#1
Karl Rove is behind this. It's his continued efforts to take the focus off the election!!! If earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanoes, and asteroids won't do it, well, we'll throw in a brand new ape!!!
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
10/12/2004 15:16 Comments ||
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#3
I already saw that movie, dammit! But the scene where he climbs the Empire State building, and the biplanes are buzzing around him, is really neat...
Posted by: Fred ||
10/12/2004 15:16 Comments ||
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#4
I thought this was another posting about John Kerry.
#5
Actually, this is fairly old news, and after the first round of articles had come out, there were releases of some genetic studies done of mitochrondiral DNA that showed these creatures as just another subspecies of Pan troglodytes, if it is a subspecies.
Fred: these apes have been known, but not well-known and not really well observed and sequenced, for about a century. They really were the basis for the fictional killer apes in the Michael Crichton book/movie "Congo."
The guy who rediscovered them, photographer and conservationalist Karl Ammann, has his own website:
His recent activities seem to be centered around fighting the Bushmeat trade; he is the coauthor of two recent books, Consuming Nature, and Eating Apes.
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
10/12/2004 17:39 Comments ||
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#6
His recent activities seem to be centered around fighting the Bushmeat trade; he is the coauthor of two recent books, Consuming Nature, and Eating Apes.
I hear his next one is titled "To Serve Man".
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
10/12/2004 18:08 Comments ||
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#7
I really miss The Twilight Zone.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
10/12/2004 20:20 Comments ||
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Mortuary attendants in Durban were shocked this week when a man, who had been declared dead by paramedics and taken to a government mortuary, suddenly started breathing and woke up in front of them. "AAA! It's alive! It's alive!"
Gale Street Mortuary Unit Commander Thegran Moodley said: "The man had been involved in a car accident somewhere in the Umbumbulu area at the weekend. After the paramedics had certified him dead, my staff were called in to fetch the body." After arriving at the mortuary the attendants had been preparing to label the body when the man had started breathing heavily and had woken up. Surprise meter nearly broke the needle, it jumped so fast.
"The attendants ran away because they were shocked," said Moodley.
"Feet, don't fail us now!"
Surprise meter dropped back to zero.
... along with heart rate.
"We called the paramedics to come and attend to this person who had regained life.
"We ain't goin' back in there! Youse go in there!"
They took him to King Edward VIII Hospital for treatment." "You can make it. You can make itâŠ"
Hospital staff confirmed on Thursday night that a man had been sent to the hospital from the Gale Street mortuary, but refused to give any details. Moodley said the attendants were being treated for shock.
Posted by: Steve from Relto ||
10/12/2004 9:17:46 AM ||
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#1
Given the prevalence of "traditional" beleif I don't wonder at the attendants reaction. Either that or they saw a slasher/zombie flick previous night and took the natural precautionary action.
I'm not sure what i'd do in that situation.
Posted by: N Guard ||
10/12/2004 18:27 Comments ||
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A conceptual foundation for the deconstruction of mortality
Can there be any certainty in the death of Jacques Derrida ? The obituarists' objective attempts to place his life in a finite context are, necessarily, subject to epistemic relativism, the idea that all such scientific theories are mere "narrations" or social constructions. Surely, a postmodernist deconstruction of their import would inevitably question the foundational conceptual categories of prior science — among them, Derrida's own existence — which become problematised and relativised. This conceptual revolution has profound implications for the content of future postmodern and liberatory science of mortality. Is God dead?
It was, perhaps, Alan D. Sokal who most heuristically challenged the dogma imposed by the long post-Enlightenment hegemony over the Western intellectual outlook in his brilliant exegesis of Derridian principles Transgressing the Boundaries: Towards a Transformative Hermeneutics of Quantum Gravity. Dr Sokal's inclusive review of the literature (see especially Hamill, Graham. The epistemology of expurgation: Bacon and The Masculine Birth of Time. In Queering the Renaissance, pp. 236-252. And also Doyle, Richard. Dislocating knowledge, thinking out of joint: Rhizomatics and the importance of being multiple), and his eerily exact summary of the complementarity principle (Instead of a simple "either/or" structure, deconstruction attempts to elaborate a discourse that says neither "either/or" nor "both/and" nor even "neither/nor" while at the same time not abandoning these logics either) make his reading of Derrida irrefutable. We know only two things. We do not know. And M Derrida is in no position to enlighten us.
Bravo! Bravo! The logic is irrefutable! The style is impenetrable! The estimable Scott Ott would be proud oud to have written it himself!
Posted by: Fred ||
10/12/2004 10:46:27 PM ||
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#2
Seems to me that "dead" is a value judgement implying that one state of existence is privileged over another.
Posted by: Jonathan ||
10/12/2004 10:25 Comments ||
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#3
History is dead. Derrida lives.
Posted by: Francis Fukuyama ||
10/12/2004 10:27 Comments ||
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#4
ROTFLMFAO!
Great wahrks! This is a Classic too!
Posted by: Steve from Relto ||
10/12/2004 10:41 Comments ||
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#5
[i]f reading and writing are one, ...if reading is writing, this oneness designates neither undifferentiated (con)fusion nor identity at perfect rest; the is that couples reading with writing must rip apart. One must then, in a single gesture, but doubled, read and write. And that person would have understood nothing of the game who, at this [du coup], would feel himself authorized merely to add on; that is, to add any old thing. He would add nothing, the seam wouldn't hold. Reciprocally, he who through "methodological prudence," "norms of objectivity," or "safeguards of knowledge" would refrain from committing anything of himself, would not read[/write] at all. The same foolishness, the same sterility, obtains in the "not serious" as in the "serious." The reading or writing supplement must be rigorously prescribed, but by the necessities of a game, by the logic of play.
-- Derrida, Jacques. Dissemination (63-64)
Posted by: Mike ||
10/12/2004 14:28 Comments ||
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#11
The reference to Dr. Sokal is particularly sly and wonderful. Sokal perpetrated a hoax on the lefties. (Among other things, the paper implied that the force of gravity was a social construction.)
His "comprehensive review" was a later book where he and his co-author exposed deconstructionist writings as empty and nonsensical.
Posted by: Steven Den Beste ||
10/12/2004 14:49 Comments ||
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#12
"Jacques Derrida, the French philosopher, who has died aged 74, was the founding father of deconstructionism, a controversial system of analysis which challenges the basis of traditional western thought; the deconstructive approach argues that all writing has multiple layers of meaning which even its author might not understand and which leave it open to an endless process of reinterpretation." Source.
Sounds like he studied too many Kerry speeches.
Posted by: Tom ||
10/12/2004 15:01 Comments ||
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#13
Postmodern critics have long posited that the promulgation of multiple discourses in lieu of any univocal truths reflects French historical guilt over being trounced by the Nazis in WW II. Borgboy kids you not...books have been written on the topic...
#2
We can only hope that W changes on this issue, plus others respecting to the 'Crude Kingdom' which supplied it's nationals. How many? 15 or 16 out the 19 which were able to board four U.S. passenger airliners on a clear September morn.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 5:42 Comments ||
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#3
Bush isn't going to do anything incendiary until Iraq's oil output increases enough to be a significant factor. Imagine if Saudi oil production were to shut down now due to civil war now that its at $50/bbl....
#4
Bush is awfully quiet on this matter? SMN, you liberal troll, you are so confused. First the MM crowd complains that we are illegally occupying Iraq and tries so hard to explain why Afghanistan is a failed adventure. The MM left expresses no optimism or joy that both of these countries will now allow women to vote. More women are running for office in Iraq, than are running here in the US.
Are you implying that somehow Bush hasn't made it clear that he believes women should be able to vote? Give me a break. So what exactly is Bush supposed to do in your confused mind? Threaten war if the Saudi's don't allow the women to vote??
I swear to the good Lord above - when he handed out logic, you guys must have been awol.
#5
smn: maybe we can help out the Saudi women now that we've addressed the issue of Afghan women who were actually GETTING THEIR F*CKING BRAINS BLOWN OUT. But it would help, y'know, if the Moore-ons don't try to hold our arms back this time.
#7
What can W do? Not a thing except to ask Naive to reconsider. But why even do that? Look, analyzing Saudi is like peeling the layers of an onion. There's always one more. In Saudi's case, one more layer of nuance to analyze. But it's a never-ending analysis.
You want women to vote? The Saudis would be impressed by their Moroccan, Tunisian, Iraqi, and Afghan sisters who have taken the lead in emancipitation. The rulers would automatically have a knee-jerk reaction if W or an ambassador made public statements. A phone call? Maybe. But at the end of the day, the princesses will have to get their husbands on board to make sure the vote is available. There's plenty of time. It's not called the Magic Kingdom for nothing. BTW, a proverb I often heard there was "The man rules the house, but the woman rules the man." Well, we'll see. If they don't get the vote, it's no skin off my nose. I prefer focusing on the terrorists in the MK.
Posted by: chicago mike ||
10/12/2004 12:53 Comments ||
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#8
I'm not sure how the Saudis election rules are any of our business. Blaming Bush is as ridiculous as Michael MooreOns fantasy movie that you get excited about. You paid to see his movie?
#9
1. Municipal elections without women voting is still better than what the Saudis had before, which was NO elections.
2. Whether Bush's policy on KSA is good or not depends on how much behind the scenes pressure they are putting on them. Which by definition is "behind the scenes" and is impossible to know for sure, despite pundits dropping hints. Ultimately, like Bushs plans for Iran,its a matter of faith. I have more faith in Bush than most Dems do, and less than most folks here do. But who said life was gonna be simple?
#1
I'd like to hear Bulldog or some of the other UK Rantburgers comment on this. Is the author over the top? Is what she claims the real deal among the chattering classes (as it is this whom she appears to hang out with) or is it more pervasive. This enquiring mind would like to know.
Posted by: remote man ||
10/12/2004 12:28 Comments ||
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#2
Tipper - might I suggest changing the title to something discriptive of the contents of the story, that will get more people to open it? Perhaps even excerpt it for those who won't read the whole thing?
(Full disclosure - I was going to post it, but saw you beat me to it.)
I'd be interested in the British and European R'burgers' take on this also. I never ran into this when I lived in Europe (I did hear of anti-Jewish sentiments in Germany, but not so overt as in this story), but then I came home in 1973. No more than the usual "anti-Ami" crap - there are assholes everywhere - when I went back to visit, but the last time was 6 months before the Berlin Wall fell so I'm probably out of touch.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/12/2004 14:02 Comments ||
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#3
Full disclosure - I was going to post it, but saw you beat me to it.
Same here. Anecdotal evidence, sure, but accumulated over decades from a London-based expat, and consistent with my and my friends' experiences.
Sad to say it but combine the disgraceful national reaction in the Bigley affair with the British public's clear trend toward demonizing of Israel and America-the-fanatically-religious, and it's hard to avoid the conclusion that Britain is in serious danger of going down the Spanish path of moral confusion and cultural decadence.
#4
I know this is a peculiarly American way of looking at it, but I can't help but wonder whether the rise of blatant anti-Semitism and anti-Americanism (and general moonbatiness) in Britain correlates to their loss of self-defense rights.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/12/2004 14:18 Comments ||
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#5
A charitable explanation for the repeated abuse heaped on the head of this obviously anglophiliac woman by her London neighbors, acquaintances and even friends (!) is that your average Briton, like your average, no-better-than-he-should-be citizen anywhere, resents being dragged into, as he sees it, someone else's quarrel. In other words, blame the "troubles" on the mere existence of that sh*tty little country and its American protector.
The sentiment, if not the logic, is perhaps understandable. A red-headed Irish American encountered a milder, more innocent version of this kind of weary resentment on his travels through Britain in 1980-81 ("what's in that bag of yours?"). One can sympathize with that era's Englishmen who were annoyed that "bloody Irish sods" were "bringin' all their troubles over 'ere."
And we of course have long had our Father Coughlins and other "limey"-bashers who preyed on fenianism and a certain kind of pigheaded midwestern isolationism. Today's jew-bashing and demonizing of "neo-cons" is perhaps only the European version of the Pat Buchanan/midwestern US/isolationist gripe about Israel having an "amen corner" in the White House. Combine that with the British/European media's ridiculous bleating about how BusHitlerAshcroft have transformed the US into a theocratic police state, and you get paranoia of the sort that greets Ms Gould and many other American expats in London these days.
But there's another explanation, one that Mark Steyn and Dr Anthony Daniels, whose Telegraph opinion piece was printed, have suggested: Blair's Britain is increasingly a morally decadent nation incapable of summoning a proper emotional and intellectual response to this war.
#6
A nation that heaps up teddy bears for the whimpering victim of fascist monsters while heaping scorn on those who would seek to destroy that fascist scourge. No other word for it but decadence.
#7
I think the British national psyche needs some time on the therapist's couch. Scratch that. What it needs is to stop acting out and get on its damn bike. Steyn and Dr. Daniels have got it right. Much of the current behavior of the Brits is downright embarrassing. Compare and contrast with the Australians.
#8
Decadent, yes; but we may wake up three weeks from tomorrow to find we've gone just as decadent ourselves.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
10/12/2004 14:50 Comments ||
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#9
Yes, portions of this country already have gone down the decadent path. Probably most of those living in the tonier parts of Manhattan, Cambridge, Hollywood, San Fran/Marin, Seattle and all the College Towns With a Foreign Policy.
But I would contend there remains a vast majority of Americans, not all of them religious or gun-owning or Republican-- or even pro-Bush-- who would fight these fascists with every ounce of their being. The ornery, anti-federalist, anti-bully "don't tread on me" spirit still holds sway in this country, as does an ability to make elementary moral distinctions.
#10
The only thing that would enable Kerry to be elected IMHO is a $0.30+ spike in gas prices at the pump. I seriously doubt that this race will be close, if only because those voters who at this point are undecided are the ones who pay attention only to pocketbook and character issues. The economy's at worst a glass half-full: advantage Bush. As to character, what needs to be said?
#11
I mean the economy's at worst a glass half-empty. This election will really come down to a gut decision by millions of non-ideological, non-partisan voters as to which man is more trustworthy, likeable and reassuring in a deeply unstable, insecure era. And this decision will likely be made during the last 48 hours of the campaign.
I could be wrong, but I can't imagine that more of these voters will decide at the 11th hour that Kerry is more reassuring and likeable and reliable than Bush.
#12
Millions of people who haven't figured this whole thing out yet, exposed to a non-stop barrage of anti-Bush, anti-Republican propaganda from CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN, NYT, MTV, and just about every Hollywood star you can name? I don't have much confidence in them.
As for the economy, the plain fact is we had a brief recession that was barely even detectable-- yet millions of idiots STILL buy the Democrats' "worst economy since the Great Depression" bullshit; look at the polls where people were asked what issue was most important to them.
Frankly, I find the notion that John Kerry could get more than about 5% of the vote to be utterly appalling.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
10/12/2004 15:47 Comments ||
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#13
Look, here's my essential point: I do not doubt that a large number of registered Democrats and a majority of independents in this country have more cojones and more contempt for fascist bullies than the British public have shown.
The average American today faces two sources of massive insecurity: a turbulent global economy characterized by shocks such as high oil prices and rapid technological change, and a murky, unprecedented global struggle against the jihadists.
The key social distinction here is not between Democrat ves Repub, or liberal vs conservative, or religious vs secular, but between those who are willing to fight for liberal western civilization vs those who would rather appease and make self-hating excuses for the jihadists. I have no doubt the most Americans fall into the former category. No doubt whatsoever.
#14
but between those who are willing to fight for liberal western civilization vs those who would rather appease and make self-hating excuses for the jihadists. I have no doubt the most Americans fall into the former category. No doubt whatsoever. true lex....but not enough for my comfort
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
10/12/2004 16:58 Comments ||
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#15
Rex,
If the president were elected by direct popular vote, I'd share your sentiments, but fortunately the dynamic of the Electoral College still gives an edge to the martial culture states of the South and West. Take courage.
#16
Thank God for the EC!!!!
For me, courage = a loaded 12 gauge riot pump and a tall beer. I do think that more Merkins are coming around to their senses, aided by the outright moonbattery of the LLL crowd. It'll just take time.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
10/12/2004 17:31 Comments ||
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#17
There was also an article at RB from the Spectator by Niall Ferguson some days ago that advanced the thesis that the British were becoming more European with time and had been since the endo fo WWII. Ferguson goes inot some detail of how we contributed to this terrible situation. We really should readdress our policies toward Britain and Europe.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
10/12/2004 18:07 Comments ||
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#18
Mrs D,
Ferguson's more of a provocateur than anything else. I suppose he's a kind of idea entrepreneur who launches his latest intellectual product via OpEd pieces to gauge how well they'll sell in the media world.
First Niall was off on his rant about how the US needs to admit reality and openly embrace imperialism. This Ferguson rode, fairly hard, for about two years after 9/11, when he was visiting prof at NYU.
Then he sent up a trial balloon in a recent NYT piece alleging that Americans work harder than Euros because we're more religious (he says he's working on a book about this). I sent him and the NY Times a mildly sarcastic email pointing out that the longest hours are pulled in those bastions of American irreligiosity, Wall Street and Silicon Valley, and that it's the pro-family religious types who always manage to get home by 6pm. (Ferguson had the class to respond and thank me for "my thoughts.")
I suspect ol' Niall's just stirring the sh*t with his anti-Special Alliance piece as well. Think about it: what kind of crude analysis is it that posits a firm alliance based on the NYLON (NY-London) jet passenger traffic and then concludes that the alliance is in trouble because the vast majority of yanks and Britons do not cross the pond?
Anyone with a feel for the people can see that all this "people's Princess" touchy-feely Bigley BS came directly from the US! It's the anglicization of Oprah, the culture of sensitivity and narcissism. Anyone who visited Britain 25 years ago and goes back today will see Britain's become far more Americanized in many crucial senses: more capitalist, more racially integrated/multicultural, more open to the outside world, more cosmopolitan generally. I'd guess that Niall didn't even cross the Hudson in all his time at NYU, let alone get a feel for the South or the West.
The key to Britain is the calculations of the political elites. The British people are far more like Americans than they've ever been. What annoys me so much about the Bigley nonsense is the fear that our own media elites would likely play the same games (though the public reaction would likely be different). Yellow ribbons are a manifestation of creeping Bigley-ism.
Creeping? Bigley-ism. Not in the Nation held hostage by Nightline for 400 days a quarter century ago. You are correct that the yellow ribbon thing is a bit much, expecially in blue country. But the People's Princess thing did set an international standard we have yet to meet.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
10/12/2004 20:02 Comments ||
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#20
Agree on the People's Princess. Hope you're right on the rest.
A voluntary morality teacher at a Peterborough mosque has been jailed for hitting an 11-year-old pupil with a 3ft stick during a lesson. Mohammed Abdullah, 44, was convicted last month of assaulting the boy, who cannot be identified, at the mosque. Father-of-four Abdullah, of Millfield, Peterborough, who worked as a cleaner at Peterborough Crown Court, denied common assault but was found guilty. On Tuesday Peterborough magistrates sentenced him to four months in prison. The court heard Abdullah hit the youngster, bruising his arms and neck, after discovering a "rude picture" in an exercise book in April. Passing sentence, magistrates' chairman Peter Marshall said: "Because of the seriousness of the offence, aggravated by the breach of trust and the use of a weapon on an 11-year-old child, we feel there is no alternative to a custodial sentence." Lawyers for Abdullah told the court they would be appealing against the conviction and sentence. Magistrates heard Abdullah had lost his cleaning job at Peterborough Crown Court after being convicted of assault and had been permanently suspended from teaching at the mosque.
Posted by: TS(vice girl) ||
10/12/2004 11:03:21 AM ||
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#1
Lawyers for Abdullah told the court they would be appealing against the conviction and sentence
His life isn't worth a cent in prison after word get around he's a child abuser...
A German journalist admitted yesterday that bodies buried in a mass grave at the Kosovan town of Racak during the Balkan wars had been "rearranged in order to photograph them better".
Franz-Josef Hutsch, testifying during the defence of Slobodan Milosevic, the former Yugoslav President, at his trial for war crimes at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague, said that he went to Racak in January 1999 with an official involved in ceasefire monitoring. He said that they had discovered the bodies in a gully. Mr Milosevic has said that the crackdown on Albanians was a legitimate war against Kosovo Liberation Army Islamic extremists, that Racak was a KLA stronghold and that those killed were fighters not civilians. He argued during the prosecution case that the scene had been tampered with. Mr Hutsch said it was clear that the 45 people who had been killed were not potential KLA recruits: two thirds of the victims were men over 50. The trial, which has resumed after a month to give the defence time to prepare its case, continues.
#1
Why not? Matthew Brady and his assistants did the same thing after Antietam.
Posted by: Eric Jablow ||
10/12/2004 22:19 Comments ||
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#2
How stupid was it to arrange the bodies to "better photograph them". What is wrong with journalists these days. Why is it that they believe it is their duty to shape the news, rather than report it.
If that journalist worked for me, I'd fire him and enjoy doing it. Freaking idiot. More harm than good, he did.
Eight more Congolese soldiers have disappeared from army barracks in Elsenborn, bringing the total of AWOL officers to 12, it was reported on Monday. Four Congolese soldiers who made another break for freedom last week have now officially been described as 'smart' 'deserters.'
By Gov Zell - man I love this guy. EFL - read the whole thing.
What if today's reporters had covered the Marines landing on Iwo Jima, a small island in the far away Pacific Ocean, in the same way they're covering the war in Iraq? Here's how it might have looked:
DAY 1 - With the aid of satellite technology, Cutie Cudley interviews Marine Pfc. John Doe, who earlier came ashore with 30,000 other Marines.
Cutie: "John, we have been told by the administration that this island has great strategic importance because if you're successful, it could become a fueling stop for our bombers on the way to Japan. But, as you know, we can't be sure this is the truth. What do you think?" Clueless talking head. How odd - I'm shocked, SHOCKED! I tell you, the CIC or at a minimum the CNO did not clearly explain it all to Pfc. Doe.
Pfc. Doe: "Well, I've been pinned down by enemy fire almost ever since I got here and have had a couple of buddies killed right beside me. I'm a Marine and I go where they send me. One thing's for sure, they are putting up a fight not to give up this island" ...
Cutie: "Our military analysts tell us that the Japanese are holed up in caves and miles of connecting tunnels they've built over the years. How will you ever get them out?"
Pfc. Doe: "With flame throwers, ma'am."
Cutie (incredulously): "Flame throwers? You'll burn them alive?"
Pfc. Doe: "Yes ma'am, we'll fry their asses. Excuse me, I shouldn't have said that on TV."
Cutie (audible gasp): "How horrible!"
Pfc. Doe (obviously wanting to move on): "We're at war ma'am."
(A Marine sergeant watching nearby yells, "Ask her what does she want us to do — sing to them, 'Come out, come out, wherever you are. Pretty please.' " Don't you just love a smart-assed SGT?
Cutie to camera: "No one has yet really confirmed why this particular battle in this particular place is even being waged. Already, on the first day, at least 500 Marines have been killed and a thousand wounded. For this? (Camera pans to a map with a speck of an island in the Pacific. Then a close up of nothing but black volcanic ash). For this? For this?" (Cutie's sweet voice becomes more strident as it fades out.)
DAY 2 - At 7 a.m., Cutie's morning show opens with a shot of hundreds of dead bodies bobbing in the water's edge. Others are piled on top of each other on shore. After a few seconds, one can see Marines digging graves to bury the dead.
Cutie: "There is no way the Marines could have expected this. Someone got it all wrong. No one predicted this. This has been a horrible 24 hours for our country. This is a slaughterhouse. After all this fighting, Marines control only about a mile and a half of beach and the casualties are now over 3,500 and rising rapidly. We'd like to know what you think. Call the number on the bottom of the screen. Give us your opinions on these three questions:
1. Were the Marines properly trained?
2. Is this nothing of an island worth all these lives?
3. Has the president once again misled the American people?
"After the break, we'll ask our own Democratic and Republican analysts, both shouting at the same time, of course, what they have to yell about all this. It should make for a very shrill, provocative morning.
"But before we leave this horrible — some will say needless — scene, let us give you one more look at this Godforsaken place where these young Americans are dying. Volcanic ash, cold, wet miserable Marines just thankful to be alive. And still no flag that we had been promised on that mountain. Things have gone from bad to worse in this obviously misguided military operation. One thing is certain, there should be and there will be a high-partisan — make that bi-partisan — congressional inquiry into this." And more - read it all. Zell at his best.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/12/2004 15:36 Comments ||
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#2
You have to love Zell Miller. He is a no bullshit Marine.
Posted by: A. Bungfodder ||
10/12/2004 16:08 Comments ||
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#3
This is so absolutely accurate. The same parody could be done for the months after D-Day (it was partially done by the master Victor Davis Hanson). The press are idiots who care not a whit about long term perspective. They need to be muzzled in times of war.
Posted by: remote man ||
10/12/2004 16:51 Comments ||
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#4
Eleanor Roosevelt really did have problems with flame-throwers and naplam and being just plain mean and brought it to the press on occasion.
#5
I had these same thoughts the other night watching a History Channel show on the Aleutians campaign in WWII. It was an absolute clusterfuck, with troops shipped in for the assault straight from North Africa-- no winter gear at all, no time to acclimate-- and it occurred to me: One battle. As many casualties in one attack as we've had in a year and a half in Iraq. A total balls-up, yet no criticism from the press.
Miller could have written the same parody, with the same effect, about any of hundreds of other WWII battles.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
10/12/2004 18:49 Comments ||
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#6
Don't forget the hopeless quagmire America was heading for in the Battle of the Bulge...
The gospel according to St. John Edwards I guess....
Edwards: "We will do stem cell research," he vowed. "We will stop juvenile diabetes, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and other debilitating diseases. America just lost a great champion for this cause in Christopher Reeve. People like Chris Reeve will get out of their wheelchairs and walk again with stem cell research." Saw this first on Drudge then did a google search to find this link.
#3
Took em all of 24 hours to use his death for political gain....much slower than I had expected.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
10/12/2004 18:34 Comments ||
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#4
Now Rex, you know Kerry had to flip/flop four or five times on the issue. If Edwards was still a lawyer, there would be fewer doctors to help people to walk or any other thing.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/12/2004 19:50 Comments ||
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#6
Lessee... stem cell research is possibly good for Parkinson's or damage after a stroke. There hasn't been any evidence of it being good for Alzheimer's nor spinal cord damage. The deal with spinal cord damage is in defeating the scar tissue that forms and the proteins that come from that tissue which actually inhibit the repair of nerve fibers. That's where the research is, not with stem cells.
#7
According to Mr. Kerry, the President is also responsible for the shortage of flu vaccine. I guess if Kerry were President he would somehow have control over British government agencies to insure we have enough vaccine.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
10/12/2004 20:18 Comments ||
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#8
We will stop juvenile diabetes, ....
This is just one more example of the evil of Bushitler(tm) and Chainey; that they could travel back in time and stop these diseases from being cured decades ago.
I hate to seem petty, but with all these really great plans to cure disease, end war, make the French act nice, etc; is anything written down anywhere? Talk is cheap.
#9
The only "laying on of hands" these jokers will do, is to lay hands on your wallet.
Posted by: A Jackson ||
10/12/2004 21:49 Comments ||
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#10
Couldn't Edwards even wait until Christopher Reeve's body was cold before using his death for his own political gains?
Not to sound disrespectful but I think it would be some trick for Kerry to get Christopher Reeve (or people like him - i.e. dead) to get out of his wheelchair and walk considering he died.
By ALAN FREEMAN
Members of the small mosque located behind Porter's Paint store in a strip mall along 167th Street come from a string of countries and speak several languages, but most agree on one thing: voting against U.S. President George W. Bush on Nov. 2. "With the Democrats, we would not have this chaos we have all over the world. When [former president Bill] Clinton was there, we felt as if we were all equal," said Mustapha Lymouri, a Moroccan-born businessman who blames Mr. Bush for creating divisions in American society.
"I'm going to vote for John Kerry. We need some change," said Jamal Hagos, a 42-year-old airline worker who is a native of Eritrea and who opposed the war in Iraq. "I feel for the young American soldiers who are dying every day for nothing."
Sofian Abdelaziz, director of the American Muslim Association of North America and a leader of the mosque, said everyone he knows voted for Mr. Bush last time. But most have turned against the Republican President, upset by the invasion of Iraq, by what is seen as the administration's bias in favour of Israel, and by moves they interpret as a concerted attack on their civil rights. It is a pattern that is emerging across the country among Arab-American and Muslim voters.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 3:56:24 PM ||
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They didn't vote for Bush in 2000, they voted against Lieberman. Odd that the reporter failed to note this little tidbit.
#2
And he carries, at worst, 1/3rd of Moslems. In that it is somewhat better than African-Americans voting for republicans, I wouldn't say that as a group Arabs and Moslems hate him. How do they stack up beside Hispanics and Asians? In all fairness, what's the big hoop-dee-doo?
Posted by: Tom ||
10/12/2004 15:16 Comments ||
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#3
I predict if America elects this fool as its President, he will be so despised after four years that he ends up being the last Democrat elected to the office, EVER.
The people are gonna get real sick of this idiot, real fast.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
10/12/2004 15:19 Comments ||
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#4
"I once performed an emergency tracheotomy using only a pocketknife and a ball point pen!"
#7
In Unfit for Command the then Jr Lt suggested to his superiors that psyops be used in the delta. His fellow officers thought this was not a wise move since broadcasting on a loud speaker would bring the Cong like flys to shit. It did. The Swift boats lost whatever stealth they had and were subsequently fired on. Another brainstorm from Hanoi John.
Posted by: Bill Nelson ||
10/12/2004 19:53 Comments ||
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#8
I got laid in the fourth grade.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
10/12/2004 20:25 Comments ||
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#9
DB - O/T - Sigh. It was the seventh for me. Three years wasted on sports, religion, TV, and running numbers for the local "mafia" to make money. Damn! Of course, once they thought I was "man enough", they took me along to see Candy Barr one night in Dallas, so...
#10
Heck yeah, I mentioned this in another post. I was camping this weekend and was reading the latest F&S I picked up at one of the truck stops on the way. I read that little ditty about the 16 point buck on the cape and almost fell into the fire lmao. My wife asked what the hell was a matter w/me, I told her it was another JFK "fish story" - she just shook her head when I gave her the low-down.
A politically conservative broadcasting company has ordered its 62 television stations - which together reach almost a quarter of the nation's households - to air a documentary critical of Sen. John Kerry's antiwar activities after his return from Vietnam more than three decades ago.
The 41-minute film "Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal" is to be shown on stations owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group barely a week before the election. The film, made by Harrisburg, Pa.-based journalist Carlton Sherwood and financed by Pennsylvania veterans, shows former prisoners of war accusing Kerry of worsening their plight in Vietnam by engaging in antiwar activities. It focuses on Kerry's 1971 testimony before the U.S. Senate, during which he recounted stories of American atrocities.
#2
Oh I love how the VP has invited a special guest, JFK, to be on the program. Yep, get it out now. Later we can discuss whether it's fair or not.
There's no sympathy from me as Joe Lockhart still hasn't explained his phone call to the Texas forger, and all at the request of the 60 Min producer. Joe was on Stephanopolous show on Sunday. George had a great op to put Joe on the spot. Nada, rien, nothing.
The DNC, Kerry, Edwards, are just babies, "girlie-men" Sorry female readers if any offense is taken, but isn't meant to be given. Stick up for your country, in other words. Forget about how to make European vacations more palatable to American tourists. Tell them to smile and learn a little of the language. Always works for me.
"The way we were" Nusiance. I'll go to the UN to let it know a new day has dawned when I'm elected. Allawi's a puppet. Richard "Ever" Clarke.
I could go on, but stream-of-consciousness isn't my strong suit. But I hope you get my drift.
Posted by: chicago mike ||
10/12/2004 14:11 Comments ||
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Hat Tip DRUDGE on the below...
Kerry Senior Advisor Chad Clanton to SINCLAIR Broadcasting: 'They better hope we don't win' [said on FOX NEWS DAYSIDE]...
Veiled threats. The Democrats are truly becoming like the Mexican PRI.
#4
Sherwood said he made the film during the summer out of rage that Kerryâs antiwar activities were, he felt, being undercovered. "For 33 years, Vietnam combat veterans, especially POWs, were told to sit down and shut up," he said in a phone interview. He called Democratsâ complaints "a blatant attempt at censorship."
Amen to that Sherman baby! Payback's a bitch and she's in heat.
Democrats counter that the film should not qualify under the news-program exemption because it is a prolonged advertisement for Bush. "Nobody is against them telling their story," Sandler said. "The issue is the personal attacks once again on Senator Kerry and his service." DNC officials acknowledged Monday that they probably would not have time to prevent "Stolen Honor" from being broadcast but said they wanted it known that Sinclair was a partisan company.
Well, that's one company against several others.
The loud over the top whining is what happens when a media company decides to broadcast material that will help take away the Viet Nam cudgel the left has been using for 30 years against the brave people who held the line despite the traitrous conduct by the left and their allies.
It's time the left sits down, shuts up and takes the lumps over Viet Nam that are coming its way for once in their wretched lives.
From South Asia Analysis Group, an article by Dr. Subhash Kapila, an International Relations and Strategic Affairs analyst.
Pakistan completes five years of military rule by the Pakistan Army in October 2004 under the dictates of general Pervez Musharraf. It was on 12 October 1999 that a clique of Islamic fundamentalist generals who staged an 'in-abstentia' coup in favour of General Musharraf. Sadly enough post-9/11 under United States pressure, General Musharraf had to do away with the very Generals who brought him into power.
Pakistan, at a first glance of five years of Army rule (the Pakistan Army does not 'co-opt' the Air Force and Navy) gives a picture of a nation far more internally divided than it was under civilian rule. Vast sections of the Pakistani Society view general Musharraf as an American stooge who has bartered away Pakistan's self respect for his own continuance in power in Pakistan. This view is widely shared in the Islamic world all over, whose leadership Pakistan has always tried to claim. Much elaboration, ending with this conclusion:
General Musharraf and the Pakistan Army are not tired even after five years of strict military rule. Ironically it has been the history of Pakistan that Pakistani Army Chiefs have never relinquished power voluntarily. They have been pushed out of power by another Pakistani General or assassinated and engineered from within the ranks of Pakistan's Armed Forces.
Pakistan's democracy can only be restored when the United States wills it so. It is ironic that while the United States espouses democracy in Pakistan's neighborhood in Afghanistan and Myanmar, successive US Administrators have shied away from demanding democracy in Pakistan. The Pakistan Army has traditionally exploited this weakness of the United States for its continuance in power i.e. by engineering their indispensability to US strategic interests.
Posted by: Mike Sylwester ||
10/12/2004 11:01:53 PM ||
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blah, blah blah. So what do they want us to do - go in and occupy them so that we can force elections. (sigh, shake head)
Ironically it has been the history of Pakistan that Pakistani Army Chiefs have never relinquished power voluntarily
and pray tell me, when did anyone, who ever achieved similar rank EVER agree to relinquish power. Super DUH! Super DOH!
You can see the little cubicle reporter weenie that wrote this. Never had any power and has no clue about power and what that implies. Yeah, stupid. They don't relinquish power. That's why our founding fathers created a "balance of power". They understood clearly what you do not.
Islamic courts in Nigeria sentenced two women to death by stoning for having sex out of wedlock, but two men whom they said they slept with were acquitted for lack of evidence, authorities said Tuesday. Both sentences, which were passed within the last month in the northern state of Bauchi, have to be confirmed by the state governor before being carried out, and they are open to appeal. Nobody has been lawfully stoned to death in Nigeria since 12 northern states introduced Islamic Sharia law in 2000, because all such sentences have been overturned on appeal. Hajara Ibrahim, a 29-year-old woman, was sentenced on Oct. 5 by an Islamic Sharia court in the Tafawa Balewa area of the state, having confessed to having sex with 35-year-old Dauda Sani and becoming pregnant, the court said in a statement. "The court has however handed the woman convict to her guardian to take care of her until she delivers the baby before the sentence will be executed by stoning her to death according to the provisions of the Sharia penal code," the court said. "There is no evidence to link him with the allegation and consequently the court acquitted him for lack of evidence."
The second woman, 26-year-old Daso Adamu, was handed the same sentence on September 15 by a Sharia court in Ningi area of Bauchi state, said judge Ahmed Musa Wurojamel. Adamu admitted to having sex with a 35-year-old man 12 times, and is now in custody in Ningi prison, the judge added. Sharia judgments often go unreported in Nigeria because they are handed down in small, remote court houses and local media interest is limited. Previous sentences of death by stoning for adultery in 2002 and 2003 were overturned by higher Sharia courts after international appeals for clemency. The adoption of Sharia law in northern Nigeria has polarized Africa's most populous nation, whose 130 million population is split roughly evenly between Muslims and Christians.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
10/12/2004 21:10 Comments ||
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#2
What a wonderful religion!
.
Posted by: Mike Sylwester ||
10/12/2004 21:25 Comments ||
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#3
I bet somebody could have a LOT of fun if they could get some DNA from the father and present it as "proof" of paternity. At first they would deny that such a thing was possible, and then they would panic at the thought of killing a male for fornication. They would also want to kill whoever presented the evidence. But it would unnerve the heck out of them.
If anyone out there knows of other attacks on GOP/Bush headquaters please post this information.
The Republican Party campaign office in downtown Spokane was broken into and vandalized by perpetrators who tried to steal a computer, party officials said Monday. State Republican Chairman Chris Vance immediately said the attack on the Victory 2004 office appeared to be politically motivated, coming on the heels of last week's vandalism of the party's office in Bellevue. "One more time, I call on the Democratic Party and the Kerry campaign to urge their supporters to stop," Vance said, although he offered no proof that Democrats were involved. "It is time for the leadership of the Democratic Party to issue a public statement condemning these break-ins," Vance added.
State Democratic spokeswoman Kirstin Brost denied that any party staff members would have been involved in a break-in. "We don't need to break into their offices," she said. "That's despicable and we wouldn't do that."
Vance said the attack occurred between 6:15 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. Monday. On Sunday, about 4,000 people gathered inside the nearby Spokane Arena for a rally in favor of heterosexual marriage. Scores of protesters gathered outside the arena calling for legalization of gay marriage. Jon Wyss, vice chairman of the Spokane County GOP, said the vandals pried the jamb off a back door of the building and then kicked a hole in a gypsum wallboard wall to get into the GOP office. The vandals dumped contents of desks onto the floor, but did not touch a printer that was the most expensive item in the room, Wyss said. They also left a donation jar holding $103.18, Wyss said. They moved a computer and a television, but left both items, he said. Those are being checked by police for fingerprints, Wyss said.
Wyss said the office would be back in action later Monday. There was no message or other communication from the vandals, Wyss said. Wyss declined to speculate on who might have caused the damage. "The thing we say is if they don't agree with our politics, take that to the polls," Wyss said. The downtown office features posters for President Bush, GOP gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi, U.S. Senate candidate George Nethercutt and others. Wyss said it was the first problem the office has had in three months of operation.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 6:20:43 PM ||
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'Bush Campaign Protests Union Violence Against HQs' 2nd related story
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 18:47 Comments ||
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A campaign office in Canton, OH was broken into.
That makes a string of Donk crimes along I-77 from Cleveland: around 1,000 fraudulent registrations in Cleveland, around 800 in Akron, now this.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
10/12/2004 18:53 Comments ||
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#3
...the [Bellevue WA and Spokane WA] break-ins are part of a broader attack on the president's re-election offices around the country, including a burglary in Canton, Ohio, last night, gun shots fired in West Virginia, Florida and Tennessee and union protestors storming offices in three Florida cities and Minneapolis.
We know that the AFL-CIO coordinated nationwide assaults. What are the chances that the DNC is not coordinating national attacks as well?
#8
Kerry's already mobilized a strike team of lawyers all over the place. I'm thinking it is going to be for the purpose of defending these *ahem* questionable registrations.
#9
Somebody did a Bellevue on a Democratic county office in the Toledo area, and there have been arson fires in Louisiana (Democratic) and NE Pennsylvania (nutbar Socialist Workers Party, even so). Even my local Democratic county office had someone smash the storefront window with a slingshot or something last month.
It's no fucking joke, and people ought to be working to restraint the assholes on their own side right now. I was pissed last week, but now I'm worried. Decency is better than revenge.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
10/12/2004 19:54 Comments ||
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#10
Links, Mitch?
Not saying I don't believe you, just saying cites would be appreciated.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
10/12/2004 21:16 Comments ||
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#11
OK, the Toledo break-in. The Socialist Workers Party arson. The Louisiana double-dip arson. (Huh. Actually reading that article, Mike Tottenâs cite of that as "two arsons" is stretching things beyond all recognition - somebody burning a sign on your doorstep isn't arson, that's intimidation.) As for my local incident - I've been on that recently. I'm at the point where there's enough pissed-off for everybody.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
10/12/2004 22:59 Comments ||
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Text deleted -- remember folks to check to see if the article you're posting has already been posted.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 3:40:13 PM ||
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QUESTION-Why is Pakistan, a country that was near bankrupt on Sept. 11, 2001, now so flush with money and confidence that it can practice sabre-rattling?
ANSWER-George Walker Bush made the stupidist alliance in the history of recorded diplomacy.
#2
Was it really stupid, or is it a way to secure this pro-al-Qa'ida Islamic hot spot. If the jihadees were pull off a coup and then gain control of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal it would be beyond a nightmare for a number of geostrategic reasons.
Has there been a history of major problems with the current Paki government in terms of nuclear data being sold to the highest bidder? Yes, but it could be a lot worse if the Islamo-nuts take over.
Pakistan is right up there with Iran as far as being a ticking time bomb thus warrenting our close monitoring of the daily situation from the ground level.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 16:05 Comments ||
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#3
I wonder how long before the Indian Government approaches Israel about ABM systems or turns its not insignificant engineering talent loose on the problem
#5
George Walker Bush made the stupidist alliance in the history of recorded diplomacy.
Even though GW is our beloved Commander in Chimp(tm), somehow I doubt this. But it does bring up the question "What was the stupidest alliance in recorded history?". Let the ranting begin!
#7
For you Civil War experts: England's support of the Confederacy (or were those just trade agreements to get cotton for England's mills?) Although I suppose it wasn't the Confederacy being stupid.
EFL
A group trying to stop a bear hunt in Maryland sent 600 postcards to landowners in Garrett County claiming that 40 percent of the sportsmen with permits to take part in the hunt are alcoholics, drug addicts or mentally unstable. The postcards were mailed out by the Institute for Public Safety, a citizens group from nearby Montgomery County, urging residents to exercise special caution during the state's first black-bear hunt in 51 years, which is set to begin Oct. 25. The Institute for Public Safety? Hmph! Calling hunters mentally unstable doesn't secure one's saftey. Just a thought....Say, just where did they come up with these numbers?
Earle Hightower of outer space Rockville, Md., a real estate agent who serves as chairman of the institute for alien life forms, told the Associated Press that the group simply made up the statistic(emphasis added). "We were just working from general population figures," Hightower said. "If you get 200 people, a certain number are going to be somewhat undesirable." Hey, I can play this game too. Watch. Over 90% of members of the MSM are _________ .
Posted by: Dragon Fly ||
10/12/2004 8:50:13 AM ||
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I used to live in Montgomery County, MD. The average citizen there is somewhere to the left of Mao and crazier than an outhouse rat. Mr. Hightower calling hunters "mentally unstable" is an instance of pot-kettle-blackness.
Posted by: Jonathan ||
10/12/2004 10:03 Comments ||
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#2
In other news, Achenar accused Atrus of insanity.
Posted by: Steve from Relto ||
10/12/2004 10:59 Comments ||
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Oooooh. Better pay attention. He's a real estate agent. Surely, he operates at a higher plain then any of us...
#6
Mr. Hightower might be more effective if he led a delegation of his fellow Montgomery Countians out to Garrett County, where most of the bear hunters probably reside, to go door to door explaining in person why they should prefer to keep the hunters out and have more bears in thier lovely county.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
10/12/2004 12:00 Comments ||
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#7
No surprise. Everybody knows that 67.5% of statistics are made up on the spot...
Posted by: Fred ||
10/12/2004 16:32 Comments ||
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#8
....and all the others are outside of one standard deviation.....
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
10/12/2004 16:35 Comments ||
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Hightower is maybe 3-4 standard deviations to the left of center. Maybe even further out on the extremes in the dingbat, light in the loafers category. He must be in bed with Rebecca Peters who was instrumental in disarming the Aussies. The gun control crowd is dangerous.
Posted by: A. Bungfodder ||
10/12/2004 16:53 Comments ||
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#10
I recall a similarly named outfit - the "Committee for Public Safety" they were.....
Robespierre, Marat, et al.
#11
I would quote a huge statistic but I can't get my rectum to open that wide. So I'll make one up too. 99.9% of the members of the Institute for Public Safety are LLL moonbats. Worse yet many are space cadets who are not homeless yet due to personal good luck.
I suggest these people should all go hug a live bear. That will cure them.
#12
Matt - he also made mention of bringing his trusty double barrel 12 gauge during such hunts.....in the latest field and stream he no shit states he had an encounter with what was at least a 16 point buck.....that must've been the one they shot & killed for x-mas dinner up in cambodia back in '68. Yeah, that's the ticket.
A group of California women aged from 51 to 84 posed for a racy calendar to raise money for their local firehouse, but the town turned down the cash as too hot to handle. The women raised $30,000 to help fix up Carmel-by-the-Sea's firehouse because the upscale town was short of funds, calendar organizer Patty Ross said on Friday. "I learned we were $2.2 million in debt and thought it would be a fun idea," said Ross.
She said she had obtained permission from the mayor to use the firehouse and its equipment as props for the "Carmel Fire Belles" calendar, which features some partially nude shots. "One of them is a school teacher, one is a business owner," said Ross, who is Miss November. "We're just hard-working members of the community who thought we were doing a nice thing."
Carmel's mayor was not immediately available for comment, but City Attorney Don Freeman said town officials decided that taking the group's money would open the town to potential lawsuits. "It would open us up to workplace causes of action such as sexual harassment and hostile environment and things of that nature," Freeman said. "This is the kind of thing that just can't be done in the workplace ... It runs the risk of offending people."
With its white sand beach, Carmel has long been a favorite vacation spot for California's rich and famous. Many also keep homes there, and actor and director Clint Eastwood once served as the town's mayor.
Carmel is a lovely little town, full of lovely people with no sense...
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
10/12/2004 8:37:03 AM ||
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The question why American Jews vote Democrat against their interests has been discussed extensively by the inmates of the 'burg. I've extracted the relevant statistics from this article.
But political rhetoric aside, surveys show that Republicans are making inroads in a group that once regarded their support of the Democratic Party as natural as their attendance at temple on Saturday and their support for Israel. A recent survey by the American Jewish Committee found that younger Jewish voters are much more likely to support Bush than their older counterparts. Bush was favored by 33 percent of Jewish voters under 40, according to the survey. By comparison, he snared the support of 25 percent of Jewish voters between 40 and 50 and a mere 19 percent of those over 60. My aged parents have reached the "a pox on both their houses" stage.
Further, support for Bush is even more pronounced in certain segments of the Jewish community: those from the former Soviet Union and Orthodox Jews. A whopping 60 percent of Orthodox Jews surveyed said they supported Bush, compared with 26 percent who said they would vote for Kerry.
Although various surveys, including the one taken by the Jewish committee, show Bush will get only 24 percent to 30 percent of the Jewish vote overall, that is up from the 19 percent he got in 2000. It is also within reach of the record 39 percent Ronald Reagan got in 1980. More important, the push for Jewish voters is strategic. The fight is being waged in Florida and other battleground states where the shift of a small number of voters could make a difference. Florida, New York, New Jersey, and lots of Israelis in California - the climate is so like home! Any other states I missed?
Although Jewish voters make up only 4 percent of the electorate nationwide, their turnout on Election Day far outstrips any other racial or ethnic group. While about 50 percent of Americans vote in presidential elections, the turnout is 80 percent among Jews. "It's part of the Jewish dictum that is written in the Talmud, that you should vote," said Rabbi Dan Levin at Temple Beth El in Boca Raton. I didn't know that. I thought voting was part of being a good citizen, like praying that our leaders act wisely, our country be blessed, and peace come to all the world.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
10/12/2004 1:28:03 AM ||
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Itâs part of the Jewish dictum that is written in the Talmud, that you should vote," said Rabbi Dan Levin at Temple Beth El in Boca Raton.
Too bad this rabbi didn't cite his source. The Talmud doesn't say "you should vote". In fact, there is no Aramaic word for 'vote'. There are a number of talmudic statements obeying the laws, etc. that could be interpreted that way.
#6
Florida, New York, New Jersey, and lots of Israelis in California - the climate is so like home! Any other states I missed?
Jewish vote's important in Illinois and potentially important (if the swing from D to R is great enough) in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio. If I were one of Rove's men I'd be combing the Southfield/WestBloomfield Michigan and Cleveland and Pittsburgh and Philly Democratic voter lists now for jewish Lieberman supporters.
VOTE : from L. votum "a vow, wish, promise, dedication," noun use of neut. of votus, pp. of vovere "to promise, dedicate." The meaning "accepting or rejecting a proposal, candidate, etc." is first recorded c.1460. The verb in the modern sense is from 1552.
#8
I should have said "no Talmud Aramaic way to say 'vote'".
There are some Syrians (only a few thousand) who today use Aramaic in their daily speech. This group may have a word for 'vote'. If they do, however, it probably is a loan word from another language.
#9
Most thinking Jewish voters and those living or regularly visiting Israel understand all too well when a Muslim lunatic with bombs attached under a coat & self detonates in a public square, it is far more then a 'nusiance', it's death.
Of course there will be the self hating types which are Super Glued to the Dems/Kerry's leftwing agenda.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 16:13 Comments ||
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#10
#5 Shipman - "Terrorism" is not the word Frank G's talking about. :-p
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/12/2004 19:59 Comments ||
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Pakistan successfully test-fired Tuesday an intermediate-range ballistic missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads as parts of its efforts to boost its defenses, a military statement said. Nuclear-armed Pakistan conducts regular missile tests, despite a revived peace process with nuclear rival India. The last time Pakistan test-fired a nuclear-capable missile was on June 4. "Pakistan this morning carried out another successful test of the indigenously produced intermediate range ballistic missile Hatf V (Ghauri)," the statement said.
It said Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz witnessed the test of the surface-to-surface missile, which has a range of 1,500 km (940 miles). In March, Pakistan test-fired the Shaheen II ballistic missile with a range of 1,250 miles. It said the missile was capable of carrying nuclear warheads to every corner of India. Pakistan tested its first nuclear bomb in 1998 and says its weapons program is a response to that of India, with which it has fought three wars since both countries won independence from Britain in 1947. Ghauri and Shaheen are different versions of a Pakistani missile series named Hatf, which is a reference to an ancient Islamic weapon. Pakistan first test-fired the Ghauri missile in April 1998. India and Pakistan carried out nuclear tests the following month. The Ghauri missile were formally inducted into the military in January 2003. The missile was developed by Khan Research Laboratories, Pakistan's main uranium-enrichment facility, which was named for Abdul Qadeer Khan, the once-revered as the father of the country's atom bomb. Some experts say the Ghauri missile was developed with North Korean help in return for nuclear know-how, but Pakistan denies the link and says it is indigenously produced.
A little djinn action, some juche and white slag, add a monomanical laugh and presto! An imitation of a V-2 rocket!
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/12/2004 1:05:01 AM ||
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Just what Packland needs, another missle, when their real enemy, the Jiihad mentality, lies within. Pakland is a country with intercontinental nuclear missile ambitions, and a political situation held together with baling wire. Now THAT'S a model for stability.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
10/12/2004 9:14 Comments ||
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Kashmir will likely be the flashpoint of the next nuclear exchange: One side believes in martyrdom, the other in reincarnation
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/12/2004 9:49 Comments ||
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That is one hell of a contest, Frank. It is the Zen Koan of the Week (TM) which will win: martyrdom or reincarnation.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
10/12/2004 9:55 Comments ||
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Doesn't it bother the Chinese at least a little bit having all this potential mayhem on their doorstep?
Nope, not at all. India is considered to be a potential threat so what better way to deal with India than to keep it preoccupied with a nuclear-armed neighbor. Of course blow-back might cause the Chinese unfortunate consequences.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 00:59 ||
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Crude oil should be $60 a barrel by the end of October (3 weeks) with current price trending due to numerous winter supply concerns.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 4:08 Comments ||
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Do you have any for sale?
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
10/12/2004 4:24 Comments ||
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60.00 bucks a barrel is about where it should be. It's the only way we will ever free ourselves from mid east oil. Cheap oil will continue to make us slaves to unstable supplies owned by folks we don't get on with.
#4
Mrs. D,
Being that crude oil has indeed jumped above $54 a barrel, if one holds long crude oil contracts which were purchased in late 2003 or even early 2004 they are worth a bundle. You could peel off (sell) some contingent on return and amount, or ride this market higher, all the way to $60 to $70+ which is projected, since the supply data indicates will continue climbing most likely until at least Christmas.
There are no real bearish energy market indicators out there, after all winter is around the corner...but. recall nothing goes up forever, the bearish ride down, when it transpires, and contingent on how much she drops, in my opinion will be even more rapid, and a greater, quicker profit then the current panic driven bull run which is being fuelled by various supply related justifications and the fact the speculators are throwing gasoline in the trading pits. Pun intended.
Think of this, what would the energy markets do if there was a devastating supply disrupting attack on the principal Saudi oil field of Gahwar? $100, $125 a barrel, nothing can be ruled out and should not be either. One other item, back in 1999 crude oil sunk like a lead weight all the back to $11 a barrel and then shot back within one year to over $30.
Different portions of the global economy, depending on which regional sectors most effected, will eventually be forced to scale back or just cancel costly imported energy products & certain high priced commodities out of necessity, and this will in turn start a general economic slow down. Bonds would then rise further and stock indexes would do the reverse. Depending on how hard a particular nation is being adversely effected by soaring energy costs, the greater the deleterious sell off in there paper markets.
Sock,
There is a basket of economic reasons behind this run up in oil/energy prices. One of the primary is Mainland China's building boom, thus demanding natural resources as never before, and once again, the is no visible end, if any thing, short of a major jolt in the global economy, China will expand its hungry demand of commodities and tasking international supplies of not only energy, but construction related metals such as copper, plus grains, as in soybeans ( for some reason there are more Chinese restaurants over there then any other type) :)
One passing thought; Back in March I posted my two cents worth on oil heading for $50 plus and listed the reasons why before the end of 2004. Some people online & off got a real kick out of that, had some laughs and said I was a 'promoter of bad economic news' plus a '******* idiot'. That's ok ....I wonder where they are now? At the local Sunoco station?
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 5:21 Comments ||
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#5
I have long been prepared to a long term increase in energy prices. I think it's a good thing. Short term it will have a negative impact but I think long term it will spur new inovation in energy production and more effective use of energy. That is good for us here in the US and our ecconomy. I expect China to keep increasing it's demand on resources and driving thoses prices up. I don't see 60 dollar oil as long term bad. Short term it is bad, long term it plays to yankee strengths. But I can walk about every place I need to go locally to. Most people can't.
#6
Sock's right. The price of oil now, if sustained, will encourage serious work into petroleum alternatives, as well as alternate petroleum energy sources. The Saudis know this, hence all the brouhaha about pumping to increase the supply of crude. It will be painful, but I think that it will be good in the long run. We will not change as a civilization until we are forced to, because of political considerations.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
10/12/2004 9:52 Comments ||
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#7
Has anyone looked at the worldwide consumption numbers? I see articles mentioning that the tight supplies are due to high demand, especially in China. Could it be that China is actually stockpiling into a reserve, as part of a plan for disruption of supplies when military action is attempted over Taiwan?
#10
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3654060.stm China's oil imports for the first eight months of 2004 rose by nearly 40% compared with the same period last year, according to state media reports.
China imported a total of 79.9 million tonnes of oil between January and August, a 39.9% increase on the year, the Xinhua news agency reported.
The figure reflects a slowdown in domestic oil production at a time of rapid economic expansion.
Total oil imports for 2004 are set to reach a record 110 million tonnes.
That's about 3M barrels a day.
Posted by: ed ||
10/12/2004 13:11 Comments ||
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#11
One more point: this short-term spike is potentially disastrous for Bush.
The voters who've yet to make up their minds are precisely the types whose vote depends on pocketbook issues. No more immediate or visible pocketbook issue than the price of gas at the pump. If that price increases another ~30 cents a gallon by Nov 2, Bush will be in serious trouble.
#14
what would the energy markets do if there was a devastating supply disrupting attack on the principal Saudi oil field of Gahwar? $100, $125 a barrel, nothing can be ruled out and should not be either.
Acc to former middle east spook Bob Baer, these fields and especially the two main Saudi production facilities are easy targets for the jihadists.
Mark,
Do you hear any market participants factoring in the likelihood of such an attack in near future? If so, what probability do they assign to it?
#15
If probability of such an attack is greater than 30%, then it's perhaps time to consider seizing those oilfields and placing them under protection of US forces.
#16
Lex, the wild market card is what will Iran do when 'confronted' over the nuke issue, after the election, being that Iran is on the other side of the Persian Gulf and in easy range of those Arabian oil fields. Recall the mullah mindset if they think time is almost up for them.
I would have to say the main supply related trending factors are Nigeria, the coming winter, Norway's oil strike, the damage the hurricanes caused, China's consumption of energy products and heavy hitters wanting to make even more dough playing options & futures on the entire energy complex, plus other related contacts.
The Saudi oil fields for are of course a big unknown and not even on the radar for 'most', but 'not all' traders. If the Saudi supply is withdrawn during a cold winter, price hikes would be wild as in 73 & 79.
Baer is correct, since they enemy would attack in frame work of 'total jihad', i.e. go for broke.
In late 2003 some traders (granted just a few) foresaw the tangible potentials of $50+ oil in 2004, and even less acted, locking in prices but also having to wait & wait for the ride upward.
Many people jumping in now now are chasing this market and that is not always kosher, since she can crash and crash quickly when the reversal gets underway, once the big players start cashing in there chips for profits, which is what happened during the Iraq war in early 2003, when it became known Saddam's Scuds were 'no longer a threat' to Israel (broadening the war). That information was issued to the large volume traders, triggering a large block selloff, very quickly, leaving the little guys wondering what happened.
Ship, 'Danger, danger, Will Robinson, crude oil is only $52.28 as I send this...lol'
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 19:39 Comments ||
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#17
Analyst warns of Saudi oil dropoff (link)
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 19:49 Comments ||
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#18
I heard an energy analyst saying $10.00 in the increase is due to pure speculation and has nothing to do with current reality. It may be the oil futures traders being nervous over a Kerry win along with other international factors.
#19
Sock, that figure sounds in order. Maybe a little broader, $8 on the low end and $12 on high end.
The 'fear factor' plus 'the speculation factor'& the 'supply factor' which is directly linked to the 'winter factor' makes for a very nervous market, which is the 'main factor' in driving these type of markets up or down.
Volatility is the key. The more the better for broad price gyrations. Markets stuck in sideways mode do not benefit call or put traders.
There should probably be a 'geostrategic volatility index' to compile & chart critical data relating to historical price trending influenced by extremes governing prices, which would greatly assist in the prognostication of future trends if the same cyclical indicators are demonstrated in relation to international or regional zones effecting certain segments of key commodity markets.
Indexing data in this fashion, such as oil, could be a valuable trending guide when similar situations arise for those attempting to gage future price adjustments.
Sock, your overview is most welcome.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 20:36 Comments ||
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#20
Anonymous6176, As to your question, the linked charts/data should help. plus there are other web sources if needed.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
10/12/2004 20:42 Comments ||
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#21
..you do not require a lot of money to join energy traders in the largest price jump in history.
I don't know what that means. I'm not some kind of expert or in possession of any knowledge of the intricacies of the trade, so I'm just going on what I've read.
My beef is that these various "factors" on the part of oil traders regarding supply concerns is nothing but speculating on something that may or may not happen. If these scenarios don't play out according to their "fears", then will we not all have paid more for crude oil derived products than was really necessary? Why can't these people wait until a problem actually exists instead of creating one in their heads and transferring it into our pocketbooks?
#2
"killing at least 23 people...
Some 43 people survived the accident late Sunday on Lake Kivu and were safe ashore. But an estimated 50 others were still missing"
#3
Prolly a dug-out type canoe with the optional converted truck engine propulsion system. Depending on the tree used to make it, these things can get 60-100 feet long if the builders are ambitious enough. I've seen examples in Brazil that could hold 40+ people and all their livestock and possessions.
Of course, its still a canoe, with all the tippiness implied by the design.
Posted by: N Guard ||
10/12/2004 8:45 Comments ||
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#4
Too bad that they did not evolve the design to include outriggers, or a second dug-out tree for a catamaran. Then the problem moves to synchronizing propulsion and to structural issues in connecting the two hulls.
And it would be considered anti-macho to wear life vests.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
10/12/2004 9:24 Comments ||
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