Iran Focus is reporting "649 under-14 girls arrested in Iran capital".
Tehran, Iran, Jan. 23 – The commander of Iran's State Security Forces in Tehran announced that 649 teenage girls under 14 years of age have been arrested in the Iranian capital over the past ten months.
The SSF chief told a press conference in Tehran yesterday, "Of the 59,121 individuals arrested in Tehran over the past ten months, 3969 of them were women; 649 were girls under the age of 14".
The SSF chief said that the Iranian capital was facing both a social and a security crisis, adding that his forces were prepared to crack down on anyone suspected of engaging in activities against the state.
How does an under 14 year old girl engage "in activities against the state"?
Via The Adventuress
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Tuesday, January 25, 2005
Guantanamo tip led to terrorists arrests
Guantanamo tip tied to arrests of 22 in Germany
Information obtained through the interrogation of a Guantanamo Bay detainee led to a spectacular series of counterterrorism raids in Germany this month, in which more than 700 police swept through mosques, homes, and businesses in six cities and arrested 22 suspected militant extremists, according to a senior Defense Department official.
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Information obtained through the interrogation of a Guantanamo Bay detainee led to a spectacular series of counterterrorism raids in Germany this month, in which more than 700 police swept through mosques, homes, and businesses in six cities and arrested 22 suspected militant extremists, according to a senior Defense Department official.
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Freedom of the Thought - Regained
The Belmont Club has some extracts from The Buzz Machine 's live blogging from a conference on blogging at Harvard.
: Jill Abramson, an editor at the NY Times, and Dave Winer, get kerfluffling together and I can't summarize it well. But I entered in when she went on about the expense of keeping journalists in Iraq -- which is true and for which we are grateful. But I started telling the story of Zeyad taking his camera to cover an antiterrorism demonstration last December that The Times didn't cover. As soon as I mention it, Abramson starts shaking her head and looking away.
: Abramson said that it is "completely contrary" to the histyry and standards of The Times to run content that they do not vet.
I would have given anything to have asked whether Abramson of the Times preferred an unidentified AP stringer taking pictures of Iraqi election workers being executed on Haifa Street over Zeyad, and why. But that would have been churlish, and I must admit, intellectually shallow. The really interesting question was posed by Jimbo Wales. The engine that enabled Wikipedia to overtake Brittanica at the encyclopedia game was self-evidently a powerful one; a phenomenon, which I am tempted to surmise may structurally resemble asymmetrical warfare. Abramson shuddered and well she should. But at what? What was out there in the dark about which these conference participants are talking? It is a something that has already swallowed Brittanica. No one is quite sure what it is, but everyone should be quite certain that it will strike again.
"It" is the citizens taking back their freedom of thought. The words "you can't fool all the people all the time" are more true today than at anytime in the history of man. We no longer trust nor rely on legacy media to think for us. Gone are the days when CBS and thought master, Dan Rather, could shove forged documents down our throats. We are in control now Dan; no need to adjust your set.
"The engine that enabled Wikipedia to overtake Brittanica at the encyclopedia game" is powered by citizens of the world. That same engine is already replacing the existing thought machine - the liberal press.
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Then somewhat later.
: Jill Abramson, an editor at the NY Times, and Dave Winer, get kerfluffling together and I can't summarize it well. But I entered in when she went on about the expense of keeping journalists in Iraq -- which is true and for which we are grateful. But I started telling the story of Zeyad taking his camera to cover an antiterrorism demonstration last December that The Times didn't cover. As soon as I mention it, Abramson starts shaking her head and looking away.
: Abramson said that it is "completely contrary" to the histyry and standards of The Times to run content that they do not vet.
I would have given anything to have asked whether Abramson of the Times preferred an unidentified AP stringer taking pictures of Iraqi election workers being executed on Haifa Street over Zeyad, and why. But that would have been churlish, and I must admit, intellectually shallow. The really interesting question was posed by Jimbo Wales. The engine that enabled Wikipedia to overtake Brittanica at the encyclopedia game was self-evidently a powerful one; a phenomenon, which I am tempted to surmise may structurally resemble asymmetrical warfare. Abramson shuddered and well she should. But at what? What was out there in the dark about which these conference participants are talking? It is a something that has already swallowed Brittanica. No one is quite sure what it is, but everyone should be quite certain that it will strike again.
"It" is the citizens taking back their freedom of thought. The words "you can't fool all the people all the time" are more true today than at anytime in the history of man. We no longer trust nor rely on legacy media to think for us. Gone are the days when CBS and thought master, Dan Rather, could shove forged documents down our throats. We are in control now Dan; no need to adjust your set.
Legacy media shutter at the sight of a citizenry that can think for itself; that can no longer be controlled. They shutter at the thought of the common man questioning their words from on high. Bloggers have poured water over legacy media and just like the wicked witch of the north from Oz, they are melting.
The combination of citizens armed with cheap video phones, blogs and cheap high speed access to the world's "jungle drum", the Internet, herald a new dawn for freedom of thought.
"The engine that enabled Wikipedia to overtake Brittanica at the encyclopedia game" is powered by citizens of the world. That same engine is already replacing the existing thought machine - the liberal press.
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al-Qaida Official Admits to U.N. Assault
They have "officials" now? According to The AP they do.
BAGHDAD, Iraq - An al-Qaida lieutenant in custody in Iraq (news - web sites) has confessed to masterminding most of the car bombings in Baghdad, including the bloody 2003 assault on the U.N. headquarters in the capital, authorities said Monday.
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BAGHDAD, Iraq - An al-Qaida lieutenant in custody in Iraq (news - web sites) has confessed to masterminding most of the car bombings in Baghdad, including the bloody 2003 assault on the U.N. headquarters in the capital, authorities said Monday.
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Islam - Working With the Left
During the last US Presidential campaign it was noted how Islamic terrorists and the Left had the same talking points.
That working relationship continues after the resounding re-election of Bush.
Compare how Islamic terrorist apologist, Maureen Dowd, misrepresents Vice President Cheney's remarks, with Islamic terrorist mouthpiece Al Jazeera.
I shouldn't be surprised, Dowd is writing in The New York Times after all.
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That working relationship continues after the resounding re-election of Bush.
Compare how Islamic terrorist apologist, Maureen Dowd, misrepresents Vice President Cheney's remarks, with Islamic terrorist mouthpiece Al Jazeera.
I shouldn't be surprised, Dowd is writing in The New York Times after all.
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Europe has taken over the Holocaust
Mark Steyn on the Holocaust rememberance.
Americans and Europeans will never agree on this, and the demographic reality - the Islamisation of Europe - will only widen the chasm in the years ahead. But, if I were a European Jew, I would feel this week's observances bordered on cultural appropriation. The old defence against charges of anti-Semitism was: "But some of my best friends are Jewish." As the ancient hatreds rise again across the Continent, the political establishment's defence is: "But some of our best photo opportunities are Jewish."
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Americans and Europeans will never agree on this, and the demographic reality - the Islamisation of Europe - will only widen the chasm in the years ahead. But, if I were a European Jew, I would feel this week's observances bordered on cultural appropriation. The old defence against charges of anti-Semitism was: "But some of my best friends are Jewish." As the ancient hatreds rise again across the Continent, the political establishment's defence is: "But some of our best photo opportunities are Jewish."
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Monday, January 24, 2005
BBC - Saddam had Weapons of Mass Destruction
At least according to Mr. BBC himself Jeremy Paxman.
This is a long article but a must read as it shows just how hypocritical and anti-American the BBC are.
Be sure and read the whole article but here is the "why".
1. How on earth could the BBC cover the Iraq war in the manner that it did, when one of its top reporters had just published a book such as this?
How could the BBC, after one of its major reporters had published this damning description of Saddam's WMDs in late 2002, go on to produce a series in late 2004 called The Power of Nightmares to argue that
In the past our politicians offered us dreams of a better world. Now they promise to protect us from nightmares.
The most frightening of these is the threat of an international terror network. But just as the dreams were not true, neither are these nightmares.
In a new series, the Power of Nightmares explores how the idea that we are threatened by a hidden and organised terrorist network is an illusion.
It is a myth that has spread unquestioned through politics, the security services and the international media.
To realize what a stunning piece of hypocrisy this is, you have to understand the position of Jeremy Paxman at the BBC. He is as representative of his network as Walter Cronkite or Dan Rather have been of CBS or as Peter Jennings or Ted Koppel have been of ABC. How dare the BBC cop a "Blair lied!" attitude when Paxman, Mr. BBC himself, was publishing the same argument at the same time as Blair?
2. That leads us back to a question I posed at the beginning of this post: Why the sudden 180-degree turnaround in Paxman/BBC attitude on the subject of Saddam's possession of WMD?
The answer, I think, lies in this excerpted sentence from Chapter 11: "For twenty years, Iraq, under Saddam's leadership, has held up Caliban's mirror to the West." In late 2001, when Harris and Paxman were apparently doing most of their writing, to August 2002, when the book was published, the notion that Saddam Hussein had kept his stockpiles of WMDs and was an immediate threat was not yet an argument in America's and George W. Bush's interest; it was still, at that point, an argument with which to indict the West.
In Harris and Paxman's telling, Western civilization was the Frankenstein that produced the monster Saddam. And not only was the West to blame for creating Saddam; but the history that Harris and Paxman relate is one of the monster repeatedly outsmarting his creator, rendering his creator impotent to stop him.
As the months wore on into the autumn and winter of 2002-03, however, and it became clearer that Bush was making essentially the same argument that Paxman and Harris were making but that Bush was using it to build a case for war, it rapidly became less an anti-Western argument and more a pro-Western one. Even worse, it became a blatantly pro-American and pro-George Bush argument. Anti-Western feeling may be rampant at the BBC, but it pales beside the BBC's anti-American feeling. And so, virtually overnight and without missing a beat, the BBC and the media in general became corrosive skeptics on the subject of Saddam Hussein and current stockpiles of WMDs.
I hope the bloggers can bring down Paxman and the BBC in the same manner they brought down Rather and CBS.
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This is a long article but a must read as it shows just how hypocritical and anti-American the BBC are.
Be sure and read the whole article but here is the "why".
1. How on earth could the BBC cover the Iraq war in the manner that it did, when one of its top reporters had just published a book such as this?
How could the BBC, after one of its major reporters had published this damning description of Saddam's WMDs in late 2002, go on to produce a series in late 2004 called The Power of Nightmares to argue that
In the past our politicians offered us dreams of a better world. Now they promise to protect us from nightmares.
The most frightening of these is the threat of an international terror network. But just as the dreams were not true, neither are these nightmares.
In a new series, the Power of Nightmares explores how the idea that we are threatened by a hidden and organised terrorist network is an illusion.
It is a myth that has spread unquestioned through politics, the security services and the international media.
To realize what a stunning piece of hypocrisy this is, you have to understand the position of Jeremy Paxman at the BBC. He is as representative of his network as Walter Cronkite or Dan Rather have been of CBS or as Peter Jennings or Ted Koppel have been of ABC. How dare the BBC cop a "Blair lied!" attitude when Paxman, Mr. BBC himself, was publishing the same argument at the same time as Blair?
2. That leads us back to a question I posed at the beginning of this post: Why the sudden 180-degree turnaround in Paxman/BBC attitude on the subject of Saddam's possession of WMD?
The answer, I think, lies in this excerpted sentence from Chapter 11: "For twenty years, Iraq, under Saddam's leadership, has held up Caliban's mirror to the West." In late 2001, when Harris and Paxman were apparently doing most of their writing, to August 2002, when the book was published, the notion that Saddam Hussein had kept his stockpiles of WMDs and was an immediate threat was not yet an argument in America's and George W. Bush's interest; it was still, at that point, an argument with which to indict the West.
In Harris and Paxman's telling, Western civilization was the Frankenstein that produced the monster Saddam. And not only was the West to blame for creating Saddam; but the history that Harris and Paxman relate is one of the monster repeatedly outsmarting his creator, rendering his creator impotent to stop him.
As the months wore on into the autumn and winter of 2002-03, however, and it became clearer that Bush was making essentially the same argument that Paxman and Harris were making but that Bush was using it to build a case for war, it rapidly became less an anti-Western argument and more a pro-Western one. Even worse, it became a blatantly pro-American and pro-George Bush argument. Anti-Western feeling may be rampant at the BBC, but it pales beside the BBC's anti-American feeling. And so, virtually overnight and without missing a beat, the BBC and the media in general became corrosive skeptics on the subject of Saddam Hussein and current stockpiles of WMDs.
I hope the bloggers can bring down Paxman and the BBC in the same manner they brought down Rather and CBS.
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Iraq - Blair is Right
"Blair is right. Why aren't more democrats backing these elections?" asks William Shawcross commenting in, of all places, The Guardian.
Ever so seldom the Guardian throws out a bone so it can claim "see we aren't biased".
Just look at who is trying to stop Iraqis voting and by what methods. That alone shows how important this week's elections are to Iraq.
The horrific war against the Iraqi people is being run by the same people who oppressed and tortured them for decades - Saddam's henchmen and gaolers. They are more than ably abetted by the Islamofascist jihadists led by Osama bin Laden's Heydrich in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. [Don't forget the anti-war movement which is abetted by the liberal press]
Elections really do matter to people - especially to people who have been denied them. We saw that in 1993 when millions of Cambodians braved threats from the Khmer Rouge. We saw it in Algeria in 1995, when the government, almost overcome by years of Islamist terrorist assault, called elections and the silent majority defied the terrorists' threats and voted en masse.
We saw it much more recently in Afghanistan, where the people confounded the western critics and scoffers and, despite Taliban threats, voted overwhelmingly to put the curse of the Taliban's Islamic extremism behind them.
Since Afghanistan was such a resounding success for America as well as Afghanistan, it no longer merits the liberal press attention.
If it were up to the liberal press and the anti-war movement all of these countries would still be under the boot of Islamofascist.
Tony Blair said in Baghdad in December: "On the one side you have people who desperately want to make the democratic process work, and want the same type of democratic freedoms other parts of the world enjoy, and on the other side people who are killing and intimidating and trying to destroy a better future for Iraq. Our response should be to stand alongside the democrats."
Blair is absolutely right. It is shocking that so few democratic governments support the Iraqi people. Where are French and German and Spanish protests against the terror being inflicted on voters in Iraq? And it is shocking that around the world there is not wider admiration of, assistance to and moral support (and more) for the Iraqi people. The choice is clear: movement towards democracy in Iraq or a new nihilism akin to fascism - Islamist fascism.
The rest of the world would rather see America defeated than see Iraqis gain their freedom. That is shocking and the epitome of selfishness.
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Ever so seldom the Guardian throws out a bone so it can claim "see we aren't biased".
Just look at who is trying to stop Iraqis voting and by what methods. That alone shows how important this week's elections are to Iraq.
The horrific war against the Iraqi people is being run by the same people who oppressed and tortured them for decades - Saddam's henchmen and gaolers. They are more than ably abetted by the Islamofascist jihadists led by Osama bin Laden's Heydrich in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. [Don't forget the anti-war movement which is abetted by the liberal press]
Elections really do matter to people - especially to people who have been denied them. We saw that in 1993 when millions of Cambodians braved threats from the Khmer Rouge. We saw it in Algeria in 1995, when the government, almost overcome by years of Islamist terrorist assault, called elections and the silent majority defied the terrorists' threats and voted en masse.
We saw it much more recently in Afghanistan, where the people confounded the western critics and scoffers and, despite Taliban threats, voted overwhelmingly to put the curse of the Taliban's Islamic extremism behind them.
Since Afghanistan was such a resounding success for America as well as Afghanistan, it no longer merits the liberal press attention.
If it were up to the liberal press and the anti-war movement all of these countries would still be under the boot of Islamofascist.
Tony Blair said in Baghdad in December: "On the one side you have people who desperately want to make the democratic process work, and want the same type of democratic freedoms other parts of the world enjoy, and on the other side people who are killing and intimidating and trying to destroy a better future for Iraq. Our response should be to stand alongside the democrats."
Blair is absolutely right. It is shocking that so few democratic governments support the Iraqi people. Where are French and German and Spanish protests against the terror being inflicted on voters in Iraq? And it is shocking that around the world there is not wider admiration of, assistance to and moral support (and more) for the Iraqi people. The choice is clear: movement towards democracy in Iraq or a new nihilism akin to fascism - Islamist fascism.
The rest of the world would rather see America defeated than see Iraqis gain their freedom. That is shocking and the epitome of selfishness.
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Iraq - BBC Downplay of Elections Continues
Despite The OCV updating its webpage daily the BBC continues to downplay participation of the Iraqi expat vote.
On Sunday The BBC ran the same headline as before - "Iraq exile vote runs into trouble " and had this to say:
By Thursday, the fourth day of registration, fewer than one in 10 Iraqis had registered abroad, out of more than a million eligible voters.
This article is date stamped Sunday, 23 January, 2005, 03:00 GMT.
What the BBC doesn't want you to know is those figures have climbed dramatically. With two days left to register 237704 have done so. That is nearly 25%! If the current rate of 50,000 a day holds the final total could be nearly 350,000 or 35%. Given the short notice and difficulties in registering, I'd say that would be a huge success.
You wouldn't know that by reading the BBC.
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On Sunday The BBC ran the same headline as before - "Iraq exile vote runs into trouble " and had this to say:
By Thursday, the fourth day of registration, fewer than one in 10 Iraqis had registered abroad, out of more than a million eligible voters.
This article is date stamped Sunday, 23 January, 2005, 03:00 GMT.
What the BBC doesn't want you to know is those figures have climbed dramatically. With two days left to register 237704 have done so. That is nearly 25%! If the current rate of 50,000 a day holds the final total could be nearly 350,000 or 35%. Given the short notice and difficulties in registering, I'd say that would be a huge success.
You wouldn't know that by reading the BBC.
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Iran - Torturing Bloggers
The LA Times is reporting "About 20 online journalists and bloggers have been jailed. Some say they were tortured and forced to publicly denounce their work."
After toiling for years to silence dissent within the Iranian republic, the mullahs have turned their war against free press to the last reserve of open political debate: the Internet. Since the summer, Iran's Web loggers, or bloggers, and online journalists have been demonized as CIA collaborators, their work whitewashed from many Iranian computers with filters.
"They can't accept the free exchange of ideas and equality offered by the Internet," said Sayed Mustafa Taj-Zadeh, an advisor to reformist President Mohammad Khatami. "They had to crack down on it." [...]
The arrest of online journalists and bloggers began last fall. The writers say they were tortured and forced to publicly denounce their work. Even technicians who worked on Web pages have been imprisoned. President Khatami has ordered an investigation into the reports of torture.
"They think that now that they've closed the papers they should concentrate on the Web logs," said Ali Mazroui, Hanif's father and a former reformist lawmaker. "They think if they close this new source of information, they'll have control."
The Committee to Protect Bloggers is following the events.
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After toiling for years to silence dissent within the Iranian republic, the mullahs have turned their war against free press to the last reserve of open political debate: the Internet. Since the summer, Iran's Web loggers, or bloggers, and online journalists have been demonized as CIA collaborators, their work whitewashed from many Iranian computers with filters.
"They can't accept the free exchange of ideas and equality offered by the Internet," said Sayed Mustafa Taj-Zadeh, an advisor to reformist President Mohammad Khatami. "They had to crack down on it." [...]
The arrest of online journalists and bloggers began last fall. The writers say they were tortured and forced to publicly denounce their work. Even technicians who worked on Web pages have been imprisoned. President Khatami has ordered an investigation into the reports of torture.
"They think that now that they've closed the papers they should concentrate on the Web logs," said Ali Mazroui, Hanif's father and a former reformist lawmaker. "They think if they close this new source of information, they'll have control."
The Committee to Protect Bloggers is following the events.
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UK 'dirty bomb' suspects for trial
CNN is reporting " Three terror suspects have pleaded innocent to charges that they conspired to possess a radioactive substance and entered into funding arrangements linked to terrorism."
I couldn't find anything about this on the BBC site yet. They are probably too busy fabricating anti-American stories.
Roque Flaviano Fernandes, 43, Dominic Agnello Martins, 44, and Abdurahman Kanyare all denied that they conspired to possess a "radioactive mercury-based substance" for terrorist purposes between July 1 and September 25, 2004.
I note that it says "conspired to possess" and not actually possess for CNN tells us the stuff doesn't exist.
"Red mercury" is a substance many scientists doubt exists. Since the Soviet collapse in 1991, black marketeers have been peddling substances they call red mercury, saying it is a highly radioactive compound developed in Soviet nuclear facilities.
Samples that have turned up in Europe have proved to be bogus or far less dangerous than made out to be, many scientists and law enforcement officials have said
How were these guys to know?
Besides, do you think the public would be interested in the nuance of "far less dangerous" when talking about radioactive substances? It's the terror factor that counts.
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I couldn't find anything about this on the BBC site yet. They are probably too busy fabricating anti-American stories.
Roque Flaviano Fernandes, 43, Dominic Agnello Martins, 44, and Abdurahman Kanyare all denied that they conspired to possess a "radioactive mercury-based substance" for terrorist purposes between July 1 and September 25, 2004.
I note that it says "conspired to possess" and not actually possess for CNN tells us the stuff doesn't exist.
"Red mercury" is a substance many scientists doubt exists. Since the Soviet collapse in 1991, black marketeers have been peddling substances they call red mercury, saying it is a highly radioactive compound developed in Soviet nuclear facilities.
Samples that have turned up in Europe have proved to be bogus or far less dangerous than made out to be, many scientists and law enforcement officials have said
How were these guys to know?
Besides, do you think the public would be interested in the nuance of "far less dangerous" when talking about radioactive substances? It's the terror factor that counts.
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BBC - No Stone Unturned
It seems more and more people are noticing the BBC's crusade against America.
I don't usually post someone else's entire post but this is short and sweet.
I almost admire the Beeb's diligent efforts to leave no stone unturned in its continuing attempts to foment world-wide hatred against the US. Today they are happy to report that JP Morgan Chase bought a certain bank one year ago, which sometime in its long past, bought two other banks, which, although now long defunct, accepted some slaves as collateral for loans 140+ years ago. The Beeb online runs this non-story in a prominent place on the front page of its "America's Section", under the headline, "JP Morgan Admits Slavery Link," helpfully illustrated by a large US flag flapping in the breeze.
What's next for our beloved Beeb? A front-pager entitled, "McDonald's Admits 'Link' to US Cattle Farm That Stole Its Land From Native Americans 170 Years Ago?" Helpfully illustrated by a US flag flapping in the breeze, of course.
Welcome Adventuress.
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I don't usually post someone else's entire post but this is short and sweet.
I almost admire the Beeb's diligent efforts to leave no stone unturned in its continuing attempts to foment world-wide hatred against the US. Today they are happy to report that JP Morgan Chase bought a certain bank one year ago, which sometime in its long past, bought two other banks, which, although now long defunct, accepted some slaves as collateral for loans 140+ years ago. The Beeb online runs this non-story in a prominent place on the front page of its "America's Section", under the headline, "JP Morgan Admits Slavery Link," helpfully illustrated by a large US flag flapping in the breeze.
What's next for our beloved Beeb? A front-pager entitled, "McDonald's Admits 'Link' to US Cattle Farm That Stole Its Land From Native Americans 170 Years Ago?" Helpfully illustrated by a US flag flapping in the breeze, of course.
Welcome Adventuress.
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Blog Roll Update
I've made a lot of new additions to the blog roll; pay them a visit.
Welcome everyone!
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Welcome everyone!
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China - Growing Threat Update II
The EU is to lift the arms embargo against China while China "is building up military forces and setting up bases along sea lanes from the Middle East" and announced she "is to hold unprecedented joint military maneuvers with Russia on Chinese territory next year involving both nations' air forces and navies".
At the same time China continues to crack down on dissidents.
Imagine the outcry if the US government had officially released Abu Ghraib photos, in which abject and terrified prisoners held little Arabic signs disclaiming their former allegiances, which were in fact infinitely more perverse. Though the Inaugural Address did not explicitly challenge the double standards of Western 'liberals,' it did imply a notion of human rights far beyond anything Jimmy Carter ever imagined. The former president thought that one could talk malefactors into being nice. The current president knows diplomacy can accomplish nothing to advance human rights without the credible backing of armed force. But I hope Bush understands that Syria, Iran, Cuba, North Korea, and Russia itself are only satellites of the Evil Empire now. The capitol is Beijing.
China recently signed an aid agreement with Cuba "...aimed at strengthening friendship between two of the world's last remaining communist governments."
China is to "Further Overall Cooperation with Iran".
Likewise, China, Syria to sign agreements.
China's rulers fear internal instability more than any outside force. No matter what their party or doctrine, they have always lived in dread of movements like Falun Gong, which have sometimes swept the nation with cataclysmic force. The Communist Party itself arose and gained power through such a social convulsion. Will China ever escape the treadmill of oppression and revolt? Not before it makes its bid to lead a world alliance of politboros, autocracies, and crackpot despots.
I'm becoming convinced that the Cold War never truly ended. We have been fooling ourselves. For what was the Cold War, really? Prior to World War Two, war between nation-states had been the characteristic form of Western conflict since the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. T. M. Lutas has taken to calling the present period 'post-Westphalian,' because the US is currently warring with a non-Western international movement -- the Islamist jihad. But I think this is an aberration that conceals the true, underlying pattern. The Cold War was a principally a conflict between philosophies of governance: totalitarian versus consensual. And that conflict continues today, between nation-states and within them. The post-Westphalian period actually began more than half a century ago.
If I'm right, the Twenty-First Century will be blighted by strife between consensual and totalitarian governments. The latter will have differing motives, ranging from religious tyranny to secular control to cults of personality; but they have already allied covertly against their common enemy. Both sides will also continue to exploit non-state actors -- people like Osama bin Laden on the dark side, and Lech Walensa on the light. One side or the other will inherit the Twenty-Second Century. The world is becoming too small for both.
The one thing not discussed here are weapons.
The nuclear deterrent was a good idea at first. The down sides of nuclear winter, mass destruction of resources and infrastructure and long term contamination, are not so appealing. You will defeat your enemy but, unlike in previous conquests, you will not be able to claim the booty. While that may suit Islamic terrorists, who want to return to the stone age anyway, it would not suit Russia or China. Islamic nations are another matter; caring little for the mass destruction even if it is mutually assured.
Chemical or biological weapons don't have these down sides and would suit both Islamic terrorists and nations. But Islamic terrorists so far do not have the capability to use these weapons on a large scale. Nations are another matter.
Not long ago Russia test fired a new missile which was observed by the US.
Oddities were immediately apparent.
Visible through binoculars, the missiles fins glowed red hot. Why would you want to dissipate heat from a missile?
The warhead, after separation from the missile, deployed little bomblets that floated to the sea on parachutes. Why would you want to do that? Most bombs hit the ground, blow up and do their damage.
The US reportedly recovered some of these bomblets and found they were punctured with tiny holes. What are the holes for?
It has been suggested that the fins dissipate heat from the nose cone and away from the holed bomblets. Why would you want to keep the bomblets cool?
To keep something "alive". Russia has the largest stockpile of biological weapons in the world.
If China and Russia join forces the old alliances will be needed more than ever before.
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At the same time China continues to crack down on dissidents.
Imagine the outcry if the US government had officially released Abu Ghraib photos, in which abject and terrified prisoners held little Arabic signs disclaiming their former allegiances, which were in fact infinitely more perverse. Though the Inaugural Address did not explicitly challenge the double standards of Western 'liberals,' it did imply a notion of human rights far beyond anything Jimmy Carter ever imagined. The former president thought that one could talk malefactors into being nice. The current president knows diplomacy can accomplish nothing to advance human rights without the credible backing of armed force. But I hope Bush understands that Syria, Iran, Cuba, North Korea, and Russia itself are only satellites of the Evil Empire now. The capitol is Beijing.
China recently signed an aid agreement with Cuba "...aimed at strengthening friendship between two of the world's last remaining communist governments."
China is to "Further Overall Cooperation with Iran".
Likewise, China, Syria to sign agreements.
China's rulers fear internal instability more than any outside force. No matter what their party or doctrine, they have always lived in dread of movements like Falun Gong, which have sometimes swept the nation with cataclysmic force. The Communist Party itself arose and gained power through such a social convulsion. Will China ever escape the treadmill of oppression and revolt? Not before it makes its bid to lead a world alliance of politboros, autocracies, and crackpot despots.
I'm becoming convinced that the Cold War never truly ended. We have been fooling ourselves. For what was the Cold War, really? Prior to World War Two, war between nation-states had been the characteristic form of Western conflict since the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. T. M. Lutas has taken to calling the present period 'post-Westphalian,' because the US is currently warring with a non-Western international movement -- the Islamist jihad. But I think this is an aberration that conceals the true, underlying pattern. The Cold War was a principally a conflict between philosophies of governance: totalitarian versus consensual. And that conflict continues today, between nation-states and within them. The post-Westphalian period actually began more than half a century ago.
If I'm right, the Twenty-First Century will be blighted by strife between consensual and totalitarian governments. The latter will have differing motives, ranging from religious tyranny to secular control to cults of personality; but they have already allied covertly against their common enemy. Both sides will also continue to exploit non-state actors -- people like Osama bin Laden on the dark side, and Lech Walensa on the light. One side or the other will inherit the Twenty-Second Century. The world is becoming too small for both.
The one thing not discussed here are weapons.
The nuclear deterrent was a good idea at first. The down sides of nuclear winter, mass destruction of resources and infrastructure and long term contamination, are not so appealing. You will defeat your enemy but, unlike in previous conquests, you will not be able to claim the booty. While that may suit Islamic terrorists, who want to return to the stone age anyway, it would not suit Russia or China. Islamic nations are another matter; caring little for the mass destruction even if it is mutually assured.
Chemical or biological weapons don't have these down sides and would suit both Islamic terrorists and nations. But Islamic terrorists so far do not have the capability to use these weapons on a large scale. Nations are another matter.
Not long ago Russia test fired a new missile which was observed by the US.
Oddities were immediately apparent.
Visible through binoculars, the missiles fins glowed red hot. Why would you want to dissipate heat from a missile?
The warhead, after separation from the missile, deployed little bomblets that floated to the sea on parachutes. Why would you want to do that? Most bombs hit the ground, blow up and do their damage.
The US reportedly recovered some of these bomblets and found they were punctured with tiny holes. What are the holes for?
It has been suggested that the fins dissipate heat from the nose cone and away from the holed bomblets. Why would you want to keep the bomblets cool?
To keep something "alive". Russia has the largest stockpile of biological weapons in the world.
If China and Russia join forces the old alliances will be needed more than ever before.
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Hating America
It was the humorist Art Buchwald who captured, in 1957, the American predicament; following a survey on what made people dislike America, he concluded: "If Americans would stop spending money, talking loudly in public places, telling the British who won the war, adopt a pro-colonial policy, back future British expeditions to Suez, stop taking oil out of the Middle East, stop chewing gum, ... move their bases out of England, settle the desegregation problem in the South ... put the American woman in her proper place, and not export Rock n' Roll, and speak correct English, the tension between the two countries might ease."
From a review of the book "Hating America".
Be sure to read the rest of the review.
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From a review of the book "Hating America".
Be sure to read the rest of the review.
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BBC - "ignorance knows no bounds"
I'm not the only one noticing.
It doesn't help that even the BBC is staffed by people whose ignorance often shows. The report claims that "the new quake was also felt by residents of India's Andamans chain," and later it adds "Monday's fresh quake also brought brief panic to Madras in southern India, which was also badly hit by the tsunami, although there were no new reports of injuries."
This is nonsense. Port Blair in the Andamans was shaken by a minor aftershock of the 26 December whopper. This took place hours after the Sulawesi tremor, and two thousand miles away. There is no connection! Another thousand miles off, Madras felt nothing but the seismic spasm of its understandable fears. BBC's language presumes a palpable quake. The staffer responsible for this embarassment should be assigned to more a fanciful subject, like politics. He or she is too ignorant to write about our planet.
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It doesn't help that even the BBC is staffed by people whose ignorance often shows. The report claims that "the new quake was also felt by residents of India's Andamans chain," and later it adds "Monday's fresh quake also brought brief panic to Madras in southern India, which was also badly hit by the tsunami, although there were no new reports of injuries."
This is nonsense. Port Blair in the Andamans was shaken by a minor aftershock of the 26 December whopper. This took place hours after the Sulawesi tremor, and two thousand miles away. There is no connection! Another thousand miles off, Madras felt nothing but the seismic spasm of its understandable fears. BBC's language presumes a palpable quake. The staffer responsible for this embarassment should be assigned to more a fanciful subject, like politics. He or she is too ignorant to write about our planet.
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Democrats "Descent into Madness"
Fresh Bilge has some observations.
Against this ominous backdrop, I would have you consider Senator Kennedy's remarkable claim that Democrats "may be in the minority in Congress, but we speak for the majority of Americans." What does he mean? It is of course a lie, and a rather silly rationalization of political defeat. Yet I do not think there is any cynicism involved; instead I suspect something much more sinister, though I am sure the Senator is wholly unconscious of it.
Read what he thinks it is.
Via Spiced Sass
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Against this ominous backdrop, I would have you consider Senator Kennedy's remarkable claim that Democrats "may be in the minority in Congress, but we speak for the majority of Americans." What does he mean? It is of course a lie, and a rather silly rationalization of political defeat. Yet I do not think there is any cynicism involved; instead I suspect something much more sinister, though I am sure the Senator is wholly unconscious of it.
Read what he thinks it is.
Via Spiced Sass
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Tsunami Disaster - US Response So Far
The Diplomad has a great round up on the US response so far.
The USG, thus far, has provided $33.5 million in direct humanitarian assistance to Indonesia in response to the disaster-- this is in addition to military assistance and support (which is estimated to cost some $5 million/day.) No other country or organization comes anywhere close to this figure of assistance ACTUALLY provided. With USG support, emergency humanitarian services began Sunday (December 26), immediately following the disaster:
- With $2.3 million from USAID, the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) began providing emergency services to victims, including shelter, water, food and medical services.
- With $3.5 million from USAID, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) began transporting and delivering relief supplies (water, food, plastic sheeting, generators, fuel and medical supplies).
- Embassy staff in Jakarta, Banda Aceh and Medan are coordinating with the U.S. Military on logistics, especially to prioritize the delivery of relief items. TNI (Indonesian military) are assisting in loading relief planes and are accompanying U.S. helicopter sorties and trucks delivering relief supplies.
- On average we have four C-130 aircraft/day airlifting support to Jakarta, Medan and Banda Aceh for transport of relief supplies, including shelter, water, food and medical services.
- Eleven USN ships and one USCG vessel are operating near Indonesia and supporting the relief work there.
- Thirty-eight American helicopters are delivering supplies (16 from USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN Carrier Group; 22 from the USS BONHOMME RICHARD Expeditionary Group; another 4 are on the way from the USS FORT MCHENRY). The USS BONHOMME RICHARD is ferrying supplies to shore via amphibious landing craft (LCACs).
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The USG, thus far, has provided $33.5 million in direct humanitarian assistance to Indonesia in response to the disaster-- this is in addition to military assistance and support (which is estimated to cost some $5 million/day.) No other country or organization comes anywhere close to this figure of assistance ACTUALLY provided. With USG support, emergency humanitarian services began Sunday (December 26), immediately following the disaster:
- With $2.3 million from USAID, the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) began providing emergency services to victims, including shelter, water, food and medical services.
- With $3.5 million from USAID, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) began transporting and delivering relief supplies (water, food, plastic sheeting, generators, fuel and medical supplies).
- Embassy staff in Jakarta, Banda Aceh and Medan are coordinating with the U.S. Military on logistics, especially to prioritize the delivery of relief items. TNI (Indonesian military) are assisting in loading relief planes and are accompanying U.S. helicopter sorties and trucks delivering relief supplies.
- On average we have four C-130 aircraft/day airlifting support to Jakarta, Medan and Banda Aceh for transport of relief supplies, including shelter, water, food and medical services.
- Eleven USN ships and one USCG vessel are operating near Indonesia and supporting the relief work there.
- Thirty-eight American helicopters are delivering supplies (16 from USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN Carrier Group; 22 from the USS BONHOMME RICHARD Expeditionary Group; another 4 are on the way from the USS FORT MCHENRY). The USS BONHOMME RICHARD is ferrying supplies to shore via amphibious landing craft (LCACs).
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UN Condemns Palestinian Terror Attack
Yeah, read that again - UN Condemns Palestinian terror attack. It wasn't just anybody at the UN who said that either. It was none other than Koffi Annan.
Here is the text of the dispatch.
The Secretary-General condemns the Palestinian terror attack that caused the death of six Israeli civilians and injury to four others at the Karni crossing between Israel and the Gaza Strip yesterday evening. He wishes to express his deepest condolences to the families of those killed and injured.
The Secretary-General hopes that this terrible incident will not be allowed to undermine the recent positive steps made by both parties. He also calls on the new Palestinian leadership to make all possible attempts to bring to justice the organizers and perpetrators of this attack.
The Secretary-General emphasizes again that violence cannot provide a solution to the conflict, and that only through negotiation can peace be achieved.
Except to name the nationality of the victims Israel is conspicuously missing from this statement. Is Annan trying to appease the West?
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Here is the text of the dispatch.
The Secretary-General condemns the Palestinian terror attack that caused the death of six Israeli civilians and injury to four others at the Karni crossing between Israel and the Gaza Strip yesterday evening. He wishes to express his deepest condolences to the families of those killed and injured.
The Secretary-General hopes that this terrible incident will not be allowed to undermine the recent positive steps made by both parties. He also calls on the new Palestinian leadership to make all possible attempts to bring to justice the organizers and perpetrators of this attack.
The Secretary-General emphasizes again that violence cannot provide a solution to the conflict, and that only through negotiation can peace be achieved.
Except to name the nationality of the victims Israel is conspicuously missing from this statement. Is Annan trying to appease the West?
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Islam Exposed - Suggested Reading
Jihad Watch has an extensive reading list.
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