A woman with an apparently insatiable sweet tooth stunned staff at a British shop when she bought more than 10,000 chocolate bars and had them loaded into her chauffeur-driven limousine.
The woman asked staff at a north London Woolworths branch for every single Mars bar in stock - 10,656 of them packed in 220 boxes - and paid for them in cash with 50 pound notes.
The total bill was 2,131 pounds ($US3,828).
"It was very, very strange but nobody thought to ask her why she wanted so many," a Woolworths spokesman said.
"It would usually take us a month to shift that number of chocolate bars.
Woman Reportedly Bites Into Live Bullet In Hot Dog
X-Rays Show What Appears To Be Bullet In Womanâs Stomach
POSTED: 3:23 a.m. EDT May 6, 2004
UPDATED: 2:05 p.m. EDT May 6, 2004
IRVINE, Calif. -- A woman eating a hot dog from a Costco food court in Irvine reportedly bit into a live 9mm round and later found what appears to be a bullet lodged in her stomach, according to a Local 6 News report.
Glad I donât shop there anymore...
Olivia Chanes, 31, told police she was eating the hot dog Sunday afternoon at the store in Irvine, about 40 miles south of downtown Los Angeles, when she bit into something hard and found what officers determined was a live round.
X-rays later found what appears to be another bullet in her stomach.
Color me skeptical, but unless youâre in one of those eating contests, Iâm pretty sure youâd notice this sort of thing.
Police interviewed workers and opened all of the approximately 25 remaining hot dog packages after Chanes reported biting into the bullet, CEO Jim Sinegal said.
Um, did you find any more?
"We checked everything thoroughly," Sinegal said by phone from Costcoâs corporate office near Seattle. "Obviously, itâs regrettable. ... The question is when could something like this happen."
The company CEO said he was not aware of any legal claim filed by Chanes. Just wait a few days...
Police and the Orange County Health Department are investigating the incident.
Costco officials say they serve Hebrew National hot dogs, which are carefully prepared and pass through a metal detector at the factory.
"This is such an extraordinary thing," Singal said. "Itâs difficult to understand how this could have happened."
Question for Steve White - whatâs the best way to resolve this situation, surgery or, um, natural egress?
I'll bounce this off a GI colleague of mine, he'll enjoy the story. Based on what I know off the top of my head, one could do an endoscopy (rubber video-periscope into the stomach), and use a snare to grab the bullet. It's essentially a wire basket. If you snare it you pull the snare and the scope as one unit and bring the bullet out. If it works it's a lot easier than surgery. But I'll ask.
#1
At least Olivia did not chew her food 27 times! A 9mm cartridge isn't the smallest thing in the world, though. Planting the 9mm cartridge in the hot dog sounds like an inside job, pardon the pun.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
05/06/2004 17:54 Comments ||
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#2
Hebrew National makes good quality dogs.
(psst - even us Protestants eat them. They make great base for Chili-Cheese Dogs, which aren't very Kosher)
Their ads have a line, "No artificial colors or fillers. . ." Whoops
Am I paranoid or would it be too far a stretch, owing to past threats, that a al-Qada type would like to target a Kosher food Company?
#3
BigEd---I would not be surprised if someone targeted the food company. Years ago the PLO and friends targeted Jaffa oranges in Israel for export. I won't tell what they did, but it was an evil deed.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
05/06/2004 18:21 Comments ||
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#4
That is sad, because their Dinner Franks are very good.
#8
GK, I have to agree with you. I don't know about the rest of you carnivores, but when I'm eating food, especially meat, and I bite anything that not proper consistency, I immediately stop and try to pull it out. And I'm talking about something just a little tougher, like gristle or fat. That this woman "found" a bullet means that it would have to have been dropped in under the relish, or put there when the dog was actually being manufactured. Since these were kosher hotdogs, they get a lot more inspection than an average dog. As for that bullet in her stomach, my theory is that she wants to sue someone, but is too grossed out to deep fry a rat and stick in her big mac when no one is looking. So she tested out the safety of using a dangerous, but non-organic object, like a bullet, and accidentally swallowed it during one of her practice runs.
A construction worker had six nails driven into his head in an accident with a high-powered nail gun, but doctors said on Wednesday they expect him to make a full recovery. On Wednesday Isidro Mejia made his first public appearance since the April 19 accident that left him with 9cm nails embedded in his face, neck and skull.
X-rays at the link, if you have a strong stomach
He told reporters in Spanish from his wheelchair that he does not remember much about the accident, but is grateful to be alive.
Mejia, 39, was on top of an unfinished home when he fell from the roof on to a co-worker who was using the nail gun, Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy Mark Newlands said. The two men tried to grab each to keep from falling, but both tumbled to the ground.
"Hey, let go of meeeeeee......OUCH"
At some point, the nail gun discharged and drove the nails into Mejia's head.
Six times? Hummmm
Quinonez said Mejia told authorities he remembered a "shock" to the back of his neck and little else before passing out. Three nails penetrated Mejia's brain, and one entered his spine below the base of his skull. Doctors said the nails barely missed his brain stem and spinal cord, preventing paralysis or death.
Isidro, forget the lotto tickets, you dun used up all your luck
Posted by: Steve ||
05/06/2004 12:55:34 PM ||
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#1
Wonder what TSA would make of him if he tried to go through the metal detector on the way to the gate.
Posted by: Jonathan ||
05/06/2004 14:59 Comments ||
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#2
DO back up your statement with facts when necessary.
DON'T punch the other person through the chest, pull out his heart, and show it to him before he dies when you feel run into a corner. That's usually a non-sequitur to the debate... unless the debate is whether you can actually pull someone's heart out and show it to him before he dies.
as Frank G, I have to agree with Frank J on this one...plus it's soooo messy
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/06/2004 12:39 Comments ||
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#3
Gosh, common courtesy. What a concept! Sadly, the virtues of proper forensic engagement do not seem quite so popular these days. It must be supposed that formulating original ideas in a concise and objective manner is too much to ask of some people.
I wonder how many who read this will realize that hitting other people over the head with one's own views in an ill dignified and personally insulting manner is precisely one of those things being fought against elsewhere with so much loss of life.
It brings to mind individuals like Patrick Tillman, who had sufficient courage of his convictions to forego great wealth and ended up giving his life for what he considered most important in this world.
I thought about it a lot at his memorial service last Monday.
#6
Yes, Zenny, it's common courtesy for an American citizen to refer to our President as President Bush; not "Shrub," not pResident, not "selected not elected."
Similarly, it's also courteous and civil to refer to him that way at a forum where the majority of the posters also respect the President properly.
Posted by: Jen ||
05/06/2004 14:08 Comments ||
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#7
It's also common courtesy to show an even greater respect for a well known precept called "Freedom of Speech." While you might quail at the thought of doing so, I would fearlessly defend your right to it. Fortunately, this site's staff and a majority of the intelligent posters here demonstrate sufficient understanding of this fundamental constitutional right. Even one who so often mangles our beautiful language like muck4doo seems to have no problem grasping such an elementary concept. The opprobrium of impaired individuals long ago ceased to be of any importance to me.
#9
Sure, Zipperhead, the Constitution guarantees Freedom of Speech but Fred Pruitt, the private owner of Rantburg, doesn't have to!
And Ed, you're referring to "pResident" as a typo?
The wags over at DUH.com use this to refer to Bush.
They make the "p" lower case so that it reads "Resident" because to genii like Zipper, Bush was "selected not elected" as their President, so he's only the "resident" of the White House.
Get it? Clever, huh?
Posted by: Jen ||
05/06/2004 14:40 Comments ||
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#10
Oh no, more opprobrium! How dreadful, I think I'm getting a case of the vapors.
In this particular case, you're right (for a change). Fred Pruitt has absolutely no obligation to let me post a single d@mned thing at this site (ain't freedom grand?). I think it speaks rather well of his sensibilities that he hasn't demonstrated any reservations about my participation here. That is something I respect about him (and the staff) immensely.
Their clear philosophic vision has served to both provide me with vital insights not found elsewhere and a newfound respect for conservatives who are not bound hand and foot by accepted doctrine or dogma.
#11
Of course, you don't respect him...just like you don't respect the President and for the same reasons.
You just want to see how much of your spew you can get away with and are working it against the day.
But your day will come.
Posted by: Jen ||
05/06/2004 15:09 Comments ||
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#12
You just want to see how much of your spew you can get away with ...
#13
Zenster, IMO, your history of past posts shows that you probably have ulterior motives -- you voice strong support (to the point of utter overkill) for positions obviously near and dear to many who visit this blog -- and then (here and there, thrown in as if afterthoughts) mock Bush and the validity of his presidency, without any proof to back up the slander. Just because you sound pro-military doesnât mean youâre not some DU operative (or equivalent) out to slam Bush. The lack of realism to the gung ho, âpro-militaryâ solutions you frequently spout makes me question your sincerity. Please persuade me otherwise, if you think Iâm wrong.
#15
cingold, it's your privilege to think whatever you wish. I can only speculate regarding what you consider to be my "ulterior motives." My personal belief is that those who are not forthright about their intentions are ethically bankrupt. I value transparency above much else.
I would think the unvarnished nature of my opinions should make that more than clear to you. If this is not apparent, you may be sufficiently opaque to where an exchange of ideas is not possible. Again, that's your privilege. If you ever find me toning things down in a politically correct fashion, please feel free to call me on it.
Back to your respective corners. You each get a standing eight-count. Yeah, yeah, she/he didn't lay a glove on ya. To your corners anyways.
C'mon already. Each comment like this eats up bandwidth and slows page loading. Enough.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/06/2004 16:27 Comments ||
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#17
If there was a "golden rule" for Internet discussion it should be this: Never write anything anonymously (or pseudonymously, I guess) to another person that you wouldn't say to his or her face.
#18
Hmmm, I'll try to cut out the fat and get to the gist. #15 cingold . . . My personal belief is that those who are not forthright about their intentions are ethically bankrupt. I value transparency above much else.Thatâs good to hear. Thatâs what more than one person here has asked you about -- how do you square your âkill them all, let God sort them outâ rhetoric with your âBush is a crookâ rhetoric? Do you have someone better able to handle the WOT in mind?
I would think . . . you may be sufficiently opaque . . . My guts are largely opaque, but my skin is mostly translucent . . . What are you talking about? The main question is: How do you square your âkill them all, let God sort them outâ rhetoric with your âBush is a crookâ rhetoric?
#19
i know this isn't part of this post but i have to..
zenster - Bush was duly elected by a majority of electoral votes. this is how we've elected presidents for decades. it so happens your man wasn't elected so then there is a problem. now that is hypocrisy..and if you are not a citizen of the United States then your opinion does not count in the overall scheme of our politics.
as a historical note JFK (Kennedy not the fake) lost the popular vote but won the electoral vote and went on to be one of the most popular presidents.
Posted by: Dan ||
05/06/2004 17:37 Comments ||
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#20
cingold, don't look now, but I think I hear...crickets!
Posted by: Jen ||
05/06/2004 17:39 Comments ||
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#21
Oops! My bad. It was chickens.
(This is too rich, BTW: "My personal belief is that those who are not forthright about their intentions are ethically bankrupt."
Don't look now, Zen Boy, but your assets are lower than zero!)
Posted by: Jen ||
05/06/2004 17:51 Comments ||
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#22
Zenster is actually Comic Book Guy, just not as comical.
#23
PCBurg. Hmmmm - loses something in the transition. So many names, so few IP addresses, eh cingold? Lol - Bro, I know you get it! And you nailed it - added to the infamous "ethicality" we have hypocrisy of the highest order. He was quick - it only took him about 48 hours to figure out that if he kept his mouth shut about [mumble] and [mumble] then he could hang out and dazzle us with puffery and buffoonery and share his deep understanding of many many miracles he's acquired at second hand. If only Jen and Phil_B and I had not been there to see his highness up close and personal spewing upon arrival at the RB RR Station.
Hmmmm, the common decency of Rantburgarians becomes a weakness... Now where have I seen this pattern, before?
#24
DotCom. I've been holding my breath all day, just waiting for Zenster to answer this one little question: How do you square your âkill them all, let God sort them outâ rhetoric with your âBush is a crookâ rhetoric? Waiting, waiting . . .
#27
Dotcom and cingold, you know what's really pathetic and sad?
I think Zipperhead's so cerebrally-challenged that he doesn't understand why there's such cognitive dissonance between his opinions ( or whatever you call his "views").
Posted by: Jen ||
05/06/2004 22:11 Comments ||
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#28
The opprobrium of impaired individuals long ago ceased to be of any importance to me.
I'd call that a confession. Zipster doesn't buy his own crap.
EFL - (simple registration required) The Singular Life - Petronella Wyatt
... But most of our notions about the South come from old romances and films such as The Virginian. We deplore the fact that plantation owners kept slaves and sometimes abused them, but in general we have forgiven. As Disraeli rather flippantly remarked when questioned about the outcome of the civil war, âThe South will win because it has better manners.â
I was inclined to agree with such assessments until I went to live in Virginia. During the four months I spent there, I found it an alien and sometimes frightening place. Middle-class whites remain polite if insular. There is always the feeling that they still long for the good old days of Anglo-Saxon supremacy. But working-class whites, those who used to be called âwhite trashâ, constitute some of the most terrifying creatures on this planet.
Lynndie England and her fellow soldiers come from poor redneck backgrounds. In my limited experience, rednecks seem to live on hate. They are dirty, overweight, rude, drunken and drive (recklessly) big trucks with the Confederate flag on the bonnet. They are brought up on a deeply racist gun culture. There are probably more gun shops in Virginia than in the rest of the US put together. And in their hearts, most rednecks would like to point them at a coloured person. They still blame freedom of the slaves for their impoverished lives. Indeed, the worst thing that could happen to the average Virginian would be for their daughters to take up with people they still call niggers.
This is the world Lynndie England has lived in all her life. Iraqis are regarded as no better than blacks, their ancient traditions dismissed as savagery. Whenever I argued for more understanding with regard to the âpeaceâ, I was met with stares usually reserved for child-killers. There is no respect for foreign cultures in rural Virginia. No one would bother to read about them anyway. If any literature is perused, it is the local gun manual. This cocktail of disrespect, violence and ignorance is a lethal one for Iraq. Obviously, the US army has to take what it can, but, if anyone had asked recruits like Miss England for their opinions of Iraqis, they might have thought twice about sending them overseas.
Actually, I feel sorry for Lynndie England. She stood no chance in a Middle Eastern war zone. The fault lies not with her but with her world. Her world of stolen pigs and turkeys roasted on the roadside, of callous beliefs and revanchism. Very few young women in present-day Virginia grow up to be Southern belles; they grow up to be harridans who, given the opportunity, take their grievances out on helpless people with dark skins. The South once had a veneer of glamour and civilisation. Sadly, it has it no longer. Why do I have the impression that Ms. Wyatt recently received a âDear Petâ letter from a fat, dirty, fast-drivinâ, pig-stealinâ, turkey-roastinâ Virginian?
#3
The fault lies not with her but with her world.
Um ... no. It is precisely this sort of drivel that has fomented so much of the modern world's malaise. I can only compare it to the almost congenital inablilty of Arab cultures to take responsibility for their acts and poverty.
We all have a personal responsibility to found our beliefs upon rational and coherent reason. Removing even one iota of this obligation is an appeasement of incompetence. This is what has helped to breed up terrorism, Nazism, communism and the worst sort of crimes against humanity.
#4
Excuse me whilst I make a comment for my rural Tennesee relatives. As they would probably say it.
There's this English snooty woman. She has a strange notion of how we folks conduct our lives. I think it is a might presumptous of her to say we're all nothing but a bunch of Confederate Flag waving, gun toteing intolerant, ignorants.
She is very concerned about manners, but I think she's a might short on them herself. She ought to keep her mouth shut and be concerned what's going on in her own country.
I see in the paper, and yes miss fancy britches, we do read, where these Moslem folks are yapping about blowing up stuff, and you're afraid to do anything about it.
So I will end here, and pass Miss Wyatt's yapping off as ignorance and racism. I don't want to think it is anything personal, yet I think it might be. If she was truly sure of herself, she wouldn't be putting down folks she didn't understand.
#5
As someone who has worked with a few dozen Brits for the better part of a decade, let me assure you that Brits are not the people you see on Masterpiece Theater. If you want to see what Brits are really like, check out the (anachronistic) WWII TV series about a group of RAF fighter pilots entitled "Piece of Cake". A friend of mine who works in London mentioned this little incident - when word of the Concorde crash of several years ago first spread, the mood on the trading floor was glum - until it was discovered that the airline was French and the passengers were German - whereupon the crowd broke out into hysterical laughter.
Many of the Brits I've met seem to either have chips on their shoulders the size of cinder blocks, or just enjoy sniping for the sake of sniping. Maybe this is why supposedly individualistic Americans work so much better in teams - they don't squabble as much or take things quite so personally.
#6
Ah, yes, another episode of "I had this stupid romantic notion and if it's wrong, it's the fault of the people who showed me it was wrong, and not my fault for being an ignoramus in the first place."
Not to mention the fact that Cinderella here would probably shake her head sadly at anyone who was so gauche as to fail to distinguish a Sunni from a Shia, an Arab from a Kurd, a Marsh Arab from one of your more dusty Arabs. And yet here she has conflated about four layers of Southern society. (Not to mention that your WV mountain folk should not be confused with your Georgia plantation society---an absolutely laughable blunder, which she has also committed.)
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
05/06/2004 16:05 Comments ||
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#8
Sorry for that -- it really should be "What a bigoted bitch".
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
05/06/2004 16:05 Comments ||
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#9
One word: Incest.
Posted by: Evert V. in NL ||
05/06/2004 16:17 Comments ||
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#10
British Aristocrats - Why Do They Hate Us?
I think "hate" is too strong a word - it's more a questions why Wyatt is so contemptuous, given that British soccer thugs present a much bigger menace than any number of Southern belles. But the fact is that English soccer thugs and Southern belles, no matter how you caricature them, do not hold a candle to the Muslim fighter who shoots women and children in the head from several yards away, or mutilates enemy civilians and hangs them from bridges. I think it is for us to be contemptuous of her conspicuous inability to take things in proportion - an inability that springs from a lack of intellectual and moral rigor that continues to infest and bring discredit to the world of hack reporters.
#11
I once had a pet pig named Petronella, until someone stole her and BBQ'ed her on the side of the road. So I know how Mr. Wyatt feels.
Posted by: ed ||
05/06/2004 16:21 Comments ||
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#12
I've met some good Englishters and some bad Englishters but I hates em all. We's Irish so therefore we hates em.
Avtually, it's amazing to me how someone could live in the South for any length of time and come away with her perception of Southerners. I lived in Woburn, Massachusetts for 2 years and found the people there to be pretty much like the people where I grew up in Alabama. They just talked funny.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
05/06/2004 16:35 Comments ||
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#13
Authoritarian clairvoyance run amok. Note the number of times this person projects the thoughts and feelings of others and generalizes about large groups. This is naked bigotry and hate speech. Inasmuch as it serves the interest of those who openly advocate the killing of all and any Americans, and the destruction of American society, it is an incitement to genocide and should be judged as such.
#14
Ms. Wyatt is being deliberately disingenuous. She writes for the Spectator and one of her columns last year described a situation in which she was mugged and nearly raped by some street thugs in London. She's throwing mud at us but she has good personal reason to know her home-grown louts are much worse. She's just toadying to the new management at the Speccie. Coward.
Posted by: mac ||
05/06/2004 16:54 Comments ||
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#15
ZF: Glad you got that out of your system. Chips on shoulders, eh?! Taking things personally? LOL
If you want to see what Brits are really like, check out the (anachronistic) WWII TV series about a group of RAF fighter pilots entitled "Piece of Cake"
Um, I don't remember that particular (apparently factually challenged) TV series, but I'm guessing it was some Second World War drama involving moustaches, lots of evil snarling huns and swooning strawberry-blondes in flowery summer dresses. Strikes me as the perfect sort of material with which to aquaint yourself with a national character and counter crude national stereotypes! Just the ticket, by jingo!
A friend of mine who works in London mentioned this little incident - when word of the Concorde crash of several years ago first spread, the mood on the trading floor was glum - until it was discovered that the airline was French and the passengers were German - whereupon the crowd broke out into hysterical laughter.
The trading floor bust out into hysterical laughter? Do you really believe that happened? Bullshit.
When was the last time British football hooligans were news in the states? How many Brits have you come across who actually were soccer hooligans? You can't really object to a foreign journalists's caricature-painting nonsense when your own opinions are pretty similarly bigoted.
#16
"Um, I don't remember that particular (apparently factually challenged) TV series, but I'm guessing it was some Second World War drama involving moustaches, lots of evil snarling huns and swooning strawberry-blondes in flowery summer dresses. Strikes me as the perfect sort of material with which to aquaint yourself with a national character and counter crude national stereotypes! Just the ticket, by jingo!"
Loved this! Can a ginger-haired Yank-ette play, Bulldog?
Having lived in England twice, once in Oxford where the UC types are pretty thick (wink, wink) on the ground, I've found that Brits from all classes can be pretty terrific to know!
'Course I'm from Texas and even though we're from one of the knuckle-dragging, mouth-breathing states, they don't hold it against us!
(The show Dallas helped a lot, as did the rep of the Dallas Cowboy football team. That and the fact that Maggie Thatcher's son married a common, but rich Texas girl and lived here in Dallas. I even saw Maggie and Dennis once when they were here visiting. Y'all come!)
But I found most British people, even the Upper Class ones, absolutely charming!
Posted by: Jen ||
05/06/2004 17:09 Comments ||
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#17
Bulldog: Um, I don't remember that particular (apparently factually challenged) TV series, but I'm guessing it was some Second World War drama involving moustaches, lots of evil snarling huns and swooning strawberry-blondes in flowery summer dresses.
Actually - no. They spent most of their time shooting each other down (in words and in the air), and being ambushed by other British squadrons and German units alike. Which may have been what happened. But I thought it was anachronistic because it may have overdone the class warfare angle. A people at war can't possibly have the energy to spend all their time sniping at each other.
#18
Zhang Fei is correct - Brits in no way resemble what you see on Masterpiece Theatre.
In my experience, I have found most Brits not only as common as dirt but dirtier than dirt.
Posted by: Deb ||
05/06/2004 17:14 Comments ||
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#19
No need to get all wrapped round the axle folks. Petronella Wyatt is a notorious lightweight. She makes Maureen Dowd seem like a journalistic giant by comparison.
The Spectator has got a reasonable history. But it has taken a sickening swerve to the left under Boris Johnson and Miss Wyatt. The only consistently good things left are Theodore Dalrymple and Mark Steyn. Expect a stinging slap down from Steyn in short order--though he may need to publish it on his own blog.
Beyond that, The Spectator is a narrow circulation pub (about 60k paid readers)with limited relevance to British political and cultural life. You'd get a more realistic appraisal of the Brits from browsing Roger's Profanisaurus.
#20
Bulldog: The trading floor bust out into hysterical laughter? Do you really believe that happened? Bullshit.
True story. My best buddy (from Noo Joisey) attests to it - he was there. Maybe they were laughing out of relief that no Brits were killed, but he'd been working there long enough - 5 years - to recognize it for what it was. OK - you can't tar an entire nation with the bloodymindedness of a few, but I have encountered enough Wyatt clones to conclude that her personality type is not uncommon in the UK.
#21
Jen - Strawberry blonde! I'm glad you enjoyed your times in England! Sorry to hear you had to live in Oxford for a while - was that recently? It's really gone downhill in the last decade or three.
ZF: Forget the plot for a moment - ask yourself a question: was it fact, or fiction?
Deb: Thanks for sharing your wisdom.
ZF and Deb: I suspect you might find the truth about British character is that most of us are actually somewhere in between Masterpiece Theatre (whatever that is) and Piece of Cake. Hard to imagine, I know, but I'm sure it's true.
#23
In my experience, I have found most Brits not only as common as dirt but dirtier than dirt.
Good grief!All nations have their good and bad sides. It looks like you guys have simply run into (oddly enough, just) the bad side. Iâve seen both. E.g., as a young lad, I was severely traumatized by a classmate who mercilessly tormented me that I couldnât spell simple words like colour (which I had the misfortune of spelling as I was taught, c-o-l-o-r). She was quite insistent, which hurt my feelings terribly. OTOH, some of my best memories are of another British, âAuntâ Burry, who plainly told me the girl was just being âplain silly.â
#24
ZF: I can tell you my own experience of the day that Air France Concorde went down was that the number of people who found the crash and loss of life anything less than tragic, was zero. I find it impossible to believe that an entire trading floor burst out into spontaneous hysterical laughter upon hearing that news. I'm inclined to believe your friend was exaggerating for effect, or not telling the whole story. Perhaps the first gallows humour jokes were doing the rounds. Maybe that's not an American custom?
#25
Bulldog: Forget the plot for a moment - ask yourself a question: was it fact, or fiction?
Dude, you're missing the point. I know who the Brits I've dealt with are like. For those who don't encounter Brits in their day-to-day lives, I'm pointing to "Piece of Cake" as an example of the kind of things they get up to. (It's actually a dramatization of a book by Derek Robinson, for those who are interested). They're perfectly nice people, but there's that chip on their collective shoulders - call it loss of empire, loss of prestige, whatever - the whole attitude is that they always did it better than those boorish Americans, who are lucky more than anything else. Wyatt's polemic is just an extended rant on that theme.
#26
ZF: It sounds to me as though the 'type' you've dealt with are the old school boys. Ex-pats? LOL Yep, I can see where the chocks away! and back in time for elevenses! impressions come from.
#27
Beyond that, The Spectator is a narrow circulation pub (about 60k paid readers)with limited relevance to British political and cultural life. You'd get a more realistic appraisal of the Brits from browsing Roger's Profanisaurus.
Exactly, this is one individual writing in one magazine with limited circulation. Does every single newspaper & magazine in the USA present a consistently positive & upbeat portrayal of the Brits? We know your film industry doesn't (think Braveheart.) Sheesh, Petronella's just an arsehole letting off steam, she doesn't deserve this much attention.
Posted by: Dave (UK) ||
05/06/2004 17:58 Comments ||
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#28
Bulldog, I lived in Oxford at Queen's College during the summer of 1978--ah, what a magical time!
My bestest friends were my scout, who loaned me her radio and a teakettle (this is like a dorm housekeeper to Americans) and my English love Kevin, who worked in the college buttery.
Best. Lover. Ever.
Posted by: Jen ||
05/06/2004 18:00 Comments ||
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#29
Dave (UK): We know your film industry doesn't (think Braveheart.)
Mel Gibson is a special case - he's got a thing about Brits*, and he's not really American, anyway - being brought up in Australia has done things to him.
* With Patriot and Braveheart, Gibson was only using dramatic license to emphasize the difference between the good and the bad guys. (And the English really did draw and quarter William Wallace - a process in which he was hanged, and while alive, emasculated, his guts removed through his anus and his heart removed while still beating and the whole mess burned before him. A straight-up hanging was a big improvement, from a human rights standpoint, upon these draconian measures). I can't really believe the average American would believe that British forces actually burned American churches with civilians inside them, any more than the average Brit would believe that an American can walk into a bank and walk out with a gun (Bowling for Columbine).
#30
Bulldog, squabbling aside, I highly recommend both the book and the TV version of "Piece of Cake". It was done in the late 80's (?), and is superbly written and superbly adapted to the screen.
In fact, I think I may just go online and order the video...
Thanks for bringing that up, Zhang !
PS. One of the main characters is a Yank who brings practical experience from the Spanish Civil War and teaches the Brits how really to fight the Luftwaffe -- but don't let that put you off !
Posted by: Carl in N.H ||
05/06/2004 18:22 Comments ||
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#31
Jen, sounds like good times. I had a friend at Christchurch College a few years ago, finishing medicine. I don't live a million miles from Oxford at the moment, but I used to go and visit him quite frequently. Still go occasionally for a punt on the Isis or a few pints in the town.
...We know your film industry doesn't (think Braveheart.)
Indeed. The number of people who take that ahistorical abomination seriously is amazing. Do you think we think Michael Moore exemplifies how America looks at itself? And why are so many of the Hollywood bad guy characters Brits, huh? Alan Rickman gets the dollars, the rest of us get the bum rap.
Posted by: Carl in N.H ||
05/06/2004 18:25 Comments ||
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#33
One of my secret pleasures is to enjoy a good laugh everytime I hear an self-proclaimed enlightened person tell me how they look down on "Southerners", "conservatives" or "Christians" or "Republicans" because they are all bigots and ignorant fools.
Anyone who condemns large swaths of "theys" is condemning themselves as a bigot and ignorant fool - they are just to foolish to realise it.
Posted by: Anny Emous ||
05/06/2004 18:26 Comments ||
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#35
And why are so many of the Hollywood bad guy characters Brits, huh? Alan Rickman gets the dollars, the rest of us get the bum rap.
'cuz we like our evil masterminds to be cool, intelligent, and refined. A British accent is a Hollywood shortcut for refinement. Hell, take the dumbest British guy you can find, and a lot of Americans will think he knows stuff just because of the accent.
Posted by: Cthulhu Akbar ||
05/06/2004 18:34 Comments ||
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#36
Gibson was only using dramatic license to emphasize the difference between the good and the bad guys
Yeah, in precisely the same way that Michael Moore uses dramatic licence to paint the good guys and the bad guys with buckets of black and white paint. Do you think that sort of punishment was an exclusively English thing at that time? Of course not! Gibson's Braveheart is woefully inaccurate anti-English propaganda. I can't comment on Patriot as I haven't seen it.
#37
Bulldog: And why are so many of the Hollywood bad guy characters Brits, huh? Alan Rickman gets the dollars, the rest of us get the bum rap.
Because Brits are good sports, great actors (in English, no less) and don't take offense. Above all, Hollywood is politically-correct and focused on the bottom line. If Brits were to start making death threats, periodically delivered upon, and the British government decided to deny access to Hollywood films featuring villains with British accents, Hollywood would stop doing this. No American thinks of Brits as villains - these are roles that could be played by anyone else, but are portrayed with the most dash and style by British actors. On top of this, Britain is a nation of good sports, unlike Koreans, for example - recall the ruckus over every facet of the Bond film.
#39
Mel Gibson does seem to have it in for the English. Not sure why, but I do know that his crazy father moved the family to Oz because he interpreted the assassination of South Vietnam's Catholic President, Ngo Dinh Diem, as proof that the US was waging an anti-Catholic war in Vietnam. The old fool said that he didn't want his sons to fight in a war against Catholicism.
The problem of course is that the enemy in Vietnam were also Diem's enemies and he was disposed of for corruption and incompetence, not for being on the other side.
It is also worth noting that Australia was heavily involved in Vietnam at the time of the Diem assassination and, like the US, it eventually sent draftees to fight there.
Conclusion: Mel's dad is, and has always been, as crazy as a march hare and some of this may have rubbed off on Mel himself.
#41
Our friends in Britain should keep in mind that many Americans (including my humble self) regard Hollywood as a hive of scum and villainy rivalled only by Madison Avenue, Berkeley, and Paris on the global scale of depravity.
Witness, for example, the prominence of various Hollywood prostitutes celebrities in the anti-war gang known as International ANSWER, an organization that advocates the unconditional release of Saddam Hussein.
#42
BigEd: Mel Gibson's portrayal of Robert Brus, future King of Scotland, in Braveheart makes him wishy-washy too.
Dramatic license - the whole point of Braveheart was that the Scottish nobility were too cowardly / greedy to fight. The reality is that they had no problem fighting - under Robert the Bruce's banner. But when you're making a film about William Wallace as the hero, it wouldn't do to have Robert the Bruce upstaging him.
#43
ZF, Columbine: that's "documentary" with full scare quotes, if you please. Both contain elements of propaganda, it's just that Gibson's is less overtly political. Did you know that many people credited Braveheart, at the time, with precipitating demands for Scottish devolution and a separate Scottish parliament?! That's arguably a bigger real-world influence than the overt political tub-thumping of Michael Moore has yet achieved.
No American thinks of Brits as villains
You mean American cinema audiences are really sniggering behind their popcorn every time Rickman , Irons etc. strike their sinister poses and sneer menacingly at the camera?! They'd be devastated if they knew.
Cthulhu Akbar, Sir, with such impeccable manners must be a Southern gent...
#44
Bulldog: You mean American cinema audiences are really sniggering behind their popcorn every time Rickman , Irons etc. strike their sinister poses and sneer menacingly at the camera?! They'd be devastated if they knew.
You got that right - these guys are like the neo-Nazi villains in the Sum of All Fears - politically-correct stand-ins for really dangerous people.
#45
Gibson was only using dramatic license to emphasize the difference between the good and the bad guys. (And the English really did draw and quarter William Wallace - a process in which he was hanged, and while alive, emasculated, his guts removed through his anus and his heart removed while still beating and the whole mess burned before him.)
That was the zakat in those days, treason doth never prosper etc... I doubt William Wallace treated suspected traitors any more humanely, certainly Robert de Bruce didn't (hmmmm, a certain incident in Greyfriars Abbey in Drunfries does spring to mind.) Edward was a vicious but effective mediaeval politician, as were Wallace & de Bruce, and do you realy think they were fighting for 'the people'? AFAIK a lot of the Scotish Aristos sided with Edward cos they prefered the idea of a distant king king in London to a nearby king in Edinburgh.
Posted by: Dave (UK) ||
05/06/2004 19:05 Comments ||
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#46
Bulldog--
Maybe you never got to see the episode of "Saturday Night Live" over there when Jeremy Irons guested. There was a skit that kind of mocked Americans' fascination with upper-class British accents. A group of women cornered him and made him say things like "I am not good enough for you." Y'know, the usual things guys say when they are breaking up with a woman. The whole joke was that it wasn't any more believable coming from him, it just sounded better with that accent.
What can I say.....hearing Alan Rickman spout off about an evil plan just sounds so much more, well, cool/sexy/dangerous than hearing any American actor say the exact same thing to this Yank. Take it as a compliment!
#48
Let me state for the record that I am no Anglophobe - where I used to think "inside every Canadian is an American struggling to get out", I now think this of the average Briton. I also think that Eisenhower's betrayal of France, Israel and the UK during the Suez crisis was one of the greatest foreign policy mistakes* of the modern era. That single act led to France and Britain pulling back from their colonial possessions all over the world, necessitating American involvement to fill the power vacuum. It was nothing short of a disaster - Eisenhower should have left the petty alliance squabbles of WWII behind and supported that joint effort.
* Another instance of punishing your friends and rewarding your enemies.
#49
Zhang--well said! Ike never made a bigger mistake and we're still paying for it. If Nasser had done an Allende in 1956 the West would have had a LOT fewer problems from Arab terrorists. It was Suez followed by De Gaulle's capitulation in Algeria that got them thinking they could play with the big boys.
Back on topic: Petronella Wyatt is not British aristocracy: she's an import of Hungarian manufacture.
Posted by: mac ||
05/06/2004 23:20 Comments ||
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#50
A society which can produce men such as Alistaire Cooke cannot be all bad, heh. This is a family spat, which is why it got so testy, instigated by an outsider with pretentions of grandeur. Petronella should be ridden out of town on a rail for trying to stir up trouble amongst the cousins.
#51
Of course, Alistair Cooke became an American, which shows great taste. Wasn't Mel Gibson's first big movie Gallipoli? He's always been anti-English. As an old joke goes, âThe acute Angles went north, and the obtuse Angles went south.â
One English television series that this situation reminds me of was the 1980 short series, An Englishman's Castle, an alternate history story. If anyone knows where I can find a tape or DVD, please let me know.
Mark Steyn in a recent column reminds us that while the English have forgotten everything they learned about their experiences in Iraq and the Middle East, common US soldiers have been studying their history. Ms. Wyatt is a blind prig. I just hope she isn't too influential.
Still, I hope Lynndie England and her fellow soldiers get hammered, and that the publicity does not derail their trials.
Posted by: Eric Jablow ||
05/07/2004 0:21 Comments ||
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#52
I know it's late but I've read the thread with much amusement. And all I can say is your all a bunch of evil monsters. There I said it, all total jerks and masterbaters. Just kidding. What another great day at Rantburg.
I have nothing but great respect for our UK bros. They are us, they just arn't us. Like Canadiens, who are cool just jerks and masterbaters, nope, take that back, my bad. I've had the opportunity to see all aspects of UK folk. There was Ms Bush who lived next door to me in Felixstowe, a vet of the London bombings too my mates on the church basketball team (bunch of ball hogging chumps) to Lord Tollemache who opened his 1000 year old house to my mom, dad and myself (place had a drawbridge that Lord Tolly said had been raised every night since the time of conquest).
But as to the remark about our southron bros. Please!
#54
Bulldog, I have been an outsider looking in many different cultural situations. For three and a half years I lived in rural Eastern North Carolina where it took me six months or so before I could understand what several of my employees were saying on the first listen. I lived another year in rural Kentucky where one of my neighbors tried to convince me for a half an hour that the folks on the other side of the river in Ohio were somehow different and inferior to "Briars." I imagine that there are skinheads and Klansmen of one kind or another in most cultures on the face of the earth.
In my experience social ignorance seems to evaporate where humans are challenged by being thrown in social situations where they are the outsider or where all are the outsider. It is an uncommon person that can make it through boot camp with internal racism unchallenged. This woman soldier is totally responsible for her own actions and the damage she did to the team that is the United States Military through her own immature depravity. Military service itself provides the type of challenge and discipline that should have made the actions of these morons unlikely. Strong leadership from junior officers and senior enlisted should have prevented this revolting behavior from becoming more than a stupid idea in some bozo's head.
If the writer of this article truly lived where she did and missed the honor, caring, friendship, generosity and work ethic that you find in rural or industrial America that is strictly her problem. She certainly would have had a similar experience with blue-collar folks in Manchester, Santiago, Alexandria or Lima.
If this condescending person remains convinced that this woman should get a free pass because she is culturally deprived than why would this type of disgusting display of inhuman behavior not be the norm in rural America.
I would think that many Jordies(sp?) would feel quite a local North Carolina bar watching NASCAR- that is not where the problem lies. The problem is that the writer of this article would feel all to comfortable in a group of our homegrown Tranzi's as they belittled honest blue-collar folk from either country as the group of snobs snootily ate a chicken dinner with the correct utensils.
respectfullly,
Super Hose -
Andover graduate
Dorito eater
Fan of William Shakespear
and the Cleveland Browns
Posted by: Super Hose ||
05/07/2004 2:33 Comments ||
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#55
I mispelled Shakespeare - so much for my credibility.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
05/07/2004 2:35 Comments ||
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#56
Lynndie England is from West Virginia, not Virginia. It is not matter of distancing oneself from the woman since 2 of the people implicated in the abuses were from Virginia. This is a matter of accuracy. If Ms.Wyatt could not get this one fact of England's ancestry correct, then it calls into question the other 'facts' in her article. After all, Ms. Wyatt herself said she lived in Virginia for 4 months -- don't you think she could have learned a little geography? That shouldn't have been too hard for a 1989 graduate of UCL with a history degree.
Ms. Wyatt apparently enjoys belittling people for a living. I imagine she doesn't have fan clubs in Cornwall or Hartlepool either since she dumped on them too. At least she hates people on both sides of the Atlantic.
Needless to say, I am a Virginian from birth with ancestors living here beginning in 1741. I guess Ms. Wyatt would also hold that against me since she probably still regards me as an uncouth colonist. 'Stolen pigs and turkeys roasted on the roadside' are not, to my knowledge, Virginia traditions.
It seems that commentators of the chatty elite on both sides of the Atlantic enjoy painting with a broad brush. It is the 'in' thing to unfairly stereotype people, and it pays the bills too.
I was tempted to respond to Ms. Wyatt's comments regarding Virginia women and harridans, but that would have been way too easy. To borrow from Disraeli, being a Virginian, and a Southerner, I have better manners.
Posted by: Dave ||
05/10/2004 11:02 Comments ||
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Fifteen Chinese workers were killed when storage shelves stacked high with garlic collapsed in central China. Some 34 workers were buried by tonnes of garlic after 10-metre (30 foot) high shelving broke at Chenzhai Cold Storage in Zhengzhou city, Henan province. Xinhua news agency said a major rescue operation was launched - with 15 bodies recovered and 19 people pulled out alive and taken to hospitals. The owner of the cold storage warehouse is being held by police, said Xinhua. Chinese newspapers said the accident happened on Wednesday morning as the workers were stacking garlic cloves. Rescuers worked throughout the day and into the night to dig out the workers weighed down by the garlic and metal beams. The cause of the accident is under investigation, according to local sources. Thousands of people are killed by accidents at work in China every year. First coal miners, now food processors. These guys just canât seem to run a safe operation even if their crewâs life depended on it. I guess this all goes to show that garlic isnât any protection from the real bloodsuckers.
Tomorrow's headline: "41 dead in runaway Chinese icecream machine"... And the day after that: "Berserk Chinese Barbie slays 16"...
Posted by: Zenster ||
05/06/2004 5:48:13 AM ||
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Isn't Zhengzhou the city that Dayne zapped with Grazer One in the movie Under Siege 2 - Dark Territory? Conspiracy theories abound...
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/06/2004 1:08:36 AM ||
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Hummmmmm? So Steve, is that really what minesweepers look like now? That is one odd looking, but also oddly effective looking, ship. Very strange. I know that I'm not a Navy guy, but still I thought I was pretty much up on things military....but obviously not in reference to the Navy.
#2
Traveller, That looks like one of the high speed catamaran transports the USN is leasing from builder in Tasmania. Various version have beeen proposed including a mini aircraft carrier with V/Stol fighter/attack aircraft. Cool!
Posted by: Aussie Mike ||
05/06/2004 3:59 Comments ||
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#3
I wonder if the mini-sub being tested is destined for the litoral combat ship.
#8
Ignore the name, if I were to make a list of military applications for autonomous robots, mine hunting/clearing would be number one. These things are intended to be disposable. Suicide robots anyone?
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/06/2004 1:07:13 AM ||
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The Germans are going to build it? Does anyone at State remember the Embassy in Moscow that we had to nearly tear down completely because the Soviets embedded surveillance devices throughout? We don't have friends only common interests (at times). Helllloooooo?
Political Correctness is nothing more than another name for intolerance. Cal Poly Settles Suit by Student
A Cal Poly San Luis Obispo student who sued the school for allegedly violating his 1st Amendment rights reached a settlement with the university this week. The school promised to expunge Steve Hinkle's disciplinary record and to pay $40,000 in legal fees. Hinkle, a 23-year-old industrial technology major, was reprimanded in November 2002 after several students complained that fliers he had posted in the school's multicultural center were offensive. Hinkle, president of the Cal Poly College Republican Club, was advertising a speech by Mason Weaver, the author of "It's OK to Leave the Plantation." Weaver argues that reliance on government aid enslaves blacks.
The Cal Poly Judicial Affairs Office, after a seven-hour hearing in February 2003, found Hinkle guilty of "disruption of a campus event," after several students said the fliers distracted them from a meeting, Hinkle said. The school had ordered Hinkle to submit a written apology to the offended students. Hinkle refused, saying his constitutional right to free speech was suppressed. He contacted the Brooklyn-based Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, which filed a lawsuit against Cal Poly. "He didn't do anything wrong, period, ever," said Greg Lukianoff, director of Legal and Public Advocacy. "It's not like the university didn't have the right to an opinion. If they thought that was offensive, they're free to say that." The student, now in the school's graduate program, said he was glad the fight was over. "If they've shown any intelligence throughout this process, it's that they settled with me," Hinkle said. "I'm glad this is over so I can actually concentrate on school. I can go back to hanging up fliers and being more active. I would absolutely do it again." The politically correct totalitarian left that has infected our universities suffered a setback.
Link to Case Detail Cal Poly SLO Pres. Warren Baker should be fired by the state board of regents for this case going as far as it did. He cost taxpayers not only the $40,000, but enforced California already tarnished image as home to a bunch a bunch of kooks. More Info
The "offensive" book by an "inauthentic" black conservative author.
Posted by: BigEd ||
05/06/2004 11:20:55 AM ||
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In other words, the admin thinks it's not ok to leave the plantation.
#2
The 'Offensive' poster.... Hinkle was summoned to meet with school officials. They told him that the lecture announcement was offensive to the African-American students in the lounge. One administrator suggested that his being white and having blond hair and blue eyes was a "flashpoint."
Translation: It would have been ok if he had been black.
#3
The Cal Poly Judicial Affairs Office, after a seven-hour hearing in February 2003, found Hinkle guilty of "disruption of a campus event," after several students said the fliers distracted them from a meeting, Hinkle said.
It would appear Hinkle was held responsible for the fact that other students possessed the attention span of fruit flies.
Work with me here, isn't it a good thing to "Leave the Plantation?" Wasn't that one of the principles so many Yankees died for in the Civil War? Most of all, it took a $40,000 court case to reach this conclusion? Looks like it isn't just the students who are exhibiting low function intellectual capacity.
#4
The sight of you offends me. You are a white male, and breathing.
The PCs have learned Dick Morris' triangulation.
He supposedly "interupped" a Bible Study sponsored by the "Campus Crusade for Christ", who are usually conservative.
If you read the transcript of the hearing, The CCC is not a recognized club as Cal Poly SLO.
Of course the meeting was supposed to start at 7PM, and they were or were not (this is unclear) sitting around eating pizza and drinking Coca-Cola when hew came by (within insult distance of the "good" Christians) and put the flyer up on a public bulletin board which happened before 7.
HUH?
Now the campus policeman came by and took the report after 7, but one of the witnesses said thet he had put up the flyer at a time that was AFTER the policeman came by and took the report of the disturbance he created by posting the flyer.
HUH?
edited for brevity
The productivity of Americaâs companies rose solidly in the opening quarter of this year, and new filings for jobless benefits plunged last week to their lowest level in more than three years, good news for the countryâs economic health. The Labor Department reported Thursday that productivity â the amount an employee produces for every hour on the job â rose at a 3.5 percent annual rate in the January-to-March quarter, up from a 2.5 percent pace registered in the previous quarter. The latest reading on productivity marked the best showing since the third quarter of 2003 and matched analystsâ forecasts. In a second report from the department, new applications filed for unemployment insurance dropped by a seasonally adjusted 25,000 to 315,000, for the week ending May 1. That marked the lowest level since Oct. 28, 2000. The layoffs picture presented by the jobless claims filings looked better than economists had expected. They had forecast claims to dip to around 335,000 last week.
Posted by: Jarhead ||
05/06/2004 10:47:01 AM ||
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More productivity -and- more jobs? Buh-bye, JFK2.
#2
What does Kerry have left to run on? The economy is good (oh no), this time he is losing the Vietnam war, his friends at the UN and old europe got caught with their hands in the oil for food jar at the wrong time, the 911 commission is crashing into a partisan Gorelick wall, and in spite of the difficulties of an on going war Americans seem to resent helping the other side. What is left for Kerry to do?
Posted by: Sam ||
05/06/2004 18:54 Comments ||
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President Megawati Sukarnoputri has chosen the leader of Indonesia's largest Muslim group as her vice-presidential running mate. Hasyim Muzadi is the chairman of the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), which has 40 million followers. Mrs Megawati is currently trailing behind Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ahead of the 5 July presidential poll. Supporters hope links with a Muslim group - in the world's most populous Muslim country - may help her cause. About 148 million voters will go to the polls in July, to choose a president and vice-president in the country's first direct presidential election. "Hasyim Muzadi has expressed his willingness to be part of a presidential and vice-presidential duet," Mrs Megawati said in a speech to announce her choice of running mate. PDI-P deputy chairman Roy Janis said the choice was aimed at bringing solid Muslim credentials to Megawati's re-election bid. Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim nation, and the NU runs mosques, schools and medical clinics throughout the country. "Hasyim Muzadi is expected to bring along his supporters from NU. What we have is an ideal combination of nationalist and Islamic," Mr Janis told Reuters news agency. It is unclear how much influence Mr Muzadi will have over the Muslim electorate. Many NU members remain loyal to Mrs Megawati's predecessor, Abdurrahman Wahid, who once headed NU. Mr Wahid - who founded the NU-linked National Awakening Party - has refused to endorse Mr Muzadi's candidacy.
#1
Does Indonesia have a sucession policy where the vice-president becomes president if Mrs Megawati happens to catch the C-4 virus?
Posted by: Steve ||
05/06/2004 12:09 Comments ||
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#2
I think that's it Steve, and next in succession is the Mufti pro tem.
Posted by: Carl in N.H. ||
05/06/2004 21:30 Comments ||
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#3
A rough description of Nahdlatul Ulama (of which Hasyim Muzadi is the chairman), and Indonesian religious/political dimensions, was previously posted here on Rantburg. This might not be as bad as it seems at first blush, but I sure hope other candidates prevail (and not Wiranto).
Pilot studies have been carried out to construct the worldâs largest petrochemical plant in Iran, said here Tuesday, an official in Iranâs Petrochemical Industries Development Management. The plant that is to be constructed in Assaluyeh is planned to produce 1.900,000 tons of olefin yearly, added deputy chairman of the Iranian Petrochemical Industries Development Management, Mohammad Khayyat. âMore than 1.3 billion dollars is needed for the construction of the unit. French, German and Iranian companies have been invited to participate in the bid,â commented the official. Khayyat further explained, âAlso, agreements have already been signed with foreign and Iranian companies to build two petrochemical units in Ilam and Kharg.â (I wonder what else those mullahs will be attempting to produce at this Iranian petrol-chemical (weapons) plant)
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
05/06/2004 12:45:30 AM ||
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If the plant's really that big at least it'll be hard to miss in the bombsights. Hope they have good insurance.
#4
She is still a 21 year old daughter of someone, whose "home" is a trailer in WV... who claims to have been in the wrong place at the wrong time last year. She deserves a little benefit of the doubt and due process, so I feel the need to cut her a little slack... military justice is a brutal enough process without being the poster child for "soldiers gone wild"..
Despite what everyone morning announcer is saying, it ain't torture, yet anyway...Playing forced "Naked Twister" with other Fedayeen may be bad for your (arab) street cred, but it is still HAZING...not torture.
#5
I hope these Iraqi's are grateful. Do they realize how much you gotta pay for this treatment in the States? When will we stop subsidizing their fetishes?
Posted by: John Simmins ||
05/06/2004 15:11 Comments ||
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Genetics suggests that it's unlikely that her child will be smart...
Cincinnati: In a moment largely unnoticed by the throngs of people in Lebanon waiting for autographs from the president of the United States, George W. Bush stopped to hold a teenager's head close to his heart. Lynn Faulkner, his daughter, Ashley, and their neighbor, Linda Prince, eagerly waited to shake the president's hand Tuesday at the Golden Lamb Inn. He worked the line at a steady campaign pace, smiling, nodding and signing autographs until Prince spoke: "This girl lost her mom in the World Trade Center on 9-11."
Bush stopped and turned back. "He changed from being the leader of the free world to being a father, a husband and a man," Faulkner said. "He looked right at her and said, 'How are you doing?' He reached out with his hand and pulled her into his chest."
"I could hear her say, 'I'm OK,' " Faulkner said. "That's more emotion than she has shown in 21/2 years. Then he said, 'I can see you have a father who loves you very much.' And I said, 'I do, Mr. President, but I miss her mother every day.' It was a special moment." This is the sort of thing you want people to see, but then you don't -- you know that when Ted Rall and Michael Moore get close to it they'll get their odor all over it. -Fred
Bush caught smothering small child in broad daylight. Congress asked to open investigation into aqusations child abuse
Posted by: Frank Martin ||
05/06/2004 12:11 Comments ||
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This is the kind of fine man that President Bush is.
Thank God for him and may God be with the Faulkners and all the other loved ones of the 9/11 victims.
Posted by: Jen ||
05/06/2004 12:12 Comments ||
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#4
Not a fake pouty-lip-i-feel-your-pain clintonian slickness bone in this mans body.
#5
Ted Rall and Michael Moore Are they still here? I thought they had joined the parade of spongioformed-brain leftys like the formerly cute Gwenewth Paltrow in Europe because this is such a dastardly place.
#6
I grew up in the town next to this one before moving to lefty California. Trust me...the people there know a real leader and honest man when they see one.....Kerry ain't it.
Posted by: Anny Emous ||
05/06/2004 12:43 Comments ||
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#8
Prediction: some Michael-Moore type will try to turn this against Bush. They will say, "Look at him, staring into the camera with fake, contemptible compassion, when what he is really doing is exploiting a photo-op."
Response: He was looking at the girl's father (who took the photo), not mugging for a press photographer. He had no idea this photo would ever be seen outside of that family. And you are a bad person for suggesting otherwise.
There! I just won the imaginary debate I created, huzzah!
#9
Too bad this will probably never see the light of day of, for example 'Good Morning We hate America' or 'ABC Nightly news Hatefest' or ABCNBCCBSCNNBBC...
Yet if Kerry farts they are all over him giving them his 'blessings'....
Whatâs interesting is that the bulk of the weapons turning up in jihadi hands are of Russian (and not Chinese, as I had expected) origin. Thereâs this really complex set of interactions going on, where the Russians fight one set of jihadis and sell weapons to another (who may in turn provide these weapons to the jihadis who are fighting the Russians). Richard Pipes was right - the Russian threat was not primarily the result of Communists taking power in the Kremlin - it has always been a problem of Russian imperial aspirations, which preceded Communism and has continued after the fall of the Communist Party from power.
Aleksander Grigoryev, an editor for Washington ProFile (search), a non-profit international wire service that pumps American news into the hands of Russian-speaking subscribers, said the misunderstanding between the two cultures is at an all-time high.
He said a lethal combination of the war in Iraq, the Russian view of American foreign policy and culture, along with a state-run media that thrives on anti-U.S. bias, has led to a growing âhatredâ for the American way of life among the Russian people.
âRight now, state-run Russian media is a huge engine of anti-American propaganda,â said Grigoryev, who added that the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, which Russia did not support, took these feelings over the top. âThis problem is extremely serious.â
"Iraq broke down relations completely," said Zlobin, adding that the Russian people turned quickly on Americans when the United States led a coalition to invade Iraq despite its failure to get a U.N. resolution, which Russia opposed. "Itâs become a state policy to hate Americans."
But the State Department has distanced itself from charges against Russia. In a February briefing following Secretary of State Colin Powellâs visit to the region, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Elizabeth Jones said both countries are working together on fighting terrorism in former Soviet strongholds. Talks over Russiaâs sale of weapons to Iran and its nuclear program have also been progressing.
"We are able to talk about these issues in quite an open and frank manner, and thatâs valuable," Jones said.
Posted by: Zhang Fei ||
05/06/2004 9:55:22 AM ||
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A Libyan court sentenced six Bulgarian medics to death on Thursday on charges that they intentionally infected more than 400 children with the AIDS virus. International observers had been monitoring the trial in the coastal city of Benghazi, where the Bulgarians - five nurses and a doctor - were employed at a hospital when they were arrested in February 1999. Bulgaria has claimed they have been tortured in Libyan custody. Prosecutors demanded death sentences, accusing the Bulgarians of intentionally infecting the children with HIV-contaminated blood as part of an experiment to find a cure for AIDS. Twenty-three of the children reportedly have since died of AIDS. As soon as the sentence was announced, five relatives of the infected children shouted: "Allahu Akbar!"
"I thank god for this sentence," said Abdel Razek al-Odaibi, a father of an infected child. "If there is a greater sentence than death, I would have wished it for them" Al-Odaibi brought his infected son, Akram, 6, to court. He was infected when he was 12 months old. Human rights groups have claimed that Libya concocted that story to cover up poor safety in its medical clinics. Libya initially claimed the infections were part of a conspiracy by the CIA and Israeli intelligence - though it has backed away from those allegations. All six had pleaded innocent, and experts for the defense have argued poor hygiene likely led to the contamination. Dr. Luc Montagnier, the French researcher who co-discovered the AIDS virus, testified that the contamination happened in 1997 - more than a year before the Bulgarians were hired to work there. But a commission of court-appointed Libyan doctors rejected the Western expertâs testimony. The head of the five-judge panel that heard the case, Fadallah el-Sherif, announced the sentencing.
The speaker of Bulgariaâs parliament, Ognyan Gerdzhikov, said that the verdicts will be appealed. Under Libyan law, people to condemned to death automatically have the right to appeal. The European Union, Amnesty International and other organizations have criticized the proceedings, and Bulgarian Foreign Minister Solomon Pasi claims the medics were tortured. The suspects have said they were jolted with electricity, beaten with sticks and repeatedly jumped on while strapped to their beds. Two of the women said they were raped. Late last month, European Commission President Romano Prodi met with Gadhafi and raised the issue of the Bulgarians. Prodi later said he was "fully confident that we will see in the next few weeks satisfactory solutions," though there was no sign whether Gadhafi would interfere.
Posted by: TS(vice girl) ||
05/06/2004 7:54:34 AM ||
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The dollar lost ground on Wednesday, chalking up a four-week low against the euro after the Federal Open Market Committee said it could afford to be "measured" in raising interest rates from 46-year lows. As widely expected, the committee said the upside and downside risks to sustainable growth were now "roughly equal" and the risks to price stability have "moved into balance".
The well-worn phrase that the FOMC could be "patient" in removing its policy accommodation also disappeared, but the replacement - "that policy accommodation can be removed at a pace that is likely to be measured" - created as many questions as it answered.
Most took the statement to mean that US rates will not rise in June. With no meeting planned for July, August would thus be the first opportunity for an increase. "The FOMC has set itself up to where its earliest hike canât come until August 10 because the statement is insufficient to prep the market for a June 30 rate hike," said Aziz McMahon, currency strategist at ABN Amro.
However with the doves holding sway, the dollar extended Tuesdayâs sell-off, losing Y1 against the yen to Y108.65 and slipping to a four-week low against the euro of $1.2179. The euro was generally strong, recording a seven-week high of £0.6789 against sterling, aided by a modest uptick in the health of the eurozone service sector.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
05/06/2004 12:42:34 AM ||
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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.
The 'Offensive' poster....
Cincinnati: In a moment largely unnoticed by the throngs of people in Lebanon waiting for autographs from the president of the United States, George W. Bush stopped to hold a teenager's head close to his heart. Lynn Faulkner, his daughter, Ashley, and their neighbor, Linda Prince, eagerly waited to shake the president's hand Tuesday at the Golden Lamb Inn. He worked the line at a steady campaign pace, smiling, nodding and signing autographs until Prince spoke: "This girl lost her mom in the World Trade Center on 9-11." 
