Turkish Plane Wallet bomb raises questions
From Washington Post
More news is emerging about this "wallet bomb" on a Turkish passenger airliner. And it raises many questions.
The explosive device was apparently attached to a wallet left in a bathroom on the Turkish Airlines plane, according to a physician who was on the scene. When a cleaner picked up the wallet, it exploded in his hand, said Huseyin Kuytak, a doctor who works for the airport clinic.
"It was a very, very small explosion," he said. "There was not much damage in the plane. But because it's inside a plane, that makes it very significant."
I'm no expert on these matters but the question that comes to mind is, what would the effect of this explosion have been had the cabin been pressurized?
What would the effect have been on a plane load of passengers at 30,000 ft if the wallet had been picked up by a passenger and exploded? Panic, perhaps, terror for sure; the goal of the terrorist in the first place.
And, if true, here is the really chilling part.
The device contained no electronic components which might have made it easier to get through screening, at Izmir, officials said.
Again, I'm no expert but if there were no electronic components how did it detonate? Chemicals perhaps?
I think there is far more to this story and should be looked into a lot more closely.
Remember Richard Reid the shoe bomber? Well, seemingly he did not act alone.
The FBI has discovered forensic evidence that indicates alleged shoe bomber Richard Reid had help making the explosives found in his shoes on board an American-bound flight.
I don't know if they ever caught his accomplice.
And from Cori Dauber comes this interesting news item from Canada.
Toxic chemical found in bus filters
VANCOUVER (CP) -- A small amount of a potentially lethal chemical was found in a city transit bus, Vancouver police confirmed Friday, rejecting claims by B.C.'s chief medical officer that the so-called toxic bus was a case of mass hysteria.
Maybe these items are not related but maybe these are just probes of our defenses or probes to gauge effects and responses.
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Wednesday, June 30, 2004
Good news from Afghanistan
Chrenkoff doing what he does best - reporting all the good news mainstream media don't want you to know about.
Be sure to read the whole article and if you have not read his Good News from Iraq series, there are links to all four on the left of his blog.
Keep them handy for the next time some moonbat starts condemning the US.
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Chrenkoff doing what he does best - reporting all the good news mainstream media don't want you to know about.
Be sure to read the whole article and if you have not read his Good News from Iraq series, there are links to all four on the left of his blog.
Keep them handy for the next time some moonbat starts condemning the US.
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US recalls old soldiers for duty
Here is another example of why the media doesn't know what it is talking about when it comes to military matters.
Also, notice the BBC bias here again. Instead of using the term "former" soldiers, the BBC opt to use "old soldiers" to give the impression the US is calling up pensioners. What a shameful organization the BBC has truly become.
From The BBC
As members of the IRR, the 5,600 former soldiers now being recalled have retired or otherwise left the military but still have a reserve obligation.
Unlike other reservists, however, they do not train or receive pay unless they are mobilised and probably did not expect ever to have to serve again, our correspondent says
Couple of points here which illustrate why the media are not qualified to speak on military matters.
First the BBC fail to mention that those IRR members who retired do recieve pay. Depending on the length of service they could be getting over 50% of their baisc pay when they retired.
Everyone in the IRR know full well that they may be called up. Some in the IRR were called up in the first gulf war in addition to this one.
Lastly, out of the nearly 6,000 IRR troops involved, over 2000 had already volunteered! Something the BBC does not want you to know.
The BBC then produce a retired Army colonel of their choice to add fuel to the fire.
Retired Army Col Andrew Bacevich, a Boston University international relations professor, said the recall suggested the army was too small for its current missions.
"These are people who used to be soldiers and no longer are," he was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency.
"The informal contract... is that I have volunteered for a certain period of time and once that time is up, then the choice returns to me to decide either to continue my service or to opt out.
First of all, as a retired US service member I take offense at the statement that we are no longer soldiers. And if that were true, why would the military accept over 2000 of these experiences soldiers who volunteered?
There is nothing informal about your military contract and the choice to continue your military service does not return to you.
The BBC in its' own report say these IRR members "...but still have a reserve obligation". That is a contractual obligation.
So, why did the BBC choose Army Col Andrew Bacevich in the first place? Because he is an outspoken critic of the war in Iraq. Bacevich recently wrote "Fighting a War in Name Only " in which he said:
Yet peeling back the rhetoric reveals a different story. By historical standards, the enterprise that some have described as another world war has turned out to be a niggling affair. Bush has asked nothing and required nothing of Americans. And nothing pretty much describes what we've anted up to support the cause.
Again, so much for the BBC's much vaunted "core values". The BBC continue in their anti-American agenda.
The BBC's charter should not be renewed.
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Here is another example of why the media doesn't know what it is talking about when it comes to military matters.
Also, notice the BBC bias here again. Instead of using the term "former" soldiers, the BBC opt to use "old soldiers" to give the impression the US is calling up pensioners. What a shameful organization the BBC has truly become.
From The BBC
As members of the IRR, the 5,600 former soldiers now being recalled have retired or otherwise left the military but still have a reserve obligation.
Unlike other reservists, however, they do not train or receive pay unless they are mobilised and probably did not expect ever to have to serve again, our correspondent says
Couple of points here which illustrate why the media are not qualified to speak on military matters.
First the BBC fail to mention that those IRR members who retired do recieve pay. Depending on the length of service they could be getting over 50% of their baisc pay when they retired.
Everyone in the IRR know full well that they may be called up. Some in the IRR were called up in the first gulf war in addition to this one.
Lastly, out of the nearly 6,000 IRR troops involved, over 2000 had already volunteered! Something the BBC does not want you to know.
The BBC then produce a retired Army colonel of their choice to add fuel to the fire.
Retired Army Col Andrew Bacevich, a Boston University international relations professor, said the recall suggested the army was too small for its current missions.
"These are people who used to be soldiers and no longer are," he was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency.
"The informal contract... is that I have volunteered for a certain period of time and once that time is up, then the choice returns to me to decide either to continue my service or to opt out.
First of all, as a retired US service member I take offense at the statement that we are no longer soldiers. And if that were true, why would the military accept over 2000 of these experiences soldiers who volunteered?
There is nothing informal about your military contract and the choice to continue your military service does not return to you.
The BBC in its' own report say these IRR members "...but still have a reserve obligation". That is a contractual obligation.
So, why did the BBC choose Army Col Andrew Bacevich in the first place? Because he is an outspoken critic of the war in Iraq. Bacevich recently wrote "Fighting a War in Name Only " in which he said:
Yet peeling back the rhetoric reveals a different story. By historical standards, the enterprise that some have described as another world war has turned out to be a niggling affair. Bush has asked nothing and required nothing of Americans. And nothing pretty much describes what we've anted up to support the cause.
Again, so much for the BBC's much vaunted "core values". The BBC continue in their anti-American agenda.
The BBC's charter should not be renewed.
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Tuesday, June 29, 2004
Hating America
From Bruce Bawer
Set aside some time, get a cup of coffee and read this. It is long but a must read.
Here is just a small sample.
This experience was only part of a larger process of edification. Living in Europe, I gradually came to appreciate American virtues I’d always taken for granted, or even disdained—among them a lack of self-seriousness, a grasp of irony and self-deprecating humor, a friendly informality with strangers, an unashamed curiosity, an openness to new experience, an innate optimism, a willingness to think for oneself and speak one’s mind and question the accepted way of doing things. (One reason why Euro- peans view Americans as ignorant is that when we don’t know something, we’re more likely to admit it freely and ask questions.) While Americans, I saw, cherished liberty, Europeans tended to take it for granted or dismiss it as a naive or cynical, and somehow vaguely embarrassing, American fiction. I found myself toting up words that begin with i: individuality, imagination, initiative, inventiveness, independence of mind. Americans, it seemed to me, were more likely to think for themselves and trust their own judgments, and less easily cowed by authorities or bossed around by “experts”; they believed in their own ability to make things better. No wonder so many smart, ambitious young Europeans look for inspiration to the United States, which has a dynamism their own countries lack, and which communicates the idea that life can be an adventure and that there’s important, exciting work to be done. Reagan-style “morning in America” clichés may make some of us wince, but they reflect something genuine and valuable in the American air. Europeans may or may not have more of a “sense of history” than Americans do (in fact, in a recent study comparing students’ historical knowledge, the results were pretty much a draw), but America has something else that matters—a belief in the future.
You owe it to yourself to read the whole article.
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From Bruce Bawer
Set aside some time, get a cup of coffee and read this. It is long but a must read.
Here is just a small sample.
This experience was only part of a larger process of edification. Living in Europe, I gradually came to appreciate American virtues I’d always taken for granted, or even disdained—among them a lack of self-seriousness, a grasp of irony and self-deprecating humor, a friendly informality with strangers, an unashamed curiosity, an openness to new experience, an innate optimism, a willingness to think for oneself and speak one’s mind and question the accepted way of doing things. (One reason why Euro- peans view Americans as ignorant is that when we don’t know something, we’re more likely to admit it freely and ask questions.) While Americans, I saw, cherished liberty, Europeans tended to take it for granted or dismiss it as a naive or cynical, and somehow vaguely embarrassing, American fiction. I found myself toting up words that begin with i: individuality, imagination, initiative, inventiveness, independence of mind. Americans, it seemed to me, were more likely to think for themselves and trust their own judgments, and less easily cowed by authorities or bossed around by “experts”; they believed in their own ability to make things better. No wonder so many smart, ambitious young Europeans look for inspiration to the United States, which has a dynamism their own countries lack, and which communicates the idea that life can be an adventure and that there’s important, exciting work to be done. Reagan-style “morning in America” clichés may make some of us wince, but they reflect something genuine and valuable in the American air. Europeans may or may not have more of a “sense of history” than Americans do (in fact, in a recent study comparing students’ historical knowledge, the results were pretty much a draw), but America has something else that matters—a belief in the future.
You owe it to yourself to read the whole article.
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First the shoe bomber and now the wallet bomber
From KBCI
Istanbul, Turkey-AP -- Turkish Airlines says three workers were injured in a small explosion on a plane in Istanbul today.
Airline officials say a package -- which appeared to be some kind of wallet -- blew up after a worker who was cleaning the plane picked it up. That worker lost some fingers. Two other workers suffered minor injuries.
Was this a practice run?
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From KBCI
Istanbul, Turkey-AP -- Turkish Airlines says three workers were injured in a small explosion on a plane in Istanbul today.
Airline officials say a package -- which appeared to be some kind of wallet -- blew up after a worker who was cleaning the plane picked it up. That worker lost some fingers. Two other workers suffered minor injuries.
Was this a practice run?
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BBC claims Iraqi kidnappers spare 'those of the same faith wherever possible'
via ED
In the BBC's continuing quest to prove it has absolutely no plans to implement its' much vaunted "core values", claims to know the terrorist (kidnappers to the BBC) intentions.
Yesterday The BBC made the following claim:
Secondly, with more than 100 [Iraqi Muslim] civilians being killed each week [by terrorists], the power of the government to impose its will on the streets is very limited.
But today The BBC claim these same terrorists are a kind and considerate type of terrorist; at least to their Muslim brothers.
Correspondents say Iraqi kidnappers are trying to deflect criticism from Muslim countries by sparing those of the same faith wherever possible.
Now, which is it BBC? Are these terrorists slaughtering 100 of their Muslim brothers every week or are they the careful type of terrorist and spare their Muslim brothers "wherever possible"?
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via ED
In the BBC's continuing quest to prove it has absolutely no plans to implement its' much vaunted "core values", claims to know the terrorist (kidnappers to the BBC) intentions.
Yesterday The BBC made the following claim:
Secondly, with more than 100 [Iraqi Muslim] civilians being killed each week [by terrorists], the power of the government to impose its will on the streets is very limited.
But today The BBC claim these same terrorists are a kind and considerate type of terrorist; at least to their Muslim brothers.
Correspondents say Iraqi kidnappers are trying to deflect criticism from Muslim countries by sparing those of the same faith wherever possible.
Now, which is it BBC? Are these terrorists slaughtering 100 of their Muslim brothers every week or are they the careful type of terrorist and spare their Muslim brothers "wherever possible"?
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Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton advocates Communism
From SF Gate
Sen Clinton speaking at a Democratic fund raiser, says the Democrats will roll back the tax cuts introduced by Bush. Look at the arrogance with which she says it.
"Many of you are well enough off that ... the tax cuts may have helped you," Sen. Clinton said. "We're saying that for America to get back on track, we're probably going to cut that short and not give it to you. We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good."
Uh, isn't that called Communism?
UPDATE: I knew this sounded familiar but I couldn't remember where I had heard it. It was from Lileks You have to scroll down to "A minor political note"
Lileks is telling a story about a Kerry supporter calling on him to enlist support for Kerry and they get around to Kerry's position that he will roll back Bush's tax cuts. Same as Hillay here.
“Why should the government have given you the money in the first place?”
“They didn’t give it to me. They just took less of my money.”
That was the last straw. Now she was angry. And the truth came out:
“Well, why is it your money? I think it should be their money.”
Then she left.
And walked down the stairs. I let her go without charging a toll. It’s the philanthropist in me.
And people actually vote for Democrats.
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From SF Gate
Sen Clinton speaking at a Democratic fund raiser, says the Democrats will roll back the tax cuts introduced by Bush. Look at the arrogance with which she says it.
"Many of you are well enough off that ... the tax cuts may have helped you," Sen. Clinton said. "We're saying that for America to get back on track, we're probably going to cut that short and not give it to you. We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good."
Uh, isn't that called Communism?
UPDATE: I knew this sounded familiar but I couldn't remember where I had heard it. It was from Lileks You have to scroll down to "A minor political note"
Lileks is telling a story about a Kerry supporter calling on him to enlist support for Kerry and they get around to Kerry's position that he will roll back Bush's tax cuts. Same as Hillay here.
“Why should the government have given you the money in the first place?”
“They didn’t give it to me. They just took less of my money.”
That was the last straw. Now she was angry. And the truth came out:
“Well, why is it your money? I think it should be their money.”
Then she left.
And walked down the stairs. I let her go without charging a toll. It’s the philanthropist in me.
And people actually vote for Democrats.
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Human Rights Watch Decries Iraq War - wants intervention in Sudan
Human Rights Watch seems to want to pick and choose who gets protection.
No to Iraq
The war in Iraq cannot be justified as an intervention in defence of human rights even though it ended a brutal regime, Human Rights Watch said Monday, dismissing one of the U.S. administration's main arguments for the invasion.
Yes to Darfur
U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, traveling to Sudan today, should make it clear to the Sudanese authorities that the international community will protect the civilians in Darfur if the Sudanese government fails to do so, Human Rights Watch said today.
"International community" is a euphanism for the US, isn't it?
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Human Rights Watch seems to want to pick and choose who gets protection.
No to Iraq
The war in Iraq cannot be justified as an intervention in defence of human rights even though it ended a brutal regime, Human Rights Watch said Monday, dismissing one of the U.S. administration's main arguments for the invasion.
Yes to Darfur
U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, traveling to Sudan today, should make it clear to the Sudanese authorities that the international community will protect the civilians in Darfur if the Sudanese government fails to do so, Human Rights Watch said today.
"International community" is a euphanism for the US, isn't it?
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Euro rights court backs ban on Muslim scarves
From Reuters
Banning Muslim headscarves in state schools does not violate the freedom of religion and is a valid way to counter Islamic fundamentalism, the European Court of Human Rights said yesterday.
In what could be a precedent-setting decision, the Strasbourg-based court rejected appeals by a Turkish student who was barred from attending Istanbul University medical school because her headscarf violated the official dress code.
The court decision, which takes precedence over national court rulings, could help the French government face court cases it expects to be filed in September against a headscarf ban it plans to impose in state high schools.
"Measures taken in universities to prevent certain fundamentalist religious movements from pressuring students who do not practise the religion in question or those belonging to another religion can be justified," the court ruling said.
Bans issued in the name of the separation of church and state could therefore be considered "necessary in a democratic society", said the court, which is part of the Strasbourg-based Council of Europe whose members include Turkey.
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From Reuters
Banning Muslim headscarves in state schools does not violate the freedom of religion and is a valid way to counter Islamic fundamentalism, the European Court of Human Rights said yesterday.
In what could be a precedent-setting decision, the Strasbourg-based court rejected appeals by a Turkish student who was barred from attending Istanbul University medical school because her headscarf violated the official dress code.
The court decision, which takes precedence over national court rulings, could help the French government face court cases it expects to be filed in September against a headscarf ban it plans to impose in state high schools.
"Measures taken in universities to prevent certain fundamentalist religious movements from pressuring students who do not practise the religion in question or those belonging to another religion can be justified," the court ruling said.
Bans issued in the name of the separation of church and state could therefore be considered "necessary in a democratic society", said the court, which is part of the Strasbourg-based Council of Europe whose members include Turkey.
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Moslem family sues school over Pledge
From Post Tribune
Still don't believe that the very fabric of America is under attack? Read this.
HAMMOND — A father says his children were harassed because they failed to take part in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and the “Star Spangled Banner” at Gavit High School. He has filed a discrimination complaint with the Indiana Civil Rights Commission.
Yusef Ali El, a Moorish-American Moslem, said the Pledge and anthem are contrary to his children’s religion.[...]
“Participating in the Pledge of Allegiance or the ’Star Spangled Banner’ ceremonies would not be honoring the creeds and principles of our forefathers. As Moorish Moslems, our allegiance is to ALLAH...
And people wonder why we are suspicious of Muslims in our armed forces and our Muslim neighbours.
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From Post Tribune
Still don't believe that the very fabric of America is under attack? Read this.
HAMMOND — A father says his children were harassed because they failed to take part in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and the “Star Spangled Banner” at Gavit High School. He has filed a discrimination complaint with the Indiana Civil Rights Commission.
Yusef Ali El, a Moorish-American Moslem, said the Pledge and anthem are contrary to his children’s religion.[...]
“Participating in the Pledge of Allegiance or the ’Star Spangled Banner’ ceremonies would not be honoring the creeds and principles of our forefathers. As Moorish Moslems, our allegiance is to ALLAH...
And people wonder why we are suspicious of Muslims in our armed forces and our Muslim neighbours.
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The Religious Policeman - a Saudi blogger
One of my usual blog visits is to a Saudi blogger called The Religious Policeman. If you've never been to his site you should pay him a visit.
His blog is dedicated as follows:
In Memory of the lives of 15 Makkah Schoolgirls, lost when their school burnt down on Monday, 11th March, 2002. The Religious Police would not allow them to leave the building, nor allow the Firemen to enter.
He has a link to the BBC report of the tragedy.
With all the political correctness being used in relation to Islam these days, I thought it might be worthwhile to revisit this story.
Saudi Arabia's religious police stopped schoolgirls from leaving a blazing building because they were not wearing correct Islamic dress, according to Saudi newspapers.
They would rather let them burn to death because they were not properly attired.
According to the al-Eqtisadiah daily, firemen confronted police after they tried to keep the girls inside because they were not wearing the headscarves and abayas (black robes) required by the kingdom's strict interpretation of Islam.
One witness said he saw three policemen "beating young girls to prevent them from leaving the school because they were not wearing the abaya".
They didn't merely "let them burn to death", they actually used force to make them burn to death.
Keep all this in mind when people are trying to be politically correct when discussing Islam and Muslims.
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One of my usual blog visits is to a Saudi blogger called The Religious Policeman. If you've never been to his site you should pay him a visit.
His blog is dedicated as follows:
In Memory of the lives of 15 Makkah Schoolgirls, lost when their school burnt down on Monday, 11th March, 2002. The Religious Police would not allow them to leave the building, nor allow the Firemen to enter.
He has a link to the BBC report of the tragedy.
With all the political correctness being used in relation to Islam these days, I thought it might be worthwhile to revisit this story.
Saudi Arabia's religious police stopped schoolgirls from leaving a blazing building because they were not wearing correct Islamic dress, according to Saudi newspapers.
They would rather let them burn to death because they were not properly attired.
According to the al-Eqtisadiah daily, firemen confronted police after they tried to keep the girls inside because they were not wearing the headscarves and abayas (black robes) required by the kingdom's strict interpretation of Islam.
One witness said he saw three policemen "beating young girls to prevent them from leaving the school because they were not wearing the abaya".
They didn't merely "let them burn to death", they actually used force to make them burn to death.
Keep all this in mind when people are trying to be politically correct when discussing Islam and Muslims.
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BBC 'no weapons of mass destruction found in Iraq'
Kind of reminds you of Andrew Gilligan saying the Americans had not taken Baghdad airport when in fact they had and Gilligan wasn't anywhere near the airport to know.
So it is with Michael Buchanan, except he is the BBC correspondent in Washington and has access to all the US media reports detailing the weapons of mass destruction found so far.
Here is a copy of my latest complaint to the BBC for breaching their "so called" core values. Everyday since announcing that the BBC is a changed animal for the good, they have shown it is business as usual. No one is in control of this organization and their charter should not be renewed.
In the referenced article, Michael Buchanan states "The failure to find weapons of mass destruction is moving the Iraq conflict, in the minds of many voters, from a war of necessity to a war of choice."
A totally false statement.
Many weapons of mass destruction have been found. Many news outlets, except of course the BBC, have reported on the finding of weapons of mass destruction.
From Fox News
"He also told Fox News that about 10 or 12 sarin and mustard gas shells have been found in various locations in Iraq."
From Front Page
"Demetrius Perricos, acting chairman of UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC), recently disclosed that his inspectors have been busily tracking shipments of illicit Iraqi WMD components around the world.
The Associated Press announced that UNMOVIC inspectors have found dozens of engines from banned al-Samoud 2 (SA2) missiles, which were shipped out of Iraq as “scrap metal.” Most recently, UNMOVIC agents found 20 SA-2 engines in Jordan, along with a great deal of other WMD materials. Officials discovered an identical engine in a Rotterdam port in the Netherlands and believe as many as a dozen extra SA-2 missile engines alone have been transported out of Iraq and remain unaccounted for."
Your much vaunted "core values" states in its' first paragraph:
"Truth and accuracy - BBC journalism must be rooted in the highest accuracy, well sourced and based on sound evidence."
Do you call this "the highest accuracy and sound evidence"?
Please correct these false statements as soon as possible.
UPDATE: Forgot to post the link to the story. BBC referenced article here
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Kind of reminds you of Andrew Gilligan saying the Americans had not taken Baghdad airport when in fact they had and Gilligan wasn't anywhere near the airport to know.
So it is with Michael Buchanan, except he is the BBC correspondent in Washington and has access to all the US media reports detailing the weapons of mass destruction found so far.
Here is a copy of my latest complaint to the BBC for breaching their "so called" core values. Everyday since announcing that the BBC is a changed animal for the good, they have shown it is business as usual. No one is in control of this organization and their charter should not be renewed.
In the referenced article, Michael Buchanan states "The failure to find weapons of mass destruction is moving the Iraq conflict, in the minds of many voters, from a war of necessity to a war of choice."
A totally false statement.
Many weapons of mass destruction have been found. Many news outlets, except of course the BBC, have reported on the finding of weapons of mass destruction.
From Fox News
"He also told Fox News that about 10 or 12 sarin and mustard gas shells have been found in various locations in Iraq."
From Front Page
"Demetrius Perricos, acting chairman of UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC), recently disclosed that his inspectors have been busily tracking shipments of illicit Iraqi WMD components around the world.
The Associated Press announced that UNMOVIC inspectors have found dozens of engines from banned al-Samoud 2 (SA2) missiles, which were shipped out of Iraq as “scrap metal.” Most recently, UNMOVIC agents found 20 SA-2 engines in Jordan, along with a great deal of other WMD materials. Officials discovered an identical engine in a Rotterdam port in the Netherlands and believe as many as a dozen extra SA-2 missile engines alone have been transported out of Iraq and remain unaccounted for."
Your much vaunted "core values" states in its' first paragraph:
"Truth and accuracy - BBC journalism must be rooted in the highest accuracy, well sourced and based on sound evidence."
Do you call this "the highest accuracy and sound evidence"?
Please correct these false statements as soon as possible.
UPDATE: Forgot to post the link to the story. BBC referenced article here
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Iraqi bloggers rejoice for freedom
A Small Victory has a roundup of what some Iraqi bloggers are saying about their new freedom.
Hail our true friends, the Great People of the United States of America; The Freedom giving Republic, the nation of Liberators. Never has the world known such a nation, willing to spill the blood of her children and spend the treasure of her land even for the sake of the freedom and well being of erstwhile enemies.
I can see only one bright road and I believe that going to the end is worth the sacrifice and we’ll never be discouraged by the dark pictures shown by the evil propaganda machines.
To me, we didn’t get rid of a military occupation today as I never considered the coalition’s presence as an occupation even if the whole world told me that I’m wrong.
Thank you united state of America for your great Job you done here .
Thank you coalitions forces for you brave work and supporting good.
Thank you all Brave mans ,who lost there life here ,your bloods will be the river of hope for us.
I hold high hopes in Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi and his courageous team. Yes, you could say every negative thing about them. But, those people wake up every morning to go to work not knowing if they'll be alive be end of the day. Cowards don't do that.
Just a sample.
You will never, ever see anything like this from the BBC. They do not want you to know the truth about Iraq.
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A Small Victory has a roundup of what some Iraqi bloggers are saying about their new freedom.
Hail our true friends, the Great People of the United States of America; The Freedom giving Republic, the nation of Liberators. Never has the world known such a nation, willing to spill the blood of her children and spend the treasure of her land even for the sake of the freedom and well being of erstwhile enemies.
I can see only one bright road and I believe that going to the end is worth the sacrifice and we’ll never be discouraged by the dark pictures shown by the evil propaganda machines.
To me, we didn’t get rid of a military occupation today as I never considered the coalition’s presence as an occupation even if the whole world told me that I’m wrong.
Thank you united state of America for your great Job you done here .
Thank you coalitions forces for you brave work and supporting good.
Thank you all Brave mans ,who lost there life here ,your bloods will be the river of hope for us.
I hold high hopes in Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi and his courageous team. Yes, you could say every negative thing about them. But, those people wake up every morning to go to work not knowing if they'll be alive be end of the day. Cowards don't do that.
Just a sample.
You will never, ever see anything like this from the BBC. They do not want you to know the truth about Iraq.
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Koch: Moore's propaganda film cheapens debate, polarizes nation
From World Tribune
I have stayed out of much of th political debate because there are so many sites that do it far better than I ever could. One of my main goals is to expose the anti-American campaign being waged by the BBC. This article is a good example.
Many in the audience assembled by the BBC included Americans and people from other nations. Their positive responses to Moore on this and other comments he made during the program convinced me that the producers had found a lair of dingbats when looking to fill the studio with an audience
They didn't "find" a lair of dingbats. The BBC with its' unrelenting anti-American bias created the lair of dingbats.
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From World Tribune
I have stayed out of much of th political debate because there are so many sites that do it far better than I ever could. One of my main goals is to expose the anti-American campaign being waged by the BBC. This article is a good example.
Many in the audience assembled by the BBC included Americans and people from other nations. Their positive responses to Moore on this and other comments he made during the program convinced me that the producers had found a lair of dingbats when looking to fill the studio with an audience
They didn't "find" a lair of dingbats. The BBC with its' unrelenting anti-American bias created the lair of dingbats.
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Iraqis Rejoice on Talk Radio Airwaves
From AP
Here is a chance for the new BBC Arabic.com to report on some good news out of Iraq. Let's see what their intrepid reporter on the ground, Omar Razek has to say on this momentous occasion.
Iraqis are, as usual, preoccupied with thoughts of earning their daily living and dreams about security and peace on the day the handover of power was officially announced, two days ahead of the schedule.
There are no celebrations in the streets of Baghdad, no demonstrations and no banners or flags marking the occasion.[...]
Iraqis are not ignoring what is taking place, but they have learnt to be cautious before setting their hopes high.
But I thought it was all over Iraqi radio; Iraqis rejoycing?
Let's see what the Iraqis are saying then.
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Iraqi voices filled the airwaves of the nation's first independent talk radio station Monday, applauding a surprise move by the U.S.-led coalition to return sovereignty to Iraq (news - web sites) two days early.
The callers clogged Radio Dijla's telephone lines to congratulate interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, urging him to be strong, while warning insurgents against continued violence. [...]
"People have been calling in all day, sending their greetings to the new government," said Ahmed al-Rikabi, who founded Radio Dijla about two months after working for years with broadcasters in Europe. "There is a feeling of joy among the listeners. But they are also expressing hope that the day will pass with no problems and no explosions."
So, what gives? Does Omar not have a radio? Does he not speak the language? Is he really in Iraq?
The answer is - he works for Al Jazeera, er, the BBC.
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From AP
Here is a chance for the new BBC Arabic.com to report on some good news out of Iraq. Let's see what their intrepid reporter on the ground, Omar Razek has to say on this momentous occasion.
Iraqis are, as usual, preoccupied with thoughts of earning their daily living and dreams about security and peace on the day the handover of power was officially announced, two days ahead of the schedule.
There are no celebrations in the streets of Baghdad, no demonstrations and no banners or flags marking the occasion.[...]
Iraqis are not ignoring what is taking place, but they have learnt to be cautious before setting their hopes high.
But I thought it was all over Iraqi radio; Iraqis rejoycing?
Let's see what the Iraqis are saying then.
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Iraqi voices filled the airwaves of the nation's first independent talk radio station Monday, applauding a surprise move by the U.S.-led coalition to return sovereignty to Iraq (news - web sites) two days early.
The callers clogged Radio Dijla's telephone lines to congratulate interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, urging him to be strong, while warning insurgents against continued violence. [...]
"People have been calling in all day, sending their greetings to the new government," said Ahmed al-Rikabi, who founded Radio Dijla about two months after working for years with broadcasters in Europe. "There is a feeling of joy among the listeners. But they are also expressing hope that the day will pass with no problems and no explosions."
So, what gives? Does Omar not have a radio? Does he not speak the language? Is he really in Iraq?
The answer is - he works for Al Jazeera, er, the BBC.
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Monday, June 28, 2004
Islamic terrorist smackdown
Via Rantburg
The Algerian army has killed three Islamic extremists, one of them an "emir" or leader, in a raid near the capital, Algiers, newspapers reported on Monday.
Indonesian police arrest terror suspect
Russian forces on Monday said they had killed Magomed Yevloyev, the leader of a rebel group that rampaged through the Ingushetia
Iraqi police detain two Chechens
Two Taliban leaders caught
One of Saudi Arabia's most wanted militants has turned himself into the authorities
Good work folks and keep it going.
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Via Rantburg
The Algerian army has killed three Islamic extremists, one of them an "emir" or leader, in a raid near the capital, Algiers, newspapers reported on Monday.
Indonesian police arrest terror suspect
Russian forces on Monday said they had killed Magomed Yevloyev, the leader of a rebel group that rampaged through the Ingushetia
Iraqi police detain two Chechens
Two Taliban leaders caught
One of Saudi Arabia's most wanted militants has turned himself into the authorities
Good work folks and keep it going.
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Iraqis in control now
For those who doubt the transfer means a real transfer to the Iraqis, check out Robert Alt writing from a free Iraq. via Cori
For those who question whether Iraqis are going to be given a real chance to govern, they need look no further than the fact that the U.S. Army will now be submitting improvement project proposals to the Iraqi government for consideration.
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For those who doubt the transfer means a real transfer to the Iraqis, check out Robert Alt writing from a free Iraq. via Cori
For those who question whether Iraqis are going to be given a real chance to govern, they need look no further than the fact that the U.S. Army will now be submitting improvement project proposals to the Iraqi government for consideration.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BBC derides Iraqi handover
While the world celebrates Iraq's new found freedom from 35 years of a brutal dictator, the BBC just can't stand the coalition's success.
Paul Reynolds in another one of his "so called" analysis (trust me this guy couldn't analyze a packet of crisps) pours cold water over the most important day in Iraq's history.
The unexpected early handover in Iraq has provided the new interim Iraqi government and the departing Coalition with a rare propaganda coup - but the advantage is likely to be short-lived as Iraq's problems press in.
As if that were all there is to it. The BBC have been at the forefront calling for the coalition to hand over power and critisizing Bush for the delay. Then when the US move the date forward Reynolds calls it a "propaganda coup".
And the hurried nature of the move is an indication by itself that not all is well in the state of Iraq.
If it was, the moment would be one for celebration not for secrecy.
Brilliant deduction Watson, er Reynolds. I'm sure pretty much the whole world knows that all is not well in Iraq. But things get better every day. You wouldn't know that from the BBC though.
As far as having the handover in secrecy, there is another reason that escapes Reynold's sharp "analysis". The US wanted today to be Iraq's day not the coalition's and they want to avoid the impression that the new government is a puppet of the US. The picture the US wants the world to remember is Bremer getting on a plane and flying out of Iraq.
And for celebrating, the method used in that part of the world usually includes large groups of men firing automatic weapons in the air. I would imagine the government thought this would be an unwise move at this point in time.
Some bright spark must have realized that the conjunction of the Nato summit in Turkey with the original handover date of 30 June would give the United States and Britain the chance of controlling the news agenda for a change.
A snide remark? Do I detect jealousy, Reynolds old boy? Lost control of the old news agenda have we? You're sure trying to make up for it here though.
The handover is now dominating the summit, diverting attention from the undercurrents of divisions which marked the G8 meeting three weeks ago and which were threatening this gathering, whatever the show of public unity.
Really, Reynolds? Looks like your "analysis" failed to turn up the fact that NATO agreed to provide training to the new Iraqi forces, send up to 10,000 additional troops to Afghanistan, "Istanbul Declaration" that renews their commitment to collective defense and to work together..., and ended with this statement:
"And it reflects the reality of transatlantic cooperation in NATO today: America and Europe united in a strong alliance " committed to defend and to promote our common values and shared interests in the Euro-Atlantic area and beyond," he said.
Told you Reynolds couldn't analyze a packet of crisps. His fumbling and stumbling continues.
It has also enabled President George Bush and UK Prime Minister Tony Blair to present the argument to their closest allies they have always relied on when other justifications for the war have faltered - that one day Iraqis would govern themselves. Here therefore, they can say, is evidence of this.
Name one Reynolds. Name one justification Bush set out in his UN speech that has faltered.
Weapons of mass destruction found here and more confirmed found by UN inspectors here.
Saddam's oppression of his own people, failure to repatriate Kuwaiti prisoners, ties to terrorism and blatant disregard for 18 UN resolutions, are a matter of record. Not to mention the unfolding UN oil-for-food scandal.
So, come on Reynolds; put up or shut up.
Just when you think Reynolds can't do any worse, he steps up and proves us wrong.
To start with, this is only an interim, appointed government with limited powers. Elections are not due until January and even then there will only be a "transitional" government which will have to write a constitution before full elections are held by the end of next year.
Let's see - interim government, followed by elections, then a transitional government and then full elections. Sounds good. What is wrong with that Reynolds? You have to start somewhere. Or are you advocating that the US should have written the constitution for them and held elections immediately?
So democratic legitimacy is some way off and that makes it hard for this government to rally support from the people.
Reynolds is obviously one of those BBC reporters that sit around the pool and drink G and T all day. How else can one explain his complete lack of information and news?
Organization of the Islamic Conference backs new Iraqi government
The world's largest Islamic group threw its support behind Iraq's interim government
The Islamic world, the UN, and even the Iraqis themselves consider the interim government legitimate. But somehow the BBC and Reynolds feel they know what is best for the Iraqis.
Here is what the Iraqis themselves said about the interim government in a recent poll.
Some key numbers.
68 percent of Iraqis have confidence in their new leaders
73 percent of Iraqis polled approved of Allawi to lead the new government
84 percent approved of President Ghazi Yawar
two-thirds backed the new Cabinet
Four out of every five Iraqis expected that the new government will "make things better" for Iraq
Reynolds goes on to moan about the security in Iraq and the interim governments ability to deal with it.
Secondly, with more than 100 civilians being killed each week, the power of the government to impose its will on the streets is very limited.
While security is a concern, the hand over changes the dynamics of the insurgency in Iraq. Even Iraq's religious leaders have turned on the insurgents and something unheard of in the Islamic world, Sistani through his spokesperson said the following:
"Zarqawi, Zawahiri and bin Laden are filthy infidels who nurture malignance against Imam Ali and his sons," he said.
Powerful words against bin Laden himself!
Even firebrand cleric Sadr's milita, having been defeated by coalitionn forces, have laid down their arms.
Seems to me the interim government having been given legitimacy by everyone in the world except the BBC and now being backed by Iraqi clerics, is gaining in imposing its' "will on the streets". Somehow all this escapes our intrepid analyst, Reynolds.
Government, security, what will Watson, er, Reynolds "analyze now"? Iraq reconstruction, economy and jobs.
This can be seen from the failure to improve the electricity supply. Coalition figures show it was running on a daily average during May of 4144 megawatts, well below the 6000 megawatts planned by the handover date.
Curiously, this "so called analyst", fails to mention that
the country as a whole is producing as much power as before the war and by spring it will be up by 25%. In fact Basra has a power surplus!
So even though the coalition may have (knowing Reynolds as I do, I'm not taking his word for it) missed it's target, the power is back to prewar levels and improving daily.
What about jobs Reynolds?
Sabotage and the threat to foreign workers are obviously factors. Until these issues can be addressed, the rebuilding of Iraq - heralded as one of the main effects of the American occupation with $18bn voted by Congress for infrastructure - will not provide enough good news to counter the bad. Nor will it provide enough jobs.
Well, for starters you will never, ever hear any good news out of Iraq from the BBC. While there is good news all over the place, the BBC in pushing its' anti-American agenda will not tell anyone about it.
If you follow the link to Chrenkoff's blog, be sure to check out the links on the right to his Iraqi good news series. There are four so far and each is a long and detailed review of all the good news in Iraq that mainstream media will not report.
Some notes on the Economy from The Economist.
For many Iraqis, living standards have already risen a lot. Boosted by government make-work programmes, day labourers are getting double their pre-war wages. A university dean's pay has gone up fourfold, a policeman's by a factor of ten.
Before the war, Kifah Karim, a teacher at a Baghdad primary school, took home monthly pay equivalent to just $6. Her husband earned $13 as a factory overseer. Today, with a combined income of close to $450...They buy 2-3 kilos of meat a week, and have recently purchased a new fridge, a television, a TV satellite dish, a VCR and a CD player.
Stacks of such goods now crowd the pavements of Baghdad's main shopping streets.
See how easy it is Reynolds if you just put down that G&T, get off your ass, and at least try your hand at analysis.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
While the world celebrates Iraq's new found freedom from 35 years of a brutal dictator, the BBC just can't stand the coalition's success.
Paul Reynolds in another one of his "so called" analysis (trust me this guy couldn't analyze a packet of crisps) pours cold water over the most important day in Iraq's history.
The unexpected early handover in Iraq has provided the new interim Iraqi government and the departing Coalition with a rare propaganda coup - but the advantage is likely to be short-lived as Iraq's problems press in.
As if that were all there is to it. The BBC have been at the forefront calling for the coalition to hand over power and critisizing Bush for the delay. Then when the US move the date forward Reynolds calls it a "propaganda coup".
And the hurried nature of the move is an indication by itself that not all is well in the state of Iraq.
If it was, the moment would be one for celebration not for secrecy.
Brilliant deduction Watson, er Reynolds. I'm sure pretty much the whole world knows that all is not well in Iraq. But things get better every day. You wouldn't know that from the BBC though.
As far as having the handover in secrecy, there is another reason that escapes Reynold's sharp "analysis". The US wanted today to be Iraq's day not the coalition's and they want to avoid the impression that the new government is a puppet of the US. The picture the US wants the world to remember is Bremer getting on a plane and flying out of Iraq.
And for celebrating, the method used in that part of the world usually includes large groups of men firing automatic weapons in the air. I would imagine the government thought this would be an unwise move at this point in time.
Some bright spark must have realized that the conjunction of the Nato summit in Turkey with the original handover date of 30 June would give the United States and Britain the chance of controlling the news agenda for a change.
A snide remark? Do I detect jealousy, Reynolds old boy? Lost control of the old news agenda have we? You're sure trying to make up for it here though.
The handover is now dominating the summit, diverting attention from the undercurrents of divisions which marked the G8 meeting three weeks ago and which were threatening this gathering, whatever the show of public unity.
Really, Reynolds? Looks like your "analysis" failed to turn up the fact that NATO agreed to provide training to the new Iraqi forces, send up to 10,000 additional troops to Afghanistan, "Istanbul Declaration" that renews their commitment to collective defense and to work together..., and ended with this statement:
"And it reflects the reality of transatlantic cooperation in NATO today: America and Europe united in a strong alliance " committed to defend and to promote our common values and shared interests in the Euro-Atlantic area and beyond," he said.
Told you Reynolds couldn't analyze a packet of crisps. His fumbling and stumbling continues.
It has also enabled President George Bush and UK Prime Minister Tony Blair to present the argument to their closest allies they have always relied on when other justifications for the war have faltered - that one day Iraqis would govern themselves. Here therefore, they can say, is evidence of this.
Name one Reynolds. Name one justification Bush set out in his UN speech that has faltered.
Weapons of mass destruction found here and more confirmed found by UN inspectors here.
Saddam's oppression of his own people, failure to repatriate Kuwaiti prisoners, ties to terrorism and blatant disregard for 18 UN resolutions, are a matter of record. Not to mention the unfolding UN oil-for-food scandal.
So, come on Reynolds; put up or shut up.
Just when you think Reynolds can't do any worse, he steps up and proves us wrong.
To start with, this is only an interim, appointed government with limited powers. Elections are not due until January and even then there will only be a "transitional" government which will have to write a constitution before full elections are held by the end of next year.
Let's see - interim government, followed by elections, then a transitional government and then full elections. Sounds good. What is wrong with that Reynolds? You have to start somewhere. Or are you advocating that the US should have written the constitution for them and held elections immediately?
So democratic legitimacy is some way off and that makes it hard for this government to rally support from the people.
Reynolds is obviously one of those BBC reporters that sit around the pool and drink G and T all day. How else can one explain his complete lack of information and news?
Organization of the Islamic Conference backs new Iraqi government
The world's largest Islamic group threw its support behind Iraq's interim government
The Islamic world, the UN, and even the Iraqis themselves consider the interim government legitimate. But somehow the BBC and Reynolds feel they know what is best for the Iraqis.
Here is what the Iraqis themselves said about the interim government in a recent poll.
Some key numbers.
68 percent of Iraqis have confidence in their new leaders
73 percent of Iraqis polled approved of Allawi to lead the new government
84 percent approved of President Ghazi Yawar
two-thirds backed the new Cabinet
Four out of every five Iraqis expected that the new government will "make things better" for Iraq
Reynolds goes on to moan about the security in Iraq and the interim governments ability to deal with it.
Secondly, with more than 100 civilians being killed each week, the power of the government to impose its will on the streets is very limited.
While security is a concern, the hand over changes the dynamics of the insurgency in Iraq. Even Iraq's religious leaders have turned on the insurgents and something unheard of in the Islamic world, Sistani through his spokesperson said the following:
"Zarqawi, Zawahiri and bin Laden are filthy infidels who nurture malignance against Imam Ali and his sons," he said.
Powerful words against bin Laden himself!
Even firebrand cleric Sadr's milita, having been defeated by coalitionn forces, have laid down their arms.
Seems to me the interim government having been given legitimacy by everyone in the world except the BBC and now being backed by Iraqi clerics, is gaining in imposing its' "will on the streets". Somehow all this escapes our intrepid analyst, Reynolds.
Government, security, what will Watson, er, Reynolds "analyze now"? Iraq reconstruction, economy and jobs.
This can be seen from the failure to improve the electricity supply. Coalition figures show it was running on a daily average during May of 4144 megawatts, well below the 6000 megawatts planned by the handover date.
Curiously, this "so called analyst", fails to mention that
the country as a whole is producing as much power as before the war and by spring it will be up by 25%. In fact Basra has a power surplus!
So even though the coalition may have (knowing Reynolds as I do, I'm not taking his word for it) missed it's target, the power is back to prewar levels and improving daily.
What about jobs Reynolds?
Sabotage and the threat to foreign workers are obviously factors. Until these issues can be addressed, the rebuilding of Iraq - heralded as one of the main effects of the American occupation with $18bn voted by Congress for infrastructure - will not provide enough good news to counter the bad. Nor will it provide enough jobs.
Well, for starters you will never, ever hear any good news out of Iraq from the BBC. While there is good news all over the place, the BBC in pushing its' anti-American agenda will not tell anyone about it.
If you follow the link to Chrenkoff's blog, be sure to check out the links on the right to his Iraqi good news series. There are four so far and each is a long and detailed review of all the good news in Iraq that mainstream media will not report.
Some notes on the Economy from The Economist.
For many Iraqis, living standards have already risen a lot. Boosted by government make-work programmes, day labourers are getting double their pre-war wages. A university dean's pay has gone up fourfold, a policeman's by a factor of ten.
Before the war, Kifah Karim, a teacher at a Baghdad primary school, took home monthly pay equivalent to just $6. Her husband earned $13 as a factory overseer. Today, with a combined income of close to $450...They buy 2-3 kilos of meat a week, and have recently purchased a new fridge, a television, a TV satellite dish, a VCR and a CD player.
Stacks of such goods now crowd the pavements of Baghdad's main shopping streets.
See how easy it is Reynolds if you just put down that G&T, get off your ass, and at least try your hand at analysis.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
US hands over sovereignty in Iraq
From The BBC
The US has formally handed over power in Iraq, two days ahead of schedule.
At a low-key ceremony in Baghdad, US administrator Paul Bremer transferred sovereignty to an Iraqi judge, before leaving the country by plane.
In one of the most historic days in Iraq's history, the BBC can't post an aricle simply rejoycing with the Iraq's in their new found freedom without putting a shot accross America's bow. And who do they roll out to provide the parting shot? Gas bag and washed up "so called" journalist John Simpson.
The BBC's world affairs editor John Simpson in Baghdad says bringing the handover forward was a clever tactical move that wrong-footed the Iraqi resistance.
However, he says it actually underlines the US-led coalition's big failure - its inability to stop the violence.
What a wind bag. The BBC should be ashamed to print crap.
The coalition's big failure, eh? The coalition destroyed the much vaunted Special Republican guard in just a few weeks with few casulties. They removed Saddam and freed the Iraqi people. Iraq now has a sovereign government for the first time in decades and are on the road to democracy. All this in spite of anti-American news outlets like the BBC.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From The BBC
The US has formally handed over power in Iraq, two days ahead of schedule.
At a low-key ceremony in Baghdad, US administrator Paul Bremer transferred sovereignty to an Iraqi judge, before leaving the country by plane.
In one of the most historic days in Iraq's history, the BBC can't post an aricle simply rejoycing with the Iraq's in their new found freedom without putting a shot accross America's bow. And who do they roll out to provide the parting shot? Gas bag and washed up "so called" journalist John Simpson.
The BBC's world affairs editor John Simpson in Baghdad says bringing the handover forward was a clever tactical move that wrong-footed the Iraqi resistance.
However, he says it actually underlines the US-led coalition's big failure - its inability to stop the violence.
What a wind bag. The BBC should be ashamed to print crap.
The coalition's big failure, eh? The coalition destroyed the much vaunted Special Republican guard in just a few weeks with few casulties. They removed Saddam and freed the Iraqi people. Iraq now has a sovereign government for the first time in decades and are on the road to democracy. All this in spite of anti-American news outlets like the BBC.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Grand Ayatollah Sistani publicly denounces bin Laden
From The Australian
"Zarqawi, Zawahiri and bin Laden are filthy infidels who nurture malignance against Imam Ali and his sons," he said.
That's the first time I have heard of any public Muslim figure condemn bin Laden by name. In fact, it is the first time I have ever heard any Muslim condemn bin Laden by name.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From The Australian
"Zarqawi, Zawahiri and bin Laden are filthy infidels who nurture malignance against Imam Ali and his sons," he said.
That's the first time I have heard of any public Muslim figure condemn bin Laden by name. In fact, it is the first time I have ever heard any Muslim condemn bin Laden by name.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Niger, uranium, Bush and The State of the Union speech
Remember Bush's State of the Union speech wherein Niger was accused of supplying "yellow cake" unranium to, amoung others, Iraq? After some letters were forged and supplied to the IAEA the whole idea was thrown out. Except the British sood by their intelligence.
Now, from Belgravia Dispatch reporting on an article in the Financial Times. via Cori Dauber
To be sure, as the FT article reminds us, some documents that detailed alleged uranium transfers as between Niger and Iraq have indeed proved fraudulent.
So why then, now many months out, is British intelligence still sticking by the story, despite the embarrassing forgeries?
Here's why:
However, European intelligence officers have now revealed that three years before the fake documents became public, human and electronic intelligence sources from a number of countries picked up repeated discussion of an illicit trade in uranium from Niger. One of the customers discussed by the traders was Iraq.
These intelligence officials now say the forged documents appear to have been part of a "scam", and the actual intelligence showing discussion of uranium supply has been ignored.
There's more, lots more.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Remember Bush's State of the Union speech wherein Niger was accused of supplying "yellow cake" unranium to, amoung others, Iraq? After some letters were forged and supplied to the IAEA the whole idea was thrown out. Except the British sood by their intelligence.
Now, from Belgravia Dispatch reporting on an article in the Financial Times. via Cori Dauber
To be sure, as the FT article reminds us, some documents that detailed alleged uranium transfers as between Niger and Iraq have indeed proved fraudulent.
So why then, now many months out, is British intelligence still sticking by the story, despite the embarrassing forgeries?
Here's why:
However, European intelligence officers have now revealed that three years before the fake documents became public, human and electronic intelligence sources from a number of countries picked up repeated discussion of an illicit trade in uranium from Niger. One of the customers discussed by the traders was Iraq.
These intelligence officials now say the forged documents appear to have been part of a "scam", and the actual intelligence showing discussion of uranium supply has been ignored.
There's more, lots more.
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Sunday, June 27, 2004
Muslim dispels myths - creates new ones
Jeff Siddiqui is on a mission to show the public what Islam is truly about.
And I'm on a mission to show the public what Jeff Siddiqui is truly about.
From Herald Net
EVERETT - When Snohomish County Councilman Dave Gossett was looking for a Muslim to give the invocation at the July 7 County Council meeting, an interfaith group directed him to Jeff Siddiqui.
Since Sept. 11, 2001, Siddiqui has made a mission of countering negative stereotypes about Islam. The Lynnwood real estate agent has spoken before skeptical Veterans of Foreign Wars members in Edmonds, addressed Jewish students in Everett and talked to teachers in Snohomish.
Wonder who the interfaith group was? Would have been nice if this reporter had done the basics of reporting.
However, let's see who Jeff Siddiqui is.
Muslims try to bar terror expert
SEATTLE – Who is the enemy in the war on terrorism? Seattle-area Muslims fought hard to block the appearance this week of a leading terror expert whose answer to that question, some believe, strikes too close to home.
Former Harvard professor Daniel Pipes, who has been in high demand by the mainstream media since Sept. 11, says he experienced unprecedented opposition prior to his lecture at the University of Washington Wednesday night.
Calling Pipes a "rabid Muslim/Arab-hater," Jeff Siddiqui of the American Muslims of Puget Sound distributed a letter expressing "profound shock" that Pipes had been invited and urging organizers to cancel the event, sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle and the university's school of international studies.
Pipes, who speaks Arabic, has a Ph.D. in history from Harvard and served in the U.S. Departments of State and Defense. The author of 10 books, he was director of the Foreign Policy Research Institute and currently heads a Philadelphia-based think tank, the Middle East Forum.
"Indeed, it is not unlike having a Nazi speak about the security of the U.S.A., or a KKK member speak about crime," Siddiqui wrote to event organizer Edward Alexander, an English professor at the university.
Pipes has been an outspoken critic of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which bills itself as a Muslim civil rights group but actually has a long history of terrorsit involvement. What is interesting is that Siddiqui never questions Pipe's facts, he just calls him names.
University of Washington defends its' actions.
What else do we know about Mr. Siddiqui?
Western Associates Real Estate
Jeff Siddiqui, Associate Broker
Seattle, WA 98103
Pager: (206) 994-7398
So, Mr. Siddiqui is a real estate broker. Nothing wrong with that. I'm not saying there is a connection but I find this interesting.
From Jihad Watch
The terrorist organization Hamas invested millions of dollars during the past decade in real-estate projects nationwide, including in suburban Maryland, as part of a scheme to raise cash to fund acts of terrorism, records show.
What about Mr. Siddiqui's political views?
Not In Our Name: Seattle Area Endorsers of the Statement of Conscience
Jeff Siddiqui, American Muslims of Puget Sound
And what does this "Statement of Cosicience" say that Mr. Siddiqui signed?
Among other things,
We believe that people of conscience must take responsibility for what their own governments do — we must first of all oppose the injustice that is done in our own name. Thus we call on all Americans to RESIST the war and repression that has been loosed on the world by the Bush administration. It is unjust, immoral, and illegitimate. We choose to make common cause with the people of the world.
And who else has signed this statement?
Project and has been signed by an extraordinary list of public intellectuals and artists including (just to mention a few) Mos Def, John Edgar Wideman, Barbara Kingsolver, Ossie Davis, Noam Chomsky, Eve Ensler, Tony Kushner, Edward Said, Gloria Steinem, Alice Walker and Howard Zinn.
Siddiqui is a prolific speaker and writer, just do a Google search. Here is one example.
Seattle PI
In this article, Siddiqui, defends, among others, Jose Padilla.
It turns out the "dirty bomb" plan was not so bad after all because it was infeasible, the REAL plan was to blow up apartment buildings!
Yeah, like that would terrorize a lot of people. And if the plan was infeasible, why attempt it? We are after all talking about Al Qaeda, the organization that was able to train terrorist to fly commercial airliners and convice them to fly them into multiple independant targets simultaneously. Not a dumb organization.
So, ask yourself, what is Jeff Siddiqui's real mission?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jeff Siddiqui is on a mission to show the public what Islam is truly about.
And I'm on a mission to show the public what Jeff Siddiqui is truly about.
From Herald Net
EVERETT - When Snohomish County Councilman Dave Gossett was looking for a Muslim to give the invocation at the July 7 County Council meeting, an interfaith group directed him to Jeff Siddiqui.
Since Sept. 11, 2001, Siddiqui has made a mission of countering negative stereotypes about Islam. The Lynnwood real estate agent has spoken before skeptical Veterans of Foreign Wars members in Edmonds, addressed Jewish students in Everett and talked to teachers in Snohomish.
Wonder who the interfaith group was? Would have been nice if this reporter had done the basics of reporting.
However, let's see who Jeff Siddiqui is.
Muslims try to bar terror expert
SEATTLE – Who is the enemy in the war on terrorism? Seattle-area Muslims fought hard to block the appearance this week of a leading terror expert whose answer to that question, some believe, strikes too close to home.
Former Harvard professor Daniel Pipes, who has been in high demand by the mainstream media since Sept. 11, says he experienced unprecedented opposition prior to his lecture at the University of Washington Wednesday night.
Calling Pipes a "rabid Muslim/Arab-hater," Jeff Siddiqui of the American Muslims of Puget Sound distributed a letter expressing "profound shock" that Pipes had been invited and urging organizers to cancel the event, sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle and the university's school of international studies.
Pipes, who speaks Arabic, has a Ph.D. in history from Harvard and served in the U.S. Departments of State and Defense. The author of 10 books, he was director of the Foreign Policy Research Institute and currently heads a Philadelphia-based think tank, the Middle East Forum.
"Indeed, it is not unlike having a Nazi speak about the security of the U.S.A., or a KKK member speak about crime," Siddiqui wrote to event organizer Edward Alexander, an English professor at the university.
Pipes has been an outspoken critic of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which bills itself as a Muslim civil rights group but actually has a long history of terrorsit involvement. What is interesting is that Siddiqui never questions Pipe's facts, he just calls him names.
University of Washington defends its' actions.
What else do we know about Mr. Siddiqui?
Western Associates Real Estate
Jeff Siddiqui, Associate Broker
Seattle, WA 98103
Pager: (206) 994-7398
So, Mr. Siddiqui is a real estate broker. Nothing wrong with that. I'm not saying there is a connection but I find this interesting.
From Jihad Watch
The terrorist organization Hamas invested millions of dollars during the past decade in real-estate projects nationwide, including in suburban Maryland, as part of a scheme to raise cash to fund acts of terrorism, records show.
What about Mr. Siddiqui's political views?
Not In Our Name: Seattle Area Endorsers of the Statement of Conscience
Jeff Siddiqui, American Muslims of Puget Sound
And what does this "Statement of Cosicience" say that Mr. Siddiqui signed?
Among other things,
We believe that people of conscience must take responsibility for what their own governments do — we must first of all oppose the injustice that is done in our own name. Thus we call on all Americans to RESIST the war and repression that has been loosed on the world by the Bush administration. It is unjust, immoral, and illegitimate. We choose to make common cause with the people of the world.
And who else has signed this statement?
Project and has been signed by an extraordinary list of public intellectuals and artists including (just to mention a few) Mos Def, John Edgar Wideman, Barbara Kingsolver, Ossie Davis, Noam Chomsky, Eve Ensler, Tony Kushner, Edward Said, Gloria Steinem, Alice Walker and Howard Zinn.
Siddiqui is a prolific speaker and writer, just do a Google search. Here is one example.
Seattle PI
In this article, Siddiqui, defends, among others, Jose Padilla.
It turns out the "dirty bomb" plan was not so bad after all because it was infeasible, the REAL plan was to blow up apartment buildings!
Yeah, like that would terrorize a lot of people. And if the plan was infeasible, why attempt it? We are after all talking about Al Qaeda, the organization that was able to train terrorist to fly commercial airliners and convice them to fly them into multiple independant targets simultaneously. Not a dumb organization.
So, ask yourself, what is Jeff Siddiqui's real mission?
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Andrew Sullivan, me and BBC bias
Well, not really. Tigerhawk was kind enough to mention me in the same sentence as Andrew. Flattery will get you everywhere.
Tigerhawk is on vacation in Europe and is experiencing first hand the anti-American media, especially the BBC.
Recognizing that the center-right caucus of the blogosphere has been
deconstructing the BBC's left-wing bias for years (see Andrew Sullivan and
USS Neverdock, for example, links to the right), I have never made it
TigerHawk's business to mimic what others do so well. Also, I am not a big BBC viewer, except when I am travelling abroad on business and have a few
minutes to kill in my hotel room. However, I caught a short glimpse of the
BBC from our Rome apartment the other day, and the perspective was quite
astonishing, at least for somebody used to a diet of MSNC. In less than 30
minutes I saw three examples of expressed or implied anti-American or
anti-Isreali coverage, each of which could have been dealt with quite
differently if the BBC's editors were not trying to push an agenda.
Notice how Tigerhawk points out that there were three instances of anti-American bias in less than thirty minutes. Now imagine that the biased reporting goes on 24/7 and you can begin to understand why there is so much anti-Americanism in Europe.
Something America, especially the American govenment, need to wake up to.
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Well, not really. Tigerhawk was kind enough to mention me in the same sentence as Andrew. Flattery will get you everywhere.
Tigerhawk is on vacation in Europe and is experiencing first hand the anti-American media, especially the BBC.
Recognizing that the center-right caucus of the blogosphere has been
deconstructing the BBC's left-wing bias for years (see Andrew Sullivan and
USS Neverdock, for example, links to the right), I have never made it
TigerHawk's business to mimic what others do so well. Also, I am not a big BBC viewer, except when I am travelling abroad on business and have a few
minutes to kill in my hotel room. However, I caught a short glimpse of the
BBC from our Rome apartment the other day, and the perspective was quite
astonishing, at least for somebody used to a diet of MSNC. In less than 30
minutes I saw three examples of expressed or implied anti-American or
anti-Isreali coverage, each of which could have been dealt with quite
differently if the BBC's editors were not trying to push an agenda.
Notice how Tigerhawk points out that there were three instances of anti-American bias in less than thirty minutes. Now imagine that the biased reporting goes on 24/7 and you can begin to understand why there is so much anti-Americanism in Europe.
Something America, especially the American govenment, need to wake up to.
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Death of the anti-war movement
Recent anti-war movement protests have managed to attract very little support. Most attract a few hundred and at best maybe a thousand.
But who is marching? Who are these few hundred or so people; common folk who really are against the war or organized enemies of America?
Let's look at an anti-war rally, held yesterday in Boston. Boston is appropriate due to a famous tea party held there.
BOSTON -- Hundreds of protesters rallied yesterday on a city plaza to call for an end to the U.S. military presence in Iraq.
"We are here to say that it is time now to bring the troops home to their families where they belong. It is time to care for the thousands and thousands of broken bodies, minds and hearts created by this war," Paul Shannon, an activist with the American Friends Service Committee, told the crowd on Copley Plaza.
Police estimated a crowd of about 400 to 500.
OK. So who are the American Friends Service Committee?
The American Friends Service Committee is and has always been committed to undermining Western democracy, propping up Communist regimes and working for the total disarmament of the United States in the face of her enemies. From Front Page
Hmmmm. No common folk here. Let's try the rally's organizers.
Similar protests were scheduled for the weekend in cities around the nation, including San Francisco, St. Louis and New York, said Jennifer Horan, a spokeswoman for United for Justice With Peace, the coalition of groups that organized the rally.
With that kind of name surely these are some common folk.
Given the manner in which the major media report the contemporary "peace" movement's activities, the average American would never suspect that it is in fact a movement dominated the selfsame Communists that once marched in support of Stalin, Mao, the Vietcong, the Sandinista Marxists, and the Communist guerrillas in El Salvador; the same America-loathing radicals who, because they passionately deem America the root of all evil in the world, now support Kim and Castro. From Front Page
Wow! Certainly no common folk here either. This is not looking good for the anti-war movement.
Horan, acknowledging the turnout in Boston was disappointing, said, "My feeling is right now a lot of people are demoralized because trying to bring the troops home is like trying to move a mountain."
That mountain being the mountain of public opinion of the common folk who, based on the "disappointing" turnout, do not support the anti-war movement.
Horan goes on to contradict herself.
But, she said, "We are here and we're not going away and more and more the American public is coming to support the idea that the troops should be brought home."
Well if "more and more" of the American public support the idea, how come the turnout for your rally was a miserable few hundred? And if you have so much support, why is stopping the war "like trying to move a mountain"?
I think one of the reasons for the decline of the anti-war movement is the internet. With the aid of the internet you truly "cannot fool all the people all the time". It is all too easy now to look up who these people really are, who they support and their actions in the past. Not only does the internet give you access to vast amounts of information; the internet has a very long memory.
If only we had had the internet during Vietnam, I have no doubt the outcome would have been far different.
UPDATE: Perhaps the Boston anti-war types should pay more attention to what is happening in their own backyard.
FBI Investigating Terror Suspect in Boston
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Recent anti-war movement protests have managed to attract very little support. Most attract a few hundred and at best maybe a thousand.
But who is marching? Who are these few hundred or so people; common folk who really are against the war or organized enemies of America?
Let's look at an anti-war rally, held yesterday in Boston. Boston is appropriate due to a famous tea party held there.
BOSTON -- Hundreds of protesters rallied yesterday on a city plaza to call for an end to the U.S. military presence in Iraq.
"We are here to say that it is time now to bring the troops home to their families where they belong. It is time to care for the thousands and thousands of broken bodies, minds and hearts created by this war," Paul Shannon, an activist with the American Friends Service Committee, told the crowd on Copley Plaza.
Police estimated a crowd of about 400 to 500.
OK. So who are the American Friends Service Committee?
The American Friends Service Committee is and has always been committed to undermining Western democracy, propping up Communist regimes and working for the total disarmament of the United States in the face of her enemies. From Front Page
Hmmmm. No common folk here. Let's try the rally's organizers.
Similar protests were scheduled for the weekend in cities around the nation, including San Francisco, St. Louis and New York, said Jennifer Horan, a spokeswoman for United for Justice With Peace, the coalition of groups that organized the rally.
With that kind of name surely these are some common folk.
Given the manner in which the major media report the contemporary "peace" movement's activities, the average American would never suspect that it is in fact a movement dominated the selfsame Communists that once marched in support of Stalin, Mao, the Vietcong, the Sandinista Marxists, and the Communist guerrillas in El Salvador; the same America-loathing radicals who, because they passionately deem America the root of all evil in the world, now support Kim and Castro. From Front Page
Wow! Certainly no common folk here either. This is not looking good for the anti-war movement.
Horan, acknowledging the turnout in Boston was disappointing, said, "My feeling is right now a lot of people are demoralized because trying to bring the troops home is like trying to move a mountain."
That mountain being the mountain of public opinion of the common folk who, based on the "disappointing" turnout, do not support the anti-war movement.
Horan goes on to contradict herself.
But, she said, "We are here and we're not going away and more and more the American public is coming to support the idea that the troops should be brought home."
Well if "more and more" of the American public support the idea, how come the turnout for your rally was a miserable few hundred? And if you have so much support, why is stopping the war "like trying to move a mountain"?
I think one of the reasons for the decline of the anti-war movement is the internet. With the aid of the internet you truly "cannot fool all the people all the time". It is all too easy now to look up who these people really are, who they support and their actions in the past. Not only does the internet give you access to vast amounts of information; the internet has a very long memory.
If only we had had the internet during Vietnam, I have no doubt the outcome would have been far different.
UPDATE: Perhaps the Boston anti-war types should pay more attention to what is happening in their own backyard.
FBI Investigating Terror Suspect in Boston
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Iran 'covered up nuclear spill'
From
The Telegraph
This does not look good.
Western intelligence officials are examining reports that Iran's Revolutionary Guards attempted to cover up a nuclear accident that occurred during the delivery of a secret shipment of weapons-grade uranium from North Korea.
How long before Iran announces that it too has the bomb?
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From
The Telegraph
This does not look good.
Western intelligence officials are examining reports that Iran's Revolutionary Guards attempted to cover up a nuclear accident that occurred during the delivery of a secret shipment of weapons-grade uranium from North Korea.
How long before Iran announces that it too has the bomb?
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Beheadings fuel fresh backlash against Muslims
From CNN
"It's really our fear coming true," said Faiza Ali of the New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations [CAIR]. "It indicates a hatred that could turn into something violent."
Well, Mr. Ali, violence and terrorism is what your, "so called" civil rights group, CAIR is all about. Here are four links exposing your groups terrorists links. CAIR terror links here
Mr. Ali, do Muslims denounce bin Laden, Al Qaeda and these beheadings?
The day after Johnson's death, a coalition of Muslim groups held a rally to condemn the killing in Paterson, the heart of New Jersey's Arab-American community.
As I understand it, the city has one of the Garden State's highest concentrations of Muslims. So, this must have been some rally.
About two-dozen people attended the gathering on Main Street. The city has one of the Garden State's highest concentrations of Muslims. Source
Two dozen people (maybe they weren't all Muslims) to speak for the largest Muslim community in New Jersey and denounce the barbaric beheading of an American in the name of Islam. That should tell you all you need to know about this "so called" religion of peace. America better wake up soon to who these people really are.
Seems to me CAIR and New Jersey Muslims support these beheadings.
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From CNN
"It's really our fear coming true," said Faiza Ali of the New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations [CAIR]. "It indicates a hatred that could turn into something violent."
Well, Mr. Ali, violence and terrorism is what your, "so called" civil rights group, CAIR is all about. Here are four links exposing your groups terrorists links. CAIR terror links here
Mr. Ali, do Muslims denounce bin Laden, Al Qaeda and these beheadings?
The day after Johnson's death, a coalition of Muslim groups held a rally to condemn the killing in Paterson, the heart of New Jersey's Arab-American community.
As I understand it, the city has one of the Garden State's highest concentrations of Muslims. So, this must have been some rally.
About two-dozen people attended the gathering on Main Street. The city has one of the Garden State's highest concentrations of Muslims. Source
Two dozen people (maybe they weren't all Muslims) to speak for the largest Muslim community in New Jersey and denounce the barbaric beheading of an American in the name of Islam. That should tell you all you need to know about this "so called" religion of peace. America better wake up soon to who these people really are.
Seems to me CAIR and New Jersey Muslims support these beheadings.
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Saturday, June 26, 2004
US air raid kills '25 terrorists'
From The Telegraph
Is it me or is there something important about these number of terrorists being killed? This is the third strike in the last few days in which the number of terrorists killed has been in the twenties. Is there some tactical reason for there being a group of terrorists in this number?
American forces stepped up their offensive against the "terrorist network" of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, killing up to 25 people in an air strike on a house in Fallujah where militants were thought to be hiding.
Why did they go from being terrorists to being militants?
The American raid was the third on houses in Fallujah, west of Baghdad, this week. The strikes have claimed a total of at least 60 lives. Zarqawi admitted responsibility for a series of attacks in the "Sunni triangle" insurgent strongholds of Mosul, Baqubah, Fallujah and Ramadi on Thursday that left more than 100 Iraqis dead, many of them police officers.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From The Telegraph
Is it me or is there something important about these number of terrorists being killed? This is the third strike in the last few days in which the number of terrorists killed has been in the twenties. Is there some tactical reason for there being a group of terrorists in this number?
American forces stepped up their offensive against the "terrorist network" of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, killing up to 25 people in an air strike on a house in Fallujah where militants were thought to be hiding.
Why did they go from being terrorists to being militants?
The American raid was the third on houses in Fallujah, west of Baghdad, this week. The strikes have claimed a total of at least 60 lives. Zarqawi admitted responsibility for a series of attacks in the "Sunni triangle" insurgent strongholds of Mosul, Baqubah, Fallujah and Ramadi on Thursday that left more than 100 Iraqis dead, many of them police officers.
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Anti-war group to take to streets over Iraq handover
Now this is funny.
The Evening Advertiser, a Wiltshire, UK, local paper is reporting on an upcoming anti-war protest next Wednesday.
The protesters claim that, ""It is a stunt for the American presidential elections.
And
"The American occupation army will stay, and all the key decisions will still be taken by the Amer-icans."
This despite the fact that the Iraqis want and back their new government.
Some key numbers.
68 percent of Iraqis have confidence in their new leaders
73 percent of Iraqis polled approved of Allawi to lead the new government
84 percent approved of President Ghazi Yawar
two-thirds backed the new Cabinet
Four out of every five Iraqis expected that the new government will "make things better" for Iraq
So, the anti-war movement want to protest against an Iraqi government that is backed by a vast majority of the Iraqi people themselves!
First the anti-war movement want to deny Iraqis their freedom and when the US gives them that freedom, the anti-war types don't want them to have the government of their choice. And they say the US is meddling in the internal affairs of Iraq!
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Now this is funny.
The Evening Advertiser, a Wiltshire, UK, local paper is reporting on an upcoming anti-war protest next Wednesday.
The protesters claim that, ""It is a stunt for the American presidential elections.
And
"The American occupation army will stay, and all the key decisions will still be taken by the Amer-icans."
This despite the fact that the Iraqis want and back their new government.
Some key numbers.
68 percent of Iraqis have confidence in their new leaders
73 percent of Iraqis polled approved of Allawi to lead the new government
84 percent approved of President Ghazi Yawar
two-thirds backed the new Cabinet
Four out of every five Iraqis expected that the new government will "make things better" for Iraq
So, the anti-war movement want to protest against an Iraqi government that is backed by a vast majority of the Iraqi people themselves!
First the anti-war movement want to deny Iraqis their freedom and when the US gives them that freedom, the anti-war types don't want them to have the government of their choice. And they say the US is meddling in the internal affairs of Iraq!
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Fighting Jihad on the internet
Here is a site that might interest everyone, especially Jihadist the world over.
Haganah is a website dedicated to taking down Jihad websites and chat rooms.
How successful are they?
Tally of Jihad Site Takedowns: 493
Almost 500 Jihad sites taken down! Keep up the good work folks.
The site also contains some great articles.
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Here is a site that might interest everyone, especially Jihadist the world over.
Haganah is a website dedicated to taking down Jihad websites and chat rooms.
How successful are they?
Tally of Jihad Site Takedowns: 493
Almost 500 Jihad sites taken down! Keep up the good work folks.
The site also contains some great articles.
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Iraqis Back New Leaders, Poll Says
The Washington Post is reporting that the Iraqis overwhelming support the new interim government.
Some key numbers.
68 percent of Iraqis have confidence in their new leaders
73 percent of Iraqis polled approved of Allawi to lead the new government
84 percent approved of President Ghazi Yawar
two-thirds backed the new Cabinet
Four out of every five Iraqis expected that the new government will "make things better" for Iraq
In a sign that Iraqis are more optimistic generally about their future after the occupation ends, two-thirds of Iraqis believed the first democratic elections for a new national assembly -- tentatively set for December or January -- will be free and fair, the survey shows.
Despite the growing number of attacks on Iraqi security forces, including several yesterday, public confidence in the new police and army has reached new highs, the poll shows. Seventy percent of Iraqis polled supported the new army, and 82 percent supported the police.
I couldn't find any reporting of this on the BBC website. No surprise there.
I don't know if it will still be there when you visit the site, but there is an advert for John Kerry appearing on the same page. Talk about bad advertisement placing!
I'll post a picture of the web page in case the ad goes away.
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The Washington Post is reporting that the Iraqis overwhelming support the new interim government.
Some key numbers.
68 percent of Iraqis have confidence in their new leaders
73 percent of Iraqis polled approved of Allawi to lead the new government
84 percent approved of President Ghazi Yawar
two-thirds backed the new Cabinet
Four out of every five Iraqis expected that the new government will "make things better" for Iraq
In a sign that Iraqis are more optimistic generally about their future after the occupation ends, two-thirds of Iraqis believed the first democratic elections for a new national assembly -- tentatively set for December or January -- will be free and fair, the survey shows.
Despite the growing number of attacks on Iraqi security forces, including several yesterday, public confidence in the new police and army has reached new highs, the poll shows. Seventy percent of Iraqis polled supported the new army, and 82 percent supported the police.
I couldn't find any reporting of this on the BBC website. No surprise there.
I don't know if it will still be there when you visit the site, but there is an advert for John Kerry appearing on the same page. Talk about bad advertisement placing!
I'll post a picture of the web page in case the ad goes away.
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New York Times admits it knew of Saddam - Al Qaeda ties
From Andrew McCarthy writing in NRO
After printing two articles retracting their claims that there was no connection between Saddam and Al Qaeda, we now get this astonishing admission that, not only did the Times know that there was a connection, they had documentary poof weeks before they printed this:
the New York Times reported, in a screaming page-one headline, that the 9/11 Commission had found "No Qaeda-Iraq Tie."
Andrew McCarthy writes a detailed smack down on the Times. Be sure to read all of it.
Today, in a remarkable story that positively oozes with consciousness of guilt, the Times confesses not only that there is documentary evidence of at least one tie but that the Times has had the document in question for several weeks. That is, the Times was well aware of this information at the very time of last week's reporting, during which, on June 17, it declaimed from its editorial perch that the lack of a connection between Saddam Hussein's regime and Osama bin Laden's terror network meant President Bush owed the nation an apology.
While America might be aware the Times retractions and admissions of guilt, the BBC here in the UK isn't reporting any of it. This despite jumping on the Probe rules out Iraq-9/11 links bandwagon.
It is all part of the BBC's new "core values" training. Bias by omission.
From Andrew McCarthy writing in NRO
After printing two articles retracting their claims that there was no connection between Saddam and Al Qaeda, we now get this astonishing admission that, not only did the Times know that there was a connection, they had documentary poof weeks before they printed this:
the New York Times reported, in a screaming page-one headline, that the 9/11 Commission had found "No Qaeda-Iraq Tie."
Andrew McCarthy writes a detailed smack down on the Times. Be sure to read all of it.
Today, in a remarkable story that positively oozes with consciousness of guilt, the Times confesses not only that there is documentary evidence of at least one tie but that the Times has had the document in question for several weeks. That is, the Times was well aware of this information at the very time of last week's reporting, during which, on June 17, it declaimed from its editorial perch that the lack of a connection between Saddam Hussein's regime and Osama bin Laden's terror network meant President Bush owed the nation an apology.
While America might be aware the Times retractions and admissions of guilt, the BBC here in the UK isn't reporting any of it. This despite jumping on the Probe rules out Iraq-9/11 links bandwagon.
It is all part of the BBC's new "core values" training. Bias by omission.
Friday, June 25, 2004
Incitement to Jihad on Saudi Government-Controlled TV
From MEMRI
In response to my earlier post Saudi Arabia's amnesty sounds familiar
One of my readers posted a comment which stated in part "...that the [Saudi] authorities here are doing everything they can to stamp this [terrorism] out."
Does this sound like the Saudis are the least bit interested in stopping terrorism anywhere except in their own country?
As part of MEMRI's TV Monitoring Project, Saudi government controlled television channels including TV1, TV2 and satellite channels such as Iqraa TV, are continually monitored.(1) These channels include shows with leading Saudi religious figures, professors, members of the royal family, government leaders and intellectuals. Constant themes within Saudi television shows include: calls for the annihilation of Christians and Jews, rampant anti-Americanism and antisemitism, support for Jihad, incitement against U.S. troops in Iraq, and the coming Islamic conquest of the U.S. Segments from these TV shows can be found at www.memriTV.org.
Here are just a few of the topics recently covered on Saudi television.
Saudi Professor: Allah Permits Annihilating Christians and Jews
Former Saudi Embassy Official on 'Big Explosion' Coming
Prominent Saudi Professor: Allah Willing, the U.S. Will Collapse
The Coming Islamic Takeover of the U.S.
Prominent Saudi Professor: America is on It's Way to Destruction
And who does Saudi Crown Prince Abdallah blame for the terrorism in Saudi Arabia?
In reaction to the May 1, 2004 terrorist shooting in the offices of an oil contractor in Yunbu', Saudi Arabia, in which seven people, among them two Americans, were killed, Saudi Crown Prince Abdallah ibn Abd Al-'Aziz stated at a gathering of Saudi dignitaries, including top Muslim clerics and preachers, that "the Zionists" were to blame. The statement was made at a May 2 gathering of the royal family, which aired on Saudi TV 1: "Be assured that the Zionist are behind everything. This is certain. I don't say this with 100% [confidence], but with 95%."
All of which proves the point in my original post that the commenter is objecting to, that the Saudis actually support terrorism; they just don't like it in their country.
And to answer this question from the commenter, "is yor [sic] propoganda message serving any useful purpose."
Yes, exposing Saudi propaganda.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From MEMRI
In response to my earlier post Saudi Arabia's amnesty sounds familiar
One of my readers posted a comment which stated in part "...that the [Saudi] authorities here are doing everything they can to stamp this [terrorism] out."
Does this sound like the Saudis are the least bit interested in stopping terrorism anywhere except in their own country?
As part of MEMRI's TV Monitoring Project, Saudi government controlled television channels including TV1, TV2 and satellite channels such as Iqraa TV, are continually monitored.(1) These channels include shows with leading Saudi religious figures, professors, members of the royal family, government leaders and intellectuals. Constant themes within Saudi television shows include: calls for the annihilation of Christians and Jews, rampant anti-Americanism and antisemitism, support for Jihad, incitement against U.S. troops in Iraq, and the coming Islamic conquest of the U.S. Segments from these TV shows can be found at www.memriTV.org.
Here are just a few of the topics recently covered on Saudi television.
Saudi Professor: Allah Permits Annihilating Christians and Jews
Former Saudi Embassy Official on 'Big Explosion' Coming
Prominent Saudi Professor: Allah Willing, the U.S. Will Collapse
The Coming Islamic Takeover of the U.S.
Prominent Saudi Professor: America is on It's Way to Destruction
And who does Saudi Crown Prince Abdallah blame for the terrorism in Saudi Arabia?
In reaction to the May 1, 2004 terrorist shooting in the offices of an oil contractor in Yunbu', Saudi Arabia, in which seven people, among them two Americans, were killed, Saudi Crown Prince Abdallah ibn Abd Al-'Aziz stated at a gathering of Saudi dignitaries, including top Muslim clerics and preachers, that "the Zionists" were to blame. The statement was made at a May 2 gathering of the royal family, which aired on Saudi TV 1: "Be assured that the Zionist are behind everything. This is certain. I don't say this with 100% [confidence], but with 95%."
All of which proves the point in my original post that the commenter is objecting to, that the Saudis actually support terrorism; they just don't like it in their country.
And to answer this question from the commenter, "is yor [sic] propoganda message serving any useful purpose."
Yes, exposing Saudi propaganda.
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More weapons of mass destruction found in Iraq
From Fox News
In an exclusive interview with FOX News’ Brit Hume, Charles Duelfer (search) — whose ISG is leading the hunt for weapons of mass destruction — said terrorists in Iraq are “trying to tap into the Iraqi WMD intellectual capital.”
“When we have investigated certain labs and contacted certain former experts in the WMD program, we have found that they are being recruited by anti-coalition groups,” Duelfer told FOX News. “They are being paid by anti-coalition groups. We’re seeing interest in developing chemical munitions.”
The same process seems to be happening in Afghanistan, he said.
He also told Fox News that about 10 or 12 sarin and mustard gas shells have been found in various locations in Iraq.
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From Fox News
In an exclusive interview with FOX News’ Brit Hume, Charles Duelfer (search) — whose ISG is leading the hunt for weapons of mass destruction — said terrorists in Iraq are “trying to tap into the Iraqi WMD intellectual capital.”
“When we have investigated certain labs and contacted certain former experts in the WMD program, we have found that they are being recruited by anti-coalition groups,” Duelfer told FOX News. “They are being paid by anti-coalition groups. We’re seeing interest in developing chemical munitions.”
The same process seems to be happening in Afghanistan, he said.
He also told Fox News that about 10 or 12 sarin and mustard gas shells have been found in various locations in Iraq.
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Thursday, June 24, 2004
Saudi Arabia's amnesty sounds familiar
Does Saudi Arabia's amnesty offer sound familiar to you? It does to me.
Pakistan amnesty deal hit by setback.
And wasn't there a 24 hour cease fire in Afghanistan that let bin Laden escape.
Yeah, thought it sounded familiar.
I saw this phrase, "pre-emptive appeasement" on No Pasaran, sounds about right.
These people just don't want to deal with the problem. What this is really about is giving the bad guys time to get away. Let someone else deal with the problem. The problem with that is the someone else is usually the US.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Does Saudi Arabia's amnesty offer sound familiar to you? It does to me.
Pakistan amnesty deal hit by setback.
And wasn't there a 24 hour cease fire in Afghanistan that let bin Laden escape.
Yeah, thought it sounded familiar.
I saw this phrase, "pre-emptive appeasement" on No Pasaran, sounds about right.
These people just don't want to deal with the problem. What this is really about is giving the bad guys time to get away. Let someone else deal with the problem. The problem with that is the someone else is usually the US.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zaraqawi's Oath
The Belmont Club at its' usual best
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's oath to fight "until Islamic rule is back on earth" -- besides being historically wrong, as it never was -- and his vow to kill the Shi'ite President of the interim Iraqi government, can be more accurately understood as a desire to fight for leadership of the Sunni triangle. The control of Iraq has slipped forever beyond his grasp. Iraqi blogger Hammorabi's breakdown of the the foreign fighters killed in one US strike on Fallujah underscores the point:
Nationality Number
Saudi 5
Somalia 2
Emirates 1
Yemen 1
Morocco 1
Algeria 1
Syria 1
Libya 1
Kurdistan 1
China 1
Mauritania 1
From the looks of it, Zarqawi has brought in the Bekaa Valley gang, the elite of Hezbollah honed in battle against the Israeli Defense Forces to derail the June 30 turnover to Shi'ite Iyad Allawi. But although he has quality, for his fighters are far better than Moqtada Al-Sadr's rabble, he has forgotten that the April upsurge of violence, which some had breathlessly hoped would signal the downfall of the US in Iraq, was only made possible by Teheran's decision to unleash simultaneous unrest in the south, in the hopes that a desperate America would pay any price for relief. But after the US calmly beat back both attacks, grinding Sadr down to a powder, it was no longer faced with a two-front war. There is now no way that the Shi'ites will allow the Sunni-backed Zarqawi to call the shots. The Sunni Saddam had lorded it over them once before; and neither the Kurds nor the Shi'ites will so easily let that happen again. A more attainable goal will be to prevent the emergence of any independent Sunni figure in the new government. Zaraqawi's methods are nothing if brutal. His elite forces have killed 66 Iraqis and 3 Americans in the Sunni triangle in the last 24 hours, a reminder that any Sunni who breaks with him should prepare to die.
This leaves the US in a curious position of strength. Although both the Sunnis, the Shi'ites and the other interests like France, possibly fronted by the UN may form occasional tactical coalitions against America, their interests fundamentally conflict. Like bank robbers squabbling over the loot, they may decide to jointly resist the police but will knife each other at the earliest opportunity once the coast is clear. Only America can play the lone hand. Some observers believe that both Washington and Teheran are clearing the decks for final showdown over Iraq once the two weaker players are ousted from the game. Clearly the Shi'ite-Iranian theater is the decisive area of operations. The Sunni Triangle, however disgustingly Zarqawi's elite fighters behave, is the secondary front.
As an aside, one might remark on the extremity of the Jihadi effort in Iraq. They are sending their best team, the team that harried the IDF out of Lebanon to no good effect. US forces have quietly become very efficient, with chemical test kits to screen suspects for explosive residue, aircraft which electronically detonate IEDs, a steady drumbeat of raids on explosives factories and other operational advances. The enemy is still able to kill Americans, but not in any decisive numbers. But how will America use its capability to achieve a strategic result?
A must read!
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The Belmont Club at its' usual best
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's oath to fight "until Islamic rule is back on earth" -- besides being historically wrong, as it never was -- and his vow to kill the Shi'ite President of the interim Iraqi government, can be more accurately understood as a desire to fight for leadership of the Sunni triangle. The control of Iraq has slipped forever beyond his grasp. Iraqi blogger Hammorabi's breakdown of the the foreign fighters killed in one US strike on Fallujah underscores the point:
Nationality Number
Saudi 5
Somalia 2
Emirates 1
Yemen 1
Morocco 1
Algeria 1
Syria 1
Libya 1
Kurdistan 1
China 1
Mauritania 1
From the looks of it, Zarqawi has brought in the Bekaa Valley gang, the elite of Hezbollah honed in battle against the Israeli Defense Forces to derail the June 30 turnover to Shi'ite Iyad Allawi. But although he has quality, for his fighters are far better than Moqtada Al-Sadr's rabble, he has forgotten that the April upsurge of violence, which some had breathlessly hoped would signal the downfall of the US in Iraq, was only made possible by Teheran's decision to unleash simultaneous unrest in the south, in the hopes that a desperate America would pay any price for relief. But after the US calmly beat back both attacks, grinding Sadr down to a powder, it was no longer faced with a two-front war. There is now no way that the Shi'ites will allow the Sunni-backed Zarqawi to call the shots. The Sunni Saddam had lorded it over them once before; and neither the Kurds nor the Shi'ites will so easily let that happen again. A more attainable goal will be to prevent the emergence of any independent Sunni figure in the new government. Zaraqawi's methods are nothing if brutal. His elite forces have killed 66 Iraqis and 3 Americans in the Sunni triangle in the last 24 hours, a reminder that any Sunni who breaks with him should prepare to die.
This leaves the US in a curious position of strength. Although both the Sunnis, the Shi'ites and the other interests like France, possibly fronted by the UN may form occasional tactical coalitions against America, their interests fundamentally conflict. Like bank robbers squabbling over the loot, they may decide to jointly resist the police but will knife each other at the earliest opportunity once the coast is clear. Only America can play the lone hand. Some observers believe that both Washington and Teheran are clearing the decks for final showdown over Iraq once the two weaker players are ousted from the game. Clearly the Shi'ite-Iranian theater is the decisive area of operations. The Sunni Triangle, however disgustingly Zarqawi's elite fighters behave, is the secondary front.
As an aside, one might remark on the extremity of the Jihadi effort in Iraq. They are sending their best team, the team that harried the IDF out of Lebanon to no good effect. US forces have quietly become very efficient, with chemical test kits to screen suspects for explosive residue, aircraft which electronically detonate IEDs, a steady drumbeat of raids on explosives factories and other operational advances. The enemy is still able to kill Americans, but not in any decisive numbers. But how will America use its capability to achieve a strategic result?
A must read!
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The Lavizan Shiyan Technical Research Centre, in a north-eastern suburb of the city, has been under mounting suspicion of harbouring secret military activities since it was named by an Iranian opposition group in 2003.
Now two commercial satellite images, the first on 11 August 2003 and the second on 22 March 2004, show that the site's buildings have been razed, its features obliterated and its ground cleared.
"The images show that Iran has taken dramatic steps that make it difficult to discover what was happening there," says Corey Hinderstein from the Institute for Science and International Security in Washington DC. It was the institute which found and released the photographs.
Independent nuclear experts regard the satellite photographs of Lavizan Shiyan as important new evidence. "Iran is clearly trying to hide something - and there is suggestive, though not conclusive, evidence that the something is nuclear," says Matt Bunn, a nuclear policy adviser to former US President Bill Clinton, now at Harvard University. "Iran clearly owes the world an explanation."
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Fallujah Volcano video released by Iraqi terrorists
From Northeast Intelligence Network
Scroll down untill you see this: 23 June 2004 - New Jihadi video issued: Fallujah Volcano
The newest Al Qaeda video is a chilling reminder of dangers that the American military personnel and contractors face in Iraq on a daily basis.
Explicit and graphic footage shows a play by play of the events of several months ago when American contractors were attacked, dragged from a burning car, pulled through the streets of Fallujah, and hung from a bridge over the Euphrates.
Global Islamic Media announced the release late last night of a new video series entitled "Fallujah Volcano".
The video, entitled Fallujah volcano, also provides a view into life in Fallujah from the viewpoint of the militants, with scenes of masked and armed militants singing jihadi anthems.
According to the announcement, the multi-part video includes the following subjects:
The "Words of the Fallujah heros"
Fallujah volcano
Burning of a US military vehicle (Hummer)
Recitations of the militants part 1
Recitations of the militants part 2
Fallujah after the militants victory
Killing and dragging of "agents of the American and Israeli intelligence through the streets" part 1
Killing and dragging of "agents of the American and Israeli intelligence through the streets" part 2
Oasis of Fallujah martyrs
Each of the above segments is a link to a Windows Media player clip. Graphic Warning!
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From Northeast Intelligence Network
Scroll down untill you see this: 23 June 2004 - New Jihadi video issued: Fallujah Volcano
The newest Al Qaeda video is a chilling reminder of dangers that the American military personnel and contractors face in Iraq on a daily basis.
Explicit and graphic footage shows a play by play of the events of several months ago when American contractors were attacked, dragged from a burning car, pulled through the streets of Fallujah, and hung from a bridge over the Euphrates.
Global Islamic Media announced the release late last night of a new video series entitled "Fallujah Volcano".
The video, entitled Fallujah volcano, also provides a view into life in Fallujah from the viewpoint of the militants, with scenes of masked and armed militants singing jihadi anthems.
According to the announcement, the multi-part video includes the following subjects:
The "Words of the Fallujah heros"
Fallujah volcano
Burning of a US military vehicle (Hummer)
Recitations of the militants part 1
Recitations of the militants part 2
Fallujah after the militants victory
Killing and dragging of "agents of the American and Israeli intelligence through the streets" part 1
Killing and dragging of "agents of the American and Israeli intelligence through the streets" part 2
Oasis of Fallujah martyrs
Each of the above segments is a link to a Windows Media player clip. Graphic Warning!
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About 75 Die in Rebel Attacks in Five Iraq Cities
From Reuters
Now they are Rebels? Does this mean Reuters is recognizing Interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's government as the legitimate government of Iraq?
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From Reuters
Now they are Rebels? Does this mean Reuters is recognizing Interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's government as the legitimate government of Iraq?
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BBC to develop Arabic TV station
From The BBC
They already have one, it's called Al Jazeera.
Notice the picture and caption used in this article. The picture is of bin Laden and the caption reads "Al-Jazeera rose to prominence during the Afghan war". What's the message here?
And when Al Jazeera was launched who did they turn to for reporters?
That same year al-Jazeera launched, based in Qatar, and recruited a number of former BBC Arabic staff.
And once the voice of Jihad, Al Jazeera, was up and running what did the BBC do?
the BBC hired Ibrahim Helal, editor in chief of the much-criticized al Jazeera TV network
The love fest with Al Jazeera doesn't stop there.
It grew in popularity and international recognition during the recent war in Afghanistan.
Popularity and recognition from whom? Jihadist the world over.
After poisoning most of the world against the US and Israel, the BBC has turned its' attention to Iraq.
BBC World Service is the largest international radio news broadcaster in Iraq, recent audience figures have shown.
The launch of FM broadcasts in Baghdad, Basra and other major cities gained a weekly audience of 1.8 million.
Haven't the poor Iraqis suffered enough without having to listen to the BBC propaganda machine. No wonder there is continuing strife in Iraq. After listening to the continus drumbeat of bad news and attacks on the US, it is a miracle most Iraqis have not committed suicide by now.
After siging the praises of Al Jazeera and hiring their editor in chief, the BBC decide to attack the US funded satellite channel called al-Hurra.
Despite assurances that it is editorially independent, it has still faced criticism in some quarters.
I bet you can't guess who the "some quarters" are.
The Syrian newspaper Tishran said: "This station is part of a project to re-colonise the Arab homeland that the United States seeks to implement through a carrot-and-stick policy".
The Syrians.
Well, I suppose we can just tear up that "core values" idea; the BBC have.
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From The BBC
They already have one, it's called Al Jazeera.
Notice the picture and caption used in this article. The picture is of bin Laden and the caption reads "Al-Jazeera rose to prominence during the Afghan war". What's the message here?
And when Al Jazeera was launched who did they turn to for reporters?
That same year al-Jazeera launched, based in Qatar, and recruited a number of former BBC Arabic staff.
And once the voice of Jihad, Al Jazeera, was up and running what did the BBC do?
the BBC hired Ibrahim Helal, editor in chief of the much-criticized al Jazeera TV network
The love fest with Al Jazeera doesn't stop there.
It grew in popularity and international recognition during the recent war in Afghanistan.
Popularity and recognition from whom? Jihadist the world over.
After poisoning most of the world against the US and Israel, the BBC has turned its' attention to Iraq.
BBC World Service is the largest international radio news broadcaster in Iraq, recent audience figures have shown.
The launch of FM broadcasts in Baghdad, Basra and other major cities gained a weekly audience of 1.8 million.
Haven't the poor Iraqis suffered enough without having to listen to the BBC propaganda machine. No wonder there is continuing strife in Iraq. After listening to the continus drumbeat of bad news and attacks on the US, it is a miracle most Iraqis have not committed suicide by now.
After siging the praises of Al Jazeera and hiring their editor in chief, the BBC decide to attack the US funded satellite channel called al-Hurra.
Despite assurances that it is editorially independent, it has still faced criticism in some quarters.
I bet you can't guess who the "some quarters" are.
The Syrian newspaper Tishran said: "This station is part of a project to re-colonise the Arab homeland that the United States seeks to implement through a carrot-and-stick policy".
The Syrians.
Well, I suppose we can just tear up that "core values" idea; the BBC have.
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BBC bias by omission and false statements
In Analysis: Iraq's military landscape the BBC's Neil Arun attempts an analysis of the Iraq military situation before the handover. Arun obviously skipped the BBC's new "core value" training seminars.
First notice the picture used for this article and the caption under it. The picture shows a bloodied American soldier and caption reads "The US came to Iraq looking for banned weapons - but found none". The picture is obviously intened to convey the impression that America is getting its' butt kicked. The caption is down right false.
Tests Confirm Sarin in Iraqi Artillery Shell
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
By Liza Porteus
NEW YORK — Tests on an artillery shell that blew up in Iraq on Saturday confirm that it did contain an estimated three or four liters of the deadly nerve agent sarin (search), Defense Department officials told Fox News Tuesday. [...]
Another shell filled with mustard gas (search), possibly also part of an improvised explosive device (IED) was discovered on May 2, Defense Dept. officials said.
Not to mention all the other banned weapons that have been found.
Look at how Arun frames his entire so called analysis.
As a string of audacious attacks and assassinations suggest a catastrophic outlook for Iraq, BBC News Online examines the military landscape against which the coalition plans its 30 June handover to an interim government.
Arun is framming his entire analysis around the idea that the coalition is going to hand the Iraqis a catastrophy on 30 June.
Next he talks about reasons why we are here in the first place.
The invasion of Iraq was inspired by claims about Saddam Hussein's banned arsenal;...
Notice the words he uses here very carefully.
First, he uses "inspired by claims". Now the online Webster dictionary defines inspired as "Moved or animated by, or as by, a supernatural influence; affected by divine inspiration; as, the inspired prophets;" Arun is trying to portray Bush as being possesed when he decided to invade Iraq.
Second, notice the use of "arsenal". Here Arun is trying to move the goal posts.
Like most journalist, Arun touts WMDs as the main reason for invading Iraq. When in fact in his speech to the UN, Bush noted the 18 UN resolutions that Saddam had ignored since the end of the first Gulf war. Bush's UN speech here.
Arun goes on the attack and points out what he calls the coalitions biggest mistake of the occupation.
With coalition forces and Iraqi security services battling an insurgency, correspondents say last year's decision to dissolve the defeated Iraqi army may have been the single biggest mistake of the occupation.
"Corrrespondents say". And they would be the military experts then?
The 400,000 Iraqis fighting for Saddam Hussein made up what was reputed to be one of the most formidable forces of the Middle East.
They have been replaced by 160,000-odd soldiers from a coalition of more than 30 countries.
America's 138,000 troops form the backbone of the coalition.
Here Arun is saying the US disbanned the most formidable force in the Middle East and replaced it with a rag tag army. If Saddam's 400,000 were such a formidable force, why were they defeated by a rag tag army in just a few weeks?
And who does Arun credit with the violence in Iraq?
Insurgents and coalition soldiers may account for most of the violence in Iraq - but they are not the only gunmen on the landscape.
That's right, coalition soldiers lumped in with insurgents may account for most of the violence.
Arun ends up trying to use Falluja as a blueprint for how the rest of Iraq will go. And it is here that he shows why jounalist just do not have a clue what they are talking about when it comes to military matters.
It was a hasty solution, says the BBC's Paul Adams, and an imperfect one - Falluja is now a no-go area for Americans.
Says the BBC's Paul Adams. Another jounalist and not an expert on military matters. How does Adams know that the Americans "want" to go into Falluja? How does he know it is an imperfect solution or hasty for that matter?
If it succeeds, the Falluja formula will be hailed as an innovative way of correcting a cardinal error of the occupation - the summary disbanding of the Iraqi army.
If it fails, the formula will resemble not so much a settlement, as a surrender.
I don't know how much training Arun has in tactics, so let me see if I can help him out.
Lesson on how to defeat terrorists
The third lesson to learn is the strategy of forcing the terrorists into fixed positions before moving against them. The terrorist constantly seeks anonymity, like fish in water.
But he also needs safe havens, hospitals, recreation centers, places to hide his bigger weapons, and facilities to train new recruits or imprison potential defectors. All this means a loss of mobility which is the terrorist’s key advantage over the state.
In both Algeria and Peru, and to some extent even in Turkey and Egypt, the state decided to actually help the terrorists become fixed targets. In Algeria, for example, the anti-terror units deliberately stayed out of some areas, notably the Mitidja plain and the town of Blida, thus shooing the terrorists there. On some occasions the security forces even refused to intervene to stop terrorist operations that took place under their noses, so to speak. The idea was to convince the terrorists that they had a safe haven. In time this meant that the terrorists became fixed targets while the security forces enjoyed the advantage of mobility and the choice of the time to attack.
Arun and the BBC are prime examples of why journalist should stick to news reporting and leave the fighting to the military.
Notice what Arun has omitted? He completely leaves out the the defeat and surrender of Muqtada al-Sadr. A milita once touted as being over 10,000 strong and set to start an uprising and civil war that would end the coaltions occupation of Iraq. Astonishingly, that huge coalition victory escaped Arun's attention. But then, he did miss the BBC's much vaulted "core values" training.
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In Analysis: Iraq's military landscape the BBC's Neil Arun attempts an analysis of the Iraq military situation before the handover. Arun obviously skipped the BBC's new "core value" training seminars.
First notice the picture used for this article and the caption under it. The picture shows a bloodied American soldier and caption reads "The US came to Iraq looking for banned weapons - but found none". The picture is obviously intened to convey the impression that America is getting its' butt kicked. The caption is down right false.
Tests Confirm Sarin in Iraqi Artillery Shell
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
By Liza Porteus
NEW YORK — Tests on an artillery shell that blew up in Iraq on Saturday confirm that it did contain an estimated three or four liters of the deadly nerve agent sarin (search), Defense Department officials told Fox News Tuesday. [...]
Another shell filled with mustard gas (search), possibly also part of an improvised explosive device (IED) was discovered on May 2, Defense Dept. officials said.
Not to mention all the other banned weapons that have been found.
Look at how Arun frames his entire so called analysis.
As a string of audacious attacks and assassinations suggest a catastrophic outlook for Iraq, BBC News Online examines the military landscape against which the coalition plans its 30 June handover to an interim government.
Arun is framming his entire analysis around the idea that the coalition is going to hand the Iraqis a catastrophy on 30 June.
Next he talks about reasons why we are here in the first place.
The invasion of Iraq was inspired by claims about Saddam Hussein's banned arsenal;...
Notice the words he uses here very carefully.
First, he uses "inspired by claims". Now the online Webster dictionary defines inspired as "Moved or animated by, or as by, a supernatural influence; affected by divine inspiration; as, the inspired prophets;" Arun is trying to portray Bush as being possesed when he decided to invade Iraq.
Second, notice the use of "arsenal". Here Arun is trying to move the goal posts.
Like most journalist, Arun touts WMDs as the main reason for invading Iraq. When in fact in his speech to the UN, Bush noted the 18 UN resolutions that Saddam had ignored since the end of the first Gulf war. Bush's UN speech here.
Arun goes on the attack and points out what he calls the coalitions biggest mistake of the occupation.
With coalition forces and Iraqi security services battling an insurgency, correspondents say last year's decision to dissolve the defeated Iraqi army may have been the single biggest mistake of the occupation.
"Corrrespondents say". And they would be the military experts then?
The 400,000 Iraqis fighting for Saddam Hussein made up what was reputed to be one of the most formidable forces of the Middle East.
They have been replaced by 160,000-odd soldiers from a coalition of more than 30 countries.
America's 138,000 troops form the backbone of the coalition.
Here Arun is saying the US disbanned the most formidable force in the Middle East and replaced it with a rag tag army. If Saddam's 400,000 were such a formidable force, why were they defeated by a rag tag army in just a few weeks?
And who does Arun credit with the violence in Iraq?
Insurgents and coalition soldiers may account for most of the violence in Iraq - but they are not the only gunmen on the landscape.
That's right, coalition soldiers lumped in with insurgents may account for most of the violence.
Arun ends up trying to use Falluja as a blueprint for how the rest of Iraq will go. And it is here that he shows why jounalist just do not have a clue what they are talking about when it comes to military matters.
It was a hasty solution, says the BBC's Paul Adams, and an imperfect one - Falluja is now a no-go area for Americans.
Says the BBC's Paul Adams. Another jounalist and not an expert on military matters. How does Adams know that the Americans "want" to go into Falluja? How does he know it is an imperfect solution or hasty for that matter?
If it succeeds, the Falluja formula will be hailed as an innovative way of correcting a cardinal error of the occupation - the summary disbanding of the Iraqi army.
If it fails, the formula will resemble not so much a settlement, as a surrender.
I don't know how much training Arun has in tactics, so let me see if I can help him out.
Lesson on how to defeat terrorists
The third lesson to learn is the strategy of forcing the terrorists into fixed positions before moving against them. The terrorist constantly seeks anonymity, like fish in water.
But he also needs safe havens, hospitals, recreation centers, places to hide his bigger weapons, and facilities to train new recruits or imprison potential defectors. All this means a loss of mobility which is the terrorist’s key advantage over the state.
In both Algeria and Peru, and to some extent even in Turkey and Egypt, the state decided to actually help the terrorists become fixed targets. In Algeria, for example, the anti-terror units deliberately stayed out of some areas, notably the Mitidja plain and the town of Blida, thus shooing the terrorists there. On some occasions the security forces even refused to intervene to stop terrorist operations that took place under their noses, so to speak. The idea was to convince the terrorists that they had a safe haven. In time this meant that the terrorists became fixed targets while the security forces enjoyed the advantage of mobility and the choice of the time to attack.
Arun and the BBC are prime examples of why journalist should stick to news reporting and leave the fighting to the military.
Notice what Arun has omitted? He completely leaves out the the defeat and surrender of Muqtada al-Sadr. A milita once touted as being over 10,000 strong and set to start an uprising and civil war that would end the coaltions occupation of Iraq. Astonishingly, that huge coalition victory escaped Arun's attention. But then, he did miss the BBC's much vaulted "core values" training.
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Complaint to BBC over "core values" breach
Here is a copy of my email complaint to the BBC over their use of Korean internet chat rooms to justify a statement that a majority of Koreans believe troops should not be sent to Iraq.
But the BBC's Charles Scanlon in Seoul says that internet chat sites suggest a majority of Koreans believe their troops should not be taking part in what they see as an immoral occupation.
Scanlon uses "internet chat sites" to state "a majority of Koreans"
Your new "core values" first value states
"Truth and accuracy - BBC journalism must be rooted in the highest accuracy, well sourced and based on sound evidence."
How is using internet chat sites to state a majority of Koreans believe in anything, "well sourced and based on sound evidence"? And does that sound like "the highest accuracy" to you?
There is no scientific basis for Scanlon's statement whatsoever. The BBC cannot even state that a majority of Korean internet chat sites believe in anything unless you did a study of all Korean internet chat sites.
Many other news organizations are reporting how the death of Mr. Kim has galvanized the Koreans in favor of troop deployments to Iraq. Leave it the BBC to use internet chat rooms to take a different view.
You really are a sad bunch.
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Here is a copy of my email complaint to the BBC over their use of Korean internet chat rooms to justify a statement that a majority of Koreans believe troops should not be sent to Iraq.
But the BBC's Charles Scanlon in Seoul says that internet chat sites suggest a majority of Koreans believe their troops should not be taking part in what they see as an immoral occupation.
Scanlon uses "internet chat sites" to state "a majority of Koreans"
Your new "core values" first value states
"Truth and accuracy - BBC journalism must be rooted in the highest accuracy, well sourced and based on sound evidence."
How is using internet chat sites to state a majority of Koreans believe in anything, "well sourced and based on sound evidence"? And does that sound like "the highest accuracy" to you?
There is no scientific basis for Scanlon's statement whatsoever. The BBC cannot even state that a majority of Korean internet chat sites believe in anything unless you did a study of all Korean internet chat sites.
Many other news organizations are reporting how the death of Mr. Kim has galvanized the Koreans in favor of troop deployments to Iraq. Leave it the BBC to use internet chat rooms to take a different view.
You really are a sad bunch.
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BBC breaches its' "core values" again
From The BBC tipped by one of my readers, David.
The BBC has launched a media blitz touting how it has learned the error of its' ways and vows to change for the better. But we all know better than that.
The BBC's first "core value" says this:
Truth and accuracy - BBC journalism must be rooted in the highest accuracy, well sourced and based on sound evidence.
"Well sourced" and "sound evidence". Sounds simple enough, for all but the BBC.
According to the BBC's Charles Scanlon in Seoul "internet chat sites suggest a majority of Koreans believe their troops should not be taking part in what they see as an immoral occupation."
That's right, you read it correctly, his source for stating "a majority of Koreans", are internet chat sites. That's certainly scientific enough for the BBC, "well sourced" and "sound evidence" indeed.
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From The BBC tipped by one of my readers, David.
The BBC has launched a media blitz touting how it has learned the error of its' ways and vows to change for the better. But we all know better than that.
The BBC's first "core value" says this:
Truth and accuracy - BBC journalism must be rooted in the highest accuracy, well sourced and based on sound evidence.
"Well sourced" and "sound evidence". Sounds simple enough, for all but the BBC.
According to the BBC's Charles Scanlon in Seoul "internet chat sites suggest a majority of Koreans believe their troops should not be taking part in what they see as an immoral occupation."
That's right, you read it correctly, his source for stating "a majority of Koreans", are internet chat sites. That's certainly scientific enough for the BBC, "well sourced" and "sound evidence" indeed.
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Muslim trucker sues over alcohol load
From CNN
CHICAGO, Illiniois (Reuters) -- A Muslim truck driver has filed a federal court suit in Tennessee against his employer, saying he was fired for refusing an assignment to transport beer, a Muslim advocacy group said Wednesday.
I bet you can guess who the Muslim advocacy group is. Yep, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). I cannot understand how, after all the exposing of this groups links to terrorism, mainstream media can still call them "Washington-based advocacy group".
So, what happens next? Can a Catholic refuse to transport condoms? Can a Jewish person refuse to transport pork? Can a Southern Baptist refuse to transport chocolate? Can someone from Greenpeace refuse to transport, well anything?
When does this nonsense end? This guy is a trucker and truckers truck things. He can practice his religion on his own time.
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From CNN
CHICAGO, Illiniois (Reuters) -- A Muslim truck driver has filed a federal court suit in Tennessee against his employer, saying he was fired for refusing an assignment to transport beer, a Muslim advocacy group said Wednesday.
I bet you can guess who the Muslim advocacy group is. Yep, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). I cannot understand how, after all the exposing of this groups links to terrorism, mainstream media can still call them "Washington-based advocacy group".
So, what happens next? Can a Catholic refuse to transport condoms? Can a Jewish person refuse to transport pork? Can a Southern Baptist refuse to transport chocolate? Can someone from Greenpeace refuse to transport, well anything?
When does this nonsense end? This guy is a trucker and truckers truck things. He can practice his religion on his own time.
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Converting to Islam is actually a reversion
According to the Islamic Center of El Paso "we were all born Muslim" and when you convert you actually "revert" from whaterver religion you are now, back to Islam.
One word for the good folks at this Islamic Center - Bullshit!
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According to the Islamic Center of El Paso "we were all born Muslim" and when you convert you actually "revert" from whaterver religion you are now, back to Islam.
One word for the good folks at this Islamic Center - Bullshit!
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OPERATION TIGER CLAW - a high school senior opposes the left
Tired of hearing about how our centers of education are turning out left wing zombies? Here is one high school students record of his struggle against the left in our schools; complete with photos!
My name is Bryan Henderson and I am an 18 year old senior attending Princeton Senior High School. Better known as Templar_Crusader on the PW forum, I am the proud leader of the small but growing PHS chapter of ProtestWarrior.
Operation Tiger Claw was my first attempt at leading a protest against the apathy and leftism running rampant at my school. It all started on Friday, May 14th with a small act of conservative pride. My socialist history teacher was on another kick about how articulate Noam Chomsky was, when I finally reached my limit.
You have got to read this. This "kid" is only 18.
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Tired of hearing about how our centers of education are turning out left wing zombies? Here is one high school students record of his struggle against the left in our schools; complete with photos!
My name is Bryan Henderson and I am an 18 year old senior attending Princeton Senior High School. Better known as Templar_Crusader on the PW forum, I am the proud leader of the small but growing PHS chapter of ProtestWarrior.
Operation Tiger Claw was my first attempt at leading a protest against the apathy and leftism running rampant at my school. It all started on Friday, May 14th with a small act of conservative pride. My socialist history teacher was on another kick about how articulate Noam Chomsky was, when I finally reached my limit.
You have got to read this. This "kid" is only 18.
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After losing Iraq to the US, France goes after Iran
From No Pasaran
One of the hallmarks of Gaullist foreign policy is the willingness to fill in the gaps left by the American strategic posture. France has often been eager to set up shop where US companies either fear to tread or are barred from operating: Burma, Iran, Iraq, Libya are a few examples. The IHT has run a story on Franco-Iranian relations that is to appear in to-morrow's New York Times. In it, Borzou Daragahi reports that
French companies have been increasing their presence here in the past few years. New Peugeots and Citroëns flood crowded highways and streets. French business people dine in the capital's restaurants and work on Gulf oil platforms. Air France resumed flights to Tehran this month after a seven-year hiatus. And the carmaker Renault is about to make the first large-scale, long-term direct investment in the country by a French company since the 1979 revolution that toppled the pro-American Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi.
This represents quite a change as, since the Iran Iraq war, France had, for long periods, been unwelcome in Iran because of its support for Saddam. But back then this did not prevent France from at least trying to establish relations.
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From No Pasaran
One of the hallmarks of Gaullist foreign policy is the willingness to fill in the gaps left by the American strategic posture. France has often been eager to set up shop where US companies either fear to tread or are barred from operating: Burma, Iran, Iraq, Libya are a few examples. The IHT has run a story on Franco-Iranian relations that is to appear in to-morrow's New York Times. In it, Borzou Daragahi reports that
French companies have been increasing their presence here in the past few years. New Peugeots and Citroëns flood crowded highways and streets. French business people dine in the capital's restaurants and work on Gulf oil platforms. Air France resumed flights to Tehran this month after a seven-year hiatus. And the carmaker Renault is about to make the first large-scale, long-term direct investment in the country by a French company since the 1979 revolution that toppled the pro-American Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi.
This represents quite a change as, since the Iran Iraq war, France had, for long periods, been unwelcome in Iran because of its support for Saddam. But back then this did not prevent France from at least trying to establish relations.
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Laughing Muslim children reenact the savage beheading of Nick Berg.
From LGF
I thought there could be nothing more horrific and maddening than the home movies of jihadis cutting off heads.
But then LGF reader ‘Norwegian kafir’ forwarded a link to a Swedish Islamic forum, where he found a video that’s a glimpse into a parallel universe inhabited by demons.
From a discussion thread titled Al Qaeda for Kids, posted with a comment in Swedish (“Salam aliykom. Look how cute!”), here’s a death cult video that breaks new ground in loathsomeness, as smiling, laughing Muslim children reenact the savage beheading of Nick Berg.
Muslim kids play “Holy Warrior.”
How cute. How incredibly, terminally insane.
UPDATE: And in order to play-act the decapitation of Nick Berg, these children must have studied the actual video.
LFG has a link to the movie if you want to watch it.
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From LGF
I thought there could be nothing more horrific and maddening than the home movies of jihadis cutting off heads.
But then LGF reader ‘Norwegian kafir’ forwarded a link to a Swedish Islamic forum, where he found a video that’s a glimpse into a parallel universe inhabited by demons.
From a discussion thread titled Al Qaeda for Kids, posted with a comment in Swedish (“Salam aliykom. Look how cute!”), here’s a death cult video that breaks new ground in loathsomeness, as smiling, laughing Muslim children reenact the savage beheading of Nick Berg.
Muslim kids play “Holy Warrior.”
How cute. How incredibly, terminally insane.
UPDATE: And in order to play-act the decapitation of Nick Berg, these children must have studied the actual video.
LFG has a link to the movie if you want to watch it.
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