#4
Here's an old story about the simian threat. Note the fella on the upper right looks like it's wearing space headgear or a Jerry Ford era football helmet.
Hold the last.... Jerry Ford era football helmet was a head of hair.
#5
"India has been told the rules of the Universe."
Is this anything like The Terrible Secret Of Space?
"India is slowly getting to the point when it is accepted as a permanent member of the Security Council. All the five Security Council members China, America, Russia, France and UK support Indiaâs inclusion."
Okay, I was enjoying the foolishness of the UFO thingy, but this puts it over the top.
Kazakhstan intends to set up its Navy in the Caspian Sea, the Kazakh Defense Minister Mukhtar Altinbayev said. He underlined that such an intention is based on the principles of friendship and neighborhood.
Gunboats make sure of that.
"The Caspian Sea must be turned into the sea of fire peace, friendship and kindness," said Altinbayev, noting that his country is ready to cooperate with all Caspian littoral states on security issues. The Kazakh official added that Russia will assist Kazakhstan in establishing the Navy, ensuring security and training personnel.
Cuz the Russians have such a great record as a naval power
Posted by: Steve ||
01/07/2005 9:36:13 AM ||
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#1
I think they mean "to kill pirates and smugglers in peace, friendship and kindness." Plus search and rescue and stuff. Ya gotta have one.
#3
Well, if what they are really doing is setting up a Coast Guard version of a "Navy," I can't see any problem with that. After all, Iran is one of the other Caspian Sea states. Just think if we had Iran rather than Ontario on the other side of Lake Huron.
While not much is published about the actual capabilities of Chinese amphibious shipping, there is one source available; the PLA Officers Handbook. This reference, which all officers have to purchase, is, of course written in Chinese. But this handbook is not classified and is sold quite openly. This is a custom the Chinese picked up from the Russians. The Handbook gives the technical details of Chinese amphibious shipping, so that officers can calculate what can be carried in each type of ship. The Chinese LSTs (landing ship, tank) can carry 2,000 tons, versus the 800 ton figure usually given by Western analysts.
The Type 067 landing craft is described in rather alarming terms, if you're are a Taiwanese general. The Handbook gives the Type 067 a capacity of 50 tons, a range of 800 kilometers, endurance of ten days at sea, and the ability to operate in rough water while using its own navigation system. There are actually three different Type 067s, the first version began building in the 1970s. There are about 130 of these. The second version, of which 300 are available is substantially the same. But the third version, which began building in the late 1990s, is still being built. A scaled up version of the Type 067, the Type 271, can carry the latest, heavier (50 ton) Chinese tanks. The Handbook also refers to hundreds of commercial ferries and barges that can be used for amphibious operations against Taiwan, and describes how they would be loaded with military equipment. The Handbook indicates that there is sufficient lift for 250 infantry and mechanized (tank and mechanized infantry) battalions. That's about twenty divisions. There is additional shipping (mostly civilian) for moving support units. Note that the Handbook is not a piece of propaganda, but a practical manual describing how the Chinese would go about making war.
Posted by: Steve ||
01/07/2005 9:53:18 AM ||
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So, um, what are we doing now with those LA Class subs that reach their End of Service date? We've got some Dolphins 'round here, I believe... So fill us in -- what do they likely need? A little refurb or major surgery? If the operational life estimates from way back when aren't really indicative of the lifespan of these craft, but Regs compel them to be beached / deactivated, I have an idea...
#2
The PRC is playing our cold war game in reverse. They are out spending Taiwan on military hardware in hope that they will eventually give up and join the greater China. The only reason they just don't invade the island is that it would be an great cost militarily and financially. Better to wait it out until Taiwan elects some pacifist leader who wants to unilaterally disarm.
#3
They can have as much carrying capaciity as they like. The problem is the time needed to assemble the ships, troops, supplies and armor. Using the example of D-day, it would probably take months (OK, maybe weeks if they rushed). Unlike D-day, it would be absolutely impossible for them to hide these preparations, leaving plenty of time to prepare countermeasures. Turkey shoot, anyone?
Posted by: Weird Al ||
01/07/2005 15:12 Comments ||
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New Zealanders complaining about unseasonal summer rain in recent weeks are now witnessing icebergs in their territorial waters for the first time since 1948. The icebergs were seen in the Southern Ocean, about 700 kilometres south-east of the South Island, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) said. They were a hazard to all shipping, including yachts participating in the Vendeeglobe solo round-the-world race, officials said. The Vendeeglobe website has issued a warning to competitors after one sailor sustained minor damage to his boat when he hit an iceberg just before Christmas.
NIWA scientist Lionel Carter said 15 icebergs, some up to 3km wide, have been recorded. "In 30 years of working for NIWA, this is the first time I have recorded sightings of icebergs in New Zealand waters," Mr Carter said. Previous reportings were in the 1890s, early 1920s, 1930s and in 1948. In 1931 icebergs were seen as far north as near Dunedin in the South Island. He said it was too soon to blame this flotilla of ice on global warming, although the coincidence of large collapses of the Antarctic ice shelves with a rapidly changing climate could not be dismissed.
As opposed to the ones from the early 1920s.
The icebergs were expected to drift away towards South America.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/07/2005 12:25:32 AM ||
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Alaska Paul, get out of NZ...while you still can.
WORLD Vision will get a boost to its fundraising effort for victims of the south-Asian earthquake and tsunami next weekend when some big-name Australian bands and musicians perform at the Sydney Opera House. Killing Heidi, The Whitlams, and Australian Idols Anthony Callea and Casey Donovan will join Spiderbait, Noiseworks, Eskimo Joe and Scribe at a "reach out" concert to raise funds for the biggest relief effort ever mounted. Hosted by Channel Seven, the concert will be held on the steps of the Opera House and proceeds from the 4000 ticket sales - each costing $25 - will be donated to the Christian aid organisation. The concert will be broadcast to over 26 Countries.
As 2004 came to an end, Australians had donated about $36 million to aid groups helping assist the injured, the homeless, the starving and the sick across ten Asian nations. But Community Aid Abroad Oxfam Australia alone last night received $1.12 million from New Year's Eve revellers across the country, bringing their total fundraising amount to about $6.5 million. The United Nations today said the death toll from the earthquake and tidal waves was approaching 150,000. Tickets to the Reach Out To Asia fundraising concert go on sale on Tuesday, January 4.
Posted by: God Save The World ||
01/07/2005 5:18:45 PM ||
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Killing Heidi, The Whitlams, and Australian Idols Anthony Callea and Casey Donovan will join Spiderbait, Noiseworks, Eskimo Joe and Scribe...
Money that world leaders plan to spend on a warning system against the kind of tsunami that killed 150,000 on December 26 would be better spent fighting everyday diseases, according to Danish academic Bjorn Lomborg. Mr Lomborg, the 40-year-old enfant terrible of the environmental movement, says the desire to build a system is understandable - and reasonably cheap at an estimated $US20 million initially - but that its benefits were uncertain given the lack of necessary supporting infrastructure in many places. He adds that 100 years or more could pass before the next tsunami strikes. "On the other hand, we would certainly save many lives by investing that money in clean drinking water, disease prevention and basic education," Mr Lomborg said.
In South-East Asia alone, 3 million people die every year from infectious and parasitic diseases - most curable with inexpensive drugs, Mr Lomborg said. "The tsunami toll represents only three weeks of disease-borne death in South-East Asia," he said. At a one-day summit in Jakarta yesterday, world leaders backed the creation of an Indian Ocean early warning system similar to one functioning in the Pacific. Mr Lomborg first attracted attention in 1998 with his book The Sceptical Environmentalist in which he said forests were hardly shrinking, fewer species were becoming extinct than believed and oceans were becoming cleaner. He argued that the hundreds of billions of dollars spent on curbing greenhouse gas emissions under the Kyoto pact would only delay global temperature rises by six years over this century, and would be better spent fighting AIDS, hunger or illiteracy.
Posted by: God Save The World ||
01/07/2005 5:21:34 PM ||
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"Don't take money from the citizens to fund your pet project! Use that money to fund our pet project!"
#2
Lomborg deserves the highest credit for outraging the eco-wacky power-seekers over the past few years, and withstanding a Stalin-style academic inquisition to do it, but he is off base with this one.
The amount required for the tsunami warning system is trivial compared to what is already spent on the problems he cites and would make no discernable difference in eradicating them.
The next tsunami may not occur for 100 years, but it could occur next week, and it could easily be much worse.
I think an informal warning network, based on contacts among media, professional seismologists, and government officials, would be highly effective and would cost next to nothing.
#3
I'm with AC - Lomborg gets a well-deserved Mulligan on this one
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/07/2005 10:48 Comments ||
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I would be in favor of any tsunami warning system that involves placing Kofi Annan way out in the ocean. It might be his first act of doing something good.
Ukraine's Supreme Court on Thursday rejected losing presidential candidate Viktor Yanukovych's appeal of last month's repeat election, bringing the former Soviet republic a step closer to resolving its political crisis. Yanukovych has not exhausted all of his options, however. His campaign has said that his main appeal would be filed with the court only after the Central Election Commission announces the final results of the Dec. 26 vote. Preliminary results of the balloting showed opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko winning by a decisive margin. The three-judge panel unanimously threw out what Yanukovych's team had called an "intermediate" appeal, which alleged mass fraud and had asked the court to invalidate voting in all of Ukraine's 225 electoral districts. The panel said the appeal had no basis. The appeal was a bid to overturn the commission's unanimous refusal last week to consider a similar complaint. That complaint had focused on claims that at least 4.8 million people — mainly the disabled and sick — were deprived of their right to vote by election reforms introduced after the first runoff.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/07/2005 00:00:00 ||
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BANFF, Alta. (CP) - Environmental lawyer Robert Kennedy Jr. says U.S. President George W. Bush is the greatest threat facing the planet's environment. Kennedy also says Canada has its share of "little George Bushes" who look at natural resources only as commodities that can turn a profit. "That's about the worst thing I could say about them," said Kennedy, who is one of the hosts at a star-studded celebrity fundraiser in the Rocky Mountain resort of Banff for his Waterkeeper Alliance. The alliance fights to protect the health of waterways worldwide.
Kennedy stopped short of naming those he believes aren't properly protecting the environment, but he did give some hints. "There are people like that, I'm sorry to say, in Canada and in the governments of Alberta and British Columbia and many of the other provinces."
Kennedy, the son of slain U.S. Senator Robert Kennedy, has criticized environmental efforts north of the border before. During a 2002 visit to Alberta, he locked horns with former environment minister Lorne Taylor over the province's pollution laws. At the time, Taylor said rich Americans didn't have any place criticizing what they don't know. Kennedy said every country has people who believe the planet should be treated as if it were a business, liquidating and converting natural resources to cash as quickly as possible.
"You can do that, you can generate an instantaneous cash flow and the illusion of a prosperous economy, but our children are going to pay for our joyride," he said. But the scion of the powerful Kennedy family saved his harshest words for the U.S. president.
"In the United States, we have a president who has launched a jihad against the American environment and the world environment . . . by walking away from global treaties such as Kyoto."
Hummm, I believe your Uncle Ted was one of those who voted 95-0 against that in the Senate back in 1997. Of course, he could always claim he was drunk at the time.
Kyoto is the global climate change accord requiring countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
"We used to have the best laws in the world and over the last four years this president has just eviscerated them."
Name one!
Kennedy said that five years ago, environmental groups would have been hard-pressed to choose between acid rain, overpopulation or global warming as the biggest challenge.
"Today, they'll all tell you it's George Bush," he said. "All of our problems are solveable. We have the technology to fix all our environmental problems. The only question is whether we have the political will."
So, how's that wind power generating plant in Nantucket Sound coming along........oh that's right, can't build one there, it would spoil the view from your compound.
Kennedy has no meetings planned with politicians during his current Canadian visit. His plants included giving a speech in Calgary on Sunday about local environmental issues.
Posted by: Steve ||
01/07/2005 3:37:49 PM ||
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launched a jihad against the American environment
I don't get it. So, is Bush the new Caliph??
Posted by: Rafael ||
01/07/2005 16:15 Comments ||
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"I see George Bushes. They're everywhere. They don't even know they're George Bush."
#5
Bobby then called his private stretch limo, which drove him to his gas guzzling personal jet, which he used to attend a meeting of "Citizens Who Heat Multiple Empty Mansions". The topic of the meeting was, How to discourage the little people from driving SUV's.
#6
LOL 2b. I'm all in favor of global warming if there is such a thing--keeps the electric bill down. Won't have to move to Florida. I can stay in Tennessee. I won't have to go to the beach, I can wait for it to come to me.
#8
Another looney lost in his own signal-to-noise ratio. This shit about eviscerating laws and shredding the constitution, et al, is the hallmark of a fantasist. Locate a relative and draw up the papers...
#9
He's a rich looney-toon with far too much time on his hands who wants to destroy businesses, not realizing where the money in his trust fund comes from.
He's not that hot of a lawyer either, from what I've read. I seem to remember he got himself verbally spanked by a judge in one of the "environmental" (read: bankrupt a business) cases he brought.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
01/07/2005 22:28 Comments ||
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The U.S. Congress on Thursday formally certified President Bush (news - web sites) as the victor of the November elections after two Democrats symbolically stalled the event in protest at alleged voting irregularities in Ohio. California Sen. moonbatBarbara Boxer and Ohio Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, formally lodged objections because of Ohio, although they said they recognized Bush had won and were not trying to overturn the results. They said their goal was to force lawmakers to heed problems that had been particularly evident in Democratic-leaning minority and urban neighborhoods and to consider the need for more voting reforms including standard election rules in all states. Of course the 3,500 king county voters (washington state GOV race...) who don't exist are not a cause for concern.....move along... nothing to see here....
"This objection does not have at its root the hope or even the hint of overturning or challenging the victory of the president," Tubbs Jones said. Boxer called it a matter of "electoral justice." The rare objection to vote certification, the first filed in decades, forced the House and Senate to halt their joint session, usually a routine and ceremonial affair. Each chamber then debated the objection, and rejected it, the Senate by a 74-1 vote, the House 267-31. The state-by-state certification was completed a few hours later. About 200 protesters near the White House, including the attention whore Rev. Jesse Jackson , beat drums and urged Congress not to certify the results because they said unreliable voting machines and partisan election officials had tilted the closely fought swing state of Ohio to Bush.
#1
Watching on C-SPAN last night, the recording of the Congressional "debate" showed one of the funniest displays of Dummycratic lunacy ever witnessed. As Maxine Waters crowed the glories of Michael Moore, as the inspirational leader of the party; and Shelia Jackson Lee stating that she came to America as a "slave".
Other good lines:
-- "Democracy is when Democrats vote; conspiracy is when Republicans vote"
-- (paraphrase) "Democratic Party seems to be following something out of the X-Files"
Oh, and did you hear that the Rev. Jackson said that Hillary lied to him when she refused to follow Barbara "whiner" Boxer in protest?
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/07/2005 14:23 Comments ||
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Rev. Jackson said that Hillary lied to him when she refused to follow Barbara "whiner" Boxer in protest?
news to me...more?
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/07/2005 14:46 Comments ||
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California Sen. moonbat Barbara Boxer and Ohio Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones , formally lodged objections because of Ohio, although they said they recognized Bush had won and were not trying to overturn the results.
Sounds like someone needs a time-out...aren't they a bit old to be having temper tantrums?
"When the Rev. Jesse Jackson heard Hillary Clinton Thursday morning railing against the legitimacy of the presidential vote in Ohio, he assumed she was about to follow through on her promise to vote against certifying the Electoral College results.
Instead Sen. Clinton voted the other way, leaving Jackson wondering what happened to the deal he thought they had.
While lobbying her on Wednesday, "she told me I was preaching to the choir," a suprised Jackson told the New York Post. (end of excerpt)
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/07/2005 15:03 Comments ||
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Can we get Michael Nedow to get the district court to ban Jesse from any political function? Separation of "church" and state, you know.
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., wipes away a tear as she announces with Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, D-Ohio, that they will object to the certification of Ohio's electoral votes during a joint session of Congress today Thursday, Jan. 6, 2005. It would be only the second time since 1877 that the House and Senate were forced into separate meetings to consider electoral votes. What sympathy can you feel for someone so consumed with hate and anguish for being denied political power?
#1
I don't know what the HELL she was crying about. It is sad when a woman (or man) becomes emotionally unhinged before the cameras. Even saddier when performed by a santimonous bimbo.
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/07/2005 13:52 Comments ||
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CA - I think it was 'staged' for her moonbats back in California.
Drudge has pictures of her crying her poor whittle eyes out..... booo hooo...
#10
ima feel you babs. chaineys bringa tears my eyes to. ima maker shure an post sumthin nice fer you on em janeane gaofolo blog when you an jesse jakson on the show tonite.
#11
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., wipes away a tear as she announces with Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, D-Ohio, that they will object to the certification of Ohioâs electoral votes during a joint session of Congress today Thursday, Jan. 6, 2005.
No Murat - this isn't about your country The director of a Detroit food bank wants to know what happened to 60 turkeys -- 720 pounds of frozen birds -- that his charity gave to members of U.S. Rep. John Conyers' local staff two days before Thanksgiving to give to needy people. Conyers' Detroit office promised an accounting of any turkey distribution by Dec. 27, but the Gleaners Community Food Bank had received no paperwork as of Tuesday, said the charity's director, Agostinho Fernandes. Fernandes said he became suspicious that the turkeys didn't get to poor people after hearing from a friend that a federal court worker had said he was offered free turkeys from a member of Conyers' staff.
[it ends with lots of Conyers staffers refused to return calls; documentation not available, etc.]
Posted by: mhw ||
01/07/2005 8:30:46 AM ||
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"We have no (burp) idea what happened to the turkeys..."
#4
hmmm.... I find it hard to believe that there are no laws applicable to this situation. Gifts? Political contributions not declared? This has to be a felony of some kind.....
Posted by: Mark E. ||
01/07/2005 16:57 Comments ||
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Arrogance - it's what always gets these guys in the end.
A federal judge in California has blasted federal prosecutors for willful and deliberate misconduct in handling a counterespionage case. U.S. District Judge Florence-Marie Cooper leveled the charges against the U.S. attorney's office as she dismissed all criminal charges against Chinese-American businesswoman Katrina Leung, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday. Leung passed information to U.S. officials based on her frequent trips to China. Later, she was suspected of being a Chinese double agent. Cooper's ire focused on prosecutors' deal with Leung's FBI handler, James J. Smith, whereby he would not talk to Leung's lawyers in exchange for a guilty plea to a reduced charge of failing to report his 20-year-long sexual affair with Leung.
FBI agents can't seem to keep their pants on around Chinese female spies
Prosecutors may not obstruct a defendant's access to witnesses. "In this case, the government decided to make sure that Leung and her lawyers would not have access to Smith," said Cooper. "When confronted with what they had done, they engaged in a pattern of stonewalling entirely unbecoming a prosecutorial agency." She further called on prosecutors to come clean publicly: "Anything short of an admission and apology on the part of the government is hard to imagine."
Posted by: Steve ||
01/07/2005 9:20:50 AM ||
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Chinese females are tough to keep your pants on around, period. :) I can't blame the guy, I'd talk too!
She kind of has the naughty schoolteacher thing going.
U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan flew over the tsunami-ravaged landscape of Indonesia's Aceh province on Friday and asked "Where are the people?" as Jakarta raised its death toll by thousands.
Secretary of State Colin Powell also expressed shock at the scale of the disaster as he toured another devastated Indian Ocean country, Sri Lanka.
As aid workers strove to reach hundreds of thousands of people thought to be stranded in isolated parts of Indonesia's Sumatra island, Jakarta added more than 7,000 deaths to its tsunami toll. It now stands at 101,318, out of a total of more than 153,000 for the 13 nations affected.
"I have never seen such utter destruction, mile after mile. You wonder, where are the people?," Annan told reporters after a helicopter tour with World Bank chief James Wolfensohn over Aceh on the northern tip of Sumatra.
A day after a crisis aid summit in Jakarta, Powell toured Sri Lanka's south, where the giant waves that crashed ashore on Dec. 26 killed more than 30,000 and reduced coastal towns to piles of rubble.
"The destruction that we saw was significant," he said as he wrapped up his lightning visit. "It was more than just walls that have been knocked down or buildings that have been crushed, but lives that were crushed and snuffed out."
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/07/2005 5:45:39 PM ||
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SINGAPORE - A 31-year-old German is using two utility turboprop jets belonging to his business to ferry medical aid to the Indonesian town of Meulaboh, among the worst-hit in tsunami- bludgeoned Sumatra. The two planes Christian von Strombeck bought last year to transport seafood from the coasts of southern Java to his factory in Jakarta and his three Indonesian pilots have been flying eight hours a day since 28 December, primarily ferrying medical aid from Medan.
The business has been "put on ice for at least a month," Strombeck told The Straits Times while in Singapore to repair one of his planes. Strombeck, a resident of Pangadaran in southern Java, and his Indonesian wife, Susi Pudjiastuti, 39, run the operation. "I was looking at the map of the (devastated) area and the landing and take-off sites available, and I thought there was a need for this kind of aeroplane which can take off and land within a short distance of 450 metres," he was quoted as saying. The only available landing site in Meulaboh is a 550-metre airstrip on which larger rescue jets cannot land, slowing down foreign assistance to the town, Strombeck said.
Describing his help as a "renegade relief effort", Strombeck said his jets, which can carry up to one-and-a-half tonnes of supplies each, allow him to bypass the "logistical and bureaucratic bottleneck" that can hamper larger rescue team.
I was prepared to slam the press for calling him a "renegade", but he calls himself that. I call him a damm fine man.
"It's shocking to see what has happened," Strombeck told the newspaper. He said Meulaboh "is completely destroyed". He recalled an instance when he picked up a group of field doctors from the Japanese Red Cross who were waiting for transport to arrive.
"They were just standing there, waiting and looking helpless, so I got them up on my plane and flew them to where they had to go," Strombeck said. "We have the ability to help so many people," said Strombeck, referring to his jets. "It would not be ethical if we had the tools but did not use them." Strombeck said he bought the planes for SID 7 million (EUR 3.2 million), never imagining that within months they would be saving lives from one of the world's worst tsunamis.
Posted by: Steve ||
01/07/2005 10:22:09 AM ||
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Good for him - and the recipients. The UN will, of course, have to close him down - he's already gained some good media coverage (this article) and they can't have that...
#2
I hope there's another hundred of these guys. Between this and the Palaces Oil for Food debacle, I'm hoping the UN will finally bite the big one this year.
#4
CF - of course! All in the name of "coordination"
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/07/2005 13:58 Comments ||
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#5
He saw people in desparate need. He has the resources to do something and takes action to do it. The world needs more exemplary people like Mr. Strombeck.
Even when America is doing something for Muslims — in this case, helping mostly Muslim Indonesia and other tsunami-battered nations — it comes in for criticism in the Middle East, where resentment and suspicion color thinking about the United States. On the streets of Tehran, technician Dariush Darabian accused Americans of "talking more than they actually do." Jordanian columnist Aida al-Najjar wrote in the daily Ad-Dustour that America's was exploiting "the suffering of people" to try to improve its image. In the pages of leading pro-government Egyptian daily Al-Ahram, prominent columnist Salah Montasser scoffed that America's initial allocation of $15 million "is less than what America spends every minute in its war in Iraq." The United States later raised its pledge to $350 million and sent Secretary of State Colin Powell to one of the worst-hit regions of Indonesia. Powell, speaking in Banda Aceh on Wednesday, said the outpouring of American aid and humanitarian help — citizens are adding tens of millions in donations to their government's contribution — could help Muslims see the United States in a better light.
I doubt that greatly...
U.S. generosity has been noted by some Muslims, even in unexpected quarters. "I give them (Americans) credit for helping the tsunami victims," said Hassan al-Aali of Bahrain's National Committe for the Support of Iraqi People, who has organized several protests against the American occupation of Iraq. "I believe their help is genuinely for humanitarian reasons," al-Aali said, adding that the U.S. has no vested interest in the disaster-struck areas because "there is no oil there."
But Bahraini political analyst Mohammed Almezel said the aid "can take hold in the minds of Muslims and Arabs only if it was part of a wider move by Washington to insert some balance in its policies that concern the region." The United States is repeatedly accused of bias in favor of Israel in the Arab-Israeli conflict, and of plunging Iraq into chaos with the invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein. Influential satellite stations like Al-Jazeera have reported on the Dec. 26 south Asia disaster that killed at least 140,000 people and left millions in need and America's and the world's response, but the main focus of coverage remains on Iraq and other regional issues. In a part of the world where conspiracy theories greet every development, the disaster was no different. Contributors to some Web sites known as clearinghouses for militant Muslim comment wrote that America knew the tsunami was coming but moved only to protect its military bases, a theory reminiscent of speculation U.S. officials staged the Sept. 11 attacks to demonize Muslims.
Others, including some clerics, have said that tsunami was God's revenge on Westerners who engaged in vice and prostitution while vacationing in southeast Asia. The immensity of the disaster, though, also sparked introspection, with some commentators calling on Arab government and citizens to do more to help the tsunami victims. Saudi Arabia stepped up its response to the disaster on Wednesday, tripling its official aid pledge to $30 million and planning a telethon so Saudi citizens can contribute. Oil-rich Gulf states have been increasing their pledges for tsunami victims as the scope of the disaster becomes clearer, and amid accusations that they are doing too little, especially when one of the worst hit regions is mostly Muslim Indonesia.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/07/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Yep, that's about it. When we give a little, it isn't enough; when we give a lot, it's for the wrong reasons. Either way, we're f&#^$d.
#4
And give nothing and be accused of turning a blind eye by muslim nations in the future.. good to see your lot in there and getting the job done.
There was an interesting interview on BBC Radio 4 with The Saudi ambassador to Britain Prince Turki Al Faisal. He was asked why Saudis had so far contributed comparably little to the plight of fellow muslims when their county is suspected of providing vast sums to support pro-islamic terrorism around the world via 'islamic charities'.
He doesn't think generous aid will help to stem ill feeling towards the west because of Palestine, Iraq, Chechnya etc.. I think Aunty Beeb has inadvertantly shown the Saudis to be the scum they are - contributing little themselves whilst criticising the efforts of others..
Others, including some clerics, have said that tsunami was Godâs revenge on Westerners who engaged in vice and prostitution while vacationing in southeast Asia. I knew it - blame it on the infidels.. I presume they don't teach plate tectonics in high school in muslim countries..
Posted by: Howard UK ||
01/07/2005 5:43 Comments ||
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Ya know, this Allan must have bad aim or something if he was looking to punish "infidels", cuz why wouldn't he just hit the US and Israel with the tidal waves instead?
Hmmm?
I ought to post that on one of those "Ask the Asshole Imam" sites.
Posted by: Laurence of the Rats ||
01/07/2005 9:12 Comments ||
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#12
A similar post came up the other day. This bears repeating: Do good for others because it is right.
The apostle Paul reiterated Jesus's command to "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you," and added King Solomon's statement(Proverbs 25:22) "In doing so, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you." The "burning coals" can be interpreted several ways: you will shame him into repentance, or win him over. God's opinion is the only one that matters ultimately. Do good. Period.
Another item that bears repeating: not every Muslim is a rattlesnake. The rattlesnakes make more noise but aren't the only critters there. A friend in Sumatra reported hearing a song by a Muslim, saying that the Tsunami was a judgement on Muslims for supporting terrorists.
Most people recieving aid will see the behavior of the aid workers and make their judgement accordingly.
#13
Even if it does engender goodwill, that goodwill would be short-lived. Remember how we went in to save the Bosnian Muslims from "ethnic cleansing?" Americans died for them simply because it was the right thing to do. It was then, and it is now.
But . . . (and there's a lesson here)
Muslims have a way of conveniently forgetting what doesn't neatly fit their blame-game world view.
#14
Why would they be grateful to you? You are only doing your duty. They are the supreme and wonderful mooslims, and it's your job to feed them and pay them and kill their enemies, you dirty kaffir, you.
#15
I am going to take the moral high ground here. I gave $100 to two charities helping with the tsunami disaster. I could care less if the people on the other end are grateful or not. I sent the money to help people not convert them. I would be pleased to hear that some of those helped would give us infidels credit, but I am not expecting it. FYI neither organization was connected with the un.
#16
we bother because 95% of those suffering are just going about living their lives and are not actively promoting the American and Jew hatred spred by the ambitious and funded by Saudis.
#17
Powell, speaking in Banda Aceh on Wednesday, said the outpouring of American aid and humanitarian help â citizens are adding tens of millions in donations to their governmentâs contribution â could help Muslims see the United States in a better light.
I burst out laughing when I first heard him say that. I couldn't believe that Powell, of all people, would actually believe that claptrap.
#18
Actually, a Fox News report by Greg K---, showed that only 17% of Muslims in the affected countries favored the US prior to the tsunami, but man-on-the-street (and interviewed women) reported today indicate just the opposite is happening. Even the Iman at a Muslim Mosque was quoted as saying, "If America does us a good favor, then we should repay them with a thousand."
The ones who hate us will continue to hate us, the ones who support us will continue to support us. The battleline is draw for those who are in between the extremes. And, we appear to be gaining ground while being consistent with our values.
This is indeed Colin Powell's finest hours.
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/07/2005 15:18 Comments ||
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#19
For those that hate us, or later "forget", ala Bosnia...
#21
I'm usually inclined toward cynicism-- esp because, as .com points out, no good favor we've done the muslims in the balkans has gone unrewarded by muslim slaughters of Americans (the 9/11 plot was hatched a few months after we saved tens of thousands of lives with the Kosovo air campaign in Spring 1999).
But I think Asian muslims are different. My view is that Asia offers us a chance to get it right, ie build multilateral institutions that actually can protect our interests and benefit the inhabitants of the region. Mainly because the Asian powers are realists and unwilling to put up with all the noise from euro-chihuahuas and the terror and chaos of the islamists.
Francis Fukuyama has a good piece on this in Foreign Affairs--excerpted in the NYT:
http://www.nytimes.com/cfr/international/20050101faessay_v84n1_fukuyama.html?pagewanted=all&position=
#22
Screw the wahabbis, focus on Asia. Build a multilateral security institution in East Asia and increase cooperation with India and Australia. For chrissakes, start shifting this country's attention away from European non-allies that can't help or harm us and focus our bandwidth, assets, and intellectual resources on the truly crucial region in this century, ASIA.
#23
I'm usually inclined toward cynicism-- esp because, as .com points out, no good favor we've done the muslims in the balkans has gone unrewarded by muslim slaughters of Americans
I was up until 2AM last night talking international issues at an academic conference with a Turk, a German and a Dane. All are PhDs in technical areas.
The Turk describes himself as a not-very-actively-observant Muslim -- but irrevocably a Muslim nonetheless. He made a point of noting that Europe did nothing in the Balkans but the US intervened on behalf of Muslims there.
He also made some angry claims about the US and Israel and some angry comments about Iraq, most of which I countered firmly. The result was a long conversation in which he and I agreed on far more than we disagreed about. Significantly, on these topics the German and the Dane said very little and I suscept the Turk and I are more in agreement than either of the Europeans is with us.
There are Muslims like my Turkish colleague in East Asia -- and (often quiet, in order to survive) in the Middle East. Those who dismiss all Muslims as worthless or anti-American are not doing the US any favors. They won't fall all overthemselves thanking the Bwana Yanks when we do things -- but there are Muslim leaders who will respond to serious dialogue if we engage in it.
#24
We're fools if we're expecting gratitude. Our experience with France should have taught us no good deed goes unpunished. We should aid the tsunami victims because it's the morally right thing to do.
I believe we do what we do for our own edification. I gave to Amer Red Cross because it felt right. I don't expect diddley-squat in return. If I did, then the act would have been foolish - bribery is a loser's game - I believe Egypt is a classic example.
No, I wish the victims the best because they've suffered terribly without having done anything to deserve it. This isn't cause=>effect, it's simply sometimes really bad shit just happens and it's the luck of the draw who gets it. So help 'em - it could've been anyone.
Hey! It's ME again!! Everybody look at ME!!!
SAN FRANCISCO - An atheist who sued because he did not want his young daughter exposed to the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance has filed a suit to bar the saying of a prayer at President Bush's inauguration. Michael Newdow notes that two ministers delivered Christian invocations at Bush's first inaugural ceremony in 2001, and that plans call for a minister to do the same before Bush takes the oath of office Jan. 20.
In a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Newdow says the use of a prayer is unconstitutional. The case is tentatively scheduled Jan. 14. Last year, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals tossed the same lawsuit, saying Newdow did not suffer "a sufficiently concrete and specific injury." But the decision did not bar him from filing the challenge in a different circuit. Mike, could you go bother some other judges please?
Newdow is best known for trying to remove "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance. He won that case more than two years ago before a federal appeals court, which said it was an unconstitutional blending of church and state for public school students to pledge to God. In June, however, the Supreme Court said Newdow could not lawfully sue because he did not have custody of his elementary school-aged daughter, on whose behalf he sued, and because the girl's mother objected to the suit. But what about ME!
Newdow refiled the pledge suit in Sacramento federal court this week, naming eight other plaintiffs who are custodial parents or the children themselves. ...and ME! I'M doing it too! ME! I am! ME!
#2
The atheists are like annoying gnats, they just gnaw away. I wonder if there is a hell for atheists? Their argument is like Groundhog's Day--it just keeps repeating itself over and over--ad nauseum. The atheists probably prefer Camus' existentialist Myth of Sisyphus analogy instead of Groundhog's Day.
#4
You are probably right DB. It is this particular guy that is trying to get as much mileage out of the issue as possible. I have seen him interviewed. He used his daughter to push his agenda and his daughter really didn't care all that much for his agenda. The guy is both an attorney and a doctor. He is probably conflicted between different parts of his anatomy.
#5
This is an 'unemployed' Doctor/Lawyer that should tell you everything you want to know. I would hazard a guess he is being bankrolled by one of the many LLL groups. Also (and this is just my observation) he reminds me of someone who is not taking their medication or not taking the right dosage.
EFL. Couldn't see this coming...
NEW DELHI: They come in hordes with truckloads of relief material and a newfound urge to serve, but their presence is doing more harm than good in many areas hit hard by the December killer tsunamis of India. As unseemly as it sounds, these well-meaning people have spawned a new industry - disaster tourism. Kofi Annan is... "Disaster Tourist"!
The massive inflow of charitable organisations and aid volunteers to the tsunami-hit areas of Tamil Nadu, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Kerala, Pondicherry and Andhra Pradesh is what is now being seen as the second giant wave. And overzealous volunteers, obsessed with the need to "do good" are making things worse - in many places. You don't say?
"They are coming in large numbers, with loads of loads of relief material but no idea as to what they need to do," said AID-India volunteer Ravi Shankar, who has taken a break from his teaching assignment at an Indian Institute of Technology.
"We call it disaster tourism." I wonder if they ask Ravi to whip out his sitar and play a few tunes? You know, in recognition of their noble efforts? I don't think it's actually him, but what do they know.
Shankar hastened to clarify that help was more than welcome. "We need as many people as we can get, but they have to come with a proper understanding of what they have to do and face." Many of the relief aid workers who jumped on to the bandwagon after the December 26 quake-triggered tsunamis ravaged the coasts of south and southeast India found themselves hopelessly out of sorts in "Ground Zero". Hey, you mean this ain't like a camping trip?
Said Sanchita, an advertising professional: "People should know that all relief workers must take immunisation and antibiotics as a precaution against epidemics." More advice for wannabe volunteers, coming from those who learnt the hard way -- be equipped with disaster overall suits, sleeping bags, safety helmets, gloves, water-proof boots, masks, mosquito repellents and first aid boxes. "Most volunteers do not want to dirty their heels in the muck," remarked Shankar, referring to the elaborate precautions listed for the aid workers. Eeeeeewwwwwwwww, yucky dead people!
As one volunteer observes, the eagerness to give and help has not really helped. More often than not, it is like the act of washing one's sins. We mean well, dammit! Don't you realize that!? Isn't that important!?
Some of these do-gooders have gone on a spree to "adopt-a-village". "Often that means they take care of one afternoon meal for a village, spend perhaps a day and disappear, leaving giant banners to advertise their deed," said a relief worker from Mumbai who is working in Nagapattinam, Tamil Nadu. Banners and posters cover relief trucks and walls in and around villages, often advertising that an organisation has "adopted the village". Some nomadic agencies are wont to swamp the affected villages with relief material, then move off without looking back. Hey, Rajiv. Looks like the UN's in town...
When relief trucks come calling, a huge crowd gathers around them and a fight usually ensues over packets of food grain, medicine and utensils. The winners are those with muscles or belonging to a higher caste. Said Shankar, "Unless there is proper coordination and sincerity, I am afraid relief workers will end up doing good to none but themselves." ...and isn't that the important thing?
Posted by: tu3031 ||
01/07/2005 10:53:12 AM ||
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#1
Most certainly, the NGO's and UN entities have camp followers - entrepreneurs who know they have a ready market - especially in disaster relief situations. How else can a sophisticate of superior morality and legitimacy expect to get his Minimum Daily Requirements of... [insert luxury items here]? Certainly not out there amongst the little [off-white, brown, black, yellow, chartreuse: pick one] people. Pshaw.
#2
I had a feeling last week, looking at how things were going, that this would turn into something over-the-top, like the flowers piled on the sidewalk after Princess Diana died.
#3
I don't see any downside to this. So what if they travel to 5 star hotels and try to wash their sins away in the local bars? They are helping the local economy...who cares what their motives are.
#4
I did some volunteer work in Asia a couple years back, and I felt like I was on an episode of "Survivor." A mix of a few Americans (from California, if that gives you an idea), English, and Europeans, the whole effort and atmosphere seemed competitive: who can do the most volunteering? Who, at the very end, will be named "The Ultimate Volunteer?" I just kept to myself, did what I could, and bit my tongue when I listened to them talk about their additional monetary donations and how much good they were doing for these "poor people." Kinda takes away the spirit of volunteering, doesn't it?
#6
nada - I presume you got a good kick out of the Tom Hank flic called "Volunteers"? I though the John Candy character was a scream, heh.
As for the Real World, I have seen what you describe - those "little brown people" were so cute... I wanted to hurl - and got my first glimpse of the Liberal. It was another 20 yrs before I fully realized the condescension and arrogance quotient required to be a member in good standing of the Elitist Class.
I must have repressed a lot of bad memories, because your comments brought a few back. Example: While I was distributing medicine to a child, the loudest, Left Coast American woman said, "Let me do it," and literally pulled it out of my hand, gave a couple of kids a little bit, and proceeded to walk away and talked about "how wonderful" it felt "giving back." I just walked away and helped pick up some trash. Her friend was an old lady who gave me an earful on how much she hated George W. Bush, but thought Dennis Kucinich was the best thing ever. How would you like to be stuck in a tiny,
moving vehicle with that bending your ear?
#9
nada - I commiserate. And I echo lex's question. My experience was as a pure volunteer when hanging out in Thailand on vacation - back in '95 or '96.
I went to volunteer at an elephant sanctuary in Chiang Mai. The people who ran it were (are) extraordinary folks. It was the people who "helped" who were the ones who got my blood pressure up. I saw the sanctuary on National Geographic about five years ago now. "Vanishing Giants" was the name of the show. They do a lot more than just help the elephants, too. Google "Jumbo Express" and it should take you to "Thaifocus."
#11
I think I know the one you mean! I lived in Chaing Mai for 9 months last year... Is it on Doi Suthep? I have a tourist map, so I shouldn't be bothering you with that, lol!
Hell, there were bumper stickers for it in half the tuktuks (the blue locals) I rode in, lol!
Good for you, nada. I hope the zipperheads didn't totally ruin it for you. The Thais prolly helped out there - I love those folks, generally speaking, and Chiang Mai isn't as screwed up as Bangkok regards people trying to scam you. Chiang Mai almost captured me as a perm resident / semi-retiree. I was this close to staying for good on the OA Visa program.
Malawi's president has pardoned a group of politicians charged with treason over an alleged plot to kill him. Three members of the ruling party were accused of taking guns to a meeting with the president in order to kill him. A fourth was arrested with knives. President Bingu wa Mutharika said he had forgiven them to bring about reconciliation within his party. But he stressed he still believed they had intended to kill him. The four have now been released.
How very un-African of him.
"B-I-N-G-U! B-I-N-G-U!
And Bingu was his name-oh!"
The BBC's Raphael Tenthani in the capital, Lilongwe, says there has been a growing rift between the president and leaders of the United Democratic Front (UDF) over his anti-corruption drive. The talks on 3 January were intended to end the rift, but were abandoned after weapons were discovered.
Yeah, I can see how that might disrupt them
Deputy transport minister Roy Cumsay, senior party member Harry Thomson and MP Alfred Mwechumu were charged with treason on Wednesday. They said in a statement they regularly carried firearms for self-defence. A fourth politician was arrested on Thursday after knives were found in his car. On Friday, President Mutharika ordered the immidiate dissolution of the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), amid allegations that some intelligence officers were involved in the alleged foiled assassination plot against the president.
They normally are
Mr Mutharika told a news conference in Lilongwe on Thursday that according to information received in advance, someone was to "say something rude to the president to disrupt the meeting". "In the fracas, someone would fire in the air and then someone was also probably assigned to fire at me," he said. He also accused former President Bakili Muluzi of involvement in the plot. But Mr Muluzi's spokesman firmly rejected the charge as "an outrageous accusation". "The former president would never, ever plan to kill his own boy," Sam Mpasu was quoted as saying by AP news agency. "However, the UDF party will be meeting to discuss the issue." Since Mr Mutharika's election last May, several top UDF leaders have been arrested in connection with corruption and fraud scandals.
Posted by: Steve ||
01/07/2005 8:23:22 AM ||
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US scientists have detected the largest explosion ever observed, which saw a mass equivalent to about 300 suns sucked into a black hole. "The eruption, which has lasted for more than 100 million years, has generated energy equivalent to hundreds of millions of gamma-ray bursts," NASA said in a statement.
The discovery was made by NASA's orbiting Chandra X-ray Observatory which is controlled from a base in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The huge eruption was seen in a Chandra image of the hot, X-ray emitting gas of a galaxy cluster called MS 0735.6+7421, the agency said. The galaxy is about 2.6 billion light years away.
Scientists believe that this black hole is a relatively recent phenomena. This event was caused by gravitational energy release, as enormous amounts of matter fell toward a black hole. Most of the matter was swallowed, but some of it was violently ejected before being captured by the black hole. "I was stunned to find that a mass of about 300 million suns was swallowed," said Brian McNamara of Ohio University, lead author of a study on the discovery published in the latest issue of Nature.
The energy released shows the black hole in MS 0735 has grown dramatically during this eruption. Previous studies suggest other large black holes have grown very little in the recent past, and that only smaller black holes are still growing quickly. "This new result is as surprising as it is exciting," said co-author Paul Nulsen of the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics in Cambridge. "This black hole is feasting, when it should be fasting."
Gas is being pushed away from the black hole at supersonic speeds over a distance of about a million light years, said the scientists. The mass of the displaced gas equals about a trillion suns, more than the mass of all the stars in the Milky Way. "Until now we had no idea this black hole was gorging itself," said Michael Wise of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. "The discovery of this eruption shows X-ray telescopes are necessary to understand some of the most violent events in the universe."
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/07/2005 12:36:22 AM ||
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#1
Imams condemned the U. S. for fomenting the uiniverse's greatest destruction.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
01/07/2005 9:49 Comments ||
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#11
Since TrailingWife mentioned John Lee Hooker in another thread (the torture thread, IIRC), I've had this stuck in my head: Boom, boom, boom, boom ...
NEW DELHI: India, which imports most of its crude oil needs, called yesterday for the development of an Asian petroleum market with trading exchanges to serve the region's fast-growing economies and soften price volatility. "It's essential we develop a sophisticated Asian market for petroleum and petroleum products" to ensure supply stability and reduce price volatility, Indian Oil Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar told a regional energy conference. India, which has a vital interest in stable oil markets as it sources 70 per cent of its crude oil needs abroad, hosted the one-day meeting in the Indian capital to promote supply security through regional linkages. Booming economic growth has turned Asia into one of the main buyers of Gulf oil but a lack of partnerships between producers and consumers has made Asian nations vulnerable to global oil price volatility, participants said. But at least one country said there was more oil in the market than needed.
Guess who?
"The market is oversupplied. There is no doubting it," Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanghaneh told reporters after the meeting with Asian colleagues in New Delhi.
You guessed it!
Other key fuel-guzzling nations such as China, Japan and South Korea also attended the forum along with oil-producers such as Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Qatar, Oman, the UAE as well as Malaysia. India's Aiyar also urged setting up strategic storages and mutual investments to promote supply security. He said a regional market would spur transparent pricing, allow for derivatives trading and reflect "the real role in the global oil economy of Asian production, Asian consumption and Asian trade." Zanghaneh said an "Asian crude market" could be formed through sustained dialogue.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/07/2005 12:09:28 AM ||
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#1
Just one more reason the West needs to be become energy independent by what ever means. Let the freaking mullahs and emirs drink the goddamn stuff
#2
Impose a permanent and regularly increasing tarriff and let the market fix it.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
01/07/2005 7:57 Comments ||
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#3
Everybody wants "light, sweet" (low sulfur, high % of gas/heating oil components) crude; not the "heavy, sour" stuff that is abundant and costs more to refine. However, most l/s is sold in long-term contracts, with just the remainder being sold on the high volatility "spot market". They undoubtedly want to create an l/s market with cheaper long-term contracts for *them*, and a much larger, thus less volatile spot market. This is why that idea will fail--it will be a controlled market competing against a free market.
WIKIPEDIA, and its trustworthiness, has become a topic of considerable discussion. This entry on InstaPundit does little to inspire confidence. Okay, the picture with the "I had an abortion" t-shirt and the reference to blended puppies might be humor (is Wikipedia a Frank J. production now?) but InstaPundit was never hosted on UT servers, and I don't know where anyone would get that idea.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
01/07/2005 4:00:30 PM ||
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#1
Wikipedia is not peer reviewed, If you want put anything on there they will take it. That a number of over active leftist wankers tend to post lots there should tell you something. If you don't like something on there don't worry it will change, repeatedly. Funny facts rarely change if they are right in the real world.
Would anyone cite any Wiki for any purpose in the real world?
#2
Aris is a source for Wikipedia. I stand by his credibility...off to the right a little bit, but nearby...ok, within "the vicinity"
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/07/2005 0:14 Comments ||
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#3
If you don't like something on Wikipedia, the answer isn't "don't worry it will change", the answer is "go change it yourself". It takes half a minute and you don't even need to register to do it.
Let's hear less whining about wrong information in Wikipedia, and more effort to correct it, shan't we?
#8
The one I would target is the British Probert Encyclopedia, which is professionally produced, widely cited, and riddled with Goebbels-inspired anti-American propaganda, including this rant that passes as an article on the Invasion of Iraq. The phrase "according to opponents of the war" was inserted only recently btw. Before that, the article stated the conspiracy theory as a fact.
Probert also contains many examples of that time-dishonored lefty academic device, the incidental histori-lie, as in this passage from Battle of the Bulge:
"The battle is notorious for the atrocious war crimes committed by both sides, notably the slaughter of
prisoners of war taken during the offensive."
This certainly invites a conclusion of equivalence, but what evidence is there that American forces committed "atrocious war crimes" or that these are in any way "notorious" as compared to those of the Germans?
#9
Regards Wiki - Aris makes the case against it, certainly not for it, in #3. Where is the obvious requirement that the edit / entry be, at the least, quarantined until vetted by several authoritative sources? The essence of this proud proclamation being any jackass can contribute their spin or spew. Wiki used to be useful - I no longer trust it even for historical factual timeline information - it has been PC-ized regards Islamists by Islamists and Symps. I only quote it occasionally, now, and only for apolitical topics.
#10
.com> A bird can't pull a plow, and quarantining an entry "until vetted by authoritative sources" goes against the core of the Wiki concept.
The minus is as you say - that any jackass can edit Wikipedia. The plus is that any jackass can edit Wikipedia. If the whole process needed to pass through "vetting" by authorative sources, it'd be unlikely that Wikipedia would have reached the width and breadth of topics it has reached.
#12
Yesterday I wikied a book I just read and spent a couple of hours linking around in there. The information provided on this historical novel was quite interesting.
BTW, I highly recommend "The Egyptian", by Mika Häkkinen. Many eerie parallels to the politics of today, and a darn good read.
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.
Kazakhstan intends to set up its Navy in the Caspian Sea, the Kazakh Defense Minister Mukhtar Altinbayev said. He underlined that such an intention is based on the principles of friendship and neighborhood. 
New Zealanders complaining about unseasonal summer rain in recent weeks are now witnessing icebergs in their territorial waters for the first time since 1948. The icebergs were seen in the Southern Ocean, about 700 kilometres south-east of the South Island, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) said. They were a hazard to all shipping, including yachts participating in the Vendeeglobe solo round-the-world race, officials said. The Vendeeglobe website has issued a warning to competitors after one sailor sustained minor damage to his boat when he hit an iceberg just before Christmas.
WORLD Vision will get a boost to its fundraising effort for victims of the south-Asian earthquake and tsunami next weekend when some big-name Australian bands and musicians perform at the Sydney Opera House. Killing Heidi, The Whitlams, and Australian Idols Anthony Callea and Casey Donovan will join Spiderbait, Noiseworks, Eskimo Joe and Scribe at a "reach out" concert to raise funds for the biggest relief effort ever mounted. Hosted by Channel Seven, the concert will be held on the steps of the Opera House and proceeds from the 4000 ticket sales - each costing $25 - will be donated to the Christian aid organisation. The concert will be broadcast to over 26 Countries.
Ukraine's Supreme Court on Thursday rejected losing presidential candidate Viktor Yanukovych's appeal of last month's repeat election, bringing the former Soviet republic a step closer to resolving its political crisis. Yanukovych has not exhausted all of his options, however. His campaign has said that his main appeal would be filed with the court only after the Central Election Commission announces the final results of the Dec. 26 vote. Preliminary results of the balloting showed opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko winning by a decisive margin. The three-judge panel unanimously threw out what Yanukovych's team had called an "intermediate" appeal, which alleged mass fraud and had asked the court to invalidate voting in all of Ukraine's 225 electoral districts. The panel said the appeal had no basis. The appeal was a bid to overturn the commission's unanimous refusal last week to consider a similar complaint. That complaint had focused on claims that at least 4.8 million people — mainly the disabled and sick — were deprived of their right to vote by election reforms introduced after the first runoff.
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., wipes away a tear as she announces with Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, D-Ohio, that they will object to the certification of Ohio's electoral votes during a joint session of Congress today Thursday, Jan. 6, 2005. It would be only the second time since 1877 that the House and Senate were forced into separate meetings to consider electoral votes.
The director of a Detroit food bank wants to know what happened to 60 turkeys -- 720 pounds of frozen birds -- that his charity gave to members of U.S. Rep. John Conyers' local staff two days before Thanksgiving to give to needy people. Conyers' Detroit office promised an accounting of any turkey distribution by Dec. 27, but the Gleaners Community Food Bank had received no paperwork as of Tuesday, said the charity's director, Agostinho Fernandes. Fernandes said he became suspicious that the turkeys didn't get to poor people after hearing from a friend that a federal court worker had said he was offered free turkeys from a member of Conyers' staff.
A federal judge in California has blasted federal prosecutors for willful and deliberate misconduct in handling a counterespionage case. U.S. District Judge 
Even when America is doing something for Muslims — in this case, helping mostly Muslim Indonesia and other tsunami-battered nations — it comes in for criticism in the Middle East, where resentment and suspicion color thinking about the United States. On the streets of Tehran, technician Dariush Darabian accused Americans of "talking more than they actually do." Jordanian columnist Aida al-Najjar wrote in the daily Ad-Dustour that America's was exploiting "the suffering of people" to try to improve its image. In the pages of leading pro-government Egyptian daily Al-Ahram, prominent columnist Salah Montasser scoffed that America's initial allocation of $15 million "is less than what America spends every minute in its war in Iraq." The United States later raised its pledge to $350 million and sent Secretary of State Colin Powell to one of the worst-hit regions of Indonesia. Powell, speaking in Banda Aceh on Wednesday, said the outpouring of American aid and humanitarian help — citizens are adding tens of millions in donations to their government's contribution — could help Muslims see the United States in a better light.
Malawi's president has pardoned a group of politicians charged with treason over an alleged plot to kill him. Three members of the ruling party were accused of taking guns to a meeting with the president in order to kill him. A fourth was arrested with knives. President 
NEW DELHI: India, which imports most of its crude oil needs, called yesterday for the development of an Asian petroleum market with trading exchanges to serve the region's fast-growing economies and soften price volatility. "It's essential we develop a sophisticated Asian market for petroleum and petroleum products" to ensure supply stability and reduce price volatility, Indian Oil Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar told a regional energy conference. India, which has a vital interest in stable oil markets as it sources 70 per cent of its crude oil needs abroad, hosted the one-day meeting in the Indian capital to promote supply security through regional linkages. Booming economic growth has turned Asia into one of the main buyers of Gulf oil but a lack of partnerships between producers and consumers has made Asian nations vulnerable to global oil price volatility, participants said. But at least one country said there was more oil in the market than needed.
WIKIPEDIA, and its trustworthiness, has become a topic of considerable discussion. This entry on InstaPundit does little to inspire confidence. Okay, the picture with the "I had an abortion" t-shirt and the reference to blended puppies might be humor (is Wikipedia a Frank J. production now?) but InstaPundit was never hosted on UT servers, and I don't know where anyone would get that idea.
