Social Engineering

Via the haves.
In todays NYTimes is a story about one person's idea to send $150 laptops to children in third world countries. It sounds cool.
Small screen, linux operating system, wireless internet capability and ways to re-charge itself when the power is out. But no harddrive. Read the article. What a concept.

But Bill Gates seems to think this is a bad idea. Why?

And Bill Gates, Microsoft's chairman and a leading philanthropist for the third world, has questioned whether the concept is "just taking what we do in the rich world" and assuming that that is something good for the developing world, too.

Ummm, oftentimes. And computers and internet access are awesome advances in knowledge throughout the world. What a pompous.......

In related news Mick at Uncorrelated writes one of the best posts I've seen on the hated Walmart. Here is the start:

Democrats: Protecting Your Right To Pay Higher Prices

I watched a show recently profiling Warren Buffet, the second richest man in the U.S. next to Bill Gates. Buffet commented that the average middle class family lives better than the 19th century robber-barons, mentioning Rockefeller in particular. Warm in the winter, cool in the summer, vast choices in entertainment, abundant food, transportation at a whim.

All true. I remember getting a request for money once from Habitat for Humanity. In it they profiled a poor single woman who needed a new house. They went through her budget which didn't allow for much on a mortgage. That budget included a new car payment (required to get to work) and cable tv (required for her son). Huh?

So now we have Walmart, that allows for even more consumer goods to get into the hands of the poor. For all the pieces against Walmart I've ever read, they don't seem to do anything more than use their spending power to lower their prices even further, giving those shopping there a 25% more bang for their buck.

Yeah, you can talk about loss of the local stores etc, but until people quit using ATMs and automatic checkins at airports or self-check lanes at supermarkets etc, we can't accuse Walmart of being the only folks "taking away local jobs".

Anyway - I got off on a tangent. Read Mick's post.

The UN

Captain Ed continues to dog the UN and their sex problems. It's pretty pathetic that grown-ups have to go to children for either sex or power.

Drudge shares this headline this morning.

FLASH: One in every 32 Adults is in Prison, Jail or on Probation

While that is sad commentary I would say that while this number affects those peole and their families etc, some things are illegal and the US is not a hell hole for it.
The point being that rape is illegal. Buying sex when you are a member of the UN should be illegal if it isn't. Why the hell aren't those people in jail? They know it goes on, why not these creeps in the local lockup?

In other UN news, Kofi Annan has expressed "deep concern" for the break in peace in Sudan. via bloodthirstyliberal

Burning

Michelle Malkin continues to follow the story on the burned Sunnis.

Her re-cap:

Two unnamed Associated Press reporters get new acounts from three unnamed witnesses (who, of course, refuse to be identified by name--although the AP has no problem describing some weirdly specific details about their ages, occupations, ethnicity, and religions) about six burned-alive Sunnis, five of whom no one can name and whose bodies can't be disinterred in an investigation because it would violate Islamic law. And of the two original sources who claim the incident happened, one has recanted and the other is someone whom the military and Iraqi officials maintain is not who he says he is.

She also links us to this blog by Jim Hoft that included a reminder that the AP also mentioned 4 burned Mosques where only 1 was burned.

Iraq acting Sovereign, Bush to Blame

This story in the LA times today was interesting.
Maliki wants a) more control over his forces, b) faster training of his people, c) bigger and better weapons d) talks with Syria and Iran.

Maliki's emboldened stand comes at a time of uncertainty for U.S. strategy in Iraq.

While the process may be accelerated due to Democrats in office and Bush leaving in 2 years, this sounds like the exact US strategy that we've been working on. Get the Iraqi's to take care of themselves. Isn't it?

This cracked me up:

"If the Americans withdraw, the fighting will stop," Iraq's most revered Sunni cleric, Harith Dhari, said in Jordan, where he met with Abdullah in the run-up to the summit. "Once Americans make the decision to withdraw, whether it is in one or two years, we can go to the resistance and tell them you have what you have been fighting for."

If you can go to the resistance and tell them the Americans will leave in 2 years and you have what you want, then why can't you go to the resistance and tell them that the Americans will leave as soon as the resistance stops killing their own people? Pulease.

In other news, the famous NYTimes has leaked MORE classified information. Though I have to say with all the leaking going on, I'm personally going to start calling it "President Bush's special way of getting out the news without actually having to talk with reporters."

The memo presents an unvarnished portrait of Mr. Maliki and notes that he relies for some of his political support on leaders of more extreme Shiite groups. The five-page document, classified secret, is based in part on a one-on-one meeting between Mr. Hadley and Mr. Maliki on Oct. 30.

Yes, this was leaked from Senior Administration official and the Times just went right ahead and put it in their paper. And the secret part? The administration wonders if Maliki is up to the task ahead. LOL.

If I were President Bush, I would want that information on the table and out in the open before going into a meeting with President Maliki. It looks to me like Bush knows exactly where to accidently leave his memos in order to get them printed in the NYTimes.

And one more. Iraq the Model has a short post of the rumors in Baghdad about this meeting today.

Lebanon

Abu Kais notes a suicide bomber at the Lebanon border who truly was a "suicide" bomber. I love those stories.

Syrian-born Omar Hamra, a "tawhid and Jihad terrorist and military official", was casually crossing the border with Lebanon today with a suicide belt strapped to his waist, and nine different fake IDs. He ended up "exploding himself", according to the Syrian News Agency SANA.

And bloodthirstyliberal notes that security forces in Lebanon have uncovered an assasination plot by Syrians.

Lebanese security forces discovered a Syrian plot four days ago to target 36 anti-Syrian officials, according to the Lebanese paper al Mustaqbal and cited by Israel Radio Wednesday. The paper is owned by the Hariri family.

The Revenge Burning

Powerline has a quick re-cap concerning the story from the AP that may or may not be true. The AP is insisting it's true and they think it's crazy to even doubt their reporting.
They might want to go back and check recent history for why their public might doubt their stories.

Michelle Malkin has a longer version along with tons of links.

The Press

As I read the papers today I kept thinking, "how do I know if this is true or not?" Michelle Malkin has a short follow up on the AP bullshi** from yesterday along with a quick poll.

So this morning I'm reading about President Olmert offering to exchange Palestinian prisoners for the captured Israeli soldier. (second reference from Al Jazeera so I'm not sure if this is true or not but it seems truish.)

So imagine my laughter when I came across this title on the BBC.

Olmert speech puzzles press

LOL. The story is about the press not knowing how to spin this! ROFL.

What a world.

Those Six Immans

Captain Ed handles this story that came out in the Washington Times today. What were the suspicians?

- Praying loudly. I do my praying on an airplane quietly with sweat pouring out my forehead but others may choose out loud.

- Switching from their assigned seats. Ok -on an empty plane, but something to look at. The 2 that went to first class when they weren't assigned those seats should have been expelled right then.

- Going back and forth to talk amongst each other and holding up the boarding process. Irritating enough when done amongst families. I would say it's enough to tell them to get back to their "assigned seats" and if not done, then boot them.

- And finally:

And those seat-belt extenders? Once they received them from the flight attendants, the imams put them under their seats, and not on the seat belts that purportedly would not fit them. Anyone who saw that would understandably wonder why the imams requested them in the first place, especially the flight crew, which has primary responsibility for flight security.

Outta here. Those are simple weapons. Simple like a box cutter.

Part D

Look who made Instapundit!

MICKEY KAUS: "With the midterm election safely in the past, the NYT's Robert Pear reveals that the Bush administration delegated the task of saving the Medicare drug plan to ... a competent civil servant." Analysts say that this business of holding positive stories until after the election is common media behavior . . . .

Prejudice

Unbelievable. Last week was the big story about Sunnis being burned alive as part of a revenge killing spree in Bagdad. This week, its appearing the whole thing was quite possibly fabricated, yes, fabricated. There was one source for that story and that man apparently doesn't really exist but has been sending the AP stories for a while now.

Flopping Aces broke this story and continues to update his posts.
The fun just goes on.

I mentioned prejudice because in reading that original story didn't we all kind of go, "ewww - what is with these people?"
Here is what Iraq the Model has been going through. Mohammed called them "Rough Days". I believe he gets the prize for understatement of the year.

The other star of the crisis was rumors about ugly revenge attacks and I sometimes feel that those rumors are part of the terrorists and militias propaganda campaign.

Sadly the AP turned out to be a part of that.

Rough times blur the vision and disrupt reason, I understand that. When you hear stories about people burned alive or mass public executions it makes you imagine that the streets are full of monsters coming to predate everything and makes you shout calling for merciless punishment upon even those who are only suspects.

Thankfully most people are better than that. As Mohammed says:

Being stuck at home for four days with all the violence going outside and the fear that it might reach you at home was a horrible experience. When the news came that the curfew was over and people began walking on the streets again there was a strange feeling that was particularly very strong this morning in Baghdad; despite all the rumors and fear from more wide-scale revenge attacks there was a feeling among the people that they must go out on the streets and live in all possible means.
The most beautiful scene was that of students going to their schools and colleges despite all what happened in the days before.

Not everyone will absorb the lesson but I'm sure that this last dose of terror has changed the feelings of so many people here, a change in favor of denouncing and rejecting violence, I hope.

He brings me hope. If you didn't read his post, he has a friend who has been kidnapped. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

Sadr City

What a mess. Leaders of all three sects are calling for calm, but we'll see what happens here. Hammarabi is expecting further revenge killings now along with a call to oust the government that is not protecting the people there.

Once again this indicates the failure of the government and the occupying forces to provide the simplest kind of the security. It is not a war between militias and others but it may be just the beginning of a civil war that is going to happen openly and on a large scale may be soon.

While searching for more information on this round of violence I found this by Alaa written on the 12th of November that was worth a read.

The only thing that America is guilty of is that of underestimating the viciousness of the enemy, and not so much his military capability; because the enemy’s weapon is not so much military prowess, but evil and viciousness. He specializes in hitting below the belt. He has no rules and no scruples, and will stop at nothing. He is absolutely devoid of any kind of human feeling. To think that you can reason with him or somehow accommodate his wishes and desires is absolute folly and suicide. This was clearly illustrated lately in Iraq when all kinds of overtures and approaches were made in forlorn hopes of appeasing him. This only resulted in boosting his morale and appetite for murder and violence. America seems to have become confused and loosing sight of the fundamentals of the issue and even who the real enemy is. Of course this was aided by a massive propaganda assault aimed directly at the American public from abroad and from within. Yet this is absolutely not a partisan issue. It is tragic that this matter is used for partisan purposes and for electoral considerations. When the ship of state starts sinking, it will take down everybody with it. You ask us Iraqis about this. And this is war, my friends. You can’t have half wars. In war you just have to go all the way. You either win or lose, and if you lose you are lost. In no other situation is this more true than this our war.

Democrat or republican, America has no option but to find a way to win this war. All real Americans must be as sure of that as all real Iraqis.

Man, I hope so.

Friday Links

David Ignatius reminding Arabs that it's really up to them to fix things in the Middle East. We can't do it for them.
The sad part? He implies that the UN will be there to guide them. HA!

Any leader or nation who aspires to play a constructive role in the region's future must embrace this idea of legal accountability. That is what the United Nations insisted this week, with a unanimous Security Council resolution demanding that the murderers be brought to justice.

As we say around here. BFD.
Mr. Ignatius needs to return to his premise because it will never be up to the UN to fix the Middle East.

John Podhoretz has the first post election analysis that makes sense to me. Democrats came out and voted this year. Karl Rove taught them that little trick. Frankly, I find it more refreshing than the whining about "stolen elections".

Thanksgiving

I was rushing to get out of the house this morning and forgot to mention the date. Thanksgiving! It's a great holiday. One that's about what we are thankful for. I'm with Coastwatcher and am thankful for those who have stepped up to serve this country in so many different capacities. I just piddle my time away playing and working and writing while others choose to earn less money with longer hours in order to do public service.
Thank you to those in the service.
Thank you to those in politics
Thank you to those in the CIA/FBI/Police/Fire departments.
Thank you to those who volunteer for all the stuff that needs done in the world.
Thank you to God for basically making humanity worth all the effort He and we put into us.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Speculation

Today there are 2 unrelated stories that both seem speculative to me. The first is on the situation in Lebanon. When we first went into Iraq, and things started happening in the Middle East, like Libya and Lebanon, it was hailed, even by me as a sign that things were shaking up there and "freedom was on the march".
That is completely different than saying "stable democracies are now the norm thanks to the US of A".
Today in the LA times we get:

"You're now seeing the last strand" of failed U.S. policy endeavors, said Nathan Brown, a specialist in Arab politics at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a former United Nations consultant.

So now we've failed because some whack job in Syria has assassinated a Lebanese guy and the people there are angry. The article can't fail to mention our list of failures.

Palestinian voters have since granted power to the militant group Hamas, which the administration has yet to recognize. Egypt's reforms have stalled. And in Iraq, the government has proved unable to run the country amid increasing violence and rising U.S. casualties. Many Iraqis say they would prefer a return to authoritarian rule.

Sheesh. I suppose we're at fault for global warming and the problams in Darfur too? Oh right. We are.

Analysts see the Lebanon situation as another sign that American clout is shrinking in the Middle East.

How long has our clout been shrinking in the Middle East? I suspect in the 70s analysts were saying the same thing. These folks sound like the Middle Easterners. For some reason people over there think we "control" all things. And if only we wanted to do something it would be done. Please.

So moving on to the Rumsfield piece by Robert Novak.

The treatment of his war minister connotes something deeply wrong with George W. Bush's presidency in its sixth year. Apart from Rumsfeld's failures in personal relations, he never has been anything short of loyal in executing the president's wishes. But loyalty appears to be a one-way street for Bush. His shrouded decision to sack Rumsfeld after declaring that he would serve out the second term fits the pattern of a president who is secretive and impersonal.

Sounds speculative to me. If I were doing the speculating here I would say that Rumsfield's firing was a respectful ploy by the President towards the American people who just elected Democrats. They won the election and they wanted Rumsfield's head. Bush gave it to them as a gesture of good will. Did he mention this to Rumsfield first? I don't know. But who should Bush be the most loyal to? Rumsfield or "the people"?

Horse Rescue

Do you remember the news about those horses stuck on an 'island' after flooding in the Netherlands? Here is video footage of the rescue. It's beautiful. And the music (Vangelis) is gorgeous too. Prepare to be inspired!

Steyn

On those youths.

AIDS in Africa

Unbelievable. Aids has been around now for 20 years. 20 years! And just now researchers are learning that in Africa they do things differently that might spread it? They are just now finding that there are rituals with tatoos, and communal breastfeeding and other things that cause the spread of H.I.V..

The NYTimes has a front page story on this today that leaves you shaking your head. And not at Africa or Africans. But at the friggin scientists, researchers, charity groups, etc that are theoretically helping stop the spread of AIDS in Africa.

Researchers here and elsewhere in Africa are just beginning to study the role of these common traditional practices of rural Africa, to determine if they account for a small or large portion of H.I.V. transmission. "We don't know enough about this important topic, but there is no doubt that traditional practices are spreading H.I.V. It's a growing concern," said Dr. Edward J. Mills, an epidemiologist at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, who has done extensive work in South Africa.

"Unaids has been ignoring it," he said, referring to the United Nations agency that deals with the disease. "I think it's because people think it's culturally insensitive to talk about. Even if it turns out to be only a minor amount, it's a preventable amount so we really need to address it."

Oh, right. Political correctness. I should have known it would be culturally insensitive to discuss germs with people.

Yves Moumbe, a doctor in Batie, said that almost all of his patients with H.I.V. went to traditional healers before they saw him.

"It is not clear if they are using any sterile technique at all," Dr. Moumbe said. "They don't have much knowledge of H.I.V. and how it is spread. So it could be a serious problem."

How many billions have been spent on HIV in Africa? I realize it could be difficult, but wouldn't the FIRST place you'd go to would be the traditional healers? And after 20 years of pounding it into them, wouldn't they know to clean their knives by now? Something is not right here. Africans are not idiots.
Here's another quote:

"We're used to saying this is all about sexual intercourse, but now we have to remind people it can be elsewhere in the body, and there are other dangers as well," said Bertrice Mabule, who started the Children's Education and Health Foundation to promote H.I.V. awareness in Batie.

NOW? NOW we have to remind people?
For twenty years this foundation has discussed sex, over and over and over but not once with the connotation that the sex part has to do with body fluids?? Not only is this cultural correctness gone crazy, this is, "let's make sure that everyone knows how to have safe sex" pounded into their heads without any grounding for it.

No wonder people don't believe the hype over there. How hard would it have been to add in the part where it isn't "sex" that kills you, it's the body fluid exchange? Seriously, what was it that caused foundations to only discuss sex without sharing any information about blood or fluids? Were they afraid that like here, people wouldn't want to share water glasses or something?
I'm sorry that my rants end up with questions all over the place and no answers but I am astounded and outraged by this story today.

Hugo Chavez

I love this news. And how it's filed under "wankers". Though expected to win the election, Hugo's opposition is giving him a run for the money.

"We see him as a failed government," Rosales said in an interview at his headquarters in an elegant neighborhood of Caracas. "No one understands how the government is giving away Venezuela's riches, as part of a political and ideological strategy, when there are bad services, a bad health system, a bad education system, bad policies for housing construction."

The government, meanwhile, has ignored Rosales almost completely and is focusing instead on President Bush, whom Venezuela's leader has portrayed as the country's archenemy.

Yeah, Hugo, run against President Bush. He'll be out in 2 years, then what are you going to do? Wanker.

1984

Yes, not only do we have a war going on that most people aren't involved in in the very least, but we have the vocabulary fun. Today it's Global warming = Cooling.
(via Tim Blair, via JMH.)

Movie Review

Of Shut up and Sing.

Pelosi as Rove

So apparently Nancy Pelosi brought up the Murtha vote first as a way to "lead trump" so to speak. Get everything out in the open. Now Democrats will be afraid to vote against Alcee Hastings because it might make Democrats look REALLY weak if they have to oust the speaker they just picked. Mickey Kaus has the story. Someone ought to hire him to come up with these plans versus just interpreting them!

The Draft

Sure, NOW the papers remind everyone who's pushing a draft! (Do you remember when politicians used the threat of a draft to try to get people to vote for a Democrat?!)

Just links today

Don't bother reading here today. Go to Instapundit instead.

If not, then read
The Mudville Gazette notes the conversation between Senators and generals concerning Iraq.
and
this about a new method for creating synthetic oil from shale in Israel. They are expecting to see $17/barrel oil from this.

Iran and Somalia

Apparently the connection is growing between these two countries as Iran searches for a steady supply of uranium.
The UN is reporting this:

Three illegal shipments from Teheran are detailed. On July 25, an aircraft carrying Iranian arms landed at Baledogle airport near Mogadishu. This consignment included 1,000 machineguns, 45 surface-to-air missiles, M-79 rocket launchers and land mines.

After its arrival, the UN says that Iran promised the Islamists further weapons, but only in return for uranium, presumably for use in Teheran's nuclear programme.

I await the resolutions condemning this plan.
I await......
awaiting................

Oh, nevermind. They have Israel to condemn.

From Iraq the Model

This is even better than the Saddam verdict!

Hmmm. What would that be? What just happened there?
It was the warrant for that head of Muslim scholars, Harith al-Dhari that was in the news yesterday. From Omar:

Actually the minister's words were an indirect threat to Muqtada al-Sadr, or more like a direct one because he said, and I'm paraphrasing, "there are two neighboring countries that are causing trouble in Iraq and anyone who cooperates with these countries will not be safe from prosecution"

I suspect Omar can read between the lines better than me. I hadn't realized how important this could be.
Excellant!

Michael Moore

Do you remember him? He made the front page of the LA Times today with his "pledge", "extending an olive branch to disheartened conservatives".

Yeah, don't bother reading it, I just linked there so you can see that it's there.
Michelle Malkin had this story yesterday comparing and contrasting Moore's manifesto with a democratic underground's manifesto written earlier than Moores.
"To be fair to Moore, the manifesto form is hardly an original concept. But it would have been nice for the Voice of the Common Man to tip his hat."
I agree.

My Friends

I just want to say publically that I have the best friends!
As you know my dog went to surgery just last week (and is recovery nicely). Well the day he came home from the hospital, my grandfather (as quoted by the minister during his funeral) "keeled over and died" while bowling. He was 91 years old, lived a full life, and had just bowled a 215 perfect game. That bowling ball went with him to his grave.

Anyway - I needed to go to that funeral but really didn't want to put my poor dog back in the hospital to board.
Instead he received round the clock loving care from Tish and Cheryl and Susan and Deanna and Steve!
Thank you very, very much for making this trip easy for me. Merlin, as I knew he would be, was feeling great last night when I got home.

The Al Gore Effect

Reported to you via Scott. LOL

Great news for Pakistani Women

New rape laws to halt adultery charges for victims

A giant step forward.

General Musharraf made an appearance on state television and congratulated the nation on the passage of the Women's Protection Bill.

"This process of empowerment, protection of women will continue," he said.

Just when I'm getting ready to give up on that country.....

Bicycling

Great news for Landis! The French are sloppy.

In a letter sent to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency in September, Jacobs said the positive finding on the "B" sample came from a sample number not assigned to Landis.

"It's incredibly sloppy," Jacobs said at the time. "It has to make you wonder about the accuracy of the work."

Politics

Captain Ed notes the revolt happening within the Democratic party.

With her unexpected endorsement of John Murtha's challenge to Steny Hoyer and her demotion of Jane Harman on the Intelligence committee, Pelosi has made clear that her rule will find its basis on personal whim rather than any concern over the philosophical direction of the party:

The NYTimes recalls the first post-election hearing on Iraq. They noted Hillary's "Hope is not a strategy" without noting the response.

Abizaid shot back: “I would also say that despair is not a method.”

(from: Bloodthirstyliberal)

Marc Shulman has the best quote though.

The civil war among the Democrats will be a non-violent reflection of the sectarian violence in Iraq.

Good news for Iraq

Lieberman refuses to close door on switching parties. I believe in the military, I believe in the right we have done in Iraq, I believe we must not leave them to ruin, and I believe Senator Lieberman will do what is right no matter the cost to him when the stakes reach a certain point.

I suspect Iraq is that point. Knowing he may switch if necessary is a big relief to me.

Powerline found a good cartoon.

The Simpsons

Michelle Malkin isn't happy with the Simpson's version of humor as it concerns the military.

I saw that episode. Yes, there was the "message" there. 'The military is made up of idiots who can always be beaten by the locals.' It was also so filled with cliches as to be funny. Come on Michelle, we get to laugh at ourselves. The reason Islamists are so sensitive to "humor" is because they realize the truth of the matter and it makes them unhappy when its pointed out. Clearly the military in this country is not made out of losers. They are the best and brightest out there. And they are grunts too. It is a diverse group of people who do an awesome awesome job.

And yet, they are the military. They do go into people's homes searching for bad guys. And those people don't really like that.

Do I generally like the Simpson's? Not so much. I prefer Southpark or King of the Hill in my cartoons, but sheesh. Give it a rest. It's a cartoon, written, created, illustrated by a lefty I'm sure, but still it's a cartoon.

Global Warming

Due to multiple jumbo jets arriving in Nairobi for a summit on, you guessed it, global warming.

Blogger "discussion"

It sounds like John from Powerline and Captain Ed are discussing the importance of a Democrat response to Al-Qaeda's nyah, nyah. John is all for it, and Captain Ed is against it.
As any good moderate, I see both sides. But since the Dems have not responded, I'll go with the Captain Ed side but for different reasons.

Like Arafat, Al-qaeda wants respect and attention from us. Why give it to them? Why respond? We don't respect them. We know we can beat the living crap out of them when it comes down to it. It's only because we're the good guys and care about all that collateral damage stuff that they even still exist. If they want to think they won this US elections, who the hell cares?

Now is the time, not to "speak" but to "act". It is my hope that the Democrats in power will not want to lose Iraq or lose the war on terror. They have a big election coming up in 2 years. Imagine the results if we give up and go home only to find the war has come to us here. Hillary knows. And I'm sure there are others. I say, lets give them a chance to act like grown ups here before we start asking them to speak with Al-qaeda.

Iraq

Instapundit linked to this article for a second time so I thought I'd read it.
It basically talks about really doing what it takes to win the war by adding more troops to overwhelm the enemy. Which does work. But the point that isn't made in this article is we still have the situation where we want the Iraqis to take care of themselves. The mindset there is not necessarily that of the Europeans or the Japanese after WWII. We still have the middle eastern culture to deal with long term here so it may be possible that "doubling down" isn't the best idea in this case.

I believe that's what Rumsfield was trying to say. Yes, it may be time to try something new. I am not one to second guess those in charge of the military because I know squat, but this article people are pointing to is not very well rounded.
That, my friends is my 2 cents. And it's worth every penny!

Lebanon

Is going through some changes. Hezbollah and Amal announce they are quitting the government.

The resignations are widely viewed in Lebanon as an attempt to cause political paralysis in the country in order to force the government to agree to changes that would increase the Shiite parties' political power.

Keep an eye on this.
Or keep reading Michael J. Totten. He's bound to watch for us, so send him money.

Arab Bloggers

Finding freedom on the internet.

Though Persian Gulf countries routinely block access to sites that are pornographic, are run by dissidents or discuss terrorism or drugs, the blogosphere is difficult to police. Within hours, Yousif's blog was up again, at another location.

Freedom on the march eh?

The UN caves again

From what I can tell anyway. Jan Egeland met with Joseph Kony.

Mr Egeland earlier said it would only go ahead if rebels agreed to free abducted children and wounded people.

So I look - I don't see where those children and wounded have been freed. As a matter of fact, here is the lead out of Seattle:

RI-KWANGBA, Sudan -- The U.N.'s humanitarian chief met Sunday with a Ugandan rebel leader wanted for war crimes, traveling to a jungle clearing in southern Sudan in an attempt to free women and children enslaved by the insurgent group.

Let me know if you hear otherwise, but I think they went the route of appeasement, once again. Losers.

Veteran's Day

Thank you to all of you who have served, are serving or are going to serve!! May we always treat you well.
The Longmont paper had 3 or 4 articles today honoring veterans and in an hour I'll be going to the parade! I do like this town.

Watching a train wreck

The other day Michael J. Totten had an interesting exchange with a member of Hezbollah.
Today, Ric gives an a thoughtful response.

Happy Birthday to the Marine Corps!

Still More......

Charles Krauthammer has a good analysis today.

To muddy even more the supposed ideological significance of this election, consider who is the biggest winner of the night: Joe Lieberman. Just a few months ago he was scorned by his party and left for dead. Now he returns to the Senate as the Democrats' 51st seat -- and holder of the balance of power. From casualty to kingmaker in three months. Not bad. His Democratic colleagues who abandoned him this summer will now treat him very well.

Wouldn't it be cool, if he switched?
lol

I'm not sure if this NYTimes article had much to say, but it had a great quote regarding the election leaving Bush free to work with Dems.

"It could be the saving grace of his administration," said Kenneth M. Duberstein, chief of staff to President Ronald Reagan, "because it gives him an opportunity to demonstrate real presidential leadership that is inclusive, right of center but not far right of center, which is where the American people are."

Mark Steyn goes over his notes from before the election when he visited President Bush and Donald Rumsfield. It reads differently now.

Captain Ed notes the differences between the London Times report of how the troops reacted to hearing about Rumsfield's resignation and the NYTimes report. No surprises there. And both equally true. Some folks are involved and know what's going on in the world of politics and other people can't name the Vice President if their life depended on it. The interesting part is who the newspapers wanted to quote.
Personally, I loved Rumsfield. But I understand his resignation. The Republicans lost. It's important to admit that and try to work with the other side. Rumsfield is a huge bone to throw to the Pelosi/Reid team. I don't read this as a sign that we will be leaving Iraq by July like I've heard people say. Instead I read it as a sign that we are in a new phase. And frankly, we are and have been. This last little 30 mile radii of trouble in Iraq needs to be taken care of some way or another. And Bush is still the commander in chief. I'm not going to worry yet. It's because of him I voted straight GOP in spite of the fact that I can't stand my representative. (and by the way - she won and I'm stuck with her and without a GOP victory. Therein lies my bit of bitterness. lol)

Captain Ed is also suggesting Michael Steele for head of the RNC. That would be great. I read something yesterday about how he was basically finished and "don't look for him in the future". Personally I thought "bullshit". This guy is good. And he's smart. And he's handsome. He's going somewhere.

Another election observation

Talk radio is all over the thought that "Republicans lost because they betrayed the conservative agenda". I think they need to remember something else.

Voters came out in droves this year. Democrats were tired of losing past elections and are starting to realize that every vote counts. Karl Rove taught them that one. And it's a good one to learn.

Now, even if Republicans go back to conservativism, they will still need to get more voters out than Dems. That will probably happen because it will be the Republicans that are mad next time and the Democrats will be complacent, but my recommendation to those in charge is, don't go too far into fairyland thinking that this country isn't basically 1/2 and 1/2.

ps - I've been out of the blogging action to any extent lately but the good news is the dog is coming home tonight from the hospital! (hence his pic)

Election Reflection

Well - it happened. It wasn't a surprise, but that glimmer of hope has gone out. (you know - that hope that said "Wait, they've just called it with only 1% of the returns in!")
(That's a true story by the way. There were people standing in line still in Denver, 1% of the returns in, and those were just the mail-in ballots, and the networks were calling the Governors race for Ritter. Amazing)

A sincere congratulations to the Democrats. We knew people were angry.

Here's the beautiful part: We don't have to listen to the whining about "stealing" the election for the next 2 years! Republicans will gather up their stuff, move on and continue to work at governing. Democrats have stomped their feet, whined and worked at looking pathetic for the last 2 years. Now they have some power.

May they please, dear Lord, not abandon Iraq. (Thank you George Bush - I trust you won't!)
I can handle increases in taxes, a screwed up economy, even the abandonment of the patriot act and medicare part D. But don't lose Iraq. They need us there for a bit longer. And the world needs to know that we can be counted on. I know Bush can be. Let Congress stand up and say the same.

The US isn't going to the crapper because of this election. As a matter of fact, who among my readers doesn't now have some hope that it will clearly be a GOP win for the presidency in 2008? That's right.

We know those Dems don't have any ideas. We know we American people don't like to go too long with one party in that position. And we know the GOP was starting to take it's position of power for granted. Had they continued with the house until then, in 2008 the presidency would have gone to the left. Now....... Hey, lookee here, that glimmer is back!!

Election Day

Won't we all be glad to not have to listen to the ads for a bit? Or clear out our answering machines?
Go, Vote.

In Iraq, freedom IS on the march.
Iraq the Model notes today that the Interior Ministry there has charged 57 people with torture. These are people not of Saddam's regime. This is the first time there have been charges brought down on current members of the security force. And this is progress.

Building rule of law is much more of a difficult task than breaking the law is and the transformation from jungle law to civil law requires patience and determination.
What makes me feel good about this is that we're now moving to prosecute the criminals of the present just like we prosecuted the criminals of the past.

Gangs and militias are stronger today than they were three years ago and the same can be said about the legitimate foundations and institutions of the state, even more, the latter are growing stronger at a faster rate even though that might not be so visible.
Anyways, I think if law-enforcement apparatus, judicial and military alike, are allowed to retain the momentum, then maybe in a year we will be discussing al-Sadr and al-Dhari verdicts.

I tell you, it warms my heart to see it. And I once again thank God for George W. Bush.

Now Go, Vote, and vote GOP!

Fire at Gatorland

Gatorland is the best themepark I've ever been to and I recommend you go waaay before you buy your tickets to Epcot or Disneyworld.
There was a fire there yesterday, but it's going to be ok.

If you have not been to Gatorland, you have not been to Florida. And it's not just the leapin' lizards. It's the gator wrasslin', the moms snapping photos of their kids sitting on the back of a live gator, the antiquated train ride, the goofy Bubbas and their corn-pone jokes. It's so unpolished, so laid-back, so un-Disney.

Gatorland is a time capsule from a better time. So please go when the doors open again to ensure it rises from the ashes.

Awesome Post

By Proteus

So perhaps we could take a walk through Fantasy Island armed only with a shotgun of logic and a few fact-filled shells and see what intellectual tumors we may safely blow into atoms. Time is short! So let’s start with the easy stuff and work our way up to the Lord God King Mack-Daddy falsehood of our age.

It's long, so get your coffee. (ht Op-For)

John Kerry: elitist snob, not "military man or war hero"

(Coastwatcher is back for another guest blog!)
When I first heard of Senator Kerry, I was impressed with his service in Vietnam. Ever since "reporting for duty" as a candidate and wrapping himself in his military service, the liberal mainstream media lionized him as a "war hero" especially Chris Matthews. Was his service honorable and admirable in Vietnam, yes.

But look at these photos and you'll see a man of privilege, obviously enamored with a youthful President from Massachusetts who himself was considered a "war hero" for his service in WWII commanding PT Boat 109. I absolutely believe John Kerry intended to go to Vietnam, burnish his credentials as JFK did, in the most similar duty: skipper of a small craft, in his case, on a Swift Boat. He used a loophole to come home early (three Purple hearts) and when the antiwar movement gained traction, hitched his star to that. His quotes through the years are all over the net (Genghis Khan, in Iraq terrorizing women, etc.) I won't repeat them here. He has had disdain and disgust for real military members ever since trying to lead a ragtag group of antiwar veterans and Hippies from the so called Winter Soldier period in the early 70's.

His latest comment speaks to his entire lifetime of privilege, of money, of his Ivy League education. That those in the military are disgusted by him should come as no shock. That he is a leader and was a nominee for President from what was once a proud Democratic Party is sad.

I think this has effectively ended ANY hope for John Kerry to be President.

Austin Bay has much more and spot on.


Kerry yachting with President Kennedy



JK on board the USS Joseph Kennedy with President Kennedy watching the America's Cup race.


John Kerry disgracing his service with long hair and improperly worn uniform testifying to the Senate. Could you ever imagine a veteran today dishonoring his uniform in front of the Senate?



My Election Day predictions:



Senate: Republicans hold by 3 seats.



House of Representatives: Republicans by 1 seat



Coastwatcher out.

Time

I seem to have lost track of it. So more "quicklinks" today....

The Jawa Report, because it's hilarious.

Michael J. Totten on the goings on in Lebanon.

OPFOR on why he voted GOP this time.

More Reasons to Vote GOP

From a Democrat

Another Great Photo

Courtesy of John Kerry.

It's a Good Day

Saddam is convicted.
(Mohommed's reactions)
(Tim Blair notes, the "invitation to leave" given to Saddam's American attorney's!)

And in Venezuela 100,000 of thousands take to the streets in support of Manuel Rosales!

Forgetting how the Middle East Used to be

Victor Davis Hanson makes so many good points, I'm just going to say "read it". A small taste of a clear point:

Yes, the Middle East is “unstable,” but for the first time in memory, the usual killing, genocide, and terrorism are occurring in a scenario that offers some chance at something better. Long before we arrived in Iraq, the Assads were murdering thousands in Hama, the Husseins were gassing Kurds, and the Lebanese militias were murdering civilians. The violence is not what has changed, but rather the notion that the United States can do nothing about it; the U.S. has shown itself willing to risk much to support freedom in place of tyranny or theocracy in the region.

2002 News: Nukes in Iraq in a Year!

Hey, the rest of the newspapers aren't covering this HUGE disclosure by the NYtimes, so I might as well keep reminding you all!
Cripes, it's not even on Drudge anymore. Isn't the pattern, 1 big newpaper breaks the story and the rest follow up? I see zilcho out there today.

Instead front page headlines are about the accused Evangelical Preacher I've never heard of maybe having sex with a male prositute. Why is that election news? Does it wipe out all Christian thought because, horrors, one prominent Christian might actually be a sinner?? Sheesh. Give me some news please, newspapers.

The Anchoress agrees.

People are good

Sometimes you get so sick of people, it's nice to read a "good" story about us now and then. This one recounts a rescue effort to save a bunch of horse stranded on a small knoll in the middle of flood waters.

There are plenty of such stories out there, if we look, making this scenario of a world without people pretty darn sad. People do amazing things that animals never would so thinking that "wild and natural" is the way to go is really kind of cruel. Do you really think your pack of dogs would allow you and your myopia to survive in the lovely wilds? What about that mildly retarded neighbor? Or the cleft lip kid? Even those horses above. You don't actually see the other horses volunteering for this stint to go save them.
Nature is cruel. It seems silly to forget it.

UPDATE: Just when I think I actually have an original post, Matt Drudge steals my thunder. And he's got a picture

Letter from the NYTimes

Dear US Govt.,
We just found out that you yourselves have posted ultra super secret information on the internet. We request that you cease and disist. This job is only for us to do.
Yes, we realize that for 7months now we have given this website no attention since it was requested by (shudder) Conservatives. But now that we it's come out that the information could have possibly helped insurgents/terrorists/Iran, we must insist that credit go to us.
Thank you for immediately removing the material. We will post in in our newspaper later.
Sincerly
The NYTimes

“For the U.S. to toss a match into this flammable area is very irresponsible,” said A. Bryan Siebert, a former director of classification at the federal Department of Energy, which runs the nation’s nuclear arms program. “There’s a lot of things about nuclear weapons that are secret and should remain so.”

The government had received earlier warnings about the contents of the Web site. Last spring, after the site began posting old Iraqi documents about chemical weapons, United Nations arms-control officials in New York won the withdrawal of a report that gave information on how to make tabun and sarin, nerve agents that kill by causing respiratory failure.

"There's a lot of things about nuclear weapons that are secret and should remain so." Does that mean it was "right" to oust Saddam in order to get these papers? I'm so confused!

UPDATE Captain Ed has helped my confusion!

The Times has just authenticated the entire collection of memos, some of which give very detailed accounts of Iraqi ties to terrorist organizations.

He has more.

UPDATE AGAIN Jim Geraghty has a great account of this too. Many bloggers are wondering why the govt caved and removed the documents last night. I say, "Mission Accomplished". The mission? Get the MSM to realize that Saddam realy WAS a threat! Every time a new document went up, someone probably was saying "This one ought to do it." wait, wait, wait. Nada. "Ok, well, this one really should do it." etc.etc.

From the mouths of Jihadists

Vote Democrat!
Rove has a lot of cards up his sleeve doesn't he? Iran testing long range missiles, Kerry's "joke" and now

In a recent interview with CBS's "60 Minutes," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, stated, "The jihadists (are) in Iraq. But that doesn't mean we stay there. They'll stay there as long as we're there."

Pelosi would become House speaker if the Democrats win the majority of seats in next week's elections.

WND read Pelosi's remarks to the terror leaders, who unanimously rejected her contention an American withdrawal would end the insurgency.

Islamic Jihad's Saadi, laughing, stated, "There is no chance that the resistance will stop."

He said an American withdrawal from Iraq would "prove the resistance is the most important tool and that this tool works. The victory of the Iraqi revolution will mark an important step in the history of the region and in the attitude regarding the United States."

Jihad Jaara said an American withdrawal would "mark the beginning of the collapse of this tyrant empire (America)."

"Therefore, a victory in Iraq would be a greater defeat for America than in Vietnam."

Read it all!

Quick links today

Captain Ed notes Egytian unhappiness with Iranian involvement of the Palestinian/Israeli prisoner exchange.

Varifrank has yet another compelling reason to vote GOP.

Freedom

Another word for doing idiotic things as a result of politics! PM Maliki has asked the US/Iraqi Army to stop the blockade of Sadr City and he sounds surprised that his request carried any clout. I suspect his handlers said he had to make the request to keep his position but he never expected it to really happen.
From a person living there:

"Who is the Mahdi Army to decide the future of my daughter and stop the movement of life in the country? Does the government have no power?" demanded Duniya Hilmi, 34, a city government worker whose daughter had been sent home from school by the Mahdi Army on Tuesday.

The Mahdi Army called a general strike in the city to pressure Maliki to oust the Americans. Did the citizens do so? Sure. After being threatened by these lowlifes.

The militiamen stopped one worker, Sameer Kadhumi, as he walked to his job at the Culture Ministry. "They told me not to go to work, otherwise I will be in trouble," Kadhumi said.

Yes the Mahdi Army is cashing in their chits with Mr. Maliki. And guess what, he's free to do this. Yes - that's how liberty works. Mr. Kadhumi actually chose to fake running an errand and made his way to work only to find the business closed. Good for Mr. Kadhumi.
This is what continues to give me hope about Iraq. Iraqis just want to live normal lives without threats. They want to go to work. The more they see that they have the freedom to choose what kind of govt they will live under, the better off they will be.

Kerry: because it's required of bloggers today!

What a doof.
Let's start with the MSM. The BBC works to get the actual story while the NYTimes works to switch it out.
BBC heading: 'Kerry under fire for Iraq 'joke''
What follows is a story of the incident.

NYTimes heading: 'As Vote Nears, Stances on War Set Off Sparks'
What follows is a commentary about Iraq. On page 2 you finally get the famous quote from Kerry. This was my favorite part though. In a 2 page story there are maybe 4 paragraphs on the "botched joke" and then read the transition.

But Charles Huang, 19, a sophomore who described himself as one of the few conservatives at the college, said he was offended by the comment and thought Mr. Kerry did owe American troops an apology.

“I was kind of offended that someone would say that,” Mr. Huang said. “I think he was trying to crack a joke, but it was inappropriate.”

The contrast of Republican candidates distancing themselves from the White House even as Mr. Bush defended his policy again on Tuesday — “We will fight in Iraq and we will win in Iraq,” he said to cheers in Georgia — reflects what Republican Party officials said was a pragmatic message they were sending to candidates: do whatever it takes to win.

That's some smooth writing there.
I would be ROFL if it was funny vs tragically ridiculous!

Move on to the the question of the day. If this were a "botched joke", then can someone ask Mr. Kerry once again about Bush being a Yale graduate with better grades than John Kerry? If this is a "botched joke", then it just goes to prove that studying hard and working hard at school work means diddly do. Who wrote such a stupid joke? And where is the "inspire the kids" moment in this?

That's right. No one did. Because calling this a botched joke is spun so tight anyone can see it.

Varifrank has reason number 9 to vote Republican.
Scrappleface has branched out into video with a presentation of the term "Kerry Smart" vs just smart.

Zawahiri

Last time I left, I come back to find Zarqawi dead and gone. This time is it Zawahiri?

At a security seminar Tuesday in Islamabad, Musharraf said the targeted compound was being monitored for the last several days and that militants had been training there.

''We knew what they were doing,'' he said. ''There were no innocent people inside the compound and anyone saying otherwise is telling lies. ... Those killed were militants using weapons.''

A security official said al-Qaida's No. 2, Ayman al-Zawahri, and the alleged mastermind of the London airline bomb plot busted in August, Egyptian al-Qaida operative Abu Ubaida, had both visited the religious school several times, but they weren't there at the time of Monday's attack.

If so, I'm going to leave again!