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August 31, 2007
Teamsters To Try To Block Mexican Trucks
Teamsters to try to block Mexican trucks
yahooonews (AP)
WASHINGTON
The Teamsters Union said Wednesday it will ask a federal appeals courts to block the Bush administration's plan to begin allowing Mexican trucks to carry cargo anywhere in the United States.
The union said it has been told by officials in the Transportation Department's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration that the first Mexican trucks will be coming across the border on Saturday.
Teamsters leaders said they planned to seek an emergency injunction Wednesday from the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco.
"What a slap in the face to American workers, opening the highways to dangerous trucks on Labor Day weekend, one of the busiest driving weekends of the year," said Teamsters President Jim Hoffa.
Joining the Teamsters in seeking the emergency stay were the Sierra Club and Public Citizen. "Before providing unconditional access throughout the country to tens of thousands of big rigs we know little to nothing about, we must insure they meet safety and environmental standards," Sierra Club executive director Carl Pope said.
A call to a spokeswoman at the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration was not immediately returned.
The Bush administration said last week it would start the cross-border program once the Transportation Department's inspector general certifies safety and inspection plans.
Leslie Miller, a Teamsters spokeswoman, said attorneys for the federal truck safety agency advised the union's lawyers that they expect to get that certification on Friday. She said the Teamsters also were told by the agency attorneys that limited authority for trucks to begin crossing the border will be approved Saturday.
Supporters of the plan say letting more Mexican trucks on U.S. highways will save American consumers hundreds of millions of dollars.
Labor and driver-owner groups have been fighting the measure — part of the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement — since it was first proposed, saying the program will erode highway safety and eliminate U.S. jobs.
A one-year demonstration project would allow 100 Mexican motor carriers full access to U.S. roads. It can begin as soon as the inspector general certifies that safety and inspection plans and facilities are sufficient to ensure the Mexican trucks are as safe as U.S. trucks.
Since 1982, Mexican trucks have had to stop within a buffer border zone and transfer their loads to U.S. trucks.
Wild Thing's comment........
“Sierra Club”
Will wonders never cease.
Because Bush is insisting on this happening, Rep. Duncan Hunter had a bill requiring all Mexican transport vehicles to adhere to the same rules and regulations as Domestic transport vehicles on American Highways. Does anyone know what happened to that bill?
It would have made our highways safer for American pedestrians and motorists. It would have curbed drug running. It would have greatly diminished illegal alien smuggling. I thought it should have had a clause calling for inspections at the border as well.
I wonder how many trucks will be half full of illegals stowed away behind a stack of cargo?
From Bush remarks from July 2001:
"It is wrong for the Congress to discriminate against Mexican trucks, and I urge the Senate to reject an amendment to the transportation bill that would clearly discriminate against Mexican truckers. Our Mexican counterparts and friends need to be treated just like the Canadians are treated. We ought to... We ought to, you know, accept the spirit of NAFTA. And so whether it be people or trucks or businesses, I solidly reject discrimination against people who are here of all origins, particularly Mexico."
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (19)
London Newspaper Editor Prays for Iranian Nuclear Attack on Israel
London Newspaper Editor Prays for Iranian Nuclear Attack on Israel
Jerusalem Post .....for complete article
The editor of an Arabic daily newspaper published in London said in an interview on Lebanese television that he would dance in Trafalgar Square if Iranian missiles hit Israel.
Talking about Iran's nuclear capability on ANB Lebanese television on June 27, Abd Al-Bari Atwan, editor-in-chief of Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper, said, "If the Iranian missiles strike Israel, by Allah, I will go to Trafalgar Square and dance with delight."
In the interview, Bari Atwan was asked if he thought there is a process of détente [vis-à-vis Iran] and an American-Iranian inclination to reach a deal on Iran's nuclear ambitions.
"If there is a deal, it will be at the expense of the Arabs and if there is a war, it will also be at the expense of the Arabs," he responded. "I'm sad to say that we have no backbone now. If Iran reaches a deal with the Americans, what will be the bottom line? That Iran will have a nuclear program, and even if it does not manufacture nuclear weapons in the next 5-10 years, it will do so later."
Wild Thing's comment........
ALL Muslims “inciting to riot or war” should be forcefully evicted, deported or worse.....from their “host nations”. Can you imagine the riots, the violence, the calls for charging the editor with hate crimes or incitement to violence that there’d be if a Jewish newspaper editor said the same thing about Teheran or the Iranian nuke sites being nuked?
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (10)
Iowa Judge Says Marriage Not Just Man, Woman
Iowa Judge Says Marriage Not Just Man, Woman
local6.com
DES MOINES, Iowa
A Polk County judge has struck down Iowa's law preserving marriage for only a man and a woman. He ordered the county recorder's office to issue marriage licenses to gay couples.
Six gay and lesbian couples went to court for the right to legally marry in Iowa.
Lamda Legal filed a lawsuit in 2005 on behalf of the couples in Iowa, saying they deserve equal protection under the law.
Des Moines laywer Dennis Johnson represented six gay couples who filed the lawsuit after they were denied marriage licenses, and he says Hanson's ruling is a moral victory for equal rights.
Judge Robert B. Hanson ruled that couples cannot be denied licenses to marry or marriage certificates or "in any other way be prevented from entering into civil marriage pursuant to Iowa Code Chapter 595 by reason of the fact that both persons comprising such as couple are of the same sex."
The county is expected to appeal the ruling to the Iowa Supreme Court.
"Today's civil-rights ruling by Judge Robert Hanson is another step in what is expected to be a lengthy legal process. The prudent approach would be for the Legislature to await an expected appeal and subsequent ruling by the Iowa Supreme Court before taking any steps in reaction to this decision," said Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal in a statement.
Wild Thing's comment........
Well here is another radical judge! Good grief!! Better WAKE up Iowa!
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:45 AM | Comments (14)
August 30, 2007
Soldiers Buying Bread in Baghdad ~ This is GREAT!
"We all starting to crave the Iraqi bread called "Samoon" during our deployment. A lot of times while we were out on mission, instead of eating MRE's we would stop and buy some off the local vendors to stave off our hunger until we got back to base. Also in this video my good friend Brum gets the Iraq kids involved in American politics lol..."
Wild Thing's comment.........
They fight, they serve, they make sacrifices every day for all of us, and for our country. They risk their lives, and also endure horrible hot weather wearing 80 pounds of equipment, and freezing cold in the winter months. And they make these awesome video's that we can watch and get a glimpse of being there with them.
Our troops totally ROCK!
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (16)
Castro: Hillary Will Win
Castro: Hillary Will Win NY Post ....for complete article
Hillary Rodham Clinton got a boost yesterday from an unwanted source - Fidel Castro.
A column purportedly written by the badly ailing Cuban dictator said that Clinton would likely win the presidency in 2008, with Barack Obama as her running mate.
"The word today is that an apparently unbeatable ticket could be Hillary for president and Obama as her running mate," Castro wrote in a piece about U.S. presidents published by the Communist Party newspaper Granma.
Meanwhile, Castro offered a favorable assessment of only one of the 10 men who have been president during his regime - Jimmy Carter.
"I only knew one who, for ethical-religious reasons, was not complicit to the brutal terrorism against Cuba: James Carter," the essay read.
Wild Thing's comment........
The GOP couldn’t buy better PR.....LOL And to think, Castro almost died again the other day. heh heh He has turned NOT dying into a third world art. hahaha
Her first endorsement. She must be so thrilled. Since Castro will be dead by then, he can vote for her. Democrat party has a history of dead people voting so a dead Castor is par for the course.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (12)
Tankity Tank Tank Tank ~ Lovin it!
M-1 Abrams Music Video...song is titled..."I'VE GOT DAH POWAH!"
.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:45 AM | Comments (6)
August 29, 2007
Ahmanutjob Giving Us The “neener-neener-neener"
US attack on Iran 'impossible'
Times of India
TEHRAN: President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Tuesday dismissed the chance of a US attack against Iran as impossible, saying that Washington already had enough trouble in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"There is in no way the possibility of such an attack by the United States. Even if they take such a decision they cannot implement it," he told a news conference. "They have to solve the question of Iraq and Afghanistan."
"Politicians do not deal with imaginary things. They deal with reality and this is propaganda. This (an attack) is not
on the agenda of US officials and it cannot be," he said.
The White House has never ruled out attacking Iran, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Monday that Iran risked being bombarded if the crisis over its atomic programme was not solved.
Wild Thing's comment........
Well, duh. Unless Iran does something stupid. Which, unfortunately, they might. Yeah. It’s absolutely impossible for a pilot to launch from his carrier, cruise a couple of hours max, and drop one down right on the head of Ahmadinejad.
Do you feel lucky PUNK? Well do you punk? ...<<<<<
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM
| Comments (12)
The television commercials that Freedom's Watch has produced, featuring veterans and their families, that urge Congress and the public to continue supporting the Iraq war. The commercials are well done, and convey the simple message that the Iraq war is important and winnable, and that we should allow our troops to see the mission through. The ads are appearing in the context of a blizzard of anti-war ads by left-wing groups, intended to pressure Senators and Congressmen into pulling the plug on the Iraq effort. Given your recent history of airing such ads (see below), we must wonder if your denial to FW is a subjective decision because the network officials disagree with the FW ads’ message? If you continue to refuse to air FW’s advertisement we request an explanation of your basis in writing or station policy within two (2) days from the date above as time is of the essence. FW has requested time on your networks to air advertisements discussing the War Against Terrorism. Your reporters and commentators discuss this issue on your programs at every hour of the day so you clearly agree this is an issue of great public importance. FW’s advertisements, to be sure, present a view of this debate that rounds out your coverage. These ads feature Iraq War Veterans and their families discussing their sacrifices in personal terms and their belief that we must allow the military time to complete its mission in Iraq and seek victory. This is a side of this issue that should not be silenced by national cable networks. We believe that rather than censor these American heroes, you should let the American public hear their story. As noted above, it’s troubling that the Networks appear to be airing messages on issues on a selective basis. Our research indicates that your network has accepted and aired advertisements dealing with controversial issues of national importance in the recent past. For example, the Networks aired an advertisement entitled “Shameless Politicians” sponsored by Move America Forward regarding the war on terror in October 2004. In November 2006, the Networks aired advertisements sponsored by the American Medical Association entitled “Patient Voice” concerning the controversial issue of access to health care and coverage for the uninsured. During July 2007, the Networks aired advertisements sponsored by the Save Darfur Coalition. Your history of airing other issue advocacy advertisements makes the denial of FW advertisements troubling and raises the issue of whether your denial is based on an editorial disagreement with FW's message. These ads are about important issues that will shape our national security policies for years to come. These ads present a point of view that your viewers are not now receiving. Very Truly Yours, Wild Thing's comment........ To a Commie-Vampire, the American Flag is like the cross, they shrink in the face of it. The political face of NBC is Keith Olbermann. An email I got from a friend that goes to a lot of boards online said the comments on the NBC board-they are overwhelmingly disgusted with NBC for putting that panty-waist Nazi Olbermann in the pre-season line-up. Any network that will not run these ads hates America as far as I am concerned, and they will never convine me otherwise.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM
| Comments (7)
MSNBC, CNBC Refuse to Run Pro-War Ads
MSNBC, CNBC Refuse to Run Pro-War Ads
Freedom's Watch has placed its ads on Fox and CNN, but CNBC and MSNBC have refused to run the ads. Ari Fleischer wrote this morning on behalf of Freedom's Watch to let us know that CNBC and MSNBC have stubbornly refused to air the pro-war ads, even though they have run issue ads on other controversial topics. Freedom's Watch has written to CNBC and MSNBC to protest their decision; here is the text of that letter:
John Kelly
Senior Vice-President of NBC News Network Sales
30 Rockefeller Plaza
12th Floor
New York, NY 10112Dear Mr. Kelly,
We understand that MSNBC and CNBC (the “Networks”) are refusing to sell advertising time to Freedom’s Watch (“FW”) to air a series of educational advertisements. It is our understanding that the purported basis for the denial is a Network policy denying access to groups that wish to sponsor advertising on controversial issues of public importance.
Your viewers deserve to hear all sides of this issue so that they can make informed judgments about the future of their country.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this request. Please respond to me through Larry Weitzner at Jamestown Associates.
Bradley A. Blakeman
President and CEO
Shinedown on a USO Tour To Thank Our Troops
Video footage of Shinedown on a USO tour!
From two of our troops......"I know no members of shinedown will see this but they should know, every soldier, sailor, airmen and marine that saw them in Iraq has more respect for them than any performer that didn't have the balls to visit. I literally bought their CD and started listening to them right after I saw them in Al Asad"
"I was in that crown in Fallujah, Iraq. It was a bad ass show. For two hours it made be forget about all the shooting and killing. More bands and people need to be like Shinedown. I appreciated them coming to Iraq to give us a break from war. Thank you Shinedown. Semper Fi!"
Wild Thing's comment........
This band also played a soldier only show out in Ft. Bliss, TX .
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:45 AM | Comments (5)
August 28, 2007
Lima Company 3/1 turns routine patrol into payday
Lima Company 3/1 turns routine patrol into payday
NEAR KARMAH, Iraq
August 25, 2007
Using the term “Motivating Marine Corps day” in the morning is usually an indicator of sarcastic optimism throughout the ranks. Generally speaking, “motivating” can mean tired, frustrated and dirty. Rarely is the term prophetic.
Today, however, what began as a standard counterinsurgency patrol in Al Anbar Province turned into a truly motivating day as Marines from Lima Company, Battalion Landing Team, 3rd Battalion 1st Marines uprooted several large weapons caches, Homemade Explosives (HME) and a Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device factory.
Canvassing the remote desert region near Combat Outpost Chicago, Weapons Platoon Marines swept several routes and fields before a local citizen tipped them off and pointed them toward suspicious sites in the area.
Conducting a search based on this lead, Marines discovered numerous weapons, including a mortar tube, hundreds of automatic weapons rounds (of varying caliber and munitions type), a Simonov SKS rifle and American-made flares.
The citizen then escorted Marines to two buried containers, both filled to the brim with enemy “accelerants,” including a Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) launcher with several rounds and boosters, a 14.5mm anti-aircraft weapon with seven receivers, grenades, mortars, rifle magazines, primers and IED trigger mechanisms.
Continuing the search in close proximity to the buried containers, a house, identified as a car bomb factory, contained evidence of a massive HME-mixing operation, including tarps, several pair of rubber boots and a children’s swimming pool (used as a mixing vat).
Personnel from Combat Logistics Battalion 13’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal section destroyed the caches after site exploitation was complete.
Successful days like today are becoming surprisingly routine. As BLT 3/1 continues counterinsurgency operations here, willing locals are frequently offering up information on insurgent activity and weapons cache sites. The constant accomplishment is causing some Marines to make confident, early morning predictions of success.
“I woke up this morning, and I just knew it was going to be a ‘motivating Marine Corps day,’” said Lance Cpl. Randy Cantrall, a native of Peoria, Ariz. “And it was. It was beautiful.”
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (6)
New York Islamist Day Parade ~ Grand Marshall Keith Ellison
New York Islamist Day Parade
Frontpage ....for complete article
On September 9, 2007, a pre-9/11 celebration of sorts will be taking place in New York City, as Islamists from across the Tri-State area will congregate there for the 22nd Annual Muslim Day Parade. If past parades are any indication, law enforcement will need to be on high alert, as the participants have been amongst the most radical in the nation. Will the city allow this denigration of a very somber day to take place, or will it remember its many victims of terrorism and shut it down?
The Grand Marshal for the 2006 parade was Siraj Wahhaj, a Brooklyn imam who is known for his fiery speeches, including those that have been considered threatening to the United States. In February of 1995, Wahhaj was named – along with such people as Osama bin Laden and bin Laden’s mentor, Abdullah Azzam – as a potential co-conspirator to the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center.
Another Grand Marshal of a past parade was Muzzamil Siddiqi, the former President of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), a mosque umbrella organization that was recently named a co-conspirator to the financing of millions of dollars to Hamas. Siddiqi, like Wahhaj, has also verbally threatened the United States, stating in October of 2000, “America has to learn. If you remain on the side of injustice, the wrath of G-d will come.”
The fact that this parade is taking place so close to Ground Zero is an insult to the memory of the 3,000 people who perished there six years before. The event should be taken as a threat to public safety and, therefore, it is incumbent on the city of New York to not only watch all of those involved, but to work to shut down the event completely, along with the sponsoring organizations.
Wild Thing's comment........
How about a Pork BBQ stand at a muslim parade and bacon bits for confetti.
I wonder if one day, who knows when, the public will finally be outraged at how easily we have turned our country over to Islam. So far the outrage only happens in spurts and dies out quickly.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (17)
Ron Paul Wants $8,000,000.00 To Market Wild American Shrimp
It's in a subscribers only link at the Wall Street Journal. The Congressman wants $8,000,000.00 to pay for marketing of wild American shrimp and $2.3 million to fund research into shrimp-fishing.
These are but two of the Congressman's 65 earmarks sought thus far this year to the tune of $400,000,000.00.
Wild Thing's comment........
Thank you Gunnery Sgt.Benton for sending this to me.
What the heck are wild American Shrimp? LOL Oh maybe it's Shrimp that practice an immoral lifestyle. Much tastier than decent American shrimp.
So Ron Paul supports taxpayer dollars for the shrimping business, but not for our troops in Iraq, heh?
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:45 AM | Comments (11)
How Marines Pulled Fallujah Out Of Hell
How Marines Pulled Fallujah Out Of Hell
August 27, 2007
NY Post ....for complete article
FALLUJAH, Iraq
Fallujah and the Marines have some history. In 2004, one savage battle ended when the Marines were pulled out for political reasons. Later that year, they had to finish the job.
And they did. They took down the terrorists' stronghold in a week of fury.
With a fundamentalist tradition, Fallujah seemed to fit al Qaeda perfectly. Robbed of their Saddam-era privileges and out for revenge, even secular locals had aligned with the terrorists. Despite the Marine victory, violence simmered on.
The extremists and insurgents believed they could wear America down. But between 2004 and 2007, two things happened: We wore them down - and al Qaeda wore them out.
With foreign fanatics butchering the innocent and enforcing prison-yard "Islamic laws" that far exceeded the Koran's demands, it belatedly dawned on the insurgents that, while we intended to leave eventually - on our own terms - al Qaeda meant to stay.
A wave of suicide bombings earlier this year, culminating in a massive attack on a funeral procession, made the population snap. The people of Fallujah may never love us, but they hate al Qaeda with the rage of a betrayed lover.
Since May, the change has been stunning. When the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marines were last in Fallujah, in 2006, they took casualties from snipers and roadside bombs. The city was violent, bankrupt and partly in ruins.
Now the battalion's back. And welcome. Marines banter with the locals where, six months ago, it was risky to ride in an armored vehicle.
Paradoxically, the violence of the past set the only possible conditions for the sudden reconciliation. The Iraqis had to grasp that we meant business. Now the 1st Platoon of the battalion's Fox Company lives and works in the Hadari Precinct with the Iraqi police.
The new police are recruited from vetted locals, and the policy has paid huge dividends. The locals know who doesn't fit, and they've got an immediate interest in their neighborhood's safety. Most encouragingly, the reformed police are popular.
Fallujah still isn't a place to buy retirement property, but it was encouraging to sit down with 1st Platoon's commander, 2nd Lt. Nick DeLonga, and his Iraqi counterpart, 1st Lt. Mohammed.
We went for a stroll in the streets. The Marines still wear full combat gear: Despite security measures, a sniper might still sneak into the city. But there was no threat from the locals in the market. The worst mood the Marines encountered was aloofness. More often, they were welcomed with a polite greeting.
People are relieved that their streets are safe again. And the kids are out in regiments, surrounding the Marines in hope of candy or just a bit of attention.
"Crash," is a Basra-born interpreter (a "terp") who, more than anything else in the world, wants to become a U.S. Marine. He lives and works with the Marines, studies their rituals, works out with them - and carries himself like a Marine. Crash also carries a weapon for self-defense - a right he earned after pulling wounded Marines to safety in combat.
"His" Marines are doing all they can to help him enlist.
And the locals are out in front of us in the fight against al Qaeda. Which is a big thing.
In a "swarm," identification cards are provided to all, beginning with the local movers and shakers. Volunteers are vetted to join the police or armed neighborhood-watch groups. And revitalization programs go into gear.
Capt. Mason Harlow, the Fox Company commander, was wounded by shrapnel two years ago. In Fallujah. Now he's back, overseeing the Hadari District and two others. His Marines haven't been attacked for months. And his former enemies are doing his work for him.
Capt. Harlow didn't think he'd live to see the day.
Wild Thing's comment........
The lefties must truly hate stories like this. In your face Dems, and God bless our Marines and also Army Task Force 2-2 Infantry and Task Force 2-7 that fought in Fallujah.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:40 AM | Comments (2)
August 27, 2007
Hugo Chaves To Buy 5,000 Russian Sniper Rifles
Hey Hugo!
Venezuela to buy 5,000 Russian sniper rifles
CARACAS (Reuters)
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Sunday said he plans to buy 5,000 Dragunov sniper rifles from Russia to protect the oil-rich nation from a possible U.S. invasion.
The self-styled socialist revolutionary and open critic of Washington has bolstered the OPEC nation's weaponry by buying planes, helicopters and assault rifles from Russia to prepare for a guerrilla-style resistance to a foreign invader.
"I'm going to buy 5,000 Dragunov rifles from Russia ... with telescopic sight, the best in the world, with infrared night-view," Chavez said during his weekly Sunday broadcast held on a beach along Venezuela's eastern coast.
"We will knock out any imperialist that approaches."
The United States has cut arms sales to Venezuela and blocked several attempts by Chavez to acquire military aircraft technology on the grounds that Venezuela has not adequately explained why it needs the equipment.
U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Hemispheric Affairs Stephen Johnson said during a recent visit to Colombia that countries in the region should be concerned about Venezuela's multi-billion dollar weapons purchases.
Venezuela last year purchased 24 Sukhoi fighters jets and 100,000 Kalashnikov AK-103 assault rifles from Russia, and is currently negotiating the purchase of submarines.
Wild Thing's comment........
Hey Hugo, are Dragunov’s effective against cruise missiles? Another looney dictator headed for big trouble. My guess is the real target of those sniper rifles will be his fellow countrymen who oppose him. Buying lots of hardware is one thing. Having the expertise to deploy that hardware effectively is quite another. The fool has to keep blaming someone for his incompetence as the country goes into ruin because of socialism.
Note to Hugo: You’ll need at least 5000 sniper rifles to deal with us. We only need one... to deal with you.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (13)
Dancing Marines
5/14 Marines dancing ......... "Since we're in the middle of nowhere.."
Love it!
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (4)
'Blasphemous' balls anger Afghans
'Blasphemous' balls anger Afghans
bbc news
A demonstration has been held in south- east Afghanistan accusing US troops of insulting Islam after they distributed footballs bearing the name of Allah.
The balls showed the Saudi Arabian flag which features the Koranic declaration of faith.
The US military said the idea had been to give something for Afghan children to enjoy and they did not realise it would cause offence.
The footballs were dropped from a helicopter in Khost province.
Some displayed flags from countries all over the world, including Saudi Arabia, which features the shahada, one of the five pillars of Islam - the declaration of faith.
The words, which include the name of Allah, are revered, and Muslims are very sensitive about where and how they can be used.
Saudi Arabia has complained to the World Cup's ruling body in the past about the use of its flag on footballs.
Mullahs in Afghanistan criticised the US forces for their insensitivity, and around 100 people held a demonstration in Khost.
Afghan MP Mirwais Yasini said: "To have a verse of the Koran on something you kick with your foot would be an insult in any Muslim country around the world."
A spokeswoman for the US forces in Afghanistan said they made "significant efforts to work with local leaders, mullahs and elders to respect their culture" and distributing the footballs was an effort to give a gift the Afghan children would enjoy.
"Unfortunately," she added, "there was something on those footballs we didn't immediately understand to be offensive and we regret that as we do not want to offend."
Wild Thing's comment........
Islamic holy writings on pig skin! GO MARINES!
Thuffering Thuccotash! You can’t win with these people! Oh, bitch, bitch, bitch. These cavemen even bitch about free soccer balls. Give them a truckload of pigskin footballs and tell them to STFU.
Muslims are very sensitive about where and how they can be used.
Obvious copyright infringement. Allah can only be used when one is planning to kill. DUH!
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:45 AM | Comments (16)
"Let me show you around my Blackhawk"
Iraq, let me show you around my Blackhawk, I fly in this every day
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:44 AM | Comments (4)
August 26, 2007
Obama Names Republicans (RINO's) He'll Work With
Obama Names Republicans He'll Work With
Breitbart.com
KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. (AP)
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama often says he will be a candidate that will bring both parties together and Saturday he named a few of the Republicans he would reach out to if elected.
"There are some very capable Republicans who I have a great deal of respect for," Obama said in an interview with The Associated Press. "The opportunities are there to create a more effective relationship between parties."
Among the Republicans he would seek help from are Sens. Richard Lugar of Indiana, John Warner of Virginia and Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, Obama said.
"On foreign policy I've worked very closely with Dick Lugar," Obama said. "I consider him one of my best friends in the Senate. He's someone I would actively seek counsel and advice from when it came to foreign policy."
"Senator Warner is another example of somebody with great wisdom, although I don't always agree with him on every issue," Obama said. "I would also seek out people like Tom Coburn, who is probably the most conservative member of the U.S. Senate. He has become a friend of mine."
Part of Washington's problem is that President Bush has created a partisan atmosphere, he said.
"The Bush-Cheney administration has perfected the perpetual campaign, what I call the 50-plus-one election strategy, where you just presume half the country is red and half the country is blue," Obama said.
Wild Thing's comment........
Translation: "I'll work with the Republicans who think like Democrats."
“when I become President...blah, blah” When pigs fly, no way in Haddes.
Keep going, dude. With any luck, Americans will be smart enough to figure out that anyone that ends up on Obama’s “reaching out” list is a Republican to vote out of office. And No mention of Hagel above the fold? I’m shocked! SHOCKED I tell ya!
Hallucinating Obama might as well name his Secreatry of State and his wife’s official hair-stylist already...
What a stand-up comic he is...ha ha...
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (8)
Surprise From The Air For Insurgents Shooting At Our Troops Humvee
Iraq, Insurgents shooting at our Humvee get a big surprise from the air
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (6)
August 25, 2007
Wreckage of World War II Submarine Found Off Aleutian Islands
Wreckage of World War II Submarine Found Off Aleutian Islands
Fox News
ANCHORAGE, Alaska
The mangled remains of a vessel found in the Bering Sea are likely those of a World War II submarine that disappeared with a crew of 70 off the Aleutian Island of Kiska.
The discovery of the USS Grunion on Wednesday night culminates a five-year search led by the sons of its commander, Mannert Abele, and may finally shine a light on the mysterious last moments of the doomed vessel.
"Obviously, this is a very big thing," the oldest son, Bruce Abele, said Thursday from his home in Newton, Mass. "I told my wife about it when she was still in bed and she practically went up to the ceiling."
A remotely operated vehicle snapped pictures and captured three hours of video footage of the Grunion on a rocky underwater slope north of the volcanic island, according to another brother, John Abele, who was in Kiska Harbor with the search team on Thursday.
The submarine lies 1,000 feet below the surface and had been crushed by water pressure, said Abele. He is director and co-founder of the medical equipment company Boston Scientific Corp. and the youngest of the three brothers.
The most surprising thing was the damage," he said. "It was much more than we or anyone else imagined. Initially it was very hard to recognize as a ship."
The hull had imploded so severely that the interior, including bunks and a dive wheel, were clearly visible, Abele said. No human remains were found.
"There's a 95 percent chance that this is the Grunion and a less than five percent chance that it's not," said Christopher J. Nicholson, general manager of the Cataumet, Mass.-based company. "The fact that they actually found this in an expanse of ocean is really pretty spectacular."
The Grunion had a propeller guard, which was rare in subs of the day, Abele said. The vessel discovered yesterday also had the fence, which prevented docking lines from getting caught in the propeller.
The Grunion patrolled Alaska's Aleutian Islands during the early months of World War II. Her last official radio message to the submarine base at Dutch Harbor came on July 30, 1942 and described heavy enemy activity at the Japanese seaplane base at Kiska Harbor.
Earlier that month, the Grunion had sunk two Japanese submarine chasers and heavily damaged a third near Kiska, one of two islands in the far west Aleutians captured by the Japanese. Until a few years ago, the clues to the Grunion's disappearance were too fragmented to justify a search.
As news of the search spread, several relatives of the Grunion's crew banded together to locate others with ties to the lost men. To date, the relatives of 69 men are following the progress of the search, said Mary Bentz of Bethesda, Md., whose uncle died on the Grunion.
Bentz said the news is a relief after decades of not knowing what happened. Her father's youngest brother, Carmine Anthony Parziale, of Weedville, Penn., was in his early 20s when he served as a torpedoman third class on Grunion.
"I know when my dad would talk about him, his eyes would well up with tears," said Bentz. "I was relieved to know that this is finally over, that now we can say, two and three generations later, that we know what happened."
A forensic engineer and other experts will use the footage to piece together the Grunion's final hours and figure out why it sank. The search crew of 17 plans to spend several more days looking for sunken Japanese ships in the area.
"Actually seeing the burial site was touching and in a way rewarding," John Abele said. "It provides a closing and hopefully an answer to the unknown."
This is from the US Navy History page on the Grunion
Grunion was launched by the Electric Boat Co., Groton, Conn., 22 December 1941; sponsored by Mrs. Stanford C. Hooper, wife of Rear Admiral Hooper; and commissioned 11 April 1942, Lt. Comdr. M. L. Abele in command.After shakedown out of New London, Grunion sailed for the Pacific 24 May. A week later, as she transited the Caribbean for Panama, she rescued 16 survivors of USAT Jack, torpedoed by a German U-boat, and conducted a fruitless search for 13 other survivors presumed in the vicinity. Arriving at Coco Solo 3 June, Grunion deposited her shipload of survivors and continued to Pearl Harbor, arriving 20 June.
Departing Hawaii 30 June after 10 days of intensive training, Grunion touched Midway; then headed toward the Aleutians for her first war patrol. Her first report, made as she patrolled north of Kiska Island, stated she had been attacked by a Japanese destroyer and had fired at him with inconclusive results. She operated off Kiska throughout July and sank two enemy patrol boats while in search for enemy shipping. On 30 July the submarine reported intensive antisubmarine activity; and she was ordered back to Dutch Harbor.
Grunion was never heard from nor seen again. Air searches off Kiska were fruitless; and on 5 October Grunion was reluctantly reported overdue from patrol and assumed lost with all hands. Captured Japanese records show no antisubmarine attacks in the Kiska area, and the fate of Grunion remains a mystery. Her name was struck from the Navy List 2 November 1942.
Grunion received one battle star for World War II service.
....Thank you Jack of Conservative Insurgent for the llink.
Wild Thing's comment........
This is amazing, I am so glad there is a group that searches for our ships and Submarines like this. These are a part of our history and also for the families of the lives that served on the Submarine.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (16)
Some Then and Now From The Left
This is what some have said in the past.................
"This war is lost and the surge is not accomplishing anything." Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), April 19, 2007
"As many had foreseen, the escalation has failed to produce the intended results…The increase in US forces has had little impact in curbing the violence or fostering political reconciliation." Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), June 13, 2007
"Bush's strategy of increasing troops in Iraq is "a failed policy wrapped in illusion." Rep. John Murtha (D-PA), April 24, 2007
On the New York Times editorial asserting the initial success of the Iraq troop surge: "I dismiss it at as rhetoric. I dismiss it as -- you know, in my estimation, the things that I measure are not -- oil production, electricity production, water. Only two hours of electricity. I don't know where they were staying. I don't know what they saw. But I know this, that it's not getting better. It's rhetorical is what is getting better. It's over-optimist. It's an illusion." Rep. John Murtha (D-PA), July 31, 2007
On the troop surge strategy: "This is a dangerously wrong-headed strategy that will drive America deeper into an unwinnable swamp at a great cost. It is wrong to place American troops into the middle of Iraq's civil war.
We cannot escape the reality that there will be no military solution in Iraq…More American troops, treasure and casualties will not change this reality." Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE), January 10, 2007
On the troop surge strategy: "a categorical, catastrophic...[and] abject failure." Rep. Tom Lantos (D-CA), June 29, 2007
"The prospects that the current 'surge' strategy will succeed in the way originally envisioned by the President are very limited…Unless we recalibrate our strategy in Iraq to fit our domestic political conditions and the broader needs of U.S. national security, we risk foreign policy failures that could greatly diminish our influence in the region and the world." Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN), June 25, 2007
"According to polls, the vast majority of Americans disagree with President Bush's plan to send an additional 21,500 troops to Iraq to quell sectarian violence. I, too, disagree with the troop surge. The question now before the U.S. Senate is how best to send a strong, clear, bipartisan message to the President to express our disagreement and urge him to instead consider all options and alternatives." Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), January 29, 2007
"Twenty thousand American soldiers are too few to end this civil war in Iraq and too many American lives to risk on top of those we've already lost." Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), January 10, 2007
"I continue to believe that it is a mistake to send more U.S. troops to Baghdad, which is engulfed by sectarian strife…I have repeatedly expressed directly to the president my opposition to his plan to increase the overall number of American troops in Iraq." Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), April 26, 2007
And this is what some of them are saying now...............
"It's working. We're just years too late in our tactics," she said, referring to the beefed-up U.S. troop presence battling insurgents in Iraq, including war-torn Anbar province.Hillary Clinton Aug 20, 2007
As we are seeing military progress, any political scene is discouraging. SEN. DICK DURBIN
in response to the question do you agree with your colleague there are some signs of military progress here?
Sure, there are, John. We have said in the beginning, our troops are doing their job. SEN. Bob Casey
Knowing all this, how can someone who opposed the war now call for continuing the new directions that have been taken in Iraq? The answer is that the people, strategies and facts on the ground have changed for the better and those changes justify changing our position on what should be done. Democrat Rep. Brian Baird
AA successful Report from Petraeus would be “a real big problem for us.” Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.)
"We are also encouraged by continuing positive results – in al Anbar Province, from the recent decisions of some of the Sunni tribes to turn against al Qaeda and cooperate with coalition force efforts to kill or capture its adherents,”Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman (D) Carl Levin
Wild Thing's comment........
Awhile back I listed the quotes from all the Dems that said there were WMD, the quotes were said during the Clinton years in the White House and also right after 9-11. Madeline Albright, Bill Clinton and the list of Democrat names goes on and on saying there absolutely were WMD.
Now the quotes about the Surge and it is interesting how there is a similarity in so many of the same people being negative about our troops and those that said oh heck yes Saddam has WMB and needs to be taken out, we need to go to Iraq.
Just thought I would show you this, it is kind of interesting I think. Even though we all know the obvious, that they change with the wind to whatever suits them. They have no substance at all.....nothing.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (12)
SLAMRAAM Boom!
The lyrics "Here comes the boom!", are no joke in this video done to the POD song "Boom". Done by the project team for the SLAMRAAM missile system, this video shows off just how accurate those rockets can be. You certainly don't want to see one of these Humvees coming your way if you're one of the bad guys!
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:45 AM | Comments (6)
August 24, 2007
Kucinich Complains About ABC News
Fox News Unfair? Dennis Kucinich Complains About ABC News
newsbusters
Remember how many of the Democrat presidential candidates, led by John Edwards, announced that they would refuse to participate in any debate sponsored by Fox News because they complained about the so-called unfairness of that network? It turns out that Dennis Kucinich is upset about the coverage he is receiving from a major news network and it isn't Fox News. Kucinich is angered over what he perceives to be an attempt by ABC News to minimize him. Here is the Kucinich list of complaints about ABC News from his campaign website:
* Congressman Kucinich was apparently deliberately cropped out of a "Politics Page" photo of the candidates.
* Sometime Monday afternoon, after Congressman Kucinich took a commanding lead in ABC's own on-line "Who won the Democratic debate" survey, the survey was dropped from prominence on the website.
* ABC News has not officially reported the results of its online survey.
* After the results of that survey showed Congressman Kucinich winning handily, ABC News, sometime Monday afternoon, replaced the original survey with a second survey asking "Who is winning the Democratic debate?"
* During the early voting Monday afternoon and evening, U.S. Senator Barack Obama was in the lead. By sometime late Monday or early Tuesday morning, Congressman Kucinich regained the lead by a wide margin in this second survey.
* Sometime Tuesday morning, ABC News apparently dropped the second survey from prominence or killed it entirely.
* AND, as every viewer of the nationally televised Sunday Presidential forum is aware, Congressman Kucinich was not given an opportunity to answer a question from moderator George Stephanopoulos until 28 minutes into the program.
The campaign submitted objections and inquiries to ABC News representatives on Monday and Tuesday. ABC News representatives have failed to respond - or even acknowledge - those objections and inquiries.
.
Wild Thing's comment........
LOL Don't you just love it when the Democrats complain about the media.
Well Dennis, you all turned down Fox News. Certainly not that Fox is perfect...... but why snub any one of the News networks if you want to be President of ALL the people and not just the heavy left news networks. Shame on you Dennis and all of you Democrats.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (17)
Dems Seeking 'Bumper Sticker' Campaign Slogan ~LOL
Democrats Seeking 'Bumper Sticker' Campaign Slogan
August 23, 2007
CNSNews.com
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) has announced a campaign to find the "bumper sticker slogan" that will carry it through the 2008 elections. The slogan also will appear on the DSCC Web site and campaign literature.
"We need a turn of phrase that really jumps out and tells you right off the bat what this election is all about," said James Carville in a message to Democrats.
Carville is credited with the famous phrase, "It's the Economy, Stupid," which apparently propelled the Clinton campaign to victory in 1992. (Less well known was the 1996 phrase, "Had Enough?")
In a message to DSCC supporters on Thursday, Carville said sometimes the best ideas come from people outside Washington. "Heck, come up with something good enough, I'll risk my own safety and put it on my wife's car," Carville said. (His wife Mary Matalin is a Republican and a former aide to Vice President Dick Cheney.)
The DSCC, a group that works to elect Democrats to the Senate, is urging Democrats to vote on its four suggestions -- "or create one of your own by midnight August 27."
The DSCC's suggestions include "W Is Out: Send the Right Wing With Him," "No Republicans Left Behind in D.C.," "What Have Republicans Done for You Lately," and "2006 Was Just the Beginning: More Dems in '08."
Wild Thing's comment........
Well let's see, how about the current slogan, “Death to America”? That is how they act and talk and work for.
“Hating America, One Liberal At A Time”
Or they could keep it simple for the simple minded - “WE’RE IDIOTS!!”
“Get Free Stuff!”
“We Suck!”
"Scrape the bottom....vote for Rodham!"
“In your guts, you know we’re nuts.”
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (8)
Break Girl John Edwards Slams Hillary About Corruption
John Edwards Hits Hillary Clinton as Part of Corrupt Washington Establishment
Fox News
HANOVER, N.H
Presidential hopeful John Edwards said Thursday the Washington establishment is corrupt and suggested — without mentioning her by name — that rival Hillary Rodham Clinton has been part of that corroded system.
Edwards' new stump speech, centered on a a need for change and aimed at his top two rivals, comes just before Labor Day, the traditional start of the primary nominating season in this state where he has seen his polling lead slip in recent months.
"Real change starts with being honest, and I want to say something again: The system in Washington is rigged, and I'll say it again, it's rigged and it's rigged by greedy powers," Edwards said Thursday.
"It's rigged by the system to favor the establishment," he said at Dartmouth College
The American people deserve to know that their presidency is not for sale. The Lincoln Bedroom is not for rent," Edwards said to applause, referencing a Clinton-era controversy in which high-dollar donors were allowed to stay in the White House's famed bedroom.
He said the past isn't going to solve today's problems or "a corrupt a corroded system."
"Those wed to the policies of the '70s, '80s or the '90s are wedded to the past, ideas and policies that are tired, shopworn and obsolete. We will find no answers there," he said.
Clinton served as first lady during most of the 1990s.
Edwards later said he didn't mean to target Clinton during his new stump speech.
Wild Thing's comment........
This is just too funny. They are both corrupt. It seems Edwards is getting desperate as he strikes out at the Hillary. Visions of Vince Foster headlines come to mind.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:45 AM | Comments (10)
Soldiers in Iraq Say They Don’t Hear Deliberations Back Home
Half a World Away: Soldiers in Iraq Don’t Hear Deliberations Back Home (and Often Don’t Care)
Popular Mechanics
TIKRIT, Iraq
It never even hits the radar screen. For the troops on the front lines and the colonels in the rear—and just about everyone in between—the big news in Iraq every day is that they’re still alive and healthy. When it comes to Senate votes on the U.S. presence in Iraq, Sunday talk shows thrashing out length of deployment and stateside pundits talking to themselves, nearly every grunt, airman, sailor, soldier and Marine I speak with just doesn’t care.
It’s not negligence or a lack of opinion about how long they think they should stay here; they’re tuned out because the news doesn’t impact their day-to-day operations—and because comms often leave them uninformed from half a world away.
War deliberations and post-firefight reactions back home can vanish during the 12-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week base-line duty of the average soldier in Iraq. So when line troops are swamped carrying gear from street patrol to street patrol, village raid to village raid, for up to 20 hours a day, they often don’t have the time for, or the luxury of, Internet access. And when they do get it, they’re not punching up CNN—it’s e-mails from home they’re reading.
During last month’s heated, all-night debate on Capitol Hill about when and if the U.S. should withdraw from Iraq, I asked several military officers of different ages and ranks about their thoughts on a potential pullout. Nearly every one stressed how important his or her work here has been—and will be.
“If we leave within months, Iraq will be a province of Iran,” one colonel said. “Everyone with any education or skills who hasn’t already left will end up leaving.”
A mortarman with the 25th Infantry stationed in Tal Afar stressed that he thought the American media has not been reporting what really goes on during daily ops across the war zone.
“It’s all about body counts,” he said. Marines out in the former Wild West of Anbar province said the same. They are proud of the job they’ve done in cleaning up what was once considered a lost, Al Qaeda-infested area. They wondered why America hasn’t heard MORE of that news.
A sergeant 1st class with the 5th Battalion, 7th Cavalry, whose unit is attached to the Marines near Habbaniyah, patrols daily around Al Anbar province. This is his third tour, and he’s confident that progress is being made, despite what he calls early missteps in policy.
“I think Americans understand our sacrifice, but they don’t understand that we’re just not ready to leave.”
The sergeant expressed an opinion I’ve heard from dozens of line and support troops and commanding officers about the continuing effort to rebuild, piece by piece:
“We need a little more time—some places are more violent than others. But that’s how things happen. This country can’t be built in five years. And don’t we have a responsibility to help them build it?”
Wild Thing's comment........
Note the source for this story, Popular Mechanics. Nothing against that magazine, Nick subscribes to it, but good lord when is our media going to stop being part of the enemy of our land.
I love how our troops say things, aren't they awesome!!
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:40 AM | Comments (8)
August 23, 2007
You Too Can Look Like Putin, says newspaper ~ HUH???
Vladimir Putin poses stripped to the waist, fishing rod in hand, in a boat on a Siberian river. The Russian leader has been worrying Western leaders by flexing his political muscles recently.But yesterday he was showing off the real thing - and appeared in impressive shape for a man of 54. The former KGB officer is known as a fitness fanatic and is a black belt in judo.
Wearing only combat trousers tied roughly at the waist, a camouflage hat and army-style boots, Putin displayed his usual icecold expression as he waited for the fish to bite.
You too can look like Putin, says newspaper
Herald Sun
A STEP-BY-STEP guide to building a body like President Vladimir Putin's was available to readers of a Russian newspaper yesterday.Official photographs of the 54-year-old leader holidaying in southern Siberia last week showed him fishing with his shirt off to display a well-honed torso.
He was also shown on horseback in sunglasses, gloves and a body-hugging white vest.
“He has some great definition under that shirt,” said the Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid, Russia's biggest circulation newspaper which specialises in admiring coverage of President Putin.
Under the headline: “Get a body like Putin's”, the daily published an exercise guide by a fitness instructor.
An accompanying diagram of President Putin's naked torso had arrows pointing to his major muscle groups.
President Putin, who is married with two daughters, has attributed his physique to sports - he is an accomplished practitioner of judo and a keen downhill skier.
Wild Thing's comment.........
Never mind looking like him, I want a large country to rule! If you have that, they don’t care what you look like. LOL
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (8)
You had us on the ropes and you left ~ General Giap, North Vietnam
The first major battle of the Vietnam War and a test of the concept of airborne assault using the new Huey UH-1 helicopter. Led by Lt-Gen Hal Moore the 7th Air Cavalry set down in LZ X-Ray with the intent to engage the enemy, they were immediately surrounded by 3 battalions of the Vietcong. They fought against these almost overwhelming odds for 3 days before claiming victory.
Track 1 - Jefferson Airplane - Somebody to Love
Track 2 - Joseph Kilna MacKenzie - SGT. MacKenzie
.
"What we still don't understand is why you Americans stopped the bombing of Hanoi. You had us on the ropes. If you had pressed us a little harder, just for another day or two, we were ready to surrender! It was the same at the battles of TET. You defeated us! We knew it, and we thought you knew it. But we were elated to notice your media were definitely helping us. They were causing more disruption in America than we could in the battlefields. We were ready to surrender. You had won!" - General Giap, North Vietnam (memoirs)
Vietnam
The fall of Saigon happened 30 April 1975, two years AFTER the American military left Vietnam. The last American troops departed in their entirety 29 March 1973.The peace settlement was signed in Paris on 27 January 1973. It called for release of all U.S. prisoners, withdrawal of U.S. forces, limitation of both sides' forces inside South Vietnam and a commitment to peaceful reunification.
The 140,000 evacuees in April 1975 during the fall of Saigon consisted almost entirely of civilians and Vietnamese military, NOT American military running for their lives. There were almost twice as many casualties in Southeast Asia (primarily Cambodia) the first two years after the fall of Saigon in 1975 then there were during the ten years the U.S. was involved in Vietnam. Thanks for the perceived loss and the countless assassinations and torture visited upon Vietnamese, Laotians, and Cambodians goes mainly to the American media and their undying support-by-misrepresentation of the anti-War movement in the United States.
As with much of the Vietnam War, the news media misreported and misinterpreted the 1968 Tet Offensive. It was reported as an overwhelming success for the Communist forces and a decided defeat for the U.S. forces. Nothing could be further from the truth. Despite initial victories by the Communists forces, the Tet Offensive resulted in a major defeat of those forces. General Vo Nguyen Giap, the designer of the Tet Offensive, is considered by some as ranking with Wellington, Grant, Lee and MacArthur as a great commander.
Still, militarily, the Tet Offensive was a total defeat of the Communist forces on all fronts. It resulted in the death of some 45,000 NVA troops and the complete, if not total destruction of the Viet Cong elements in South Vietnam. The Organization of the Viet Cong Units in the South never recovered. The Tet Offensive succeeded on only one front and that was the News front and the political arena. This was another example in the Vietnam War of an inaccuracy becoming the perceived truth. However, inaccurately reported, the News Media made the Tet Offensive famous.
credit and research go to:
Capt. Marshal Hanson, U.S.N.R (Ret.)
Capt. Scott Beaton, Statistical Source
Wild Thing's comment........
President Bush brought up Vietnam in his speech yesterday.
I was reading this the other day by Capt. Marshal Hanson, and thinking about the Democrats, Reid, Murtha, Pelosi and the rest of their ilk that are dong their best to turn this war into another Vietnam. Meaning politicians running the war and NOT the military, not wanting to wait for General Petraeus.
Thirty-two years ago, in 1975, after America and the Republic of Vietnam had fought and won a ten-year war to save South Vietnam from the predations of the communist north, a Democrat Congress voted to terminate life support for South Vietnam in the face of another North Vietnamese invasion, backed by the USSR.
A Democrat Congress voted to "pull the plug," and condemned millions of Vietnamese, Cambodians, and Laotions to death, torture, imprisonment, and re-education camps, and condemned others to flee their homes and countries as refugees.
Now, another Democrat Congress is poised to repeat that act of infamy, and abandon the people of Iraq to the conflagration that will almost certainly follow if the United States withdraws its forces prematurely.
Another Democrat Congress declares to the world that America is a fair weather friend, that America cannot be relied upon, that America cannot be trusted to stand by its promises when the going gets tough, that America no longer has the will to lead the world toward a future of freedom.
Another Democrat Congress declares that America, having liberated the Iraqi people from the bloody tyranny of Saddam Hussein, has grown tired of the messy business of liberation and will now wash its hands of the whole affair, and abandon the Iraqi people to the bloody tyranny of the Jihad.
Read the words of General Gaip. Once the North Vietnamise saw what our media was doing, they said hang on one more day, one week, one more month. Their Army was defeated but the media still gave the enemy resolve. Now, let's look at the resolve of Reid and other demortic leaders.
Our Troops are not fighting to lose. The Democrats need some resolve and they need to support the mission. Back then there was Cronkite and Hanoi Jane, today we have the oldies from back then as well as the new ones added to the list, the terrorist lovers like Reid and others.
We see America's Congressional Democrats becoming the American Judas, betraying America, and Iraq, for the proverbial thirty pieces of silver.
When have we ever heard this from a Democrat in this war against the terrorists........
"we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival of liberty"? Said by JFK.
I didn't vote for him, I never voted for a Democrat, but that quote is inspiring, and the Democrats of today could well learn a lesson in how NOT to be traitors from this.
Don't let the media and politicians in Congress effect the execution of this war and we will win it.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (16)
CAIR Confronts Marine Vet. Over Bumper Sticker ~ "Jesus loves you, and Allah wants you dead"
CAIR Thugs on Islamophobia Patrol: Coming Soon to Your Neighborhood?
Family Security Matters
Author: Patrick Poole
Three officials of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in Ohio admit to going unannounced to a man’s home to confront him over a bumper sticker on his car – a testament, they claim, of their tolerance and moderation. The incident occurred last year, but the CAIR trio involved – Ahmad Al-Akhras, CAIR national vice chairman, Asma Mobin-Uddin, CAIR-Ohio president, and Abukar Arman, CAIR-OH board member – have recently recounted this incident to the local establishment media as an example of how they “invite dialogue”.
Others, however, believe the incident is additional proof that CAIR regularly resorts to threats, intimidation and demonization to silence its critics.
Earlier this month, attorneys for CAIR sent a letter threatening legal action against the Young Americans Foundation if they allowed NY Times bestselling author and JihadWatch director, Robert Spencer, to speak at their conference on “The Truth of the Council on American-Islamic Relations”.
This thuggery is reminiscent of CAIR’s 2004 lawsuit against independent journalist Andrew Whitehead of Anti-CAIR, a suit which was dropped by CAIR in order to avoid responding to required interrogatories about its historic ties to HAMAS and role in terror financing.
The CAIR-OH incident is without known precedent, harassing a private citizen at his home because CAIR officials did not like one of his bumper stickers.
One of the trio, Abukar Arman, has described how they set upon their unwitting victim:
"Several months ago, a non-Muslim fellow in the inter-faith community brought to the attention of CAIR-Ohio a picture of his neighbor’s truck with a bumper sticker that read “Jesus loves you, and Allah wants you dead”.Some of us thought that the appropriate thing to do was to get media involved and use this truck owner as a poster-child of the prevalent assertive ignorance that is widening the post 9/11 political divide between Muslims and non-Muslims. Others, on the other hand, saw this as an opportunity for human contact, discourse, and to build bridges of understanding.
Therefore, I had the privilege of being one of three Muslims (2 male and a female with Islamic veil) who paid a neighborly visit to the truck owner.
"What ensued was an interesting discourse that I found to be very educational (its final outcome notwithstanding).The truck owner was a former Marine officer who served in Somalia and Iraq. Initially, as he opened the door, he was visibly apprehensive (and rightfully so).
We greeted him and introduced ourselves. We reassured him that we were only interested to get to know him, address any questions or perhaps grievance that he may have, and to give him a chance to meet and dialogue with ordinary Muslims.
Long story short: in a conversation that took place right outside his door and lasted for over an hour, the former Marine talked about how he was very suspicious of Muslims and how, both in Somalia and in Iraq, he and other Americans who “came to help these two countries had their hands bitten…” He talked about how he did not believe there were any moderate Muslims and how organizations such as CAIR were deliberately silent about condemning terrorism. He also talked about being alarmed by the growing Muslim population in Central Ohio and how they may be hiding a terrorist who has in his possession a “briefcase nuke”. He said, “I don’t want to see a giant mushroom in Columbus” [I will come back to this point].
Lastly, he talked about his career in the private sector…how he worked as a “corporate anti-terrorism expert” and a “consultant to a numerous multinational corporations”
Arman admits that the original intention was to make this two-war veteran a “poster-child” of Islamophobia and publicly to vilify the man by enlisting the help of the local media – all because they didn’t agree with the sentiments the man expressed via a bumper sticker.
He also admits that the man was visibly leery of his late-night visitors showing up on his doorstep, what they probably would argue is proof of his Islamophobia. What makes this situation and Abukar Arman’s comments even more appalling is that the former Marine had served in the UN-backed peacekeeping mission in Somalia, Arman’s native country.
But imagine if the roles in this case were reversed: imagine if Robert Spencer, Andrew Whitehead and myself showed up on the doorstep of any of these CAIR officials - unwelcome and unannounced - to confront them about their repeated statements of support for extremism, bigotry and terrorism: Ahmad Al-Akhras for his public defense of convicted terrorists, including his “long-time friend”, convicted and deported Palestinian Islamic Jihad operative Fawaz Damra; Asma Mobin-Uddin for promoting several hate sites with rabidly anti-Jewish content on her own personal website; or Abukar Arman, for his vocal public support of HAMAS, Hezbollah and the al-Qaeda-backed Islamic Courts Union. Would they see such action as “inviting dialogue”, or would they instead denounce such an “invitation to dialogue” in a flurry of CAIR press releases as a “hate crime” that would merit restraining orders and warrant federal criminal charges?
It should be evident that going to a man’s home, particularly someone entirely unknown to you, to confront them about the content of their bumper stickers is not an invitation to dialogue, but jackboot thuggery reminiscent of the Nazi SA Storm troopers. One of them admits that rather than painting a symbol on the man’s house or business to show their disapproval for his religious statements (much as the SA would mark Jewish homes or businesses with a Star of David and the word “Juden”), they considered calling in the media to condemn this two-war Marine veteran and expose him to public scorn all because they didn’t like his bumper sticker.
CAIR’s Islamophobia patrols: coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
Wild Thing's comment........
Whew! Going to people’s homes like this is a VERY BAD IDEA! And I sure am glad I don't have a neighbor like this Marine has. Can you imagine anyone coming to your door to confront you about a bumper sticker on you car? And late at night at that? OMG This Marine is a security expert. These goofballs are on someone’s official s-list.
Is anyone else getting sick of seeing the COEXIST bumper stickers where each letter of COEXIST is a symbol for a different religion? I wish someone would make up bumper stickers with the symbol for islam and CONVERT OR DIE to slap over the COEXIST stickers. heh heh
Radical Islam is an insane murder cult and moderate Islam is its Trojan Horse in the West.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:45 AM | Comments (18)
August 22, 2007
Revolutionary Guard Troops Killed By U.S. Forces In Iraq
Revolutionary Guard Troops Killed By U.S. Forces In Iraq
BAGHDAD, Aug. 16 (UPI) — Three gunmen killed by U.S. troops in Iraq this week were members of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards Corps, a U.S. military statement said in Baghdad.
The U.S. Army statement said that in several anti-insurgency attacks this week, a total of nine gunmen were killed. However, in one raid in northeastern Baghdad targeting a leader of the Iranian Guards’ foreign fighters known as Al-Quds, three of his aides were killed by U.S. forces, Kuwait’s KUNA news agency reported.
The unidentified leader was arrested on suspicion of supplying arms to Iraqi insurgents, the statement said.
Iran has repeatedly denied coalition allegations it provided training and weapons to Iraqi rebels. Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Defense said it was planning to designate the Revolutionary Guard a terrorist operation, which would disrupt the group’s considerable foreign business transactions.
In another security operation, the military statement said six terrorists were killed in northern Baghdad. The raid also netted machine gun rounds and components used to make explosive devices, the report said.
Wild Thing's comment........
Thank you brave fighting soldiers of the red, white and blue. God Bless the United States Military!
72 X 3 = 216, that’s alot of virgins on standby. Since we had kidded they all look like Helen Thomas....
here she is waiting for them. 
Sorry could not get a burka to sohw up this small wiithout looking like a Halloween outfit. heh heh
I get so tired of these units being referred to as “elite”. The best training offered by the Iranians is a joke compared to the standard training given to American Soldiers. Elite means Special Forces, Rangers, Seals, and units like the SAS.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (11)
2007 Version of The Three Amigos ~ Bush, Harper and Calderon
President George W. Bush (R) walks with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper (C) and Mexican President Felipe Calderon at the North American leaders summit in Montebello, Quebec, August 20, 2007
Joint Statement by Prime Minister Harper, President Bush, and President Calderón
We, the leaders of Canada, Mexico and the United States, have met in Montebello to discuss the opportunities and challenges facing North America and to establish priorities for our further collaboration. As neighbours, we share a commitment to ensure North America remains a safe, secure and economically dynamic region, and a competitive player in global markets. We also discussed opportunities to cooperate globally and within our own hemisphere. The values and principles we share, in particular democracy, the rule of law and respect for individual rights and freedoms, underpin our efforts in building a more prosperous and secure region.
The Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP), launched in 2005, is aimed at jointly achieving tangible results across a spectrum of areas, while respecting each nation’s sovereignty. On February 23, 2007, our ministers responsible for the SPP met in Ottawa to review progress and discuss our further cooperation. Our ministers of industry and commerce, foreign affairs, security, environment, energy, health, transportation and trade have also met in recent months, reflecting our deepening dialogue within North America. They have made progress in advancing the priorities we identified at our 2006 meeting in Cancun. In particular, our three countries have completed:
You can read the entire text here
Today President Bush gave a joint statement with Prime Minister Harper, of Canada, and President Calderón of Mexico
PRESIDENT BUSH: Thank you, Prime Minister. Thanks for having us here. I, too, want to thank the good folks of Montebello for their wonderful hospitality. The food was good, the hospitality was warm. You picked a great place to come.
I expressed my country's concerns for the citizens whose lives will be affected by Hurricane Dean. I respect the fact that President Calderón has decided to get back to Mexico as quickly as possible in a safe way. I want you to know that U.S. agencies are in close touch with the proper Mexican authorities, and if you so desire help, we stand ready to help. The American people care a lot about the human condition in our neighborhood, and when we see human suffering, we want to do what we can to help alleviate that. So we wish you all the best.
These meetings are -- I'm not going to try to reiterate what Stephen said. He went through the list of the meetings. And he's a -- he's right, that we talked about a lot of issues. I just want to give you the spirit of the discussions and why I think they're important.
It's our people's interests that Canada and Mexico work closely together. In other words, there's a good reason why our leaders should come together on a regular basis. First reason why is to figure out ways to continue to enhance prosperity. It's in our interests that the Canadian lifestyle be as strong as it is, and it's in our interests that prosperity spread to Mexico. If you're a U.S. citizen, you want people that live close to you to be prosperous. The more prosperity there is in your neighborhood, the more hopeful your neighborhood is.
NAFTA, which has created a lot of political controversy in our respective countries, has yielded prosperity. Since NAFTA came to be, trade between our respective countries has grown from $293 billion a year to $883 billion a year. Now, for some, those are just numbers; for many, it's improved wages and a better lifestyle and more hope. And the question that we're faced with is how do we continue to enhance prosperity so the average citizen understands the benefits of three countries working together? And I think we made some good progress toward eliminating barriers and toward harmonizing regulations to a point where more prosperity will come to be.
And we discussed a lot of other issues. We discussed bilateral issues. Stephen and I talked about border issues. Of course, Felipe Calderón and I talked about border issues and migration. These are complicated issues, but they're issues that we can work out in good spirit as friends.
One reason one meets is to reconfirm friendships, is to make sure that not only at the leaders' level is there conversations taking place that are friendly, but that that spirit translates throughout our governments. And I think we've accomplished that objective today.
We also talked, as Stephen mentioned, about international issues, issues concerning South America, the Middle East. These are meaningful discussions. I'm glad I came and I'm looking forward to hosting them next year. Matter of fact, it's in the interests of our countries that we have these meetings on an annual basis and then have working groups follow through on the discussion items that -- during our meetings with the business leaders or our own Cabinet Secretaries.
And so thanks for having me. It's been worthwhile. I appreciate it.
After returning from Canada to the States President Bush stopped in Minneapolis where he participated in a briefing on the Interstate 35-W Bridge damage and Minnesota floods.
There is also an article about this meeting at Fox news.
Wild Thing's comment........
How can Bush do this without the approval of the American people? My personal feeling on this is a person can be a Globalist or an American. You can’t be both. President Bush - SELLING OUR NATION’S SOUL without so much as a whimper.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (22)
Muslim Islamophobia Awards Coming
Muslim Awards Coming
Herald Sun Australia
A VICTORIAN mosque plans to bestow awards on Australians they believe are Islamophobes -- politicians, community leaders or media identities they categorise as hostile to Muslims.
The Brunswick-based Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah Association has unveiled what it calls its annual "Islamophobia Award for the worst Islamophobes in Australia".
Likely to be near the top on the group's list of nominees is Pauline Hanson, who has come under fire from the mosque and other Muslims for her recent call for a "moratorium on any more Muslims coming into Australia".
Mosque leader Sheik Mohammed Omran, who teaches a fundamentalist minority form of Islam, has previously been questioned about his views on international jihad but he has condemned terrorism in Australia.
The Australian award follows a similar initiative in Britain where the Islamic Human Rights Commission imposed its Annual Islamophobia Awards on politicians including Australian Prime Minister John Howard, then British PM Tony Blair and US President George W. Bush.
Wild Thing's comment........
Darn it, I have to move to Australia to qualify for one these things? hahaha
I would love it if some Aussie set up a website for other Aussies to sign up and pledge to each send $1 to whoever wins the “award”. That would put the jihadis in a nice little bind if a few thousand Aussies signed the pledge. People would start campaigning for the award, trying to outdo each other in their slams against the jihadis. Oh the hilarity that would ensue!
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:45 AM | Comments (12)
August 21, 2007
China Campaigns Tries To Woo Back International Trust
A Chinese shopper inspects toys on display at a shopping mall in Beijing Monday, Aug. 20, 2007
China TV airs shows defending products
(AP) .....for complete write up
China has launched a new campaign to restore international trust in its products with a weeklong television series defending the country's safety standards.
But new allegations of unsafe Chinese goods emerged Monday when New Zealand said it was investigating children's clothing found to contain dangerous levels of formaldehyde. The chemical is used to give clothes a permanent press effect and also as an embalming fluid and it can cause problems ranging from skin rashes to cancer.
The new television campaign titled "Believe in Made in China" follows discoveries of high levels of chemicals and toxins in a range of Chinese exports from toys to toothpaste and fish.
The first program in the series aired Sunday on China Central Television's economic channel and featured the head of a quality watchdog criticizing the recent furor over the quality of Chinese exports as "demonizing China's products."
"Personally, I believe it is new trend in trade protectionism. Although recalls are necessary, it is unfair to decide that all products made in China are unqualified," Li Changjiang, director of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, said on the 90-minute segment.
Li said his department was doing everything possible to monitor product quality, especially after recalls of millions of toys by Mattel Inc., the world's biggest toy maker, because of lead paint and small magnets that can be swallowed by children.
No injuries have been reported in last week's global recall of 19 million toys, including Barbie and "Sarge" cars based on the character from the movie "Cars."
"I'm here to tell you have faith in 'Made in China,'" Li told a group of foreign and Chinese executives and journalists invited to view the show.
The programs can be seen only in China and will feature interviews with Chinese producers and officials as well as foreign buyers and chambers of commerce, CCTV said on its Web site.
Wild Thing's comment.........
Communist China is not on my trusted list, not their leaders, not their government, not their country. No sale chicoms!!
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (13)
High Price For Cheap Lettuce
Freed illegal immigrants endanger public
Shelbyville Times Gazette
"I don't want somebody in this county to get run over and killed by someone that I've had in my jail numerous times ... and he's still here."
Those were the words from Sheriff Randall Boyce last month as he talked about implementing the federal database sharing program called 287(g) that would be used to identify and then deport illegal immigrants.
Boyce was talking about the problem of certain folks who are in and out of the county jail on a such a regular basis that it is a second home to some.
But the sheriff is also touching on a deadly dilemma that is being seen in communities all across the county -- illegal immigrants who are let out of jail instead of being deported that end up committing more crimes and killing innocent people.
The latest, most sensational case comes out of Newark, NJ, where illegal immigrant Jose Carranza has been charged with the execution-style murders of three college students. What has people enraged is that fact he was freed on bail twice this year after being charged with assault and rape involving a girl of kindergarten age.
The man, regardless of his race or immigration status, should not have been walking around free with such hideous charges pending. What were they thinking?
On Wednesday, reports came in from Baltimore that a Guatemalan man who is in the country illegally was arrested on hit-and-run charges after a traffic accident killed two highway construction workers and injured three others.
Remember the case of the six illegal immigrants arrested that were allegedly plotting to kill U.S. soldiers at Fort Dix? It turns out that three of them had been in the country illegally for 23 years, and had been charged by the New Jersey police more than 75 times during that time period.
Last month in nearby Columbia, cops were on the hunt for an illegal immigrant they say raped a 15-year-old girl only hours after being released from jail. Juan Villa had been in jail 11 times since 2001 on charges that include assault and public intoxication. Authorities say Villa committed the rape just hours after his latest stay in the county lockup. While investigating the first crime, a 13-year-old girl also told deputies that Villa raped her as well.
And in Nashville, there has been several cases of illegal immigrants who have repeatedly been in jail, only to be released where they would get drunk and then drive off and slam into another innocent family, killing them.
One big problem rests with towns and cities that have set themselves up as "sanctuary zones." The status bans cooperation between federal immigration officials and local cops, the exact opposite of the 287[g] program. There are currently more than 60 sanctuary zones, and Newark was one of them.
The first sanctuary city established was Los Angeles and guess what: 95 percent of all outstanding murder warrants in that city are for illegal immigrants.
According to statistics released last year by Rep. Steve King of Iowa, 12 Americans are murdered every day by illegal immigrants, and 13 more are killed by drunk illegal immigrant drivers. That's a whole lot more than we lose in Iraq every week.
A report released in 2005 by the Government Accountability Office [GAO] looked at 55,322 illegals locked up in federal, state, and local facilities during 2003. The study found that the 55,322 represented a total of 459,614 arrests -- around eight arrests per illegal alien.Those arrests represented a total of about 700,000 criminal offenses -- averaging 13 offenses per illegal immigrant and 36 percent had been arrested at least five times before.
Wild Thing's comment........
Can't cut and run here, as there is nowhere to run which makes this our fight. You will NOT find the liberal US media totalling these up, and then having a big news event—with buzzers and whistles and fireworks— when we cross over the 10,000 dead mark, and crap like that
2006 (First Quarter) INS/FBI Statistical Report on Undocumented Immigrants
CRIME
* 95 % of Warrants in LOS ANGELES are for ILLEGAL ALIENS
* 83 % of Warrants for MURDER in Phoenix Arizona are FOR ILLEGAL ALIENS
* 86 % of Warrants for MURDER in Albuquerque New Mexico are for ILLEGAL ALIENS
* 75 % of those on the most wanted list in Los Angeles, Phoenix, Albuquerque are ILLEGAL ALIENS
* 24.9 % OF ALL INMATES in California detention centers are Mexican Nationals here ILLEGALLY
* 40.1 % of all inmates in Arizona detention centers are Mexican Nationals here ILLEGALLY
* 29 % (630,000) Convicted ILLEGAL ALIENS felons fill our state and federal prisons at the cost of $1.5 Billion Annually
* 53 % Plus of all investigated burglaries reported in California, New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona and Texas are perpetrated by ILLEGAL ALIENS
* 50 % Plus of all gang members in Los Angeles are ILLEGAL ALIENS
* 71 % Plus of all apprehended Cars stolen in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, and California were stolen by ILLEGAL ALIENS or "Transport Coyotes "
* 47 % of cited / stopped Drivers in California have NO License, NO Insurance, and NO Registration for the vehicle of that 47 %, over 92 % were ILLEGAL ALIENS
* 63 % of cited / stopped Drivers in Arizona have NO License, NO Insurance, and NO Registration for the vehicle of that 63 %, over 97 % are ILLEGAL ALIENS
* 66 % of cited / stopped Drivers in New Mexico have NO License, NO Insurance, and NO Registration for the vehicle Of that 66 %, over 98 % were ILLEGAL ALIENS
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (12)
August 20, 2007
In Country With Our Troops and Olivia
.
BAGHDAD
American Forces Press Service
Iraqi and Coalition forces are pursuing extremist leaders in Iraq’s remote areas in coordinated “quick strikes” launched this week, the commander of Multi-National Corps-Iraq told Pentagon reporters Saturday.
Operation Phantom Strike is a series of joint operations that extend from Operation Phantom Thunder, a corps-level offensive that began in June targeting al-Qaeda, Sunni insurgents and Shiia extremists in, near and around Baghdad, said U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno.
“With the elimination of safe havens and support zones due to Phantom Thunder, al-Qaeda and Shiite extremists have been forced into ever-shrinking areas. It is my intent to pursue and disrupt their operations,” Odierno said.
Over the coming weeks, the general said, combined forces will conduct quick-strike raids against extremist sanctuaries and staging areas. Using precision-targeting operations, troops will target terrorist leaders and members of lethal improvised-explosive-device and car-bomb networks, he said.
“We will continue to hunt down the leadership, deny them safe haven, disrupt their supply lines and significantly reduce their capability to operate in Iraq,” Odierno added.
In the first 24 hours of one “quick-strike” raid, Multi-National Division-North Soldiers captured and killed several enemies and seized weapons caches in the Diyala River Valley. Called Operation Lightning Hammer, this operation targeted extremists as they tried to re-establish sanctuaries, the general said.
Odierno highlighted some successes of Operation Phantom Thunder, which launched June 15. In 142 battalion-level joint operations, Iraqi and Coalition forces detained 6,702 suspects, killed 1,196 enemies and wounded 419 others. Combined forces also killed or captured 382 high-value targets, he said.
Troops also cleared 1,113 weapons caches and scores of IEDs and car bombs. “The number of found and cleared IEDs, (car bombs) and caches are approximately 50 percent higher than the same period last year due, in large part, to effective tips provided by concerned Iraqi citizens,” the general added.
Odierno warned that high-profile attacks may rise as two important dates approach. In the early weeks of September, Ramadan, Islam’s holiest month, begins. U.S. Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander of Multi-National Force-Iraq, is slated to present an anticipated report to Congress around the same time.
“Our enemy is ruthless and will no doubt attempt to exploit the upcoming Ramadan season, as well as influence political opinions in the coming weeks by increasing attacks with particular emphasis on high-profile terror attacks,” he said.
But extremists’ efforts are increasingly hampered by civilians who cooperate with coalition forces as troops ramp-up raids around the country, Odierno said.
“Al-Qaeda and other extremist elements will have to contend with an Iraqi population that no longer welcomes them,” he said, “as well as quick-hitting offensive operations by Coalition and Iraqi forces.”
MAHMUDIYAH, Iraq - Iraqi and Coalition troops found a suspected torture and execution house near Mahmudiyah, Iraq, and detained six local men Aug. 12.Soldiers of 2nd Battalion, 4th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division and 2nd Battalion, 15th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) out of Fort Drum, N.Y., checked the house, which local sources said was used as a torture facility.
They found wire whips and a short-handled maul in the house, as well as two casings from AK-47 rounds.
Six local men were in the house across the street. When the troops went to speak with them, the house was found to contain Jaysh al-Mahdi, or Mahdi militia, DVDs, what appeared to be mounts for heavy machine guns and rocket adjustment equipment, as well as a 9mm pistol with two magazines and a collapsible police-style baton.
The Soldiers questioned the men, who denied any involvement with Jaysh al-Mahdi and said the house across the street was a local meeting place.
One of the men had a cell phone with text messages concerning the placement of heavy machine guns.
The men all tested positive for explosive residue on their hands. They were detained and taken to the Iraqi Army Compound in Mahmudiyah for further questioning.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:55 AM | Comments (8)
Holy Beltway, Batman! ~ Sen. Leahy Lands Role in Batman Movie
Sen. Leahy Lands Role in Batman Movie
BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP)
Sen. Patrick Leahy has a part in the next Batman movie.
"I don't wear tights," the Vermont Democrat said.
Leahy's scene was filmed this summer for "The Dark Knight" and involves Batman, played by Christian Bale, The Joker, played by Heath Ledger, and Alfred Pennyworth, played by Michael Caine.
The longtime Batman fan would reveal little about his role other than he is called the "distinguished gentleman."
"It's a pretty tense scene," said Leahy, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. "It's going to be a very interesting one."
He's done voice-overs on Batman cartoons, written the preface for a Batman book and had small roles in the last two Batman features.
He said he will donate his earnings from the film to the Kellogg-Hubbard children's library in Montpelier, where the senator got his first library card.
"The Dark Knight" is scheduled to be released next summer.
Wild Thing's comment........
Hmmmmm ( just thinking here) I wonder if he will leak the ending?? And then it will be only a matter of hours before the NY Times publishes Bat Man’s secret identity.
I hope Rush talks about this today, he would have a lot of fun with it. Hahahaha
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:47 AM | Comments (15)
Sadr Pledges To Work With UN
Sadr pledges to work with UN
Herald Sun
Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has pledged to commit his forces and followers to help the United Nations if it replaces American and British troops in Iraq, according to an interview published today.
Speaking to The Independent newspaper from his movement's headquarters in Kufa, south of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, Sadr said that he would "support the UN if it comes and replaces the American and British occupiers".
"If the UN comes here to truly help the Iraqi people, they will receive our help in their work. I would ask my followers to support the UN as long as it is here to help us rebuild our country.
"They must not just be another face of the American occupation."
Sadr, who enjoys popular grassroot support among Iraqi Shiites, is a powerful political player in Iraq's embattled government led by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
His anti-American views have frequently seen his Mahdi Army militia clashing with US soldiers since the US-led March 2003 invasion to topple Saddam Hussein.
Sadr told the newspaper that the British army's downscaling in Iraq was a sign that it had given up and was defeated, saying:
"They are retreating because of the resistance they have faced. Without that, they would have stayed for much longer, there is no doubt."
He also warned that Britain's involvement in Iraq had endangered its citizens at home: "The British put their soldiers in a dangerous position by sending them here, but they also put the people in their own country in danger.
"They have made enemies among all Muslims and they now face attacks at home because of their war. That was their mistake."
On domestic Iraqi politics, Sadr said that Mr Maliki's days as Iraqi leader were coming to a close.
"Al-Maliki's government will not survive because he has proven that he will not work with important elements of the Iraqi people ... The prime minister is a tool for the Americans and people see that clearly," he said.
"It will probably be the Americans who decide to change him when they realise he has failed. We don't have a democracy here, we have a foreign occupation."
Sadr also denied American claims that he was being armed by Iran.
Wild Thing's comment........
Someone really needs to whack this bastard.
“Al-Maliki’s government will not survive because he has proven that he will not work with important elements of the Iraqi people ... The prime minister is a tool for the Americans and people see that clearly,” Sadr said.
“It will probably be the Americans who decide to change him when they realise he has failed. We don’t have a democracy here, we have a foreign occupation.”
I sure hope he will not be the one to replace Al-Maliki if he steps down, is killed or they remove him.
Posted by Wild Thing at 12:45 AM | Comments (14)
August 19, 2007
Hundreds of Global Warming Freaks Pose Nude on Swiss Glacier
Hundreds Pose Nude on Swiss Glacier
BETTMERALP, Switzerland (AP)
Hundreds of naked people formed a "living sculpture" on Switzerland's Aletsch glacier Saturday, hoping to raise awareness about climate change.
The photo shoot by Spencer Tunick, the New York artist famous for his pictures of nude gatherings in public settings worldwide, was designed to draw attention to the effects of global warming on Switzerland's shrinking glaciers.
"The melting of the glaciers is an indisputable sign of global climate change," said the environmental group Greenpeace, which co-organized the event.
It said most Swiss glaciers will disappear by 2080 if global warming continues at its current pace.
The event, which followed Tunick's previous shoots in London, Mexico City and Amsterdam, was designed to minimize any impact on the environment, Greenpeace said.
Temperatures during the shoot hovered around 50 degrees.
Wild Thing's comment........
See we have not seen everything yet! LMAO ok I just thought we all could have nice Sunday mornnig laugh. This is some global warming awareness party. Oh my gosh, the LAST place I would dream of being naked is atop a glacier.
This is not like the oh what do they call it, the Polar Bear Club or something, where people take a dip in freezing cold water during the winter months. Nope this group is about Global Warming. hahahahaha