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Cemetery Sanctuary
. . . playing to win . . .
Posted September 17, 2006 by Mike
The recent publication of this photo showing a group of about 190 Taliban in close formation in a cemetery which the US Military failed to engage has caused quite a stir. The military released a statement last wednesday which stated in part (via
www.military.com):
"During the observation of the group over a significant period of time, it was determined that the group was located on the grounds of (the) cemetery and were likely conducting a funeral for Taliban insurgents killed in a coalition operation nearby earlier in the day," the statement said. "A decision was made not to strike this group of insurgents at that specific location and time."
While not giving a reason for the decision, the military concluded the statement saying that while Taliban forces have killed innocent civilians during a funeral, coalition forces "hold themselves to a higher moral and ethical standard than their enemies."
It's not about "holding themselves to a higher moral and ethical standard". These Taliban soldiers are now free to kill more coalition troops. An opportunity like this will most likely never happen again, as the enemy watches our news, and now knows to avoid presenting such an appealing target. It is our fault for trying to fight a politically correct war against an enemy who has no such scruples.
It was not always so.
During WW II, the Gestapo, Germany's secret police, were a key part of the German war effort. They set up headquarters in captured cities to track down and eliminate any local resistance. In Denmark, resistance was especially fierce, and the Gestapo's response was brutal. Danish Friheds (resistance fighters) had requested a second1 English Mosquito2 attack on the Gestapo who had set up their headquarters in Shell House3 in the middle of Copenhagen. As recounted in "The War In the Air", edited by Gavin Lyall, we take up the tale right after one of the lead Mosquitos has dropped it's bombs on the Gestapo headquarters:
"Unhappily Kleboe, who was flying just behind me, hit one of the uprights4 on the bridge to which I referred, and crashed into a convent school. The second wave of aircraft, thinking this was the target, bombed the wreckage, causing loss of life to many innocent children. Naturally this unfortunate incident caused great sorrow and distress in the Group, but the Danes accepted it with with brave and stoic hearts, and acclaimed the attack as a blow for freedom.
We lost three Mosquitos and one Mustang on this occasion, but succeeded in completely demolishing the Shell House, destroying all Gestapo records, liberating all the prisoners without the loss of a single life5, and killing twenty-six Gestapo. It will always remain a miracle to me that anyone inside the building survived to tell the tale."
Air Chief Marshal Sir Basil Embry
GCB KBE DSO DFC AFC
(numbered references in the above quote were added by me)
When you are fighting a war, there will always be both collateral loss of life and sensitive property damage. It is unavoidable if you want to win. Would that today's leadership had the courage to recognize this basic fact, and the stoicism of the Danes in WW II to accept the cost - seems the Danes were stand-up allies then, as they are today, in spite of the country's miniscule size.
(1) The first was on the Gestapo headquarters in Aarhus, Denmark, which completely destroyed the headquarters and allowed some of the Danish prisoners to escape.
(2) Mosquito - an extremely fast British twin-engine bomber constructed of wood and used for high value targets deep in enemy territory and later as a nightfighter.
(3) Shell House - the headquarters building for the Shell Oil company in Copenhagen, before being taken over by the Gestapo.
(4) For missions of this type, the Mosquitos flew at top speed (between 300 and 400 mph) below tree-top level, a very dangerous activity. Hitting buildings, trees, and other obstacles was not an infrequent occurance - many aircraft returned with pieces of the local scenery embedded in their wings. As recounted here, some did not return at all. Next time you have the opportunity to see one of the Thunderbirds or Blue Angels display team aircraft do a "high-speed fly-by", you'll have some idea of the speeds Mosquitos flew at - but Mosquitos did it at an altitude of less than 50 feet.
(5) a single prisoners life.
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Posted September 14, 2006 by Mike
Now that the show has run, and all the bru-ha-ha has died down, I find it difficult to understand what all the commotion was about. For all of Clinton's threats, all the moonbat left's tantrums, and the outright threats of censorship and retaliation by democrat leadership (in writing no less!), I didn't see anything to warrant all the noise. It was a fairly accurate portrayal of the history leading up to 9-11, primarily following the paths of the major terrorist figures from the 1993 WTC bombing to the 9-11 event itself.
Protestations by Clinton and the democrat leadership appear to have been baseless, which leaves one wondering why they protested at all. The ineffective response to the terrorists by the Clinton administration is a point of fact. They would have been wiser to say nothing and not bring their lack of action to the forefront of the debate. At least then they could have taken the position that no one would ever have expected suicidal maniacs to fly airplanes into buildings. As it is, they caused attention to be refocused on their policies - treating terrorists as a law-enforcement problem, not a matter of national defense, creating the infamous "Gorelick Wall" between law enforcement and the intelligence services, and trying to keep presidential approval ratings up by treating terrorist attacks as isolated incidents instead of acts of war against the United States.
Keeping quiet about things that could reflect negatively on their approval or legacy is such a natural course of action for the Clinton administration and the democrat leadership, that their failure to do so in this case begs the question "why?"
The only answer I can think of is that they want the public to forget 9-11 ever happened, or that it might have been prevented if a more proactive approach had been utilized. Only if the public can be made to forget 9-11 happened, and can be convinced that Islamofascists are not trying to bring war to the United States, and have been ever since the 1993 WTC bombing (and possibly before that), will their argument that "the war in Iraq is an unjust war, and therefore President Bush (and all republicans) should be removed from office" be acceptable.
Airing the movie "THE PATH TO 9-11" made forgetting 9-11 difficult, if not impossible, and makes their biggest argument, "Iraq is an unjust war" a complete farce.
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ELEMENTARY SCHOOL REPORT CARD SUPPLEMENT
LETTER TO THE PARENTS OF:
Achmed, Mamout, Mustafa, Muhammed, Rashid, Sahid, Ahmed, Ramzi, Hassan, Osama, et al:
Concerning: Continued enrollment in our school system
Dear Parents:
Your children are still
still trying
to blow up or fly airplanes into buildings unable to play nicely with the other children during the recess and lunch periods. Because they keep trying to kill people who are minding their own business of their anti-social behavior, we are recommending that your children be deported to a country where they can blow each other up to their hearts content without endangering people with views differing from their own be permanently expelled from this school altogether.
While this act is being debated, your children will be banned from riding busses, trains, subways, or other public transit, driving vehicles of any sort, or flying in aircraft of any type participating in recess and lunchtime activities with the other children, and must sit in their classrooms during those time periods.
Due to your children’s bad habit of flying airplanes into buildings, blowing up busses, trains, subways, airplanes, and themselves extremely poor behavior, we are also going to recommend that they all be shipped off to the new island nation of Whack-job-istan, from which no other nation will allow emigration your children not be allowed to attend any school in the school district, and that if you wish your children to continue to be a part of the world community their education, they must attend Reform School for remedial education and discipline.
We will also recommend that your children not be allowed to return to the world community public school system until they have proved that they can refrain from killing other people and blowing themselves up in public places play nicely with children of backgrounds different from their own for a period of 1000 years for an extended period of time.
SIGNED,
The ENTIRE REST of the #$@%&$ CIVILIZED WORLD Elementary School Staff
Posted August 11th, 2006 by Mike
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You read the UK Times ?
Why ?
Hat tip to
Cold Fury.
Posted June 5, 2006 by Mike
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Border State Governors Become Irrelevant
. . . Minutemen to build fence along border . . .
Posted April 20, 2006 by Mike
The Border Wall
Governor's Challenge
may have just become irrelevant.
The Minutemen have
issued their own ultimatum, not to the border state governors, but directly to the POTUS himself, effectively taking the governors right out of the loop. Told you guys ya didn't have all year:
MINUTEMEN TO BUILD ARIZONA-MEXICO BORDER FENCE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
MINUTEMEN TO BUILD ARIZONA-MEXICO BORDER FENCE
(PHOENIX, AZ) April 20, 2006 - Chris Simcox, President of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps (“MCDC”), today announced plans by the MCDC to work with local Arizona land owners to build border security fencing on private land along the border with Mexico.
At present, six private land owners have partnered with the Minutemen for the commencement of construction of border fencing on their land. Surveillance cameras on the fencing will be monitored via computer by registered Minutemen across the country. We have chosen a fence design that is based on the Israeli fences in Gaza and on the West Bank that have cut terrorist attacks there by 95% or more. In order to be effective, a fence should not be easy to compromise by climbing over it with a ladder, cutting through it with wire cutters, ramming it with a vehicle, or tunneling under it undetected. No fence can be a 100% impenetrable barrier-but a good design will be time-consuming enough to get through that Border Patrol agents can be alerted to get to a point of attempted intrusion before the intrusion can be completed. Our design does this. You can see it at www.WeNeedAFence.com.
Two construction companies to date have offered to inaugurate groundbreaking, coordinate volunteer construction crews and donate the use of the necessary heavy construction equipment.
The groundbreaking will begin in Arizona on Memorial Day weekend, unless in the interim President Bush deploys National Guard and reserve troops to immediately secure the out-of-control southern border.
The fencing will be built with privately donated funds, engineering and labor and will be used as an example to educate the public about the feasibility and efficacy of fencing to secure America’s borders from illegal incursion by aliens and international criminal cartels. A non-profit organization dedicated specifically to this purpose will facilitate and administer donations for construction of the fence. Monetary and in-kind contributions for this effort will go directly into building materials for this private, volunteer fencing project.
Personally, I'm not much in favor of a wire fence like the one shown in the link above - I prefer a tall concrete wall like Israel is putting up, but hey, it's a start. If they make the government look bad enough, maybe a concrete wall will eventually get built.
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Governor's Challenge Issued !
. . . who's really serious about border security . . .
Posted April 10, 2006 by Mike
The Border Wall
Governor's Challenge
has been issued!
The governors of the states of Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas have all received the following challenge:
Border Security - Governor's Challenge
Which one of you guys can get it done first?
Posted March 29, 2006 by Mike at BoxStockRacer
The border Wall - Which Governor can get it done first?
The Challenge - Which Governor can build a 20 foot tall concrete wall along their southern border first?
A border wall isn't rocket-science. It's a plain old concrete wall.
So here's my challenge to the big three southern border Governors (Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas).
Call three large PROFESSIONAL Civil Engineering firms - I'll make it easy for you:
1) Halliburton: http://www.halliburton.com/kbr/index.jsp
2) Bechtel: http://www.bechtel.com/
3) Flour: http://www.fluor.com/
Get a firm estimate for putting up a 20 foot tall concrete border wall for your state only.
If they think you are even remotely serious, they'll have survey helicopters running up and down your border in a week, and a pretty good estimate of the total cost in two weeks (including incentive clauses for early completion).
I'd be willing to bet that it's a lot smaller number than you think.
Call a press conference at your Governor's Mansion. Give everyone a few days heads-up, and you'll have the undivided attention of every citizen in your state.
Present the cost of the border wall for YOUR STATE ONLY at the press conference.
Announce that you will be asking your state legislators to put it on the ballot in a special election.
Watch your state's citizens stampede to the polls to vote the money to build a border wall.
Watch in amusement as your fellow border state Governors scramble to do the same because all the illegal immigrants that were streaming across your border are now streaming across their borders.
Enjoy hero status for reducing illegal immigration into your state, cutting violent crime, cutting drug flow into your state, and reducing school, medical, and prison costs.
And since you did it without the federal government's help, you don't have to share the glory with them.
So how 'bout it Guv'nors? Who'll be the first to get off the dime?
Newsflash for the governors of Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas - successful presidential candidates of late have all come from Governor's Mansions, not the U.S. Senate.
So which one of you is gonna be first with a spine to be first in line for 2008?
(the Texas contact form was limited to 200 words, so it received an abreviated version, but with all the pertinent info - if they want the whole thing, they can come here to read it.)
All responses to the challenge (if any) will be posted below.
Response #1 - 04/10/2006:
Arizona: "Thank you for filling out the form. You will hear back from one of our staff in the near future."
BoxStockRacer to Arizona: I don't want to hear back from you. I want you to BUILD A WALL. Are we clear on this?
UPDATE: Yo! Guv Perry! Ya gonna let a democrat to get the jump on ya? Get it in gear dude! We ain't got all year ya know.
Response #2 - 04/11/2006:
New Mexico: "This is to acknowledge receipt of your message. Thank you for contacting Governor Bill Richardson."
Another autobot-reply. I can't wait to see the form letters . . .
"Dear Citizen:
We share your concern on the issue of (fill in the blank) ___border security___, and are working hard with the relevant state and federal agencies to address this issue yadda, yadda, yadda . . . . "
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Border Security - Governor's Challenge
Which one of you guys can get it done first?
Posted March 29, 2006 by Mike
The citizens of California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas have all been clamoring for more stringent border control. They're tired of the massive influx of illegal immigrants flooding across the border. They're tired of property destruction on the border, and negative impacts on the crime rate, public school costs, medical costs, and housing for all the extra criminals in our prisons. They want the borders CLOSED.
Unfortunately, illegal immigration is proclaimed by all the talking heads as too big an issue, that "we can't just close the border", because that won't solve the problem.
I beg to differ. Closing off the border is a great start. The number of illegals that come across the border every single day completely swamps the border patrol. Stop that massive influx, and the border patrol will be able to do their job.
How, you say. Just build a 20 foot concrete wall. That will slow the influx to a trickle, something border patrol can handle even in it's present state.
* But we can't build a 1000-mile-long wall - it's too haaaaar-rrdd.*
Waa-waa-waa, and bull-pucky. It ain't rocket-science. It's a plain 'ol concrete wall. The kind of thing that, oh, say, Halliburton, could do blind-folded in their sleep.
So here's my challenge to our four southern border Governors.
Make the call. Halliburton/et all have salespeople sitting around dreaming of taking just such a call. Ask for a ball-park on putting up a wall for your state only. I'll bet they could give you a WAG in ten minutes. If they thought you were even remotely serious, they'd have survey helicopters running up and down your border in a day, and a pretty good estimate of the total cost in a week (including incentive clauses for early completion). I'd be willing to bet that it'll be a lot smaller number than you think.
With that number in hand, call a press conference at the 'ol Governor's Mansion. Give everybody a few days heads-up, and you'll have the undivided attention of every citizen in your state.
Present the cost of the wall for YOUR STATE at the press conference. Announce that you will be asking your state legislators to put it on the ballot at the next election, or even at a special election. Ignore the howls of the LLL media.
Stand back, and watch the people stampede to the polls to vote for this.
Watch in amusement as your fellow border state Governors scramble to do the same because all the illegals that were streaming across your border are now streaming across their borders.
Enjoy hero status for reducing illegal immigration into your state, cutting violent crime, cutting drug flow into your state, and reducing school, medical, and prison costs.
And since you did it without the federal government's help, you don't have to share the glory with them.
So how 'bout it Guv'nors? Who'll be the first to get off the dime?
Update: Newsflash for the governors of Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas - successful presidential candidates of late have all come from Governor's Mansions, not the U.S. Senate.
So which one of you is gonna be first with a spine to be first in line for 2008?
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Port TERMINAL Deal -
. . . Part the Deuce
Posted March 10, 2006 by Mike
So . . . it's NOT OK that the UAE, which
1) has never attacked us militarily,
2) has helped tremendously in the global WOT,
3) has bought almost 14 billion dollars worth of Boeing 777's alone,
4) plans on buying additional billions of dollars worth of Boeing's new 787 Dreamliner,
5) allows the U.S. Navy to dock WARSHIPS in Dubai's port (at considerable risk of terrorist reprisal to themselves)
run a few TERMINALS in a small number of U.S. ports,
BUT, it is OK that the frigging RED CHINESE, who have
1) supported the North Koreans during the Korean War, resulting in the deaths of over 38,000 American servicemen,
2) supported the North Vietnamese during the Vietnam War,
3) Shot missiles at Taiwan,
4) launched missiles towards Japan,
5) forced down a U.S. reconnaissance plane in international airspace, imprisoned the aircrew, and stripped the aircraft of classified equipment,
6) stole CLASSIFIED U.S. MIRV NUCLEAR WARHEAD technology during the Clinton administration,
7) bought Highly sensitive, if not classified BALLISTIC MISSILE LAUNCH TECHNOLOGY during the Clinton administration,
8) won't let the U.S. Navy within 200 miles of their coastline, and
9) invaded and took over Tibet,
CAN FRIGGING RUN ONE OF OUR PORTS IN LONG BEACH CALIFORNIA.
In short:
The UAE BUYS our stuff, keeps us employed, and supports our military.
Red China SELLS us stuff, takes our jobs, and will attack us at the drop of a hat.
Who do YOU support?
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Scuttling the Port (terminal) Deal -
. . . A Triple-Play for Democrats
Posted March 9, 2006 by Mike
In their never-ending quest to destroy this administration, the democrats finally got something to stick to the wall (with major help from witless republicans), and they got a three-fer with this one.
First, they finally were able to give President Bush a black eye, something they have been unsuccessful at for the last 6 years.
Second, there's the distinct possibility that there will be a backlash - the UAE may cancel a 9.7 Billion dollar (that's Billion with a capital 'B') deal to buy American Boeing aircraft instead of Airbus aircraft, and may choose not to buy Boeing's new next-generation 787 Dreamliner, another multi-BILLION dollar deal. Democrats never miss an opportunity to damage the economy if they think they might be able to blame it on republicans.
Third, there is also the possibility that the UAE may retaliate by reconsidering the US Navy's use of their ports in Dubai (which are the safest, if not the only place to dock in the middle east). This could negatively affect the prosecution of the WOT in Iraq, which would please democrats no end. They're still hoping for a Vietnam-style failure they can pin on President Bush.
And the Democrats couldn't possibly have done it on their own. They had help. LOTS of help - from, of all places, conservative talk radio (with Rush and the Snowman being the only notable exceptions).
Conservative talk radio took a page (practically the entire book, actually) from the democrat play-book.
First, they reacted to a situation based on pure emotion, without doing even the most rudimentary background investigation of the issue - a classic democrat response.
Second, they stirred up public opinion by using the most emotional rhetoric possible to stop the deal, and helped stampede a majority of politicians into unconsidered, uninformed, and damaging action - something that democrats will do at the drop of a hat if they think they aren't getting a piece of the action (money or the power equivalent) for any major deal that happens in any situation.
Third, they positioned themselves as leaders in a decision-making process waaaay above their pay grade, and completely outside their area of expertise - yet another classic democrat political tactic.
Our only hope to avoid major negative consequences of this incredible stupid escapade that could be felt for years to come is if the UAE leaders are much bigger people than our own (embarrassing) congressional leadership.
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My local Seattle-based
Bartell's drug store just got a shipment of jelly's and jams in from Danish Orchards, a Danish food products company. This stuff is actually made in Denmark. I picked up a 2 lb tub of their Seedless Strawberry fresh fruit preserves (jelly), and it is
OUT-STANDING!
And it's ON SALE! (At Bartell's, for now at least - don't know how long it will last)
Support Denmark - check out your local grocer/deli/drugstore for this stuff and stock up the 'ol pantry! Even if it's not on sale, it works out cost-per-pound to be as cheap as, if not cheaper than, your regular brand.
Yo, Pot - Kettle Calling, Line 2 . . .
Posted February 9, 2006 by Mike
If it's such a sacrilege to portray images of Muhammad the Prophet, then why are so many followers of the Religion of Pieces, named Muhammad?
I'm pretty sure that more than a few of the tens of millions of Muhammads around the world have had pictures taken of themselves now and again . . . you know - for say, driver's licenses, employee identity cards, the family photo album - that kind of stuff. Now a picture of themselves, with the prophet's name under it, might be considered . . . presumptuous . . . if not outright blasphemous, by the standards they are currently espousing, no?
Seems just a weeeee bit hypocritical, dontcha think?
. . . just sayin' is all.
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Buy DANISH !
. . . and tick off Islamofascists!
Posted February 1, 2006 by Mike
Seems that Islamofascists all over the world have got their Victoria's Secret®s in a bunch over some satirical cartoons that appeared in a Danish newspaper depicting the Supreme Leader of the Splodydopes® (SLotS®) in a less than flattering manner. All I've got to say to the Islamofascists is, grow up, and grow a skin. Ya'all sound like a bunch of Junior High/High School cry-babies. As the smallest kid in the school, I learned to put up with at least a half-dozen uncomplimentary nick-names without going postal on my juvenile delinquent classmates (or in your case, going 'splody). This ended when I went off to University, where everybody seemed to have magically grown up over night. So when ya gonna graduate from public school and start behaving like grown-ups, huh?
These junior high juveniles need a good spanking, and you can do it with your dollars. Here's a short list of Danish products that you can buy to show support for our long-time friends, the Danes.
Buy, buy, buy !
Danish furniture (hat-tip to Tam,
here, at
view from the porch).
Danish Ham Good stuff! Available at your local grocery store! And if you can find it outside of England, Danish Bacon - it's pretty good stuff.
Danish Cheese Also at your local deli/grocery?
Danish Crackers Same as above?
Danish ButterCookies They come in Really Big tins!
Make sure all the Danish foodstuffs are actually made in Denmark - read the labels!
Visit Denmark! After you've got all the Legos® you can handle, some nice furniture, and you've stocked up the 'ol pantry with all the Danish Ham, Bacon, cheese, crackers, and cookies that'll fit, I recommend the ultimate. Visit Denmark itself. I've been to over a dozen countries in my lifetime, and Denmark, in my opinion, is the prettiest, cleanest, nicest place to visit of them all. The castles are beautiful, the scenery outstanding, everyone speaks English, and you can visit the original LEGOLAND®! Denmark is expensive, but the idea here is to support the Danes, and I can think of no better way than to spend a week or two seeing the sights there. Start planning your vacation now, and don't forget to visit the most famous Danish statue of all, The Little Mermaid! Here's the official Danish web-site to get you started: Denmark.
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Terrorists in Iraq get a 2-fer . . .
. . . two journalists down - double the terrorists' media coverage.
Posted January 30, 2006 by Mike
Hat tip to
Michelle Malkin.
In a normal war setting, the conflict in Iraq would have been over two years ago. However, the terrorists know that the real war is now in the media, where the American left-wing news media is their biggest ally. Following the Vietnam/American media playbook, all they have to do is keep killing one or two people a day, and eventually, the incessant daily drumbeat of negativism and disaster heaped out by the American news media will sap our will to continue, and we will pull out, leaving the battlefield to the enemy.
Vietnam, deja-vu.
This, in spite of the truly stunning success and achievements of our military in Iraq, some of which have never been equaled in all of human history.
The drumbeat of failure has been unparalleled in modern times, and in spite of the lowest casualty rate in American history, the news media has not only not reported the good news, but has become increasingly shrill in it's reporting of bad news.
If you doubt this, here's a simple example. Look at the daily body count reporting, and how it has changed in the last two years.
At the beginning of the war, the body count report consisted merely of a network news anchor somberly reporting the day's casualties, with perhaps file footage of something blowing up in the background.
This obviously wasn't having the desired negative affect on public perception of the war, so a colored graphic DEATH TOLL BOX® was added under the nightly news anchor with the total number of deaths to date.
When this didn't produce the desired angst and despair in the American people, the DEATH TOLL BOX® grew in size.
Today, the DEATH TOLL BOX® fills the entire screen, with the total number killed in letters as big as they can make them, usually with a bright red background that screams "LOOK AT ME". If they could make the graphic any bigger, they would.
And yet, it still hasn't produced the desired affect on the public consciousness and will to continue the fight. The network news medias' hunger for more American casualties is so palpable, I almost expect one of them to make the DEATH TOLL BOX® flash on and off like a strobe light, with a subliminal skull and cross-bones image.
Fast forward to today's news.
In this media war, journalists have been high priority targets for terrorists since the beginning because of their obvious propaganda value - pop a journo, and you get a full week's coverage (if not more) for free. Chop off a journo's head, and you get a month or more of exposure in the American press.
But now the terrorists have
struck gold.
They got a MAJOR PLAYER in the news media. ABC "World News Tonight" co-anchor Bob Woodruff and cameraman Doug Vogt were hit with an IED while traveling with the Iraqi Army on patrol. The propaganda value of this attack will be priceless for the terrorists. I expect the American network news media to oblige the terrorists and go absolutely nuts over this - after all, one of the Really Important People (a network news anchor) got hit.
The coverage the news media gives this will be interesting to see. I expect nothing less than a full-court press by every American news network explaining how "the war in Iraq has failed", and that "we can't possibly win", because "the longer we stay, the more terrorists we create", and "the Iraqi people were better off under Saddam" anyway, so we should "support the troops by bringing them home now".
After all, if it's not safe enough for a bullet magnet journalist, then it's obviously "too dangerous for our troops",
and since "we don't have an exit strategy", we should "set a concrete date for withdrawal of all our troops".
Watch and see if they don't.
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Dis-Incentive for Eco-Terrorists
You break somebody else's toys, we pay for them by selling yours . . .
Posted January 22, 2005 by Michael A. Morrow
James D. Miller, Assistant Professor of Economics at Smith College, has written a great article on changing the market dynamics of eco-terrorism. I should have linked it when I first saw it.
I'm correcting that oversight now. Here's the money quote:
"Giving in to terrorists encourages them. Unfortunately, markets automatically respond to eco-terrorism by doing exactly what the terrorists want. If, for example, SUV dealerships were subject to a significant risk of arson, their insurance rates would rise, which would in turn raise the price of SUVs and therefore result in Americans driving fewer big cars.
We need to change economic cause and effect to stop the market from rewarding environmental terrorism. I propose that the government fully compensate individuals and businesses for all losses caused by eco-terrorists. The money for this compensation should come from the Environmental Protection Agency's business oversight budget or from selling federal land to mining companies. Under either financing plan, eco-terrorism wouldn't increase the price of goods the terrorists dislike, but rather would cause the government to act in ways they detest."
Emphasis mine. Go thou, and readeth the whole thing:
Markets Reward Eco-Terror. So Let's Fix Them.
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What would you do?
Does anybody else feel uneasy about this?
Posted January 12, 2005 by Michael A. Morrow
I've got a meet Saturday, and I need a specific size balsa wood to finish two projects. I drive across town to the only hobby shop that I'm sure will have the right size. I walk in and head straight to the back where I spend 15 minutes finding the most suitable wood, and then head for the register.
On the way to the register, I pass by something I've never seen before. It's a flight simulator. A full-on hardware/software flight simulator, complete with overhead switches, dual throttle quadrants, pedals, a stick, and a huge flat screen monitor where the "pilot" is alternating between a very high quality rendition of a Boeing 737 backing away from a terminal, and an instrument panel of the 737 on the screen. I stop and stare.
Why do I stop and stare? Is it because I've never seen such a realistic setup like this before? No. Since I'm in a hurry, I would normally have checked it out, said something profound like "cool", and been on my way.
The reason I've stopped, is an incredibly uneasy fascination for the scene in front of me.
I'm looking at the most sophisticated hardware/software flight simulator I've ever seen (*).
It has a Boeing 737 airliner on the screen.
And two guys speaking Arabic are using it.
A 20-30-something "pilot" at the controls, and a 40-something guy in a serious discussion with the "pilot".
In Arabic.
It felt completely surreal, and I was in a hobby shop for crying out loud.
. . . Am I the only person who feels uncomfortable with this?
What would you do?
(*) Outside of Boeing. In high school, I got to fly the REAL-DEAL Boeing 747 Flight Simulator at Boeing. And no, I didn't crash it - I had already soloed in real life, and I managed to land the simulator perfectly, even though the simulator supervisor cut an engine on me on final approach, and then turned it back on about 8 seconds before touchdown.
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Paul Johnson's Murderers Caught/Killed
Saudi security forces kill four "militants" in gun battle
Posted June 19, 2004 by Michael A. Morrow
The web-site
"Al Bawaba - The Middle East Gateway"
has published a photo of a dead Abdulaziz bin Isa Al-Miqren, the top al Qaeda terrorist in Saudi Arabia. Here's what they have to say:
Saudi Arabia confirms death of al Qaeda leader
19-06-2004, 14:08
"A Saudi official from the Ministry of Interior said on Saturday that the security forces on Friday night spotted four gunmen around 21:00 Friday evening at a patrol station in Al-Malaz (area)."
"The security forces immediately surrounded them during which an exchange of fire took place, resulting in the killing of the four."
The source identified the four killed as follows:
1. Abdulaziz bin Isa Al-Miqren who claimed to be head of al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia. ...."
Three associates were also killed, including one who participated in the murder, and two who participated in attacks on westerners in western compounds earlier in the year.
'bout time.
The
Difference Between Wild Dogs and Islamofascists
Oh wait... there isn't a difference is
there?
Posted April 8, 2004
by Michael A. Morrow
On
March 31st, 2004, I wrote
"...... They're like wild dogs - the only difference I can see in
the actions of the Islamofascists and a pack of wild dogs is that the wild
dogs eat what they kill. usually."
Turns out I was wrong - there isn't any difference at
all:
from a Reuters
story today:
"We tell you
that three of your children have fallen prisoner in our hands and we give
you two options -- withdraw your forces from our country and go home or we will burn them alive and feed them
to the fighters."
These
animals are disgusting.
The Difference Between Wild Dogs and
Islamofascists
The June 30th Turnover in Iraq
Baiting the Baathist Thugs and Islamofascists
Posted April 6, 2004 by Michael A.
Morrow
During the
Coalition's Run to Baghdad, firefights would frequently break out along
the road. In order to draw out the enemy combatants, U.S. troops would use
loudspeakers to impugn their ancestry and manhood. It worked every time.
The enemy troops would become enraged, and charge right out in the open,
making it easy to take them out(1).
President Bush
employed exactly the same tactics against foreign terrorist fighters in
Iraq when he publicly goaded them to "Bring it on". It worked again. Many
terrorist fighters tried to flock to Iraq to fight the coalition. The
result was the same - they were killed or captured, and those that escaped
Iraq alive complained loudly that they were shunned by regular Iraqi
citizens.
The June 30th turnover date is a brilliant continuation
of the same tactic. It's a public goad - a flaunting of their impotence,
and a reminder that the last chance to prevent a stable, more or less
democratic government from being established is fading away. It's smoking
out the worst of the enemy. It is unfortunate that we are seeing more
casualties, but it is necessary to get rid of the thugs and terrorists in
order to create a stable environment free of fear.
As we get closer
to the turnover, I think we'll see more and more of the ex-Baathist thugs
and other enemy combatants come out of the woodwork to try and prevent the
establishment of a stable government. Between the June 30th Turnover and
our November Presidential election, I expect increasing violence,
increased casualties, and vicious butchery approaching the worst that has
ever been seen, in an attempt to influence the hearts and minds of
Americans as they go to the polls. The thugs know that getting rid of
President Bush is their only chance at keeping power.
Maintaining
the June 30th Turnover date will help draw them out so we can deal with
them. The more of them we get now, the sooner and easier it will be to
establish a peaceful, free, and democratic Iraq.
The June 30th, 2004
Turnover Date
(1) From the April 21st
edition of Newsweek, via psywarrior.com:
"...young Arab toughs cannot
tolerate insults to their manhood. So, as American armored columns pushed
down the road to Baghdad, 400-watt loudspeakers mounted on Humvees would,
from time to time, blare out in Arabic that Iraqi men are impotent. The
Fedayeen, the fierce but undisciplined and untrained Iraqi irregulars,
could not bear to be taunted. Whether they took the bait or saw an
opportunity to attack, many Iraqis stormed out of their concealed or
dug-in positions, pushing aside their human shields only to be confronted
with American tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles."
The Religion of Peace? -
I Have No Words ....
Posted March 31, 2004 by Michael A. Morrow
I wanted this blog to be a fun place, but with stuff like
this going on.....
** Warning ** Graphic Photos **
Four unarmed civilian contractors helping rebuild Iraq were attacked, killed, dismembered, dragged through the streets, and hung from a bridge in Fallujah, in the Sunni Triangle. All the while, Islamofascists were chanting "Allahu Akbar". I have no words.
I did have thoughts though....
First thought: Nuke the Sunni Triangle till it glows, shoot 'em in the dark, then set up solar panels around the area to catch the radiation and provide power for the rest of Iraq.
* calm down *
Second thought: Surround the north, east, and west sides with the 1st I.D. Have the 4th I.D. enter from the south and go door to door with I.R. equipment and photos of the perpetrators. Shoot THEM in the dark.
* easy now... *
Third thought: Start new TV show - "Iraq's Most Wanted". $100,000 reward for each and every participant. Show faces of participants on TV. Send F.B.I. over with several divisions of support plus five squadrons of Apache gunships to hunt the animals down.
I just don't know what to say. They're like wild dogs - the only difference I can see in the actions of the Islamofascists and a pack of wild dogs is that the wild dogs eat what they kill. Usually.
French
Raise Terror Alert Level!
Warning! - Axis of Weasel Member State Pronouncement!
Posted April 5, 2004 by Michael A.
Morrow
From Crampy.com:
This just
in...
French Raise Terror Alert Level:
PARIS, France
(AFP-N) - In the wake of the Madrid train bombings on 11 March, which
killed 191 people, French President Jacques Chirac has ordered his
country's terror alert level raised from "Run" to "Hide."
The only
two higher terror alert levels in France are "Surrender" and
"Collaborate."
According to an unnamed French counterterrorism
official, Paris tried to assign colors to the four alert levels, but gave
up when no one could suggest any color other than "Yellow."
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The Difference Between Wild Dogs and Islamofascists
The June 30th Turnover in Iraq
The Religion of Peace?
French Raise Terror Alert Level
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Copyright Michael A. Morrow - March 21, 2004.
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