World leaders will meet to tackle the tough issues facing the Muslim world in a two-day summit beginning in Makkah on Dec. 7.
Sounds exciting...
The Extraordinary Islamic Summit, being held under the mantle of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, offers Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah his first opportunity after ascending the throne to address the leaders of the 57 Muslim countries. The summit follows a September meeting in Makkah where many of the worldâs leading Muslim scholars and intellectuals helped formulate a new vision for the OIC and to set the agenda for the prestigious summit.
Meet the new vision, much the same as the old vision, but now longer, lower, leaner, wider, with more road-hugging weight.
Among their recommendations for discussion were Islamic solidarity and joint Islamic action, creation of a poverty fund, institutionalization of Islamic good governance, conflict prevention and confidence-building, terrorism, dialogue and civilization, Islamophobia, political and human rights of Muslim minorities in non-OIC countries. The scholars and intellectuals had also called for the restructuring of the OIC. The reinvigorated organization hopes to give the Muslim world a chance to speak in a powerful, unified voice and have the best minds come up with the best resolutions to difficult challenges, from Iraq and Palestine to economic and educational issues.
OK Rantburgers...what does one find in one's Extraordinary Islamic Summit goodie bag? Pens, chickpeas, C-4...
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Does the December 7 date have any special meaning? Like will it live in infamy? or something????
Or perhaps they got a good room rate......
Just wondering, ya' know.
#7
The Organization of the Islamic Conference (ummah solidarity;) has existed for a long time and been pretty worthless the whole time. Don't expect anything of significance from it.
#13
Now if God REALLY had a sense of humor, Mecca would be hit by a huge comet (1, 1.5km in dia) on December 8th, about 2:30AM. If that DID happen, I'm sure there would be a stampede toward synagogues and churches all over the world on December 9th...
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
10/25/2005 15:39 Comments ||
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#14
Lol, OP - that's a BIG hit, y'know. Prolly ELE-sized, hitting in the desert like that.
#15
Old Patriot, a comet hit would just show the wackos that they have not been violent enough, have not killed enough infidels and beaten their women often enough.
An Ecuadorean military intelligence report alleges that leftists from Ecuador and seven other Latin American nations received guerrilla training in Venezuela this year from backers of President Hugo Chavez.
The report does not link Chavez personally to the training in explosives, weapons and urban guerrilla tactics. But it notes that part of the training took place in two Caracas military bases, one used by the army reserves and another that houses the Defense Ministry.
And in a concluding section, it says that backers of the Venezuelan president, "with covert support from the government of Hugo Chavez ... have strengthened incipient subversive movements."
The Miami Herald repeatedly sought the reaction of Venezuelan Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel, who most often speaks for the government, and Gen. Julio Quintero Viloria, commander of the reserves. Neither responded.
However, after the Ecuadorean newspaper El Comercio broke the story earlier this month, the Venezuelan Embassy here issued a statement denying the story and saying Chavez "is against all groups or organizations that support the use of violence." The president himself later dismissed the newspaper's story as part of a U.S. government propaganda campaign against him.
If the allegations are proved to be true, however, they would bolster a rash of recent U.S. complaints that Chavez's self-proclaimed socialist and revolutionary government has become a destabilizing factor around Latin America.
In its story, El Comercio broadly cited military intelligence documents but gave few details about the alleged Venezuelan link.
The Miami Herald independently obtained a copy of an intelligence report that focuses on the Venezuelan link.
The report's key assertion of guerrilla training could not be verified independently by The Miami Herald. But a senior civilian government official here with access to intelligence information verified the existence of the report and described its contents as ''undeniable.'' Several military intelligence personnel here also told The Herald that the report was indeed the work of their agency.
U.S. intelligence officials are known to be aware of the report and to believe that its allegations are true.
Ecuador's intelligence agencies are considered relatively reliable because they had Israeli and U.S. training during a successful drive in the late 1980s to break up a leftist guerrilla group, according to a U.S. security consultant, who asked for anonymity because he often works here.
El Comercio's Oct. 2 story quoted a spokesman for the previously unknown Alfarist Liberation Army, or ELA, an underground leftist group, as stating that members had indeed traveled to Venezuela. When asked if it was for military training, the spokesman was quoted as responding: ``In our contacts, there are exchanges of experiences, methods and mechanisms. And in fact one passes through those experiences.''
But in a later interview with El Comercio, the spokesman, who used only the nom de guerre Sebastian Sanchez, issued a qualified denial. ''We've never received logistical or financial support from the Chavez government,'' he said, not ruling out support from Chavez's supporters. The Miami Herald could not reach him or other ELA members for comment.
Although the report does not implicate Chavez personally in the guerrilla training, it argues that his leftist ideology is allowing kindred Latin American groups to go to Venezuela and ``take advantage of the space and facilities that the government ... provides.''
''The Revolutionary Bolivarian Movement created by the Venezuelan Republic,'' the report adds, ``is formalizing its process of consolidation in Latin America, taking advantage of the revival of the leftist political parties and popular movements, with which ... they are attempting to organize paramilitary political forces that reach power.''
Chavez was democratically elected in 1998 on a promise to break with Venezuela's historically corrupt and elitist politics and launch a peaceful revolution on behalf of the country's poor majority.
Since then, he has poured billions of dollars into health and education programs, forged a tight alliance with Cuba, and increased his country's economic ties to nations throughout Latin America.
After handily winning a recall referendum last year, he declared himself a socialist and stepped up a campaign to create a Latin Americanwide bloc that opposes U.S. policy, which Chavez says has only caused poverty. But he also became the target of increasing U.S. complaints that he has been using the windfall profits from high oil prices to support radical leftists in neighboring countries.
Ecuadorean President Alfredo Palacio's government has downplayed El Comercio's stories. Chavez has offered to buy Ecuadorean bonds, provide this country with oil and build a refinery here - and the leak of the intelligence report might indicate some opposition to the relationship with Chavez.
The report obtained by The Miami Herald does not identify whether the information it contains came from a defector, an infiltrator or another source.
But it tells a detailed story of subversion, outlining a four-week training course in Venezuela for 20 unidentified persons - three from the ELA and 17 from Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, the Dominican Republic, Colombia and Venezuela. Except for Colombia, none of those countries are known to have guerrilla movements.
Training started April 16 in the base of the army's Queseras del Medio reserve battalion in the 23 de Enero neighborhood of Caracas, the report states.
A reserve battalion by that name does exist in that neighborhood.
The initial trainers are identified as an army sergeant major and Juan Contreras, the top leader of the pro-Chavez Simon Bolivar Coordinator. The sergeant could not be located, but The Miami Herald spoke with the well-known Contreras.
''The training as described never took place, and I don't know anyone from that movement (the ELA),'' he said.
``As far as I know, no one here is doing anything like that - it strikes me as crazy. We (the Coordinator) are involved in public activities, including training with the reserves, but nothing more than that.''
The Coordinator was founded in 1993 by former members of leftist guerrilla groups from the 1960s and '70s, but says its activities today are centered on government-financed social work with the poor that is aimed at boosting ``popular power.''
The Ecuadorean intelligence report says that the Ecuadorean trainees, alongside pro-Chavez Venezuelan militia members, also took target practice at Fort Tiuna, a sprawling Caracas base that is home to the Defense Ministry and key military units.
One member of Spain's ETA, the violent Basque separatist group, trained the group to fire weapons, the report adds, without specifying whether that training occurred in Fort Tiuna. Several ETA members are known to live in Caracas under a safe-haven agreement between previous Spanish and Venezuelan governments.
On April 24, the report states, Contreras blindfolded the three ELA members, put them in a car and took them to an unidentified rural spot in the western state of Tachira, where the 17 other ''delegates from subversive organizations'' had gathered for training.
There, four members of Peru's Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement, a leftist urban guerrilla group known by its Spanish acronym MRTA, trained the group in security, recruiting, intelligence-gathering, urban guerrilla tactics and the use of weapons, the report continues.
The list of possible targets discussed includes U.S. military bases and embassies as well as refineries, electrical towers and banks.
The report states that MRTA members also showed the students instruction videos featuring al-Qaida attacks on unidentified military bases, embassies and airplanes, and gave additional lessons afterward.
Trainees, the report says, also watched videos about bank robberies - a traditional way for Latin American guerrillas to finance their activities.
On May 8, the report states, a man who identified himself only by the nom de guerre Antonio began to give the group instructions on explosives.
And the next day, the students allegedly practiced with dynamite and TNT and learned how to make hand grenades from metal pipes.
The report says the Peruvian trainers are wanted for participating in MRTA's holding of 72 hostages for 126 days at the Japanese Embassy in Lima in 1997.
All 14 hostage-takers were killed in a government raid, and the group has had little presence in its homeland since.
One top Peruvian security official told The Miami Herald he did not know of any MRTA members living in Caracas.
Some MRTA and ELA members met after the course and talked about carrying out a kidnapping together in Ecuador, the report adds - presumably to raise funds from the ransom. It is not known whether the two groups in fact carried out any joint actions.
The report concludes by stating that the Ecuadorean armed forces should direct all of their attention toward thwarting this allegedly nascent regionwide insurgency.
''It constitutes a threat to the security and stability of the people,'' the report says.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
10/25/2005 13:25 ||
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Venezuelan opposition groups are suspected of initiating a bizarre new terror campaign before Halloween. Sinister pumpkins have appeared in parts of Caracas with warnings and photos of government officials, VHeadline.com, a Venezuelan electronic news site, reported Monday.
Seriously, we can't make this stuff up
The State Political & Security (DISIP) Police and the Police Detective Branch (CICPC) are taking the matter seriously using anti-bomb units to remove the pumpkins, VHeadline.com said.
However, the pumpkins were not bombs but did contain messages and photos of possible assassination targets including Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Frias, Caracas Mayor Juan Barreto, Attorney General Isaias Rodriguez and former Media Minister Andres Izarra, the report said.
The seven pumpkins were placed in the Chacao municipality of Caracas in front of the Pequiven (petrochemical) HQ, Avenida Liberatdor, Santiago de Leon clinic, and Avenida Bolivar and three other locations and the texts in them were signed by the Macumba Group, the report said. CICPC special division chief, Commissioner Jesus Gonzalez said wires had been attached to the pumpkins along with messages about Constitution Article 350 on civil rebellion.
It remained unclear whether the pumpkins were a hoax or the precursor to an opposition terror campaign, the report said.
Posted by: Steve ||
10/25/2005 11:29 ||
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SEOUL - North Korea will attend the November round of six-party talks on its nuclear program, a North Korean foreign ministry spokesman said. âIt is our consistent and invariable stand to realise the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula through dialogue. We will, therefore, go to the fifth six-party talks at the date to be agreed upon early in November as the six parties had committed themselves to do so,â the unnamed and as yet un-eaten foreign ministry spokesman said, as quoted by the Northâs state-run Korean Central News Agency.
A senior South Korean official said earlier on Monday that the next round of six-party talks will probably be held in the second week of November. âThe fifth round of six-party talks, which will be held in early November, probably in the second week, will focus on how to implement the joint statement,â South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-Young told members of the National Assembly, according to his office.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Norks to attend November nuclear talks
I guess they couldn't bear to pass up the lunch buffet.
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/25/2005 0:26 Comments ||
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#3
Sure, in November they go to the talks, get pissed off over some imaginary slight, and refuse to come back to the table for 6 months. Therefore buying themselves another year's worth of time to miniturize their warheads and develope a workable long range, multistage missile system capable of reaching most of the world. Good, I'm glad they decided to come back to the table.
#1
Italian diplomats have claimed that, by disseminating bogus documents stating that Iraq was trying to buy low-grade "yellowcake" uranium from Niger, France was trying to "set up" Britain and America in the hope that when the mistake was revealed it would undermine the case for war, which it wanted to prevent.
#3
This is an antique story, there is even a Wiki about it, but not only that, it is totally irrelevant. The zinger is that Saddam already *had* a large amounts of pre-nuclear weapons material:
http://tinyurl.com/76mr3
(What the report doesn't mention is all the other stuff the US absconded with post-invasion. We made enormous amounts of equipment and materiel disappear.)
Chancellor Helmut Kohl, after being defeated by Gerhard Schroeder in 1998, graciously allowed his successor to represent him at a European Union summit despite his rival's not even having been sworn into office.
The incoming Schroeder thus had a chance to use the bloc's traditionally informal October summit as a get-to-know-you meeting without pressure to make any crucial European Union (E.U.) decisions.
But seven years later, following his own defeat by Angela Merkel, Chancellor Schroeder sees no need for such statesmanlike gestures.
The outgoing German leader insists he alone will attend the E.U.'s Hampton Court summit near London on Thursday despite having been formally discharged as Germany's head of government and now serving merely as caretaker.
"It's a political decision and a question of style," said Peter Becker, an E.U. expert at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, adding: "My personal view is that Kohl did the right thing in 1998."
Schroeder's insistence that he still represents Germany - the E.U.'s biggest member - means already low expectations for the meeting can be scaled back further. heh
London earlier this month abruptly cut the summit from two days to just one day, citing demands by member states.
Merkel, meanwhile, must wait until the E.U.'s regular December summit in Brussels to meet leaders of the entire 25-nation bloc.
This could prove a baptism by fire with the E.U. seeking to hammer out a deal on its 875 billion euro (1 trillion dollar) budget through 2013.
Becker said he expected Merkel to give up Schroeder's overtly pro-French policy in the E.U. and return to the traditional Berlin stance of seeking equal ties with both London and Paris.
"I think German policy E.U. policy will become more pragmatic and integrate the smaller member states," Becker said.
For Schroeder, who is 61, the Hampton Court summit is his swansong on the international stage.
Gearing up for the meeting, Schroeder fired a broadside at what he warned was the growing influence of both the European Commission - the bloc's executive - and the European Court.
"Nothing enrages citizens more than the suspicion of a creeping loss of sovereignty," said Schroeder in an essay published in the newspaper Die Zeit.
But with power slipping from his hands, this appears mainly for show and Schroeder will likely use the meeting for an emotional public farewell to friends - and a ticking off of his enemies.
Above all, the meeting marks the end of the Berlin-Paris axis forged over past years by Schroeder and French President Jacques Chirac.
This ran so deep that Schroeder took the unprecedented step of allowing Chirac to represent Germany at E.U. summits he could not attend.
Together, the German and French leaders rammed through a deal in 2002 on E.U. farm spending which currently gobbles up half of the Union's 100 billion euro annual budget. Under the accord, grudgingly accepted other members, farm spending is to remain largely unchanged through 2013.
But this was put into question by British Prime Minister Tony Blair at last June's Brussels summit. Blair said he would only give up London's multi-billion euro E.U. rebate if France agreed to give up its 10 billion euro annual farm subsidies.
This was furiously rejected by Chirac, leading to an acrimonious collapse of talks on the E.U.'s 2007 to 2013 budget.
Earlier this year, Schroeder and Chirac also teamed up to, in effect, scrap the eurozone's stability and growth pact which had demanded massive fines for countries which run up budget deficits over 3 per cent of gross domestic product.
Both Berlin and Paris are repeat offenders and have overshot this limit for years with Germany poised to do so for the fifth time in a row in 2006, according to a report by the nation's six leading economics institutes.
But the highly personalized Schroeder-Chirac axis, which also led European opposition to the Iraq war, is soon to become history.
Not only is Schroeder is half deposed. Chirac himself is a lame duck as successors jockey for position in the run-up to France's 2007 presidential election.
#2
He is going kicking and screaming. No class, but he is german so I might be redundant. I expect no changes in German policies in any important area. Too bad for Germany.
#4
I wonder what he and Jacque will eat while they are there? Is there a good Finnish resturant near Hampton Court?
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
10/25/2005 14:48 Comments ||
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#5
Next thing you know, he'll start claiming he invented the Internet.
Posted by: Mike ||
10/25/2005 14:51 Comments ||
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#6
Schroeder missed a great opportunity to shut up.
Posted by: Jacques ||
10/25/2005 15:38 Comments ||
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#7
President Chirac isn't doing well -- his personal friendship with Schroeder gone, his personal friendship with Saddam Hussein gone, his friendship (although not so close) with John F. Kerry gone, Robert Mugabe will likely lose Zimbabwe soon enough (deliberate depopulation has its downside, I've heard)... and his friendship with deVillepain isn't going to do him good for much longer. At this rate, he is going to live the rest of his long life friendless, alone and poor.
New security regulations for passengers travelling to the US failed to cause a potential check-in "disaster", as Dutch airline KLM warned last week.
Stupid passengers failed to get stuck in extra long lines and gripe plaintively and pithily about e-e-e-evil America. Stupid passengers. Us professional reporters couldn't even swap made up quotes with each other at the Schiphol bar.
Extra staff were drafted to keep the check-in lines moving as passengers had to come to grips with the requirement to provide detailed information about where they intended to stay in the US.
In fact, they had to ask Alberto Gonzales personally, "Mother, may I?" before they could board the plane...after giving a DNA sample, of course.
The new regulations were introduced at the insistence of the US government as part of its security drive against terrorism.
Rotten America, always hassling us noble Euros. We would never dream of rudely interrupting your travel, unless we're going on strike.
There were long queues at Schiphol on Monday morning but news agency said this was largely due to the heavy rain.
Bad weather, why does it hate quality journalism?
Most passengers interviewed by the media said they understood the need for the new security measures.
But hey, they're sheep, what do they know?
Martinair opened extra check-in desks at Schiphol to ensure its passengers did not have to wait in line for too long. But the airline said it did not have much enthusiasm for the new security regime. "It costs time and is a nuisance and we ask ourselves if it is of value in terms of security," a spokesperson told RTL television news. Green-left party Groenlinks also demonstrated against the new regulations on Monday. Party members handed out flyers that passengers could sign to indicate their opposition to the requirement to give more detailed information. The signed flyers were later handed in at the American Embassy in The Hague.
Finally, some people making sense here. The Greenie/Commies and a disgruntled airline employee. Hallelujah! Now I can expense my Heinekens with a clear conscience.
#1
Green-left party Groenlinks also demonstrated against the new regulations on Monday. Party members handed out flyers that passengers could sign to indicate their opposition to the requirement to give more detailed information. The signed flyers were later handed in at the American Embassy in The Hague.
If you don't like it, take the slow camel boat to sand land.
Posted by: Red Dog ||
10/25/2005 4:46 Comments ||
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#2
funny comments! But looks like they did manage one made up quote from the barstools. No piece would be complete without it.
"It costs time and is a nuisance and we ask ourselves if it is of value in terms of security," a spokesperson told RTL television news.
#3
"It costs time and is a nuisance and we ask ourselves if it is of value in terms of security," a spokesperson told RTL television news."
Umm, maybe it is not or particular value to YOU a**holes, but it IS of a value to all of us Yanks live near, work in, or just pass close by anything that might be construed as a target.
#4
Ya know, I almost agree with the concept that the expanded itinerary questionnaire is a bad idea, in that it will generate a lot of meaningless paperwork for law-abiding citizens. The airlines are not interviewing the passengers personally; this information can be entered on line. Any Mastermind® worth his tabouleh would have the controller take care of this minor detail when he dispatches the killbots. The rest of us are stuck cooling our heels in the queue, explaining our lives away while the hard boyz continue to plot against us, secure in their multicultural coccoons.
I checked the KLM website just now and could find no evidence of Dire Warnings of Increased Security Measures. Maybe they only show up for ticketed passengers.
Mainly I was amused by how unhappy the reporter was that the expected angry crowds failed to materialize.
#6
This is no big deal. When I was travelling to and fro Europe in the mid 90's the security at United in Heathrow and Virgin in NY gave you a mini version of El Al 3rd degree orally! What the hell is time consuming about telling them what hotel you are staying in or names of friends you are visiting? Anyway, most of the Dutch taking Martinair are coming to Orlando to visit Mickey. Some threat.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
10/25/2005 14:53 Comments ||
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#7
Just fly to Mexico (or Canada) and come across that way.
The Boston Globe and Al-Rueters are going all out to celebrate their (and their allies) achievement of 2000 dead americans. Oh and (as a side note) they Iraqi's approved a consitution too...
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The U.S. military death toll in Iraq passed 2,000 with the announcement on Tuesday that a soldier had died in a Texas hospital of wounds from a bomb.
The unwelcome milestone was expected to spur new calls for U.S. President George W. Bush to outline an exit strategy for the Iraqi conflict.
Earlier in the day, final results showed that Iraqi voters had ratified a new U.S.-backed constitution, despite bitter opposition in Sunni Arab areas where insurgents are battling to topple the Baghdad government.
The Pentagon said Staff Sergeant George Alexander, 34, had died on Saturday of injuries sustained eight days ago when a roadside bomb set by insurgents blew up near his vehicle in the town of Samarra.
Bush said the war would require more sacrifice and rejected calls for a U.S. pullout from Iraq.
"Each loss of life is heartbreaking, and the best way to honor the sacrifice of our fallen troops is to complete the mission and lay the foundation of peace by spreading freedom," he said in a speech before the latest death was announced.
"This war will require more sacrifice, more time and more resolve."
In the Iraq war, which began in March 2003, more than 15,000 U.S. troops also have been wounded in action.
Casualties among Iraqis have been far higher, first in the invasion and then the insurgency that elections and October 15's constitution referendum have failed to calm.
Iraq's Electoral Commission said 79 percent of voters backed the constitution against 21 percent opposed in a poll split largely along Iraq's sectarian and ethnic lines.
Several Shi'ite and Kurdish regions voted between 95 and 99 percent "Yes"; in rebellious, Sunni Anbar 97 percent said "No."
Prominent Sunni Arab leaders rejected the referendum as a fraud, warning it could fuel militant violence and discourage Sunnis from participating in future elections.
U.N. and Iraqi election officials said the vote, which was largely peaceful despite widespread fears of a surge in militant violence, was fair.
#3
The unwelcome milestone was expected to spur new calls for U.S. President George W. Bush to outline an exit strategy for the Iraqi conflict.
The calls won't be new; they'll simply be renewed calls from the usual suspects. Expect an over-the-top rant from Derrick Z. Jackson on this subject tomorrow, complete with racial tie-ins.
As was discussed here during Galloway's Senate appearance, the whole point was to get to perjure himself under oath. Now comes the evidence.
Maverick British lawmaker George Galloway solicited and received nearly $600,000 in profits for himself and a charity he ran from secret deals under the Iraq oil-for-food program, Senate investigators charged yesterday.
The new charges, released by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs permanent subcommittee on investigations, come five months after Mr. Galloway, a fierce critic of U.S. policy in Iraq, emphatically denied under oath to the panel that he had taken bribes from Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein or participated in any Iraq oil deals.
Subcommittee Chairman Sen. Norm Coleman, Minnesota Republican, said the new findings "clearly demonstrate that the testimony given by Mr. Galloway in May was false and misleading." "We heard a lot of bombast at that hearing, but Mr. Galloway has been anything but straight with Congress or with the American people," Mr. Coleman told reporters.
The outspoken British lawmaker, who was expelled from the ruling Labor Party for his criticisms of Prime Minister Tony Blair and the Iraq war, denied the charges in written responses to the new report.
The new findings were based in part on interviews with three senior officials under Saddam, including Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, as well as on bank account records. The evidence details what investigators said were direct transfers of oil-for-food profits to bank accounts controlled by Mr. Galloway's wife and by the Mariam Appeal, a charity and political organization founded by Mr. Galloway.
Among the subcommittee's findings:
⢠Mr. Galloway personally asked for and received from Mr. Aziz and others eight allocations from 1999 to 2003 for the rights to 23 million barrels of oil.
⢠Amineh Abu-Zayyad, Mr. Galloway's wife, received $150,000 in the summer of 2000 from Fawaz Zureikat, the Jordanian businessman Mr. Galloway acknowledges was his business representative in Baghdad.
⢠The Mariam Appeal was given at least $446,000 in bank transfers from Mr. Zureikat. These transfers and the one to Mrs. Abu-Zayyad came almost immediately after Mr. Zureikat was paid commissions for deals he brokered under the oil-for-food program.
⢠Two unidentified oil traders interviewed by the subcommittee said Mr. Zureikat met with them in summer 2000 and that it was made clear to them that the Jordanian was marketing Iraqi oil on Mr. Galloway's behalf. The deal fell through.
Posted by: ed ||
10/25/2005 08:44 ||
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⢠Mr. Zureikat also paid more than $1.6 million in illegal surcharges back to the Saddam government, which demanded bribes from those receiving favorable oil-for-food deals. The Senate investigators said it was highly unlikely Mr. Galloway did not know of the kickbacks, but found no direct proof of his involvement.
A senior subcommittee staffer, briefing reporters on background, said that based on his categorical denials at the May hearing, Mr. Galloway could be charged with perjury, making false statements under oath, and obstruction of congressional proceedings.
The staffer said the panel was sharing its findings with U.S. and British legal authorities. Mr. Coleman said he was discussing with subcommittee Democrats whether to refer Mr. Galloway's case to the Justice Department.
In responses to the new report, Mr. Galloway denied all wrongdoing and specifically denied discussing oil allocations or other oil-for-food deals at a Dec. 26, 1999, meeting with Mr. Zureikat and a member of the Iraqi intelligence service.
Mr. Galloway's May 17 voluntary appearance before the subcommittee provided some riveting political theater, as he attempted to turn the proceedings into an indictment of the U.S.-led war in Iraq. "I have never seen a barrel of oil, owned one, bought one or sold one -- and neither has anyone on my behalf," Mr. Galloway said at the time. He argued heatedly with Mr. Coleman and later called him "not much of a lyncher."
Mr. Coleman said yesterday that he had not called the hearing to debate Mr. Galloway and said that, based on the subcommittee's new findings, Mr. Galloway's attacks were "full of sound and fury, signifying nothing."
Posted by: ed ||
10/25/2005 9:02 Comments ||
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#2
It does appear that the man who only recently ranted in the middle east about the kafir rape of muslims' "two beautiful daughters" (Bahgdad and Jerusalem) seems to have been getting himself a little coerced side action off one of the "daughters".
#5
From the UK Times: US Senate 'finds Iraq oil cash in Galloway's wife's bank account'
GEORGE GALLOWAY faces possible criminal charges after a US Senate investigation tracked $150,000 (£85,000) in Iraqi oil money to his wifeâs bank account in Jordan.
...
But the report provides bank account details tracking payments from an oil company through a Jordanian middleman to Mr Gallowayâs nowestranged wife, Amineh Abu- Zayyad, and his Mariam Appeal fund.
...
A Senate aide said that Mr Galloway would be referred to the Justice Department for investigation of possible perjury, false statement and obstruction of a congressional proceeding â all âClass Aâ felonies carrying a sentence of up to five years and a $250,000 fine.
The report says the Jordanian middleman Fawaz Zureikat, a close friend of Mr Galloway and his representative in Baghdad, funnelled $150,000 from Iraqi oil sales to Mr Gallowayâs wife and at least $446,000 to the Mariam Appeal. On the same day Mr Zureikat also paid $15,666 to Ron McKay, Mr Gallowayâs spokesman. Mr McKay could not be contacted for comment last night.
Posted by: ed ||
10/25/2005 11:56 Comments ||
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#7
if he gets away with this i'll be fuming! lock him up for 15 years! if and its a big if, if he gets collered and done for this watch the media rally around him.
Posted by: Shep UK ||
10/25/2005 12:21 Comments ||
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#8
Galloway is daring us to indite him. And he brags he will come here to stand trial. Obviously, he doesn't have a clue regarding the difference in evidence and trial procedure between UK and USA. Too bad Rudi isn't US Atty in New York any longer. He'd love this guy.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
10/25/2005 15:02 Comments ||
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#10
Some Shi'ite cleric needs to issue a fatwa against Georgie boy, so the British will be forced to put him into "protective custody" - for about 40 years. There's more than one way to accomplish true justice!
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
10/25/2005 19:05 Comments ||
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#11
"The great masses of the people will more easily fall victims to a big lie than to a small one."
President George W. Bush, bracing for the fallout when the U.S. death toll in Iraq reaches 2,000, said on Tuesday the Iraq war will require more sacrifice and rejected critics calling for a U.S. pullout.
Bush, facing waning support for the war, argued that Iraq is making progress by approving a new constitution and that Iraqi troops are increasingly playing a larger role in defending against the insurgency.
"Each loss of life is heartbreaking, and the best way to honor the sacrifice of our fallen troops is to complete the mission and lay the foundation of peace by spreading freedom," Bush said, his voice breaking with emotion as he spoke to a luncheon of military wives at Bolling Air Force Base in Washington.
In a lengthy speech, Bush said those calling for a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq were refuted by a simple question, whether America and other nations would be more or less safe if Iraqi insurgency leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden were in control of Iraq.
Bush's remarks were aimed at addressing criticism expected when the U.S. death toll in Iraq reaches the 2,000 milestone. It stood at 1,999 on Tuesday.
"This war will require more sacrifice, more time and more resolve," he said. "The terrorists are as brutal an enemy as we have ever faced."
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
10/25/2005 13:20 ||
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He's right - it will. And the stakes are far higher than the indifferent or anti-Iraq war people are willing to recognize.
A federal judge yesterday refused to throw out statements made by a Northern Virginia terrorism suspect who said he was tortured in a Saudi prison, meaning that Ahmed Omar Abu Ali will go on trial today on charges of plotting to kill President Bush.
The decision by U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee is a major blow to the defense of Abu Ali, 24, who is charged with multiple counts in one of the highest-profile terrorism cases in recent years. Abu Ali's statements to his Saudi jailers, in which he admitted being part of an al Qaeda plot, are central to the government's case.
Lee did not give a reason for his one-sentence ruling, filed late yesterday in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, but said he will issue a detailed opinion later. Jury selection in the case is scheduled to start today.
The ruling marks a legal victory for the Justice Department, which brought the complicated case under circumstances that are unusual in a U.S. courtroom: Most of the evidence was obtained in a foreign country, and the defendant claims to have been tortured while a prisoner in that country.
Prosecutors declined to comment yesterday. Defense lawyers did not return phone calls. The defense can appeal yesterday's ruling, but only if Abu Ali is convicted.
The decision culminated a six-day hearing in which the judge weighed Abu Ali's allegations that he was tortured before being flown back to Alexandria in February to face terrorism charges. The Falls Church man testified that his Saudi captors chained him to the floor of an interrogation room, shackled his feet and whipped him until his back was bloody and throbbing with pain.
He said that the Saudis screamed "Confess! Confess!" as they whipped him and that his confession was therefore coerced and should be thrown out.
Prosecutors argued that Abu Ali was lying and pointed to what they called holes in his story, such as his inability to remember what type of object he was whipped with and the fact that he did not seek medical attention afterward. Saudi officials had testified earlier in depositions that Abu Ali was well treated.
The hearing also featured clashing opinions from experts about whether marks on Abu Ali's back were caused by whipping and whether he suffered post-traumatic stress disorder from the alleged abuse.
Abu Ali is charged with conspiracy to assassinate President Bush and other terrorism counts in connection with the alleged al Qaeda plot, which prosecutors say envisioned a Sept. 11-style attack in the United States that would include hijacking planes. Prosecutors say that Abu Ali admitted his participation and that he planned to shoot the president or blow him up with a car bomb. He admitted that the plan never got past the idea stage, prosecutors have said in court papers.
If convicted on the assassination count alone, Abu Ali faces up to life in prison. In a videotaped statement played during the hearing, he said he joined the al Qaeda plot out of anger at U.S. support for Israel.
In closing arguments at the hearing last week, defense attorney Khurrum Wahid said that allowing into evidence statements brought about by torture was antithetical to the American system of justice. "We decided some time ago that this nation is not going to accept evidence that violates the accepted norms of our society," he said. "The actions taken by others that offend our constitutional principles have to offend them whether taken here or abroad."
But Assistant U.S. Attorney David Laufman criticized Abu Ali's testimony as vague and evasive and said the judge should not believe him.
"The evidence makes it clear, your honor, that the defendant's claim is an utter fabrication," Laufman said. "He has every incentive to concoct a story that his confession was coerced, and this is precisely what he has done."
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
10/25/2005 13:16 ||
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The popularity of volunteer civilian border guards is growing in the United States, with a strong Washington contingent guarding 26 miles of Canadian border.
What happened to the "racist vigilantees" meme? Oh, that's right, this is the Canadian border.
The so-called Minuteman presence at nine "posts" along the stretch of the 4,000-mile northern border's far western sector has been uneventful, USA Today said. Minutemen once called in to report a suspicious vehicle, but it turned out to be an unmarked Border Patrol SUV.
Near the town of Lynden there are no fences to separate the United States and Canada and the border is marked by a 3-foot drainage ditch. But 58-year-old Minuteman Ben Vaughn said his vigilance is needed. "If we can help keep some terrorists from coming across that would be great," he said. "Even just slow them down." The movement is growing, particularly in the southwest, the report said. "The borders are absolutely wide open, and we're under invasion from drug dealers, criminals and people from all around the world," said Chris Simcox, president of Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, based in Tombstone, Ariz. "Our Department of Homeland Security is absolutely impotent."
Posted by: Steve ||
10/25/2005 11:48 ||
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#1
An appropriate tag from the old WWII Civil Defense Corps.
#2
What is the purpose of this Canadian border exercise? Right now, these guys could be policing the southern border and being a heck of a lot more effective.
Their leaders should be planning passive defenses to dissuade illegals from coming across, not just observing and reporting. It doesn't matter how silly it sounds, it helps break the stalemate.
For example, planting a strip forest of spanish bayonet agave 5 yards wide. It is hard as heck to get through. I'm sure there are other desert plants even more impenetrable.
They could post signs that said all sorts of things. Nothing threatening or impolite, more like pointing out the dangers ahead. They could even sound half-helpful.
"113 people on foot died here of heat stroke last year. Do not try to cross this desert. If you wait here for 30 minutes, you will be helped by the Border Patrol."
"If you can read this sign, you have been seen on camera."
"There is a large reward for turning in people smugglers."
#4
Maybe Oprah could ante up the reward money. Don't underestimat how porous the northern border is though, as many easily enter Canada. Chinese nationals disappeared just a couple of weeks ago.
#5
well, moose, since they're volunteers, they probably LIVE THERE
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/25/2005 16:50 Comments ||
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#6
They could post signs that said all sorts of things.
I prefer one that says quite simply, in 26 languages, "Danger - Minefield. Radioactive waste disposal area. Not Responsible for death or disease caused by not following these warnings."
Back it up with a plowed strip a quarter-mile wide, planted in strips of razor-grass, stinging nettles, and acacia (thorn) trees.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
10/25/2005 19:14 Comments ||
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#7
OP: There a petition to sign for that?
Posted by: Charles ||
10/25/2005 20:25 Comments ||
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I don't think Spanish Bayonet agave grows well along the Canadian border, Anonymoose.
Look at how easy it is for Muzzys to get into Canada - and look at which border is easier to cross completely undetected wiht large equipment, etc. There are waterways, forests, etc that provide a lot of easy crossing points, and far far less border patrol up there.
And its probably even easier during hunting season. A group of armed men in camo running in large 4WD vehicles with a lot of cargo would stand out liek a sore thumb on the Mix border, but not up north this time of year.
If I were Al-Q, I'd not be doing the mexican border. Instead I'd smuggle aboard Chinese vessels into Vancouver, then go inland to meet up with gear, and cross in the easier places where there are likely to be NOBODY - no other illegals, no coyotes, nobody.
Makes sense - and I beleive the terrs are tactically proficient enough to see this opportunity and take advantage of it.
I mean after all - a guy with a bloody chainsaw came across the US-Can border successfully at a freakin checkpoint! How much easier is it if you are actually *trying* to be covert?
The US Senate committee which accused MP George Galloway of receiving oil money from Saddam Hussein has accused him of lying under oath.
Mr Galloway gave evidence to a Washington hearing in May, where he ridiculed its claims. Now the senators claim they have fresh evidence linking the Respect MP and his wife to Iraq's oil-for-food programme.
Mr Galloway said: "I did not lie under oath in front of the senate committee." His wife has previously issued denials.
"I did not have sex with, oh, sorry. Wrong committee."
Mr Galloway told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "The specific allegation against me is that I lied under oath in front of a senate committee. "In this case the remedy is clear - they must charge me with perjury and I am ready to fly to the US today, if necessary, to face such a charge because it is simply false."
The committee says it has seen bank records linking Mr Galloway and his wife Dr Amineh Abu-Zayyad with Iraqi government vouchers. Chairman Norm Coleman said documents it had uncovered were "the smoking gun". Mr Coleman claimed that Mr Galloway had "been anything but straight" with the committee.
But the Bethnal Green and Bow MP launched an attack on senate investigators. He said: "They have been cavalier with any idea of process and justice so far, but I am still willing to go to the US and I am still willing to face any charge of perjury before the senate committee." However, in regards to the claims levelled at his estranged wife, Mr Galloway said he had "absolutely no idea" about her alleged business dealings. "I am not responsible for my wife," he said.
The MP, who said he was not in a position to answer questions on her behalf, went on: "I am bemused at the news that I see on the front of the newspapers."
Mr Galloway appeared before a US Senate committee on 17 May. The former Labour MP travelled to Washington after senators accused him of receiving credit to buy Iraqi oil. One of the main allegations raised by the senate sub-committee was that Mr Galloway received oil allocations with the assistance of Fawaz Zureikat. Mr Zureikat, who was chairman of the Mariam Appeal set up by Mr Galloway to help a four-year-old Iraqi girl with leukaemia, has strongly denied making any arrangements linked to oil sales on behalf of the MP.
BBC Washington correspondent Justin Webb said the development meant the senators' confrontation with Mr Galloway had "reached a new and more serious stage". Mr Galloway has always denied funds from the sale of Iraqi oil were funnelled through the Mariam Appeal. In December, Mr Galloway won £150,000 in libel damages from the Daily Telegraph over its separate claims he had received money from Saddam's regime. The paper is currently awaiting the result of its appeal against that ruling. An entertaining second round to come ??
Get the popcorn in...
#2
Or, if we indeed do have the goods then let us finish connecting the dots, check the work product, then lay it out clearly in order to commence the gutting of porky Galloway. He'll do most of the work for us if the case is presented clearly. Leave a couple trip wires out for him because if and when he starts running scared he'll become more bold and even moreso idiotic. The implosion will provide much entertainment to all.
Western military powers are being forced to rethink strategy because conflict in Iraq has shown the limits of their conventional armies, the International Institute of Strategic Studies said on Tuesday.
In its annual report on global military might, "The Military Balance", the London-based think-tank said strategists had hoped new technology would let them target enemies accurately from ships and planes, avoiding protracted ground battles.
But it said conventional armies have been sucked into messy conflicts, often in towns, where they face enemies invulnerable to the advanced gadgetry that was supposed to dissipate the fog of war and herald a new era in warfare.
"Iraq, Afghanistan and Chechnya demonstrate the limitations of modern conventional forces in complex environments that demand more of them than traditional warfighting," wrote Editor Christopher Langton in the introduction.
The United States has some 137,000 troops in Iraq more than two years after crushing Iraq's conventional army in a ground invasion. Nearly 2,000 U.S. soldiers have been killed in Iraq since March 2003.
The Military Balance said that rather than winning "network-centric warfare" using electronic sensors to find targets and direct fire, Western forces were enmeshed in "netwars", based on "agile and adaptive human networks".
"The conflict environment of the early 21st century certainly does represent a new era in warfare: but not the era that Western military planners expected," it said in its handbook which lists the size and capabilities of the world's armed forces.
Using suicide bombers and roadside bombs, Iraqi insurgents have killed U.S. and British soldiers and thousands of civilians. U.S. campaigns to dislodge fighters embedded in Iraqi towns have also involved losses.
"Dealing with this new conflict environment has caused a rethink for many Western forces," the institute said.
It said British and Australian special forces and the U.S. Marines were adapting to the new era of "asymmetric" conflict used by non-state actors such as al Qaeda by creating smaller fighting groups.
But it said there was unlikely to be any major shift in U.S. strategy, or spending, for two reasons. First, because it feared the rise of large conventional armies in countries such as China and wanted to maintain air and sea supremacy.
"China's military is rapidly modernising. This is of concern to the U.S. and some countries in the Asia-Pacific region as the modernisation of the People's Liberation Army is no longer directed solely against Taiwan," Langton wrote.
The second reason was the immense inertia of the industrial groups that helped build U.S. military might and the fact that it would take time to move away from decades of strategic thought.
The institute said one bright spot for Western conventional armies was that they were still unrivalled in their ability to respond quickly to natural disasters, such as the Tsunami.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
10/25/2005 13:22 ||
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But it said conventional armies have been sucked into messy conflicts, often in towns, where they face enemies invulnerable to the advanced gadgetry that was supposed to dissipate the fog of war and herald a new era in warfare.
Considering the advance in man portable UAVs and their exploitation by ground pounders, it appears a lot of fog of war for the grunt has been lifted. Throw in hovering air support to deliver ordnance on target in seconds, the think tank boys need to take their product to sale elsewhere.
What we have seen is the flexibility of the American forces to get within the decision cycle of the enemy faster, to adapt new tactics faster, to share information faster, and to integrate their resources faster and far more effectively. I'd say a lot of advancement has been achieved.
But it said conventional armies have been sucked into messy conflicts
What conflict isn't messy. Yeah, and water is wet.
Using suicide bombers and roadside bombs, Iraqi insurgents have killed U.S. and British soldiers and thousands of civilians. U.S. campaigns to dislodge fighters embedded in Iraqi towns have also involved losses.
As say oppose to what? D-Day, Okinawa, Gettysburg?
Even the aboriginal natives of the American west inflicted casualties. Ask Custer or Fetterman.
I get the sense of this that these people think you can fight a war without losses. Guess their concept of warfare was "Bomber" Clinton's campaign in Yugoslavia which in the end had to carry the threat of ground forces to finally get leverage. Given that 4,000 years of recorded history says you have to have ground pounders to occupy territory, these guys must be smoking that special blend.
#2
Claving Speart7152 the problem with your reasoning is that the UAVs dont flood the battle field yet. Looking at paquidermic US procurement system and the hype gold plated stuff i doubt that in less than 10 years US will have much needed improvement in it's land gear.
HUMVVES must be replaced ASAP with a better protected anti-IED veichle.
IED detectors eventualy UAV based are needed. And much more.
#3
We need more tools to disrupt communication of telephone and cell phone useage while raiding. It seems that early warning to the terrorist is main advantage.
Whoever is first in the field and awaits the coming of the enemy, will be fresh for the fight; whoever is second in the field and has to hasten to battle will arrive exhausted.
- Sun Tzu
Move not unless you see an advantage; use not your troops unless there is something to be gained; fight not unless the position is critical. If it is to your advantage, make a forward move; if not, stay where you are. Anger may in time change to gladness; vexation may be succeeded by content.
- Sun Tzu
"The art of using troops is this:
......When ten to the enemy's one, surround him;
......When five times his strength, attack him;
......If double his strength, divide him;
......If equally matched you may engage him;
......If weaker numerically, be capable of withdrawing;
......And if in all respects unequal, be capable of eluding him,
..........for a small force is but booty for one more powerful."
- Sun Tzu, the Art Of War
Posted by: ed ||
10/25/2005 12:05 ||
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#1
So this is what journalism looks like. It's so rare that I barely know it when I see it. (Hamster fighting machines! Outstanding!)
Posted by: Jonathan ||
10/25/2005 13:15 Comments ||
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He may be good, but this seems to be in error -
âYes,â I said, âBut wasnât it a Red Cross document that exposed abuses at Abu Ghraib?â
âYes,â answered Kris, âbut that document was leaked.â
The timeline shows that events became known when on 13 January 2004 Abu Ghraib detainee abuse reported by Army Spc. Joseph M. Darby, an MP with the 800 MP Brigade.
14 to 25 January 2004 - The Criminal Investigation Division (CID) conducts interviews.
16 January 2004 - BG Kimmit notifies reporters that an investigation had been opened into alleged abuse at an unspecified prison in Iraq.
17 January 2004 - CPT Donald Reese ceased command of the 372nd MP Company, BG Janis Karpinski, Commander, 800th MP Brigade receives a Memorandum of Admonishment by LTG Sanchez, Commander, CJTF-7, Phillabaum was suspended from his duties as commander of the 320th MP Battalion by LTG Sanchez, CJTF-7 Commander.
19 January 2004 - LTG Sanchez requested that the Commander, US Central Command, appoint an Investigating Officer (IO) in the grade of Major General (MG) or above to investigate the conduct of operations within the 800th Military Police (MP) Brigade from 1 November 2003 to the present. This report is separate from the other investigation which is an investigation into the specifically alleged crimes.
24 January 2004 - Chief of Staff of US Central Command (CENTCOM), MG R. Steven Whitcomb, on behalf of the CENTCOM Commander, directed that the Commander, CFLCC, LTG David D. McKiernan, conduct an investigation into the 800th MP Brigade's detention and internment operations from 1 November 2003 to present surrounding recent reports of suspected detainee abuse in Iraq.
28 January 2004 - CID Report on criminal abuses at Abu Ghraib.
31 January 2004 - Commander of CFLCC, LTG McKiernan appointed MG Antonio M. Taguba, Deputy Commanding General Support, CFLCC, to conduct an informal investigation under AR 15-6 into the 800th MP Brigade's detention and internment operations.
8 February to 28 February 2004 - The Taguba team collected documents, compiled references, conducted follow-up interviews, and completed a detailed analysis of the volumes of materials accumulated throughout their investigation.
24 February 2004 - The International Committee on the Red Cross provides the Coalition Authority with a confidential report on prison abuse in Iraq.
9 March 2004 - The team submitted the AR 15-6 written report with findings and recommendations to the CFLCC Deputy SJA, LTC Mark Johnson, for a legal sufficiency review.
20 March 2004 - Charges are lodged against the six accused MP NCOs. BG Kimmit gives a press conference.
6 April 2004 - CG CFLCC approves MG Taguba investigation. [which was made available in PDF format for download available at the CENTCOM website].
28 April 2004 - "60 Minutes II" broadcasts photos of abuses at Abu Ghraib, taken in late 2003.
Now CENTCOM had brief the investigation way back in January. The difference between January and late April. Family members of an accused soldier provided photographs taken by him were being employed to get the SOB out of the crime he had committed. Photos, images, drama, action. It was the beginning of the sweeps rating period.
#3
Great article, way too much infor on a good man and loose lips sink ships. And I found it interesting, his need to cite Abu Ghraib in order to convince himself and others of his willingness to criticize his government and thus prove he is a true journalist.
Baghdad, 25 Oct. (AKI) - The Shiite faction led by Moqtada al-Sadr says it backs the Arab League's proposed national reconciliation conference but not at the proposed location, Cairo. League secretary-general Amr Moussa has just returned from a visit to Iraq where he secured the support of influential Shiite cleric Ali al-Sistani and the Kurdish leadership to bring together Iraqi parties and foreign ministers of the 22 League nations.
"We agree with the proposal to hold a conference of national unity, but believe it should be held inside Iraq and not abroad," Sheikh al-Arji, a representative of al-Sadr's Shiite faction, told the Voice of Iraq news site.
Moqtada is worried if he leaves Iraq to attend, he might not make it back.
"The divisions and differences which are lacerating the country are real and require a debate that must happen inside the country and not overseas," he added.
Al-Sadr has a significant following among poor Shiites. In 2004, he led uprisings against the US forces in Najaf and Sadr City on the edge of Baghdad. However, he agreed to a deal a year ago, which involved his followers handing over their weapons in return for cash and which gave him the chance to be included in the country's political process. The national unity congress is scheduled to be held on 15 November in Egypt.
Posted by: Steve ||
10/25/2005 09:27 ||
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Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, in an interview published here yesterday, suggested a âgeneral amnestyâ by Ankara for Turkeyâs Kurdish PKK rebels to end fighting in southwest Turkey. âIt is possible to bring down the PKK from the mountains if there is a general amnesty in Turkey,â Talabani, himself a Kurd, told English-language daily The New Anatolian. âIt will also be helpful if there is some kind of cooperation between Turkey, the Iraqi government, the PUK and the KDP over the issue,â he said. Talabani was referring to the two main Kurdish factions that share power in Northern Iraq, his own Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and Massood Barzaniâs Kurdistan Democratic Party. âIt will be impossible to solve the issue by using force,â Talabani said, adding: âThe Iraqi army is not yet able to do this. If we push the PKK too far, perhaps they will start cooperating with terrorists in Iraq like Al-Qaeda, Ansar al-Islam and (Abu Musab) Zarqawi and will bring more trouble to all of us.â
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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Petroleum is a valuable feedstock for various materials but its days as the main source of fuel are limited. And so too is wealth from extracting it, without other industrial or intellectual value added.
A unique system that can produce Hydrogen inside a car using common metals such as Magnesium and Aluminum was developed by an Israeli company. The system solves all of the obstacles associated with the manufacturing, transporting and storing of hydrogen to be used in cars. When it becomes commercial in a few years time, the system will be incorporated into cars that will cost about the same as existing conventional cars to run, and will be completely emission free.
As President Bush urges Americans to cut back on the use of oil in wake of the recent surge in prices, more and more people are looking for more viable alternatives to the use of petroleum as the main fuel for the automotive industry. IsraCast recently covered the idea developed at the Weizmann Institute to use pure Zinc to produce Hydrogen using solar power.
not all that reliable in my cloudy weather ...
Now, a different solution has been developed by an Israeli company called Engineuity. Amnon Yogev, one of the two founders of Engineuity, and a retired Professor of the Weizmann Institute, suggested a method for producing a continuous flow of Hydrogen and steam under full pressure inside a car. This method could also be used for producing hydrogen for fuel cells and other applications requiring hydrogen and/or steam.
The Hydrogen car Engineuity is working on will use metals such as Magnesium or Aluminum which will come in the form of a long coil. The gas tank in conventional vehicles will be replaced by a device called a Metal-Steam combustor that will separate Hydrogen out of heated water. The basic idea behind the technology is relatively simple: the tip of the metal coil is inserted into the Metal-Steam combustor together with water where it will be heated to very high temperatures. The metal atoms will bond to the Oxygen from the water, creating metal oxide. As a result, the Hydrogen molecules are free, and will be sent into the engine alongside the steam.
The solid waste product of the process, in the form of metal oxide, will later be collected in the fuel station and recycled for further use by the metal industry.
Refuelling the car based on this technology will also be remarkably simple. The vehicle will contain a mechanism for rolling the metal wire into a coil during the process of fuelling and the spent metal oxide, which was produced in the previous phase, will be collected from the car by vacuum suction.
Beside the obvious advantages of the system, such as the inexpensive and abundant fuel, the production of Hydrogen on-the-go and the zero emission engine, the system is also more efficient than other Hydrogen solutions. The main reason for this is the improved usage of heat (steam) inside the system that brings that overall performance level of the vehicle to that of a conventional car. In an interview, Professor Yogev told IsraCast that a car based on Engineuity's system will be able to travel about the same distance between refueling as an equivalent conventional car. The only minor drawback, which also limits the choice of possible metal fuel sources, is the weight of the coil. In order for the Hydrogen car to be able to travel as far as a conventional car it needs a metal coil three-times heavier than an equivalent petrol tank. Although this sound like a lot in most cars this will add up to about 100kg (220 pounds) and should not affect the performance of the car.
Engineuity is currently in the advanced stages of the incubator program of the Chief Scientist in Israel, and is seeking investors that will allow it to develop a full scale prototype. Given the proper investment the company should be able to develop the prototype in about three years. The move to Hydrogen based cars using Engineuity's technology will require only relatively minor changes from the car manufacturer's point of view. Since the modified engine can be produced using existing production lines, removing the need for investment in new infrastructures (the cost of which is estimated at billions of dollars), the new Hydrogen cars would not be more expensive. Although Engineuity's Hydrogen car will not be very different from existing conventional cars, the company is not currently planning an upgrade kit for existing cars but is concentrating on building a system that will be incorporated into new car models.
Possibly the most appealing aspect of the system is the running cost. According to Yogev, the overall running cost of the system should be equal to that of conventional cars today. Given the expected surge in oil prices in the near future Engineuity's Hydrogen car could not come too soon.
#4
"the tip of the metal coil is inserted into the Metal-Steam combustor together with water where it will be heated to very high temperatures".
Two questions:
1) What heats the water?
2) Are we going to be sitting there waiting for the water to boil like we might for a cup of tea?
Posted by: Baba Tutu ||
10/25/2005 13:12 Comments ||
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#5
What can I say... what a marvellous zionist plot. Hope it works out. I would like to see the shaykhs drink crude for a change, they don't have much water to speak of.
#7
It'll be a race between this and the hydrogen pills (solid hydrogen). My guess is we'll see this kind of engine powering homes, producing the hyrdogen pills so that we don't have to worry about the weight of the water and waiting for it to heat up.
#10
Heh, RD. I keep saying it, the key to the Universe is Friction Management. The right amount, in the right place, at the right time. I'm working on a Friction Portal where my "friends" and I can easily coordinate all of our friction and lubricant activities. Oops, IBM is on line 1 and Heidi Fleisch is on line 2, gotta go.
#11
Don't buy shares yet. The "common metal" aluminum, for example, is generally produced using lots of electrical ENERGY. And this so-called "zero emission engine" produces a solid waste product. Want to recycle that waste product? You'll have to use lots of -- you guessed it! -- ENERGY.
#13
Gotta agree w. phil_b. 2 Metal + HOH -> 2 MOH + H2. Any HS chem student knows that. Alkali metals like sodium react freely, Aluminum and magnesium would require some heat to start the reaction. You end up with hydrogen and an alkali. Producing the metal in the first place requires a fair amount of power (Aluminum is made via electrolysis - which is why aluminum plants were originally set up in the northwest - near hydropower). So this would be at best VERY inefficient. Besides - replace the water with acid, and add a copper electrode and you can produce electric power directly. I think I'll patent this latter process. I will call it a 'BATTERY'. :-)
#14
The "common metal" aluminum, for example, is generally produced using lots of electrical ENERGY. And this so-called "zero emission engine" produces a solid waste product. Want to recycle that waste product? You'll have to use lots of -- you guessed it! -- ENERGY
Energy isn't a problem. Nuclear power plants can produce more energy than we can use. The problem is making it available for transportation.
Also, aluminum recycles with a substantial energy efficiency - refining the original ore takes a lot of electricity, but recycling takes a much smaller amount.
#15
Solar power during the Alaskan Winter⢠is used, starting in February, when there is more daylight. Ima needing to study this in more detail. There are lots of brilliant ideas in energy supply or conversion. Most of them do not go anywhere, except into the black hole of interesting ideas. Alternative sources of energy and motive power other than petroleum take time and effort to develop. There is no easy fix. I do not like hyped up systems that have not had the development time put in.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
10/25/2005 20:36 Comments ||
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#16
Ethanol and methane can be used in existing petrol powered cars, with a cheap(ish) conversion. Existing models can be factory fitted for these fuels. Both fuels can be manufactured from solar, nuclear or any other power source. Hydrogen, fuel cells, or any other exotic technologies are just expensive boondogles.
Bali's police chief has expressed frustration at the lack of progress finding those behind triple suicide bombings this month that killed 23 people, including four Australians.
Made Mangku Pastika, who led the successful investigation of the 2002 Bali nightclub attacks, said national distribution of leaflets showing the decapitated heads of the three bombers as well as electronically enhanced pictures had yielded little.
"I wonder why nobody has stepped forward? What is baffling is where did (the three bombers) live? We don't even know where they came from," Pastika said.
Police have not named any suspects over the attacks.
The three bombers detonated explosives-laden backpacks in crowded restaurants on October 1, killing themselves and 20 innocent people.
Pastika has said the bombers had Indonesian facial features.
He said the bombers might have left their families and hometowns for so long that nobody recognised them.
Pastika also had a more chilling theory.
"The second possibility is they come from families or groups that agree with the terrorism movement. This is dangerous."
Police said they would issue new leaflets saying anyone giving credible information on the identities of the suspected backpack bombers would receive $US10,000 ($A13,140).
In recent bombings, court testimony has shown that senior operatives from Jemaah Islamiah have brainwashed young recruits from poor families living on the main island of Java to drive bomb-laden cars to targets.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
10/25/2005 13:24 ||
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JAKARTA - Indonesian police are promising almost 100,000 dollars for anyone with information leading to the arrest of two Malaysian bomb experts suspected of masterminding blasts in Bali on October 1, police said on Monday. The one billion rupiah (99,260 dollars) bounty was announced as police planned to distribute 600,000 leaflets with photographs of fugitives Azahari Husin and Noordin Mohammad Top and three suicide bombers from the October 1 attacks on the Indonesian resort island.
I'll take the reward in dollars -- I think I'd get a hernia lifting one billion rupiahs.
National Chief Police Detective Makbul Padmanegara said police were also offering one million rupiah (99.26 dollars) in cash to anyone able to identify any of the three suicide bombers.
Yeah boy, a hunnert bucks, that'll do it. Cheapskates.
The heads of the bombers were recovered relatively undamaged at the sites of the blasts, which also killed 20 other people. But their identities remain unknown more than three weeks after the attacks at restaurants in southern Bali, prompting the distribution of the leaflets across the country, including in residential areas, Padmanegara said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
There's always the possibility the suicide bombers aren't Indonesians. They could be from the Philippines or Malaysia, or even imported from Pakistan or the Middle East. That would provide even greater security for those behind the plot.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
10/25/2005 19:27 Comments ||
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(CNSNews.com) - A news conference conducted by self-described Iranian dissidents descended into chaos on Monday as audience members and two journalists accused the speakers of spreading disinformation and being agents of Iranian intelligence. As supporters of the rival dissident groups vied for media attention, one group accused the other of being imposters. An hour and a half into the National Press Club event in Washington, D.C., organizers halted it and Capitol police were called in to keep order.
Monday's news conference, titled "Saddam and Terrorism," was sponsored by the Iran Peyvand Association and was supposed to focus on Iraq as it was. Speakers argued that after fleeing Iran, the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK) operated out of Iraq as a terrorist group. For that reason, its leader, Massoud Rajavi, should be brought to justice just as Saddam Hussein was, the Iran Peyvand Association insisted. The MEK was expelled from Iran after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Starting in the late 1980s, its main support came from Saddam Hussein's Iraqi regime. While it conducted terrorist attacks against the interests of the religious regime in Iran, it also mobilized to suppress the 1991 Shiite and Kurdish uprisings against Saddam, a point the presenters emphasized.
According to U.S. government terrorist group profiles, the MEK advocates the overthrow of the Iranian regime and its replacement with the group's own leadership. Currently, over 3,000 MEK members live in Camp Ashraf, north of Baghdad, where they remain under the Geneva Convention's "protected person" status. A press release for Monday's event promised that attendees would see a documentary film exposing the MEK's role in the suppression of the 1991 Iraqi uprising and "video evidence, secretly filmed by Saddam's own security services," showing the "financial, spying and terrorist relationship between the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization and Saddam's regime."
Anti-war activist Carol Moore warned that if the U.S. attacked Iran, the result could be world-wide nuclear war. A flier distributed by the organizers echoed the "catastrophic" repercussions of an American attack and argued that Iranian officials could deploy "millions of troops and enter Iraq," as well as attack Israel's nuclear sites and cities, American bases and troops in Iraq and U.S. ships at sea. "They could cut off much of the world's oil, which comes through the Straight of Hormuz," read the flier, which was produced by StopTheWarNow.net, DawnDC.net and UnitedForPeace.org.
Sounds like they have given up on Iraq and "moved on" to the next conflict.
Karim Haqi, introduced as a former member of the MEK, followed Moore's speech. After a video was shown, he addressed the meeting in Farsi while Marukh Haji translated. Shortly into Haqi's speech, audience members began interrupting, including one unidentified young woman who said she spoke Farsi and complained the translation being given to the audience was erroneous.
Another woman who refused to be identified except to say she was an immigration attorney, stood up and complained that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security had allowed a former "terrorist" into the country.
A man who described himself as a "freelance journalist" asked Haqi whether it was true, as alleged, that he had worked with Iranian intelligence. He was escorted from the meeting by organizers. But the charge was echoed in questions by a British-Israeli journalist.
Haqi later denied any such ties to Iranian Intelligence, and through translator Marukh Haji, added that he and his supporters had spent years in Iranian prisons and were the "first ones" the government attacked. "We put all our hopes in [the MEK]" said Haqi. "They betrayed us. Two individuals carrying materials from the Committee Against Ahmadinejad (Iran's new president) repeatedly interrupted Haqi and his translator. Later, members of the group gave reporters copies of a document accusing the organizers of Monday's news conference of being in the employ of Iranian intelligence.
Posted by: Steve ||
10/25/2005 08:32 ||
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#1
Ugh. Sounds like a public MEK catfight between some apostates and true believers and/or patsies of true believers. God, MEK is worse than the Scientologists - any incident or story featuring that group descends inevitably into a black hole of layered, chaotic bullshit.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
10/25/2005 9:36 Comments ||
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Reminds me of the '70s at UMASS when all the Iranian kids would run around accusing each other of being SAVAK agents.
Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat- The name al-Ahbash, recently mentioned in the media in connection to the UN investigation into the murder of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, refers to The Association of Islamic Charitable Projects in Lebanon which was founded by A Abdullah ibn Muhammad ibn Yusuf al Hirari, nicknamed âal Habashiâ, referring to his Ethiopian origin. Born in the city of al Hirara , near Somalia , al Hirari settled in Lebanon in 1950 where he taught religious studies and cultivated a personal following.
Maintaining strong relations with the Syrian government, the groups leader, Nizar al Halabi was killed in 1995 by Ahmad Abdul Karim al Saaid, known as Abu Mihjin, who headed âAsbat al Ansarâor the League of Partisans. The latter was sentenced to death in absentia for his crime.
In April 2001, al Ahbash organized a series of public rallies to counter demonstrations called by those opposed to Syria's presence in Lebanon on the anniversary of the civil war. Members took to the streets dressed in black and wearing face paint and masks, the al-Ahbash members chanted pro-Syrian slogans before the TV cameras while waving nail-encrusted broomsticks, kitchen knives, brass knuckles, chains, axes, old rusted swords and hammers.
Released on Friday, the UN report into the assassination of Hariri featured the name of three brothers, Ahmad Abd al Al, an active member of al Ahbash currently in Lebanese custody, Walid, a member of the Presidential Guard, and Mahmud, also member of al Ahbash who, according to the investigation telephoned Lebanese President Emile Lahoud moments before the bombing which targeted Haririâs convoy on February 14 th 2005. Mahmud was arrested on Sunday on a warrant issued by Magistrate Judge Sai Mirza. Police in Beirut also raised a sweet shop in Tariq al Jadidah neighbourhood owned by Hashem Mahmud Alian, allegedly a member of al Ahbash where hand grenades were found and confiscates and Alian arrested.
According to Dar al Iftaa in Beirut , the Lebanese state muftiâs administration, Abdullah al Hirari was âa man hostile to those who did not share his views, even his predecessors such as Sheikh Ibn Taymiya and Sheikh Mohammad bin Abdul Wahab. He was nicknamed the Sheikh of strife.â
On its internet site, the group explains how its name was originally âused to indicate the students and supporters of sheikh al Hirari. In reality, al Ahbash are an organization called The Association of Islamic Charitable Projects.â
âThe Association rejects the Takfir ideology and opposes the use of violence against the ruling authorities and the killing of the elderly, women, and children. It does not depend on any government for financial support and rejects the takfir ideologies that denounce Muslims as infidelsâ.
According to the site, the former Mufti of Lebanon, Sheikh Mukhtar al Alayli, had recognized the religious knowledge of al Hirari and helped him settle in Lebanon and teach in its mosques.
Listing the group's accomplishments, the site mentions the schools and colleges it has founded around Lebanon and the university it established. Members are alleged to live as far as North America and Europe where they run a number of religious schools. Al Ahbash run their own radio station which broadcasts religious programs in Lebanon. Sheikh Abdullah al Habashi is married to four women and has two children, a boy and a girl, the site added.
Based in Burj Abi Haidar in west Beirut , the group maintains centers across Europe , including Switzerland , France , The Netherlands, Sweden , Denmark , and German, and several US states.
Al Ahbash entered the Lebanese political arena in 1992 when its candidate Dr. Adnan Trabulisi was elected to the Lebanese parliament.
Dar al Iftaa has accused the group of following the Khawarij, an Islamic sect in the 7 th and 8 th centuries in Southern Iraq and being extreme in their denunciation of their predecessors without taking into consideration the regulations around takfir.
#2
âThe Association rejects the Takfir ideology and opposes the use of violence against the ruling authorities and the killing of the elderly, women, and children. It does not depend on any government for financial support and rejects the takfir ideologies that denounce Muslims as infidelsâ.
In spite of the fact that we assisted in the killing of Hariri, we would hope you will continue to send money.....for the children.
U.S. special forces dart through Iran's underground nuclear facilities, gunning down any hapless Iranians standing between them and centrifuges that must be blown to bits.
Much to Tehran's relief, this crack team exists only in a new U.S. computer game. But even these animated saboteurs are too close for comfort, downloadable into Iranian living rooms at the click of a mouse.
The cyberspace troopers have sparked bitter press comment in Iran and a petition asking that the game be shelved.
"Americans have a deep craving for an attack against Iran, but they are going to have to settle for this make-believe assault," wrote the Kayhan daily, whose editor is appointed directly by Iran's Supreme Leader.
"U.S. attacks Iran" is made by U.S. firm Kuma Reality Games whose war games often tie into top news stories.
Iran is at the center of a diplomatic maelstrom, flatly denying U.S. accusations it is seeking atomic warheads. It argues it needs underground nuclear facilities, such as one near the central town of Natanz, to make fuel for power stations.
The United States consistently declines to rule out a military strike against Iran, but has said such an option is "not on the agenda".
The game's trailer plays pounding music and starkly asks: "Diplomacy has failed ... Is nothing to be done?". U.S. troops then strafe a car, leap out of helicopters and prowl around menacingly before blowing things up.
Web site www.persianpetition.com, a forum for Persian speakers in Iran and abroad, posted a notice asking Kuma to withdraw the game on October 12. Since then it has got more than 5,000 signatures.
"We must make the Americans understand that Iran is different from Iraq and Afghanistan, where they just did what they wanted," the petition read.
Kuma boss Keith Halper said he had no plans to take the game offline and that he had not realized the games were played in the Middle East as well.
"The controversy does surprise me. I just didn't expect that there were people from Iran who were going to become aware of it," he told Reuters.
Other Kuma games have been criticized in the United States for their realistic portrayal of current events, including recent battles.
The Iran game has been downloaded in Iran thousands of times, Halper said, and the company has received roughly 300 e-mail messages from Iran. Some criticized the game but others had asked how to get a copy without a broadband connection.
Iran has been prickly about the idea of U.S. special forces lurking around inside the Islamic Republic since U.S. journalist Seymour Hersh said in the New Yorker this year that U.S. "Black Ops" had ventured across Iran's borders. I think it is important that each and every Rantburger consider what game mods they would like to add to this game. My own personal fave would involve the Special Forces involking demons that would drag screaming Mullahs down to Hell.
#2
To mooselimbs, satan is a seducer. This is why the MMs call the US the "Great Satan" - because our culture seduces the yoots away from allan. This game is a great example.
#6
payback will likely come from the sky, MM's, to avoid the boots on the ground....heads up?
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/25/2005 12:26 Comments ||
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Article: Iran has been prickly about the idea of U.S. special forces lurking around inside the Islamic Republic since U.S. journalist Seymour Hersh said in the New Yorker this year that U.S. "Black Ops" had ventured across Iran's borders.
If Hersch said it, I think the Iranians are safe in assuming that it never happened. It would stand to reason, too. What US decisionmaker would take the risk of having one of these guys captured?* Unlike in the movies, these guys don't bite down on cyanide capsules to avoid being captured alive, and they're certainly not expendable to any politician who doesn't want to be impeached.
* Far safer to recruit Iranians to carry out any reconnaisance.
#9
A commenter on this story over at Brothers Judd had a good idea:
If we had a competent CIA, they would know the exact floorplans for the Iranian facilities, and incorporate them into the game. The mullahs would be freaked out by how well we knew their secrets and any possible anti-regime elements would have a nice how-to guide...
Posted by: Mike ||
10/25/2005 18:30 Comments ||
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Ali Sadr-al-Din al-Bayanuni, general guide of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) in Syria, has called on the world "not to punish the Syrian people because of what was committed by the regime." He stressed that "there is a real alternative, as indicated by the Damascus Declaration, which marked the launch of national collective action that includes all opposition parties." He hoped that a preparatory committee would be formed soon to prepare for a conference for the opposition, in all its shades.
Al-Bayanuni, told Asharq al-Awsat that he was not surprised by what was contained in the report of German investigator Detlev Mehlis concerning the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri. He said, "The Syrian regime is professional." He added that the international community has ignored the conduct of the Baath regime in Damascus for a long time, which led to the fall of more innocent people. He noted that "the arrests among Syrians were still continuing until yesterday."
He stressed that "the regime cannot be reformed. The only solution is a radical change, as the Damascus Declaration (of the opposition) demanded" several days ago. He said "there is no longer a real justification for the talk about the lack of an alternative." He added that contacts are now under way for the purpose of forming a preparatory committee "which includes all the forces that signed the Damascus Declaration, be they at home or abroad." This is meant to prepare for holding a conference for all political forces, including Islamic, leftist, nationalist, Arab, and Kurdish forces. He remarked that change "will be carried out by the Syrians themselves. We, however, need support and a cover from the international community" to protect the people from the oppression of the regime, which may resort to more violent methods.
Lawyer Al-Bayanuni hoped that "the international community will adopt a decisive position and will remove the cover from this regime." He said, "We ask for not punishing the Syrian people twice." He added "imposing any economic sanctions will harm the people and will not harm the regime." He said that economic sanctions will be the second punishment after the suffering, which the people have gone through over the past 40 years.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Syrian Muslim Brotherhood Leader Says Syrian Regime Cannot Be Reformed
Islamist extremist Omar Bakri, barred from returning to Britain after leaving for Lebanon last summer, indicated he had set up a college to teach Arabic for foreigners in Beirut . The former leader of al Muhajiroun (the migrants), which disbanded itself last October, expected his European students to be among the first to attend classes at the âTawheed in Greater Syriaâ college after its inauguration in December 2005. He also noted that the college would have its own internet site.
At a cost of $1400 US and including accommodation and living expenses for a three-month term, students will have the opportunity to study Arabic as well as fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), aqqidah (doctrine) and usul al din (theology) under Bakri and a select number of scholars. Speaking exclusively to Asharq al Awsat on Saturday, from his residence in the Lebanese capital, Bakri revealed he was spending the month of Ramadan in prayer and seclusion and denied an article in The Times newspaper alleging he had resumed contact with his followers and was giving sermons in a chat room hosted by Paltalk.com. Defending himself, the extremist preacher said the technology is Lebanon did not allow him to lecture online, as he had done in London.
Since his sudden arrival in Lebanon on 6th August 2005, Bakri said a new diet and daily swimming in Khaldeh, south of Beirut, meant he had lost almost 20kg. A Lebanese national who had sought asylum in Britain, Bakri bravely left London 24 hours after British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced new measures to combat terrorism. His residency was revoked by the Home Office a few days later and was excluded from the UK as his presence was "not conducive to the public good", according to Home Secretary Charles Clarke.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Gotta love it when they cluster up like this. Can you say, "Target Rich Environment"?
France said on Monday it was too early to seek sanctions against Syria but the UN Security Council must demand Damascus cooperate with a UN inquiry into the killing of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri. France said it would not consider sanctions on Syria until the end of the inquiry but that it would like a United Nations resolution to demand its cooperation in the investigation. "We have here an opportunity to do justice with an independent inquiry. Let's go to the end ... if we need to make it longer, let's do it, and afterwards lets see what the consequences should be, including on the question... of sanctions," Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said.
Lebanon's Hizbollah group and Amal Movement, two staunch pro-Syrian Shiite groups, rejected any talk of sanctions. "Facing a pressure campaign led by the United States and Israel, we declare our rejection to any decision that wants to impose sanctions on Syria," they said in a joint statement. "Reaching the truth needs more serious investigation which rests on facts and substantial evidence, and steering away from politicising the findings," it said.
"We don't like the results of your investigation! Go back and bring us different results!"
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Like watching France before the Iraq War: how long can one drag out doing nothing? How long can one parade catatonia as a sophisticated foreign policy position? How long can one hawk a farce as the truth? France will show the "international community" that it is world champion.
#2
It's too early to call Hizbollah a terrorist organization too huh France, oh and don't forget the humanitarian Hamas, all good people who are only implicated by circumstantial evidence.
#3
I dont think France his as against us as they seem. For one France, Germany have massive Muslim populations nearly the number percentage wise as african americans in the US. Just imagine if Africa was a insane radical Jihadi group and those groups were in the US in such numbers we would be rather carefull on what we did when it came to such. Look at america today we are really gun shy of race hell even New Orleans a freekin act of nature and local gov incompitence can be turned into a White devil act to take down the black man. With bombs and black helicopters and all.
Now in Europe their Muslims have the same minortiy victim mentality with extreme self induced poverty and white devel attitudes that make them vulneralble to insane conspiracy theories and open to radicalism. If France and Germany had joined us their would be daily or weekly bombings in EU. Today those same radicals go to Iraq were they are splattered on the streets killing Muslims which in turn make themselves more muslim enemies not supporters.
Thier hands are tied all they can do is play this good cop bad cop game with us to help. On Iraq I do think they went to far to try to stop us but not out of hatred or to counter us it was out of self preservation and Fear for good reason.
Let's get real here, folks. France is an enemy country trying to build alliances with every corrupt Arab and African dictator and China to oppose les Anglo-Saxons on general principles.
If in the case of Syria they appear to be on our side, it is only a coincidence of which they are willing to take advantage, or a ruse intended to confuse us about the goals they consistently pursue.
We've got friends there, like JFM and A5089, but the French government and the majority of the people who elect them are not our friends. If it appears so, it is an illusion or coincidence. We should pursue our policies without regard to France. We should get our of NATO so they have less ability to spy on us. We should press for UNSC realignment with the French and British vetos replaced by an EU veto.
As to the US and Africa, yeah, we care /sarcasm. Blacks are not a voting block that matters. They vote democrat more reliably than feminazis. And nothing is doen about Africa. Sudan, Nigeria, ZimBobwe, Rwanda, the list goes on and on and nothing is done. So the Euro worry cannot be compared to the blacks in the US. Blacks can mouth off all they want to about levees being bombed in NOLA, but no one pays attention to them.
If the Euros were really concerned about their muslim minorities, they would assimilate them. But they can because they are pure blood tribal nations who cannot admit inferior humans. The Frogs are not playing good cop, bad cop with the US. They are playing good cop, bad cop with the Arabs against us.
#5
France has traditional ties to the Maronite community in Lebanon - stronger than its ties elsewhere in the arab world. Those ties, and French influence in Lebanon, are more important to France than weakening the US, which is only a subordinate goal of French foreign policy, IMO.
If we're supposed to do this "France is only coincidentally on our side" and "don't rely on France" thing, then what's the matter with letting them act 'against' Syria? I distinctly recall an article where SecState Rice herself is arguing for condemnation instead of sanctions in hopes of fine-controlling the fall of Baby Assad, not too much but not too far... for one, remember how sanctions were useless against Saddam?
Posted by: Edward Yee ||
10/25/2005 16:34 Comments ||
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Hell, the French probably think it is too soon to call for sanctions against the Third Reich
WASHINGTON â At least 21 detainees who died while being held in U.S. custody in Iraq and Afghanistan were killed, many during or after interrogations, according to an analysis of Defense Department data by the American Civil Liberties Union.
The analysis, released Monday, looked at 44 deaths described in records obtained by the ACLU. Of those, the group characterized 21 as homicides, and said at least eight resulted from abusive techniques by military or intelligence officers, such as strangulation or "blunt force injuries," as noted in the autopsy reports.FOX
Notice the leap to calling these deaths homicides. The ACLU bases these allegations on what? Their own word? They cherry picked 21 deaths from 44, and slapped them with the label of homicide. What I want to know is how this is any of the ACLU's business anyway, and who is funding this attack on the military. We've all seen the photos at Abu Ghraib, and investigations were put into place.
War is ugly, and you can be sure the ACLU, who feel the need to stick its nose in foreign affairs of war, will not be going after any of the killers that sawed off the heads of American contractors, or burned them alive! No, these are the ones the ACLU have decided to defend. How American of them.
One of these many, many, 21 deaths is even being disputed by his very own father.
Wahid, 28, was taken from his home by Afghan militia and accused of being a terrorist. The autopsy report said he died in American custody, though his father has blamed the militiamen.
I'm sure there are many other details in the other 20 cases that the ACLU failed to report, instead preferring to paint a picture of the American military as ruthless murderers. Other than anti-American propaganda, I really can't think of any reason the public needs to know about these things. The military have done their own investigations, and dealt out justice.
Details about the detainee abuse and deaths have been released by the Pentagon as part of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the ACLU. Many of the incidents have been made public previously, and in a number of cases soldiers and officers involved have been prosecuted and punished.
"The U.S. military does not tolerate mistreatment of detainees," said Army spokesman Col. Joseph Curtin. "Past cases have been fully investigated. When there is credible evidence, commanders have the prerogative to prosecute."
To date, there have been more than 400 investigations of detainee abuse, and more than 230 military personnel have received a court-martial, nonjudicial punishment or other administrative action.
But the ACLU don't need "credible evidence", they have concluded all on their own authority that these poor terrorists were murdered. All 21 of them without doubt.
"There is no question that U.S. interrogations have resulted in deaths," said Anthony D. Romero, ACLU's executive director. "High-ranking officials who knew about the torture and sat on their hands and those who created and endorsed these policies must be held accountable."
Oh, now I see! The ACLU are not concerned with soldiers who go overboard. They are concerned about "high ranking officials." They are concerned about our torture "policies." You've got to be kidding ACLU!
#1
Tell that SON-OF-BITCH Romero to come see me!!I'll show him what ABUSE is ALL about. Since when do THESE ASSHOLES get involved in international law or for that fact WAR????
Me thinks it's time to pull together and stop,if not wipe these JACKASSES from the face of the earth!!
#3
Can we round up these ACLU a**holes and ship 'em off to northwest Pakistan. Let them try to explain the concepts of 'rights' to the former Taliban and AQ.
It's funny, I remember reading a very similar article quite some time ago, I wonder if there is reprinting or plagiarizing involved, or if it's just that bad habits die hard in Guantanomo bay?
Serious bad guys at Guantanamo would love to kill you. Have a nice day.
The sun sets behind the building where hearings have been held at Guantanamo Naval Base. Visitors report exemplary treatment of less-than-exemplary prisoners.
There is indeed abuse going on at Guantanamo--but it's abuse by savage inmates against our troops.
GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA--In the fall of 2001, the U.S. Naval Facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba ("Gitmo" to those who live here) was teetering on the edge of oblivion, with a skeleton crew of fewer than 2,000 service members on duty. Now a contingent of more than 10,000 resides here. Behind that surge: the need for secure confinement of a collection of human debris snatched from the battlefields of Afghanistan in early 2002.
These "detainees" are not innocent foot soldiers, or confused Afghan opium farmers drafted by the Taliban. They are Islamic fundamentalists from across the Middle East, rabid jihadists who have dedicated their lives to the destruction of America and Western civilization.
Among the residents are al-Qaida organizers, bomb makers, financial specialists, recruiters of suicide attackers, and just plain killers. Many of these men met frequently with Osama bin Laden. The terrorist Maad Al Qahtani--a Saudi who is a self-confessed collaborator with the Sept. 11 hijackers--is one of many infamous captives.
In the opening salvos of the global war on terror, our forces took a lot of prisoners from the battlefield. Estimates are that more than 70,000 Taliban and al-Qaida fighters were captured and screened. Of that number, approximately 800 were deemed of such high value for intelligence purposes, or such a severe threat in their own person, that they needed to be interrogated and confined in a secure locale from which they could not easily escape or be rescued.
Welcome to the new Gitmo.
I was able to observe conditions at the detention facility, firsthand, at the end of June, when I was invited to join a group of 10 former military and intelligence analysts on an inspection tour. Briefings commenced aboard our aircraft shortly after takeoff, and continued until landing.
We were met planeside by Brig. Gen. Jay Hood, the commanding officer of Joint Task Force Gitmo, whose soldiers are responsible for the security, interrogation, housing, and oversight of all the terrorists confined there. Gen. Hood and his staff fielded all questions and criticisms, and were very forthcoming.
Who are these men?
While we observed absolutely no evidence of torture of prisoners at Gitmo, it is clear that the daily atmosphere is rife with harsh abuse: The prisoners are constantly assaulting the guards.
Our young military men and women routinely endure the vilest invective imaginable, including death threats that spill over to guards' families. All soldiers and sailors working "inside the wire" have blacked out their name tags so that the detainees will not learn their identities. Before that step was taken the terrorists were threatening to tell their al-Qaida pals still at large who the guards were.
"We will look you up on the Internet," the prisoners said. "We will find you and slaughter you and your family in your homes at night. We will cut your throats like sheep. We will drink the blood of the infidel."
That is bad enough, but the terrorist prisoners throw more than words at the guards. On a daily basis, American soldiers carrying out their duties within the maximum-security camp are barraged with feces, urine, semen, and spit hurled by the detainees. Secretly fashioned weapons intended for use in attacking guards or fellow detainees are confiscated regularly.
When food or other items are passed through the "bean hole"--an opening approximately 4 inches by 24 inches in the cell doors--the detainees have grabbed at the wrists and arms of the Americans feeding them and tried to break their bones.
When guards enter the cells to remove detainees for interrogation sessions, medical visits, or any number of reasons, detainees sometimes climb on the metal bunks and leap on the guards. They have crammed themselves under the bunks, requiring several guards to extract them. Some have attacked unsuspecting soldiers with steel chairs.
Determined to inflict maximum damage, detainees have groped under the protective face masks of the guards, clawing their faces and trying to gouge eyes and tear mouths.
Keep in mind that our soldiers--young men and young women--are absolutely forbidden from responding in kind. They are constrained to maintain absolute discipline and follow humane operating procedures at all times, at risk of serious punishment.
Documents recently obtained by The Associated Press through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit show that one detainee punched a guard in the mouth, knocking out his tooth, then began to bite the MP. Several guards were required to repel the prisoner's attack; one soldier who came to the rescue delivered two blows to the inmate's head with a handheld radio.
For this he was dropped in rank to private.
In a different incident, an MP doused with toilet water responded by spraying the offending inmate with a hose. For this he was charged with assault.
Another American soldier was disciplined for cursing at inmates. One guard punched a detainee after being struck and spit on while placing the man in restraints in the prison hospital in October, 2004. ("My instincts took over after the hitting and spitting," the soldier wrote in his report.)
He was recommended for a reduction in rank to E-4, loss of a month's pay, and extra duty for 45 days.
How cooperative a detainee is determines where he is housed, how much free time he is given, whether he lives alone or in a group, and what color clothing he wears. The most dangerous wear an orange jump suit. Those who heed instructions earn a beige jumpsuit, and those who are deemed to be fully compliant wear white. The latter groups have daily recreation periods, live in groups of as many as 10, and receive extra privileges.
The compliance rating, by the way, has nothing to do with cooperation with interrogators. Indeed, many fully compliant detainees have maintained stoic silence, while some of the most notorious, dangerous prisoners speak freely with interrogators.
Nearly all of these hardened terrorists have been well-coached on how to be an American captive. Given any opportunity, they will all claim torture and human-rights violations. They have been schooled on counter-interrogation techniques, on how to construct and maintain a cover story, and other subterfuges to fool or deflect interrogators.
Some detainees, including one classified as a "high value intelligence source" that I was able to observe, take pride in discussing their activities and capabilities with interrogators. The man I saw brags about Americans he has killed, other Muslims he has terrorized, attacks he has planned and carried out, and what he will do to the Americans if he has a chance.
He is a leader, and affirms his high rank within the al-Qaida chain. He has started or ended riotous behavior by fellow prisoners on more than one occasion.
With twisted irony, this individual condemns prisoners who maintain silence for being "ashamed" of their past. "They ought to proclaim their feats as proof of their commitment to the cause of Islam," he tells interrogators, while munching continuously from a box of doughnuts provided by the interrogator. Why the doughnuts? "He throws his food at the guards," General Hood says, "so he loves to eat the doughnuts during the interrogation sessions."
Functional leniency?
We asked Hood if he was possibly being too lenient with these men. "This system of rapport-building works," Hood assures us. In support of the soft-handed approach, he cites an extraordinary amount of actionable intelligence that continues to flow out of the interrogation rooms of Gitmo.
His revelation was a surprise to me. During my own career in the U.S. Army Special Forces, I had been taught that intelligence, like bread, gets stale quickly. That may be true for tactical intelligence of the sort I used in the field. Strategic intelligence, however--the kind that we continue to collect at Gitmo--seems to have a much longer shelf life.
Today's interrogators are succeeding at mapping out the complex organizational and financial structure of al-Qaida in increasing detail, thereby uncovering networks that need to be attacked and dismantled. They are uncovering new "sleeper" cells. They are learning of temporarily shelved plans for new terrorist attacks, some of which have subsequently been thwarted by law enforcement authorities in America and Europe.
Another surprise for me was learning that many of the U.S. interrogators are women. We have all heard the salacious stories about using women to tease or embarrass the detainees. I saw a different reality. The camp behavioral expert, a female Ph.D. who has more than two years of experience at Gitmo, informed me that female interrogators have been very effective.
"We assume the role of sister or mother," she explained, "something that is quite acceptable and natural in their culture." She dresses demurely for her sessions. "I wear long sleeves, an ankle-length dress, and little makeup": The interrogation room she enters is sparsely furnished with leg cuffs to secure the prisoner, a one-way mirror, cameras, and a distress button to summon help if needed.
"We review what we know of their backgrounds, try lots of approaches, and work on them to find something that they can relate to."
It is a long, complex process requiring great patience, and more than a little human empathy. It categorically rejects the use of drugs, coercion, or duress.
Intelligence gleaned from Gitmo is blended with information from other sources to connect dots. We learned that one noncooperative detainee had his cover penetrated just last month by having his photo identified by a freshly captured fighter in Afghanistan. Once confronted with his real identity, he began to talk.
It is important to keep in mind that these men, while exceedingly dangerous and even pathological in their desire to kill Westerners, are generally well-educated and broadly traveled. Several detainees have advanced degrees in law, engineering, and medicine from American and European schools like the University of London.
Others are highly skilled technical experts with advanced training and knowledge of electronics and demolitions. (Some of these are contributing to our knowledge of al-Qaida bombs found in Iraq.) Many of these men occupied the top al-Qaida echelons, and met frequently with bin Laden.
A lot of these men came from middle-class or wealthy families. They come from 17 different countries, but a great many are Saudi Arabian. They are not driven by poverty, unemployment, or class deprivation. They are motivated by a virulent form of Islam that promotes jihad and death to Western civilization.
They will kill Americans--including women and children--without conscience, for they are convinced that restoration of the Islamic caliphate is their sole mission on this Earth.
Many readers will have heard stories about detainees sleeping in air-conditioned berths, while the American troops guarding them sweated in tents. You may have heard that American soldiers were eating MREs while the terrorists dined on three "hots" daily, providing about 2,600 calories of carefully varied food. Those stories were correct.
Conditions for camp guards have been improved dramatically, however. I ate heartily with the soldiers and sailors working the camps (the Navy supplies a large number of experienced Masters at Arms), and learned how they feel about their mission. Universally, they are proud of their work, although somewhat disappointed that the American public is not more aware of the difficulties they undergo to keep us safe.
One young woman at my table, an Army private first class, was asked what she thought about rhetoric in the American media, and from the mouths of elected officials like Sens. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) and Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), describing our service members at Guantanamo as "Nazis."
Frowning, she answered, "It hurts my feelings to hear that junk. We try to do as good a job as possible down here. These detainees are dangerous. They try to kill us every time we get close to them, and would certainly kill Americans if released."
I asked her if morale was affected by such political statements. "I'll tell you this," she replied, breaking into a grin. "Every time we get called those names we decide we're going to show 'em. We focus on our mission and work harder."
Guards pull several days of duty inside the wire, and are then rotated out. They need the relief from the intense pressure inside. But the time outside is not R&R; training continues on a constant basis. Gitmo has some of the most detailed and comprehensive procedural rules in the military. Supervision is constant, random inspections are common, all supervisors in the chain of command are held responsible for the actions of subordinates, and soldiers are schooled to report infractions.
The American service members at Guantanamo do not have the satisfaction of tossing a grenade or shooting back at the terrorists in their midst. They will not be recognized when awards for valor are bestowed.
In the face of vile abuse they must respond with supreme restraint, aware that even the slightest infraction will draw the fury and condemnation of hyperbolic politicians and reporters who loathe our military and want nothing more than to embarrass and damage American interests in this war.
For defense against irresponsible and slanderous charges, these men and women rely on ordinary Americans--those of us who rest at home in the shadow of safety they cast.
#1
We asked Hood if he was possibly being too lenient with these men. "This system of rapport-building works," Hood assures us. In support of the soft-handed approach, he cites an extraordinary amount of actionable intelligence that continues to flow out of the interrogation rooms of Gitmo.
His revelation was a surprise to me. During my own career in the U.S. Army Special Forces, I had been taught that intelligence, like bread, gets stale quickly. That may be true for tactical intelligence of the sort I used in the field. Strategic intelligence, however--the kind that we continue to collect at Gitmo--seems to have a much longer shelf life.
Today's interrogators are succeeding at mapping out the complex organizational and financial structure of al-Qaida in increasing detail, thereby uncovering networks that need to be attacked and dismantled. They are uncovering new "sleeper" cells. They are learning of temporarily shelved plans for new terrorist attacks, some of which have subsequently been thwarted by law enforcement authorities in America and Europe.
Here's hoping that the actionable intelligence hasn't been directly proportional to the going-soft on them... so high a price to pay for what's HOPEFULLY worthwhile.
Posted by: Edward Yee ||
10/25/2005 19:54 Comments ||
Top||
#2
Personally, I believe interrogation should consist of taking the prisoners one at a time into the yard, where the rest can see. Ask him questions. First one he fails to answer, torch him with a flamethrower. Wait til he stops burning, then bring out the next and repeat.
...In a 45-minute meeting last Thursday, Vice President Dick Cheney and the C.I.A. director, Porter J. Goss, urged Senator John McCain, the Arizona Republican who wrote the amendment, to support an exemption for the agency, arguing that the president needed maximum flexibility in dealing with the global war on terrorism, according to two government officials who were briefed on the meeting. They spoke on condition of anonymity because of the confidential nature of the discussions.
Mr. McCain rejected the proposed exemption, which stated that the measure "shall not apply with respect to clandestine counterterrorism operations conducted abroad, with respect to terrorists who are not citizens of the United States, that are carried out by an element of the United States government other than the Department of Defense and are consistent with the Constitution and laws of the United States and treaties to which the United States is a party, if the president determines that such operations are vital to the protection of the United States or its citizens from terrorist attack."
Posted by: Captain America ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
then Veto his bill
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/25/2005 0:36 Comments ||
Top||
#2
Three line summary:
I am against the McCain Amendment!
I will only support Republicans with my dollars who vote against it.
I request our Republican senators strip amendment 1977 from the defense budget bill!
The Divided House: What happened to the Commander in Chief's authority to prosecute the GWOT?
S.AMDT.1977 to H.R. 2863 (Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2006 )
Sponsor: Sen McCain, John [AZ] (submitted 10/3/2005) (proposed 10/5/2005)
AMENDMENT PURPOSE:
Relating to persons under the detention, custody, or control of the United States Government.
TEXT OF AMENDMENT AS SUBMITTED: CR S10908-10909
10/5/2005:
Amendment SA 1977 proposed by Senator McCain. (consideration: CR S11061-11072, S1114; text: CR S11062)
Amendment SA 1977 agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 90 - 9. Record Vote Number: 249.
COSPONSORS(11):
8 so-called Republicans (including sponsor John McCain)
Graham, Lindsey [R-SC] - 10/3/2005
Hagel, Chuck [R-NE] - 10/3/2005
Smith, Gordon H. [R-OR] - 10/3/2005
Collins, Susan M. [R-ME] - 10/3/2005
Alexander, Lamar [R-TN] - 10/5/2005
Warner, John [R-VA] - 10/5/2005
Chafee, Lincoln [R-RI] - 10/5/2005
4 Democrats
Durbin, Richard [D-IL] - 10/5/2005
Levin, Carl [D-MI] - 10/5/2005
Sununu, John E. [D-NH] - 10/5/2005
Salazar, Ken [D-CO] - 10/5/2005
nine NAY votors (all Republicans)
Allard (R-CO)
Bond (R-MO)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Roberts (R-KS)
Sessions (R-AL)
Stevens (R-AK)
President George W. Bush was re-elected President in 2004 in a stunning Republican victory.
Immediately, a series of events occur where the victory is forgotten and the President is painted a lame duck.
The War on Terrorism and our soldiers are forgotten.
Republican congressmen turn attention to their re-elections in 2006.
Democrats look to Hillary in 2008.
As a Rantburg.com devotee, I have been in WOT (War on Terrorism) heaven reading about our military's great successes against terrorist.
Now it looks like our congressmen have joined with those who want to undermine our troops effectiveness
by tieing our Commander in Chief and our troops down with political rules in the fight against global terrorists
who operate unburdened by any rules and are shielded by the PC Nazi's who our congressmen are now caving to.
I make it clear I will give no money to any Republican who caves to the demands of anti-American groups who
attempt to burden our soldiers with any limitations in their prosecution of the War on Terror other than what
the Commander in Chief or the Pentagon and the Secretary of Defense deem necessary.
I have full confidence in the Chief, the Pentagon and our soldiers.
I have zero confidence in our politicians who are seeking reelection.
I salute the 9 Republicans with my dollars support who got it right voted for the troops and against the McCain AMDT 1977.
Senator Jeff Sessions was the hero standing up to the self righteous media darling John McCain in support of our troops over our acusers
Please, contact and urge the Republicans on the resolution committee to strip the McCain amendment from the defense bill for our soldiers sake:
http://stevens.senate.gov/contact_form.cfm
http://cochran.senate.gov/contact.htm
http://bond.senate.gov/contact/contactme.cfm
http://burns.senate.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=Home.Contact
http://domenici.senate.gov/contact/contactform.cfm
http://gregg.senate.gov/sitepages/contact.cfm
http://hutchison.senate.gov/e-mail.htm
http://mcconnell.senate.gov/contact_form.cfm
http://specter.senate.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=ContactInfo.Home
Also, please, contact house representatives not to let the McCain amendment stand.
Please, tell our Commander in Chief, George W Bush, we will support his veto of the defense budget if congress fails to strip it from the defense bill.
If Congress wants to play with the defense bill then we should amend any hurricane relief bill until the defense budget is passed.
#3
I am proud to claim Sen. Jeff Sessions. I've met Sen. Sessions and can say that I trust him to represent me. He is a smart and down to earth kind of man. I am fully confident that he will always do his best for our soldiers. He knows the people of AL wouldn't stand for anything less. Of course, he doesn't have to put up with liberal newspapers trying to crucify him in AL. We're not exactly known for our liberalness (is that a word?!) here in AL.:)
ISLAMABAD: Riaz Hussain Prizada, a treasury member, has said in the National Assembly that the devastating October 8 earthquake was âGodâs wrathâ for Pakistanâs support of the US invasion of Afghanistan.
You knew this was coming, didn't you?
God was also angry with Pakistan because âwe welcomed the holy month of Ramazan by rigging the last phase of the local government elections,â Pirzada said on Monday, which the National Assembly devoted entirely to debate on the earthquake.
"That's why the epicenter was in Muzaffarabad, y'know. Because... ummm..."
Pirzada opposed the North Atlantic Treaty Organisationâs (NATO) offer to dispatch 1,000 troops to the earthquake-ravaged areas to help relief work. âWhen the Pakistan Army is capable of dealing with the situation, why should the government agree to the deployment of NATO forces in the earthquake hit areas?â
"We don't need no help from no damned infidels!"
He said there was no guarantee that the NATO forces would return home after relief operations were over.
"They're gonna take over the country and hang us all with our own turbans! I jest know it!"
He said the government should have invited Turkish or Chinese engineers if it needed technical aid to rebuild the destroyed cities.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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God was also angry with Pakistan because âwe welcomed the holy month of Ramazan by rigging the last phase of the local government elections,â
Isn't election rigging one of the five pillars of Islam? How else were the other four put in place? Enquiring minds want to know!
#2
Democrats are muslims? I'd thought that, given 20- or 30 yrs...
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/25/2005 0:19 Comments ||
Top||
#3
Riaz Hussain Prizada, a treasury member, has said in the National Assembly that the devastating October 8 earthquake was âGodâs wrathâ for Pakistanâs support of the US invasion of Afghanistan.
And here I thought is for a whole number of other things. Get a FUCKING CLUE . There is a physical process called PLATE TECTONICS. In which the Indian Plate is still driving under Asia after 30 or so Million years* causing the mountains of the Hindu-Kush to continue to rise. One consequence is earthquakes.
* I may be off on the time frame but not the overall cause
#4
Knowing that they most certainly believe this god's wrath crap just reinforces and reminds us of the mind set of these folks that we're fighting. Sigh
Posted by: Jan ||
10/25/2005 1:12 Comments ||
Top||
#5
Another reminder that different monotheistic people worship different God. Beware of the one you worship. If in fear, that's the phoney one.
#6
And here I thought is for a whole number of other things. Get a FUCKING CLUE . There is a physical process called PLATE TECTONICS. In which the Indian Plate is still driving under Asia after 30 or so Million years* causing the mountains of the Hindu-Kush to continue to rise. One consequence is earthquakes.
Cheaderhead, It's time we had a little chat.
Posted by: Halliburton Epicenter and Upthrust sub Division ||
10/25/2005 4:33 Comments ||
Top||
#7
[religious wingnut]
Now, now. we all know that the REAL reason for the earthquake was that it was "God's Wrath" on the people there sheltering the mass murderer Osama Bin Laden and His judgment on the camps training killers who murder innocents in His name.
[/religous wingnut]
NEW DELHI - The Indian Air Force (IAF) plans to upgrade the majority of its aging combat jets and transport aircraft, a senior IAF officer said on Monday. âWe are planning upgrades of practically every aircraft. We will also upgrade our surface-to-air missiles which are about 30 years old,â Air Marshal Ajit Bhavnani told reporters. He added the upgrade was being done so the IAF doesnât have to procure new aircraft. The upgrade will be completed within five years and will include MiG 29 fighters, deep penetration Jaguar aircraft, Mirage 2000 multi-role fighters, Mi-17 transport helicopters and An-32 medium transport aircraft. No cost details were available. The IAF has already upgraded 125 of their Russian-made MiG-21s which had been reporting frequent crashes until about two years ago, IAF officers said.
Throwing good money after bad with those MiG-21s.
âThe upgradation is being done to check the slipping force levels and till the time the IAF procures 126 new multi-role fighter aircraft, which has already been announced,â an IAF officer said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Heres to hoping pilot and ground crew standards, etal. go with it, becasue iff these don't, all of India's pilots will go with God everytime they take a plane up.
An Interior Ministry report has confirmed that Moroccan security forces shot dead four illegal immigrants trying to storm a fence at a Spanish enclave and gain a foothold into Europe this month, according to the country's official news agency. Six migrants died on 5 and 6 October trying to cross barbed-wire fences into the Spanish enclave of Melilla on Morocco's northern coast, the MAP news agency reported on Monday quoting the Interior Ministry. Of those, four died after being shot in a "spray of gunfire by Moroccan security forces", the report said. The other two are believed to have died after blood loss from wounds, MAP said, without specifying what caused the wounds. The victims' names and nationalities are unknown, as they were not carrying identification.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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[0 views]
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#1
can you imagine the international outcry if we did that?
Egyptian rights groups will be allowed to monitor the parliamentary elections that begin in November, including watching vote counting, the committee overseeing the polls has said. Egyptian groups also monitored the September presidential polls and catalogued a list of irregularities and abuses, such as voter intimidation and ballot stuffing. But rights groups said the abuses were not enough to alter the result. President Hosni Mubarak won a fifth six-year term with 89% of the vote in September.
Analysts say Mubarak's ruling party will face tougher competition in the parliamentary polls and rights groups say this could encourage more abuses such as vote buying. An alliance of opposition groups has called for foreign monitoring. When the United States made a similar call for the presidential election, the government said it saw no need for outside monitoring. The election committee, headed by Justice Minister Mahmoud Aboul Leil, said it would allow "Egyptian national societies and institutions" to apply to monitor the polls, Egypt's official MENA news agency reported on Monday.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2005 00:00 ||
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Link ||
[1 views]
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#2
does Jimmah actually get bribes and cash for his services - or is he really that stupid? Pshaw, on second thought, why do I ask? Everyone knows he works for peanuts.
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.
World leaders will meet to tackle the tough issues facing the Muslim world in a two-day summit beginning in Makkah on Dec. 7.
SEOUL - North Korea will attend the November round of six-party talks on its nuclear program, a North Korean foreign ministry spokesman said. âIt is our consistent and invariable stand to realise the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula through dialogue. We will, therefore, go to the fifth six-party talks at the date to be agreed upon early in November as the six parties had committed themselves to do so,â the unnamed 
Iraqi President 
JAKARTA - Indonesian police are promising almost 100,000 dollars for anyone with information leading to the arrest of two Malaysian bomb experts suspected of masterminding blasts in Bali on October 1, police said on Monday. The one billion rupiah (99,260 dollars) bounty was announced as police planned to distribute 600,000 leaflets with photographs of fugitives Azahari Husin and Noordin Mohammad Top and three suicide bombers from the October 1 attacks on the Indonesian resort island.
(CNSNews.com) - A news conference conducted by self-described Iranian dissidents descended into chaos on Monday as audience members and two journalists accused the speakers of spreading disinformation and being agents of Iranian intelligence. As supporters of the rival dissident groups vied for media attention, one group accused the other of being imposters. An hour and a half into the National Press Club event in Washington, D.C., organizers halted it and Capitol police were called in to keep order.
Ali Sadr-al-Din al-Bayanuni, general guide of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) in Syria, has called on the world "not to punish the Syrian people because of what was committed by the regime." He stressed that "there is a real alternative, as indicated by the Damascus Declaration, which marked the launch of national collective action that includes all opposition parties." He hoped that a preparatory committee would be formed soon to prepare for a conference for the opposition, in all its shades. 
Islamist extremist Omar Bakri, barred from returning to Britain after leaving for Lebanon last summer, indicated he had set up a college to teach Arabic for foreigners in Beirut . The former leader of 
France said on Monday it was too early to seek sanctions against Syria but the UN Security Council must demand Damascus cooperate with a UN inquiry into the killing of former Lebanese prime minister 
ISLAMABAD: Riaz Hussain Prizada, a treasury member, has said in the National Assembly that the devastating October 8 earthquake was âGodâs wrathâ for Pakistanâs support of the US invasion of Afghanistan. 
NEW DELHI - The Indian Air Force (IAF) plans to upgrade the majority of its aging combat jets and transport aircraft, a senior IAF officer said on Monday. âWe are planning upgrades of practically every aircraft. We will also upgrade our surface-to-air missiles which are about 30 years old,â Air Marshal Ajit Bhavnani told reporters. He added the upgrade was being done so the IAF doesnât have to procure new aircraft. The upgrade will be completed within five years and will include MiG 29 fighters, deep penetration Jaguar aircraft, Mirage 2000 multi-role fighters, Mi-17 transport helicopters and An-32 medium transport aircraft. No cost details were available. The IAF has already upgraded 125 of their Russian-made MiG-21s which had been reporting frequent crashes until about two years ago, IAF officers said.
An Interior Ministry report has confirmed that Moroccan security forces shot dead four illegal immigrants trying to storm a fence at a Spanish enclave and gain a foothold into Europe this month, according to the country's official news agency. Six migrants died on 5 and 6 October trying to cross barbed-wire fences into the Spanish enclave of Melilla on Morocco's northern coast, the MAP news agency reported on Monday quoting the Interior Ministry. Of those, four died after being shot in a "spray of gunfire by Moroccan security forces", the report said. The other two are believed to have died after blood loss from wounds, MAP said, without specifying what caused the wounds. The victims' names and nationalities are unknown, as they were not carrying identification.
Egyptian rights groups will be allowed to monitor the parliamentary elections that begin in November, including watching vote counting, the committee overseeing the polls has said. Egyptian groups also monitored the September presidential polls and catalogued a list of irregularities and abuses, such as voter intimidation and ballot stuffing. But rights groups said the abuses were not enough to alter the result. President Hosni Mubarak won a fifth six-year term with 89% of the vote in September.
