Saturday, August 30, 2008

2 Dead, Hospital on Lock Down After Hazmat Exposure

Where did these people get exposed to such a dangerous chemical? I want more information!

FOXNews.com - 2 Dead, Hospital on Lock Down After Hazmat Exposure - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News: "Two people are dead after nearly half a dozen were exposed to the highly toxic and dangerous chemical nitroaniline, MyFOXSTL.com reported.

Emergency rooms at two St. Louis-area hospitals were closed Saturday afternoon after several people entered the facilities saying they were exposed to a white powdery substance.

St. Anthony's Medical Center in St. Louis was reopened Saturday night, while DePaul Health Center in Bridgeton was expected to be closed to several more hours.

Investigators believe those hospitalized are employees of an East St. Louis business who were mixing chemicals, and then put them into a dumpster, MyFOXSTL.com reported.

Victims reportedly showed up at the hospitals with blue skin, prompting the hospital lock down, the station reported.

About 20 who were exposed to those three patients are also under quarantine."

Friday, August 29, 2008

Hizballah’s Attack On The Lebanese Army: An Accident Or A Message?

Hizballah continues to get away with blatant attacks on everyone. If the Israelis had shot down a stray helicopter, they would be crucified in the Media. Since it was the terrorists shooting down this helicopter, that is not news worthy in the West. Even then, the Media has tried to shift the blame for this attack to other terrorists instead of the obvious ones. What is it about Hizballah that puts them above condemnation?

Counterterrorism Blog: Hizballah’s Attack On The Lebanese Army: An Accident Or A Message?: "Many in the media insinuated that the attack may have something to do with “Sunni Islamist militants from the north [read: Tripoli]”. The New York Times stated, “The Lebanese Army has come under attack several times this summer, including in a bombing this month that left nine soldiers and several civilians dead.” As with the NYT, the AFP, made sure the Sunni Islamists would be placed at the end of the article stating, "Nine Lebanese soldiers and five civilians were killed in a bombing at a bus stop in the northern port city of Tripoli earlier this month in an attack thought to have targeted the army. The army has also suffered other attacks since it fought a 15-week battle with militants of the Al-Qaeda inspired Fatah al-Islam in the Nahr el-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon. In December the head of the army's military operations, General Francois el-Hajj, was killed in a massive bomb attack and just over a month later Major Wissam Eid, a top intelligence officer, was killed in similar circumstances.”

In fact, the last attack in the south by suspected Sunni Islamists was in June, 2007, killing 6 Spanish peacekeepers in a UNIFIL convoy. While Hizballah was the obvious cause of the latest attack, and even Hizballah militiamen said that they, “thought that there was an Israeli landing attempt (under way) and opened fire in the direction of the helicopter, hitting it.” The major press still insinuated that a group like Fatah al Islam could be behind the attack. When the attack was first reported, Hizballah initially denied it had anything to do with the attack, but this would later be disproved.

The Israeli daily Ha‘aretz reported that, “ Hezbollah downed a Lebanese Army helicopter on Thursday in what Israeli officials believe was a case of mistaken identity: The Shi'ite militiamen apparently thought they were firing at an Israeli chopper.” Even with the assumption that Hizballah made a mistake, Ha’aretz further disproves this theory when they said, “The helicopter was apparently flying at low altitude.” Just a cursory look at the paint schemes of a Lebanese UH-1 (usually painted a dark green with a very visible red, green and white Lebanese air force roundel) versus Israeli models (normally painted an olive green with a golden V, and recognizable roundel featuring the Star of David or a desert, green and brown camouflage), shows that the Hizballah militiamen operating the anti-aircraft gun(s) were either extremely incompetent or had some idea that they were targeting a Lebanese helicopter.

...
The Hizballah and allies responded with a mixture of whitewashing the incident, ignoring it, and even tried to shift blame onto the Israelis. According to the International Herald Tribune, “Sheik Abdul-Amir Kabalan, urged the army to investigate swiftly and suggested that a collaborator with Israel may have fired on the aircraft.” Kabalan is close with Harakat Amal, the other major Shia party in Lebanon, which in turn is allied to Hizballah. NOW Lebanon reported that according to “inside sources,” “Hezbollah fighters shot at the military helicopter because it crossed red lines that Hezbollah had warned the Defense Ministry and army command' not to cross” OTV, the Free Patriotic Movement’s mouthpiece (the FPM is Hizballah’s key Christian ally), did not even offer a story on their website regarding the incident. Instead OTV only featured the story as a small link reading, (Google Translation) “General Michel Aoun visited the Metropolitan of Mount Lebanon for the Roman Orthodox George Khader and discussed with him the latest developments in the death of First Lieutenant Samir Hanna result of the fall of the Lebanese Army helicopter. After exposure to a shooting in the south, the UN Security Council extended an additional year of peacekeeping forces in south Lebanon.” "

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Former President Carter: McCain ‘Milking’ POW Experience

Why do former Democrat Presidents seem to both be such complete morons? Neither was a winner, but they both continuously sink to new lows.

Mr Carter, you are a scary guy. I thought the President who replaced you was the senile one. You, sir, seem to make me want to vomit every time you make the news. You should lock yourself in a closet and stay out of public.


Former President Carter: McCain ‘Milking’ POW Experience - America’s Election HQ: "Former President Jimmy Carter said Thursday that John McCain is “milking every possible drop of advantage” from his time as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, USA Today reported Thursday.

Carter focused on McCain’s interview earlier this month with author and pastor Rick Warren at his parish, the Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif. McCain used every question, whether it was about religion, domestic or foreign affairs, to talk about his five-and-a-half years as a POW, Carter claimed.

“John McCain was able to weave in his experience in a Vietnam prison camp, no matter what the question was,” Carter, a 7-year Naval officer, told the paper. “It’s much better than talking about how he’s changed his total character between being a senator, a kind of a maverick at the time, and his acquiescence in the last few months with every kind of lobbyist pressure that the right wing Republicans have presented to him.”

In the interview that came before Obama’s acceptance speech at the Democratic convention in Denver, Carter also talked about Obama’s challenges facing the lingering effects of racism in America, the ability of the Clintons to bring their supporters over to Obama. He also decried Sen. Joe Lieberman’s decision to “abandon” the Democrats by speaking at the Republican National Convention next week."

SGT Nazario Acquitted!

That leaves almost every Marine accused of crimes acquitted! Semper Fi!

A big F U to the Liberals!


BLACKFIVE: Judicial Waterboarding of Our Marines - UPDATE SGT Nazario Acquitted!: "Just got word from GI W. that former Marine Sergeant Jose Nazario has been acquitted by the jury in Riverside California."

Putin Accuses U.S. Pushing Georgia Conflict to Influence Elections Back Home

I remember how the Soviets used to put out blatant lies just to watch people in the West defend themselves from the lies. Now they are throwing out the lies just to mess with the US. I doubt it will work since this is so obvious.

FOXNews.com - Putin Accuses U.S. Pushing Georgia Conflict to Influence Elections Back Home - International News | News of the World | Middle East News | Europe News: "The White House is rejecting Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's claim that the United States pushed Georgia to war, calling the allegation 'patently false.'

Putin had suggested that U.S. involvement was intended to affect its own domestic politics.

Spokeswoman Dana Perino responded Thursday by saying that 'to suggest the U.S. orchestrated [the crisis] on behalf of political candidates is not rational.'

Putin made the claims in an interview Thursday with CNN, and Russian news agencies report he said the U.S. seemingly encouraged Georgia to use force to resolve its dispute with separatist South Ossetia.

'The American side in fact armed and trained the Georgian army,' ITAR-Tass quoted Putin as saying in the interview. 'Why hold years of difficult talks and seek complex compromise solutions in interethnic conflicts? It's easier to arm one side and push it into the murder of the other side, and it's over.'

According to ITAR-Tass, he also said: 'If my guesses are confirmed, then the suspicion is raised that somebody in the United States purposefully created this conflict with the aim of aggravating the situation and creating an advantage ... for one of the candidates in the battle for the post of U.S. president."

CNN said he provided no evidence, and he apparently did not name a party or candidate."

Happy Birthday to Gilat Shalit

Poor guy has been forgotten by his government and left to die. I almost hope he is dead and not in pain and being tortured.

I also pray that he will be released soon. No one deserves to be held by terrorists. F Olmert for not freeing him!


Something... and Half of Something: Where were you when you turned 22?: "Today is Gilad Shalit's 22nd birthday, his third birthday in the hands of Hamas terrorists."

Obama campaign confronts WGN radio

This is a very interesting article. Fair and balanced, covers both sides, yet is about Obama. Interesting.

Obama and his supporters are right to block this investigation into his past. The only thing that we should know about Obama is that He is for Hope and Change and is Black. His past, friends, family, speeches, and writings are all off limits. Who cares what He has done anyway? He is the One and we will all be blessed by His presence as our Leader. The Future is all that matters! Hope and Change!

I should get a job at the HuffPo for writing that. However, if I had to think that way daily, I would probably vomit myself to death.


Obama campaign confronts WGN radio: The Swamp: "Sen. Barack Obama's campaign organized its supporters Wednesday night to confront Tribune-owned WGN-AM in Chicago for having a critic of the Illinois Democrat on its air. ( (Listen to the interview.)

"WGN radio is giving right-wing hatchet man Stanley Kurtz a forum to air his baseless, fear-mongering terrorist smears," Obama's campaign wrote in an e-mail to supporters. "He's currently scheduled to spend a solid two-hour block from 9:00 to 11:00 p.m. pushing lies, distortions, and manipulations about Barack and University of Illinois professor William Ayers."

Kurtz, a conservative writer, recently wrote an article for the National Review that looked at Obama's ties to Ayers, a former 1960s radical who later emerged as a school reform advocate in Chicago.

The magazine had been blocked in its initial attempts to obtain records from the University of Illinois at Chicago regarding a school reform initiative called the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, which Obama chaired and Ayers co-founded.

Obama critics were quick to suggest that political clout could be involved in seeking to protect Obama from embarrassment. The school later reserved its position and made the records available Tuesday.

On Wednesday evening, Obama's campaign urged supporters to call the radio station to complain.

"Tell WGN that by providing Kurtz with airtime, they are legitimizing baseless attacks from a smear-merchant and lowering the standards of political discourse," the note said.

"It is absolutely unacceptable that WGN would give a slimy character assassin like Kurtz time for his divisive, destructive ranting on our public airwaves," the note continued. "At the very least, they should offer sane, honest rebuttal to every one of Kurtz's lies."

Zack Christenson, executive producer of "Extension 720 with Milt Rosenburg," said the response was strong.

"I would say this is the biggest response we've ever got from a campaign or a candidate," he said. "This is really unprecedented with the show, the way that people are flooding the calls and our email boxes."

Christenson said the Obama campaign was asked to have someone appear on the show and declined the request."

General James Conway - USMC Update (SWJ Blog)

Semper Fi, sir. Thanks for helping our boys be safe and providing great leadership.

General James Conway - USMC Update (SWJ Blog): "Iraq’s once-deadly Anbar province could within the next few days become the 11th province to be turned over to Iraqi control, paving the way for a reduced US Marine Corps presence there, the Marine Corps commandant said today.

Gen. James T. Conway told Pentagon reporters the marked drop in violence in Anbar sets the stage for a drawdown of Marine forces that could be freed up for duty in Afghanistan, if needed.

“The change in the al-Anbar province is real and perceptible,' with attacks at an all-time daily low of two to three, Conway said. He cited assessments by Marine Maj. Gen. John Kelly, commander of Multinational Force West, that a reduced US force in the region could keep violence in check.

“Anbar remains a dangerous place, but the ever-growing ability of the Iraqi security forces continues to move us closer to seeing Iraqi control of the province,” he said. Once believed to be “the last [Iraqi province] to turn for the better,” he added, it is expected to return to Iraqi control “in just a few days.”

Conway noted that signs of construction and rebuilding – not violence – were ever-present during his drive through the Anbar cities of Fallujah and Ramadi earlier this summer."

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Afghanistan: Hidden Battles And Secret Victories

Afghanistan: Hidden Battles And Secret Victories: " Many Afghans have noted that, while the Westerners can be deadly fighters, they do have their vulnerabilities. It's something of a competition among the tribes, to outdo each other in hustling the Westerners. The biggest hustle is obtaining foreign aid, while resisting anti-corruption efforts that seek to prevent crooked officials from stealing much of that aid. This is the real war in Afghanistan, for it takes place throughout the country.

The Taliban are relying more on suicidal attacks. The suicide bombers are obvious, but sending groups of gunmen away from Kandahar or the Pakistani border is also suicidal. The group that ambushed the French patrol outside Kabul two days ago, were soon found and attacked as they headed back to the border. About half of them were killed, wounded or captured. The Afghan "way of the warrior" does not endorse suicide attacks, so al Qaeda and their local allies have a hard time recruiting suicide bombers. Roadside bombs, and the prospect of loot from the victims of ambushes, is seen as respectable. There are more Afghan police and soldiers out there, and these are easier to kill and loot than the foreign troops. But, basically, if you have enough cash available, you can entice experienced fighters to accompany the ill-prepared religious school students recruited in Pakistan. The Taliban effort is more about religious faith and media manipulation, than it is a conventional military campaign. This is all a baffling mystery to most Westerners, because the mindset is so different. Afghanistan is a gun culture with a warrior mentality and a tribal society influenced by extreme religious ideas, greed and opportunism. Try and make a snappy headline out of all that. "

Information Warfare: The Spawn of Storm Rides Again

Information Warfare: The Spawn of Storm Rides Again: "Are you one of those people who are getting several emails a day with 'Journalists shot in Georgia' in the subject line, and with a Georgia.zip file attachment? If so, don't open that that zip file, because you are being probed by the Spawn of Storm. That's as in the Storm computer virus, zombie computers and botherders.

We covered the Storm virus (the first one to use this kind of news hook) last year with There are several recent variants, like email alerts the appear to come from MSNBC or BBC, many recent ones including a link to some Georgia or Olympics related item. The original Storm virus was so named because the news hook was unusually harsh Winter storms in Europe.

Despite all the publicity Storm got, and efforts to shut it down, the criminal gangs that seek to grab control of your PC found that the Storm formula continued to work if you just changed the news item. And so it came to pass that the spawn of Storm mutated and continues to infect more PCs (usually with a trojan horse program, that is used for things like DDOS attacks to shut down web sites in Georgia.)"

1 Dead, At Least 41 Hospitalized in Oklahoma E. Coli Outbreak

FOXNews.com - 1 Dead, At Least 41 Hospitalized in Oklahoma E. Coli Outbreak - Health News | Current Health News | Medical News: "State health officials are confirming a type of E. coli bacteria has been found in 10 patients who were sickened by a severe illness in northeastern Oklahoma.

The outbreak killed 26-year-old Chad Ingle and at least 41 people have been hospitalized and several children are undergoing dialysis because of kidney failure.

Laboratory specimens will be sent to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for further analysis.

Health officials say many who became sick ate at the Country Cottage restaurant in Locust Grove but the restaurant has not been pinpointed as the site of the outbreak.

The restaurant is normally closed on Mondays and voluntarily closed yesterday and today as the investigation continues.

The illnesses are a very severe and bloody diarrhea with symptoms also including vomiting and severe abdominal cramping."

Senior Special Groups leader captured at Baghdad airport

It worries me that the terrorists feel secure enough to be flying around in major airports while everyone is searching for them. At least he was picked up without a fight. Good to know that he was not able to get weapons into the flight.

Senior Special Groups leader captured at Baghdad airport - The Long War Journal: "The US military detained a senior Special Groups leader as he flew into Baghdad International Airport this morning. He was detained without incident after the US military received intelligence he was arriving in Baghdad via air.

The leader, who was not named, is described as being 'part of the most senior social and operational circles of Special Groups' by Multinational Forces-Iraq. 'The man has been known to travel in and out of Iraq to neighboring nations including Iran and Lebanon, where it is believed he meets and helps run the Iranian-backed Special Groups in Iraq,' Multinational Forces-Iraq reported in a press release.

The leader is said to be behind the deadly bombing at the Sadr City District Advisory Council meeting on June 24 that killed two US soldiers, two members of the US State Department, and six Iraqis. The meeting took place after the Mahdi Army called for a cease-fire and allowed Iraqi troops to enter the northeastern Baghdad neighborhood."

Corps to hand over control of Anbar

What a wonderful time for Iraq.

Corps to hand over control of Anbar - Marine Corps News, news from Iraq - Marine Corps Times: "After a summer of delays, the highly touted handover of security in the once-volatile Anbar province of Iraq is scheduled for next week, the top Marine in Iraq said Tuesday.

Iraqi officials signed a memorandum of understanding Tuesday that paved the way for the handover of security next week, Maj. Gen. John F. Kelly said from Iraq in a telephone interview with Marine Corps Times.

The announcement comes on the heels of Commandant Gen. James Conway’s trip to the region in which the top Marine officer touched down first in Afghanistan, where several thousand Marines are fighting the Taliban and training Afghan security forces, then visited Iraq — a sign of the evolving level of importance between the two theaters.

Conway is slated to hold a press conference Wednesday morning to discuss the details of his trip through the Middle East.

The security handover was originally scheduled for late June, but was postponed twice due to weather and then indefinitely due to a governing conflict between the local and national governments that was recently resolved, said Kelly, the commander of Multi-National Force — West.

The increasing success of the 28,000-strong Iraqi police force in Anbar in securing the province has freed Marines to hunt down the remaining"

Dear Senator Biden

Nothing to add to this. Go read the rest of it if you wish.

Something... and Half of Something: Dear Senator Biden: "Today, Senator Biden, the falseness of your statements have been proven. Eight of the Marines charged for the so called “massacre” have already been exonerated. There is but one case still pending and that case is likely to be dismissed as well. There was no massacre and if there was no massacre, there was no coverup, at any level.

Senator Biden, there can be no doubt you made a serious mistake in your accusations against our Marines and you made a serious mistake in your accusations against Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, and you made a serious mistake in your accusations against the President of the United States, George W. Bush. Mistakes you should be held accountable for.

According to your own statement, your own "system of accountability," the gentlemanly thing to do would be for you, Senator Biden, you, to stand up and to acknowledge your serious mistake, for you to apologize to each of these brave and honorable men for your false accusations and misdeeds, for you to apologize for the injuries you inflicted upon them based on your rash and thoughtless words spoken without knowledge, that were based on rumor, innuendo and ignorance of the facts, the accusations you made without the benefit of a proper investigation and the gathering of information necessary to make intelligent commentary on such a sensitive subject.

Never mind the dangers inherent in your promotion of the propaganda of the enemy at a time of war and your undermining of our Government and the Military in favor of the enemy, which equals aiding and abetting the enemy, as your words were before the world and they put every soldier overseas in grave danger of suffering vengence for acts that did not in fact occur but which you claimed did occur.

Do the the right thing Senator Biden. The world is watching. The world is watching you.

Stand up Senator Biden. Be a man.

Acknowledge your serious mistake. Apologize to those you have falsely accused. "

Shipping limits through the Bosphorus

When it comes to Maritime expertise, I always go to the Eagle. I did wonder why no major ships were taking supplies into the Black Sea.

I also have to wonder why the US Coast Guard is in that area. Any takers? I can't think of any parts of the US coast near Greece!


EagleSpeak: Shipping limits through the Bosphorus: "Interesting read on U.S. intentions with respect to the Black Sea at Oktay Eksi: United States scratches the Montreux Convention itch.

I won't comment on his conjecture about what reasons other than Georgia the U.S. might want access to the Black Sea for, but it should be noted:

The Montreux Convention limits the total weight of a single warship that countries not bordering the Black Sea can deploy to 15,000 tons. Country’s bound by the agreement can deploy warships totaling a maximum of 45,000 tons.

So, if you wonder why we are sending destroyers and a Coast Guard cutter...now you know."

===================================================================================

http://www.eaglespeak.us/2008/08/coast-guard-cutter-dalls-joins-uss.html
The Coast Guard cutter Dallas entered the Dardanelles; as a giant crane unloaded 55 tons of aid from the USS McFaul for refugees in Batumi, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of another port, Poti, where Russian troops are still present.

This has been the first U.S. humanitarian mission via the sea to Georgia since the start of the conflict on Aug. 8, when Russia sent forces into Georgia to repel an attack on the Moscow-backed separatist region of South Ossetia that Tbilisi had started the day before.

U.S. Navy officials were met by Georgian officials, including Defense Minister David Kezerashvili.

Kezerashvili said that "the population of Georgia will feel more safe from today from the Russian aggression." "They will feel safe not because the destroyer is here but because they will feel they are not alone facing the Russian aggression," he was quoted by the AP as saying.

The McFaul is also outfitted with an array of weaponry, including Tomahawk cruise missiles, which can carry both conventional or nuclear warheads, and a sophisticated radar system. For security reasons the Navy does not say if ships are carrying nuclear weapons, but they usually do not.

The command ship USS Mount Whitney is due to follow the two U.S. warships carrying relief supplies to Georgia. The U.S. has already delivered some aid by military cargo plane but is now shipping in beds and food for the displaced.

NATO-member Turkey has authorized the three U.S. ships to sail through the Turkish straits into the Black Sea.

Hizballah high-up falls to his death at rocket pad on Israeli border

The UN is almost aiding the terrorists in their efforts to fortify in direct violation of the UN Resolutions. Why are they just standing back and allowing this to happen?

Why are the Israeli politicians keeping their military on a short leash while the terrorists are openly preparing for war?

It is past time to bomb that area flat. It is almost a criminal act that neither the UN or local governments are willing to stop these acts of open aggression.


DEBKAfile - Hizballah high-up falls to his death at rocket pad on Israeli border: "The geography of the accident Tuesday, Aug. 26, belied the reiterated claims of Israeli ministers and UN officials that Hizballah’s rockets had been pushed back from the Lebanese-Israeli border, under the terms of the Resolution 1701 ceasefire which ended the 2006 Lebanon War.

Jamal Amin Salah, 51, a Hizballah operations executive, stood on the rooftop of a building at the Lebanese Yaroun village, less than half a kilometer from the Israeli border. He was discussing with his men how far inside Israeli territory the rockets installed at the launch pads in the village could reach, when he fell to his death.

DEBKAfile’s military sources confirm that, not only has Hizballah returned to its old positions on the Israeli border - contradicting statements by prime minister Ehud Olmert and defense minister Ehud Barak - but the Iran-backed Shiite terrorists are working feverishly on the construction of a new line of fortified military positions, including rocket-launching pads, right on top of the Israeli border fence.

Neither Israeli Defense Forces nor UN peacekeepers have interfered with this barefaced violation of international agreements."

Moscow: No room for more NATO ships on Black Sea, Moldova should beware

DEBKAfile - Moscow: No room for more NATO ships on Black Sea, Moldova should beware: "America’s decision to redirect its Georgia aid warship from Russian-controlled Poti port to Georgian-controlled Batumi Wednesday, August 27 – on direct orders from the Pentagon - did not cool the escalating Black Sea tension between the two powers. As soon as the US Coast Guard cutter Dallas docked with 34 tons of humanitarian aid, three Russian missile boats, led by the Moskva missile cruiser, anchored to the north at the Black Sea port of Sukhumi, capital of breakaway Abkhazia, for what the Russians called “peacekeeping operations.”

In Moscow, Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn said NATO had exhausted the number of forces it can deploy in the Black Sea under international agreements. He warned Western nations against sending more ships. “NATO – which is not a state located in the Black Sea” cannot continuously increase its forces and systems there, he said.

According to DEBKAfile’s military sources, ten NATO warships are present in the Black Sea – American, Turkish, German, Spanish and Polish. Alliance sources have said more vessels would soon be deployed, raising the number to eighteen.

Moldova, another former Soviet Black Sea nation, is the latest target of Russian threats and element in the Russian-US contest over the region.

Tuesday, Russian president Dmitry Medvedev warned Moldovan leaders against repeating Georgia’s mistake of trying to use force to regain control of its breakaway region of Transdniestria. Russian peacekeepers have been posted there since 1990, when provincial separatists fought to break away from Moldova. This dispute mirrors the predicament of Georgia and other former Soviet nations which have large Russian populations.

Moldova is strategically located on the Western shore of the Black Sea, very near the Crimean Peninsula and the big Russian naval headquarters base at Sevastopol, Ukraine.

Wednesday, Russian ambassador Valeri Kuzmin advised Moldova’s leaders to avoid a “bloody and catastrophic trend of events.” He said Moscow had recognizes South Ossetian and Abkhazian independence the day before, because of “Georgian’s aggression.”

Ukraine stepped in Wednesday with a demand to renegotiate the Russian Black Sea fleet’s lease for the use of the Sevastopol base to raise the rent."

Miliband ratchets up the rhetoric against Russia

Russia is scary in their determination to be viewed as a Superpower once again.

Miliband ratchets up the rhetoric against Russia | Opinion | The First Post: "There is a risk that David Miliband could be talking us into a small war as he ratchets up the rhetoric against Russia on his visit to Ukraine. He has called for the 'widest possible coalition against Russian aggression'. This means full Western support if Russia pulls on Ukraine the same trick it has on Georgia - a grab for territory to protect the endangered Russian minority.

The language and mood of the Western allies in Nato and the EU is shifting from containment of Russia to confrontation. The main powers - Germany, France, Britain and the US - are pulling their junior partners together in a way they weren't only last week. France, as the current president of the EU, has called a summit next Monday."

The Truth About Russia in Georgia


Totten gets into the true history behind the Russian-Georgian War. I knew only a smattering of this and I think more people should understand it before they make comments about the War. Too many people only know what the Soviet PR machine has spewed out.

This is a very important lesson! Read this article to get an understanding.


Michael J. Totten: The Truth About Russia in Georgia: "Virtually everyone believes Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili foolishly provoked a Russian invasion on August 7, 2008, when he sent troops into the breakaway district of South Ossetia. “The warfare began Aug. 7 when Georgia launched a barrage targeting South Ossetia,” the Associated Press reported over the weekend in typical fashion.

Virtually everyone is wrong. Georgia didn't start it on August 7, nor on any other date. The South Ossetian militia started it on August 6 when its fighters fired on Georgian peacekeepers and Georgian villages with weapons banned by the agreement hammered out between the two sides in 1994. At the same time, the Russian military sent its invasion force bearing down on Georgia from the north side of the Caucasus Mountains on the Russian side of the border through the Roki tunnel and into Georgia. This happened before Saakashvili sent additional troops to South Ossetia and allegedly started the war."

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Palestinian factions reject deploying Arab security forces in Gaza

The only way that the "Palestinians" will end the slaughter of women and children is if they run out of people to kill. The efforts of even their fellow Muslims does not matter if they are not allowed to kill and slaughter and maim.

Once again, I am forced to say that Gaza just needs to be razed and the "people" removed. They have been reduced to a subhuman, blood thirsty mass of animals. They are like wild boars that have developed a taste for human flesh - too dangerous to allow to exist. Can anyone think of a way to end the crisis besides killing all of one of the sides? Well, the one side will gladly live with the other if allowed, but we need to to find a way to get to that point.

The Nazis trained the original "Palestinian Resistance" very well.


Palestinian factions reject deploying Arab security forces in Gaza - People's Daily Online: "The proposal to redeploy Arab security forces in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip has been widely rejected by most of the Palestinian factions, which was even compared to a new occupation of Gaza similar to the one Israel ended in September 2005.

Leaders of the Palestinian factions, mainly Hamas and Islamic Jihad (Holy War) strongly rejected the proposal which was welcomed by the leadership of the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah.

The leaders of the factions said that the mission of the Arab security forces, if they are deployed in Gaza 'will be protecting the Israeli occupation and ending the Palestinian armed resistance against Israel.'

Palestinian Authority leaders had earlier announced that they have officially discussed the idea with the Egyptian leaders and other Arab countries to deploy Arab security forces in the Gaza Strip, which has been ruled by Hamas movement since mid June last year.

They said that the role of the Arab security forces is to rebuild the Palestinian security apparatuses and restore order and discipline in the Gaza Strip, which had witnessed violent fighting between rival Fatah and Hamas movement."

The Conning Khan Caper Revealed

Because this story is about a US CIA success, I am going to not expect to see much about it in the Media. I will expect to see a lot about it once the secrets get leaked somehow. The Media hates allowing the CIA any secrets.

Intelligence: The Conning Khan Caper Revealed: "Despite efforts by the CIA to keep it quiet, it was recently revealed how the CIA did major damage to nuclear weapons developments programs in Libya and Iran. This was done by getting to one of the engineers working for the Pakistani Khan network (named after scientist, Abdul Qadeer Khan, who led development efforts for Pakistani nuclear weapons.) The CIA basically hired Swiss engineer Friedrich Tinner and his two sons, to feed the Khan network, and its customers, defective (in subtle ways) nuclear weapons components. From 2001-4, the Tinners worked under CIA direction. This caused Libya to drop its nuclear weapons program, and delayed work in Iran.

Since then, the Tinners have been prosecuted in Switzerland for their work with the Khan network. The elder Tinner began working for Khan in the 1970s, helping to steal European nuclear technology for the Pakistani weapons program. This relationship expanded in the 1990s, when Abdul Qadeer Khan began making money on the side by selling nuclear weapons technology to anyone who could afford it and was discrete (like Libya, Iran, North Korea and Iraq). The CIA effort to discover the Khan network, and take it down, led them to Tinner, whose willingness to collaborate helped bring down the Khan network.

The CIA paid the Tinners $10 million for their work, and are trying to keep them out of jail. But now details of the Tinner operation have been leaked to the media. The CIA will now try to keep secret the methods and contacts it used to uncover and destroy the Khan network, as well as how it sabotaged components. All this information can be used again, if it doesn't get published in the mass media first. "

Blockheads vs. the blockade

I see that Israel decided to ignore my advice about locking these fools up in Sderot, but they did the smart thing, which was to let the ship through since it was already cleared and certified by Cypriot authorities as being weapon free.

See what I miss when I go out of town for a few days over the weekend? Thanks for finding all this SoccerDad.


Soccer Dad: Blockheads vs. the blockade: "Never mind that Israel allows large quantities of goods into Gaza and the Palestinians themselves smuggle even more in via tunnels from Egypt. But a bunch of anti-Israel activists decided to make some PR and "run" Israel's naval blockade of Gaza.

Two wooden boats carrying dozens of human rights activists reached the Gaza Strip on Saturday afternoon after the Israeli navy decided not to hinder the challenge to Israel's blockade of the Palestinian enclave. Thousands of Palestinians turned out to welcome the group, which brought token humanitarian aid, including hearing aids and balloons.


The Post's headline proclaims that the boats "broke" the blockade, but Israel let them pass unhindered.

(In some of the early publicity - it wasn't news, it was unvarnished PR - it was noted that a Holocaust survivor was going to be on the boat. The Post's PR release doesn't mention her among the celebrities on the boat. Did she change her mind or was the Post just unaware of her presence.)

Meryl points out that since the ship of fools didn't meet any resistance they charged that Israel jammed their instruments to prevent them from reaching Gaza.

However Backspin points out that the activists may not have such an easy time leaving Gaza as they did arriving.

And despite the crowds cheering their arrival, left unreported by many organizations was

once it turned out these boats contain too little food and mostly activists...some people left the beach disappointed."

Free History Project demands that History be kept caged

So, History needs to be Freed from its use by the Right? Only the Leftists who want to revise it are allowed to use it? Interesting! Keep up the good work hippies!

As an amateur historian, I love to find little historical tidbits to contemplate and to regale others with. Some people think that I should be sent to Gitmo as a professional torturer and just tell these tidbits to the inmates. Others think that might be too cruel. I am not sure if I should be insulted or not. Help keep history safe. Keep it away from censors and hippies.


Lucianne.com News Forum: "The Berkeley-based nonprofit Free History Project has sent a cease-and-desist letter to a right-wing political group which used footage from one of the project’s documentaries in a new ad that tries to tie Barack Obama to 1960s-era radical William Ayers. The letter demands that all broadcasts of the American Issues Project ad, now running in Michigan and Ohio, be halted as a violation of copyright law."

Tar Heel jihadist gets 33 years

When will Muslims practice the Peace they profess? So many do, but they are not able to contain their bloody-handed brethren. Why not? Is it because they have also read the Koran and know that Islam is only peaceful for the Master Faith? Die, in prison pig eater.

Jihad Watch: Tar Heel jihadist gets 33 years: "The headline to this WXII story is 'Former Student Sentenced In UNC Crash.' Crash? There was no 'crash' in the sense of an accident. Taheri-azar, by his own admission, was trying to kill students by hitting them with the SUV, and did so -- again by his own admission -- because he believed the Qur'an directed him to kill infidels."

"The Muslim faith disqualifies him from leading the Muslim nation because he is comparable to an infidel"

See! Islam is willing to work with other faiths!

NOT!

Islam is the Master, all others are slaves. At best.

Since Mauritania is now a thugocracy, can they just shoot fools like this? It will be interesting to watch! If they are thugs, Esseman will die soon. If they are just place holders trying to fix their country for a return to democracy, then Esseman will stay in jail. I say they shoot him anyway, and all his followers. Just because the AQ wannabes are dangerous vermin.


Jihad Watch: "The Muslim faith disqualifies him from leading the Muslim nation because he is comparable to an infidel": "The suspected head of Al-Qaeda in Mauritania urged the country's Muslims not to recognise the ruling military junta, calling it an 'infidel regime,' AFP learned Monday.

The denunciation came as the head of the African Union (AU) Commission said he held an 'optimistic' meeting with the junta's leader General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, aimed at restoring a constitutional government.

In a two-page letter, handwritten in Arabic from prison and signed with his name, El Khadim Ould Esseman wrote that Muslims must not support or recognise the junta that seized power earlier this month.

'Even if (the head of the junta) linked by blood and membership of the same tribal group, the Muslim faith disqualifies him from leading the Muslim nation because he is comparable to an infidel,' the letter said.

'Those who applaud the new government and those who are against it must stop and turn to the strict application of Sharia.' [...]"

Classes Start in Texas School District Where Teachers Can Carry Guns

THe people who dislike this plan are afraid that the teachers are the ones who are going to go crazy and start shooting up the classrooms? Or they just hate guns and put their kids in private schools behind armed guards so that the peasants can't be seen.

This school district has gone to extremes to ensure the safety of its students. I am even willing to bet that none of the teachers are carrying a weapon because the standard is so high for being able to carry one. Not that the gun haters care. The only people who are allowed to carry guns on campus, in their twisted world, are highly visible so that snipers can see them, or criminal - because only criminals should have guns. Or something like that.

I am willing to bet that the local kids will be more than happy NOT to test the system by shooting wildly in class. Wait! These are teenagers and are, by definition, stupid enough to test the system. I hope that the kid who does dies a quick and painful death. A lonely death.


FOXNews.com - Classes Start in Texas School District Where Teachers Can Carry Guns - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News: "Thweatt said the board took extra precautions, such as requiring employees to use bullets that will minimize the risk of ricochet, similar to those used by air marshals on planes.

'I can lead them from a fire, tornado and toxic spill; we have plans in place for that. I cannot lead them from an active shooter,' Thweatt said. 'There are people who are going to think this is extreme, but it's easy to defend.'

Judy Priz, who has a third-grade daughter, said that 'everyone I've talked to thinks it's great.' She said she trusts the teachers with her child's life.

'Look how long it takes the police or anybody else to get here,' she told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram for a story in its Monday online edition. 'If someone wants to come here and harm someone, at least we would have sort of defense.'

Gov. Rick Perry has said he supports the policy because 'there's a lot of incidents where that would have saved a number of lives.'

The Brady Center has spoken out against the plan, saying it may not comply with Texas law, which bans firearms at schools unless carriers have given written permission. If the school board authorizes an employee to carry a gun, then that person must be a peace offi"

Special Operations: Decapitation in Afghanistan

This is a topic that I seem to harp on about often. The Special Ops boys do not get the credit they deserve. Keep up the good fight, lads!

Special Operations: Decapitation in Afghanistan: "Decapitation in Afghanistan

August 25, 2008: Afghanistan is once more becoming a gathering place for special operations (commando) operators from dozens of countries. This has led to the development of a new strategy, of trying to destroy the Taliban and al Qaeda leadership. Several years worth of experience and information collected by the thousands of commandos has provided a way to do this. Commandos could track the terrorist leaders, and also use a network of informants they had developed along the border, on both sides, over the years. In addition, the U.S. had developed electronic and visual surveillance capabilities that provide the commandos with additional eyes, and weapons. The commandos are particularly fond of Predator and Reaper UAVs, which come operators describe as having a full time spy satellite overhead. Commandos, as well as smart bombs and Hellfire missiles.

These "decapitation" operations have increased this year, and are expected to keep increasing into next year. The Taliban and al Qaeda have already figured out what is going on, and are increasingly paranoid when it comes to informers, using their own cell or satellite phones, and any unidentified aircraft in the area. The terrorists keep changing the way they meet and communicate, yet they keep getting killed. While the terrorists can replace leaders and technical specialists, they cannot replace them with people of equal experience. And as they move into the shallow end of the talent pool, more mistakes are made. Al Qaeda operatives who have fled Iraq to Afghanistan, have noticed, and commented on, the lower level of technical expertise among their Afghan brothers. While most Iraqi terrorists were literate, and some even had formal technical training, most Afghans are illiterate, and any technical training they might have was acquired informally. This has led to more bombs that don't go off on cue, or, worse yet, explode while being worked on, or emplaced. This sort of thing will happen more, as the talent pool gets diluted. The terrorists have a nearly inexhaustible supply of gunmen and suicide bombers from the hundreds of pro-terror religious schools in Pakistan. Plenty of cash is available from contributions and criminal activities (particularly working for the heroin gangs in Afghanistan). But leadership cannot be bought, nor can you hire technical people to work the high risk (and high death rate) border areas. You have to develop your own leaders and technical people. And if the enemy kills off those leaders and techies too rapidly, the terror operations will collapse. That's how the Israelis crippled Palestinian terrorist operations several years ago, and how the Americans crushed al Qaeda in Iraq, and throughout the rest of the world. Now that solution is being applied to the terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and commandos from over a dozen nations are in charge.

From the beginning, in September, 2001, Afghanistan was very much a special operations war. The United States asked all of its allies to contribute their commando forces, and most eagerly obliged. This enthusiasm came from the realization that this part of the world was particularly difficult to operate in, and would be a welcome challenge to men who had trained hard for years for missions like this. In addition, most nations saw Islamic terrorism as a real threat, and knew that key terrorist leaders were still hiding out in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran. Even after the invasion of Iraq in 2003, which many Western and Middle Eastern nations opposed, they kept sending their commandoes to Afghanistan. But few commandos were allowed into Pakistan, where most of the Taliban and al Qaeda leadership were hiding. Efforts to operate in Pakistan created growing hostility from Pakistani intelligence agencies, which contained many al Qaeda sympathizers. The Pakistani government was reluctant to come down too hard on the Taliban and al Qaeda members on their Afghan border. So the commandos proceeded to learn all about the pro-Taliban tribes in Afghanistan, and secretly sneaked across into Pakistan as well.

Most of these commando operations have been kept secret. This is typical for commando operations, but in this case, many of the nations involved don't want it known that they are involved. This has especially been the case with Arab nations that have contributed commando units. The only time any information gets into the media is, typically, when a commando contingent returns. In that way, the Norwegian media covered the return of their special forces from, as it was described, "another mission" to Afghanistan. Many nations have either sent their commandoes to Afghanistan in shifts, maintaining a near continuous presence, or send some in for a few months, or up to a year, then bring them home for a year or so, before sending them back. For many nations, this is the only combat experience any of their troops are receiving. These countries are often officially hostile to the U.S. effort in Iraq, and refuse to send combat troops to Afghanistan. But commandos in Afghanistan are another matter, partly because nearly all commandos are eager to go.

Afghanistan has been called "the Commando Olympics," because so many nations have contingents there. While the different commando organizations aren't competing with each other, they are performing similar missions, using slightly different methods and equipment. Naturally, everyone compares notes and makes changes based on combat experience. That's the draw for commandoes, getting and using "combat experience." Training is great, but there's nothing like operating against an armed and hostile foe. This is all a real big thing, as the participating commandoes are becoming a lot more effective. But you can't get a photograph of this increased capability, and the commandoes aren't talking to the press. So it's all a big story you'll never hear much about, except in history books, many years from now.
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