After nearly drowning in a sea of red states, John Kerry is keeping his head above water and is making it clear that he has no intention of disappearing beneath the waves despite his loss last November.
That'll teach him to take driving lessons from Ted Kennedy
As the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday, unlike Al Gore, who the Times recalled virtually disappeared for months after the 2000 race, traveled to Europe, grew a beard, ate 9,000 donuts and gained weight, Kerry hasn't done any of these things. Instead, he climbed back up to Capitol Hill, reclaimed his seat in the Senate, and, as the Times, put it, is "working hard to fashion himself into something rare in American politics: a presidential also-ran who isn't an afterthought."
Who're they talking about again... I forget.
Moreover, he has been sonorous outspoken on such hot issues as health care, electoral reform and military preparedness and helped spearhead the failed attempts to prevent Senate confirmation of both Condoleezza Rice as secretary of state and Alberto R. Gonzales as attorney general.
#4
Now, now, folks. Be nice. Perhaps in the next 4 years, Mr. Kerry will actually be able to figure out what he really stands for. Or maybe he won't. Then again, maybe he...what was the question?
#9
Ssshhhh - we don't wanna disrupt this. But, he DID promise to sign his form 180 on MTP the other day....
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/23/2005 13:03
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#10
IMHO: Just a smokescreen to keep conservative talk radio/bloggers focused on Kerry instead of Hilary--who doesn't want the heat just yet. Closer to the election, he'll fade out and Hilary will "emerge."
Despite his fli-floppy Clintonesque poll matching behaviors, Kerry remains remarkably consistent on things that matter, like helping "spearhead the failed attempts to prevent Senate confirmation of Condoleezza Rice as secretary of state . . ."
#13
ex-lib, the idea JFnK would do ANYTHING to benefit someone other than himself is laughable
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/23/2005 14:52
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#14
Frank G - Bill Bulger (former Mass. Senate leader) has an acronym for JFK - 'Just For Kerry'.
Kerry's infamous for selfish behaviour - too bad that didn't make many headlines during the race; I'm sure Rove was involved somehow...
#18
MoJO- He has plenty of money to run or Thersa can finance him! I was in Boston for a job interview and saw a t-shirt "Bend over and fart- Kerry is all wind". DO you get it?
Andrea Jackson
Posted by: Andrea Jackson ||
02/23/2005 21:39
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Lebanon's climate has been charged with latent violence since the assassination Monday, February 14, of Lebanese former prime minister Rafiq Hariri, and his funeral two days later. Sparks began flying when the opposition unveiled their "peaceful democratic uprising for independence" Friday, February 18, and, as revealed by DEBKAfile's intelligence sources, Syrian forces began distributing weapons to groups supporting Damascus and the 1.4 million expatriate laborers in the country.
The resignations of president Emil Lahoude and the Karame government were forcefully demanded by the opposition leader, Walid Jumblatt, head of the Lebanese Druses who speaks for a rare multiethnic coalition made up of his own community, Christian factions endorsed by Maronite Catholic Archbishop Nasrallah Sfeir, and Sunni Muslims led by the dead billionaire's oldest son, Bahaa Hariri, with the blessing of the Sunni Muslim Mufti of Lebanon.
Saturday, February 19, Omar Karami, who succeeded Rafiq Hariri as prime minister, accused this group of attempting a coup d'etat. The belligerent Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned (or threatened) that "popular agitation against Syria's grip on the country following the killing of Rafiq Hariri could plunge Lebanon into civil war again. Backed solidly from Damascus and Tehran, he exhorted the 100,000 Shiites massed in Beirut to mark the Ashura festival not to forget the real enemy. "Death to Israel!" they roared after him.
The sparks will fly in earnest when government and Syrians move into aggressive mode to crush the opposition, which will become increasingly inflamed by multiplying leads to Syria and its Lebanese minions as Hariri's assassins. Our sources report that US, French and Israeli intelligence have already gathered solid evidence that General Rostum Ghazallah of Syrian military intelligence orchestrated the murder on orders from Damascus with the aid of Lebanese general intelligence and its chief General Jamil al-Sayad.
The Damascus-backed government in Beirut and its masters has no intention of going quietly. Bashar Assad desperately needs the political and economic benefits he extorts from Lebanon to prop up his regime. Monday, February 21, presidents George W. Bush and Jacques Chirac meet in Paris. With Lebanon at the forefront of their agenda, they will have to look hard at some tough questions. How to handle the situation if Assad orders his Syrian troops in Lebanon to march on Beirut in defense of his puppet government? And worse still, what if the full weight of the Syrian army is sent across the border to squash the uprising? Will the two Western leaders dispatch a joint US-French force to repulse the Syrian onslaught? If they did, it would be the most drastic event to hit the Middle East since the March 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq. The second American invasion of an Arab land might this time be partnered or endorsed by a European power.
To force the hands of the American and French presidents, the leaders of the Lebanese uprising are preparing a spectacular event to coincide with their summit. One proposal is for a hundreds of thousands of protesters to march through Beirut's streets and seize the parliament building.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2005
9:37:15 PM ||
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#1
Wow, we really are back to the 70s.
I remember when Chicago was called Beirut by the Lake.
#3
The author of the "Tipping Point" was on "Nightline" last night, applying his theory - little things make big differences - to Syrian occupied Lebanon. Maybe Syria is ready to tip as well.
Posted by: Tom ||
02/23/2005 8:27
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#6
And I remember when Frisco was called Baghdad by the Bay...that would fix Pelosi.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
02/23/2005 8:43
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#7
Seeing a lot of fimiliar names coming back to forefront of Lenanese politics that have their roots in the bad old days when Beirut earned its reputation.
#4 raptor, you thinking the other border Syrian could see some activity? If so, Me too.
#8
That is what I had in mind,TA.With a huge part of Syria's mil/intel already tied down in Lebenon and if they send and even bigger portion of the army South that would leave a wide open eastern flank and a wide open coast.Tie that in with Israelie"training manuvers"on the Lebaonese border and opurtunity would be begging US to come in.I don't think Syria has the ability to do a Patton"Battle of the Bulge"manuver.
EFL:
An otherwise "loving family pet" was shot dead by police after the tabby cat went berserk and terrorized a city family late last week, The Intelligencer has learned. The bizarre ordeal began when the family's 12-year-old daughter arrived home from school Wednesday evening and began petting the feline, 'Mickey,' in the living room of their east end home. "He was just your average, playful cat," who never had any behaviour problems before the incident, recalled the homeowner, who asked her family's name not be used. "He was a sweet and loving household pet."
Yeah, that's just what cats want you to think..
While her daughter was stroking the long-haired white and orange tabby in the living room, the feline leisurely walked downstairs.
Mine do that slow walk right in front of me trying to trip me...
But when Mickey emerged from the basement-area of the home, it was " ... a different animal ... it looked as though it was possessed." Ears flat back, hair standing on end and eyes bulging, Mickey lunged across the dining room and attacked her daughter, biting through her jeans and slicing into her leg. When the cat released its grip, it continued coming at the girl, shrieking and hissing.
Like I've said before, a cat is 8 pounds of soft fur around a razor blade..
The husband arrived home a short time later and managed to corner the cat in the living room until his wife and two children could sneak out the back door to safety. "So I stood there having a stare-off with this cat for 20 minutes until the officer arrived," he said, adding that both animal control and police were called to the scene. While it ran wildly around the interior of the brick bungalow, the cat continued shrieking and began defecating throughout the home. As the constable entered the home, the cat ran up the stairs and stared the officer down. Speaking to The Intelligencer on condition of anonymity, the constable said he had " ... never seen an animal act like that before — it was like it was possessed or something, hissing and growling."
Been there, done that, have the scars
The officer shot the cat square in the chest with his Beretta .40-calibre handgun.
"Look out, Ned! He's going to charge, shoot him!"
"Even after he shot it, that cat was so hopped up — we're talking about a little, eight-pound cat — Mickey ran down the hall into the bathroom and jumped into the tub," the husband recollected. "He didn't die for at least five minutes ... he was all nerves and adrenaline ... he wasn't in his right mind."
Should have used more gun, with silver bullets..
Government test results earlier this week confirmed the feline didn't have rabies. An autopsy to determine the exact cause of the animal's behaviour is not scheduled, however. Without knowing the animal's history, Dr. Kim Drysdale of the Belleway Veterinary Hospital on Highway 62 said it would be hard to pin-point the exact cause of Mickey's wild behaviour. "There are cats out there that are a little bit aggressive," whether because of its natural disposition or a medical ailment of some sort, she said. And an angry feline can be a handful — even more vicious than an aggressive dog, Drysdale said. "A cat with a behaviour problem or serious aggression problem can be a force to be reckoned with. But that's not normal — most cats are pretty nice and social."
When they want to be
"We have heard stories about people not being able to leave their homes because their cat was blocking the doorway. So some cats can be aggressive."
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
9:36:56 AM ||
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#6
Something doesn't ring right here. I accidently stepped on my cat's (Martin Granite-Lion) paw in the dark this morning, and he meowed but didn't attack my leg. I think like Chuck S., that he must have eaten something, or been ill, or the other scenario - there were minor incidents leading up to this.
You don't hear about otherwise gentle cats going crazy unless there is something else happening. The first thing I thought was, if it wasn't rabies, did the cat have a tumor causing pain, and when the girl petted it, did she hit it? I have had two previous cats die of cancer (mouth & lung) - but they never got mean.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005 13:10
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#15
My former M-I-L had a nice purring feline once (I've got 3). One day, probably chasing insect in the open window, the cat fell down six storeys and landed on the pavement, cracking its skull a bit, breaking a leg or two. It survived, and after 3 weeks in amimal hospital it was almost like new. Forward 6 months. M-I-L complains about cat behaving strangely, hostile, making sounds that may be more associated with a bloodthirsty preditor than a cat. It took over kitchen. I came to investigate. Cat seems normal, I gave it fresh water, and more food. It started munching happily. I transversed the length of the kitchen (7m narrow noodle) and were opening the door to exit.
The sound... It would be a really really good sound effect for horror flick, I felt the hair on my back standing up. In a second, the cat turned into a vicious preditor, accelerated through the whole length of the kitchen--I simply did not know what hit me, as I saw the cat munching before I turn my head towards the door--its teeth sunk into my calf and the claws..oy! sharp as razors...tearing my skin through jeans!
I was able to shake it off and slip out closing the door on the berseker critter. I devised a plan... taking a thick blanket, I entered the kitchen again, the cat sitting under the table with an expression that did not indicate anything happened minutes ago. I put the cat on the blanket, gathered the corners to emulate a bag, slipped the whole thing into a real bag and off to the animal hospital I went--it was conveniently a block away. They took the cat, which seemed to be at that time the most angelic animal on the face of earth. I got my rabies shots, just in case. Two weeks later, still under observation, the cat died. Autopsy revealed a brain tumor. The vet offered a suggestion that the fall 6 months prior may have caused a trauma that resulted in the cancerous growth.
I there a possibility that humans may follow the same fate? Like falling on their head at young tender age and then turning into vicious bloodthirsty jihadis? I dunno. I got several accidents that resulted in noticeable and prominent bumps on the back of my skull--yet I did not turn into an insane (some may argue with that assessment) bloodthirsty murdering animal.
I was also indoctrinated during my early years into believing in the evilness of kapitalistic opressors. Did not seem to work.
#16
#9 growler: I have a cat with 6 fully functional digits on each paw. The extra digit is almost opposable and the cat uses it to walk tightrope-like across ropes and chair rungs. Apparently sailors liked these cats (called ship's cats) especially for this reason. This cat also happens to be the smartest cat I've EVER seen. She's almost at the point of tool-using in inventing games to play with her toys. Just a bit more evolution and cats like Twitchy would rule the world outright, as opposed to subtly like they do today.
#18
Xbalanke, I concur. Imagine cats with tiny human hands. Scarry! :-)
Whenever I go on a trip, I get my cats out and provide enough food/water for the length of the trip with someone taking a peek on them if it is longer than a week. My cats always supplement their diet with an ample supply of rodents and avians, so there is not much worry in the case they run short on cat food before I return.
Once, I did not notice that Rene (named after Rene Descartes, e.g. very smart cat) slipped back in. That someone that was supposed to check on them did not get to it.
Upon return after 10 days, when I opened the door and entered the living room, Rene peaked her head over the back of an armchair. Geebus! I locked her in!
Fortunately, I had a spare bag of the cat food in a kitchen kabinet (she can open them on the fly). She teared off a corner to make a spout and apparetly used the batroom faucet that was slightly leaking to get her water by pulling a sponge over the sinkhole, so there was a always a little pool there. She did go to potty in the bathtub--boy, the smell, but easy to dispose off than from a carpet.
So, yes, cats are very smart. The only thing that is a bit strange is their behavior when I go to bathroom and close the door. They scratch like crazy to get in. Why? They know there is no secret exit door through which I would slip out. I'll always come out. This is a mystery for me.
How about when "Granite Lion" runs to the toilet when you flush to watch the water and other "particulate matter" go down! He justr watches it! AND when we get sushi, he will hop on the table to steal a piece of salmon roll when ones back is turned. His timing is calculated and impeccable! And he is very quick...
He likes the whirpool spin, it may be fascinating for a cat. Sort of a research project.
My cats are stealing steaks from neighbor's barbeque before it gets too hot. Turn away for a few seconds and give you steak a good-bye. I once offered to return a steak thoroughly washed, but the neighbor declined. Talked to my cats about it, but they did not seem to express an opinion about the matter either way, probably thinking that neighbor's steaks are a fair game. So be it.
#24
My cats pretty much get anything they want. Which of course makes them not want anything, as is their fickle way.
A previous girlfriend had a cat called a Blue Chartreuse whom I christened "Puma." He was exceptionally big. 29 pounds big. When he stretched, you could see muscle definition, like on a big cat. He was also exceptionally angry at the fact he was a cat. More than once I had to put on combat boots and a long sleeve non-snag shirt to get the cat out of a neighbors closet or vestibule. Most clothing was useless, as his claws were longer than the thickness of most fabrics. After I was with her for over 2 years, I was the only person other than her to be able to even touch the cat or brush it as it went by. When she went away to business school, I got the cat. She told me that it was either me or the shelter because literally no one else could have contact with it. After living with me for about 2 years, he was still angry, but didn't go out of his way to attack house guests as much. He died of liver failure on Army-Navy day 3 years ago. I still miss him and his violent attitude.
Posted by: Mark E. ||
02/23/2005 16:22
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#25
We got a female (indistinguishable breed) from the shelter. She belonged to all of us but my wife got feeding duty. One time we went out for a day trip, so we didn't make any special arrangements for kitty food. We ran into a humongous thunderstorm on the way back, however, so we stayed in a hotel overnight. When we got back the cat was nowhere to be found, so we assumed that she had gone into hiding because of the storm. My wife went into the kitchen to do something and the cat ran across two rooms, leaped into the air, and sank fangs and claws into my wife's leg. Good thing I was nearby or we would have had a dead cat on our hands.
Posted by: Jonathan ||
02/23/2005 16:38
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#26
Catblogging! My friends brought their male Manx (no-tail) kitty along with them on holiday on Chincoteague Island in Virginia. A couple years after Trucker's two-week visit, Chincoteague now has LOTS of kitties with no tails. Heh.
#27
Seafarious-> best story yet.....the tom cat out tom cattin'!
Posted by: Mark E. ||
02/23/2005 17:22
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#28
OK, just one more cat tale related to cats' pointy ends: I had a cat whom I moved with me to another town. The cat managed to get out and disappear for a few days. I noticed him lurking about the edge of the woods and finally coaxed him into letting me approach. As I was just starting to pick him up my friend came crashing though the woods wondering how I was doing - the cat absolutely panicked. No way was I going to let go and lose him forever, though, so I held on to this howling ball of fur, teeth and little razors for all I was worth. I just managed to get him inside, but at the cost of much blood and flesh. He was fine after that and never got out again.
#29
When our cat was a kitten, she would sometimes nap under the loveseat, safely hidden behind the upholstery flaps. One day the priest came for a visit and sat down on the loveseat. Several minutes later, without warning, two paws suddenly poked out, wrapped around his ankle, and sank all claws deeply. I'll give the man a lot of credit for poise under attack: he bolted upright, gasped, and then all he said was "And what have we here?!?". I'll bet he wears heavier socks to this day.
Posted by: Tom ||
02/23/2005 17:27
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#30
I there a possibility that humans may follow the same fate? Like falling on their head at young tender age and then turning into vicious bloodthirsty jihadis?
Good heavens.
According to my mother, I fell out of a high chair when I was 2, and bonked my head on the floor of a dwelling that had no basement (read: linoleum covered cement). While running my hand across the top of my head, there is a pronounced dent on the top.
Maybe I should sell whatever weapons I own now, while I can. :)
#31
#3 Chuck, I'm a dog person myself, but I agree.
Posted by: too true ||
02/23/2005 19:20
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#32
And I vote for some kind of poisoning, or brain-tumor event... and would like to point out that an 8-lb pound cat can be a fearsome object... I was put into the hospital for two days by a semi-feral, 8 lb cat. She was one of mine--- whom I prefer to be indoors cats (since they live longer, and don't rack up interestingly long veterinary care bills) and took violent exception to this arrangement. The bite on my left hand took some surgery and two days of antibiotics to sort out. I let her be an outdoor kitty after that, and she was killed by a car a year later... just before she was due for shots. I was not looking forward to catching her, stuffing her into the carrier and taking her to the veterinarian. Leather gauntlets are a good idea, when handling even the smallest, uncooperative cat.
#33
I there a possibility that humans may follow the same fate? Like falling on their head at young tender age...
Eerie someone should make such a comparison...
One of the American Musical Giants, George Gershwin, died of a brain tumor at 38.
He once told the story of how he was playing cards at age 13 with some friends, his chair tipped over, and he hit his head on a radiator, and was knocked out for a few minutes. Until that time he had no real intrest in music, but claims that after the incident, the intrest in music developed suddenly... Eerie...
#34
Something happened to Morris's health. COUld have had a number of ailment's which effected the cat neurologically. I don't feel as though the cat needed to be shot (agressive cops) The cat could have been trapped into a pet carrier, then brought to the vet for a full eval.
Andrea Jackson
Posted by: Andrea Jackson ||
02/23/2005 21:11
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#36
#23 neighbor's steaks are a fair game? How about the steaks you cook, Sobiesky?
They are yummy, of course, am an excellent cook!
But I guess the thrill of the steak kill is missing.
There is another highly intelligent critter that steals steaks from unattended barbeque--crow. I've seen it myself--a crow lifting a steak half of its size... So, maybe my cats are blamed by default, based on a couple of incidents.
As for the drop on the head incidents, I remember reading about several incidents that were a precursor of a complete personality change, so the Gershwin's case is not that unique, despite somewhat rare statistically.
#37
Yes, I would love to read the police report on that case! One time when doing yard work at my Mother's
a EEEKKKK SNAKE found it's way inside the aluminum ladder rungs and would not come out !!! We took a can of DRANO and poured it into the rungs of the ladder...the snake ingested the Drano, came slithering out of the ladder onto the yard and BLEW UP LIKE A BOMB! (If the cat swallowed laundry detergent, that could have been enough).
Andrea Jackson
Posted by: Andrea Jackson ||
02/23/2005 21:33
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February 23, 2005: Another enormous troop movement is just about finished in Iraq. The second annual troop rotation to Iraq is almost complete. Some 15,000 troops were kept in Iraq to provide additional security for the elections last month. This turned out to be a prudent move, as the security was good enough to keep the vast majority of voting places safe. But now the 18th Airborne Corps headquarters, the 42nd Infantry Division (a National Guard outfit), the 3rd Infantry Division and the 2nd Marine MEU (Division) have replaced the 3rd Corps headquarters, the 1st Infantry Division, the 1st Cavalry Division and the 1st Marine MEU (Division). American troops strength will go down to 138,000 by March. The increased traffic from over 250,000 troops moving in and out over the last few months has caused an increase in traffic accidents, although combat injuries have been declining since the battle of Fallujah last November. Most of the heavy equipment belonging to units remains in Iraq, to ease up the logistics burden. The troops either return to the equipment they left behind when they came over, or are issued new equipment and weapons, to the replace those being left behind, when they get home.
This practice of moving troops and equipment as separate entities is a Cold War innovation. To speed the movement of reinforcements from the United States to Europe, in the event that the Soviet Union invaded, two divisions had one set of equipment in Europe, and another set back in the United States, where they were based.. Actually, the plan was also developed as a politically acceptable way to withdraw two divisions from Europe. This was done in 1968, but the equipment stayed behind, and was stored and maintained by contractors (German civilians). Starting in 1969, some of the troops would fly to Europe, fire up the gear, and go out on field exercises. The troops would then return the gear to the storage areas and fly home. These annual exercises lasted until 1988. The experience gained in all those "REFORGER" exercises made the army, and marines, confident that they could apply the concept of pre-positioned equipment elsewhere. This also led to the idea, as applied in Iraq, of having the first units to be there, to leave their gear behind (if they were being replaced by the same type units.) This saved a lot of money in shipping costs, not to mention the additional work the troops had to do preparing everything for sea movement.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
9:32:47 AM ||
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#1
Just as an aside: one of the oddities of WWII was that more British citizens in Britain died as a result of traffic accidents involving American forces than were killed in the German Blitz.
#3
LOL Grom.
two divisions had one set of equipment in Europe, and another set back in the United States, where they were based
It's expensive to fight like an American.
#4
Shipman, the reasoning was if the Rooskis had attacked there wasn't time to ship all the equipment over to Europe so equipment was pre-positioned. The troops would be flown over and mate up with the pre-positioned stuff. The equipment in the States would then be loaded on ships and used as replacement stuff for stuf lost in battle. Actually, a good way to go.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
02/23/2005 11:40
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#5
Warfare since the railway (and arguably before, but in a different way) has been a race to the battlefield, culminating in the timetables of Russian troop trains in WWI, that once begun were difficult to be stopped. Anything that could allow you to steal a march on the enemy such as delaying his mobilization by a day was seen as beneficial. Prepositioned weapons lets your guys get off the planes with brand new shiny mothballed equipment, ready to go, and as you said, with plenty of spares ready for shipping.
"Amateurs study tactics. Professionals study logistics."
Posted by: Mark E. ||
02/23/2005 12:03
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#7
The experience gained in all those âREFORGERâ exercises made the army, and marines, confident that they could apply the concept of pre-positioned equipment elsewhere.
As an unfortunate byproduct the Army forgot how to deploy "for real". Too many years of flogging the same old exercise.
Among other things, this resulted in over reliance on the 82nd to go places and do things, and a couple of divisions that were the equivalent of hangar queens. One BIG advantage of the Navy/Marine approach through the cold war was that every unit cycled through a deployment every 18 months, keeping everyone in a reasonably battle ready status.
Another problem is that the canned exercises are planned at too high a level, with pre-allocated logistics/transport resources. A case in point was that early in Desert Shield the Army had to get water from the Marines. The Army had the capability, but it was in reserve units requiring mobilization & training.
See
http://www.gulflink.osd.mil/declassdocs/marines/19960917/082696_d50039_001.html
or
http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/books/DAHSUM/1990-91/ch07.htm (p93)
In (old) Army think "we have that capability", unfortunately it's at the theater level sitting in Germany, and the poor SOB's on the pointy end of the stick have to improvise.
#10
I took part in some eleven different REFORGER exercises in one extent or another during my military career. The first was in 1969 with the 49th Tac Fighter Wing. There are problems with the concept, and people are still working on them. That's why you have 700 tanks and thousands of other vehicles in various places around the world. Military equipment began having the ability to operate in a chemical environment in 1976, and it kept getting better. Most of the equipment stored was wrapped in material that would have been discarded prior to decontamination and issuance. Several of the "storage sites" we SAID we were stocking, weren't. We studied the Russian battle plan almost as much as they did. There would have been some major surprises for them if they'd ever come across the line. I'm glad they never did, but it wouldn't have been the cake-walk a lot of people outside the military spouted off about.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/23/2005 15:44
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#11
Like that graphic--it must have been a recruiting poster for the Pennsylvania Nat'l Guard with that keystone in the corner (the Germans supposedly called it "The Bloody Bucket" when they were slugging it out with the 28th ID in the Huertgen Forest).
Posted by: Dar ||
02/23/2005 16:25
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#12
Speaking of roatation and traffic, my brother has one more week in Baghdad, then he has to say goodbye to getting around in armored SUV's. He is going back to Naples, Italy. He is a bit nervous as he will have to get around the Naples madhouse in an unarmored BMW. Poor fella.
February 22, 2005: For the last three days, a brigade of coalition troops (U.S. Marines and Iraqis) have been engaged in "Operation River Blitz," west of Baghdad. Based on information collected last November in Fallujah, and since, roadblocks were set up throughout Anbar province, and raids carried out in Ramadi (the capital of the province) and other largely Sunni Arab cities along the Euphrates river. Anbar province has been the scene of most Sunni Arab violence in the last year, but that began to change after Fallujah was cleared out last November. Since then, anti-government attacks have been fewer, as have coalition casualties. Arrests of terrorists have increased, and more Sunni Arab groups have defied the terrorists and began negotiating with the government. These Sunni groups, led by tribal and religious leaders, are often heavily armed, with informal militias (formal militias are illegal) containing hundreds, or even thousands, of armed men.
The Sunni leaders have avoided ordering their followers to not attack the government or coalition forces, lest they have a little civil war on their hands. But that is now changing, as more Sunni Arabs, fed up with the chaos, and seeming futility of fighting the government and coalition forces, try to switch sides. The more deliberate attacks on oil facilities and utilities (like water and power), have only made life more uncomfortable. The battle of Fallujah last November made it clear that anti-government claims to have "liberated" Fallujah were just more empty propaganda. Following that, the widespread arrests of Sunni Arabs involved in the terrorism, added to the feeling among Sunni Arabs that they were backing a losing cause. Despite deliberate attacks on Shia religious festivities in the last week, the Shia dominated government continues to offer deals to Sunni Arab leaders who were willing to stick their necks out, and order their followers to cool it with the violence. These Sunni Arabs do face some real danger, for the Baath Party and al Qaeda leaders are willing to go after prominent Sunni Arabs for "disloyalty." For Sunni Arabs, the battle for Iraq is far from over.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
9:24:20 AM ||
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A Chinese weekly magazine issued in Beijing reported on February 21 that China feels a serious security threat from the fact that the U.S. is surrounding China, its potential antagonist, from three sides: east, west, and south.
The weekly says that the U.S. considers Japan and Taiwan as the first encircling net in the east and accordingly tries to strengthen its military alliance with Japan, sell advanced weapons to Taiwan, and push forward the establishment of an air base in Shadidiao.
Also, the U.S. is nurturing Guam as it core military base in Asia, setting the island as the second encircling net. To that end, the country augmented B-52 and B-2 strategic bombing planes, and deployed 64 air-launched cruise missiles to regions other than the U.S. mainland for the first time ever. It also decided to station three attack nuclear submarines at all times and deploy a Carrier Battle Group.
Meanwhile, the U.S. completed the western encircling net against China by setting up its military base in central Asia, while carrying out wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: tipper ||
02/23/2005
9:18:57 AM ||
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#1
Ah but I love the smell of squirming Chicoms in the morning.
#2
China is expected to protest strongly against the plan, as it is the first joint training of the three countries on the assumption of Chinaâs invasion of Taiwan.
"Do as we say, not as we do, eh?" The Great Satan(tm) must NOT do joint exercises with Japan or Tawain, but we may do joint exercises w/ Russia and buy arms from the Euroweenies.
Posted by: BA ||
02/23/2005 9:39
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#3
The Yankee traders are no threat. They just want to do business. They just don't like messy lower anthropodial territorial behaviors messing up good trade. Get a hint. Instead of spending an ungodly sum of money and resources trying to obtain the military ability to annex Taiwan, just start buying out the companies. Faster than you can say, monopoly, you will be Taiwan Inc. Shheeeessshhhh. Stop skimming all that income for your corrupt leader retirement fund and start investing in the future.
#6
I think this is just the PLA getting ready for its annual budget request, especially since there's now the prospect of getting fancy new weapons from Europe.
Iraqi insurgents told Iraqi television Wednesday they were taught in Syria how to prepare and detonate cars bombs and roadside explosives. Also a Syrian national, going by the name of Anas the Syrian, appeared on television and confessed he was a first lieutenant in Syrian intelligence. The insurgents -- many former officers of the dissolved Iraqi army -- confessed to several crimes, including the kidnappings and killings of Iraqis working as translators with the U.S. forces. They also admitted to bombing attacks against multinational troops in the city of Mosul, north of Iraq. They said they were trained in Latakia, Syria, by Syrian intelligence officers.
The televised confessions have been going on for three days and are bound to cause a crisis in relations between Iraq and neighboring Syria. Iraqi authorities have so far accused Damascus of allowing hostile gunmen to cross the border into Iraq to fight multi-national troops. The insurgents said they executed dozens of Iraqis in return for monthly salaries from the Syrian intelligence ranging between $500 and $1,500.
Tick....tick....tick...
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
9:12:04 AM ||
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#1
A bullet in Assad's head from long range should do the job.
#2
Could I just point out that the US government has repeatedly denied plans for invading Iran? Now, Syria, on the other hand... have you seen any denials?
#3
Finally...effective use of the media. If it were up to me, I'd blanket the airwaves with reality shows displaying what goes on in insurgent circles.
#4
Assad has his private parts in SEVERAL wringers (quite a trick), what with his botching of the Lebanan assasination, and now this airing of his obvious complicity in the Iraqi murders. Oops.
And consiering the fact that the U.S. military is currently on a "good-will tour" of Iraq...well, Assad better beat feet for Paris SOON (whence ALL exiled despots go).
#6
I'm even getting sick of the term "insurgents." When you are a national, defending your homeland, yes, you are an "insurgent." But when you go around calling yourself Anas the Syrian, you're NO insurgent. Sure hope "G.I. the American" gets his hands on Anas.
Posted by: BA ||
02/23/2005 13:23
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#7
You really think Baby Assad is in actual charge in Syria?
#8
I'd blanket the airwaves with reality shows displaying what goes on in insurgent circles. It appears the Iraqis are. Apparently these terrorist confession shows run for hours. Clever.
An outbreak of what tests suggest is pneumonic plague has spread to a second town in the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to a medical charity. Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) says it believes it has found a case in a second area in the north-east. Thousands have fled the remote diamond mining town of Zobia since the disease first emerged at the end of last year.
At least 60 people have died so far. The plague affects victims lungs and is fatal if left untreated. "People have been leaving Zobia. They were starting to panic - its contagious," MSF's Meike Steensens told BBC News from the city of Kisangani.
The outbreak began just four days after the diamond mine re-opened near Zobia, in Oriental province, north of the country's biggest city, Kisangani, a major trading centre on the Congo River. Those who have died are all diamond miners. Another 350 miners have been infected. MSF discovered the new case after sending an emergency team of doctors to the area.
Final confirmation of the plague is expected next week, MSF say, but initial tests indicate that they are dealing with an outbreak of pneumonic plague.
Very bad stuff
An advance team of medical experts from the World Health Organisation (WHO) has already visited the area to confirm that people are infected with the plague. Around 7,000 people worked at the mine. The WHO team will focus on trying to trace the 2,000 who have left since the start of the outbreak.
Better keep them out of the cities
Bubonic plague is endemic in parts of Africa, including the DR Congo, but pneumonic plague, which occurs when bacteria infect the lung, has a very high fatality rate and is "invariably" deadly when left untreated, the WHO said.
Humans are generally infected with plague by rodents and fleas, but the pneumonic form of the disease can also be transmitted from person to person through respiratory droplets.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
9:07:43 AM ||
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#1
Filthy, filthy people. You only get plague from getting bitten by fleas that live on rats. RATS. Yuk.
#3
A dollars worth of tetracycline cures almost a 100% of cases. Rather than send teams of experts, airdrop 10K packages of tetra with the dosage and a description of the symptoms.
#6
In addition, as we've found out with our bums and winos homeless, they take the medicine until they "feel better," then lose it, sell it, or throw it away. Now you have a strain of bugs highly resistant to antibiotics and that gets passed around.
Suspected militants blew up an electricity pylon and fired rockets at a paramilitary camp, officials said on Tuesday.
"Inspector! Someone blew up an electricity pylon and fired rockets at the paramilitary camp!"
"Ahah! Legume, I suspect they may be militants!"
Meanwhile, Quetta police arrested five terror suspects in two raids and seized rockets and other weapons. A bomb on Monday toppled the pylon supporting a power line near Sibi, 110 kilometres southeast of Quetta, power company spokesman Gibrail Khan said. However the attack failed to break the high-tension wire, he added. The police arrested three suspected terrorists in a raid in the Western Bypass area and seized three rockets and other explosives.
Rafi Pervez Bhatti, the deputy inspector general of police in Quetta, said that the police raided the Marri Camp in the Western Bypass area on a tip-off and arrested the three. The police official said one of the arrested men had been identified as Abdur Rehman Marri who he said was wanted in the Justice Marri murder case. The three were involved in rocket attacks and bomb explosions in Balochistan. The police official said the Baloch Liberation Army and Baloch Liberation Front claim responsibility for these blasts and attacks earleir. In another raid, police arrested two suspects from a banned Sunni group and near a Shia mosque where Shias were busy mourning in connection with Muharram. Rahim Jaffery, a Shia scouts leader, said that the scouts pointed out that the two suspects were involved in mysterious activities near the mosque.
Meanwhile, four rockets fired from mountains landed near a paramilitary camp in Kohlu district 230 kilometres east of Quetta on Monday but there were no casualties or damage, police said. Paramilitary personnel also seized four rockets, four bombs, detonators and fuses.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2005
9:06:36 PM ||
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Progressive Socialist Party President Walid Jumblatt urged Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Monday to join the convoy of Lebanese who are calling for freedom, independence and free decision-making. Jumblatt made the call from his stronghold in Mukhtara, where he commemorated the seventh day of the late former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's assassination and laid a flower on the tomb of his father Kamal Jumblatt.
Addressing the Syria authorities, Jumblatt called for the dismantling of the security intelligence regime and for it to leave the country. "We want to remain friends with Syria, and we refuse the rule of the intelligence services in Lebanon," he said, adding: "You have killed many but you will never succeed in destroying the people's will." Jumblatt, a leading member of the opposition, ruled out any dialogue that was not based on the Taif Accord and called for the immediate withdrawal of Syrian troops from the country, in a bid to open a new page between the people of Lebanon and Syria. "The Taif is the basis and we will not accept any postponement," he said. Jumblatt said that he regretted the absence of the country's sovereignty in the presence of the Syrian intelligence apparatus and called for a fair investigation into Hariri's death.
This article starring:
Kamal Jumblatt
Rafik Hariri
SAIYED HASAN NASRALLAH
Hizbullah
Walid Jumblatt
Hizbullah
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2005
8:58:44 PM ||
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I listened to George W Bush telling Europeans that his campaign for liberty and democracy arose directly from ideals that had originated with them. You could almost hear the injured bewilderment in his voice: this was all your idea in the first place. Whatever happened to your commitment to the values enshrined in Magna Carta and the French Revolution - the doctrine of the rights of man and of government by consent? And if you are still committed to those principles, why can you not see the need to extend them to parts of the world that are still deprived of them?
The enlightenment idealism of Europe was exported to the rebellious colonies and, in geographical isolation, it flourished. While Europeans themselves undermined their own great democratic project with their ancient hatreds and their aristocratic nostalgia, the naïve Americans kept the dream intact, building it into a written constitution (which was an 18th-century idea itself).
Europe has pretty much given up on the whole undertaking now: we tried it and it ended in the Terror. We went through our phase of proselytising democratic revolution with Bonaparte and look where that ended. Spreading freedom? All that amounts to is killing off one generation of autocrats and replacing them with another. Trust the people? They are just as likely to follow a fascist demagogue as to perpetuate the sacred principle of justice.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
02/23/2005
8:52:28 AM ||
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#1
It's never too late to get back in the game. Freedom will always appeal to people. It never goes out of style. When the EU falls apart, the "naive" Americans will be right there to support our Allies. Arab terrorists will eventually start attacking Europe on a regular basis and they will be forced out of their "mass prosperity". Guess who'll be there? We will. That's why we shouldn't ever consider pulling out of Europe.
#3
My grandfather (as well as Silentbrick's, my brother) was a naval officer on an LST. Got stuck on the landing and had to wait for high tide to come so they could get off the beach. He spent the whole war in the Pacific, but Iwo Jima was the only battle he directly took part in.
Then he came home and started setting nuclear bombs off in Nevada, but that's another story. :)
Posted by: Laurence of the Rats ||
02/23/2005 12:58
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#4
My dad was in the signals company of the 4th, more near the middle of the island. Didn't see a thing of the assault of the volcano. The fight was only just getting good and going.
Grenade blast at Moulvibazar shrine-Imam, madrasa teacher held A grenade exploded at Shaidingi shrine in Kulaura upazila of Moulvibazar on Sunday night badly damaging the structure of the shrine. No casualty, however, was reported while the roof of the shrine was blown up. Immediately after the explosion, locals captured a local Imam and a madrasa teacher on suspicion, and handed them over to police.
That makes sense to me, muslim holy men and explosives seem to go together
Police said the detainees -- Maruf Mohammed Ishaque, 22, and Quamrul -- had confessed their involvement in the explosion.
"Ooch! Ouch! Ouch! Ooch! We confess! We dunnit!"
Police declined to elaborate on the leads obtained from the two. A team of Bangladesh Army's explosive experts from Comilla had visited the scene and recovered splinters from the spot. Team leader Captain Manjur confirmed it to be a hand grenade. Police and locals said the grenade exploded at about 8:15pm sometime after a few thousand people had left Prithimpasa Nawab Bari where the local Shia community arranged an Ashura programme. The venue stands only 200 yards off the scene of the blast.
Got all fired up at the Ashura program and had to boom something
Maruf, who hailed from Haluaghat of Mymensingh, is Imam of the local mosque and a student of Karmadha Madrasa while Quamrul is a teacher of Darus Salam Madrasa in Sylhet. Besides the two, police held a woman at Budhpasa village on suspicion that her son could be another accomplice of Maruf and Quamrul.
"Madame? You have a son named Mahmoud?"
"Yeah? Whut's it to yez? Whut's he done now?"
"Come with us, please!"
"[Gasp!] To the abandoned warehouse?"
"No, to the cop shoppe."
"Whew. Okay."
"And then we're going to the abandoned warehouse!"
[gasp] "No! No! Anything but that!"
Raushan Ara Begum, superintendent of Moulvibazar police, who visited the spot last night, told The Daily Star that police and army personnel are jointly investigating the incident.
Dhamrai militants busted
Twelve suspected extremists were arrested from Dhamrai, Jahangirnagar University (JU) and Joypurhat Sunday night. The six arrested from Dhamrai were found with bomb-making formulas, masks, wigs and important documents belonging to an extremist organisation, while JU authorities also found a timer and an audio tape containing a speech protesting attempts to arrest Osama bin Laden, Mufti Fazlul Haq Amini and Shaikhul Hadith Azizul Haque. Intelligence agencies, meantime, have mounted surveillance on a number of mosques in the north-western regions of the country in the wake of a recent wave of bomb attacks on various NGOs, including Brac and Grameen Bank. A patrol team of Dhamrai police challenged eight youths as they were walking by Joypura Jora bridge on the Dhaka-Aricha highway at 1:00am yesterday. Two of the youths ran away when they saw the police, and remaining six were arrested. It has been learned that four of the six Abdul Wahab, 26, Yakub Ali, 21, Faruq Hossain, 34, Rafiqul Islam, 18, Nurul Islam, 20, and Anwar Hossain, 23, -- are students of the area's Sharifabad Madrasa.
Just good muslim schoolboys, out for a stroll at 1am.
"Each of them was carrying a bag," Tareq Kamal, officer-in-charge of the Dhamrai Police Station, told reporters.
"'Ere, now, lads! Wot's in the bags?"
Searching their bags, police found pieces of glass, five diaries and a notebook, dresses for girls, ladies' underwear, masks, fake beards and moustaches, wigs and bomb-making formulas complete with drawings.
Typical muslim school supplies, if you're a cross-dressing terrorist
Police said all of the youths were wearing lungis and pajamas, but that each carried with them two extra dresses. Police also found three pairs of shoes, muri (fried rice), cakes, soft drinks and bottles of drinking water. The youths claimed they were returning from a feast at one Delwar Hossain's house, but police could not find anyone by that name in the area, raising doubts about the youth's motives for roaming the highway at night.
Sounds like every episode of "COPS" where they pull over a car in a crack neighborhood:
"What are you boys doing down here tonight?"
"Visting a friends house."
"Yeah, where's your friend live?"
"Err, over there"
"What's your friends name?"
"Ah, err, ummmmm...."
"OK, hands on the car..."
A police source said the arrested disclosed the names of eight members of 'their people'. Local police officials suspected, based on the recovered items, that the youths were preparing to undertake an operation.
"Legume, I believe they were preparing to undertake an operation!"
"Gosh, Inspector! How do you do it?"
Several police sources said the extremists have a safe den somewhere in the area, where they are training young members. Reporters have not been permitted to speak with the arrestees.
Three hard boyz arrested at Water Development Board mosque
Police arrested three activists of Jamaatul Mujahidin from the Water Development Board mosque in Thakurgaon on Thursday night. The arrestees are Amanat Ullah, Mamun ur Rashid and Mahbub Alam. Following the statement police raided the house of one Asiruddin, 50, of Laxmipur village in Sadar upazila of Thakurgaon and seized bomb making materials, acid, splinters, electrical wire, batteries, a dummy rifle made of bamboo and rod, some books and leaflets as well as a cycle of violence motor cycle.
SEE: muslim school supplies
Police said the arrestees admitted to police that they were carrying out anti-NGO propaganda at the direction of Bangla Bhai, operation commander of Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (JMJB), and Dr Asadullah Galib of Rajshahi University. Earlier, in the first week of February, police arrested 12 members of Jamaatul Mujahidin activists from a mosque in Natore. Superintendent of Police (SP) of Thakurgaon Khandaker Golam Faruq said there are thousands of mosques, but such activities. "It is not possible to watch every mosque by limited forces," he said.
100 hurt in clash over grass land
At least 100 people including a woman were injured in a clash between two groups of villagers at Madir Haor of Ashurail village under Buresheyar union in Nasirnagar upazila over cutting grass from a disputed land on Friday. Aksir Mia of a group led by Md Karim member and Younus Mia of their rival group led by Farid Mia exchanged hot words following cutting of grass at the disputed land, according to eye-witnesses, hospital and police sources.
"Hey, git yur hands off my grass!"
At one stage they began a wrestling. Being informed, at least 800 supporters of both the groups equipped with lethal weapons rushed to the spot and locked in a bloody clash that lasted for two hours.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
8:42:14 AM ||
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#1
The Water Development Board has its own mosque? Talk about job perks.
#4
I learned long ago that the usual way to make water is to add one oxygen to two hydrogens, then run an electrical current through the mixture until it gives up and becomes water. Or if one wishes to make it complicated, pull water vapour out of the air, then cool to a liquid; last possibility being to warm solid water until it reaches liquid state. Are the Bangladeshi scientists at the Water Board on the track of a new method?
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Six black lawmakers Wednesday called for the removal of the head of the state's juvenile justice department for showing a Chris Rock video at a meeting with NAACP leaders.
One lawmaker called the 4-minute skit - How To Not Get Your Ass Kicked By The Police - "absolutely racist." An NAACP member at the viewing last July said no one complained.
The skit, which came from Rock's former HBO comedy show, was shown in the office of Juvenile Justice Secretary Anthony Schembri - the former head of New York City's jails who was the model for the 1991-1995 offbeat television show "The Commish."
Rock's tips for young blacks include driving with a white friend, and turning down loud rap music when pulled over. The video also shows scenes where actors dressed as police pretend to beat up blacks who didn't follow Rock's advice - a driver who jumps out of his car during a traffic stop and starts yelling profanities, and a man who jumps a subway turnstile while smoking marijuana and carrying a gun.
"I found this as being totally and absolutely racist, there's no way around it," said Democratic state Sen. Mandy Dawson, who was joined by five other black lawmakers. "It doesn't make sense to me to show this type of video under any circumstances to the NAACP."
Schembri's spokesman, Tom Denham, said the video was part of a discussion on racial profiling. He said Schembri, who is white, previously used it when teaching college courses as a way to open up discussion on profiling.
"The secretary is a very colorful and unusual man and he likes to push the envelope and get people to think about things," Denham said, adding the video was never meant to be used to train staff and administrators, as the lawmakers alleged.
"I would like to apologize. I did not mean to offend anyone," Schembri said through a spokesman.
William H. Booth, a retired New York City judge and an NAACP member, said he was at the meeting and no one complained about the video. He said Schembri used it as an example of how the media can contribute to attitudes about profiling.
"I've never known him to be prejudiced in any way," said Booth, who knew Schembri in New York. "I don't think he's got a racial bone in his body."
Rock's publicists would not comment.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is defending letters sent to an Iraq-bound GI by a sixth-grade class in Brooklyn that trashed America's military heros as war criminals.
Asked about the letters on Tuesday, the liberal Republican explained, "Well, look, we have freedom of speech and you certainly cannot go around censoring what people want to write..."
Bloomberg argued that the GIs would actually appreciate the derogatory screeds, explaining, "Most of them believe that the freedoms that we have, like the freedoms to write critical letters, are protected by them putting their lives at risk..."
#1
Steps on it . . .
. . . and promptly shoots himself in the foot. Only question is whether that will be enough for the soldiers these travesties went to.
Posted by: The Doctor ||
02/23/2005 22:22
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Iraq has awarded its first oil development contracts since the fall of the Saddam Hussein regime.
The Oil Ministry has awarded development contracts to companies from Canada and Turkey. Turkey's Everasia was awarded a project to develop the Khurmala Dome oil field in northern Iraq. Canada's Ironhorse Oil and Gas was selected to develop Himrin field.
Officials said the awards required Cabinet approval. Everasia was said to have beaten Ireland's Petrel Resources.
The projects would include the construction of flow lines, gas separation stations in an effort to increase production at these sites.
Officials said the Oil Ministry sought to produce 100,000 barrels of oil per day at Khurmala.
IRAQ war wobbler Jacques Chirac scuttled George Bush's fence-mending trip to Europe yesterday — by cranking up a row over the future of Nato. I'm shocked, SHOCKED, I tell you!
Jacques - are you aware you're probably doing Dubya's dirty work for him here?
He embraced a German-led plot to ditch the alliance as the backbone of transatlantic relations, in favour of the European Union. "Let's start with that aircraft carrier currently drydocked in Marseilles!"
He also snubbed President Bush by speaking French at a dinner, despite having fluent English. I'd like to know how many French were in the audience; could be MSM spin at work here.
Diplomats insisted Mr Bush had pulled off a coup by getting all 26 Nato members to contribute to a £2.5million programme to train and equip Iraq security staff. But the clash on Nato overshadowed everything. I'm inclined to wait until the cheques clear...
France and Germany, led by Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, want defence enshrined in the EU constitution.
Mr Bush said Nato was the "cornerstone" of US-Europe relations. Tony Blair agreed it was of "fundamental importance".
Posted by: Raj ||
02/23/2005
7:24:42 AM ||
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#3
£2.5 million is next to nothing -- about $200,000 per NATO country.
So what if Chirac spoke French: Bush speaks Texan and Chirac obviously doesn't understand Texan. Chirac is never going to be a good cowboy.
Posted by: Tom ||
02/23/2005 8:10
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#4
Mr Bush said Nato was the "cornerstone" of US-Europe relations. Tony Blair agreed it was of "fundamental importance". Jacques Chirac babbled something in French, but nobody paid much attention, not having brought their translators, except one journalist who had taken a course in French in high school. He later reported that Chirac had said something like "...Fish heads cheese (in the) Paris moonlight earlobes", though others suggested that that sounded silly. Chirac was later seen cursing at an Arabic taxi cab driver who didn't speak French.
#5
Chiraq is right, NATO should be dropped and the USA should pull equipment, personel, and paychecks out of Europe entirely. A truly modern hospital in Iraq would do more good than flying the injured to Germany anyway. It would be good for the fighting boys and it would be good for the region.
#6
Actually when you think on it the US is NATO. If we were not there NATO would be an enfeebled joke. The only thing Europe brings to the table is the ability to create internal conflict.
Other than it allows us to be in their knickers, and that may be worth something, I see no point to remaining in NATO.
I do find the Presidential tour interesting though. I never saw so many politicians spread so much doodoo in such a short period of time. I would be shocked and amazed if any of them have the slightest belief in this Europe is a meaningful partner crap. As far as I can tell the ony useful function Europe provides is that it keeps high tides from swamping the Kermlin.
I suspect that Chirac's problem is how best to digest the crap President Bush has been feeding him these last couple of days and that is most likely something best done in french, which may explain his behavior.
Posted by: Michael ||
02/23/2005 10:10
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#7
He embraced a German-led plot to ditch the alliance as the backbone of transatlantic relations, in favour of the European Union.
Not a problem. The sooner NATO is dissolved and our forces and equipment removed, the better off things will be. Oh, and the facilities that will be left behind? We'd appreciate a little monetary gratuity. After all, it's pretty unlikely that what we leave behind would fall into disuse...
#9
bulldoze the facilities and plant trees to help the environment and put them in moral quandry about how they can justify clear-cutting in order to reuse the land again.
#11
if we completely pulled out of Europe ,it would only be a matter of time until Europe got itself in another mess we had to go back in all over again. So what if NATO is useless? It's not going to hurt to keep it going. There should be some sort of association the U.S. and Europe belong to together besides the U.N. It doesn't have to have deep meaning attached to it...they can call an early lunch and go play golf for all I care...just as long as they keep up a dialouge.
#12
Actually, planting trees would be a very effective move. I have no doubt that various pollutants, such as lead and gasoline, have soaked into the soil, and certain tree and plant species have recently been shown to absorb such pollutants through their roots (cottonwood is very effective, sunflowers also, I believe). So, should the local gov't cut down the trees before they'd completed their clean-up work, a matter of a decade or two, that adds an additional dimension to their moral quandary.
#15
So what if NATO is useless? It's not going to hurt to keep it going.
Actually it will. As soon as the Euros lift the arms embargo on the Chicoms in an attempt to keep their (pick one) failing socialist states going US military technology will flow as follows: Uncle Sam ---> NATO ---> China. There's a HUGE downside to sticking with the failure.
#20
US NATO airbases still fill a needed function. Furthermore,having NATO around keeps some of Europe's military and political leaders engaged w/US. Is NATO needed to defend Europe-not now. Is NATO useful in challenging those who want an Anti-American Unified Europe-yes.
To Eastern Europeans,even those who are not members,NATO represents a willingness to actually defend them from aggression and of the US to listen to other views. To Eastern Europeans,too much of history is the willingness of Western Europe to sacrifice them so the West can stay at peace a little longer.
Why are France and Germany staying in NATO? Is it because they recognize the powerful symbolism of NATO and fear being ostracized if they left? Do not doubt for a second that there are those in France,Germany and Brussels who want NATO dissolved,but they want the US to do it.
Posted by: Stephen ||
02/23/2005 14:50
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#21
Has it been proved that President Bush does not understand French?
#29
I knew a Commo Platoon Sergeant in Germany that worked with NATO. He said NATO countries were a fricking joke. The only country that put money into new equipment was the US. The first in line to try and take it was France , Germany, and the rest. Get rid of Belgium, France, Spain and Germany. Look at Turkey, but keep most of the rest. I'm sorry but, I live in Germany and these people won't fight for shit if it doesn't have to do with Germany itself, a shorter work week or an increase to their pay and already bloated benefits. Let them handle the next Kosovo by themselves. They're already 2 for 2 in destroying Europe in the last hundred years, I'm sure they could make it 3 for 3.
**Side Note: To hear the Germans wail about George Bush's visit was incredible. The main highway around Frankfurt was closed in all four directions. The German workers pretty much had to take a day of leave off. My wife was bemoaning their plight when I reminded her not to worry. The Germans will just go on their 3-4 week vacation, call in sick on week #2 (which means if they are on sick leave and they stop using their annual leave) extend their "illness" another week, which would have been their first week back just like they always do. Then at the end of the year tell their American employers with Doe eyes. Sorry but I have to take it. She then whined that they can't do that anymore because everybody is afraid to lose their jobs. I said, "See, you should thank Bush, he helped your entire country finally pull their heads out of their asses and join the real world." She wasn't amused...but I was.
SAVANNAH, Georgia (AP) -- Military police are investigating a cruel hoax in which a man wearing an Army dress uniform falsely told the wife of a soldier that her husband had been killed in Iraq.
Investigators are trying to determine why the man delivered the false death notice and whether he was a soldier or a civilian wearing a military uniform.
"We're taking it extremely seriously. Whatever motivation was behind it, it was a sick thing to do," said Fort Stewart spokesman Lt. Col. Robert Whetstone. . . .
. . . When the 3rd Infantry first deployed to Iraq for the 2003 invasion, some Fort Stewart families reported receiving phone calls from pranksters saying their soldiers had been killed.
This time around, troops and their spouses got pre-deployment briefings that included detailed explanations of how death notices work. Two soldiers, including a chaplain, in dress uniform always arrive to tell the family in person. The Army never makes notifications over the telephone. . . .
. . . Military police described the suspected hoaxer as being 6-feet, 1-inch tall and about 180 pounds with black or brown hair and a pale complexion. He was reported to be driving a blue or green pickup truck with chrome wheels, oversized tires and a Georgia license plate.
Impossible to say yet whether this is an isolated sicko or organized moonbattery at work. I can think of an appropriate punishment, though.
Posted by: Mike ||
02/23/2005
6:53:46 AM ||
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#5
I don't condone any vengence, but if a wife shot the fellow I couldn't convict her. If there is anything that would justify a temporary insanity plea it would be responding to this kind of sick cruelty.
Posted by: Mike ||
02/23/2005 22:13
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#11
I think they should cut the naughty bits off and nail him to that California couple's house that likes to hang effigy's from their house to try and demoralize our fighting men and women. Just be sure to slap a "Just Visualize Whirled Peas" sticker on his chest. Now if you really want to be cruel, you slit his belly open and haul out his intestines to wrap around the trees in the yard.
Ward Churchill, American Indian Movement leader, admits he's not an Injun.
On "Fox & Friends" this morning, Brian Kilmeade had a great line. He said "This guy has been posing as an American Indian leader, but it turns out he's just a big fan of 'F Troop.'"
Posted by: Tibor ||
02/23/2005
4:21:25 PM ||
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#1
"I was targeted because they thought I would be an easy target," Churchill told the crowd of about 800. "That was a mistake.
"It's not just an attempt to purge me," he said. "It's a purge of the academy."
You got that right you lying sack of runny sh*t! You and your kind are not being paid good money (by hard-working parents) to spread your bullshit and half-baked personal opinions - you are there to TEACH!
(Apologies to any piles of sh*t out there which may have been offended by this comparison).
Every time he opens his mouth he contradicts himself. O'Reilly etc. has been saying for weeks that Churchill can only be fired for 1. misrepresenting his ethnicity or 2. incompetence as an educator, and Churchill is stoopid enough to fall right into the "he's no Native" trap. What a maroon.
Posted by: Chris W. ||
02/23/2005 18:27
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#3
How about FRAUD for cause for termination (if not inprisonment):
He applied for and got a tenured professorship at the University of Colorado, Boulder, despite his lack of a doctorate. Listing himself as an American Indian, he prevailed over eleven other Indians who applied for the position, and over the other two who were actually interviewed. He later received an honorary doctorate from Alfred University after serving there as a visiting professor in American Indian Studies.
#4
Because pedigree is "not important," except in your job application and lies to gain advancement based on your skin color?
I predicted Ward Churchill is now against Affirmative Action... as it applies to him... just as he advocated it when his lies allowed exploitation to his advantage.
I also loved this idiocy:
"He was humorous and he certainly didn't pull any punches," UH student Kirsten Chong said, adding that because she is native Hawaiian, she agrees with much of what he said.
Because "Chong" is such a "native Hawaiian" name? How ironic this Mhore-On uses her own "claim" of victicratic ethnic heritage to rationalize her "agreement" with Ward Churchill's false claims to a victicratic ethnic heritage even as he admits to his lies in a narcissistic rant where he still claims victicratic status.
#5
Oh, lord, what a total, faux, system-playing, self-contradicting, bogus-intellectual, self-parodying fool! It's like Jane Smiley or Tom Wolfe made him up entirely! No, CU, don't fire his totally faux-Indian ass! Keep him, keep him as a cautionary tale, and for the blogosphere to use as an intellectual piniata, during the breaks from working over the usual targets. I look for years of fun, thwacking this idiot on a regular basis!
#7
Back in law school, a colleague wrote an article about an African-American guy who was trying to get himself declared a Native American so that he could join a tribe that was building casinos in Connecticut. The title of the article was "Why Being Drunk and on Welfare Doesn't Necessarily Make You an Indian." I'm not sayin' he was right, but it was pretty funny (and scandalous).
Posted by: Tibor ||
02/23/2005 22:51
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Recep Tayyip Erdoðan's Justice and Reconciliation Party (Adalet ve Kalkinma Partisi, AKP) swept to victory in Turkey's parliamentary elections on November 3, 2002. More than two years later, the Islamic-oriented party finds itself more popular than ever. But while the AKP came to power on the strength of its image as fresh and honest amid a sea of corrupt establishment parties, the AKP's own finances have become murky and worrisome. At best, it appears that AKP leaders have blurred the distinction between business and politics. More troubling yet is the pattern of tying Turkish domestic and foreign policy to an influx of what is called Yesil Sermaye, "green money," from wealthy Islamist businessmen and Middle Eastern states.
Where goes the AKP? Is Erdoðan's party a threat to Turkish secularism, or the product of it? Does the AKP represent an Islamist Trojan horse, or the benign Islamic equivalent of Europe's numerous Christian Democrat political parties? While the political signs are contradictory, the financial indicators are consistently troubling.
On winning a majority, Erdoðan and the AKP leadership articulated a moderate policy. Erdoðan declared after the AKP's election victory,
Secularism is the protector of all beliefs and religions. We are the guarantors of this secularism, and our management will clearly prove that.[1]
Indeed, the AKP's 2002 election victory prompted much optimism. "AK Victory Heralds New Dawn for Turkey," headlined the Daily Telegraph.[2] "Turkey Takes the Plunge: Islam and Democracy Combine Forces" opined an editorial in The Guardian.[3] Official U.S. government reaction was cautious. "Let's not speculate on the future of the Turkish government, but let us at this point congratulate the Justice and Development Party on its electoral success," suggested State Department spokesman Richard Boucher.[4]
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/23/2005
3:31:22 PM ||
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EFL Let's hope this is true! Iraqi state television aired a video Wednesday showing what the U.S.-funded channel said was the confession of a captured Syrian officer who said he trained Iraqi insurgents to behead people and build car bombs to attack American and Iraqi troops. The video also showed an Iraqi who said the insurgents practiced beheading animals to train for decapitating hostages. Syrian officials could not immediately be reached for comment on the claims. The video comes at a time when the Bush administration has stepped up pressure on Syria to stop meddling in Iraqi affairs by allowing insurgents to cross into the country to fight coalition troops and by harboring former Iraqi regime members. Syria has denied the charges. In the video, the man, identified as Lt. Anas Ahmed al-Essa of the Syrian intelligence service, said his group had been recruited to "cause chaos in Iraq ⊠to bar America from reaching Syria."
"We received all the instructions from Syrian intelligence," al-Essa, 30, said on a video broadcast by state-run Iraqiya TV, which can be seen nationwide. The tape was apparently made in the northern city of Mosul but no date was provided. It was not possible to authenticate the claims. An unidentified Iraqi officer introduced the video, saying all insurgent groups in Iraq were covers for Syrian intelligence. He named a number of well-known groups, including one which has killed and beheaded foreigners.
Iraqiya TV is believed to be widely watched by Iraqis mainly those who cannot afford satellite dishes offering the Gulf-based Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya stations. But the station, which went on the air in May 2003 with help from the Pentagon, is viewed by many Iraqis as an American propaganda tool having a pro-American slant. Top officials in Iraq's interim government have called on Syria to hand over former Iraqi Baathists who fled there after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, which Syria vehemently opposed. snip
The FBI warned Tuesday that a computer virus is being spread through unsolicited e-mails that purport to come from the FBI. The e-mails appear to come from an fbi.gov address. They tell recipients that they have accessed illegal Web sites and that their Internet use has been monitored by the FBI's ``Internet Fraud Complaint Center,'' the FBI said. The messages then direct recipients to open an attachment and answer questions. The computer virus is in the attachment. ``Recipients of this or similar solicitations should know that the FBI does not engage in the practice of sending unsolicited e-mails to the public in this manner,'' the FBI said in a statement. The bureau is investigating the phony e-mails.
I'll wager this one gets priority
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
2:46:42 PM ||
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Translated from Spanish, published 2-22-05. Two Soldiers Dead and Seven Injured by Mines in Teorama (North of Santander)
Last night, an engagement between the Army and members of FARC in Sucre traded three soldiers and one guerrilla dead. General Carlos Alberto Ospine, commander of the Armed Forces, stated that near the municipality of Teorama, vigorous operations against FARC rebels were being undertaken and during an attack, the troops entered a field sown with antipersonnel mines. A second lieutenant, identified as Leandro Perez Castro and a soldier Lisimaco Suarez, members of the V Military Brigade were killed instantly, while seven soldiers were injured, three of them gravely.
Three Soldiers and One Guerrilla Dead in Sucre The engagement took place last night, when troops tried to neutralize an illegal roadblock on the highway that connects Ovejas with Sincelejo. The following was related by Colonel Rafael Colon, commander of the First Brigade of Marine Infantry: "A group of FARC Guerrillas were attempting to maintain a presence on the highway [a roadblock; Spanish like Arabic often tries to talk around the subject] and were confronted by members of the infantry battalion. During this fight, three of our men were murdered and others were injured, fortunately none seriously" stated the official in a radio transmission. According to Colon, the soldiers recovered a rebel corpse that also had perished in combat. "We are continuing with operations in this zone, with the goal of neutralizing the actions of the terrorists that are seeking to operate on the margins of the law," added the military chief.
Police in Baghdad said Wednesday they captured a suspected terrorist leader who was a soldier in Saddam Hussein's regime. Ali Hassan Kadham al-Jabouri was arrested with five others who allegedly were setting up an illegal checkpoint recently, police said. Authorities accuse al-Jabouri of leading terrorist cells, kidnapping and weapons smuggling.
American forces found four large weapons caches, including bombs, rockets and mortar rounds, in Mosul on Wednesday, the U.S. military said. U.S. and Iraqi troops also captured 11 suspected insurgents in four separate operations in the Mosul area this week, the military said.
Iraq's interim government said it's reopening all border crossings that were closed last week to keep insurgents from infiltrating the country during Ashura. Ashura -- arguably the holiest day on the Shiite calendar -- attracts pilgrims to Iraq from all over the world. Weekend attacks in Baghdad resulted in dozens of deaths.
This article starring:
ALI HASAN KADHAM AL JABURI
Iraqi Insurgency
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
2:25:31 PM ||
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DEBKAfile's Exclusive Palestinian and intelligence sources report:
Death squads controlled by Gaza's would-be strongman Mohammed Dahlan are busy settling accounts with Palestinian intelligence chief Mussa Arafat's men. Sending an I-am-in-charge message, Dahlan dispatched assassins Wednesday, February 23 to gun down a Palestinian military intelligence officer and throw his body outside his home. According to DEBKAfile's Palestinian and intelligence sources, Dahlan's death squads had earlier disposed of three other Arafat adherents, murders Palestinian authorities have scrambled to hush up.
Captain Mohammed Abu Jarad, 27, died Saturday, February 19, in hail of submachine-gun bullets and grenades on his car in Gaza's Sheikh Daraj neighborhood. His body, riddled with bullets and shrapnel, was dumped in the center of the city for all to see. A day later, masked men grabbed Captain Dihab Hamdu, 33, from his home in Gaza's Sheikh Reduan district. His corpse was also abandoned in the town center. A third intelligence officer, another captain, was killed in a separate attack but his body has yet been found. Our sources report that Nabil Hamous, leader of Gaza's death squads, arranged the assassinations at Dahlan's behest. All of the dead officers took part in clashes between Arafat's and Dahlan's forces, as well as in the infamous incident last November in which warning shots were fired over the head of new Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) after Yasser Arafat's death, when he visited a tent set up for mourners in Gaza City.
Following that non-fatal shooting, Abu Mazen seemed to have brokered a "sulha", or reconciliation, between the Gaza Strip's three warring chiefs: Dahlan, Arafat, who holds multiple jobs as general security commander, head of the Palestinian armed forces in the Gaza Strip and military intelligence chief, and Rashid Abu Shbak, head of the preventive security service in the territory. Part of the peace deal was mutual consent to dismantle the death squads. The latest wave of murders indicates that none of the rivals intended to keep his side of the bargain and has no scruples about defying Abbas' authority. Dahlan simply ordered his hired killers to obey him rather than Abbas but to keep a low profile. Internal strife for the top spot in the Gaza Strip has just begun. Several of our Palestinian sources in the Gaza Strip say it is only a matter of time before Mussa Arafat and his followers respond in kind to Dahlan's "house-cleaning" operation.
This article starring:
CAPTAIN DIHAB HAMDU
Palestinian Authority
CAPTAIN MOHAMED ABU JARAD
Palestinian Authority
MOHAMED DAHLAN
Palestinian Authority
MUSA ARAFAT
Palestinian Authority
NABIL HAMUS
Palestinian Authority
RASHID ABU SHBAK
Palestinian Authority
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
2:21:47 PM ||
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#1
sucks being on the losing end, huh?
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/23/2005 15:04
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#2
I think the only thing that would actually produce any result in the Gaza would be the indiscriminate use of napalm and heavy artillery. The survivors can flee to Egypt in a reversal of the Sinai wanderings of Moses. We can let Abbas lead them - it'll give him a big head, but not letting him come back will take care of that.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/23/2005 15:54
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#3
"Gangs of Gaza"... it has a nice sound to it. Wonder if Martin Scorsese is available?
World Health Organization officials urged governments on Wednesday to act swiftly to control the spread of the bird flu, warning that the world is in grave danger of a deadly pandemic triggered by the virus. The bird flu has killed 45 people in Asia over the past year, in cases largely traced to contact with sick birds, and experts have warned the H5N1 virus could become far deadlier if it mutates into a form that can be easily transmitted among humans. A global pandemic could kill millions, they say. "We at WHO believe that the world is now in the gravest possible danger of a pandemic," Dr. Shigeru Omi, the WHO's Western Pacific regional director, said Wednesday. He said the world is "now overdue" for an influenza pandemic, since mass epidemics have occurred every 20-30 years. It has been nearly 40 years since the last one... The mortality rate among identified patients who contract the disease from chickens and ducks is about 72 percent, Dr. Julie L. Gerberding, head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Monday. She added that her agency was preparing for a possible pandemic next year...
Ten years ago, scientists first expressed concern because statistically we were late for having a killer flu, which comes cyclically.
Then, about 7 years ago, the avian flu variant first appeared. It was troubling because it seemed to be a souped-up version of the usual avian flu, so precautions were taken. Millions of chickens have already been slaughtered, replenished, then their replacements in turn slaughtered, when this strain was detected, and to no avail. The strain is too well embedded in wild fowl to be destroyed.
Now, only one thing has to happen for this to become a nightmare plague. Right now, humans only contract the disease from exposure to contaminated ducks and chicken. But if the virus mutates slightly, so that it can *easily* be transmitted from human to human, the nightmare begins.
Get this straight, if you catch this disease from a bird right now there is a 72 PERCENT CHANCE THAT YOU WILL DIE. And if the disease is transmitted from person to person, this mortality rate will stay the same.
The latest news on this is the WHO is contemplating WIPING OUT MOST OF THE WILD DUCKS IN SOUTHERN ASIA. Maybe 500 million birds killed to stop this disease.
We are danger close to having a catastrophe beyond anything the human species has ever experienced.
And there's not a damn thing they can do to stop it.
#6
Bird flu virus found in flies. I would question the article's claim that flies cannot transmit the disease. BTW moose it is definitely person to person transmissable there have been several recent clusters. However, it is not easily transmissable.
#7
If you are interested this site does a good job of tracking bird flu. Although be warned Niman thinks undiagnosed spread is common. He thought the same about SARS and was wrong.
#8
Sooo 45 dead in one year, some 77 sick total if 72% fatality holds true. Meanwhile, regular flu in the US alone strikes some 500,000 with 2,000 a year in fatalities.
I'm not impressed.....
#9
The current H5N1 virus doesn't transmit easily because it hasn't yet exchanged genes with a human infuenza virus strain. When that change occurs, it will be as easy to catch as the common flu. That's what's got experts worried, or should I say panicked?
Kong Sam Ol, deputy prime minister for the Royal Palace of Cambodia, hosted a reception on February 16 in celebration of leader Kim Jong Il's birthday. Present there on invitation were Ambassador Choe Han Chun and staff members of the DPRK embassy in Phnom Penh.
On hand were the chief of protocol for the king and the secretary and the under-secretary of state of the Ministry of the Royal Palace.
In the meantime, the DPRK embassy in Ulan Bator was visited by different personages of this country on Feb. 15 to celebrate Kim Jong Il's birthday.
Among those visitors were the chairman of the Mongolian Mt. Paektu Association, the vice-chairman of the Mongolia-Korea Friendship Society, the director of the Kim Jong Suk Kindergarten, the commander of Unit 0151 of the Frontier Forces of Mongolia and the director of "Gor King-Erdene" Institute of Teachers.
They laid bouquets before the portraits of President Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il and paid respects to them.
Kim Yong Nam, president of the Presidium of the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly, today sent a message of greetings to Guyanese President Bharrat Jagdeo on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the proclamation of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana. The message expressed the belief that the long-standing friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries would continue to develop favorably in the future, too, and sincerely wished the Guyanese people progress, prosperity and well-being.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/23/2005
1:52:39 AM ||
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#1
Yeah, a lot of heavy hitters in Kim's stable, that's for sure...
#2
"Gor King-Erdene"
Oh, good lord. We have the king from really awful Sci-Fi books visiting Kim?
"The 65th anti-U.S. solidarity rally..."
Do they hold those every year (since 1940?) or twice a year, or when the Dear Leader's hair gets out of control, or...?
"...the partyâs policy for the agricultural revolution." Everything is edible if you are hungry enough.
"...hot-blooded youngsters to perform miracles and feats."
We see that every year at Spring Break.
Nur Misuari, the jailed ex-chair of the Moro National Liberation Front, yesterday denied having ordered his followers in the MNLF to attack the 104th Army Brigade in Sulu province, according to Bayan Muna party-list Representative Satur Ocampo.
Misuari, a former governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, presented his side on the military claim that he was responsible for the renewed fighting between government troops and MNLF rebels led by Habier Malik during a three-hour, closed-door hearing at Fort Sto. Domingo in Laguna's Sta. Rosa town, where he is being held on rebellion charges.
The hearing was conducted by the House special committee on peace, reconciliation and national unity, which Ocampo chairs.
Ocampo said at a press briefing that Misuari "absolutely denied" military reports that he had ordered his field commanders by cell phone to attack government targets.
"He is in solitary confinement," Ocampo pointed out. "He is also under watch by his security aides. How can he command MNLF leaders via cell phone? He said he has no means of communications inside his jail."
Asked if they believed Misuari, the eight members of the special committee replied almost in unison: "Of course, yes."
In an interview with the Inquirer in Manila after the hearing, Ocampo said Misuari denied that the MNLF had a tactical alliance with Abu Sayyaf bandits, who had claimed responsibility for the Valentine's Day bomb attacks in the cities of Makati, General Santos and Davao.
The Armed Forces had linked the bomb attacks to the Sulu conflict, and said these were intended to ease the military pressure on the rebels.
But Ocampo said: "Misuari said that kidnappings and bombings are anti-Islam, and that the MNLF will never resort to these. He said the MNLF and Abu Sayyaf are like oil and water -- hindi puwedeng maghalo (they can't mix)."
By Ocampo's account, Misuari insisted that the renewed hostilities were triggered by the soldiers' massacre of a family, including a child, and urged the committee to hold fact-finding and public hearings in Sulu in order to get to the bottom of the issue.
He said Misuari warned that the fighting would spread to nearby provinces if the government does not act now to end it.
At about 12:30 p.m., during a break in the hearing, police allowed reporters inside a room to see Misuari, but only for a few minutes.
Misuari, looking pale and thin in a black suit over a yellow shirt, posed for pictures with members of the committee, his wife Tarhata and their children -- Nurredha, 10; Khalid Nur, 7, and Nurhata, 4.
Ocampo said that when Misuari was asked by the special committee whether he would be willing to appeal to his followers to call a ceasefire, the latter said he would only do so if requested by the government.
"Misuari said he did not want to be misunderstood on this. He said a call for a ceasefire would not be effective because President Macapagal-Arroyo had ordered soldiers to finish off the Muslim rebels," the party-list representative said.
In the press briefing, Ocampo quoted Misuari as saying that "the real solution to the conflict in Mindanao is not war but a cessation of it."
Salvador Panelo, Misuari's lawyer, told reporters that the rebel leader made his position clear: "The MNLF did not start the ongoing war in Sulu. It was the military who [did]. So why would the MNLF call a ceasefire when it did not start the war?"
House Speaker Jose de Venecia told the Inquirer in Manila that he would recommend a declaration of ceasefire to Ms Arroyo to enable the warring forces to talk peace.
He said a ceasefire would be "the most desirable of the immediate options."
De Venecia also said he would try to convince AFP Chief of Staff General Efren Abu and Defense Secretary Avelino Cruz to halt military offensives against the rebels.
Ocampo said Misuari admitted that Malik was his religious adviser. But he said that Malik was not getting orders from him.
Sulu Representative Hussin Amin said interviews with Malik showed that the MNLF rebels had had no communication with Misuari for over a year now.
Amin said it was also worth noting that there was no cell site in the municipality of Panamao, Sulu, where the initial fighting started.
"I think it is only now that satellite phones are being used in that area. There is no cell site there," he said.
Ocampo said Misuari took the opportunity to air complaints against the Arroyo administration regarding his case as well as alleged violations of the 1996 peace agreement between the MNLF and the government.
Misuari said he had been languishing in jail for three years without a trial.
He also said then Justice Secretary Simeon Datumanong had ordered a preliminary investigation of his case but that this was ignored and he was immediately charged with rebellion.
"Misuari complained that he had been denied a speedy trial, and that he had been in solitary confinement without conjugal visits since the revival of the hostilities in Sulu [three weeks ago]," Ocampo said.
On the broader issue of Muslim discontent, Misuari reportedly said the government had inserted several provisions in the peace agreement that were never discussed and approved.
In an open letter dated Feb. 19 and addressed to his followers and the Muslim people, Misuari designated "brothers Lahammudin Ghullam and Arthur Laibing" to relay his "wishes for you to help prevent another outbreak of hostilities and war in our homeland."
Ghullam was appointed in 2001 by Misuari as deputy chief of the Bangsamoro Armed Forces. Laibing heads the MNLF forces in the Zamboanga Peninsula.
"Please cooperate with them in the best interest of our people and peace in that highly volatile and restive region," Misuari wrote, adding:
"The most important thing is for the MNLF to maintain its role as the chief defender and champion of peace in our homeland Mindanao and its islands."
He concluded the letter thus: "My love to all of you."
There was no specific reference to the weeks-old fighting in Sulu. Neither did Misuari issue an order for MNLF forces to cease fire.
A copy of Misuari's appeal for peace was given by Ghullam and company to De Venecia in a brief meeting at the House on Monday evening.
Ghullam and his party were accompanied to De Venecia's office by businessman Crismel Verano, who was recently named member of the board of directors of the Philippine National Oil Co.-Exploration Corp.
Misuari also sent De Venecia a handwritten letter endorsing Ghullam to "augment your effort to prevent the spread of the war in Jolo to the mainland of Mindanao."
"You may authorize him and his companions to go around Mindanao to prevent the MNLF forces from getting embroiled in the war," Misuari told the Speaker in the letter also dated Feb. 19.
"I'd like to reiterate my support [for] your effort to investigate the root causes of this sudden outbreak of hostilities between the AFP and the MNLF forces with a view to stopping the war and restoring the peace not only in Jolo but in Mindanao as well," he said.
Quoting "the latest report," Misuari said "people in Mindanao are getting restive and are preparing to get [involved] in the war in Jolo."
"Please do your best to preempt any further threat to peace in the region," he told De Venecia.
Misuari gave the members of the special committee a copy of his letter to De Venecia after reading its contents during the hearing.
De Venecia said he had received Misuari's letter from the latter's wife Tarhata and MNLF commanders.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/23/2005
1:39:54 AM ||
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More, including a nice picture of him and Basayev, at the link.
A message circulated among jihadist e-groups on February 22, 2005 provides information about the martyrdom of Abu Omar al-Kuwaiti in Chechnya and his ties to al-Qaeda. A leader of military operations in Chechnya and an associate of Chechen commander, Shamel Basayev, Abu Omar, according to the message, trained in Afghanistan at the al-Qaeda training camp, al-Farooq and later fought in both Bosnia and Chechnya.
The message claims that Abu Omar led the terrorist attack on the Ministry of the Interior in Ingueshetia in the summer of 2004 as well as the Beslan School attack of September 2004.
This article starring:
ABU OMAR AL KUWAITI
al-Qaeda
SHAMEL BASAIEV
al-Qaeda
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/23/2005
1:37:05 AM ||
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#1
Love the beards. Must be jihadi high fashion.
Posted by: Jonathan ||
02/23/2005 16:26
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#2
Now he's Abu Omar al-Deadguy.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2005 21:54
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The commander of the 42nd motorized rifle division General-Major Sergei Surovikov said he would kill three rebels for every soldier killed on Monday in an attack in Grozny, Interfax reported.
Nine servicemen were killed and three more injured in the rebel attack on Monday, the military prosecutor's office reported earlier. The servicemen died in an exchange of fire with gunmen. According to some sources, grenade launcher fire caused a building to collapse that killed the servicemen.
The attackers numbered at least five. One of them was killed by return fire.
Earlier reports said that nine servicemen were killed when a roof collapsed at a poultry farm on the outskirts of Grozny. It occurred at about 19:50 local time on Monday, a source in the military prosecutor's office for the troops deployed in Chechnya told Itar-Tass on Tuesday. Six servicemen of the Defense Ministry died in the incident, and another three died on the way to hospital.
Surovikov also said that, according to his information, his servicemen eliminated two rebels and wounded another one.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/23/2005
1:35:45 AM ||
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#1
American soldiers' lives trade at about 20 to 1.
Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, 23, an American citizen, and at least 10 unidentified co-conspirators allegedly planned in 2002 and 2003 to kill Bush either by shooting him or by detonating a car bomb, according to an indictment released during a hearing before a U.S. magistrate judge in Alexandria, Va. The six-count indictment also alleges that Abu Ali and one of the co-conspirators discussed ways he could conduct a terrorist operation and establish an al-Qaida cell in the United States.
According to U.S. officials, Abu Ali was arrested June 9, 2003, in Medina, Saudi Arabia, during a crackdown by Saudi authorities on alleged terrorist cells blamed for the bombings a month earlier that killed 34, including nine Americans, in three residential compounds in Riyadh. He was detained in a Saudi prison and was flown to Washington Dulles International Airport only hours before Tuesday's hearing in U.S. District Court. He is scheduled to appear in court again Thursday.
Abu Ali is charged with providing material support and resources to al-Qaida, providing material support to terrorists, contributing services to al-Qaida, receiving funds and services from al-Qaida, and two counts of conspiracy. If convicted on all charges, he could be sentenced to up to 80 years in prison. According to the grand jury indictment, items found at Abu Ali's home in Falls Church a week after his arrest included a six-page document on how to avoid government and private surveillance, a document praising the Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar and the terror attacks on New York and the Pentagon, a copy of Handguns magazine with the name "Ahmed Ali" on the subscription label, audio tapes promoting violent holy war and the killing of Jews, and a book by Al Qaeda deputy Ayman Al Zawahiri criticizing democracy.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/23/2005
1:32:00 AM ||
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#1
At the very least they should fine him a few bucks for that self conscious smirk!
Standing in the thick mud before a giant Paladin howitzer, Capt. John Benoit, an artilleryman from the Louisiana National Guard, looked Gen. John Abizaid squarely in the eye and asked bluntly: How's the war going? Many soldiers, even those who give no quarter when fighting insurgents, tend to clam up in the presence of four-star brass. So when Abizaid, commander of all U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, finds a group like the Louisiana grunts willing to ask tough questions, he sticks around. And he doesn't just answer their questions but tries to share his view of the war in Iraq and what he sees as the larger struggle against Islamic extremism.
The insurgency, Abizaid acknowledged, has grown worse over the past year. There's no defensiveness on that point, though, as he segues into a discussion of why the insurgents--particularly the radical Islamists--must be confronted. "What we can't allow to happen is guys like Abu Musab Zarqawi to get started," Abizaid told Benoit and the soldiers of the 1-141 Field Artillery. "It's the same way that we turned our back when Hitler was getting going and Lenin was getting going. You just cannot turn your back on these types of people. You have to stand up and fight."
Abizaid's military command covers an area that stretches from Somalia through the Arabian peninsula, and into Iraq and on to Pakistan and Afghanistan. Throughout that mostly Islamic region, Abizaid argues, a critical struggle is going on between the forces of moderation, who are pushing for democratic reforms, and of extremism, who are pushing for the imposition of a rigid interpretation of Islamic law.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/23/2005
1:29:18 AM ||
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#1
Reminder: IEDs are planted in open areas, with numerous witnesses around, notwithstanding the huge rewards offered for information about same. The lesson that I take is: Islamofascism - of different variants - is the dominant ideology in Iraq. Iraq jihadism isn't as bad as the Pale-suicide-martyr cult. But give them time...
#2
Not always, ITYS. And before you criticize the Iraqi civilians, be very sure you know what you would do if you had a small kids who could be deliberately killed by the insurgents if you intervene.
We're so conditioned by our safe lives. Others are so vulnerable.
#3
IToldYouSoLucy: The lesson that I take is: Islamofascism - of different variants - is the dominant ideology in Iraq.
Actually, most of this happens in the Sunni parts of the country. I think it means that the Sunnis really, really want to get back in power. As to Islamo-fascism being the reason - I think many of these guys are secularists - Baath Party people who aren't really doing much that is different from what they used to do when Saddam was in power. The only thing different here is this - when Saddam was in power, they only used to get rewarded for raping, torturing or killing their victims, whereas now that Uncle Sam is in charge, they run the danger of being captured, wounded or killed.
US intelligence agencies have concluded that theft of radioactive materials from Russia's sprawling nuclear complex "has occurred" and the country's atomic power plants remain vulnerable to terrorist attack, according to a new intelligence report.
The unpublished analysis by the National Intelligence Council, a CIA-based think tank that serves the entire US intelligence community, came as US President George W. Bush prepared for a potentially contentious meeting Thursday with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
During their talks in the Slovakian capital of Bratislava, the two leaders are expected to discuss what is seen here as setbacks in the Russian democratic process and non-proliferation, including Moscow's nuclear assistance to Iran and the security of its own nuclear stockpile.
Russian officials have repeatedly denied that Al-Qaeda or other terrorist groups could get access to either Russian nuclear weapons or weapons-grade radioactive materials in the hope of fashioning a radiological device known as a "dirty bomb."
But in its report to Congress, an unclassified version of which was obtained by AFP, the council cast doubt on these assurances, arguing that US intelligence experts believe that diversion of nuclear material has already taken place.
"We assess that undetected smuggling has occurred, and we are concerned about the total amount of material that could have been diverted or stolen in the last 13 years," the report said.
The Russian nuclear arsenal is estimated to currently include about 4,000 operational warheads deployed on land- and sea-based intercontinental ballistic missiles and strategic bombers.
But Moscow also retains several thousand non-strategic nuclear warheads in storage, plus a network of production and research facilities dealing with fissile substances on a regular basis, according to US officials.
The US intelligence community, according to the report, retains high confidence in safeguards built around battle-ready weapons, saying that an unauthorized launch or accidental use of a Russian nuclear weapons remained "highly unlikely".
But, said the council, "we continue to be concerned about vulnerabilities to an insider who attempts unauthorized actions as well as potential terrorist attacks."
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/23/2005
1:26:29 AM ||
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Lebanon's Justice Minister Adnan Addoum said on Friday that authorities were hunting for twelve Australian men wanted over the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq al-Hariri. Addum said that all the suspects hold the Australian passport and that six of them left Beirut for Australia hours after Monday's deadly blast, adding that police found traces of explosives on aircraft seats. The minister added that there are two more Australians who tried to leave Lebanon after the assassination but missed the flight for unknown reasons. Their location is not known. Interpol agreed to interrogate the twelve suspects, Addoum said.
"Say mates, you off this bloke Hariri?"
"Nah, never seen him."
"Thanks fellas, that's a wrap."
"Thanks, inspector. Beer?"
The minister didn't provide further details and it was unclear what role the men played in the attack. Reports earlier this week said that the Australian government was helping Lebanon investigate Hariri's murder.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/23/2005
12:52:14 AM ||
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#1
This storys 5 days old. Didnt pan out, they were cleared.
MOORPARK, Calif. - Authorities shot and killed a tiger Wednesday that had been roaming for days in the hills near the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
The cat was shot several hundred yards from school soccer and baseball fields at the edge of a housing development, said Lorna Bernard, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Fish and Game. Authorities still don't know who the owner is. "It's unfortunate that we had to kill it," Bernard said. "It's even more unfortunate that the person who owned it didn't come forward and alert us immediately. We might have been able to capture it." The hunters had been looking for the animal for eight days, using infrared equipment at night. They had set traps with goat meat and chicken. Federal wildlife service trackers had to shoot to kill because a tranquilizer would have taken several minutes to bring down the animal and the hunters or others could have been in danger.
The hunt began after the discovery of paw prints on a ranch near the library that were far too large for native bobcats or mountain lions. The size of the tracks indicated the animal weighed as much as 600 pounds; officials thought it might even be a lion.
That's a big kitty cat
The area has a number of ranches and large estates. Two weeks ago, authorities removed nearly two dozen large cats, including lions and tigers, from a Moorpark animal sanctuary not far from the library. Bernard said all the animals that had been kept on that property were accounted-for.
I'd talk to them again, but that's just me.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
12:50:20 PM ||
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#1
Authorities shot and killed a tiger Wednesday that had been roaming for days in the hills near the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
Jimmy Carter probably had some friends plant this cat to scare off tourists. He is still bitter over 1980.
#3
should've baited with DU commenters...that way nobody worth a damn woul've been hurt
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/23/2005 15:48
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#4
Who ever owned the cat probably had an illegal pet!
The owner may have lost his home in all the rain/mud slides and let the cat go hoping someone would take care of the cat?? like so many do with stray animals...leave them off in the woods, dead end street etc. That is my guess. I don't think they had to kill the cat- super tranq it.
Andrea Jackson
Posted by: Andrea Jackson ||
02/23/2005 21:28
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#5
Well, they sure could have used tranquilizers. What a bunch of bunk. Some people . . .
#6
Right. Let's second guess the guys on the scene.
It was shot near a school.
Who wants to be the one in the wrongful death suit deposition explaining the value you placed on the life of the deceased when you decided to use a tranq instead of a real bullet?
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
02/23/2005 21:37
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#7
Not to mention that "super tranqing" often leads to death by respiratory depression.
Posted by: too true ||
02/23/2005 21:42
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#8
Correct- there are a number of factor's and ways to look at the problem. I did see the cat on tonight's
6 p.m. evening news it was a "purty Cat" as tweety bird would say. Maybe Ray Horn could have assisted** Ithink you know what I mean!
Andrea Jackson
Posted by: Andrea Jackson ||
02/23/2005 21:43
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16.02.2005 at 2240 LT at Chittagong 'B' anchorage, Bangladesh. Ten robbers armed with long knives boarded a chemical tanker from two boats. They seized duty a/b and held him at knifepoint. D/O raised alarm and crew mustered. Robbers jumped overboard and escaped with ship's stores. Chittagong port control informed.
15.02.2005 at 1545 UTC in posn: 02:38N - 107:47E, South China Sea. An unlit craft approached a bulk carrier underway. Alert crew flashed aldis lamp in the direction of the craft. A few minutes later craft altered course and moved away.
15.02.2005 at 0505 LT at Adang Bay anchorage, Indonesia. Three robbers armed with iron rods boarded a bulk carrier from hawse pipe. They broke open forepeak locker and stole ship's stores and a liferaft. Duty a/b raised alarm and crew mustered. Robbers escaped in their boat.
Posted by: Pappy ||
02/23/2005
12:47:31 AM ||
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#1
An unlit craft approached a bulk carrier underway. Alert crew flashed aldis lamp in the direction of the craft.
"What's he saying, matey?"
"R-U-N--O-U-T--N-I-N-E--P-O-U-N-D-E-R-S"
Posted by: Mike ||
02/23/2005 6:44
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Ten robbers armed with long knives boarded a chemical tanker from two boats.
I'm sure, like all self-respecting pirates, they carried them gripped in their teeth.
Israeli military and government officials said Monday that Israel must be prepared to carry out an air strike against Iran's nuclear program even though it does not expect a nuclear strike from Iran.
The Israeli Air Force Major-General Eliezer Shkedi did not say whether Israeli planned to attack suspected Iranian nuclear sites. But when asked whether such an attack could be carried out he replied, "There is no doubt Iran is trying to reach WMD capability. They have long distance missiles that can reach Israel and are interested in extending their range to 3000 kmâŠIf the government of Israel will decide to act, we have to be ready. I must prepare for everything."
Â
Seeing as the Israelis are usually prepared for about everything, wonder why he said this? Hmmmm ...
The US and Israel have said that Iran plans to develop nuclear military weapons. Last month the head of the Mossad said that within six months Iran would have that capability. Iran denies this and says its nuclear program is purely for providing electricity for baby duck hatcheries.
Â
Despite its fears of Iranian acquisition of such weapons, Israel does not believe that Iran will use them. "We don't think there is (someone) who is going to press the button," said Harry Knei-Tal, the director of the Israeli Foreign Ministry's Center for Diplomatic Research. He further added that Iran was planning to acquire the weapons as a form of "insurance... so that the US won't attack it like it attacked Iraq."
Â
Despite the mullahs' previous vow to use them on Israel.
What Israel fears, he said, is that Iranian possession of nuclear weaponry will boost its regional clout. "We are afraid that it will give Iran more leverage to empower its clients," he said.
The Israeli government's authorization of the acquisition of bunker-buster bombs and long-range fighter-bombers has fed speculation that Israel might use force against Iran if international diplomacy or the threat of sanctions do not stop it from producing nuclear weapons. When asked if there was such a plan, Shkedi replied, "You know that for obvious reasons I won't say even a word."
Â
"Even though I just did, heh-heh."
"We must deal with all the alternatives before [choosing] something very complicated," he said. "But we don't have a lot of time....
"I hope that there won't be a war, but you know, no one knows."
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/23/2005
12:46:27 AM ||
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#1
Begging Steve White's pardon, but the headline is not what the general said.
The headline was written both in this article and in the original article deliberately to misrepresent what the general actually said.
In fact, what the general did say was what most decent militaries should say in these times of military tensions. The general should be lauded for his prefessionalism and his personal restaint.
#2
The general should be lauded for his prefessionalism and his personal restaint...
Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's all well and good, but...
The Israeli government's authorization of the acquisition of bunker-buster bombs and long-range fighter-bombers has fed speculation that Israel might use force against Iran if international diplomacy or the threat of sanctions do not stop it from producing nuclear weapons. When asked if there was such a plan, Shkedi replied, "You know that for obvious reasons I won't say even a word."
OK, Israel..
We heard about the "new" weapons...
Now go and microwave those mullahs and the nuke facilities... Good huntin'!
An American student who was imprisoned in Saudi Arabia for the last 20 months was returned to the United States and accused by the Justice Department on Tuesday of plotting with members of Al Qaeda in 2003 to assassinate President Bush. In an indictment unsealed in federal court in Alexandria, Va., the student, a 23-year-old American citizen named Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, is charged with providing material support for terrorism. Mr. Abu Ali is accused of training with Al Qaeda overseas and wanting to "become a planner of terrorist operations" like Mohammed Atta or Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, two Qaeda leaders central to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The indictment's accusations rely mainly on the testimony of several unnamed co-conspirators. While American officials said they took the threat seriously, the indictment suggests that any plot to assassinate Mr. Bush did not move beyond the discussion stages among extremists in Saudi Arabia, and Mr. Abu Ali was not charged under the federal statute on assassinations.
Friends of Mr. Abu Ali and defense lawyers denied that he was part of any terrorist plot and accused the Justice Department of an overzealous prosecution. They said that Mr. Abu Ali, a valedictorian at an Islamic high school in suburban Washington, was the victim of torture at the hands of the Saudis after his arrest there in June 2003, an assertion that a federal judge in Washington appeared to validate in a recent ruling in a lawsuit brought by Mr. Abu Ali's family to force his release.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/23/2005
1:24:52 AM ||
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#1
and other prosecutions suffered zero setbacks like--lackawanna six--paintball putzes--cair assholes--oregon idjits--blind sheik--fat lawyer--the last sentence in the story is nyslimes LLL spin--this guy gets abeed schlong up the hershey highway for 20 years--feds don't lose on unindicted co-conspirator testimony--lashing is legal under sharia in the ksa--bite me jihadiboy
Posted by: SON OF TOLUI ||
02/23/2005 3:35
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#2
Just exactly how many terrorist /jihadi have not been convicted? Zero. There have been no "setbacks all these dumb turkeys are in federal pound in the you know where prison. The NYT a another lying member in good standing of the anti-US Coalition of the Stupid.
#4
The Detroit case was a real screw-up. The prosecuter admitted to tampering with evidence. I don't know whether they were really guilty or not. (It's conceivable that they were innocent.)
#7
They said that Mr. Abu Ali, a valedictorian at an Islamic high school in suburban Washington, was the victim of torture at the hands of the Saudis after his arrest there in June 2003,..
valedictorian at an Islamic high school
Subject of the talk :
"Psycologial impact of anticipating virgins - Why the 72 is important." or, "The joy of dispersing one's atoms with plastique and nails."
#10
I loved that the lawyer complained that his client was tortured by Saudi authorities and the Judged responded: âI donât think he will be tortured by the FBI and he will remain in custody!â You could just hear the air leave the lawyer bubble. I am sure the Saudis were not nice to this young Islamofacists but that donât make him innocent.
#11
"Abu Ali attended high school at the Islamic Saudi Academy, a private school in Alexandria that serves hundreds (uh-oh) of children of Saudi citizens and is subsidized by the Saudi government. He graduated in 1999 as valedictorian of his class."
Islamic highschool, huh? Wasn't there a discussion a couple of days ago about the Swiss getting the "bright" idea that teaching Islam in their schools would somehow improve things? Well, this is what you get from the "valedictorian" of such an institution. Moral of the story: Teach Islam and yer gonna git trouble--and there ain't no two ways 'bout it.
The Osama bin-Laden Academy of woman enslavement, and mass murder of Christians and Jews.
Sample Questions for tests/and assignments : Mathematics : How many Virgins does it take to keep a Martyr Happy? Biology : What is the most effective Dispersal of Anthrax? Chemistry : What is the most efficient way to manufacture Ricin? Physics : What is the best isotope to use in a "dirty" nuclear bomb? Foreign Language : Write a letter in Farsi to his emminence the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran congratulating him on his countries development of Nuclear Weapons for use on the Joooz. History : Describe your favorite methods of execution used by Saladin during the crusades. Phys Ed : Practice your skill for the future by using a rusty knife to saw a watermelon in two.
#14
I found this at www.homelandsecurityus.com; "it is interesting to point out that Ismail Selim Elbarasse - the Virginia man stopped last summer for videotaping the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and indicted by a federal grand jury in Chicago for providing material support for Hamas, worked as an accountant for 14 years at the Islamic Saudi Academy High School. He was terminated in 1998 when Ali was a senior."
#16
TCal: You've got me wondering. Not real familiar with the path from DC to Camp David, but my sister knows a Secret Service agent who guards Bush occassionally. She just told me that he had told her (I know, 3rd hand to you all) that one time a while ago when he was guarding the Prez, they were driving up to camp David (that alone made me wonder 'bout the story..thought he flew Marine 1), and the convoy came up on a vacant car on the side of the road (very desolate road she made it sound like, that may have been cleared to make way). Anyhoo, turns out, there was no one with the car, no plates, and there was a suitcase in the front seat. According to the agent, it turned out to be nothing, but they had received specific intel about potential roadside bombs to take him out. Don't know where this school is (or the guy you mentioned ties to it), but I imagine its near DC, as the kid's dad worked in the Saudi embassy. Coincidence?
Posted by: BA ||
02/23/2005 20:44
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Flexing its maritime muscle, Taiwan's navy plans to make its first circumnavigation voyage later this year to display its long-range sea power. Starting in March and concluding in June, three Taiwanese naval vessels in 101 days will pay port visits to seven countries that recognize Taiwan. The squadron will also refuel in countries without formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan. The circumnavigation voyage is bound to perturb mainland China's government, which views Taiwan as a rogue province eventually to be reunited with the mainland by force if necessary. Taiwan has formal relations with only 26 nations, with the United States maintaining a "one-China" policy.
The squadron will set sail in mid-March and sail through Southeast Asia, the Indian Ocean, around South Africa into the Atlantic Ocean and then through the Caribbean and the Panama Canal. Following transiting the canal, the vessels will traverse the Pacific, returning to Taiwan on June 19. The ships consist of a French-made Lafayette frigate, a Cheng Kung Perry-class frigate and a support vessel. Scheduled port visits will be made in Senegal, Gambia, St. Vincent, Panama, the Marshall Islands, Kiribati and Palau. The voyage may be timed coincide with a visit by President Chen Shui-bian's to Pacific allies in May, allowing Chen to stay aboard one of the ships. A Chinese navy destroyer and supply ship made China's first circumnavigation of the globe in 2002.
Of course, they'd never even consider meeting up with a US task force in mid-ocean and conducting a exercise or two.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
12:45:10 PM ||
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And it will especially bug the Chinese government when they pass through the Chinese-run Panama Canal. I wonder if they are going to visit the Hutchinson-Whampoa Chinese naval base in the Caribbean while they're at it?
THE HAGUE - The trial of a young Muslim, alleged to have plotted attacks against several targets in The Netherlands including the country's main airport and a nuclear power station, is scheduled to open on Thursday in Rotterdam. The prosecution suspect defendant Samir Azzouz, 18, of having links with a radical network known as the Lions of Islamic JihadHofstad Group, another associate of which is on trial for the murder last November of moviemaker Theo van Gogh, who directed a controversial film criticizing Islamic attitudes towards women. Azzouz stands accused of planning attacks against the Dutch parliament, Schiphol airport, the defense ministry, the Borssele nuclear power plant and offices used by the Dutch intelligence service.
All at once or one at a time?
Investigators said plans of the alleged targets were found in the home of the accused, along with ammonia and other materials that could have been used to make a bomb. Azzouz was also accused of an armed robbery in a Rotterdam supermarket to finance his alleged terrorist operations. He was arrested in the course of investigations into this robbery.
Twelve members of the Hofstad group -- the name given to a number of young radical Moslems in Rotterdam and Amsterdam by Dutch intelligence -- were arrested in November and accused of belonging to a terrorist conspiracy. Investigators said that Azzouz, who has joint Moroccan-Dutch citizenship and is a father, attempted to go to Chechnya in 2003 to fight Russian forces and had since been followed by Dutch intelligence.
He was arrested for a first time in October 2003 along with four other suspected Islamic terrorists extremists, but all were released for lack of proof. Judicial sources said Azzouz had declined to answer questions during the preliminary stages of the investigation, or to undergo a personality test.
Wise move, he'd have flunked.
This article starring:
SAMIR AZZUZ
Hofstad Group
Theo van Gogh
Hofstad Group
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/23/2005
12:28:42 AM ||
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ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz arrived in Teheran yesterday. Earlier before flying to Iran Aziz said that he expected to make "substantial progress" on a proposed gas pipeline project running from Iran to India. "In my view, there will be substantial progress on the gas pipeline project during this trip," Aziz told state television before leaving for a three-day trip to Iran.
If the $4 billion project takes off, it will earn Pakistan millions of dollars from transit fees, but more importantly it will create an economic link with nuclear rival India, with which it has fought three wars in the past. During talks in Islamabad last week to push along a year-old peace process, India signalled it was willing "to look at" the project, subject to security considerations. Diplomatic momentum behind a project dubbed "the peace pipeline" has built up fast.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/23/2005
12:25:57 AM ||
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WASHINGTON - The Pentagon is investigating an allegation that a US soldier raped an Iraqi female prisoner while she was in US military custody, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said. The allegation has not yet been substantiated, he said on Tuesday. He gave no details.
Another rape allegation against a US soldier by an Iraqi woman was dismissed for lack of evidence, Whitman said. They are the only two rape allegations that have been made against US troops by Iraqi women, the spokesman said.
But I thought Amnesty Int'l said there were 'many' of these. I'm so confused, I'd best go lie down.
During testimony last week on Capitol Hill, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were pressed for information about rape allegations against US forces in Iraq. Rumsfeld promised to look into the matter and report his findings.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/23/2005
12:20:04 AM ||
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#1
Steve, for AI two = many. Their count* only goes up to 10, they run out of fingers. That's why tugocracies don't show up too often on AI's hit list. They quit counting at 10 and so everyone else is just the same.
* exception being the US of course, which has no ceiling in numbers. The US must be perfect. Anything less than perfect by the US is evil.
#8
Mrs Davis, I'm seeing their site and frontpage has Sudan, Iran, Vietnam in the center, it doesn't have the United States.
As for the number of those recent reports about Iraq, since many of these are condemnations of terrorist bombings, condemnations hostage takings and beheadings, and so forth, I think you are trying to imply something that's actually the reverse of reality.
JUBA, Sudan, Feb. 23 (UPI) -- An hour of explosions at a Sudanese government ammunition depot Wednesday shredded a southern town and killed at least 13 people, the BBC reported. A large portion of the residential and barracks area of Juba were obliterated by shrapnel as armaments exploded "every second for about an hour," one witness told the network. The number of injured was not immediately known, but expected to be high from the shrapnel bombardment.
The town's deputy governor, Simon Wani Ramba said the shells flew and burst more than half a mile from the depot. "There was a huge mushroom cloud in the sky and everyone fell on the floor," witness Gemma Mortensen told the BBC.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
11:59:06 AM ||
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An FBI informant said yesterday he wanted to put "the world on notice" but not actually commit suicide when he set himself on fire outside the White House in November. Testifying at the Brooklyn federal trial of two Yemeni men accused of plotting to help terrorism, informant Mohamed Alanssi said his suicidal gesture was actually designed to try and get more money from his FBI handlers. "It was my right to get as much money as I can," Alanssi said under questioning by defense attorney Howard Jacobs, who is representing Mohammed Ali Hassan al-Moayad, a Muslim cleric. "I was very upset and I had no money," Alanssi, 53, explained later under cross-examination by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly Moore. "My wife is sick. She has cancer. I can't go back to Yemen because my life is in danger in al-Yemen."
Al-Moayad, 56, is on trial with his aide Mohammed Mohsen Yahya Zayed, 31, on charges they conspired to provide about $2 million and other assistance to the terror groups al-Qaida and Hamas. Alanssi, a short, bespectacled, heavyset man with close-cropped gray hair, is the main FBI informant in the case. It was Alanssi and another FBI operative who met with al-Moayad and Zayed in January 2003 in Germany. Secret tapes that were made of those meetings comprise the prosecution's main evidence in the case. After Alanssi got into a dispute with his FBI handlers last year and tried to set himself on fire, Brooklyn federal prosecutors apparently thought better of calling him as their witness. Instead defense attorneys called him but his testimony appears to have hurt their cause at times, particularly when he blurted out that al-Moayad is linked to terrorists. Yesterday, Alanssi repeated his claim that al-Moayad said he personally gave $20 million to Osama bin Laden several years before Sept. 11, 2001, and gave $3.5 million to Hamas. Alanssi also stuck to his story that it was his job to travel around and try to root out terrorism. He again insisted that al-Moayad's charitable bakery in Yemen was "a fake."
Alanssi was argumentative with defense attorneys and sometimes avoided answering queries directly. He occasionally appeared to smirk at their questions. Asked by Zayed's attorney Jonathan Marks how he learned to say he couldn't answer questions with a simple yes or no answer, Alanssi had a response that drew laughs: "Through the movie, 'Law & Order.'"
This article starring:
MOHAMED ALI HASAN AL MOAIAD
Learned Elders of Islam
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
11:51:17 AM ||
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#1
I knew that.
Every time I've set fire to myself it's been a ploy, too.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2005 13:44
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#2
Heh, I love this straight forward honesty. But he has a point, if you want informants, it costs. We can afford to fly his wife here and put her in a good cancer center. If he gives up a little bit that allows us to hang a terrorist, it is worth it. dont count pennies when the propaganda payoff is worth more than you can count.
#4
I wonder if he actually new anything of value or was just trying to get money.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
02/23/2005 14:53
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#5
It's an appeals thing -- Howard can be brought up on conflict-of-interest charges.
Posted by: Tom ||
02/23/2005 14:56
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#6
I think it's more that he said everything of value, and he wanted huge sums, the likes of which are never paid to informants. The feds made what they considered to be a very generous donation, and this guy considered it to be pennies.
#7
Alanssi is a nutcase. The FBI probably paid him what he was worth. The auto-firebuggery confirmed their suspicions that he was a nutcase. It is a hell of a job working with informants, like practicing a dark art, as they are usually low lifes.
Posted by: Alaska Paul in Hooper Bay, AK ||
02/23/2005 18:00
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EFL Prime Minister Paul Martin will deliver a firm No to Canadian participation in the U.S. missile defence plan and break a lengthy silence that fomented confusion on both sides of the border. News of the announcement follows a day of confusion on Parliament Hill after Frank McKenna, Martin's choice to be the next ambassador to the U.S., sparked a political firestorm by saying participation in the controversial continental missile defence system is a done deal. The end of Martin's silence will come as an about-face for a prime minister who had repeatedly stated his support for missile defence when he was a Liberal leadership candidate barely a year ago. He voted for it before he voted against it!
The U.S. was informed of the Canada's plans at a NATO summit in Brussels, attended by Martin and President George W. Bush, and the news was also conveyed Tuesday through a text message on Condi's BlackBerry diplomats in Ottawa and Washington. "(The Americans) were told we will not participate," a federal official, who asked to remain anonymous, told The Canadian Press. "It is a firm No. I am not sure it is an indefinite No." How...nuanced.
"The will to participate is no longer there," another government official said several days ago. "I think the internal conflict - the dissension within the party - is now almost insurmountable. This is because of domestic considerations." Public opinion polls have suggested two-thirds of Canadians opposed missile defence.
Oh, yeah. I oppose it, too. I'm looking forward to seeing a nuclear-tipped missile arriving in Yellow Knife. That's a firm opposition, too. I'm not sure if it's an indefinite opposition...
That opposition grew in the vacuum of any public support from the federal government. Within Martin's cabinet, only Defence Minister Bill Graham and Public Safety Minister Anne McLellan lobbied in favour of the project. Leading opponents included Foreign Minister Pierre Pettigrew and Infrastructure Minister John Godfrey.
Will somebody tell Harry Potter where that guy is? I'm tired of hearing from him.
Bush made a bold pitch for Canadian participation during his visit here late last year. The program would cost billions of dollars and the U.S. hasn't requested any money. The Americans were offering Canada a decision-making role in the system's deployment. McKenna backed his argument by citing last summer's deal that allows Norad, the joint Canada-U.S. air defence command, to monitor for incoming missiles - a critical element of the missile shield program's operation. "There's no doubt, in looking back, that the Norad amendment has given, has created part - in fact a great deal - of what the United States means in terms of being able to get the input for defensive weaponry," said McKenna.
Posted by: Desert Blondie ||
02/23/2005
11:45:16 AM ||
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#1
OK - Canada gets a terrorist strike, and all of a sudden, it's like those old people in the ads on TV
"Help me, help me, I've fallen and I can't get up!"
If Ottawa or Toronto "glows Iranian or North Korean or Islamo green" because no one wanted missile defense up North, will create a situation of "Fewer but better Liberals"
#2
Canada doesn't need missile defense. The ROPers know that they still have a better than average chance of taking Canada through the tried and true method of gradual immigration followed by political pressure and the threat of violence. Canada's European, so they'll use the European model.
#3
If I were them, I wouldn't be counting on North Korea's aim being all that good.
Posted by: Tom ||
02/23/2005 12:20
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BH is right. The Canadians, as implemented by their government, are no more than a pacifist Euro style leach on the American defense umbrella (can I mix any more metaphors?).
Personally I'd like to see the US basically treat Canada, France, Germany, etc. as nothing more than the annoyances they have become. Give them a slap when they start down a dangerous path (providing nukes to Iran, arms to China, etc.) but otherwise ignore them.
#5
Realistically Canada doesn't need a missile defense shield because if the US sees something coming over the pole we'll shoot it down, we won't wait to determine if it'll hit the US Canada or Mexico.
Just as an invasion of Canada by the Soviets would have been prevented by the US because of our own defense requirements.
This way Canada can keep their pacifist street creds and avoid paying for anything or any illusions that they are run by honorable folks.
#6
Maybe a nice note: "Dear Canada, when your cities are smoking radioactive holes, please be so kind as to not permit any fallout from traversing our common border. Such pollution would violate the spirit of NAFTA, and invite a punitive trade response. Yrs, UP. Oh, we mean US."
#8
My sentiment exactly, rjschwarz. As if the US will wait for permission when the need arises...as if. The entire Canadian Air Force can be dealt with in 15 minutes if need be (120 planes, 60 of them are flyable).
Posted by: Rafael ||
02/23/2005 14:10
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#9
Inspections of automobiles and occupants entering the United States from Canada and Mexico should be made at least as comprehensive as those Americans must endure to fly from Cincinnati to Cleveland. Cars should be parked and inspected and people should go through metal detectors. They aren't friends or allies any longer.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
02/23/2005 14:35
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#10
Just another Free Rider. Good folks up there, but they ought to be ashamed and a little less brazen.
#11
They should get a brain, first of all. Then they should buy an atlas. I'm not sure most Canadians realize, especially recent immigrants, that the well-being of the US means the well-being of Canada.
As an aside, we now have our own John Kerry up here. His name is Paul 'Kerry' Martin.
Posted by: Rafael ||
02/23/2005 15:40
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ok, yes it is great fun for the yanks here to bash on Canada. And I will be the first to admit that we do not spend enough on our military, we are not paying our way in world affairs and we should have supported the war on Iraq publicly (even though we are helping out big time militarily in the war on terrosim). BUT, I think there is a bigger game going on with respect to Canada/US relations than missile defense. Yes, we are kinda sorta maybe saying a definite no to missle defense but we also signed onto the NORAD agreement which is all the US really cared about on that file. The rest was bargaining. And our high tech companies will still participate in the development of the system. However, missile defense is only a small part of how the US (rightly) sees a role for Canada's military in the world....So in exchange for our refusal of missile defense which is for stupid domestic reasons, our government is ramping up military spending. Which is what the US wants more than our participation in missle defense. Oh, and guess what the Cdn $12Billion in extra funding over five years for the military just might include: new Hercs, new SAR planes, plus C-17s - all from US based manufacturers. Maybe even some used littoral (sp?) ships from the US Navy....All in all, I think the US would be much happier with Canada doing that than Canada signing on to missle defense because right now you are only going to get one or the other....I defer to the group for their opinions....
#13
My gut feeling is that Australia is a much better ally and that the U.S./Canadian border needs tighter control.
Posted by: Tom ||
02/23/2005 16:46
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Hey Canuck,
What you say has some things that are nice to hear. The one thing that bothers me, and I suspect others, is the "...our refusal of missile defense which is for stupid domestic reasons, ..."
In other words the fact that you have to act like snotty French for "stupid domestic reasons" in the first place. Makes me wonder just what in hell the US did to "you" that justifies this attitude? Was it the comic insult dog? ;^)
#15
AlanC, a significant portion of our population is french and opposed to the weapons in space (I know, I know don't bother commenting) and so they are part of the equation in domestic politics....However what I meant, personally, by "stupid domestic reasons" is that our vocal minority - french and english alike - does not understand world politics/affairs too well. We focus too much on land mine treaties and ignore the big, ugly picture. We prefer to speak softly and not even bother carrying a stick. That will take a while to correct or even improve. That is what I meant by that comment.
Are we talking about Canada paying part of the tab for ABM or making territory available for radars and weapons systems? If it's just money, that's one thing, but if it has an effect on the system design, that's another. I was under the impression it was the later.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
02/23/2005 17:25
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Mrs Davis, I have read your posts on many topics and I assure you that your knowledge is beyond mine... My understanding of the key component of Canada's role in missle defense was to include it in the NORAD agreement. We contribute staff and the second in command is Canadian. So if there is a missle launch, a Canadian radar guy can't say, "whoops, not my problem". With respect to money, any contribution would be nominal on our part: the US$ 50B budget (?) for missle defense is about our entire national budget. With respect to radars, once missle defense is part of NORAD, all our/your radars are part of it. Plus you have Alaska (damn it) and California with silos - so I don't think there is a need for bases in Canada. I don't think it effects the design (if there is one) or we would have caved to it already....I really think it was a pressure tactic (and a right one). There is only so many times we can say no to the US re military affairs before we get slapped really hard. We were given an option: snub us (the US) on missle defense because it doesn't matter now that you have signed the NORAD amendment and look good to your own population and get yourselves re-elected but then you have to cough up some big bucks for your military. (oh, yeah and we - the US - are still pissed at the Iraq thing so make it really big bucks)
#18
Nope, sorry, I don't think retaliation is in order here. I wish the Canadians would come to understand that the Mad Mullahs don't distinguish between an American and a Canadian, no matter how much the Canadians try, but that's a complaint for a different day.
Canada is our best trade partner. Treating them poorly would hurt only us. We have the longest undefended border in the world between us. Treating them poorly might change that, and that would be a damned shame.
Canuck is especially correct on one issue: Canada has a limited military budget. Time was, a few decades ago, the Canucks punched well above their weight, but creeping socialism, national health care, and Euro-style attitudes have changed that. Not going to change soon, and so if the Canadians have to stretch limited defense dollars, I'd rather seem them buy the hardware their troops will use everyday. They'll be more effective, and a more effective Canadian military is in our interest.
We can design and build the ABM without their help. In that case, it might not defend Canada all that well, but as long as the Canadians understand that, fine by me.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/23/2005 17:54
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You're right Steve, but this is where we rant at times. Besides, I'm still po'ed about having my windshield smashed by vandals in low crime Vancouver.
Nova Scotia, on the other hand, was beautiful with nice people and a generous exchange rate. If you ever want to see what the world is all about today, visit Fortress Louisbourg and then Colonial Williamsburg. Nothing has changed in the last 300 years except technology.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
02/23/2005 18:09
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More than 500 Iranian pilgrims were detained in Basra, Faw and Abol-Khasib by Iraq's border guards and British troops, an informed source told Fars News Agency. Speaking on the condition of anonymity, the source noted that the Iranian pilgrims had illegally entered Iraq for attending "Ashura" ceremonies in Karbala's shrine of third Shiite Imam Hussein (AS) via Abadan and Arvand-Kenar waterways.
"Of course we're pilgrims! Wanna see our Ashura swords n' Kalashnikovs?"
According to another report, more than 60 illegal pilgrims, who tried to enter Iraq for the mourning ceremonies, were arrested by the police in Abadan and Khorramshahr. Iranian and Iraqi officials had repeatedly warned against embarking on illegal pilgrimage to Iraq.
Government soldiers killed eight rebels and discovered a large cache of weapons in dense jungles of southern Colombia, a top military official said Tuesday. Gen. Carlos Alberto Ospina, the chief of the Colombian Armed Forces, called the rebel weapons seizure - which included machine guns and grenade launchers - one of the biggest since a military offensive began in the southern jungles more than a year ago. The most recent clashes took place over the past two days in an isolated region of Guaviare state, 210 miles south of Bogota. They came in response to rebel attacks that have surged since Feb. 1 and left more than 60 soldiers dead, Ospina said. He said government forces suffered no casualties in the latest fighting.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/23/2005
1:12:08 AM ||
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The medical examiner's office has largely ended its effort to identify the remains of those killed at the World Trade Center site on Sept. 11, 2001, leaving more than a thousand victims unidentified. "We've finished making identifications for the World Trade Center," Robert Shaler, director of forensic biology at the medical examiner's office, told the New York Daily News in a story published Wednesday. The forensic effort failed to identify any remains of more than 1,100 victims, or almost half of the 2,749 who died there.
Over a thousand people, vaporized.
Since the attacks 3 1/2 years ago, the medical examiner's office identified nearly 1,600 victims, although progress had slowed considerably in recent months. Since September, only eight victims have been identified. A few inconclusive tests are still pending that could yield a couple of more identifications, Shaler told the newspaper. The city has about 10,000 unidentified bone and tissue fragments that cannot be matched to the list of the dead. The medical examiner's office will contact all victims' families who asked to be notified when the forensic effort ended.
Shaler has said that the DNA effort could be reopened if new scientific processes were developed. "If three years from now somebody comes up with something ... that really looks like it's going to work, then we're going to be poised to go after it," he told The Associated Press in 2003. Some identifications were made quickly in the weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, attack. To identify smaller remains, the medical examiner had to rely on DNA matching, drawing results from shreds of bone and tissue. But tests were often not possible because the DNA was too damaged by heat, humidity, and the passage of time. "I'm still driven by the families," Shaler said in 2003. "When I see these people, they look at me with eyes that say, 'Did you find her yet?' But when you're only turning out a couple a week or four, five a month, it's hard." In most cases, victims whose remains were not identified have been legally declared dead by the court anyway, based on documentation that they were at the trade center or on the hijacked airplanes.
May you Rest In Peace, my friends, and thank you to the NYC Medical Examiner's Office staff for their hard work.
Never forgive, never forget, never "understand."
Posted by: Seafarious ||
02/23/2005
11:00:40 AM ||
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#1
Thanks to everyone who gave their all so that evil would not triumph that day.
#5
I would like to think that the 3000 would be pleased with our efforts thus far to punish those responsible, and to prevent another such mass murder from occurring. May they rest in peace.
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AP) - Four journalists working for international news organizations have fled Zimbabwe after they were threatened with arrest during police raids on several news offices.
Zimbabwe's Central Intelligence Organization, the country's secret police, threatened the journalists with arrest for transmitting "material prejudicial to the state," and alleged they were spies. The raids and subsequent threats of arrest were seen as an attempt ahead of the March 31 parliamentary elections to silence the foreign media, one of the last independent voices remaining in Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe forced the country's only independent daily newspaper, the Daily News, to close last year despite court orders that it be allowed to reopen. All other broadcast news and daily newspapers in the country are controlled by the state.
On Feb. 15, 10 police officers searched the office shared by Angus Shaw, a freelancer who contributes to The Associated Press, Jaan Raath, who contributes to the Times of London and Bryan Latham who contributes to Bloomberg. A fourth journalist, Cornelius Nduna, a Zimbabwean freelance television producer who works for a number of foreign news organizations, left the country after secret police raided his office a week earlier and said they were looking for him.
The police, who did not have a warrant, searched the office of Shaw, Raath and Latham, and examined the computers over the objections of a lawyer for the journalists, Beatrice Mtetwa, who was present during the search. Police returned two days later with a search warrant that said they had grounds to believe the journalists had filed false stories "prejudicial to the state" and that they had illegal communications equipment. The police also alleged the journalists were working illegally without a license from the government.
Under Zimbabwe's tough media laws, a story considered "prejudicial to the state" or working without applying for a government license is punishable by imprisonment.
That's kinda like a "Soviet era" law, isn't it?
The journalists denied any wrongdoing and were able to present evidence that they had applied for government licenses to work as journalists. No warrants were issued for their arrests. However, the three journalists, all Zimbabwean, decided to leave the country after police told Mtetwa that they would return and arrest the journalists.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/23/2005
1:09:24 AM ||
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From yesterday with minor revisions
To all - The new anthem of The People's Republic of Zim-Bob-Me, formerly Zimbabwe :
Marshall County, Miss., authorities had a mystery on their hands Monday after the killing of a Red Banks convenience store clerk. About 3 a.m. Sunday, the killer entered the Texaco gas station and grocery store on old Highway 78 and gunned down Hefad Hallah 'Tony' Almuntaser, 31.
Guy with a turban working long hours in a convenience store, bumped off in the wee hours of the morning. Happens now and then...
Nothing was taken from the cash register and the victim's wallet was in his pocket, Sheriff Kenny Dickerson said.
That part doesn't usually happen...
Almuntaser was shot at least twice, probably with a handgun, Dickerson said. "We have not determined a motive," he said. "But we have no reason to believe it was a robbery ... the money was still in the cash register."
But wait! There's more...
A fellow clerk inside the store saw the shooting. "But we are not getting any information out of him," Dickerson said.
I wonder why?
A state-of-the-art surveillance camera system was turned off sometime before the shooting, Dickerson said. "Normally, it would have been on," he said.
Ummm... Have you thought about applying the knuckle dusters to the other clerk?
Police were dispatched to the store after a woman who stopped at the gas station to fill up noticed an argument going on in the Texaco. She drove across the road and called 9-1-1.
Arguing with whom?
The owner of the Red Banks store, who owns several other such businesses, is on his way back to Mississippi from Jerusalem, and may be able to shed light on the shooting, Dickerson said. An autopsy was being performed Monday in Jackson, Miss.
It's probably not associated with terrorism in any way. The fact that the guy's Middle Eastern is mere coincidence. My initial guess, given the scanty facts, is that the other clerk dunnit. Just a flash in the pan killing and ten years from now poor Tony will be forgotten. Probably he wasn't a sleeper. Probably he didn't know anything, much less too much. Probably Big Mahmoud wasn't dispatched to rub him out before he went to the Feds. Probably nothing like the Hezbollah brothers in North Carolina a couple years back who were shipping the profits of a cigarette smuggling racket back to Lebanon...
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2005
10:36:36 PM ||
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#3
If the owner is on the way back from Jerusalem does that mean he's ME too? Or is Middle Eastern just another way to say Jewish so it doesn't appear to be a hate crime?
Posted by: Charles ||
02/23/2005 6:59
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More likely Palestinian, Charles. Think East Jerusalem.
#5
Or think Palestinian-Israeli (Arab-Israeli?) err . . . uh . . . the Muslims what did not run away when the Jews moved in.
Posted by: Jame Retief ||
02/23/2005 14:48
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Arab Israeli. Some Arabs of the Muslim, Christian and Druze persuasions remained when the majority ran away in 1948. Even more of the Muslim and Christian flavours were 'acquired' in 1967, as residents of re-united Jerusalem. And then finally, as a result of one of the post-Oslo agreements (or maybe it was Oslo itself, I can't keep track), a number of residents of the PA territories were allowed to move in in a family re-unification program. The latter group tend to be bona fide Jew haters and terror supporters.
An Italian sex researcher claims he can tell a woman's personality from the size and shape of her breasts. According to German newspaper Bild sexologist Piero Lorenzoni said: "A woman's breasts denote a woman's character, just like her star sign." He has categorised breast types according to fruits and says men can draw up their own horoscope-type chart that indicates what a woman's chest size says about her.
The fruity chart starts naturally with the traditional melon. According to Lorenzoni, a woman with large, round breasts like a melon may appear motherly, but is far from it. "She likes eating and wants to be spoiled and admired. But seldom likes sex," he said. For men who want someone a bit more lively they should choose a woman with "lemon" breasts - pert and prominent. "These women are full of life and can laugh at themselves. They want a balanced life without surprises." Pert, oval-shaped breasts are for Lorenzoni like pineapples. "A woman with pineapple breasts is intelligent, often has a career but is still romantic. They are also faithful. Whoever wins their heart will not lose it quickly."
Grapefruit-shaped breasts - pert and firm - are also not a good sign for good sex. "This woman may look erotic, but in reality is bashful and homely. She spoils her partner but prefers tenderness over sex." Even women with "oranges" are not going to turn up the temperature between the sheets. "While she is self-confident and knows her goals, she has little interest in sex. She likes conversation and partnerships." Small breasted women, with assets that resemble cherries are "funny and very exciting. They are entertaining and intelligent. Make great partners both for everyday life and on holiday and are moderately interested in sex," says the researcher. A woman with pear-shaped breasts "Loves love in all its variations. She can be very religious, but is known to have affairs."
I need to research his findings before commenting, this may take awhile
Posted by: Steve ||
02/23/2005
10:14:15 AM ||
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#1
Different fruit can mean different things to different people. Why are there no illistrative examples on the link?
#5
According to Lorenzoni, a woman with large, round breasts like a melon may appear motherly, but is far from it. "She likes eating and wants to be spoiled and admired. But seldom likes sex,"
#8
I'm glad I am a pineapple and not a coconut or fruitcake!! What does Fruit of the Loom mean for the men?? ANd where is this so called horoscope
that says what the breast mean about the woman?
Andrea Jackson
Posted by: Andrea Jackson ||
02/23/2005 21:18
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It's just another scam to ogle and fondle boobs. We've been inventing scams like this since, well, since there were boobs.
UNITED NATIONS (AP) - France circulated a draft U.N. resolution Tuesday that would boost the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Ivory Coast by more than 1,200 personnel to help counter precarious security and monitor an arms embargo.
The request for 1,226 new military personnel for the Ivory Coast mission, which currently consists of 6,000 U.N. peacekeepers, was made in a January report by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Some 5,000 French troops are also in the country but operate independently.
How unilateral!
The draft resolution is meant "to take into account the SG's report," France's U.N. Ambassador Jean-Marc de La Sabliere said, using the secretary-general's initials. "The situation is unstable in Abidjan, and the SG thinks that strengthening the force will help the force in Abidjan to fulfill its mandate."
The reinforcements would include an 850-man infantry battalion, eight attack and light helicopters and support staff of 270 personnel, as well as a 125-member police unit and other staff.
A resolution adopted by the council on Nov. 15 imposed an arms embargo on Ivory Coast and gave the government and the rebels until Dec. 15 to get the peace process back on track or face a travel ban and asset freeze against those blocking peace, violating human rights and preventing the disarmament of combatants. Without any significant movement toward peace, the council took action, unanimously adopting a resolution earlier this month authorizing U.N. peacekeepers and French forces to monitor implementation of an arms embargo.
Annan had sought a new medical facility in Abidjan, as well as more security and public information personnel to monitor so-called "hate media" and collect information about the arms embargo as well as the situation along the country's borders.
In fifty years they could do the same kind of job they did for the Palestinians.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/23/2005
1:01:11 AM ||
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Annan's "hate media" would be those who remind us that most Muslims in the north, are aliens with no legal right to be there. Unless you subscribe to unholy Koran' dogma of the gift of global sovereignty to the slaves-of-allah-the-retarded-moongod. Give a Muslimutt an inch...
President Bush praised thousands of troops and their families during a Wednesday afternoon pit stop at the Wiesbaden Army Airfield during his three-country European tour.
Before heading off to the Slovak Republic, the president and other White House officials stopped to thank war-weary troops and give them a bit of entertainment for a job well done.
"Laura and I were in the neighborhood, thought we'd drop by and say hello — howdy," said the military's commander in chief to cheering troops and family members. Bush had spent most of the day meeting with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in Mainz....
Bush said he wanted to give the troops a taste of home after their yearlong deployment to Iraq.
"Today I bring you a message from back home: The American people are grateful to you. Your communities are proud of you. And as you defend the cause of freedom, America stands with you..." Gentleman.
Great Timing and Great Handle on the concept of Cause and Effect PARIS - The World Council of Churches, the main global body uniting non-Catholic Christians, encouraged members Tuesday to sell off investments in companies profiting from Israeli control of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.... This action is commendable in both method and manner, uses criteria rooted in faith and calls members to do the 'things that make for peace'," it declared, quoting St. Luke's Gospel. and we know that giving terrorists and incentive to kill makes for peace
Posted by: mhw ||
02/23/2005
10:03:20 AM ||
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Religious left? It's making my brain hurt, like trying to picture a 5-dimensional figure.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
02/23/2005 10:09
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I call them that because the WCC supported Castro in the Elian affair and because throughout the Cold War, the WCC took the 'let's disarm now' stance.
#6
Why do small groups like this get BIG press coverage? I haven't heard that the Catholicsn are divesting from Israel? This is where the LLL MSM fails. They think the fringe represents that whole and nothning could be farther from the truth. I am a Catholic and I have never met, seen or heard anyone remotely connected with the church call for anthing but support for Israel. Deos the WCC represent Mormons and Babtists? I doubt either group supports the divestment strategery.
#7
The World Council of Churches, the main global body uniting non-Catholic Christians...
Excuse me? Here is the deal. Personally, As many RB folks have figured, I am a believer.
But, I avoid organized religion because, as amoral as the âReligious Leftâ is, and there is a âReligious Leftâ, the âReligious Rightâ seems to avoid a world view. At more than one wedding in my family, the minister intones. âThere is no salvation (paradise in the hereafter) except through Jesus. Good works alone will not enter you into Heaven.â I consider myself Christian, and I have known non-Christians, like the non-Synagogue attending Jewish 2nd husband of my sister who probably have a better standing with God than âdevout Christianâ relations whose business dealings make me cringe. Illegal? No. But their attitude is anything but Christian. Or for that matter, was the behavior of my sisterâs philandering âChristianâ 1st husband... But the fundamentalist believes Jesus forgives everything? So, why not live a bad live and ârepentâ on the deathbed? I know this is a common question, but the answer Iâve gotten is always nonsense. Sorry for the soapbox. Now to the article.
We have to be careful who we group with whom. Donât associate any of this basically Totalitarian poppycock with all non-Catholic Christians. The WCC is an organization of pacifist nitwits who think God approves of sitting down and singing âKum-by-yaâ while Western Civilization is under attack. Their god does not want Western Civilization to be the top, because of all the historical nasties that have occurred. All other civilizations are worse and more murderous in their existence and history. If that makes me racist, then so be it. Western Civilization actually strives, in its philosophy to be better. It has lapses, but has a better track record of anti-brutality, especially in the last 50 years. God, most of all, I believe, wants us to use the life He gave us to strive be better towards our fellow man, but also look after our families as well. To carry on humankind, and not get the jollies of forcing others to follow the rules we like in their private personal lives.
Of course there is a society and rules. I like some of the aspects of libertarianism, but not to the libertine anarchistic extreme. Part of governmentâs role is to respond when attacked. Israel responds when they are attacked. The murder of innocents by people who are not, in my mind truly human (as opposed to simply having Homo Sapiens DNA), deserves response. I donât give a ratâs ass about the âPalestinian Peopleâ until those people have the courage to stand up and say, âEnoughâ! Quit killing our children. Quit grabbing retarded boys off the streets to do your bombing dirty-work. If you are so convinced that strapping explosives to a body and committing suicide is good then YOU DO IT! Rachel Corrie is deservedly flat, because the leftist Totalitarian twit didnât understand paying off families of people who commit murder is not the way the you protest what you perceive to be injustice. There is no Ghandi-like Moslem because, I believe it is non-sequitor to the religion. F.U. WCC. You must be worshipping the same god as the Islamonuttz, because you certainly donât worship the same God as me. You are not honoring the God of life. You honor the god of death.
#8
At more than one wedding in my family, the minister intones. âThere is no salvation (paradise in the hereafter) except through Jesus. Good works alone will not enter you into Heaven.â
Old Spook can probably give me a smackdown to set me straight, but I think Catholics believe Good Works are but a way into heaven. At least that is what one of my customers, a Catholic, told me.
#9
Here are the North American members:
African Methodist Episcopal Church [USA]
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church [USA]
American Baptist Churches in the USA
Anglican Church of Canada
Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East, N.A. Diocese
Canadian Council of Churches**
Canadian Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Canada
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church [USA]
Church of the Brethren [USA]
Episcopal Church
Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church Abroad [Canada]
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
Hungarian Reformed Church in America
International Council of Community Churches [USA]
International Evangelical Church [USA]
Moravian Church in America
National Baptist Convention of America
National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.
National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA**
Orthodox Church in America
Polish National Catholic Church
Presbyterian Church in Canada
Presbyterian Church (USA)
Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc. [USA]
Reformed Church in America [USA]
Religious Society of Friends [USA] - Friends General Conference - Friends United Meeting
United Church of Canada
United Church of Christ [USA]
United Methodist Church [USA]
A church is able to join if it agrees with the WCC 'basis' which you can read here. It is a great example of how something gets watered down when you try to be all things to everyone.
#12
Badanov, the "by faith alone" controversy was a defining characteristic of one part of the protestant reformation. The eastern Orthodox, the Catholics and some Protestants find that .... unbiblical, a simplification that if taken too far becomes false.
#13
Badanov, the "by faith alone" controversy was a defining characteristic of one part of the protestant reformation. The eastern Orthodox, the Catholics and some Protestants find that .... unbiblical, a simplification that if taken too far becomes false.
Oh really, true nuff? This is Fred's website, so I won't waste bandwidth on what he may regard as a religious argument, so I've taken the liberty to discuss your assertion, which I take you support as well, at my website.
To encourage others to visit: After laying out the biblical foundation for "by faith alone", I give my reasons as to why I believe that "by faith alone" is the only viable long germ option when combatting Islamist Fascism.
#2
In many ways, Uzan operated his business with a "mafia mentality," according to a Turkish political advisor. He used his television station to attack opponents.
Just like our media.
If the AKP is able to translate money into power and power into money, then the main loser will be Turkish secularism. As an executive with one of Istanbul's largest firms said, "The AKP is like a cancer. You feel fine, but then one day you start coughing blood. By the time you realize there's a problem, it's too far-gone."[74]
The real problem will come when the Suadi's stop funding them. Fuel cells, faster, please!
#1
Thanks for the posting. I thought it was wonderful- If we could all ban together, work together and stop the fighting and end this war- what a MIRACLE.
The money that this war has taken from the U.S. tax dollar's is beyond comprehension. I have seen the cuts that have been made in human services in the state of Massachusetts. We can barely take care of our people at home- so that money can be spent fighting this awful war! (I'm told our budget has been cut and monies are being spent for Homeland Security Act).
Andrea Jackson
Posted by: Andrea ||
02/23/2005 9:38
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Get educated Andrea, go read the budget numbers. You might actually be suprised on how much money is there for programs, duplicated, triplicated, and eaten by bureaucarcy rather than showing up in the hands of those it is intended for. There is also a difference between STATE monies and FEDERAL monies in social services programs. If the cuts are at the State level, the war has nothing to do with it. However, the whine will still be the same. Its about 'potential' monies that 'could' have gone to programs which are designed to make people feel good about themselves and not about solving the problem.
#3
I have seen the cuts that have been made in human services in the state of Massachusetts.
Not nearly enough. Sadly many people will never succeed in life if we continue to give them a way out. In otherwords the organism requires a little stress to perform most effectively.
#9
I have seen the cuts that have been made in human services in the state of Massachusetts
Yeah, all those starving Massh*le urchins crowding the streets made the commute a real hassle.
That is, until I stopped swerving around them...
Posted by: Carl in N.H. ||
02/23/2005 17:31
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Andrea - puhleeze.
Cuts to govermom pogroms in Taxachusetts? This is supposed to bring tears?
I live in the belly of that beast, and I can attest that the Communewealth Entity is probably the most corrupt grafting dembot parasitic organism in all of the 50 states.
There can NEVER be enough cuts inflicted on that beast.
Where you're from and what you whine about suggests to me that you derive sustenance from deductions to my pay check.
Posted by: Red Lief ||
02/23/2005 21:43
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#11
"The money that this war has taken from the U.S. tax dollar's is beyond comprehension."
It appears as though someone has sipped the kool aid!
Posted by: Analog Roam ||
02/23/2005 23:17
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#12
Andrea - you are a dork. Massachusetts sucks your tax dollars right into Ted Kennedy's gut. Your comments are so naive as to be almost cute.
money to social services....*snicker* And the Big Dig was such a success too. Funny how the other states do so much more with so much less. And it all works because people like you think they are getting free apple pie. haha
The diplomatic tiff between Saudi Arabia and Hungary still rumbled yesterday with both nations making opposing statements on the reasons for the cancellation of the visit of Hungarian Parliament Speaker Katalin Szili, who was to have visited Riyadh from Feb. 19-22. According to a report by the German news agency Deutsche Presse-Agentur, Saudi Arabia has said that it will not receive Szili until Budapest officially apologizes for the nasty remarks made by Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany against the Saudi soccer players.
The DPA report quoting unnamed diplomatic sources said: "The Kingdom would not receive the Hungarian speaker, during this period of diplomatic tiff." But an official in charge of the media affairs at the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not confirm this. The official, who only confirmed the news of the recall of the Saudi ambassador to Hungary for consultations, said: "An announcement about the Saudi position on the whole episode will be made shortly."
Hungarian Ambassador Istavan Tolli, meanwhile, termed the report as "misleading" and said Szili's trip was canceled for reasons unrelated to Gyurcsany's remarks. Tolli said: "A note from the Hungarian side was sent to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Shoura Council about the postponement of the visit last Friday." He said the visit of the Hungarian speaker has been postponed for the time being because of her preoccupation with "unforeseen official duties". He, however, hastened to add that Gyurcsany had apologized again for his remarks against the Saudi soccer players.
A statement released by the Hungarian Embassy yesterday expressed the hope that the apology offered by the prime minister would bring to an end this sorry episode. The Hungarian Embassy's press release has quoted Gyurcsany as saying: "As I said earlier, I regret if my statement was misunderstandable and insulting. It was not my intention to insult the government and people of Saudi Arabia. However, if my remarks had that effect, I express my apology to them." The Hungarian premier made this apology on Monday, while addressing an international press conference in Germany. The embassy statement further said: "It is the firm intention of the Hungarian government to develop friendly relations and to strengthen the many-sided cooperation between our two countries, thus contributing to the mutual understanding between the two peoples."
"It is sincerely hoped that the Saudi ambassador to Hungary will return, as soon as possible, to his post in Budapest," said the statement. Gyurcsany triggered the spat following a 0-0 drawn soccer game on Feb. 2 that had been billed as a friendship match. Speaking during a function organized to celebrate the 15th anniversary of his political party, Gyurcsany said: "I think there were many terrorists among the Saudi players and our boys fought fearlessly against these terrorists."
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2005
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#1
A 0-0 tie? Only Europeans can make a controversy over a scoreless tie in soccer.
Tensions have emerged between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia over a border row dating back to the 1970s and fresh differences, chiefly over trade links with Washington, Gulf officials say. The strains between the oil-rich neighbors coincide with problems between Riyadh and both Bahrain and Qatar, which are grouped with Saudi Arabia and the UAE in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). "The Emiratis raised the (border dispute) with the Saudis shortly after a new leadership took over in Abu Dhabi" last November following the death of UAE founder and president Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahayan, said a senior Gulf official who requested anonymity. "The Saudis replied that the issue had been settled under an agreement signed by the two countries in the 1970s," the official told AFP.
President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan, who succeeded his father as head of the seven-member federation, "raised the question when he visited Riyadh (in December) on his first trip abroad after his accession to power". But the Saudis referred to the border accord, another Gulf official confirmed. Under the agreement signed on August 21, 1974 in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia dropped its claim to the Buraimi oasis region, while Abu Dhabi relinquished a 25-kilometer-long (15-mile-long) strip of land linking it to Qatar, thus isolating Doha. The UAE also gave up some 80 percent of the resources of the Shaybah oilfield in southeast Saudi Arabia. Shaybah, located in Saudi Arabia's vast Rub al-Khali, or Empty Quarter, desert, has some 15 billion barrels of proven oil reserves and untapped gas reserves of 25 trillion cubic feet. Abu Dhabi has always felt wronged by the accord, which it perceives as having been concluded under duress.
Saudi Arabia had welcomed the departure of British troops from the region in 1971, but it made recognition of the new UAE federation conditional on a settlement of its territorial dispute with Abu Dhabi. Emirati and Saudi officials declined to comment on the issue. But another Gulf official, also on condition of anonymity, told AFP that Saudi Arabia "tried in vain to cool things down with the UAE" during a mid-January visit to Abu Dhabi by Saudi Defense Minister Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz. "A plan to build a causeway between the Emirates and Qatar raised tensions up a notch," he said. GCC Secretary General Abdulrahman al-Attiyah mentioned the plan during a summit of the Gulf bloc -- which also groups Kuwait and Oman -- in Manama in December. The plans for this and another causeway between Qatar and Bahrain are not sitting well with Saudi Arabia, which believes they will enable Qatar, with which Riyadh has had tense ties in recent years, to establish direct territorial links with neighbors bypassing the kingdom. "Another bone of contention (between the UAE and Saudi Arabia) is the fact that the Emirates is set to become the second Gulf country after Bahrain to sign a free trade pact with the United States," the same official said. Talks on a free trade deal are due to start between Washington and Abu Dhabi on March 8, to be followed on March 12 by the launching of similar negotiations with Oman, a move likely to further isolate Saudi Arabia in the region. Bahrain's free trade deal with the United States has angered Riyadh, which sees it as hindering GCC economic integration.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2005
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#1
The UAE is puny. If the House of Terrorists (or Saud) was capable of Muslim brotherhood (ikhwan) they could give up a little of the camel kingdom.
#2
Historically, it's been the Gulf Arabs, with their boats and the accompanying necessity for hard work (catching fish is work, when you're doing more than drowning worms) have been richer and more civilized than the sand Arabs of the interior.
Dilmun was nearly as old as Uruk, and had trade relations with the Harappan civilization of the Indus valley. It was reputed to be the home of Utu-Napishtim, who discovered the secret of immortality. Naturally, having all that gold and those jewels lying around, the sand Arabs came by regularly and despoiled them, sometimes killing all the women and raping the men.
The more things change...
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2005 9:04
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#3
Historically, it's been the Gulf Arabs, with their boats and the accompanying necessity for hard work (catching fish is work, when you're doing more than drowning worms) have been richer and more civilized than the sand Arabs of the interior.
Spain's foreign minister said Madrid "neither sought nor negotiated for" a one-on-one meeting between Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and President George W Bush during the US-EU gathering in Brussels.
"Nope. Nope. Not us. No way, no how. Not even if you paid us."
Zapatero flew to the Belgian capital on Monday for a meeting between European leaders and the US president. But Zapatero is unlikely to get more than a fleeting meeting with Bush.
All dressed up with nowhere to go.
"It has already been said many times that no bilateral meeting with the president of the United States has been sought, nor negotiated nor attempted," Miguel Angel Moratinos said at a press conference following a meeting of European Union foreign ministers. Zapatero and Bush "will speak as (people) speak in the hallways", but underscored that "no bilateral meeting" is planned apart from the summit.
Other than a few hopeful smiley emoticons and a Evite on Condi's BlackBerry.
"The meetings will happen in good time. I don't think there's any hurry or urgency," added Moratinos. "It's just that we have a schedule and will logically work it out as usual between two partners and allies who enjoy good relations and are going to keep strengthening them."
It's not a partnership when you're sitting at the kid's table, Miguel.
Moratinos pointed out that he himself plans to visit the United States in April and noted the possibility that his staff and that of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice may finalise schedules and decide on a specific date for the visit on Tuesday.
"Why, it's almost just exactly the same as meeting POTUS face-to-face. It's much better this way. And my boss is just a powerless figurehead anyway. I'm the brains of this outfit!"
Posted by: Seafarious ||
02/23/2005
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--"will speak as (people) speak in the hallways", --
French President Jacques Chirac called Tuesday for a sign to be sent to Iran as part of European-led talks aimed at convincing Tehran to definitively abandon its nuclear ambitions. Chirac told a press conference in Brussels that an "entirely legitimate" sign could focus on the Islamic republic's desire to join the World Trade Organisation (WTO) or to obtain civilian aircraft engines. He said he had spoken about Iran with US President George W. Bush during a dinner date on Monday, but did not say what the US leader's response was.
Can't print that in a family weblog newspaper.
Washington has alleged that Iran is seeking to build nuclear weapons, a charge that Tehran vehemently denies, saying that its nuclear programme is completely peaceful.
"Just like our long-range missile programme. Really really peaceful!"
While the US has not ruled out the threat of military action, European nations, led by France, Britain and Germany, have been using the carrot rather than stick approach and are seeking to persuade Iran to comply with international obligations in return for a lucrative package of trade deals.
Plus they're into the whole "groveling" thing...
Posted by: Seafarious ||
02/23/2005
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#2
An gesture appropriate for the MMs... and Chirac, too, for that matter. Add Putty and the King of the Belgians, the House of Saud, Turkey, PakiWakiLand... The UN, MSM, Soros, Pelosi, Reid, Rockefeller, Leahy, Teddy, Skeery, McCain, the Ninth Circuit Court, Kos, DU, Babs, Martin Sheen, Affleck... Sheesh, this could take all night.
#4
We all must be thinking the same thing tonight, 'cause I mentioned The Finger in a different post before reading these. Must be the moon out yonder...
Too bad we can't put these thoughts in front of Chirac - and, to quote the amazing Nathan Bedford Forrest: "if you were any part of a man I would slap your jaws and force you to resent it."
The most remarkable case of insubordination I've ever come across. But then Forrest was certainly no regular man.
#12
.com, Forrest also told General John Bell Hood "If you was a whole man I'd whup you". After the disasterous charge at Franklin, which, by the way, was bigger and suffered more casualities than Picketts Charge at Gettysburg.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
02/23/2005 7:30
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#13
Clearly, Gen Forrest should have been enrolled in an anger management program earlier in his career.
Kinda makes you wonder what Gen Mattis would say in similar circumstances.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
02/23/2005 7:46
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#14
If Jacques wants to continue negotiating, then either he or someone he knows is still making money off of Iran. What a shallow, useless turd.
#15
French trade with Iran hit around $2.5B euros last year and has grown at an annual rate of 30%+ since the turn of the millennium. No further explanation necessary.
#17
Thanks for the link AzCat, quite an eye opener. After reading that and knowing Jacques is one of the most underhanded, money grubbing whores outside of Kofi, there is zero possibility he will risk that revenue because of principles.
I'm certain he will continue to try and encourage paying off the mullahs under any circumstance.
#18
Ya know, I'm almost amazed at the frogs. Makin' money of Saddam AND the MMs! Two more bitter enemies you could never meet and yet the frogs found a way to make money off of both. Again, though, I said ALMOST amazed!
Posted by: BA ||
02/23/2005 9:47
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French President Jacques Chirac called Tuesday for a sign to be sent to Iran as part of European-led talks aimed at convincing Tehran to definitively abandon its nuclear ambitions.
"Forrest's scolding against Bragg in fall 1863, is regarded by some as the greatest insubordination speech ever given by a US military officer:
"You commenced your cowardly and contemptable persecution of me soon after the battle of Shiloh, and you have kept it up ever since. You did it because I reported to Richmond facts, while you reported damned lies. You robbed me of my command in Kentucky, and gave it to one of your personal favorites -- men that I armed and equipped from the enemies of our country. In a spirit of revenge and spite, because I would not fawn upon you as others did, you drove me into West Tennessee in the winter of 1862, with a second brigade I had organized, with improper arms and without sufficient ammunition, although I had made repeated applications for the same. You did it to ruin me and my career.
"When in spite of all this I returned with my command, well equipped by captures, you began your work of spite and persecution, and have kept it up. And now this second brigade, organized and equipped without thanks to you or the government, a brigade which has won a reputation for successful fighting second to none in the army, taking advantage of your position as the commanding general in order to further humiliate me, you have taken these brave men from me.
"I have stood your meanness as long as I intend to. You have played the part of a damned scoundrel, and are a coward, and if you were any part of a man I would slap your jaws and force you to resent it."
"You may as well not issue any more orders to me, for I will not obey them. And I will hold you personally responsible for any further indignities you try to inflict upon me.
"You have threatened to arrest me for not obeying you orders promptly. I dare you to do it, and I say that if you ever again try to interfere with me or cross my path, it will be at the peril of your life."
Reportedly, Bragg's face was totally white when Forrest left. After exiting Bragg's tent. Dr. Cowan told him, "Well, you are in for it now.". Forrest turned and replied, "He'll never open his mouth. Unless you or I mention it, this will never be known."
This incident was reported later in detail by Forrest's doctor, Dr. Cowan."
I like that #21 pic. He has an U.S. insurgent look going on. The only thing that is missing is the soldier cutting Chirac/Zarqawi's head off, with a sign in the background that states "Praise Israel."
US First Lady Laura Bush visited a US military hospital and airbase in Germany on Tuesday, a day in advance of President George W. Bush's one-day trip to the country. To roars of applause from 2,500 military personnel and family members gathered in a cavernous hangar at Ramstein Air Base, she said the US military was doing "excellent service" all around the world to secure peace and liberty and successfully fight terrorism. She said "Team Ramstein" had helped ensure that millions of people in Iraq and Afghanistan could vote freely for the first time and that girls could for the first time attend school. "Germans and Americans share the same values," Bush added in a nod to the base's hosts. Mrs Bush, who later departed by air for the German city of Wiesbaden, also visited 20 wounded personnel at Landstuhl Regional Medical Centre, a US hospital complex 5 kilometres from Ramstein that treats the sick and wounded from the Gulf War. The base visit concluded with a lunch for 30 wives of soldiers.
Posted by: Seafarious ||
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Four journalists working for international news organizations have fled Zimbabwe after they were threatened with arrest during police raids on several news offices. Zimbabwe's Central Intelligence Organization, the country's secret police, threatened the journalists with arrest for transmitting "material prejudicial to the state," and alleged they were spies. The raids and subsequent threats of arrest were seen as an attempt ahead of the March 31 parliamentary elections to silence the foreign media, one of the last independent voices remaining in Zimbabwe.
Posted by: Seafarious ||
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Credit where it's due: Sen. Hillary Clinton seems to have it about as right on Iraq as any Democrat with national political ambitions can be expected to at this stage of the electoral cycle. Speaking from Baghdad as part of a high-profile "fact-finding" tour, Mrs. Clinton over the weekend expressed "cautious optimism" about Iraq's future — and firmly rejected any artificial deadline for U.S. troop withdrawals: "That just gives a green light to the insurgents and the terrorists, that if they can just wait us out they can basically have the country. It's not in our interests, given the sacrifices we've made."
The logic is impeccable. Announcing a departure date before Iraq has been stabilized — however long that takes — makes moot the entire point of Operation Iraqi Freedom. One might just as well swing open Saddam's jail-cell door at the same time.
Then there's the politics. Mrs. Clinton is a prohibitive favorite for re-election next year — and a presumptive presidential candidate in 2008. The implications of her views for the latter effort are most interesting. Clearly, the senator seeks to orient herself toward the political center. (Folks who are offended by this needn't be; it's how politics is practiced in America.) Meanwhile, what are the odds that Mrs. Clinton would have said what she did if she thought there was any chance her words would come back to bite her? Zero. President Bush, in other words, just got an "attaboy" from an unlikely source. Moveon.org and the Angry wing of the Democratic Party no doubt will seek to make Mrs. Clinton pay for her candor — correct though she may be. When that day comes, more moderate Democrats should keep in mind what Mrs. Clinton said when it mattered — and apportion their support accordingly.
Posted by: Fred ||
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#1
So she's taken polls and checked with focus groups to find out what position is selling this month.
Color me unimpressed.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
02/23/2005 1:00
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Color me unimpressed.
Me, too.
Hillary is too predictable, phoney, and transparent. I guess she's gotta keep tryin', though, huh?
#4
Yeah, it's just another career politician. Zero heart.
It is gratifying, though, to see Hilary taking a big bite out of not only this, but a veritable buffet of shit sandwiches, and licking her fingers clean. You know these policies have got to grate on what's left of her inner being.
#6
I agree with everyone's comments about her transparent efforts to appear more "conservative" but think for a moment about the reaction of the LLL to her recent statements. Not a peep out of Teddy or moveon.org. Why so silent? have they been tipped off to the fact that this may be a smokescreen? Her recent statements about being religious, going to church, etc. haven't elicited the kind of bashing the President got for his open religiosity. Why not? I think she is a wolf in sheep's clothing.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
02/23/2005 7:41
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#7
She's more of a socialist in socialist's clothing. Recall the LLL's collective (no pun intended) moans following the election that they simply weren't as good at tricking the voters as was Karl Rove and his evil band of Republicans. The Hildebeeste's collectivist credentials are beyond reproach so you're not likely to hear much whining from the left about her impersonating a conservative in an attempt to dupe the voters into putting them back in power four years down the road.
#8
It was mentioned on the local morning news that a large number of Americans would support a female president. I don't have a problem with that, as long as it's not the Hildabeast or the likes of her.
#10
When my wife (whose hearing is not spectacular) heard about this trip on TV she heard: "back-biting trip". I think her version is probably closer to the truth of the matter.
#12
When that day comes, more moderate Democrats should keep in mind what Mrs. Clinton said when it mattered â and apportion their support accordingly.
#13
Do not underestimate Hillary or fall into the trap the Dem's did of openly hating her too much. The response to Hillary has to be better ideas that are more effectively articulated. Hate of the candidate alone will not win an election. That said, she makes me want to barf.
A top US senator called yesterday for a permanent American military presence in Afghanistan to protect his country's security interests in the region, where Iran is allegedly jostling for nuclear capability. Speaking after meetings with President Hamid Karzai at his heavily fortified palace in the Afghan capital, Republican John McCain said he was committed to a "strategic partnership that we believe must endure for many, many years." Asked what such a partnership would entail, he replied: "Economic assistance, technical assistance, military partnership including - and this is a personal view — joint military permanent bases and also cultural exchanges." He said the arrangement would be "not only for the good of the Afghan people, but also for the good of the American people because of the long-term security interests that we have in the region." McCain was leading a five-member delegation also including former first lady Sen. Hillary Clinton, as well as senators Russell Feingold, Susan Collins and Lindsey Graham. McCain did not elaborate about what form permanent bases might take and Karzai gave no further details after the meeting.
Posted by: Fred ||
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McCain runs off the rails sometimes with things like First Amendment repealCampaign Reform, but his foreign policy usually makes a lot of sense.
We have a bunch of bases in countries like Uzbekistan that have rather unsavory government. When in a war, you deal with whom you have to to get the job done, but if we have a choice, I'd rather be allied with a halfway decent Afghanistan than some neo-Stalinist country.
Iran's supreme spiritual leader Ayat Allah Khamenei has disguised himself in civilian clothes to get a better look at how relief and recovery operations are progressing in the quake-devastated city of Bam. Khamenei donned a coat and hat and strolled around the southeastern city with a top local official during a surprise visit there on Friday, according to the conservative Ressalat newspaper.
Following the tour, the all-powerful leader urged local officials to speed up reconstruction efforts. His office also upped the death toll from 30,000-35,000 to 41,000-45,000. The ancient city was destroyed in a massive earthquake on 26 December measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale. "Only a few officials were aware of the visit and when residents saw the local official they approached him and told them of their problems, without realising the Guide was there," reported the Javan newspaper. There were several complaints over aid distribution, it added.
Posted by: Fred ||
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Somebody trying to tell you "Don't play with matches.".
Egypt is still holding as many as 2,400 people without charge four months after the devastating anti-Israeli bomb attacks in Sinai tourist resorts, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Tuesday. "The state security investigation agency conducted mass arrests in northern Sinai without a warrant or judicial order, as required by Egyptian law," the New York-based group said in a report. "As many as 2,400 detainees are still being held incommunicado" following the October 7 bombings which killed 34 people, many of them Israeli tourists, in car bomb attacks on the Taba Hilton hotel and two holiday camps in Nuweiba. "The government has not released information on the whereabouts of these detainees either to their families or lawyers representing them, and has not indicated if any have been charged with crimes," said HRW.
Posted by: Fred ||
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That's a lot of "usual suspects." On second thought, this is Egypt, so maybe not...
#2
Where's the International outrage over these illegal holdings!? Where's ANSWER!? Oh yeah, over the border at Isreali prisons trying to free killers.
Posted by: Charles ||
02/23/2005 7:10
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Egypt holding 2,400 without charge since Taba bombings...
You mean they have gien up attaching electrodes to sensitive body parts?
Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal has said that countries should not hastily accuse Syria of involvement in the killing of Lebanon's former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. He also dismissed calls for an immediate international probe into last Monday's assassination, saying Beirut should be allowed to hold its own investigation.
Afraid somebody'll find something before the evidence is all cold?
"We cannot accuse one side before we know the facts," he told Arab journalists in London.
In that case, getting the facts should be the priority, right? Regardless of who gets them...
"Those who accuse Syria without evidence will be open to criticism." Lebanese opposition leaders have bluntly accused Damascus of involvement in the Beirut car bombing which killed the former premier and several of his bodyguards. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, speaking at an EU foreign ministers' meeting, said there was a "high level of suspicion about the potential involvement of Syria".
Posted by: Fred ||
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Who's rushing?
Actually, the "accusation" is waaay late.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
02/23/2005 0:58
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Oh any Saudi prince will be glad to tell you who did it "it was the Joos!"
Israel is ready to react to any attempt by the Lebanese militia Hezbollah to open up a new battle front on the northern border during the operation to pull out of Gaza, army chief of staff Moshe Yaalon said Tuesday. "The army is ready to respond to any attempt (by Hezbollah) to provoke the opening of a new front and it will pay the price if it does so," public radio quoted Yaalon as telling a gathering of civic leaders close to the border with both Lebanon and Syria. Thousands of troops are expected to take part in the operation to remove the 8,000 Jewish settlers of the Gaza Strip and several hundred from four small northern West Bank settlements from mid-July. While incidents on the once highly volatile northern border are less frequent, three people, including a French UN peacekeeper, were killed last month in a flare-up of violence between Israeli troops and Hezbollah.
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An Israeli military court Monday passed five life sentences against Hassaan Abu Leil, an affiliate with the Aqsa Martyrs Brigades the military wing of the Fatah Movement. Legal sources said that the court found Hassaan "guilty" of shooting at an Israeli army base in the Jordan Valley in April 2003 that killed two soldiers and wounded eight others. The same court also passed a 40-year-term against Kayed Kalboni, another Fatah activist, for "involvement" in two commando raids in Tulkarm and near Qalqilia. Both armed attacks led to the injury of four Israeli soldiers.
This article starring:
HASAAN ABU LEIL
Aqsa Martyrs Brigades
KAIED KALBONI
Aqsa Martyrs Brigades
Aqsa Martyrs Brigades
Posted by: Fred ||
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The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) has appealed to the government of Thailand to put an end to the "persistent bloody acts of violence" perpetrated against Muslims in southern Thailand. The appeal was made in a statement here on Monday following a meeting OIC Secretary-General Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu had with Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, chairman of the 10th Islamic Summit Conference.
Professor Ihsanoglu expressed "serious dissatisfaction at the situation which continues to remain bad despite appeals made by the OIC and the international community to the Thai government to end the violations that have claimed the lives of hundreds of people." The OIC secretary-general renewed his appeal to the government of Thailand about the need to conduct a "just and urgent" investigation into the causes of such incidents and put an end to them. He stressed the need to give due importance to achieving economic and social development in southern Thailand without discrimination. During the meeting Professor Ihsanoglu and Badawi discussed a number of issues relevant to the Muslim world, including the situation of Muslims in Arkane, in Myanmar, and the incidents in southern Thailand.
Posted by: Fred ||
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#1
Ah yes, the ever innocent and persecuted Mooslim population...
#2
Between 5 to 10 attacks on Thai civil authorities are being carried out everyday. That would not be happening if Muslim numbers had not been permitted to grow in south Thailand. Once unproductive Muslimutts became a majority in Malaysia, at the expensive of industrious Chinese and Hindus, the repression started. And the new minority had nobody to help them.
#4
gee let me think? If memory serves me the Thai army gave out thousands of oragami doves and when they got home the muzzies replied to the peace offerings with ten bombings. Oh and I forget was it not the poor muzzies that attacked the police station that got all this all started?
So I'm reading my former boss Michael Ledeen's column today and I learn (via a link to Iraq the Model) that according to a captured Iraqi terrorist that George Habash's PFLP (the only Palestinian group ever to successfully assassinate a member of the Israeli cabinet) has come out of the woodwork and is now actively involved in targeting US forces in Iraq. That's a huge story given its Syrian connections, and it certainly isn't the first of its kind to come out of broadcasts on Iraqi TV.
Which leads me to the question: Why isn't this getting more play over here? Why aren't any of these stories getting play over here?
What this means
Like I said above, the PFLP has been around since the 1970s and is one of the deadliest Palestinian terrorist groups in the business. The Israelis appear to have more or less dismantled their infrastructure in the Palestinian Territories, but they still retain more than enough fighters and infrastructure in the Levant. It is also a wholely-owned subsidiary of the Syrian government (complete with offices in Damascus where the group's founder, George Habash, lives) and serves as one of their more capable Palestinian proxies against the Israeli government. If the PFLP is fighting against US forces inside Iraq at Habash's behest, it is inconceiveable that they would be doing so without the knowledge of their Syrian handlers.
To bring it down to the bottom line, this means that a Palestinian terrorist group that is trained, harbored, and financed by Bashar al-Assad's regime is complicit in the deaths of US and Iraqi soldiers. If this can be confirmed, it would seem to indicate that Syrian involvement in the assassination of Rafik Hariri would be the least of al-Assad's (or Khaddam, if we want to be more up-front about these things) problems.
Ah, but is it true?
Israel's Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz accused new Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas Tuesday of failing to do enough to put an end to attacks by militant groups, parliamentary sources said. "From the point of view of the war against terrorism, Abu Mazen (Abbas) has not passed the test," Mofaz said during a closed-door session of the parliament's foreign affairs and defence committee.
Israel has been demanding that Abbas dismantle what it calls the "terrorist infrastructure" of hardline groups such as Hamas. While Abbas has managed to persuade the factions to observe a temporary truce, he has held back from a crackdown on the groups for fear of provoking a civil war. Mofaz also told the committee that the planned pullout of settlers from the Gaza Strip, scheduled to start on July 20, was likely to last six or seven weeks. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had previously indicated that he expected the process to last around 12 weeks.
Posted by: Fred ||
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Iraq's main Shia alliance has named Ibrahim al-Jafari as its candidate for prime minister in the new government, Aljazeera has learned. Al-Jafari,currently the vice president of Iraq in the interim government, is a religious Shia and head of the Islamist Dawa Party. He had faced competition from inside the alliance from former exile Ahmad Chalabi, once favoured by the Pentagon, but Chalabi withdrew and the alliance's 140 members unanimously approved al-Jafari, alliance sources said. Some of Chalabi's aides, including Qaisar Witwit, have suggested he may be offered the post of deputy prime minister in charge of economic and security affairs. "The security situation is the first matter we will address" When asked about the reported deal, Chalabi said simply: "We will see."
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Nine Russian soldiers died and three were injured near Chechnya's capital when a militant-fired grenade brought down a building in which they were sheltering, officials said on Tuesday. "The militants attacked our base in the old factory, when a grenade knocked the wall down," said one officer as he stood next to the ruins of the disused building on the edge of Grozny.
Troops had moved into the factory on Monday to spend the night there when they came under fire. Two rebels were killed before rebel fire toppled a support wall in the building. The attack showed that at least some of the militants, who have fought Moscow's rule for a decade, were not abiding by a ceasefire declared by their leaders. The unilateral truce, which was intended to lead to peace talks but has been rejected by Russian officials, is due to end at midnight on Tuesday. According to human rights groups, some 20,000 soldiers have died in Chechnya since Russia sent in troops to crush separatist militants in 1994. Hundreds of thousands of civilians are believed to have been killed.
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Iran is studying the question of joining the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi said yesterday. "That has been in the talks for some time," he said in response to questions after a lecture on India-Iran relations at the Indian Council of World Affairs here whether Tehran's membership of the seven-nation club came up during his talks with Indian leaders. "We are studying the question of accession to SAARC," he said. He referred to Iran's borders with South Asia and said the country could provide the region with East-West connectivity. He did not say whether any of the seven SAARC member nations — India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and the Maldives — had extended Iran an invitation. There has been a move by Pakistan and Bangladesh to get China as a SAARC member, but India and Bhutan have reservations about it. Under the SAARC charter all decisions have to be unanimous.
Posted by: Fred ||
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Is it my imagination, or are we seeing more of these lately?
Police arrested a suspected Taliban activist in Balochistan on Tuesday. A Kalashnikov rifle with ammunition, a mobile phone and a Thuraya satellite phone were seized as well as some documents, police said, indicating the detainee may have links with senior members of the ousted Afghan regime. "We are scanning telephone numbers on the Thuraya to determine if the man had been in touch with Taliban leaders," police officer Rauf Bareach told AFP. Police refused to disclose the name of the detainee, who was captured in a raid on near Kuchlak town, 17 kilometers north of Quetta. Last month police arrested 17 Afghans including some Taliban suspects in a swoop on their hideouts in Quetta.
Posted by: Fred ||
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Police said on Tuesday they had arrested a man for allegedly beheading his eight-year old niece with a hatchet during an exorcism. The man's wife delivered a stillborn boy two weeks ago and an "exorcist-cum-magician" told him that the victim's mother had performed black magic on them, police said. The exorcist said that to ward off the effects of the evil spell he had to kill his niece, said Mukhtar Tikka, the district police officer of Vehari.
"We have arrested Muhammad Asghar for murdering his eight-year-old niece Ramsha," Tikka told Daily Times. Asghar murdered his niece on Sunday and dumped her body in a canal, police said. He later told the family that she had been kidnapped and joined the search efforts, but the girl's mother and his wife knew about the crime and told investigators. The girl's body was found on Monday, Tikka said. "The accused has confessed his crime and police have seized the hatchet," he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
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#1
How did I know this would be a member of the ROP?
#3
Muslimutts believe that demons (Jinn, or Hollywood's "geniis") are ever-present, tempting them to do the dirty. It also enables them to point the fickle finger of responsibility, elsewhere. The jinn made me do it.
The United Nations is investigating a woman's allegations that she was raped by three U.N. peacekeepers from Pakistan, a U.N. official said Tuesday. The men claim they paid to have sex. The 23-year-old woman made the report to the police over the weekend, said Damian Onses-Cardona, a spokesman for the 7,400-member U.N. force. The men, whose names were not released, said the woman was a prostitute and they paid to have sex with her, he said. The latest rape allegations come as the United Nations investigates sexual abuse allegations in a handful of countries around the world, most notably in Congo. The three Pakistanis were ordered to return from northern Gonaives, where the incident allegedly occurred, and remain in the capital of Port-au-Prince until the investigation is concluded this week, said Onses-Cardona, who declined to give more details. Calls to police in Gonaives were not immediately returned.
Posted by: Fred ||
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Slightly OT. Fred, the Scandals Magazine cover is interesting for a couple of reasons. The blue NRA seal indicates that is from the mid 1930's. Which means that the riske 'Vegas Girl'-like illustration is avante garde and the 25 cent price is exorbitant for the depression era. I enjoy the story line visuals from your archives.
Indonesian prisons may be a fertile recruiting and training ground for Al Qaeda-linked militants, blamed for a string of bomb attacks in recent years, because jailers are too soft on them, an international think-tank said on Tuesday. Indonesian militants are finding it harder to recruit new bombers, but arresting top leaders may prove futile in eradicating them, the International Crisis Group (ICG) said.
The practice of "recycling" militants means authorities need to focus on what happens in prison, and what becomes of the families of militants, if they want to tackle terrorism, it said. "The government needs to ensure that prisons do not become a place where radicalisation increases or is reinforced," the Brussels-based group said in a 57-page report. Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, has jailed more than 30 militants convicted of the 2002 Bali bombings, blamed on the regional Jemaah Islamiah (JI) network. They have been handed sentences ranging from a few years to the death penalty for the nightclub attacks that killed 202 people, many of them foreign tourists.
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Indonesian prosecutors made their final push on Tuesday to convict militant Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir on terrorism charges by arguing he was aware of plans for deadly bomb attacks but never tried to stop them. Prosecutors wound up their case against 66-year-old Bashir on charges that link him to the October 2002 nightclub bombings in Bali that killed 202 people, many of them foreign tourists, and the 2003 blast at Jakarta's JW Marriott Hotel in which 12 died.
Bashir is charged with criminal acts of arson and explosion in relation to the Bali blasts and with "evil conspiracy" under Indonesia's anti-terror laws over the Marriott bombing. The white-bearded cleric has repeatedly denied the charges, which he says resulted from Western pressure. Prosecutors had earlier cited a lack of evidence when they dropped a charge that Bashir had incited terror attacks as the leader of the militant, al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiah (JI) network in Southeast Asia.
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Nawab Akbar Bugti, the chief of the Bugti tribe and former Balochistan chief minister, has said the Baloch will pardon Captain Hammad, the man accused of raping a female doctor, only if the victim forgives him, Online reported. Talking to a private TV, he said in line with Baloch and Sindhi traditions, the rapists would have to go to the victim to seek her mercy, and if she forgave them, they would have no objection to her decision.
Staff report adds: At a telephone press conference on Tuesday, Bugti warned that there could be armed resistance if the government decided on military action in the area. "The situation in Balochistan is alarming and there could be an armed resistance if a military option is opted, which I can see coming soon," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
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#1
Sure, she can.
But why in the hell would she?
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
02/23/2005 0:59
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Because she would be killed otherwise
More seriously one of the nice things in shariah is the concept of blood money and the fact a woman live is worth half of a man's live. It goes like this: a man life is worth 1,000$ so if a man is killed and the family pardons the life of the murderer it would get 1,000$ from the muderer (the price of a man's life). Now if a man kills a woman then her family can either pardon him and get 500$ (the price of a woman's life) or have him executed but in that case they MUST pay the differnce (ie 500$) to the family of the murderer.
Algeria's President Abd al-Aziz Butaflika has extended his support to a bill aimed at improving women's rights, despite opposition from Islamic parties. A change to a 1984 law plans to ban men from divorcing their wives for no reason and give women access to financial support from their former husbands, an official statement said on Tuesday. It would scrap the need for women to ask permission from a male family member to marry, and polygamy would need to be approved by a magistrate. Politicians say the reform law will expectedly be approved shortly by parliament since Butaflika has the backing of the majority in both houses.
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An Israeli military court has passed a 115-year-verdict against Issa Battat, a resident of Bethlehem city, claiming he masterminded five major raids in the Hebrew state. The court said that Battat was the commander of the Quds Brigades the military wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Bethlehem before his arrest.
This article starring:
ISA BATTAT
Islamic Jihad
Islamic Jihad
Posted by: Fred ||
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Faced with the very real possibility of a rejection of his Cabinet lineup in the Palestinian Parliament, Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei yesterday promised to present a Cabinet of technocrats to the PLC today. Lawmakers and members of the dominant Fatah faction said Qorei had drawn up a new list dominated by technocrats and featuring only two members of Parliament.
The initial list presented by Qorei to Parliament for its approval on Monday featured 15 deputies. Qorei put together his new list after a meeting of Fatah's Central Committee convened after Monday's aborted parliamentary session when he had hoped to win the approval for his 24-member team. "There will only be two members from the Legislative Council on the new list," Cabinet Minister Qaddura Fares told reporters. Parliamentary officials said Qorei would present the line-up to MPs for approval today. "We will convene (parliament) tomorrow," said Fatah MP and central committee member Abbas Zaki. "A totally new government will be presented to us. It's a government of technocrats with only two MPs... The Central Committee of Fatah decided that such a government is needed to respond to the needs for reforms at all levels."
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
After nearly drowning in a sea of red states, 
Lebanon's climate has been charged with latent violence since the assassination Monday, February 14, of Lebanese former prime minister 
February 23, 2005: Another enormous troop movement is just about finished in Iraq. The second annual troop rotation to Iraq is almost complete. Some 15,000 troops were kept in Iraq to provide additional security for the elections last month. This turned out to be a prudent move, as the security was good enough to keep the vast majority of voting places safe. But now the 18th Airborne Corps headquarters, the 42nd Infantry Division (a National Guard outfit), the 3rd Infantry Division and the 2nd Marine MEU (Division) have replaced the 3rd Corps headquarters, the 1st Infantry Division, the 1st Cavalry Division and the 1st Marine MEU (Division). American troops strength will go down to 138,000 by March. The increased traffic from over 250,000 troops moving in and out over the last few months has caused an increase in traffic accidents, although combat injuries have been declining since the battle of Fallujah last November. Most of the heavy equipment belonging to units remains in Iraq, to ease up the logistics burden. The troops either return to the equipment they left behind when they came over, or are issued new equipment and weapons, to the replace those being left behind, when they get home. 
February 22, 2005: For the last three days, a brigade of coalition troops (U.S. Marines and Iraqis) have been engaged in "Operation River Blitz," west of Baghdad. Based on information collected last November in Fallujah, and since, roadblocks were set up throughout Anbar province, and raids carried out in Ramadi (the capital of the province) and other largely Sunni Arab cities along the Euphrates river. Anbar province has been the scene of most Sunni Arab violence in the last year, but that began to change after Fallujah was cleared out last November. Since then, anti-government attacks have been fewer, as have coalition casualties. Arrests of terrorists have increased, and more Sunni Arab groups have defied the terrorists and began negotiating with the government. These Sunni groups, led by tribal and religious leaders, are often heavily armed, with informal militias (formal militias are illegal) containing hundreds, or even thousands, of armed men. 
A Chinese weekly magazine issued in Beijing reported on February 21 that China feels a serious security threat from the fact that the U.S. is surrounding China, its potential antagonist, from three sides: east, west, and south.
The insurgents -- many former officers of the dissolved Iraqi army -- confessed to several crimes, including the kidnappings and killings of Iraqis working as translators with the U.S. forces. They also admitted to bombing attacks against multinational troops in the city of Mosul, north of Iraq. They said they were trained in Latakia, Syria, by Syrian intelligence officers.
Suspected militants blew up an electricity pylon and fired rockets at a paramilitary camp, officials said on Tuesday. 
Progressive Socialist Party President 
A grenade exploded at Shaidingi shrine in Kulaura upazila of Moulvibazar on Sunday night badly damaging the structure of the shrine. No casualty, however, was reported while the roof of the shrine was blown up. Immediately after the explosion, locals captured a local Imam and a madrasa teacher on suspicion, and handed them over to police. 
IRAQ war wobbler Jacques Chirac scuttled George Bush's fence-mending trip to Europe yesterday — by cranking up a row over the future of Nato.
Iraqi state television aired a video Wednesday showing what the U.S.-funded channel said was the confession of a captured Syrian officer who said he trained Iraqi insurgents to behead people and build car bombs to attack American and Iraqi troops. The video also showed an Iraqi who said the insurgents practiced beheading animals to train for decapitating hostages. Syrian officials could not immediately be reached for comment on the claims. The video comes at a time when the Bush administration has stepped up pressure on Syria to stop meddling in Iraqi affairs by allowing insurgents to cross into the country to fight coalition troops and by harboring former Iraqi regime members. Syria has denied the charges. In the video, the man, identified as 
The FBI warned Tuesday that a computer virus is being spread through unsolicited e-mails that purport to come from the FBI. The e-mails appear to come from an fbi.gov address. They tell recipients that they have accessed illegal Web sites and that their Internet use has been monitored by the FBI's ``Internet Fraud Complaint Center,'' the FBI said. The messages then direct recipients to open an attachment and answer questions. The computer virus is in the attachment. ``Recipients of this or similar solicitations should know that the FBI does not engage in the practice of sending unsolicited e-mails to the public in this manner,'' the FBI said in a statement. The bureau is investigating the phony e-mails. 
The engagement took place last night, when troops tried to neutralize an illegal roadblock on the highway that connects Ovejas with Sincelejo. The following was related by Colonel Rafael Colon, commander of the First Brigade of Marine Infantry: "A group of FARC Guerrillas were attempting to maintain a presence on the highway [a roadblock; Spanish like Arabic often tries to talk around the subject] and were confronted by members of the infantry battalion. During this fight, three of our men were murdered and others were injured, fortunately none seriously" stated the official in a radio transmission. According to Colon, the soldiers recovered a rebel corpse that also had perished in combat. "We are continuing with operations in this zone, with the goal of neutralizing the actions of the terrorists that are seeking to operate on the margins of the law," added the military chief.
World Health Organization officials urged governments on Wednesday to act swiftly to control the spread of the bird flu, warning that the world is in grave danger of a deadly pandemic triggered by the virus. The bird flu has killed 45 people in Asia over the past year, in cases largely traced to contact with sick birds, and experts have warned the H5N1 virus could become far deadlier if it mutates into a form that can be easily transmitted among humans. A global pandemic could kill millions, they say. "We at WHO believe that the world is now in the gravest possible danger of a pandemic," Dr. Shigeru Omi, the WHO's Western Pacific regional director, said Wednesday. He said the world is "now overdue" for an influenza pandemic, since mass epidemics have occurred every 20-30 years. It has been nearly 40 years since the last one... The mortality rate among identified patients who contract the disease from chickens and ducks is about 72 percent, Dr. Julie L. Gerberding, head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Monday. She added that her agency was preparing for a possible pandemic next year...
Kong Sam Ol, deputy prime minister for the Royal Palace of Cambodia, hosted a reception on February 16 in celebration of leader Kim Jong Il's birthday. Present there on invitation were Ambassador Choe Han Chun and staff members of the DPRK embassy in Phnom Penh.
Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, 23, an American citizen, and at least 10 unidentified co-conspirators allegedly planned in 2002 and 2003 to kill Bush either by shooting him or by detonating a car bomb, according to an indictment released during a hearing before a U.S. magistrate judge in Alexandria, Va. The six-count indictment also alleges that Abu Ali and one of the co-conspirators discussed ways he could conduct a terrorist operation and establish an al-Qaida cell in the United States.
MOORPARK, Calif. - Authorities shot and killed a tiger Wednesday that had been roaming for days in the hills near the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
16.02.2005 at 2240 LT at Chittagong 'B' anchorage, Bangladesh. Ten robbers armed with long knives boarded a chemical tanker from two boats. They seized duty a/b and held him at knifepoint. D/O raised alarm and crew mustered. Robbers jumped overboard and escaped with ship's stores. Chittagong port control informed.
An American student who was imprisoned in Saudi Arabia for the last 20 months was returned to the United States and accused by the Justice Department on Tuesday of plotting with members of Al Qaeda in 2003 to assassinate President Bush. In an indictment unsealed in federal court in Alexandria, Va., the student, a 23-year-old American citizen named Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, is charged with providing material support for terrorism. Mr. Abu Ali is accused of training with Al Qaeda overseas and wanting to "become a planner of terrorist operations" like Mohammed Atta or Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, two Qaeda leaders central to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
THE HAGUE - The trial of a young Muslim, alleged to have plotted attacks against several targets in The Netherlands including the country's main airport and a nuclear power station, is scheduled to open on Thursday in Rotterdam. The prosecution suspect defendant 
An FBI informant said yesterday he wanted to put "the world on notice" but not actually commit suicide when he set himself on fire outside the White House in November. Testifying at the Brooklyn federal trial of two Yemeni men accused of plotting to help terrorism, informant 
Prime Minister Paul Martin will deliver a firm No to Canadian participation in the U.S. missile defence plan and break a lengthy silence that fomented confusion on both sides of the border. News of the announcement follows a day of confusion on Parliament Hill after Frank McKenna, Martin's choice to be the next ambassador to the U.S., sparked a political firestorm by saying participation in the controversial continental missile defence system is a done deal. The end of Martin's silence will come as an about-face for a prime minister who had repeatedly stated his support for missile defence when he was a Liberal leadership candidate barely a year ago. 
More than 500 Iranian pilgrims were detained in Basra, Faw and Abol-Khasib by Iraq's border guards and British troops, an informed source told Fars News Agency. Speaking on the condition of anonymity, the source noted that the Iranian pilgrims had illegally entered Iraq for attending "Ashura" ceremonies in Karbala's shrine of third Shiite Imam Hussein (AS) via Abadan and Arvand-Kenar waterways. 
Government soldiers killed eight rebels and discovered a large cache of weapons in dense jungles of southern Colombia, a top military official said Tuesday. Gen. Carlos Alberto Ospina, the chief of the Colombian Armed Forces, called the rebel weapons seizure - which included machine guns and grenade launchers - one of the biggest since a military offensive began in the southern jungles more than a year ago. The most recent clashes took place over the past two days in an isolated region of Guaviare state, 210 miles south of Bogota. They came in response to rebel attacks that have surged since Feb. 1 and left more than 60 soldiers dead, Ospina said. He said government forces suffered no casualties in the latest fighting.
Marshall County, Miss., authorities had a mystery on their hands Monday after the killing of a Red Banks convenience store clerk. About 3 a.m. Sunday, the killer entered the Texaco gas station and grocery store on old Highway 78 and gunned down Hefad Hallah 'Tony' Almuntaser, 31. 
An Italian sex researcher claims he can tell a woman's personality from the size and shape of her breasts. According to German newspaper Bild sexologist Piero Lorenzoni said: "A woman's breasts denote a woman's character, just like her star sign." He has categorised breast types according to fruits and says men can draw up their own horoscope-type chart that indicates what a woman's chest size says about her.
PARIS - The 
Spain's foreign minister said Madrid "neither sought nor negotiated for" a one-on-one meeting between Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and President George W Bush during the US-EU gathering in Brussels. 
French President Jacques Chirac called Tuesday for a sign to be sent to Iran as part of European-led talks aimed at convincing Tehran to definitively abandon its nuclear ambitions. Chirac told a press conference in Brussels that an "entirely legitimate" sign could focus on the Islamic republic's desire to join the World Trade Organisation (WTO) or to obtain civilian aircraft engines. He said he had spoken about Iran with US President George W. Bush during a dinner date on Monday, but did not say what the US leader's response was. 
Credit where it's due: Sen. 
A top US senator called yesterday for a permanent American military presence in Afghanistan to protect his country's security interests in the region, where Iran is allegedly jostling for nuclear capability. Speaking after meetings with President Hamid Karzai at his heavily fortified palace in the Afghan capital, Republican 
Iran's supreme spiritual leader Ayat Allah 
Egypt is still holding as many as 2,400 people without charge four months after the devastating anti-Israeli bomb attacks in Sinai tourist resorts, 
Foreign Minister Prince 
Israel is ready to react to any attempt by the Lebanese militia Hezbollah to open up a new battle front on the northern border during the operation to pull out of Gaza, army chief of staff Moshe Yaalon said Tuesday. "The army is ready to respond to any attempt (by Hezbollah) to provoke the opening of a new front and it will pay the price if it does so," public radio quoted Yaalon as telling a gathering of civic leaders close to the border with both Lebanon and Syria. Thousands of troops are expected to take part in the operation to remove the 8,000 Jewish settlers of the Gaza Strip and several hundred from four small northern West Bank settlements from mid-July. While incidents on the once highly volatile northern border are less frequent, three people, including a French UN peacekeeper, were killed last month in a flare-up of violence between Israeli troops and Hezbollah.
The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) has appealed to the government of Thailand to put an end to the "persistent bloody acts of violence" perpetrated against Muslims in southern Thailand. The appeal was made in a statement here on Monday following a meeting OIC Secretary-General Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu had with Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, chairman of the 10th Islamic Summit Conference.
Israel's Defence Minister 
Iraq's main Shia alliance has named 
Nine Russian soldiers died and three were injured near Chechnya's capital when a militant-fired grenade brought down a building in which they were sheltering, officials said on Tuesday. "The militants attacked our base in the old factory, when a grenade knocked the wall down," said one officer as he stood next to the ruins of the disused building on the edge of Grozny. 
Iran is studying the question of joining the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), Foreign Minister 
Police arrested a suspected Taliban activist in Balochistan on Tuesday. A Kalashnikov rifle with ammunition, a mobile phone and a Thuraya satellite phone were seized as well as some documents, police said, indicating the detainee may have links with senior members of the ousted Afghan regime. "We are scanning telephone numbers on the Thuraya to determine if the man had been in touch with Taliban leaders," police officer Rauf Bareach told AFP. Police refused to disclose the name of the detainee, who was captured in a raid on near 
The United Nations is investigating a woman's allegations that she was raped by three U.N. peacekeepers from Pakistan, a U.N. official said Tuesday. The men claim they paid to have sex. The 23-year-old woman made the report to the police over the weekend, said Damian Onses-Cardona, a spokesman for the 7,400-member U.N. force. The men, whose names were not released, said the woman was a prostitute and they paid to have sex with her, he said. The latest rape allegations come as the United Nations investigates sexual abuse allegations in a handful of countries around the world, most notably in Congo. The three Pakistanis were ordered to return from northern Gonaives, where the incident allegedly occurred, and remain in the capital of Port-au-Prince until the investigation is concluded this week, said Onses-Cardona, who declined to give more details. Calls to police in Gonaives were not immediately returned.
Indonesian prisons may be a fertile recruiting and training ground for Al Qaeda-linked militants, blamed for a string of bomb attacks in recent years, because jailers are too soft on them, an international think-tank said on Tuesday. Indonesian militants are finding it harder to recruit new bombers, but arresting top leaders may prove futile in eradicating them, the International Crisis Group (ICG) said. 
Indonesian prosecutors made their final push on Tuesday to convict militant Muslim cleric 
Nawab 
Algeria's President 
An Israeli military court has passed a 115-year-verdict against 
Faced with the very real possibility of a rejection of his Cabinet lineup in the Palestinian Parliament, Prime Minister 
