Russia's largest firearms manufacturer, JSC Izhmash, unveiled its first model of the fifth-generation Kalashnikov assault rifle. The new rifle is tentatively called AK-12. The assembly of the new weapon, the development of which was initiated by Izhmash's chief designer Vladimir Zlobin, was completed in 2011. Specialists currently test the new weapon, the press service of the enterprise said Wednesday.
Russia's Interior Ministry has already requested the AK-12 for test exploitation. Izhmash is ready to arrange the deliveries of the new weapon for the Russian army too, Interfax reports.
Russian news agencies reported Wednesday that the Defense Ministry of Russia was not planning any purchases from Izhmash within the scope of the state defense order for 2012. It was also reported that the messages about the creation of the new Kalashnikov rifle were not true to fact.
"The AK-12 is being developed for export purposes. However, it also meets the requirements of the Defense Ministry, which the ministry has for the equipment of the soldiers of the Russian army. If there's an order, the enterprise will be ready to arrange the shipments of the AK-12 for the Armed Forces and special units of the Russian Federation," the press service of the company said.
The United States has arrested and charged an Iranian semiconductor scientist with violating U.S. export laws by buying high-tech U.S. lab equipment, a development likely to further worsen Iranian-U.S. tensions.
Prison records show the U.S. is holding Seyed Mojtaba Atarodi, 54, a microchip expert and assistant professor at Tehran's prestigious Sharif University of Technology, in a federal facility in Dublin, Calif., outside San Francisco. The Iranian interest section in the Pakistani embassy in Washington said it was aware of the arrest.
Atarodi arrived at a bond hearing in federal district court in San Francisco Thursday wearing a green jump suit and bowed to his attorney. Before the hearing began, the judge closed the courtroom except to attorneys and members of the family. According to friends, Atarodi was detained Dec. 7 after stepping off a plane in Los Angeles.
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/26/2012
16:00 ||
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#1
"... , a development likely to further worsen Iranian-U.S. tensions."
Drop in the ocean.
Posted by: Mike Ramsey ||
01/26/2012 17:12
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"It's where I spent my youth. I grew up on that ship," said 85-year-old Lee Hunt of Charleston, S.C., a member of the original crew when it was commissioned. "I went on it when I was 17 and spent my 18th birthday killing people in Germany in the invasion of France and right on into Okinawa and the Philippines and what have you. This means a lot. I spent a lot of time on that ship."
He said it was no surprise that, by 1945, the Laffey would encounter suicide attacks by Japanese aviators.
"We knew we were going to get hit. Every destroyer out there on picket duty knew they were going to be attacked," said Hunt, who said he had no time to get nervous because he was on the ship and doing what the crew was asked to do.
#1
...This was a close one - there were some very quiet discussions about whether or not the museum would be able to save Laffey, but fortunately the state stepped up. If you've never been to Patriot's Point, take the time.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
01/26/2012 16:15
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#2
Thank you for the post. I went on to read other comments. Made in America.
#3
If you've never been to Patriot's Point, take the time.
You bet Mike, though spending a hot ass July night aboard the Yorktown with cub scout troops from around the southeast screaming and yelling wasnt my ideal r & r. I'm glad I did it.
Remember that one keyword that oddly enough never made it's way into the president's largely recycled SOTU address - "Solyndra"? It is about to make a double or nothing repeat appearance, now that Ener1, another company that was backed by Obama, this time a electric car battery-maker, has filed for bankruptcy. Net result: taxpayers lose $118.5 million.
The irony is that while Solyndra may have been missing from the SOTU, Ener1 made an indirect appearance: "In three years, our partnership with the private sector has already positioned America to be the world's leading manufacturer of high-tech batteries."
Uh, no. Actually, the correct phrasing is: "...positioned America to be the world's leading manufacturer of insolvent, bloated subsidized entities that are proof central planning at any level does not work but we can keep doing the same idiocy over and over hoping the final result will actually be different eventually."
We can't wait to find out just which of Obama's handlers was may have been responsible for this latest gross capital misallocation. In the meantime, the 1,700 jobs "created" with the fake creation of Ener1, have just been lost.
#2
fwiw, IIUC, this is a chapter 11 bankruptcy which means the company may successfully emerge and prosper
it all depends on whether their lithium battery technology (based on various patents and proprietary designs) can work in a real world situation and also be cost effective
the company has already burned it's way through about half of the $118M without producing a workable prototype but they have actually lined up some private equity who will invest post chapter 11
Posted by: Lord Garth ||
01/26/2012 14:04
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I've noticed that ,amy start-up companies will get a producr with the capital and then Bankrupt, screwing the original investers and whatcanyoudoaboutit.
Un other wotds YOURGUJT.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
01/26/2012 19:33
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#5
Obama only invests our money in projects or companies to benefit his backers. In truth his backers probably make money by the truck-load during the transactions - probably through some vehicle akin to a "commission" for obtaining the funding. The only people burned in theses bogus ventures are the true-believers that didn't understand that the business was a shell just for the purposes of bilking the suckers ... the tax payers.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
01/26/2012 20:24
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"they have actually lined up some private equity who will invest post chapter 11"
That's what they should have done in the first place, LG. >:-(
Posted by: Barbara ||
01/26/2012 22:45
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Israeli hackers brought down Iran's Press TV website and two websites belonging to the Ministry of Health and Medical Education on Thursday. The hackers, who call themselves "IDF Team," said their actions were a response to a series of attacks on Israeli sites the previous day.
Three additional Iranian sites were hacked and their servers altered to display an Israeli flag and anti-Arab text in English.
But many Iranians are not Arab, so they would likely agree with the sentiment...
The website of Press TV, the Iranian regime's English-language satellite channel, was unavailable for a short period of time following the hackers' announcement.
"At 16:30 Israel Clock the Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Education website will be down until further notice. In addition to Iran's television network, broadcasting in English round-the-clock, based in Tehran that [is] called Press TV will be down until further notice," the hackers wrote in a message.
"Ahmadinejad what do you have to say about that?" they added.
When François Hollande cited Shakespeare during his biggest campaign speech on Sunday, it was one of the high points of an effort that helped cement himself as the front-runner in France's presidential race.
#2
"Nicholas Shakespeare, journalist, novelist, biographer and direct descendant of William's grandfather"
It is unlikely to help Mr Hollande's campaign to discover they were uttered by the novel's hero, Gabriel, a Maoist revolutionary who ends up a terrorist for the murderous Peruvian guerrilla group, Shining Path.
Mr Hollande should ask Nork refuges what they think of the results of leftest economic policies.
Posted by: Mike Ramsey ||
01/26/2012 16:32
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North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue (D) is set to announce today that she will not seek reelection in 2012, according to two sources familiar with her plans.
She's the one who 'suggested' that we 'postpone' elections for a while so that the Congress and the President could 'address our problems'. When she was called on it she said she was 'joking'; a careful review of the videotape shows that no one was laughing at the time. Guess we now know why she wanted elections postponed...
Perdue, who turned 65 earlier this month, was set for a rematch of her 2008 race with former Charlotte mayor Pat McCrory (R), but she has been plagued by low approval ratings and faced some tough odds this year.
Sources say she has labored over her decision about whether to seek a second term. One source said she plans to announce she will step aside in a statement this afternoon. Perdue's office did not immediately response to a request for comment.
Names that are likely to be bandied about as possible Democratic replacements include Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton, Attorney General Roy Cooper, former White House chief of staff Erskine Bowles and Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx.
In addition, Rep. Brad Miller (D-ACORN N.C.) is set to announce today that he won't seek reelection.
How is it that Newt Gingrich, should he be nominated, would cause the Pubs to be blown out of the House, and yet Dem congress-critters are quitting anyways?
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/26/2012
10:36 ||
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too bad - a crushing defeat would demonstrate the popularity of her reign
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/26/2012 10:44
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You can hide - but you can't run...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
01/26/2012 12:17
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#4
Knowing when to fold em is key to maintaining your viability for commissions, consultancy dollars or cabinet level positions down the road. Bev is a little soft on the intellect for any of those options to be lucrative for her. She doesn't even really have the Grayson-esque nastiness to qualify as a contributor on MSNBC. Probably she should consider calling Bingo or organizing low level Non-denominational church functions.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
01/26/2012 20:39
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#5
Oooooh! I want an atomic scalpel like Super Hose has.
#1
Obviously the government must take over nutritional decisions outside of the schools as well because the unwashed just can'twon't make the decisions the elites approve of.
A 65-year-old man shot two teens, one fatally, as they tried to rob him Wednesday morning on a trail near the Schuylkill River, police said.
According to investigators, the man was riding his bicycle on the trail near the Bertolet Fishing Dock at South First Avenue and Chestnut Street in West Reading. The teens knocked the man off his bicycle, and two of them assaulted him.
The man pulled out a handgun and shot them both. Another success for concealed carry...
#2
The gentleman was released without charges because the prosecutor refused to take the case, and the dead boy's mother asked only that she could inform relatives before his name was released to reporters. I second Bright Pebbles.
Johnathan Doody was 17 when he was arrested in the August 1991 murders of six monks and three others at a Buddhist temple in the West Valley farming community of Waddell.
On Tuesday, Doody, now 37, was back in Maricopa County Superior Court as prosecutors prepare to try him again for the killings that came to be known as the temple murders.
The trial judge imposed nine consecutive life sentences. But the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals threw out the conviction, first in 2010, ruling that the confession had been coerced, and again in 2011 after the state asked the court to reconsider.
Last October, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the case, which sent it back to Maricopa County Superior Court for retrial. Prosecutors will retry the case without Doody's confession.
The victims' bodies were found Aug. 10, 1991, face down in a circle, and each, six men, two youths and one elderly woman, had been shot in the head several times, execution style.
At first, sheriff's investigators pursued four men from Tucson, then stumbled upon Doody and Alessandro Garcia. Garcia, who had committed a murder at a campground in Tonto National Forest, pleaded guilty and testified against Doody. It is generally believed that the murderers slaughtered these nine people on the belief that the temple contained a lot of gold. In fact, the only gold was a tiny amount of gold leaf applied to statues.
Thirteen people were killed in two separate bomb attacks in Iraq. Two brothers - both policeman - and at least eight of their relatives were reported to have been killed after terrorists insurgents bombed a house in Musayyib. Three people were also killed in Kirkuk in a separate bomb attack.
The Musayyib attack is said to have taken place at 4 a.m. when several roadside bombs surrounding the house were set off. Reports say the dead police officers were idenified as Ahmed and Jihad Zuwaiyin. Six children are also thought to have been killed. Four people were reported to be injured and six homes nearby were also damaged.
Many Shia Muslims live in the Musayyib area, south of Baghdad.
Police say the attack in Kirkuk was caused by a motorcycle bomb parked near a primary school in the city center. Five were injured, in addition to the three fatalities.
A village defense volunteer was gunned down in Yala province on Thursday morning.
The police received a report from the hospital that a man, shot and seriously wounded, was taken to the hospital and died soon after admission. Police investigators went to the hospital and viewed the corpse. The victim, shot twice, was identified as Hama Nicha, 52, a village guard.
Witnesses said that Hama was driving his motorcycle back home from prayers at the village mosque when two terrorists men on another motorcycle asked him to stop for a talk. While the terrorists they were talking the terrorist man riding pillion drew out a handgun and shot him twice. The terrorists attackers then fled. Villagers who heard the sound of gunfire found Hama lying on the road.
The Rangae district chief escaped unharmed from a bomb intended to take his life in Narathiwat province on Thursday morning. The district chief was to chair the opening of a civic event at the village.
The bomb went off about 9 a.m. on a road along a railway track while Supawaris Phetkarn, the district chief, and four defense volunteers were traveling by pick-up truck to a local village. Mr Supawaris said as his vehicle was heading down the road, a bomb buried on the road was detonated, apparently by radio.
The explosion damaged the vehicle and another car coming in a different direction, leaving a big hole on the road. The district chief and the defense volunteers were not hurt.
A man already convicted of taking part in a terror plot to attack the U.S. Marine Corps base in Quantico, Virginia has now been accused of plotting the beheading of key witnesses against him and his coconspirators. I'm guessing he's not feeling very repentant yet.
According to a criminal complaint unsealed this week, Hysen Sherifi tried to arrange for the witnesses to be murdered for $5,000 apiece by a hitman named "Treetop," but the go-betweens in the murder-for-hire scheme were actually federal informants. Did I mention that he wanted pictures of their beheaded corpses and severed heads with the faces showing so he could make sure he got what he paid for?
Hysen Sherifi was convicted of providing material support to terrorists, conspiracy to murder U.S. military personnel and firearms charges in October 11 for his role in the foiled Quantico plot. Three other men in his North Carolina-based terror cell pled guilty to terrorism charges in 2011, and three more defendants were found guilty at trial. Another defendant still awaits trial, while an eighth suspect remains at large.
Sherifi, 27, was sentenced to 45 years in federal prison on January 13. In an FBI affidavit unsealed this week, however, authorities claim that prior to Sherifi's sentencing he tried to take out a murder contract on key witnesses against him.
According to the affidavit, Sherifi confided in an informant that he wanted to kill three witnesses who testified against him and a prisoner he believed had stolen from him. Man, that's just crazy.
"[The Informant] contacted the FBI to advise that Hysen Sherifi had confided in him and requested his/her assistance for the purpose of hiring someone to kill several individuals. Three of the intended victims are witnesses who testified against him at his federal trial." Not to be too cynical, but what did the informant receive in return for his information?
The affidavit alleges that Sherifi showed his brother's girlfriend, Nevine Aly Elshiekh, notes that he wanted passed on to another individual who was also an informant in the case.
Elshiekh allegedly passed the information on to the second informant, who claimed to be in contact with a hitman known only as "Treetop." During a January 2, 2012 meeting the second informant allegedly showed Elshiekh a picture of one of the targets and the two discussed a $5,000 payment for the killings. "I got the picture from Treetop," the informant allegedly told Elshiekh, "and Treetop wants to make sure it's the right person to be killed."
On Jan. 8, 2012, Sherifi's brother Shkumbin Sherifi visited his brother at the New Hanover County jail. Two hours later, Shkumbin allegedly arranged a call with the second informant to meet him and get money to him. The court papers note that Shkumbin Sherifi allegedly brought the informant $4,250.
During the meeting the informant allegedly asked Shkumbin Sherifi, "You need to ask [Hysen] Sherifi which one he want [sic] killed. The black guy or Arab."
Shkumbin allegedly told the informant 'Okay, um does he, um, are you guys in touch?"
The court documents note that Shkumbin "claimed not to know what was going on but promised to speak with his brother and get a response."
Shkumbin Sherifi and Elshiekh are charged in the alleged murder-for-hire plot and are scheduled to have a detention hearing in Wilmington, N.C., on Friday. Hysen Sherifi has not yet been charged. The brothers are natives of Kosovo and emigrated with their family to the U.S. in the 1990s.
#1
Three witnesses so that is three counts under the federal murder-for-hire law, so tack on 10 years a piece. 45 + 10 + 10 + 10 = 75 years.
Another Darwin award winner.
Posted by: Mike Ramsey ||
01/26/2012 10:40
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#2
That may also be enough aggravating circumstances so that they get a one-way ticket to a federal max, though I doubt if he is top tier enough to make it to ADX Florence.
Woody Harrelson's dad made it there only after he killed a federal judge *and* tried to escape from another federal max in Georgia. You have to have a serious resume to get there.
#8
I was in a news shop at the KC airport last summer and noticed an orange tee-shirt that was embossed with the logo "Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary: A Gated Community." My 16 year old son was mad that I didn't bring it home for him.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
01/26/2012 22:15
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I think we can safely dispense with the 48-hour rule here.
It is a "myth" that regularly eating fried foods causes heart attacks, researchers have found, as long as you use olive oil or sunflower oil. I didn't bother to read any further than this.
A fear-inducing advertisement, posted around New York City, warning that too much sugary soda will give you diabetes and cause you to lose limbs has come under scrutiny because the amputee in the poster lost his leg due to Photoshop, not diabetes.
The poster, a product of Michael Bloombergs health crusade in the city, depicts an obese man with a missing leg and warns that growing portions, specifically of soda, can cause type 2 diabetes and subsequent amputations.
First of all, the best way to gain weight is the combination of carbohydrates and fats.
However, if you are overweight, eating little or no carbohydrates, and a lot of protein and fat, and you will likely lose a lot of weight.
A high carbohydrate and low fat diet can be very bad for your health, possibly creating a fatty liver, high triglycerides, etc.
Coconut oil is a rarity, in that it is a medium chain triglyceride, which is absorbed directly and does not have to take the extensive route that most fats and oils do to be digested. It is very useful for people who have a hard time with their digestion of fats and oils.
Oddly enough, while it is good way to generate heat in the body, it is hard for it to be converted to white body fat, and may contribute to its metabolic use.
Another factor is the "Omega balance". Omega-6 factor is common in our diets, but needs to be balanced with Omega-3 (fish oil) factor for optimal digestion and use of blood triglycerides. Importantly, of the two factors within Omega-3, called EPA and DHA, the latter is the most desirable, enough so that it is now sold separately. (Not to be confused with DHEA, which is an entirely different substance.)
Most recently, it was discovered that raw foods are much more difficult to digest, and far lower in their nutritional value, than cooked foods. So much so that it is difficult to survive eating just raw foods, and those who live on raw food diets are prone to malnutrition.
It also means that food calorie tables based on proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, are incorrect, being based on incineration of food in calorimeters, not digestion.
#7
Your metabolism converts to burn fats and protein since there are no carbs to burn. Also, since you are not processing carbs, you don't need as much water in your system, so a lot of the initial weight loss is due to peeing out this now unnecessary water, and not actually losing as much fat as you might incorrectly infer.
#8
It's the "meat eaters" or Atkins diet. As long as you eat under 40 grams of carbs a day, you can eat as much meat and fat as you want, and still lose weight.
There's about a 2 week start time on the diet until the liver loses enough stored glycogen for the state of ketosis to kick in. At that point, not having glycogen to burn, the body starts consuming fatty acids, and you start losing fat weight, not muscle.
Done properly, an overweight person can shed a lot of pounds fairly quickly, but if they start eating carbs again, they will put it right back on.
One problem is called the "carb werewolf", in that once you have been on the diet for a while, and you eat some carbs, you can't stop yourself from overeating them.
A trick is to also have a half teaspoon of cinnamon twice a day, because it has an ingredient that normalizes blood sugar levels, preventing peaks and valleys that cause hunger.
#11
I don't believe in diets, most are b.s. - if you maintain clean eating habits say 6 days a week -i.e. - fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and clean proteins that is (IMHO) 75% of the battle, the other 20% is consistent and results oriented exercise, 5% is genetics. Just my experience but the food closest to the source is generally better. I generally abstain from sugary or fried foods during the week - not because of the b.s. heart issues but because of the mass amount of calories and little ROI nutrition wise. If you look at your body as a performance car it kind of makes sense. However, I do go "carb werewolf" one day a week & it doesn't sink my progress. I usually eat pretty much whatever I want on Saturday (hey, ya gotta enjoy life and the occasional krispy kreme!) and eat clean the rest of the week, this works for me (pushing 40, still run a high first class PFT/CFT and 21 lbs under my weight max) but certainly might not work everyone.
#1
According to an Australian buddy, the precipitating incident, which is missing from this story, was a survey by University of Western Australia sociology Professor Farida Fozdar that essentially claimed flying the Aussie flag on Australia Day was a racist act. (yeah, I'm paraphrasing, but that seems to be the impression people got)
As most of readers know, foreign travelers abroad can be beset by emergencies and calamities that simply cannot be anticipated.
Such was the case for Mick Bryan, 61, and his wife, Jacqueline, 43, who were traveling in Tanzania in recent days and had just celebrated Jacqueline's birthday. Subsequently, after pulling up to a campsite to have lunch, a swarm of bees suddenly converged on both of them, at which point Mick Bryan warned his wife to run.
Tragically, Mick Bryan was stunk multiple times and died shortly after being bitten. Although Jacqueline was stung as well, she was able to summon help from a nearby road. British diplomats in Tanzania are assisting Mrs. Bryan with arrangements. Get tested by an allergy specialist to see if you're vulnerable. Anaphylactic shock is a deadly condition for 3% of us.
[An Nahar] Russia said Wednesday it was "open to constructive proposals" on Syria but remained opposed to any U.N. resolution that tried to force all nations to respect sanctions previously imposed by the West.
"We are open to constructive proposals that go in line with the set task of ending violence," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said following talks with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu.
His comments came as Russian and U.S. officials held talks in Moscow on ways to stop nearly 10 months of violence in Syria that the United Nations ...an organization whose definition of human rights is interesting, to say the least... estimates has killed more than 5,400 people.
Lavrov said there was no need to draft new resolutions on Syria because Russia was ready to amend its previous draft that blames both the Syrian government and the opposition for the use of force.
But he insisted that Russia would not back U.N. action granting the global body's approval to economic sanctions that the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... and the United States have already adopted against Moscow's traditional ally.
"We will not be able to back proposals under which unilaterally imposed sanctions against Syria -- sanctions that were declared without any consultations with Russia or China ... are blessed retroactively," said Lavrov.
"This is simply unfair and counterproductive."
Any resolution backed by Russia "must firmly record that it cannot be used or interpreted to justify anyone's outside military intervention in the Syria crisis," he added.
Russia and China both blocked a previous Western attempt to have the U.N. Security Council formally condemn Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Before going into the family business Pencilneck was an eye doctor... 's crackdown and impose stiff sanctions if he refuses to enter direct talks.
Moscow has since further angered the West by continuing to sell arms to its Soviet-era ally and recently striking a new deal to supply small fighter jets to Assad's regime.
But U.S. officials have voiced optimism that new meetings with Russian officials held at both the U.N. headquarters in New York and in Moscow will eventually lead to a compromise.
The U.S. embassy said U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman and Special Coordinator Fred Hof held meetings in Moscow on Wednesday "with a particular focus on recent events in Syria.
"We agreed today to continue close U.S.-Russian coordination on Syria in the weeks ahead."
Lavrov for his part said Russia was open to the idea of hosting direct talks between the opposition and Assad's government.
"We will welcome any choice (of venue) suiting all sides. If the opposition does not want to travel to Damascus ...The City of Jasmin is the oldest continuously-inhabited city in the world. It has not always been inhabited by the same set of fascisti... , then this could be Cairo ... Turkey or the territory of the Russian Federation," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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[Dawn] The Wah Saddar police on Tuesday claimed to have tossed in the calaboose two would-be jacket wallahs and recovered two suicide jackets along with arms and ammunition from their possession.
Subdivisional Police Officer Raja Taifoor Akhter while speaking at a presser identified the tossed in the calaboose suspects as Usman Liaquat alias Tayyab and Saqib Shah alias Hamza. The two, who were nabbed near Brahama interchange, were stated to be members of a banned outfit. The official said four hand grenades, two Kalashnikovs and 200 bullets were also recovered from them.
During preliminary interrogation, the accused said they got military training in a camp run by Taliban in Wazoo and were planning to strike sensitive installations in the area.
He said the accused had been handed over to a joint investigation team in Rawalpindi for further interrogation after registration of a case against them.
It may be recalled that over 70 persons were killed and 120 others injured in two suicide kabooms in the city on August 21, 2008.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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#1
Happy Birthday/Daily Gam Shot
Joan Leslie aka Mary Cohan in "Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)" aka Gracie Williams in "Sergeant York (1941)" aka Eileen Dibble in "This Is the Army (1943)" aka Velma in "High Sierra (1941)" aka Julie Adams in "Rhapsody in Blue (1945)" aka Donna Foster in "Born to Be Bad (1950)" aka Lt. Polly Davis in "Flight Nurse (1953)" aka Annalee Johnson in "The Revolt of Mamie Stover (1956)" (age 87)
[An Nahar] New Zealand police said Tuesday they were shocked at the number of mothers they found breastfeeding babies while driving along motorways in the country's largest city Auckland.
Police said they stopped three breastfeeding drivers this month while carrying out a 10-day operation aimed at ensuring children were properly restrained in vehicles.
"They were each driving a vehicle on the motorway. They were stopped and spoken to," Inspector Shanan Gray said, stressing that the practice placed both mother and child "in an extremely dangerous situation".
"If they had to stop their vehicle suddenly, or they were involved in a serious crash, the infant would surely be ejected from the vehicle," he said.
Gray said police were also stunned at the number of children being transported in car boots (trunks).
He said the number of children found to be at risk during the operation was "extremely disappointing".
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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#1
And for safety's sake, guys, make sure your girlfriend/wife is doing the driving while breastfeeding.
#5
What is the proper road etiquette? Do you slow to the speed limit when you take your baby in and out of the car seat? Also, does the baby get in the way when you go to beep the horn?
Posted by: Super Hose ||
01/26/2012 18:38
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OK, the breastfeeding while driving is a little weird, but the part that gets me is: police were also stunned at the number of children being transported in car boots
[Daily Nation (Kenya)] Assassins have rubbed out a former big shot of Al-Qaeda in Iraq who defected from the bully boy network and sided with US forces, officials said on Wednesday.
The murder of Mullah Nadim al-Juburi, 34, came after he made remarks on Iraqi television of how the organization's front group, the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), had made key changes to its leadership.
"We feared such an incident would occur," said Amr Khuzaie, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's adviser on national reconciliation, told AFP.
"Mullah Nadhim al-Juburi and others took the risk of being killed, but that will not prevent us from continuing to work with anyone who wants to rebuild the country."
Juburi, who worked in the national reconciliation commission, was killed on Tuesday night while driving in the west Storied Baghdad ...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate... neighbourhood of Mansur, police in the capital said.
A vehicle in front of him slowed down, forcing his car also to slow while a second vehicle pulled up alongside his and gunnies opened fire using silenced weapons.
"He worked with us (in the national reconciliation commission) after becoming aware of the crimes of Al-Qaeda," said Khuzaie, who blamed the ISI and supporters of executed dictator Saddam Hussein's Baath Party for Juburi's murder.
Juburi sparked the ire of hard boyz last week when he appeared on television to give details about changes to the ISI's operational structure in the leadership and in south Iraq, and provided the names of those in charge.
On the Honein jihadist Internet forum, several messages on Sunday had warned that Juburi's "days are numbered."
Juburi was the leader of ISI's fighters in Duluiyah, a predominantly Sunni town 90 kilometres (55 miles) north of Storied Baghdad, before cutting ties with the group in May 2008 and siding with US forces.
He then became a leader of the Sahwa, comprised of Sunni tribal militias that turned away from Al-Qaeda from late 2006 onwards, helping turn the tide of Iraq's violent insurgency.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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#1
'...He [al-juburi] then became a leader of the Sahwa, comprised of Sunni tribal militias..."
So this might just be a Shiite killing of a Sunni big shot.
Posted by: Lord Garth ||
01/26/2012 18:31
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Pudgy is distributing free food in an attempt placate an increasingly angry population. Pudgy is even tapping the military food reserves. Meanwhile, back at the ranch
As more North Korea refugees show up south of the DMZ, southerners find their history being reinterpreted. The northerners see leftist South Koreans, who supported the establishment of a communist government in South Korea, as traitors to democracy. Guess you gotta hit rock-bottom before you see the truth.
Even the elites are suffering as things spiral down the toilet. For example, apartment buildings put up in the last decade in the capital suffered from cheap materials, sloppy work and poor quality control. Now the heating and sanitation systems are failing, making the apartments uninhabitable in the cold weather. There is no money or material available for repairs. What do you do when you run out of duct tape?
Posted by: Mike Ramsey ||
01/26/2012
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#1
He hasn't learned the dictator's paradox, that their only tool is deprivation and brutality, not generosity and kindness. The latter are seen as weakness.
#4
Someday the North will cave in with a giant noise and the smell of bark and grass fed flatus ... and every jounalist in the world will be able to say that they predicted it. (Except the ones in North Korea of course.)
Posted by: Super Hose ||
01/26/2012 17:59
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[An Nahar] Outgoing Russian President Dmitry Medvedev suffered a rude jolt Wednesday when a student asked him if he was ready to stand trial for decisions taken during his rule and even face execution like ousted Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.
The youth challenged Medvedev during a meeting with students, asking if he would shoulder the blame for protests that erupted over a planned job-swap which will see his mentor Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ...Second President of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Because of constitutionally mandated term limits he is the current Prime Minister of Russia. His sock puppet, Dmitry Medvedev, was installed in the 2008 presidential elections. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law. During his eight years in office Russia's economy bounced back from crisis, seeing GDP increase, poverty decrease and average monthly salaries increase. During his presidency Putin passed into law a series of fundamental reforms, including a flat income tax of 13%, a reduced profits tax, and new land and legal codes. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile... run for the presidency.
"An acute, revolutionary situation is now brewing in the country. Are you ready to face responsibility?" journalism student Vladimir Polyakov demanded. "Do you realize that you could even be condemned to death? Are you ready to take it bravely just like Saddam Hussein did or will you emigrate to friendly North Korea?"
Saddam was captured by U.S. troops in December 2003 and hanged in December 2006 after being convicted of crimes against humanity.
The job-swap announcement, which will see Medvedev become prime minister upon Putin's planned return to the Kremlin after a March 4 presidential vote, triggered a wave of protests unseen in Russia since the turbulent 1990s.
Medvedev appeared to make light of the student's question, saying he did not see any reasons for a revolution in Russia and that he was not afraid of anything.
"You probably asked the most courageous question of your life," he quipped. Quip?
The student, who held a sign reading "Responsibility", kept pressing Medvedev, asking him whether he was ready to die for his ideals.
"If you need a precise answer: of course, I am ready to die for my ideals," the Kremlin chief replied tersely.
Many observers, including his one-time supporters, have accused Medvedev, who had in the past openly spoken about his ambitions to run for a second term, of giving up power too easily and letting down his backers.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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#1
Putin quietly arranged for the student to be served as a nice light lunch.
Posted by: Water Modem ||
01/26/2012 1:28
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"...A crown (sometimes referred to as a phylactery), is placed upon the dead layman's head. This consists of a strip of paper upon which the Trisagion is written, and sometimes an icon of the Deesis is printed on it as well. A small icon of Christ, the Theotokos or the deceased's patron saint is placed in the right hand; or, alternately, a cross.
"After the clothing of the deceased, the priest sprinkles the coffin with holy water on all four sides, and the deceased is placed in the coffin. Then the wake begins immediately. Often, an Orthodox casket will have a solid lid which is removable. The lid, with a large cross on it, is often placed outside the front door of the house as a sign that the house is in mourning, and to invite all who pass by to pray for the deceased and give comfort to the bereaved."
#4
Putin quietly arranged for the student to be served as a nice light lunch.
Yes, son, another helping of polonium-210?
Posted by: jack salami ||
01/26/2012 11:42
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The job-swap announcement, which will see Medvedev become prime minister upon Putin's planned return to the Kremlin after a March 4 presidential vote
The decision has already been made. We just have to get the ballot boxes ready for that decision.
#6
I would not underestimate the youth. So much anger. They must deliver peace and stronger economic future. The demands and expectations are very high. It will be very difficult for any government to manage. They have all the social problems, perhaps more than their fair share. I see a greater potential interaction with Europe and the West. I see an opportunity but with this current administration nothing is being done.
#7
If Putin was Sadaam, then Medvedev would be Tariq Aziz. Fortunately, Putin is not Saddam.
Saddam was actually a tin pot dictator masquerading as Joseph Stalin. Saddam was Saruman. Saddam only filled 400k in his mass unmarked graves. Pol Pot killed way more. Sure he is probably top 10 - scoring extra points for putting his serial rapist son in charge of the Iraqi Olympic Team.
Putin is way down the list or this kid would be hiding in his basement hoping to last the next purge. Nobody accosted Joseph Stalin while wearing a stupid sign. Tank Man spoke truth to power. This kid is the Russian equivalent to a Truther. That is not to say that Putin is good. If the kid was a serious threat, he would still be in trouble. A Russian version of Joe the Plumber is pretty unlikely.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
01/26/2012 20:19
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"All-girl Russian punk band rages against Putin"
is on Drudge tonight. I think the band stinks but many more bands and groups exist. This is one eample but look at some of the others.
(CBS/AP) One year ago, the Arab Spring arrived in Egypt. In just 18 days, protesters forced out the president of 30 years, Hosni Mubarak ...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011...
The military now rules Egypt, but promises a transition to civilian rule. Religious and secular groups are now vying for power.
On the revolution's anniversary, they were back on the streets of Cairo for the biggest rally since the uprising. CBS News correspondent Clarissa Ward reports they streamed into Tahrir Square by the tens of thousands, with an endless sea of Egyptian flags.
Supporters of the Moslem Brüderbund dominated the square. Banned under Mubarak, the Islamist party won a majority in recent parliamentary elections. Still intoxicated by the hard-won freedom to speak their minds, many held banners ridiculing the former president.
But not everyone in Cairo was celebrating. In one of the many marches out protesting Wednesday, you could hear the people chanting over and over, "Down with the military regime," as they marched to Tahrir Square.
Activists claim that nearly 100 protestors have been killed by security forces since the military took power when Mubarak's regime fell.
While the military says it will step down after presidential elections in June, many here, including activist Khaled Mansour, are not so sure.
While Egyptians may be better off now than they were with Mubarak, Mansour said that's not the point.
"This is a revolution," Mansour said. "We don't want to compromise. We have demands and we have and we dream of a big, a free country, a democratic country."
Wait until your country runs out of bread...
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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#1
Instead of crops and water. Think using that stuff behind the dam might be a good idea? Also, stocking up on food and guns for when it hits the fan?
Posted by: Water Modem ||
01/26/2012 1:20
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[Bangla Daily Star] Former secretary of industries ministry Shoeb Ahmed yesterday said that Motiur Rahman Nizami ...During the liberation war of 1971, Nizami formed the Al-Badr Force and acted as its supreme commander. The Al-Badr militia took active part in rape, extortion, looting and killing of Bangladeshis who supported the liberation, including a pre-planned massacre on December 14, 1971, when the Al-Badr militia along with Pakistan Army rounded up hundreds of doctors, professors, writers, and other Bengali intellectuals, and executed them... knew about the arms haul incident before he passed on the information to Nizami.
Shoeb said this to a Chittagong court while giving his deposition in connection with the 10-truck arms haul cases.
In reply to a question of defence lawyer Mohsin Uddin Talukder, Shoeb said that he talked to the then industries minister Nizami on April 4, 2004, after being informed of the incident by the chairman of Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) on April 2.
Nizami also talked to the highest authority of the government about the arms haul, he said.
"What do you think haven't I [Nizami] informed the prime minister and home minister about the matter?" Shoeb said quoting Nizami.
The former industries secretary also said that when he informed Nizami about newspaper reports involving the ministry of industries with the arms haul incident, and requested him to conduct an investigation, Nizami replied that law enforcement agencies are probing the matter.
The industries ministry need not launch an investigation separately, Nizami added.
When the defence lawyer asked Shoeb whether the minister gave any written instructions on the matter, he replied if the minister concerned says that he conveyed the information to the prime minister what else a secretary can do.
Earlier, the defence lawyer cross-examined Shoeb.
During the cross-examination, Shoeb told the court that he directed the then BCIC chairman to give a detailed report on the whole incident immediately on April 2.
The BCIC chairman could not submit the report on April 2 and April 3 as those were Friday and Saturday--the government holidays.
The BCIC chairman told him that he would inform him about the whole matter on Sunday, Shoeb said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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[An Nahar] Around 30 gunnies rained bombs and gunfire on a cop shoppe in Kano, killing a woman in the latest attack blamed on Islamist group Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. Currently wearing a false nose and moustache and answering to Jama'atu Ahlus-Sunnah Lidda'Awati Wal Jihad, or Big Louie... in Nigeria's second city, residents said.
The northern city has lived in fear amid continued chaos since a coordinated wave of attacks after Moslem prayers on Friday killed at least 185 people, Boko Haram's deadliest ever onslaught.
The converged on the station from two different directions on cycle of violences and in a Mercedes car late Tuesday, witnesses said.
The gunnies "were just telling people to move away, they were just here to do their work. They just opened fire on the cop shoppe," a resident who requested anonymity told Agence La Belle France Presse on Wednesday.
The station, in Kano's densely populated Sheka area, was heavily damaged in the attack: its windows were shattered, the walls were smoke-stained and blood had covered nearly the entire bathroom floor, according to AFP news hounds.
The holding cells at the back of the station had been opened.
A purported front man for Boko Haram has said last week's attacks were in response to a refusal by the authorities to release incarcerated members of the group from custody.
A huge crowd had gathered outside the station on Wednesday, surveying the wreckage after the assault that also injured at least one policeman, according to witnesses.
No police were in sight, just neighborhood youths trying to control the crowd.
"A policeman was shot in the leg. A woman who came to see a policeman was shot in the stomach. She died," the same resident told AFP, adding that the woman was standing outside the station's gate and talking to the officer when she was shot.
Residents said the attackers hurled two bombs at the station before opening fire.
"It was around 6:30 pm (1730 GMT) when people were preparing for the evening prayers and a large group of gunnies arrived in the area and opened fire on the cop shoppe and threw in bombs," one witness said.
Kano, an ancient Moslem city of 4.5 million, had hitherto beat feet the increasingly sophisticated attacks blamed on Boko Haram, a group that has said it wants to create an Islamic state in northern Nigeria, and which some believe has Al-Qaeda ties.
Mali's Foreign Minister Boubeye Maiga said Tuesday there was a "confirmed link" between Boko Haram and al-Qaeda's North Africa franchise, at a security meeting of Sahel states in Mauritania also attended by Nigeria.
At checkpoints set up across Kano on Wednesday security forces were stopping vehicles and ordering drivers to open their car's boot for inspection.
The army was manning the checkpoints in the Christian neighborhood of Sabon Gari, while the local police were in charge elsewhere, AFP correspondents said.
Security forces have also imposed a strict sundown curfew across the city.
All of Kano's banks have been closed since Friday and some residents complained that their businesses will collapse if they cannot access cash soon. A group of 30 people had crowded around one bank, where an ATM was still dispensing money, according to AFP news hounds.
Earlier on Tuesday, gunfire erupted when security forces raided a house suspected to be a Boko Haram hideout shortly after midnight.
They opened fire and a suspect fired back, resulting in a shootout lasting around four-and-half hours and sending residents into panic.
According to Human Rights Watch ... dedicated to bitching about human rights violations around the world... , Boko Haram has killed more than 935 people since the group -- whose name can be loosely translated as "Western education is sin" -- launched a violent campaign in July 2009.
More than 250 of those deaths have come in 2012 alone.
President Goodluck Jonathan ... 14th President of Nigeria. He was Governor of Bayelsa State from 9 December 2005 to 28 May 2007, and was sworn in as Vice President on 29 May 2007. Jonathan is a member of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP). He is a lover of nifty hats, which makes him easily recognizable unless someone else in the room is wearing a neat chapeau... has vowed to beef up security as he grapples with the worst crises of his nine-month tenure -- a surge in Boko Haram attacks and mounting social discontent.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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Algerian authorities have broken up an Al Qaeda plot to launch explosive-laden speedboats in suicide strikes on U.S. ships in the Mediterranean Sea, a U.S. official confirmed.
The planned attack by North Africa's Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb mirrored the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole, which killed 17 American sailors.
"The U.S. was aware of the plot, which looks right now like it was in the early stages, but the Algerians deserve the credit for the arrests," said the U.S. official, who spoke to the Daily News on condition of anonymity.
Algerian newspaper Echorouk reported Tuesday that the three-person AQIM cell had purchased a boat with a powerful engine to be used in an attack.
The group planned to strike U.S. and European vessels off the northeastern coast of Algeria, but the exact targets would be selected by the doomed attackers, Echorouk reported.
The group's broader goals were media attention and paralysis of the Algerian economy, according to the newspaper.
Algerian authorities uncovered the plot after reports that the cell's three members frequented internet cafes and viewed jihadist websites using phony names, Echorouk reported.
The Al Qaeda affiliate has waged a guerilla war against Algeria's government for close to a decade, carrying out ambushes, bombings and kidnappings-for-ransom.
In separate news, at a regional conference Tuesday, Malian Foreign Minister Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga said there was a "confirmed link" between AQIM and Nigerian Islamist sect Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. Currently wearing a false nose and moustache and answering to Jama'atu Ahlus-Sunnah Lidda'Awati Wal Jihad, or Big Louie... , Agence La Belle France-Presse reported.
Hopefully a follow-up report will reveal whether the three men were arrested or killed, and who they were contacting using the internet cafe computers.
[Al Ahram] US President Barack Obama My friends, we live in the greatest nation in the history of the world. I hope you'll join with me as we try to change it... 's Republican foes listened mostly stone-faced to what they hoped would be his last State of the Union speech, then raced for the exits while he was still shaking hands.
Many Democrats didn't stick around either on Tuesday evening, and the House of Representatives was mostly -- and unusually -- empty by the time he was done receiving praise from cabinet members seated near the front of the chamber and began moving up the thin ranks of well-wishers flanking its main aisle.
The speech got off to an inauspicious start when the sergeant-at-arms tasked with announcing Obama's arrival did so apparently unaided by a microphone, his shout all but drowned out in the steady pre-speech buzz of chatting politicians.
And even before the embattled Democratic president had spoken a word, news hounds' email in-boxes overflowed with canned statements responding to the prime-time address with praise or scorn.
One of those commenting hours before Obama stood before the politicians in a time-honoured political ritual insisted that he had listened to the speech with "an open mind."
There were flickers of bipartisan truce: The chamber erupted in applause and shone with affectionate smiles as Democratic Representative Gabrielle Giffords slowly walked onto the floor to join her colleagues.
Giffords -- who plans to step down this week to focus on her recovery from an liquidation attempt last year in which she was shot in the head -- got a standing ovation from the crowd and a bear hug from Obama.
Lawmakers from both parties also applauded First Lady Michelle Obama, US troops, the death of the late Osama bin Laden ... who has left the building... , US workers, putting the unemployed back to work, equal pay for women, keeping Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, ties to Israel, and banning insider trading by members of Congress.
And they united in a mild chorus of stifled laughter mixed with groans when Obama attempted the sole joke of his 7,000-word speech, a comment about rolling back a four-decade rule requiring farmers to spend $10,000 to prove that they could contain a milk spill.
"With a rule like that, I guess it was worth crying over spilled milk," quipped Obama.
Republicans twice roared their approval, once when Obama quoted Republican president Abraham Lincoln's call for limited government, another when he called for an "all-of-the-above" approach to energy.
Obama often reached far beyond his immediate audience to court voters and engage the Republican presidential candidates who have spent months hammering his administration on the campaign trail.
Former Massachusetts governor and multi-millionaire Mitt Romney ...whose real first name is actually, no kidding, Willard, was governor of Massachussetts and is currently the front-runner for president on the Publican ticket. He is the son of the former governor of Michigan, George Romney, who himself ran for president after saving American Motors from failure, though not permanently. Romney's foot is in an ideological bucket because of Romneycare, a state-level experiment that should have been a warning against Obamacare if anyone had been paying attention. Romney's charisma is best defined as soporific, which is probably why he is leading the Publican field... has denounced the president's call for higher taxes on the richest Americans as "class warfare" fed by "envy" and enmity to "free enterprise."
Obama said: "You can call this class warfare all you want. But asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary in taxes? Most Americans would call that common sense."
"We don't begrudge financial success in this country. We admire it. When Americans talk about folks like me paying my fair share of taxes, it's not because they envy the rich," he added.
Romney has also accused Obama of crippling the US military and putting the United States on a course for national decline.
"America is back," Obama shot back. "Anyone who tells you otherwise, anyone who tells you that America is in decline or that our influence has waned, doesn't know what they're talking about."
"America remains the one indispensable nation in world affairs, and as long as I'm president, I intend to keep it that way," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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"America remains the one indispensable nation in world affairs, and as long as I'm president, I intend to keep it that way," he said.
Indispensible for all UN and trans-nazi schemes, that is. But hogtied when it comes to defending our national interests.
#6
I had the, uhem, pleasure of watching the (replay) SOU.
Some observations the talking crowd failed to mention.
First, it was perhaps the most militant address I have witnessed; 2002 made sense, but with things supposedly winding down and cuts to defense apparently inevitable there was a lot of call to service of the government going on: We will force you to complete school until 18, follow the example of the armed forces, and allusions to the civil defense force in order to secure government programs.
Second, I kept hearing the song We're Bringing Sexy Back during the most impassioned part of the speech, which was well delivered for the first third.
Third, his having flashbacks during the Operation No Brainer was a bit infuriating, like Hillary!s sniper story. I've been through the book Nightstalkers, I found that part almost a bit condencending.
And during the energy part I believe "Stand Up" Joe caughed what sounded like a *caugh bullshit caugh*, seemed purely accidental yet strangly appropriate, took The Man out of rhythm as he tried to figure out who behind him caughed and why.
As far as content, I'll let the experts talk about that, the rebute was great. His joke was a joke, like that counts as reigning in the EPA where real people spend real time and real money to come to real and expanded regs.
People need to recognize that the natural expansion of this whole narrative is an expansion of estate taxes, nevermind such suggestions as equal profit boards, yes death panals, and other equalization sporting measures.
And piss on a guy who thinks that by simply putting on a uniform does the trick. I am a volunteer firefighter, part of the 75%, and have come across plenty of jackwagons, and well intentioned, who have no business there. It is a culture. It is work. It is dedication. It is training. It is a mindset. It is sacrifice. It is love. People who do not have that are damn near a liability, at best a gopher. I probably wipe more soot from my eyes in 30 minutes than this classroom extrodinaire has ever had under his fingernails. It remminds me of the Greensburg Tornado, when my buddies were calling me and asking what can I do, I said don't come you would be in the way you have no mindset. I'm not some bad-ass, but that stuff is not for everyone, so forcing people into such role would just quite simply be debacle.
Now I got some rich guy on TV, broadcasting from Switzerland, telling me that it makes no difference whether somebody pays 20% or 60% or such and it makes no difference to start-up business, well that is total crap. It makes all the difference, because running a good business is not for everyone, it is a culture, it is tough, and if there is no reward for basically making it your life plus family from 3am to 9pm, plus travel and worry, then that middle class of dedicated (point, not those who cannot help but explore and on the other end those who are in essence peter princible) who generate that energy will eventually say F@ it. And I thought that before familiar with who John Galt is. Went to a deally recently, gov deal, opening joke was "I'm from the government and I'm here to help".
#12
#9 Sorry to hear of the dog, but at least he doesn't have to suffer the 11 months of Obama's Presidential Re-Election Misery tour. Now that is the horse shit I am going to dread. Witnessing a failed President running for re-election.
#14
SOTU has always been Kabuki theater. Debates with pre-approved questions and other rules and stipulations to make them canned are lame as well. I would tune in to watch Newt give one if that ever happens. He may not prove to be viable as a candidate, but he might give a State of the Union off the cuff. There is no telling what bombs he might throw. It would be interesting to see Gingrich, Rumsfelt and Cheney perform in the debates that are more a part of British and Canadian parliamentary procedures.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
01/26/2012 20:55
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[Dawn] The United States Agency for International Development will continue its support for economic and social development of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... and Federally Administered Tribal Areas.
This assurance was given by Andrew Sisson, the USAid's mission director in Pakistain, while speaking at a ceremony at Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) here on Tuesday. He said that the agency had spent $500 million on development and economic growth in the KP and Fata during the past few years.
"We are making a major investment in the KP and Fata," said Mr Sisson, adding that his organization in collaboration with the government, Fata authorities and business community was making efforts to achieve development of the two areas.
Earlier, Senior Minister Bashir Bilour emphasised the need for the US to do more for the economic development of KP.
Bilour, the USAid official, and minister for industries Ahmed Hussain Shah, in their speeches at the ceremony, attached significance to achieving economic growth by promoting industrial and tourism sectors.
"Poverty is the cause of terrorism and not the religious extremism," said Bilour while pressing for sustained industrial growth and tourism development to drive the engine of economic growth in the province.
The USAid-funded 'Vision Document for Tourism Sector of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa' and 'Vision Document for Industries and Manufacturing Sector of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa' were officially unveiled at the chamber.
Bilour said that tourism required the most attention as the province had a large number of serene and attractive places with a vast potential to draw foreign and domestic tourists.
He said that the southern districts of the province had huge reserves of natural gas that could not attract much foreign investment because of the bad security situation. He said that the government was trying to improve the security situation and make the province attractive for foreign investors.
The provincial industries minister talked about his department's under-execution schemes seeking industrial growth in the province. He said that his department would benefit from the SCCI's vision document for the preparation of industrial policy of the province.
In his presentation on the industrial vision document, Nauman Wazir, a local industrialist, said that it was aimed at achieving a double digit industrial growth in the province in next three years with the constant support of the government.
Mohammad Ali, general manager Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Tourism Corporation, unveiling the tourism sector's vision document 2025, said that the provincial government had already started implementing a tourism promotion strategy. He, however, asked for a continued technical and financial support from the USAid to fully implement the vision document.
In his remarks, the SCCI president Afan Aziz urged the provincial ministers present on the occasion to help the chamber in implementation of the framework for the industrial growth. He asked for the continuation of expertise by the USAid, adding "we need doable and identifiable projects."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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#1
Great! Install a few million more wireless cameras feeding the drone links...
Posted by: Water Modem ||
01/26/2012 1:21
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[Bangla Daily Star] The father of Ishraq Ahmed, an alleged key planner of the recent foiled attempt to topple the government, learnt of the involvement of his son in the conspiracy days before the army disclosed the plot.
MA Rakib still does not believe, though, that Ishraq was in any way involved in the plot.
"Although I do not use Internet, I came to know from my relatives and acquaintances before it was made public [through an army presser] that my son was involved in the coup," Rakib told The Daily Star in Naogaon on Monday.
"I didn't believe it. It's merely propaganda," Rakib said about his reaction after hearing about his son's involvement in the plot.
Even though Rakib did not pay any heed to the information he had from relatives, he stopped keeping contact with his son.
"I know that he is fine," said Rakib, a presidium member of the National Awami Party (Nap-Mozaffar).
Asked whether he had tried to stop Ishraq after learning of the facts, Rakib avoided a direct answer. "Every individual is governed by his or her own conscience. Ishraq is now 60. He is doing what he thinks to be good," he observed.
Ishraq took up a rifle in hand during the Liberation War in 1971 and he never retreated from his belief his -- power comes from the barrel of a gun, said the father.
Shahriar Kabir, executive president of Ekattorer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee, said Ishraq was undoubtedly a freedom fighter. "But it's no big deal for a freedom fighter turning into a criminal. All killers of the Father of the Nation were freedom fighters," he pointed out.
Contacted over phone, Kabir, also a journalist and writer, said he knew Ishraq well. "He used to visit the Weekly Bichitra office in Dhaka. I always avoided him as his movements were suspicious."
Rakib said Ishraq was termed beyadob (impudent) in Jahanara Imam's Ekattorer Dinguli for his frequent smoking habit in front of her.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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#1
D *** NG IT, PAKISTAN + BANGLA SHOULD HEAD ON OER TO PAPUA NEW GUINEA IFF THEY WANNA LEARN HOW TO DO A COUP RIGHT!
[Al Ahram] Nigerian troops have withdrawn from the streets of the commercial capital Lagos following a public outcry over their deployment in the wake of mass fuel protests, a front man said Wednesday.
"The soldiers have left Lagos. Their withdrawal was approved by the military authorities," military front man Colonel Mohammed Yerima told AFP, adding that the pullback took place on Tuesday.
Earlier this month, armoured tanks and hundreds of soldiers had deployed to trouble spots in Lagos, the country's largest city with a population of around 15 million, to quell week-long protests over the removal of fuel subsidies.
On the deployment's first day, more than 100 soldiers cordoned off the main protest venue in downtown Lagos' Ojota neighbourhood.
Police also fired tear gas to disperse protesters while in one incident soldiers drove armoured cars into a surging crowd.
The move drew harsh criticism from prominent Nigerians, including Lagos state governor Babatunde Fashola and Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, who demanded the army immediately withdraw from central Lagos.
President Goodluck Jonathan ... 14th President of Nigeria. He was Governor of Bayelsa State from 9 December 2005 to 28 May 2007, and was sworn in as Vice President on 29 May 2007. Jonathan is a member of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP). He is a lover of nifty hats, which makes him easily recognizable unless someone else in the room is wearing a neat chapeau... set off a wave of protests when he abolished fuel subsidies on January 1, causing petrol prices to more than double.
A subsequent general strike locked the country down for several days and cost the regional powerhouse an estimated $1.3 billion (one billion euros). The government eventually agreed to a lesser price hike.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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Wouldn't the troops be more useful and effective up north crushing Boco Haram?
Posted by: Water Modem ||
01/26/2012 1:26
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#2
The Islamists are killing enough Christians without help from the military.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
01/26/2012 18:23
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Hackers brought down Sheeba Medical Center's website overnight Tuesday with a Denial of Service attack similar to those that brought down the El Al and Tel Aviv Stock Exchange websites last week, Israel Radio reported Wednesday.
The hackers also attempted to break into the hospital's computer system but its security measures were able to fend off the attack, according to the report.
[Dawn] Gunmen rubbed out three Shia Mohammedans on Wednesday in the southwestern city of Quetta , police and local intelligence officials said.
"Two gunnies riding a cycle of violence opened fire on a car in Quetta city, killing three Shia Mohammedans including two government officials and a local television artist," senior local police official, Muhammad Tariq told AFP.
He said it seemed like a sectarian attack, but the police had launched an investigation into the incident. A local intelligence official also confirmed the incident. No group has grabbed credit for the attack.
Hundreds of civilians have been killed since Baluch rebels rose up in 2004 against the federal Pak government, demanding political autonomy and a greater share of profits from the region's oil, gas and mineral resources.
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[An Nahar] U.S. President Barack Obama This is a teachable moment... said Tuesday that a peaceful resolution was still possible in the international showdown with Iran over its nuclear ambitions.
But Obama vowed in his annual State of the Union speech that he would "take no options off the table," including the military option, in preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
The world community has overcome its divisions and was now united on how to check Iran's nuclear ambitions, Obama told politicians from both chambers of the U.S. Congress, in remarks prepared for delivery.
"The regime is more isolated than ever before; its leaders are faced with crippling sanctions, and as long as they shirk their responsibilities, this pressure will not relent," Obama said.
"Let there be no doubt: America is determined to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, and I will take no options off the table to achieve that goal," the president declared.
"But a peaceful resolution of this issue is still possible," he said.
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#1
OTOH DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > CLOSURE OF PAK SUPPLY ROUTES COSTS US SIX TIMES MORE [for alternate = Northern route].
Costs the Fed up to US$104.0Milyuhn per month, up from the previous US$87.0Milyuhn before the closure.
and
* TOPIX, LUCIANNE > STRAIT OF HORMUZ [closure] IS NOT THE ONLY WAY IRAN CAN HARASS THE WEST.
Oil Price manipulations; + Regional, International Shia mass protests, MilTerr Proxies from the ME to Central Asia.
#2
TOPIX > IRAN WON'T BUILD A NUCLEAR WEAPON IN 2012, SAYS DRAFT ISIS REPORT. Think-tank.
Due to ...
> on-going international sanctions.
> lack of enough weapons-grade nucmats.
> fear of possible Israeli [US?] attack.
Given various MSM-Net Artics claiming that Iran already has enough nucmats for several Nukes, I'M INTERPRETING THIS ARTIC TO MEAN IRAN WON'T ADMIT OR DECLARE IT HAS NUCWEAPS IN 2012, NOT THAT IT DOESN'T OR CAN'T???
U.S. President Barack Obama surprised some observers by making no mention of North Korea in his State of the Union address on Tuesday. The Stalinist state has featured in one way or another in these addresses since Bill Clinton mentioned the North in January 1995 after Washington and Pyongyang signed the Geneva accords.
Doesn't baffle us. Bambi has no beef with Pudgy, he doesn't care about the South Koreans and the Japanese, and he's too weak to challenge the Chinese.
"To stop and roll back North Korea's potentially deadly nuclear program, we'll continue to implement the agreement we have reached with that nation. It's smart. It's tough. It's a deal based on continuing inspection with safeguards for our allies and ourselves," Clinton said.
Obama too mentioned the North in the last two years. In 2011 he said, "We... insist that North Korea keeps its commitment to abandon nuclear weapons." And a year earlier, he said, "Now, these diplomatic efforts have also strengthened our hand in dealing with those nations that insist on violating international agreements in pursuit of nuclear weapons. That's why North Korea now faces increased isolation, and stronger sanctions -- sanctions that are being vigorously enforced."
But this year he focused mainly on economic issues ahead of the presidential election in November. He did, however, talk tough about Iran. "Let there be no doubt: America is determined to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, and I will take no options off the table to achieve that goal."
No one, however, believes him...
Pundits speculate that the U.S. is trying to get North Korea back to the negotiating table following the death of leader Kim Jong-il using a flaccid softly-softly approach.
George W. Bush had the strongest words for Pyongyang in his State of the Union addresses. In 2002, Bush defined the North as part of an "axis of evil." In 2003, he called it an "oppressive regime" as well as an "outlaw regime." In 2004, he called it "the world's most dangerous regime." Only in his last address in 2008 did Bush not mention the North because an agreement reached in the six-party nuclear disarmament talks appeared to be making some progress.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/26/2012
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#1
Where oh where to begin ...
To wit,
* TOPIX > NORTH KOREA: KIM JONG-UN RESPONSIBLE FOR PAST NUCLEAR TESTING, as under late Big Daddy Kim Jong-Il.
Perhaps its just me, but I'm interpreting this life description of KJU by the DPRK as SSSSSHHHHHHH ... CCCCCCC agz China - among other, IIUC the DPRK is trying hard not to say it will directly or indirectly continue wid dev of its Nucprogs, ala IRAN???
* SAME > A "KOREAN SPRING"?
* SAME > POINT OF NO RETURN, for US-Allies [ + also Russia + China] as per Nuclearizing + increasingly MilPol-assertive North Korea + Iran.
Wehell ya know, it is "2012" after all.
* FREEREPUBLIC > [Asahi News] CHINESE TROOPS CAN REACH PYEONGYANG IN TWO HOURS.
I'm a'guessin these are exclusive of the 10-20,000 Chinese Security troops already repor there protecting the Kim family + Regime, espec from their fellow North Koreans.
* DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > NORTH KOREA SEEKS REVISION OF 1961 DEFENSE TREATY WID CHINA.
The NOKORS wanna change or revise a treaty-specified security clause mandating "automatic" PLA mil intervention in case of threat, to one where PLA mil intervention would first have to be formally "requested" by Pyongyang.
DE-LINKAGE.
versus
* ION CHINESE MILITARY FORUM > CHINA WILL EXPAND AIR SURVEILLANCE IN SEAS DISPUTED WID JAPAN | JAPAN'S AIRSPACE GETS MORE ATTENTION FROM CHINA.
* DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > CHINESE HELICOPTER CARRIER COMING SOON. The US has its "Gator Navy", so now cometh in time the mighty Chinese "Tiger/Panda Corps" Amphibs???
* SAME > INDIA CAN BUILD NUCLEAR-POWERED AIRCRAFT CARRIERS [ + other Nuke-powered Warships]. Indian Atomic Energy Commission Chair ANIL KAKADODHAR.
* SAME > SOUTH KOREAN STUDENTS [Middle, High School] RANK THEIR NATION'S GREATEST ENEMIES - JAPAN, NORTH KOREA, AMERICA [in that order], followed by China, then Russia.
* WORLD MIL FORUM > JAPAN WORRIED THAT SOUTH KOREA MAY BE ASSIMILATED INTO CHINA AFTER 20 YEARS, CHINESE LANGUAGE HAS REPLACED JAPANESE AS SOUTH KOREA'S "SECOND LANGUAGE".
* SAME > HERITAGE FOUNDATION STUDY: CHINA'S GROWING SPACE PROGRAM CAN BE HINDERED BY CONTINUING US AIR, NAVAL DOMINANCE IN ASIA-PACIFIC, DENIAL BY US OF STRATEGIC ISLANDS FOR CHINA'S SPACE VENTURES.
[HUGO "THE US HAS LAND-DESTROYING EARTHQUAKE BOMBS/WEAPONS" CHAVEZ; WWIII: DESTRUCTION OF THE BATTLESHIP "OKLAHOMA": CELINE DION'S THEME FROM "TITANIC" here].
#4
Baffles? He doesn't want to upset the "New" Regime. (Needs a sactuary)
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
01/26/2012 14:09
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#5
No one has instructed him as to what to say. Yet.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
01/26/2012 14:36
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#6
Actually, ignoring NK as much as possible is the best policy. As Joe points out (and to mix metaphors), China keeps playing playing chess with an incomplete deck. China's most powerful piece (the Crazed Bishop Kim Et Al) has become tiresome albiet tragically amusing (soon to be NK's offical motto --- tata?)(that, or e pluribus sputum, I forget).
Anyway, Bammer's policy of benign neglect (and carrying a big stick in the dead of night) has come to amuse one (nod to Sheldon) over the years.
Posted by: Gabby Cussworth, Man of a Thousand Nyms ||
01/26/2012 15:00
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#7
Except the stick Bumbles is carrying is more like a wet noodle...
#10
Let me tell ya, the Pakistanis are so impressed by Seal Team 6 they killed roughly 30 of them in the following months, in targeted payback for the raid.
#11
Anyway, my point was that I am amused at myself by being pleased with Bammer's occasional stopped-clock-style successes in foreign affairs, so to speak. To call him (and, by extension, the military) 100% wrong in every instance seems intellectually dishonest and ill-serves the nation and those who fight and die for it.
I did just make a New Year's resolution though: since I am a California Republican and my vote doesn't amount to Jack in the general election, I resolve to vote for Bammer in November, just to piss off the perpetually agrieved in Comments.
Posted by: Gabby Cussworth, Man of a Thousand Nyms ||
01/26/2012 17:15
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#12
But this year he focused mainly on economic issues ahead of the presidential election in November. He did, however, talk tough about Iran.
That because they polled well. North Korea isn't an election issue.
#13
Iran could attempt to shut the Straits of Hormuz which would be significant to America. NK will most likely conduct some equally numbskull operation that will require Americans to read about it in the paper. Fox News will go to DEFCON One for 48 hours. It may prick the American conscience depending on what Gingrich and Romney are saying about each other and whether the incursion occurs during Super Bowl coverage, March Madness or American Idol. Most likely NK will be treated like the really disgusting dog terd in our neighbor's yard - as an item of curiousity only if it is abnormally large or of abnormal color.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
01/26/2012 17:41
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#14
And remind people about how they talked their way out of war after the DD was sunk and village bombed? Trying to make President Action Star here.
[An Nahar] Six Pak soldiers and 17 Talibs were killed in an overnight clash in a northwestern tribal district near the Afghan border, officials said Wednesday.
Some 50 Taliban fighters attacked Pak troops during a search operation in Jogi village of central Kurram tribal district ...home of an intricately interconnected web of poverty, ignorance, and religious fanaticism, where the laws of cause and effect are assumed to be suspended, conveniently located adjacent to Tora Bora... late Tuesday, officials said.
"Six soldiers were killed and four injured in the clash. Troops repelled the attack and killed 17 Death Eaters," Sher Bahadar Khan, a local government official in Kurram told Agence La Belle France Presse.
The snuffies were Pak Taliban, he said.
A bigwig of Pakistain's paramilitary Frontier Corps confirmed the attack, and the casualties, and added that troops had taken control of the area.
Independent confirmation of the corpse count was not immediately possible as the lawless tribal region is barred for journalists .
In July last year, Pakistain launched an offensive in Kurram district to evict Islamist Death Eaters.
Troops are still engaged in a search and cordon operation after clearing most of the area.
Pakistain's seven tribal districts bordering Afghanistan are rife with a homegrown insurgency, and are also strongholds of the Afghan Taliban and al-Qaeda-linked Death Eaters.
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[Dawn] A security man was killed and two persons were maimed when a bomb, buried under the debris of a destroyed school, went off in Landi Kotal tehsil of Khyber Agency on Tuesday.
Officials said that a team of khasadar ...a rural policeman in Pakistain or India... s was sent to Sheikhmal Khel area on Tuesday morning to asses the damage done to a government primary school, targeted by Islamic fascistion the night between Monday and Tuesday.
During the inspection of the damaged building, an unwent kaboom! device buried under the debris went off, injuring three men including two khasadars.
One of the khasadars identified as Murtaza Khan departed this vale of tears while his colleague Waliullah and a local resident Abdullah were treated for their injuries in Landi Kotal hospital.
Two rooms, a veranda and a portion of the boundary wall were damaged in the kaboom. Nobody was present in the building at the time of the kaboom as schools in Landi Kotal have been closed for winter vacations.
Officials said that they started the paperwork but haven't done much else and started investigations. No one has so far grabbed credit for targeting the school. The incident is second of its type in Landi Kotal in less than a week.
Four days ago, unidentified Islamic fascistiblew up a government primary school near the Torkham border.
Officials of the education department said that number of schools destroyed in Khyber Agency had reached 57. Out of these schools 32 were targeted in Bara, 22 in Landi Kotal and four in Jamrud, depriving 16,000 children of education only in Bara tehsil.
Meanwhile, ...back at the bunker, his Excellency called a hurried meeting of his closest advisors. It was to be his last. They discussed the officers's efficiency rating system... the political administration paid cash compensation to the families of the two khasadars, who had bit the dust in an encounter with a gang of kidnappers in Jamrud on Monday.The families of Mir Mat and Yousaf were given Rs500,000 and Rs300,000 respectively. Other khasadars, who took part in the operation, were also awarded Rs200,000 by the political agent.
However, man does not live by words alone, despite the fact that sometimes he has to eat them... the compensation was awarded only after a protest demonstration by the relatives of the slain khasadars. Mir Mat's father Zar Mat Khan, also a khasadar, was killed in a suicide kaboom in Jamrud a year ago.In Swabi, unidentified Islamic fascistiblew up a CD shop in Razaar tehsil on Monday night.
The CD shop was destroyed completely when explosive went off in a market in Dagai village. Two other adjacent shops were also damaged. Police reached the area soon after the incident and collected evidence. Nobody was hurt in the incident.
In Lakki Marwat, a vehicle carrying workers of a project was partially damaged in a roadside blast on Tuesday evening.
An official said that an bomb planted alongside Lakki-Mianwali Road went off when the bus carrying PAEC workers reached near Chowkijand. "The workers were coming to Lakki city from the project site as usual," an official said.
He said that the kaboom occurred after the bus crossed the place where the bomb was planted. All the workers onboard remained safe.
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[Bangla Daily Star] BNP acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday said the Awami League-led government will be ousted from power through a mass uprising, not through "army coup".
"This autocratic government has to go," he said while addressing a discussion at the Jatiya Press Club in the city.
Sammilito Peshajibi Gay Pareehad organised the meeting to mark January 25 as "Democracy Killing Day".
The fourth amendment of the constitution was passed in parliament on January 25 in 1975. According to BNP and its allies, freedom of press was restricted through this amendment.
Alleging that the government has imprisoned democracy, Alamgir said people have to force this government to quit in order to protect the country. Calling on all to prepare for a mass upsurge, he reiterated that his party does not believe in military intervention in politics. Mostly because the BNP doesn't control the military...
"BNP believes in transfer of power in a democratic way," he said.
The army last Thursday said they have foiled an attempt to topple the government. Later, ruling party leaders alleged that BNP is plotting to oust the government in an undemocratic way.
Mirza Alamgir yesterday said AL talks about democracy but does not practice it.
"They want to gag the people's voice through repression in a fascist way. They're using courts to do this and have politicised the judiciary to establish a one-party rule," he added.
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[An Nahar] Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Wally Jumblat ... Druze politician, head of the Progressive Socialist Party, who's been on every side in Leb at least four times. He'll sell you his friends for a dollar, but family comes higher because of shipping and handling... on Wednesday left for the Russian capital Moscow aboard a private plane, state-run National News Agency reported.
The agency did not elaborate any further.
But MTV reported later on Wednesday that the Druze leader had been invited to Moscow by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov for talks on "the Syrian crisis."
Jumblat has called on Syria's key ally Russia to "launch a political initiative together with the countries concerned in order to pull Syria out of its crisis."
In his weekly column in his party's al-Anbaa newspaper published Tuesday, Jumblat also urged Iran to "launch some kind of initiative towards the Syrian people who stood by the Iranian revolution against the Shah regime and in the face of the Saddamist attack in the eighties."
"There's no doubt that Syria may descend into a devastative civil war if the bloodshed continues," Jumblat warned.
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[An Nahar] Police in Thailand said Wednesday that they had apprehended a thief with more than a thousand pairs of women's underwear in the trunk of his car.
Police also found more than ten thousand pairs at the house of the 48-year-old Thai suspect, who was set to sit in solemn silence in a dull, dark dock, in a pestilential prison with a life-long lock late Tuesday with an accomplice after breaking into a building in Bangkok's Chinatown.
They said the man admitted to stealing and collecting women's underwear since the age of 18.
"He smelled them all the time even while driving," said police Major General Saroj Promcharoen.
The suspect will be charged with stealing property, though not the underwear for now because there is no plaintiff, police said.
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[Dawn] Prime Minister Yousuf raza Gilani on Wednesday appeared to back down from a confrontation with the military, moving away from remarks made earlier that it had acted unconstitutionally in supporting a court investigation of a controversial memo.
"I want to dispel the impression that the military leadership acted unconstitutionally or violated rules," said Gilani, according to state television. ... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe?
His comments appeared to be a bid to defuse tensions between the country's civilian leaders and the powerful military and came a day after a high-level meeting with the military to discuss a possible trilateral summit on the future of Afghanistan.
"The current situation cannot afford conflict among the institutions," he added.
Gilani left here today for Davos to attend the annual summit of the World Economic Forum.
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#1
"I want to dispel the impression that the military leadership acted unconstitutionally or violated rules," said Gilani, according to state television.
[Dawn] Three lawyers belonging to Shia community were killed and another was injured when gunnies opened fire on their vehicle here at Pakistain Chowk area on Wednesday, DawnNews reported.
The police sources identified the dead as Shakeel Jafri, Kafil Jafri and Badar Munir whereas Babar Ali, also a lawyer, sustained injuries.
All victims, including father and son, belonged to shia community. The Shia Ulema Council has announced three-day mourning including strike on Thursday.
Four gunnies, riding two cycle of violences, opened fire on Lawyers' car when they were going back home from City Court in Arambagh area.
All four lawyers got injured after shooting and three shuffled off the mortal coil on the way to hospital.
Sindh Home Minister Manzoor Wassan suspended the SHO Arambagh and ordered an inquiry report within next 48 hours.
"We have noticed a few sectarian killings lately, which are aimed at creating chaos in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It may be the largest city in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... ," said Wassan.
The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) has announced a nation wide boycott of courts on Thursday.
Meanwhile, ...back at the desert island, Bert was realizing to his horror that he'd had only one bottle for one message, and he'd forgotten to include a return address... Governor Sindh Dr Ishrat ul Ebad has vehemently condemned the incident.
He directed the concerned officials for immediate arrest of those involved in the incident.
The governor expressed solidarity with the lawyers' and Shia community and assured that every possible efforts would be made to bring the accused to justice.
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[Daily Nation (Kenya)] Arson and looting broke out in Sudan's war-ravaged Darfur region on Wednesday after a protest against the appointment of a new governor, witnesses said.
It was the second day of unrest in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur state.
Black smoke hung over the town's main market, where many shops had been set ablaze, the witnesses said.
"The demonstration is still going on and now many are setting fire in the market. Some people, I don't know if they are protesters or not, are looting the main market," one said.
Police fired tear gas, which sent some people to hospital, the witnesses said, estimating hundreds had turned out in the morning to show support for the ousted elected governor, Abdul Hamid Kasha.
President Omar al-Bashir Head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself president-for-life. He has fallen out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its secessesion, and attempted to Arabize Darfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it. earlier this month replaced Kasha with an appointee, Hamad Ismail, and broke off parts of South Darfur to add two new states in the region, which previously had three.
"People want Kasha," protesters chanted as they marched through the streets, witnesses said.
Many of the demonstrators were students or school children, they added.
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[An Nahar] Russia will never become a dictatorship, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ...Second President of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Because of constitutionally mandated term limits he is the current Prime Minister of Russia. His sock puppet, Dmitry Medvedev, was installed in the 2008 presidential elections. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law. During his eight years in office Russia's economy bounced back from crisis, seeing GDP increase, poverty decrease and average monthly salaries increase. During his presidency Putin passed into law a series of fundamental reforms, including a flat income tax of 13%, a reduced profits tax, and new land and legal codes. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile... said Wednesday, as he continued his bid for a third term as president despite unprecedented protests against his rule.
"We have an open country and no matter what they say or write, no matter what scary statements they make about some sort of dictatorship, we don't have that and -- I hope -- never will," he told students of Tomsk Polytechnic University in Siberia.
Of course it's not a dictatorship. Putin and Medvedev rotate the offices of the presidency and the prime ministership. What could be more democratic?
Putin, who served two consecutive presidential terms between 2000 and 2008, has sought to dispel fears he plans to impose a more authorities style of leadership upon his planned return to the Kremlin.
"We have an open market economy and an open country on the whole," he said in comments released by his office.
Putin is wrestling with the worst legitimacy crisis of his 12-year rule after he announced plans to seek a third term in the Kremlin in a job swap with incumbent President Dmitry Medvedev in September.
Many ordinary Russians have attacked the plan. Tens of thousands of people erupted into the streets in protest after December parliamentary elections that observers said were slanted in favor of Putin's ruling party.
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01/26/2012
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#1
after all Dictatorship is such an icky word and I am the hindmost!
Posted by: Water Modem ||
01/26/2012 1:29
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#4
As some day it may happen
that a victim must be found,
I've got a little list I've got a little list
Of society offenders
who might well be underground,
And who never would be missed
who never would be missed!
There's the pestilential journalists who write offensive slanders
All people to whom the wretched loyal opposition panders
All hooligans who curse the state, and billionaires who steals
All persons who, when dining out, eat only Halal meals
And all third persons who on spoiling Kremlin plots insist
They'd none of 'em be missed they'd none of 'em be missed!
[An Nahar] The Syrian regime and opposition on Wednesday traded blame for the killing of a Christian holy man and a regional Syrian Red Islamic Thingy chief.
An "armed terrorist group" killed a priest in the protest hub of Hama in central Syria on Wednesday, state media said, as regime forces reportedly pounded the city for a second day.
"An armed terrorist group killed the priest Bassilius Nassar as he was helping a man who was maimed in the neighborhood of al-Jarajmah," the official SANA news agency said.
But activists said the priest had been "martyred" during an offensive by the army.
"Father Bassilius Nassar was martyred during a military campaign conducted by the regime's forces in the city," the Local Coordination Committees, which organize protests on the ground, said in a statement received by Agence La Belle France Presse.
Security forces raked the protest city with heavy machinegun fire and explosives for a second straight day on Wednesday, the LCC said, reporting a number of casualties.
The al-Watan newspaper, which is close to the authorities, said the military had launched the offensive to retake several districts of Hama that were controlled by Orcs and similar vermin after "the failure of efforts" for a negotiated solution.
Jarajmah was one of the neighborhoods targeted.
"The Syrian army is bombarding Hama with heavy weapons, using rocket-propelled grenades," the LCC said.
"The 'shabiha' (regime militiamen) and security agents backed up by tanks are pounding all parts of the Bab Qibli neighborhood."
Some 4,000 soldiers were in the town supported by tanks, the activist group said, adding that houses had collapsed.
The regime and opposition also offered conflicting stories about the killing of the head of the Syrian Red Islamic Thingy in the restive northwestern province of Idlib.
Official media said he was murdered by "a terrorist group."
"An armed terrorist group assassinated Abdul Razzaq Jbeiro, president of the Red Islamic Thingy organization in Idlib, in the Khan Sheikhoun area," SANA said.
"The group opened fire with a machinegun, hitting him in the head. He was taken to hospital where he died," it added.
Meanwhile the LCC said security forces "assassinated" Jbeiro on the Khan Sheikhoun-al-Maara road.
The Syrian regime blames "terrorist gangs in the pay of foreigners" for the popular unrest that has swept the country since mid-March, with the United Nations ...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks... estimating that at least 5,400 people have been killed.
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#1
Maybe Christians need to threaten jihad over disrespecting the lives of Christians....
Posted by: Mike Ramsey ||
01/26/2012 18:23
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[An Nahar] Egyptian authorities grounded a Libyan Airlines flight on Wednesday after an attendant found a suspected bomb in a toilet on the aircraft, airport officials told Agence La Belle France Presse.
Tripoli-bound flight 203 was due to leave Cairo International Airport when a member of the cabin crew found "a metal object" in one of the plane's toilets shortly before take-off.
"The captain immediately informed security authorities at the airport. Security officials and bomb experts boarded the plane and found a tear gas canister," the official said.
"After a thorough search, nothing else was found on the plane and officials are now questioning the 75 passengers on board," he said.
The plane will remain in Cairo until an investigation is carried out.
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[Bangla Daily Star] President Zillur Rahman has thanked the army for foiling the recent plot by some serving and retired army officials to topple the government.
"I extend my sincere thanks to our patriotic army for this action. At the same time, I urge all to remain vigilant and alert against any such heinous attempt," he said in the 12th parliament session yesterday.
"Full-fledged democracy has been established in the country after many sacrifices. Any evil attempt to hinder that democratic process cannot be desirable for any of us." said the president.
Zillur also called upon opposition politicians, who were absent in the House yesterday, to place all their proposals, recommendations and complaints in the Jatiya Sangsad.
"Democracy will be enriched in that way."
He said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had repeatedly urged the opposition politicians to discharge their responsibilities as people's representatives by joining the Jatiya Sangsad.
"Opinion of the opposition was sought in all instances, including the amendment to the constitution, both inside and outside the House," he said.
"But it is very frustrating that the opposition is not showing a positive attitude about taking part in parliamentary deliberations. Democracy is a dynamic process. And the discharge of responsibilities reposed by the people is more important than an indulgence in political conflicts."
The president strongly criticised the rule of the BNP-Jamaat alliance and the last caretaker government.
He said the present government had to face many problems after it came to power against the backdrop of disorder in socio-economic and political life.
The misrule and corruption of the post-2001 governments pushed the economy to the verge of collapse, and had shaken democratic institutions and governance. Transparency and accountability in government activities were absent, and the country's politics was in chaos, said Zillur.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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Top|| File under: Jamaat-e-Islami
[Magharebia] When Dr Ayman al-Zawahiri ... Supremo, formerly second in command of al-Qaeda, occasionally described as the real brains of the outfit. Formerly the Mister Big of Egyptian Islamic Jihad. Bumped off Abdullah Azzam with a car boom in the course of one of their little disputes. Is thought to have composed bin Laden's fatwa entitled World Islamic Front Against Jews and Crusaders. Currently residing in the North Wazoo area. That is not a horn growing from the middle of his forehead, but a prayer bump, attesting to how devout he is... succeeded slain al-Qaeda leader the late Osama bin Laden ... who walked in the Valley of the Shadow of Death and didn't make it out... in June 2011, it was clear that he faced a daunting task in rebuilding an organization suffering from a severe depletion of its ranks as a result of the blows it received, particularly in the Afghanistan-Pakistain border areas.
It was also clear that al-Zawahiri needed to find a solution to the challenge posed by the Arab Spring revolutions. The strength of the demonstrations illustrated that the majority in the Arab street did not support al-Qaeda's policy of advocating change through violence, nor were they convinced of its justifications for attacking the West, as the West stood by the Arab peoples in their quest for greater political freedom.
And now it appears that al-Zawahiri needs to find a solution to another problem, one that most likely started years ago but has been exacerbated by the killing of Bin Laden in Abbottabad ... A pleasant city located only 30 convenient miles from Islamabad. The city is noted for its nice weather and good schools. It is the site of Pakistain's military academy, which was within comfortable walking distance of the residence of the late Osama bin Laden.... , Pakistain in May 2011; specifically, a shortfall in donor funds.
Nine months after Bin Laden's death, not one retaliatory attack has been carried out, which may be a result of the organization's inability to conduct operations or its unpreparedness to do so at this time. Another reason may be that the myriad of security services in Western and Arab countries are on high alert to prevent possible attacks from occurring.
Another factor delaying or hindering the conduct of attacks could be a shortfall in donor funds to al-Qaeda. This lack of funds may be affecting its ability to make the necessary preparations for large operations that require substantial financing, in addition to the cost of recruiting and training operatives.
Shortfall in donor funds not new
The shortfall in donor funding for al-Qaeda in Wazoo is, in fact, not new. Frequent reports of funding shortfalls have been circulating for years. Al-Zawahiri highlighted the issue explicitly in a June 2005 letter to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the former leader of al-Qaeda's branch in Iraq.
Al-Zawahiri requested that al-Zarqawi transfer a large sum of money ($100,000) to the leadership of the organization. In his letter, al-Zawahri refers to an interruption in al-Qaeda's funding following the arrest of Abu Faraj al-Libi, a leader in the organization, even though al-Zawahiri described the organization's financial status as "good" in general, which means that some funds were still reaching al-Qaeda in Waziristan at the time.
It is not clear if donations to al-Qaeda, which come mostly from supporters in Gulf countries, declined further or increased in the years after this letter was written, but new information from Waziristan does not indicate that the organization is in a better position militarily or financially.
An Afghani operative who fought alongside al-Qaeda said the organization's presence in Waziristan has contracted significantly, their ranks thinning to no more than a few dozen individuals. The young Afghan, named Hafez Hanif, told Newsweek in an interview published January 2nd that he sought information about a group of al-Qaeda gunnies that he had not heard from since the killing of Bin Laden and found out they were living in dire conditions with their ranks greatly depleted.
While Hanif said "money is a more significant problem [for al-Qaeda] than the thinning of its ranks", the fighter's uncle told the magazine his sources confirm that the organization's donor funding, which used to be in the millions of dollars each year from Gulf donors, has dried up.
Donor funds go to other causes
It appears that donor funds now go to causes other than those of al-Qaeda's leadership, which has apparently become marginalised and isolated in its Waziristan hideout. Hanif's uncle said he thinks "Arab people now think the fight should be political at home and not terrorism aimed at the West", and that "the peaceful struggle on Arab streets has accomplished more than Bin Laden and al-Zawahiri ever have".
If the information provided by these Afghans is true, it would reinforce the widely held belief that the organization is at risk of ceasing to be an effective force, as it was in Afghanistan in the years prior to the September 11, 2001 attacks.
This impression was reinforced during the Arab Spring demonstrations, and again following Bin Laden's death. Also, media reports confirmed al-Qaeda's loss of many of its leaders and members in air strikes and festivities with Pak forces.
Newsweek's report indicated that al-Qaeda, which once had hundreds of fighters in the Afghanistan-Pakistain border areas, now has no more than a few dozen left in the area, probably including al-Zawahiri and Abu Yahya al-Libi. This paltry number confirms that al-Qaeda has been reduced to a marginal role. The absence of al-Qaeda gunnies in the battles being waged by the Pak and Afghan branches of the Taliban against the governments of Pakistain, Afghanistan and Western forces is another sign of its weakened position.
The fact that al-Qaeda is facing these problems in Wazoo does not mean the organization is finished, and it could still carry out a suicide kaboom to avenge Bin Laden's killing. But even if al-Qaeda succeeds in carrying out a Dire Revenge™ attack, that would probably not signify a fundamental change in its status if the shortfall in fighters and funding continues, and if it remains marginalised amidst the mostly peaceful Arab Spring revolutions.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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Top|| File under: al-Qaeda
#1
So - now for the real question... does this mean their owners, the ISI, are broke or just allocating funds elsewhere?
Posted by: Water Modem ||
01/26/2012 1:18
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#3
This article is an opinion piece. It offers no new evidence since 2005. And it is not true that Al Qaeda has not carried out a single attack since bin Laden's death. Many people in Iraq died in the near-immediate aftermath of bin Laden's death by al-Qaeda in Iraq and their cohorts.
Financially, they're hurting, yes, but we shouldn't overstate that. The only news here really is about the reported number of al Qaeda fighters.
Posted by: American Delight ||
01/26/2012 6:52
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#4
They should borrow a bunch of money from the Chinese and call it a stimulus package.
[An Nahar] Bahraini police and anti-government protesters clashed in Shiite villages, leaving dozens of officers and several demonstrators injured, officials and the opposition said Wednesday, as a Bahraini court ruled that King Hamad ...King of Bahrain (since 14 February 2002), having previously been its emir (from 6 March 1999). He is a Sunni, while the rest of Bahrain is predominantly Shiite... acted lawfully when he declared a quasi state of emergency in March ahead of a crackdown on Shiite-led democracy protests.
The interior ministry accused protesters of "orchestrated attacks on police forces ... across the kingdom" that caused "significant injuries" to 41 officers, two of them requiring "critical care" at Bahrain's military hospital.
An opposition figure said protesters clashed with security forces in at least four Shiite villages, leaving several of them injured, including one seriously after being hit on the head with a tear gas canister.
Earlier, Public Security Chief Major General Tariq al-Hassan said that "vandals blocked roads" and threw petrol bombs during the festivities on Tuesday night.
Hassan, who was quoted by the official BNA news agency website, said security forces had made "several arrests" in Shiite villages, but gave no further details.
Former opposition MP and Wefaq member Matar Matar, who gave the civilian injury toll, said two protesters have been killed in recent months from tear gas injuries to the head.
"This indicates the existence of a (government) policy to intentionally injure protesters rather than just merely disperse them," Matar told Agence La Belle France Presse.
On December 31, al-Wefaq said 15-year-old Sayyed Hashem Saeed died after being hit in the head by a tear gas canister.
The government at the time released a statement saying they would investigate the teenager's death.
According to Matar, Tuesday night's festivities erupted after posts on social networks, including Facebook and Twitter, called on Bahrainis to go out and "confront" the security forces.
Al-Wefaq has posted videos and pictures of the unrest on its Facebook page, including images of coppers in the Shiite villages of Sitra and Bani Jamra, dressed in full riot gear and hurling objects, including metal rods, at a small crowd of young men.
In another image posted on the page, plumes of tear gas can be seen wafting through the night skies over the Shiite town of Bani Jamra.
On Monday, the United States said it was relocating embassy staff and their families to new neighborhoods in Bahrain's capital Manama as part of safety precautions amid anti-government unrest.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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Top|| File under: Arab Spring
Syrian security forces raked the central protest city of Hama with heavy machinegun fire and explosives on Wednesday for the second straight day, as troops killed 18 civilians and six army deserters across the country, activists said.
"The Syrian army is bombarding Hama with heavy weapons, using rocket-propelled grenades," said a statement from the Local Coordination Committees, which organizes anti-regime protests on the ground.
"The 'shabiha' (regime militiamen) and security agents backed up by tanks are pounding all parts of the Baba Qibli neighborhood," said the LCC.
"There will be dead and maimed. Houses have collapsed," it said, adding about 4,000 soldiers supported by tanks were in the rebel town 210 kilometers north of Damascus ...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world...
Baba Qibli was the scene of massive protests and where mutinous soldiers of the Free Syrian Army have been holed up, Saleh al-Hamwi, front man of the General Revolution Commission, told Agence La Belle France Presse on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, ...back at the ranch, Butch and the Kid finally brought their horses under control... the Local Coordination Committees, the main activist group spurring protests on the ground, said security forces killed five people in the restive countryside around Damascus, four people in Hama, four in the central opposition bastion Homs, three in the flashpoint northwestern province of Idlib, one in the northern province of Aleppo ...For centuries, Aleppo was Greater Syria's largest city and the Ottoman Empire's third, after Constantinople and Cairo. Although relatively close to Damascus in distance, Aleppans regard Damascenes as country cousins... and another in the southern province of Daraa, the cradle of the uprising.
For its part, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said there was at least one dead in Hama.
"One civilian was killed on Wednesday at dawn in Hama's Sheikh Anbar district, which has also been the target of army fire along with Baba Qibli," it said in a statement received by AFP in Nicosia.
The General Revolution Commission called for Sudan's General Mohammed Ahmed Mustafa al-Dabi, who heads the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... monitoring mission to Syria, to "come and see the tanks in Hama before they destroy the city."
"These tanks could be withdrawn in 10 minutes by the Syrian forces and hidden at Hama's military airport," it added.
The city has already been the target of major military offensives to make its rebel residents bow to the regime of Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Before going into the family business Pencilneck was an eye doctor...
His father Hafez, who died in 2000, set his armed forces on the city in 1982 to put down an armed revolt by the Moslem Brüderbund, killing an estimated 20,000 people.
Syria's al-Watan newspaper, which is close to the authorities, said on Wednesday the military had launched an offensive aimed at retaking several districts in Hama that were controlled by Death Eaters.
It said the assault followed "the failure of efforts" to come up with a peaceful solution.
"The competent authorities have decided to resolve the matter in a definitive manner in order to relieve the city of armed militias," it said.
The authorities "yesterday morning launched a campaign to clean up the cramped residential areas of Baba Qibli, Jarajima, Farraya, Olayliyat and Hamidiyeh, after leaving the door open to those who wished to surrender and lay down their arms," al-Watan said.
The Observatory said 33 non-combatants were killed by fire from the security forces across the country on Tuesday, 23 of them in the central province of Homs.
"Another 19 civilians died on Tuesday when two buildings in Homs city's Bab Tadmor neighborhood collapsed and burned after being bombarded by security forces," it added of Syria's third largest city, citing residents.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
[Daily Nation (Kenya)] The body of Zim-bob-we's first army commander General Solomon Mujuru had a hole in the abdomen and emitted blue flames when it was retrieved from his farmhouse that was gutted by fire last year, an inquest heard on Wednesday.
Police Constable Clatwell Garisayi, who was the 23rd witness to give evidence after the inquest opened last week, was the first to give graphic details of how the body of the husband of Vice President Joice Mujuru was discovered.
"At the back of the house, people managed to identify a bluish flame. There was an object, which was burning. I peeped through the window and saw an object with folded hands...it was a akin to a human body," he said.
When the body was finally retrieved, it took 10 buckets of water to put out the flames, the police officer revealed.
"The body was still on fire and there were strange blue flames coming out of both sides of his abdomen and around the body," Cont Garisayi said. "Ahah! An obvious case of spontaneous combustion!"
"Homes! How do you do it?"
Another police officer Inspector Simon Dube said: "The fire was bluish and the area covering the chest had flesh but the bottom area was heavily burnt and on the head only the skull remained."
"His lungs and intestines were burnt extensively and the head was just a skull," he said.
The general's widow said after the hearing the inquest will provide answers to what happened to her husband whom many believe was assassinated.
"It's becoming clearer and clearer what happened and the inquest is proving to be the best way of handling the matter," Ms Mujuru said.
Last week she said the security lapses at the farm, which was supposed to be guarded around the clock, were "shocking."
On Tuesday, the inquest was told that police at the nearest station had no vehicle to respond to the fire after they received a call at 3:15 am on August 16.
Gen Mujuru was considered to be the only politician in President Bob Muggsy Mugabe Octogenarian President-for-Life of Zim-bob-we who turned the former Breadbasket of Africa into the African Basket Case... 's Zanu PF who could stand up to the 87 year old leader.
He was believed to be leading one of the factions positioning themselves in anticipation of the ageing President Mugabe's departure.
Last week, cross examining witnesses at the inquest, the VP said she had been kept in the dark about the probe.
"Firstly I was not given a chance to see the statements made by the witnesses to the police so that if possible I could assist them, " Ms Mujuru said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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Top|| File under:
#1
He shot himself with a flare gun?
Posted by: Water Modem ||
01/26/2012 1:27
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The only economically important source mineral for caesium is pollucite Cs(AlSi2O6), which is found in a few places around the world in zoned pegmatites, and is associated with the more commercially important lithium minerals lepidolite and petalite... The Bikita pegmatite deposit in Zimbabwe is mined for its petalite but it also contains a significant amount of pollucite.
[An Nahar] Turkish authorities found the remains of 23 people in a mass grave in mainly Kurdish southeast Turkey on the former site of military police headquarters, Anatolia news agency reported Wednesday.
The first remains were discovered earlier this month, during an archeological dig in Ickale, in central Diyarbakir, where ruins of an ancient palace dating back to the 13th century were being excavated.
The area had been the site of a military police headquarters until the early 2000s. The eventual aim of the excavation is to carry out restoration work and turn the place into a museum and culture spot.
Human rights activists claim the remains belong to civilian Kurds killed by security forces during 1990s.
"Skulls and other bones belonging to humans were found here ... According to what we saw they were piled up in a narrow place... They were apparently thrown there casually, without any religious ceremony," Agriculture Minister Mehdi Eker told news hounds earlier this week, after visiting the site.
The Diyarbakir branch of the Human Rights Association (IHD) and 36 families whose relatives went missing during 1990s filed a criminal complaint on Wednesday against state officials of the time and asked for DNA tests for identification.
Around 45,000 people have died since the mid-1980s when the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) took up arms for a self-ruled homeland in southeast Turkey.
Remains of 190 bodies have been found in 29 different mass graves in more than 10 provinces in southeast Turkey, according to IHD's Diyarbakir branch.
The association estimates that more than 3,000 people are buried in 224 different mass graves in the region.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2012
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
The United States has arrested and charged an Iranian semiconductor scientist with violating U.S. export laws by buying high-tech U.S. lab equipment, a development likely to further worsen Iranian-U.S. tensions.
A man already convicted of taking part in a terror plot to attack the U.S. Marine Corps base in Quantico, Virginia has now been accused of plotting the beheading of key witnesses against him and his coconspirators.
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
[Dawn] The Wah Saddar police on Tuesday claimed to have 
New Zealand police said Tuesday they were shocked at the number of mothers they found breastfeeding babies while driving along motorways in the country's largest city Auckland.
Pudgy is distributing free food in an attempt placate an increasingly angry population. Pudgy is even tapping the military food reserves.
...Second President of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Because of constitutionally mandated term limits he is the current Prime Minister of Russia. His sock puppet, Dmitry Medvedev, was installed in the 2008 presidential elections. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law. During his eight years in office Russia's economy bounced back from crisis, seeing GDP increase, poverty decrease and average monthly salaries increase. During his presidency Putin passed into law a series of fundamental reforms, including a flat income tax of 13%, a reduced profits tax, and new land and legal codes. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile...
North Korea
(CBS/AP) One year ago, the Arab Spring arrived in Egypt. In just 18 days, protesters forced out the president of 30 years, 
[An Nahar] Around 30 
US President 
[Dawn] The United States Agency for International Development will continue its support for economic and social development of 
Earlier this month, armoured tanks and hundreds of soldiers had deployed to trouble spots in Lagos, the country's largest city with a population of around 15 million, to quell week-long protests over the removal of fuel subsidies.
cycle of violence
Kurram tribal district
Walid 
Police in Thailand said Wednesday that they had apprehended a thief with more than a thousand pairs of women's underwear in the trunk of his car.
Three lawyers belonging to Shia community were killed and another was injured when 
Zawahiri
Wazoo
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
The body of Zim-bob-we's first army commander General Solomon Mujuru had a hole in the abdomen and emitted blue flames when it was retrieved from his farmhouse that was gutted by fire last year, an inquest heard on Wednesday.
