Article

2008-06-05 Africa Subsaharan

Zimbabwe police arrest British and American diplomats at gunpoint

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Posted by mrp 2008-06-05 10:48|| || Front Page|| [11131 views ] Top

#1 Act of war. Needs a proper response.

I think a Marine regiment would be enough to take down the yahoos running Zimbabwe.

Posted by DarthVader">DarthVader 2008-06-05 12:22|| 2008-06-05 12:22|| Front Page Top

#2 Reminds me of "The Mouse That Roared".

It seems like they are just BEGGING to be invaded.

Posted by crosspatch 2008-06-05 12:33|| 2008-06-05 12:33|| Front Page Top

#3 Under the Carter Doctrine, any action against diplomats does not constitute an act of war. Even occupying the embassy. So we should be grateful that the diplomats were only held for five hours.
/sarcasm

Posted by Rambler in California">Rambler in California 2008-06-05 13:27|| 2008-06-05 13:27|| Front Page Top

#4 Can you say "act of war"?...

Posted by mojo">mojo 2008-06-05 14:12|| 2008-06-05 14:12|| Front Page Top

#5 Told Ya two days ago, "Make Jimmuh Ambassador to Zim-Bob-Land"

Larn'em to grow Goobers.

Posted by Redneck Jim">Redneck Jim 2008-06-05 14:55|| 2008-06-05 14:55|| Front Page Top

#6 Right after Rhodesia became Zimbabwe, a traveling Methodist minister came to our church and talked about the peaceful nature of Mugabe even though the minister said he was "only" a Socialist. In my mind, the word dictator suddenly flashed before me. Now the chickens have come home to roost in Zimbabwe and Mugabe's true character, or lack thereof, has been revealed for what it is - Dictator of a country that his going to hell in a broken hand-basket. Ian Smith is probably saying, "I told you so!" to the world community, if anyone is ever listening. Zimbabwe has become just one more Uganda as if it were under the hob-nailed boots of Idi Amin and his wrecking crew! Sometimes our hunches are pretty good looks into the future.

Posted by Jim W">Jim W 2008-06-05 15:33|| 2008-06-05 15:33|| Front Page Top

#7 Why do we have people there?

Posted by Nimble Spemble 2008-06-05 15:36|| 2008-06-05 15:36|| Front Page Top

#8 Its called job security for the State Department Officials. Once you create a feckless bureaucracy you must keep feeding and grooming it, even though it can do absolutely NOTHING!

Posted by Jim W">Jim W 2008-06-05 15:42|| 2008-06-05 15:42|| Front Page Top

#9 The Carter Doctrine would make US grateful that our officials were ONLY held for five hours - my, oh my, how generous. Of course, that is much shorter than the 444 days of captivity in Tehran in 1979, 1980 and 1981 under the Carter "administration!"

Posted by Jim W">Jim W 2008-06-05 15:46|| 2008-06-05 15:46|| Front Page Top

#10 >#7 Why do we have people there?

We DO have friends in that country. It's important we support them any way we can.

Posted by Mizzou Mafia 2008-06-05 16:31|| 2008-06-05 16:31|| Front Page Top

#11 It's important we support them any way we can.

And you expect DoS to do that?

Posted by Nimble Spemble 2008-06-05 16:33|| 2008-06-05 16:33|| Front Page Top

#12 NS - You DO know what the most common cover for folks from Langley tends to be, doncha?

Posted by liberalhawk 2008-06-05 16:55|| 2008-06-05 16:55|| Front Page Top

#13 I thought they worked for front companies.

Posted by Nimble Spemble 2008-06-05 16:58|| 2008-06-05 16:58|| Front Page Top

#14 You DO know what the most common cover for folks from Langley tends to be, doncha?

Avon salespeople?

Posted by DarthVader">DarthVader 2008-06-05 17:03|| 2008-06-05 17:03|| Front Page Top

#15 Before we beat up on the striped pants brigade too much, let's remember that we have embassies out there for a reason. We have diplomatic, intel, and business interests just about everywhere in the world, including Zim-bob.

A lot of the people in State are good people, particularly the ones who end up in the shitholes of the world. I don't envy them one little bit, and you couldn't pay me enough to sit in Harare.

Posted by Steve White">Steve White 2008-06-05 17:18|| 2008-06-05 17:18|| Front Page Top

#16 And the names of those two people are?

We DO have friends in that country. It's important we support them any way we can.

Posted by HammerHead 2008-06-05 17:58|| 2008-06-05 17:58|| Front Page Top

#17 Why do we have people there?

1. To ensure that US interests are represented in Zimbabwe?

2. Because other nations whose interests don't coincide with the US' interests are there?

3. Because if we have to pay the Swiss to represent US interests in every country our illustrious foreign-policy experts here at Rantburg think the US shouldn't have an embassy in, we'd be subcontracting our foreign service to Geneva?

We have an ambassador-with-balls (James McGee) there. He's done a pretty good job of pissing off Mugabe's government for the right reasons.

Posted by Pappy 2008-06-05 18:22|| 2008-06-05 18:22|| Front Page Top

#18 >>In case you folks don't know, we have an ambassador-with-balls (James McGee)there. He's done a pretty good job of pissing off Mugabe's government.

When this story broke this afternoon European time, he was on CNN-I a half hour later, going after the ZimBob government hammer and tong. No squishy diplomat is he. I was impressed.

Posted by Mizzou Mafia 2008-06-05 18:30|| 2008-06-05 18:30|| Front Page Top

#19 You DO know what the most common cover for folks from Langley tends to be, doncha?

Jehovah's Witnesses?

Posted by bigjim-ky 2008-06-05 19:19|| 2008-06-05 19:19|| Front Page Top

#20 Maybe it is time to load up a little diplomatic pouch into a B-52.

Posted by crosspatch 2008-06-05 19:45|| 2008-06-05 19:45|| Front Page Top

#21 We don't have DoS in Cuba, Nork, Somalia, or Iran. Doesn't seem to have caused a problem. It is beyond my why we have them in Zimbobway, Syria or the Sudan.

Posted by Nimble Spemble 2008-06-05 20:01|| 2008-06-05 20:01|| Front Page Top

#22 Those good people volunteered to sit in those shit holes of the world but still the question remains - why are those people there and what can they do?

Posted by Glitle Ghibelline2636 2008-06-05 21:02|| 2008-06-05 21:02|| Front Page Top

#23 #8 Its called job security for the State Department Officials. Once you create a feckless black totalitarian communist dictator you must keep feeding and grooming it, even though it can do absolutely NOTHING!
Posted by Jim W 2008-06-05 15:42|| Front Page|| ||Comments Top

Totally agree Jim. Please kindly accept the insert.

Posted by Besoeker 2008-06-05 21:38|| 2008-06-05 21:38|| Front Page Top

#24 We don't have DoS in Cuba, Nork, Somalia, or Iran.

First, you have to have a host nation willing to accept an ambassador and/or consul. Given the history of relations between the US and those countries, think any of those are going to say 'yes' if asked?

It is beyond my why we have them in Zimbobway, Syria or the Sudan.

Maybe you'll figure it out someday.

Posted by Pappy 2008-06-05 22:19|| 2008-06-05 22:19|| Front Page Top

#25 Please kindly accept the insert.

Besoeker, please cite where the US DoS continues to support the Mugabe regime.

Posted by Pappy 2008-06-05 23:22|| 2008-06-05 23:22|| Front Page Top

23:22 Pappy
23:07 gorb
23:02 Procopius2k
22:51 Procopius2k
22:30 Alaska Paul
22:26 lotp
22:21 Besoeker
22:19 Pappy
22:19 Besoeker
22:17 Spike Uniter
22:16 Besoeker
22:15 Spike Uniter
22:03 Besoeker
22:02 OldSpook
22:01 scpatriot
22:00 OldSpook
21:57 OldSpook
21:53 Besoeker
21:51 OldSpook
21:41 lotp
21:40 lotp
21:38 Besoeker
21:37 M. Murcek
21:32 g(r)omgoru