This is the time of year that fighting traditionally tapers off in Afghanistan as winter sets in, so it's probably not too surprising that the Taliban's latest offensive is on the propaganda front. Ah. The cockroaches are becoming civilized.
First there were videos, including one obtained by CNN that shows multiple beheadings as well as preparations for attacks and recruitment of suicide bombers.
Now, the Taliban has put out a code of conduct for its commanders and fighters -- including when to kill teachers and how to prevent sexual abuse. According to Pakistani journalist Khawar Mehdi Rizvi, who obtained a copy of the 30-point plan and provided it to CNN, the instructions have been issued to district level commanders in Afghanistan in a small handbook.
The document, which says it was approved by the elusive Taliban leader Mullah Muhammad Omar, was apparently first given to members of the insurgent group's Shura council during a secret meeting in late September or October.
#1
I'll worry about increased professionalization when they stop throwing recruits still covered with Peshawar dust across the border to become part of 200:1 casualty ratios. This document is compounded of equal parts wishful thinking and "My eyes are closed, you can't see me" toddler conjuration, by hidden commanders who can only hope they are far enough from the border that the Americans won't try to hunt them down.
#3
This rule sheet reads like an effort to put a kinder, gentler, more moderate and professional face on the movement."
Seems to be working. Even though they saw the head off an occasional teacher, the US State Dept. still refers to the Taliban as simply an Insurgent Group that occasionally uses terrorist methods to achieve their goals. Its called Branding Bayybee!
Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri arrives in Kabul today (Thursday) for talks on tribal councils aimed at stemming the growing Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan and putting an end to the worst fighting in that country since the regime was ousted in 2001.
The foreign ministers visit comes amid accusations from senior Afghan intelligence officials that Islamabad still supports the Taliban and warnings from Kabuls western allies that the insurgents are being bolstered by the ability to shelter in Pakistan.
Afghanistan and Pakistan have agreed on holding jirgas of community leaders from each country to find a solution to the ongoing violence. We hope that the real representatives from across Pakistan will take part in the (Afghan) jirga, said Karim Rahimi, spokesman for Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
Afghanistan wants all tribes to take part in the councils, not just the Pashtuns from the main Pakistani border areas. And bring your drums!
But still there is a big gap on positions of the two governments on jirgas and other issues, according to Rahimullah Yusufzai, a newspaper editor and expert on Afghan affairs. Pakistanis want more restricted jirgas that should include local tribal elders while Afghans are interested in broad-based gathering including parliamentarians, local councillors, representatives of civil society and NGOs, he said, adding that it was not easy to bridge this gap.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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MOGADISHU, Somalia - Residents of a southern Somalia town who do not pray five times a day will be beheaded, an Islamic courts official said Wednesday, adding the edict will be implemented in three days. Public places such as shops and tea houses in Bulo Burto, about 124 miles northeast of the capital, Mogadishu, should be closed during prayer time and no one should be on the streets, said Sheik Hussein Barre Rage, the chairman of the town's Islamic court.
Those who do not follow this edict "will definitely be beheaded according to Islamic law," Rage told The Associated Press by phone. "As Muslims, we should practice Islam fully, not in part, and that is what our religion enjoins us to do."
He said that the courts are announcing the edict over loudspeakers in the town. The decision is not binding on courts in other towns. Won't have to be.
Somalia's Islamic courts have made varying interpretations of Quranic law, some applying a more strict and radical version of Islamic law than others. As a result of such disparate variations, residents in the capital of Mogadishu complained, forcing the Council of Islamic Courts officials in October to set up an appeals court with better-educated judges.
Their sometimes strict and often severe interpretation of Islam has raised the specter of Afghanistan's ousted Taliban regime, and contrasts with the moderate Islam that has dominated Somali culture for centuries. Some of the courts have introduced public executions, floggings of convicts, bans on women swimming at Mogadishu's public beaches, and the sale and chewing of khat, a leafy stimulant consumed across the Horn of Africa and in the Middle East.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
"As Muslims, we should practice Islam fully, not in part, and that is what our religion enjoins us to do."
It is a bit hard to practice Islam fully without your head. Still, much of Islam is brain-optional.
#2
Remember that such prayers are not done in the privacy of home, but in the street; public prayer has been a great tool of the islamic order : everybody must show his devotion to the Master Religion by praying ostencibly five times a day; perfect way to spot the mild and the recalcitrant.
Side effect is, a society which grinds to a perfect halt five times daily is not going to be very productive, but, hey, scriptural answer is to plunder neighbouring non-muslim societies, so, no big deal.
The UN Security Council has voted unanimously to authorise a regional force to protect the Somali government which is under increasing pressure from the Union of Islamic Courts and has lifted an arms embargo to allow the force to be equipped.
Islamic Courts fighters have taken control of the capital and most of southern Somalia since June. The US-sponsored resolution urged the Islamic Courts fighters to stop any further military expansion and to join the transitional government in talks to achieve a political settlement in the country which has not had an effective government since 1991.
It threatened Security Council action against those who block peace efforts or attempt to overthrow the government but no specific measures were mentioned. Critics of the resolution, including some non-governmental organisations, accuse the Security Council of taking sides in supporting the transitional government. The government was formed with the help of the UN two years ago but it has struggled to assert its authority against the Islamic Courts.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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Cairo, 7 Dec. (AKI) - A number of young Egyptian Jihadis fighting in Iraq took part in a September attack in the insurgent stronghold of Ramadi in which American troops died, according to the pan-Arab daily Al-Sharq al-Awsat. The paper cites the findings of an ongoing investigation by Egyptian security forces being carried out in Marsa Matrouh - a tourist location some 400 kilometres northwest of the Egyptian capital, Cairo, where the homegrown Jihadis are from.
The Egyptian authorities on Thursday deported eight French citizens and two Belgians suspected of belonging to a terror cell they smashed last week. Egyptian security forces are hunting five Egyptians alleged to belong to the cell. Two of them were identified by state media as Ramadan el Nagdi and Islam Sabri, both medical students at the al-Azhar Islamic University and originally from the Nile Delta area.
The cell allegedly had contacts with a Syrian suicide bomber who blew himself upon on 28 November on the border between Lebanon and Syria, according to the state media. The uncovering of the cell, which allegedly contained Western and Middle Eastern operatives, has highlighted the security issues Egypt faces. From Ayatollah, Inc., apparently
Most of the terror suspects arrested are aged between 20 and 30, had been living in Egypt for some time, and are students of Arabic or Islam.
Billionaires, former KGB spies and Chechen rebels joined members of Alexander Litvinenkos family for his funeral yesterday at Highgate cemetery in London.
What was meant to be a private, non-denominational service was interrupted by a Muslim imam who pushed his way to the front of the mourners to conduct prayers over the coffin. Litvinenkos father had claimed that his son had converted to Islam on his deathbed.
His wife, Marina, restrained a number of burly Russian minders from intervening to stop the imam, pleading with them: Remember why we are here.
She held on to the hand of her 12-year-son, Anatole, who stared straight ahead at the lead-lined, airtight coffin in which officials insisted Litvinenko was buried to avoid any health risks.
The exiled Russian oligarch, Boris Berezovsky, was among the pallbearers, together with the Chechen Foreign Minister, Akhmed Zakayev.
Both Litvinenkos parents, Walter and Nina Belyavskaya, were at the graveside along with his first wife, Natalia, and a group of 50 family friends.
Earlier it was revealed that Litvinenko had taken part in a citizenship ceremony in October using a false name, Edwin Carter.
It is understood that Whitehall officials knew that he had changed his name for his own protection.
#1
From the comments to the article at the link, a very good question:
Wait a minute. First the authorities say that Polonium-210 poses no threat to the public unless it's ingested. They also say that anyone coming into casual contact with Litvinenko is not at risk. And now, they can't let his body out in the open because of the health risk? Which is it?
U.S. offers N. Korea aid, with restrictions
WASHINGTON: The United States has offered a detailed package of economic and energy assistance in exchange for North Korea's giving up nuclear weapons and technology, according to American officials.
But the offer, made last week during two days of intense talks in Beijing, would hinge on North Korea's agreeing to begin dismantling some of the equipment it is using to expand its nuclear arsenal, even before returning to negotiations.
It is unclear whether North Korea will accept the offer, which is more specific - in both the details and the timing - than a vaguely worded statement of principles that the North signed in September 2005, a year before its first nuclear test.
The combination of incentives and demands was the focal point of three- way meetings on Nov. 28 and 29 involving Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill; North Korea's vice foreign minister, Kim Kye Gwan; and Chinese officials at the Diaoyutai state guesthouse in Beijing. The incentives offered by the United States include food aid from the United States, Japan and South Korea, a senior administration official said Tuesday.
#7
Please, please, please let it be an exploding carrot a la Bugs Bunny.
Posted by: Tibor ||
12/07/2006 17:06 Comments ||
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#8
Let's quit all this foolishness and cut directly to the chase. Offer him five AIDS-infected African hookers. I'm sure he'll grab the deal.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
12/07/2006 19:15 Comments ||
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#9
#2: Looks pretty clean for a machine shop, lol. A "potempkin" machine shop?
Ummm, No, Seems normal to me.
If the Pres was going to visit Our Machine Shop, the floor and machines would be so clean. I'll bet you could eat off them.
Plus no real work would be going on until he left, no shavings, no noise.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
12/07/2006 19:49 Comments ||
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Posted by: DanNY ||
12/07/2006 06:29 ||
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#1
"Israel and Palestine is an important issue. Sometimes it's used as an excuse to deal with underlying issues. But the reality here is that the Islamo-fundamentalist terrorists are at war with our way of life, with our modern world, with rights for women, religious freedom, societies that have religious freedom. And all of that would still exist, no matter what happens in Israel and Palestine."
Thank you, sir, for getting the team back on topic.
Giuliani v. Baker
New York Sun Editorial
December 7, 2006
Now that the Secretary of State Baker has made public his recommendations in respect of Iraq it's becoming clear why Mayor Giuliani quietly dropped off the commission not long after it got up and running. Our Eli Lake has particulars on page one. The nub of the advice from Mr. Baker and Lee Hamilton, a former congressman from Indiana, and their colleagues is that America should cut and run. The "cut" part is that the commission wants America to cut a deal with Iraq's neighbors nearly every one of which is an enemy of America and the idea of a free Iraq and the "run" part is to pull our GIs out of the fight by the start of the election season in 2008.
The persons who speak on background for Mr. Giuliani, ever the graceful diplomat, stress that the former mayor really did sense that the commission was going to take too much of his time. In addition, he had concluded the commission was a place for retired politicians, not for those who could be running for president next year. Mr. Giuliani himself praised the report yesterday at a public appearance. But the way to translate Mr. Giuliani's action is that anyone who ran for president on a platform of retreat in the middle of a major world war couldn't get elected dog catcher.
Not that Mr. Giuliani was looking out for merely his own interests. He deserves great credit. The Baker commission has gone the wrong way on important matters of principle, something no doubt Mr. Giuliani spotted not long after he got horn-swoggled into joining the group. Not only does the commission recommend negotiations with the various Middle East tyrannies, but it wants to use as coin in these negotiations the security and even sovereignty of the state of Israel. Outsiders first got a glimpse of this last week in a story by our Mr. Lake, quoting an e-mail sent by one of the expert advisers to Mr. Baker's group.
The expert, Raymond Close, a former CIA station chief in Saudi Arabia, said he expected "any realistic chance of success" would depend on "a major initiative, promoted and vigorously supported by the United States, to reach a comprehensive resolution to the Israel-Arab crisis through a process of reasonable compromise and accommodation between Israel and its Arab neighbors." Wrote Mr. Close, according to Mr. Lake's report, "perhaps the US will have to put pressure on Israel to make territorial concessions in the Golan."
Mr. Lake's report, not to mention Mr. Close's expectation, proved all-too-accurate. Recommendation 16 of the Baker commission: "the Israelis should return the Golan Heights." How rewarding terrorism in Iraq with concessions of strategic land to the undemocratic, terrorist-hosting Baathist regime at Damascus is in America's national interest is beyond us. The report goes so far as to claim that Iraqi opposition to America "spiked in the aftermath of Israel's bombing campaign in Lebanon." Talk about a blame- Israel-first mentality.
Even for those who, unlike this newspaper, do not rank security of Israel as one, albeit only one, of the original war aims, the Baker commission report represents a triumph of Brent Scowcroft-ism of the kind that helped cost George H.W. Bush a second term in the White House. It would have us drop the ambition of regime change in the country, Iran, with one of the cruelest and most hostile regimes. And then to top it off Messrs. Baker and Hamilton want to to set milestones for Iraq's legislature.
Or, to put it another way, barely a year after the Iraqis gave the world an inspiring example of courage, with millions going to the polls in the face of enemy threats, Messrs. Baker and Hamilton want to tell the legislature the Iraqis elected what to do. Finally, Messrs. Baker and Hamilton want the formation of a broad-ranging "contact group" of Iraq's neighbors. We predict that will lead to peace talks with an enemy who doesn't want peace and just before the 2008 election a next-generation Henry Kissinger will come out before the cameras and declare "peace is at hand." Don't forget what happened next.
By our lights, though, the worst damage of the Baker commission's recommendations, if they are adopted, won't be to Israel or to the political hopes of American Republicans but to the cause of freedom and democracy around the world and the American national security on which it rests. The commission's message to our enemies and to our potential allies is that if enough Americans are killed, America's foreign policy elite will give up on its core values of freedom and democracy and return to the pre-September 11 mode of coddling Middle East dictators, putting oil and a façade of "stability" ahead of America's long-term security.
The list of those with whom the Baker commission consulted includes dozens of foreign ambassadors, former generals, and newspaper columnists, but not a single widow of a New York City firefighter. Mayor Giuliani spoke at the funerals of so many firefighters that it is understandable that he would not want to follow the Baker commission's recommendation to return to the approach that America pursued before September 11. And as he sets out in quest of the White House, he can be proud of the fact that he stepped down from the Baker commission before its report was written.
#5
" . . . the Baker commission report represents a triumph . . . that helped cost George H.W. Bush a second term in the White House"
" It would have us drop the ambition of regime change in the country, Iran, with one of the cruelest and most hostile regimes."
"And then to top it off Messrs. Baker and Hamilton want to to set milestones for Iraq's legislature . . . Or, to put it another way, barely a year after the Iraqis gave the world an inspiring example of courage, with millions going to the polls in the face of enemy threats, Messrs. Baker and Hamilton want to tell the legislature the Iraqis elected what to do."
Finally, Messrs. Baker and Hamilton want the formation of a broad-ranging "contact group" of Iraq's neighbors. We predict that will lead to peace talks with an enemy who doesn't want peace and just before the 2008 election a next-generation Henry Kissinger will come out before the cameras and declare "peace is at hand."
By our lights, though, the worst damage of the Baker commission's recommendations, if they are adopted, won't be to Israel or to the political hopes of American Republicans but to the cause of freedom and democracy around the world and the American national security on which it rests.
The commission's message to our enemies and to our potential allies is that if enough Americans are killed, America's foreign policy elite will give up on its core values of freedom and democracy and return to the pre-September 11 mode of:
1.) coddling Middle East dictators
2.) putting oil and a façade of "stability" ahead of America's long-term security."
And this is why the transnational "politicians" are so very, very dangerous. Their loyalties are to their business interests only. While we're all focused on the turban terrorists, the white-collar terrorists are having their way.
I feel sick.
Good for Giuliani for going his own way, but I doubt it will turn out in our favor. You've got Baker, a false report, the Dems and the Moslem leaders ganging up, all with the blessing and support of the press. It won't be long before nobody knows what's going on, and the only way out will seem to be to do what Baker is designing. He's way ahead of the game, and is playing everyone.
#8
ex-lib - There's more than one enemy - mebbe I shouldn't have said The Plan - it makes it sound like they're logical or something, lol. The alliance of convenience arrayed against Freedom doesn't include an American Great Satan Study Group, lol. Some are friskier than others. The "Immoderate" Muzzies can't help themselves, they're just bloody MoFo's. Osama hissownself said they need to do some serious killin', not just enslave us. Kimmie's got Little Man Syndrome... Hell, they all do, lol. Yeah - I think someone or other will get hinky and screw it up for the others.
#10
Yeah, I was thinking that, .com. Just cuz' some of the muzzies want to play the "cooperate and influence" game, doesn't mean some nut job of greater intensity wouldn't use the chance to do something big. Barring that, I still think it will be slow bleed. Of course, if we do get nuked, it could change the game, or it would just solidify our "relations" with the Middle East, as their leaders express their "sadness and regrets" as they laugh their way to the mosque.
#15
"The commission's message to our enemies and to our potential allies is that if enough Americans are killed, America's foreign policy elite will give up on its core values..."
...and go looking for a rationale for quitting.
"Enough Americans", in the case of Iraq, amounts to roughly the same number of Americans that were killed in recreational boating accidents during the same period.
And if THAT is all it takes to make us turn tail and skedaddle, God have mercy on us. Because the enemy sure won't.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
12/07/2006 18:09 Comments ||
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#16
Mr Ship person -
Imr thinkin you maybe missed the "spirit" of my post-like thingy. Perhaps it wuz too je ne sais quoishy, n'est pas?
I always compare the # of killed to how many we lost in just a few hours on 9/11/2001. We just surpassed that # recently, and it took us OVER 5 years of active war, lookin' for the baddies to reach it.
Or compared another way...how many murders were there in D.C. and San Francisco during the same timeframe, speaking of quagmires!
Posted by: BA ||
12/07/2006 22:12 Comments ||
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Let the Spin Begin! Nancy Pelosi, the incoming Democratic speaker of the House, on Wednesday praised the Iraq Study Group's report on the Iraq war and said the report proves "that the President's Iraq policy has failed and must be changed." The Arabs have failed.
Earlier, President Bush said the country "is tired of pure political bickering that happens in Washington." Bush said it's best for the country if Democrats and Republicans work together, and he expressed the hope that report "will give us all an opportunity to find common ground." Dream on, W.
After blasting Bush's handling of the war, Pelosi pledged to work with him to end it. The war - or the sedition?
"If the President is serious about the need for change in Iraq," she said in a statement, "he will find Democrats ready to work with him in a bipartisan fashion to find a way to end the war as quickly as possible." As quickly as possible. The ISG talks about 2008, at the very earliest. Will that be okay with Her Highness who couldn't be bothered to read the report before flapping gums to the press?
Pelosi said Democrats "are committed to ensuring that the ideas of the Iraq Study Group, as well as the ideas of other thoughtful people inside and outside of the government, are given full consideration in that process." Is she gonna make up shit about the ISG report as she did with the 9/11 Report?
Pelosi mentioned only one of the group's recommendations, which is to change the primary mission of U.S. troops in Iraq from combat to training and support. That's it. The Grand Plan of the DhimmiDonks.
I wonder what the troops are supposed to do if attacked?
What about if the Iraqi Trainees are attacked?
"Now that the Study Group has endorsed this proposal," Pelosi said, "I hope that the President will recognize that he must take our policy in Iraq in a new direction." Like "Take a left at the Congressional Cafeteria?" Like that?
She did not address the group's other recommendations, which include forming a "support group" among Iraq and its neighbors in Iran and Syria and beginning to withdraw troops from Iraq "by the first quarter of 2008." I didn't have time. I've been redecorating my new office. Don't spoil the ending for me.
#1
Iff reports that the post-2006 elex Dems are offering=giving key Congresional positions to hardlineers, can only mean that the Dems are aware that Amer Hiroshimas loom on high for America, AND ARE TRYING TO PROTECT AND GUARANTEE THAT ULTRA-LEFTISTS SURVIVE + DOMINATE POST-HIROSHIMA(S) WASHINGTON. As argued time before, worse coming to worse, SAVING AMERICA + WORLD FROM DUBYA/GOP-CAUSED + BLAMED NEW 9-11'S = SURVIVING DUBYA/GOP-SAME, when it comes to POWER. REALISM-PRAGMATISM > keeping any and all Options open > Contingencies > ensuring that DEMOLEFISTS,
NOT GOP-RIGHTISTS, rule post-Hiroshima Washington = Amerika. Whether duly elected, or as stalwart Hiroshima "Survivor", HILLARY = CO-POTUS VEEP HILARY = POTUS HILLARY!?
#3
Well, I haven't read it either, but it sounds to me a lot like Bush's plan with a timetable and some threats. I heard on the radio going home last night that the ISG report indicated W's plan had failed, and they said it twice in the span of 20 seconds, just in case you missed it the first time.
What plan failed? The one that was in effect when the ISG started their work? The one that was in effect halfway through the 'study'? Or the one that was in effect the day the report was released?
The strategy is unchanged - "stand them up as we stand down" - that hasn't changed in a while. The tactics should be changing all the time, as the enemy adapts. (Hey! I'm a civil engineer, not a military guy!)
And by the by, Ms. Pelosi - your people were elected a month ago and the price of gas started rising the next day. It's now skyrocketed 15% in one month. At that rate, gas will be $5.00 a gallon by summertime. Whatcha gonna do about that, sweetheart?
Posted by: Bobby ||
12/07/2006 5:56 Comments ||
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WASHINGTON - Praised by some and panned by others, the report of a high-level commission on ways to wind down the war in Iraq offered no startlingly new ideas but said a U.S. defeat still could be averted.?
#5
The authors of this report are the same losers who advised GHWB (Bush #1) to abondond the shiite and Kurd uprisings in Iraq following the first gulf war. These same losers are mostly responsible for Bush 41 being a one termer. So tell me why we should consider their opinion at this time? In my eyes, they are just slightly ahead of Jimmah Cahtah in terms of military or foreign policy success.
Send this entire group packing, ask the 3rd infantry brigade to show up on the hill in fatigues, round up the entire congress, senate,and supremee court - jail most, shoot some, and return others to work - start over!
When treason is acceptable to the government, then the government is no longer acceptable to the people - throw them out!
#6
I really hate to say it, but it's been going thru my mind a lot lately.
I think the country would be better off today if the people who fought on flight 93 lost.
I deeply respect them for what they did, but I think the long term results have resulted in more harm than good. I think we would have been better off of most of these bastards had been killed and we had to start over with a new Congress.
I know this is crazy talk, but it's how I feel.
Posted by: kelly ||
12/07/2006 13:27 Comments ||
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#7
I see a big fall in this overaged piece of skank meat's future. She makes too many enemies...even among her own people.
There is no substitute for victory. It is the only standard by which military conflict which involves the US should be resolved for the US.
The ISG reports the memebrs wants to avert defeat. If that is true then the commission should have at least stated that victory is the only standrad for military conduct. That didn't happen.
#14
The ISG thing to me is just too damn silly. It's like needing a study group to tell you to wipe your arse after taking a growler. The only part of the policy that has failed imho is not being brutal enough on certain tribes (a deadhorse I've resurected and beaten back to death on here numerously) who support the islamo-nutz. Only GWB can declare victory.
Lost in Iraq? What a bunch of idiots. We won the ground war, won every major and minor tactical battle and realistcally own 85%+ of the real estate. That's a military victory by anyone's definition (minus lefty idiots who are not even f*cking Americans afaic). We are only constrained by our own ROE. (rant/off)
#20
It's weird. They seem come out when the news is good, rather than bad - RC's Troll Law, IIRC. I guess the circle-jerk at DU on a bad day is more inviting, lol. I guess we get the real dregs on a bad day...
On Broadway, that is. Via Opinion Journal.
After a year of controversy and debate, My Name Is St. Pancake Rachel Corrie is closing. The one-woman play was put together by Alan Rickman and Katharine Viner from the writings of an American-born terrorist sympathsizer Palestinian-rights advocate who was killed in 2003 by her own stupidity an Israeli Army bulldozer in the Gaza Strip. After its final performance on Dec. 17, Rachel Corrie will have played 9 previews and 71 regular performances at the Minetta Lane Theater in Greenwich Village.
The run of IHOP Rachel Corrie was tranquil compared with the uproar that preceded its arrival. The production was initially scheduled to move in March from the Royal Court Theater in London to the New York Theater Workshop. But when the workshops artistic director, James C. Nicola, decided to postpone the show, many in the theater community erupted in protest. In June, Dena Hammerstein and Pam Pariseau announced that they would produce it for a commercial run Off Broadway.
#1
They say the girls are something else on Broadway
But looking at them just gives me the blues
'Cause how ya gonna make some time
When all you got is one thin dime?
And one thin dime won't even shine your shoes
SEATTLE (AP) - An Algerian convicted of plotting to bomb the Los Angeles airport at the turn of the millennium has written a letter to the judge who sentenced him to 22 years in prison and his lawyers fear it could hurt his chances of winning an appeal.
Few details were provided in court filings this week about the letter, written in Arabic by Ahmed Ressam. The filings indicate U.S. District Judge John Coughenour had it translated and placed it under seal but the judge's office refused to say Wednesday whether he had read it. Its content was not disclosed.
Ressam's lawyers have asked Coughenour not to read it, for fear of tainting the case. Let him rassle the bear. If he wins, he gets to swap places with these rascal lawyers.
- Judge Bean
Ressam and federal prosecutors have appealed aspects of his 2005 sentence to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which has indicated it may send the case back to Coughenour. Prosecutors said 22 years was too lenient a punishment.
Ressam was convicted in 2001 of terrorism and explosives charges for plotting to bomb Los Angeles International Airport. Customs agents in Port Angeles, Wash., caught him with explosives in the trunk of his rental car when he drove off a ferry from British Columbia in December 1999, a scare that prompted cancellation of millennium celebrations at Seattle's Space Needle.
One of Ressam's lawyers, Thomas Hillier, declined to say Wednesday how he learned of the letter. "Mr. Ressam is not a citizen of this country, does not speak our language and has suffered difficult confinement for a substantial period of time," Hillier wrote in court documents. "His letter may have been sent without fully appreciating the inappropriateness of contacting the court ex parte. The government has no right to take advantage of Mr. Ressam without the shield of counsel."
Ressam started co-operating with authorities after his conviction, which helped win him a lesser sentence. But he eventually stopped co-operating, infuriating prosecutors who then had to drop charges against two suspected co-conspirators.
Federal prosecutors argued in documents filed Tuesday that the judge should be allowed to read the letter because it might say Ressam wants new lawyers or wishes to resume co-operating. "It is for Mr. Ressam to determine whether he wishes to file a matter with the court or whether he wishes to withdraw it, not counsel on his behalf," prosecutors wrote.
#1
"Mr. Ressam is not a citizen of this country, does not speak our language and has suffered difficult confinement for a substantial period of time." Ummm CY ME A FRIGGIN RIVER!
Edited for brevity
Field upon field of more than 1,000 battered M1 tanks, howitzers and other armored vehicles sit amid weeds here at the 15,000-acre Anniston Army Depot -- the idle, hulking formations symbolic of an Army that is wearing out faster than it is being rebuilt. The Army and Marine Corps have sunk more than 40 percent of their ground combat equipment into the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to government data. An estimated $17 billion-plus worth of military equipment is destroyed or worn out each year, blasted by bombs, ground down by desert sand and used up to nine times the rate in times of peace. The gear is piling up at depots such as Anniston, waiting to be repaired.
The depletion of major equipment such as tanks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles, and especially helicopters and armored Humvees has left many military units in the United States without adequate training gear, officials say. Partly as a result of the shortages, many U.S. units are rated "unready" to deploy, officials say, raising alarm in Congress and concern among military leaders at a time when Iraq strategy is under review by the White House and the bipartisan Iraq Study Group. More at link...
Posted by: Dar ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Buy more then. End of problem.
Millions for defense, not one cent for tribute!
Posted by: DanNY ||
12/07/2006 6:29 Comments ||
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#2
...Part of the problem is that although we developed a huge, fast, mobile army, it's still being deployed, fought, and maintained under WWIII rules - a relatively fast, high intensity conflict. For all the talk about 'transformation', everything is still geared towards fighting and supporting The Big Contingency.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
12/07/2006 6:29 Comments ||
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#3
Our Freedom comes with a cost. $17 B seem a bit much, but at the end of the day what is the defence of our nation worth?
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
12/07/2006 8:42 Comments ||
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#4
The last items on the Congressioanl/military budget -
spare parts
maintenance ghettos housing
They are so unsexy like new toys and subcontractor jobs back in the district/state.
#6
49Pan....$17 billion is nothing compared to the total DoD budget, much less the ENTIRE federal budget. Then, you add on the pork, and there are LOTS of areas to cut that could even give twice this amount to the military.
Take the $250 million "bridge to nowhere". Add in the (coming) I-75 bridge (replacing the existing bridge) over the Ohio River in northern KY, and that one bridge alone is quoted at $3 BILLION! If you think about how many vehicles/planes/boats/subs/etc. our military has (many here argue we need to up these #s too) and add in the complexity of many of these machines, and the current on the ground conditions they operate in (extreme temps, fine sand, etc.) and $17 billion looks like chump change to keep them running to me. Our troops deserve the best.
Posted by: BA ||
12/07/2006 11:50 Comments ||
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#7
Yes, this is yet another failure of Congress.
The govmint should be run like a business, not like a raffle.
#9
Good point, 3dc, but, knowing the efficacy of government, they may have a moratorium on acquiring new equipment and therefore have no choice!
Posted by: Dar ||
12/07/2006 16:24 Comments ||
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Problem is on a lot of the stuff that needs repair, we no longer have active production lines for them. That, and the fact that repairs would take 6 months and ramping up to production would take 18 months. So, if you want the item in a usable timeframe, you need to repair it.
Three parallel investigations into the removal of six imams from a US Airways flight last month have so far concluded that the airline acted properly, that the imams' claims they were merely praying and their eviction was racially inspired are without foundation.
An internal investigation by the airline found that air and ground crews "acted correctly" when they requested that the Muslim men be removed from a Minneapolis-to-Phoenix flight on Nov. 20. "We believe the ground crew and employees acted correctly and did what they are supposed to do," US Airways spokeswoman Andrea Rader said.
Omar Shahin -- one of the imams and the group's spokesman -- said the men did not behave out of the ordinary while on the plane, and that passengers overreacted because some of the imams conducted prayers in the concourse before boarding.
US Airways' investigation is "substantially complete" but Miss Rader said airline officials still want to meet with the imams to review the situation. "We're looking at it as a security issue and as a customer-service issue and where we might need to do outreach," she said. Airline officials have had several discussions with Mr. Shahin, but a meeting scheduled for Monday with all six men was canceled at the imams' request. "We talked with crew members and passengers and those on the ground. We've done what we typically do in a situation where there is a removal or some kind of customer service at issue," Miss Rader said. "We found out the facts are substantially the same, and the imams were detained because of the concerns crew members had based on the behavior they observed, and from reports by the customers."
The Minneapolis airport police department's report on the incident said the imams' behavior warranted their removal. The imams were not accused of breaking any laws.
The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties is reviewing the actions of department members who were involved in the incident.
Secret Service agents questioned the imams, who are accused of making negative comments about President Bush and the Iraq war. Officials of the Transportation Security Administration were involved in screening the imams and their baggage.
"There is no indication there is any inappropriate activity, at least no indication at this time," DHS spokesman Russ Knocke said. "To my knowledge, we are only doing a review, and that is a fairly routine practice with incidents like this."
The Air Carrier Security Committee of the Air Line Pilots Association investigated the incident and said, "The crew's actions were strictly in compliance with procedures and demonstrated overall good judgment in the care and concern for their passengers, fellow crew members, and the company. The decisions made by all the parties were made as a result of the behavior of the passengers and not as a result of their ethnicity," the report concluded.
The suspicious behavior cited in the report included "changing seats, stating anti-war, anti U.S.-Iraq involvement, negative comments concerning the president of the United States." The report noted that "two of the passengers requesting seat-belt extensions when their body size did not appear to warrant their use."
Mr. Shahin told television reporters that he needed the seat-belt extension because he weighs 280 pounds. However, the police report lists his weight as 201 pounds. Weights listed for the other imams ranged from 170 pounds to 250 pounds.
The imams have retained the Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) as their legal counsel. CAIR officials said yesterday that initial claims by the airline contradict the official police report. "The imams are obviously concerned about a number of false and distorted representation of the facts and events, and one example is initial reports that all suggested they refused to get off the plane when personnel asked them to, and the police report said they all got off and cooperated," a CAIR spokesman said.
#1
I hope each and every one of these bastards now has every aspect of their waking life under intense scrutiny by investigative agencies. The number of connections between these maggots and 9-11, not to mention other significant terrorist threats, are far too striking to be coincidence.
#2
said the men did not behave out of the ordinary while on the plane
So what would unordinary look like? Scary thought.
Mr. Shahin told television reporters that he needed the seat-belt extension because he weighs 280 pounds. However, the police report lists his weight as 201 pounds.
Taquiyya should be a bit more subtle than that, don't you think?
In any case, if he had to lie to support a point, then he knew it was wrong.
#3
I hope this incident plants the seed in American minds that the only safe travel in US involves barring Muzzies. Let the stinking bastards walk. It's not their right to disrupt anything. It's our right to travel safely all the time.
#5
This is just the engineer in me....listen, I'm an admittedly overweight couch potato. I used to weigh around 240 or so (I have started trying to lose weight), but even in coach class, I never came CLOSE to needing a seatbelt extender, even at 240+. Some reports I've read stated that 3 of the imams asked for the extenders, and when the HEAVIEST of them is about my size, that ALONE should've warranted questioning.
Posted by: BA ||
12/07/2006 11:45 Comments ||
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The next time they're thrown off the plane, make sure it's in flight...
The Senate voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to confirm Robert Gates as defense secretary, with members of both parties strongly backing him as the man who will replace Donald H. Rumsfeld and help overhaul President George W. Bush's war policies in Iraq.
The 95-2 vote to approve Gates, coupled with Wednesdsay's release of an independent study lambasting Bush's approach to the costly conflict, added pressure on the president to rethink US strategy in Iraq.
Gates said this week that he does not think the United States is winning that war and conceded that all options to overhaul the administration's approach must remain on the table.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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Gates' swift approval contrasted with his experience 15 years ago when he was picked to head the CIA.
In 1991, 31 Democrats voted against confirming Gates, citing charges he had pressured intelligence analysts to develop conclusions that fit President Reagan's policies and turned a blind eye to the Iran-Contra scandal when arms were sold to the Iranians and the cash used to supply the Nicaraguan Contra rebels.
But now...HE'S SEEN THE LIGHT!!!
Welcome! Welcome, Brother Gates!!
Grievance theater at Minneapolis International Airport
By Debra Burlingame
Long piece at OpinionJournal -- too long even with Page 49 for reproducing here, so RTWT. Ms. Burlingame nails what happened, and since her brother died at the Pentagon, in the words of Maureen Dowd, she has 'absolute moral authority'.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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Well written and logically thought out article. Of the three investigations underway, I hold out the least hope for the TSA receiving a vote of confidence; I expect the employees involved to receive some sort of 'sensitivity training' or other more negative actions. You can bet that there will then be follow up directives sent to the entire suitcase sniffing division of that sorry-ass agency ( having endured 7 arduous months working for this agency, I think I can speak with 'absolute morale authority')
Just as in the case of Omar Sheikh and Dr.A.Q.Khan, the Pakistani authorities are once again avoiding handing him over a criminal to the British or American investigators.
Rashid Rauf is from a Mirpuri family of Birmingham. The Mirpuris are the Punjabi-speaking residents of Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK).He disappeared from the UK in 2002 after the British Police suspected him in connection with the murder of one of his relatives in Birmingham. Their search for him did not produce any clueseither in the UK or in Pakistan.
Then, suddenly, on August 9, 2006, Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) claimed to have picked him up from a house in Bhawalpur, southern Punjab, which he had bought after coming to Pakistan in 2002. He had married a woman related by marriage to Maulana Masood Azhar, the Amir of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) which was involved in the aborted attack on the Indian Parliament in December, 2001.
The Pakistani authorities claimed that he was in close touch with Al Qaeda and that it was his arrest that gave them an inkling regarding the imminence of the plot of a group of jihadi extremists based in the UK to blow up a number of US-bound planes. The discovery of the conspiracy and the arrest of many UK-based suspects were then announced by the British Police. The final results of their investigation are not yet known.
Since Rashid Rauf was projected by the Pakistani authorities as the most important player in the plot and as the man whose arrest led to the unearthing of the planned terrorist conspiracy in the UK, one would have thought that his being handed-over to the British for interrogation would have been of the highest priority to the British investigating authorities. But, no action has been taken so far. The Pakistani media had reported that a team of British Police officers had visited Pakistan to question him, but it is not clear whether Rashid was questioned by them and, if they and if his questioning did indicate his involvement in the plot, why have they have so far moved for his extradition.
It is clear from the facts available so far that as with Omar Sheikh, the principal accused in the case relating to the kidnapping and murder of Daniel Pearl, the US journalist, in the beginning of 2002, and Dr.A.Q.Khan, the Pakistani nuclear scientist with links with Iran, North Korea, Libya and Al Qaeda, in the case of Rashid Rauf too, the Pakistani authorities are avoiding handing him over to the British or American investigators.
Reliable police sources in Pakistan say that the reluctance of Gen.Pervez Musharraf to hand over Rashid Rauf to the UK or US is due to the fear that his independent interrogation by them might bring out that Rashid Rauf was aware of the training of some of the perpetrators of the Mumbai blasts of July, 2006, in which over 180 suburban train commuters were killed, in a camp of the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LET) in Bhawalpur and that the ISI was aware of his presence in Bhawalpur ever since 2002, when he fled to Pakistan from the UK. These police sources say that the ISI's contention that it came to know of his presence only in the beginning of August,2006, is not correct.
The government of Pakistan told a court on October 30, 2006, that Rashid Rauf had been detained under the Security of Pakistan Act. A Rawalpindi Anti-Terrorism Judge, Justice Safdar Hussain Malik, passed orders on November 21, 2006, approving his judicial custody in the Adiala jail. This could rule out his early transfer to the British Police for interrogation.
Under the joint anti-terrorism mechanism recently set up by the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan, India should also request the Pakistani authorities for permission to interrogate him on the LET training camp in Bahawalpur. If Pakistan refuses to co-operate, the international community should be informed about it.
Posted by: john ||
12/07/2006 16:15 ||
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hey nice catch John, every and anything that focuses heat and light on the Paks is a good thing.
The six-party Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) has split down the middle over the issue of resignations, with three of its components refusing to quit the National Assembly in protest at the Womens Protection Bill.
Qazi Hussain Ahmed, MMA president and chief of the Jamaat-e-Islami, is the biggest proponent of resignations. He said at the meeting that the MMA should resign because that was what the Supreme Council had decided. He said it was right to resign because parliament had just passed an un-Islamic bill. However, other MMA leaders disagreed. The decision to resign from the assembly was not taken unanimously. It was a decision which was imposed by the alliance president (Qazi) on all of us, the sources quoted Mir as saying. We should not leave the parliament open for PPPP by resigning, he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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The Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal on Wednesday accused federal intelligence agencies of carrying out all the recent explosions in the provincial capital.
NWFP Information Minister Asif Iqbal Daudzai demanded that the federal government hand over two Intelligence Bureau (IB) officials allegedly involved in planting explosive material outside Chief Ministers House. He said that if the two officials were handed over to the provincial government, the truth behind all the blasts in Peshawar over the last two months can be unearthed.
If the accused men are not handed over to us, well be forced to believe that the federal government wants to sabotage the peaceful environment of the province before the elections, to damage the good name of the MMA government, he told a press conference at the Media Centre. Disagreeing with the federal governments claims that democratic institutions and the media were free in the country, the minister said that senior intelligence agency officials had forced TV channels and newspapers to kill the news about the incident. If intelligence agencies do not stop this practice, we will tell people about the incident through the MMA platform, and our representative will spread this news across the country, he said.
He said that a FIR had been registered against IB employee Tufail, who was nabbed red-handed while planting the explosive, and IB Joint Director Zafarullah Khan. It is unfortunate that Zafarullah not only got Tufail released, but also removed the explosive material from the police station, he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
I cant believe it but i agree with MMA for once that ISI were behind the explosions!!!!The ISI cause trouble all over the region!!!
The federal government will form a team to investigate the incident where an Intelligence Bureau employee allegedly tried to plant a bomb outside the office of the NWFP chief minister, Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao told reporters on Wednesday. The minister said action would be taken against those involved in this case in the light of the findings of the investigation team. He accused the chief minister of trying to gain political benefit from the incident and create trouble between the federal and province govts.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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The AQ Khan network could not have carried out its activities without the awareness of the Pakistani government, the Swedish Weapons of Mass Destru-ction Commission said in a report.
The commission, headed by former IAEA chief Hans Blix, said that as far as it was aware, nuclear weapons had never been stolen or transferred from arsenals of states. The threats posed by existing nuclear weapons relate in the first place to the risks of deliberate use. High representatives of nuclear-armed states have recently alluded in precisely calculated ambiguity to a readiness actually to use nuclear weapons. Additional dangers could arise as a result of accidents, miscalculations, faulty intelligence and theft of unauthorised use.
Addressing the possibility of terrorists acquiring nuclear weapons, it said nobody could make a nuclear weapon without fissile material and the technical knowledge to design and manufacture a device. The first task is more difficult than designing a weapon. The basic information to design a crude nuclear device is publicly available. To produce the plutonium or highly enriched uranium needed to make a nuclear weapon is difficult and expensive. It requires the kind of infrastructure that is likely to be available only to states. There is a risk that security weaknesses could allow terrorists to steal enough material.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Dr. Hans Blix agreed to that statement? I wonder what kind of evidence was so much more overwhelming than usual that he had to concede the point!
A coalition of terrorist groups operating in Jammu and Kashmir has lashed out at President Pervez Musharraf's new offer for a resolution of the India-Pakistan dispute over the State, describing his four-point charter as a "unilateral concession."
"Kashmiris cannot compromise on their right to self-determination," a spokesperson for the Pakistan-based United Jihad Council said in a press release faxed to newspaper offices in Srinagar late on Tuesday. Referring to Gen. Musharraf's suggestion that India-Pakistan supervise the autonomous or self-governed states of Jammu and Kashmir that would be created if his proposals are accepted, the UJC said that "options like joint control can only be acceptable if they are a stepping stone for the right to self-determination."
UJC leaders have become increasingly critical of India-Pakistan dialogue on Jammu and Kashmir in recent months. "Freedom is our goal," Hizb ul-Mujahideen chief Mohammad Yusuf Shah in an October 30 interview, "and we will not accept anything under the Indian Constitution." He described plans for self-rule a formulation that figures in General Musharraf's new proposals as "a document of slavery."
Earlier, in May, the UJC had lamented what it described as the Pakistan Government's "weak and apologetic" policies on Jammu and Kashmir, as well as the "pointless moderation" of secessionist politicians. "Some so-called moderates are playing political showmen," the UJC had said, "and keep knocking at New Delhi door. They are part of Indian cunningness." Such hostile polemic, Indian security analysts believe, is an attempt to drive the best bargain possible in hard times "General Musharraf is under intense pressure from the United States of America to dismantle jihadi groups," a senior intelligence official told The Hindu. "He hopes to secure a quick political settlement on Jammu and Kashmir," the officer argued, "and then use it to compel the jihadis to shut shop."
Elements of the jihadi leadership appear to understand the new reality, and are seeking a political role. In one recent interview, the Hizb ul-Mujahideen chief dropped several preconditions for initiating a ceasefire, and appeared to suggest that he would be willing to consider joining the dialogue process. However, under intense pressure from his UJC partners, Mr. Shah soon resiled on this offer.
Interestingly, the political divisions in the Hizb ul-Mujahideen command on dialogue have manifested themselves down the terror group's command structure. Hizb leaders have, for example, been unable to decide on the competing claims of hawks and doves to succeed the recently-killed southern Kashmir divisional commander Mohammad Ashraf Shah a key go-between for the Hizb ul-Mujahideen and the People's Democratic Party. Javed ''Seepan'' Sheikh, an Anantnag-based policeman-turned-terrorist who strongly favours dialogue, and Pulwama district commander Parvez Dar, a hardliner who favours escalating violence, had both put in claims to lead the Hizb ul-Mujahideen's largest unit. Until a second meeting to be held later this month to decide these competing claims, Tral-based district commander Hanif Khan has been appointed acting divisional commander.
Frictions between the UJC and their patrons in Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate have been evident since March, when 18 top jihad commanders staged an unprecedented public protest in Muzaffarabad. The protests followed the ISI's decision to terminate monthly subsidies ranging from Rs. 3,000,000 to Rs. 400,000 to Islamist terror groups operating against India. Hizb ul-Mujahideen supreme commander Mohammad Yusuf Shah, who operates under the nom de guerre Syed Salahuddin, is leading the protests, along with Lashkar-e-Taiba's Mohammad Zaki ur-Rahman, the Jaish-e-Mohammad's Abdul Rahman, the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen's Maulana Farooq Kashmiri, al-Umar's Mushtaq Ahmad Zargar, the Jammu and Kashmir Islamic Front's Bilal Ahmad Beig and al-Badr's Bakht Zamin Khan. Speaking to The Hindu during the protests, UJC spokesperson Mohammad Kalimullah said the protesters wanted Gen. Musharraf to reverse policies that "dishonoured a war in which one hundred thousand Kashmiris have sacrificed their lives."
"Until he announces that Pakistan's moral and political support for the mujahideen in Kashmir will continue," Mr. Kalimullah said, "our leaders will remain on hunger strike. We will not back down."
Warnings from the ISI, though, led the protestors to call off the protests. Although terrorist groups continued to mount large-scale offensive operations against India, the protests failed to secure them additional funds and weapons. An investigation by Pakistan's prestigious Herald magazine, which was published in August, said there was a mood of "lethargy and disorientation" at jihadi training camps.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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O.K. So the headline's a tease. Big deal!
KIRKUK REGIONAL AIR BASE, Iraq, Nov. 29, 2006 The new Iraqi air force have returned to the sky, performing a variety of missions throughout the country, thanks to training and support from U.S. and coalition advisors. At Kirkuk Regional Air Base, American advisors are helping Iraqi military members of Squadron 3 train for their intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance mission.
"Our mission is to train, advise and assist ... See? They got right on the ISG plan. Before it was even released!
... the Iraqi air force unit at Kirkuk in the development and execution of all aspects of air power," said Lt. Col. Greg Zehner, senior advisor for the Coalition Air Force Military Transition Team. "This includes flight operations, aircraft maintenance, base operations support activities and basic levels of professional military education.
"We also work to develop and enhance a professional military ethic for all Iraqi air force personnel, from the youngest enlisted airman to the senior officers," he said.
The mission of Squadron 3, one of six squadrons in the Iraqi Air Force, is to perform ISR of the strategic infrastructure in northern Iraq -- flying over the oil pipelines, electrical power lines and other important facilities to monitor their condition and watch for insurgent activities. This is accomplished with the SAMA (Zenair) CH-2000 aircraft, a single-engine, two-passenger plane.
The squadron conducts a mix of training and operational missions -- training new members, getting them certified in the aircraft, and performing the reconnaissance mission with those pilots who are fully mission-capable. The responsibility of training and advising the Iraqi military members falls to a seven-person team. Their areas of expertise are spread across several specialties including operations, intelligence, maintenance, communications and supply.
"Our first big obstacle was getting the aircraft," said Maj. Jean Havens, director of operations. "Since they have arrived, we are moving forward with getting the Iraqis checked out on the aircraft." Flight training had been on hold due to the grounding of the CompAir 7SL, the unit's previous aircraft.
Havens, an instructor pilot deployed from Columbus Air Force Base, Miss., is responsible for advising her Iraqi counterparts on all aspects of the flying operations. She said she was excited about her assignment and the opportunity to be a part of helping the Iraqi air force become a self-sufficient organization. "The dream of any instructor is to see progress of a student," she said. "Serving as their instructor will probably be the highlight of my career." A woman instructor. Sweet.
Master Sgt. James Redmond, maintenance advisor, has the responsibility of instructing and advising the Iraqi airmen on how to keep their new aircraft flying. "We show them what has to be done and how to use technical data and proper safety procedures," he said. "Then they develop plans and techniques that will work for them."
He said his mission is to show the Iraqis how to make their air force better and to help them grow from lessons learned in the past. "The Iraqis are eager to learn, and they take pride in their work," Redmond said. "Once the maintenance is done, they will usually hang around and watch the launch of the aircraft they worked on."
Zehner said the most satisfying part of his mission is two-fold: "Doing our part to help the Iraqis transition to a functioning democratic government at peace within its borders and with its neighbors; and the personal relationships we have gained and expect to further develop in our daily interaction with our Iraqi counterparts."
Posted by: Bobby ||
12/07/2006 06:24 ||
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See? They got right on the ISG plan. Before it was even released!
DAMN, we're good...:)
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
12/07/2006 8:34 Comments ||
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Sure glad the Iwaki Surrender Goop report came out or these guys would be standing around watching paint dry. ISG = Cluster F#$%
P.S. I glad to see the Air Force is able to conduct operation since my retirement but it does kind of hurt my ego.
The United States on Wednesday froze the U.S. assets of nine people and two businesses in the border area of Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay who Washington said helped funnel millions of dollars to Lebanon's Hezbollah. The U.S. government considers Hezbollah, a Shiite Muslim group whose guerrillas fought a 34-day war with Israel in July and August, a terrorist organization. The Treasury said the people and businesses raised and transferred cash for Hezbollah through the so-called triple border area between the South American countries, which is home to a large Arab community.
The action triggered a U.S. executive order on Wednesday freezing their U.S. assets and banning transactions with U.S. citizens and banks. "...It is safe to say that millions of dollars have been raised and moved by this network," Treasury Assistant Secretary for terrorist financing Pat O'Brien told reporters in reference to the triple-border area. "One of the key ways money has moved is through personal couriers." For example, O'Brien said one of the people on the list, Ali Kazan, raised more than $500,000 for Hezbollah as recently as August.
The U.S. government has raised concern in recent years that the porous frontier region is a center of fund-raising and money laundering for Middle Eastern groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. Brazil denies this.
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Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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As the debate over Iraq intensifies, leading Democrat Silvestre Reyes is calling for the deployment of more U.S. troops.
Dec. 5. 2006 - In a surprise twist in the debate over Iraq, Rep. Silvestre Reyes, the soon-to-be chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said he wants to see an increase of 20,000 to 30,000 U.S. troops as part of a stepped up effort to dismantle the militias.
The soft-spoken Texas Democrat was an early opponent of the Iraq war and voted against the October 2002 resolution authorizing President Bush to invade that country. That dovish record got prominently cited last week when Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi chose Reyes as the new head of the intelligence panel.
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Posted by: Steve White ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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Agreed - the Desm are still looking for a feel-good, PDeniable way to overtly come out in suppor of the CONSERVATIVE-RIGHT [SECULAR?]SOCIALIST-GOVTIST AGENDA. LEFTISM-LIBERALISM is dead and gone, so is LEFTISM-ALTERNATISM/LIBERTARIANISM + Lefty LAISSEZ FAIRE. Useful now only as elex-year TALKING POINTS, FULL OF SOUND AND FURY, MEANING NOTHING, at least while PRE-OWG, SOCIALIST = PRE/PSEUDO-COMMUNIST AMERIKA CONTINUES TO HAVE ELECTIONS. Truly feel sorry for the Hippies, ALterns + Bohemians, etc. of America.
#2
As the debate over Iraq intensifies, leading Democrat Silvestre Reyes is calling for the deployment of more U.S. troops.
You mean the 250,000 troops cut during the Clinton years? And you can pass that question to the Trunks who controlled Congress during that period too. Someone didn't ask and someone didn't challenge.
A call for President George W. Bush to reduce US support to Iraq if Baghdad fails to improve security drew a sour response from Iraqi politicians, who said Washington had an obligation to back their government. "The US calls itself an occupying force in Iraq and, according to the Geneva Conventions, if you are an occupier then you are responsible for the country," said parliamentarian Mahmud Othman, a Kurd. Well no, we're no longer an 'occupying' force. We're working in partnership with a sovereign government. That's the real justification for our presence today -- we're invited (we're also the 800 pound gorilla, yes). If you want us to leave, say so. Til then we work with you. That's what you ought to be saying to Mr. Baker -- "the Americans are here because we want and need them here; when that changes they've promised to leave."
"They have no right to to do this. This is unfair."
Bassim Ridha, a top advisor to Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, said the White House has to support Baghdad "all the way". "If they do not support the government then it will look as if they do not do what they preach," Ridha said. "We need their support to go forward." Correct. You need to do your part as well. Disarming Tater (figuratively or literally) would be a good start.
The report said Washington must step up action -- including the threatened reduction of political, military and economic support -- to make the Iraqi government improve security.
Haidar al-Abadi, a member of Maliki's Dawa party and close associate to the prime minister, said most of the panel's recommendations, including a dialogue with Iran and Syria and increased training for Iraqi security forces, had been expected. But the threat to reduce support was new.
"We were told there would not be pressure as such," said Abadi. "In our dialogue with the US administration, we said that we would work together." You can read tea leaves and know that a fair number of Americans back home are growing impatient. You could help us out on this one by solving some of your problems and thus demonstrate progress. Or you could complain and depend on the will of Allan.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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"They have no right to to do this. This is unfair."
No one said life is fair.
Who sat on the sidelines for months, years waiting to see who'd be in charge when the Americans were sorting things out?
Who has been wasting time engaged in petty and pathetic positioning of clan and personal interests?
Who has been spending their time and effort to get family and clan members into positions to exploit the 'system' in the grand tradition of what the west refers to as corruption and you as the normal conduct of business?
Who hasn't displayed the courage to take out assholes like Tater who undermine the tolerance of the Americans to remain around to assist you?
Who expects the Americans to do your work forever?
[Military and Security] Welfare reform is going to hit you hard and fast. I see two choice. Jump in with both feet and make the best of what you can before the Donks can pull the funding, or make peace with your new masters. Its free will, your choice, your fate.
The White House has been examining a proposal by James Baker to launch a Middle East peace effort without Israel.
The peace effort would begin with a U.S.-organized conference, dubbed Madrid-2, and contain such U.S. adversaries as Iran and Syria. Officials said Madrid-2 would be promoted as a forum to discuss Iraq's future, but actually focus on Arab demands for Israel to withdraw from territories captured in the 1967 war. They said Israel would not be invited to the conference.
As Baker sees this, the conference would provide a unique opportunity for the United States to strike a deal without Jewish pressure, an official said. This has become the most hottest proposal examined by the foreign policy people over the last month. Because it's just Jewish pressure that keeps us from kittens and fluffy bunnies in the Middle East. Always has been. Those pesky Joooz insist on not being murdered.
Officials said Mr. Baker's proposal, reflected in the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group, has been supported by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns and National Intelligence Director John Negroponte. The most controversial element in the proposal, they said, was Mr. Baker's recommendation for the United States to woo Iran and Syria.
Here is Syria, which is clearly putting pressure on the Lebanese democracy, is a supporter of terror, is both provisioning and supporting Hezbollah and facilitating Iran in its efforts to support Hezbollah, is supporting the activities of Hamas," National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley told a briefing last week. "This is not a Syria that is on an agenda to bring peace and stability to the region." Mr. Hadley reads Rantburg; Sec. Rice clearly does not. How in the world would anyone, anyone expect Syria to have a positive role in either Iraq or with Israel? They're presently engulfing Lebanon -- again -- and murdering political opponents there. They're destabilizing Iraq. They're meddling with Jordan. They're in a lip-lock with Iran. Baby Assad is the offspring of Daddy Assad who whacked many ten thousands of his own citizens, and Baby maintains the totalitarian police state because if he doesn't, he'll be swinging from a lamppost ala Mussolini (an apt comparison). Just exactly how does one see him and Syria as a 'partner in peace'?
Officials said the Baker proposal to exclude Israel from a Middle East peace conference garnered support in the wake of Vice President Dick Cheney's visit to Saudi Arabia on Nov. 25. They said Mr. Cheney spent most of his meetings listening to Saudi warnings that Israel, rather than Iran, is the leading cause of instability in the Middle East. Yup, it's the evil Jooooz who keep trying to defend themselves rather than an aggressive Iran that's enriching uranium, building missiles and exporting terrorism.
He [Cheney] didn't even get the opportunity to seriously discuss the purpose of his visitthat the Saudis help the Iraqi government and persuade the Sunnis to stop their attacks, another official familiar with Mr. Cheneys visit said. Instead, the Saudis kept saying that they wanted a U.S. initiative to stop the Israelis attack in Gaza and Cheney just agreed. Because all the attacks on Gaza are unprovoked, e'one knows that. Other than those Qazzam rockets. And the hard boyz slipping across the border to cut throats. And the splodydopes.
Under the Baker proposal, the Bush administration would arrange a Middle East conference that would discuss the future of Iraq and other Middle East issues. Officials said the conference would seek to win Arab support on Iraq in exchange for a U.S. pledge to renew efforts to press Israel to withdraw from the West Bank and Golan Heights. And that in turn means we have to order the Israelis, on pain of their $3 billion military aid a year, to move out of those areas even if it makes no sense whatsoever.
Baker sees his plan as containing something for everybody, except perhaps the Israelis, the official said. The Syrians would get back the Golan, the Iranians would get U.S. recognition and the Saudis would regain their influence, particularly with the Palestinians. And who cares about the Israelis anyway?
Officials said Mr. Baker's influence within the administration and the Republican Partys leadership stems from support by the president's father as well as former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. Throughout the current Bush administration, such senior officials as Mr. Hadley and Ms. Rice were said to have been consulting with Brent Scowcroft, the former president's national security advisor, regarded as close to Mr. Baker. Everybody has fallen in line, the official said. Bush is not in the daily loop. He is shocked by the elections and he's hoping for a miracle on Iraq. I doubt that seriously -- Bush is not shocked. He's a superb politican; he saw what was coming even as he worked to head it off. And while a miracle would be nice, he's not going to give away the store to get one.
For his part, Mr. Bush has expressed unease in negotiating with Iran. At a Nov. 30 news conference in Amman, Jordan, the president cited Iran's interference in the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki. We respect their heritage, we respect their history, we respect their traditions, Mr. Bush said. I just have a problem with a government that is isolating its people, denying its people benefits that could be had from engagement with the world. That was the polite way of saying it. The impolite way is to note that the Mad Mullahs are everything we've said they are here on the Burg.
Mr. Baker's recommendation to woo Iran and Syria has also received support from some in the conservative wing of the GOP. Over the last week, former and current Republican leaders in Congressconvinced of the need for a U.S. withdrawal before the 2008 presidential electionshave called for Iranian and Syrian participation in an effort to stabilize Iraq. I would look at an entirely new strategy, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said. We have clearly failed in the last three years to achieve the kind of outcome we want. It's too bad that Newt the visionary has become Newt the political schemer. He'd sacrifice the essence of the Bush policy -- that 'stability' is a failed model and what's essential is to remove the thugs and provide hope for people -- in return for an election.
In contrast, Defense Department officials have warned against granting a role to Iran and Syria at Israel's expense. They said such a strategy would also end up undermining Arab allies of the United States such as Egypt, Jordan and Morocco.
Because they'll see quickly that, if we sacrifice Iraq and Israel -- especially Israel -- that we won't stand by them in any emergency. The regional strategy is a euphemism for throwing Free Iraq to the wolves in its neighborhood: Iran, Syria and Saudi Arabia, said the Center for Security Policy, regarded as being close to the Pentagon. If the Baker regional strategy is adopted, we will prove to all the world that it is better to be America's enemy than its friend. Jim Baker's hostility towards the Jews is a matter of record and has endeared him to Israel's foes in the region. There's a clear understanding.
But Defense Secretary-designate Robert Gates, a former colleague of Mr. Baker on the Iraq Study Group, has expressed support for U.S. negotiations with Iran and Syria. In response to questions from the Senate Armed Services Committee, which begins confirmation hearings this week, Mr. Gates compared the two U.S. adversaries to the Soviet Union.
Even in the worst days of the Cold War, the U.S. maintained a dialogue with the Soviet Union and China, and I believe those channels of communication helped us manage many potentially difficult situations, Mr. Gates said. Our engagement with Syria need not be unilateral. It could, for instance, take the form of Syrian participation in a regional conference. We never got anywhere rewarding the old Soviet Union for their bad behavior. Reagan didn't reward them; he challenged them and they collapsed. We won't get anywhere rewarding Syria or Iran for their bad behavior. We need the Reagan approach. That's the lessson.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Mr. Baker managed to slide in a reference to the so-called "Palestinian Right of Return" as well. link. Thank goodness I'll never be in a position to refuse to invite him to my home.
#2
I want Mr Baker a private citizen just like me, to STFU and sit down, he is a leading surrenderist and part of the SOS. He needs to be back retired and out of the public lime light.
Israel is not the problem. This Arabist asshole Baker will never see that. Perhaps he thinks a cake will sooth Amanutjob? Ossama?
#3
BAKER + HAMILTON have already said on FOX that they expect nothing new from Iran or Syria, even iff rhetoric or proposals to contrary. They don't expect Iran or Syria to substantively abide by any peace initiatives. IOW, a "peace conference" would only be "going thru the Motions" with no one expecting anything to change or be resolved.
#5
As Baker sees this, the conference would provide a unique opportunity for the United States to strike a deal without Jewish pressure, an official said. This has become the most hottest proposal examined by the foreign policy people over the last month.
Not only would Jewish pressure be absent, but also any sense of moral or ethical responsibility. That always facilitates dealing with Arabs.
Baker sees his plan as containing something for everybody, except perhaps the Israelis, the official said. The Syrians would get back the Golan, the Iranians would get U.S. recognition and the Saudis would regain their influence, particularly with the Palestinians.
While our betrayal of the Israelis in return for very temporary Arab cooperation, more commonly known as terrorist appeasement, would properly haunt us for decades. We might gain some short-term approbation in the MME (Muslim Middle East) for stabbing Israel in the back this way, but the only long-term result would be to have forever made ourselves a complete and total laughingstock in the eyes of our terrorist enemies. We would permanently lose all credibility and face in any future dealings. Whatever shortcomings Bush may have, I truly doubt he is unable to see this as being the final upshot.
Iran and Syria should be shown only one thing, the back of our hand.
#6
I thought the Baker report appalling on so many levels that I didn't know where to begin. The strategy seems to be, let's throw Israel to the wolves and see if that solves the problem. Ignorant and stupid are far too weak words for this arrant nonsense.
Verlaine nailed it yesterday, when he said Iraq's problems originate in Iraq. While those in the region are fuelling it for their own ends, the solution is in Iraq. And BTW, the solution is a federal Iraq with homogenous moreorless populations in the different entities. Failure to recognize this merely drags out the whole thing. The MSM will scream about ethnic cleansing but who cares.
#7
The strategy seems to be, let's throw Israel to the wolves and see if that solves the problem.
Bingo. Losing Congress, Rumsfeld, and Bolton is depressing. Watching world leaders reach consensus on sacrificing the Jews for an illusory peace is chilling. Not just the fact itself, which is awful enough, but given what usually comes next.
It's been exactly 65 years since Pearl Harbor, long enough to learn the lessons of WWII and forget them again. Guess that means we're due for another good smiting. Idiots, the lot of em.
#8
But exJag and Phil -- it worked so well for the South Vietmanese and Cambodians! It worked so well for Neville Chamberlan! What's not to love about this plan?
This isn't a Study Group Report - its the terms of our surrender!
Once again we try appeasing evil and expecting a different outcome.
#15
"JUSTICE Return to SPLENDOR" is our old friend "JUSTICE", aka "Truth Has Come", posting from Saudi Arabia.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
12/07/2006 9:08 Comments ||
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#16
Nah, after that last comment, he's a joke not worth responding to. He's probably as Muslim as I am. The Sierra Club? Ha!
Ya pushed too hard, retard. What time do you have to put on the Santa's elf suit and report to the mall?
#17
If these idiots serve Israel up on a platter there will be no place they can hide. Also, I hope the IDF will see the handwritting on the wall in time to seize their government and execute operation "Blow up the Arab World"! I know it is called something else, but I forget the name.
With everthing I see happening, it just confirms my belief that this nation, and the Western Civilizations have been bought and paid for by the Islamists, and our leaders are the Judas's.
I fully believe we are heading for a World War the likes of we cannot imagine. In fact, I believe we are already in it, but the main act has yet to start. If we do survive, we'll need to purge our politicians mercilessly.
#20
That poor idiot from the Magic Kingdom? Don't let him anywhere near the children, tu3031, his culture teaches him that little children -- especially the boys, beautiful as pearls -- exist to sate his sexual desires, as he once was forced to satisfy those bigger or more powerful than himself. Mr. Wife never went into the coffee houses in that part of the world, preferring to not to have to defend his posterior from unwelcome advances. Ick!
Salaam means peace, thou Arabia-based idiot; Islam means submission, so gettest thyself on with submitting. And yes, I used the archaic, second person singular form used by superiors when talking to their inferiors or to children most deliberately. Thou deservest not the respect of the common you used between equals.
Mick Dundee, are you thinking of the Samson Option?
#22
Good gawd, this is SOOOOO appalling on so many levels, I don't even know where to begin. My two (human) life verses to live by (again):
(1) Those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it (See: Chamberlain, Neville and after Vietnam, Cambodia, and most recently, 9/11/2001 - NYC, PA and The Pentagon).
(2) All it takes for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing (See: not defeating Hitler early on, before him "arming up", and not taking Ahmadinijad at his (Hitleran) word).
Oh well, I hold out hope that this ISG Report is DOA at the White House. I pray that Cheney and Bush still have the nerve to smack it down and hard.
Posted by: BA ||
12/07/2006 11:10 Comments ||
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#23
Mick Dundee, are you thinking of the Samson Option?
TW, thank you, that would be the one. The sooner the major population centers of the Arab/Muslim world are radioactive, the sooner this Islam problem will end.
#25
Mick -- no, we're not going to commit genocide in order to save ourselves. It's not necessary and it's not smart.
Unilateral use of nukes would turn the entire world, including our best friends (the Aussies) against us. It would be our ruination. We won't nuke the Arab nations unless we're attacked with WMD or we have 100%, stone-cold clear evidence that we're about to be attacked with such.
So drop the genocide nonsense and think clearly. Clear thinking and an iron constitution is what is needed to beat the Islamicists.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/07/2006 11:29 Comments ||
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#26
"Let us guide you and protect you."
In the name of the strongest and most intelligent con man, Muhammad, in slavish adoration of his con man idol, Allah.
#27
Unilateral use of nukes would turn the entire world, including our best friends (the Aussies) against us. It would be our ruination. We won't nuke the Arab nations unless we're attacked with WMD or we have 100%, stone-cold clear evidence that we're about to be attacked with such.
So drop the genocide nonsense and think clearly. Clear thinking and an iron constitution is what is needed to beat the Islamicists.
Given the astonishing ease at which they seem to subvert our politicians, culture and society, time is not on our side. The left has been working towards the destruction of Capitalism for a long time, now that they have teamed up with the Islamists the process has accelerated and is picking up momentum.
I've said before, I'll say it again, this could all slide over the edge in the blink of an eye. It is obvious that we're (our leaders) (puke) are going to nothing until it too late. We continue to import this menace into our society, and we have these moldy left overs from the 60's/70's failed statecraft coming back like a herpes flareup to wreak their special havoc! Again!
By the time it gets bad enough that we do actually drop the hammer on them, everyone else in the world will probably be glad. Hell, I'll bet there are bunch now that wish we would get on with it.
#28
This is nothing new from Baker. Go back and review his actions from past years. He clearly is anti-Israel and has always been. He is just as detrimental to Israel as our good friend Jimmah. Baker was constantly demanding concessions from Israel his entire time in the Bush I administration. The fool has never accomplished anything of substance yet. This is merely a continuation of his past performance. He is a Saoodi ass kisser par excellance, just like old man Bush. Saud Abdullah calls Bush 41 all the time to relay Saoodi desires and hopes he can still foist these onto any current goverment in power. These two charactwers have been on Saoodi heroin (cash in their secret bank accounts) for far too long to change now.
#30
Welcome to the Brave New World of Jim Baker--an undercover tranzi who was quite effective in bringing down Bush#1, and is in the process of effectively bringing down Bush#2. You've got to give him credit. He's an amazing opportunist, and he's quite adept at studying his target, assessing their personal weaknesses and/or modes of thought operations, and then going in for the "prime dismantling"--all the while, his target(s) believe he's giving really great, on-the-level advice, or perhaps they simply recognize that Baker and his "secret" team are too powerful to resist. Hey--and it must certainly be that Obama/Hilary will be better for business . . .
Side note: for all you Bible-thumpers out there--10 years ago it was truly unthinkable, unimaginable, that "all the nations" would turn against Israel, per the book of Revelation. Now it not only looks possible, but plausible. Unreal.
#31
I can't bear to see so many of your people suffering in wars.
I'll freely admit that our soldiers, like so many others, suffer in this war. Fortunately, yoursoldiers terrorists DIE!
Unilateral use of nukes would turn the entire world, including our best friends (the Aussies) against us. It would be our ruination. We won't nuke the Arab nations unless we're attacked with WMD or we have 100%, stone-cold clear evidence that we're about to be attacked with such.
Thank you, good Doctor, for making a point I am obliged to post here over and over again. Mick, one of the things that differentiates America is its ability to maintain the moral high ground. This is not to say that we must fear becomong terrorists if we fight them on their level, but first use of nuclear weapons is a moral Rubicon that must not, and more importantly, need not be crossed. There may come a time when all evidence points towards such a decision, but we are still years from it.
We have conventional weaponry that can replicate the effects of a nuclear bomb. I do think that at some point we must begin a program of massively disproportionate retaliation as a way of polarizing average Muslim opinion away from the Jihadists. Above all, we need to begin "breaking things", without heed of who must repair them. Iran is the starting place with Syria and North Korea on the list immediately thereafter.
With Iran in particular, there is simply no worse alternative to what exists right now. Anyone else could rush into the power vacuum created by a decapitating strike and things would not be one whit for the worse. Same goes for Syria, at least in that we would interdict the constant formenting of unrest in Lebanon and help Israel get back on its feet.
Much more serious are the prospects of dealing with Pakstan and Saudi Arabia. These two facilitators of international terrorism need to be taken out root and branch. Our worthless alliances with the Saudis are nearly as nettlesome in this respect as how to confiscate or neutralize Pakistan's nuclear arsenal prior to takedown.
More to the point and in agreement with what you posted, our current crop of leaders simply do not have the backbone for a vast majority of these measures. Very few of them are willing to recognize that whether we think so or not, we are in a religious war, one declared by Islam. If we do not get onto a true war-footing soon, America must brace itself for taking some ghastly hits on our own soil. Ones that will make 9-11 look like a picnic.
The prospect of economic set-back arising from such profound atrocities should be enough to motivate any American government of any party to begin a campaign of summarily executing the entire top tier of Islam's command chain and propaganda machine in general. That this reality does not is a resounding condemnation of how badly lost the lessons of WWII have been.
#32
ex-lib, I was thinking about that.
"All the nations turn against Israel"
Well, I guess the end times are upon us. I guess we should take advantage of the few days of peace left to us.
I'm also thinking that the time for us right wingers to get off our fat asses is just around the corner. Maybe in the Spring, or even sooner, we should have a rally in DC with millions of us waving our rifles and shotguns and taking back our country. We already know that the left will not fight, so our only obstacle will be that we have jobs to report to. Like I said, we have to be there. The job can wait, and for that matter the job is nill if we lose this thing.
I, for one will not allow Islam to take a civilized country, except maybe France. I'm even ready to fight them for Lebanon. Certainly for Thailand or Nigeria. If you are a man, by nature, you are willing to not only protect your family with your life, but you are willing to extend the same protection to all women and children, to the tribe, and to the nation, because this nation is worth saving.
#34
I, for one will not allow Islam to take a civilized country, except maybe France. I'm even ready to fight them for Lebanon. Certainly for Thailand or Nigeria.
Not me, if they're not willing to fight and die for their nation, neither am I. I'll fight to save hearth and home, but not some ungrateful bastards overseas. After we secure the homeland, I might be willing to liberate a few places, as long as there are no silly ROE's to contend with.
#36
#21 If this government abandons Israel, I'm finished with the Bushies.
If ANY government abandons Israel, the entire nation should abandon that government. Go back and re-read the entire second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence. It may be time to exercise the "reset" button.
#28 - Steve Clear thinking and an iron constitution is what is needed to beat the Islamicists.
Wrong. It's going to take the iron will sufficient to bomb certain Islamist centers back beyond the stone age into the Precambrian to end the war against us. Nothing else will sink through those warped, twisted, one-track minds. They believe their god allan is on their side - we have to prove them wrong. That takes superior firepower and the willingness to use it - any or all of it, as needed. They will continue to fight until we prove to them that they will either accept defeat or accept total destruction. There are NO other options.
#34 Zenster We have conventional weaponry that can replicate the effects of a nuclear bomb. I do think that at some point we must begin a program of massively disproportionate retaliation as a way of polarizing average Muslim opinion away from the Jihadists. Above all, we need to begin "breaking things", without heed of who must repair them. Iran is the starting place with Syria and North Korea on the list immediately thereafter.
The first thing we need to understand is that no muslim is our friend - not one. There are muslims that are not out to kill us - yet - but that doesn't make them "friends". Secondly, we need to understand that we MUST change "hearts and minds" in order to win, because the hearts and minds of muslims is in sync with islam, a destructive death cult. Thirdly, the only way to change the hearts and minds of most arabs is to prove we're the meanest, baddest, most terrible creature on the face of the Earth, and they will do things OUR way, or else they will cease to exist. Everybody tries to keep finding "middle ground". Give up - it doesn't exist. Break them of the way they think, or break them to the point they can't retaliate, or continue to suffer abuse and deaths among our people.
This war began for real in the late 1960's, following the 1967 Israel/Arab war. The only thing that's changed is that the theater of operations has expanded to include the entire planet and all its people. We either fight back with overwhelming force, or we go under. I do NOT intend to live any part of my life as a muslim.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
12/07/2006 22:38 Comments ||
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#37
#39: "They will continue to fight until we prove to them that they will either accept defeat or accept total destruction."
Why give 'em a choice, OP?
Total destruction works for me. These nutcases will never accept defeat - so make 'em accept dead.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
12/07/2006 23:26 Comments ||
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By Avi Issacharoff and Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondents and AP
Hamas has recently prepared a list of leading Palestinians held in Israeli prisons that the organization will demand in a possible deal for the exchange of abducted Israel Defense Force soldier Gilad Shalit.
So far, both sides have reached agreement through Egyptian mediation, over the framework of the deal; however they have not finalized the number and identities of the prisoners to be released.
Among those whose release Hamas intends to demand is Abbas Sayed, the mastermind of the massacre at the Park Hotel in Netanya over Passover in 2002, in which 29 civilians were killed. That is, more than the *actual* number of civilians killed at quana (not the 80 claimed at first, but the mid-20 final number of burials).
The military censor allowed the release Wednesday of a report prepared by an IDF investigating team regarding the raid and abduction of two IDF reservists along the northern front by Hezbollah guerrillas in July. The report concluded, on the basis of physical evidence at the site of the attack, that Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser were seriously injured during the attack.
According to the assessments made in the report, one of the two suffered critical injuries, although the report left the identity of the individual ambiguous.
At this time, Israel and Hamas are holding indirect negotiations on the central details of the Shalit deal. Sources familiar with the developments say that if progress is achieved, it is likely that the first stage of the deal will take place in a few weeks.
Early Wednesday, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak told reporters negotiations for Shalit's freedom are "are in their final stage and waiting for Hamas approval" but added, "it seems that there other parties who are intervening against the interest of the Palestinian people." He did not elaborate.
The deal is intended to take place in three stages: In the first, Israel is expected to release about 400 prisoners!!!, among them women, minors and prisoners suffering from health problems. A short while later, or parallel to the initial release, Shalit would be released to Israel.
In the second stage, following the release of Shalit, another large group of Palestinian prisoner would be released. In the third stage, another group of prisoners, considered "heavy duty" figures, would be freed. These include senior members of terrorist organizations, including individuals with "blood on their hands."
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has hinted recently that he would agree to the release of some prisoners who had been involved in attacks that claimed the lives of Israelis. Nonetheless, the identity of the prisoners who would be released is still unclear; there is some debate over the number and identity of the prisoners who would be freed.
For its part, Hamas is demanding that 400 prisoners be freed in the first part of the deal, and 500 each in the two subsequent parts of the exchange. Israel would like to limit that figure.
However, a senior Israeli source said this week that it is possible that Israel will agree to the release of as many as 1,000 Palestinians!!! Bis.
Palestinian sources told Haaretz yesterday that topping the list of those Hamas wants released, is Sheikh Hassan Yusef, among the leaders of the organization in the West Bank. Yusef, a resident of Bitunia, near Ramallah, was jailed for his membership in a terrorist organization.
Next in line is Sheikh Mohammed Jamal Natshe, from Hebron. He is also among the leaders of the Hamas political wing in the West Bank.
Also high on the Hamas list is Jamal Abu Hija, who headed the group in the Jenin region.
Another whose release Hamas will demand is Yahiye Sanuar, among the founders of Hamas and its special security arm, a resident of Khan Yunis, and brother of Mohammed Sanuar, considered to be one of the heads of Izz al-Din al-Qassam, the military arm of the organization, and one of those believed to have been involved in the abduction of Gilad Shalit. Vertue Sin is its own reward. Sanuar has been in prison for nearly 20 years, having been sentenced for the murder of Palestinians suspected of collaborating with Israel. He is not considered to have "bloodied his hands" in terrorism against Israelis.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said negotiations for the release of an Israeli soldier captured by Palestinian militants are in their final stage, according to a newspaper report on Wednesday. Militants linked to the Islamic militant group Hamas, which leads the Palestinian government, crossed the Gaza border into Israel and captured Cpl. Gilad Shalit in June.
"Negotiations on releasing him are in their final stage and waiting for Hamas' approval," the semi-official Al Gomhouria quoted Mubarak as telling newspaper editors accompanying him on a trip to Europe.
Egypt has made considerable efforts to resolve the crisis, Mubarak said. "But it seems that there other parties who are intervening against the interest of the Palestinian people," he said.
Mubarak did not say what other parties he was referring to but it appeared to be a reference to Syria, where Hamas' top leader Khaled Mashaal lives. He did not give additional details about the negotiations.
(IsraelNN.com) Unnamed sources in the Islamist Hamas terror organization, currently holding power in the Palestinian Authority, said today that a Hamas delegation met with senior members of the American Democratic party. According to the Hamas sources, the meeting took place in a third party country that is unwilling to be identified at this stage.
Hamas spokespersons have said that the Democratic party victory in the recent US mid-term congressional elections indicate a change in the US policy towards the Hamas-led PA.
Seems like this should be bigger news than it is. Anyone seen any other references to this story anywhere?
Posted by: Mike ||
12/07/2006 06:27 ||
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#1
Swell. Mebbe Johnny-boy was there; he has experience with the North Vietnamese.
Posted by: Bobby ||
12/07/2006 6:45 Comments ||
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#2
Treason, pure and simple. The republicans should hammer on this like a railroad spike.
#4
I would like some actual names. Hamas doesn't strike me as particularly trustworthy... maybe they're just trying tspook the Administration into coughing up more concessions.
Or mebbe the Dims are slimy weasels, it's a tough call.
#6
This is not precedent setting. Think back just a few years ago, we had Donks jetting over to Iraq to cozy up to Saddam and tell him everything is going to be all right. We also had a couple of Donks run down to Nicaragua to let the Sandistas know they had friends in D.C. And if memory serves me right there was a Donk Delegation that visited East Germany just before the wall came down. WAIT I SEE A PATTERN HERE! Now that the Dhimis have visited Hamass it about time for them to go bye bye! Works for me.
#9
Mike, I saw it in yesterday's Seattle fish wrapper. Sorry cannot remember which one, but they all smell the same; and the fish oil only improves it.
The two Israeli soldiers, whose capture by Hezbollah sparked a month-long war in Lebanon and Israel this summer, were badly wounded during the cross-border raid in which they were taken, Israeli broadcast media reported Wednesday. If they weren't when they were captured, they probably were within hours afterwards. These bloodthirsty maggots couldn't resist hurting those Israeli soldiers even if they knew how to build an atomic bomb.
The television stations quoted a report composed by the Israeli military, containing the conclusions of an investigation by medical, ammunition and other experts of the scene of the raid. According to the classified report, one of the soldiers was seriously injured and the other critically when Hezbollah militants crossed into northern Israel and attacked them as they patrolled the border with Lebanon.
The Israeli military would not confirm that the report described the conditions of the two soldiers as "serious" and "critical." A statement issued by the military said only that its working assumption was that the soldiers were still alive. "According to this assumption the IDF continues with its actions and efforts to return the soldiers home, as was done since the moment of the abduction," it said. Just make sure you get back some living, breathing soldiers before you release a single terrorist prisoner. The trade should be 'like-for-like' -- Hezbollah returns live prisoners, you release live prisoners. Hezbollah returns dead prisoners, you release dead prisoners.
Israel Channel One reported that the military allowed Israeli media to disclose the existence of the report Wednesday, two months after its completion, because of a slip of the tongue by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in a questions and answers session with high school students earlier this week. Olmert had said that Israel would not release any Lebanese or Palestinian prisoners in return for "coffins," a statement which some interpreted as meaning the soldiers could be dead and led to widespread speculation about their condition.
The military experts reached their conclusions about the soldiers' injuries by investigating the wreck of their vehicle, which had been badly damaged by anti-tank rockets, as well as blood stains on the site. Their capture on July 12 prompted Israel to launch an offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon, while the Shiite militant movement launched thousands of rockets into Israel. The fighting came to an end with a United Nations-brokered ceasefire on August 14. Israel is said to be conducting behind-the-scenes, indirect negotiations via a German mediator about a prisoners swap with Hezbollah.
Occupied Jerusalem: At least one of the Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah fighters in July could be dead, according to security sources. An Israeli investigation into evidence gathered from the border patrol which was ambushed said that the two soldiers taken were seriously injured in the skirmish. The report, which had been suppressed by Israeli military censors, said the pair would have needed urgent medical attention and that one was in a critical condition when taken away.
An Israeli security source said: "The amount of blood left behind and other indications such as the blast damage caused to the vehicles carrying the soldiers point to the fact that they were seriously wounded, with one left in critical condition. "The question remains whether Hezbollah was capable or willing to provide them with the necessary care while also trying to spirit them to a hiding place." Terrorists don't seem to be very big on first aid or triage.
The kidnapping incident sparked the month long attack on Lebanon which claimed more than 1,000 Lebanese lives. Too bad it wasn't 10,000.
Posted by: Jerry ||
12/07/2006 05:32 ||
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#1
Why is it again that Israel doesn't have a death penalty?
#2
Why is it again that Israel doesn't have a death penalty?
'Cause if they did, the EU & the Tranzi's would say harsh things about them. Of course, short of Israeli mass suicide, they will never stop saying harsh things. Personally, I think the current Israeli leaders are insane and are dragging Israel to its demise.
Negotiations for the release of kidnapped IDF Cpl. Gilad Shalit are in their final stage, Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak said Wednesday.
Speaking about Shalit, who was captured by Hamas-linked terror operatives in June, Mubarak said "negotiations on releasing him are in their final stage and waiting for Hamas' approval."
Egypt had made considerable effort to resolve the crisis, Mubarak said, "but it seems that there other parties who are intervening against the interest of the Palestinian people."
Mubarak did not say who the "other parties" were, but he appeared to mean Syria, where Hamas' top leader Khaled Mashaal lives. He did not give additional details about the negotiations.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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The United Nations will ask suckers donor countries to contribute a record $450 million (339 million) in aid to the Palestinians, whose economy has been devastated by international economic sanctions on the Hamas-led terrorist government, UN officials said Wednesday. Um... No. Thanks for playing.
About three-quarters of the $453 million (341 million) being requested is earmarked for guns and ammunition job creation, cash assistance and food aid, said David Shearer, head of the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. The UN is also asking for jizya money to support the Palestinians health and education system. The UN plans to officially launch its appeal Thursday. You should get Jerry Lewis to host it. The French will empty the treasury.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
You write the first check, Coffi, then get a few bucks from your son's oil for food account.
#7
I think the succinct thing to say to Koffee would be, "No thanks, you first, arsewipe."
What a "parting gift" from Bolton that would be. The engineer in me wants to know details. Does anyone know how many "Palestinians" there are in total? If so, we could divide that cash amount by the population and just hand them each a check. Guess the squeeze and lack of Sammy's gifts for the "martyrs" is running REAL tight now, eh Coffee?
Posted by: BA ||
12/07/2006 11:35 Comments ||
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Amnesty International Secretary-General Irene Khan will head for Sderot in the next few days to show her solidarity with the town's residents, it was reported on Wednesday. Isn't that sweet? With solidarity with Amnesia International and $3.95 you can get a cuppa coffee at Starbucks. Is she gonna give the raised fist salute?
Meanwhile, representatives of the local councils came to the Kassam-blasted town on Wednesday to show their support. The officials made a point of buying from local businesses to help with Sderot's financial crisis.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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Palestinian Deputy Prime Minister Nasser Eddin Shaer said Wednesday that Hamas had received a message from PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas regarding its readiness to set up a unity government. Unity government talks between Hamas and Fatah have made little progress since their inception, due to vast disagreements of policy.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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Hamas officials have managed to smuggle more than $66 million in cash through the Rafah border crossing in the past eight months, a member of the Hamas-led government revealed Wednesday.
Meanwhile, sources close to the Hamas-led government claimed that Hamas representatives recently held talks with officials from the US Democratic Party at a secret location. If true these Democrats need to be identified and horse-whipped -- they're negotiating with people our government has proclaimed to be terrorists.
The sources told the Bethlehem-based Maan News Agency that Hamas representatives have also been holding secret talks with European government officials, including Britain and France. That's no surprise; the French in particular want to open the money spigots.
Palestinian Authority Planning Minister Samir Abu Aisheh of Hamas said the cash that was brought by Hamas officials was handed over to the PA Finance Ministry. He also revealed that the Hamas-led government has managed to pay 69% of the salaries to the PA's 160,000 civil servants during the same period. Preventing the riots that otherwise should have occurred.
Altogether, the Palestinians have received $318 million in international aid since Hamas took over despite international sanctions imposed on the Palestinians, the minister said, noting that most of the money was channeled through the office of PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas. Into the left pocket instead of the right pocket. All got spent in the end.
This is the first time that a senior Hamas official reveals the total sum of money that has been smuggled into the Gaza Strip through the Rafah border crossing. Several Hamas ministers, legislators and officials have managed to smuggle suitcases full of millions of dollars through the border crossing. At the border crossing manned by Y'urp-peon 'monitors'. Who obviously are enjoying long lunches and brief tours on duty.
The most recent case occurred last week, when PA Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar returned from a 14-day Arab and Islamic tour carrying $20 million in cash. A week earlier, two Hamas legislators arrived at the Rafah border crossing each carrying $2 million in cash. They managed, somehow, someway, not to get 'caught' with the cash. They must be really good smugglers.
The report about contacts between Hamas and American and European officials comes in the wake of the breakdown of negotiations between Hamas and Abbas's Fatah party over the formation of a Palestinian unity government.
According to the report, Hamas has succeeded in convincing European officials to accept the Islamist movement's plan for a long-term hudna [lie] [truce] with Israel as a substitute for recognizing Israel's right to exist. Since Y'urp-peons don't know history and have chosen not to investigate further the meaning of a hudna.
The report quoted sources close to Hamas as saying that the Europeans have bought the idea of solving the Israeli-Arab conflict on the basis of a hudna rather than the principle of land for peace. Since it's more convenient for them.
The sources claimed that many European governments have shown interest in "flexible" statements by some Hamas leaders lately, including remarks by Syria-based Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal to the effect that his movement was prepared to offer Israel a hudna in return for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the entire West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem. And should the Israelis say 'no' (not a given with Olmert), the Euros would then proceed to sanction the Israelis and give Hamas whatever it wants.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
so the UN really only needs to beg for $ 384 Million then ?
#3
I read an article last night describing how Hez has set up two searchlights in the square outside the Serail. They are used, of course, to intimidate the government. No doubt giant loudspeakers will soon be set up to play recordings of dying animals. Which reminds me: where's Janet Reno?
The Daily Star reported that Hez had a new cabinet all set to take office last week. That was a no-go. So Sunday should be interesting, otherwise Naz and his puppetmasters are going to look pretty foolish.
Ayatollahs health fails as Iran power struggle grows
by Michael Ledeen
Three days ago, Irans dictator, Supreme Leader Ayatollah ali Khamenei, was rushed to the vast medical facility traditionally known as Vanak hospital (it now has an Arabic name that means the 12th Imam Hospital), a 1,200-room facility that saves half of its beds for the leadership.
Khamenei is known to be suffering from cancer, and taking considerable quantities of an opium-based pain killer. He has lost more than 17 pounds in the past ten months, and was told last spring that he was unlikely to see another New Year (In the Iranian calendar, the New Year begins at the end of March).
Amidst maximum security, and under orders that the event be kept secret at all costs, the theocrat was placed in one of the luxurious suites reserved for the countrys most important figures. Khameneis blood pressure and pulse were alarmingly low, and his physicians at first feared some sort of hemorrhage. But they could find no trace of internal bleeding, and concluded that he had had some sort of cardiac crisis.
Khamenei is still undergoing tests and receiving maximum attention. It is clearly a serious problem because he wanted to leave the hospital, only to be talked out of it by the doctors. The precise gravity of his condition is not known, but the argument over the wisdom of moving him to his own home suggests it may be quite serious.
News of Khameneis heart problems, especially if they turn out to be life-threatening, would undoubtedly catalyze the battle at the highest levels of the regime to control the choice of his successor. Recent events document both the intensity and the violence of the power struggle.
On November 27th, a military aircraftan Antonov 74headed for a military site near Tabriz crashed shortly after takeoff from Tehran. Nearly forty deaths were reported, including several top leaders of the Revolutionary Guards Corps, the countrys elite military organization. The dead included some of Khameneis closest allies and advisers, and their loss was a serious blow for him.
Most Iranianswho are in any case reluctant to believe in accidents when the mighty are killedare convinced the plane was sabotaged, especially as this is the latest in a sequence of spectacular airplane disasters, producing high-level military casualties.
#6
We are told ever so often that believing Muslims welcome death. They are said to love death as the decadent West loves life. Why then is so much effort put into keeping this Holy Man from his eternal reward?
Posted by: Baba Tutu ||
12/07/2006 13:28 Comments ||
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#7
Good riddance of the worst sort of rubbish. We should have helped this sick twisted maggot to his earthly reward a looooong time ago. These eldery hidebound Neanderthal fucks simply cannot die soon enough. That is a problem which will be addressed only when our government finally gets serious about winning the Global War on Terrorism.
If you should want to, you can donate to the Plains, GA graveyard site fund. Click on PayPal as you please. We don't wanna be too suspicious for the black helicopter/tin foil hat crowd, so we'll hold off on Kim Jong Ill for the time being.
Iran will complete its nuclear research and development work by March 2007, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani said Tuesday. You're too late! Don't even try to stop us! Neener, neener!
Tehran says it will expand its atomic work by installing 3,000 centrifuges, devices used to enrich uranium. Experts say with 3,000 centrifuges in place, Tehran could make enough material for at least one warhead a year.
Notwithstanding that Iran signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty on July 1, 1968 and ratified the treaty 19 months later, the U.S., France, Germany, Russia and the United Kingdom have accused Iran of a clandestine intention to develop nuclear weapons.
A 2005 assessment by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a prestigious London, U.K.-based think tank, concluded "If Iran threw caution to the wind, and sought a nuclear weapon capability as quickly as possible without regard for international reaction, it might be able to produce enough highly enriched uranium for a single nuclear weapon by the end of this decade, assuming no technical problems. More plausible development programs Iran could choose to follow would take over a decade."
The future U.S. Secretary of State for Defense, Robert Gates, in a hearing in front of the Senate Wednesday, said that it was impossible to rule out the possibility of an Iranian nuclear attack against Israel. "If Teheran acquires a nuclear bomb, no-one can guarantee that it will not be used to wipe Israel off the face of the map (the words of Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad)", he said. What year was that?
#1
Also on SPACEWAR.com > but a part of article where MOud warns West to believe in God or "vanish" from earth + histoire'. As s aid before, the Russians themselves believe Iran may become "self sufficient" for either indigen/domestic energy as well as for nuke weapons-grade materials bwtn Jan-April 2007. IOW, as taken collectively, by these sources ANY SANCTIONS = UNSC REFERRALS-ACTIONS OCCURRING AFTER MARCH-APRIL 2007 CAN BE CONSIDERED PASSE', as RADICAL IRAN = RADICAL TERROR NOW HAVE ACCESS TO WEAPONS-GRADE NUKE TECHS. The Doomsday Clock for AMERICAN = later WESTERN HIROSHIMAS JUST LEAPED CLOSER TO MIDNITE.
Premier Fouad Siniora on Wednesday advised the opposition bloc trying to depose the government through protests to follow the route of dialogue and help rebuild Lebanon.
Siniora said discord was likely to occur in any "healthy and democratic" country. "Nevertheless, conflicts ought to be resolved within institutions such as the Parliament rather than be taken to the streets," he added. "They will fail to provoke us, for our patience has no limits and constitutes the key to our deliverance," Siniora said.
The March 14 Forces, the anti-Syrian coalition that dominates both Parliament and the Cabinet, was taking a "wise" stand, "not because we are weak, but because we are sure that our idea of a sovereign and free Lebanon will inevitably prevail," the embattled premier said.
Siniora's comments were broadcast live on a number of local television stations. The premier also met with a delegation of supporters from the Northern regions of Minyeh and Dinnieh at his Downtown Beirut office. Siniora said like his opponents, he and his allies could also call on "hundreds of thousands" of people to take to the streets, but the issue should not be a contest in crowd numbers.
"The contest ought to be for the reconstruction of the country," he added. "We want to build Lebanon, not to bring back images reminiscent of the [1975-90] Civil War in Beirut's neighborhoods," Siniora said, referring to violent clashes that have shaken Beirut this week and which resulted in one death and left at least 15 others wounded.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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As the opposition demonstration in the heart of the capital seemed to lose some of its momentum on its sixth day, Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun said protests will escalate if Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's government fails to accept demands for a unity government. "If the prime minister and his camp continue to monopolize power, there will be an escalation of popular pressure," Aoun told AFP in an interview on Wednesday. "We will paralyze the government, we will force it to go into a deep coma," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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Iran on Wednesday categorically denied a report that it was holding clandestine talks in Europe to settle an old Israeli debt.
The report is "unfounded and totally false," Iran's mission to the United Nations in Geneva said in a faxed statement.
The statement accused the Israeli daily Haaretz, which published the report, of "quoting fictitious sources" to divert attention away from alleged atrocities committed by Israel's government.
Haaretz reported Wednesday that Iran is still owed hundreds of millions of dollars for oil it supplied to Israel in the years before the Islamic Revolution in 1979, and representatives of the two countries, now sworn enemies, are holding contacts meant to settle the debt.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the Iraqi conflict and Lebanon's power struggle with Syrian President Bashar Assad on Wednesday as part of Turkey's effort to play a greater role in regional affairs.
Erdogan, who flew to Syria early Wednesday, was making his second diplomatic initiative in the region in four days after a visit to Iran.
Before leaving Turkey, the prime minister said his talks in Damascus would focus on many of the issues he discussed with the Iranian government, such as the rising tension in Lebanon, the insurgency in Iraq and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
He was met at Damascus airport by Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Naji Otari and driven to see President Assad.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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Lebanese politician Saad Hariri in remarks published Wednesday said he was "reaching out" to Hizbullah and its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, to stop the turmoil in Lebanon which he said was a Syrian plan to regain control of the country.
In the interview in the London-based pan-Arab newspaper Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, Hariri called the mass public demonstrations going on in Beirut a coup against legitimacy.
The crisis in Lebanon was deeply-based in a Syrian plan to control Lebanon again with Iran's support, charged Hariri, who is head of the Future Bloc in the Lebanese parliament.
"We stood by Hizbullah and defended its weapons as long as it was a Lebanese party that represents a Lebanese resistance in the face of Israeli aggression," Hariri said. "But if Hizbullah turns its militias against the Lebanese, it will not only lose our support, it will also incite an internal sectarian turmoil that we warn against, and we are working hard to avoid that."
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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Six world powers meeting in Paris on Tuesday said they had failed to agree what sanctions to impose over Irans refusal to halt sensitive nuclear work, as diplomats said Russia was blocking a deal.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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#2
JERUSALEM A high level U.S. commission's recommendations for an eventual withdrawal from Iraq and for dialogue with Iran and Syria proves "Islamic resistance" works and America will ultimately be defeated, according to senior terrorist leaders interviewed by WND.
The militants, from the largest Palestinian terror groups in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, welcomed the policies outlined by the Iraq Study Group, which they claim recognizes Islam is the "new giant of the world."
The group is led by former U.S. Secretary of State James Baker.
"The report proves that this is the era of Islam and of jihad," said Abu Ayman, a senior leader of Islamic Jihad in the northern West Bank town of Jenin.
The Islamic Jihad terror group is responsible for every suicide bombing in Israel during the past two years.
According to Abu Abdullah, a senior leader of Hamas' so-called military wing, Baker's report is a victory for Islam brought about by "Allah and his angels."
Al Qaeda may not have carried out any major attack on the West in 2006, but the next one is only a matter of time and Osama bin Laden and his followers enter 2007 stronger than ever, experts believe.
Al Qaeda and its allies are winning the larger conflict and recent events indicate the continued vitality of Al Qaeda and the jihadi movement, warned Michael Scheuer, former head of the bin Laden Unit at the CIAs Counterterrorist Centre.
Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller, head of the Britains MI5 domestic intelligence agency, summed up the scale of the British governments task in November when she said that five major conspiracies in the UK had been halted since mid-2005. Today we see the use of home-made improvised explosive devices; tomorrows threat may include the use of chemicals, bacteriological agents, radioactive materials and even nuclear technology.
For the former top CIA official Scheuer, Al Qaeda and other groups have never been stronger. Alongside events in Britain, Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for the September suicide attacks on two Western oil companies, in Afghanistan the pace of the Taliban-led insurgency continues to accelerate, and in Iraq the groups head has reasserted his support for the leader of the Iraqi resistance, Scheuer noted.
And it is with Afghanistan and with neighbouring northwest Pakistan that many of these plots are inextricably linked, since many of those planning attacks in the West receive training and combat practice from Al Qeada in these countries.
A top Pakistani security source told AFP on condition of anonymity in August that authorities had captured entire groups of militants planning attacks but that most of those seized go on to reappear in other groups, more determined and more dangerous.
For most Western experts Al Qaeda represents a double-edged danger in the coming years: the old guard and new converts throughout the world, alienated in their home countries, indoctrinated via the Internet and inspired by Western setbacks in Afganistan and Iraq.
And for Scheuer, the possible beginning of a phased withdrawal of US-led coalition forces from Iraq would allow bin Laden to score, in the perception of most Muslims, an unprecedented hat-trick of successes. US troops going home would allow the redeployment of many Iraq-based foreign fighters to Europe, the Arabian peninsula, other Middle East areas and the Horn of Africa, Scheuer believes, and would dramatically increase bin Ladens status as a leader.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/07/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
"the next one is only a matter of time "
And when it happens, the will be angrily blaming Bush (and Blair) for it, rather than Al Qaeda. And they certainly won't be looking in the mirror to find the enablers.
#2
Michael Scheuer is promoting the growth of terrorism because it covers the utter lack of success under his watch. If terrorists are growing stronger now, it cannot be his, and his friends' faults.
al Qaeda, at its best, was a loose network of cells based out of Afghanistan. At this time, most of the operational leadership is dead or in captivity, and most of the original foot soldiers are dead. Some of the wacky estimates of al Qaeda's original size would have made Afghanistan the tourist capital of South Asia. Not true.
The Scheuerites have redefined Islamic terrorism from the definition they used when they could have done something about it. Now Hamas and Hezb. are Islamic terrorists. Ten years ago everyone went out of their way to deny that at State and the CIA.
#3
Al-Qaeda in Iraq claims to be doing the bulk of the fighting. And forget Shiite friendly Syria as financiers. The Sunnis are being paid by members of the Saud royal family. That is: there has been no change in Saudi support for terror. The Sauds finally won their campaign to control al-Qaeda.
I have checked out some of the combat claims made on al-Qaeda in Iraq's website. Some check out. I have cause to believe that most sniper murders against US troops, are being done by al-Qaeda. That is one reason why I am surprised that the US is brokering peace negotiations in Jordan, in which al-Qaeda is a party (albeit in another name). Check out al-Qaeda's Shura Council reports:
http://press-release.blogspot.com/
For those who don't know, "Dajjal Army"(Army of the Anti-Christ) refers to al-Sadr's "Mahdi Army." And you know what they mean by "Crusader." "Lions of Islam" are the suicide murderers.
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.
Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri arrives in Kabul today (Thursday) for talks on tribal councils aimed at stemming the growing Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan and putting an end to the worst fighting in that country since the regime was ousted in 2001. 
MOGADISHU, Somalia - Residents of a southern Somalia town who do not pray five times a day will be beheaded, an Islamic courts official said Wednesday, adding the edict will be implemented in three days. Public places such as shops and tea houses in Bulo Burto, about 124 miles northeast of the capital, Mogadishu, should be closed during prayer time and no one should be on the streets, said Sheik Hussein Barre Rage, the chairman of the town's Islamic court.
U.S. offers N. Korea aid, with restrictions
Nancy Pelosi, the incoming Democratic speaker of the House, on Wednesday praised the Iraq Study Group's report on the Iraq war and said the report proves "that the President's Iraq policy has failed and must be changed."
SEATTLE (AP) - An Algerian convicted of plotting to bomb the Los Angeles airport at the turn of the millennium has written a letter to the judge who sentenced him to 22 years in prison and his lawyers fear it could hurt his chances of winning an appeal. 
Three parallel investigations into the removal of six imams from a US Airways flight last month have so far concluded that the airline acted properly, that the imams' claims they were merely praying and their eviction was racially inspired are without foundation.
Omar Shahin -- one of the imams and the group's spokesman -- said the men did not behave out of the ordinary while on the plane, and that passengers overreacted because some of the imams conducted prayers in the concourse before boarding. 
The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties is reviewing the actions of department members who were involved in the incident. 
Mr. Shahin told television reporters that he needed the seat-belt extension because he weighs 280 pounds. However, the police report lists his weight as 201 pounds. Weights listed for the other imams ranged from 170 pounds to 250 pounds. 
The six-party 
The AQ Khan network could not have carried out its activities without the awareness of the Pakistani government, the Swedish Weapons of Mass Destru-ction Commission said in a report.
A coalition of terrorist groups operating in Jammu and Kashmir has lashed out at President Pervez Musharraf's new offer for a resolution of the India-Pakistan dispute over the State, describing his four-point charter as a "unilateral concession." 
The United States on Wednesday froze the U.S. assets of nine people and two businesses in the border area of Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay who Washington said helped funnel millions of dollars to Lebanon's Hezbollah. The U.S. government considers Hezbollah, a Shiite Muslim group whose guerrillas fought a 34-day war with Israel in July and August, a terrorist organization. The Treasury said the people and businesses raised and transferred cash for Hezbollah through the so-called triple border area between the South American countries, which is home to a large Arab community.
As the debate over Iraq intensifies, leading Democrat Silvestre Reyes is calling for the deployment of more U.S. troops.
The regional strategy is a euphemism for throwing Free Iraq to the wolves in its neighborhood: Iran, Syria and Saudi Arabia, said the Center for Security Policy, regarded as being close to the Pentagon. If the Baker regional strategy is adopted, we will prove to all the world that it is better to be America's enemy than its friend. Jim Baker's hostility towards the Jews is a matter of record and has endeared him to Israel's foes in the region.
By Avi Issacharoff and Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondents and AP 
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said negotiations for the release of an Israeli soldier captured by Palestinian militants are in their final stage, according to a newspaper report on Wednesday. Militants linked to the Islamic militant group Hamas, which leads the Palestinian government, crossed the Gaza border into Israel and captured Cpl. Gilad Shalit in June. 
Hamas officials have managed to smuggle more than $66 million in cash through the Rafah border crossing in the past eight months, a member of the Hamas-led government revealed Wednesday.
Three days ago, Irans dictator, Supreme Leader Ayatollah ali Khamenei, was rushed to the vast medical facility traditionally known as Vanak hospital (it now has an Arabic name that means the 12th Imam Hospital), a 1,200-room facility that saves half of its beds for the leadership.
Iran will complete its nuclear research and development work by March 2007, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani said Tuesday.
Al Qaeda may not have carried out any major attack on the West in 2006, but the next one is only a matter of time and Osama bin Laden and his followers enter 2007 stronger than ever, experts believe.
