UPDATE: Jawa Report Exclusive--names of hostages released. Names, images, and video of the hostages here.

The Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) organization has confirmed to The Jawa Report in an e-mail that Norman Kember, an unidentified Canadian, and two unidentified Americans were abducted from that group's Iraq peace delegation.

The Christian pacifist organization declined to name the three other hostages at this time.

In a seperate statement released today by the organization, the CPT said:

CPT has been present in Iraq since October, 2002. The Team's work has focused on documenting and focusing public attention on detainee abuses and connecting citizens of Iraq to local and international human rights organizations. Iraqi friends and human rights workers have welcomed the Team as a non-violent, independent presence and asked that the Team tell the stories of Iraqis.

In a "Statement of Conviction," the long-term Team members stated that they "are aware of the many risks both Iraqis and internationals currently face," and affirmed that the risks did not outweigh their purpose in remaining. They express the hope that "in loving both friends and enemies and by intervening non-violently to aid those who are systematically oppressed, we can contribute in some small way to transforming this volatile situation."

CPT does not advocate the use of violent force to save our lives should we be kidnapped, held hostage, or caught in the middle of a conflict situation.

Advice to CPT from a long-time hostage activist: trying to convince the hostage takers that you are on their side may work, depending on what type of group abducted your representatives. Arab nationalist, non-Salaafist jihadis, and Shia jihad groups may be convinced using this method but only if a simultaneous public campaign from clerics is undertaken. To do this you must release the names of the other victims.

Of course, if this was simply a criminal act then the above should be undertaken in addition to ransom negotiations. Many criminals who engage in hostage taking of Westerners do so with the justification (backed by certain Islamic traditions) that the ransoming of infidels is permitted. Shame from influential clerics can go along way in convincing criminals to release hostages.

However, if it was Zarqawi's al Qaeda in Iraq, Ansar al-Sunna, or any related Salaafist jihad organization then this will have no effect. The only hope would be a rescue. Fortunately if the hostages are located a rescue will be attempted, even over the objections of CPT.

UPDATE: Via Captain Ed, we learn that Norman Kember was a family friend of blogger Hammerswing. As mentioned in our earlier post, we join Hammerswing with our prayers for Kember, even if we think he was a misguided idealist.

Posted by: Rusty at 09:04 AM | Comments (19) | Add Comment
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UPDATE: The Jawa Report has learned that the name of the woman is Susanne Osthoff. More on Osthoff here.

A German woman has been taken hostage in Iraq. The image right shows the woman and her driver as they appeared in a hostage video. The woman's name has not been released. We will publish her name and the name of her driver as soon as they are known.

According to ADNKI the woman was an archeologist and was abducted with her driver near Ninevah.

Further:

The kidnappers sent a video to the broadcaster's offices in Baghdad in which they showed the hostages and threatened to kill the woman if the German government does not suspend every form of cooperation with the Iraqi government.

The video shows a woman and a man blindfolded and on their knees. Nearby are three armed men with their faces covered. The woman has a chain around her neck, with her passport attached to it.

The German Foreign Ministry has confirmed that the archaeologist and her driver have been missing since Friday. "We are doing everything possible to guarantee the safety of the woman," a spokesman said. "We are in contact with all the offices of the government of Iraq to confirm what has happened."

Hat tip to Dread Pundit Bluto who has more.

Developing........

Posted by: Rusty at 08:47 AM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
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A revalation came to me this morning in the form of an email from Amawalk John. I have finally figured out what the Democrats mean by "wrong war, wrong place, wrong time." But before we get to that, let's play a game. I'm going to give you a list of quotes and you see if you can tell me who they belong to. The answers will be in the additional section of this article.

1. He will rebuild his arsenel of weapons of mass destruction. Some day, somewhere, I am certain, he will use that arsenel again as he has ten times since 1983.


2. Saddam Hussein certainly has chemical and biological weapons. There's no question about that.


3. There's unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working aggressively to develop nuclear weapons. And will likely have nuclear weapons in the next five years. We also should remember we have always underestimated the progress that Saddam has been able to make in the development of weapons of mass destruction.


4. He continues to attempt to gain access to additional capability including nuclear capability. There is a real debate on how far off that is. Whether it is a matter of years or whether it is a matter of less than that.


5. Good Evening. Earliear today I ordered America's armed forces to strike military and security targets in Iraq. Their mission is to attack Iraq's nuclear, biological and chemical weapons programs. Saddam Hussein must not be allowed to threaten his neighbors or the world with nuclear arms, poison gas or biological weapons.


6. Other countries posess weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles. With Saddam, there's one big difference. He has used them. Not once, but repeatedly. And I have no doubt today that left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will use these terrible weapons again.


7. Inspectors are saying that even if they could stay in Iraq their work would be a sham. Saddam's deception has defeated their effectiveness. Instead of the inspectors disarming Saddam, Saddam has disarmed the inspectors.


8. The hard fact is that as long as Saddam is in power, he threatens the well-being of his people, the peace of the region, the security of the world. The best way to end that threat, once and for all, is with a new Iraqi government. A government willing to live in peace with its neighbors. A government that respects the lives of its people.


9. The decision to use force is never cost free. Whenever American forces are placed in harm's way, we risk the loss of life. And while our strikes are focused on Iraq's military capabilities, there will be unintended Iraqi casualties.


10. Heavy as they are, the costs of action must be weighed against the price of inaction.


11. Saddam will strike again at his neighbors. He will make war on his own people. Mark my words. He will develop weapons of mass destruction. He will deploy them. And he will use them.

Posted by: Drew at 08:16 AM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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I don't really understand this. All of a sudden everyone's all, "Whoa! Can you believe Ramsey Clark is going to defend Saddam? What a scumpuppet!"

Yes, he's an America-hating turd, but I thought I knew that already. And sure enough, we've been talking about his representing Saddam here on the Jawa Report for quite a while--since December of 2004, in fact.

I'm just wondering why this is news again.

Posted by: seedubya at 04:28 AM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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1 Clark never met a dictator/killer/communist/terrorist he didn't like. He and Galloway came from the same mold. He truly is scum.

Posted by: Oyster at November 29, 2005 05:19 AM (YudAC)

2 Agent Brown says that Ramsey Clark is 100% American

Posted by: Agent Smith at November 29, 2005 06:03 AM (hNv1g)

3 Agent Jones says Ramsey Clark is 100% NORML too.

Posted by: Agent Smith at November 29, 2005 07:04 AM (hNv1g)

4 Ramsey Clark is also defending the PLO in a case where relatives of a terrorist attack are suing them: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1154AP_Scotus_Terrorism_Lawsuit.html The PLO, and its governmental entity, had been sued in federal court in Rhode Island over the 1996 drive-by shooting of Yaron Ungar, an American citizen, and his Israeli wife, Efrat, as the couple returned home from a wedding. .... Former Attorney General Ramsey Clark, the lawyer for the PLO, told justices in the appeal last month that Ungar relatives have "commenced sweeping national and international efforts" to collect the millions of dollars, including an attempt to seize Palestine's U.N. Mission building in New York. Clark said U.S. courts "are marching off to the conflicts of the Middle East and elsewhere carrying with them the integrity of the U.S. judiciary and risking the foreign perception that U.S. courts will extend their jurisdiction globally deciding the most sensitive political questions affecting the foreign policies of the U.S. and other nations as they go." He also defended the PLO in a lawsuit filed by the family of Leon Klinghoffer. He has given legal advise / defended a whole slew of controversial figures and entities: David Koresh, PLO, Elizaphan Ntakirutimana,Slobodan Milosevic, Don't question his patronism though, he was a Soldier once. This Administration should confront, or at least bring into the limelight what he does, the light of day is awefully bright to things that spend most of their time living under rocks.

Posted by: dave at November 29, 2005 07:15 AM (CcXvt)

5 It's Bush's fault!

Posted by: Sissy Willis at November 29, 2005 07:30 AM (mrcD4)

6 somehow I miss aimed and tracked back the wrong post.

Posted by: Mr. K at November 29, 2005 09:38 AM (/sxIZ)

7 Clark was kicked off the legal team by the Iraqi lawyers defending Saddam, but since a couple of those lawyers were killed, Clark has come back into the picture. The Iraqis didn't care for the anti-American bent and grandstanding. Go figure.

Posted by: lawhawk at November 29, 2005 12:36 PM (eppTH)

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Background on the hostage taking here.

What do Giuliana Sgrena and abducted 'humanitarian' worker Norman Kember (pictured right at a Hiroshima memorial) have in common?

Both went to Iraq to promote "peace".

Both decided to work for "peace" by documenting allegations of prisoner abuse and mass-murder by American forces in Fallujah.

Both thought it would be a good idea to meet with 'victims' of America and that their sympathies with the 'resistance' would make them immune.

Both ended up being taken hostage by the 'resistance'.

Our deepest sympathies are with Norman Kember and the American and two Canadians taken hostage with him. But, wasn't it a little foolish to believe your own rhetoric? The U.S. military is in Iraq to help the Iraqis. If civilians are killed or innocents detained by the U.S., these are regretful mistakes. Errors made in the fog of war.

But when the so-called insurgents kill civilians and take hostages--only to murder them later by proclaiming them guilty of violating Islamic law--they do this on purpose.

It is the policy of the United States of America and Great Britain to avoid civilian casualties when possible. It is the policy of al Qaeda and other mujahidin forces in Iraq to kill civilians, on purpose, when such civilians are deemed too eager to help rebuild that country.

For the peace activists of the Left, there is no distinction between an American soldier and an al Qaeda in Iraq suicide-bomber.

That distinction should be clear now to Norman Kember and the other victims of jihadi fanaticism in Iraq.

We pray for their safe return.

Norman Kember archives here.

Posted by: Rusty at 06:36 PM | Comments (16) | Add Comment
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Interesting quote of British Foreign Minister Jack Straw:

“We are working on the basis that it is indeed a kidnapping. But we have no further confirmation,” he said.

I never have, and never will be a conspiracy theorist, but this is interesting as well:

Pat Kember said that her husband was representing a number of different organisations when he was taken. Yesterday she was seen leaving the family home in North London escorted by police.

I figure there's a 99.9% chance that this is SOP.

But after reading Rusty and Bluto, I have to admit that something smells Vichy around here.

Posted by: Vinnie at 06:30 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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UPDATE 11/29 A.M.: Christian Peacemakers has confirmed to The Jawa Report that the hostages were indeed taken from their organization. However, at this time, Christian Peacemakers has declined to release the names of the one American and two Canadian hostages.

Related: German woman taken hostage in Iraq, hostage video released.

Developing.........

UPDATED: Scroll down for updates. "Humanitarian" group named in MSM actually a peace activist group there to monitor U.S. and Iraqi 'abuses'. This story is becoming more and more like the Giuliana Sgrena drama as facts are slowly uncovered.

The so-called aid workers were actually part of a peace organization which focuses on alleged U.S. abuses. Which is the one political party that this 'peace' organization decides to meet in Baghdad? The Iraqi Communist Party.

Scroll down for more specifics and updates
-----------------------------

An American was among the Westerners kidnapped in Iraq over the weekend as reported earlier here and here. The U.S. State Department continues its insane policy of not releasing the name of the kidnapped victim. We will report his name and the name of the two Canadians as soon as we get word.

More information about Norman Kember is below.

Tribune-Democrat:

An American citizen is missing in Iraq, the U.S. Embassy said Monday, apparently one of four humanitarian workers reported kidnapped a day earlier.

U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Elizabeth Colton said only that an American had been reported missing. The person's name was not immediately released. Dan McTeague, parliamentary secretary for Canadians abroad, also refused identify the Canadians, their organization or the location where they were kidnapped to protect their safety.

Norman Kember was an officer in the Baptist Peace Fellowship which proclaims:

The FELLOWSHIP was founded as a fellowship of Baptist ministers with pacifist convictions; later it was expanded to include all Baptist Pacifists, and in 1940 became affiliated to the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FoR).

WE AIM to provide a fellowship for Baptists who feel constrained by their Christian faith to renounce war and to stir the minds and consciences of our fellow Baptists so that they may come to see that military force cannot be reconciled with the teaching of Jesus Christ and His acceptance of the Cross; to work at all times for reconciliation, justice and the things that make for peace in national, community, church and personal life.

WE BELIEVE that we will be led to witness in ways appropriate to the conditions in which we find ourselves. Like the early Christians we endeavour to talk to those whom we meet about the good news of the gospel of the Prince of Peace.

We must prepare to die by the thousands

As always, The Jawa Report will be following this hostage story carefully. Please e-mail tips to mypetjawa-at-gmail-dot-com.

UPDATE: Here is a picture of Norman Kember at a Hiroshima vigil. He is the on the right.

In response to Rhonda's comments that Kember would never try and evangelize a Muslim, I offer this, penned by Norman Kember himself:

Peace people may spend rather a lot of time talking to the 'converted'. We work and pray for new conversions!

My reading of Kember's public statements is that he is a committed Christian pacifist in the Mennonite. Jehovah's Witness or Quaker sense. As such he is a perfect example of Christian fundamentalism vs. Islamic fundamentalism. Christian fundamentalists take Jesus' 'turn the other cheek' and Paul's exhortation to Roman soldiers to 'do no violence' very seriously and, indeed, are willing to die for their beliefs but never kill for them (in the Catholic tradition, Augustine is a good example).

Muslim fundamentalists, on the other hand, follow the example and teachings of Muhammed perfectly when they kill.

Hence 'religious fundamentalism' is not really that big of a problem when the religion is fundamentally pacifist. The Dali Lama is another good example of a person taking his religion seriously, yet posing no threat of violence.

UPDATE II: WRAL:

The four were believed to be affiliated with Christian Peacemakers, one of the few Western humanitarian organizations still operating in Iraq. The organization's Web site states that among other things, the group seeks to expose and document abuses of Iraqis by U.S. and coalition forces.

Kenberer and the other hostages would have been part of this group, scheduled to be in Iraq from Nov. 17th to Dec. 1st:

As Iraq continues to suffer under unstable and difficult conditions, delegates will meet with representatives of nongovernmental organizations, fledgling Iraqi civil society groups, the US military, and others, to assess the current situation. They will may visit hospitals, schools, mosques, and churches, and will talk with Iraqis whose loved ones have been detained by US forces or under the previous regime. Based primarily in Baghdad, the delegation may travel to outlying areas.

COST: US $3000 US, which includes round-trip airfare.

Here is the scenario as it might have happened. A group of peace activists (dubbed 'aid workers' by MSM) go to Iraq trying to prove that the U.S. are the bad guys in Iraq. They then go and talk with the 'resistance' who they believe are the good guys. They are shocked when some terrorists show up at meeting with 'resistance' and kidnap them.

Possibly outcome? a) Sgrena scenario--terrorists release infidels after they have been paid off and realize hostages are really allies b) Enzo Baldoni scenario--terrorists don't care that hostages there to help, behead the infidels c) rescued by U.S. forces

Another Update: Ekklesia:

Kidnappee Professor Norman Kember, aged 74, is a long-time advocate of nonviolence. He has been involved both in the Baptist Peace Fellowship and in Fellowship of Reconciliation (FoR), an international network of religious pacifists.

An opponent of war and occupation in Iraq, Professor Kember had decided to join a two-week visit to the insurgency-torn country.

He had been telling friends, and wrote in a recent FoR newsletter, that he could not remain a spectator any longer. He understood the risks involved, he said.

The team he was working in was established by Mennonites and other historic peace churches in North America. It works to build trust and cooperation among conflicting groups, and works through the invitation and agency of local peace, social justice and human rights workers.

Local security forces and a multinational hostage team are currently searching for all four humanitarian workers.

Speaking on Channel 4 News (UK) this evening, Bruce Kent – a high profile peace campaigner, former Catholic priest, and close friend of Norman Kember – said that he was a strong and resourceful person.

It is uncertain whether the professor has been captured by a group with a political motive, or by one of the hundreds of criminal gangs seeking to make money out of hostage taking in a lawless environment.

Asked whether it was foolish to venture into Iraq under such volatile conditions, Mr Kent said that Professor KemberÂ’s Christian faith and peacemaking convictions were such that he was prepared to take risks which other might regard as unwise.

A spokesperson for the Baptist Peace fellowship said that he was a man who lived out his beliefs with courage and compassion.

Yet Another Update: This time from the Independent:

His group, who were investigating human rights abuses, had reportedly been travelling with "minimal security" when they were seized in the west of the city after dark on Saturday.

The men were in the final days of a two-week fact-finding trip with a Canada-based humanitarian organisation, Christian Peacemaker Teams (PCT). The group, which was working with Iraqi groups and was not involved in missionary work, had been due to return on Friday.

The Rev Alan Betteridge, president of the UK Baptist Peace Fellowship, who has known Mr Kember for more than 40 years, said: "Norman is a very committed worker for non-violence and peacemaking. He is a very gentle man, quiet, with a good sense of humour.

"He does not try to force his views on people - a listener rather than a talker and very committed to what he believes. I hope he has the opportunity to tell his captors about his work."

CPT, a pacifist group based in Toronto which cites the removal of coalition forces from Iraq as one of its aims, declined to comment on the abductions.

Virtually all Iraqi's we talked to would like for US troops to leave. now. Most that we talked with said that they know immediate with drawl is impractical in that they believe a civil war will result if the troops leave now. Few had a real passion about the US troops leaving right now [italics mine].

Mr Kember was part of a delegation of around eight people who had gone to Iraq to meet local human rights campaigners and assist with the setting up of a Muslim peacemakers' organisation. The organisation had sent four previous civilian delegations to Iraq.

Posted by: Rusty at 12:25 PM | Comments (19) | Add Comment
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Ok I did see FNS yesterday. Carl Levin started off pretty good but then drifted to the same old same old. Chris Wallace did a pretty good job on the Senator but I have one statement in particular that bothered me a bit.

FOXNEWS: LEVIN: Yes, but what he also said in the same sentence was that Saddam Hussein would like nothing more than to use a terrorist network to attack and to kill, and that is not what the intelligence was, which said that Saddam Hussein was, quote, "intensely secular, wary of Islamic revolutionary movements."

OK Carl let see what Howie can do with that. Saddam was intensely wary of Islamic movements challenging his power in Iraq I can agree with that. But his support of Hamas is well documented. See links below. So what does Hamas have to do with Al-Qaeda? See this post and check the links to understand how this works. Al-Qaeda is an offshoot of HamasÂ’ military wing the The Abdellah Azzam Brigades. Read this and you begin to see the loose relationship. Even Hamas itself is leery of its stepchild. For instance after the bombings in Egypt last summer the Abdellah Azzam Brigades claimed responsibility but that claim was quickly replaced by another claim by an unknown group to downplay the relationship. HamasÂ’ attempts to become a political party are haunted by its past. So while Saddam was careful to keep control of Iraq he supported terrorist activity outside Iraq and lent aid as he could to those who seek to kill Jews and Americans. We donÂ’t often think about the fact that Al-Qaeda was born of the Palestinian conflict. ItÂ’s apparent when Egypt gets bombed but more subtle when the US, England or Iraq is attacked but itÂ’s there none the less.

Need more?
try this
or this
or this
or maybe here
or there
and here
and here too.

Posted by: Howie at 11:54 AM | Comments (10) | Add Comment
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Counter-propaganda has always been this blogs main focus. Propaganda is every bit as much a weapon as an IED or an AK-47 and propagandists should be considered combatants and therefore legitimate military targets. Propaganda gives our enemies a reason to fight, recruits new soldiers, and convinces them of the possibility of victory.

It's good to see one more terrorist propagandist has been captured. If the U.S. would take the propaganda war seriously they would close down any and all media outlets which distribute the type of propaganda made by the jihadis. Unfortunately we have seen a lack of resolve by the government in targetting jihadi forums and websites.

From an MNF-Iraq press release (hat tip to Sucram):

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Acting on multiple intelligence sources and tips from concerned citizens, Coalition forces raided a suspected Jaysh al-Mujahideen terrorist safe house in Abu Ghurayb, west of Baghdad, Oct. 23.

Captured during the raid was Ahmad NiÂ’mah Khudayyir Abbas (aka. Abu Shihab), a recently identified Jaysh al-Mujahideen lieutenant who oversaw the propaganda cell and who commanded several mortar and improvised explosive device cells.

Abu Shihab, as the propaganda chief for the Jaysh al-Mujahideen media cell operating in the Baghdad area, initially recorded videos and digitized them to compact disc for distribution to various Jaysh al-Mujahideen and al Qaeda in Iraq terrorist groups. These videos would then be downloaded to various Jihadist web sites as propaganda against Iraqi security and coalition forces.

Additionally, the videos would be used to recruit terrorists and foreign fighters, as well as to provide information on potential targets for other terrorists. As his skills and terrorist connections developed, he began directing and coordinating media operations throughout the Baghdad area for Jaysh al-Mujahideen. more...

Posted by: Rusty at 11:29 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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U.S. Border Patrol agents, charged with patrolling and assuring the security of the U.S.-Mexican border, are understandably angered by the fact that their uniforms are made in Mexico. Their pants and shirts even display labels stating "Made in Mexico." And, it's not just the irony of the situation that's troubling, the agents are concerned about the impact on border security.

From KFMB.com:

Agents and lawmakers are concerned about the consequences if the uniforms for agents charged with combating illegal immigration fall into the hands of criminals or terrorists.

"If we're manufacturing uniforms in Mexico, what's to stop someone from walking across the border in a Border Patrol uniform?" asked Rep. John Carter, a Republican from Round Rock. "How do you know who are our guys and who are their guys?"

A company based in Nashville, Tennessee, called VF Solutions supplies the uniforms and subcontracts work to Mexico and other countries. VF Solutions has been providing Mexican-made uniforms to the Border Patrol for about a year with no instances of misuse reported. Customs officials assert that security measures, including on-site inspections at the Mexican production facility, are in place. Excuse me for not feeling warm and fuzzy about this. It's Mexico, dammit! You can't rely upon anything south of the border except for the paramount importance of the U.S. dollar.

Congress is expected to address enhancements to border security soon. Rep. Rick Renzi, R-Ariz., and Rep. Carter plan to introduce a measure which would require that U.S. Border Patrol uniforms be made in the United States. I think it's a good idea. Criminals and terrorists don't need to be facilitated in their lawbreaking and being able to obtain Border Patrol uniforms does just that. And if they can't be made in the U.S., at least take the "Made in Mexico" label off the garments. I can easily understand why some agents might start each work shift with an attitude of anger and frustration.

"Badges? Badges? We don't need no stinking badges. We've got uniforms."

Companion at Interested-Participant.

Posted by: Mike Pechar at 04:51 AM | Comments (25) | Add Comment
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1 'cause they're doing their job and keeping the cheap labor south of the border.

Posted by: Rodney Dill at November 28, 2005 05:08 AM (tGTSA)

2 We are everyone and we are no one.

Posted by: Agent Smith at November 28, 2005 05:40 AM (OM64d)

3 If they have the uniforms made in Mexico to save money, why don't they just hire illegal aliens over here to make them like everyone else does? [/sarcasm]

Posted by: Oyster at November 28, 2005 06:04 AM (YudAC)

4 You know, this would just be funny if it were not so serious. The contract the government has with these people should have required that the uniforms be made in the US. I know of a company right here in the US, very close to where I live, that is making uniforms for the Coast Guard and the Iraqi National Guard. They could easily make uniforms for the Border Patrol. I blame Bush, the Congress and the idiots in charge of procurement for this stupidity. When are we ever going to be concerned about the people of the US, rather than foreigners? I tell you, I am sick...sick of it!

Posted by: jesusland joe at November 28, 2005 09:10 AM (rUyw4)

5 And this is a real issue? I don't get it.

Posted by: hondo at November 28, 2005 09:57 AM (Jvmry)

6 I only wish this were even really news. This does however remind me of something that happened a few years ago. A guy I knew managed a hosiery mill near here, and had a hard time finding dependable employees, even with a competitive wage, so he resorted to hiring immigrants, who proved far more reliable. One of his problems was that his American employees kept trying to unionize, regardless of the fact that his was the only company for forty miles in any direction that offered regular hours, good wages, and benefits. He had a hard enough time finding people who would do the work, which was basically standing at a sock knitting machine all day, and hardly sweatshop labor. The fact that the few regular employees wanted double the money, paid holidays, and paid benefits, combined with more competition in the market, forced him to hire immigrants, which worked for a while, but then the owner told him he was going to move the plant to Honduras or shut down completely because even with the more cost effective immigrant labor, he still couldn't pay the bills, which were mainly taxes and payroll. The result was that the plant moved to Honduras, where they pay a high wage for the region, and they remain profitable while investing in the local community, building a medical clinic and helping build a better school. They didn't move to exploit the poor, but to survive, and until more people get their heads out of their asses and figure out that businesses can't compete if they have a crushing tax burden and constant harassment from unions and corrupt politicians, we're going to keep losing jobs.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at November 28, 2005 11:38 AM (0yYS2)

7 Maxie makes a good point - and there are others. Some of my winter veggies and fruit are from Mexico. Some of my oil, and other items too along with an occasional beer. Delivered by trucks (GM n' others), processed by machinery (AMF, CAT, and so on). I could go on with an enormous list - but what's the point. How did uniforms become an issue of any significance?

Posted by: hondo at November 28, 2005 11:57 AM (Jvmry)

8 Good Grief.

Posted by: thirdee at November 28, 2005 12:29 PM (WOh+m)

9 hondo, it's not really that big an issue unless we find that security isn't good enough to keep the uniforms out of the hands of the wrong guys. And besides, it's also the irony that they're making uniforms for the guys who are charged with keeping them out. And IM is right in that it's also ironic that those who want to punish corporations who give them jobs, punish and bleed them enough to keep them from staying viable, complain the loudest when the jobs go elsewhere or they're forced to raise prices for their products.

Posted by: Oyster at November 28, 2005 01:46 PM (fl6E1)

10 Oyster, I have been to Mexico numerous times and I can categorically tell you that security in Mexico is a problem. If a drug dealer or smuggler wanted these uniforms it would be doable. As for US companies who do the work, I know of a company that is making uniforms for the Coast Guard and the Iraqi National Guard. I know they could make uniforms for the Border Patrol. The uniforms are similar.

Posted by: jesusland joe at November 28, 2005 02:14 PM (rUyw4)

11 The security of these uniforms is a moot point considering that my Korean tailor at Ft. Bragg could replicate any uniform from a picture. It's only haberdashery, not rocket science.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at November 28, 2005 03:01 PM (0yYS2)

12 So the bad guys get their paws on some uniforms. So what? Just because they have a border patrol uniform doesn't mean they have free reign of the border. Do people think that agents in uniform can just walk across the border whenever and wherever they want to? US agents cannot cross into Mexico while on routine patrol nor can Mexican agents cross into the US. If they do they are detained. It's happened before. As for complaining about the uniforms being made in Mexico, it's just plain economics. If you want everything made in the good old US, then stop complaining about high prices. Also, due to marking rulings of US Customs, only the end-user can remove the tag that says made in Mexico...and that would be the agent who has to wear it. Jeez, no ones happy unless they're complaining about something or other.

Posted by: Jaba at November 28, 2005 03:19 PM (k6t0T)

13 Yeah, well, Jaba the Hut, I'm real pissed about the lack of security on the Mexican border and Mike has been kind enough to post about the fact that uniforms of our Border Patrol are made in the foreign country whose nationals are most likely to ILLIGALLY cross our border. And since this is a political blog designed for comments, well, hell, I decided to comment.

Posted by: jesusland joe at November 28, 2005 03:27 PM (rUyw4)

14 Yeah.

Posted by: Oyster at November 28, 2005 04:37 PM (fl6E1)

15 i think that the US agents are doing a really bad job securing our borders. we always hear of mexican druglords (that end up in prison).... but what happens with the bus full of drugs that crosses the border? where does it goes? who takes care of it? we never hear from the mafia in this side of the border, i think that our government is the one lacking security... vote democrat

Posted by: alec lauridsden at November 28, 2005 07:16 PM (Ewu0l)

16 Jeez guys if ANYONE wants a uniform all you have to do is go to the Uniform Store in your own state. I would recommend ebay though, cheaper and it comes with that "worn in look".

Posted by: john ryan at November 28, 2005 07:33 PM (ads7K)

17 John Ryan, Are you trying to take the place of Downing Steeet Memo? Your posts are becoming more and more incoherant.

Posted by: jesusland joe at November 28, 2005 08:03 PM (rUyw4)

18 Anomaly Detected - begin search "Downing Street Memo" "Downing Street Memo IV" is a certifiable lunatic who through incoherent rants and "Bush Derangement Syndrome" had plagued the Jawa Report. DSM IV, in a final, rude and unrepeatable insult, moved to Venezuela to teach English in a Bolivarian Circle. Agent Brown says DSM IV may have moved to Cuba and have used Venezuela as a plausible cover. DSM IV was photographed wearing sunglasses at a large Washington rally. Agent Jones says "DSM IV" is shorthand for "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - Fourth Edition".

Posted by: Agent Smith at November 29, 2005 06:22 AM (hNv1g)

19 Next time buy union.

Posted by: actus at November 29, 2005 07:24 AM (Zi15r)

20 Yeah, union made uniforms have a magic spell on them that prevents them from being worn by anyone other than an actual officer. Liberals aren't even stupid, because even the word stupid denotes some measure of intelligence.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at November 29, 2005 10:26 AM (0yYS2)

21 "Yeah, union made uniforms have a magic spell on them that prevents them from being worn by anyone other than an actual officer." what does this have to do with who wears the uniforms?

Posted by: actus at November 29, 2005 11:31 AM (CqheE)

22 That was the whole point of the post. Duh. And besides, if it weren't for the unions trying to destroy businesses, they wouldn't have to go out of the country to get stuff made.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at November 29, 2005 05:37 PM (0yYS2)

23 Ah! Whats the problem? They make everything else in Mexico. Even 50% of the border patrol.

Posted by: greyrooster at November 29, 2005 07:10 PM (ZaAd/)

24 I'll bite. This is a good thing. Firstly, the security argument is weak. If a copy of the Border Patrol uniform was the only thing necessary to make it across, you'd be able to buy a good enough ripoff on any street corner in Mexico. Since you cannot, I have to assume that US Border Patrol Agents are smart enough to know that if they see a group of "agents" ducking in the bushes and running north who they've never seen before, are not assigned to that area, and don't speak english, then they probably aren't agents. Also the economic and social benefits far outweigh that false negative, see my post here: http://neolib.us. -Max

Posted by: Max at November 30, 2005 06:01 PM (g4H18)

25 Would it be better if it said made in China? I don't think so... Having more jobs for Mexican citizens is better for Americans at the end of the day: More jobs for Mexicans less immigrants to the US.

Posted by: Marcos Gottfried at December 12, 2005 02:45 PM (0SZCo)

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As Vinnie mentioned below, the British hostage has been named. Here's a little background on him:

Iraq War Resister Among Those Abducted
Among the four Westerners kidnapped yesterday in Iraq (the BBC describes them as "aid workers") is Briton Norman Kember:

Professor Kember, who is believed to be in his 70s, was said to be representing a number of humanitarian aid groups.

We are deeply shocked and outraged by the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11th. Equally, we condemn the so-called war on terrorism.

Confronted by President George W. Bush with the choice: "If you are not with us, you are with the terrorists", we choose a third option: nonviolence.

Can you say irony? These folks don't believe in violence, but it appears violence believes in them. The way I see it, that leaves three options to win Kember's freedom.

First, a ransom can be paid to the kidnappers. The money paid will then be used to purchase the tools of terrorism, ensuring that more people die violently in Iraq. Perhaps the terrorists will buy some toys to booby-trap.

The second option is for Coalition and Iraqi soldiers to rescue them. The soldiers will have to put their own lives on the line to accomplish this, of course, and some terrorists are likely to die in the process. I shed no tears for dead terrorists, but Professor Kember and his mates might.

Norman Kember's third option is to lie down and die.

Also posted at The Dread Pundit Bluto, who is violently opposed to non-violence.

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I've been gone all week, so I saw little news. I do remember seeing a snippet about a suicide bombing, but didn't read anything about it.

I wish I had.

BAGHDAD, Nov. 24 -- A suicide attacker steered a car packed with explosives toward U.S. soldiers giving away toys to children outside a hospital in central Iraq on Thursday, killing at least 31 people. Almost all of the victims were women and children, police said.

If I end up in Hell, I only hope it's in the same cell as Zarqawi.

CP@VAM

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2 Canadians, 1 American, and 1 Brit taken hostage:

Nov 27, 2005 — BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Four Western aid workers, two believed to be from Canada, one from Britain and one from the United States, have been kidnapped in Iraq, the organization they were working for said on Sunday.

The only hostage identified positively is the Briton:

It is understood Professor Norman Kember was snatched in Baghdad along with two Canadians and an American. The Foreign Office is investigating.

Professor Kember, from north-west London, was said to be representing a number of humanitarian aid groups.

His wife Pat, at home in Pinner, said: "People are being very, very good to me and I'm being supported."

I'm sure we'll update this as the others are named. In any case, we wish their families the very best and pray for their safe return.

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In what's becoming a busy day for me and blogging (unusual for a Sunday) a new blogger friend of mine pointed something out to me that he knew would get me fired up.

Real Teen at Right on the Right is taking some heat for his article about the US Post Office's opposition to Christmas. You know you've struck a chord with liberals when they attack you personally like one liberal did to Real Teen.

Jazz over at Running Scared called Real Teen a Hitler Youth. That's civil discourse at its finest in a liberal's mind:

The story which got poor Roger's dander floating up into the air conditioning vents was the plaintive wailing of Darlene over a story (sourced by no less an august source than her mom) that the Post Office would issue new holiday stamps this year. They allegedly went with a "Holiday Cookies" theme instead of pictures of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus. This not only enraged Roger, saddened Darlene's Mom (soon to be named the new managing editor of Knight Ridder, I believe), and sent Darlene scurrying for her keyboard, but got Ann Coulter Althouse into a tizzy and sent the Hitler Bush Youth bustling off to strap on their jackboots and take to the streets.

Of course, this is nothing new for liberals that wished death upon Vice President Cheney when he visited a hospital. However, to not only call someone a nazi but to also call someone facist as if that's a trait of the right side of the political spectrum shows how uneducated you really are and how guided you are by your hatred.

Originally Posted at

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According to Ace of Spades and RightFaith, the pro-military actor, Bruce Willis, will be making a movie righting the wrongs of MSM bias regarding the war in Iraq.

Bruce Willis comes out fighting for IraqÂ’s forgotten GI heroes (Times Online):

ANGERED by negative portrayals of the conflict in Iraq, Bruce Willis, the Hollywood star, is to make a pro-war film in which American soldiers will be depicted as brave fighters for freedom and democracy.

It will be based on the exploits of the heavily decorated members of Deuce Four, the 1st Battalion, 24th Infantry, which has spent the past year battling insurgents in the northern Iraqi town of Mosul.

That's the Deuce Four of Michael Yon fame.

Willis attended Deuce FourÂ’s homecoming ball this month in Seattle, Washington, where the soldiers are on leave, along with Stephen Eads, the producer of Armageddon and The Sixth Sense.

[...]

“I am baffled to understand why the things I saw happening in Iraq are not being reported,” he told MSNBC, the American news channel.

He is expected to base the film on the writings of the independent blogger Michael Yon, a former special forces green beret who was embedded with Deuce Four and sent regular dispatches about their heroics.

There is a lot of good, solid info in the news article referenced here. However, I like Bruce Willis and I will definitely add this movie to my list of ones I will actually see in the movie theaters.

Originally Posted at

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I really shouldn't give this story any justice but I should at least point it out:

Pentagon Expanding Its Domestic Surveillance Activity

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Some news for those who mocked the President when he spoke of the "Axis of Evil". Iran's insane hardline president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is seeking a trade deal with fellow lunatic North Korean president Kim Jong-il. Oil and natural gas for nuclear missiles.

From Haaretz:

BERLIN - Iran has offered North Korea oil and natural gas as payment for help in developing nuclear missiles, German weekly magazine Der Spiegel reported on Saturday, citing unidentified Western intelligence sources.

A senior Iranian official traveled to the North Korean capital Pyongyang during the second week of October to make the offer, the magazine quoted the sources as saying. It was unclear what North Korea's response was, it added.

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I promised myself I'd lay off the blogging for the long weekend and to celebrate my Sainted Mother's birthday today, but I got a message from Dave at Garfield Ridge about a blogger in need.

Jennifer, of Demure Thoughts, has a sick little girl and could use some donations. Please donate via pay pal if help if you can.

I figure this is ironic justice since I had been joking all week about voluntarily getting my gall bladder removed so that my body wouldn't absorb any more fat calories. It seemed funny at the time when directed at a colleague who couldn't eat my wife's pecan pie. Karmic justice is life's little bitch.

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Occasionally I drop a post or mind the store over at Patterico's Pontifications. Patterico, for those of you who don't get over there often, is a prosecutor in a large city in Southern California. No, not San Diego. This week he's been discussing the idea of holding the prosecution to a higher standard in death penalty cases--something beyond "reasonable doubt" he's tentatively calling "beyond all possible doubt".

I don't want to show up and diss the guy on his own blog--that's like...like... banging a guy's girlfriend in his own Firebird--so I'll register my differences over here.

First, Patterico doesn't really offer much reason to justify the change. He had a post a while back about what might have been an innocent man executed in Texas, but I'm not certain how a tougher standard of proof would have saved him. After all, this was someone who according to this account of the case may have known the identity of the real killer, yet refused to disclose it. He could have induced a reasonable doubt about the prosecution's case, but he chose not to.

Second, how would you really quantify a standard stricter than "beyond a reasonable doubt"? Even if you don't use the "possible doubt" construction, you've still changed the rules to require proving reasonable doubt plus...something. What is that something?

It's not really kosher, as a matter of law or as a matter of statistics, to quantify the percentage of doubt about a defendant's guilt. After all, can you really distinguish between being ninety-five percent certain and ninety-nine percent certain about, say, what your girlfriend tells you about how the windshield got broken in your Firebird? She says she hit a bat while driving at night, but the crack might be from the inside, where a shoe heel could...no, no, you're pretty sure you believe her.

Ninety five? Ninety nine? Do those numbers mean anything? Does the difference between them really make a difference?

Reasonable doubt is more a concern about the quality of a doubt than a percentage of certainty. Does this doubt make any sense? Is it reasonable? Or is it groundless? Is it laughable to have this kind of uncertainty about this case?

REASONABLE DOUBT: These eyewitnesses only saw the guy for three seconds on a foggy night. They could be mistaken.
UNREASONABLE DOUBT: Since these three eyewitnesses have Jewish surnames, I think the Mossad is trying to set this defendant up, even though no evidence suggesting that has come up.

I don't think the state should have to defend against less than reasonable theories and criticisms of its case. Just because some hotshot defense lawyer can pull a doubt out of his wazoo does not automatically make that doubt reasonable. But raising the bar on the prosecution will encourage them to try every outlandish scheme and theory in the book. They try them already, sure, but even the defense has an obligation to make utterly fantastic stories into reasonable ones before the state is required to refute them. Besides, quite often the unreasonable is irrefutable.

For example, I remember one of the possibilities hinted at by Mark Geragos in the course of the Scott Peterson murder trial was that a group of Satanists had kidnapped and ritually sacrificed Lacey Peterson.

Possible? Yes. It's not impossible. Reasonable? Not really. It's slightly more believable than aliens, but as a serious alternative to a well-detailed, solidly prosecuted case against Peterson, it's a phantom. It wasn't worth the prosecution's time to answer that baseless theory.

I don't see how Patterico's new standard is going to keep the equivalent of those phantom Satanists out of the courtroom in every death penalty case.

Excuse me. There's some dude outside in a Firebird and he looks peeved.

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From the Boston Globe:

BENNINGTON, Vt. --The school superintendent whose district includes Mount Anthony Union High School has labeled "inappropriate" and "irresponsible" an English teacher's use of liberal statements in a vocabulary quiz.

"I wish Bush would be (coherent, eschewed) for once during a speech, but there are theories that his everyday diction charms the below-average mind, hence insuring him Republican votes," said one question on a quiz written by English and social studies teacher Bret Chenkin.

"A teacher would be of (below-average, unsound) mind to endanger his job over his own (radical, infantile) political views."

It certainly takes a well-below-average mind to think that teenagers are going to keep quiet about it. The school superintendent is not amused:

Southwest Vermont Supervisory Union Superintendent Wesley Knapp said he would not want his children subjected to such teaching.

"It's absolutely unacceptable," he said. "They (teachers) don't have a license to hold forth on a particular standpoint."

Knapp said he was recently informed of the situation and that it was a personnel issue that he took seriously.

After school, head for The Dread Pundit Bluto, where every liberal dork gets a free swirly.

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