#1
Missed the 1980's helping to save the free world from Communism + watching the Personages that later became involved in 9-11/WOT. *D *** ng it, JEMM was feminist???
Interesting op-ed piece given the WoT potential and Hugo Chavez.
By Andres Oppenheimer
Wow! All of a sudden, it looks like the Democratic-controlled U.S. Congress will approve pending free-trade agreements with Peru, Panama and -- who knows -- perhaps even Colombia.
If you ask me, Venezuela's narcissist-Leninist leader Hugo Chávez deserves the biggest credit for the congressional U-turn.
Judging from what I heard in a telephone interview with powerful House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., and an e-mail from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday evening, growing numbers of Democrats who opposed these treaties are now ready to vote for the ones with Peru and Panama.
Democrats say both countries have agreed to include in their respective trade deals stronger labor and environmental standards that the Democrats were demanding. The Senate Finance Committee is to begin hearings on the Peru treaty on Tuesday.
''We anticipate progress on the Peru and Panama free-trade agreements this fall,'' Pelosi said. She was less enthusiastic about Colombia: ``In light of the brutal violence against unionists in Colombia, the free-trade agreement with Colombia has dim prospects in Congress until we see measurable and sustained progress.''
James Taranto, "Best of the Web," Wall Street Journal
Today, when America's enemies speak, young liberal journalists cover their ears and go LA LA LA LA LA! When the latest Osama bin Laden video came out last week, the guys at TalkingPointsMemo.com felt it necessary to publish a series of posts saying that everyone really ought to ignore it. . . .
Hmm, the TalkingPointers have certainly spilled a lot of (figurative) ink on a message they claim to think everyone should ignore. But if you look at the transcript of the video, you can see why they so conspicuously do not want anyone to think about what bin Laden is saying. It's certainly true that he--or whoever actually wrote and recited the words on the tape--aims to "sow division." His method of doing so is to espouse a variety of mostly liberal causes.
He seems to view as his natural allies Americans who seek defeat in Iraq and fault congressional Democrats for failing to have brought it about, who loathe "neoconservatives like Cheney, Rumsfeld and Richard Pearle [sic]" and admire the work of Noam Chomsky and Michael Scheuer, who see U.S. military servicemen as chumps, who live in fear of "global warming," and who anathematize capitalism and corporations. In what appears to be a sop to the Ron Paul crowd, he also calls for a flat tax.
It seems both fair and accurate to note that there is a confluence of interests between bin Laden and those Americans who seek defeat in Iraq. It is little wonder that this is an embarrassment to the latter. But it would be unfair and inaccurate to suggest that this is anything more than a de facto tactical alliance. The Angry Left wants America to lose in Iraq for its own ideological and partisan purposes, which have little to do with the establishment of a global caliphate.
So what are we to make of bin Laden's striking a pose as a global warmist who hates capitalism? Here's a theory: Slate reports that by one estimate 10% of al Qaeda's "soldiers in the global jihad" are converts to radical Islamism, a religion/ideology that, as Slate puts it, "has become a magnet for some of the world's angriest people."
Posted by: Mike ||
09/11/2007 06:32 ||
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#1
Tell you the main reason: THis was AlQaeda's final Koranic warning: convert or die. Islam requires that the offer be made, the invitation to conversion be extended. If it is rejected then we are infidels and kheffirs, and are fair game - we must be either subjugated or killed by the word of the Prophet.
That is why this is an important video: he is doing what is required by the Koran before striking.
#2
I think that 'another strike' would mean that the gloves come off, quite what happens after that is anyones guess.
Posted by: Tony (UK) ||
09/11/2007 10:42 Comments ||
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#3
I think that 'another strike' would mean that the gloves come off, quite what happens after that is anyones guess.
*snort*
I'll believe that when I see it. In all likelihood, another strike means the blind won't be able to find cabs, and Porky Pig will be banned from the airwaves.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/11/2007 11:30 Comments ||
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#4
I share OldSpook's concern. Given what little I know of the the koran, one thing has always stuck with me. Per koranic ROEs, the offer to convert or die generally precedes any major effort to wage war on the infidels and kheffirs.
Posted by: Tony (UK) ||
09/11/2007 16:58 Comments ||
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#6
I don't know what the disarmed Euros plan to do, but here in the Land of the Second Amendment™....
And I won't even feel bad about it.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/11/2007 17:16 Comments ||
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#7
If it is a pre-attack announcement, and if the Islamofascists do manage to pull one off, then there will surely be hell to pay - AFTER they or their allies kill off the soft underbelly of the west and the USA and the rest of us stand up and start fighting back with all the ruthless fierocity such a war deserves.
(And before the mods come down on me, I am NOT advocating the killing of any of my fellow westerner's or Americans- just saying that the ones who are going to bleed (and whine) the most are the same ones who are most likely to die first).
Defend yourselves - and be prepared to defend yourselves and your families and friends.
#9
newc - we are the new rome... just took the civil war path with support for Spartcus....
of course that neglects civil service and bureaucracy from Ming China.
It seemed right away like it would be a big war, three to four years Afghanistan first, of course, then Iraq, then Iran. The idea that it would have stalled and ended up in diffuse oblique arguments about political timetables would have been immensely depressing. There was a model for this sort of thing, a template. Advance. But that requires cultural confidence, a loose agreement on the goals, the rationale, the nature of the enemy and the endgame. We dont have those things. Imagine telling someone six years ago Iran would be allowed, by default, to make nuclear weapons. They would wonder what the hell wed done with half a decade, plus change. What part of 25 years of Death to America didnt we get, exactly? . . .
Heres the 9/11 film I put up last year. And heres a bigger version in mp4 format. (110MB.) It was done the week of the attack, so if nothing else it's an artifact of the impressions and emotions of the time.
Not that they've changed. A 9/11 discussion is going on at buzz.mn., or so I hope; see you there.
Posted by: Mike ||
09/11/2007 06:06 ||
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#1
Less we forget the day and those who have gone before us. Remember the evil. Remember those who enable evil. Remember the names of those who want us to forget.
#2
Remember the day, yes - but don't be sad. Get ANGRY! GET ANGRY!
Get angry again and STAY angry!
It's been 6 years. We've become complacent. My bullsh%t threshold has long been exceeded. It's time to hunt these bastards down and subject them to the same experience those poor souls jumping from the upper stories had to endure.
The absence of Islamist terror attacks in the West, post 9/11, is puzzling. True, we had the transit bombings in London and Madrid, but the body count has been lower than many expected, considering the countless number of "soft" targets available in North America and Europe.
One theory is that al-Qaeda and its affiliates are biding their time, waiting to score a spectacular mass-casualty attack rather than hitting lesser targets on a more frequent basis. A competing theory is that counterterrorism agents are in top form and thus have been able to avert many attacks. A third theory is that the radicals are tied up in places like Afghanistan and Iraq.
The arrest last week in Germany of one Fritz Gelowicz, a 28-year-old convert to Islam, suggests another explanation: It could just be that would-be Islamists operating in the West are too socially and intellectually unstable to accomplish their violent goals.
As terrorist cells are broken up in London, Toronto, Miami, Germany and other places, a pattern emerges. Many of the men in these groups are maladjusted and eccentric, especially those who have converted to Islam. Richard Reid, the failed shoe bomber, is the prototype of the dysfunctional young man who stumbles his way into militant Islam.
Mr. Gelowicz, the German, knew for years that the police were watching him. As far back as 2004 the police picked him up and confiscated CDs praising Osama Bin Laden. Yet all the while he and his associates reportedly continued to plan jihad, in full view of authorities -- until finally they were arrested for what could be the last time.
It's true that even incompetent people can get lucky. But it's also reassuring to know that not every al-Qaeda wannabe is an evil genius.
I'm not sure I buy all of this, reassuring as it is to read it. Yes, you need to be stable enough and intelligent enough to plan a major mission. Morever, a terrorist cell is only as strong as its weakest member. So you could argue that al-Qaeda can't mount a mission because they've run out of people like Mohammed Atta.
But: you don't have to be an evil mastermind to pull off a 9/11. You need an ability to blend into society, work quietly, be persistent, and have exquisite attention to detail. You need enough social adjustment to keep your eye on the ball. Having a target that's asleep and pre-occupied, as we surely were 9/10, helps a great deal. But 9/11 wasn't a masterpiece of high-technology or the product of a great power bulling ahead, it was a low-tech masterpiece (as it were) that was designed to take advantage of our snoozing culture.
But you also need cultural awareness, and I suspect that's the bigger reason why we haven't had another 9/11 in the Western hemisphere. The types of people who might be recruitable just can't blend into Western culture very well. Too many visits to the mosque, too many problems getting along, too many cultural maladjustments, and all that leads to exposure and attention. The 7/7, 3/11 and the like in Europe came about in a snoozing continent that even after 9/11 refused to believe that it had an element within itself that could do the same, given the Euros superior culture and political tilt. Now at last they know (even the Brits), and potential boomers and plotters have problems similar to what they have in North America.
Said another way: while I consider myself reasonably smart, eminently trainable and emotionally stable, there's little, if any, chance I could travel to Peshawar, blend into the local society, and carry out a terrorist strike against the largest mosque in town. I could take a couple years to plan and train, learn tradecraft, explosives, martial arts, weapons, and the language, and I'd still have little if any chance.
So intelligence and emotional stability are pre-requisites. But cultural awareness and an ability to blend in are just as important, as is a target that is asleep.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/11/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Typical looking for the one reason for any problem. What's wrong with "All of the above"?
Yes, they're incompetent...
Yes, they've been seriously hurt in the senior ranks in Afghan and Iraq.....
Yes, the good guys are winning....
I doubt the "they're waiting for a big bang" it's been too long.
#2
Or you could just continue to work with Iraqis. It takes a lot of time off from having to go to government schools for what you may learn in the field.
We are not waging war, we are learning generations.
TO ANSWER the question if Pakistan is indeed a banana republic we need to know the basic characteristics of a banana republic. This term is used to describe a country that is governed by a wealthy elite, suffers from severe economic disparities, is marred by perennial political instability and is prone to military coups.
The small Central American nations of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador once embodied these characteristics and were known as banana republics. For the past several decades, Pakistan, too, has been prone to demonstrating these characteristics and seems to be on the way to qualifying as a banana republic.
As people observe the unending saga of social, political, and economic turmoil in the country, it appears that Pakistans political leaders, most of whom are extremely affluent, consider politics as a sport. Whereas the majority of the people of Pakistan struggle everyday to make both ends meet and have no access to quality education, decent healthcare or employment, their political leaders are the richest individuals who do not have a clue about how people earn their daily wages. Such things happen only in a banana republic.
The political leaders of Pakistan indulge in politics for personal aggrandisement and nothing else. Most of them do not have any vision for Pakistan. They appear on television discussion panels for the sole purpose of mud-slinging and double-talk. They hardly discuss the serious issues and challenges that the people of Pakistan face. They do not hesitate to use Islam for petty gains. They are extremely skilful in the art of obfuscation.
The top leaders of major political parties live abroad like royalty. Their lifestyle in London and Dubai is no less than that of any prince of an oil-rich sheikhdom. No one dare ask them how they accumulated such enormous wealth and how they could afford such large estates and a massive entourage on foreign soil where they never worked for a day.They convene party meetings in London to discuss democracy. One wonders why these meetings are not held in their own country. We do not hear of political parties of other countries, for instance Britains Conservative Party, holding conventions in foreign countries. Why do Pakistani political parties hold meetings in London? No one asks this question as it is presumed that because the top leader is in exile, the party must assemble there as no other leader can be trusted to lead the party. Since funds are no problem, party members must travel to London to attend those meetings. Such escapades by the elite are possible only in a banana republic.
Again, the freedom foreign powers have to dabble in the politics of a banana republic is also well known. Recently, something strange surfaced in the media. It was reported that a great personality of a friendly Muslim country had signed an agreement with Nawaz Sharif seven years ago to facilitate his release from prison. President Musharraf and his ministers did not want to reveal the name of that personality, though everyone knew who it was. Now we had the son of another foreign leader visit Islamabad to talk politics. This is quite acceptable in fact expected in a banana republic.
The governing coalition, led by the Muslim League-Q, promotes a unique concept of democracy. A military dictator is handed over a carte blanche to govern as he deems fit. They are pleased to assume the role of junior partners in government as long as they are able to exclude their opponents from power.
President Musharraf, a military dictator, is a law unto himself. He claims to have a monopoly over wisdom and expects everyone to obey his orders. He alone knows what is good for the country. Ironically, there are many in Pakistan who concur with the general. This is typical of a banana republic.
Posted by: john frum ||
09/11/2007 17:06 ||
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They were called "banana republics" because they were wholly-owned and operated subsidiaries of the United Fruit company.
In light of continued Kassam rocket attacks against Israel, military and political leaders are saying a massive ground offensive into Gaza is inevitable. But even those who favor an invasion into Gaza are not sure the time is ripe for it. Other alternatives are being offered.
Dr. Guy Bechor, an Arab affairs expert at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya, writes that there are those in Gaza who would like Israel to "take over Gaza in a great offensive, liquidate Hamas, and grant Gaza back to Fatah - so that they will be able to once again fire Kassams at us, as they did when Fatah ruled Gaza up to a few months ago. Would we like our sons to be killed for the sake of Fatah? I don't think so."
Therefore, Bechor writes, what must be done is to "part from Gaza totally and absolutely. No more supply of water, electricity, food, or other services. Never before in history has a nation kept its enemies alive so that they could continue to strike out at it. Militarily, we know the precise locations of all the homes of the leaders of Hamas, Fatah and Islamic Jihad, and of the Hamas army camps, weapons storehouses, and military infrastructures; there is no problem of ability, but just of making the courageous decisions and giving the right orders."
Posted by: Anonymoose ||
09/11/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
THIS VIDEO IS A MUST WATCH!
Wafa Sultan is fabulous! This brave woman reads Islam the riot act. As I myself noted just the other day, this is NOT a clash of civilizations. This is civilization clashing against barbarity.
Sultan begins by making this same exact point and she drives it home without mercy. We need to burn DVDs of this entire show and distribute them throughout all Muslim majority countries. Bush needs to award this woman the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She should be allocated a significant grant so that she need not worry about finances and instead direct her considerable energies towards increasing Muslim awareness.
In this short five minute video excerpt, Sultan exposes fraud after fraud of the Islamic world. In five short minutes, she does more to highlight Islam's malignancy than the Bush administration has done in all six years since the 9-11 atrocities.
I do not have enough hats to take off to this incredible woman.
#3
President Bush's religiosity effects his judgement on Muslims because he believes that a community of faith exists around the 3 Abrahamic cults. By now, someone should have told him that Muslims treat Jewish and Christian holy books as Satanic distortions. As a Christian, he should be offended by Muslim beliefs.
#4
Somebody needs a nap. Not recommended for those with high blood pressure. See also this article for possible background (sixth paragraph). Contains bonus phrase "Persian chauvinist knuckleheads".
Reading the transcript, can we really believe Osama bin Laden sits and reads Noam Chomsky or obsesses about Richard Perle or imagines what it means for him to endorse the anti-Jewish pamphleteering of Michael Scheuer, the former "expert on Al-Qaida for the Central Intelligence Agency?" (Scheuer should not be pleased.)
These snippets in the OBL tape were obviously trolled from the internet and thrown together with "clever" gimmicks like the call for Americans to embrace Islam, plus jabs about taxes and the inefficacy of the Democrats. The old and aggressive Islamic idiom found in Bin Laden's discourse is missing. So is the fire. The tone is that of exhaustion, not exhilaration in jihad.
I believe, six years after 9/11, that Al-Qaida is losing badly in Iraq, and while George W. Bush perseveres with the promise he made to fulfill America's democratic legacy, Bin Laden is looking for an exit strategy.
The Western mainstream media has it backwards; we are winning, the enemy is losing, the war was inevitable and honorable. And the innocents killed on 9/11 will be fully redeemed.
#3
I agree with the theory that Adam Gadahn wrote the speech. Of all the lefties in the world who would love to hang with Binny, he chooses an ex goatherd. That's a skill set he understands.
#5
He died years ago. They're cutting and pasting bits to make new tapes. And hanging is too good for jihadis. The execution should be bacon enhanced flamethrowers.
Nope, too quick and painless. I'm thinking something out of a scene from Braveheart, i.e., public disembowelment, would be much more appropriate. Since he's not an American, the "cruel and unusual punishments" prohibition doesn't apply. But that's just me.
#7
My hunch is the audio is probably Bin Laden, that someone wrote it for him because he hoped the American would be better tuned to influencing the US public. I believe the video is an old one, and it freezes just as he talks about modern stuff so that the audio doesn't have to sync and we don't ahve to see the damaged old thing that is Bin Laden these days because it would hurt Jihadi morale.
Looking at the standard of living of the average muslim country vs. that of infidel taxpayers, I'd rather pay taxes. That way I get roads and stuff like that.
... and the inefficacy of the Democrats
Hey, even Hitler wasn't all bad, but he still had to go. But that doesn't mean he has to go right away . . . :-)
And last but not least: My idea for taking care of him would be to give him a sex change operation and an enormous set of hooters and release him back into Taliban society. At 6'5" he ought to get all kinds of unwanted attention.
#9
I am conflicted between the following exit strategies for Binny..
1) Drawing and Quartering with slow oxen
2) Keelhauling in chummed waters until eaten
3) dipped in honey and wrapped in wet leather then placed in the Kalahari desert next to an anthill.
4) placed in the polar bear exhibit at some zoo.
#10
The man I know from the anti-Soviet Afghan War will fight to the end - there is no broad/general exit strategy, nor intent for one, for Osama except Islamist victory or his death. Likely more Correct to say or argue that, with Radical Islam losing the GWOT at the moment, that the Islamists intend to buy time to rebuild by "pushing" for geopol confusion and multi-polar/later mil confrontation among the great powers.* RADICAL MULLAHS > REGIONAL-GLOBAL WARFARE AND MUTUAL DESTRUCTION IS TO ISLAM'S = ISLAMISM'S ADVANTAGE.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
The absence of Islamist terror attacks in the West, post 9/11, is puzzling. True, we had the transit bombings in London and Madrid, but the body count has been lower than many expected, considering the countless number of "soft" targets available in North America and Europe.
