Asparagirl worries about Bush's perceived wobble with regard to the Israelis. Short entry, with 17 comments, most of them good, as of the time I added mine, which is below. Her permalinks don't work, so just scroll down... Bush is being as pragmatically supportive as he can be. The US supports the Israelis for what are basically idealistic reasons: we tend to favor David over Goliath and we recognize a kindred libertarian (small L) society in a sea of dictatorships, with an entrepreneurial economic system as opposed to a system that would be stagnant if not artificially fuelled by oil money.
The Euros take a more pragmatic view, perhaps influenced by an antisemitism that goes back to the good old days of burning Moriscos. They count the noses, come out with more Arabs to buy Siemens instead of Black and Decker, and put their money on the bigger market. The balance of influence shifts and the US finds itself isolated with the Israelis.
All Bush can realistically do is run interference and try and give the IDF time to get the important part of the job done. Since Yasser is somehow untouchable, that mean they have to take out all his support network. The more time Bush can win for them, the better, but both Bush and Sharon know that the time they're going to be allowed is finite. I would guess that Bush discussed that speech with Sharon before he gave it and that a couple smart fellows two rungs down in both governments discussed in detail exactly how much time was still available.
Jeff Goldstein at Protein Wisdom gives the Bush speech a proper analysis.
"Bush discussed that speech with Sharon before he gave it and that a couple smart fellows two rungs down in both governments discussed in detail exactly how much time was still available." Seems both cynical and obvious, asking the Palestinians to "form a committee" to delay peace processes until Israeli military action is concluded. "You can fool some of the people come of the time, etc." I suppose eventually we'll be called on to ask US troops to "expel Palestinians," and denounced as bigots if we don't want to. Posted by Anonymous 4/5/2002 11:33:24 PM
I don't see how Israel is a "libertarian (small L)" society. It is a socialist state, a la the model of so many European countries, is it not? That does not seem libertarian to me, as I understand the concept. I do think that many of us support Israel because it is democratic and free, and it does seem to be moving away from the socialist model, largely because it is becoming more and more entrepreneurial and inventive.
(By the way, why no domain name for your server, just a decimal IP address? I'm only curious.) Posted by Craig Schamp [www.craigschamp.org/] 4/6/2002 7:02:41 PM
Compared to its Arab neighbors, Israel is "libertarian" - you answered your own question when you noted that it's moving away from the socialist model. As I noted yesterday, if Israel ever does see peace it will probably be bad for them in that very area. Posted by Fred 4/7/2002 10:16:56 PM
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
Dr Frank worries about much the same thing as Asparagirl, but then relieves the tension by introducing us to Georgina Reeves, who "helped coordinate the volunteers":
"I'm keeping away from the windows because a tank's going past and there are snipers all round here," she said.
"We're surviving on crisps, Diet Coke and a lot of fruit-and-nut chocolate.
"It's too dangerous to go out anywhere but there's no point anyway because all the shops are closed." This is critical information. I did not know that Hershey's made a special chocolate bar just for fruits and nuts, did you?
Not to worry- Capt. Paul Watson made it across the Pacific once feeding his crew a Rice Krispies diet. Motto: "Sailing into harm's way" Posted by Dona Quijote [www.seashepherd.org] 4/5/2002 10:20:53 PM
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
Damian informs us that "Now Canadian synagogues are being vandalized. Three such institutions have had anti-Israel slogans spray-painted on them... but how much longer before we see the stuff that's been happening in France?" Guess it sure is a good thing they weren't mosques. Somebody would have gotten offended about it. Probably would have had riots and everything, maybe even a couple people exploding.
Uh, this sounds like a minefield to me, let's not tempt fate here. There are way too many people in this world who are wrapped way too tight, and some of them aren't even postal workers. "A mosque in Denton, Texas, was firebombed, and another in Lynnwood, Wash. had its sign defaced with black paint." ABC News, Sept. 14
"A police raid on a bar. A fire hydrant turned off. In the mid-1960s, that's all it took to start a race war. And it was not uncommon, from 1965 to 1968, to see blacks battling white police in the streets of northern cities. When the last shot was fired, hundreds were dead and thousands wounded." teacher.scholastic.com commentary Posted by Southern Poverty Law Center Fan 4/5/2002 11:53:05 PM
And we've been diligent in chasing down the goofs who do it. From whateverquarter. Posted by Fred 4/6/2002 1:19:42 AM
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[1 views]
Top|| File under:
An Algerian man and his roommates, arrested last year in the terrorism investigation, were attempting to wage "economic jihad" against the government and American businesses, especially Jewish-owned ones, a federal agent testified Friday. Sounds pretty awful. Care to elaborate?
U.S. State Department agent Edward Seitz gave no details of the allegation against Farouk Ali-Haimoud, 21, Karim Koubriti, 23, and Ahmed Hannan, 33. Koubriti, Hannan and another man, Youssef Hmimssa, 30, were indicted Sept. 27 on charges of fraud and misuse of visas. Ali-Haimoud was indicted earlier this week on charges of fraud, misuse of visas, and conspiracy to engage in fraud and misuse of visas, permits and other documents. Wow. They sound like pretty desperate criminals.
Ali-Haimoud was arrested Tuesday at an Edy's ice cream shop at Detroit Metropolitan Airport where he worked, said his lawyer, Kevin Ernst. Ummm... You got jihadis workin' at an Edy's icecream shop? I'll take my business to Baskin-Robbins, thank you.
"I think it's far-fetched that a kid who worked at Edy's could wage an economic jihad on American businesses," Ernst said. You're prob'ly right. On the other hand, he could try to, couldn't he?
A federal magistrate ordered Ali-Haimoud detained Friday. Guess the judge thought so, too.
Federal prosecutor Richard Convertino said Friday that, based on information gleaned from witnesses and informants that the government has interviewed, Ali-Haimoud could be linked to terrorist activity. The roommates had "association with a known group outside the country that has been identified as a terrorist group by the U.S.," he said. Y'mean, like Hamas or Islamic Jihad?
Convertino alleged Ali-Haimoud, Koubriti and Hannan were:
Involved in an attempt to obtain weapons to be used in the United States and transferred outside the country.
Desired to bring economic harm to American businesses.
Desired to obtain false documents to bring people into the country
Tried to get a mail drop under a fictitious name to pursue terrorist activity. Y'know, this ain't soundin' all that Big Time...
Koubriti, Hannan and Ali-Haimoud were arrested after a Sept. 17 raid at a Detroit apartment. That raid yielded more than 100 audiotapes in Arabic and a day planner with notations in Arabic that investigators believe were plans for attacks on the Alia airport in Jordan and a plot to kill former Defense Secretary William Cohen during a visit to Turkey. Did it also contain their fantasies of naked parties with Britney Spears and her new breasts? And they were gonna knock over some banks and use the money to establish world domination?
"Allah, take away the Jews and the Christians, and whoever helped them and stood with them," said one tape, according to a government translation read in court Friday. And God save us all from boomer wannabes who aren't ever gonna amount to anything unless they manage to blow up.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
One person was killed and seven others were injured in bomb blasts and brickbatting in front of three mosques during Friday prayers triggering tension at Chandernagore in West Bengal's Hooghly district on today. IGP (Law and Order) Chayan Mukherjee said the bombs went off while prayers were being offered in the mosques. Policemen arrived on the scene and chased away the miscreants who hurled brickbats and bombs while retreating, the IGP said. Official sources said one of the miscreants, who was critically injured when a bomb he was carrying in his trouser pocket went off, died at Chinsurah hospital. Seven others suffered minor injuries. The Rapid Action Force and the Eastern Frontier Rifles were deployed in Chandanagore police station area as tension ran high. A report from Hooghly district said 30 people were arrested. "Is that a bomb in your pocket or are you happy to see me?"
It sounds like these were maybe cherry bombs - the neighborhood low IQs, like, goofin' the turbans, y'know? Stupid, but not fatal unless you have a pocketful and they go off at once and blow your pee-pee or one of your butt cheeks off...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
The trial of Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh and three alleged accomplices for the murder of US reporter Daniel Pearl was adjourned on Friday shortly after starting, a lawyer said. Defence lawyer Khawaja Naveed said the trial, in the main jail in the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi, had been delayed for a week after the defence asked to see key evidence.
The court also issued a formal arrest warrant against seven other alleged accomplices who police say remain on the run. "The formal indictment will be on April 12 and the court has been adjourned until then," Naveed told reporters, who have been barred from attending the hearing.
Naveed said one of the accused, Salman Saquib, had complained to the judge that he had been tortured during police custody and was assigned a doctor. "Sheikh Omar was silent during the whole proceedings, he was very calm and very quiet," Naveed said. "But Salman Saquib shouted that he was tortured during the investigation, saying police slapped him at least 50 times and hit him in the face with shoes." The rubber hoses were at the cleaners'.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
The Palestinian bell ringer who worked at the church over the traditional site of Jesus' birth was shot and killed Thursday, the latest victim in a Palestinian-Israeli standoff. Samir Ibrahim Salman, a 45-year-old Christian and dedicated worker who kept mainly to himself, died while walking to his job. At dawn Thursday, Salman, who also cleaned the building, set out for work as he had virtually every day of his adult life. He had hoped to keep ringing the bells, even as the church became the center of the siege. It was not clear who fired the shots. Salman was hit in the chest. He slumped into a street just a few steps from the church door. He died there. Inside the church, 240 armed Palestinians have been holed up since Tuesday, with Israeli troops closing in and calling on the gunmen to surrender and come out. No one has done so.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[1 views]
Top|| File under:
Three unarmed U.N. observers and two armed peacekeepers were injured in scuffles with Hezbollah forces in southern Lebanon Thursday, the U.N. peacekeeping force commander said. The scuffle with Hezbollah forces broke out after an unarmed U.N. observer patrol reached the village of Mari, near the disputed Shebaa Farms area. The observers - from Ireland, Norway and France - were confronted by Hezbollah gunmen who would not let them pass, a U.N. observer force officer said on condition of anonymity. An argument broke out, resulting in the gunmen beating up the observers. A separate U.N. peacekeeping patrol - manned by armed Indian officers - was nearby at the time and intervened in the scuffle. This sparked a fist fight in which two Indians were hurt. Two U.N. vehicles were also damaged. No doubt there will be a strongly worded note of protest. They keep saying they need outside forces to stand between the Israelis and the Palestinians. That'll sure do a load of good, won't it?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
U.S. Middle East envoy Anthony Zinni persuaded Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat Friday to form a committee of senior aides who will work with him on a way out of the current crisis in the Middle East, Palestinian sources said. The agreement to form the committee came as Zinni met for about an hour with Arafat at the headquarters where he has been hold up since an Israeli military operation began a week ago.
According to a high-ranking Palestinian official, Arafat said to Zinni that he appreciates the American initiative in the region and contended that Israeli is not committed to it because it is continuing its offensive and occupation and not pursuing an immediate withdrawal from the region. The source said Zinni has asked for a Palestinian committee to meet with him. The committee will include chief negotiator Saeb Erakat, chief head of preventative security in Gaza Mohammad Dahlan, and head of intelligence Amin Al-Hindi. "Form a committee?"
"Form a COMMITTEE?"
Oh, Gawd. Hand me a tissue, please.
Either Zinni's lost his mind or somebody in the administration has a senzayuma. A committee - a creature with 12 stomachs and no brain - can be made to continue yapping for weeks over the shape of the table. If they're doing this right, the committee's charge should be to discuss means of preparing to get ready to discuss ways of implementing... zzzzz. Meanwhile, the IDF continues arresting everybody in sight with a gun or a fuse.
Even if Yasser's gang catches on, note that Powell won't be arriving until next week...
100 hours of Powerpoint presentations later, and they start blowing themselves up whether or not they can take any Jews with them.
Achmed, do you have any good clip-art to represent 72 Virgins? Posted by Hermetic 4/5/2002 2:54:56 PM
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
In Friday's fighting, Israeli forces battled gunmen and searched homes in the West Bank's largest city, Nablus, and the Jenin refugee camp. A standoff at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem entered its fourth day, and protesters in the biblical city planned an anti-American demonstration later in the afternoon. Three Palestinian gunmen were killed in the old city of Nablus, as Israeli helicopter gunships fired at armed Palestinians. Doctors opened a makeshift hospital in a mosque because ambulances could not enter, they said. Israeli soldiers were unable to enter the old city or the nearby Balata and Askar refugee camps because of heavy Palestinian resistance, witnesses said. The Israeli military said soldiers did not try to enter the three places. Four Israeli soldiers were killed Thursday, three in intense fighting at the Jenin camp, a stronghold of militant militias, and another in Hebron during what Israeli military sources called a small, pinpoint operation that continued early Friday. Hebron and Jericho were the only main West Bank towns still under Palestinian control.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
An Israeli helicopter strike Friday killed the man Israeli authorities blamed for the Passover attack in Netanya that killed 26, military officials said. Qais Edwan was among six members of the military wing of the Palestinian group Hamas who died in the attack, which occurred near the West Bank town of Tubas, between Nablus and Jenin. The Israel Defense Forces identified Edwan as the leader in the West Bank of the Izzedine al Qassam Brigades -- the military wing of Hamas, which has been labeled a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department. Warm where you are now, ain't it, Qais?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
Uzbekistan's president accused Pakistan Thursday of sheltering ethnic Uzbek members of al-Qaida who fled Afghanistan last month after battling U.S. troops. "The Pakistani authorities have done nothing to detain bandits from Uzbekistan who were trained in Afghanistan and took part in the al-Qaida terrorist network," Uzbek President Islam Karimov said. About 2,000 Uzbek Islamic militants were believed to be in Afghanistan at one point last year, but Karimov specifically mentioned 34-year-old Tahir Yuldash, the political leader of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. Yuldash has been wanted in Uzbekistan since December 1991. Karimov said Yuldash fled Afghanistan's Paktia province after U.S. troops launched the Operation Anaconda offensive against al-Qaida in early March. "Now he only can be in Pakistan," Karimov said. "Uzbekistan has an extradition agreement with Pakistan, but we haven't seen its practical implementation." There was no comment from Pakistan, but police there arrested another 21 people during raids against al-Qaida hide-outs in northern areas, officials said Thursday. An eight-day operation has netted more than 100 suspected al-Qaida members, among them a top deputy of Osama bin Laden.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
A Singaporean man who belongs to an Islamic militant group linked to al-Qaida is suspected of planning to hijack a plane and crash it into the city-state's international airport, Singapore's prime minister said Friday. The suspect belongs to Jemaah Islamiyah, a group implicated in an alleged plot to blow up the U.S. Embassy and other Western targets in Singapore, Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong told Parliament. Goh identified the suspect as Mas Selemat Kastari. He is believed to have fled to Thailand in January.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
According to police, four persons including two women were killed by soldiers in retaliatory action after an army picket was attacked in Varmul district. "During the preceding night terrorists fired towards the army picket at Babapora in Bandipora. In the retaliatory action four civilians including two ladies got killed," said a police spokesman. The spokesman identified the deceased as Muhammad Shafi, his wife Maryam, sister Jabina and their guest Manzoor Ahmed.
However, later in the evening the zonal police headquarters issued another statement which contradicted its earlier version. "A group of 3 to 4 terrorists entered into the house of a surrendered militant Muhammad Shafi alias Gooru having previous affiliation with TJI. They entered into the house through windows and lobbed a grenade besides damaging household goods and then sprayed bullets resulting in killing of four incumbents of the house namely Muhammad Shafi, his wife Maryam, sister Jabina and a guest Manzoor Ahmed Sheikh s/o Ghulam Muhammad of Sumler." Police said Shafi had joined the counter-insurgent Ikhwan group after surrendering and was instrumental in several successful operations against militants in the area.
But in the evening, a Kilo Force spokesman said militants were responsible for the killing and denied that Shafi had ever joined the pro-government Ikhwan. "He had only surrendered before the army," the spokesman told Greater Kashmir. From all that, we can probably conclude that they're dead. Maybe. And that it might have been them.
In an encounter with troops at Lolab, Kupwara today, a militant whose identity was not available died.
Police recovered body of an alleged informer Abdul Rashid ("Jimmy the Weasel")Ganai of Ichkote, Budgam today.
A jawan was killed when militants opened fire on a security patrol in Doonimar forest in Islamabad district early today.
Police said two Lashker-e-Toiba militants, Umer Bhai and Fahad Bhai, both residents of Pakistan, were killed in an encounter with army during search operations at Mohanpora in Islamabad late last night. A jawan and a counter-insurgent were also injured in the encounter, police said. Two AK rifles, three magazines and five grenades were claimed recovered from the encounter site.
BSF claimed arrest of a top Hizbul militant, Bashir Ahmad Mir, from Sopur bus stand last evening. "The operation was carried out following information that militants were planning to kill members of a road opening party or any prominent citizen of Sopur," a BSF spokesman said adding "Mirâs interrogation led to the busting of two hideouts around Sopur town resulting in recovery of 35 hand grenades, 12 Kgs of RDX, five remote receivers for planting of IEDs, 33 nine-volt batteries and 18 detonators."
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
04/05/2002 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
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.
