Power LineTerrorists Want Out?
Liberals were, by and large, surprised when socialism collapsed in Russia and throughout Europe fifteen years ago. (Of course, to be fair, that might be because they were relying on the CIA's rosy reports on conditions in the Soviet Union.) Likewise, I think, liberals will be surprised, and in some instances disappointed, as the Iraq "insurgency" winds down much faster than is now expected.
We're a day late on this, but if you haven't already seen it, check out the Financial Times' "Iraq's insurgents ‘seek exit strategy:'"
Sharif Ali Bin al-Hussein, who heads Iraq's main monarchist movement and is in contact with guerrilla leaders, said many insurgents including former officials of the ruling Ba'ath party, army officers, and Islamists have been searching for a way to end their campaign against US troops and Iraqi government forces since the January 30 election.
Insurgent leaders fear coming out into the open to talk for fear of being targeted by US military or Iraqi security forces' raids, he said.
Heh.
Sharif Ali said the success of Iraq's elections dealt the insurgents a demoralising blow, prompting them to consider the need to enter the political process.
For an illustration of why "insurgents" are increasingly afraid to come out of hiding, see Blackfive's post, including after action report, on a recent encounter between a handful of American MPs and a considerably larger group of heavily-armed terrorists who attacked a convoy.
The terrorists had handcuffs, apparently intending to take hostages for later beheading, and a video camera to document their exploit for Arabic television. But things didn't turn out quite as planned. You can link to the terrorists' video off Blackfive, too; it was recovered after the gun battle. The guy who shot it isn't going to win any prizes for cinematography, and it ends just as the armored humvees show up, signalling the beginning of the gun battle. Still, it's pretty interesting.
Call me an optimist, but I think events in Iraq are moving rapidly toward a happier and more peaceful future.
UPDATE: Austin Bay adds more, including the observation that if the Sunni insurgents want to come in from the cold, their "get out of jail free" card could be turning in Zarqawi.
Saturday, March 26, 2005
Power Line: March 2005 Archives
Power Line: March 2005 Archives
Terrorists Want Out?
Liberals were, by and large, surprised when socialism collapsed in Russia and throughout Europe fifteen years ago. (Of course, to be fair, that might be because they were relying on the CIA's rosy reports on conditions in the Soviet Union.) Likewise, I think, liberals will be surprised, and in some instances disappointed, as the Iraq "insurgency" winds down much faster than is now expected.
We're a day late on this, but if you haven't already seen it, check out the Financial Times' "Iraq's insurgents ‘seek exit strategy:'"
Sharif Ali Bin al-Hussein, who heads Iraq's main monarchist movement and is in contact with guerrilla leaders, said many insurgents including former officials of the ruling Ba'ath party, army officers, and Islamists have been searching for a way to end their campaign against US troops and Iraqi government forces since the January 30 election.
Insurgent leaders fear coming out into the open to talk for fear of being targeted by US military or Iraqi security forces' raids, he said.
Heh.
Sharif Ali said the success of Iraq's elections dealt the insurgents a demoralising blow, prompting them to consider the need to enter the political process.
For an illustration of why "insurgents" are increasingly afraid to come out of hiding, see Blackfive's post, including after action report, on a recent encounter between a handful of American MPs and a considerably larger group of heavily-armed terrorists who attacked a convoy.
The terrorists had handcuffs, apparently intending to take hostages for later beheading, and a video camera to document their exploit for Arabic television. But things didn't turn out quite as planned. You can link to the terrorists' video off Blackfive, too; it was recovered after the gun battle. The guy who shot it isn't going to win any prizes for cinematography, and it ends just as the armored humvees show up, signalling the beginning of the gun battle. Still, it's pretty interesting.
Call me an optimist, but I think events in Iraq are moving rapidly toward a happier and more peaceful future.
UPDATE: Austin Bay adds more, including the observation that if the Sunni insurgents want to come in from the cold, their "get out of jail free" card could be turning in Zarqawi.
Terrorists Want Out?
Liberals were, by and large, surprised when socialism collapsed in Russia and throughout Europe fifteen years ago. (Of course, to be fair, that might be because they were relying on the CIA's rosy reports on conditions in the Soviet Union.) Likewise, I think, liberals will be surprised, and in some instances disappointed, as the Iraq "insurgency" winds down much faster than is now expected.
We're a day late on this, but if you haven't already seen it, check out the Financial Times' "Iraq's insurgents ‘seek exit strategy:'"
Sharif Ali Bin al-Hussein, who heads Iraq's main monarchist movement and is in contact with guerrilla leaders, said many insurgents including former officials of the ruling Ba'ath party, army officers, and Islamists have been searching for a way to end their campaign against US troops and Iraqi government forces since the January 30 election.
Insurgent leaders fear coming out into the open to talk for fear of being targeted by US military or Iraqi security forces' raids, he said.
Heh.
Sharif Ali said the success of Iraq's elections dealt the insurgents a demoralising blow, prompting them to consider the need to enter the political process.
For an illustration of why "insurgents" are increasingly afraid to come out of hiding, see Blackfive's post, including after action report, on a recent encounter between a handful of American MPs and a considerably larger group of heavily-armed terrorists who attacked a convoy.
The terrorists had handcuffs, apparently intending to take hostages for later beheading, and a video camera to document their exploit for Arabic television. But things didn't turn out quite as planned. You can link to the terrorists' video off Blackfive, too; it was recovered after the gun battle. The guy who shot it isn't going to win any prizes for cinematography, and it ends just as the armored humvees show up, signalling the beginning of the gun battle. Still, it's pretty interesting.
Call me an optimist, but I think events in Iraq are moving rapidly toward a happier and more peaceful future.
UPDATE: Austin Bay adds more, including the observation that if the Sunni insurgents want to come in from the cold, their "get out of jail free" card could be turning in Zarqawi.
Power Line: March 2005 Archives
Power Line: March 2005 ArchivesTerrorists Want Out?
Liberals were, by and large, surprised when socialism collapsed in Russia and throughout Europe fifteen years ago. (Of course, to be fair, that might be because they were relying on the CIA's rosy reports on conditions in the Soviet Union.) Likewise, I think, liberals will be surprised, and in some instances disappointed, as the Iraq "insurgency" winds down much faster than is now expected.
We're a day late on this, but if you haven't already seen it, check out the Financial Times' "Iraq's insurgents ‘seek exit strategy:'"
Sharif Ali Bin al-Hussein, who heads Iraq's main monarchist movement and is in contact with guerrilla leaders, said many insurgents including former officials of the ruling Ba'ath party, army officers, and Islamists have been searching for a way to end their campaign against US troops and Iraqi government forces since the January 30 election.
Insurgent leaders fear coming out into the open to talk for fear of being targeted by US military or Iraqi security forces' raids, he said.
Heh.
Sharif Ali said the success of Iraq's elections dealt the insurgents a demoralising blow, prompting them to consider the need to enter the political process.
For an illustration of why "insurgents" are increasingly afraid to come out of hiding, see Blackfive's post, including after action report, on a recent encounter between a handful of American MPs and a considerably larger group of heavily-armed terrorists who attacked a convoy.
The terrorists had handcuffs, apparently intending to take hostages for later beheading, and a video camera to document their exploit for Arabic television. But things didn't turn out quite as planned. You can link to the terrorists' video off Blackfive, too; it was recovered after the gun battle. The guy who shot it isn't going to win any prizes for cinematography, and it ends just as the armored humvees show up, signalling the beginning of the gun battle. Still, it's pretty interesting.
Call me an optimist, but I think events in Iraq are moving rapidly toward a happier and more peaceful future.
UPDATE: Austin Bay adds more, including the observation that if the Sunni insurgents want to come in from the cold, their "get out of jail free" card could be turning in Zarqawi.
Liberals were, by and large, surprised when socialism collapsed in Russia and throughout Europe fifteen years ago. (Of course, to be fair, that might be because they were relying on the CIA's rosy reports on conditions in the Soviet Union.) Likewise, I think, liberals will be surprised, and in some instances disappointed, as the Iraq "insurgency" winds down much faster than is now expected.
We're a day late on this, but if you haven't already seen it, check out the Financial Times' "Iraq's insurgents ‘seek exit strategy:'"
Sharif Ali Bin al-Hussein, who heads Iraq's main monarchist movement and is in contact with guerrilla leaders, said many insurgents including former officials of the ruling Ba'ath party, army officers, and Islamists have been searching for a way to end their campaign against US troops and Iraqi government forces since the January 30 election.
Insurgent leaders fear coming out into the open to talk for fear of being targeted by US military or Iraqi security forces' raids, he said.
Heh.
Sharif Ali said the success of Iraq's elections dealt the insurgents a demoralising blow, prompting them to consider the need to enter the political process.
For an illustration of why "insurgents" are increasingly afraid to come out of hiding, see Blackfive's post, including after action report, on a recent encounter between a handful of American MPs and a considerably larger group of heavily-armed terrorists who attacked a convoy.
The terrorists had handcuffs, apparently intending to take hostages for later beheading, and a video camera to document their exploit for Arabic television. But things didn't turn out quite as planned. You can link to the terrorists' video off Blackfive, too; it was recovered after the gun battle. The guy who shot it isn't going to win any prizes for cinematography, and it ends just as the armored humvees show up, signalling the beginning of the gun battle. Still, it's pretty interesting.
Call me an optimist, but I think events in Iraq are moving rapidly toward a happier and more peaceful future.
UPDATE: Austin Bay adds more, including the observation that if the Sunni insurgents want to come in from the cold, their "get out of jail free" card could be turning in Zarqawi.
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
Moving comments on The Wounded Veterans
In Iraq for 365: Veterans and this country Veterans and this country
One man was missing an eye. Another had no left arm. Others had extreme coughs and limps. All appeared poor, wearing stained sweat pants and old shirts and out-of-style tattered shoes. They were Veterans. The heart and soul of America. And there they sat at the Milwaukee Veteran’s Hospital awaiting treatment. What they’ve seen and been through could only be understood by somebody else who’d lived through it. Many probably held their buddies as his final breath left his lungs. Yet, they are poor and take the Metro bus for their medical treatment; they can’t afford cars.
As I stood in the lobby of the hospital awaiting to register with the VA, my heart was filled with agony. It hurt to see these men. Not because they were a sight for sore eyes, but because they sacrificed so much for their country and “shabby” medical treatment hardly seems like a just reward. Why is it this country will dish out millions to pay the salary of an NBA player, but only pay its police officers and soldiers an average of $30,000? What’s more is an injured Veteran receives disability, but the most you can receive off of full disability is less than my yearly salary.
I very badly wanted to walk up to one man in particular and say “I’m sorry.” He was a black man and could not stop shaking. He stuttered and had a limp in his right leg. He still wore his old issued field jacket; no doubt the same one he wore in Vietnam. I don’t know what’s wrong with him, other than the obvious. Unlike the others I saw, he didn’t take the bus or drive. He had a backpack and after his appointment, he walked away from the hospital. I assume he was homeless.
I’m sure at one point in his life he was an up and comer. A kid with dreams to be a baseball player or a store owner. But his life was changed after his country asked a favor. He may not have wanted to serve, but he selflessly dodged bullets and chased the enemy through tunnels and slept at night praying he wakes up in the morning. And now he needs a favor from his country, and all “We the People” can offer is pro-rated medical care and a discount on a loan. It hardly seems fair. Even still, I think respect is probably what he desires most or a simple thank you from the same generation who once spat on him. Rather, he’s looked at as a bum.
It’s easy for people to say… “the war was a long time ago. People need to just get over it.” No doubt, these naysayers are the same people who would rather read about latest updates on Michael Jackson’s trial rather than a short bio of a deceased soldier. I wonder sometimes if our country has its priorities right. Then, I open the newspaper and Martha Stewart is on the front page while the war is under “international” news buried inside. To say the least, it’s just frustrating.
One man was missing an eye. Another had no left arm. Others had extreme coughs and limps. All appeared poor, wearing stained sweat pants and old shirts and out-of-style tattered shoes. They were Veterans. The heart and soul of America. And there they sat at the Milwaukee Veteran’s Hospital awaiting treatment. What they’ve seen and been through could only be understood by somebody else who’d lived through it. Many probably held their buddies as his final breath left his lungs. Yet, they are poor and take the Metro bus for their medical treatment; they can’t afford cars.
As I stood in the lobby of the hospital awaiting to register with the VA, my heart was filled with agony. It hurt to see these men. Not because they were a sight for sore eyes, but because they sacrificed so much for their country and “shabby” medical treatment hardly seems like a just reward. Why is it this country will dish out millions to pay the salary of an NBA player, but only pay its police officers and soldiers an average of $30,000? What’s more is an injured Veteran receives disability, but the most you can receive off of full disability is less than my yearly salary.
I very badly wanted to walk up to one man in particular and say “I’m sorry.” He was a black man and could not stop shaking. He stuttered and had a limp in his right leg. He still wore his old issued field jacket; no doubt the same one he wore in Vietnam. I don’t know what’s wrong with him, other than the obvious. Unlike the others I saw, he didn’t take the bus or drive. He had a backpack and after his appointment, he walked away from the hospital. I assume he was homeless.
I’m sure at one point in his life he was an up and comer. A kid with dreams to be a baseball player or a store owner. But his life was changed after his country asked a favor. He may not have wanted to serve, but he selflessly dodged bullets and chased the enemy through tunnels and slept at night praying he wakes up in the morning. And now he needs a favor from his country, and all “We the People” can offer is pro-rated medical care and a discount on a loan. It hardly seems fair. Even still, I think respect is probably what he desires most or a simple thank you from the same generation who once spat on him. Rather, he’s looked at as a bum.
It’s easy for people to say… “the war was a long time ago. People need to just get over it.” No doubt, these naysayers are the same people who would rather read about latest updates on Michael Jackson’s trial rather than a short bio of a deceased soldier. I wonder sometimes if our country has its priorities right. Then, I open the newspaper and Martha Stewart is on the front page while the war is under “international” news buried inside. To say the least, it’s just frustrating.
Moving comments on The Wounded Veterans
In Iraq for 365: Veterans and this country Veterans and this country
One man was missing an eye. Another had no left arm. Others had extreme coughs and limps. All appeared poor, wearing stained sweat pants and old shirts and out-of-style tattered shoes. They were Veterans. The heart and soul of America. And there they sat at the Milwaukee Veteran’s Hospital awaiting treatment. What they’ve seen and been through could only be understood by somebody else who’d lived through it. Many probably held their buddies as his final breath left his lungs. Yet, they are poor and take the Metro bus for their medical treatment; they can’t afford cars.
As I stood in the lobby of the hospital awaiting to register with the VA, my heart was filled with agony. It hurt to see these men. Not because they were a sight for sore eyes, but because they sacrificed so much for their country and “shabby” medical treatment hardly seems like a just reward. Why is it this country will dish out millions to pay the salary of an NBA player, but only pay its police officers and soldiers an average of $30,000? What’s more is an injured Veteran receives disability, but the most you can receive off of full disability is less than my yearly salary.
I very badly wanted to walk up to one man in particular and say “I’m sorry.” He was a black man and could not stop shaking. He stuttered and had a limp in his right leg. He still wore his old issued field jacket; no doubt the same one he wore in Vietnam. I don’t know what’s wrong with him, other than the obvious. Unlike the others I saw, he didn’t take the bus or drive. He had a backpack and after his appointment, he walked away from the hospital. I assume he was homeless.
I’m sure at one point in his life he was an up and comer. A kid with dreams to be a baseball player or a store owner. But his life was changed after his country asked a favor. He may not have wanted to serve, but he selflessly dodged bullets and chased the enemy through tunnels and slept at night praying he wakes up in the morning. And now he needs a favor from his country, and all “We the People” can offer is pro-rated medical care and a discount on a loan. It hardly seems fair. Even still, I think respect is probably what he desires most or a simple thank you from the same generation who once spat on him. Rather, he’s looked at as a bum.
It’s easy for people to say… “the war was a long time ago. People need to just get over it.” No doubt, these naysayers are the same people who would rather read about latest updates on Michael Jackson’s trial rather than a short bio of a deceased soldier. I wonder sometimes if our country has its priorities right. Then, I open the newspaper and Martha Stewart is on the front page while the war is under “international” news buried inside. To say the least, it’s just frustrating.
One man was missing an eye. Another had no left arm. Others had extreme coughs and limps. All appeared poor, wearing stained sweat pants and old shirts and out-of-style tattered shoes. They were Veterans. The heart and soul of America. And there they sat at the Milwaukee Veteran’s Hospital awaiting treatment. What they’ve seen and been through could only be understood by somebody else who’d lived through it. Many probably held their buddies as his final breath left his lungs. Yet, they are poor and take the Metro bus for their medical treatment; they can’t afford cars.
As I stood in the lobby of the hospital awaiting to register with the VA, my heart was filled with agony. It hurt to see these men. Not because they were a sight for sore eyes, but because they sacrificed so much for their country and “shabby” medical treatment hardly seems like a just reward. Why is it this country will dish out millions to pay the salary of an NBA player, but only pay its police officers and soldiers an average of $30,000? What’s more is an injured Veteran receives disability, but the most you can receive off of full disability is less than my yearly salary.
I very badly wanted to walk up to one man in particular and say “I’m sorry.” He was a black man and could not stop shaking. He stuttered and had a limp in his right leg. He still wore his old issued field jacket; no doubt the same one he wore in Vietnam. I don’t know what’s wrong with him, other than the obvious. Unlike the others I saw, he didn’t take the bus or drive. He had a backpack and after his appointment, he walked away from the hospital. I assume he was homeless.
I’m sure at one point in his life he was an up and comer. A kid with dreams to be a baseball player or a store owner. But his life was changed after his country asked a favor. He may not have wanted to serve, but he selflessly dodged bullets and chased the enemy through tunnels and slept at night praying he wakes up in the morning. And now he needs a favor from his country, and all “We the People” can offer is pro-rated medical care and a discount on a loan. It hardly seems fair. Even still, I think respect is probably what he desires most or a simple thank you from the same generation who once spat on him. Rather, he’s looked at as a bum.
It’s easy for people to say… “the war was a long time ago. People need to just get over it.” No doubt, these naysayers are the same people who would rather read about latest updates on Michael Jackson’s trial rather than a short bio of a deceased soldier. I wonder sometimes if our country has its priorities right. Then, I open the newspaper and Martha Stewart is on the front page while the war is under “international” news buried inside. To say the least, it’s just frustrating.
EconoPundit
EconoPundit: "New report from the Pew Hispanic Center on the magnitude of undocumented immigration."
Monday, March 21, 2005
Chrenkoff
Chrenkoff: "New poll from Iraq
Thanks to our special correspondent and translator Haider Ajina, here's the latest opinion poll of 970 residents of Baghdad, published in the March 21 edition of 'Iraquna' newspaper:
'Are you in favor of implementing Islamic Sharia and an Islamic government?
Yes - 12.5%
No - 83.9%
Don�t Know - 3.6%
'Do you support cutting relations with Jordan? [background]
Yes - 85.2%
No - 14.1%
Don�t know - less than 1%
'Do you support what Al-Sadr followers did in Basrah? [background]
Yes - 6.6%
No - 90.4%
Don�t know - 3%'
As Haider comments, 'most Iraqis have favored a secular government for some time and are continuing to ask for a secular government. They know what a theocracy is like, they have one next door and it does what it can to destabilize Iraq.'"
Thanks to our special correspondent and translator Haider Ajina, here's the latest opinion poll of 970 residents of Baghdad, published in the March 21 edition of 'Iraquna' newspaper:
'Are you in favor of implementing Islamic Sharia and an Islamic government?
Yes - 12.5%
No - 83.9%
Don�t Know - 3.6%
'Do you support cutting relations with Jordan? [background]
Yes - 85.2%
No - 14.1%
Don�t know - less than 1%
'Do you support what Al-Sadr followers did in Basrah? [background]
Yes - 6.6%
No - 90.4%
Don�t know - 3%'
As Haider comments, 'most Iraqis have favored a secular government for some time and are continuing to ask for a secular government. They know what a theocracy is like, they have one next door and it does what it can to destabilize Iraq.'"
Wednesday, March 16, 2005
Jihadpundit: Fanatically opposed to Islamic fanaticism
Jihadpundit: Fanatically opposed to Islamic fanaticism: "Student activists actually protesting against anti-democratic forces? I know, it sounds too good to be true, but it is anyway: Student bodies demand ban on Jamaat-e-Bangladesh politics
[World News]: By Nazrul Islam Dhaka, Mar.15 : An alliance of six opposition-backed student organisations on Tuesday demanded the imposition of a ban on the kind of politics practiced by the right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, which is a part of the Khaleda Zia-led ruling coalition.
'The armed men of the organisation [Jamaat] have been creating anarchy in the country exploiting the common pious people in the country in name of Islam,' Liakot Sikder, the president of Bangladesh Chhatra League, the student front of the main opposition Awami League, told a rally on the Dhaka University campus.
He accused the Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh of sheltering religious zealots, who wanted to turn Bangladesh into an Islamic state. The newly formed student alliance, comprising student wings of some left and social democratic parties, also blamed the Jamaat for the frequent incidents of violence taking place on college campuses.
Earlier, activists of the student alliance took out a procession and marched through the Dhaka University campus chanting slogans against radical forces. (ANI)
Heartening to see, so seldom reported. "
[World News]: By Nazrul Islam Dhaka, Mar.15 : An alliance of six opposition-backed student organisations on Tuesday demanded the imposition of a ban on the kind of politics practiced by the right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, which is a part of the Khaleda Zia-led ruling coalition.
'The armed men of the organisation [Jamaat] have been creating anarchy in the country exploiting the common pious people in the country in name of Islam,' Liakot Sikder, the president of Bangladesh Chhatra League, the student front of the main opposition Awami League, told a rally on the Dhaka University campus.
He accused the Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh of sheltering religious zealots, who wanted to turn Bangladesh into an Islamic state. The newly formed student alliance, comprising student wings of some left and social democratic parties, also blamed the Jamaat for the frequent incidents of violence taking place on college campuses.
Earlier, activists of the student alliance took out a procession and marched through the Dhaka University campus chanting slogans against radical forces. (ANI)
Heartening to see, so seldom reported. "
Babalu Blog: Cuban Mythology (Updated)
Babalu Blog: Cuban Mythology (Updated): "Cuban Mythology (Updated)
Every single time the island of Cuba and fidel castro's revolution are covered anywhere in the media one of the points always mentioned is Cuba's free healthcare. You can practically time it. If it's in print, you get the lead issue in the first and second paragraph, a mention of fidel castro or one of his cronies in the third paragraph and then the plug for the lauded free healthcare available to Cubans in the fourth. I dont think Ive ever read an article about castro or Cuba where the 'healthcare' isnt mentioned.
Every single castro supporter clings to this healthcare thing like it is some kind of holy grail. In a debate, the fact that Cuba has the most political prisoners in the world is ignored. The fact that Cubans on the island lack even the most basic of necessities is ignored. Tourism apartheid is ignored. Everything is ignored save for the free healthcare and 100% literacy.
Of course, none of these Free healthcare! cheerleaders have ever been to a Cuban hospital. They've never been to a Cuban clinic. Hospitals and clinics serving the average Cuban, that is.
Take a look at these pictures:" SEE LINK ABOVE FOR COMPLETE STORY AND DISCUSTING PICS!
Every single time the island of Cuba and fidel castro's revolution are covered anywhere in the media one of the points always mentioned is Cuba's free healthcare. You can practically time it. If it's in print, you get the lead issue in the first and second paragraph, a mention of fidel castro or one of his cronies in the third paragraph and then the plug for the lauded free healthcare available to Cubans in the fourth. I dont think Ive ever read an article about castro or Cuba where the 'healthcare' isnt mentioned.
Every single castro supporter clings to this healthcare thing like it is some kind of holy grail. In a debate, the fact that Cuba has the most political prisoners in the world is ignored. The fact that Cubans on the island lack even the most basic of necessities is ignored. Tourism apartheid is ignored. Everything is ignored save for the free healthcare and 100% literacy.
Of course, none of these Free healthcare! cheerleaders have ever been to a Cuban hospital. They've never been to a Cuban clinic. Hospitals and clinics serving the average Cuban, that is.
Take a look at these pictures:" SEE LINK ABOVE FOR COMPLETE STORY AND DISCUSTING PICS!
The MIRT & Stealth EVP preemptive traffic devices at SkyOptics.com - Authorized Dealer
The MIRT & Stealth EVP preemptive traffic devices at SkyOptics.com - Authorized Dealer: "The Mirt Traffic Control Preemptive Device for only $299.99!!"
KRT Wire | 03/16/2005 | U.S. officials worry about civilians obtaining traffic-light changers
KRT Wire | 03/16/2005 | U.S. officials worry about civilians obtaining traffic-light changers: "U.S. officials worry about civilians obtaining traffic-light changers
BY AMAN BATHEJA
Knight Ridder Newspapers
FORT WORTH, Texas - (KRT) - The tag lines on various Web sites make them seem too good to be true.
'CHANGE STOPLIGHTS FROM RED TO GREEN IN SECONDS!'
'NOW YOU CONTROL THE INTERSECTIONS!'
The devices, mobile infrared transmitters, allow a person to change an upcoming traffic light from red to green from as far as 1,500 feet.
They are intended for emergency personnel, but sales of the devices to civilians on the Internet are making authorities nervous.
While the devices can cost more than $1,000 each from official dealers such as 3M, various Web sites sell knockoffs for less than $200.
Most of the Internet sites selling the devices advertise them for emergency personnel, but some broaden the definition to include private investigators and funeral homes. Some sites also claim to target groups that have a right to the technology but could afford only the cheaper versions, like volunteer fire departments.
Due mostly to the availability of the cheaper versions online, police and fire officials have been hearing accounts of signal changers being used by civilians in other states, Aghamalian said.
'We can't have that type of technology in the wrong hands,' said Brandon Aghamalian, director of governmental relations for Fort Worth, Texas.
Four bills before the Texas Legislature this session propose to make it illegal for anyone but emergency personnel to possess a signal changer.
Using such a device is already against the law because it is illegal to tamper with a traffic control device, said Tela Mange, spokeswoman for the Department of Public Safety.
A bill by state Sen. Kim Brimer, R-Fort Worth, would make possessing a signal changer a Class B misdemeanor. A bill proposed by Sen. Bob Deuell, R-Greenville, would make possession a third-degree felony.
There have been no reported problems with unauthorized use of the devices locally, said Harry Jones, supervisor of the Fort Worth Police Department's traffic division.
---
Traffic Signal Changers
For emergency vehicles racing toward a crisis, signal changers can mean the difference between life and death. They allow emergency crews to respond to an emergency more quickly and reduce the chance of an accident when they are passing through intersections.
When a signal changer on a traffic light detects a properly equipped emergency vehicle approaching, the light responds accordingly. If the light is red, the signal changer will immediately give vehicles in other directions a yellow light, followed by a red light. Then the emergency vehicle will be given a green light.
If the light is already green, it will remain green until the vehicle has passed.
---
� 2005, Fort Worth Star-Telegram."
BY AMAN BATHEJA
Knight Ridder Newspapers
FORT WORTH, Texas - (KRT) - The tag lines on various Web sites make them seem too good to be true.
'CHANGE STOPLIGHTS FROM RED TO GREEN IN SECONDS!'
'NOW YOU CONTROL THE INTERSECTIONS!'
The devices, mobile infrared transmitters, allow a person to change an upcoming traffic light from red to green from as far as 1,500 feet.
They are intended for emergency personnel, but sales of the devices to civilians on the Internet are making authorities nervous.
While the devices can cost more than $1,000 each from official dealers such as 3M, various Web sites sell knockoffs for less than $200.
Most of the Internet sites selling the devices advertise them for emergency personnel, but some broaden the definition to include private investigators and funeral homes. Some sites also claim to target groups that have a right to the technology but could afford only the cheaper versions, like volunteer fire departments.
Due mostly to the availability of the cheaper versions online, police and fire officials have been hearing accounts of signal changers being used by civilians in other states, Aghamalian said.
'We can't have that type of technology in the wrong hands,' said Brandon Aghamalian, director of governmental relations for Fort Worth, Texas.
Four bills before the Texas Legislature this session propose to make it illegal for anyone but emergency personnel to possess a signal changer.
Using such a device is already against the law because it is illegal to tamper with a traffic control device, said Tela Mange, spokeswoman for the Department of Public Safety.
A bill by state Sen. Kim Brimer, R-Fort Worth, would make possessing a signal changer a Class B misdemeanor. A bill proposed by Sen. Bob Deuell, R-Greenville, would make possession a third-degree felony.
There have been no reported problems with unauthorized use of the devices locally, said Harry Jones, supervisor of the Fort Worth Police Department's traffic division.
---
Traffic Signal Changers
For emergency vehicles racing toward a crisis, signal changers can mean the difference between life and death. They allow emergency crews to respond to an emergency more quickly and reduce the chance of an accident when they are passing through intersections.
When a signal changer on a traffic light detects a properly equipped emergency vehicle approaching, the light responds accordingly. If the light is red, the signal changer will immediately give vehicles in other directions a yellow light, followed by a red light. Then the emergency vehicle will be given a green light.
If the light is already green, it will remain green until the vehicle has passed.
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� 2005, Fort Worth Star-Telegram."
Monday, March 14, 2005
ChrenkoffYou know they are serious, when...
Chrenkoff
You know they are serious, when...
First off, we've had the Hizbollah, pro-Syrian, pro-government rally, which according to various estimates attracted somewhere between 500,000 and 1 million people to the center of Beirut.
Now, we have an opposition, anti-Syrian, anti-Government rally, with anywhere between 800,000 and 1.3 million people in the streets.
Lebanon's total population is 3.7 million.
To get your head around the magnitude of these events, think the United States. Think the Presidential campaign 2004. Think a Kerry rally, somewhere outside Boston, attracting somewhere between 40 and 80 million people. Then think a Bush rally, on the outsikirts of Dallas, with a field crowded with between 63 and 103 million Americans.
That's somewhere between one third and two thirds of the US population coming out into the street, and the lower overall estimate of just over 100 million people protesting is not significantly lower than the total number of people who have voted at the 2004 presidential election (over 120 million).
And everyone thinks that the Americans are passionate about politics!
But speaking of knowing when they are not serious... Amir Taheri has another good opinion piece about the reluctance of the Western anti-war crowd to support democracy throughout the Middle East. "There are, as yet, no signs that the 'Western street' may, at some point, come out in support of the new 'Arab street'," he writes.
Indeed, over the last three years, millions marched around the world to get the US troops out of Iraq. Over the last 15 or even 30 years - and much more importantly, over the last few weeks - how many in the West marched to get the Syrian troops out of Lebanon?
Taheri wonders: "Is it because many of those who will be marching in support of Saddam Hussein this month are the remnants of totalitarian groups in the West plus a variety of misinformed idealists and others blinded by anti-Americanism? Or is it because they secretly believe that the Arabs do not deserve anything better than Saddam Hussein?"
No - it's because the Western left is now isolationist. It has been following, with a significant time lapse, the transition from Trotskyism-Leninism to Stalinism. Just like the Soviet communists had once raged with revolutionary fervor and dreamed of spreading dictatorship of the proletariat across Europe and then the rest of the world, only to eventually settle for "socialism in one country", so had the Western left-of-centrists once dreamed of spreading democracy, freedom and human rights around the world, only to champion today the doctrine of "democracy in one country" - ours.
So if the critics of the Bush Administration like to point out to the Trotyskite roots of neo-conservatism, that's fair enough as far as it goes, but they should accept that by the same token today's left is Stalinis
You know they are serious, when...
First off, we've had the Hizbollah, pro-Syrian, pro-government rally, which according to various estimates attracted somewhere between 500,000 and 1 million people to the center of Beirut.
Now, we have an opposition, anti-Syrian, anti-Government rally, with anywhere between 800,000 and 1.3 million people in the streets.
Lebanon's total population is 3.7 million.
To get your head around the magnitude of these events, think the United States. Think the Presidential campaign 2004. Think a Kerry rally, somewhere outside Boston, attracting somewhere between 40 and 80 million people. Then think a Bush rally, on the outsikirts of Dallas, with a field crowded with between 63 and 103 million Americans.
That's somewhere between one third and two thirds of the US population coming out into the street, and the lower overall estimate of just over 100 million people protesting is not significantly lower than the total number of people who have voted at the 2004 presidential election (over 120 million).
And everyone thinks that the Americans are passionate about politics!
But speaking of knowing when they are not serious... Amir Taheri has another good opinion piece about the reluctance of the Western anti-war crowd to support democracy throughout the Middle East. "There are, as yet, no signs that the 'Western street' may, at some point, come out in support of the new 'Arab street'," he writes.
Indeed, over the last three years, millions marched around the world to get the US troops out of Iraq. Over the last 15 or even 30 years - and much more importantly, over the last few weeks - how many in the West marched to get the Syrian troops out of Lebanon?
Taheri wonders: "Is it because many of those who will be marching in support of Saddam Hussein this month are the remnants of totalitarian groups in the West plus a variety of misinformed idealists and others blinded by anti-Americanism? Or is it because they secretly believe that the Arabs do not deserve anything better than Saddam Hussein?"
No - it's because the Western left is now isolationist. It has been following, with a significant time lapse, the transition from Trotskyism-Leninism to Stalinism. Just like the Soviet communists had once raged with revolutionary fervor and dreamed of spreading dictatorship of the proletariat across Europe and then the rest of the world, only to eventually settle for "socialism in one country", so had the Western left-of-centrists once dreamed of spreading democracy, freedom and human rights around the world, only to champion today the doctrine of "democracy in one country" - ours.
So if the critics of the Bush Administration like to point out to the Trotyskite roots of neo-conservatism, that's fair enough as far as it goes, but they should accept that by the same token today's left is Stalinis
Sunday, March 13, 2005
Jack Kelly: The hubris of Giuliana Sgrena
Jack Kelly: The hubris of Giuliana Sgrena: "k Kelly: The hubris of Giuliana Sgrena
A naive Italian communist journalist got herself into big trouble in Baghdad
Sunday, March 13, 2005
Giuliana Sgrena does not lack a sense of self-importance. The 56-year-old journalist for the Italian communist newspaper Il Manifesto thinks she knows so many deep dark secrets the U.S. military tried to shut her up permanently.
Jack Kelly is national security writer for the Post-Gazette and The Blade of Toledo, Ohio (jkelly@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1476).
Sgrena went to Iraq to report on the heroic resistance to the American imperialists. Dutch journalist Harald Doornbos rode in the airplane to Baghdad with her.
'Be careful not to get kidnapped,' Doornbos warned Sgrena.
'You don't understand the situation,' she responded, according to Doornbos' account last week in Nederlands Dagblad. (Excerpts were translated into English and posted on a Dutch writer's Web blog.) 'The Iraqis only kidnap American sympathizers. The enemies of the Americans have nothing to fear.'
Sgrena left her hotel the morning of Feb. 4 to interview refugees from Fallujah, the resistance stronghold captured by U.S. Marines in November. The interviews didn't go well.
'The refugees ... would not listen to me,' she said. 'I had in front of me the accurate confirmation of the analysis of what the Iraqi society had become as a result of the war and they would throw their truth in my face.'
Sgrena's feelings were hurt that the refugees could be so curt to her: 'I who had risked everything, challenging the Italian government who didn't want journalists to reach Iraq and the Americans who don't want our work to be witnessed of what really became of that country with the war and notwithstanding that which they call elections.' (Maybe it reads better in Italian, or maybe she just can't write worth a damn.)
She got nabbed on her way back to her hotel. Sgrena told her captors she was on their side, and suggested they kidnap an American soldier instead. But the U.S. government doesn't pay ransoms.
The Italian government did pay a ransom estimated by various sources at between $1 million and $10 million, and Sgrena was released into the custody of Italian intelligence officers. On the night of March 4, their vehicle approached a checkpoint near Baghdad International Airport. The car did not stop. U.S. troops opened fire. Nicola Calipari was killed, Sgrena was slightly wounded.
Sgrena said the soldiers deliberately tried to kill her, but didn't hazard a guess as to how the soldiers knew she was in that vehicle. According to the U.S. embassy and the Third Infantry Division, the Italians did not inform the Americans she'd been released. And Calipari had rented a nondescript sedan to pick up Sgrena, rather than utilize one of the Italian embassy's armored SUVs, which the soldiers might have recognized.
Sgrena and the driver said they approached the checkpoint slowly. But 'slowly' seems to be a relative term for Italian drivers, and for communists. An Army officer told ABC News the car may have been going 100 mph when it was fired upon.
Sgrena claims the Americans shot without warning. 'A tank started to shoot at us without any sign or any light,' she told reporters March 7.
The soldiers say they used lights, and hand signals, and fired warning shots before shooting into the engine block to stop the vehicle. The car's driver said the soldiers did shine a spotlight, but opened up almost immediately afterwards.
Sgrena said 'the tank' fired 300-400 shots at her car. But photographs of it published March 8 by the Italian newspaper La Repubblica indicate the vehicle suffered remarkably little damage for such a fusillade. There is a single bullet hole in the windshield, but the window glass and the fenders are otherwise intact, as is the hood.
Perhaps the soldiers were remarkably lousy shots. But if they were trying to kill Sgrena, why did they take her to the hospital instead of finishing her off?
There are questions that need answers. The Italians say they notified the Americans of Sgrena's release, but the Americans deny it. Was the car going 'slowly,' as the Italians claim, or was it trying to run through the checkpoint, as the Americans say?
But there is no doubt about the credibility of Giuliana Sgrena. She entitled her story 'My Truth,' perhaps to distinguish it from the bourgeois concept of truth that depends on adherence to fact.
Many on the left in America embraced Sgrena's 'truth,' while refusing to give their countrymen the benefit of the doubt. But hey, liberals support our troops. They say so all the time.
"
A naive Italian communist journalist got herself into big trouble in Baghdad
Sunday, March 13, 2005
Giuliana Sgrena does not lack a sense of self-importance. The 56-year-old journalist for the Italian communist newspaper Il Manifesto thinks she knows so many deep dark secrets the U.S. military tried to shut her up permanently.
Jack Kelly is national security writer for the Post-Gazette and The Blade of Toledo, Ohio (jkelly@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1476).
Sgrena went to Iraq to report on the heroic resistance to the American imperialists. Dutch journalist Harald Doornbos rode in the airplane to Baghdad with her.
'Be careful not to get kidnapped,' Doornbos warned Sgrena.
'You don't understand the situation,' she responded, according to Doornbos' account last week in Nederlands Dagblad. (Excerpts were translated into English and posted on a Dutch writer's Web blog.) 'The Iraqis only kidnap American sympathizers. The enemies of the Americans have nothing to fear.'
Sgrena left her hotel the morning of Feb. 4 to interview refugees from Fallujah, the resistance stronghold captured by U.S. Marines in November. The interviews didn't go well.
'The refugees ... would not listen to me,' she said. 'I had in front of me the accurate confirmation of the analysis of what the Iraqi society had become as a result of the war and they would throw their truth in my face.'
Sgrena's feelings were hurt that the refugees could be so curt to her: 'I who had risked everything, challenging the Italian government who didn't want journalists to reach Iraq and the Americans who don't want our work to be witnessed of what really became of that country with the war and notwithstanding that which they call elections.' (Maybe it reads better in Italian, or maybe she just can't write worth a damn.)
She got nabbed on her way back to her hotel. Sgrena told her captors she was on their side, and suggested they kidnap an American soldier instead. But the U.S. government doesn't pay ransoms.
The Italian government did pay a ransom estimated by various sources at between $1 million and $10 million, and Sgrena was released into the custody of Italian intelligence officers. On the night of March 4, their vehicle approached a checkpoint near Baghdad International Airport. The car did not stop. U.S. troops opened fire. Nicola Calipari was killed, Sgrena was slightly wounded.
Sgrena said the soldiers deliberately tried to kill her, but didn't hazard a guess as to how the soldiers knew she was in that vehicle. According to the U.S. embassy and the Third Infantry Division, the Italians did not inform the Americans she'd been released. And Calipari had rented a nondescript sedan to pick up Sgrena, rather than utilize one of the Italian embassy's armored SUVs, which the soldiers might have recognized.
Sgrena and the driver said they approached the checkpoint slowly. But 'slowly' seems to be a relative term for Italian drivers, and for communists. An Army officer told ABC News the car may have been going 100 mph when it was fired upon.
Sgrena claims the Americans shot without warning. 'A tank started to shoot at us without any sign or any light,' she told reporters March 7.
The soldiers say they used lights, and hand signals, and fired warning shots before shooting into the engine block to stop the vehicle. The car's driver said the soldiers did shine a spotlight, but opened up almost immediately afterwards.
Sgrena said 'the tank' fired 300-400 shots at her car. But photographs of it published March 8 by the Italian newspaper La Repubblica indicate the vehicle suffered remarkably little damage for such a fusillade. There is a single bullet hole in the windshield, but the window glass and the fenders are otherwise intact, as is the hood.
Perhaps the soldiers were remarkably lousy shots. But if they were trying to kill Sgrena, why did they take her to the hospital instead of finishing her off?
There are questions that need answers. The Italians say they notified the Americans of Sgrena's release, but the Americans deny it. Was the car going 'slowly,' as the Italians claim, or was it trying to run through the checkpoint, as the Americans say?
But there is no doubt about the credibility of Giuliana Sgrena. She entitled her story 'My Truth,' perhaps to distinguish it from the bourgeois concept of truth that depends on adherence to fact.
Many on the left in America embraced Sgrena's 'truth,' while refusing to give their countrymen the benefit of the doubt. But hey, liberals support our troops. They say so all the time.
"
Saturday, March 12, 2005
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