#2
A man that calls himself Muslim would not blow up innocent people in the middle of Ramadan, an enemy of all of us, an enemy of Afghanistan, an enemy of humanity, something that we condemn in strongest possible terms," he said.
I hope I'm not being unfair to Mr. Karzai, but the first thing I though of when I heard him say this on the radio news was, "There are probably a lot of muslims who would be more concerned about killing innocent people during Ramadan than there are muslims who are concerned about killing innocent people, period."
The Taliban has published a shadow Afghan constitution outlining an alternative hardline government to that of President Hamid Karzai. The 23-page document envisages a country where women would remain veiled and uneducated, "un-Islamic thought" would be banned and human rights would be ignored if "contrary with the teachings of Islam".
The Constitution of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, comes days after the Defence Secretary, Des Browne, said that the Taliban will need to take a role in the peace process in Afghanistan.
On freedom of speech the Taliban charter, which is written in Pashto and Dari, is clear: "Every Afghan has the right to express his feelings through his views, writings or through other means in accordance with the law." However "un-Islamic thought" is strictly forbidden and "violators will be punished according to sharia" - under the Taliban's strict interpretation of Islamic teachings.
It provides for the education of women but only within the limits of sharia and stresses that the government will enforce compliance with Sharai Hejab - that women cover fully cover themselves.
The document also stresses the importance of jihad as an obligation for every citizen. It offers the Taliban's support for the United Nations and upholds human rights - "until it is contrary with the teachings of Islam".
"The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan wishes good working relations with all the neighbouring countries and specially those who have supported the Afghan nation during jihad," it adds. The greatest power is vested in an Emir-ul-Momineen, or leader of the faithful. Like its official Afghan counterpart, the constitution states that no law can "be contrary to Islamic sharia".
The constitution was approved by the Taliban's central shura religious council, headed by Mullah Omer, in 2005 but it has not been made public until now. "The publication of the constitution is only to make sure every citizen of Afghanistan gets it in black and white," said Fath-ul-Kabir, a Taliban commander from Ghazni in Afghanistan.
"This is first time the Taliban has clearly set out its aims," said Ahmed Rashid, the author of The Taliban. "Previously their only source of guidance was the Koran."
Mr Karzai's calls for peace talks earlier this month were rejected by the Taliban, who called for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan and the restoration of Islamic law.
Mr Browne said on Monday that: "In Afghanistan, at some stage, the Taliban will need to be involved in the peace process because they are not going away any more than I suspect Hamas are going away from Palestine."
But one of the 110 articles of the Taliban's constitution, which is bound as a 10 chapter booklet adorned with the Taliban insignia, stipulates that all other constitutions are void. President Karzai and the United Nations have stipulated that a key condition for peace talks is that the Taliban must accept the constitution that was signed by Mr Karzai in 2004.
Washington rejects peace talks with the Taliban, maintaining that America will not negotiate with terrorists.
#1
it's useful when the small-brained rustics actually put their positions to paper, so you can remember exactly why they were so despicable when they were in charge. This oughtta remind those who wish to reintegrate the Taliban back into Afghan society why it was such a f*ckup in the first place.
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/29/2007 7:30 Comments ||
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#2
We the Turbans, in order to form a more perfect Caliphate, establish Jihad and restore the domestic Submission, provide for the common Resistance, and promote the five Pillars of Islam, do ordain and establish this Constitution of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
#5
This document should be used in comparison whenever the argument is made that America should help Karzai's governemnt because there constistitution establishes an Islamic state. There are Islamic states and there are Islamic states.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
09/29/2007 13:01 Comments ||
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#6
"un-Islamic thought" would be banned
The word "delusional" springs to mind.
It offers the Taliban's support for the United Nations and upholds human rights - "until it is contrary with the teachings of Islam".
Which is essentially from the get-go.
Mr Browne said on Monday that: "In Afghanistan, at some stage, the Taliban will need to be involved in the peace process because they are not going away any more than I suspect Hamas are going away from Palestine."
I suspect that—in the name of job security—Mr. Browne does not want Hamas or the Taliban to go away. This, despite the fact that peace will only come once every last participant in Hamas and Taliban is stone cold dead. Browne seeks to legitimize their existance rather than summon up the courage to demand their eradication. Such moral flaccidity amounts to nothing more than tacit acceptance of jihad, genocide and anti-Semitism.
But one of the 110 articles of the Taliban's constitution, which is bound as a 10 chapter booklet adorned with the Taliban insignia, stipulates that all other constitutions are void. President Karzai and the United Nations have stipulated that a key condition for peace talks is that the Taliban must accept the constitution that was signed by Mr Karzai in 2004.
Thus obviating any need or use for "peace talks". What's more, there can be no such thing as "peace talks" with jihadists as the concept simply does not apply. Pandering to these barbaric psychos only increases their prestige and credibility within Afghan society thereby prolonging the misery that will continue until every last one of these savages are hunted down and killed.
Karzai is very much like Musharraf in how he, too, is running with the foxes and hunting with the hounds. The fact that Afghanistan once again possesses a constitution perverted by shari'a law represents a fundamental failure in our application of military force against the Islamic world. It is by dint of this exact mistake that the Taliban retain even a shred of respectability. Treating with these killers as any sort of honorable combatants is a recipe for disaster. As a Muslim, Karzai knows this better than anyone and by doing so becomes a traitor to his people and the enemy of all civilized nations.
Tensions are rising in northern Somalia following clashes between forces of rival regional administrations, officials said Friday, and diplomats called on all sides to show restraint. Somalia's weak federal government based in Mogadishu, in the south, has been hard-pressed to assert control in the south and was unlikely to have any influence in the confrontation between the autonomous Puntland region and the breakaway republic of Somaliland.
Hassan Dahir Mohamud, Puntland's vice president, told The Associated Press that one soldier was killed and three others wounded. Somaliland officials had earlier in the week claimed on local radio stations that their troops killed three Puntland soldiers during a gunbattle at a village in a region called Sool.
"There is no Dana. Only Sool!"
Both Somaliland, which broke away from Somalia in 1991 but has not been internationally recognized, and Puntland, an autonomous region in northeastern Somalia, claim Sool. They have clashed over the region at least four times in the past.
"Are you the Gatekeeper?"
"Are you the Keymaster?"
``We urge the leadership of both Puntland and Somaliland to exercise maximum restraint and to give their full support to peaceful approaches for resolution,'' said a group of ineffectual donors to Somalia, the Committee of the Coordination of International Support to Somalia.
Give the Somalis a chance at just a touch of stability and prosperity, and they throw it away.
``There is a growing buildup of arms and troops inside the region, with deliveries coming by land on a daily basis,'' said Haji Mohamed Jama, a resident of Las Anod, the capital of Sool. "And I looked, and he opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake. And the sun became as black as sack cloth, and the moon became as blood."
Mohamud said his administration dispatched more troops to the contested region to stop forces from Somaliland crossing into Puntland. Mohamud said that Puntland had also arrested seven men carrying explosives in vehicles with Somaliland registration plates in Buhodle, a town bordering Puntland and Ethiopia. ``We handed the men to Ethiopian security forces for further investigation,'' said Mohamud.
This article starring:
Committee of the Coordination of International Support to Somalia
Haji Mohamed Jama, a resident of Las Anod, the capital of Sool
Hassan Dahir Mohamud, Puntland's vice president
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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(AKI) - A Senegalese prayer leader expelled from Italy in 2003 for "disturbance to public order and endangering state security" has launched a scathing attack against an Adnkronos International (AKI) journalist as well journalists from two leading Italian dailies.
On his new website, the imam Qader Fadlalla Mamour , using the alias Abu Sayyaf ('Sword of God'), harshly criticises reporting by AKI's Hamza Boccolini, La Repubblica's Vittorio Zucconi and Corriere della Sera's Guido Olimpico on the last videos released earlier this month by al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
Mamour's criticisms appear alongside the first full text translated into Italian of the two new messages released by al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden this month. The first, a video issued on 7 September urges Americans to convert to Islam to stop the war in Iraq. The second, an audiotape released on 20 September, calls on Pakistan to overthrow its president Gen. Pervez Musharraf.
Mamour, who currently lives in Senegal, especially attacks an analysis written by Boccolini on 8 September that focuses on doubts expressed by some Jihadist forums over the authenticity of bin-Laden's 8 Sept. video. Mamour's commentary on his new website also contains a warning to Italy of a document entitled 'It's Italy's turn' threatening future terror attacks against the country.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
he seems bitter
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/29/2007 19:30 Comments ||
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The proposed UK academic boycott of Israel was rejected Friday when the University and College Union (UCU) announced that, after seeking legal advice, a boycott would be unlawful and could not be implemented. "The legal advice makes it clear that making a call to boycott Israeli institutions would run a serious risk of infringing discrimination legislation," the UCU said in a statement. "While UCU is at liberty to debate the pros and cons of Israeli policies, it cannot spend members' resources on seeking to test opinion on something which is in itself unlawful and cannot be implemented."
The union had passed a motion at its congress in May calling for a consideration of the boycott proposal.
The legal advice stated: "It would be beyond the union's powers and unlawful for the union, directly or indirectly, to call for, or to implement, a boycott by the union and its members of any kind of Israeli universities and other academic institutions; and that the use of union funds directly or indirectly to further such a boycott would also be unlawful." The advice also said that "to ensure that the union acts lawfully, meetings should not be used to ascertain the level of support for such a boycott."
UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: "Since congress our first priority has always been to keep the union, and its members, safe during what has been a very difficult time. I hope this decision will allow all to move forwards and focus on what is our primary objective, the representation of our members. "I believe if we do this we may also, where possible, play a positive role in supporting Palestinian and Israeli educators and in promoting a just peace in the Middle East." ...since paying a negative role would send us to gaol.
#3
They're clearly incapable of judging right from wrong, Alan. Noticing that such behaviour is illegal, and therefore unwise to indulge in, is the best they'll ever be able to do.
The United States on Friday agreed to provide up to $25 million to pay for 50,000 tons of heavy fuel oil for North Korea, part of an agreement the communist regime made with the U.S. and other nations pushing it to dismantle its nuclear program. Under a February agreement, the United States and four other nations agreed to provide North Korea with 1 million tons of heavy fuel oil, or the monetary equivalent in other aid and assistance.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
I suppose Syrian BDA is complete, and you get what you pay for.
(AKI) - Although still a small group, Wahabis, followers of a fundamentalist school of Islam, are increasingly seen by officials and observers as a growing threat to the Balkans. Tensions between Wahabis and mainstream Muslims have been simmering for the past 18 months as Wahabis seek to gain influence in Bosnia-Heregovina and also in Serbia, Montenegro and Kosovo. In the past months, seven suspected militants were arrested in southern Serbia and a radical Islamist training camp and weapons cache uncovered. Evidence, the Serbian interior ministry says, that Wahabis are trying to recruit potential terrorists and plot attacks.
In April, at the request of the Serbian authorities, police in breakaway Kosovo province issued an arrest warrant for Ismail Pretic, who they claim is a Wahabi militant who may have fled to the United Nations administered province. Road-blocks have been erected in northern Kosovo to help apprehend Pretic, who should be considered "armed and dangerous," according to police.
Serbian security officials say militants at the Wahabi training camp in Serbia's southern Sandjak region - were planning an attack on local Muslims. On 17 March police discovered there an underground arsenal of weapons, including rocket-propelled grenades, 10 kilogrammes of plastic explosives and automatic assault rifles. Police said they arrested four suspected Islamist militants during the raid a further two on 19 March.
Up to 30 Wahabis had been gathering and undergoing training in the camp at Ninaja Mountain, about 30 km north of the town of Novi Pazar police said. The six men arrested all come from Novi Pazar, capital of Sandjak - a Serbian region populated predominately by Muslims. “Wahabis did not act this openly before. When these men were arrested, it was clear they had received some financial support since they were all poor yet loaded with weapons. Their main target was and still is the Islamic community in Sandzak," Mufti Muamer Zukorlic, leader of Islamic community in Sandzak told Adnkronos International (AKI).
There was a connection between Bosnian and Sandzak Wahabis, Zukorlic points out. “We had individuals from Bosnia-Hezegovina coming to hold lectures and they were considered to be leaders among local Wahabis," Zukorlic said. "But, gradually Bosnian Wahabis stopped their contacts with locals. Here, we have about 150 sect members and they are not all the same," Zukorlic added. Visibly identifiable by their ankle length trousers and beards, Wahabis have campaigned to do away with with what they see as heresy, attempts that have erupted into violence several times.
Asked if the Islamic community can solve the problem of Wahabi radicalism, Zukorlic replied: "They no longer pray in mosques."
The fundamentalist Wahhabi movement which preaches a 'pure Islam' originated in Saudi Arabia in the early 18th century and preaches religious intolerance towards other religious groups, including moderate Muslims. Several clashes have been reported lately in Bosnia and in Sandzak between Wahabis and moderate Muslims, including in a shootout in Novi Pazar last November in which several people were injured.
The Wahabi movement first emerged in the Balkans during the 1992-1995 civil war in Bosnia, when thousands of mujahadeen fighters from Islamic countries came to fight on the side of local Muslims. Many have remained in the country since the war, and according to foreign intelligence sources have been indoctrinating local youths and even operating terrorist training camps.
Because of the Wahabi military support in the 1990s, the Bosnian government has been reluctant to crack down on Wahabi religious and military training efforts, analysts say. The Wahabis, who believe they are carrying out God's will, refuse to crack down on the alleged terrorists in their midst, stoking tensions between the Wahabis and the government. “The Wahabi sect is a national security question for Bosnia, because Islamic analysts consider them as militant and therefore dangerous, " the chairman of Bosnia's three-man rotating state presidency, Negojsa Radmanovic, told AKI. "If Wahabis prove to be a security risk, the authorities will have to take action to ensure the public's safety and regulate Islam," he said.
Only the funeral of former Bosnian Muslim leader and wartime Bosnian president, Alija Izetbegovic went down with a bigger crowd and more security than that of the unofficial leader of the Wahabi sect in Bosnia, Jusuf Barcic, in Tuzla following his death in a car crash in April. Barcic's funeral threatened to become a serious incident as more than 3,000 Wahabis from Bosnia, Slovenia, Austria, Germany and Sandjak gathered at the event, refusing journalists access to the mosque. More than 50 uniformed and undercover police reportedly monitored the funeral. Police were reported to have taken no action when Palestinian Karray Kanel Bin Ali, the alleged 'mastermind' of the Wahabi sect in Bosnia, threatened to smash cameras and ordered a journalists to be removed from the spot.
Although Barcic had not been on good terms with the Muslim community in Bosnia for the past eight years, after his return from Saudi Arabia, the community granted his father permission to bury him with religious honours. Barcic, a self-proclaimed sheikh became known to the Bosnian public two months ago after he and his followers attempted to enter the central Czar mosque in Sarajevo to preach "a return to traditional Islam. He and his followers had earlier occupied several mosques in the Tuzla region, clashing with local Muslims.
In Maoca, near the Bosnian town of Brcko, Wahabis have even their own elementary school. "The ministry neglected these premises. We renovated them using our money and now we are educating our children," said a teacher at the school, Nusret Imamovic. Some 20 pupils there are following Jordan's rather than the Bosnian school programme, Imamovic said.
Security officials and terrorism experts believe that Wahabis in the Balkans are receiving covert financing from Saudi 'charities'. Five of the '9/11' attackers had served as Wahabi sponsored fighters in Bosnia, according to intelligence sources. Dozens of other militants arrested in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq and Chechnya, who proved to be members of various militant groups had been awarded Bosnian citizenship.
Although the Saudis have reportedly poured money into building mosques and supporting Wahabi missionaries, only about three percent of the Bosnian population adopted this more conservative form of Islam. Commentators such as Zukorlic claim Wahabis remain a small group with no significant influence in the region. Wahabis claim they are merely religious activists.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Wahabi missionaries? I can't see them actually speaking to non-Muslims long enough to convert them. the thought of another Saudi is terrifying.
Posted by: NOLA ||
09/29/2007 1:35 Comments ||
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#2
Thanks Bill Clinton for turning Europe into a jihad base. How could Hillary top that?
#3
<< Up to 30 Wahabis had been gathering and undergoing training in the camp at Ninaja Mountain, about 30 km north of the town of Novi Pazar >>
If Hillary is elected we can expect the size of this camp to double to about 60 Wahabis, seriously endangering Europe's strategic defenses at Novi Pazar.
Posted by: Mike Sylwester ||
09/29/2007 17:01 Comments ||
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A federal judge refused Friday to dismiss a defamation case against Rep. John P. Murtha and ordered the Pennsylvania Democrat to give a sworn deposition about his comments alleging "cold-blooded murder and war crimes" by unnamed soldiers in connection with Iraqi civilian deaths in Haditha in 2005.
A Marine Corps sergeant is suing the 18-term congressman for making the charge, which the soldier claims is false.
The Justice Department wanted the case dismissed because Murtha was acting in his official role as a lawmaker. Assistant U.S. Attorney John F. Henault said the comments were made as part of the debate over the war in Iraq. U.S. District Judge Rosemary M. Collyer said the congressman might be right, but said she won't know for sure unless Murtha explains himself. She did not set a date for Murtha's testimony but said she would also require him to turn over documents related to his comments.
Collyer, who was appointed to the bench by President Bush, said the case wasn't about whether to recall troops from Iraq and she didn't "particularly care" about Murtha's views on the war. She said the law cares only about what Murtha intended when he made the comments.
#1
"Would the dirtbag defendant please approach the bench"
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/29/2007 8:42 Comments ||
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#2
I guess he didn't remember the "innocent until proven guilty". Or it didn't fit in his political agenda. Either way, he needs his ass sued off at the very least.
#7
"Assistant U.S. Attorney John F. Henault said the comments were made as part of the debate over the war in Iraq."
Oh, bullshit. The comments weren't made as part of any "debate", they were made in the process of giving aid and comfort to the enemy in a time of war-- i.e., committing treason. And in a serious society, this asshole Murtha would be indicted, arraigned, tried, convicted, sentenced and punished accordingly.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
09/29/2007 13:17 Comments ||
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#8
Bill Clinton has a second legacy. Now, whenever a federal court hearing is held, you have to mention who appointed the judge.
What is never said, though, is because Clinton appointed such a raft of corrupt agitators to be judges, that any decision they might make as a group has to be reevaluated for its leftist political ramifications. Even if he accidentally picked one who is relatively honest, he is still forever stained by association.
The Justice Department wanted the case dismissed because Murtha was acting in his official role as a lawmaker. Assistant U.S. Attorney John F. Henault said the comments were made as part of the debate over the war in Iraq.
I was pretty sure the infamous words were uttered on Tim Russert's show, but I just read it was at a news conference. If it were truly debate on the House floor, well, that would be shielded by the Debate clause.
I think the judge's ruling is good here. And it looks like DoJ has a plenty of careerists that would try to give a leftist cover.
#12
I was pretty sure the infamous words were uttered on Tim Russert's show, but I just read it was at a news conference. If it were truly debate on the House floor, well, that would be shielded by the Debate clause.
End of story. Murtha doesn't even have the legal fig leaf of falling back on the Debate clause. I hope the soldiers clean his clock in court.
#13
The Justice Department wanted the case dismissed because Murtha was acting in his official role as a lawmaker. Assistant U.S. Attorney John F. Henault said the comments were made as part of the debate over the war in Iraq.
All the more reason why G-Dub should have appointed Giuliani as his 2nd term Attorney General instead of that f***wit Texas hack crony Gonzales. Rudy would have spent his first day storming through the Justice Department's hallways with a bullwhip and a charged firehose.
Posted by: Ricky bin Ricardo (Abu Babaloo) ||
09/29/2007 18:09 Comments ||
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#14
You know what's really great about this ?
All of Murtha's peers, every last Congressman and Senator will be laughing their asses off at the big fool. They prolly have a saying about committing Murthaside or some such. From now on, Murtha walks down the halls of the mighty capitol totally unable to cover his scent, skunk.
John McCain argued Thursday that the United States would be safer with him as president than if his leading Republican rivals were commander in chief as he seized on newfound opportunities to revive his weakened candidacy.
Once left for dead politically, McCain is sharply drawing distinctions between himself and his top GOP opponents as he seeks to capitalize on polls showing an extremely fluid race and a campaign flush enough to run ads in early voting New Hampshire. ``We don't have time or opportunity for on-the-job training, and the other candidates for president I don't believe have the qualifications that I do to hit the ground running and immediately address these serious challenges,'' the four-term Arizona senator and Vietnam veteran told reporters following a speech on the military. ``The country would be safer with me as its leader,'' McCain added. He said that while he respects his opponents, ``this is all about who is best equipped to take on the challenge of radical Islamic extremism.''
McCain, his party's presumptive front-runner late last year, underwent enormous political, financial and organizational upheaval this summer and now is looking for a comeback. Among recent positive developments is a new survey in New Hampshire that found he has gained ground since July and is giving chase to Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani. Actor-politician Fred Thompson trails.
Broke just three months ago, McCain also now has enough money to run a heavy level of TV and radio ads in that state. He is making New Hampshire - where he beat George W. Bush in 2000 - the focal point of his strategy and returns there this weekend to campaign. Despite the signs of life, many challenges remain, not the least of which is fundraising. The third financial quarter ends Sunday, and McCain is expected to show that while he brought in some money, he raised several million dollars less than his top competitors.
This article starring:
Fred Thompson
John McCain
Mitt Romney
Rudy Giuliani
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
John McCain argued Thursday that the United States would be safer with him as president than if his leading Republican rivals were commander in chief as he seized on newfound opportunities to revive his weakened candidacy.
I don't know John. How many Americans have died at the hands of foreign terrorist since 2001 and how many Americans have died at the hand [or the hands behind the wheels] of illegals in this country since then. What was your foreign policy position and action concerning Mexico this past year or so? Careful, or you'll walk into a right hook on those words.
#3
How quickly we forget. There are reasons he was "left for dead politically". P2K nailed one of them. But I still remember his ardent support of Clinton's incursion into Kosovo. Sorry, Senator. While we respect and honor your past service to our country...
Posted by: Abu Uluque6305 ||
09/29/2007 14:06 Comments ||
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I don't think we had an article on the death of GEN Wayne Downing so here's Blackfive's post plus pages with other links. The former Commander in Chief of US Special Forces was responsible for (among other things) personally arresting Noriega in Panama and commanding the successful id/destruction of Saddam's SCUDs during Desert Storm. GEN Downing came out of retirement after 9/11 to serve as the White House terrorism czar, clashing with the 'big army' people re: how to take down Saddam.
After his second retirement Downing helped to establish and led the Center for Combatting Terrorism at West Point. He was buried at the Academy on Thursday after a solemn funeral, an honor guard accompanying his mule-drawn casket to the cemetary there.
President Gen. Pervez Musharraf cleared the main hurdle to his bid for another five years in power Friday when Pakistan's Supreme Court squashed legal challenges to the leader's increasingly unpopular and bitterly opposed candidacy.
Musharraf, a close U.S. ally, appeared set for victory in an Oct. 6 presidential ballot by national and provincial legislatures, where his supporters hold a majority. He has promised to resign as army chief if elected to a new five-year term, restoring civilian rule. In its 6-3 ruling, the high court dismissed petitions filed by opposition parties and lawyers arguing that Musharraf could not be a candidate while retaining his heavyweight military post.
The ruling triggered jubilation in the government and anger among the opposition, which vowed to keep fighting to stop Musharraf. Some in the opposition threatened to have their lawmakers resign from Parliament in an attempt to rob the presidential vote of legitimacy. But analysts said it was unlikely his candidacy could be derailed, noting that the country's squabbling opposition parties are weak and unable to work together.
Many in the opposition had been looking to the Supreme Court as the best hope for blocking Musharraf's plan to extend his eight-year rule, since its judges had issued a series of rulings earlier in the year that limited his authority.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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Indian Army Chief General J J Singh Friday stressed that infiltration of guerrillas from Pakistan and levels of insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir and the country's North East have been minimised. "Situation is fast coming to normal and grounds have been created for a final settlement of these issues," Gen Singh told reporters at Delhi, ahead of his retirement as the Chief of Indian Army on September 30.
"Iron fist and velvet gloves policy is a resounding success," Gen Singh said. "In the conflict-prone areas of Jammu and Kashmir and North-East, the levels of violence have been considerably brought down. People have rejected terrorism and there is now a wish to lead a peaceful life," the Army Chief said. "The Army has been able to overcome the challenge of the guerrillas," he said, adding "the operations are based on sound intelligence inputs and support of the people".
"The policy of iron fist and velvet gloves is not only being acclaimed internally, but being seriously examined by all other militaries facing similar challenges," Gen Singh said. "If you win the hearts and minds, you have won half the battle," he said adding, "The Indian Army is projecting no-nonsense approach to terrorists, while at the same time trying to reach out to the public".
Gen Singh said the pace of modernisation in the Indian army was going on at full swing.
The Human Rights Council has adopted a resolution to implement the previous resolutions concerning the dispatch of a fact finding missions to the Occupied Palestinian Territories (oPt) including Beit Hanoun.
The representative of Egypt Amr Roshdy told the Council that a yes vote today is a yes to the integrity of the Council a no vote is a no to the credibility of the Council, a yes vote is telling Israel that it cannot get away with the serious violations committed in the oPt.
The Council adopted the resolution without a vote.
The Human Rights Council once again failed to do their jobs and adopted a resolution that clearly stated that all Israeli policies, as the occupying power, under any pretext are to limit access to the Palestinian holy places particularly in Occupied East Jerusalem, are in violation of the religious and cultural rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (oPt) including East Jerusalem. The resolution was adopted by 31 votes for, one against, and 15 abstentions including the European Union (EU).
Think the EU is running scared?
The resolution called upon Israel to respect the religious and cultural rights enumerated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the oPt, including East Jerusalem and to allow Palestinian worshipper unfettered access to their religious sites.
No mention of whether Hamas has to respect religious and cultural rights in Gaza.
On behalf of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC),
Of course
Pakistani ambassador Masood Khan told the Council that these restrictions continue during the holy month of Ramadan thus obstructing access of the Palestinians to their religious places.
Guess they'll have to visit some of the other 3,938,457 holiest places in all Islam.
Palestinian ambassador Dr. Mohammad Abu-Koash said that currently Israel has imposed severe restrictions of movement because of the Jewish holidays. This, he added, is outrageous, but it is a normal practice by Israel whenever there are religious holidays since Paleos tend to go boom at such times whether Christian or Muslims and denied them access to their holy places.
The representative of Mexico Mariana Olivera told the Council that obstructing people to get to their places of worship is one of the worst manifestations of intolerance throughout history. Olivera quoted John Kennedy in relation to the Berlin Wall that this is an not only an offense against history but an offense to mankind, and that Mexico agrees with that saying. "New walls will fall but the walls which exist continue to build in the memories of people mistrust," she stressed.
Wonder why the Mexican ambassador is so opposed to walls?
You’re traveling through another contextual universe, a universe not only of moral inversion and cultural relativism but of flagrant anti-Semitism; a journey into a mysterious region whose boundaries are that of unbridled religious bigotry, That’s the meeting room up ahead — your next stop, the Twilight Zone Human Rights Council.
#4
The The Human Rights Council us an occupying power of Turtle Bay, which I could rent to anti-semites for far more than you leeches cost. If you gave a damn about "human rights" ALL of your FULL TIME efforts would be directed at Sudan where Moslems kill Black Christians with impunity (thanks to you) and in Burma (Where Chinese backed Junta) just kills anyone for not doing what they say.
This council is a stain on all of mankind and should be disbanded without further notice. (Immediately)
#6
Hope this gets a lot of attention -- this laser-like focus on Israel while the Burmese junta is butchering monks in the street. Forces the contradiction, as ol' Karl Marx used to say.
Posted by: regular joe ||
09/29/2007 11:40 Comments ||
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#7
BTW we need a pic of someone rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic here.
Posted by: regular joe ||
09/29/2007 11:41 Comments ||
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#8
They're a joke. Everybody knows they're a joke. The UN knows they're a joke.They know they're a joke.
But it's a damn fine living...
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Security contractors in Iraq use some over-the-top tactics and overreact at times, a top U.S. general in Iraq said Friday.
Many in Iraq have witnessed security contractors operating in a questionable fashion, said U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Joseph Anderson, chief of staff for the Multi-National Corps in Iraq. "I can certainly say I've seen them do some tactics that I thought were over the top. But that's something we've got to keep working out," Anderson said in a briefing to Pentagon reporters via teleconference from Iraq.
His comments soon after Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he wants closer oversight of Pentagon contractors in Iraq. Gates has dispatched a team there to review accountability and oversight.
Anderson did not offer specific examples of incidents he had seen.
Oh, well, thanks then, General.
He agreed security contractors in Iraq have taken a lot of criticism, but he said they are in a tough position. "They obviously have a tough job to do in a tough environment. I don't know if they're overly aggressive. I think the question becomes what rules do they follow with respect to what the rules of engagement are," he said.
Under an order laid down by the U.S.-led occupation government in 2004, security contractors are not subject to Iraqi law for actions taken within their contracts, a condition that irritates Iraqi officials. About 137,000 civilians are working for the U.S. military in Iraq, Gates said Wednesday. That number includes at least 7,300 of the estimated 25,000 private security contractors working in Iraq, he said.
After the Blackwater shootings, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England issued a memo to commanders in Iraq outlining their responsibility for holding contractors accountable, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said.
Anderson said the assessment team sent by Gates is getting a feel for how the military employs contractors, to what scale, what functions they're providing and what differentiates between Department of Defense and Department of State contractors in the security role.
The State Department also is investigating the role of private security contractors. Ambassador Patrick Kennedy, a management and policy expert, will lead the effort, along with a high-level panel of outside experts, including retired Gen. George Joulwan, former commander of NATO forces in Europe; Stapleton Roy, former U.S. ambassador to China; and Eric Boswell, a former assistant secretary of state for diplomatic security. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wants an interim report by next Friday.
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/29/2007 10:39 Comments ||
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#3
The responses are "over the top" only after combat and from someone else's perspective. I can guarantee you that the people who were there that were ambushed saw things VERY differently.
When you are under fire from a pile of masked black turbans intent on ambushing you and your protected, you tend to use the best of your ability and equipment. If this seems to call for throw everything you have at them, then thats what happens. Look to the 4 on the bridge in Fallujah a few years ago or the kidnapped soldiers who were mutilated and gutted, to see what a lack of sufficiently severe response does.
Their enemies choose not to observe the Geneva conventions, so these guys are not bound by Geneva convention either. And unlike the Army with lawyers restricting the ROE, these folks WILL get deadly on you in a hurry. Thats their job - to protect their charges, not to be nice or PC.
In this instance, the harsher and worse response they give, the less likely it is that someone triggers said response another time, either out of fear, or because they are dead. And unlike US troops, these people are NOT formally representing our nation, they are representing their employers - usually the Iraqi government.
So some of this is the press and a few politicians and REMFs criticizing people who are out there doing the job on the edge that US troops cannot do for political reasons, and that the Iraqis are incapable of doing for themselves, yet.
#5
I think the difference is that security contractors aren't traveling in Bradleys and Strykers and don't have on-call access to JDAM's. So they have to be a little more aggressive. Security contractors also don't have major league death benefits for casualties, unlike the military. Anderson shooting off his mouth isn't helpful to the mission in Iraq. Without security contractors to take care of logistics, we could need a lot more troops to carry out the mission. Troops we don't have, given the current political climate.
Iraqi police and witnesses said US troops backed by helicopter gunships raided an apartment building in a primarily Sunni neighborhood in southern Baghdad on Friday, killing 10 civilians and wounding 12. The US military said it was checking into the report.
An unknown number of people also were detained after the 2 a.m. incident in the Sihha district in Dora where clashes took place between US helicopters and gunmen, said a police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.
Shaheed Abdul-Al, a 42-year-old metal worker who lives in the area, said his family was awakened by the sound of helicopters, heavy gunfire and bombing. "We saw a big spark of light with bombing sounds come from the direction of the (targeted) building," he said. "We were horrified and still awake at sunrise."
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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AMMAN, Jordan - The first shipment of Iraqi crude oil arrived in Jordan Friday after a four-year hiatus following the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, an energy ministry spokesman said. Energy Ministry spokesman Maher al-Shawabkeh said eight trucks loaded with Iraqi crude oil arrived at the Iraqi-Jordanian border. “It’s the first batch of an expected 166 tankers, which Iraq is sending to Jordan,” he said.
The oil is part of an agreement signed between Jordan and Iraq during a visit by Jordanian Prime Minister Marouf al-Bakhit to Baghdad in August 2006.
Before the war started in 2003, Iraq covered all of JordanÂ’s oil needs, delivering a portion for free and the rest at about one-third the world market price because of the neighborsÂ’ close ties and IraqÂ’s history of providing Jordan with inexpensive oil. When the supply was halted at the outset of the war, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates stepped in for a year to provide the cash-strapped kingdom with oil at prices believed to have been below market levels. Saudi Arabia now provides Jordan with funding to help the country pay for its oil needs.
Al-Shawabkeh said the initial shipment will cover 10 percent of JordanÂ’s energy requirements. It will be followed by additional shipments that will provide 30 percent at a later stage, he said. The Iraqi crude came from the northern Kirkuk fields and will be processed in JordanÂ’s Zarqa refinery, 27 kilometers (19 miles) southeast of Amman, al-Shawabkeh said.
The cost of the oil shipment was not made public Friday. But earlier in the week, Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said Iraq plans to export 10,000 barrels a day by land to Jordan at US$4 less per barrel than the market price. Al-Dabbagh also said the reason the oil was given to Jordan at cheaper prices was because Jordan would be in charge of securing tanker trucks to transport the oil. Al-Shawabkeh said Iraq drivers were transporting the oil to the Karameh border where it was then turned over to Jordanian tankers.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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200 female suicide bombers are awaiting the Merkava tanks, Hamas senior Dr. Nizar Rian told the Kuweiti Al Jareeda Friday. Rian also said his organization had more than 50,000 armed fighters, who were endowed with "courage and are able to fight in the relevant territory."
Reportedly, Rian was appointed commander of Hamas's military units whose mission is to beat back an expected Israeli ground incursion into the Gaza Strip. "They sleep and walk about armed with explosives, ready to attack Israeli tanks and to prevent them from progressing," Rian said. Women, he added, were not a new addition to the terrorist group's arsenal. Women were sent in the past to hit the "heart of the Israeli occupier's home" and while some Palestinians were against the use of women in combat roles, "the duty to guard the motherland is more important than any other priority."
Rian was also subtly critical of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas's condemnation of incessant Kassam rocket fire on Israeli towns. "One cannot say that our simple rockets, which constitute a proper arsenal of weaponry in the world of warfare, are, as some politicians who take Jihad likely say, fireworks. Where are our weapons compared to the Zionist's sophisticated weapons? But where are the cowardly Zionists when compared to our brave warriors?" he asked rhetorically in the interview.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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Israel has already made a decision to attack Syria and was just mulling over where to land its first strike, Ahmad Jibril, leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine claimed in an interview published Friday by Arabic newspaper Al Hadat.
Jibril estimated that Israeli action, several weeks after an alleged IAF foray into Syria on September 6, would likely be a wide-scale operation, and would probably be answered with attacks by Iran, Hizbullah in Lebanon and the Palestinians of Syria. "I believe Israel has prepared all likely scenarios for war with Syria, but they are still considering where they will land the first strike, which will come very soon," Jibril said. "They are weighing whether to attack on one front or on multiple fronts. There is an American Israeli plan, backed by silent agreement from the Arab world, to change the balance of power in the Middle East."
The PFLP leader said also that Israel was wary of a "domino effect" that would drag other countries into the conflict. "The Israelis have not formed a final estimate regarding the possibility of Iranian intervention if they will attack Syria. Secondly, the Lebanese resistance, led by Hizbullah's Islamic resistance, will intervene and strike the Zionist home front with missiles," he said. "The Syrian brothers will not be afraid to protect their land and will continue the war with the Zionist enemy, and we, the Palestinians in Syria, will not sit by idly - we will be on the front lines," Jibril added.
However, despite Jibril's claim that "Hizbullah would also participate," officials in the organization hinted that they would not interfere in a future conflict. Two weeks ago, Sheikh Naim Kassem, Deputy Secretary General of Hizbullah and Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah's second in command, said that Israeli estimates that the group would try to take revenge on Syria's behalf were no more that "journalistic assessments based on insufficient evidence."
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
After all these years why is anybody from the PFLP still alive to wag their tongues?
The United States has picked Annapolis, Maryland, as the expected site of a Mideast peace conference this fall that President George W. Bush hopes will launch new negotiations toward establishing an independent Palestinian state, The Associated Press has learned. The small city north of Washington was selected for proximity to the capital and the presence of the US Naval Academy, where the November conference would be based, US and other officials said Friday.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
President George W. Bush hopes will launch new negotiations toward establishing an independent Palestinian state
Sorry guys. This is like amnesty by any other name. The Paleos have demonstrated they don't deserve a state and we don't need another 'failed' state for more stewing of cultural bile. When the Silesian Germans' get their 'right of return', come talk to me. They forfeited their lands for the same reason, waging war and losing.
Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi Friday told the UN General Assembly that the use of force, and not religious difference, lies at the root of conflicts between Islamic and Western countries, emphasizing that all religions advocate peace. "This is certainly the case with Islam, which teaches its believers to practice tolerance, forgiveness, peace, fraternity and coexistence," he said.
Certainly, certainly, agreed Their Excellencies.
The real cause of conflicts between Islamic and Western countries, he explained, "is the repeated use of force by the powerful over the weak to secure strategic or territorial gains."
Ah, he's reading from the Chomsky Hymnal. Let us pray.
Voicing support for efforts to foster interfaith and intercultural dialogue, he said these initiatives can help to "establish the truth that Islam is a religion which espouses universalism, not exclusivity; tolerance, not bigotry."
Malaysia, he said, has adopted a successful approach called "Islam Hadhari, " whereby the Government "uses the progressive teachings of Islam as the basis for good governance to deliver benefits to all sectors of its multi-ethnic and multi-religious society without discrimination."
#5
So tell me muzzie piece of sh*t, I'm confused. Before 9/11, just when did the US use FORCE against Arab countries for strategic and territorial gains? When did we ever say we wanted your land?
The United Nations Security Council called for Lebanon to hold presidential elections as scheduled on October 23, but House Speaker Nabih Berri quickly blasted the world body for "meddling" in Lebanese affairs. The 15-member council "called for the holding of a free and fair presidential election in conformity with the Lebanese constitutional norms and schedules and without any foreign interference," it said in a statement released on Thursday. The top U.N. body further called for the election to be held in "an atmosphere free of violence, fear and intimidation, in particular against the representatives of the Lebanese people and institutions."
Lebanon's parliament on Tuesday adjourned until October 23 a crucial session to elect a new president for lack of a quorum and to allow more time for lawmakers to reach agreement on a consensus candidate. But fears are running high that the deadlock over the presidency could lead to two rival governments, a grim reminder of the final years of the 1975-1990 civil war when two competing administrations battled it out. The Security Council "took note of the decision to convene the next session of the Lebanese Parliament on 23 October and looked forward for the parliament to proceed as appropriate to the election of the president," it added. Egypt, France, Saudi Arabia and the Arab League had called earlier Thursday for the election to be held within the timeframe set out by the constitution.
In a statement published by Lebanese dailies on Friday, Berri rejected the U.N. statement and a similar one by the U.S. House of Representatives. "With all due respect, it is not the business of the Security Council to interfere in what is the business of the Lebanese parliament," Berri said in a statement published by Lebanese dailies on Friday. "The more people are imposed upon, the more they and the Security Council just get exhausted."
But Berri brought the criticism upon himself for failing to act responsibly in not attending the parliament meeting for electing the new president of Lebanon. According to political analysts "Berri has no one to blame but himself". Berri according to March 14 majority alliance wants a pro-Syrian president at any cost, even if this means the complete destruction of Lebanon. This is precisely what is worrying the UN security council members that are friendly to Democratic Lebanon.
The four-week delay in electing a new president was seen by both the government and opposition as a last chance to prevent an escalation of the political crisis in Beirut. A two-thirds majority of the 127-strong parliament is required for a candidate to be elected by parliament in a first round of voting to replace the current pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud, whose terms ends in November. In the event of a second round, a simple majority suffices.
Most of the 58 MPs from the Hezbollah-led opposition boycotted Tuesday's session on the grounds that the feuding political parties had failed to agree on a consensus candidate to replace Lahoud. MPs from the ruling majority have made clear they plan to go ahead with a vote when lawmakers reconvene in October even if no agreement has been struck.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2007 00:00 ||
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Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema proposed Friday that Iran should not exceed its current uranium enrichment levels as a mean to continue talks relevant to its nuclear file and other regional issues.
In a press statement, D'Alema questioned the effectives of sanctions called by some nations against Iran, urging Tehran to halt its uranium enrichment program below the critical level as a minimum prerequisite to resume talks. D'Alema believed that sanctions against Iran should be coupled with a political initiative as sanctions alone would not be that affective as a pressure tool.
Iran's levels of uranium enrichment should be a central point for future nuclear talks that would also discuss the cases of Palestine and Iraq, he said. He added that Iran should receive proper compensation for aborting military nuclear use through preserving overall security in a restless region. There is no point to discuss individual issues that are part of a greater complex relevant to the Middle East's overall situation after Saddam Husain, explained D'Alema.
#1
In other news, housecats have urged coyotes to start liking granola and tofu, instead of meat, for sustenance.
Posted by: no mo uro ||
09/29/2007 6:25 Comments ||
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#2
That'll tell 'em!
Posted by: Tony (UK) ||
09/29/2007 9:38 Comments ||
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#3
Does Italy think it can come swaggering in at the last minute and get this straightened out for us?
What a strange and unexpected move from a bunch of commie wannabes.
The leaders of Iran and Venezuela cemented an alliance aimed at countering the United States while the Iranian president reached out to a new ally in Bolivia and declared that together, "no one can defeat us."
After being vilified during his U.N. visit this week, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad traveled on to friendlier territory Thursday, first stopping in Bolivia where he pledged $1 billion in investment and then visiting Venezuela to meet President Hugo Chavez.
"Together we are surely growing stronger, and in truth no one can defeat us," the Iranian leader said through an interpreter. Apparently referring to the U.S., he said, "Imperialism has no other option: Respect the peoples (of the world) or accept defeat."
Chavez greeted the Iranian leader warmly on a red carpet in front of the presidential palace, where they both stood hand-in-hand before microphones and let loose with rhetoric challenging Washington.
"We will continue resisting to the end in the face of imperialism," Ahmadinejad said. "And the age of imperialism has ended."
Chavez embraced the Iranian leader, calling him "one of the greatest anti-imperialist fighters" and "one of the great fighters for true peace."
In his defiant speech to the U.N. General Assembly this week, Ahmadinejad rebuked "arrogant powers" seeking to curb Iran's nuclear program.
Chavez also strongly defends Iran's nuclear research, insisting it is for peaceful energy uses despite U.S. charges it is aimed at making nuclear weapons. The Venezuelan leader also says his country plans to eventually develop a nuclear energy program.
Chavez said he was proud of Ahmadinejad's courage while under hostile questioning at New York's Columbia University. "An imperial spokesman tried to disrespect you, calling you a cruel little tyrant. You responded with the greatness of a revolutionary."
In Bolivia, the Iranian leader pledged investment over the next five years to help the poor Andean nation tap its vast natural gas reserves, extract minerals, generate more electricity and fund agricultural and construction projects.
Bolivian President Evo Morales, who joins Chavez as one of Iran's key allies, called Ahmadinejad's visit historic as the two nations established diplomatic relations for the first time.
Morales brushed off concerns about close ties to a country that the Bush administration says is a sponsor of terrorism, declaring that the "international community can rest assured that Bolivia's foreign policy is dedicated to peace with equality and social justice."
Ahmadinejad's trip underscored his growing ties to Latin American nations, including Nicaragua and Ecuador, even as the U.S. tries to isolate him internationally.
The closer relationship is viewed with alarm by the opposition in Venezuela and Bolivia, and by Washington. U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, a Florida Republican, said they remind him "of the relationship that Fidel Castro had with Russia." He urged Washington to reach out more to a region analysts say it has largely ignored since the Sept. 11 attacks.
Toward that aim, a bipartisan bill is being introduced in Congress on Friday that would establish a 10-year, $2.5 billion program aimed at reducing poverty and expanding the middle class in Latin America. It would require recipient countries to contribute and encourage matching funds from businesses and non-governmental organizations.
The program would bring more stability in the long run and help the United States "re-establish leadership in the hemisphere" by increasing development assistance by more than a third, said bill co-sponsor Sen. Bob Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat.
Chavez's government, for its part, has promised more than $8.8 billion in aid, financing and energy funding to the region this year.
Relations between Iran and Venezuela, meanwhile, have grown very close. Since 2001, they have signed trade agreements worth more than $20 billion in potential investment, according to Iran's official news agency, IRNA.
They have teamed up to begin producing cars, tractors and plastic goods, and signed an agreement to help Venezuela build public housing. Iran Air began flights between Tehran and Caracas, with a stopover in Syria, earlier this year.
Venezuelan Jewish leaders objected to the presence of Ahmadinejad, who has called for the end of Israel and questioned the history of the Holocaust.
"We raise our voice to condemn these statements by the Iranian leader which incite hatred, becoming a threat to world peace," the Venezuelan Confederation of Israeli Associations said in a statement. The country is home to a large Jewish population, including Holocaust survivors.
It was Ahmadinejad's third visit to Caracas.
Along with Nicaragua and Bolivia, Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa also wants closer ties with Tehran, and Iran's PressTV reported last month that Iran will for the first time open an embassy in Quito. Get in line. He's handing out money, along with a promise to kill you last!
#1
Chavez plans to develop nuclear power? Cultural fucus on maintenance, health & safety:
US Three Mile Island
USSR Chernobyl
Iran Inshallah
Venezueala Manana
Scary.
Hey. Mr. A. You were already at the Alliance of Dictators and Arm-pit Countries(tm), aka the UN earlier. Why the redundancy? Must've been Miss Venezuela in that bathing suit competition. That's it. Miss Z-land did look a little anorexic.
#8
Uh, Frank, Venezuela is on the Atlantic side of South America.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
09/29/2007 18:13 Comments ||
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#9
no panama canal, huh?
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/29/2007 20:09 Comments ||
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#10
Why would you want to go around Africa instead of through the canal?
Of course, if they shipped it to France, I'm sure they could get it delivered from there for a few bbls of oil.
Lebanon would be a good point also. They could just ship it through Syria and past the British in southern Iraq. If the Brits take the blinders off though, things aren't going to go so well.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
09/29/2007 22:05 Comments ||
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This is complicated and I'm prolly getting it wrong, but it seems that the October issue of Vogue has a story by "trailblazing journalist" Maggie McGuane whose son enlists in the Army and features these types of statements:
There is an arrant social iniquity that comes from our country's all-volunteer army. Some ZIP codes, those of America's upper socioeconomic stratosphere, have been unscathed by the war in Iraq, while others, particularly in provincial America, take disproportionate losses. It's in those regions that public school students are targeted by military-recruitment efforts, as their labors are more often rewarded in places where patriotism is as common as yellow-ribbon bumper stickers, and high school kids see few options for escaping the confines of their hometowns.
Anyway. It turns out that the kid (Zach) is not strictly her son, and not even really her stepson as she is only dating Zach's father and they keep separate residences. And Zach's mom is NOT happy with Maggie's attempt to pimp out her son's personal decisions for a magazine story.
#2
Instead of "calling for the draft" or for using a magic wand to "end the war" Vogue should call for shaming Blue Staters into joining the military and helping to provide for the common defense. The problem is not the patriotism of flyover country. It is the sedition of establishment publications like Vogue clinging like a tick to the body of America.
#5
All wars are not WWII. That's the Hollyweird mindset. The problem is that WWII was the 'exception' not the rule on who fought and who did the dying. Maybe we could back to those 'quaint' idyllic times of racial segregation and internments, too. BTW Maggie twit, nothing stops the upper class privileged from signing on the dotted line than their own self interest. Take it up with them.
One of the big differences from before when young men not of privilege carried the burden, was that some were able to make a name for themselves which would then be the platform to attain high office. Now that liberal blue MSM is churning out the propaganda, that venue is reserved for the exclusivity of those 'upper socioeconomic stratosphere' zip codes. How's about opening that up. Limit the number of 'rich', new or old, who can garner the fruits of power. Consider it 'forced busing' or 'quotas' for past discrimination. Or is this another on of those liberal mantras of 'one set of rules for us and another set of rules for you'.
#8
My dad retired last year as from 37 years of teaching at a an extremely liberal prep school in the Mid West. Last year 5 outof 128 seniors matriculated to service academies. That is pretty typical and puts the lie to the two class argument. Note - Other classmates may go ROTC but I think that would be the exception for my Dad's school. Most of the students that are called to military service at WRA and I speculate other boarding prep schools attend the academies. I think this comes from the fact that four ears at a boarding prep school makes four years at Williams or Bowdoin or Princeton look like more of the same.
http://www.wra.net/academics/matriculation.cfm
Posted by: Super Hose ||
09/29/2007 13:26 Comments ||
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#11
We'd have more recruits from northeast New Jersey if the posters were in other languages. These poor guys think the posters are ads for a Village People concert.
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.
Tensions are rising in northern Somalia following clashes between forces of rival regional administrations, officials said Friday, and diplomats called on all sides to show restraint. Somalia's weak federal government based in Mogadishu, in the south, has been hard-pressed to assert control in the south and was unlikely to have any influence in the confrontation between the autonomous Puntland region and the breakaway republic of Somaliland. 
(AKI) - A Senegalese prayer leader expelled from Italy in 2003 for "disturbance to public order and endangering state security" has launched a scathing attack against an Adnkronos International (AKI) journalist as well journalists from two leading Italian dailies.
The United States on Friday agreed to provide up to $25 million to pay for 50,000 tons of heavy fuel oil for North Korea, part of an agreement the communist regime made with the U.S. and other nations pushing it to dismantle its nuclear program. Under a February agreement, the United States and four other nations agreed to provide North Korea with 1 million tons of heavy fuel oil, or the monetary equivalent in other aid and assistance.
President Gen. Pervez Musharraf cleared the main hurdle to his bid for another five years in power Friday when Pakistan's Supreme Court squashed legal challenges to the leader's increasingly unpopular and bitterly opposed candidacy. 
The Human Rights Council has adopted a resolution to implement the previous resolutions concerning the dispatch of a fact finding missions to the Occupied Palestinian Territories (oPt) including Beit Hanoun. 
AMMAN, Jordan - The first shipment of Iraqi crude oil arrived in Jordan Friday after a four-year hiatus following the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, an energy ministry spokesman said. Energy Ministry spokesman Maher al-Shawabkeh said eight trucks loaded with Iraqi crude oil arrived at the Iraqi-Jordanian border. “It’s the first batch of an expected 166 tankers, which Iraq is sending to Jordan,” he said.
200 female suicide bombers are awaiting the Merkava tanks, Hamas senior Dr. Nizar Rian told the Kuweiti Al Jareeda Friday. Rian also said his organization had more than 50,000 armed fighters, who were endowed with "courage and are able to fight in the relevant territory." 
Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi Friday told the UN General Assembly that the use of force, and not religious difference, lies at the root of conflicts between Islamic and Western countries, emphasizing that all religions advocate peace. "This is certainly the case with Islam, which teaches its believers to practice tolerance, forgiveness, peace, fraternity and coexistence," he said.
The United Nations Security Council called for Lebanon to hold presidential elections as scheduled on October 23, but House Speaker Nabih Berri quickly blasted the world body for "meddling" in Lebanese affairs. The 15-member council "called for the holding of a free and fair presidential election in conformity with the Lebanese constitutional norms and schedules and without any foreign interference," it said in a statement released on Thursday. The top U.N. body further called for the election to be held in "an atmosphere free of violence, fear and intimidation, in particular against the representatives of the Lebanese people and institutions."
Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema proposed Friday that Iran should not exceed its current uranium enrichment levels as a mean to continue talks relevant to its nuclear file and other regional issues.
The leaders of Iran and Venezuela cemented an alliance aimed at countering the United States while the Iranian president reached out to a new ally in Bolivia and declared that together, "no one can defeat us." 
Along with Nicaragua and Bolivia, Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa also wants closer ties with Tehran, and Iran's PressTV reported last month that Iran will for the first time open an embassy in Quito.
