Posted by: Fred ||
10/11/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Bahrainâs newly appointed foreign minister said the Kingdom had no plans to establish ties with Israel, despite a decision to lift a ban on Israeli goods as part of a trade deal with the United States. âThe decision by the government to end the boycott does not mean in any way economic, cultural, political or diplomatic normalization or any normalization of any kind with Israel,â
In summary, Israeli goods are ok, so long as they don't come from Israel, and the pure Muslims of Bahrain needn't deal with any icky Israelis. I think Sec.State Rice needs to explain to them what they agreed to when they signed the Ameican trade agreement.
Muslim communities are failing to help the police identify radical preachers promoting militancy and young people who are vulnerable to extremism, according to the most senior Muslim police officer.
Assistant commissioner Tarique Ghaffur of the Metropolitan police, who is responsible for community policing in London, predicted it would take âseveral yearsâ for Muslim communities to become engaged in wider British society.
Assistant commissioner Tarique Ghaffur of the Metropolitan police, who is responsible for community policing in London, predicted it would take âseveral yearsâ for Muslim communities to become engaged in wider British society.
What happened during the previous "several years"?
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
10/11/2005 21:14 Comments ||
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A multimillion-pound network thought to be behind the smuggling of up to 200,000 people into the UK was smashed today in a series of dawn raids by police. Several alleged senior members of the people-smuggling gang - thought to be among the biggest in Europe - were arrested in raids at 12 houses in London and one in Boston, Lincolnshire. Senior officers consider the network to be one of the largest, if not the largest, people-trafficking gang they have encountered.
It is believed the group, a huge pan-European organisation, could be responsible for smuggling tens of thousands of mainly Turkish Kurds into the UK illegally in the last few years. One source described its scale as "absolutely massive" and "frightening".
This morning's raids were the culmination of a two-year Scotland Yard investigation, codenamed Bluesky, which involved 200 officers and co-operation from law enforcement agencies in five other European countries. Ten people, including former asylum seekers, were arrested in the raids and held on suspicion of immigration offences. Two of those arrested were women.
Detective Chief Superintendent Bill Skelly, one of the lead officers in the operation, said seven suspected members of the smuggling network were among those arrested. He said police were actively searching for an eighth man in connection with the investigation.
The gang is thought to have lured thousands of economic migrants from eastern Europe to Britain with the promise of a better life. Each would probably have paid between £3,000 and £5,000 to be smuggled - in groups of up to 20 at a time - from the Balkans. They would be brought across mainland Europe to the continent's northern coastal ports - a tortuous journey possibly lasting several months. Once there, they waited in safe houses until the time was right for them to be smuggled into Britain in cramped secret compartments hidden in lorries, cars or ferries. Some were even taken across the Channel in light aircraft and flown into small provincial airfields in Kent and Cambridgeshire.
Once in Britain, most have simply been absorbed into north London's Turkish community, working in low-paid, menial jobs in the capital's black market economy. Some were given stolen or forged UK papers, and many use the money they earn to sponsor other family members to make the gruelling trip.
The smuggling ring is estimated to have made tens of millions of pounds from the racket, some of which has been invested in businesses such as cafes and snooker halls. Much of the money has flowed out of the country and police are still trying to trace where and to whom it has gone.
Police have intervened 20 times in the gang's smuggling operations in the last three years in attempts to disrupt its activities. The network's kingpins are thought to have come to Britain from Turkey as asylum seekers and have since been granted indefinite leave to remain.
This morning's raids were part of Scotland Yard's Operation Maxim, which was set up to tackle organised immigration crime in London. Law enforcement officials in France, Italy, Holland, Belgium and Denmark, and Europol, have all contributed to the investigation. More than 200 police officers were involved in this morning's raids at five houses in Enfield, two in Bexleyheath and one each in Barnet, Haringay, Tower Hamlets, Hackney and Hammersmith. At one of the houses in Bexleyheath, a specialist police dog was used to assist the search of the property.
Scotland Yard Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur, head of the Specialist Crime Directorate, said: "We have today dismantled a huge organised criminal network of human smuggling. "We have been working on this operation for two years and we have worked with agencies across Europe. It is a massive operation." Mr Ghaffur said today's raids were aimed at those "right at the top of this network". He said the racket targeted mainly Turkish Kurds who hoped to come to Britain for a better life. "Once here, some of these people get into low-paid jobs, others are clearly left to their own devices to find work," he said. Mr Ghaffur added that those who benefited from the racket were those at the head of the smuggling ring.
He said: "Our commitment is to take out such networks and this operation is the latest in our collaboration with the growing number of law enforcement agencies in Europe to work robustly to achieve this mission."
The Defense Agency has decided to introduce 18 Patriot Advanced Capability 3 surface-to-air guided missiles and components by the end of fiscal 2010 under the missile defense program, agency sources said Sunday.
The agency aims to introduce more PAC-3s starting in fiscal 2011 to bring the total number to 32 nationwide, they said. "It is desirable to put PAC-3s in place at all 24 of our air-defense batteries nationwide. We need more than 30 PAC-3s to defend Japan's entire airspace," a senior official in the Air Self-Defense Force said.
Japan and the U.S., jointly developing a ballistic missile defense system estimated to cost some $3 billion, signed an agreement in March allowing Japan to produce PAC-3 missiles for planned deployment during fiscal 2006. The missiles are designed to intercept and destroy incoming ballistic and cruise missiles.
Posted by: DanNY ||
10/11/2005 00:00 ||
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A PERMANENT memorial to the victims of the 2002 Bali bombings will be opened in Melbourne tomorrow â the third anniversary of the attacks.
About 200 people who survived the bombings Kuta nightclub or lost a loved one in the blasts are expected to attend the dedication ceremony.
The memorial, at Lincoln Square in Carlton, incorporates the names of the 22 Victorians who died and water jets in a fountain representing each of the 88 Australian victims.
The fountain stops on October 12 each year to become a reflection pond.
The 11am (AEST) ceremony will be a mixture of sombre reflection and upbeat commemoration.
The names of the Victorian victims will be read aloud as their families lay wreaths near the memorial pool before a moment of silent reflection.
Members of the Balinese community will offer a prayer and bless the memorial with holy water in a joining of the water ceremony.
Merna Curnow, who lost her 27-year-old daughter Kristen in the attacks, will speak at the dedication ceremony, along with Victorian Premier Steve Bracks and Melbourne Lord Mayor John So.
The Mahindra Bali Gamelan Orchestra and singer Christine Anu will also perform.
The terror attack claimed 202 lives, mostly foreigners.
Posted by: Oztralian [AKA] God Save The World ||
10/11/2005 04:48 ||
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ISLAMIC preacher Sheik Khalid Yasin will struggle to return to Australia after making inflammatory comments about September 11 and suicide bombings. He has also been accused of fraud. Sheik Yasin, a US-born Islamic convert influenced by Malcolm X, has travelled in and out of Australia for years, lecturing to Islamic community groups and schools.
Y'know, I haven't been to Australia yet. Can't afford the plane fare. Where's this holy man get that much dough?
Federal Education Minister Brendan Nelson yesterday said Sheik Yasin should seek psychiatric help over his belief al-Qaida was not responsible for the World Trade Centre attacks. "It's possible he needs some professional assistance," Dr Nelson said. "If I drew on my medical background, perhaps a psychiatrist may be able to help him."
Or at least administer some fairly strong sedatives when he gets violent...
Sheik Yasin was recently in Australia raising money for a planned international Muslim TV station based in Britain. But it was reported documents used by Sheik Yasin to promote the station to investors in Australia were fake.
"Ummm... This document — it's written in crayon."
"Oh. Sorry. That's my passport."
It was also said parts of a resume provided to Australia's Department of Immigration in support of a visa application were false.
"Wow! You were Secretary General of the UN?"
Sheik Yasin is believed to be at his adopted home in the English city of Sheffield.
"Reporters to see you, effendi!"
"Tell 'em I ain't here, Mahmoud!"
The sheik, a conspiracy theory enthusiast, told Channel 9's Sunday program explosives were placed inside the Twin Towers on September 11 by an unknown shadowy group to bring them down and that the attacks were not the work of Osama bin Laden. He said the AIDS virus was created in the US and spread through Africa by Western missionaries to limit population growth and backed the introduction of the death penalty for homosexuals.
By packing them full of dynamite or by injecting them with AIDS?
The sheik said he did not condone suicide bombing, but he did understand it. "Is it justified? Islamically, it is not. But it can be understood in the context of perpetuated, protracted oppression that brought about a sense of madness," Sheik Yasin said.
"I mean, we're all nuts, just in different ways, right? That's what they always tell me. So us Islamists are entitled to our own nuttiness, ain't we?"
A spokeswoman for the Attorney-General's department said Sheik Yasin's views were well-known to security agencies but declined to say if the American had been shadowed by ASIO when last in Australia. "If authorities became aware that a person was a security risk they would take appropriate action to prevent them from coming here," the spokeswoman said.
"On the other hand, he's probably just a clown, so we can safely ignore him."
Dr Nelson said he would oppose the sheik being allowed back into the country. "I think that we have got to be extremely concerned when he can come to our country and target young Muslim men," Dr Nelson said.
British police arrested seven people suspected of leading one of Europe's largest human smuggling rackets in a series of dawn raids on Tuesday.
Eleven others were held for related offences.
The arrests followed a two-year investigation into the ring which smuggled illegal immigrants, predominantly from Turkey, into London from mainland Europe. Police forces from five other countries were also involved.
Detective Chief Superintendent Bill Skelly told Reuters the scale of the problem was huge.
"Worldwide it's estimated that this is a business worth 8 billion pounds and for the UK it's estimated that it's as significant as the trafficking of class A drugs," he said.
"It's something that we take very seriously."
Skelly described the people detained as being "at the very top of the hierarchy ... operating as the heads of the network and orchestrating it from here in London."
Of the 18 arrests, seven were held on suspicion of the facilitation of human smuggling and two for interfering in the inquiry. Six others were detained on suspicion of immigration offences, one for money laundering and another two for theft.
Local media said some of the men were former asylum seekers who had settled in Britain but police declined to comment.
Migrants using the system would have spent up to 5,000 pounds to be brought into the country hidden in containers and lorries after a journey which could have taken months.
"You only have to cast your mind back to 2000 (to see the risk)," Skelly said, referring to the discovery five years ago at the southern port of Dover of 58 Chinese men and women who had suffocated to death in a container.
The head of the Specialist Crime Directorate, Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur, described the ring as a "huge organized criminal network."
London police said they had worked closely with their counterparts in France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Italy and Belgium during the investigation
#2
This helps to invigorate the English culture and firm up their hate rallies. And provide needed jihad-apprenticeships for those who qualify for the dole.
#3
This may not be the low-quality smuggling we usually hear about. Think of how long it would take someone to make 5,000 pounds ($8,700 USD) in Turkey? Their minimum wage is about $300 (I assume, a week, but nobody seems to say.)
So either they only go for high quality clientele, or they are really doing things like importing hookers, criminals for whom Turkey is too hot, and other such problems.
#5
I've read human smuggling is far more lucrative than drugs. They are held as slaves, whether for the sex trade, sweatshops, or even household servants. There have been several bodies of young Africans found in the Thames lately. A Denver Saudi and his wife were recently charged for slavery and beating their Filipino maid. They pulled her passport (if she even had one), upping the price once here, and she was not allowed out of the house. "Sultana, Saudi Princess" claims wealthy Saudis get their teen sons their very own sex slaves so their daughters can retain their virginity and spared stoning. Of course they believe thay have good jobs waiting for them.
In WOT Politix because this is a key factor in Europe's increasing dhimmitude. The stats in the last paragraph caught my eye ...
Global economic growth will decline to about 1.7 per cent a year over the next three decades unless older people are encouraged to work longer to offset declining birth rates, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
A study into the impact of an ageing workforce on labour markets warns of rising wage inflation, increased pressure on public finances and declining growth unless the demographic time bomb is defused.
By 2050 there will be an average of more than seven older, inactive people supported by just 10 active workers in OECD countries, compared with a ratio of four to 10 in 2000.
The pressures on public finances and welfare systems will be even more intense in Europe, where the ratio of active to inactive workers is expected fall to one to one by 2050, says the report.
It estimates that GDP growth in OECD countries will be 30 per cent lower than the rate achieved between 1970 and 2000 unless more older employees work longer to overcome skill shortages.
âAgeing on this scale would place substantial pressures on public finances and reduce growth in living standards,â it says.
The study calls for an overhaul in labour market attitudes, pension arrangements and welfare benefits to discourage employees from opting for early retirement.
Raising the age at which state pensions are paid will not work on its own, if countries also provide generous unemployment and other welfare benefits, making it less attractive for older people to remain in work. âIt is essential,â says the OECD, âthat older people do not face a large implicit tax if they choose to continue to work.â
Employers also needed to change their ânegative perceptionsâ towards older workers. Flexible and part-time working opportunities must increase while more training would enable older employees to develop new skills.
The problem of higher wage and non-wage costs, such as health insurance, which rise more steeply with age than productivity, will also have to be resolved, says the report.
It criticised companies for adopting mandatory retirement ages but warned that employment legislation to protect older workers could be counter-productive if it discouraged employers from hiring older age groups.
Last year it said âless than 60 per cent of population aged 50 to 64 had a job in the OECDâ.
#3
One question that has bothered me for a while...
What, exactly, would a perfect Islamic economy produce? My guess is very little, what with the endless prayer times and absolute subjugation of wimmin and proscriptions on interest and so on.
Which leaves us with the dhimmis and slavery to fill the gaps. Insh'Allan.
#4
Which brings to mind the next question: what does it look like once you run out of dhimmis because they all converted to avoid slavery or third-class status?
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
10/11/2005 12:54 Comments ||
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#5
Some local rulers actually tried to make it hard to convert, because they were losing so much of the jizya tax dhimmis paid.
Posted by: James ||
10/11/2005 13:58 Comments ||
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#6
Last year it said âless than 60 per cent of population aged 50 to 64 had a job in the OECDâ.
What the hell do those people do all day? (And what money do they do it with?)
I'm 59 years old. Last week I worked over 50 hours at my part-time job (admittedly that was high - normally it's under 45).
I also worked every other hour I could find at my part-time business (I have a large show at the end of the month and I am NOT READY).
Plus I have volunteer rescue squad duty every other weekend, as well as meetings, training, etc.
That's in addition to the regular household and life stuff we all have to do.
Sure, I'd like a little more free time; to just sit and read a book all the way through in one sitting would be a joy. A good night's sleep would be a gift. Maybe Christmas week.
But I'd rather be busy than not work. Even when I was laid off I worked at something. How the hell does anyone with average health stand having nothing to do? (Shopping, housework, and puttering don't count.)
And they wonder why their economies are in the dumper and ours - in spite of the huge cost of the war we're fighting for them as well as ourselves, the economic damage caused by Katrina, and all the money we've given for tsunami and earthquake relief - ISN'T.
Eleanor Roosevelt said it is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness. Apparently the Euros don't believe it is better to work themselves than blame America for their problems even as they're demanding handouts. :-(
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/11/2005 21:45 Comments ||
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#7
I think everyone is missing the point. Unless and until the west can figure out how to encourage its young women to reproduce at least at a replacement rate--we are doomed. Russia's population is a good example: projected to fall by 50% in the next 25 years or so. I guess poverty, abortion and alcoholism are not condusive to family life. Not to worry though--Pakistan has plenty of people to send north.
The fanatical and the fertile shall inherit the earth... Just be thankful if you live on the American side of the Atlantic.
Former FBI Director Louis Freeh on Sunday accused former President Bill Clinton of ditching the investigation into the 1996 bombing of a U.S. barracks in Saudi Arabia to pursue better relations with Iran.
In an interview with CBS' "60 Minutes," Freeh said Clinton failed to seek Saudi cooperation with the investigation into the Khobar Towers attack, which killed 19 U.S. airmen. He said Clinton instead pressed then-Crown Prince Abdullah, now king, for a donation to his presidential library -- a charge the former president's spokesman and a former adviser told CBS was false.
"I was very disappointed that the political leadership in the United States would tell the families of these 19 heroes that we were going to leave no stone unturned and find the people who killed them, to give that order to the director -- because that's the order that I got -- and then do nothing to assist and facilitate that investigation, and, in fact, to undermine it," Freeh said.
Representatives of the former president did not return CNN calls seeking comment. But former Clinton spokesman Joe Lockhart said Freeh's accusation has been disputed by "everyone who was in those meetings."
"All he is trying to do is follow the right-wing playbook, which is to make up a bunch of charges about President Clinton and do it in a way that you can line your own pockets," Lockhart said.
Freeh is promoting a new memoir, "My FBI: Bringing Down the Mafia, Investigating Bill Clinton and Waging War on Terror." He said his Khobar Towers investigation pointed to Iran, but said the probe was derailed by Clinton's desire to improve relations with the reformist Iranian government elected in 1997.
He said U.S. investigators only gained access to Saudi suspects in the bombing when former President George Bush, who sent American troops to defend the kingdom in the first Persian Gulf War, asked Abdullah for his assistance.
Asked why he did not resign and go public earlier, he said, "I had a different response. I said, 'This is too damn important for me to stop investigating it,' and I didn't stop investigating it. I wanted for a change of administration, which happened when this President Bush was elected."
Clinton named Freeh, a former FBI agent and federal judge, to lead the bureau in 1993 after the fiery raid that ended the Branch Davidian standoff in Waco, Texas. But Freeh's agents ended up conducting multiple investigations of his boss during the 1990s -- including the probe of the president's sexual relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, which resulted in his 1998 impeachment and eventual acquittal by the Senate.
Freeh said those investigations dominated his tenure. But Lockhart said Freeh wasted his time pursuing allegations of wrongdoing leveled by Clinton's political opponents.
"No one made Mr. Freeh go around and chase political rumors and scandals, to go and get into the depths of the president's personal life," Lockhart told CNN. "He did that to win favor and curry favor with the far right wing of this country. What he didn't do was run the FBI."
In his book, Freeh writes that he realized the United States was in a global war with terrorists after the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center and responses to terrorist attacks in the 1990s were inadequate.
"We lacked the political will, the spine, to take military action against our enemies," he told CBS. "It was obvious for years that that's what our position had been."
The 9/11 commission report issued in 2004 credited Freeh with recognizing the terrorist threat early on -- but it also criticized him for failing to shift FBI resources to combat it. And the Justice Department criticized him for failing to improve the FBI's computer network, which investigators said kept agents from "connecting the dots" before the 9/11 attacks.
Freeh told CBS that he had to ask Congress for permission to reassign agents.
Freeh resigned in June 2001, less than three months before al Qaeda's attacks on New York and Washington. On his last day in office, he revealed indictments against 13 Saudis and a Lebanese citizen in connection with the Khobar Towers bombing, all accused of being members of the Iranian-backed Islamic militia Hezbollah. The indictment stated that Iranian officials directed the bombing, but none were charged.
He said he remained in office until 2001 because he didn't want Clinton to name his successor.
"I was concerned about who he would put in there as FBI director because he had expressed antipathy for the FBI, for the director," he said. "I was going to stay there and make sure that he couldn't replace me."
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
10/11/2005 01:31 ||
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#1
Lol. More, more. Pop that BS bubble, Louis. Long overdue and a most welcome reminder of just how fucked up Camelot II - the ultimate political Potemkin Village - actually was. Refresh that notoriously short, and often MIA, public memory.
Joe Lockhart: A paid campaign mgr./ spin doctor [100% professional loser] who has never won a national race.
How lame is it, for cnn to have a paid hack of B Clintons.. who was out of the intel loop in every way possible, [never had access to top secret intel or meetings] refute former FBI Director Louis Freeh? How lame? Way Lame.
/i answer my own questions.
Posted by: Red Dog ||
10/11/2005 5:03 Comments ||
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#3
Clinton - portrait of a shallow man who could have been great, but ulitmately was only great at being shallow.
#6
How lame is it, for cnn to have a paid hack of B Clintons.. who was out of the intel loop in every way possible, [never had access to top secret intel or meetings] refute former FBI Director Louis Freeh?
Not as lame as sending Sandypants Burglar out.
This is going to impact the next presidential election. It will not go away.
It will be forgotten as quickly as Burglar's crime. Freeh will be dismissed as a bitter partisan crank, and the Clintons will be praised for keeping terrorism off our shores and the US out of war.
The press doesn't just admire Orwell's Ministry of Truth; they live their example.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
10/11/2005 9:06 Comments ||
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#7
It is truly amazing as I surf the fever swamp the amount of vitriol that is spouted about the criminality of the Bush administration and never is it acknowledged about the Clintons. This is especially interesting given that I canât name a former Bush administration member that was convicted or confessed to a crime, but in this story you have two (Clinton and Berger) who are supposed to believe.
As discussion of erecting a security fence along U.S. borders with Mexico and Canada heats up, some analysts say it's possible Washington could economically erect thousands of miles of barrier to keep out illegal aliens, smugglers and terrorists, for about half of what the Pentagon is spending a month to fight the war on terror.
The idea, they say, is to erect a structure similar to barrier walls built along highways to reduce sound. They are sturdy, tall, not easily scaled and, most attractively, affordable. Plus, analysts say, a wall would dramatically reduce outside threats. The Federal Highway Administration says most highway sound barriers are constructed of concrete or masonry block, range from 3-5 meters [9-16 feet] in height, and cost between $175 and $200 a square meter.
According to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, there are "more than 2,630 linear miles of sound barriers" along U.S. highways, constructed at a cost of some $1.4 billion. By comparison, the Pentagon is spending about $3.9 billion a month in Iraq and Afghanistan, not counting rebuilding costs, the Associated Press has reported.
One group, WeNeedAFence.com, is advocating the construction of a "state-of-the-art fence" along the entire U.S.-Mexico border, a plan it says would dramatically reduce illegal immigration. The group points to the fact that similar security fences in Israel have reduced terrorist attacks there by as much as 95 percent in some regions.
Lee Plank, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Diamond Manufacturing Company in Wyoming, Pa., says his company has not been approached about border security fences, but, he said, they would be a good idea. "I think they'd have to be about 10 feet high," he told WND, and would cost "about $636,000 a mile" to build. That's about $1.27 billion for 2,000 miles of border fence, similar to the government's figures.
Plank, who says his company specializes in sound-absorbing corrugated metal walls, said a border security fence "would save a lot on manpower."
"It would be interesting to see them on the borders," he added.
Mike Flick of Oldcastle Precast Group, a nationwide leader in both highway and security fencing, told WND the idea of border fencing is certainly doable, but the design, depth and other particulars would need to be worked out.
WeNeedAFence.com officials say a border fence makes sense in this day and age. "The problem is not merely the number of illegal immigrants. In addition to the hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants from Central and South America, there are several hundreds, perhaps thousands, of illegal aliens from countries that sponsor terrorism or harbor terrorists entering the United States each year across our border with Mexico. Thus, it is a national security issue as well as an immigration issue," the group says on its website.
Officials at the Department of Homeland Security also believe in erecting new fences or strengthening existing ones as a way to bolster security. Last month DHS quietly implemented a pair of measures aimed to bring regions of the southwestern border under control. One measure "makes it easier for officials to remove non-Mexican illegal immigrants, popularly called 'other than Mexicans' or OTMs," U.S. News & World Report said, "while another adds yet one more level of fortification to a metal wall stretching along parts of the border."
"They clearly did this when no one was looking," complained Tim Edgar, an immigration specialist with the American Civil Liberties Union. "And I'm worried DHS is trying to set new norms for how we treat immigrants in the United States."
Border Patrol agents have praised fences as a means to deter border-jumping. One San Diego-area agent, speaking on anonymity, told WND fences constructed there have "dramatically" reduced the incidents of illegal immigration, though, the agent conceded, many immigrants have merely moved inland, east of the area where the San Diego fence line ended, to sneak into the country.
#2
I hate it when they always assume that every square inch of the border is equal to every other square inch. Lots of the border is *naturally* impassable.
At a FRACTION of the total cost, the main routes that illegal aliens take could be blocked with such fencing. It depends on how "air-tight" is *economically* feasible. Certainly they will try new crossings, but they are very limited in how many new crossing they *could* use.
For example, if you close just a percentage of the border, starting with high-traffic crossing areas, you get a percentage of reduction in illegal aliens making the crossing, in an uneven curve:
05% closed----0% stopped---2.0M enter the US.
10% closed----5% stopped---1.9M enter the US.
15% closed---25% stopped---1.5M enter the US.
20% closed---60% stopped---800k enter the US.
25% closed---80% stopped---400k enter the US.
27% closed---95% stopped---100k enter the US.
50% closed---96% stopped----80k enter the US.
75% closed---97% stopped----60k enter the US.
100% closed--98% stopped----40k enter the US.
As anyone can tell, you get cost effectiveness up until it peaks at 27%. Then the "law of diminishing returns" kicks in, and instead of paying thousands to stop each alien, you start paying tens and hundreds of thousands, or even millions of dollars for each additional alien you stop. It's just not worth it to pay millions of dollars to keep one person out.
Of course, these percentages are just examples, and the reality is that far *less* of the border would have to be blocked to keep out *most* illegal aliens. Perhaps as little as FIVE PERCENT could keep out as much as 95% of illegals.
So, instead of billions and billions of dollars, what if it only takes $50 MILLION to stop 95% of all illegal aliens? Spend double or triple that amount to reinforce just those high traffic sections and keep them maintained. The other 5% of illegals would be just a drop in the bucket compared to the huge number of LEGAL immigrants the US lets in every year.
If you are worried about terrorists infiltrating across the border in that 5%, don't be. Terrorists already pay a premium to sneak into the US, and even having 100% border fencing won't stop a single one from getting in, or even trying to get in.
But the bottom line is that those who insist that a fence must be built for the entire length of the border are trying to deceive the public about the costs and benefits, as an excuse for inaction. They have no intention of building a fence, ever, and even if forced to build a fence, they would create endless delays and cost overruns out of thin air. Anything to stop it from happening.
two parallel chain links with some barbed wire cross stitching would do just as well (assuming the ground was treated a little to prevent digging) and cost about 5%
#5
AM's treatment is similar to the argument that eventually won the day for SDI: Take for granted that SDI will not be perfect (nothing is). How about 50% effective? People scoffed at that number, until they were reminded that a 50% reduction of warheads hitting the US was exactly the same as imposing on the Soviets a unilateral 50% cut in the number of their missile launchers.
This pretty much silenced everyone: if the soviets had cut their missiles by 50% in return for economic incentives, they would have been hailed and revered as seekers of peace, and held up as examples of disarmament. As it is, Reagan heard that, took the money that would have been given to the Soviets, gave it to our own industry to build SDI, and attained the same effect on the Soviets, with the advantage that the money stayed in the US instead of going abroad.
Opposition pretty much collapsed after that. Thanks for stirring up that memory, AM. we don't have to heed the screams for perfection from the Nilihist Antiwar pro-destroy-america crowd, when "good enough" can do most of the job.
#6
The kicker is not being able to find Americans to fill the jobs needed for construction of the fence. As it is said Americans won't take those jobs, They'll have to use "illegals." And the Medicaid, housing, and welfare for their families would be prohibitive.
#7
As it is said Americans won't take those jobs,..
The difference between an urban legend and an academic legend?
Law of supply and demand. Fewer workers means employers have to pay more till people will take the jobs [seemed to have been a good number of extra bodies around the New Orleans plantation. I'm sure a few more Blue plantations can provide additional manpower]. Some employers will move the work beyond the border, but most of the jobs we're talking about are local and non-moveable. Some of the services or products will price themselves beyond what the market is willing to pay and that work will go away as non-essential as deemed by the market. Let the employers scream, let the market decide.
#9
"...not being able to find Americans to fill the jobs needed for construction of the fence"I've talked about this type of crap before,in regards construction jobs in Tucson,Az.
Bardo,that line is absolute bullshit.Will you find Americans to build the fence or hire out as a loborer on a masonry crew for $6.00/hr hell no.But one of my neighbors is running fence along a local highway construction project(3 strand barbed),started out at $14.00/hr.I have noooo problem stringing fence for that kind of money.People who spout that"not being able to find Americans"crap don't have a clue what the hell thier talking about.The only reason people won't take those type of jobs is because what self respecting,sucsessfull contractor wants to give-up his Mercedes for a Ford.
#10
For the kinds of jobs they do at any wage level the quality of labor from (legal) Mexicans will be much better than that of Americans willing to do the same job for the same wage. You're talking ambitious Mexicans who come here to work their butts off for a few years and take their nest egg home. That's against the bottom of the ladder underclass worker here who's on drugs half the time.
These jobs will get done only if consumers will pay the price. Hotel work?, they'll pay the price. Fruits and vegetables? we'll be buying more imports. And some jobs won't get done.
Because before we started ignoring law breakers who happened to be Mexican, no one mowed their lawns, or harvested fruit and vegetables, or worked in low-paying, tedious jobs. All that shit just never got done when all you had to depend on unreliable, drug-addled Americans.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
10/11/2005 13:43 Comments ||
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#12
Because before we started ignoring law breakers who happened to be Mexican, no one mowed their lawns,..
Where I lived in my youth, the gardeners were all of Japanese ancestry, they didn't use leaf blowers, and they all spoke English.
#13
RC, You're usually better than that. 40 years ago I worked one summer at a nursrey in Pennsylvania where one other high school kid and I were the only non-Mexican migrant workers. They went up and down the east coast as the seasons changed even then. I specified legal workers, there are plenty, and they work hard. Illegals are law breakers, not sick birds. And they deserve to be prosecuted. But the legal ones work hard and are good people.
#14
The illegals are now all travelling down to New Orleans to work on the reconstruction projects. If someone would bother, it ought to be fairly easy to round them up. And there are plenty of American construction workers who would be happy to have their work schedules closer to full time than part time.
In my youth, the gardening jobs were done by school kids desirous of extra money, and housekeeping was done by those housewives who didn't want to be part time real estate agents.
#15
I specified legal workers, there are plenty, and they work hard.
The legal ones aren't the problem.
The legal ones aren't the ones that border enforcement will stop.
"Sheretle Glerenter5995", when illegals have become a law enforcement problem in rural Indiana, we have a serious problem. It's long past time to start enforcing the borders.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
10/11/2005 14:43 Comments ||
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#16
Get the Army Corps of Engineers to do the work putting the fence up. I'm for fencing the whole damn thing despite the cost. Use masonary in high traffic areas and chain link in other areas.
I think fencing in part of the border will just move the migration routes into the desert. I'd rather have fences and walls than water fountains built to keep the illegals alive in an area they shouldn't be in in the first place.
And regarding those lost jobs. A lot of teenagers used to mow lawns (and outside of the Southwest they still do). Beyond if the giant corporate farms in the US cannot survive without illegals perhaps some farms will spring up in Mexico, creating jobs and helping to prop up that basket case of a country so the illegals don't feel the need to migrate for work.
Americans can and will do any work if the pay is right and the status for hard work is accorded. It is elitest³ to look down on manual [no pun intended] work.
College and high school kids used to pick tons of fruit, vegis & fiber years ago for cash. add construction, restuarants, Garden shops, gardners, etc. etc. etc.
*job status*
Would you probe nasty assholes for a living? Not likely..but proctologist do so everyday and are accorded the letters of Dr. [status] in front of their name.
To me it seems ironic as hell that folks sit at desks all day long and then pay monthly fees so that after work they can spend an hour or two working out in a gym to stay healthy and fit.
/whew, just wasted 2 calories.
Posted by: Red Dog ||
10/11/2005 15:30 Comments ||
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#18
Simple.
Make it a "government work" project.
Minority contractors.
Grade and gravel 5 lanes worth, then build, pave and maintain a 3 lane hardtop hiway (E, W, and center lane) along the border, with 12 foot concrete barrier wall (4-stacked overlapped K-rail with rebar rods to hold it will do - easily bought, easily repaired) on the Mexico-facing side, and 2 10 foot chain links (concertina wire topped, barbed wire in the inner fence) on the US side. Build fairly spartan "patrol" stations every 90-120 miles (so nothing is more than an hours drive from a patrol station), and major "battalion" stations to control them and sensors (with helicopter, processing and arrest areas, etc). Most observation could be automated, with AI and video combined to alert sensor operators that a sector needs a close look, and then local patrol woudl be sent to investigate (or helicopter if its urgent). UAV could augment this as well as aerostats (fairly inexpensive).
Road pays for itself in reducing wear and tear on border patrol vehicles, make a very visible enforceable and observable strip, and provides good kickbacks to local and state and congress for the construction funds (lets face it: political grease works).
Start by putting aerostats up over the rougher terrain, and building the barrier road over the easy long stretches.
#20
good comments above - work paid properly will get done legally. BTW - check out the source of your out-of-season fruits and veggies in the grocery store: Peru, Columbia, Mexico, etc. are already doing the farming (and shipping here at decent prices, too). Things are actually picking up due to the trade pacts, just do it LEGALLY. No amnesty, no illegals, build the friggin friendship fence
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/11/2005 16:34 Comments ||
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#21
Recent polls in Mexico showed that 60% wanted to move to the US. It would be cheaper and easier for everyone if we just conquered made them a US territory and fixed the place and showed them how rule of law works.
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/11/2005 18:13 Comments ||
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#23
I can just imagine the outcry about the effect on the environment...
Posted by: DanNY ||
10/11/2005 21:43 Comments ||
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#24
Recent polls in Mexico showed that 60% wanted to move to the US.
That's their damned problem.
It would be cheaper and easier for everyone if we just conquered made them a US territory and fixed the place and showed them how rule of law works.
Uhh, no. They've been our next-door neighbor (albeit a very poor one) for quite a long time, and after having had front row seats watching what goes on here for all this time, they still can't get their act together? They need to fix themselves, instead of leeching off the Yanqui neighbor.
New York officials scaled back security in the city's subways yesterday after federal and local law enforcement authorities discounted the report of a terrorist threat to the city's underground transportation system.
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said that the extraordinary measures put in place on Thursday - police officers on every train, major shows of force at transportation centers - would be relaxed, but that the city would continue many of the enhanced measures it has taken to protect the subways since the bombings in London in July.
"There was no threat there," one senior United States counterterrorism official said of the possible threat that surfaced publicly late last week.
From the outset, some federal officials, including those with the Department of Homeland Security, questioned just how real a plot against the subway system had been, and while some supported the city's measures, at least one official said he was astonished by how the city had reacted.
But Mr. Bloomberg and other city officials were adamant yesterday that they had made the right decision, to go public with the report and heighten security. New York officials described the threat last week as alarming for its specificity and timing, noting that information on the possible plot was strong enough to prompt a military operation that swept up three Iraqi men thought to be involved.
City officials also reiterated yesterday that they would much rather risk frightening and inconveniencing New Yorkers than be caught unprepared for an attack.
Law enforcement officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the information in the case is classified, said that an American investigation, conducted largely in Iraq, has yielded no evidence that a plot was in motion or being actively contemplated. The outlines of the alleged plot, based on the word of an informant, were that Al Qaeda operatives in Iraq were coordinating with others, some perhaps already in New York, to hide bombs in baby strollers, packages and briefcases and blow them up in subways.
But the officials said that after taking the three men into custody last week in Iraq, they found no fake passports, no travel documents, no viable travel route from Iraq to New York, and no apparent contact or telephone calls from those in Iraq to people in New York. In addition, the officials said that two of the men detained in Iraq had been given polygraph tests that indicated they were not part of any plot.
At a minimum, then, the case of the subway bomb plot appears to be the latest addition to the country's post-9/11 struggle to meet the sometimes conflicting demands of gathering good intelligence, preventing harm and informing and reassuring the public along the way. It is an effort that has regularly proved awkward and even contradictory, as federal and local agencies make their own assessments and meet their own specific obligations.
The F.B.I.'s chief spokesman, John Miller, an assistant director, said yesterday that the agency supported the city's actions. "Since 9/11, one of the toughest balances has been to pass on all threat information quickly while understanding you have to vet it later, especially when you have to give it to a local government that could be affected," he said in a telephone interview from Washington. "We've also encouraged local governments to take whatever steps they think are prudent until the information is vetted. In this case, everybody did what they were supposed to do."
Mark J. Mershon, the head of the New York F.B.I. office, said in a statement last night that it was the agency's policy to pass on threat information immediately to any potentially threatened city. "While some evaluation continues, we are comfortable that the steps taken overseas have neutralized any threat that may or may not have existed," he said.
Officials at the Department of Homeland Security, who had raised doubts about the credibility of the threat and had seemed to suggest that the city was overreacting, said little yesterday. A department spokesman, Russ Knocke, said only, "No information has been uncovered to enable the intelligence community to substantiate the threat information."
Asked yesterday about the threat, Mr. Bloomberg said that federal authorities had told the city they were unable to verify it. He said that since the period of the strike was passing, security would be rolled back. But he noted that the city remained at level orange - a higher state of alert than the rest of the country.
"We're going to take every single threat that has any chance of being credible seriously, and do exactly what we did," he said.
Fernando Ferrer, Mr. Bloomberg's Democratic challenger in the race for mayor, issued a statement yesterday saying that the mayor should disclose what, and when, he knew about the threat, and precisely why he acted as he did. Edward Skyler, a spokesman for Mr. Bloomberg, said that during such an extensive investigation, "the mayor doesn't have the luxury of knowing whether the threat will ultimately be determined to be credible or not."
More details emerged about the alleged threat and the investigation into it. One law enforcement official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because much about the case is classified, said that the three men continue to be interrogated in Iraq.
The source who provided the information, the official said, had been mostly accurate when he gave information to his Defense Intelligence Agency handlers about actions inside Iraq and largely wrong about actions elsewhere.
"The process is not a clean one here," the official said. "Ever."
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
10/11/2005 01:18 ||
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"Fernando Ferrer, Mr. Bloomberg's Democratic challenger in the race for mayor, issued a statement yesterday saying that the mayor should disclose what, and when, he knew about the threat, and precisely why he acted as he did."
Fred Ferrer grasping at straws as his campaign for NYC mayor "sinks beneath our wisdom like a stone."
UNICEF Bombs Smurfs to Highlight Plight
Oct 11 12:19 PM US/Eastern
R. I. P.
Smurfette
(1965-2005)
By HELENA SPONGENBERG
Associated Press Writer
BRUSSELS, Belgium
Smurfette is left for dead. Baby Smurf is left crying and orphaned as the Smurf's village is carpet bombed by warplanes _ a horrific scene and imagery not normally associated with the lovable blue-skinned cartoon characters.
These are the scenes being shown as part of a new UNICEF ad-campaign on Belgian television.
"It's working. We are getting a lot of reactions and people are logging on to our Web site," UNICEF Belgium spokesman Philippe Henon said Tuesday.
The Belgian office of the U.N. children's fund said it has decided to use the creations of late Belgian artist Peyo to shock a complacent public into backing its fund-raising efforts for ex-child soldiers in Africa.
The 20-second video commercial clip now being shown on Belgian TV aims to show that war can happen in the most innocent of places, Henon said.
"We get reactions from all over the place," said Henon. "People are shocked and want to know the reasons behind this cartoon image."
The appeal is meant to raise money for UNICEF projects in Burundi, Congo and Sudan, Henon said. However, due to its graphic and disturbing scenes, this cartoon is not for everyone. The advertisement is aimed at an adult audience and is only shown after 9 p.m. to avoid upsetting young Smurfs fans.
Yes, but some will see it, and be freaked by it. But, of course, it is in French. No matter how important the message, it is seriously degraded by making a presenataion like this
The video is peacefully introduced by birds, butterflies and happy Smurfs playing and singing their theme song when suddenly out of the sky, bombs rain down onto their forest village, scattering Papa Smurf and the rest as their houses are set ablaze.
The bombs kill Smurfette leaving Baby Smurf orphaned and crying at the edge of a crater in the last scene of the video and finishing of with the text "don't let war destroy the children's world."
It calls on viewers to donate.
UNICEF traditionally uses real life images of playing and laughing children but decided to change it for something that would shock people, Henon said.
"We wanted to have lasting effect of our campaign, because we felt that in comparison to previous campaigns, the public is not easily motivated to do things for humanitarian causes and certainly not when it involved Africa or children in war," he said.
Henon added that UNICEF would never cross the line and film real-life war scenes in its appeals.
The UNICEF campaign was launched Friday with the Smurf TV spot and will last until April.
"We see so many images that we don't really react anymore," said Julie Lamoureux, account director at Publicis, an advertising agency that drew up the campaign for UNICEF Belgium. "In 35 seconds we wanted to show adults how awful war is by reaching them within their memories of childhood."
The Smurf ad will be followed by similar ad in November to promote UNICEF's "let children live in peace" campaign.
French children's program Martine and the children's song "Au Clair de la Lune" will be presented with changed lyrics.
It will do nothing to help former child soldiers in Burundi when "Generation Y" (or whatever) is too busy laughing at watching the Smurfs get pwned and saying stuff like "Gargamel is HARDCORE".
I would know. ;)
Posted by: Edward Yee ||
10/11/2005 15:55 Comments ||
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#2
When are they doing the kiddie porn version? You know, for the UN "insiders"?
#3
Didn't have enough old Pathe film available of Belgium refugees being strafed and bombed by the Luftwaffe in 1940? Why use cartoon characters when you have the real stuff?
#4
How about putting this photo up along side the smurf? The League of Nations/UN did a good job of stopping that slaughter too. Message - don't expect the UN to save your butt!
Robert Crawford and Whain, thanks for the explanation, I did not make the connection until just now after reading your replies.
Posted by: Edward Yee ||
10/11/2005 20:36 Comments ||
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#13
New Live Aid concert to come, "We are the smurfs, we are the....."
Posted by: Captain America ||
10/11/2005 22:33 Comments ||
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#14
FLASH-UNICEF-LOSERS ! The UN needs to own up to the fact that it is a lost cause if it needs to kill smurfs to get their message across. They should not have wasted all their credibility on making a select few rich over the Iraq sanctions...I hope Bolton helps clean that place up.
#15
This is about the level of competence associated with most UN peacekeeping actions of the last 20 years. I'm surprised the UN propagandists didn't put US markings on the bombs. UNICEF has been a scam for a long time.
France's former U.N. ambassador has been taken into custody as part of an investigation into allegations of wrongdoing in the Iraq oil-for- food program, judicial officials said Tuesday. Jean-Bernard Merimee, 68, who also was ambassador to Italy from 1995- 98 and to Australia in the 1980s, is suspected of having received kickbacks in the form of oil allocations from the regime of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. He was also a special adviser to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan from 1999 to 2002.
Isn't that special?
Merimee was taken into custody on Monday, and is expected to be presented Wednesday to the judge leading the probe, the officials said on condition of anonymity because French law does not allow disclosure of information from judicial investigations.
Merimee was France's permanent representative to the U.N. from 1991- 95. He was one of the world body's most prominent diplomats, in part because France occupies one of five permanent seats on the powerful U.N. Security Council. The oil-for-food program was established in 1996 to provide food, medical supplies and other humanitarian goods for millions of Iraqis trying to cope with U.N. sanctions imposed after Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The program ended with the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Merimee worked as a special adviser to Annan from 1999 to 2002, helping to create a system by which the European Commission disbursed payments to the United Nations.
From one corrupt organization to another
Annan spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the U.N. would not comment on the specifics of the case. "We have made it clear that we support the efforts of national authorities who wish to pursue proceedings into activities of their own nationals who may or may not have been involved in the oil-for- food program," Dujarric said.
The French mission to the United Nations promised to cooperate with the investigation into Merimee. A spokesman said the mission's papers from Merimee's time at the U.N. had long since been sent back to the national archives in Paris and that there had been no request so far to meet with staff in New York.
Saddam manipulated the program under a scheme by which he essentially sold oil at a reduced rate to favored buyers, who could then turn around and sell the oil at a hefty profit. Ten French officials and business leaders _ including a former adviser to former Interior Minister Charles Pasqua _ are suspected of having received oil allocations as kickbacks from Saddam's regime.
Posted by: Steve ||
10/11/2005 13:35 ||
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Ha! F@#* you Merimee...Next!( and by that I mean the Kofi guy hisself)
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
10/11/2005 15:41 Comments ||
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#2
...the previous carries the usual apologies to our more sensitive cummunity members. However, when it comes to the UN...no expeletive is off the table.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
10/11/2005 15:43 Comments ||
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#3
It isn't our community members that are sensitive to strong language, it's the occasional unsuspecting visitor. The moderators don't like us to seriously advocate murder. :-)
Posted by: abu Rubenstein ||
10/11/2005 16:33 Comments ||
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#5
Another corrupt official who worked for me?
I simply must talk to Human Resources about their screening process...
Posted by: Kofi A. ||
10/11/2005 16:37 Comments ||
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#6
Thanks TW...yeah, I caught a thread the other week where things got a little "heated". It's just that the UN gets my @#$ %^&$ in a @#$$%@@ uproar. Can't help myself - it's instant TS for me.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
10/11/2005 19:24 Comments ||
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#7
Let the Iraqis fry judge this asshole.
Posted by: Captain America ||
10/11/2005 22:37 Comments ||
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Posted by: Long Hair Republican ||
10/11/2005 21:27 ||
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That's a reasonable conclusion if the world were as presented in the main stream media. Unfortunately for these asshats, George Bush and the US military don't pay a hell of a lot of attention to the New York Times and its fellow travelers.
#2
If the current government can't do it, we'll elect somebody with a stronger stomach. Either way..we will eventually exterminate radical islam. They should surrender now.
#3
The void is already being filled by ever more effective Iraqi police and military security forces. Not to mention that everyone with a cell phone is texting your ass to the man when they see you.
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Iraqi negotiators finally agreed on the price of a rug reached a breakthrough deal on the constitution Tuesday and at least one Sunni Arab party said it would now urge its followers to approve the charter in this weekend's referendum.
Under the deal, the two sides agreed that Thomas Jefferson and James Madison a commission would be set up to consider amendments to the charter that would then be put to a vote in parliament and then submitted to a new referendum next year.
The agreement would allow the Sunnis to try to amend the constitution to reduce the autonomous powers that Shiites and Kurds would have under the federal system created by the charter, negotiators said.
Theyre counting both on more Sunni reps - they wont boycott in December, and the rules are more favorable, and also that the Shiite block wont stay united - Dawa and SCIRI seem to moving apart, and Sistani wont hold them together.
It boosts the chances for a constitution that Shiite and Kurdish leaders support and the United States has been eager to see approved in Saturday's vote to avert months more of political turmoil, delaying plans to start a withdrawal of U.S. forces.
Looks like a big win for Khalilzad, the Admin, and the US.
U.S. officials have pushed the three days of negotiations between Shiite and Kurdish leaders in the government and Sunni Arab officials, that concluded with marathon talks at the house of President Jalal Talabani late Tuesday.
A top Sunni negotiator, Ayad al-Samarraie of the Iraqi Islamic Party, said the measure would allow it to "stop the campaign rejecting the constitution and we will call on Sunni Arabs to vote yes." It was unclear if parliament would take a formal vote on the new deal with some lawmakers saying that measure may be read to the National Assembly on Wednesday.
Look for some IIP people to blown up in the next few days
Some other major Sunni parties were not present at the negotiations and it was not clear if they too would be willing to reverse their "no" campaigns.
"er, em, let me check my life insurance policy"
The Sunni-led insurgents have demanded a boycott of the election and threatened those who would vote.
"Damned traitors!!"
The announcement was the first break in the ranks of Sunni Arab leaders, who have been campaigning hard to defeat the constitution at the polls.
Ali al-Dabagh, a Shiite negotiator, said the sides agreed on four additions to the constitution that will be voted on Saturday that will allow for future amendments.
The central addition allows the next parliament, which will be formed in Dec. 15 elections, to form the commission that will have four months to consider changes to the constitution. The changes would be approved by the entire parliament, then a referendum would be held two months later.
Sunni Arabs are hoping to have a stronger representation in the next parliament and want to make major amendments to the constitution, particularly to water down the provisions for federalism, which Shiites and Kurds strongly support.
The other additions include a statement stressing Iraqi unity and another states that the Arabic language should be used in the Kurdistan region, along with Kurdish â issues important to the Sunni Arabs. The fourth underlines that former members of Saddam Hussein's ousted, Sunni-led Baath Party will only be prosecuted if they committed crimes.
Some moderate Sunni leaders once had positions in the Baath Party and fear being barred from politics by the De-Baathification process outlined in the constitution.
"The leaders of the political blocs have approved these additions and amendments and tomorrow they will be announced (read) to the national assembly," al-Dabagh said
Posted by: Fred ||
10/11/2005 19:53 Comments ||
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#6
There are so many plusses and minuses to every outcome, that you reach the conclusion that in a democracy, more haggling is better.
For example, while the Sunnis are obviously troublesome, they will *also* push the Shiites towards greater secularism and the rights of women, etc. They have a vested interest in civil rights for the minorities, i.e. them; but this overflows to all the other minorities as well.
Remember US history, and the federalist vs. the anti-federalist arguments? Many of the same rules apply, of course in much distorted form. The Sunnis will push for a strong central government, the homogenation of society, and a lack of preferences for groups. The Kurds will do the opposite, and the Shiites will be somewhere in between. And a better result will come from haggling, with everybody getting something and nobody getting everything they want.
Long article, one quote:"We were hit by 115 RPGs hit Strykers over the year we had here, not one penetrated a Stryker, not one. Not any -- no machine gun fire penetrated a Stryker inside. We did have a soldier that was killed in a hatch by an RPG -- standing up in a hatch, and they fired from a building on top, but not one RPG penetrated a Stryker; 115 hits, it's a fantastic vehicle. ...Does it need improvements? I don't know of any vehicle that doesn't. I'd put a laser range-finder on it. I'd stabilize the gun, maybe put a larger gun on it. The Army's working all that. Is it a fantastic vehicle? Yes."
Posted by: Steve ||
10/11/2005 08:41 ||
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Sounds like a wonderful start. The laser finder mated with a stabilized gun would be awsome.
#2
Speaking of Stryker has anyone heard any recent news about how the MGS variant is going?
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
10/11/2005 9:25 Comments ||
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#3
Let's not "HumVee" the Stryker to death. We have people movers with larger guns and laser range finders. They're call Bradly's. Let's allow specialty vehicles to remain specialty vehicles.
#4
The stryker can go places the bradly can't. With a stable gun and range finder 25mm gun it would be even better. Options are always good for vehicles since there is no one size fits all. Make it easily modded in the field by the grunts it moves and you have a winner.
#5
Could somebody post a link to milblogers?Thought I had put it in favorites,but can't find it.I was over there the other day and started reading one of the bloggers and was enthralled(hope thats the word I want).He was describing his experience in the Battle of Fallugah.
#6
Guys, I was thinking about the version with the 105mm gun.
It was supposed to be part of the program to begin with.
The last news I read, the guys in the field were _asking_ for it, but it's several years behind schedule.
It wasn't a standard model, but a "fire support" model not meant to carry crew around. The idea was that you'd have all these different vehicles built on the same drivetrain.
In lieu of that, they're using M-1's (when available) or using TOW missiles against bunkers or reinforced buildings (such as when Uday and Qusay were killed).
Maybe they just need to transfer some M-1's to provide fire support, I don't know.
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
10/11/2005 11:16 Comments ||
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#7
Ack... I meant "troops" when I wrote "crew" above.
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
10/11/2005 12:12 Comments ||
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#8
Wasn't the Stryker Gen. Shinseki's baby?
Though it bugged me that he was the darling of the Kerry campaign during the election the fact is that he was right about the Stryker, arguably right about troop levels needed for the Army, especially in Iraq and no harm seems to have been done by changing the uniform or the 'Army of One' campaigns for which he drew criticism. Props to the General.
Sunni Arab activists are going door to door to supporters' homes and using mosque imams in a final drive to persuade the minority community to go to the polls on Saturday and vote against the Iraqi constitution. The stepped-up campaign against the draft document comes as leaders of the Sunni Arab community are in the thick of last-minute talks with Shiite and Kurdish leaders to reach a compromise on the divisive charter.
Sunni-led insurgents are warning Sunnis not to vote at all, backing their calls with threats and violence. Iraq's Sunni Arabs â about 20 percent of Iraq's estimated 26 million people â boycotted last January's historic general election, but this time only insurgent groups are calling on voters to stay away from the polls. Dominant under Saddam Hussein, Sunni Arabs say the charter will cause the breakup of Iraq, discriminates against their community and ignores the country's Arab identity. The controversy over the charter has exacerbated Iraq's already simmering ethnic and religious divisions.
They get all fired up over that "Arab identity" thing. Up until the Arabs showed up, Mesopotamia was the home of a sophisticated civilization that regarded the camel herders as hicks. Occasionally — only occasionally — some remote descendant of the civilized will remember, and briefly hold his head a little higher. Then some Arab will cut it off.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/11/2005 00:00 ||
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Vote or die, mf
Posted by: Captain America ||
10/11/2005 2:35 Comments ||
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History has caught to to the "Iraqi" (bogus BS entity) Sunnis. This will be the pivot point, for me. Kill the constitution - and you've killed yourselves, Soft Boyz. Support it, and you'll have a life... Not as overlords, but as citizens of something resembling one of those "nation" thingys.
#3
AFAICT the Sunnis have some legitimate gripes with the constitution - not the arab identity thing, but with the degree of autonomy to the regions, and the apparent goal of SCIRI to make a seperate southern region. The degree of regional control over economics and oil is the hot button - its one thing to give up control over all of Iraq, its another to be cut out of most of the oil revenue.
On the other hand, i think if the consitution wins, the best Sunni approach will be then to participate in the constitution, and hope to effect its implementation. AFAICT many sunni leaders are looking in that direction.
OTOH if the constitution loses, then it will be up to the next govt (elected in December) to try again. That should NOT be seen as a US defeat, though some in the MSM will attempt to paint it as such.
I note with interest that Sistani has asked that clerics close to him NOT run in the December elections. Apparently his involvement on behalf of the United Iraqi Alliance in the January elections now looks like a mistake, even to him. This may well be a good thing, as it may move Iraq to cross cutting coalitions, rather than solid Shiite block.
#5
OTOH if the constitution loses, then it will be up to the next govt (elected in December) to try again. That should NOT be seen as a US defeat, though some in the MSM will attempt to paint it as such.
Some? Try 90%+. Maybe even higher, considering the way Shep and the Corner responded to Katrina.
#8
flash - a new deal has been reached, in which the Shiites and Kurds pledge that the next parliament, to be elected in December, can propose amendments to the constitution, to be subject to referendum.
In response the Iraqi Islamic Party, one of the leading Sunni parties calling for a no vote, has flipped and is calling for a yes vote.
All per AP.
Victory snatched from the jaws of defeat department?
This article rates a two-thirds full glass of warm milk and a nice chocolatey cookie. There appear to be a couple of halfhearted examples of the PA trying to restore some semblance of order, but the little girl quoted at the end of the article will probably never get to be a doctor. At least not in Paleoland.
"Freedom for Palestine!" chants 9-year-old Ahmad Abu Sharia in a Gaza Strip refugee camp, as he listens to a small radio bringing news of Israeli air strikes.
Quick note: It's been at least a week since Israel had any air strikes...
"I want to become a commander in al-Aqsa," he says. Abu Sharia's
Abu Sharia? That's criminal. For shame, mom & dad.
dream of fighting Israel and perhaps achieving fame as a "martyr" is one shared by many of his friends and other youngsters in the Gaza Strip, a militant stronghold in an uprising against Israel since 2000. Palestinians trying to rebuild the Gaza Strip must now deal with the legacy of a culture of martyrdom and militancy that appears better suited to years of violence than to making the territory a model for statehood. Cutting poverty and unemployment, and creating a conducive atmosphere to reduce militant tendencies among children is the top priority," said Ghassan al-Khatib, Palestinian planning minister.
Yeah, and Hamas is plotting your demise and laughing at you behind your back, Ghassan.
"We are looking to develop the right kinds of programs that will absorb their energy, and channel it in the right direction," he told Reuters. The government is focusing on improving school curricula and fostering an environment to help children focus on education, civic duties and eventually finding jobs, Khatib said.
Meanwhile, authorities have slapped whitewash on Gaza Strip walls to cover up the murals of "martyrs," mostly young men, brandishing assault rifles or showing off suicide bomb belts. "We don't have athletes, or movie stars or other celebrities that the children can look up to," said Eyad Sarraj, a prominent Gaza psychiatrist and human rights activist.
All those things are unIslamic. Ask anyone.
"Anyone who fights Israel is a role model. Militants and martyrs are the only role models here."
In rundown cities and refugee camps, battered by Israeli raids and air strikes during the years of Intifada or uprising, many youngsters are given saw no other few better opportunities than joining one of the armed factions. Those who died fighting could expect thousands to attend their funerals -- ceremonies of billowing flags and shots in the air where cries of revenge mingled with tears of mourning. "I want to have three stripes on my shoulder," said 12-year-old Nidal Dahman, placing three fingers on his shoulder, indicating senior ranks in the al-Aqsa brigades.Before the Israeli pullout, a survey done by Sarraj's Gaza Community Mental Health Program showed 37 percent of 12-year-olds in Gaza wanted not only to fight Israel, but to "become martyrs." Any shift in feelings appears nonexistent gradual among youths on the dusty streets of Gaza City. "The change in their attitude depends on the pace of change in the environment. The pullout created a change in the surroundings, and that affected the children in a positive way. Further changes will influence them more," Sarraj said.
More than half the Palestinian population of 3.8 million is under 18.
"I want to join Hamas because they try to make me less afraid and I want to make others feel less afraid," said 12-year-old schoolgirl Abir Jarradah, wearing a blue uniform with a white headscarf. "But I also want to become a doctor."
#2
Now they think ... all too amusing if it wasn't so pathetic and sad for the children who are not yet twisted and will have to live in the world of murderous hateful freaks Arafat and all the other scum created for them.
#3
First step is eliminating the culture of hate that spawns war in the first place.
Unable to end the hatred? FOAD. I'm sure Israel will be glad to assist with ending the hatred any way possible. Palestinians have the choice of endless war and death or peaceful coexistence.
If they cannot opt for peace, the sooner they all die, the better.
#4
The government is focusing on improving school curricula and fostering an environment to help children focus on education, civic duties and eventually finding jobs, Khatib said.
Improving? Try dumping it altogether and starting over from scratch. An "improvement" can mean that not only are some things added, changed, or removed but that some things are left alone, as in the Jews-are-this-and-that bullshit. Given the Paleo track record so far, there's little reason to cut 'em any slack.
#6
Let's see... they'll need to replace all their textbooks again (the EU can fund the printing, again, they won't mind). Then every single imam in all the mosques, as they seem to be stuck on message. Oh, yes, and they'll need to replace all the classic television shows for Ramadan... and the rest of the year as well (but that bit can wait for a month, anyway). Then repaint all the exterior walls throughout the West Bank and Gaza to erase all the nasty slogans and murals, and rename all the streets named for martyrs and battles, and remove the horrid art installations...
That should be enough to get them started, anyway. Closing down the various "summer camps" can wait until spring.
#7
I say to you Mr. Mubarak: "tear down this wall!"
(Referring to the border fences between Egypt and Paleostine.)
Egypt looks like the promised land compared to Gaza. Let 'em emigrate. I'm sure the majority will become peace loving under the watchful eye of the Egyptian police. Most would probably end up in London though...
The 2004 election ousted Party Islam Se-Malaysia (Pas) from its stronghold of Terengganu state. With only Kelantan left to govern, Pas' ultra-conservative Islamist slant is now masked under populist approaches
By NAZRY BAHRAWI
Last month's concerts in Malaysia's northern state of Kelantan featuring popular entertainers like Asmawi Ani, or Mawi, and M Nasir did not just rock its patrons at Stadium Sultan Mohamed IV, but is also set to shake the very fabric of Malaysian politics. For years now, the Party Islam Se-Malaysia (Pas) has been championing an ultra-conservative worldview that appealed to the largely agrarian Malay masses in northern Malaysia.
Last year marked a turning point.
The 2004 general election which saw Barisan Nasional (BN), headed by its newly-appointed progressive leader Abdullah Badawi, wrest from Pas the control of what was thought to be its stronghold Terengganu state, was a rude awakening for the Islamist party's head, Abdul Hadi Awang, and his political cohorts.
Against Pas' perceived orthodoxy, Mr Badawi's Islam Hadhari ``package'' _ which among other things urges Muslims to stay relevant in the modern economy through the relentless pursuit of knowledge in fields other than traditional Islamic sciences _ must surely seem to promise a better tomorrow for the bulk of moderate Malays eager for economic progress.
With only Kelantan state left to govern, leaders and members of Party Islam Se-Malaysia embarked on an intense soul-searching campaign to re-invent Pas in a bid to stay politically viable.
New voices represented by younger leaders like Nasharudin Mat Isa, Salahuddin Ayub and Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud are increasingly getting into the limelight.
The appearance of the new generation was so abrupt that some political analysts have held that the recent, unusual events like concerts and football matches with artistes _ forbidden and even banned by the ``old'' Pas _ suggest the emergence of a mellower, more moderate Islamist party.
Reading these developments critically, sceptics question whether there really has been such a catharsis. To the sceptics, what did change at best is that Pas' ultra-conservative Islamist slant is now masked under populist approaches. For instance, one must not discount that the concerts coincided with declarations that Kota Bharu, the main town of Kelantan on the Thai border, is an Islamic city.
To counter criticism, the party's vice president and Kelantan executive councillor, Husam Musa, was quoted by the popular Malaysiakini website as saying that calling the Pas-controlled state ``Islamic'' should not be seen in any negative manner. He explained further by describing Singapore as Islamic, because its strict rules on littering were a means of maintaining its pristine cleanliness. In Mr Husam's view, this is an Islamic principle.
Despite his seemingly progressive leaning on this specific affair, many still wonder about the limits of Mr Husam, and consequently Pas, on other matters, and for good reasons.
If the concerts were anything to go by, the segregated seating arrangements splitting males and females in the grandstands indicated a conventional Islamist position on issues of modesty and, to a certain extent, gender relations. After all, it is doubtful if the party will ever eradicate its ruling to fine Muslim women who do not wear headscarves while out in public places in Kelantan.
Exclusivism is another cause for concern. Just last June, The Straits Times newspaper reported that members of the party rejected plans by non-Muslim organisations in Kota Bharu to form an Interfaith Commission. Authorities in the state ruled that the commission ``will push the government to drop Islamic `moral laws' and press for legal reforms to protect Muslims who convert to other religions''.
So such a commission was banned.
Incidents such as these appear to validate the widespread cynicism about Pas' alleged moderation strategy.
Meanwhile, pundits will concede that the benefits to observing the developments of this supposed transformation in Pas' tack is not limited to Malaysian politics alone, but also inter-state relations between Thailand and Malaysia.
Muslim majority Pas-controlled Kelantan, as the Malaysian state bordering Narathiwat and Pattani, has a major role to play in the troubles conflicting Thailand's deep South.
Most recently, the transfer of 131 Thai Muslims deserters from Kelantan to Umno-led Terengganu was based on accusations of ``meddling'' by Pas _ though Kelantan police chief Zulkifli Abdullah vehemently denied this to the Kuala Lumpur newspaper New Straits Times.
What was clear, however, was that Pas pledged to support the Thai Muslims and even organised a fund for them. This will surely challenge the political demands for non-intervention by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
But a flicker of hope shines on.
During a recent visit to Singapore, Pas secretary-general Nasharudin Mat Isa said the party would refrain from meddling in Singapore's affairs, even though Pas remains concerned with the welfare of Malay-Muslims in Singapore with family relations in Malaysia.
Is Pas the leopard that can change its spots?
Much remains to be seen, and it will be seen in the near future. If the party truly is serious about re-inventing itself as a serious political contender, it will have to move quickly beyond the rhetoric of conservative Islamism, and take on universal bread-and-butter concerns.
In the meantime, not even the tunes of Mawi can appease critics who doubt the shedding of a conservative Pas image.
Nazry Bahrawi is the managing editor of `The Muslim Reader' magazine published in Singapore.
Posted by: DanNY ||
10/11/2005 00:00 ||
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Acting Director General of State Security Brigadier General Elias Qaaiqati promised to restore the people's confidence in the country's security apparatus and prevent any group or individual from undermining state security. Qaaiqati, who was recently appointed to his post as successor to Brigadier General Hassan Fawaz, spoke during the handing over ceremony held Monday at the Directorate General of State Security in Jnah.
Qaaiqati has been appointed on an interim basis until the government abolishes the position altogether. Qaaiqati said that even if some resources were limited in some fields, the techniques and equipment the government plans to introduce will soon allow all security services to progress. He urged members of the State Security to be loyal to their mission and diligent in performing their tasks and called on the Lebanese people to maintain unity in order to preserve the country's security and stability.
For his part, Fawaz said the Directorate of State Security had the opportunity to restore confidence in its capacities and show the importance of its role. There have been suggestions the government would abolish this service. But Fawaz said if the directorate improved its performance and received some financial and technical resources, it could be maintained. He said the upcoming phase required additional information and sacrifices from all members in order to increase the efficiency of the directorate and prevent it from being shut down.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/11/2005 00:00 ||
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Senior Shiite cleric Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah said Hizbullah's Islamic Resistance force in the South constitutes a reserve army to protect Lebanon whenever it is threatened by Israel. Fadlallah's comments came on Monday during his meeting with the UN's Secretary General Representative in South Lebanon Gere Pederson. The meeting focused on the UN's role in consolidating internal stability through protecting Lebanon from greater Israeli influence in the country and other attempts at foreign intervention. The cleric said the UN had a political and a security role to play to protect Lebanon from foreign pressures and interference in its domestic affairs.
Meanwhile, Higher Shiite Council vice president Sheikh Abdel-Amir Qabalan said the arms of the Palestinians in Lebanon should remain in the hands of their resistance groups for "as long as we live in fear of the Israeli enemy that violates our skies." He also urged the government to permit Palestinian refugees to own homes on Lebanese territories outside the refugee camps and allow them to travel freely outside the camps so that they might better contribute to the country's development.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/11/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
He also urged the government to permit Palestinian refugees to own homes on Lebanese territories outside the refugee camps and allow them to travel freely outside the camps so that they might better contribute to the country's development.
Gosh...that's the real headline. But [shhh] don't tell anyone in the MSM. Never stand in the way of an enemey about to commit suicide.
#3
But what about the fact that if it wasn't for the "reserve army" continually trying to attack Israel, there would be no need to protect Lebanon from Israel?
#4
2b: Well, what do you want the Lebanese to do with their Paleos? Can't ship them to Israel - Israel's not that dumb. No room for 'em in the West Bank or, god forbid, the Gaza Strip. Shame they didn't do this fifty years ago, before the Paleos in question all went mad from being stuck together like so many lifers in prisons like Ein el-Hellhole.
That's the main argument against letting the Paleos try and be normal citizens, really: a significant fraction of them are batshit insane.
Hey, maybe we can ship them to France!
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
10/11/2005 13:50 Comments ||
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Iran softened its tone amid a crisis over its disputed nuclear program, with a senior national security official saying the country had made a "strategic choice" to pursue negotiations. "Negotiations are Iran's strategic choice in the nuclear issue, and we think that there is no other way forward except through talks," Ali Agha Mohammadi, spokesman for Iran's Supreme National Security Council, told the student news agency ISNA. "Iran wants its nuclear case to be transparent and other countries want to ease their concerns through negotiations, so therefore the only solution to reach these objectives is to talk," he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/11/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Playin' out the clock.
Posted by: Captain America ||
10/11/2005 2:37 Comments ||
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#2
Heh, CA.
The transparency of MM "Foreign Diplomacy" (Lol) has finally caught up to them. It's gotta be near perfection - even a few Euros see through it.
Rhetorical Question: If a Mullah negotiates all alone, i.e. there's no one there to hear him, does he shit in the woods desert?
#3
Iff the Norkies and Chicoms and Chavez are surreally willing to cede territory to any alleged invading US force, so Americans should expect the MM to plan for deliber fallback to Iran's mountanious regions, and wage anti-US asymetric "People's War" from these, besides of course closing the distance between the Mullahs and anti-US Sino-Russian intervention milfors.
Once again, no matter their PC rhetoric, its not gonna matter to the Lefties whether Iran has WMDS = nukes or not, andor has one nuke vs. 1000 - the USA will be the MSM/LeftMedia-verified "bad guy".
What prompts someone to convert to Islam and to sign up for global "holy war" in the name of Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda?
Security agencies are asking that question with increasing urgency as they confront a growing catalogue of actual or attempted attacks in which Muslim converts are suspected of playing prominent roles.
Richard Reid, the convicted British "shoebomber" who tried to set off explosives in his footwear on a 2001 trans-Atlantic flight, was a petty criminal who first turned to Islam during a spell in prison.
Christian Ganczarski, a German suspected of involvement in a 2002 bombing in Tunisia, converted at 20 before embarking on a jihadist career in which, investigators believe, he became a close associate of bin Laden's.
Other high-profile militant converts include Jamaican-born Germaine Lindsay, one of four suicide bombers who killed 52 people in London in July, and Briton Andrew Rowe, jailed for 15 years last month for possessing terrorist materials.
Frenchman Lionel Dumont, a suspected Rowe associate and another convert, will go on trial in December accused of a series of attacks in the 1990s, including an attempt to bomb a Group of Seven summit in Lille.
"It's striking, the number of converts engaged in terrorist activities," said Michael Taarnby, a researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies who has studied the recruitment and radicalisation of Islamist militants.
Jean-Louis Bruguiere, France's top anti-terrorism judge, told the newspaper Le Figaro in an interview: "The converts are undeniably the toughest. Nowadays the conversions happen more quickly and the commitment is more radical."
The phenomenon is not confined to Europe.
John Walker Lindh, dubbed "the American Taliban", was convicted and jailed in 2002 for fighting alongside the Afghan militia, and U.S. citizen Jose Padilla has been held for more than three years as a suspected enemy combatant in connection with an alleged "dirty bomb" plot.
In Australia, British-born Muslim convert Jack Roche was jailed for nine years in 2004 for conspiring to bomb the Israeli embassy in Canberra.
In interviews with Reuters, European experts said the vast majority of those who converted to Islam did so for legitimate personal reasons. Some convert in order to marry Muslims.
Many converts were drawn, the experts said, by the appeal of a universal faith that transcended national and ethnic barriers, offered a sense of belonging and brotherhood and provided a new identity, including the choice of a Muslim name.
However, a small fraction were extremists who saw in radical Islam a vehicle to challenge and overthrow the existing world order, said Olivier Roy, research director of the French National Centre for Scientific Research.
"If you are a youngster in the French suburbs, your mates are second-generation Muslim immigrants and you want to wage war against society, the system, where do you go?" said Roy.
"Thirty years ago, you joined the Maoists, the Trotskyists, the far left, the Baader group, Action Directe. Today, where do you go? Bin Laden."
A German intelligence official cited cases where radical foreigners had acquired residents' status by marrying local women, complicating authorities' attempts to kick them out.
"It gives them more security in their legal status. If they're married to a German woman, it's very hard to expel them," he said.
Some of the best-known extremist converts whose cases have come to trial were drifters on the margins of society.
David Courtailler, a Frenchman convicted last year of abetting terrorists, was drawn into radical circles when he converted to Islam at a British mosque and was approached by a stranger there who gave him money and an air ticket to Pakistan.
Reid, Rowe and Ganczarski all had records as small-time thieves or drug dealers.
"They are people who feel devalued, despised and by becoming terrorists they suddenly become supermen, heroes," said Roy.
Once they converted, the experts said, such people often moved towards violence quickly, driven partly by a need to prove themselves. They might also be more easily manipulated by extremists because they lacked the cultural grounding to distinguish between true and distorted versions of Islam.
"Basically, you can tell them just about anything and they're willing to believe it," Taarnby said. "They're not asking the right questions. They're just accepting what they're being told at face value."
The advantage for militant groups -- and the problem for security agencies -- is that converts can often move more freely and attract less suspicion than people of obviously Middle Eastern appearance.
"Thanks to their physical appearance they can penetrate targets in Europe much more easily without being spotted," said Roland Jacquard, head of the International Terrorism Observatory in Paris.
In theory, white Europeans attending radical mosques would be easy for intelligence services to identify. "But when they are taken on by terrorist organisations, they are asked to ensure they don't draw attention to themselves in that way," Jacquard said.
Such individuals are insiders who understand perfectly the nature of the Western societies they are trying to subvert, Jacquard said. "They know the mentality, the lifestyle that the terrorist organisations want to strike."
He said al Qaeda's recruitment of "blue-eyed" Europeans dated from the Bosnian war.
"Now, when you take Muslim converts whose mother and father are French, English, Spanish or Italian and who live in society normally, with society's habits, they are absolutely undetectable."
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
10/11/2005 01:13 ||
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#1
If blue-eyed converts are being recruited and employed in jihadi operations for their access and understanding of Western societies, then it makes the jihadists dramatically easier to infiltrate. Cuts both ways.
#3
The Blue eyes may be why Bin Laden likes them, but its their penis size that motivates them to join up and be willing to kill themselves.
That is what all the fuss at guantanimo was about. It wasn't torture, but laughing at the incredibly small penis. In fact statistically the smaller the angrier, which is why Bin Laden is so angry all the time.
Of course it might be an advantage for some of the alt_sex_mohammad type activities I've read about.
#4
It's what happens when goats are the sexual selectors oC.
Posted by: abu Rubenstein ||
10/11/2005 16:41 Comments ||
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"It's striking, the number of converts engaged in terrorist activities,"
Actually, I'm surprised that anyone's surprised. Recent converts to any religion tend to be the most motivated and easily led. And - aside from the mystic/stoner sufi converts - most western converts to islam are, IMO, drawn to the strict salafist/sunni branches that appeal to their need for easy answers and a sense of power.
The Global Islamic Media Front, an al-Qaeda mouthpiece, recently disseminated a message describing âal-Qaeda University for Jihad Subjects,â a hypothetical, global institution providing instruction in psychological, electronic, and physical warfare, which really serves as a call for those who seek to become mujahideen to join the training camps. Those who enter may also receive training in explosives and âjihad with souls,â taught with the ideology of jihad leaders and the âsupporter of Allahâs religion - Usama bin Ladenâ.
The message indicates that the term âjihad subjectsâ was chosen over âterrorism subjectsâ for the reason that the terms are only synonymous to the âhypocrites and their masters, the enemies of the Islamic Nation.â Regardless, the group believers that their actions are âwell-acceptedâ and lawful as per Islamic shariâa, and âit is our right to terrify the enemies and that is what is happening now with the grace of Allah, and the greater will come, God willing.â Further, the advertisement states that âthe students of jihad today are the mujahideen of tomorrow,â as it incites Muslims to action and promises that those who âgraduateâ from al-Qaeda University apply their knowledge on the ground and teach the âjihad supporters who are still learning from these heroes, and they will hurt the enemy in the coming days.â
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
10/11/2005 01:05 ||
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India and Pakistan set aside their often-bitter rivalry Monday when Islamabad accepted an offer of aid for earthquake victims — an outpouring of sympathy with vast political implications in easing mistrust between the nuclear neighbors. India is dispatching a planeload of about 25 tons of food, tents, medicine and other supplies for possible delivery by Tuesday. Pakistani Foreign Minister Khursheed Kasuri said there was no problem accepting aid from its rival. "When it is a question of tragedy of this magnitude, it's not a question of one-upmanship," Kasuri said in an interview with India's New Delhi Television. "That is why the president of Pakistan has gone on record as having said that we aren't going to stand on ceremony."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/11/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
It's got to be pretty awful for Paki's to accept India's help.
Shaukat Khan hiked across a valley to collect food and supplies he thought were being handed out by authorities. Instead, he found what thousands of others discovered after the earthquake that shattered their villages: the help was coming from Kashmiri separatists on the Indian side of the disputed territory. "We are the ones who are here with blood, with food, with medicines — the people can see that," said Yasin Malik, leader of the separatist Jammu and Kashmir and Liberation Front.
It's an aid effort that has not gone unnoticed in a land sharply opposed to Indian rule amid a 15-year insurgency that has claimed more than 66,000 lives, mostly civilians. The Islamic rebel groups say they are only trying to help the needy but admit with some satisfaction that the tragedy could end up boosting their cause to wrest the bitterly disputed Himalayan region from mostly Hindu India. Within hours of the quake that devastated towns and villages on Saturday, separatists had started up what three days on remains the most visible aid operation in Indian Kashmir. "No one else is giving the people as much as we are giving," said Hidayat-Ullah Sheikh of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, a leading separatist alliance.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/11/2005 00:00 ||
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Any odds on there being beaten, bloodied and robbed NGO employees and/or random citizens somewhere behind this story of charitable terroristseparatists?
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
10/11/2005 13:53 Comments ||
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This is an interesting story for what it indicates of the alliance between journalists and the terrorists.
"the most visible aid operation" ?
Terrorists suddenly have tons of relief supplies and the necessary logistics trains ?
They can get past the counterinsurgency checkpoints (which are still in operation - the Indian army is still hunting and killing jihadis)?
A few thousand of them are dispensing more aid than three hundred thousand Indian troops and tens of thousands of Kashmiri police and civil admin people?
Utter rubbish.
Malik has been sidelined and he is ramping up his PR to gain credibility with outside financiers (wealthy Saudi, Paki sponsors).
What is interesting is how the associated press will pick up this bit of propaganda and run with it.
Posted by: john ||
10/11/2005 15:48 Comments ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
ISLAMIC preacher 
Sunni Arab activists are going door to door to supporters' homes and using mosque imams in a final drive to persuade the minority community to go to the polls on Saturday and vote against the Iraqi constitution. The stepped-up campaign against the draft document comes as leaders of the Sunni Arab community are in the thick of last-minute talks with Shiite and Kurdish leaders to reach a compromise on the divisive charter.
Acting Director General of State Security Brigadier General Elias Qaaiqati promised to restore the people's confidence in the country's security apparatus and prevent any group or individual from undermining state security. Qaaiqati, who was recently appointed to his post as successor to Brigadier General Hassan Fawaz, spoke during the handing over ceremony held Monday at the Directorate General of State Security in Jnah. 
Senior Shiite cleric 
Iran softened its tone amid a crisis over its disputed nuclear program, with a senior national security official saying the country had made a "strategic choice" to pursue negotiations. "Negotiations are Iran's strategic choice in the nuclear issue, and we think that there is no other way forward except through talks," 
