KABUL: The Afghan central government is planning to deploy national army in all provinces of the country. Afghan Defence Ministry sent a delegation to deploy and train local soldiers in Khost. Zalmay Rasool, an adviser to Hamid Karzai on National Security, German ambassador and US official are with the delegation. One of the functions of the delegation in Khost is to hold talks with Gen. Khayal Baz, commander of 25 Brigade. Gen. Khayal Baz said that so far the 25th Khost Brigade has not been dismantled and it is possible that in the future it might be merged in the national army.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 10:50 am ||
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They should deploy them to Pakistan. That would probably solve half of Afghanistan's problems.
RIYADH, 17 June 2003 â The father of Ali ibn Abdul Rahman Al-Faqaasi Al-Ghamdi, one of the 19 suspects wanted by security officers in connection with the May 12 suicide bombings in Riyadh, has urged his son to surrender to police for his own benefit and in the interest of his family. âSecurity agencies have promised that if he gives in and convicted of the alleged crimes, his punishment would be reduced to half,â Abdul Rahman ibn Saeed Al-Ghamdi told Asharq Al-Awsat. Abdul Rahman said he could not believe the accusations leveled against his son, saying that âthey are improper and unclear.â
Proper maybe he can argue about. Clear? He kills people. What's foggy about that?
However, he admitted that his son had gone to Afghanistan and stayed there for a long period. âAfter coming from Afghanistan, he visited us only once about two years ago,â the father said. âAfter that he has never come to our house,â he added. Al-Ghamdi used to contact his family by telephone while he was away. âWhen we ask him where was he calling from, he just answered, âthe land of God,ââ Abdul Rahman said. He said the family was in bad shape after security officers listed Al-Ghamdi among the wanted terrorists. âThe condition of his mother is extremely bad,â he added.
Ethel! Get the salts! She's gonna do it again!
Asked about his sonâs marriage to a Moroccan woman, Abdul Rahman said, âWe have heard about that, but we did not attend or approve that marriage.â
"Some hussy, I'm sure..."
Abdul Rahman disclosed that police had taken blood samples of his family members to compare them with those of the bombers who carried out the Riyadh attacks. âWe have sent a letter to Ali through the Internet asking him to return to the right path and help bring his familyâs life back to normal,â he added.
We're sure he'll be right home. Any time now... Yup... Any... time.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 09:34 pm ||
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"his punishment would be reduced to half"....
Are they only going to cut off half his head?
Latest on the soap opera in the UAE. EFL.
DUBAI - Tensions were running high in Ras Al-Khaimah, a member of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), yesterday after the crown prince was ousted reportedly for being too sympathetic to women's rights. "Eeeeeeeeeeeek!! Quick, Fatima, my rifle!"
Troops and armoured vehicles were deployed around the palaces of the new crown prince, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr al-Qassimi, half-brother to the former crown prince, who was appointed by decree on Saturday. Wonder what his views are on wimmin?
The palace of their father, Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammed al-Qassimi, the ruler of the emirate, was also guarded by the military. The reinforcements were sent from the federal capital Abu Dhabi to the northern outpost at the request of the Ras Al-Khaimah authorities 'to keep the wimmin in their place' 'to maintain stability and public order', an official source was quoted as saying.
No reason was given for the appointment of the younger brother, who is 48. But the Telegraph of London reported that the crown prince had been removed over claims that he was too sympathetic to women's rights. According to the paper, a government employee close to the ruling family said the move centred on his wife, Shaikah Fawqai al-Qassimi, a playwright and women's rights activist in her early 40s. "Dammit, Shaikah, I told you not to translate The Vagina Monologues!!"
'Sheikh Khaled was told, at a meeting with his father and six of his brothers, that he had to banish his wife from the emirate and demolish the ladies' club that helps women here if they have problems,' the employee was reported to have said. The club that helps wimmin when their sweet Islamist hubbies beat the stuffing out of them? Okay, now I see why #1 son is gone.
'She has done a lot to bring the country forward, but Sheikh Saud does not feel there is a place for women in today's Arab society.' "And that's that!"
The Telegraph said that on Saturday night, about 1,000 supporters of Sheikh Khaled, including tribal leaders, gathered outside his palace in a peaceful protest against his brother.
The paper said Sheikh Khaled had been the de facto ruler for the past four years since his elderly father became demented frail. Sheikh Saqr is believed to be as old as Moses in his 90s.
Sheikh Saud is a prominent businessman in Ras Al-Khaimah, one of seven emirates that make up the UAE federation. The brothers, two of the ruler's eight sons, were born to different mothers. We could have guessed that!
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 05:39 pm ||
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This is essentially a reactionary coup against someone who was trying to coax his pinpoint country into the 20th century...sigh...when will they learn?
ABU DHABI, June 15: Federal leaders in the United Arab Emirates have sent tanks into Ras al Khaimah to back a sudden change in succession announced by the emirate's aging ruler that has been rejected by his ousted eldest son. Eyewitnesses said on Sunday tanks were guarding the palaces of new crown prince Saud and his father Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammed al-Qassimi, who on Saturday removed his eldest son Khaled from the succession in a decree.
"Khaled, I've decided to disinherit you. Pack your shit and get out."
Sources close to Khaled said he had rejected the decision, saying his father, thought to be around 90 years old, was not in good health. No reason was given for Sheikh Saqr's move.
"I don't like him. Never did like him. He's got shifty eyes."
Khaled was known for an interest in politics and vigorous support for the UAE's claims to three islands in the Gulf under Iran's control.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 10:47 am ||
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The initial report I saw said that the ousted son was too progressive in his views of women.
An Arab newspaper is reporting that four suspected Saudi militants have been arrested after a shootout with security forces in Mecca - the second armed clash in the Muslim holy city in as many days.
That's 'cause the place is so holy...
The Saudi-owned Asharq al-Awsat newspaper reports Monday that the shootout took place late Sunday on the outskirts of Mecca. Saudi officials have yet to comment on the incident. Another shootout late Saturday killed at least five suspected terrorists and two Saudi security officers.
A bit more, from MSNBC...
The militants were detained on the road to the Red Sea city of Jiddah, having abandoned a stolen car that had broken down. It said police shot and wounded one suspect after he threatened to detonate a bomb. The bomb did not explode.
"One step closer and I go 'boom,' coppers!... Ow!"
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 08:50 am ||
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You don't see them being too pissed off when these clowns are blasting away at each other in Mecca, do you? At least they ain't infidels.
Jeddah, SPA — Asghar bin Ali bin Abdulghafour, a Pakistani national, was beheaded here on Monday after being convicted of smuggling Heroin into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, said a statement released by the Interior Ministry. "The culprit was convicted by the Shariah Court, and the verdict was approved by the Cassation Court and the Supreme Judicial Council," said the statement.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 08:43 am ||
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when's the first beheading of a cleric? *not holding my breath*
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 12:16 Comments ||
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You have to admit, this cuts down on repeat offenses.
Posted by: El Supremo ||
06/17/2003 8:12 Comments ||
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Australia has joined the United States and a number of European countries in freezing the assets of an Islamic charity foundation with alleged links to the militant Palestinian group Hamas, the government announced today. Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Australia had added the al-Aqsa Foundation to a list of organisations whose assets could be frozen because of suspected links to terror groups. "As a consequence of this listing it is now a criminal offence for persons who hold assets that are owned or controlled by the al-Aqsa Foundation to use or deal with those assets," he said.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 11:13 am ||
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About time. But good job, mates. Better late than never.
Rampaging Serb waterpolo fans have stoned the Croatian embassy in Belgrade and tore down its flag after a violent European championship final, prompting the Croatian foreign minister to cancel a visit to Montenegro. Waterpolo hooligans? Waterpolo??
The Serbia and Montenegro team beat Croatia 9-8 in Sunday night's match in Slovenia, sparking violence more likely to be seen at a football match that left at least 20 people injured.
Incensed by the defeat at the hands of their wartime foes, Croatian supporters smashed up the stadium in Slovenian city of Kranj,injuring two Serb team members and forcing the cancellation of the medals ceremony. "They were throwing bottles, stones and flares," said a Serb team official. "They were shouting 'kill the Serbs'." Television pictures of the clashes infuriated Serb fans who attacked Zagreb's embassy in Belgrade and replaced Croatia's flag with Serbia's. Croatia summoned Belgrade's ambassador on Monday to deliver a strong protest about the attack and a spokeswoman in Zagreb said Croatian Foreign Minister Tonino Picula would not make Monday's planned trip to Montenegro. He remembers what happened to the Archduke.
Posted by: Steve ||
06/16/2003 04:26 pm ||
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an amusing anecdote in the annals of waterpolo:
"A favorite trick of these early games was to place the small India-rubber ball (which ranged from five to nine inches in diameter) inside the drawers, dive under the water and then "appear" again as near the goal as possible. "Appear" is the proper word, for in those days, the water in pools had no filtration systems, and was, shall we say cloudy. But this mode of scoring had its disadvantages, as the goalkeeper was permitted to stand on the pool deck and protect his goal as he saw fit."
A mustachioed bloke in striped leotards going for your balls..... cloudy, indeed.
#6
an amusing anecdote in the annals of waterpolo:
"A favorite trick of these early games was to place the small India-rubber ball (which ranged from five to nine inches in diameter) inside the drawers, dive under the water and then "appear" again as near the goal as possible. "Appear" is the proper word, for in those days, the water in pools had no filtration systems, and was, shall we say cloudy. But this mode of scoring had its disadvantages, as the goalkeeper was permitted to stand on the pool deck and protect his goal as he saw fit."
A mustachioed bloke in striped leotards going for your balls..... cloudy, indeed.
#7
an amusing anecdote in the annals of waterpolo:
"A favorite trick of these early games was to place the small India-rubber ball (which ranged from five to nine inches in diameter) inside the drawers, dive under the water and then "appear" again as near the goal as possible. "Appear" is the proper word, for in those days, the water in pools had no filtration systems, and was, shall we say cloudy. But this mode of scoring had its disadvantages, as the goalkeeper was permitted to stand on the pool deck and protect his goal as he saw fit."
A mustachioed bloke in striped leotards going for your balls..... cloudy, indeed.
#8
Being a former waterpolo player, I am not surprised. There was a famous match between USSR & Hungary in 1956: Tension over the Soviet invasion of Hungary surfaced in the water polo match between the two nations. One man left the pool bleeding when fights broke out, and the game was stopped with Hungary leading 4-0.
Spanish police have defused a powerful car bomb in the northern city of Bilbao after an anonymous caller - claiming to be from the Basque separatist group ETA - gave a warning to a local newspaper. The bomb - comprised of 30 kilos (50 lbs) of explosives packed inside a pressure cooker and wired to a timer - was inside a car parked near the city's San Mames soccer stadium and a finance ministry building. The thwarted attack comes as many town halls in the Basque region swore in new councillors. It also comes as street protests have been held by supporters of the now banned pro-Basque independence party Batasuna, which the Spanish Government has linked to ETA.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 12:39 pm ||
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ISTANBUL, SPA — Two Kurdish rebels were killed in a clash with Turkish soldiers in southeastern Turkey. The clash occurred Sunday in the province of Bingol, some 900 kilometers southeast of the capital Ankara,the Anatolia news agency reported. Seven people suspected of aiding the rebels were also detained. Bingol Governor Huseyin Avni Cos told Anatolia that the operation was one of a series launched after a local official was allegedly kidnapped and killed by rebels in the province last week.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 08:40 am ||
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EFL. Read the whole thing. From Andrew Sullivan.
Of all the remarkable consequences of the war against Saddam Hussein, one stands out for its sheer unlikeliness: The subject of Europe has become interesting to Americans again. In the run-up to the war, France and Germany revealed an unprecedented hostility toward the Bush administration's foreign policy. Americans noticed. France, in particular, orchestrated a global campaign to prevent the United States from deposing its former client, Saddam. And, since the war, France has continued to frustrate U.S. foreign policy—most recently when Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin visited Yasser Arafat, whom the United States has tried to isolate. Worse, with the unveiling of a new federalist constitution for a "United States of Europe" in June, the anti-American trend will be subtly but profoundly institutionalized. It's past time that Americans wake up and see this new threat for what it is.
For the longest time, of course, America's approach to European unity was one of supportive neglect. In the wake of World War II, there was no reason whatsoever for the United States to object to increased Western European integration, the expansion of intra-European trade, and the pacification of ancient conflicts, especially between France and Germany. In fact, there were many good reasons to endorse and encourage increased European integration.
But this analysis always obscured something at the heart of the European project. From the beginning, European unity was understood, especially in French eyes, as a counterweight to the global hegemony of the United States. The calculation was simple: No single European power could ever hope to approximate U.S. wealth, population, or power. Even the most formidable European nation—Germany—had a population only one-third as large as that of the United States. A nation such as France, with an ancient history of global influence and a recent history of military humiliation, looked to the European project as a way to regain what it had once lost. Beneath the patina of shared sovereignty, there was the dream of a new sovereignty—more powerful than any in the past. Britain's accession to the European Economic Community (EEC), long prevented by the Anglophobic Charles de Gaulle, was only embraced because it appeared at the time to represent Britain's retreat from its commonwealth and U.S. allegiances, and toward a new commitment to forging a federal European entity.
Posted by: lkl ||
06/16/2003 07:05 am ||
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#1
Sorry, the above blather was mine.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
06/16/2003 22:20 Comments ||
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European politics is dominated by the Left and the Left, worldwide, is animated by hatred of things they don't accept as legitimate, like America. No surprise there. But America's 'enemy' isn't European unity as much as it's the European Left. We should oppose their goals for European unity like we opposed Soviet communism. In time, and with the entry of Eastern European countries to the EU, the issue may go away as the strength of Gallic anti-American 'nationalists' and Euro-leftists is diluted. In the meantime, the US should push for bilateral deals on defense and economics with individual countries in Europe, especially the UK, Poland, and Russia.
Posted by: Ned ||
06/16/2003 13:56 Comments ||
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"One thing that could unify Europe is a clumsy U.S. intervention to prevent it."
Indeed. But then the contradiction
"That's the current challenge to U.S. foreign policy: how to prevent the new European constitution from becoming a reality"
Don't try it.
"...an entity that will be respected and listened to as a political power that will speak as an equal with the largest powers on the planet."
Competition, yes. Friendship at eye level, yes. A hostile rival, no, that's not the intention. But hostile U.S. policy might push the EU into something it doesn't want.
Isn't America the champion of free enterprise and competition? It may help both sides of the Atlantic to meet the challenges that lie before us. When Kissinger complained about that there was no number to call in Europe he failed to mention that the U.S. never wanted that number to exist.
Get used to it. And let's stay the friends we (still) are. We both lose if we don't.
#4
The largest problem we here in America see, is that the EU (If it lasts. Which we here in America doubt given that it will be a 'lil U.N. )will revolve around a quasi-socialist agenda which will be directly contradictory to ours. While we see England as a potential voice of reason, we also see that they aren't a member yet, and could-with a new PM-just as easily tow the Franco/German line.
While we don't see the EU having a different agenda as being neccessarily bad, we are definitley leary (through experience-with France especially)of the EU actively undermining our agenda, and therefore our national security. At that piont, there is no way of avoiding the U.S. and the E.U. becoming hostile toward each other. One may wish to keep in mind the fact that we've already taken over Europe once, and this time we may not give it back.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
06/16/2003 15:27 Comments ||
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It's all about money. Every European country's economy is in the shitter, they can't agree on reforms individually and they'll NEVER agree as a group. EU will be the next USSR, economically doomed, with the same Soviet satellite countries looking to the US for friendship.
#6
Mike N. that was a most interesting statement. If Donald Rumsfeld ever repeats your last sentence he will promote the United States of Europe more than Giscard could ever dream of.
He has done enough already in this respect, don't you think?
#8
Mike, what you say does seem to indicate that every agenda that is "different" you immediately consider as *necessarily* bad and hostile.
And since each independent nation (or group of nations), has by necessity its own agenda, that seems to indicate that you do think as hostile every country that is not under US domination.
After all, UK vocally opposed you invading Syria. Evil, *evil* UK. You should take it over and not give it back.
EU has done and is still doing more for peace, democracy and human rights in Europe than the US will do in a hundred years in the Middle East. And it's *we* who'll have a problem with *you* if you choose to undermine our agenda or European unity, as many voices there say you should so choose.
Don't be our enemy and we won't be yours. But so choose to be, and you'll see how far the power of annoyance at American interference shall bring us all.
#9
Aris. U.S.E. could be very good for both the U.S.A. and Old Europe. You seem to misunderstand me, however. It appears that you failed to read my statement for what it says, and read into my statement instead. I specifically said "While we don't see the EU having a different agenda as being neccessarily bad" you seem to think I said. "what you say does seem to indicate that every agenda that is "different" you immediately consider as *necessarily* bad and hostile." Now, I request that you go back to my previous post and read the part about France. In case you don't want to go back, I'll make it simple in this post. What we in the U.S. see as a potential problem, is the fact that one of the major countries pushing the EU (read: France)which will no doubt play a major roll has-very recently- actively attempted to undermine specific U.S. national security goals. That is our biggest concern. The other, smaller concern, is having to deal with our allies in yet another UN type environment where nothing gets done. Now, I personally think it will be nothing more than a European UN and I am all for it. I would like nothing more than see fail, miserably, something that Jaques Suckscock loves so much.
TGA, I agree with you, but I think it's more out of European fear of being nothing, than threatening words from Rummy.
And Aris, one last thing. Europe may want to choose it's enemies wisely.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
06/16/2003 17:19 Comments ||
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Well Andrew has his opinion and he may be right that the USE will be powerful politically and financially and useless militarily. On the other hand, there is a good chance that the USE will be useless politically, hopeless financially and remain useless militarily - with the only respect coming from university professors, NPR commentators and the like - similar to the Arab League.
#11
Mike N, Europe doesn't define its "importance" by Rumsfeld's words. And France does have a disproportionate importance at the UN that it won't have in a United Europe of 25 nations (France might dream of it but it's not going to happen).
I think that Schröder (hah I have umlauts) has realized that the French have taken him for a ride. Did you notice that the EU is getting tougher with Iran? Iranian nukes are not in Europe's interest and I doubt that U.S. action against NKor will be met with a lot of EU (German) resistance. Iraq was... let me put it that way, bad diplomatic management of a crisis. Opinions about which side made the bigger mistakes may vary.
Europe has no intention to chose enemies, neither wisely nor foolishly. But the United States is not the only country in the world that has (legitimate) national security goals (and interests).
What we seem to have forgotten in the last months is that most of these goals are matching closely. I have said it before... the real challenge will be China.
#12
TGA, It was far more than bad managemant. I say again, France has-very recently- actively attempted to undermine U.S. national security. And, It was not to protect French national security, That would be understandable. It was merely for the potential profit at the expense of my security. Also, do not fool yourself. The French will be a very major power in the EU because they are better diplomats than any potential member. If you underestimate their prowess in diplomatic matters, you'll lose your ass.
Saddam was no more in Europes best interest than Iranian nukes, and I don't remember a whole lot of EU nations helping out with Iraq. So forgive me If I don't think the EU is seriously going to do anything other than talk about Iran.
Nkor? Europe is helpless to do anything about the Noks, and are going to stay away from the issue if at all possible.
And as far as the real challenge of China (They are the answer to Nkor also)goes, I agree. I also feel that France will be nothing but an obstructionist in these goals,(Nevermind that Jaques visions of Multi-Polarity are a danger to the world.-We've already had a cold war. No thanks Jaques, we're trying to quit.) and if they have any power in the EU, they will turn the EU into an obstructionist organization of countries without the other countries even wanting to be an "obstruction".
While Europeans may not define themselves by Rummies words, they certainly seem to hang on every one of them. It's almost like they fear his words, because they sure as hell don't heed them.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
06/16/2003 18:27 Comments ||
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The best policy on China is to leave them alone. Their adventures with capitalism and their communism are two divergent things.
#14
Mike N, I myself can't fully understand why the French went so far. I think it was not just for some profit making with Saddam. They could have kept their share joining America in Iraq.
The French have an agenda that doesn't really want to "undermine US security" (France has no interest in a collapse of the USA, nobody has). It's an agenda of "checking the superpower", the "cocorico" in the world. Wise politicians allow the French the "cocorico" where it doesn't hurt much so that France shuts up when it WOULD hurt. I don't believe that all French are that happy about the last months, I can't read lots of triumphalism in Le Monde or Le Figaro, but lots of worries about the French-American relations. The French idea of "multipolarity" is dangerous and nonsense as long as America choses to be a friendly power with Europe. I agree, we don't need a cold war and we REALLY don't need Europe siding with Russia or China against the "American hegemony".
"If you underestimate their prowess in diplomatic matters, you'll lose your ass"
Indeed, Schröder learnt that the hard way. But so did Powell. Let's get better diplomats then.
#15
Powell is military to the bone. What's Shroders excuse?
I'm just ribbin' the Germans a little there, no disrespect meant.
As far as better diplomats go, they won't help. As long as the left is as strong as they are, and they continue to look up to the French with the fondness equivalent to that of a puppy to it's master, and are willing to follow the way that same puppy would it's master, the French hold the best cards in the world of diplo-poker.
A backroom deal by Germany and France to sabotage the takeover directive after 14 years of work prompted a furious reaction from the European Commission yesterday and renewed fears that the European Union is incapable of tackling economic decline. Under the agreement reached over dinner in Berlin by Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and President Jacques Chirac, Germany offered to soften its demands for root-and-branch reform of the Common Agricultural Policy at the crucial farm summit underway this week. In exchange, France agreed to help block the takeover plans, which are intended to create a level playing field for investment flows across the EU and open up Germany's companies and distribution networks to full competition. "It's absolutely disgusting. We have bent over backwards to be sensitive to German concerns, and now they do this," said a Commission official. Brussels has been pushing the directive for 14 years, but each time it nears completion vested interests, chiefly in Germany, find some fresh way to scupper the plans. While both governments refuse to acknowledge the deal, EU diplomats confirmed privately that it was true.
For Frits Bolkestein, the Dutch single market commissioner who has transformed his directorate into an engine for free-market reform, it is a bitter disappointment. A former Shell executive, he has sought to smash down investment barriers and open the way for radical restructuring of Europe's hidebound management, especially in Germany. He has warned in the past that the EU would pay a "high price" for clinging to its antiquated commercial practices. "It is tragic to see how Europe's broader interests can be frustrated by certain narrow interests," he said.
But Mr Schröder, a former director of Volkswagen, has battled tenaciously against the takeover plans, fearing that they would permit predators to seize control of Germany's national champions. There have been just four hostile takeovers in Germany over the last half century, including the Vodafone purchase of the Dusseldorf industrial giant, Mannesmann, three years ago. German law allows management to use "poison pills" to frustrate takeovers without having to consult shareholders, a defence that shields them against the discipline of market forces. The City of London strongly backs Mr Bolkestein's plans. At the moment, British firms are vulnerable to hostile takeovers by German companies, but do not enjoy reciprocal access - although economists increasingly argue that Germany itself is the chief victim of its own barriers.
Posted by: Bulldog ||
06/16/2003 05:12 am ||
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#1
Aris didn't I read a week or so ago that if a country decides to leave the EU it will take a minimum of 2 years?
#2
RW, Germany couldn't sign that border treaty with Poland before reunification. It couldn't sign many things before reunification actually.
Fact is, it was signed.
Fact is, for everyone who buys land there is someone who sells it. Happened in Mallorca where fincas were sold overpriced and now the (rich) locals complain about "alienation".
Yes, two years to leave. I don't expect it to happen unless one country gets seriously pissed of. Of course there will be an economic price to pay. But if things REALLY went so bad that a country wanted to leave earlier I don't think anyone can (or will) stop them. I imagine as people voted for EU now they will be required to vote against if they want to leave.
RW, yes I know how people are. Germans were rather condescending in the 50s and 60s when it came to Italian "guest workers". You'll be hard pressed to find anything like that now. Give it 10, 15 years and German-Polish relations will look about the same as German-Italian ones. East Germans tend to be more reserved when it comes to Poland. Must have been that Communist solidarity-friendship thing forced down their throat a little too hard.
I will refrain from mentioning the attitude 50% of Americans may have when it comes to Mexicans...
#4
We keep reading about items like this where France/Germany are screwing the other current and potential memembers of the EU yet the other members take it or are still trying hard to get into the EU. Hopefully these countries will wake up before its too late.
#7
Aris: the same reason that the Soviet's struggled with the Nationalities issue. You're trying to build an Empire around the concept that Hitler, Stalin, Napoleon and the Hapsburgs tried their hand at and I wish you the best of luck; I mean [national] socialism always works in Europe, right?
Posted by: Brian ||
06/16/2003 13:00 Comments ||
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#8
We're trying to built a voluntary union. We don't force anyone to enter. We don't force anyone to remain.
Trying to build an empire around the concept that Hitler, Stalin, Napoleon and the Hapsburgs tried their hand on? Yeah, whatever. If you don't even know the difference between peace and war, between choice and violent coercion...
#10
So Schroder( Damn I don't have an oomlat )is worried about predators taking over the jewels of the German economy. Funny he did mind to much when DB snatched up Freightliner and Chrysler. And the big german machine tool company snatched up G&L
Posted by: Someone who did NOT vote for William Proxmire ||
06/16/2003 16:34 Comments ||
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We don't force anyone to remain.
Oh my friend you just stepped on a land mine there. Sure technically it may be possible for a country to attempt to leave. But if the EU is all about free movement of people anywhere and everywhere, how is a country going to evict the people that have moved in? It will be impossible. This is a permament thing Jack, so don't look back now.
#12
"how is a country going to evict the people that have moved in?"
So, that's your problem, that you want to get rid of all the immigrants, is that it? Preferably the ones with darker skin-colours? Or of Muslim faith? Or will it be all the ones which didn't have English as their native language?
I'm sure that once you abandon the EU and are no longer bound by the Charter of Fundamental Rights, you could arrange for some nice ethnic cleansing of your preference.
#14
Aris, I'm an immigrant myself, live with immigrants, grew up with immigrants, I have no problem with immigrants.
But let's take a look at your assertion: if an EU citizen settles within EU territory, he's not an immigrant is he Aris? Now suppose this citizen invests a lot of money in a state (like Poland) that wants to separate from the EU, and then does separate. What is this EU citizen supposed to do? Pack up and leave? Give up EU citizenship? No! He files a lawsuit of course.
And TGA, come on!!! Don't give me this bullshit about Europe evolving as it was only RECENTLY (1990s) that Germany signed a treaty (or understanding, or something) finally recognizing the border with Poland, and it's only been until recently that Ex-German land in Poland was referred to as "temporarily occupied territory" by German school history books.
Europe may have evolved past using war as a means, but it hasn't evolved more than the average human being. I'm convinced that Germans will buy up land in Poland like there was no tomorrow, especially former German territory. And why shouldn't they, it's beautiful. I have no problem with Germans or anyone else buying anything in Poland. In fact I have lots to sell if anyone is interested.
But Aris' point that somehow it will be easy to leave is absolutely false. The offending state would be riddled with sanctions for eons to come.
Greedy, no. Condescending, yes. BTW, I lived in Austria for a year starting in 1981. Based on my experiences there I would say about 50% of Europeans have evolved to the point where you think they have evolved TGA. The people that you think have evolved never had to evolve in the first place.
#17
RW, Germany couldn't sign that border treaty with Poland before reunification. It couldn't sign many things before reunification actually.
Fact is, it was signed.
Fact is, for everyone who buys land there is someone who sells it. Happened in Mallorca where fincas were sold overpriced and now the (rich) locals complain about "alienation".
Yes, two years to leave. I don't expect it to happen unless one country gets seriously pissed of. Of course there will be an economic price to pay. But if things REALLY went so bad that a country wanted to leave earlier I don't think anyone can (or will) stop them. I imagine as people voted for EU now they will be required to vote against if they want to leave.
RW, yes I know how people are. Germans were rather condescending in the 50s and 60s when it came to Italian "guest workers". You'll be hard pressed to find anything like that now. Give it 10, 15 years and German-Polish relations will look about the same as German-Italian ones. East Germans tend to be more reserved when it comes to Poland. Must have been that Communist solidarity-friendship thing forced down their throat a little too hard.
I will refrain from mentioning the attitude 50% of Americans may have when it comes to Mexicans...
#18
TGA, do you have any comments to make regarding the above article? I would expect France to play the system for maximum self-benefit, but I'm disappointed to read of Germay's 14 year obstruction of fair EU takeover regulations. You can hardly blame Schroeder alone for that...
He can happily remain outside the EU if he wants to. EU citizens do exist outside the EU borders you know.
"Aris didn't I read a week or so ago that if a country decides to leave the EU it will take a minimum of 2 years?"
Raptor, no, it'll be a *maximum* of two years. It'll be two years if no agreement can be reached for quicker exit. And as TGA said who could really stop them from "leaving" (for all intends and purposes) sooner than that?
And I'd say it makes sense to allow for such a delay, in order to let all those citizens/businesses leave who want to remain inside EU soil.
#22
"...although economists increasingly argue that Germany itself is the chief victim of its own barriers."
Bulldog, this says it all. You are right, we need reforms, not just in that respect. But it slowly seems to dawn on people. We should have started 20 years ago already. Maybe we just had it too good. Margaret Thatcher could do what she did because Britain in the 70s was indeed a hostage of the trade unions.
RW, in the first place it was a constitutional thing that stated that decisions like that had to be left to a free unified Germany. As a matter of fact most West Germans didn't believe in reunification for the next.. lets say 50 years. If ever. So it was rather convenient not to finalize things (and anger nationalists) but West Germany DID state that borders in Europe (including the Oder-Neisse-Line) could only be altered peacefully and in mutual agreement, so basically the Oder-Neisse has been a fact since Willy Brandt's Ostpolitik and his famous trip to Warsaw in 1972.
#23
Re: Leaving the EU and all it entails, I would say that the old principle of "Pacta Sunt Servanda" applies. So if a German moved to Poland, bought property there under EU regulations he should be able to keep both: his property and his right to remain in Poland. Same is true of course for Polish people who did the same in Germany (or elsewhere in the EU).
#24
should be able to keep both: his property and his right to remain in Poland.
I agree. Hence my point that joining is rather a permament thing, and not to be taken lightly. The younger generation though, cares more about money and wealth than who owns the house next to them. So the dream of a US of E will work eventually. I claim it's not necessary, but hey, what do I know.
#26
"I will refrain from mentioning the attitude 50% of Americans may have when it comes to Mexicans..."
TGA: If Americans have a bad attitude towards Mexican workers, it's because there are so many illegal immigrants from Mexico. Why? Because we have a huge, porous border with them and Mexico sucks. But yeah, there's a major immigration problem there. You don't find the same prejudice against Canadians or Asians or whatever.
Another "Great Moment in Catholicism"...
These days, Sister Jackie Hudson is packing away her things in her Bremerton home, visiting friends to say thank you and goodbye. She is preparing for prison. Susan Sarandon. Could this role be your next Oscar nomination?
Last October, Sister Hudson, 68, and two fellow Dominican nuns cut down part of a fence at a nuclear missile silo in Colorado, painted crosses on the silo cover with their own blood, and hammered the cover and railroad tracks leading to the silo hatch. It was similar to actions they'd taken before â spray-painting a bunker at a Michigan Air Force base, hammering on a fighter jet and pouring blood on a satellite dish at an air show in Colorado. It was, Sister Hudson said, a symbolic act to "point out and expose the crime of our government" in storing nuclear weapons. Looks like it might be time for the good sisters to do some chilling out in the the Federal hoosgow.
The government â and a federal jury â saw it differently.
After six months in jail awaiting trial, Sister Hudson, Sister Carol Gilbert, 55, and Sister Ardeth Platte, 67, both of Baltimore, were convicted in April. A federal-court jury in Denver found them guilty of two felonies â damaging government property and obstructing national defense, crimes that carry a maximum sentence of 30 years. The three nuns will return to Denver for sentencing July 25. Prosecutors are asking for five to eight years. "These were highly sensitive government installations," said Jeff Dorschner, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Denver. "They've shown blatant disregard for the laws. Because of that blatant disregard and their prior histories, they're facing a fair amount of prison time." Looks like the government has lost it's sense of humor lately, eh, sisters?
But others have taken up the nuns' cause, saying their convictions were the result of patriotic fervor spawned by the tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001, and the recent war with Iraq. Their story has garnered national media attention and letters from around the world. "Individual citizens have a right to call their government to accountability" for crimes against humanity, Sister Hudson believes. Yep, everybody's a bunch of patriotic crimes against humanity facists now. Except for the good sisters. Must be that Evil Bush again.
Her small house in Bremerton has been home since she came in 1993 to work with the Poulsbo-based Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action, an anti-nuclear-weapons group. Small wood plaques with the words "resist" and "action" adorn the walls; a black bracelet with "Free Jackie" spelled out in rhinestones (a gift from a friend) rests on a bathroom counter. On a recent day she wore a small cross over a T-shirt emblazoned with the word "Truth," a biblical quote â "You will learn the truth and the truth shall make you free" â and the statement: "Warning: Truth seeking may be hazardous to your religious denomination." Who gave you that one? Bernie Law?
Several decades ago she was living in a convent and was a music teacher in Grand Rapids, Mich. Then the vast changes of Vatican II and the civil-rights movement of the 1960s and '70s spurred Sister Hudson to become an activist for civil rights and farmworkers issues. At a religious retreat in Michigan in the 1980s, she came to believe that Christianity had lost its sense of Christ having come to Earth to "change the economic, political and religious structures of the day. He put people before the law," she said. Inspired by the words of another Dominican nun to "live the rest of our lives in the best of the struggles," Sister Hudson took up the fight against nuclear arms. She can't remember how many times she's been arrested but she's been in jail about five times, once for eight months. Remember when nuns used to be just... nuns?
The three nuns work with Plowshares, an international anti-war movement. Basing their actions on the biblical injunction to "beat swords into plowshares," Plowshares activists typically demonstrate at military installations using hammers and blood. On the morning of Oct. 6, the three nuns, dressed in white inspection suits bearing the initials CWIT (standing for Citizens Weapons Inspection Team), clipped a link in a chain locked onto a fence surrounding a Minuteman III missile silo in northeastern Colorado. They then cut down three sections of a fence to symbolically "expose (the site) to the world and invite people to bear witness," Sister Hudson said. If I'm on that Security detail after 9/11 and I come upon 3 folks screwing around near a nuke, the only thing people would be bearing witness to would be three bullet riddled nuns.
They poured their own blood, stored in baby bottles, to form large crosses on the walls of the silo. Using ball-peen hammers, they pounded on the silo cover and the railroad tracks on which the cover slides open and closed. Then they sat, knelt, sang hymns, recited Scripture and prayed. Sister Hudson said their intent that day was "not to do physical damage. It was symbolic," she said. So sending you to jail. How's that for heavy symbolism?
The April convictions shocked the nuns and their attorney. "These are women of peace," said attorney Walter Gerash of Denver, who attributes the convictions at least partly to a post-Sept. 11 intolerance of government criticisms, especially in the midst of the Iraq war. "This was what you call symbolic free speech. They didn't destroy anything." Surprise, surprise, surprise!!!
But Dorschner, the U.S. Attorney's Office spokesman, says that "during a time of war, during a time of heightened state of alert, an alarm goes off that the perimeter has been breached at a nuclear weapons silo. When the military responds to that alarm, they see three unknown people wearing chemical-weapons suits. Through a loudspeaker they gave instructions to the unknown individuals. Those instructions were not followed." Whistle a few rounds past their ears next time. See if that gets them to follow instructions.
The five- to eight-year sentence his office is seeking is dictated by sentencing guidelines that were in place before Sept. 11. "No other country on Earth provides as many avenues for peaceful and lawful protest as does the United States," said U.S. Attorney John Suthers in a statement. Sound like another one of them patrotic fascists to me.
"It is our hope that this prosecution and conviction serves as a deterrent not only to these defendants, but to others inclined to bypass peaceful and lawful means of protest to commit similar crimes." Attention all asshats! No more games! Please keep your nobility and goodness to yourselves! Thank you!
Asked if she regrets her actions, Sister Hudson is defiant: "I would do it again today." ...or in 5 to 8 years, whichever comes first.
She is buoyed by news that some anti-nuclear groups are planning demonstrations at missile sites around the country July 26. "They will find on July 26 that not only is the sentence not a deterrent but that it has ignited people all over this nation to be at the nuclear sites in their neighborhoods calling for an end to nuclearism." That's fine. I'm sure the Federal pens can find room for them. If not, we'll make more.
#1
BTW, the suit will be for the Dominicans to pay the costs incurred by the taxpayers of the State of Colorado for their incarceration for the entire lenght of thier sentence, and costs to deputies and the court system.
#2
3 items:
OP does the term"flame broiled"come to mind.
The Catholic Bishop(Phoenix Arch Dioces)acuused of obstructing justice and protecting pedophile priests,was arrested a couple of days ago for hit and run in fatal treafic accident.
While taking HazMat classes(DOT packageing and transport of hazardous materials)instructor told us this story:While decomisioning the silos around Tucson,Az.,a convoy of unmarked vehicles was transporting the warheads.The convoy was stopped by DPS officers(thats State Troopers to you"Old America"states)well it seems we had 2 groups of people pointing weapons at each other,both with ample authority to use deadly force.
#3
The only real display of miiitary force I've seen domestically was along I-80 near Rapid City SD about 20 years ago. A convoy of semi's was accompanied by something like Humvees. .50-cal machine guns were sticking out of every available doorway, and manned. Helicopters with door mounted machine guns were flying low and slow overhead. I hate to imagine what they were transporting.
#4
They're lucky SAC's defunct and the SP's didn't show up and just plug 'em. The signs on the fences around those things are not kidding. And SAC had NO sense of humor.
#5
The nuns and thier attorney were shocked at the conviction! I'm shocked that the prosecution didn't understand that the nuns were special and therefore immmune from mundane standards. And, by "special" I dont' mean of a religious community -- I mean the same sort of "special" that self-defined activists claim whenever they are called to face the consequences of their actions.
#6
I seem to recall a threatened protest/ "trespassing" this past Spring at Vandenberg AFB. The Base spokesman warned they would be met with deadly force. To this day I don't think the protest ever actually happened. The fools are starting to learn that society's patience has worn really thin
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 14:29 Comments ||
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#7
These groups decided against holding the demonstrations because of teh threat of deadly force. Hmmm I think I see an answer. These plowshare people are useful idiots for the left. they are luck that the Security Police wer not trigger happy or this discussion would be moot. Nukes are a weapon of the past, but unless EVEYONE gets rid of them we need to maintain ours. Sorry sisters, but this is for your own good.
#9
If they object to the US storing nukes, I'm sure that I can think of a few places to dipose of them. Haven't these idiots ever figured out that nuclear weapons were what kept the Cold War cod. Sure ain't like the nuns I had in school.
Posted by: Someone who did NOT vote for William Proxmire ||
06/16/2003 16:16 Comments ||
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#10
I think you should strike a deal with them. Offer them to waive prison if they go to Iran to do the same there.
#11
One of these days, these "activists" are going to show up, and we'll have a practice launch from a live silo. That huge concrete lid slams back against the chocks at something like 170 MPH. It weighs in at about 6 tons. Nobody should ever be caught in between the silo door and that backstop. Anybody there will become instant jelly.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
06/16/2003 23:02 Comments ||
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#12
Believe it or not...I think I've had a run in with the Good Sister. Allow me to explain.
Easter Sunday '84, I was a conventional weapons specialist with the 379 BMW at Wurtsmith AFB, MI. The wife and I awoke to go to church only to discover that the base was locked down. The reason was that a half dozen Catholic priests and nuns had gotten onto the base for a protest. When we finally got off the base, they were still at the main gate telling the media what heroes they were, and how they spraypainted peace slogans on a weapons bunker, then held mass in front of a B-52 on the Alert Pad.
One problem - it never happened. Y'see, these Holy Dingleberries drove up from Southern Michigan that morning on their mission of peace, where the temperatures could be reasonably expected to be in the low 70's. But at Wurtsmith - 50 miles south of the 45th Parallel - the temp that morning was a lovely twenty-something, which the very lightly clad HD's didn't realize until they got there.
Then, they jumped an 8-ft double razor wire fence to get onto the base, shredding what clothing they did have (they looked like they were wearing ghillie suits when I saw them)and themselves to boot. They set off the movement sensors, and the SPs went for 'em. However, as soon as they'd gotten onto the base, they proceeded to get lost in the fairly dense forest that covered about a third of the base. The SPs could track them by their crashing around in the woods trying to figure out where they were, and they finally herded them out and nailed 'em. They never got within a couple of football fields of either the Pad or the Weapons Storage Area, tho the newspapers believed every word they said, and since SAC policy was not to even admit we HAD weapons there, there was no way to rebut it.
The Good Sister - even if she's not an acquaintance from long ago - deserves every minute in prison and more. But I have to admit, I like TGA's suggestion.
Oh, one other thing - don't forget the idiot who laid down in front of a train carrying Trident SLBM warheads a few years ago - and then was shocked to be run over. Notice how THAT little form of civil disobedience hasn't been tried again since?
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
06/17/2003 2:01 Comments ||
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#13
These loonies should be barred from the Dominican sisterhood. I'm Catholic, but what they are doing is NOT in the books. They are being very selective, and self-deluded.
Some of us here in the Archdiocese of Denver are asking the Bishop to contact the head of their order and get clarification: are they working under the sanction of the Dominican society? If so, then we are planning to file a RICO suit agains the Dominicans for supporting and bankrolling these 3-time loser criminals. If not, then we will request that they be removed from the order.
I and my fellow Catholics (especially the veretans and KoC memebers) are sick and tired of the religious orders people who wrap themselves up in The Cloth and then proceed to soil it.
As for the scripture quoting, I have one for the Sisters of Stupidity: (Luke 22:36)
Jesus said: "But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one."
#14
BTW, the suit will be for the Dominicans to pay the costs incurred by the taxpayers of the State of Colorado for their incarceration for the entire lenght of thier sentence, and costs to deputies and the court system.
#15
3 items:
OP does the term"flame broiled"come to mind.
The Catholic Bishop(Phoenix Arch Dioces)acuused of obstructing justice and protecting pedophile priests,was arrested a couple of days ago for hit and run in fatal treafic accident.
While taking HazMat classes(DOT packageing and transport of hazardous materials)instructor told us this story:While decomisioning the silos around Tucson,Az.,a convoy of unmarked vehicles was transporting the warheads.The convoy was stopped by DPS officers(thats State Troopers to you"Old America"states)well it seems we had 2 groups of people pointing weapons at each other,both with ample authority to use deadly force.
#16
The only real display of miiitary force I've seen domestically was along I-80 near Rapid City SD about 20 years ago. A convoy of semi's was accompanied by something like Humvees. .50-cal machine guns were sticking out of every available doorway, and manned. Helicopters with door mounted machine guns were flying low and slow overhead. I hate to imagine what they were transporting.
HYDERABAD, SPA — A land mine blast triggered by Maoist rebels killed three police officers in southern India on Monday. The guerrillas, known as "Naxalites," planted the mine when they raided the Nemplipuri village in Andhra Pradesh state Sunday night, beating up villagers whom they accusedof being police informers, said the local superintendent of police, V.C. Sajjanar.
I guess beating people up is necessary if you're going to liberate them...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 08:36 am ||
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RAWAH - American troops "slaughtered" more than one hundred Iraqi civilians, most of them killed while asleep, at the early hours of Friday, June 13, eyewitnesses told IslamOnline.net.
Got the old propaganda machine fired up, do you? But your cultural blinders are ascribing the wrong tactics â Americans don't do the same things Baathists do, even when they do things that are bad, which is seldom — and never as policy...
The U.S. forces deliberately opened fire from tanks and helicopter gunships at the houses of Iraqi civilians in Rawah, 400 kilometers to the north-west of Baghdad, killing tens of people, they charged. The town residents rushed out of their homes which came under heavy American bombardment. Some of them emerged with their light arms and battled the occupation forces, killing and injuring an unspecified number of American troops, eyewitnesses told IOL correspondent.
Uhuh. It could happen, I suppose. I doubt if it did...
"The bodies of 12 of your boys were found tied with ropes, each with a bullet in the head. The Americans detained them and immediately executed them in this horrible way," charged Abu Saadoun, one of the town tribal leaders.
Now, why in the world would we do that? Even if we were committing an atrocity, why would we blindfold them, rather than just mowing them down? Blindfolds and shots to the head would be evidence. Baathists don't worry about leaving evidence, but Americans certainly would. I'd call Abu a lying sack of droppings, myself...
"Now we have to avenge not only the occupation of our country but also the slaughtering of our boys. We will open the gates of hell on the Americans," he pledged in exclusive statements to IOL.
"Yes, yes! We must declare jihad!"
Tired and exhausted Abu Khaled told IOL he spent three hours in the desert at the outskirts of Rawah digging a mass grave for the victims of the American massacre. "We buried more than 80 of our sons but are still puzzled what pushed the Americans to massacre our people. We are far away from Baghdad and no fighting has been reported here. We have no training camps as alleged by the occupation forces. No Baathists. No nothing. The people of Rawah all reserved Sunnis. Rawah has a majority of PHD and university certificates holders."
"Most of the inhabitants are puppies, kittens or baby ducks!"
He uncovered to IOL that a number of Arab fighters, who flocked to Iraq during the days leading to the Anglo-American occupation to join arms in defending the Arab country, occasionally came to the town, also inhabited by a number of Iraqi army officers. "But, they are not Baathist officers. They opposed Saddam regime but they more strongly oppose the American occupation of their country," Abu Khaled said of the Iraqi army officers.
"They're all absolute paragons of virtue! Really!"
He asserted that the resistance of the American occupation has not yet gained its full momentum and is just at the very beginning. American armored vehicles and tanks are heavily deployed along Baghdad-Rawah highway but none of the Americans agreed to deliver statements to IOL team other than that they were hunting down loyalists to Saddam and his Baath party.
"Piss off. We're busy."
Asked why they target the north and north-west of Iraq, areas of Sunni majority, an American major who declined to put his name said they do not care if the areas belong to Sunnis or others, claiming there was "terrorist" activities there.
So shut your fudge up and get out of the way."
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 09:38 am ||
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#1
I just spent 2.5 years in SaudiLand (out for good) and find the jihadis to be a joke 99% of the time. Sure, there are some truly insane Islamazoids, but in very very few places will you find so much pure hot air (pun intended) expelled as in Arabia.
When I hear one of these pudsuckers drag out the threadbare "Jihad!" crap, I recall a bit from Twain's 'Huckleberry Finn'... the relevant excerpt:
"The idea of YOU lynching anybody! It's amusing. The idea of you thinking you had pluck enough to lynch a MAN! Because you're brave enough to tar and feather poor friendless cast-out women that come along here, did that make you think you had grit enough to lay your hands on a MAN? Why, a MAN'S safe in the hands of ten thousand of your kind -- as long as it's daytime and you're not behind him."
Cyber Sarge is right... remember "mountains of bodies and rivers of blood"? LOL
#2
Seems that there were a LOT of Anti-Saddam Army officers. Wonder why they never overthrew him? Wonder how many of the Army Officers were not party members? I bet you could hold that meeting in a telephone booth.
#3
I just spent 2.5 years in SaudiLand (out for good) and find the jihadis to be a joke 99% of the time. Sure, there are some truly insane Islamazoids, but in very very few places will you find so much pure hot air (pun intended) expelled as in Arabia.
When I hear one of these pudsuckers drag out the threadbare "Jihad!" crap, I recall a bit from Twain's 'Huckleberry Finn'... the relevant excerpt:
"The idea of YOU lynching anybody! It's amusing. The idea of you thinking you had pluck enough to lynch a MAN! Because you're brave enough to tar and feather poor friendless cast-out women that come along here, did that make you think you had grit enough to lay your hands on a MAN? Why, a MAN'S safe in the hands of ten thousand of your kind -- as long as it's daytime and you're not behind him."
Cyber Sarge is right... remember "mountains of bodies and rivers of blood"? LOL
SPA — Assailants fired rocket-propelled grenades against a civilian bus and a U.S. military convoy, wounding at least four Americans, two of them seriously. In the first of two attacks, "an enemy individual fired arocket-propelled grenade at 4th Infantry Division soldiers during an attempted ambush (Sunday), hitting a civilian bus that was passing a military convoy near the town of al-Mushahidah," about 25 kilometers north of Baghdad. At least two Americans were seriously wounded in the attack, said Capt. John Morgan, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad. Soldiers returned fire "to protect the convoy and the civilian bus," said a statement from U.S. Central Command, adding that "the number of casualties on the civilian bus are unknown at this time."
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 08:27 am ||
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Iraq's U.N. ambassador during the dying days of Saddam Hussein's regime said in a television interview that his government deserved to be overthrown. Really now? What brought you to that conclusion?
But Mohammed al-Douri argued in the rare interview that the Iraqis - and not the U.S.-led coalition - should have been the ones to oust Saddam. The ones upon whose necks you were standing? Those people?
Al-Douri told BBC World that he believes people are glad Saddam is gone. ``But they are not glad that the American and British are there,'' he said, according to a partial transcript. ``The regime is over and now we have to tackle another problem, the American and British presence in Iraq as a colonialist.'' If you want us to leave, help transform your country into a stable, liberal democracy.
Asked if Saddam's regime deserved to be toppled, al-Douri said, ``Not by you but by the Iraqi people.'' Sure, Mo, and you were just about to show them how when we intervened.
For months, Al-Douri vehemently defended Iraq as America and its allies sought U.N. backing for war. With U.S. troops making rapid progress across Iraq, he became the first Iraqi official to publicly say the war was over, leaving New York in April. During his time as Iraq's U.N. ambassador, al-Douri repeatedly insisted Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction. In the BBC interview, he largely stuck to that claim, saying the government told him these weapons were destroyed in 1991-1992. ``I would right now believe that the Iraqi government was not lying, and we are now waiting for the American and British to present evidence on these weapons of mass destruction,'' he said. Of course, you're a diplomat.
Pressed about Saddam's responsibility in the deaths of thousands of people, al-Douri said: ``If he were judged, I would accept the trial and the legitimacy of the court.'' Al-Douri added, however, that a murderer should be tried in his own national courts. Funny, we were thinking along similar lines for a fair number of the Ba'athists. By the way, Mo, do you have a good lawyer?
The former ambassador has largely stayed out of the public eye since abandoning his U.N. position. His appearance on the BBC interview program ``HARDTalk'' came more than a month after a live chat with Dubai-based al-Arabiya television. Stay gone, Mo, they don't need you.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 01:06 am ||
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#2
And you felt this way all along, right, Mo? But it's okay to mouth off about the "colonialists" whenever you feel like it. They won't cut your head off or wipe out your family, right?
Thai police are stepping up a crackdown on suspected Muslim militants, arresting a fifth man who may have links with overseas networks. The news follows the arrest of four suspected members of the Jemaah Islamiah Muslim network in the past month. Authorities said four men arrested earlier, including a Singaporean, were part of a cell planning attacks on embassies and Thai beach resorts popular with Westerners during a summit of Asia-Pacific heads of state in October. United States President George W Bush is among leaders expected to attend the summit. Thai Interior Minister Wan Muhamad Noor Matha said the fifth man, an Islamic religious teacher, had been arrested in the mainly Muslim southern province of Satun, 1,270 kilometres from Bangkok. Police declined to say when the man was arrested. Thai authorities have mounted a manhunt for more members of the militant cell, including a man they believe is the group's bomb maker and another believed to be smuggling radioactive materials.
Which is apparently a different guy from the one they've already caught smuggling radioactive materials...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 10:40 am ||
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Suspected arms dealer Narong Penanam is refusing to speak to police investigating his arrest on Friday with 30 kilogrammes of radioactive cesium-137, saying that he will do all his talking in court. Crime Suppression Division deputy commander Pol Col Pisit Pisuthisak said yesterday the suspect had told investigators he would not respond to any further questioning. A search of Mr Narong's home in Surin province failed to yield any further evidence, Pol Col Pisit said. US officials said the suspect made it clear during questioning that he intended to sell the radioactive substance to a terrorist organisation, for use in attacks on targets in Thailand. Mr Narong told police he had arranged to sell the cesium-137 in exchange for 1% of the 10 million baht asking price. He identified his suppliers as Thirasak Yingwattanakrai and Mangkorn, surname unknown. The two were reportedly close aides of a late air force general, identified as AVM Chanak, who allegedly acquired the cesium-137 in Laos. Police were attempting to locate Mr Thirasak and Mr Mangkorn in the hope they would shed more light on the case.
Like who they were gonna sell it to? And what the targets were? And what it was doing in Laos?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 10:23 am ||
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JAKARTA (Agencies): The Central Jakarta District Court on Monday jailed a Muslim youth activist for five months for insulting President Megawati Sukarnoputri during a protest in January. Iqbal Siregar, 36, defaced Megawati's portrait with black tape and allowed it to be run over by a car and a motorcycle outside the presidential palace during a January 15 protest by several groups opposed to the president. At the top of the picture was the caption, "People's Fugitive." The sentence is lighter than the 10-month jail term sought by public prosecutor, Arnold Angkouw. During the rally, he waved the picture and showed it to passers-by, saying, "This is the president who disappoints the people." He then threw the president's picture to the street, to be run over by a car driven by Nazaruddin and a motorcycle ridden by Badrul Munir. Siregar, who chairs the Islamic Youth Movement (GPI), which took part in the protest, has been in custody since his arrest on January 23. The judge said this period should be deducted from his jail sentence.
I can't really get fond of the idea of jugging people for calling the president names. My opinion of certain American presidents has been none too high. On the other hand, it's good to see the Indons trying to rein in the Islamists.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 10:01 am ||
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DENPASAR, Bali: Ali Ghufron, an alleged terrorist leader who met Osama bin Laden while he was fighting in Afghanistan, went on trial Monday for giving the green light for the deadly Bali bombings. Ali alias Mukhlas is charged with overall responsibility for the blasts and is said to have "motivated" the suicide bombers. He is the highest-level suspect to face trial for the attacks on two crowded nightspots last October that killed 202 people from 21 countries. Like two key suspects whose trials began earlier, he faces death by firing squad if convicted on several counts of terrorism.
Good idea. Let him count muzzle blasts...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 09:54 am ||
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You've probably guessed by now, but I'm working on the back end of this thing again tonight, making it longer, lower, leaner, wider, with more road-hugging weight. If something disappears (like the headlines did a few minutes ago), just curse and try again. Eventually I'll get all the parts back where they're supposed to be and things'll be working reliably again. My apologies!
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 07:32 pm ||
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Apologies? You're doing all the work, we just play. No apologies necessary
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 19:49 Comments ||
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1 curious thing, Fred: Posted stories are in 24-hour clock time and Comments post in 12-hour clock time, just curious why that is...
Frank
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 20:23 Comments ||
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#3
Apologies? You're doing all the work, we just play. No apologies necessary
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 19:49 Comments ||
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#4
1 curious thing, Fred: Posted stories are in 24-hour clock time and Comments post in 12-hour clock time, just curious why that is...
Frank
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 20:23 Comments ||
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#5
Fred, what worries me about this is that I figure most of our intelligence services rely heavily on Rantburg for news and analysis. You're probably going to get a complaint from George Tenet if you don't get things straightened out :-)
Posted by: Matt ||
06/16/2003 20:49 Comments ||
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JPost - Reg req'd
(AP) British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw and French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin were at odds Monday over discussions within the EU to outlaw Hamas' political wing
Calling for an international crackdown on the radical Palestinian group, Straw said Monday that Hamas was trying to blow up the Middle East peace process.
Dominique de Villepin, making a distinction between "mass movements" and "terrorists" argued that Hamas remained a necessary player in the peace process. There is no "peace process" if Hamas is involved, M. De Pinhead
De Villepin also urged Hamas to make more efforts in ending terrorist acts from Palestinian militants. "We call on Hamas to demonstrate that they are against all terrorist activities," he said.
Speaking to reporters at a EU foreign ministers meeting in Luxembourg, Straw called Hamas a "terrorist group" and added that it was "literally trying to blow this process to pieces". piece of Israeli civilians' flesh by piece of....
"We are taking firm action in the United Kingdom against Hamas, and now I believe is the time for the whole of the international community including the European Union to take action against a group which has made very clear that it has no interest whatever in being a partner for peace," he said.
The EU has already listed Izz al-Din al-Qassam, Hamas' military wing, as a terrorist organization. It will do the same to its political wing unless Hamas backs the peace process and abandons suicide bombings, said Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou, who presided over the EU meeting. But that's too simplisme for a sophisticate like Dominique
The EU's outgoing Middle East peace envoy, Miguel Angel Moratinos, told Spain's El Pais daily on Monday that the EU should add Hamas to its terrorist groups list because a political agreement would be impossible "if they carry on bombing."
Villepin dismissed the envoy's comment, saying: "He's [Moritanos] at the end of his mandate."
Is there any other counterproductive ways France can try and screw things up? Meeting Yasser, trying a parallel peace process, undermining the exclusion of Hamas, ...
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 05:16 pm ||
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#1
Did anybody expect anything else from the French?
Aris should give GFM Papandreou a pat on the back for doing what is right.
Aris I still can't figure out why you are so strongly in favor of alliing yourself with these terrorist loving asswipes?
#2
I can never figure out why the Greeks hate our guts and love the Muslims. After all, it was the Muslims who wiped out the Eastern Orthodox Church from North Africa (Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco), Mesopotamia (Iraq) and the Levant (Lebanon, Syria, etc) over a thousand years ago.
#3
raptor, I believe there was a time around 60s, 70s where France was a better ally to Israel than America was -- the Israelis were flying Mirage planes, and it was France IIRC that first provided Israel with the nuclear technology (or material, not sure which) it nowadays has.
*That* France wasn't any less *French* than the France you seem to despise now. The Union I desire is one that may last centuries - the temporary nowadays deeds of Chirac's government, right or wrong, are trivial compared to it.
After all, Greece has acted worse in the past, and I didn't want its breakup either. Why should I want the breakup of the Union just because of one member state's actions?
"Aris should give GFM Papandreou a pat on the back for doing what is right."
Even though he's a minister in a socialist party? :-D
Anyway, I voted for him, last parliamentary elections.
#4
"Right now, no question about Hamas. In 20 years...???"
Let's answer that question after the 20 years. Right now they're blowing up bus loads of civilians. "Arafat received the Nobel Prize for Peace"
They seemed to have jumped the gun on this one. Maybe the wording on the Nobel is "...in anticipation of peace..."
#5
"unless Hamas backs the peace process and abandons suicide bombings"
Fair enough.
Now the Villepin version "unless Hamas doesn't insist on driving the Jews back into the Mediterranean on Friday 32nd of February and promises not to bomb more than 200 people in a bus at once between midnight and 1 am"
#6
"Hamas remained a necessary player in the peace process."
Is there something in the water over there in Paris? Too much lead perhaps? Great, the USE lead by idiots like this. TGA, does this answer your question as to why the USA is weary about a U.S. of E.?
#8
Did anybody expect anything else from the French?
Aris should give GFM Papandreou a pat on the back for doing what is right.
Aris I still can't figure out why you are so strongly in favor of alliing yourself with these terrorist loving asswipes?
#9
I can never figure out why the Greeks hate our guts and love the Muslims. After all, it was the Muslims who wiped out the Eastern Orthodox Church from North Africa (Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco), Mesopotamia (Iraq) and the Levant (Lebanon, Syria, etc) over a thousand years ago.
#10
raptor, I believe there was a time around 60s, 70s where France was a better ally to Israel than America was -- the Israelis were flying Mirage planes, and it was France IIRC that first provided Israel with the nuclear technology (or material, not sure which) it nowadays has.
*That* France wasn't any less *French* than the France you seem to despise now. The Union I desire is one that may last centuries - the temporary nowadays deeds of Chirac's government, right or wrong, are trivial compared to it.
After all, Greece has acted worse in the past, and I didn't want its breakup either. Why should I want the breakup of the Union just because of one member state's actions?
"Aris should give GFM Papandreou a pat on the back for doing what is right."
Even though he's a minister in a socialist party? :-D
Anyway, I voted for him, last parliamentary elections.
#11
Since it's clear that France intends to support terorists, can we now place them on the 'evil' list? Maybe after some bombs level Paris they might change their ways! Muerte a Chriac! Muerte a Villepin! Muerte a Socialismo! De larga duración la República!
#12
Zhang Fei> Beats me. But not all Muslims, we seem to only have a thing for Arabs and Kurds. Not Chechens, not Bosnians, not Albanians, and definitely not Turks...
The thing about Kurds is understandable by standard nationalistic logic - the Arab/Palestenian thing (though weaker) far less so.
I think some of it may lead back to Andreas Papandreou's the (now dead) former prime minister of Greece during the 80s, who IMAO had a horrid, horrid influence on Greek political life. "Thirdworldism" they called it. He did everything he could to antagonize the US, and be buddies with underdeveloped third-world Arab nations.
#13
RW, I can't see Hamas as a "necessary player in the peace process" either.
But what about Mazen? The mastermind of the Munich Olympics massacre, Mohammed Daoud Oudeh, says it was Mazen who provided the money for the attack. "Black September" probably never was anything but Arafat's Fatah. A few years ago Arafat received the Nobel Prize for Peace and was indeed seen as a "necessary player in the peace process". Now Abu Mazem is supposed to be.
In a historic perspective Villepin's remark isn't that idiotic as it seems. Right now, no question about Hamas. In 20 years...???
Whether we like it is another question. Whether Hamas survives that long probably not. Things have changed or haven't they?
Whatever, Villepin does speak for France, not for the EU. And whatever happens, the first EU foreign minister might not be Mr. Fischer. But he certainly won't be Dominique de Villepin.
#14
"Right now, no question about Hamas. In 20 years...???"
Let's answer that question after the 20 years. Right now they're blowing up bus loads of civilians. "Arafat received the Nobel Prize for Peace"
They seemed to have jumped the gun on this one. Maybe the wording on the Nobel is "...in anticipation of peace..."
#15
De Villepin also urged Hamas to make more efforts in ending terrorist acts from Palestinian militants. "We call on Hamas to demonstrate that they are against all terrorist activities," he said.
I'm sure Hamas' answer would go something like this:
"but... we're not. we are very much for our terrorist activities. and as soon as we are victorious over the zionists, we will be making a few phone calls to our jihadi buddies in your country. Like we always say, "first the star, then the cross..."
Can De Villepin really be so stupid as to publicly request this from an organization whose stated goal is to drive the Jews out of "Palestine", with the stated means of martyrs and bus bombs. Does anybody see some inkling of a subtle diplomatic strategy here at all? Please share it with me if you do.
#16
"unless Hamas backs the peace process and abandons suicide bombings"
Fair enough.
Now the Villepin version "unless Hamas doesn't insist on driving the Jews back into the Mediterranean on Friday 32nd of February and promises not to bomb more than 200 people in a bus at once between midnight and 1 am"
#17
Aris- "Frawnce" is ALWAYS the friend of anyone in the arms market - or is in a row with the US. When the US tries to pressure Israel into a more moderate stance, and (in the case of the timeframe you mentioned) uses weapons sales as the carrot, Frawnce jumps in to offer its wares. These seem to be the only actual identifiable "principles" in effect in Frawnce's global foreign policy. Simplisme, no? Regards the EU, of course, they have 4,000 flavors of tweaking the UK nose, luring Turkey into betraying their oldest allies, suckering Germany into backing them, attempting to sneak in amendments to the "EU Constitution", etc. - this is where they really shine. The most amazing thing, from my POV, is that the rest of the EU hasn't expelled them for the damage done / attempted.
Regards Hamas, nothing, NOTHING, that Frawnce does could surprise me. Dominique (whom they insist is a man) is merely the public hair-splitter and smoke-generator for Jacques (whom I insist is not)... the only clever thing about Frawnce's leader is how he has distracted his voters from the issue of prosecuting him. I wonder if the populace of Frawnce will, once he is out of office, turn on him. Probably.
#18
Ok Aris,
I can accept that,however(correct me if I am wrong)I don't recall you critsizing French actions or policy.What are your thoughts on Depinheads meeting Arraft,and refusal to take action aginst Hamas?
JPost - Reg Req'd
IDF forces arrested a Tanzim terrorist in Ramallah Monday night.
Troops arrested Muhammad Abu-Zayid of the Tanzim, and another terrorist from the Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades.
Abu-Zayid, of Jordanian descent, is suspected of being involved in a number of shooting attacks in the Hebron area.
Both groups belong to Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement.
Israel Radio reported that the men were arrested in their home. A search of their house revealed two explosives devices.
Just an IDF note to Yasser: It's not all about you, but they also haven't forgotten you
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 04:53 pm ||
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Yay! And here's hoping there's a few Hellfires with Yassin and Rantissi's names still on them.
Georgian authorities have found highly radioactive material that could be used in a "dirty" bomb and a container of lethal Mustard Gas in a taxi in the capital Tbilisi, police said on Monday. Police searched the taxi on May 31 and found two metal boxes stuffed with radioactive by-products of nuclear fission, Cesium-137 and Strontium-90. One container, inscribed in Russian and English, weighed at least 170 pounds. A separate container had Mustard Gas, or Yperite, an odorless chemical used in World War One and which can be lethal in small quantities. "The most likely version is that the containers were intended to be transported on to Turkey and to be resold," police spokesman Givi Mgebrishvili told a news conference.
Mgebrishvili said police found the material during a routine raid in a Tbilisi suburb.The taxi driver was unaware of his dangerous cargo and has been released. Seems like the taxi drivers in this region don't really care what the cargo is as long as you have the cash.
Two suspects are in police custody, accused of trying to take the material to the former Soviet state's Adzhara autonomous republic on the border with Turkey. "A dirty bomb could be easily made from these substances," said Leri Meskhi, a nuclear expert at Tbilisi University. Cesium-137 is the same stuff they caught the guy in Thailand with.
Posted by: Steve ||
06/16/2003 12:23 pm ||
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Cs-137 is one of the easiest gamma emitters to identify - it has a single 662-keV gamma that is emitted in 100% of all decays. It is used as a calibration source and a teaching aid and virtually anybody can get its identification right. When reports identify a source as being Cs-137 they are very often correct. The quantities are always wildly wrong but then you can't have everything.
Posted by: Russell ||
06/16/2003 20:00 Comments ||
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Seems like the taxi drivers in this region don't really care what the cargo is as long as you have the cash.
Shouldn't be too hard on them: FedEx, UPS and Yellow Cab here in Chicago will also cart and deliver just about anything, and while I'm sure there are certain security measures, I'm also sure that they've delivered stuff, unknowingly, that we would have preferred hadn't been delivered.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 12:36 Comments ||
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Remember that it ain't cesium until WE say it's cesium. Take all these reports with a big grain of salt until someone in the West confirms the find.
#4
Cs-137 is one of the easiest gamma emitters to identify - it has a single 662-keV gamma that is emitted in 100% of all decays. It is used as a calibration source and a teaching aid and virtually anybody can get its identification right. When reports identify a source as being Cs-137 they are very often correct. The quantities are always wildly wrong but then you can't have everything.
Posted by: Russell ||
06/16/2003 20:00 Comments ||
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Edited for brevity.
Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke has resigned, effective Friday, the Defense Department announced Monday. For personal reasons, Clarke is leaving the position of assistant secretary for public affairs, the department said in a press release. She has held the job for two years, arriving the summer before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center. Lawrence DiRita, special assistant to Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld will do her job until a permanent replacement is confirmed. Will the next spokesperson have as bizarre a wardrobe?
Posted by: Dar ||
06/16/2003 12:08 pm ||
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I always thought she had that same intense look on her face that my wife does at 10:45 on a Friday night when I walk in the front door after telling her in the afternoon that "I'm just going out for 1 beer with the guys after work"...
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 12:17 Comments ||
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She IS a hottie! I saw a CSPAN special on Her and she is running about 14-hours a day. Unless you feed of that kind of day, it will burn you out after a while. Rummy jones on the long days and even works standing up! Too bad she is leaving, I really liked her.
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 16:37 Comments ||
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I always thought she had that same intense look on her face that my wife does at 10:45 on a Friday night when I walk in the front door after telling her in the afternoon that "I'm just going out for 1 beer with the guys after work"...
The speaker of Somali's interim parliament, Abdallah Derow Isaak, has declared himself the new president of Somalia.
"Awright, you guys! I'm takin' over here..."
A day after throwing a chair at his deputy in a hotel in the Kenyan capital, Mr Isaak told a news conference that his government had impeached the incumbent president, Abdulkassim Salat Hassan.
"Yep. He's toast. We just threw him out. Never liked him anyway."
Somalia has been without an effective central government since the overthrow of President Siad Barre in 1991. A transitional national government (TNG) was set up 2000 but only controls part of the capital, Mogadishu. This latest announcement will do little to boost the credibility of the TNG as a united force at the ongoing Somali peace talks in Nairobi.
"Somalia? A laughingstock? How can you say that? I've seen strong men weep at the very mention of Somalia!"
Mr Isaak said that he would head the TNG until a new president is appointed, although his claim is unlikely to be taken seriously by most Somalis.
"Him? Why should he be in charge? Why can't I be in charge?"
The BBC's Yusuf Hassan, who attended the news conference, says that many delegates regard Mr Isaak's action as unconstitutional. The delegates maintain that it is only the Somali supreme court that has powers to declare a new president. The declaration by Mr Isaak was made just one day after he was involved in a fight with his deputy, Mohamed Abdi Yusuf, at a Nairobi hotel.
All the best presidents get in fist fights with their staffs now and then. Nothin' to worry about...
Mr Isaak, who was chairing a meeting of the TNG delegates, threw a chair at Mr Bashir following a disagreement. However, Mr Abshir was not injured.
Did he change his mind?
In January this year, a Somali professor, Mohammed Abdi Gandhi, had his arm broken by thugs hired by warlords at an earlier round of the peace talks in the western Kenyan town of Eldoret.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 12:03 pm ||
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If chair-throwing determines your eligibility, then Bobby Knight should be King
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 12:32 Comments ||
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Gee, maybe we should help them. Then again, maybe not. I vote not.
Posted by: Matt ||
06/16/2003 12:56 Comments ||
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Matt, I believe the best thing we could do is round up all those AK-47s in Iraq and air-drop them into Somalia, along with millions of rounds of ammunition. Sooner or later, there won't be anybody left, and we can resettle some of the feuding African tribes up there to do it all again.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
06/16/2003 22:36 Comments ||
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The Liberian Government of President Charles Taylor is urging the people of Monrovia to return to life as normal following the battle between the army and rebels.
"So grab your shootin' arns..."
It has called for shops and businesses in the capital to re-open and children to return to school. Monrovia is now completely back under government control. But while the fighting in the city ended last week, the war goes on in the countryside. The BBC's Paul Welsh, in Monrovia, says there is still nervousness in the city and a fear that the rebels may return. Some roadside stalls and a few businesses have already begun trading again, but the city is unlikely to return to normal quickly. Tens of thousands of people are still living rough, afraid to return to their homes. The schools the president wants re-opened are temporary homes to thousands of people. Mediators at Liberian peace talks being held in Ghana say they are confident that a ceasefire will be signed Monday, but there is still doubt about whether this will happen.
"What? Nobody brought a pen? How we gonna sign if nobody brought a pen? How 'bout a pencil? Crayon?"
The rebels have been dropping and then reinstating a demand that Mr Taylor must leave office first. The president says he has instructed his soldiers to continue to fight the rebels until a ceasefire is actually signed.
And after, for that matter...
"I'm the president. I give the orders. If the orders are to cease fire they will. We don't have a ceasefire signed yet," he said.
"I am the president. What I say goes, dammit!"
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 12:03 pm ||
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How we gonna sign if nobody brought a pen?
"Here's a pint of Charlie's blood. Will that do?"
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 12:40 Comments ||
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LORDâS Resistance Army (LRA) rebels yesterday hacked 18 people to death in Apac district of Uganda. Among those killed was a six-year-old, Patrick Okello, and Anthony Okello, 61. Lt. Paddy Ankunda, the Uganda Peopleâs Defence Forces (UPDF) claimed eight people, and not 18, were killed in the attack. âWe have dispatched troops there and I am optimistic that they will handle the situation,â he said.
"We have these templates, see? We'll be able to put those folks back together in no time..."
Sources at Kole said between 400 and 500 huts were burnt during the attack. The rebels were also reported to have abducted 83 people, but Ankunda said he had no information about that.
"We don't have to reassemble them, at least not yet."
Several people were admitted to Lira Hospital with cuts, including Bernard Odong, 9, who had a deep cut on his forehead. The Apac attack comes in the wake of failed talks between the presidential peace team and LRA, a situation largely blamed on the rebels.
That's because they're nuts. You can't negotiate with nuts.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 11:24 am ||
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South Korean Unification Minister Jeong Se-Hyun said today that North Korea may accept multilateral talks in a couple of months to resolve concerns over its nuclear ambitions. Jeong, who has led South Korea to high-level talks with North Korea, said sustained pressure by the international community appeared to be forcing Pyongyang back to dialogue. "North Korea may change its attitude under diplomatic pressure," Jeong told a radio program. "North Korea has no other option. I believe we may see a turnaround in their position in a couple of months."
I'd say just let Shinzo Abe handle it. He's got the right idea.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 11:10 am ||
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The al-Qaeda group once planned to demolish New York's Brooklyn Bridge, blow up grounded airliners with explosive-laden vans and derail passenger trains, Newsweek magazine reported. Quoting federal investigators who interrogated captured al-Qaeda operations chief Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the magazine said he told them he recruited a naturalized US citizen, a truck driver from Columbus, Ohio, named Lyman Farris, to assess several terrorist attacks in the US that never came off. One of them was to determine whether acetylene torches could be used to cut the cables supporting the Brooklyn Bridge, sending it crashing into the East River, the news weekly reported.
Sounds like barracks-room BS'ing to me. They were also going to crash a plane into the Golden Gate bridge. They were also going to unbolt a bridge, presumably with a great, big pair of pliers.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 11:06 am ||
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I'd like to see the can of WD-40 they were going to use on those bridge bolts, along with that pair of pliers.
Posted by: Dar ||
06/16/2003 12:06 Comments ||
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I think it was an industrial impact wrench with a silencer lol
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 12:44 Comments ||
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An acetylene torch and about two weeks of solid work might cut through the huge cables that hold up the major bridges. Certainly nobody would notice.
Egyptian envoys have failed to achieve a breakthrough in talks with Palestinian militants, aimed at arranging a ceasefire with Israel and salvaging a United States-backed peace "road map" battered by violence. Representatives of Hamas and other militant groups meeting in Gaza said they had demanded international guarantees for a halt to Israeli military strikes on their leaders before they would agree to stop their own attacks on Israelis. But Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told members of his rightist Likud party in Jerusalem: "As long as the Palestinians don't fight terror ... Israel will continue to hit at the terrorists and terror organisations." Militants said the Egyptian delegation, which has wrapped up two days of meetings, had offered to resume talks in Cairo and that the proposal was under consideration.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 10:35 am ||
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I'm thinking Ariel's turned a corner on Hamas. He met with Abbas and agreed on pursuing the peace via Roadmapâ¢, yet Hamas put themselves outside and hittable by rejecting the American plan. Since the only thing (besides their own morality) really restraining the IDF was American disapproval, he's got a pass on targetting the killers. Abbas probably would like to see the IDF succeed at smashing Hamas and IJ so he only has to deal with Arafat and Al-Aqsa/Fatah. Go get em...Yassin first
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 15:10 Comments ||
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SEOUL, June 16 (Kyodo) _ North Korea transported containers believed to be carrying missiles to Iran by air six times over about two months from April, a Seoul daily reported Monday.
The JoonAng Ilbo quoted South Korean and U.S. intelligence sources as saying U.S. intelligence satellite data indicate an Iranian Il-76 transport plane made direct flights with the containers from Pyongyang's Sunan airport to Iran six times from April to June 10.
After analyzing information obtained through various channels, South Korean and U.S. intelligence authorities tentatively concluded that disassembled warheads and Rodong missiles -- the same type sold to Pakistan in 1998 -- were inside the containers, the paper said. They believe North Korea has changed the way it exports missiles after a North Korean vessel carrying missiles was seized on its way to Yemen last December, it said. These Il-76's have such a wonderful safety record, would anyone notice if a few started turning up missing enroute?
Posted by: Steve ||
06/16/2003 09:42 am ||
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... an Iranian Il-76 transport plane made direct flights ...
Direct flight from Pyongyang to Tehran? What route was that? Wonder who stood by and just let these planes fly overhead?
[consulting map]
Hmmm, route just below the 40th parallel most of the way. Afghanistan, naw, they won't fly over that, Tajikistan, naw, they won't fly over that, China ....
.... China. And then Pakistan.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 12:53 Comments ||
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TEHRAN - Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Tehran for the sixth day on Monday, June 16, as the Islamic Republic accused the United States of âflagrant interferenceâ into its internal affairs. Protesters converged on the area in cars, as they have been doing since the gathering of a few hundred students on Tuesday, June 10, night grew into nightly protests by thousands of people. They chanted slogans against the conservative scholars and criticized the reformist President Mohammad Khatami, accusing him of betraying hopes for change. Islamic vigilantes, some carrying assault rifles and wearing bullet-proof vests, patrolled streets near the campus, and gunshots were heard with no reports of any casualties. Police have warned the vigilantes against taking the law into their own hands.
Tip... Tip... Tip... When will the coppers come over?
The previous five nights of protests left some 60 people, including 32 policemen, injured as five state banks, 22 cars and 34 motorbikes were damaged. Protestors have jammed the streets of Tehran's capital which were clogged with cars carrying people wanting to join the protests. Scores have been injured or arrested, while the protests have also reportedly spread to the provincial cities of Isfahan, Ahvaz and Shiraz - where one person was killed in circumstances that remain unclear.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 09:45 am ||
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I think someone else had this idea last week...but just to restate it...stretch some 1/8 diameter aircraft cable across the road...paint it black...hang it *tight* at just neck height...stand at one end of the road and taunt the SOBs. Watch them come screaming down the road and...WHUNG!! LOL!!
This will really put a cramp in their style. Do it once and they will learn to think twice about tear-assing around on their motorcycles.
#3
I wonder what kind of motorbikes the Khomenei thugs are using. If they are the small kind that are used by teens for recreation in the US, the motorbike can be disabled pretty easily by sticking a piece of metal in the right place.
#4
Thumbtacks on the ground, a pipe or stick in the spokes, anything thrown at the driver. A motorbike really is a bad vehicle to use for intimidation.
#7
ABC had video of the mullah BikerBoyz on the news tonight. Looked like 500cc bikes at the minimum, driver with rider on back, guess he'd be the one swinging the club. Also they were traveling in a pack of about 15 - 20 bikers, tight together using the mass of bikes as a wedge or a ruby scrurm. Try to pick off one and you'd be swarmed under. Kind of like how the old horse calvery was used on rioters. Oh, and they were all wearing the same camo uniforms.
Posted by: Steve ||
06/16/2003 20:17 Comments ||
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#8
I think someone else had this idea last week...but just to restate it...stretch some 1/8 diameter aircraft cable across the road...paint it black...hang it *tight* at just neck height...stand at one end of the road and taunt the SOBs. Watch them come screaming down the road and...WHUNG!! LOL!!
This will really put a cramp in their style. Do it once and they will learn to think twice about tear-assing around on their motorcycles.
#9
Watchers tactic is the simplist.
There have been good tactics used aginst a cavalry charge for thousands of years(maybe these students should read a couple of history texts).For instance Alexander's Pflanix,and the British Sguare.
Tehran - A Majlis deputy here on Sunday praised the police for their work in putting under control the student unrest that have hit the capital Tehran. Ali Tajernia, a member of the Majlis foreign policy and security commission, said that objections were raised as to the way students were treated in a recent gathering. The officials who attended the session expressed their concern over the greater danger such actions posed to society, he added. Majlis deputies are in favor of having the police take charge of such situations thereby preventing other forces from interfering, Tajernia said, adding that in case the situation calls for the intervention of other forces this should be done under the supervision of the police and after receiving official permission.
He's referring to the rule of law, rather than having bands of fascisti roaming the streets and beating people up. What an original idea.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 09:12 am ||
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Army Sgt. Hasan Akbar, accused in a fatal grenade attack in Kuwait, is scheduled to go before a military hearing today at Fort Knox to face charges that could lead to his execution. Akbar, 32, is one of the few enlisted men ever accused of the premeditated murder of an officer in a combat area, and the case has drawn considerable interest in the armed forces. Ya think?
The military hasn't executed a soldier in 42 years, and not in wartime since Pvt. Eddie Slovak was shot by a firing squad in Europe in 1945 for desertion. The military adopted lethal injection as its method of execution in 1999. ...and Slovik didn't murder anybody.
Akbar, a Fort Campbell soldier assigned to the 326th Engineering Battalion, is accused in the attack at an American outpost in Kuwait just after the war in Iraq began. The blasts killed Army Capt. Christopher Seifert and Air National Guard Maj. Gregory Stone. Attorneys for the government and Akbar have not discussed the case. But some experts in military law say it appears to be a difficult one for the defense. That must be why they're "experts".
The hearing will determine whether Akbar faces a court-martial. William Cassara, an Augusta, Ga., attorney who defends soldiers in military trials, said that is "a foregone conclusion" in Akbar's case. "This case is going to trial," Cassara said. "The other purpose (of the hearing) is to allow the commanding general to decide whether it should be a capital case. And my strongest hunch is that it will be a capital case." Good guess, counselor.
The case falls under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, a system of disciplining soldiers that has been in force since 1951, when the armed services came under the Defense Department. But courts-martial have been used since the Revolutionary War. And although military justice has been criticized as outdated and unfair to enlisted men, it has endured with reforms, including a recent requirement that capital cases be heard by a 12-member jury and that a unanimous verdict is needed for a death penalty. The proceeding at Fort Knox is known as an Article 32 investigation, which is equivalent to a civilian grand jury or preliminary hearing. One of the primary differences between the military and civilian court systems is that in the military, a defendant can have counsel and testify at the hearing, said Scott Silliman, a law professor at Duke University and a former Air Force colonel and lawyer. "It's a fair system," said Silliman, who speculated that Akbar's attorneys may use the weeklong hearing to calculate a defense strategy. But J. Robert Lilly, regents professor of sociology at Northern Kentucky University, said the military justice system is stacked against defendants like Akbar, despite reforms since World War II. "The problems persist in regard to command influence, and the system very definitely focuses on those with least power, the least rank," Lilly said. Spoken like a true sociology professor... Eugene Fidell, president of the National Institute of Military Justice in Washington, said Akbar may decide to testify on his own behalf at some point "if he has a story to tell that cannot come out any other way." But Dennis Hunt, a former Army brigadier general who taught law at West Point and who now teaches at Southern Mississippi University, questioned such a step. "Unless there is some astounding sleeper here, the defense cannot gain anything." Hunt said it would be prudent for Akbar's lawyers to explore a pretrial agreement to try to get the death penalty off the table. Translated: He's screwed. My heart's not breaking. Does he get the needle or does CAIR crank up the letter writing campaign to get him life?
Posted by: tu3031 ||
06/16/2003 08:51 am ||
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#1
Hmm...
"3) is engaged in an act which is inherently dangerous to others and evinces a wanton disregard of human life"
I'd say rolling grenades into an occupied tent is "inherently dangerous", and certainly "evinced a disregard of human life".
They have him pegged. Its only a matter of which arm the needle goes into.
#3
Too bad. So sad. The dufus killed two officers and injured 14 more while in a combat zone and expects to get a walk. He should get a walk-right off the end of a plank and experience a long fall on a short rope.
#6
Fed UP - being black and being muslim has less to do with it than one might think. My guess is that there are far deeper problems with this guy than his religion (from a military POV). I went through the middle eastern orientation course with a black muslim green beret.
Completely different type of man.
As for the UCMJ, yeah it's harsh, it's supposed to be harsh. Military men and women are held to a higher standard of discipline. It's necessary for the job to be done.
In most cases however, it takes a lot to get to the point of a court martial. So it's not like the UCMJ is just there to screw Joe. By the time you get to staring that jury in the face, you've screwed up BIG TIME.
Just like this guy did.
And speaking as an Enlisted Soldier I do not feel that the UCMJ proceedings are slanted against lower ranking members. As a lower ranking member it takes a lot more to ever get to a courtmartial than an officer, those guys actually do have a lot more to lose as far as their careers go.
Since they are supposed to be leaders, their decisions can get them in trouble. Wheres I only have to convince the jury that I made the best judgement call that I could, under the circumstances.
Any person subject to this chapter whom without justification or excuse, unlawfully kills a human being, when he--
(1) has a premeditated design to kill;
(2) intends to kill or inflict great bodily harm;
(3) is engaged in an act which is inherently dangerous to others and evinces a wanton disregard of human life; or
(4) is engaged in the perpetration or attempted perpetration of burglary, sodomy, rape, robbery, or aggravated arson; is guilty of murder, and shall suffer such punishment as a court-martial may direct, except that if found guilty under clause (1) or (4), he shall suffer death or imprisonment for life as a court-martial may direct.
#8
Ok I will play barracks Lawyer. Akbar should take the stand and cry his eyes out. Military juries are very soft on criminals. He might do some hard time but I doubt he will swing. If he comes out swinging (ie they are all racists) no one (military) will believe that.
Kindly knock off the nonsense about the UCMJ having the defendant âguilty until proven innocentâ. Having actually served on Courts-Martial [notice the use of the correct plural, a rare event] and civilian juries, I can state with some authority that the former dispenses far better justice than the latter. Mainly because defense counsel cannot pack the jury with persons who do not read the papers, have no education or have below average annual earnings [I have been excused from three juries for EXACTLY those reasons!]. Court-martial Boards, in my experience, take the issues of justice and objective truth far more seriously than civilian juries. I have voted three men acquitted of crimes they obviously committed, when the prosecution failed to adequately prove the case [he botched it despite signed confessions!]. In fact, our Court-Martial board unanimously voted ânot guiltyâ, and demanded better âchain of custodyâ and âMirandizingâ training for the MPs in the same document!
BTW, the article 32 investigation [which has NO civilian counterpart] is conducted by a NON-LAWYER Officer chosen at random. He determines whether there is a case or not. Only after he affirms that a) the crime took place and b) the prosecution has reasonable evidence [specified list for each charge] to accuse someone. This is specifically intended to prevent spurious prosecutions [I have personally scotched bogus charges by a military prosecutor who had more zeal than hard evidence]. The hearing happens afterwards.
#10
Considering many current interpretations of Islam blatantly and publicly say that you must stand up for a fellow muslim, even if that muslim is wrong and defend them against the kuffar, then the fact that he is Islamic IS relevant:
the USA is by definition a Kuffar state and Iraq is a country of muslims.
Therefore if this man subscribes to Islamofascism not secular islam then his religion has everything to do with it - it would literally order him if he wants to be true to his faith, to kill his own army comrades to defend the wrong muslim : Saddam.
If he is an islamofascist, he had a choice: do what the US government tells me to do or do what Allah tells me to do.
He (may) have chosen Allah.
Of course it could have been for other reasons as well - but this is at least possible and deserves proper scrutiny.
#11
Emery, Exactly! When the Military goes to trial they have a pretty good case built. Unless of course they have some slipshod lawyer who doesn't do their job. But a military jury is every bit fickle about justice. Just because they may be educated and read papers doesn't mean they will all vote for capital punishment. If Hassan sobs to the Jury they more than likely will not sentence him to death. Just my barracks lawyer two-cents.
#12
Bull Anon1,if he felt that strongly about it,all he had to do was tell his CO about how he felt attacking a fellow Muslim or Muslim country and his ass would have been on the first transport out.
#13
Amen Raptor! If this piece of shit did not want to go and fight in Iraq he had ample time to speak out. The fact that he was NOT going to move forward with the unit tells me the CO probably was going to send him back. Also he DID not have to stay in the military, if he hated it so much they would have cut him loose.
Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri said Monday that Islamists were not behind the rocket attack that targeted his television station on Sunday. "No one should convince me that Islamist extremists are behind this attack," Hariri was quoted as saying by political sources.
"Nope. Nope. Couldn't be them."
On Sunday, Hariri's Future television was targeted by two rockets fired from a parked car, causing extensive damage to one of the news studios, but no casualties. In a statement sent late Sunday to a Western News Agency in Beirut, a previously unknown group called "Ansar Allah (Supporters of God)" claimed responsibility for the attack. Another statement issued on Monday by Ansar Allah denied any inolvement.
"Nope. Wudn't us."
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 09:02 am ||
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AMMAN, SPA — Jordan's King Abdullah II pardoned Monday a Japanese journalist who had been sentenced to 18 months in jail for accidentally killing an airport securityguard by a cluster bomb in his luggage. The official Petra news agency said the king had decreed a "special clemency" for Hiroki Gomi, 36, a photographer with the Japanese daily the Mainichi Shimbun.
"Go, and sin no more. Commit seppukku or something. Just don't do it here."
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 08:31 am ||
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#1
Huh? Sooo..I guess the take-away is that, in Jordan, it is ok for a reporter carry a cluster bomb in his luggage and it's even ok if it explodes and kills an airport security guard, as long as it is an accident.
#3
Abdullah's probably been farking. "Gomi, I just loved your article on midget schoolgirl masseuses. Because of its hilarity am I able to forgive the unfortunate death of an airport security guard." The Daily Mainichi outdoes any American tabloid.
SPA -- Palestinian Foreign Minister Nabil Shaath said Monday he hoped Hamas and other Palestinian groups would agree to a cease-fire within days to save prospects for peace in the Middle East. "We would like to see Hamas and other Palestinian factions to commit themselves to a cease-fire," Shaath said. "I hope we'll get some answers tomorrow." He said Egypt and the Palestinian Authority were holding "very serious negotiations" with various Palestinian factions including Hamas, to save the Mideast "road map" peace plan. Shaath spoke after meeting foreign ministers from the European Union, which drafted the peace plan along with the United States, Russia and the United Nations.
I have my doubts...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
06/16/2003 08:24 am ||
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#1
Actually, they will agree to a cease-fire within days to save themselves.
#3
"...to save prospects for peace in the Middle East."
Peace? Hell, they're just trying to save their asses!
The best thing for peace right now would be to keep the missiles raining down on Hamas day and night. Unfortunately it doesn't look like Sharon has the guts to do it.
...The organization, which has carried out dozens of attacks during the past 33 months of Israeli-Palestinian violence, called the attack "the beginning of a new series of revenge attacks . . . in which we will target every Zionist occupying our land."
If Hamas were to backpedal and not pursue this eloquently stated policy, could they possibly be able to save face? What could they tell their lunatic passionate followers that would not make them look like the sell-outs that they accuse Abu Mazen of being? Should be interesting to see what results from this new attempt to buy time.
Israel should continue to play wak-a-mole on any hamas-er who shows his head above ground, and not let up for a moment.
The U.S. amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge was ordered to the West African coast for a possible evacuation of American citizens from strife-torn Liberia, the Pentagon says. The Navy said in a statement on its Web site that the Kearsarge "has been directed to join forces in support of Operation Shining Express, to aid in the potential evacuation of U.S. citizens from the country of Liberia." Diverted from its return voyage home after action in Iraq, the Kearsarge and its force of 3,000 Marines and sailors, and attack helicopters was cruising in waters near the Liberian capital of Monrovia, according to media reports. Hmmmmm. Wonder if they just might also pick up Charlie Taylor while they're there? Camp X-Ray has a cell, I'm sure.
Just leave him. They're full. The Liberians can find something to do with him — briefly.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 01:39 am ||
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#1
Hmm. Rather convenient that they were in the neighborhood.
#2
I bet Taylor is wishing he had never quit his gas station attendant job. Rebuilding transmissions is probably looking pretty good about now. At least has the comfort of knowing he's in Pat Robertson's prayers.
#3
I'll bet he wishes he was back in his cell in the Plymouth County House of Correction. Three squares a day, no heavy lifting, cable, liberal Massachusetts prison regs. Better an inmate in Massachusetts then President of Liberia.
Last week viewers complained that it had become almost impossible to watch their favorite programs. "The television screen is all waves and noisy interference," said Ellie, 28, an unemployed graduate with a degree in Persian literature. "I can't watch anything at all. It's so frustrating here without it." Paenthetically, I note that the Iranian college education program has reached parity with the US system: we also have lots of unemployed graduates with degrees in literature.
Although it has long been illegal to buy or install satellite dishes, the devices cling to the sides of practically every building in the middle-class northern Tehran suburbs and are a common sight across town. Large circular white boxes installed in the grounds of government barracks and bases are believed to be jamming devices. Government ministers, however, denied any knowledge of an attempt to jam the satellite signals. Offer a bounty for smashing each one of these.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 01:31 am ||
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#1
just because the iRANIANS HATE THEIR GERIATRIC RIDDEN ILLEGITIMATE REGIME DOES NOT MEAN THEY WOULD WELCOME AMERICAN BOMBING AND LOVE DUBYA
#3
All the Iranian Students want is a declaration from the US Government that they will not support the Mullahs. Ever. Break off all talks, all relationships.
Probably bombing the nuclear facilities is the only thing we need to bomb. Let the Iranians take their government back.
#4
Don't need to smash the jammers. Satellite TV is a line of sight thing. All they need to do is put a grounded screen (or better a sheet metal box) around the dish to keep the jamming signal away from the dish. As long as you have a clear view up to the bird you can receive a signal while blocking the jamming signal. A sheet metal structure could also be diguised as a AC unit.
Posted by: Steve ||
06/16/2003 9:54 Comments ||
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#5
...we also have lots of unemployed graduates with degrees in literature.
And on that note, may I introduce "Stevey Robinson" to Rantburg?
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 12:48 Comments ||
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#6
hey Stevey, Long time, no troll, huh?
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 13:02 Comments ||
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The execution of three blacks by a Cuban government firing squad in April for attempting to hijack a boat to Miami is raising questions about racism on the communist island. It was the first time anyone, black or white, had been executed for trying to flee Cuba. Cuban President Fidel Castro justified the executions of Jorge Luis Martinez Isaac, Lorenzo Enrique Copello Castillo and Barbaro Leodan Sevilla Garcia as a deterrent to another mass exodus. "We can't let people leave! They might go elsewhere and have good lives! That would be counter-revolutionary!"
But some Cuba watchers, on and off the island, doubt that the three would have been put to death had they been white. "By executing [three young blacks], Castro was sending a clear message to the Afro-Cuban population" that dissent will not be tolerated, said Jaime Suchlicki, director of Cuban studies at the University of Miami, in a report on Cuban racism released this week. I'm just sure Oliver Stone covered this in his documentary on Fidel.
It takes more than three deaders to make that case. Fidel is many things, but I've always been under the impression he oppresses everyone equally — meaning the poor guys (and a girl) would have ended up counting muzzle blasts regardless of their color. An example was desired, and they were available. I think Suchlicki is doing some cultural transference...
"I was a Fidelista. I love my nation," Ramona Copello told wire service reporters in Cuba on April 11, the day her son was executed. "I no longer love Fidel. He assassinated my son. Now I have no faith in the revolution." Careful, Ramona, or Fidel will bring the number of executed to four.
Washington Times usually carries better writing than this. She's his Mom, fergawdsake! What the hell was she supposed to say? "He was a lousy kid. I never liked him, anyway!"? Or maybe: "No worries. We have a large family. There's more where he came from!"?
On March 18, two days before the beginning of the U.S.-led war with Iraq, Cuban officials began a crackdown by arresting 35 opposition figures. What, um, interesting timing, Fidel.
A day later, six men hijacked an airplane to Key West, and less than two weeks later, a second plane was hijacked. The three Afro-Cuban men tried to commandeer a Havana ferry to take them to Florida days before the Castro regime jailed 43 dissidents. The ferry hijackers were executed April 11, nine days after their capture. Cubans of African descent, who make up 62 percent of the island's population, live in the worst, most dilapidated Havana neighborhoods: Cerro, Luyano and Guanabacoa. Afro-Cubans have the worst jobs and are increasingly disenfranchised, according to the University of Miami report. Sounds worse than Detroit.
In 1997, the Cuban government passed laws preventing citizens from moving to Havana in search of high-paying tourist jobs, but according to the State Department, the law "was targeted at individuals and families from the poorer, predominantly black and mulatto eastern provinces." The report notes that none of the top 10 generals or senior military leaders in Cuba is black. None of the 15 presidents of provincial assemblies is black. Two of the 40-person Council of Ministers is black, and three of the 15 provincial heads of the Cuban Communist Party are black. Amazing coincidence.
Cuban blacks, according to government reports, have 5 percent of the lucrative tourism jobs, but Afro-Cubans constitute 85 percent of Cuba's prison population. Wasn't Jesse Jackson upset about the numbers of black prisoners in the US? I'm sure he'll be all over this one.
Afro-Cubans and black tourists increasingly complain about "racial profiling" by state security officials, according to the report. Yo, Jesse, over here!
Mr. Castro, a white revolutionary from an upper-class background, overthrew the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, a corrupt leader of mixed race, in 1959. Funny how revolutionary leaders never experience any of the poverty that "the masses" suffer through.
One of the pillars of faith in the Cuban revolution is that Mr. Castro freed poor black Cubans, giving them schools, jobs and health care. Today, Afro-Cubans who turn their backs on the "gains of the revolution" are considered traitors unappreciative. "There are a growing number of black Cubans in the opposition movement. The leadership is almost entirely black or mulatto," said Frank Calzon of the Center for a Free Cuba, noting that the ferry hijackers could not have been executed without Mr. Castro's specific order. "No white Cuban has ever been executed for trying to leave. The message is clear: If you are white and speak out, it is bad. If you are black and speak out, you are ungrateful and watch out." But Wayne Smith, at the Center for International Policy, though acknowledging that racism exists in Cuba, said it did not play a part in the executions. "It was wrong. They didn't harm anyone, but the Cuban government said they had to do it to prevent a mass exodus. My sense is that they were not executed because they were black," said Mr. Smith, who has extensive contacts within the Cuban government. And they assured Mr. Smith of this personally, you know. Uva de Aragon of Florida International University's Cuban Research Institute agreed. "There is racism in Cuba, but I think if they were white, they would have been executed just the same," she said. I'm waiting for the mass protests in the Peoples Republics of Berkeley and Cambridge.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 01:21 am ||
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#5
"It was the first time anyone, black or white, had been executed for trying to flee Cuba."
No sympathies for Fidel whatsoever, but this is bending the truth a little. They were executed for hijacking a non sea worthy harbor ferry with many people on board. They seriously put the lives of the hijacked in danger. Had one of the passengers died during the enterprise they would probably have received the death penalty in the U.S. for a similar offense.
As nobody was obviously hurt the execution was extremely exaggerated. Actually I do think that white hijackers would have met the same fate although I might be wrong on that one.
Of course there is no excuse for putting people in such a desperate situation that they don't see any other solution than what they did. Along with the jailed dissidents it's very amazing that anyone could still defend the Cuban totalitarian regime.
#6
TGA is right, we can't encourage hijackings even for those seeking freedom. We also should really think hard about whether we would want these 3 who would willingly put so many others in harms way for their own personal motives, no matter how pure
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/16/2003 14:56 Comments ||
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#7
Ever notice in all those videos and movies of Fidel how many blacks occupy positions of authority and power? How many are senior party members? Party of the people - right!
TGA -- I have no quarrel whatsoever about protecting innocent people on a ferry. Have a trial, prove the case, and dish the punishment. Executing these guys 9 whole days after the act, without any real kind of trial, seems awfully convenient. Was their race an issue? Again, seems awfully convenient.
I agree with TGA about how despicable it is to put people in such desparate situations.
Frank: I suspect that if they had made it to the US, we would have jugged them and tried to give them back to the Cubans (after making sure that they would have a proper trial). We certainly jailed a lot of Marielitos when it became clear that they were just common criminals.
Fred notes that Fidel is an equal opportunity oppressor. I've always thought that, but this article makes me wonder.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 18:07 Comments ||
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#9
Steve, I don't know enough about Cuba to decide whether racism was involved or not. I can imagine the "trial". The "defense lawyer" probably asked for the death penalty as well.
I think Castro was just afraid that more people could try this, hence the swift execution.
Japanese police requested an arrest warrant Monday for a U.S. Marine accused of raping a woman on the southern island of Okinawa, according to a news report. The alleged attack against a 19-year-old woman spurred Japan's prime minister to call Friday for stricter discipline among U.S. forces in Japan. Okinawa police moved Monday to request permission to arrest the soldier, the next step to bringing the suspect to trial. The suspect is a 21-year-old Marine lance corporal based in Okinawa. The attack allegedly occurred early May 25 in the town of Kin. On Friday, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi urged the U.S. military ``to enforce strict discipline so this kind of incident does not take place.'' Japanese media reported last week that police on Okinawa were questioning the suspect on a voluntary basis. The handling of military suspects is a sensitive issue on Okinawa. In 1995, the rape of a local schoolgirl by three U.S. servicemen triggered outrage on the island. If he's guilty, jug him in the Marine brig. We don't need this right now.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 01:12 am ||
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#1
The key issue here is the current Status of Forces Agreement, a treaty that establishes juristiction for GI's in foreign counties [we have them in place for most nations we have bases in]. They differ, but the crime of "rape of local girl" is almost universally given to local juristiction. For example, the locals in Germany and Korea [where I have neen assigned] have it that way. Japn probably does also. It is amazing that nobody in the elite news media knows about this
#2
But according to the law governing US forces in Japan, the American military is not required to hand over criminal suspects until they are formally indicted. US officials promised to consider the request by Japanese police "as soon as possible", according to statements by Japan's foreign ministry and the US military in Japan.
Lance Corporal Torres is currently in US military custody.
Just waiting for them to finish the paperwork and then he'll be handed over. What the "elite news media" also doesn't report is that the incidence of rape by Japanese is much higher than that of US Forces.
Posted by: Steve ||
06/16/2003 16:51 Comments ||
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What happens is the U.S. officials investigate this first and if the guy is guilty they will turn him over. If he is being railroaded, he will be back in the States before the Japanese can arrest him. Notice that last time the Marines 'allowed' the three rapist to be arrested. I remember how Jackson 'RACED' (pun intended) over to Japan to defend that scum.
HARARE - Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe has banned strikes in ``essential services'' following a five-day protest against his 23-year rule. Doctors, nurses, employees of the state power utility, firefighters, transport and communications industry workers will not be allowed to go on strike. Security police definitely have to report.
The newspaper said the ban was published in the government's Labor Notice, a bulletin of new laws. Employees of state radio and television also were forbidden to strike. Penalties were not specified, but lawyers claimed Sunday that security laws allow for sentences of up to five years in prison. Wonder if prison guards are considered essential?
``It is a desperate measure which will not change anything because if workers feel that their grievances are not being addressed they will always turn to the streets despite the laws,'' said Collin Gwiyo, deputy secretary general of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions. Mugabe, 79, told a ruling party rally Friday in the western Matabeleland region that he would ``never again'' allow opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai to organize ``mass action'' advocating his removal. Harm Morgan and someone else will organize the mass actions.
Mugabe responded to the protest by deploying security forces to crush street demonstrations but a concurrent general strike shut down the economy, in its worst crisis since independence with 269 percent inflation, widespread unemployment and the near collapse of commercial agriculture since Mugabe started stealing redistributing 5,000 white-owned farms to favored cronies black Zimbabweans. He has threatened to expel the two countries' diplomats for allegedly inciting unrest, although they are the principal donors of food for 8 million Zimbabweans at risk of starvation. Brilliant, Bob — the money is worthless, there's no oil or gas, unemployment is 70%, and now you're going to piss off the remaining aid donors. What an organizational genius.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/16/2003 01:00 am ||
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#1
Airborne escape pilots must also report and be on a 24/7 call schedule. Now all they need is someone to pump the avgas for them, if there's any left.
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.
