Hat Tip: LGF Too good to pass this one up... âBruce Almightyâ Banned in Malaysia Tue Jul 29,12:12 PM ET
NEW YORK - Jim Carrey (news)âs "Bruce Almighty" might join the growing list of movies that have fallen afoul of Malaysiaâs censors. Thatâs Sensors, not Censors. Islamâs a pretty sensitive lot, yâknow.
The government minister called for the comedy to be banned, deeming it offensive to Muslims, the BBC reported. The minister, who is responsible for religious affairs, said the theme of the movie isnât "appropriate." No way. Weâve got an exclusive on the God gig. Itâs ours and you canât play. You canât even ask. Weâll kill you, in fact, if you even talk about it and we donât like what you say. So come to beautiful Malaysia and spend your tourist dollars. "Malaysia, Truly Asia..." Yeah, right.
In the film, Carrey is challenged by God to take over the running of the world to see if he can do a better job of it. The minister says "we cannot equate ourselves with God almighty even as a joke." Nope. Not funny. At all. Over the Top. Blasphemous. Heretic! Seize him! Kill Him!
The predominantly Muslim country has a track record of banning American films, or censoring scenes on moral or religious grounds. Yup. Dr. Mahatickhead was pretty tough on anything that was beyond him. That would include almost everything. A "Dr" of Indefensible Opinions, methinks.
Films outlawed in Malaysia include "Daredevil," "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me," and "Zoolander." Others prolly include Rome & Juliet, A Man For All Seasons, The Wind & The Lion, and The Mouse That Roared. In the first three he just didnât "get it" - and that last one hit a little close to home...
A British museum on Tuesday gave four Australian Aboriginal skulls collected a century ago to the communities from which they came. "Right. âere we âave the skulls: Galloway, Moore, Penn, and this nasty brute âere is Redgreave."
A delegation of Aboriginal elders accepted the remains of their ancestors during a ceremony at the Manchester Museum in northwest England. The University of Manchester and the Foundation for Aboriginal and Islander Research Action (FAIRA), had earlier agreed the repatriation of the skulls, removed from Australia during colonial times. ``This will end the practice of scientific investigations and maintaining Aboriginal ancestors in cardboard boxes, plastic bags and vaults in museums,ââ said Bob Weatherall from FAIRA. Major Sumner, a traditional custodian from the Ngarrindjeri nation in South Australia, said: ``The torment is ended, we now put an end to the torment.ââ The elders will return the remains to their traditional homelands in the state of Victoria. Apologies and respects to the Aboriginal tribes: no way would I saddle them with idiotarians like the ones I named!
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/30/2003 12:23:32 AM ||
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whatta lotta baloney
this goes in the category of 'secret women's business' in the Hindmarsh bridge.
They wouldn't have made a big fuss if it didn't help their political/economic cause. It helps them immensely to play the 'white guilt' card.
Take that away and they couldn't give two stuffs about the skulls.
#2
Anon1, same thing is happening here in the states. The Native American tribes are pressuring museums to return bodies of their ancestors that had been "collected" from tribal burial grounds. Respect for the dead is a central part of their religion.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 10:26 Comments ||
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Except that many of the remains being petitioned for have no connection to the tribes making the claims.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
07/30/2003 11:30 Comments ||
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Process allows victimization to stretch back into pre-historic generations.
#7
Partly -- there was a lot of migration and inter-tribal warfare in pre-Columbian America. Just because a given tribe was living in an area in historical times doesn't mean it was in that same area in pre-historical times.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
07/31/2003 11:43 Comments ||
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Afghan Tajik warlord General Atta Mohammad has rejected a plan by his rival, ethnic Uzbek Deputy Defence Minister Abdul Rashid Dostam, to bring peace and security to troubled northern Afghanistan. Following a recent meeting with US Major General John Vines, commander of the US-led coalition in Afghanistan, Dostam presented his plan to President Hamid Karzai calling for the removal from Mazar-i-Sharif of troops loyal to both warlords. Former communist General Dostam, head of the Uzbek Jumbesh militia, and Mohammad, chief of the Tajik Jamiat force, have been vying with a third ethnic Hazara militia Hezb-i Wahdat for control of the main northern city, the capital of Balkh province. Three way gang war.
Dostam also suggested replacing the governor of Balkh with a neutral person chosen by Kabul without links to any of the three groups whose clashes in recent months have left an estimated 66 dead in the region since April, according to the United Nations. That couldnât work, it makes too much sense
"I am the commander of the 7th corps and I will take care of security in Mazar," Mohammad said on local television late Tuesday. "The 7th corps will stay in Mazar. I am head of Balkh province. Without me, no one can change the governor of Balkh." "Iâm in charge here, so butt out!"
Meanwhile a Jamiat commander was killed and two of his bodyguards wounded in a clash with Jumbesh forces Tuesday evening in Dar-i-Suf district of neighbouring Samangan province, 50 kilometres (31 miles) south of Mazar, said Ahmad Khan, commander of Samangan army 19th corps. Somebody will be calling for Dire Revenge(tm).
Earlier this month the central government said it would clear armed factions from Mazar. Britain has just opened a provincial reconstruction team (PRT) with some 70 troops in Mazar that is intended to help improve security. The US-led PRT concept is a civil-military programme aimed to improve security, help with reconstruction and extend the reach of President Karzaiâs government beyond Kabul. Good luck, youâll need it.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 4:06:03 PM ||
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This is what happens when you let barbarians run a country.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to use the global positioning system (GPS) under the US aegis to work out coordinates with the help of satellites and match it with maps to sort out their border dispute along the tribal region dividing the two countries, reports said Wednesday. The decision to use GPS technology was reached at a technical committee meeting of senior military officers of Pakistan, Afghanistan and the United States that visited the three disputed sites along the Mohmand tribal region yesterday, according to the Dawn newspaper. The tripartite technical committee, including three military officers from Afghanistan, two military officers each from the United States forces and the Pakistan Army flew into Peshawar to discuss the border dispute that led to recent skirmishes between the two neighboring countries in recent weeks. "The GPS technology is being used to work out the coordinates through satellites and match the findings with maps on the ground to see if there has been any intrusion as alleged," an official said. "The Afghans had brought the Russian maps of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border; the Americans had their own maps and we gave them ours," he added. The three sets of maps most likely showed three different border locations. Work out the differences and paint a line on the ground.
The technical committee was told that Pakistani forces had not crossed the border. "In fact, we are minus one kilometer from the zero-line," the official maintained. "It just depends on which zero-line youâre talking about"
"This is not a complicated or difficult issue. This is purely a technical matter. If the committee concludes that our forces have strayed into the Afghan territory, we will pull them back. If there is any misunderstanding, we are willing to remove this and make adjustments. "Gonna move that border so we didnât cross it."
Afghan President Hamid Karzai earlier this week reiterated his claim that Pakistani troops had intruded about 600 meters into Afghan territory but backed down from Afghanistanâs earlier assertion that forces from the neighbouring country had moved 40 kilometers inside Afghanistan. After the border is fixed, can we just shoot anyone who sticks their turban across?
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 11:14:12 AM ||
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this should help pinpoint the GPS coords for those AQ training camps just across the border ;-)
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 11:44 Comments ||
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Frank---GPS survey of AQ coordinates: one of the many spin-offs of NASA space technology, heh heh....
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
07/30/2003 13:07 Comments ||
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Didn't Bugs Bunny work out something similar with Yosemite Sam? "I dare you to step across this line! ... Oh, I dare you to step across THIS line! ... THIS line! ... THIS line! ...THIS one! ... And THIS one! ... And" [KABLAMM!!]
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/30/2003 13:48 Comments ||
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GPS? 21st century technology? Isn't this some kind of smear against Islam? Can't they figure out a way to do this involving sundials, camel shit and quotes from the Koran?
#5
My first thought was that they were going to use the satellite like the African tribe that IBM gave modems to... they used them to crush nuts on a rock - and they praised the modems for their durability. I just figg'ed the PakiGhans would smash the satellite to smithereens and leave a trail of nuts & bolts & circuit boards & solar panels along the border.
In a significant move some relief and welfare organisations funded by foreign countries have been asked to stop their work in areas along the Pak-Afghan border, near Sadda in Kurram Agency. Reliable sources said yesterday that the relief organisations had been functioning on both sides of the border, in Pakistan's Kurram Agency and in Shehr-e-Nau in Afghanistan and are suspected to be having links with the Taleban militia and Al Qaeda network.
Oh, dear! I am so surprised!
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 00:40 ||
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They could also be CIA in disguise. bwuahahahaha
Posted by: Rafael ||
07/30/2003 1:08 Comments ||
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They are all FBI agents controlling both sides. Perhaps?
Hat tip: the Corner
An 18-year-old maid has died as a result of severe burns inflicted by her employers, Al-Madinah reported. The woman of the house poured scalding water on the maid because she could not understand Arabic, the paper said, while the husband tied her up. Both husband and wife are teachers. When the maidâs condition worsened following the assault, the woman took the maid to her motherâs house with the intention of having her deported for failure to fulfill her contractual obligations. The mother attempted to treat the maid with aspirin, but the girl, of Asian nationality, succumbed to her injuries soon after, the paper said. A court sentenced the husband to four years and the wife to two years in jail. The wifeâs mother will receive 80 lashes for conspiring to conceal the crime. Four whole years for scalding someone to death. Thatâs justice.
Posted by: Dar ||
07/30/2003 3:17:48 PM ||
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well she was a foreigner/kaffir after all
/sarcasm
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 16:31 Comments ||
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Perhaps the Soddies have a law similar to Turkey: if you're thrown in to the slammer, your family has to see that you have food to eat and water to drink - the prison doesn't supply it. After 80 lashes, I'm sure mamma isn't to pleased with her dear child.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/30/2003 23:41 Comments ||
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An outspoken pro-reform journalist yesterday alleged that the Saudi government had banned him from writing, in the latest round of a battle between hardliners and liberals in the kingdom. "I got notification from Okaz (newspaper) the other day. It said they were told by the Ministry of Information that I could no longer write in the paper," Hussein Shobokshi told Reuters by phone. "I think it's the last article, where I talked about my vision for the country," the political analyst, who presents a show on Al Arabiya satellite channel, said. Shobokshi wrote in Okaz, where he penned a weekly column, that he dreamed of a day when Saudis voted in elections, debated human rights and women could drive — topics which have alarmed the kingdom's religious establishment.
You know how it goes. First the elections, then human rights, then women driving. Next thing you know, they're laughing and singing and telling jokes instead of going to the mosque...
The religious authorities fear that domestic and foreign pressure is mounting to limit their influence and secularise the state. It is not the first time authorities have clashed with journalists and writers. In May, the government fired Jamal Khashoggi from his position as editor-in-chief of the daily Al Watan, which the prominent writer tried to turn into a champion of reform.
That's a sure-fire way to get fired...
Another Islamic reformer said yesterday that the Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al Sheikh, the kingdom's top cleric, had this month banned his views from another paper. "He asked to see a copy of an interview the paper had done with me in advance, then he asked the paper not to publish it," Abdelaziz Al Qasim told Reuters. "The Mufti considered my opinions to be criticism of Wahhabism," said Qasim, a former Islamic law judge.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 01:13 ||
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and these reformist journalists wouldn't even register on a western scale. they are not 'reformist' in any sense of teh word we would understand except being a *tiny* bit less wahabist than the other fanatics.
The seventh militant who was injured in a shootout with security forces in Al-Qasim on Monday was discharged from King Fahd Specialist Hospital and handed over to police while funeral prayers were held at the Mosque of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques for two victims of the incident here yesterday. The militant, who sustained minor injuries to his hand in the firing, has been identified as Ibrahim Obaidallah Al-Harbi, Arab News learned yesterday.
Wonder if he was related to the cop who was killed in the same shootout?
Security officials have intensified their presence around the farm where the terror suspects were hiding. Police have also arrested for questioning the owner of the farm, who was absent from the scene at the time of the shootout. Interior Minister Prince Nayef yesterday paid a short visit to Al-Qasim. The prince met with the regionâs dignitaries, government officials and security commanders and conveyed the condolences of the Saudi leadership to the families of the dead officers, who he said were martyrs who died defending their country. He reiterated the government had full confidence in the people of the region. âWe are all responsible for not taking care of our youth and how they think and where they are heading,â he said and expressed regret over errant youth who hold ideas that have nothing to do with Islam.
But are still somehow thoroughly rooted in Islam...
âWe are all on the side of right. We will defend this religion (Islam) and hold fast to Shariah and apply it in every aspect of our life. We shouldnât be affected by what comes from a group of people from this country who have been misled and who carry evil thoughts that have been planted in their minds. These people think they are serving Islam, but what they are doing has nothing to do with Islam. A Muslim never kills another Muslim and Islam protects human lives. Islam even protects trees from being destroyed,â the prince added.
Nope. He doesn't get it.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 01:03 ||
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Such a shame when misguided youth attack their own countrymen instead of going abroad and killing infidel. Where did they get such ideas? What happened to the plane tickets we gave them?
What's this about Islam protecting trees? Is this a campaign to convert the people at Greepeace? Of course this would explain how the Saudis have managed to protect their vast tracts of forset.
Posted by: Tokyo Taro ||
07/30/2003 5:08 Comments ||
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Six Muslim militants killed on Monday in the latest Saudi security sweep were trained in Al Qaeda camps, Saudi Arabiaâs interior minister said in comments published on Tuesday.
Comes as a surprise, doesn't it?
âMost of them received their military training in Al Qaeda camps in Afghanistan and a small number perhaps were trained on farms and the like inside the country,â Prince Nayef was quoted as saying in the London-based Saudi-owned daily Asharq al-Awsat. âMost of the evidence points to them being connected to the terrorists who were arrested in Mecca,â he said, referring to clashes in the Muslim holy city of Mecca last month.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 00:43 ||
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Whoah, big admission there: "a small number perhaps were trained on farms and the like inside the country". I read that to mean the "Prince" admitted there are terrorist training camps in Saudi Arabia.
Not that I'm suprised by that fact; I'm surprised that he let it slip.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
07/30/2003 11:36 Comments ||
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Nayef - my favorite.
Remember folks, this is the guy who's been running the Interior Ministry for almost 30 years. He was the one who sold out the Saudi Education system to the Wahabbi clerics in exchange for a "cease-fire" on the Royals. He's the one who said "There are no Al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia" (http://www.dawn.com/2002/06/17/top17.htm). This is the Saudi weenie who gave NYC Mayor Giuliani a check for $10M - which the good Mayor rejected (BBC article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/1602840.stm) because Nayaf implied that the US "deserved" the 9/11 tragedy for its support of Israel against the Pals.
NOTE: It may interest you folks to know that a search on Google for this story (Nayef +Giuliani +Palestinians) does not yield a hit for any major US-based News service other than The Chicago Tribune... Does that bother anyone else here? It was MAJOR news when it happened, but it appears CNN, et al, have scrubbed / sanitized the story to remove the Pals. If anyone find hits on other major US news orgs, I'd like to hear of it. This makes me wonder if the Saudis are buying off people... Using www.alltheweb.com I saw a Seattle paper join the list. This really pisses me off.
Fred - I'm getting the "www.rantburg.com" prefix in comments, now - and I'm using double quotes - so I'm showing the URL as text.
#3
add +McKinney (who publicly said she'd accept the check on behalf of the oppressed blacks) and all you get is www.afrocubaweb.com and www.myislah.org
nice
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 12:35 Comments ||
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Are you including the "http://"?
Posted by: Fred ||
07/30/2003 19:51 Comments ||
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This is the voice of the Saudi Arabia that wants to dominate the world. These are the articles in the Arab News that donât appear in the English language version. The attitudes expressed here inform us why they thought they could attack us with impunity. Iâm glad that George Bush is teaching them differently. From MEMRI. [Writing about the killing of Uday and Qusay.]"I was appalled. I have said it before (not in this publication) and I say it again: Western, and especially U.S. , military doctrine is incapable of achieving victory. It took a 50:1 ratio (I am ignoring the helicopters, etc.) of crack (at least thatâs what the Americans call them) troops five hours to kill the three men and a boy who were hiding, not in a heavily fortified bunker, but in a simple villa. What a disgrace!"
"In addition, they were not even trying to capture them alive. If they had been, maybe it would have taken them a week. Had these been Saudi troops I would have urged that they be court-martialed for sheer colossal incompetence and cowardice. We must learn from this that U.S. military strategy, doctrine, tactics, and whatever else you can think of, have reached a point of total bankruptcy. They are simply incapable of fighting real battles against real people who do not roll over and play dead on cue."
"Therefore it is incumbent on us to avoid being influenced by their bankrupt military thinking and to start using our own common sense and to learn from people who have a proven track record of success in modern warfare. I would like to suggest learning military arts from such people as the Vietnamese, who proved beyond a shadow of doubt their military superiority over the U.S. despite the latterâs almighty bluster and fancy hardware (how the Americans love their toys)."
"The Chinese also have a thing or two to teach us. Do not forget that they fought the U.S. and its allies (another coalition of the willing) to a standstill in Korea at a time when the U.S. was at its mightiest militarily and economically. China at the time was a Third World country which had just come through a massive civil war. The East, brothers and sisters, is where we should look. Forget about the West, for they are finished." Read it all. Remember the name. Those the gods wish to destroy, they first fill with hubris.
Posted by: 11A5S ||
07/30/2003 12:15:52 AM ||
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Remember hell... it's what the entire in-bred clan is thinking...
#5
What they are really good at, their true claim to fame is what this article is about: talking out of both side of their duplicious cocksucking faces.
Out one side: They can look you square in the eye and lie like there's no tomorrow - and never flinch. It is an amazing thing to see and also amazing in that they don't flinch when they're found out, either. They always have some sort of "out" or excuse or scapegoat when caught red-handed. It is a marvel to behold. Others who've been there can confirm. (Wanna jump in, Michael?)
Out the other side: They will tell the Arabic-speaking world what they want to hear. They have no issues with this being totally different from what they tell the West. As with lying, they don't seem all that concerned that there are people in the West who speak Arabic and understanding the nuances of the cultural underpinnings of the language - much more prosaic and symbolic and visual than Western languages, I'm told... just consider the Saddam speeches you've seen translated - they don't make much sense to a Westerner, do they? Nope. Full of historical symbols and visuals and other non-factual but emotionally laden verbiage to native Arabic speakers.
So, is anyone really surprised by this shit? I hope not. I thnk this expose is most remarkable mainly for showing vast gap between the two messages. Totally different substance is being conveyed. I, for one, will ululate the day this shit is terminated - take that however you like. ;->
#6
This is a good read. I am torn between disliking what the guy says and thinking maybe this guy is just the Soddy answer to Fox's Bill O Rielly.
Anyway, since they have a lot to learn from the Vietnamese, I think Prince should immediatly start planting those rain forests accross the Kingdom and digging tunnels in the sand for the upcoming quagmire.
As far as the US "liking its (technology) toys", this is the one reason why I don't care for USA today stories explaining to the world our gameday tactics and startegies (MOAB etc) ... not that the info isn't available anyway, but more so because it makes it easier for the worlds simpletons to understand.
And as far as US military prowess and overwelming force, the term the pampered Prince is looking for is called "rightsizing".
#7
PD - of course they lie to us, after all we're infidels.
I believe they view reality in a completely different manner than those in the non-Islamic world do; the concepts of cause and effect, action and reaction have little meaning to them. This is why so many of their religious leaders seem to long for the 'good old days' of the 11th century.
#10
Something else I am Fed UP with...these Saudis, we all know what they are....sand niggers...and what could be lower than that. I'm Fed Up I tell ya, Fed Up!!
Posted by: Fed UP ||
07/30/2003 14:21 Comments ||
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Delusional, completely delusional.
Attention Howard Dean: your new speechwriter has arrived.
Posted by: john ||
07/30/2003 14:26 Comments ||
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#13
Wonder if he wants to give back all SA's US made "toys" and fight us with spears and bows?
There can be no peace or co-existence with Islam. In the end either Islam or the West must be utterly defeated. Bush's continued prattle about the goodness of the "Religion of Peace", is amazing in the light of such comments.
#14
A good reading of/listening to Martin Kramer, Daniel Pipes, or Bernard Lewis might start to explain it all. It has to do with fantasy ideology. There is a huge gap between what they want to happen and what is happening/will happen. It causes frustration. This prince is exhibiting this frustration. Go deal with your frustration, Your Lowness, in London, Casa, Beirut, or Bangkok.
A good illustration of his fantasy is the part that deals with Jews. They are becoming "more prominent", but it's all part of an Anglo-Saxon plot since the A-S want them to be prominent. Why? So that on that special day, all the rich A-S elite will say to the Gentile community in the USA,"The JEWS are the cause of your misery and torment." Then the A-S will wipe out the Jews.
Funny, reading typical anti-semetic literature has taught me that the JEWS have no equal in manipulating and pulling the strings in any society. So now the A-S are smarter than the JEWS in setting up machinations? Maybe the Prince in his next article will say that once the Jews are wiped out, then the A-S elite will pull off their handsome-face WASP masks and reveal themselves to be a bunch of hook-nosed, glasses-wearing guys with curls hanging down to their shoulders where men's sideburns should be. Then pull off the masks of the Jew lookin' dudes to reveal handsome WASP elites!! Damn, all part of the Jewish plot! Contradiction, oh contradiction. Fantasy, oh fantasy. The Magic Kingdom.
BTW, from the Prince's name, it looks like he's from the brood of the assasinated King Faysal/Faisal. Let's see...Faysal, father of Mohamed, Mohamed, father of Amr. Yeah, that's how it works. Still with me. Saud al Faisal, the FM, visited Bush and Cheney yesterday telling the boys to publish the 28 pages. "My concern is that the good name of Saudi Arabia is not tarnished. Everybody is having a field day and casting aspersions about SA." (Chi. Tribune) Damn, re his name, the Trib has him as "Saud bin al-Faisal"! Where did that "bin" come from? The Faisal brood, I believe, always preferred the no "bin" appelation to distinguish themselves from the seedier Royals. Never saw it before today. No kidding. Maybe a Hilary Rodham Clinton/Hilary Rodham/Hilary Clinton issue. Wants to sound more Royal Family like?
PD, all I can do is shrug my shoulders and hope Bush stays the course.
Posted by: Michael ||
07/30/2003 17:06 Comments ||
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Yeah, yeah, 13 years ago when he was wetting the bedsheet he wears, you know he was more than happy to see our vehicles roll across his land. Hell, he probably ground guided our vehicles off the ships. Now this? God I am soooooo tired of the lame Arab trash talkers. The only time their predictions come true is when they say they'll die for Allah! They tend to be pretty good at that. Just not at a fast enough rate.
As far as the Vietnamese and Chinese are concerned, by all means, please do! With all of the foilage in Saudi, I'm sure you could hold out for AT LEAST 3 to 4 seconds.
Most importantly, war's are not won by those with the most weapons or the biggest armies. Wars are won when one side has lost it's will to fight.
Saudi, I think you should stick to pumping your oil, because the stripe down your backs is a neon yellow.
mhw >>> My thoughts exactly.
Posted by: Paul ||
07/30/2003 17:08 Comments ||
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#16
They are simply incapable of fighting real battles against real people who do not roll over and play dead on cue.
#17
Saudi Arabian big-mouths are going to talk themselves into big trouble one of these days, and a bunch of that sand will be converted into glass. Couldn't happen to a more deserving group of mental midgets.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/31/2003 0:01 Comments ||
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PUBLIC servants were not brow-beaten into holding back intelligence information on Iraqâs weapons of mass destruction program before the Iraq war, public service chief Peter Shergold said today. Before the war, Prime Minister John Howard said in a speech that Iraq had sought to import uranium from Niger. It has since emerged a key government intelligence agency, the Office of National Assessments (ONA), had received information before the speech that the claims were false, but did not tell the Prime Minister. i guess they had to weigh up those claims against counter claims and non-related evidence that actually supported the thesis and was valid and verified
Dr Shergold, the head of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, said government agencies, including the ONA, had been consulted by the Prime Ministerâs department before Mr Howard gave his speech on Iraqâs weapons capacity. "There was this very strong flow of information," Dr Shergold told ABC radio. "And yet the media have been writing as if that is not the case, as if what you see is a cowed public service not being able to get its advice across â itâs just wrong." NO! our media isnât BIASED or anything is it? I mean, it seems so fair when SBS and the ABC persistently blame America for all their terrible genocidal capitalist globalisation world-domination policies...
While not wanting to comment on why the ONA did not tell Mr Howard the Niger uranium claims had been discredited, Dr Shergold said it was often difficult for government agencies to verify the credibility of intelligence reports.
Either that, or it hadn't actually been discredited...
"Intelligence, Iâve discovered in my time in this department, is a remarkably difficult area," Dr Shergold said. "It is every bit as much art as it is science." so you mean just because the intelligence agencies didnât tell us 100% certainty about 911 and the Bali Bombing ahead of time, it doesnât mean it is all a conspiracy and that the US and Israel and ASIO really planned it all along as an excuse to wage war on the Arabs????
Dr Shergold said some people believed public servants were too scared to give ministers advice they might not want to hear. "Iâve got to say itâs absolute balderdash and poppycock," Dr Shergold said. And Iâve got to agree with you. Thankyou Dr Shergold. Unfortunately, though, as the WHISTLEBLOWER, he will now likely be ostracised and forced out of the public service
Posted by: Anon1 ||
07/30/2003 4:49:36 AM ||
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Indonesian police are piecing together the 10-year journey of Islamic extremist Abdul Rahim Ayub — Australiaâs most wanted terrorist suspect — with investigators now showing pictures of him to Bali bombing suspects in the hope of making arrests. The photos of Ayub and his twin brother, Abdur Rahman Ayub, are believed to have been seized either in recent Indonesian police raids or in swoops conducted by ASIO and the Australian Federal Police on Ayubâs Perth home. But Ayub — alleged to be the chief of Australiaâs embryonic JI cell — had already fled his home in the suburb of Thornlie, leaving on October 15 to attend a JI leadersâ summit on October 17 in a remote Indonesian village. On the run, he is known to have attended another JI meeting in Indonesia last April.
The pivotal role played by the Ayub brothers in JIâs expansion plans emerged only last week in testimony at a Bali bombing trial. Last Wednesday, prosecutors questioned Idris, the Afghan-trained fighter who escorted two suicide bombers to Jalan Legian on October 12. Idris said he was sworn in by a top JI boss, Abdul Rohim, in 1993 at the Ngruki Islamic school in Solo, central Java. After his testimony, Indonesian police showed Idris a picture of Ayub, but he could not say with certainty that he recognised the photograph. The AFP and ASIO have been frantically seeking to establish the veracity of the claims, which suggest JI may have made more significant progress in Perth and Sydney than initially believed. However, his possible sponsorship of some of the Bali bombing suspects has raised new questions on the extent to which terrorists have infiltrated Australia — and whether sleeper cells have been established.
In a summary of Idrisâs confession, read by the Herald, he nominates a man called Abdul Rohim Toyib as the JI leader who presided at the ceremony, which commits members to perform jihad in retaliation for the suppression of Muslim followers across the world. Idris went on to tell police Toyib later went to Australia to set up a mantiqi, one of four chapters of JI throughout South-East Asia. It is now believed Toyib is an alias used by Ayub. He first settled in Sydney in 1997, and attempted — with the blessing of JIâs spiritual leader, Abu Bakar Bashir — to take control of a mosque at Dee Why, on Sydneyâs northern beaches. Those efforts failed and Ayub moved to Perth. His brother, Abdur Rahman, was deported in 1999 after an attempt to seek refugee status.
Posted by: Paul Moloney ||
07/30/2003 1:36:25 AM ||
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The head of the Australian-led intervention force in Solomon Islands, Nick Warner, will fly to the province of Malaita today. He will meet with the leaders of the militia group that virtually controlled the capital for the past three years. Three founders of the Malaita force said they did not want to fight the intervention force. One of them, Jimmy Rasta, said they wanted to meet with Nick Warner on Malaita and that they would be prepared to give up their guns if he could grant them a 30-day gun amnesty.
"Jimmy Rasta"? The Solomons are that close to Jamaica?
Mr Warner says he will be flying to Malaita tomorrow. "I think that we have set up a meeting with Jimmy Rasta and his colleagues for [Wednesday] and there will certainly be a meeting with the Premier, church leaders, community leaders and chief," he said. Mr Warner says he is still discussing the whole amnesty issue with the Solomon Islands government.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 00:09 ||
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#1
as Marley said, it's all "one world, one love" even for rebel militias trying to shoot their way into power. Jah!
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 10:17 Comments ||
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#2
Jimmy Rasta, the one-time Malaitan Eagle Force militia leader who went on to lead a criminal gang in the Solomon Islands, has agreed that his "boys" will hand in their weapons to be publicly destroyed in a ceremony on August 15.
A pig was roasted and a bamboo band played on the island of Malaita to celebrate the agreement yesterday between Rasta and the Australian-led intervention task force.
Jimmy had been asking for 30, got 15 days. And a nice BBQ.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 10:49 Comments ||
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President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair will be able to visit Brussels without fear of arrest after Belgium voted to scrap a controversial war crimes law under strong U.S. pressure. wanted that NATO thing after all, huh?
A large majority of the lower house of parliament passed a bill late Tuesday quashing the universal jurisdiction law, under which cases were launched against Bush, Blair and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. The law soured diplomatic relations between Brussels and Washington after complaints were filed against high-ranking U.S. officials on allegations of war crimes during the war in Iraq. That prompted Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld last month to suspend funding of a planned new NATO headquarters building. The senate has to approve the bill Friday before it takes effect, but that is seen as a formality.
Go ahead and approve. Maybe they'll remember...
The 1993 law gave Belgian courts the power to try war crimes cases no matter where the alleged offences were committed and regardless of the victimâs or perpetratorâs nationality. Because we are your Moral Bettersâ¢...ask the Congo
Courts have been flooded in the past two years with cases against a number of world leaders. The decision to scotch the law followed several unsuccessful attempts to water it down. Justice Minister Laurette Onkelinx told the lower house the law had fallen victim to "abusive, even absurd use."
Coulda called that before it was even passed...
Onkelinx said last week that some 29 cases were being processed by investigating magistrates and most would now likely be canned by the Supreme Court of Appeals. Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt said earlier this month 10 cases involving the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, plus two related to Guatemala and Chad, all involving Belgians, would continue. That would be proper jurisdiction now, wouldnât it?
The high-profile lawsuits against Bush, Blair, Rumsfeld and U.S. General Tommy Franks, the Iraq war commander, never got as far as an examining magistrate and will be automatically dumped. "Today, Belgium certainly loses this vanguard role, but it remains one of the rare countries which has legislation penalizing crimes against international humanitarian law," Onkelinx said. Matters came to a head when Rumsfeld last month lambasted the law and warned that Washington would be reluctant to send officials to Brussels for NATO meetings. U.S. officials denied reports they were contemplating moving the 19-nation alliance headquarters, but fear of the loss of jobs, money and prestige shook the Belgian establishment.
Sounds like they're brighter than the Puerto Rican establishment, at least...
Planned new criminal law provisions will restrict the right to launch war crimes cases to Belgians or people resident in the country for at least three years at the time of the crime.
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 9:16:09 AM ||
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#1
Justice Minister Laurette Onkelinx told the lower house the law had fallen victim to "abusive, even absurd use."
What is absurd is the Belgians. Let them eat chocolate cake.
#2
The internationalists will surely take this blow to the Great Global Village as fodder for endless wailing about (paradoxically) the control of multi-national corporations, American hegemony, the loss of Universal Civil Rights, and the continuing victimization of the voiceless.
Turkey's parliament on Tuesday approved a new amnesty bill to encourage Kurdish rebels to lay down their arms in exchange for less severe prison terms.
I doubt that's gonna make it...
Thousands of Kurdish rebels, fighting for autonomy from Turkey, are believed to be based across the border in northern Iraq. The United States has encouraged an amnesty, saying it will help provide stability in Iraq and in the region. The bill, approved by a vote of 356-71, excludes top rebel leaders. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer must sign the law before it takes effect. "One of the visions that all of us, Turks and Americans, have for Iraq, is an Iraq that has no connection with terrorists or terrorist organizations," U.S. Undersecretary of State Marc Grossman said in an interview with CNN-Turk television broadcast Tuesday.
Concentrate on dismantling them in Iraqi territory and let the Turks deal with them inside Turkey. Ensure the twain doesn't meet by controlling the border.
Under the new measure, rebels who have not been involved in any violence will be pardoned if they surrender. Those surrendering who were involved in armed attacks will receive reduced prison terms. But they would first have to provide information about the rebel group. Under the deal, a life sentence would be reduced to nine years in prison. The government has estimated that about half of the estimated 4,500 Kurdish rebels would seek such amnesty.
Let's see how close their estimates are...
Hundreds of Kurdish rebels applied for reduced sentences under a similar amnesty in 1999, officials said. Although the amnesty mainly targets Kurdish rebels, members of other illegal leftist or Islamist organizations would also benefit, including members of Hezbollah, a radical Islamic group suspected of scores of killings throughout Turkey but is not linked to the Lebanon-based guerrilla group of the same name.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 01:24 ||
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#1
Doesn't the oil start flowing from one of their pipelines soon?
The prosecutor of the world's first permanent war crimes court will review a dossier containing allegations of human rights abuses by British troops in Iraq, the court said on Monday. Members of the Athens Bar Association have called on International Criminal Court (ICC) Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo to investigate 22 alleged incidents involving British forces in the war. The Greek lawyers handed a dossier containing 74 press reports and 13 video tapes of news reports from the war in Iraq to the prosecutor. The ICC has received around 500 complaints from 66 countries since the global court came into force in July 2002. It has not yet initiated a full investigation. Both Britain and Greece are among 91 countries which recognise and support the court. More than 100 complaints so far have concerned the US-led war in Iraq. America claims immunity from these courts which are setup to provide justice against the attrocities commited by government despite the fact that its forces have killed hundreds of innocent civilians in Iraq recently and many more in the previous attacks on different countries, not to mention the biggest war crime ever in the recorded history — the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki whose after effects can still be seen in that area.
Anybody still a believer? Except for Stevey?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 00:17 ||
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#1
This particular Steve is surprised only that Bush wasn't named first.
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/30/2003 0:48 Comments ||
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"Sign up to the ICC and receive 2 not-guilty verdicts for free!"
Some conditions apply. While supplies last. Offer not valid in America.
Posted by: Rafael ||
07/30/2003 0:57 Comments ||
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#3
Oh yeh! The circus is in town. Watch the zany hilarity of the newest group of clowns, the Athens Bar Association, as they try to act serious. Laugh as a bunch of old Greek lefties try to make the British Army jump through hoops.
Posted by: Tokyo Taro ||
07/30/2003 3:55 Comments ||
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#4
oh yes, i can see it is a MUCH higher priority to prosecute the british for shooting a civilian by accident (for example) which is an aberration and which would be investigated anyway, than for instance to try to prosecute the hutus for killing a million tutsis (or was it the other way round?) or Saddam's old regime for gassing the Kurds/attempted genocide of the Marsh Arabs, or Dear Leader's psycopathic starvation of his people, or Indonesia's attempted genocide in East Timor culminating in the bloody violence when the troops finally moved out a couple of years ago...
#5
this is very good news for the Bush admin - it makes their opposition to the ICC look much more reasonable. All those in Europe - Blair and sympathizers - who supported ICC, but see this as political prosecution, will have some explaining to do.
I confess I was never a hardcore ICC oppponent like some here, but this seems to me to be strong evidence for the anti-ICC case.
#6
first question to the Dem challenger to Bush - would you submit to the authority of the ICC?
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 10:25 Comments ||
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#7
this seems to me to be strong evidence for the anti-ICC case.
These 22 cases would only be the tip of the iceberg if Americans signed onto the ICC. Oh sure the cases can be thrown out, but the point is, people would be continually bringing up case after case after case. This is another brilliant European experiment. I give it two years before they are crushed under the paperwork of silly cases (or maybe that's the point, to give some unemployed bureaucrats work).
Posted by: Rafael ||
07/30/2003 10:59 Comments ||
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I guess they needed to get these filed by Thurday, July 31, since the EU goes on mandatory vacation Friday for the month of August.
(Feel an old 60's song coming on...)
"Will (we) see you, in September?
Or lose you,
To a summer love?
#10
Per the article above, let me see if I have this right. The Belgians revoked their inalienable right to try anyone, anywhere, for anything -- but the Greeks, attempting to use the ICC, have stepped in seize the high ground in international oversight. Ah, there is hope yet for an international bureaucracy of meddlers. Next, we'll be hauling in people from nations that refuse to pay their increased assessments to fund those who have appointed themselves World Judges.
#11
I wonder if (god forbid) the former Rapist-in-Chief gets to be UNSG that he will submit to the court? Lots of Serbs, Sudanese, etc. want to try him for war crimes. If he goes on trial will Senator Clinton defend him or some other lefty? This is what Sitcoms (or HBO Specials) are made of.
#12
The Greek lawyers handed a dossier containing 74 press reports and 13 video tapes of news reports from the war in Iraq to the prosecutor.
I could probably find 1000 press reports and a couple of hundred videotapes of Brit troops patting puppies and passing out candy to kids. Would that get them off the hook? This is their evidence? Real solid case ya got there.
Americans can see their president on television almost every day. From policy speeches to White House meetings to photo opportunities on the road with selected groups, the sight of George W Bush is anything but a rarity. But opportunities for the nationâs press to question the leader are far less common. He will make comments before or after events — such as paying tribute to the late comedian Bob Hope — and he takes two questions after meeting visiting foreign leaders like Israelâs Ariel Sharon. Yet the White House can let months go by without giving the press any extended opportunity to ask questions of the president. Why, so he can be pelted with leading, liberal/leftist questions that are insulting and degrading?
Mr Bushâs last news conference was on 6 March this year, 11 days before he issued Saddam Hussein with an ultimatum to leave Iraq or face invasion. Since then, there has been the war itself, growing concern about difficulties still being faced by US troops in Iraq and a row over the intelligence used to justify the attack. Other issues have also come up — Mr Bushâs controversial tax cut, violence in Liberia, renewed criticism of the intelligence services who failed to stop the 11 September attacks and, most recently, allegations that the White House is trying to protect Saudi Arabia with its refusal to declassify a congressional report on those attacks. Puh-leeeze.
News conferences offer an important mechanism for the American people to see their president answer questions on the panoply of issues facing the country. Reporters lob questions at White House spokesmen, but elements of the media have become increasingly frustrated at the lack of opportunity to hear directly from the president. On Tuesday, the influential Washington Post newspaper ran an editorial calling on Mr Bush to "Meet the Press". While not calling for the kind of monthly televised news conferences introduced by UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, the paper said even four appearances a year would be an improvement. It noted that Mr Bush had held just eight solo news conferences in his two-and-a-half years in power. At the same stage of their terms, Bill Clinton had held 33 such events and the first President Bush 61. When the press is dominated by assholes with a left/liberal agenda, why should he put up with their garbage?
"News conferences arenât a panacea. The questions can be silly or preening or off-point," the Post noted.
"Self-serving, ill-informed, stupid, inane..."
"But news conferences offer an important mechanism for the American people to see their president answer questions on the panoply of issues facing the country. And they give the president, as he prepares for the grilling, a useful refresher course on the workings of his administration." Maybe someone in the administration heeded the Postâs words, but few expect a dramatic shift in media policy from the White House. Mr Bush makes a point of learning journalistsâ names and some personal details about them, such as whether they have children. This allows him to have a seemingly easy rapport when he does take questions. But sometimes he also appears to become irked when reporters fail to return the bonhomie and pepper him with demands. He deflects issues he does not want to address — as any other leading politician would — but there seem to be no plans to allow more sparring with the press. At his final briefing earlier this month, former presidential spokesman Ari Fleischer defended Mr Bushâs way of giving brief comments to reporters several times a week on the issue of the day. "I think some people have come to the conclusion that these grand news conferences of the past are designed for a little more theatre than they are for information. So thatâs the presidentâs style," he said. Thank you. next.
#3
If you caught much of this AM's press conference, each leftie reporter seemed to start each question with a speech (designed to "frame" the response). I guess this is the "bonhomie" [sic] that he is supposedly failing to return.
I don't know who they think THEY represent, but they are trying to shape the news. Screw tort reform, we need media reform worse.
Posted by: Mark IV ||
07/30/2003 20:08 Comments ||
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Did they let all of the NPR talking heads out of their cribs?
Judging from the questions they asked, I think we can pretty well figure out who is on the distribution list for the last DNC strategy memo that Terry McAwful sent out. This is so bad and so transparent.
My gosh, you would have thought that Howard the Dean and Gebhardt the Dick wrote the questions.
Are we sure that George didn't stumble into the Iowa Democratic Caucus instead of the Rose Garden.
You know, the mainstream media still acts like they have a monopoly on the news. They forget that Rush, Joe, Hugh, Laura and the rest of the radio attack dogs hosts have chewed this charade up by noon. It is almost insulting that these diaper wearing little liberal thumbsuckers think the average american is stupid enough to fall for this gig.
You know we ought to start a pool and pick the overs and unders on how many states George carries in 2004, I say the overs and unders are 45.
A Nevada assemblyman who mentioned that African-Americans are being served by an AIDS awareness program that targets minorities is being called a racist for stating the obvious. In an interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Assemblyman Bob Beers, R-Las Vegas, reportedly dismissed a program dubbed Fighting AIDS in Our Community Today as a program "dedicated to putting condoms on gay men in the black community."
A fellow assemblyman, Democrat Kelvin Atkinson, said the comment stemmed from Beersâ âracial issues. "To me itâs a racist remark," Atkinson said. "Itâs something that shouldnât be tolerated in our district." Other assemblymen described themselves as âspeechlessâ over the comment, even though the programâs main goal is to provide outreach to the minority community and educate them in an effort to reduce the transmission of HIV. I spend a good deal of time in Nevada and people there are, well, blunt. If Atkinson doesnât like it he should move back to Los Angeles, where he is undoubtably from. Or he should stop stirring up partisan BS â one or the other.
Posted by: Secret Master ||
07/30/2003 11:00:27 AM ||
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Via Drudge
Saskatchewanâs plan to petition the United States to reopen borders to Canadian beef stumbled out of the gate Wednesday when an internal government document flippantly referred to U.S. President George W. Bush as "Shrub." Freudian slip = freudian tariff
"Re: Petition to President Shrub," is the title of the memo, dated Tuesday, and sent to NDP legislature members and candidates by party researcher Ted Bowen. The memo was sent to media outlets by mistake. "Shrub is Molly Ivinsâ dismissive nickname for President Bush," reads the P.S. Molly Ivins is a shrivelled bush in her own right, so I would give her that....
Shrub: The Short But Happy Political Life of George W. Bush is a 2000 book by Ivins, a Texas writer, and journalist Lou Dubose. Itâs a cheeky work that describes Bush as politically savvy but a shallow thinker and beholden to special interests. When contacted about the memo, Bowen, an American with a thick southern accent, insisted that referring to Bush as a shrub is common where he comes from. "In a way itâs my heritage," Bowen said.
As a Democrat...
"Nobody calls anybody by their right name in Texas. Everybody has a nickname. Itâs the silly season. If thatâs news, itâs news, but I should not have done it and I apologize."
Not accepted, due to lack of sincerity...
Opposition Saskatchewan Party leader Elwin Hermanson labelled the memo "idiotic" and said Premier Lorne Calvert should apologize immediately. Calvert launched the petition Tuesday before he headed for the Rolling Stones concert in Toronto as a way for Saskatchewan citizens to make a difference where politicians couldnât.
Yeah. You made a difference, alright. Fuggeddaboudit.
It was to be forwarded to Bush in the coming weeks.
He has a trash can...
Ranchers across Canada have been struggling since major exports markets were closed to Canadian beef after one case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad cow disease, was discovered in Alberta May 20. The memo is the latest high level Canadian insult to Bush and Americans that cattle industry representatives say are not helping their cause.
Do tell? Not helping? Wonder why that is?
Prime Minister Jean Chretienâs former press secretary, Francoise Ducros, was forced to resign last November after being overheard calling Bush a "moron." Earlier this year, Liberal MP Carolyn Parrish was overheard saying, "Damn Americans, I hate those bastards."
How about: "Damn Canadians. They've got the government they want."
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 5:40:01 PM ||
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#1
i am getting sick of anything coming out of canada! when will they get the picture? get over your jealosy , america is not going change because some aholes have a identity crisis! they think they are so smug - tell me this why is it when the shit hits the fan it is uncle sam you come crawling too?
Posted by: Dan ||
07/30/2003 18:27 Comments ||
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#2
LIkewise Carolyn, you pedantic pontificating piece of spoiled poon.
#3
I would comment, but Bowen is an American, so... could you take her back please?
Posted by: Rafael ||
07/30/2003 19:09 Comments ||
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#4
Dan, Canada is the result of living under the American security umbrella for fifty years, and has become a very unserious nation focused entirely on medical welfare. (And as SARS has proven, we cannot even do that succcessfully.)
If GW and Co. is really "all about oil", then a maintenance platoon making a wrong turn at the Montana border could probably secure all of Alberta in a couple of hours. Couple of tanks at the Peace Bridge in Buffalo would probably send Chretien and his pack into asylum in Cuba. C&C deserve each other.
Posted by: john ||
07/30/2003 21:00 Comments ||
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#5
My "dismissive nickname" for Molly Ivins is "Fat, Ugly Douchebag". Isn't that precious!?
Canadaâs Solicitor-General would not discount the possibility yesterday that rogue elements in the RCMP passed on intelligence information to U.S. authorities leading to the arrest and deportation of an Arab-Canadian to Syria over allegations of links to al-Qaeda. Wayne Easter said he is aware the Americans are claiming the RCMP quietly asked the U.S. government to pick up Maher Arar, whom Paul Cellucci, the U.S. Ambassador to Canada, says was the target of a joint Canada-U.S. security investigation long before he was arrested in New York last September.
Mr. Arar, a Syrian-born Canadian citizen, was arrested when he arrived at New Yorkâs John F. Kennedy International Airport en route to Canada. The 32-year-old Ottawa engineer was carrying a Canadian passport when he was detained and then sent to a CIA debriefing station in Jordan before ending up in a Damascus prison. He is being held in a secret location and denied access to his family and legal counsel. Mr. Easter said senior Mounties insist there was no "official" decision to provide the United States with information that led to Mr. Arar being placed on a watch list used to screen passengers arriving in that country. "The Americans had indicated that it was RCMP and it was the RCMP who indicated to me that there was no official discussions," he said.
However, Mr. Easter did not rule out the possibility RCMP officers working the Arar case alerted U.S. law enforcement without the official approval of their superiors at RCMP headquarters. "I would hope that when an American authority is dealing with Canada that they only do it on the basis on official clearance," he said. "You could have a number of individuals claiming to speak on behalf of an agency and that is certainly not what we want, so the information that I have been provided with is that there was no official clearance or discussion on that issue with American authorities."
"It is a serious matter and that is why the Prime Minister is taking on this case with his profile," Mr. Easter said. "He certainly speaks for the government and what we want to do is ensure that there is due process of the law for a Canadian citizen." Asked whether the Canadian Security Intelligence Service provided information on Mr. Arar to the United States, Mr. Easter said: "I canât get into talking what CSIS did or didnât on that particular matter."
U.S. authorities indicated yesterday an RCMP team in charge of the Arar investigation co-operated with the United States to ensure Mr. Arar did not return to Canada. "There is a real disconnect between the Mounties on the street doing the investigations and sometimes the people at the top in terms of acknowledging the problem in Canada with sleeper cells," a U.S. official said. "From the American perspective, the RCMP is much better to work with than CSIS because CSIS is a political creature. The RCMP are cops doing their jobs. They are the guys who do the surveillance. They know the score."
Posted by: john ||
07/30/2003 3:29:03 PM ||
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#1
fred? header help
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 16:29 Comments ||
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Actually, CSIS has a good working relationship with US intelligence agencies and theyâre pretty highly regarded for their work.
My father had a problem with a former Pakistani employee and reported him to the Canadian authorities. CSIS contacted him back and asked him a series of questions about the guy. The agent also said that they are watching a lot of these people and they do acknowledge that it is a problem and even a threat within Canada, but they arenât supposed to discuss it publicly for âsensitivity reasonsâ (i.e. they donât want to offend anyone).
The main problem with Canada is the people in charge who either seriously donât have a clue, are outright delusional or donât want to do anything about the situation just so they can spite the US. Chretien is a vestige of the old Trudeau leadership, and we all know what he really thought of the US.
Point is, they know what's really going on, but are saying the opposite for a variety of stupid reasons.
I hope things change when Paul Martin takes over, but I donât really like him either. Itâs a shame that John Manley bowed out of the race because he really took this threat seriously. Still, anyone (except for Sheila Copps) would be better than the buffoon in charge of Canada right now.
#3
Amen SL. Chretien is treated like a god because he won several elections in a row. But in reality there was no alternative to Chretien in the east, and Ontario consistantly kept forming the federal government. In fact the last federal election had the lowest voter turn-out ever, to illustrate this. I never voted for him; never liked him from the beginning. He can't go away fast enough. Unfortunately, I have my doubts about Martin as well, but we'll see...
Posted by: Rafael ||
07/30/2003 19:22 Comments ||
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#4
When Mounties turn rogue... I expect that anyone losing their job due to this will find work in the U.S.A., perhaps with the New York City Police Department.
#5
I actually voted for Cretin the first time. Not because I really agreed with his policies or anything, but I was disgusted by the PCâs âis this the face of a leader?â campaign. It was pretty disgusting.
Then again, I was young, stupid and didnât know much about politics or the man himself and just about anyone seemed better than Kim Campbell.
Look how it all turned out. Cretin has been a disaster from the get go and an absolute embarrassment.
Youâre right, Rafael, in that there is simply no alternative and just the way the system is in Canada virtually guarantees that the Liberals will be elected time and time again. I like the Alliance, but they just donât resonate with voters in the East, who are much more left-wing. Wish the Right could just unify and make a united stance just to get those bastard Liberals out of office.
Pakistani authorities imposed a round-the-clock curfew in the northwestern tribal town of Parachinar overnight after violence erupted over the death of man shot by police. âAn unruly mob of some 2,500 attacked government offices, destroyed records, looted some shops and set on fire official vehicles on Mondayâ a security official told AFP.
Sounds very, ummm... Islamic.
Parachinar, in the semi-autonomous Kurram region bordering Afghanistan, has been put under an indefinite curfew and people have been asked not to leave their homes. Residents told AFP by telephone that police and paramilitary troops were patrolling in the area. Officials said the trouble erupted when troops from the local Kurram militia signaled a pick-up truck for âroutineâ checking but its driver sped away. The militiamen chasing the vehicle opened fire which resulted in the death of the driver on spot. When his body reached Parachinar, angry residents took to the streets and attacked government buildings.
Must have been a favorite turban...
The authorities summoned troops to quell violence and the situation is now âunder control,â they said,adding that more than 20 people responsible for the incident have been rounded up.
Wonder how many of them are clerg?
Residents said troops also detained several people for violating the curfew. Pakistan has tightened security along its northwestern border and recently additional check posts have been set up to block possible infiltration of suspected Taliban and al-Qaeda fugitives from neighbouring Afghanistan.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 00:37 ||
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Followup to yesterday's article, even though we could have guessed the details...
One person was killed and another five injured on Monday in a suicide bomb attack by terrorists near a Shia Imam Bargah in Jhang, Pakistan. Two Afghans were seen fleeing the scene in Mohallah Jogianwala on a motorcycle rickshaw moments before the bomb went off. Another Afghan killed in the blast, was carrying the bomb. After searching the dead body, the police found that the dead man was wearing two Shalwars and two underwears, which made him highly suspicious, officials said.
Did they get suspicious before or after he exploded?
The motorcycle rickshaw on which two of the terrorists fled was taken into custody later. The rickshaw driver told the police that the slightly injured Afghans got off his rickshaw near the Fawara Chowk. The area was cordoned off by the police who searched all the hotels in the vicinity, but could not find the suspects. Mohallah Jogianwala is adjacent to Mohallah Sultanwala where Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan, one of the country's most militant Wahabi groups, has its headquarters. The area is popular among Afghans who are often seen renting shops for short periods. The Sipah e Sahaba and Lashkar-e-Jhangavi both had their terrorist training camps in Afghanistan during the Taliban rule in that country.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 00:24 ||
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Military trying to identify malady that killed lake area soldier
By Marsha Paxson
Lake Sun
LAKE OF THE OZARKS -- Seven more soldiers in Iraq have contracted the same puzzling illness that has killed two soldiers, including one from the lake area.
The latest cases bring the number of affected troops to 19. All have been evacuated to the same Landstuhl, Germany, hospital where Spec. Josh Neusche, 20, of Montreal was treated before he died July 12.
It is believed Neusche contracted the illness, first thought to be pneumonia, while conducting cleanup operations with the 203rd Engineer Battalion in Baghdad.
"The Army Surgeon General confirmed that three or four of the soldierâs in Joshâs unit are among those who got sick," Sen. Ike Skelton told the Lake Sun Tuesday. "I know Josh was stationed in Baghdad when he got sick but I still do not know what unit the second soldier (who died of the mysterious illness) was in, what his job was or where he was working when he became ill."
Hmmm...you donât suppose we got a good old case of respiratory ANTHRAX do you????
Skelton said he had not yet been told which units the sick soldiers were attached to or where they might have been before they fell ill. U.S. Army Surgeon General Lt. Gen. James Peake has ordered teams of medical experts and epidemiology specialists to retrace the soldiersâ steps from the second they set foot in the Middle East.
If this was in New York City, we would have a mass panic on CNN. The interesting thing about this is he died over two weeks ago...
"They are investigating everything it could possibly be," Skelton said. "Iâm confident that with medical science and the technological advances weâve made, we will get some positive answers."
Skelton, who serves as the ranking Democrat of the House Armed Services Committee, contacted top officials with the Department of the Army when he first learned of Neuscheâs case in late June.
Neuscheâs family could not afford to make the trip to Germany and was told he was in a coma, dying of a flu-like ailment.
Fellow soldiers chipped in for airfare and Skelton expedited their passports and paperwork to get them to Germany in time. When Neuscheâs parents arrived in Germany on July 9, the illness had already begun ravaging his muscles, liver and kidneys. Neusche died in an ambulance on the way to another hospital for dialysis.
Muscular Atrophy, Liver and Kidney Failure.......Any of you guys out there know your infectious diseases?
In Pakistan, Geo-TV aired an interview with Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, in which he again raised U.S. concerns about foreign fighters among the resistance cell in Iraq. "Certainly we know that there are foreign fighters that have flowed in through Syria, and in fact, 80 of them were engaged several weeks ago in a training camp, and they were not Iraqis," Myers said. The "engaged" and "they were not Iraqis" statement leads me to believe they are now taking a dirt nap.
On Tuesday, the US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage said that there were "some indications" that Lebanonâs Hizbullah may be trying "to harm our interests in an already confused situation" in Iraq. He did not offer any specifics but said foreign fighters from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Pakistan and Syria had been involved in armed attacks against US forces in Iraq. Since you canât tell nationality from DNA, Iâd guess they are finding ID cards on the bodies and taking prisoners. Somebody is making a list.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 10:18:30 AM ||
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Gee, ya think Myers is letting Perv know there are some PakiTwits in the bag?
#2
Hopefully he's delivering that message by pouring their remains on top of Perv's desk.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
07/30/2003 11:39 Comments ||
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Meyers and Armitage are stating the obvious without resorting to graphic language. I think that they ought to say something graphic, through, to let everyone know that we will take no sh-t from any nationality and they will have to take DIRT NAPS if they continue their behavior.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
07/30/2003 16:31 Comments ||
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... in fact, 80 of them were engaged several weeks ago in a training camp ...
The US military will hold the wedding reception, and take photos of the blushing grooms as they're lead away to meet Bubba, their new 350 lb "bride" in their prison cell.
*evil grin*
Posted by: Ed Becerra ||
07/30/2003 18:13 Comments ||
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The ousted Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein, is wearing an explosive belt and plans to activate it when he feels US forces are closing on him, the London-based Arabic language newspaper, AlHayat reported on Wednesday. Quoting "various Iraqi sources", the daily said Saddam has been wearing the belt, since the killing last week of his two sons, Uday and Qusay. "See, we had to shoot him before he set off the bomb belt. Thatâs why we couldnât take him prisoner, we wouldnât want any innocent Iraqi citizens hurt by pieces of flying Saddam."
(CENTCOM PIO practicing for the press conference after Sammy gets wacked.)
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 10:06:36 AM ||
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a $25 million "work accident" in the making? Call OSHA!
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 10:13 Comments ||
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The new Tammy Wynette video for "I Fall to Pieces"?
#4
Yank - yes, though it'll be scorched and somewhat misshapen from the concussion. I had the misfortune of personally seeing an "aftermath" once from a guy wearing what was described as a "vest" - so I figure a belt would about the same or slightly less due to proximity. The power of the device would come into play, of course. So I guess there are 2 questions:
1) Is Saddam going lug around enuff to try to take out a room - or a building?
2) Will all the King's horses and all the King's men be able to identify Humpty and pay the reward?
#14
Fred, PD's right, this one needed a warning label. Although I should have had enough sense to put down the coffee first.
Posted by: Matt ||
07/30/2003 14:05 Comments ||
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They just released a new video of Saddam, but he doesn't appear to be wearing the belt?
Posted by: Dar ||
07/30/2003 15:05 Comments ||
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Does the head usually remain after using a suicide belt?
"Hey, here's Saddam! No wait, he's here! And over here! And more little pieces of him here, here, and here! And over there is yet another piece, and........."
#18
I just hope that they trap him in the crapper before he blows.
Posted by: Paul ||
07/30/2003 17:40 Comments ||
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I blew up a carcass of a horse that had fallen in a trail creek crossing and died with 2 cases of 40% dynamite. Parted out the leg ends and head. The rest was schrapnel in the trees. It was quite gross--both before and after the duPont vest.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
07/30/2003 18:47 Comments ||
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#20
If we capture this "person", we'll have nut job Iraqi Baathists pulling hostage gigs all over the world with ole Sammy as the ransom.
Just like everytime we would corral a PFLF or Black September guy alive, the next thing you know, BANG, a highjacked airplane, oceanliner, or office building with the little note:
"Give us Achmed the Glorious butcher of children or we'll start shooting hostages"
I'd like to see a hostage thingee at CBS and take bets on how many of those talking heads get their IQ's raised before we send in the Delta Force.
#21
I'd like to add that we should shoot him and spare ourselves about five years of liberal sniveling and whining over the death sentence at the World Court of "public opinion".
I would modify the wanted poster to say that if we take him alive the reward is $25.00 and if we can kill his sorry @$$ the reward is $25.0 million...maybe like the old bounty on coyotes, we should only ask for his head and the fingers off his right hand for proof.
via instapundit - EFL - read it all How can Saddamâs family expect a proper burial for their sons, when they have denied thousands of others? The Guardian
I can not really say it was very wise to go to Tikrit with foreigners two days after the death of Uday and Qusay was confirmed. They are not very friendly up there in Saddamâs home town at the best of times, and now they border on the hostile. I am now Salam "the spy" Pax in Aujah.
That village is the weirdest of places, it is like a ghost town. I had never been there before and although they tell you it is a village, there is nothing village-y about it. The streets are better than the streets of downtown Baghdad and the houses are huge. Did you know that Aujah in Arabic means "the twisted one"? That was the unspoken joke: how is he going to straighten up his act when he comes from a place called Twisted?
His actual birthplace is a small mud hut. It had fallen down and Saddam had it rebuilt in brick, then covered with mud. The funny thing is that there is an American army base right beside it and they had no idea what that "tool shed" was. They just told us that they have been here for a long time and nobody gave them that piece of information. Well, I bet there is a lot they are not telling you about.
The question in Aujah now is how the family is going to get the bodies back "to bury them properly". Someone in Baghdad later told me that proper burial for these two is to dig a hole somewhere in the desert and have the family look for them for years. How can they expect a proper burial for people who have denied it for hundreds of thousands? I know, we need to start dropping the hate and concentrating on our future.
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 9:20:53 AM ||
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he does throw in an obligatory anti-U.S. shot or two to maintain his credibility - after all he is writing for Al-Guardian
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 9:28 Comments ||
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He throws in an anti-US shot on his website all the time. It's really pretty tiresome, I've stopped reading his website. You see, he's lived a large portion of his life outside of Iraq, in Europe. He described how his friends in Baghdad taught him to think like an Iraqi. S.P.'s reports are useful, but I don't believe they are representative of Iraqi attitudes.
Posted by: Pete Stanley ||
07/30/2003 14:36 Comments ||
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ahah two white American unhappy that an Iraqi really doesnt like them and doesnt appreciate the benefits of being bombed..boo hoo hoo. Tired of being unloved ahaha he has a right to be Anti American ,and you anti Iraqi. It is their country ,their future,their oil, their lives...and foolish GIs are polluting it....everyday a gi is killed is a day of rejoicing
Why so bitter? Finished all fifteen boxes of twinkies and mommy and daddy won't buy you more?
Maybe you're just too stressed out with your "high powered" job answering phones. I'm sure that being an uneducated phone jock that knows "everything" about banking doesn't get you the praise that you deserve at the workplace. (For crying out loud, Don't they know you went to EDGEWOOD HIGH SCHOOL?) Didn't you show them your diploma? What, with all of that hard work you put into it? (and STILL it only took you 8 years to get). You deserve better Stevey.
Don't worry Stevey, I have faith in you!
For GOD'S SAKE,
I WON"T GIVE UP ON YOU STEVEY!!! ....
....because fat, uneducated, people who answer phones in "centralized call centers" need love too. (Just not the kind your grandfather gives you after church on Sunday. That's just plain bad.)
I bet, I'll just bet, that if you know someone who can actually write in the English language in a coherent fashion. (Hey, maybe mommy or daddy!) If you have them fill out your job application for the local Shell station. I think you just might get the job. Just think, after you've passed the mirror test (That's where they stick a mirror in front of your slack jaw and if any fog appears on the mirror you're hired!) then you can run around pretending that your "GAS PUMP GUY!"
The most powerful man in your universe.
"Pumping gas only to those you deem worthy"
Job Tip: Just remember:
The "gas pump" and the Penis Pump (TM) don't serve the same function.
YOU'RE MY HERO STEVEY!!!
Don't give up! Just roll drag your fat *ss off of the couch, deflate your "Billy the Horny Goat"(TM) doll (in case mom comes back in) and do it! We'll all be here jeering cheering you on!
Posted by: Paul ||
07/30/2003 18:35 Comments ||
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Paul: Wow! I feel sorry for that chump; and I don't even like the bastard. Go ahead and rant, Stevey, if that improves the above mentioned existance any....
#9
Salam Pax is *far* from being an anti-American -- if the occasional anti-US shot signified that, then would the *constant* shots against actions and attitudes of his fellow Iraqis mean he's an anti-Iraqi traitor? Obviously not.
And, stevey you gonna be disappointed - Salam may have not liked the bombings but he now wants the US troops to remain as long as it takes, rather than leave handing the country back to the Baathists and/or Islamists.
Away from the chaos and anarchy of other parts of Iraq, in relatively peaceful Sulaimaniya, experts are assessing the possible consequences of the death of Uday and Qusay on the four facets of resistance in the country. The groups are:
Different groups from among the ranks of the Ba'ath Party who have formed small pockets. They are well coordinated and well equipped, with rocket-propelled grenades and small missile launchers. They are spread all over the north of Iraq (aka the Arabian belt) and target US convoys and installations in particular.
Small pockets of Arab tribes who have been left out of the current interim setup and who see no hope of ever being represented. They are not well organized and launch random attacks on US forces.
A few thousand Arabs who arrived in Iraq before the US-led invasion who have joined hands with different resistance groups. They include Afghans.
Independent groups of gangsters who have taken advantage of the lawless situation in the country to establish fiefdoms, especially in the regions of Khals and Kirkuk in the north. They also randomly attack US troops.
Those in the first group - Baath Party stalwarts - would clearly have been jolted by the deaths of their two main coordinators. This leaves only Saddam himself - wherever he might be - as the only real binding force for the remnants of the party, and it would be difficult for him to single-handedly manipulate events without the help of his two trusted lieutenants. Coincidentally (or not?), an audio tape purportedly from Saddam urged Iraqis on Wednesday to fight US forces, saying that the war was not over. "Our will will not surrender and won't be defeated. The battle is not over yet," the tape, addressing the Iraqi armed forces, said. It was aired by Dubai-based al-Arabiya television, and dated July 20, two days before the death of his sons. Nevertheless, this element of the Iraqi resistance faces possible disintegration, or at least a serious loss in capabilities. The fact that Saddam was not with his sons at their death is not surprising. Throughout his bloody dictatorship he adopted a separate strategy for himself, including his own hideouts, and he was a past master at covering his trail and keeping his whereabouts a secret. Thus, even though a number of former colleagues close to him have been arrested by US authorities, they have not been able to provide information on his hideouts.
The resistance of the Arab tribes in the northern belt, meanwhile, is gradually changing shape. Virtually every day there is a declaration from a new Islamic group calling for jihad against US forces. These groups are, in fact, drawn from the tribes, who are attempting to give their struggle an ideological touch and broaden their influence. Their position, nevertheless, is in a state of flux, and while they are a force at present, they would need to become more organized in the future.
The foreign Arab fighters are essentially a volunteer force totally dependent on their local allies for support, and for them it will likely be a case of united they stand, divided they fall once the going gets a bit tougher.
Similarly, if the US forces fail to develop a strategy to set up a strong indigenous political system, the gangsters and looters are likely to elevate themselves as warlords - much like in Afghanistan - and they may develop links to militant groups fighting against the US for reasons of expediency.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 01:20 ||
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but tribal leaders can be bought off, as in afghnistan, and in Iraq under saddam. Foreigners will either be limited number, as the borders come under control, or will be admitted as part of the flypaper strategy. As long as the Shia are quiet (note that first rotating president is leader of Dawa party - Iraq's first Shiite president?) the only real opposition is Baathists and gangsters. Baathists are on the run, and gangsters are ultimately a police problem - probably.
#2
This is more wishful thinking from the jihadi-loving partisans at Asia Times, which has been wrong in every possible way about both Afghanistan and Iraq. Because they've been wrong for so long, it makes sense for them to roll the dice with even more dire predictions - they might get lucky once in a while and improve their record. These guys are great at predictions, so long as these predictions aren't about the future.*
* OK - I stole that line from some big-time movie mogul - Sam Goldwyn, I believe.
The United States has agreed to provide transportation and other support for 9,000 Polish peacekeepers heading to Iraq, an official said Tuesday. The agreement was signed by Polandâs Deputy Defense Minister Janusz Zemke and the U.S. Defense Departmentâs comptroller, Dov Zakheim, last week, said Col. Eugeniusz Mleczak, a Defense Ministry spokesman. Mleczak said the U.S. agreed to provide airlifts for most of the 9,000-person unit to Iraq, additional equipment, camp construction, and medical care and food. The spokesman did not disclose the value of the support. Polandâs government has said it can afford only one-third of the Iraq missionâs annual cost of $90 million. Poland was a staunch ally of the Bush administrationâs effort to oust Saddam Hussein, contributing some 200 troops to the war. The Polish mission is scheduled to start in September. Ukraine, Spain, Bulgaria, Norway and Denmark are among more than 20 nations that will have troops in the Polish sector. Cheap at twice the price. Welcome aboard, Stosh!
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/30/2003 12:19:25 AM ||
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The Grom have earned them twice this.
Besides, the German troops will be reporting to the Poles. LMAO.
#8
Well, apparently the news reports I saw were, er... greatly exagerated. The Germans remain in Afghanistan but are unable to commit troops to Iraq without reducing their troop strength in Kosovo.
Not made up but certainly poorly interpreted. Apologies.
Soldiers have captured six members of the Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom gang in a raid on a coastal town in Mindanao, the military said Wednesday. The rebels were preparing to escape aboard a motorboat when they were apprehended by soldiers near the villages of Kraan and Libua in the town of Palimbang late Tuesday, it said. They were later taken to an army headquarters for interrogation, the military said, without giving further details. Looks like somebody is still on duty over there. Good work, guys.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 3:37:31 PM ||
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President George W. Bush on Monday imposed tough new sanctions on Myanmar's crippled economy, vowing Americans would not desert opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in her struggle for democracy. Bush signed the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003, which garnered huge majorities in the House of Representatives and the Senate two weeks ago. "The world must make clear, through word and deed, that the people of Burma, like people everywhere, deserve to live in dignity and freedom, under leaders of their own choosing," said Bush in a statement.
They've only been ticking along like this for the past fifty years or so. I think juntas have become a Burmese tradition...
He said the move was a "clear signal" to Myanmar's generals that they must release Aung San Suu Kyi, arrested in May, and move towards democracy." The sanctions, which go into force in a month, include a ban on all imports from Myanmar, and are aimed especially at the crucial textiles trade in an economy teetering on the brink of collapse. "By denying these rulers the hard currency they use to fund their repression, we are providing strong incentives for democratic change and human rights in Burma," Bush said.
I don't think Burma exports anything else but textiles, except for a bit of tin and a lot of opium...
Meanwhile, Red Cross officials, allowed to meet Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi for the first time since her detention two months ago, said on Tuesday she was in good health and high spirits. International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) officials had been trying to meet the 58-year-old Nobel Peace laureate since she was detained on May 30 after a bloody clash between her supporters and a pro-junta group. "I and one of my colleagues met her at where she was kept yesterday morning," the ICRC's representative in Myanmar, Michel Ducreaux, told Reuters on Tuesday.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 00:52 ||
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They also export high grade dark red rubies called 'pigeon's blood red'. The best are smuggled out across Thai border near Mae Hong Son.
#2
hi there, my ignorant rightwinger.Everyone knows that Burma/Myanmar has lots of Natural Gas. Ask California's Unocal. See the sanctions dont affect Unocal relationship with Burma.The fine print exempts American companies who had deals with that regime before 1990 something. So while we wont get anymore textile from there,Unocal will still make money from its pipelines in Myanmar
#3
oh ignorant leftwinger stevey (is that a tautology? I think it might be) it isn't aung san suu kyi, it is DAW CRAW DAW as any non-western person would know!!!
#7
i think i am getting a bit too excited about rantburg, that comment was uncalled for, SORRY STEVEY FOR THE AD HOMINEM ATTACK. not fair. also sorry new people for boring references to age-old trolls.
#8
Anon1 - You're a scream! Don't you dare leave us, ever! Passion is missing in far too many (tres` triste, no?) - and welcome here in Rantburg. And our pathetic little stevey, who needs 2 additional neurons so he'll have a pair to rub together, is precisely as you stated - facts are facts, no apology necessary for truth-telling - ever. Keep it up!
Yeah I miss Mike in Tokyo and his lovely wife Yuka. Her "Daw" rant was a blog classic. Just it's hard to explain to somebody who might not have seen it.
Posted by: Tokyo Taro ||
07/30/2003 9:25 Comments ||
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are you an -- Outsider?
(you'd have to see his website)
Posted by: Rafael ||
07/30/2003 11:26 Comments ||
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PD -- as a medical person, I can tell you that the proper way to express Stevey's condition is "two neurons held together by a spirochete."
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/30/2003 14:18 Comments ||
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SW - So, Doctor, does his condition parallel that of, say, Al Capone? A steep deterioration into madness? Given all of his posts, I fear the condition is well advanced...
Can he be saved?
(Knock it out of the park... You're welcome! ;->)
#15
Contain your screams people but.... Stevey has a point. Read below information taken from www.ibiblio.org, which seems to be a dissident Burmese website of some type.
Burma, Thailand sign big gas deal
By Tavorn Tammachatwichit
Bangkok, Feb. 2 (Upi) -- Thai Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai presided at the signing of a controversial contract Thursday to pipe 10 billion baht (d400 million) worth of natural gas per year across southern Burma to energy-hungry Thailand.
Along with Thai and Burmese government officials, the signing ceremony at the Government House in Bangkok was attended by representatives of the two international petroleum companies with interests in the huge project, Unocal of the United States and Total of France.
The project has been criticized on environmental grounds and by ethnic minorities living in Burmese territory through which the pipeline will be laid.
The signing was the culmination of three years of exploration and negotiation by the two petroleum giants, the Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise of Burma, the Petroleum Authority of Thailand and the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand.
Officials said the 30-year agreement calls for drilling about 1.2 miles (2 km) beneath Burma's Gulf of Martaban in the Tadana field, which has proven reserves of 5.7 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
IMAO, however, I think that this project will benefit the people of Burma as it will outlive their current government by a long, long time. I say that the feds should leave it alone.
Maybe this will change a few minds?
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - A gun distributor that won a lawsuit brought by the widow of slain Lake Worth teacher Barry Grunow wants her to pay its legal fees but wonât go after her personal assets. (Vindictive and Compassionate)
The Valor Corp. is suing Pam Grunow as a representative of her husbandâs estate, the gun dealerâs attorney Tom Warner said Friday. The company says it is entitled to recover legal costs because Grunow lost her lawsuit accusing the Broward County company of being responsible for her husbandâs death. Valor sold the .25-caliber handgun that Lake Worth Middle School student Nathaniel Brazill used to kill Barry Grunow on the last day of school in 2000. (LEGALLY sold it to an Adult)
Brazill, who was 13 when he shot Grunow outside a classroom, stole the gun from the home of a family friend. Brazill was convicted of second-degree murder in 2001 and sentenced to 28 years in prison. (Sounds like the Family friend should have been the target of the suit. But I guess a Gun Dealer is a bigger target.)
Pam Grunowâs attorney, Rebecca Larson, said the widow was worried about losing her house if she was forced by the court to reimburse the gun company. The estate has no assets, Larson said.
(âAll I wanted was a modest out-of-court settlement.â I would have named Ms. Larson in the counter-suit. I guess it was ok for the Gun dealer to pay?)
A jury found Valor partially responsible for the teacherâs death and awarded Pam Grunow and her two children $1.2 million, but Circuit Judge Jorge Labarga threw out the verdict. The lawsuit claimed the Saturday night special handgun sold by Valor was inherently defective and should be sold only with safety locks. (I like Jorge but I can bet the Dems would block him if his name comes up in committee.) Note: I feel for the womanâs loss but someone sold her that she won some âlawsuit sweepstakesâ (Ms. Larson perhaps?). She should have sued the family that allowed that child to have access to the gun. I would take my pound of flesh out of her lawyer for this lawsuit.
#2
Thks CS - as it points out: don't believe your ambulance-chasing attorney. A gun legally sold and illegally used is no cause for suit in the first place. Attn: ACLU, NAACP - when you have pay the consequences of your mispersecution, you may understand legal rights/consequences of malicious suits - enjoy!
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 16:24 Comments ||
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She should have sued the family that allowed that child to have access to the gun.
Torts usually go after the deepest pockets. She was just taking a stab at the litigation lottery. Suing the child's parents wouldn't have gotten here any real compensation.
Was it wrong for her to sue the manufacturer? Yes. Was it stupid? No Would suing the family have gotten her any compensation even if she had won? No.
At least 1500 Liberians held a peace rally Wednesday in Monrovia to urge rebels occupying parts of the city not to retreat until international peacekeepers arrived. They confirmed by telephone that the rally was held in the rebel-controlled Bushrod Island in the north of the Liberian capital, with estimates of the crowd ranging from 1500 to 4500. Raymond Zarbay, a journalist living in the area, said the marchers waved banners saying "We want peace," "We are tired of this senseless war," and "Uncle Sam must come at once." They then marched on the local head office of the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (Lurd) rebel movement, pleading them to stay on as they feared retribution by government forces. Sekou Fofana, Lurd deputy general secretary of civil administration [said residents] handed Lurd a memorandum saying they feared a genocide if the rebels "left them to the mercy of President Charles Taylorâs forces". The residents said "the last two times we retreated, Taylorâs renegade soldiers went on a violence spree, looting, raping and killing. They want us to stay until peacekeepers arrive to prevent a genocide," Fofana said, adding: "We will remain in order to protect them." It would be nice if they could finish it themselves.
Zarbay said the show of support for Lurd was not under duress. "Some banners are saying that the deaths outside Monrovia attributed to the Lurd by the government are lies." That wouldnât suprise anyone, although Iâm sure Lurd has itâs share of killings.
Lurdâs Fofana, meanwhile, said his forces would keep up an offensive on two strategic bridges linking northern Monrovia to the government-controlled heart of the city and eastern districts. "We will not leave the bridges. We know Charles Taylorâs men. The civilians on our side will be massacred if we leave before foreign peacekeepers come," Fofana said. Especially now after theyâve begged Lurd to protect them.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 1:05:05 PM ||
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You know that you're desperate if you're begging a bunch of elevn year old boys in sun dresses to protect you.
via Drudge
Former Vice-President Al Gore is coming under pressure from political supporters and friends to jump into the 2004 presidential campaign even though he ruled himself out in December.
Ohfergawdsake.
Goreâs spokesperson denied that there was any change of plans, but a former Democratic National Committee official close to Gore told The Hill he believes the former vice president may enter the Democratic primary this fall. A second Gore confidant, Steve Armistead, a local Tennessee government official, said: âI think heâd like to grit his teeth and jump back in, but I canât speak for him. I donât think he liked the medicine he got from the Supreme Court.â Truth Serum gave him a bad reaction huh?
Armistead, a good friend of Goreâs for more than 40 years, said Gore has not indicated to him whether he would run. But he added: âIâve had a lot of people that know him real well tell me that he ought to get back in. I hear it daily. âHe got out too soon.â âI wish Al never got out of the race.ââ
"I wish Al was in Samoa... I wish space aliens would disintegrate him..."
Talk of Gore joining the race could be a trial balloon to test the atmosphere for a 2004 White House run. Gore lost in 2000 to George W. Bush in an election finally decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.
"Selected not elected" = "We weren't able to manipulate and machinate them into picking our guy"
The former DNC official, who was active in Goreâs 2000 campaign, said his prediction of another Gore campaign is based on more than a hunch. But he declined to offer specific evidence. Hey! This time run on your national security creds? Have Hillary and Bill campaign with you? The possibilities are endless as will be the fun
"I was responsible for the creation of the United States Army..."
He believes, as other Gore confidants do, that the political climate has changed significantly since December, making Bush more vulnerable to defeat in his bid for a second term. âThings have dramatically changed since his announcement,â said the official. âBush has lied to the country, no one is articulating a foreign policy thatâs resonating.â
Uday and Qusay are stuffed and mounted. Idi Amin's on his death bed. Chuck's about to disappear. The French are eating crow in a delicious sauce made from unsold wine...
However, Kiki McLean, Goreâs spokesperson, denied the possibility that her boss would declare his candidacy, adding his name to the nine already declared candidates and automatically moving into their front ranks. âHe is not a candidate for president, heâs made his position known and he has no intention of changing his mind,â said McLean.
"Despite his demeanor, he's bright enough to realize that he'd probably lose more states than we actually have in the Union. All the Bushies would have to do is ask people what Al would have done September 12th..."
Surveys show that Gore would have a good chance of capturing the nomination, even if he entered the race only a few months before the nationâs first primary next January in New Hampshire. A Time/CNN poll conducted between May 21 and 22 showed that if Gore changed his mind and ran for president, 40 percent of Democrats and Independents who lean Democratic nationwide would vote for him. The Democratic runners-up, Sen. Joe Lieberman (Conn.), Sen. John Kerry (Mass.), and Rep. Dick Gephardt (Mo.), would each draw 7 percent of that vote. A Washington Post-ABC News poll from mid-July showed that Bushâs support has dropped sharply amid growing concerns of U.S. casualties in Iraq and questions over whether the administration exaggerated Iraqâs efforts to acquire weapons of mass destruction. Yet Democrats so far have failed to capitalize on Bushâs potential weakness. A new poll commissioned by the centrist Democratic Leadership Council shows that the Democratic Party is losing support among white men.
That's because they generically dislike white men.
A USA Today/Gallup Poll released yesterday shows that no more than 20 percent of the voters likely to pull the Democratic lever back any of the declared candidates. The fluid situation has apparently kept a core group of Democratic fundraisers who played key roles in Goreâs 2000 campaign to remain aloof from the current candidates despite being courted intensely. A former Gore campaign aide who surveyed fundraising data on politicalmoneyline.com noted that nine Gore supporters — eight of whom served as finance chairman, or deputy finance chairman at the DNC during the 2000 election — have by and large sat out of the Democratic primary. Two of the three persons who had served as finance chairmen at the DNC in 2000 have contributed to presidential candidates, but otherwise remain uninvolved. Carol Pensky has given $2,000 to Kerry and Joel Hyatt has given $2,000 to Lieberman this year. Hyatt said in an e-mail that heâs too busy to become more involved. The third finance chairman, Joe Cari, has yet to give to any of the candidates. Of the fundraisers who served as deputy finance chairs at the DNC during Goreâs run, Pamela Eakes has given $750 to former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, Christopher Korge has given $2,000 to Sen. Bob Graham (D-Fla.) and Alan Kessler has given $1,500 to Lieberman. Ken Jarin and Peter Knight have yet to give. In interviews, Eakes and Kessler said they are not yet committed to a candidate. Another Gore official, who also worked on the 1996 and 2000 campaigns, said: âThese folks are playing in a non-material, insignificant way. These were the top fundraisers for Gore and the party in 2000 and they are basically keeping their wallets shut and more importantly not asking their friends [and] colleagues to help with an â04 candidate.â trial balloon going up to see the reaction.
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 12:14:04 PM ||
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Don't forget, kids, his announcement that he would sit out '04 came after he and Tipper released their book, went on all the morning shows, geared up into full publicity blitz mode . . . and the thing sank like a stone.
Gore's moment came and went.
Posted by: Mike ||
07/30/2003 12:54 Comments ||
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#3
well the ideal positioning for Gore should be somewhere between Edwards and Gephardt - more populist than mainstream DLC, but not protectionist like Gephardt, and without actually committing to large govt programs, like Gephardt's health insurance plan. OTOH his "hawkish" opposition to the Iraq war seems close to the Bob Graham position - OTOH Graham doesnt seem to be going anywhere. On the other hand i think every dem other than Edwards and Lieberman is falling into the WMD trap, and i cant see Gore escaping it. It hurts a centrist like him or Gephardt worse than it hurts Dean, since his hardcore will stay with him even after WMD are found. OTOH maybe he will avoid commenting on Iraq till its clear which way things are gonna fall - then go one way or the other. On the other hand if he waits too long it will be too late. Could this be why the Bush admin is holding off giving an answer on WMD?
#4
Could this be why the Bush admin is holding off giving an answer on WMD?
Holding his hole card till all bets/raises are in? A dumb cowboy like GWBush? That would be a lot like a game I know called Texas Hold 'Em (probably a coincidence...)
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 13:29 Comments ||
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#5
To Algore: Please oh please oh please run again!
#9
Please Al! This is tooo much! I just want to grab a cooler full of beer and watch the returns. Seeing Dan Rather sad face as he says 'CBS is predicting that the Republicans will gain seats in the House/Senate AND retain the White House. Switching to ABC in time to see Peter to start crying. Surfing over to NBC we see Tom calling out "Mommy" and then goes into the fetal position. CNN will run a Special 'Cuba the new paradise'. MSNBC will air an interview of EU member who will tell us why 'Your system Sucks'. ON E! the cast of West Wing, Will & Grace, and most of the Hollywood elite are taking their private Jets to France (where they can live free). PLEASE OH PLEASE AL RUN AGAIN!
I was cruising this morning through the MANY left-wing nut ball sites (they are entertaining) and I came across an article by Paul Brennan at www.ocweekly.com that really stood out. I cherry picked the best comments from the article but I encourage you to read the entire article in the left-coast version of the village voice. You can tell that the Dems/Davis are nervous by the level of venom they spew:
Bill Simon? Everything in his life, except for his disastrous campaign for governor, was handed to him by his rich and powerful father. He should be ashamed to call himself a Republican. Thereâs no room for a spoiled rich boy who owes everything to his daddy in the party of George W. Bush. (Bill is NOT a charismatic person and but he ALMOST beat Davis in this last election. So he must be a threat to Emperor Davis in this next election. I like the connection ?jab? at President Bush.)
The Issa family, on the other hand, encouraged a do-for-yourself attitude in its boys, with only one of the Issa brothers going to prison as a result. And it wasnât Darrell, whoâs never been in jail longer than it takes to be booked. Even so, Darrellâs doing-for-himself has attracted the attention of so many police departments and insurance-fraud investigators it can sometimes be confusing to remember which allegation against him youâre dismissing as unimportant. (Darrel funded the recall effort and Comrade Brennan goes out of his way to smear Issa and his family. No mention about how Darrell turned his life around and started a successful business that made him rich. Oh my a business man that made money? He must have done I on the backs of the poor and downtrodden.
Arnold Schwarzenegger has done something far more difficult. Arnold has taken a thick Austrian accent and the acting abilities of a robot, and parlayed those handicaps into a successful movie career playing a robot with a thick Austrian accent. How? In a word, discipline. In interviews for his latest robot-with-an-accent movie, Arnold credits his late father with instilling in him the discipline needed to succeed at any task, robot-related or otherwise. And Arnoldâs father, Gustav, knew discipline: say what you will about the Nazis, but they were a disciplined bunch. According to documents in the Austrian State Archives, Arnoldâs father wasnât just a Nazi party member; he also joined both the storm troopers and the army, reaching the rank of sergeant major in the military police. Even though Arnold says he didnât know any of this until after his father was dead, imagine the sort of discipline a Nazi MP can pass on to his son. Thanks to the recall, we might get a taste of such discipline in Sacramento. (I knew there was something that the Davis goons had on Arnold but not sure how a fathers ?crimes? are passed on to the son? Arnold of course was a body builder and a VERY successful real estate investor. Gosh! An immigrant that made something of himself and DID NOT rely on Uncle Sam? How can this be? And yes they need some discipline in Sacramento)
So this is how the âcampaigningâ will go in the golden state. Thank God that we only have to wait 70 more days. Cheers from the Peoples Republic of California.
Posted by: Cyber Sarge (VRWC CA Chapter) ||
07/30/2003 11:44:30 AM ||
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My God! Where are the Dead Kennedys when you need them the most!? California(TM) Uber Alles! Ray? Jello? Klause? Nooooooooo...
#2
All pretty typical here in California. People here are pretty much idiots, so it's up to the rest of you to help those of us who are not contain the Hollywood/Berkeley culture before the rest of the country catches a terminal case of dumb!
#3
Tom McClintock is the only guy I've heard who actually has any plans on the table to fix the problems in California. The rest of these guys are hacks or empty suits in the worst way.
#4
and in retort to everything Davis could possibly say about anyone else, including the random name out of the phone book:
"It's the economy, stupid."
#6
Hacks and empty suits are a definite upgrade, IMO. Better an empty suit, than one stuffed with the 34 bil that's up in smoke over the last 4 years.
Say, wasn't Gray in the Nam? Where they killed all the babies 'n stuff? Same rank as Lt. Calley? Not saying he had anything to do with it or anything like that at all, but imagine the atrocities he could've picked up... etc., etc., etc.
I don't care who they run. I would rather have a bougainvillea for governor.
Posted by: Mark IV ||
07/30/2003 20:14 Comments ||
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It seems the Dems standard game plan is to not talk issues but smear and character assassinate. Which is pretty standard defense attorney behavior when you know your client is guilty as hell and unless you completely divert the jury's attention away from the critical proofs of evidence and run them down some snipe hunt, your boy is gonna fry.
Since they are all either trial lawyers or suck ups to trial lawyers, it does not surprise me.
It is also a pretty good indicator that the Dems are scared silly about this....rolling out the slander and libel mobile early in the battle.
The Transportation Security Administration wants to reduce the number of air marshals to save money, even as the government is warning about the possibility al-Qaida may try more suicide hijackings. Good timing, guys.
The TSA is seeking approval from Congress to cut $104 million from the air marshal program to help offset a $900 million budget shortfall. Itâs unclear how many of the estimated several thousand air marshal jobs would be affected. "When we are faced with more priorities than we have funding to support, we have to go through a process of trying to address the most urgent needs," TSA spokesman Robert Johnson said. Sounds like a ploy to get even more money.
News of the air marshal program cutbacks come as the Department of Homeland Security is warning of the possibility of hijackings. Like I said, timing.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 10:38:20 AM ||
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As for addressing the most urgent needs, try trimming some of the politically-paid off (read: appointed without merit) management, instead. Start with Robert Johnson, paid spokesdink. Then tell the uberdink Homeland Security Director Ridge to reconsider trying to blackmail the US public.
Dubya, fix this, dump him, or face the heat yourself - your choice, but it's our lives you're playing politics with here. You declared the WoT, now clean up the team and get the job done without the theatrics. This is one of the real issues, not that stupid shit the Dems are chasing - and it can really blow up in your face. Fair warning.
#5
These guys are needed, but I think something like 9/11 would be unlikely today. I travel and like most people today, I am quite ready to step up to the plate if the plane is taken over. I do not talk from bravado, but with the understanding that this would be the only course of action. I am not 'scary-brave' but 'mad-brave' and if I am going down, I am going down fighting. I am sure that those on the planes on 9/11 would have done the same if they knew what was up. To quote someone 'Bring it on!' and that is the attitude of most of many of my fellow travelers too.
#6
Bush needs to publicly take the moral high ground and to quit reacting to Demo's baiting. He has a great majority of the public that is sick and tired of REMF-types trying to bring down the country and its intrinsic values. People that harp on him are small in number and big in dBA (volume). Bush needs to jump on the bully pulpit and go to the people. He needs to set an example, especially in security. Concrete steps and not a bunch of defensive verbage. He will lose in '04 if he plays defense with the Dems.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
07/30/2003 16:28 Comments ||
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It was Todd Beamer, immortalized in Neil Youngs' "Let's Roll". Americans kick ass when they know the score. These islamic pussies figuring on bringing boxcutters for the next hijackings better figure out how they'll satisfy 72 white raisins if they've been manually castrated
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 16:40 Comments ||
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EFL
President Charles Taylorâs top military commander is all for foreign intervention to end the brutal civil war here but he warned of more war if he is not "treated right" in a post-Taylor scenario. "The president may leave, but I am not going to leave this country," Benjamin Yeaten said, warning: "If I am not treated in the right way, there will still be war. I will not allow anyone to capture me. I have 7 500 loyal troops who are ready to die for me." OK, weâll add you to the list
I'd say the right way to handle him would involve a rope, and maybe tar and feathers...
Speaking on Tuesday as mortars and shells pounded the battered former auditorium that serves as his headquarters, Yeaten said: "We can go into the bush. I will not submit to anybody." Yup, Ben needs to hang right next to Chucky
The 34-year-old general nevertheless swore undying loyalty to the embattled president, who is under tremendous international pressure to leave Liberia and pave the way for a caretaker government to serve until fresh elections are held. Yeaten said his proudest achievement was the simple fact that he had successfully guarded Taylor since 1990. "Liberia is unique in that there is no living ex-president. They all have been killed." And who are we to break with a tradition like that?
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 9:58:20 AM ||
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Nice of him to help out by placing the bullseye on himself publicly and voluntarily. 34 yr old general huh? Isn't that kinda old to be in a gang?
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 10:04 Comments ||
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A diplomatic row has blown up between Moscow and Khartoum over the detention of a Russian helicopter and its crew in the Sudanese capital. Sudanese troops seized the private helicopter a week ago in the western city of Al-Fasher. Since there is little work in Russia, you can find Russian aircraft and crews working all over the world. Just make sure your life insurance is paid up.
Russian media said a Sudanese senior diplomat in Moscow was summoned to the Foreign Ministry to explain the incident. Moscow has said the flight was part of a United Nations peacekeeping mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo. Uh huh.
Russia expressed bewilderment over the arrest and demanded the immediate release of the crew as well as an official explanation. "Russia has... made it clear that if this unacceptable situation persists, Moscow will have to draw certain conclusions, which will not benefit bilateral relations between Russia and Sudan," said a Foreign Ministry statement. That sounds like a threat.
Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail said on Sunday that an inquiry was being launched into the incident. "There are certain suspicions about this helicopter and they must be investigated," Interfax news agency quoted him as saying. The independent Sudan Media Centre said the authorities suspected the helicopter of carrying arms for the rebel Sudan Liberation Movement (SPLA). Picking up a little extra cash?
There is still fighting in Sudan between government and SPLA forces despite a ceasefire signed last year to end 19 years of civil war.
Except that the SPM/SPA is a different group from SPLA, operating in Darfur and not in the south. But I guess they all look alike to Beebs...
Itâs an African ceasefire, of course thereâs still fighting.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 9:30:47 AM ||
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Iranâs Vice-President, Mohammad Ali Abtahi, has said Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi, who died in custody in Iran, was probably murdered. He used the "M" word, guess theyâve picked a fall guy.
The Iranian authorities have already said the journalist was beaten to death after being arrested for taking photographs outside a prison in Tehran, but these latest comments appear to go further. Speaking after a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Mr Abtahi said: "The high possibility is that her murder was caused by a haemorrhage caused by a blow." The development comes as an Iranian newspaper reported the mother of Ms Kazemi as saying she had been forced against her will to agree to her daughterâs burial in Iran. We guessed this was the case. Ezzet Kazemi told the Yas-e No newspaper she was pressured to agree to a burial in Iran because the Iranian authorities wanted to get rid of the body as quickly as possible. "I donât know what the reason for her death was, only God knows," Mrs Kazemi said. "All I want is for the killer of my daughter to suffer the same fate as my child. I want this person to be executed." This has become too high profile a case for there not to be a execution. The only question will be who.
My guess at this point would be Ezzet...
Zahra Kazemi, 54, was detained on 23 June for taking pictures of Tehranâs Evin prison. She died in hospital in Tehran on 10 July after falling into a coma having received head injuries during more than three days of interrogation. An Iranian report said she died in custody from a severe blow to the head that fractured her skull and caused a brain haemorrhage. Five officers were arrested last Saturday following "comprehensive investigations" into Ms Kazemiâs death. Meet the fall guys.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 9:18:47 AM ||
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What, no arresting of the Minister for Punishment Footwear? I'm shocked!
State radio in the tiny west African state of Equatorial Guinea has hailed the nationâs leader as "the countryâs God". What the hell is in the water down there?
In a programme called Bidze-Nduan (Bury the fire) which deals with "peace, tranquillity and the order reigning in the country" the radio declared that President Teodoro Obiang Nguema was "in permanent contact with the Almighty". It said that the president was "like God in heaven" who has "all power over men and things". Thatâs, er, nice.
President Nguema won the 2002 presidential elections by almost 100% to serve a third, seven-year term. Iâm sure they were fair and open elections, I mean, if you canât trust God..........
"He can decide to kill without anyone calling him to account and without going to hell because it is God himself, with whom he is in permanent contact, and who gives him this strength," a presidential aide announced on the show. OK
The radio show, which claims to "inform and mobilise the masses on issues of national interest", has warned against any attempt to disrupt the peace and order which, it said, had reigned since President Obiang, 61, took power in a coup 23 years ago. Letâs just put a high fence around the whole continent.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 9:08:45 AM ||
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The guy's memoirs will probably be called "Res Gestae Divi Teodoro Obiang Nguema" and be inscribed on bronze tablets housed in his own temple. Man 0 man!
#3
Just another reason why I am Fed UP....is it any wonder?
Posted by: Fed UP ||
07/30/2003 14:08 Comments ||
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So, if you're god... you won't mind if I shoot you with this gun, right? Let me see you do something godlike, like... oh, I don't know... feeding people and stuff?
#6
Wonder when him and Kimmie will start sending flower baskets to each other and the Equatorial Guinea Commitee for the Promotion of the Juche Idea will be formed?
A Paleo Civil War is in fact inevitable, and desirable, if a real state called Palestine is ever to emerge
Islamic militants accused the United States and Israel Wednesday of trying to spark a Palestinian civil war by building a new "Berlin Wall" in the West Bank and threatened to reassess a shaky truce. Nice analogy for the Jooooos, except they arenât German, and this wall is meant to keep krazed killer loser Paleos⢠out, not in
Their anger highlighted Palestinian resentment that President Bush did not persuade Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon at talks Tuesday to stop building what Israel calls a security fence and demanded a crackdown on militants. "There is a conspiracy between the aggressive minds of Israel and the United States against Palestinian hopes and independence," said Rantissi, a leader of the militant Islamic movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip. ooo I love dark conspiracys!
"The Americans need what the Israelis need — a civil war in the Palestinian territories." The militantsâ reaction, and the disappointment expressed by mainstream Palestinian leaders after the talks, pointed to trouble ahead for Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, who had been hoping to show gains after his own White House meeting. at the Israelisâ expense since Abbas had shit to show for his promises
Bush said after talks last Friday with Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, that the barrier was a problem that would make it hard to develop confidence between Israel and the Palestinians. confidence? Bwahahahaha
Bush did not publicly censure Sharon Tuesday although a White House spokesman said he had "concerns" about the barrier. "I must ask Abu Mazen what he thought when he saw the Americans talk to him about the wall and then saw them retract what they said when they talked to Sharon," Rantissi said.
Islamic Jihad, another militant group that has carried out suicide bombings in the 34-month-old uprising for an independent state, said the United States was not serious about peace efforts. "This wall is like the Berlin Wall. They need civil war and donât want to give Abu Mazen anything," said Mohammed al-Hindi, an Islamic Jihad leader in Gaza. He said this stance threatened a three-month truce declared by militant groups a month ago, and added: "We think we should make a reassessment of the truce because the dangers are very close to harming our hopes and goals."
Seems like everything threatens the truce, doesn't it?
Sharon has begun a limited troop pullout from occupied territory in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, promised withdrawals from two more West Bank cities, agreed to free some Palestinian prisoners and lifted some military roadblocks. But Palestinian leaders say Sharon must do more to ease ordinary Palestiniansâ hardships and free more prisoners. For its part, Israel says Abbas must carry out obligations under the road map to dismantle the militantsâ "terrorist infrastuctures." Abbas says a crackdown could start a civil war and notes that he coaxed the militants into the truce without using force. And was a cease-fire a part of the Road Map? no? So no credit for it
The dispute over the West Bank barrier is a big obstacle to progress, although Sharon vowed Tuesday to do his utmost to ensure it had minimum impact on Palestinian daily life. Israel says a fence it built around Gaza halted attacks from the territory, and that one in the West Bank will have a similar effect. Palestinians say it amounts to a land grab because it cuts deep into territory they want for a Palestinian state. The Paleo terrorists have figured out that if there is a separation, and they canât get the U.S. or EU to beat Israel into removing the fence, that it becomes a de facto border, the Israel-Paleo problem will effectively be solved since they wonât be able to wander into a crowd of civilians and kill them, and everyone except them will end up happy
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 9:04:50 AM ||
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Here is what Sharon (or maybe some American straight shooter like McCain) should say,
"Israel is building the wall to prevent Palestians from murdering Jews. A lot of Palestinians want to murder Jews. A lot of Europeans and American leftists want the Palestinians to murder Jews. Obviously that's why they don't want the wall built."
#3
The Palestinians are missing a business opportunity here: spraypaint colorful artwork on their side of the wall, and call it a tourist attraction. If you build it, they will come.
Posted by: Rafael ||
07/30/2003 11:19 Comments ||
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"Islamic militants accused the United States and Israel Wednesday of trying to spark a Palestinian civil war..."
Well, yeah! And their point is....?
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
07/30/2003 11:40 Comments ||
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O man... I've been spitting coffee all over my little laptop's keyboard. Thanks guys! Great stuff! This topic brings out the best Rantburgerian traits... Cool. Now, I need to get some Windex and paper towels...
#6
Such a very nice wall. Once it is complete then the nutbags will have a civil war. Mabey not civil. If they cannot do the splodey dope against Israel it won't take long before they go after each other. They're addicted to killing.
Posted by: Michael ||
07/30/2003 11:53 Comments ||
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Civil war? Not hardly, since the paleos are hardly civilized. Gang war is more like it, semi-organized thugs fighting for the right to kill jews.
#8
Civil War? I can see it now. Sen. Byrd (KKK-WV) saying, "I knew Jefferson Davis. Jefferson Davis was a friend of mine. Yasir Arafat is no Jeff Davis."
Posted by: Ken Burns ||
07/30/2003 12:44 Comments ||
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"The Americans need what the Israelis need ..."
... yes, reasonably civilized neighbors with whom they can do commerce, and interact with on a day to day basis without fear of being killed or mutilated.
Gotta correct you a bit, Mojo. they're not fighting for the right to kill Jews. Their holy book grants them that right. They're fighting for the bragging rights as to who can kill more Jews, and who gets to sleep with saint Pancake in paradise. But you are right in calling it a gang war - basically just a bunch of sub-animals arguing over who has the bigger dick.
LOL. was that refering to us Canadians or the Mexicans (or both)?
Posted by: Rafael ||
07/30/2003 14:43 Comments ||
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A Paleo Civil War is in fact ineveitable, and desirable, if a real state called Palestine is ever to emerge
Another little feature (not a bug) is that everyone gets to see pretty much who stands where. Willing to take on the terrorists? Then you're probably someone that can be reasoned with. Willing to stand WITH the terrorists? Well, the implications of that are really pretty obvious...
#12
I love the quote where the Palestinians are complaining that the wall 'infringes on land they want for a Palestinian state'. Of course it infringes in their minds (such as they have)! In their minds, the 'Palestinian state has beachfront property in Tel Aviv.
I still feel that the Israelis should be allowed to function just as the US is functioning now in response to terrorism.
My two cents.
Posted by: Brian ||
07/30/2003 16:16 Comments ||
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Pals: Cut the chatter and get ON with it already. Talk, bitch, moan, bomb, talk, bitch, moan, bomb. What a bunch of PUSSIES. See that guy over there? He said your mother slept with a pig... and liked it. And that one? He sez he's gonna kill you and your whole family - and bury you face-down with a pork chop in your mouth...
#14
PD >> LMAO ...I haven't had milk shoot out of my nose like that since grade school.
Posted by: Paul ||
07/30/2003 18:45 Comments ||
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While this would be an ugly deal, maybe it's the necessary turn to get the average Palestian to use his head for something other then a hat rack and realize that his "leaders" all mostly deserve to be pushed up against the wall.
Foday Sankoh, the leader of a 10-year terror campaign in Sierra Leone, has died while waiting to be tried for war crimes. The spokesperson for the United Nations-backed war crimes tribunal in Sierra Leone told BBC News Online that he had died at 2240 GMT on Tuesday. Sources say he died from complications resulting from a stroke he suffered last year. Sankoh founded the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) which became notorious for mass rape and hacking off the hands, feet, ears and noses of thousands of civilians during a 10-year civil war, which ended last year. Earlier this month doctors treating Sankoh said he was in a "catatonic state" â incapable of walking, talking or even of feeding himself and he could not recognise his immediate surroundings. Thatâs too bad, guys like this should suffer more.
Sankoh, like President Charles Taylor of neighbouring Liberia, trained in the guerrilla camps of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. He was captured after his fighters shot more than a dozen protesters outside his Freetown home in 2000. Say hi to Sammyâs boys when you see them.
I do hope they're planning and stuffing and mounting him, too.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/30/2003 8:57:47 AM ||
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Any reason why we can't send Muammar to join Foday, Uday, et al?
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/30/2003 13:51 Comments ||
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#2
When does he start sending out the audio tapes?
#3
They forgot to mention that Charles Taylor also got his PR training from the Reverend Jackson. Seems ole Jesse went to Liberia and came back with a rousing indorsement of ole Chuckie as the man for the job.....
You know, I think Jesse was interviewing Chuck for a position as body guard but got his wires crossed when he came back and realized he had a press conference and some foreign affairs to take care of......
In a fresh attempt to help bring peace to Congo, the Security Council voted unanimously Monday to strengthen the UN military presence and impose an arms embargo in the resource-rich east where rival factions continue to defy a cease-fire. The council's resolution will increase the UN peacekeeping force from 8.700 to 10,800 troops, a move welcomed by Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who called for an expanded UN military presence with a more robust mandate.
Like maybe to include shooting bad guys and protecting civilians? Nah. That'd never work...
The additional troops are expected to replace an emergency French-led international force sent to Bunia in northeastern Congo last month to stem fighting between rival tribal factions that has killed hundreds of people. The international force, expected to reach 1,500 troops, is scheduled to leave by Sept 1. It reinforced 750 UN troops that have been deployed in Bunia since April. An advance 450-strong Bangladeshi contingent that will lead the UN force once the French-led force departs is already in Bunia.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/30/2003 00:54 ||
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impose an arms embargo
LMAO. The tried and tested solution.
"Owww, Mon Dieu! I've been shot!"
"Silence! They have no guns here!"
Posted by: Rafael ||
07/30/2003 1:06 Comments ||
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MOSCOW (AP) - President Vladimir Putin said Monday that he wanted to focus on boosting U.S.-Russian economic ties during his upcoming visit to the United States, and urged the American business community to invest more actively in Russia. "Thank you, thank you, Iâll be here all week."
Putin said economic issues would figure prominently at his September summit with U.S. President George W. Bush. "I believe that the main emphasis at this meeting should be given to issues relating to our economic cooperation," Putin said at the start of his meeting with Maurice R. Greenberg, chairman of American International Group (AIG). Putin said he welcomed AIGâs plans to invest in the development of Russiaâs mortgage system. "Your participation is of utmost importance to us," he said. "Since itâs almost impossible to squeeze anything out of the French!"
Putin expressed regret that U.S. companies ranked only eighth last year among foreign marks investors in Russia and voiced hope that more American investors would come. "We strongly hope that representatives of the U.S. business community will help create favorable conditions for our economic cooperation," he said. I thought it was your job to create favorable conditions, Vlad!
Greenberg said AIG and affiliated companies had invested some $300 million in the Russian economy in recent years, and was considering making more investments. The meeting followed a plunge on Russiaâs stock market this month that reflected investorsâ fears over an official probe against Russiaâs largest oil company, Yukos. Another Elf scandal in the making.
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/30/2003 12:33:23 AM ||
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Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 10:46 Comments ||
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#3
I think Putty's taking lessons from the most successful BS artists of all time: Clinton & the Saudis. And he's getting pretty good at it, if we only listen to his werdz and ignore his actions - as the LeftyPress does. What a prick. I wish Dubya would feign the flu or call a spade a spade - something - and disinvite this snake. Let him stew - and lose hard currency everday his oil production drops.
#4
Hey Vlad, as my boss likes to say "What have you done for us lately?" other than send us over that lesbian teen girl band?
Maybe a few thousand troops to help out in Iraq will open a few doors for you.
#5
oh great, lol, now whenever some googles "lesbian teen girls" they'll get this foreign policy thread
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/30/2003 13:36 Comments ||
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Capsu78: NOOOOoooo thank you; a few thousand Russian troops are NOT what we need in Iraq. They would do more harm than good; as we found out the hard way in Bosnia, the Russians (and the French) have their own agenda.
China has been playing nice with us these past few weeks, apparently because we are helping them to put the squeeze on Taiwan to prevent a referendum. While I recognize the need for the US to make deals with the likes of France and the ChiComs to win this war, I am opposed to any compromise that undermines democracy in any nation whether our ally or not.
China and the United States signed a cooperation declaration on the Container Security Initiative (CSI) here Tuesday, with an aim to increase anti-terrorism cooperation in container security. The declaration was signed by Mou Xinsheng, director of the General Administration of Customs of China and Mr. Bonner, bureau chief of the Customs and Border Protection of the United States. According to the declaration, the U.S. will send customs officials to ports in Shanghai and Shenzhen. The US customs officials should respect Chinaâs sovereignty andabide by Chinese laws, while similarly, Chinese customs officials can be sent to US ports. CSI is an important part of the US global anti-terrorism strategy, helping identify and check high risk containers before they are delivered to the United States. [...]
Posted by: 11A5S ||
07/30/2003 12:29:10 AM ||
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#1
The most recent issue of The Atlantic (September) has a big article on the lawlessness at sea. Not on-line yet but worth a read when it is. We have so little control over what happens on the high seas.
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/30/2003 0:47 Comments ||
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China has been playing nice with us
They're letting our guys in because they have to. The alternative is a massive slowdown in imports from China, as each container is examined stateside. They need this. Their economy would slow down significantly if each container were inspected in California.
They're continuing with their shell game on North Korea. They armed the Koreans and are now pretending to help us while stiff-arming any real progress in disarming the DPRK.
Chinese customs officials can be sent to US ports
Pretty funny how these guys found a brand new way to restrict US exports to China. They don't call 'em sneaky for nothing.
#4
Of course we have little control over the high seas...the Pirates are there. Yarrr!
Posted by: Brian ||
07/30/2003 11:03 Comments ||
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They're copying a tactic used by the Japanese to reduce or stop US imports - and keep that trade imbalance artificially high.
One of our Japan experts should jump in here and inform us all about the incredible protection afforded Japanese farmers and manufacturers.
The Japanese public would like much greater access to American products, but it's stymied by the intentionally perverse importation process (e.g. fruit rots on the dock while a single inspector takes his time with an entire cargo ship...).
I really wanted to leave out the "On" in that title. EFL Charles Taylorâs forces battled Tuesday to retake key cities captured by rebels in fighting that had the Liberian warlord-turned-president threatening to hang onto power despite his pledge to resign. Aid workers tending to emaciated babies in Monrovia said the new combat cut the starving capitalâs last aid lifeline. Desperate refugees, crossing paths as they fled one embattled Liberian city for another, said there was no place to turn. ``All over, fighting now,ââ said Hadija Kabah, 54, caring for more than a dozen children and grandchildren at a makeshift camp outside Monrovia. ``Thereâs no place safe to go in Liberia.ââ Ainât that the truth.
``People are fighting this side. People are fighting that side,ââ said businessman Norman Anderson, arriving at the camp from Buchanan, Liberiaâs second-largest city, where Taylorâs forces launched a counterattack Tuesday. He pointed first up, then down, the road. Referring to repeatedly stalled international promises of a peace force, Anderson said bitterly: ``You all are making fun of us. We need the international body now, not tomorrow. We are dying now.ââ Not our problem. Go get a rifle and join LURD, and fight for your own country.
Arguments over funding are believed to be delaying deployment of a peace mission, pledged by West African nations with assurances of U.S. and other international assistance. Nigeria, West Africaâs military power, has offered two battalions but says it needs help with what it expects to be a multimillion-dollar daily tab. And if we offer to help pay, the tab will be higher.
Asked after meeting with Prime Minister Tony Blair in London when peacekeeping troops might go in, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo told reporters, ``a few days after Chuckles gets it.ââ United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, eager to see peacekeepers in place, said in New York that a U.N. peacekeeping mission in Sierra Leone can transport one Nigerian battalion and, with Security Council approval, could provide support for two battalions for a limited period. "We could support two battalions for a week, or a company for a month."
On Monday, Liberiaâs second, smaller rebel group abandoned its own cease-fire pledge and went on the offensive, capturing the southeastern port of Buchanan. Government forces waged a counterattack Tuesday, battling in the streets of the city. As evening arrived, neither side was in control. ``Buchanan was the only alternative way to ship some food into Liberia,ââ Frederic Bardou said at a feeding station run by Action Contre la Faim, or Action against Hunger. ``Now - you can forget about it,ââ said Bardou, surrounded by listless children held by their wasting mothers. Under pressure from the United States, the rebel group behind the siege of the capital called a new cease-fire late Tuesday. It was the latest in weeks of truce declarations — repeatedly flouted by fighters on both sides. Tuesdayâs cease-fire declaration showed no more promise of sticking than the others. When word passed over the radio, Monroviaâs war-weary residents started cheering. Minutes later, three loud explosions sent thousands diving for cover. They ought to know better by now.
In Washington, the Bush administration insisted Taylor must get out. ``Certainly, we have made clear that he needs to leave,ââ State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said. ``The presidentâs made clear that he needs to leave, and that departure needs to be coincident with the arrival of peacekeepers.ââ Bushâs assistant secretary of state for Africa, Walter Kansteiner, was expected Wednesday in the region for talks on Liberiaâs crisis. Officials in Guinea said the U.S. envoyâs first stop was that country, which is accused of funding Liberiaâs rebels in retaliation for cross-border raids by Liberia. "We told Chuck, âdonât screw with usâ, but did he listen? NO-O-O-O-o-o-o-o!"
Meanwhile, West African leaders called the latest in weeks of talks on Liberia and the long-delayed peace mission. This round, set for Thursday in Accra, Ghana, was to be for top leaders, authorities said. Hey, theyâre just like the U.N. — talk, talk, talk. No wonder Kofi supports them!
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/30/2003 12:17:03 AM ||
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Liberia's army says it has launched a heavy counter-attack to drive rebels from the second city of Buchanan. Its fall dealt a big blow to embattled President Charles Taylor. "Right now we are fighting in central Buchanan. They are not making it easy, but our men are beating them back," Defence Minister Daniel Chea told Reuters by satellite phone as bursts of gunfire resounded in the background.
Gee, I hope he's lying...
There was no immediate independent confirmation of where the fighting had reached on the ground. Rebels known as Model, Liberia's smaller insurgent faction, said they had seized Buchanan, a major port, which is less than 100 kilometres from the main international airport. Buchanan's fall left the government without access to a sea port.
So no last image of Chuck, wearing dinner dress, disappearing into the sunset, driving a speedboat...
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.
