(AIP): Chairman of National Reconciliation Commission, Professor Sibghatullah Mujaddidi on Tuesday once again accused Pakistans spy agency for unrest in Afghanistan and said it had been proved that Pakistani intelligence agencies sending people to Afghanistan for suicide attacks. This he said while addressing a meeting held here on Tuesday in connection with the joining of government by a commander from Zabul province. Professor Sibghatullah Mujaddidi who is also Chairman Senate said, Pakistans ISI is the centre of all evils as it has been providing training to people and sending them to Afghanistan. It has been proved to us that all the unrest in Afghanistan is due to Pakistani intelligence agencies because they area sending people for suicide attacks here, he added.
Mujadidi said several Taliban do not join government due to Pakistans fear. If they announce support to government then they area killed by Pakistan, he said. He termed suicide attacks as forbidden (Haram) in Islam. Chairman of National Reconciliation Commission informed the meeting that 1800 government opposed people have joined government due to efforts of the commission and 5000 elders have promised to cooperate in making the programme a success.
Commander Muhammad Ibrahim who joined the government also addressed the meeting and said, I joined the government on my own sweet will.
Sibghatullah Mujaddidi leveled these allegations but Pakistan repeatly rejected these allegations. Similarly, pro-Taliban clerics termed suicide attacks as jehad agiasnt foreign forces in their decrees (Fetwa). However, there is no consensus among religious scholars on this issue. It is to be mentioned here that security situation did not improved despite the joining of government by 1800 anti-government people.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/21/2006 00:00 ||
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Posted by: ed ||
06/21/2006 01:18 ||
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#1
I always think of Somalia as a libertarian's dream. NO real government to speak of. You do it all on your own, what ever you like to, for as long as you live.
(SomaliNet) The Sudanese government and rebels in eastern of the nation have signed a ceasefire deal in a meeting in neighbouring Eritrea, AFP reported Tuesday. The Sudan government and the rebels agreed to end hostilities to pave the way for a lasting settlement, the Eritrean mediators said.
For more than 10 years, the Eastern Front rebels, allied to other Sudanese rebel groups, have controlled Hamesh Koreb close to the Eritrean border. According to the Eritrean mediator Yemane Gebreab the talks so far had been friendly, serious and positive and that more substantive issues would now be dealt with. "We are only at the beginning of the road, we have a long way to go," Khartoum's representative Mustafa Osman Ismail said.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/21/2006 00:00 ||
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(SomaliNet) The Sudan ambassador to Ethiopia Abdi Zaid Hassan says his government is ready to send one battalion of peace keeping troops to Somalia, as Khartoum government is due to mediate between Somalia president Abdulahi Yusuf Ahmed and the leader of Islamic courts union Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed to end hostility. Speaking to the reporters in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, Mr. Zaid Hassan [said] Sudan government is determined to dispatch troops to the lawless country Somalia to help restoring peace and security when the united Nation Security Council lifts the weapons embargo on Somalia since 1992.
The Security Council said right now it is suitable to lift weapons embargo on Somalia, mentioning it is needed that the Somali political rivals should firstly reach an agreement more sustainable before voting that. Khartoum said it also due to engage in mediation effort between transitional federal government and Islamic courts union to tackle the difference and come into concession. This follows Yemeni president Ali Abdalla Salah earlier announced he was calling both rivals for dialogue in his country or other neighbor states.
Meanwhile Ugandan government said it will not send its troops to Somalia unless the political differences in Somalia are solved. Uganda earlier pledged to send troops to Somalia in order to take part in the peace keeping mission in the country.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/21/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
This can't be good
Posted by: Captain America ||
06/21/2006 0:35 Comments ||
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Chutzpah is when the man who murdered his parents stands before the judge and pleads for mercy because he is an orphan.
The Ministry of Higher Education and the General Authority of Civil Aviation are offering scholarships to Saudi men and women to study various majors related to civil aviation in the United States. The scholarships are available in majors such as communications, electrical and computer engineering, computer science, systems analysis, air traffic control, flight safety, and other majors related to the airline transport industry.
Applicants for the bachelors program must have a minimum score of 85 percent in the science section and 90 percent in other sections, such as Quran memorizing, administrative and commercial sciences. Prospective medical students must also have scored more than 70 percent in the abilities determination exams to become eligible. For other specialties the requirement is 65 percent. Students must have graduated within the past three years to qualify. Applicants for post-graduate studies must have at least 4/2.75 and 5/3.75 grade point averages and must have acquired their bachelors degrees within the past five years.
There are various scholarships this year being offered by the Saudi government to the US, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, India, China, Australia and New Zealand. Further information can be found on the Ministry of Higher Educations website.
#1
That was me -- I temporarily misplaced my cookie.
Oh, and Chutzpah is when the man who murdered his parents stands before the judge and pleads for mercy because he is an orphan. was my comment, meant to be highlighted. Clearly I was too tired to be allowed to operate a keyboard when I posted this last night.
#3
We should stop this insanity. We do not want or need any Saudi students here. They don't want Americans there. We don't want them here. Plain & simple.
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - North Korea said Wednesday it wants direct talks with the United States over its apparent plans to test-fire a long-range missile, a day after the country issued a bristling statement in which it declared its right to carry out the launch.
North Korea said in comments published Wednesday that its self-imposed moratorium on testing long-range missiles from 1999 no longer applies because it's not in direct dialogue with Washington, suggesting it would hold off on any launch if the U.S. agreed to new talks. "Some say our missile test launch is a violation of the moratorium, but this is not the case," Han Song Ryol, deputy chief of North Korea's mission to the United Nations, told South Korea's Yonhap news agency in an interview from New York. "North Korea as a sovereign state has the right to develop, deploy, test fire and export a missile," he said. "We are aware of the U.S. concerns about our missile test-launch. So our position is that we should resolve the issue through negotiations."
The North's official Korean Central News Agency also ran a report Wednesday on U.S. officials urging direct talks between Washington and Pyongyang in regard to the standoff over the North's nuclear weapons program.
#2
Tell them we need to think about it for a month or two. Of course, if the missile is already fueled, this would mean they will have to remove the fuel, which can be very hazardous. After they have defueled the missile, we can just say no. That should give us time to move several Aegis cruisers into position. Then they can start the refueling process again. And the cycle can continue.
Posted by: N guard ||
06/21/2006 12:42 Comments ||
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#4
But I Ha' missile, and I will caw Arec Balren and Sann Penn to negroshate faw me. Stop Team America rye naw. I so ronery... even son in Germany wi girl at Eric Crappon concert.
He no wan be Pyongyang when ronnin dag Booshe
send own Nuuk.
Posted by: Kim Jung-il ||
06/21/2006 14:07 Comments ||
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#5
The U.S. said no, here's a few words from Bolton. "You don't normally engage in conversations by threatening to launch intercontinental ballistic missiles, and it's not a way to produce a conversation because if you acquiesce in aberrant behavior, you simply encourage the repetition of it, which we're obviously not going to do,"
Posted by: Mike N. ||
06/21/2006 15:37 Comments ||
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#6
Gregoire (sp) wants the troops home from Iraq now so they can protect Seattle from a nuke.
US President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone Monday and agreed to close ranks on Iran and North Korea, a White House official said. "The presidents agreed on the importance of remaining united in their efforts to press Iran to suspend all enrichment activities and begin negotiations on the incentive package," the official said. "The presidents also discussed the potential North Korean launch and plan to remain in contact on the issue," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/21/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Putty pute will do anything for a buck
Posted by: Captain America ||
06/21/2006 0:36 Comments ||
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#2
It is gracious of "W" to touch base with 'Putty pute', we are supposedly friends and 'getting along'! But be mindful, the Red Phone Hotline is always there for 'putty' to vent when the s*** hits the fan with the Norks! My guess is that "W" has told 'putty' that if the trajectory of that missile is anywhere between 30º NE through 120º SE, it will be intercepted and blown out the sky! Just giving his 'eyes to the soul' mate, a heads up!
VIENNA, Austria - President Bush on Wednesday won a robust endorsement from European leaders for his tough approach to nuclear standoffs with Iran and North Korea, despite trans-Atlantic differences on Iraq, Guantanamo Bay and trade.
European Union leaders emerged from a summit with Bush in this capital of cafes and cobblestones to back U.S. demands that North Korea abandon a long-range missile test and that Iran quit dragging its feet in responding to a Western plan aimed at getting it to suspend uranium enrichment activity.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday that his country will respond to the proposal by mid-August.
Bush was cool to the time frame. "It shouldn't take the Iranians that long to analyze what is a reasonable deal," he said. "We'll come to the table when they verifiably suspend. Period."
The summit host, Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel whose country holds the rotating presidency of the 25-nation EU said it's best for Iran to agree to the proposal as soon as possible. "This is the carrot. Take it," Schuessel said.
On North Korea, Schuessel agreed with Bush that the communist country faces further isolation from the international community if it test fires a long-range missile believed capable of reaching U.S. soil.
"It should make people nervous when non-transparent regimes who have announced they have nuclear warheads, fire missiles," Bush said. "This is not the way you conduct business in the world."
Schuessel said Europe would support the U.S. against North Korea if it test fires the missile.
"If that happens, there will be a strong statement and a strong answer from the international community. And Europe will be part of it. There's no doubt," said Schuessel, who appeared with Bush and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso to address reporters.
There were a host of other issues on the U.S.-EU agenda.
On terrorism, Bush thanked the Europeans for their support in Afghanistan and Iraq, while acknowledging past disputes about the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
"I can understand the differences ... but what's past is past and what's ahead is a hopeful democracy in the Middle East," he said.
Across the 25-nation bloc, mounting discontent over the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, the campaign in Iraq and the purported existence of secret CIA terror prisons in Eastern Europe have threatened to eclipse the talks.
Bush acknowledged European concerns about the 460 detainees held at the U.S. facility in Cuba because of their suspected ties to al-Qaida and Taliban. But he said the group includes some dangerous people who need to be brought to justice.
"I understand their concerns," Bush said. "I'd like to end Guantanamo. I'd like it to be over with."
Bush said 200 detainees had been sent home, and that most of the remaining 460 are from Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Afghanistan.
"There are some who need to be tried in U.S. courts," he said. "They're cold-blooded killers. They will murder somebody if they are let out on the street."
Barroso said the leaders also discussed with Bush a way to reach a balanced conclusion to a global trade deal. The United States is among 149 nations trying to finish the international round of trade talks known as the Doha Round, named after the city in Qatar where they began.
Negotiators have missed several deadlines. There are disagreements over cutting farm barriers in Europe, the United States and other rich nations. Major developing countries, such as India and Brazil, also are refusing to significantly reduce trade barriers that protect their manufacturing and service industries.
"After the good exchange of views we had today during this summit, I'm convinced I'm really convinced that it's possible to have a successful outcome of the Doha talks," Barroso said. "And it's crucially important from a trade point of view, from a global economic point of view, but also from a development point of view."
Bush dismissed as "absurd" a recent poll by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press in which European nations said U.S. involvement in Iraq was a worse problem than Iran and its nuclear program.
While Bush scores low on popularity polls in Europe, Schuessel rose to his defense, which seemed to catch the American president by surprise.
"I think it's grotesque to say that America is a threat to the peace in the world compared with North Korea, Iran, a lot of countries," Schuessel said, adding that it was Bush who raised Guantanamo and other thorny issues.
"He came up, and he said, `Look, this is my problem. This is where we are,'" Schuessel said. "And I think we should be fair from the other side of the Atlantic. We should understand what Sept. 11 meant to the American people."
Still, anti-Bush sentiment was prevalent. Yeah, you knew the AP had to get it in...
About 1,200 students chanting "Bush Go Home!" rallied at a train station to protest his visit to the capital, where 1,000 police officers were assigned solely to deal with demonstrators. Another 2,000 officers patrolled the city.
Leading the students was U.S. "peace mom" Cindy Sheehan, who lost her son in Iraq and energized the anti-war movement last summer with a protest outside Bush's Texas ranch. The "Skating on Casey's Bones Tour" rolls on...Vienna's nice this time of year, right, Cindy?
Demonstrators waved black flags, blew whistles, beat drums and shouted, "Hey, ho, Bush has got to go!" Others carried banners and signs that said "World's No. 1 Terrorist" and "Islam is not the enemy." No Big Giant Puppets? Eliminating those probaly covered Cindy's expenses...
Posted by: Captain America ||
06/21/2006 17:53 Comments ||
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#5
"won a robust endorsement from European leaders for his tough approach to nuclear standoffs with Iran and North Korea"
Lip service only.............
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
06/21/2006 18:59 Comments ||
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#6
Actually, shouldn't it be the Americans wishing the Euros and Russians good luck? It's not like the US gets a lot of oil from the Arabian Gulf or US cities within Persian missile range. Wish them good and should the Euros and Russians invade Persia, let them know we support them 100% and will gladly provide 1500 peacekeepers for 18 months or the first shot fired, whichever comes first.
Posted by: ed ||
06/21/2006 19:26 Comments ||
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#7
so who paid for the bitch to fly to Vienna? Soros? Code Pink? Communist Party? Aren't they all one and the same?
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/21/2006 19:44 Comments ||
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#8
Lip service only
Right. Just wait for the tune to change when we get serious about Iran.
Even by the unruly standards of France's National Assembly, yesterday's session was exceptional. When François Hollande, the Socialist Party leader, berated the French government for its handling of the crisis at Europe's leading aerospace company, Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin lost control and shook his tiny fists and squealed in rage.
In an outburst that was both highly personal and filled with rage, de Villepin accused Hollande of cowardice. "I denounce, Mr. Hollande, your superficiality, and I would even say, looking at you, cowardice! Cowardice!" de Villepin shouted, ``There is in your attitude, I say it again, cowardice!''
Socialist members of parliament tried to drown him out with cries of "Resign! Resign!" Some deputies moved forward toward the prime minister before storming out of the chamber. Henri Emmanuelli, a Socialist deputy and a former president of the National Assembly, shouted, "He's mad!''
Nah, he's just a wuss.
The session the regularly scheduled Tuesday hearing with de Villepin and other ministers came to an abrupt end.
De Villepin's outburst was provoked by an accusation by Hollande about the growing scandal involving the newest super-jumbo jet from Airbus and the controversy over alleged insider trading by the French co-chief executive officer of its parent company, EADS. Hollande asked whether the French government, a major stakeholder of EADS, continued to support the executive, Noel Forgeard.
Hollande also charged that de Villepin lacked the trust of the French people and would not regain it by filing a libel suit against journalists who wrote books.
Lack the trust? Is there anyone in French politics who has the trust of the French people?
On Monday, de Villepin took the unusual step of filing libel suits against the authors of two books on a complicated financial scandal known as the "Clearstream" affair. It was considered a politically risky move, in that it could force him for the first time to testify about the affair in court. De Villepin has been accused he insists wrongly of ordering an undercover investigation in 2004 of Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, his political rival, in connection with the Clearstream affair. Sarkozy has been cleared of any wrongdoing.
Calls for de Villepin's resignation have increased in recent months, even within his own UMP party, following the failure of his disputed initiative to create jobs for young people. An opinion poll in Le Journal du Dimanche last weekend indicated de Villepin's approval rating stands at 23 per cent, compared to 28 per cent a month ago.
#3
It was so tense that it looked like Villepin and Hollande were about to trade blows (I would place my money on Villepin if that hapenned). In fact just in case Parliament personel moved placed themselvesd between both politicians.
#5
I'm so fed up with thoses dram queens; let the republic die, please, it is rotting more and more with every passing day.
It was so tense that it looked like Villepin and Hollande were about to trade blows (I would place my money on Villepin if that hapenned).
JFM, in my local newspaper, there's a picture of socialist MP Jean-Christophe Cambadeli leaning over Galouzeau "de Villepin", looking aggressive.
The main reason I know Cambadeli's name is because a few years ago, during a socialist meeting heckled by anarchists and assorted leftists, he led a countercharge of militants, sticks and saps in hand (msm was of course silent about that glaring example of direct democracy and nuanced socialist dialog by an elected official in action), who chased the moonbats away, bashing heads in the process.
Thus, I wouldn't place my money on Dom if he traded punches with that ex-trotskist brawler.
Of course, Holland is the most wussified example of a man I could imagine, I wouldn't picture him voctorious in any kind of brawl with almost anyone.
#6
I saw a Frenchman quit his job over a matter of honour. They still get very excited about those sort of words. Somehow they have to have everyone agree with them now instead of letting history sort it out later with calmer minds. Good theater, lousy government.
#7
Yes, Verdun -- almost a million Frenchman and Germans killed in a very short time. Yes, there were definitely some idiots in charge and some courageous men there. It makes Pearl Harbor, Hiroshima, and 9/11 look like minor events.
Nonetheless, the whole exchange in parliament has the flavor of a Monty Python sketch or Scrappleface. "I denounce, Mr. Hollande, your superficiality, and I would even say, looking at you, cowardice! Cowardice!" Bring out the dueling pistols.
#11
Thus, I wouldn't place my money on Dom if he traded punches with that ex-trotskist brawler.
But Cambadelis is not the party leader. He may not trade blows with the other side leader. That privilege is for the fattish and relatively short Hollande who looks like having never done any sport since high school and having never been involved in a fight since day care center.
#13
JFM,
The reason French are such pussies now is because every Frenchman with any balls was killed during WWI. Then, just in case any survived, their children got killed in Indochina and Algeria. Masculinity has been selectively bred out of the French people.
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
06/21/2006 12:20 Comments ||
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#14
I would tend to say that the French problem starts in kidergarten when children are encouraged to report bullies instead of dealing with them like a normal boy would instictively do. The second problem is that not having guns given habits of not meeting the danger afec to face but call the authoritis or run.
But despite the best efforts of our leftist eductaors and our supposedly right wing politicians there are still French with enough balls for this
Note: I ended finding where the images came from and those people aren't south-africans.
Your Francophobe prejudices are quite tiresome. I think highly of for both JFM and anonymous - please do not unfairly insult their nation. The French died in epic numbers during WWI. In some ways they are still recovering from the slaughter. And while France has obviously fallen on some hard times, there is every reason to be optimistic about it recovering in the near future. France is slowly coming to her senses. Many individual Frenchmen already have.
With all that said: Dominique de Villepin in a brawl with Francois Hollande? Priceless.
#17
Thank you Master, I'm a bit fed up with it as well. Ring me up if you'd like a recipe for that
lovely creme brule.
Posted by: Julia Childs ||
06/21/2006 14:14 Comments ||
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#18
JFM.
I'd swear the pilot was reading a map while flying at the one foot level or so. What was he doing, checking road signs? (Hate to be in a car on that road.)
Posted by: SLO Jim ||
06/21/2006 15:11 Comments ||
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#19
I'd swear the pilot was reading a map while flying at the one foot level or so. What was he doing, checking road signs? (Hate to be in a car on that road.)
Right. Thay are following the road until the objective and the guy is probably chacking which branch of a crossroad to follow. But he is not at one foot level, if you look carefully at the shades and the appant size of the scrubs plus the fact that immediately after that he enters a barrel he must be between 150 and 300 feet high.
But a bit later they go much lower 30 to sixty feet max and then the guy calmy adjusts something in his front panel. There is also the acrobatics over the airfield when the right wing nearly touches the tarmac.
#20
UPDATE Villepin apologizes to Hollande. (text in French)
Secret Master,
I think I'm saying the same thing as you: The French suffered horrendous losses in WWI and still haven't recovered. I suspect they need another generation to fully recover. The big question is whether they have a generation before the Muzzies take over.
On the hopeful front, it seems the conservative Catholics are even more fertile than the Muslims, and the next generation of French children will be heavily Latin Rite Catholics.
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
06/21/2006 16:09 Comments ||
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'Reliable sources' in The Hague say Islam critic Ayaan Hirsi Ali will not be stripped of her Dutch nationality despite giving a misleading name to get asylum in 1992, RTL Nieuws reported on Wednesday.
Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk of the Liberal Party (VVD) provoked a backlash in the international media in May when she suggested Hirsi Ali may not hold Dutch citizenship. Hirsi Ali, who was born in Somalia, quit the Dutch parliament and announced she was accelerating her move to the US to take up a job with a neo-conservative think tank. The Netherlands was accused by the media of silencing Hirsi Ali because of her claims Islam is not compatible with Western democracy.
Parliament passed a motion calling on Verdonk to allow Hirsi Ali to keep Dutch citizenship, no matter what. Verdonk said in light "of the new political reality" she would ensure Hirsi Ali retained her Dutch passport.
And that slap hurt, eh Rita?
The six-week deadline for a decision runs out this week. Responding to RTL's story, the Minister's officials insisted a decision had not yet been taken.
Verdonk suggested in May the use of the 'Ali' rather than her surname 'Magan' may have invalidated her naturalisation. Several other former asylum seekers have lost their Dutch nationality for giving false names. But RTL cited sources in The Hague as saying from a legal point of view Hirsi Ali had not told a lie as her grandfather's name was 'Ali'. She was therefore entitled under Somali law to use this name, even if she did not know this at the time.
RTL said the announcement of the decision has been put on hold while officials work out an elegant formulation of words to prevent a major loss of face for Verdonk.
Not possible.
Verdonk, the broadcaster said, also wants to have a document showing the name of the grandfather. But this is proving difficult to find in Somalia.
Why not just e-mail the Bureau of Vital Statistics in Mogadishu?
#4
while officials work out an elegant formulation of words to prevent a major loss of face for Verdonk
I love this tranzi idea that good government is all about dotting i's, crossing t's, and elegant word formulations. The sad thing is that they don't even realize how silly they sound.
The DhimmiDonk Mantra: Defeat = Victory... in November. No graphics for Sedition, Traitor or Coward, so I had to settle for these. Democrats said yesterday that the United States must start "redeploying" troops from Iraq, calling the recovery of the mutilated bodies of two U.S. soldiers a "grim reminder" of why withdrawal should begin soon. Actually, I'd say it's a reminder of why we want to do the fighting there, in the asshat's back yard, rather than here.
Republican leaders called the proposal for withdrawal a "cut and run" that would embolden terrorists. Obvious, if you aren't a partisan asshole, total idiot, or utterly lacking a sense of shame.
The Senate is expected to spend at least five hours today debating two competing Democratic proposals to start pulling U.S. combat troops out of Iraq. Productive.
The killings are "a grim reminder of the price we're paying for a failed policy in Iraq," said Sen. Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the Democratic whip. "It's time for Iraqis to stand up. When will this end?" Yo, Turban Durbin, when will you stand up? Have you no shame? When will this end? I'd say not until you're sent packing to find productive employment.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said withdrawing troops would be a "dishonor of historic proportions. The Iraqi people want us and need us to help them. If we break our promise and cut and run, as some would have us do, the implications could be catastrophic," the Tennessee Republican said. "Surrendering is not a solution. We cannot go wobbly. The price is too high." Though not a favorite of mine, Fristy's nailed this issue cold.
Last night, in a speech at the Hyatt Regency Washington to Republican volunteers, Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman said, "Republicans unite on the need to stay on the offense to confront terrorists; Democrats are having a debate in their party." He characterized the Democratic debate as some "say we need to cut and run; some people say we need to walk ... and other people say we need to jog." The comments come as lawmakers embark on a second week of debating Iraq policy, this time in the form of the Senate's defense authorization bill. Some (heh) say the Donks should drop dead, too. I would like to help them, but that's just me.
Sen. Carl Levin, Michigan Democrat and ranking member on the Armed Services Committee, and Sen. Jack Reed, Rhode Island Democrat, have sponsored an amendment that calls for "phased redeployment" to begin by Dec. 31. The nonbinding amendment would require the Bush administration to submit a schedule for continued troop withdrawal. Typical poseurs trying to look important and in charge - and this bit of sabotage is the only thing they can come up with. Democratic Sens. John Kerry of Massachusetts and Russ Feingold of Wisconsin have a binding amendment calling for all combat troops to be redeployed by July 1, 2007. A similar measure offered last week was overwhelmingly defeated in the Senate. But this time it'll be different. Really. We're not wanking for press releases and MSM orgasms. We've, uh, played with the numbers and dates and stuff, so this time will be special. This is what the Senate is for, y'know.
Mr. Kerry and Mr. Feingold -- potential presidential candidates in 2008 -- sent a joint e-mail to Mr. Kerry's 2004 campaign supporters saying that withdrawal will lead to a more effective war on terror. "Our troops have served valiantly in Iraq," the senators said. "Now, it's time to put the future of Iraq where it belongs: in the hands of the Iraqi people and their leaders." Potential. Heh. Um, more effective how, exactly? Actually, your wet dream is more dead soldiers. It's the only thing that will serve your political ends. BTW, release your records, yet?
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said Democrats agree that there "should be a redeployment starting sooner rather than later," and downplayed the difference between the Levin and Kerry amendments. "Even though we have at least two positions, I think if you look at them closely, they are both basically the same: that there should be redeployment of troops. It's a question of when," the Nevada Democrat said. Yes, indeed, all of you are finally on message: Defeat.
Mr. Levin and Mr. Reed insisted yesterday that their amendment is not "cutting and running," and that it sets no pace or speed for combat troops to leave Iraq. Then it is utterly unnecessary - and taking the decision out of the hands of the commanders on the ground, putting it in the hands of political hacks, is cutting and running.
Sen. John McCain, Arizona Republican, disagreed. "I don't support it. I strongly believe it's not when we leave, it's how we leave," he said. Victorious. No more Dhimmidonk military adventures cut short because they didn't have the stomach for it. The "when" is easy - when victory is achieved and Iraq is secure. The lessons learned the hard way in Germany, Japan, Korea, etc. - y'know, those places where we've had troops for 50+ years.
Either amendment would need 51 votes to become attached to the defense authorization bill. It is unlikely that enough Republicans will join the about 40 Democrats expected to vote for the Levin amendment. Fewer Democrats are expected to back the Kerry amendment because it fixes a date for complete withdrawal from Iraq. This is pure kryptonite - America does NOT back either of these idiot ideas - the RINOs had better keep that in mind - to cover for lacking any innate sense or courage.
National Security Adviser Stephen J. Hadley told reporters on Air Force One yesterday that Iraqis are eager to assume responsibility for their nation's security. "Their concern is that we will move, draw down our forces too quickly, before they're ready," he said. Why, that's rational!
The Senate last year passed a resolution declaring that 2006 would be a year of "significant transition" in Iraq. Yep. That's what the Senate is for. Pointless uninformed posturing.
Last week, House lawmakers voted 256-153 to reject a timetable for troop withdrawal and approved a nonbinding resolution that affirms the Bush administration's Iraq policy. The 10 hours of House debate and expected five hours of Senate debate are the most significant discussion of Iraq policy since the war began in March 2003. More than 2,500 troops have been killed in the war. Um, this has been shot down in the House, already, General Levin. Been there and done that. Just last week. Makes you wonder doesn't it? About the motives, I mean. This couldn't be another purely political Dhimmidonk stunt, could it? These Dhimmidonk "statesmen" are above that, right? I love Levin's pretentious little image thing, with the glasses down on his nose and his comb-over. I presume it's meant to convey serious scholarship and wisdom. Something like that. Funny, though, he doesn't seem to recall last week very clearly. I guess it's either Alzheimer's or politics. Probably both.
The Senate yesterday voted 79-19 to pass a nonbinding amendment saying Iraq should not grant amnesty to terrorists who attack, kill or wound U.S. troops, responding to a newspaper report that Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki was considering limited pardons for militants who lay down arms. Senators also voted 64-34 to approve a measure saying Congress recognizes Iraq as a sovereign nation. Yep. That's what the Senate is for, alrighty. Nonbinding? Of course. Pointless? You said it. Irrelevant? Hey, it's the Senate, dood!
I've decided that losing your sense of shame leads directly to insanity and then to the Dhimmidonk Party, though some might suggest they are the same thing. You don't pass "Go", but you'll collect alot more than $200 - if you're reliably partisan.
#1
This treason can stand. When is enough, enough? How can anyone who says they support the troops or they support the WoT remain a Democrat?
The MSM is a tool in total thrall of the socialist/neo-communist wing of the Demopcrat party. No lie is to great and to sedition to evil for them to pass off as fact. The Democrat Politicians even worse.
I curse you all Democrats and hope the wrath of Hell consumes each one of you treason loving, back stabbimg haters of all that is decent and right.
#2
When Fox News came to this story last night, I yelled at the lovely and charming Mrs. Bobby to turn it off; I was sick and tired of the dimmidem horse hockey.
Posturing is more important to them than soldiers lives. How low can one get?
Posted by: Bobby ||
06/21/2006 7:13 Comments ||
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#3
Shorter Democrats: "We are in serious danger of actually winning. We must hurry up and get out before that happens."
#4
"Mr. Kerry and Mr. Feingold -- potential presidential candidates in 2008 -- sent a joint e-mail to Mr. Kerry's 2004 campaign supporters saying that withdrawal will lead to a more effective war on terror."
Good God Almighty. I can't even begin to comprehend the level of stupidity it would take to make a statement like that.
More than anything else we could possibly do, setting a "timetable" for "strategic redeployment" and walking out on the Iraqis would convince our jihadi enemy that Osama bin Laden was absolutely right about us: America is weak, soft, foolish, effete and corrupt, and simply DOES NOT have the stomach anymore for a long fight because it doesn't even believe in the rightness of its own cause. Bleed America enough-- and Lord knows, it doesn't take much**-- and we will eventually talk ourselves into giving up and leaving.
And it isn't just the Islamofascists who will be convinced of our weakness: China is watching. So is Iran. And North Korea. And Russia. They, too, are drawing conclusions about the lack of American steadfastness on extravegant display in the Democratic Party.
And someday, they are likely to act on those conclusions.
** Just for perspective, the number of American casualties in Iraq so far, after more than three years there, is roughly the same as just three weeks worth of U.S. highway fatalities-- or of six average days during World War II.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
06/21/2006 7:40 Comments ||
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#6
Algeria was a prime exmaple of what happens when you send noises that you could be leaving soon. The FLN who for a time had set bombs in Algiers at leisure and massacred entire (mostly native) villages was on the ropes after the anti-terrorist operations of the paras. And then De Gaulle came and began making noises about conceeding independence or more exactly about handling power to the FLN?
Guess what happenned? Inforùmants who no longer informed, neutral or friendly populations turning to FLN because quite simply, they had to ingratiate with eth FLN before the French left or face unspeakable deaths (boiled alive or quartered were common place after independaence).
And that is what will happen in Irak once you set a fixed time table.
#8
The Reps don't have the guts to now play the card given to them. That the cowards are responsible for the continuing deaths of innocent civilians, Coalition and American soldiers cause the enemy having lost the battle is desperately hoping that in another month, six months, a year, the Democrats will gain enough power to give them the victory they can not achieve otherwise. So they continue the violence for another day of media coverage. The Democrats have literally become an instrument of the enemy. Their words and actions means more will die. If the Democrats had presented a united front as the Republicans had done during WWII, the enemy would have already quit the fight. Each utterance, each media posturing event encourages the enemy to keep killing and killing and killing, with the hope that victory is but one more betrayal away.
#9
The dim-witted Dems don't mind living with camel dung boots (or Nikes) on their necks for the next several hundred years. What a bunch of f*cking losers-literally!
#10
The donks are just a symptom of what is happening in Europe. Mass surrender and apathy. Leave us alone and we will give you what you want. Very Chamberlin.
I think these people fell asleep during history class, or were taking "multi-cultural" studies.
What a pathetic waste of oxygen these folk are.
#11
These people have to remember that we are currently holding most of them under indictment currently. To screw this war up could gaurantee them some consequences they did not expect.
#13
You just got to wonder which 19 Senators think its a good idea to release bad guys that killed our troops in Iraq. I bet the vote on their resolution in something like 75-25.
Allard (R-CO)
Bond (R-MO)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burns (R-MT)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Cornyn (R-TX)
DeMint (R-SC)
Enzi (R-WY)
Graham (R-SC)
Hagel (R-NE)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Lott (R-MS)
McCain (R-AZ)
Sessions (R-AL)
Stevens (R-AK)
Thomas (R-WY)
Warner (R-VA)
Interesting group. I'd like to find some of the debate, if any, to understand why. I suspect it has to do with BS preening by the donks to limit the flexibility of the Iraqi government in wartime. Lincoln, Grant and Sherman let a lot of traitors off the hook after the civil war and the nation was better for it.
#16
They want to redeploy to New Orleans Nawlins to help fight crime. Recently, we have captured documents which infer that the 'insurgents' are despirate, and are running out of time. Since then, we have killed and captured another thousand 'insurgents'. And, rumor has it, we have a high ranking al Qaeda who is talking. So, we continue to roll the carpet, while the democrat party belittles itself publicly. What's not to like ?
Also, WMDs may be burried under man made ponds in Iraq. We have known this, but none of the ponds have been drained for excavation yet. This process will commence shortly, I think.
#17
"The Democrat lawmakers are calling for 'redeployment' because much of their base wants to quit Iraq, and quit now."
Which brings up the core problem the Democrats have right now: their base sucks.
Around the time Operation Iraqi Freedom began-- actually, even before that, during the run-up to the 2002 mid-term elections-- the Democratic Party began pandering to the Kos/DU/Moveon.org crowd in a cynical bid to tap into the large reserves of money and passion on the political Left.
They made a conscious choice to take a ride on that tiger, and now they can't get off even if they wanted to-- which many of them don't, having gotten accustomed to the ride.
Four years ago, only a few of the Democratic politicos would ever utter the kinds of inane, defeatist lunacy we see now. But today it's standard fare for the entire Party; so much so, that Hillary Clinton may not succeed in getting the 2008 Democratic nomination because of her comparatively pro-WoT position, and Joe Lieberman-- a true-blue liberal-- seems on the brink of being drummed out of the Party by the DNC Chairman and his Connecticut counterpart, at the urging of the Kossacks et al.
So that's the problem for the Democratic Party right now: a shitty base.
And I think we've only barely begun-- God help us all-- to glimpse the full depth of their insanity.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
06/21/2006 12:47 Comments ||
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#18
#14 NS: Yes, I think you have it right. Here's Senator Stevens, who voted against:
"I wonder seriously about what the
Senator from Florida is doing by telling
this new fledgling democracy that
they cannot go through the process of
cleansing, go through the process of
trying to get people who were misguided,
who were part of coalitions
that they now are willing to recant, if
they are, to come forward and support
this new democracy. What are we doing
anyway on the floor of the Senate trying
to tell the new democracy what
they can and cant do? I didnt like
that story when I read it in the paper
this morning, but I was happy to see
the new statement from the security
people that clarified what they intend
to do.
But the time will come, if that democracy
is going to succeed, when they
are going to have to fold into their population
those who are willing now to
give up terrorism, those who are willing
to put aside the activities of the
past which led them to attack Americans
as well as any otherthere are 34
other nations over there. Are we saying
just those who did kill Americans, they
cant get amnesty, but the rest of them
can?
What are we doing on the floor of the
Senate trying to debate an issue as to
how this country is going to come back
together again? I am sort of appalled at
it, really. I dont know if anyone else
is. But it seems to me that we ought to
do everything we can to encourage
them to bring their people together, to
forget the sins of the past, to forget the
terrorists of the past, and to pledge
themselves to a new future of democracy
and have people come forward and
say: I am willing to support this new
democracy. And if they do, and demonstrate
that they do after a period of
time, shouldnt they be recognized as
being loyal citizens of the new democracy?
This is a debate that disturbs me. It
disturbs me to think we are willing to
just seize the moment and make a political
pointseize the moment and
make a pointand not think. It is time
we started thinking about how we can
assure and take steps to help this country
survive as a democracy. If it becomes
a democracy in that part of the
world, it will be a marvelous success,
and I think it will lead to greater consideration
by other countries of liberalization
of their concepts and giving the
people more power.
I believe we ought to try to find some
way to encourage that country, to
demonstrate to those people who have
been opposed to what we are trying to
do, that it is worthwhile for them and
their children to come forward and support
this democracy. And if that is amnesty,
I am for it, I would be for it. And
if those people who come forward and
want to obtain a better life for their
families in the future are willing to
support that democracyif they bear
arms against our people, what is the
difference between those people who
bore arms against the Union in the War
Between the States? What is the difference
between the Germans and the
Japanese and all the people we have
forgiven?
When I left the war and came home,
I had a deep hatred for the Japanese.
Today, Mr. President, I have a granddaughter
who is Japanese. I have a
daughter-in-law who is Japanese. And
her parents were involved in World War
II. Now, are we to understand that time
can heal, heal the pain of the past?
I really wish the Senator from Florida
would have the courage to withdraw
the amendment, just withdraw it
and say it was a political effort. This is
nothing but politics. I will vote to
table it or vote against it in good conscience."
Also, WMDs may be burried under man made ponds in Iraq. We have known this, but none of the ponds have been drained for excavation yet. This process will commence shortly, I think.
June 21, 2006: The current American efforts to "improve intelligence" continue to run into two seemingly intractable problems. First, agencies continue refusing to share data. The usual excuse, that such sharing would threaten sources, is wearing thin. The National Intelligence Director has asked for examples of such damage to sources, and has not received any. The fanatical dedication to the protection of sources is hard to overcome. A particularly valuable source is usually someone on the inside, who could be killed if the connection to American intelligence services was revealed. But as a practical matter, the vast majority of the "burned" (exposed, and often killed) sources were the result of a traitor within the intel or law enforcement agency. But logic has nothing to do with this. The institutional desire to protect sources is so strong that a major effort will be required to effect a change. The smart money is on things staying the way they are.
The other problem, the inability to analyze all the information collected, is more likely to be solved. This was a problem that arose during the Cold War, when spy satellites and electronic eavesdropping systems were developed, and quickly began to generate far more data than could be examined and analyzed. This is still a major problem. For the last two decades, there have been several major efforts to deal with the flood of data using computer systems. Huge databases and software that can scan large amounts of data quickly and extract the useful bits, were developed. Typically, only a few percent of the material collected (including a lot of written reports) are useful. It's really a needle in the haystack problem.
The current war on terror has, as wars tend to do, spurred development of more effective screening and analysis tools. This has put the spotlight back on the sharing problem. The more data you have, the better the screening software can work. This has also led to another problem. Some political groups have invoked fears of 1984 and "Big Brother" by calling the new techniques invasive and a threat to personal liberties. This makes politicians leery of getting behind any large scale automated data analysis systems. The 1984 angle is more hysteria than anything else. It comes up any time some pressure groups notice that the quantity of personal data has been growing at an enormous rate over the last few decades, and that the government, as well as commercial firms, can analyze it. This is much ado about nothing, but it makes for great headlines, and can easily be used to frighten people. The military gets around all this by calling the analysis systems something else, and keeping quiet about it.
But because of the institutional, technical and political problems, the intel agencies are still overwhelmed with data. The new software sifting systems are showing results, but only here and there. No big breakthroughs, and when these do occur, no one will be releasing press releases.
Posted by: Steve ||
06/21/2006 09:10 ||
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#1
First, agencies continue refusing to share data. The usual excuse, that such sharing would threaten sources, is wearing thin.
It's like MSM and confidentiality of sources. Both are done on 'professional' courtesy, for each other, given the amount of leaks from the CIA.
The other problem, the inability to analyze all the information collected, is more likely to be solved.
And timeliness, which the uniform military seems to have solved in its operations in Iraq. Maybe the job needs to be turned over to DoD and the library, shifting, and bulk publication work retained by the old departments. You know like counted the tonnage of wheat, rice, petroleum, etc is produced, amount of land under the plow, and the amount of national GDP kept in numbered Swiss bank accounts.
#2
There is some truth to this, however. You could say that with each person in an agency brought into a secret, the probability of a leak goes up incrementally; with inter-agency sharing, the probability increases logarithmically; and with cross-governmental sharing, geometrically.
#3
The usual excuse, that such sharing would threaten sources, is wearing thin.
While this line made me bristle and leary of this article - I still maintain that one of the biggest mistakes made by our intelligence sources is that they keep too much secret. The public can help if they know enough. You don't have to give it all away. Amber Alerts broke the barrier for law enforcement believing that locking away every secret for later use is beneficial overall.
Open source, while locking away the really, really secret stuff...has to be the best way to go.
The Pakistan Army has put militants in Waziristan on the defensive and the situation in the Waziristan tribal areas has cooled down tremendously, Commander 11 Corps Lt Gen Mohammed Hamid Khan has said. Others disagree. Gen Hamid Khan told Pamela Constable of the Washington Post in an interview in Peshawar that the army had shifted from mass raids to snap operations based on intelligence, and now controls key towns once in the hands of militants. However, adds the report published on Tuesday, other observers say the armys aggressive efforts since 2004 have backfired, alienating the populace with heavy-handed tactics and undermining the traditional authority of tribal elders and officials. They say that the local Taliban movement, which has close ethnic and theological links to the Taliban across the border in Afghanistan, has won new supporters and been able to carve out enclaves of alternative power.
A Western diplomat in Islamabad told the correspondent that things are starting to spin out of control and in some areas, its beginning to look like they are setting up a government within a government. Noting that the tribal areas are off-limits to foreign visitors, including journalists, except for periodic, brief helicopter visits with military authorities, the report said that tribal lawyers, educators and politicians with knowledge of events in the areas have described growing fundamentalist influence and intimidation that is spilling beyond the sparsely inhabited tribal zones and edging closer to settled, government-run localities. Fundamentalist clerics have freely used FM radio stations to preach holy war and set up public recruiting offices in towns such as Dir and Bannu just outside the tribal areas. Music stores have been shut down and thieves executed before crowds.
Afrasiab Khattak of the Awami National Party (ANP) told the Post, North and South Waziristan are in the grip of Talibanisation and all of the seven federally administered tribal agencies can come under its grip, too. The army has put up an honest fight, but it has failed, and the government has failed. The traditional system has been made ineffective, and the Taliban have moved into the vacuum.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/21/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
I believe we've heard this BS before. Many times.
June 12 2006 at 1930 UTC in position 15:23.7N - 041:30.7E, Southern Red Sea. A white-hulled speedboat doing over 18 kts approached a general cargo ship underway. Alert crew raised alarm and master zig-zagged course. Speedboat stopped the chase and moved away.
Recently reported incidents
June 16 2006 at 0540 UTC at Magdalena River, Barranquilla, Colombia. A robber armed with a knife boarded a general cargo ship at anchor. He stole a liferaft and safety equipment and escaped in a boat waiting with an accomplice. Master informed port authority and after 30 minutes a patrol boat recovered the liferaft in damaged condition.
Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) and Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.) announced Wednesday the finding of over 500 munitions or weapons of mass destruction, specifically "sarin- and mustard-filled projectiles," in Iraq.
Reading from unclassified portions of a document developed by the U.S. intelligence community, Santorum said, "Since 2003, coalition forces have recovered approximately 500 weapons munitions which contain degraded mustard or sarin nerve agent. Despite many efforts to locate and destroy Iraq's pre-Gulf War chemical munitions, filled and unfilled pre-Gulf War chemical munitions are assessed to still exist."
According to Santorum, "That means in addition to the 500, there are filled and unfilled munitions still believed to exist within the country."
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Posted by: DanNY ||
06/21/2006 19:35 ||
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Follow-up on the story Trailing Wife posted last night.
The Pentagon has notified about 21,000 Army soldiers and Marines that they are scheduled to be sent to Iraq late this year as part of the latest deployment rotation. Four major combat brigades from Texas, Alaska and Colorado are scheduled to replace troops returning home from the war, the Pentagon said. Thus, the announcement does not signal an increase in troop strength in Iraq.
In a press release Tuesday, the Pentagon said the planned assignments could change depending on the conditions in Baghdad. The move comes as Pentagon officials and the Bush administration are under increasing pressure from Congress and the public to begin withdrawing troops from Iraq. Combined with last November's announcement of 92,000 American service members scheduled to go to Iraq in the 2006-2008 rotation, this would bring the total U.S. troop level to about 113,000 for that period. That is less than the approximately 138,000 average troop level for the past year, but more than military officials' goal of less than 100,000 by the end of the year.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/21/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Rumor central says one bridgade will stay in Kuwait to bring the total to 100K. They will be involved in training Iraqis. Plus its much less expensive to maintain a brigade in Kuwait than it is in the Iraqi theater of Ops (simpler logistics, shorter and more civil log routes, base security etc).
But primarily they will be providing extra punch for offensives and a large amount of operational flexibility (and surprise) for rolling up a place like Ramadi. For example, if you use forces in-country, you have to do a lot of shuffling and prep work, which tips off the bad guys. A reserve heavy brigade can combat-assualt in from over the border without giving the locals much of a heads up while the in-place forces provide cordon and support on short notice.
This is doubly effective if the "outside" brigade is training an Iraqi mixed brigade of a couple of motorised infanty battalions, a battalion of armor and a few mobile companies of "Heavy Police" (Think SWAT teams in technicals). They simply drag the Iraqis along for a "live fire" graduation exercise. We assualt in, with the Iraqi armor side-by-side, the Iraqi infantry mopping up the hard points, and the Iraqi Police taking over security ops permanently for that area.
So - large grian of salt regarding in-theater disposition of forces.
A theater-level operational reserve and proper commitment of it can have a HUGE impact if done right.
#2
OS, a question if you know the answer: how do the Kuwaitis feel about a substantial American presence in the (at least) medium-term future? I imagine keeping a brigade in Kuwait is rather visible.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/21/2006 0:39 Comments ||
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#3
This is just in from John Murtha
Okinawa?
Posted by: Captain America ||
06/21/2006 0:42 Comments ||
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#4
el-AP, the Bush administration are under increasing pressure from Congress and the public to begin withdrawing troops from Iraq
No bias here (surely not), but the donks crying for a draw down are proposing at year-end.
Posted by: Captain America ||
06/21/2006 0:44 Comments ||
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#5
Kuwaitis dont mind. They are getting paid and making money off the ports, etc. Plus it makes them VERY safe in terms of anyone deciding to roll up on them and their oil ports (i.e. Iranians like during the Tanker War).
A lot of them still remember who freed them back in 91 - they haven't completely forgotten or gone french (ingrate) yet.
#6
The truth: The Bush administration are under increasing pressure from The press and Democrats (the party of cut an run) to begin withdrawing troops from Iraq.
(KUNA) -- Japan's Air Self-Defense Force (ASDF) will expand its airlift support in Iraq even after pulling its ground troops out of the southern Iraqi city of Samawah, Defense Agency Director General Fukushiro Nukaga said Tuesday. "The ASDF activities are legally allowed until December, so we will consider the activities in response to requests from the United Nations and others until then," Nukaga told a press conference, adding that Tokyo will decide whether to extend the mission when the deadline approaches.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi announced a plan to withdraw the Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) troops from Samawah, ending their aid and reconstruction mission in the war-ravaged country, which began in January 2004 under a special law. According to the agency, the ASDF will form a new team in charge of airlifting supplies and personnel to Baghdad and Irbil, which are considered more dangerous than the southern Iraqi region.
General Hajime Massaki, the SDF Joint Staff chief, acknowledged that the risk levels remain high in the Iraqi capital area and that more caution needs to be placed as one goes further north in Iraq. "We will have to deal with the matter by being double careful and conducting activities such as repeating training for measures the ASDF is now equipped with to deal with the various threats," Massaki added. The ASDF currently has a 200-member unit stationed in Kuwait with three C-130 transport planes to mainly deliver supplies to GSDF troops involved in a non-combat reconstruction mission in Samawah. Since March 2004, it has been providing transport flights between Ali Al-Salem Air Base in western Kuwait and the southern Iraqi destinations of Talil and Basra.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/21/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Kinda puts a dent in NPR's breathless proclamations...
GAZA: The ruling Hamas militant group on Tuesday delayed a parliamentary showdown with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas over his call for a referendum on statehood, saying it wanted to allow more time for dialogue.
Tensions have escalated between Abbas's Fatah movement and Hamas since the president set a referendum for July 26 on a proposal for statehood that implicitly recognises Israel. Some fear their violent power struggle could lead to civil war. Hamas had said it would submit a motion in parliament on Tuesday seeking to declare the referendum illegal. But senior Hamas lawmaker Mushir al-Masri said negotiators from Hamas and Fatah should be given more time to reach a deal on changes to the proposal. Abbas has said the vote would be cancelled if the rivals agreed on the document. "We want to give the ongoing dialogue a chance to succeed," Masri said, without saying if Hamas had set a deadline for lodging the parliamentary motion.
Spokesmen for both Hamas and Fatah have expressed optimism that recent days of talks would resolve the impasse over the manifesto drawn up by Palestinian prisoners in an Israel jail. But key sticking points remain. Hamas has said it wants the proposal to explicitly reject recognition of Israel.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/21/2006 00:00 ||
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Israel needs to announce that explicit rejection of recognizing its existence will be considered a declaration of war... because of course it is.
June 21, 2006: The billions being spent to stop terrorists has brought to the market items that can be used in a combat zone. Case in point is the Temporary Roadblock Apparatus Pack (TRAP).
"OK, we want to call this device "TRAP". Now, get working on what words will fit into that acronym"
This is a portable system consisting of a battery operated gate and speed bump. The speed bump, which fits across one lane of traffic, can, on radio command, unmask tire shredding blades. It's all battery operated, and the rechargeable battery can lift the barrier about 10,000 times between charges. TRAP has been very useful in Iraq, where driving habits border on the manic, and a checkpoint is often regarded as a challenge to Iraqi drivers, not a reason to stop. But some of those cars are suicide bombers, trying to get to the U.S. troops guarding the checkpoint, or some target further on. TRAP allows U.S. troops to stop cars that try to dash through, without having to open fire. This saves the lives of reckless Iraqi drivers, and stops suicide bombers as well (who sometimes detonate their explosives once they realize their tires are toast.
Posted by: Steve ||
06/21/2006 09:13 ||
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I often think that some names/acronyms are far too obvious.
This doesn't matter in the civilian world where marketing and sales encourage it for economical reasons and ID purposes, ie, everyone knows what they're talking about, instantly recognisable, the world over.
But, having this sort of thing and other useful devices hitting the "combat-zone market" to surprise our rascally, ugly, soon-to-be-dead palominos with, I wouldn't want to let them know what we're talking about beforehand: like with TRAP. An international word.
If someone said to me, "There's a trap over there", I wouldn't go near it, I would go around it, or find another way.
So let's allow them to make up their own word for it, and waste some time trying to think of a word for a new experience, after they've been rinsed and repeated a few times and still don't know wtf we're talking about. Call it a lateral thinking exercise, new experience. (Lateral thinking probably not allowed by Allan, whereas imaginary thinking is).
Back to the competition! Instead of acronyms, perhaps try jargon. I say, "Forget TRAP".
Let's try the "Shred My Wheels-Pack", or perhaps the BJ, but they would know what that was, so it's the Sierra Mike Whiskey for me.
June 21, 2006: Once American infantry got their hands on reliable, and portable, UGVs (unmanned ground vehicles), they did two things. First, they used their small robots as much as possible, especially for dangerous jobs like checking for roadside bombs, or bad guys lurking inside buildings or caves. The second thing the troops did was ask the UGV manufacturer to put weapons on the robots. So far, the Department of Defense has backed away from proposals to arm these MTRS (Man Transportable Robotic System), because of safety concerns. It's not that the armed robots would just be turned on, and turned lose. They would be controlled by their human operator, but there is a reluctance to having the troops equipped with an armed robot. Such systems are more prone to friendly fire incidents. But the troops want them, and the manufacturers of the robots, are spending their own money to develop armed versions of its UGVs.
One of these armed robots is the PakBot, made by iRobot. There are several models of Packbot, but the most popular job for these remote controlled vehicles (that look like a miniature tank, with an extendable arm where the turret should be) is checking out possible roadside bombs, or booby traps, or the insides of caves or buildings believed to hold hostile gunmen. For over a decade, there have been larger (over a hundred pounds) remote control vehicles like this for bomb squads. But better designs, and smaller electronics, have made the man-portable (under 50 pounds) units possible. Two years ago, there were several different MTRS systems in Afghanistan and Iraq, but the iRobot equipment has emerged as the most popular, and most effective. This means troops no longer have to get close to possible bombs, and risk getting blown up when nearby terrorists detonate the device.
But for combat use, PackBot has limitations. Human troops can move a lot faster, and speed is often more important than having an expendable trooper (the robot) in the lead. Armed with a weapon, say a shotgun for opening a locked door, the robot would be more useful. An armed robot would also be more effective when taking the lead in many urban combat situations. Currently, troops continue to find new uses for the unarmed version, like spotting snipers, standing guard and carrying remotely controlled explosives to targets covered by enemy fire. But to be really useful, the troops want armed droids.
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Posted by: Steve ||
06/21/2006 08:50 ||
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#1
What is the DoD problem?
How is it different from a Predator armed with a Hellfire?
#8
It's not that the armed robots would just be turned on, and turned lose. They would be controlled by their human operator, but there is a reluctance to having the troops equipped with an armed robot.
Same f*****n attitude that had Marines at the Beruit barrackes without rounds in the chambers. Oh, my, someone may actually pull a trigger. No, no, no, can't have that.
But the troops want them
Ever hear of field expedient? Troops are very creative. If you don't do it, they will.
"She'll make point five past lightspeed. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, kid. I've made a lot of special modifications myself."
Wonder if they've stuck a claymore on the front plate so when it turns a corner and see Hadji armed for trouble, Hadji get a present.
#10
What is the DoD problem?
How is it different from a Predator armed with a Hellfire?
Several reasons:
1.A bad case of Not Invented Here, the here being the higher echelons of the procurement shop. The echalons above reality hate it when the junior enlisted serfsscum soldiers come up with an excelent idea, and a good, clear reason to have it implemented right now. Do you have any idea how much things like this disrupt schedules and budget planning....
2. It will be a cheap system. Not enough $$ to interest the pork meisters on the hill. But it will have to be paid for, and the money will have to come out of someone's budget.
3. It is not directly controlled by a company or field grade officer, like preadator.
4. It gets too close to the cultural nightmare of "killbotz" that the press will have a field day with if an "incident" occurs.
5. Its new. The military is innately sceptical of all new technologys on the battlefield, and rightly so. I, and some of the other vets around here could tell you about some of the ideas we've seen come and go that did not work out in the real world...
6. Lastly, there are genuine safety and proceedural issues involved with a remote controlled weapons system. While I'm glossing over them, they are not trivial. I was in IZ when we started fielding the CROWS remote turrets on up-armors. A good system, but we did have to solve some unforseen problems, and address a safety issue or two. I suspect the same or similar problems will appear with the killbotz.
No, I'm not going to say exactly what these problems were, in case hajji is reading this. I want hajji to find out the hard way. preferably with lots of hajji casualties.
Posted by: N guard ||
06/21/2006 12:37 Comments ||
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#11
1.A bad case of Not Invented Here, the here being the higher echelons of the procurement shop.
ROTS = Robots Off the Shelf! Circumvent the standard Army 29 year acquisition process....? Lets DO IT!
#13
It's not that the armed robots would just be turned on, and turned lose. They would be controlled by their human operator...
That means they're not robots. "Drones", "remotes", or "waldoes" would be more appropriate, though not nearly as sexy.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
06/21/2006 13:11 Comments ||
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#14
Can't all these problems be discovered and ironed out at Fort Irwin?
No. Try as we will, there is no substitute for actual deployment in the field. A training environemt will inevitably restrict operations. Especialy if the operations involve shooty type activitys. Either for safety or cost considerations. Such is the price we pay for peacetime garrison thinking.
Posted by: N guard ||
06/21/2006 13:58 Comments ||
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#15
Two possible solutions are to arm the robot with less-than-lethal weapons, and to mostly use the robot to draw fire.
One of the big problems with LTL weapons is delivering them. It's hard to get close enough to someone with a lethal weapon to use a LTL weapon on them.
Enter the "pester-bot".
As an example, with almost all your emphasis on a robot that can move quickly through rubble. Once that is done, equip the robot with a high-pressure cannister of CS gas. As soon as it sees the bad guyz, or anyone ahead of its departure line, it gives them a big whoosh of tear gas.
For their part, the bad guyz light up the robot big time, revealing their positions, with their movement making them even more attractive targets for another woosh from the robot.
In other words, frustrating as hell for them, and that is the "philosophy" of the design. To piss them off.
Spotting them through protected eyepieces also reveals the bad guyz position back to the friendly side.
You are overlooking one minor detail--
The ID10Ts up in the Echalons Above Reality are if anything less enthusiastic about less than lethal weapons than the killbotz.
This is because if the Less than Lethal weapon actualy kills someone, well, feeding frenzy by the traitor antiwar crowd just barely begins to cover it.
We have enough trouble with ginned up outrage over weapons like WP, ICM, CBUs, etc. as it stands. IIRC Strategypage.com has had an article or two recently about this phenomena.
Combining the two, killbotz and LtL weaps. = total procurement constipation.
Sorry if I seem such a doom sayer, but articles like this just push a lot of my buttons. I truly despise moral cowardice by my nominal superiors.
Posted by: N guard ||
06/21/2006 15:47 Comments ||
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#17
Once we get the robot to pull a pin on a grenade, he can get the beer. Now, how does Robby determine the cold ones ?
#18
NGuard hits most of the reasons why you have not yet seen armed UGV's fielded to date. The bulk of the time is the testing and safety analysis that has to be done to minimize the number of issues to be discovered in the field. No one wants to see these things screw up as this is the real future direction for the services.
The guy who wrote the article is off base on some aspects. First off, the Packbot has no real weapon capability at this time. It is too small. There are limits on how small you can go given that the robot has to carry the M-240 or M-249 and planty of cameras for effective situational awareness. The weaponized TALON, referred to with the acronym SWORDS, is about as small as you can get. It is also the only deployment-ready system out there. There is no armed UGV using the Packbot.
The sentry characterization for the TALON is also BS. The real mission is armed recon. Send the unit out to draw fire with the ability to respond as the enemy moves from cover.
The deployment is getting close, IMO. There is a definite desire for these remote systems (remote is the correct characterization). They should prove to be extremely effective.
Almost every Thursday during the academic year, a bus carrying a dozen or so Naval Academy midshipmen leaves Annapolis for the 45-minute drive to Bethesda, where navy doctors perform laser eye surgery on them, one after another, with assembly-line efficiency.
Nearly a third of every 1,000-member Naval Academy class now undergoes the procedure, part of a booming trend among military personnel with poor vision. Unlike in the civilian world, where eye surgery is still largely done for convenience or vanity, the procedure's popularity in the armed forces is transforming career choices and daily life in subtle but far-reaching ways.
Aging fighter pilots can now remain in the cockpit longer, reducing annual recruiting needs. And recruits whose bad vision once would have disqualified them from the special forces are now eligible, making the competition for these coveted slots even tougher.
Continued on Page 49
#1
The Law of Unintended Consequences knows no bounds.
Regardless of the "problems" caused, I am very grateful (and proud) that the military is providing this service to these fine men and women. Their lives will be enhanced by it.
IIRC, back in the 19th century, if a recruit had a (nearly) full set of teeth, he went into the infantry or cavalry. If he was missing most of his teeth, he went into the artillery. You needed teeth to open the paper cartriges for the muskets of the era. Not so for the cannon cockers.
Still, a happy dilemma for the armed forces. Now the Submarine types will have to work on selling their specialty. Good eyesight is useful, no matter where your career takes you. Even if it is under water.
Posted by: N guard ||
06/21/2006 1:08 Comments ||
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#3
Last time I checked, the operative word was "Orders;" as in, "On or about 1200, 3 July, Ensign John Q. (20-20) Doe are to report to the Commanding Officer (fill in nedded billet here) for duties as assigned." Or words to that effect. c'mon, guys, you got a free (no bucks out of pocket) college education, and you owe Uncle a bit of pay back. Most of us po' ol' enlisted pukes got no guarantees from the recriuter, 'cept a bus ticket to the AFEES station (that term no longer exists, boy am I dating myself). And how come the detailers don't go ahead and fill the necessary billets anyway? A bit of testicular atrophy perhaps, and not wanting to make waves?
#4
Even so, the Navy apparently isn't finding enough recruits to fill the recently significantly expanded SEAL slots. My neighbor's son went to Annapolis with the goal of becoming a SEAL, but he still has two more years until he graduates, and they need, I think, about a thousand more just for this year.
Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers on Tuesday recommitted to the island's 2002 ceasefire and said they had told mediator Norway that they will ensure the safety of Nordic truce monitors. But while both the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the government have now told Norway that they will honour the truce, many fear it is just a matter of time before rash of attacks and clashes reignite a two-decade civil war. "We have committed to the ceasefire agreement and Norway's facilitation role and giving diplomatic immunity and protection to the SLMM monitors who are working in the northeast," S Puleedevan, head of the Tigers' peace secretariat, told Reuters referring to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/21/2006 00:00 ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
(AIP): Chairman of National Reconciliation Commission, Professor Sibghatullah Mujaddidi on Tuesday once again accused Pakistans spy agency for unrest in Afghanistan and said it had been proved that Pakistani intelligence agencies sending people to Afghanistan for suicide attacks. This he said while addressing a meeting held here on Tuesday in connection with the joining of government by a commander from Zabul province. Professor Sibghatullah Mujaddidi who is also Chairman Senate said, Pakistans ISI is the centre of all evils as it has been providing training to people and sending them to Afghanistan. It has been proved to us that all the unrest in Afghanistan is due to Pakistani intelligence agencies because they area sending people for suicide attacks here, he added.
(SomaliNet) The Sudan ambassador to Ethiopia Abdi Zaid Hassan says his government is ready to send one battalion of peace keeping troops to Somalia, as Khartoum government is due to mediate between Somalia president Abdulahi Yusuf Ahmed and the leader of Islamic courts union Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed to end hostility. Speaking to the reporters in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, Mr. Zaid Hassan [said] Sudan government is determined to dispatch troops to the lawless country Somalia to help restoring peace and security when the united Nation Security Council lifts the weapons embargo on Somalia since 1992. 
Even by the unruly standards of France's National Assembly, yesterday's session was exceptional. When 
'Reliable sources' in The Hague say Islam critic Ayaan Hirsi Ali will not be stripped of her Dutch nationality despite giving a misleading name to get asylum in 1992, RTL Nieuws reported on Wednesday.
Democrats said yesterday that the United States must start "redeploying" troops from Iraq, calling the recovery of the mutilated bodies of two U.S. soldiers a "grim reminder" of why withdrawal should begin soon.
Democratic Sens. John Kerry of Massachusetts and Russ Feingold of Wisconsin have a binding amendment calling for all combat troops to be redeployed by July 1, 2007. A similar measure offered last week was overwhelmingly defeated in the Senate. 
The Pakistan Army has put militants in Waziristan on the defensive and the situation in the Waziristan tribal areas has cooled down tremendously, Commander 11 Corps Lt Gen Mohammed Hamid Khan has said. Others disagree. Gen Hamid Khan told Pamela Constable of the Washington Post in an interview in Peshawar that the army had shifted from mass raids to snap operations based on intelligence, and now controls key towns once in the hands of militants. However, adds the report published on Tuesday, other observers say the armys aggressive efforts since 2004 have backfired, alienating the populace with heavy-handed tactics and undermining the traditional authority of tribal elders and officials. They say that the local Taliban movement, which has close ethnic and theological links to the Taliban across the border in Afghanistan, has won new supporters and been able to carve out enclaves of alternative power.
Suspicious crafts
(KUNA) -- Japan's Air Self-Defense Force (ASDF) will expand its airlift support in Iraq even after pulling its ground troops out of the southern Iraqi city of Samawah, Defense Agency Director General Fukushiro Nukaga said Tuesday. "The ASDF activities are legally allowed until December, so we will consider the activities in response to requests from the United Nations and others until then," Nukaga told a press conference, adding that Tokyo will decide whether to extend the mission when the deadline approaches.
Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers on Tuesday recommitted to the island's 2002 ceasefire and said they had told mediator Norway that they will ensure the safety of Nordic truce monitors. But while both the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the government have now told Norway that they will honour the truce, many fear it is just a matter of time before rash of attacks and clashes reignite a two-decade civil war. "We have committed to the ceasefire agreement and Norway's facilitation role and giving diplomatic immunity and protection to the SLMM monitors who are working in the northeast," S Puleedevan, head of the Tigers' peace secretariat, told Reuters referring to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission.
