The story seems to indicate that these hostages will not be executed because of China's opposition to the invasion of Iraq.

The names of the hostages are Wei Wu, 19, Lin Bin, 38, Lin Qiang, 39, Zhou Sunqin, 17, Chen Qin'ai, 36, Zhou Sunlin, 18, Lin Zhong, 38, and Lin Xiong, 34.

Al Jazeera:

Unidentified gunmen kidnapped eight Chinese employees, working for a construction company, they say is collaborating with U.S. occupation troops, a video released on Tuesday showed.

Various news channels aired the video, in which eight Chinese appeared holding their passports, and standing in front of a small mud brick building. Along with the eight Chinese, two gunmen appeared in the video with headscarves wrapped around their faces.

In the tape, the kidnapping group said it grabbed the men as they were on their way out of the country.

"After interrogation, we found that they are working for a Chinese construction company that is working inside American sites in Iraq," the note said.

"The movement decided to free these Chinese soon on condition that they will not go back to their work with the occupation forces. And we hope the Chinese company will not deal with these forces," said the voice in the tape.

"At a time when the position of the Chinese government toward our cause was clear -- not taking part in invasion forces and their aggression against our country."

"We call on the Chinese government to clarify its position on them and other Chinese. We will kill them 48 hours after their pictures are televised unless that is done."

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Paul at Wizbang notes why CBS disabled the copy function for the PDF document detailing the Rathergate 'investigation'---they were worried bloggers might alter the content and pass the forged document along as authentic.

That's a lot like worrying that the Secret Service is in the counterfeiting business.

Which reminds me of this girl I once new with enormous boobs. Were they real? Who cares, as long as they were ACCURATE.

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Catholic World News:

Archbishop Basile Georges Casmoussa of Mosul, Iraq, was released on Tuesday morning, January 18, less than a day after being kidnapped.

Details of the archbishop's abduction and release were incomplete, as of Tuesday morning. But the Vatican was notified promptly that Archbishop Casmoussa had been freed, and papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls expressed "great satisfaction" with the news.

"The Pope was informed immediately, and thanked God" for the Iraqi prelate's release, Navarro-Valls added. He said that no ransom had been paid.

Earlier, Church officials in Iraq had been quoted as saying that they had received a ransom demand. Father Tetrus Mosei, the vicar general of the Mosul diocese, reportedly received a phone call on Tuesday morning demanding payment of $200,000 for the archbishop's release. Catholics in Mosul were collecting funds for the ransom payment when they heard that Archbishop Casmoussa was already free.

In Rome, Navarro-Valls said that the archbishop's abduction came as a surprise, in part because he is "very well liked by both Christians and Muslims."

Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho, who heads the Chaldean Catholic diocese of Mosul (Archbishop Casmoussa is the Syrian-rite leader), suggested that the kidnapping was probably not motivated by religious issues. He told reporters that criminals in Mosul, taking advantage of the unrest in the city, have begun kidnapping prominent people to generate quick profits from ransoms.

I may be going out on a limb here, but it remains a distinct possibility that whoever took Casmoussa might not have realized what kind of press this would receive--even in the Arab world. After all, the Catholic church opposed the war making itself the darling of terrorist media such as al Jazeera. An ignoble ally for such a great institution.

Having said that it does remain a distinct possibility that simple extortion was the only motive. Wherever we go human greed seems to remain the same. However, in my own experience I find that one is rarely motivated by a single factor. It is then also possible that extortion and religion played motivating factors.

Hat tip Digger and Interested Participant

Expect an update later.....

Let's not forget that at least four (possibly five) Americans are still being held hostage in Iraq. Roy Hallums, Dean Sadek, Tim Bell, and Bill Bradley.

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Mosul is a base of operation for The Army of Ansar al Sunnah, and I suspect that this is their handiwork. Right: Archbishop Basile Georges Casmoussa at the UCIP World Congress 2004.

Critical update 1/18/05: Archbishop Basile Georges Casmoussa freed! No ransom paid. Details at this post.

Reuters:

The Catholic archbishop of the Iraqi city of Mosul was kidnapped Monday in what the Vatican called an "act of terrorism."

Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls told Reuters the Holy See had received news of the kidnapping of Archbishop Basile Georges Casmoussa in Mosul. The spokesman demanded his immediate release but gave no details of the abduction.

A Catholic archbishop in the northern Iraq city of Mosul has been kidnapped by insurgents, the Vatican says. Archbishop Basile Georges Casmoussa, 66, was abducted from outside his church in the east of the city.

The Vatican said in a statement that it deplored "in the firmest way such a terrorist act", and asked that the archbishop be freed immediately.

There have been a number of attacks on Iraq's Christian minority. Two churches were bombed in Mosul in December.

More on Archbishop Basile Georges Casmoussa,a Syrian by birth, he was Archbishop of the Catholic Syrian Church--which is affilated with the Roman Catholic Church.

Recently quoted as saying, "The terrorist groups that carry out the attacks “hope that many, many more Christians will go. Their strategy is to create fear among the Christians and push them out of Iraq,”

UPDATE I: No claims of responsibility aired yet on al Jazeera, but only this story:

Casmusa, 66, leader of the city's Syrian Catholic community, was seized at around 5pm local time (1400 GMT) as he was about to enter his car, Father Faraj told AFP.

The armed men tossed him into the trunk of their vehicle before speeding away, according to the priest, who follows the rival Chaldean rite.

The Chaldean patriarch in Baghdad, Emmanuel Delly, said Casmusa "was abducted outside his home as he was returning from a pastoral visit in the diocese of Mosul".

"He was abducted and taken off in a car. We don't know who took him, nor the reason why," Delly told the missionary news agency Misna by telephone.

However, one need look no farther than a recent communique from Abu Musab al Zarqawi to see why Christians in general have a great deal to fear in the Middle East. Al Qaeda in Iraq justified the recent murder of Amer Nayef saying he was "the deputy police chief of the Jews and Christians" and that Nayef's son was murdered because he "serves the pagan guard."

The terrorists really believe that the liberation of Iraq was a reenactment of the Crusades. Iraq is just another chapter in the Crusades and who better to symbolize Christianity's victory than Archbishop Casmoussa?

The deep paranoia of Muslims in the Middle East plays out in such a way that all Christians should now consider themselves targets. Jews who once lived in Arab countries can tell you what I am talking about. All Jews in Muslim lands are considered potential spies for the "Zionist entity."

I suspect the same suspicions and paranoia will now scapegoat Christians as responsible for the ills of Iraqi society and as possible collaborators with the "Crusader forces."

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A New Jersey man originally from Egypt, Hossam Armanious, his wife, and his two daughters, age 16 and 8, were found brutally murdered in their home on Jan. 14th. Mr. Armanious was an Egyptian Christian who spent his spare time online speaking out against Muslim persecuation of Christian Copts in Egypt. He had been threatened online for his criticism.

The death penalty is prescribed for blasphemy under Islamic Law.

Let's see...guy says things about Islam that could be construed as offensive...guy gets death threats from followers of the Religion of Peace...guy won't back down...why does all of this sound so familiar?

NY Post (via Cranky Neocon):

The father of a murdered New Jersey family was threatened for making anti-Muslim remarks online — and the gruesome quadruple slaying may have been the hateful retaliation, sources told The Post yesterday.

Hossam Armanious, 47, who along with his wife and two daughters was found stabbed to death in his Jersey City home early Friday, would regularly debate religion in a Middle Eastern chat room, one source said.

Armanious, an Egyptian Christian, was well known for expressing his Coptic beliefs and engaging in fiery back-and-forth with Muslims on the Web site paltalk.com....

The married father of two had recently been threatened by Muslim members of the Web site, said a fellow Copt and store clerk who uses the chat room.

"You'd better stop this bull---- or we are going to track you down like a chicken and kill you," was the threat, said the clerk, who was online at the time and saw the exchange.

But Armanious refused to back down, according to two sources who use the Web site....

The FBI confirmed it has been called in to help with the case.

The Father, Hossam Armanious, spent some of his spare time in Internet chat rooms debating about religion and speaking out against the Islamic persecution of the Coptic Christians in his native country Egypt .

About two months ago, when he made a comment in a Paltalk chat room, he was threatened.

"Some Muslim guys said if you don't stop this, we're going to come out and kill you," said a family friend. To which he responded: “Here is America , I am free to say whatever I want”.

Armanious could not be more wrong. When he found out that even in America he was not free to speak his mind, it was already too late. He was stabbed to death, his throat was slashed and his entire family was butchered.

Has America already become a dhimmi nation? Are the big American media afraid of the Islamists? Do the reporters fear for their own lives? What is the explanation of this silence? How many more death you need before you wake up and realize our freedom in America is hijacked? How many more innocent people should bathe in their own blood before you realize we are no more free in our own homes and the first amendment does not exist anymore? If today, Muslims with less than 2% of the population, can intimidate you to the extent that you are afraid to report their crimes, what will befall on you (and us) if their number is allowed to grow to 10%

Other commentary: more...

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My six year old daughter reminded me this morning that she didn't have to go to school because "today is the King's birthday." So how can I celebrate the King's birthday? Link drop. Apologies for not being able to put each link in its own post, but this is exactly how MLK would have wanted it to be.

It's the Religion of Peas update--

U.S. Prof Attacks Arab Muslim Student's Pro-Americanism at Hyscience.

"Kuwaiti Mujahideen" Claim Attacks on Foreigners, Army Base by Evan Kohlman.

Is the coming Caliphate of Europe dangerous over at the Astute Blogger.

Crosswalk notes the insurgents have produced an English language propaganda video.

Misha on 'Torture' in the press.

(via Aylward) Chrenkoff's good news from Iraq.

Saddam's piggybank: UN Oil for Food at Friends of Saddam.

Abbas calls for end to intifada....sorta at Captain's Quarters.

(via Ace) Blackfive has the goods on the traitors that call themselves 'reporters' in Iraq.

Unrelated to the Religion of Peas, but interesting.

Rally against illegal immigration photo-blogging by Digger.

Armstrong Williams' brother still not paying Jawa Report for support and Iowahawk has generic forms for product placement in your posts.

Hotel Rwanda movie review....I gots to see that!

SNL Rathergate skit over at RatherBias (via Slantpoint)

Interesting, interesting, very interesting, then suddenly I lost interst while walking down the street @ SWG.

Now you know who NOT to talk to at a dinner party from the Colossus.

Flea, art, and the value of the snow peso.

Orgazmo in the GWOT at Edotors in PJ's.

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by Demosophist

A recent installment of The Belmont Club on a "colonial corps" had a reference to Sam Huntington's speech on a "great awakening" in the US, and his thesis that the greatest ideological force in the world today is God. This, from a Harvard professor. His perspective, however, isn't as a religionist but as a sociologist and political scientist. I wrote a piece several years ago, on the first anniversary of the 9/11 attack, about a "tidal wave" of totalitarianism in the Middle East traveling, mostly unnoticed, toward landfall. It's somewhat ironic to think about that wave analogy now. The term "tidal wave" is slightly misleading, because it really has nothing to do with the lunar tides, but is "tidal" in the sense of being a sudden change in sea level as a result of a shift in the earth itself. One might call it an "earth tide," or a "quake wave." I therefore reasoned that it was a good analogy to what had happened to the Middle East where subterranean pressures had built up over centuries and had finally resulted in a paradigmatic shift in the culture. And I reasoned that the only way to deal with the consequences of that shift, analogous to the rise of the Nazis in the early 1930s, was to create a "counter-wave." In terms of the jihadist movement a liberal/democratic vanguard to counter their Qutbist vanguard. more...

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(Rome, Italy) According to the Italian Information and Democratic Security Service (SISDe), al-Qaeda publishes a monthly Internet magazine for female terrorists called Al Khansa which provides guidance and advice on how Muslim women can be better suicide bombers. The view of al-Qaeda is that women become "emancipated" through martyrdom and equality between the sexes is achieved.

Among a variety of subjects, Al Khansa gives tips to aspiring female suicide bombers on fitness, diet, fashion, and how to "conquer the passions" to prevent any final flings before lacing up an explosive-laden corset. Also included are instructions for first aid and emergency training, for learning the Koran, and for shooting and carrying ammunition. Nevertheless, although aspiring martyrs are considered largely emancipated, some prohibitions are emphasized. These include absolute restrictions on watching television and enjoying air conditioning and, of course, restraints on mandatory veils and tunics. Violations could result in a prison sentence, ruining any near-term plans for martyrdom. In other words, behave and be covered from the head to the floor or miss your chance to be adorned with C-4.

It's inconceivable to me that an aspiring suicide bomber would reasonably need or care about advice regarding her diet. And, the contention that a female martyr is equal to a male martyr makes no sense. A male martyr is greeted in heaven by 72 virgins. As far as I know, nothing comparable awaits the female martyr.

Companion post at Interested-Participant.

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Spc. Charles Graner Jr.'s fate has gone to the jury. He has been accused of 'torturing' inmates in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. In the spirit of solidarity with human rights activists around the world outraged at American abuses, I present to you 'torture' vs. 'torture', an old but oft overlooked post.
----------------------------------------

Three British nationals recently released from Guantanamo Bay have claimed they were tortured. The ICRC goes so far as to say that what is going on at Gitmo may be a war crime. Many involved in the Abu Ghraib torture scandal now stand trial for their crimes. In fact, Islamist websites routinely use pictures of 'torture' at Abu Ghraib to justify their jihad against the US.

But what exactly does 'torture' mean? Is what was done at Abu Ghraib torture? Laying aside the fact that most of what is being said by the released Gitmo prisoners is rubbish--also, suspend for a second your knowlege that the Geneva Conventions do not apply to non-uniformed enemy combatants---what about the more credible claims of 'torture'?

I offer the following photo essay. Us vs. Them. Our 'torture' vs. their torture.

WARNING: Extremely graphic. You must be an adult to see this!! The images below are extremely violent and ought to make you sick. more...

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Evan Kohlman is now blogging over at The Counterterrorism Blog and links a number of his original translations of recent al Qaeda in Iraq communiques. His analysis?

Abu Musab al-Zarqawi--has dramatically increased its targeting of influential Iraqi government officials, potential candidates in the election, and anyone else associated with the electoral process.

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Via Chad at In the Bullpen the news that 15 Iraqi National Guardsman have been captured by the terrorists. Sadly, their fate is already sealed.

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And I thought American actors were idiots....Maybe they belong to a British chapter of F.A.G?? BBC News:

Actors Corin and Vanessa Redgrave want a British detainee at Guantanamo Bay to stand for a Parliamentary seat.
Moazzam Begg, 36, from Birmingham, was arrested in Pakistan and has been held as a terror suspect at the US military base in Cuba since January 2002.

The Redgraves want Mr Begg to stand for their Peace and Progress Party

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....al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade claims responsibility.

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Notice how the person thinks that airing the beheading video believes it would galvanize public opinion against the war. I should think it would do just the opposite. Which victim was shown is unknown. Cambridge Chronicle:

Cambridge Community Television broadcast the beheading of a hostage in Iraq, sparking a fresh round of complaints about cable access standards.

A tape of the execution ran on Channel 10 at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 31, immediately after a family-friendly scene of a pumpkin-carving festival....

Foley said the beheading could play a role similar to searing photos from the Vietnam War. He cited the photos of the point-blank execution of a Viet Cong prisoner and a napalm-burned Vietnamese girl as helping the anti-war movement.

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I love Dean Esmay. He's cool. He throws me a link every once in a while and actually reads this blog from time to time. So it is with a great deal of reluctance that I challenge the inferences drawn by the quack Harvey Bialy, Ph.D. over at Dean's World.

Bialy's argument is rather poor on its face, and I'm surprised that any one could be duped by it.

The argument goes something like this. If HIV causes AIDS, then how come the AIDS rate has gone down but the HIV rate has remained constant? If HIV causes AIDS then shouldn't you expect that the AIDS rate and the HIV rate would mirror each other?

The conclusion he wishes the reader to draw is this: Since the HIV rate has remained fairly constant, but the AIDS rate has declined--then HIV does not cause AIDS. Something else does.

This is a clear case of drawing false inferences from reliable data. The major hole in Bialy's argument is that he leaves out the fact that since the early 1990s--precisely when the HIV/AIDS rates began to diverge--several intervention strategies have been introduced which lessen the likelihood that a person with HIV will contract full-blown AIDS.

That is, because HIV is treatable it should be expected that the number of HIV cases will be much larger than the numbers of AIDS cases. These data, then, support the fact that HIV is the cause of AIDS.

What is more interesting to me are the unspoken reasons why so many in Africa are unwilling to accept that fact. Why would so many people go on this insane hunt to find another culprit for the AIDS crisis in Africa?

In my mind such insane theories as advocated by Dr. Bialy are a matter of cultural denial. What are Africans in denial over? They wish to deny the pathologies of their own culture--namely that rape, molestation, and sodomy are much higher in sub-Saharan Africa than elsewhere in the world.

Those that wish to deny that HIV causes AIDS are in fact denying that their own culture is largely responsible for the pandemic. For instance, it is estimated that 37% of the adult population in Botswana has AIDS. Read that number again--37%!!!

I once went to a campus-wide convocation in which the speaker was a children's advocate in Africa. She spoke of entire regions of Africa where there are literally no Adults. None. Remember that a rate of 37% does not mean that every area of the country is equally affected. Some parts of the country may have much smaller infection rates, in other areas the rate is close to 100%.

She spoke of entering a village controlled by a gang of teenagers because all the adults were dead from AIDS. I couldn't help but think of Lord of the Flies.

She spoke of gangs of men with AIDS who would go from village to village raping little children. How little? Infants.

Why would grown men rape infants? Because they have been told that HIV does not cause AIDS. A popular cultural myth is that the only way to get the AIDS infection out of their systems is to have sex with a virgin.

Another example. In post-appartheid South Africa the police will no longer patrol the streets of some ghettos. Rape is a nightly occurence. Again, rape in these ghettos is of the gang rape sort. The only recourse has been for vigilante groups to lynch those suspected of being members of the rape gangs. Even so, the rapes continue.

Of course, most cases of HIV are probably not caused by rape. Most cases are probably contracted in Africa just as it is contracted in the US--sodomy. The easiest way to contract the disease is to be on the receiving end of sodomy. It is very difficult for a man to get AIDS from a woman. Men usually get AIDS from another man--and women get AIDS from men who have slept with another man.

Denying that AIDS is caused by HIV is part of the cultural machismo in Africa that tacitly allows bisexual relationships among men and in which heterosexual promiscuity is tolerated (as long as it is the man that is promiscious).

On the other hand in Arab Africa, which generally looks down on these behaviors, the incidence of AIDS is much lower. (Yes, homosexual relationships with young boys is probably common in Northern Africa, but the underground culture of man-boy relationships does not allow for grown men to be penetrated--the main mechanism for transmission.)

HIV causes AIDS. To deny this is to buy into the myth that all cultures are equal to the task of addressing the problems before them.

The essay published by Dean does not falsify the hypothesis. On the contrary, these data verify the hypothesis. By adding intervention to the mix, the data does just what it is supposed to do. more...

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1 I agree with you Rusty. It IS causal. ABSOLUTELY. I was just being more than fair since the Harvey crew over at Dean's world have slammed me for this in the past. Repeatedly. I'm willing to grant their thought experiment in that case. My take is that HIV is responsible for the vast majority of AIDS, but some (v. few) cases have other origins. Just to clarify. Thanks for the link

Posted by: caltechgirl at January 13, 2005 04:40 PM (SbnT9)

2 Questioning isn't generally seen as being "duped" but if that's the way you see it, okie dokie.

Posted by: Donna at January 13, 2005 04:42 PM (0yEW+)

3 Another explanation I've heard for the apparent difference in transmission patterns in sub-Saharan Africa is a practice called “dry sex”.

Posted by: Dave Schuler at January 13, 2005 05:30 PM (OLr4c)

4 Admitting I lack the expertise to offer a valuable opinion makes me a wuss? Feh. I've been called worse by people I actually know

Posted by: John at January 13, 2005 05:36 PM (LwJx1)

5 i challenge dean and all of the scientists he cited to take a blood transfusion from someone with hiv but not aids. if they won't then they should publicly retract the posting.

Posted by: reliapundit at January 13, 2005 05:54 PM (mZjms)

6 RUSTY: Now you went and did it. Welcome to the racist club. You told the truth therefore you are a racist in the eyes of the liberals. It's really not so bad once you get used to it. In fact, your fan club will grow.

Posted by: greyrooster at January 13, 2005 06:36 PM (oKjnh)

7 My God is someone saying South Africa in worse now that it is run by blacks? Couldn't be. The whites were responsible for all the crimes. Rhodesia and South Africa are surly better places to live now that the white people are no longer in charge. This is crazy. Sounds racist to me. Love it.

Posted by: greyrooster at January 13, 2005 08:04 PM (oKjnh)

8 I'm a wuss for tossing my husband a link without rendering an opinion? I wonder what I am for accepting his sperm and bearing his child... Pushover, I guess.

Posted by: Rosemary the Queen of All Evil at January 13, 2005 08:36 PM (LOj+R)

9 Dr. Shackleford, I wanted to thank you for your link. I actually want to stand by my "agnostic" comment over on MUSC Tiger, but that may not be quite right since I believe there really may be something to what Dean and his Scientists are saying. Now as for you discussion on Africa, well all I gotta say is talk to Kim about that, who I support fully in his rant about his homeland. (That's Kim du Toit if you are not familiar) PS: LOL Rosemary, You go girl!

Posted by: CInomed at January 13, 2005 09:05 PM (PmWhP)

10 Man, are people STUPID or what? When I can get myself under control; I'll then reply.

Posted by: firstbrokenangel at January 13, 2005 09:22 PM (D39Vm)

11 Dean presents one piece of evidence that MAY have the explanation that you propose, and I am officially agnostic on the subject, but your dismissive reaction is probably arrogant, unless you are a research biologist, epidemiologist, or have other expertise specifically related to the topic. Some bright, well-credentialed people have raised questions, and while they well be dead wrong, slapping any insurgent hypothesis down because established science "told you so," if you aren't familiar with the intricacies of the challenge ... well, it's dangerous ground. In addition, most people tend to think of states of disease in two-dimensional terms, have it or not, is this or isn't, when in fact many "diseases" are either subjectively defines places on a genetic spectrum or painfully multifactorial. Just a thought.

Posted by: Bill from INDC at January 13, 2005 10:49 PM (2uDpz)

12 Bill, Just because a guy has a 'Ph.D.' next to his name doesn't make him bright nor does it make his research of any quality. The only place this theory is taken seriously is in Africa, for the stated reasons above. I am no friend to Orthodoxy, but neither should we question Orthodoxy simply because it is Orthodoxy. The report as published by Dean is flimsy at best and fraudulent at worst. I went to Dean's site expecting this major revelation (as promised) and got THAT? The argument, as published, would get an F in a basic stats class and is a classic example of bad inference from data. And of course you're right about disease definition, but that it's still a pretty pathetic argument put forth by the guy Dean cites. Greyrooster--No, but sub-Saharan societies generally are ill equipped to deal with AIDS and are in denial. QOAE-LOL CInomed, John, Donna-the argument was so poor I can't help but wonder how any one could remain agnostic.

Posted by: Rusty at January 14, 2005 08:23 AM (JQjhA)

13 "Just because a guy has a 'Ph.D.' next to his name doesn't make him bright nor does it make his research of any quality." I completely agree, Rusty. I've run into some pretty dumb (both ignorant and unitelligent) PhDs in my time (uh, no offense, Dr.). I've also seen really poor research based on either: 1) A faulty knowledge or gross error in the statisical analysis. (as it looks like in this case) or 2) Continual maschinations of data until a statisical correlation (or non-correlation) is spit out. (I blame SAS and their software for this that allows complex analysis to be done by people who have no business doing this type of analysis OR a correlation in search of a theory). It's the number 2 point that is scarier in that it's the opposite of classic scientific experiment (i.e. developing a hypothesis, deciding upon a test method to prove this hypothesis and THEN doing the analysis of the data)

Posted by: JFH at January 14, 2005 03:23 PM (fmEeo)

14 PHD doesn't stand for common sense. Some have it some don't. Some are dedicated academic professionals. Some are hiding in academia because they can't hack it in a competitive enviroment. Only they know the truth. That is, until they open their mouths.

Posted by: greyrooster at January 14, 2005 07:43 PM (Chchy)

15 RUSTY: And why is that? heh, heh, heh. Spot light on Rusty. Off subject but Greyrooster's first grandson comes home from hospital in morning. Greyrooster's idiot son has chosen to stay in Iraq. Apparently, to be assigned to another unit. I think he's done his share. If I could get my hands on him, one of us would get an asswhipping. Bet on him.

Posted by: greyrooster at January 14, 2005 07:51 PM (Chchy)

16 Without reading the links yet, I did see you Grey Rooster calling Rusty a racist because he was talking about FACTS in Africa and that's exactly what they were - FACTS. Africa has the highest rate of HIV+ and AIDS cases in the world and there are lots of people trying to educate and raise money for the people of Africa to stop the spread of the disease. That does not make Rusty a racist. If you paid attention to news and other reports, you'd know already that what he is stating are facts. What makes me sick is how any man could rape a child must less an infant iet just boggles my mind. And they sure as shit do not use condoms or any other type of protection. Being Hiv-positive, you need to tell everyone you've ever been with so that they can be tested. Some become ill with full blown AIDS because their immune system cannot handle it. And it has to be one of the worst ways to die. You can be HIV positive and never get sick butif you don't protect your partner,he or she could contract HIV+ and get full blown AIDS. It all depends on your body. One thing you don't want to do is pass it on because people react differently to it depending upon their own immune systems. You can also have HIV+ for a long time and never get sick but you can get others sick without protection. They have meds now for early and quick diagnoses of HIV+ virus and itis working for most people. By the time most people get tested, it's way too late. Once you go into full blown AIDS, make our your will, do a power of attorney and a living will. Anyone,despite what their immune dysfuction is - cannot donate blood nor can they be organd donors. I found that out after 9/11 and as disappointed as I was then to know that, I realized I certainly did not want to pass my illness onto other peopl as I have my own sons. There are way too many immune disorders in this country. There was also a point that when the Portuguese from southern MA would fly home. When they returned, they were tested and found there are different forms of HIV and AIDS. Back in 1975 in Readers Digest Magazine,there wasan article on an epidemic regarding AIDS but most people never bothered to read it so it was another ten years before it really become known. If you have no signs of the illness despite being HIV+, consider yourself lucky but you still need to be tested and treated and protected,especially protecting your partner. As to this article, there may be less people coming down with full blown AIDS even though they have HIV+ results. Intervention makes the difference here. So the person who wrote that article is an asshat; what is going to save you from this horrible death is knowledge and if you test positive, don't fool around with it by passing it along. The speading of HIV does indeed cause AIDS but with early help and intervention, some will never get sick and to me that's a good start. Just don't donate blood or your organs. Grey Rooster, be proud of your son for staying in Iraq; many are returning for their third tour of duty there, so he must feel it's worth it. We'll keep him in our prayers and thoughts. Cindy

Posted by: firstbrokenangel at January 15, 2005 12:54 AM (D39Vm)

17 CINDY: Read my post again. And think this time. Does a person have to put LOL after everything to place some subtle humor?

Posted by: greyrooster at January 15, 2005 08:18 AM (4npOj)

18 I don't know Grey Rooster, still sounds like you're angry with him for staying in Iraq. Cindy

Posted by: firstbrokenangel at January 15, 2005 03:51 PM (D39Vm)

19 To continue on the topic of downward revision of HIV infection in Africa: Estimates on HIV called too high New data cut rates for many nations (BOSTON GLOBE) By John Donnelly, Globe Staff | June 20, 2004 http://www.boston.com/news/world/articles/2004/06/20/estimates_on_hiv_called_too_high/ Study cuts Kenya HIV estimates (BBC) http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3379707.stm

Posted by: Ed at January 15, 2005 10:04 PM (lgWew)

20 People need to stop approaching this as if it has been proven that HIV causes AIDS. It has never been proven. HIV has never even been isolated in a lab. The test for HIV is also very inaccurate. I have a friend who tested positive, and then got a letter a few weeks later saying that the test was just wrong. Lots of people get AIDS symptoms without being HIV positive. HIV doesn't always mean AIDS, and AIDS doesn't always mean HIV. That's enough to make me seriously question the HIV/AIDS connection.

Posted by: Mark J at January 17, 2005 12:47 AM (ykFk5)

21 Was referring to Racist comment. Get it? Get it? Get it? My point is that if one tells the truth and the truth happens to be a bad comment about any other race than white. You are automatically banded a racist. Please note that Rusty has not answered my (and why is that question). Nor do I expect him to. I wish to be the only racist on this blog. Ha, Ha.

Posted by: greyrooster at January 17, 2005 06:54 AM (paXpx)

22 ED: Speech was nice. Do you have a point or solution? I also stood up at the 37% figure. But why is problem placed on whites. Do blacks begging for money count any better? Could the 37% figure have originally came from blacks begging for money? Exaggeration just a white thing huh! The fear is not youth gangs. It's fear of having to support them later. The same old story. Support us, protect us, feed us, save us from ourselves, and by the way, we hate you white bastards.

Posted by: greyrooster at January 17, 2005 07:18 AM (paXpx)

23 Gotta love the conservative mind. Bludgeon it with facts and reality for long enough, and it slips into its favorite defense mechanism: "Do you have a point?" coupled with a healthy dose of "Must be racism, and we all know racism is bad *wink wink nudge nudge*" Puh-leeze.

Posted by: BanzaiRabbit at February 25, 2005 10:55 PM (ztw8g)

24 I think it is highly unreasonable to argue that HIV does not cause AIDS. It is so unreasonable that it doesn't even warrant discussion. To the above poster who seems to argue that reports of higher incidence of AIDS in Africa are part of some "white" conspiracy, please try to get a grip on reality. Knowing definitively how many people have AIDS would require a thorough and well-funded study and a population willing to cooperate with researchers. Neither of these conditions exists. Whether it is 37% or 15% shouldn't really matter. Either way AIDS is an epidemic that threatens the future of many of these countries. I don't buy your population estimate argument at all. You cite figures from 1980 and 2004. I think if you examine the figures more closely you would find very high population growth until the mid-90s when a large number of people started dying from AIDS and then much slower or even stagnent population growth since then. An incidence of 37% HIV and a growing population at present are not at odds with each other as we know that the disease is usually present for several years before if untreated it results in death. So, I'm afraid to say it is not conservatives that need to be bludgeoned with facts, it is you my friend. You also seem to deny that cultural attitudes about sex in this part of sub-Saharan Africa may have something to do with the growth and difficulty in containing the epidemic in that part of the world and then cite that "The problem is that none of these ideas are supported by actual sociological or sexual research." What is you basis for this claim? I think you assume this to be the case but you're actually quite wrong. Many sociologist and anthropolgoists have chronicled the fact that promiscuity and a diminished respect for women's sexual rights (i.e. the need for their consent) are present in many African communities (although the opposite is true in others). The practice of migrant workers and truckers spreading the disease to their families after having sex with prostitutes is also widely established as a primary cause of the spread of the disease in Africa. When I was in South Africa I was told that it was estimated that something like 75% of truck drivers were HIV positive. This isn't by chance. There is a lifestyle that supports these rates of transmission and it isn't one of monogomy or absistance. While drugs and money will be indispensible in the fight against AIDS in this part of Africa, a critical piece in figthting the epidemic also must be education and reform of the population and their attitudes about sex. There is no denying that AIDS feasts on promiscuity and activities such as prostitution. There is also no denying that cultural prejudices against wearing condoms and against restraining sexual appetites also fuels the epedimic. While is may offend you liberal sensibilities to hear such reason that contradicts your cultural relevatists, anti- anything that smacks of Christian morality (i.e. monogamy and abstinance), progress in reducing the spread of AIDS must address people's sexual practices. The campaign to educate people in this country about AIDS did suceed in doing some of this in the late 80s and early 90s as people rationally saw the connection between promiscuity, wearing condoms, contracting HIV and dying. Comprehension of such a clear logical connection would help in Africa. This must be done in a way that is sensitive to the stigma that attaches to women especially from this connection (i.e. they or their partner were promiscuous) especially since many times women are at the mercy of their partners.... Blaming it on the white man doesn't only fail to accomplish anything useful, it deflects attention from the real issues at hand. Futhermore, it is an intellectually indefensible position.

Posted by: manofreason at February 27, 2005 12:48 PM (pZiwh)

25 To manofreason, it is not a question of a 'white' conspiracy, or even a question of blacks 'begging for money' as one above post put it. The point that was being made by Ed, I believe, is that there are far too many inconsistencies in the HIV/AIDS hypothesis, and that is all it is - a hypothesis, and far too many inconsistencies in the 'African AIDS Epidemic' story which has been perpetuated by the media. As far as I am concerned, all statistical data regarding AIDS in Africa is massively inaccurate at best. I would like to know how such data is compiled and whether or not it is independently verified by any third party. Just because data comes from a supposedly reliable source such as the WHO/UN or a nation's government, does not make it true. Regarding the 37% infection rate in Botswana for example, I find it highly improbable first of all that this figure could be calculated anyway in a country as sparsely populated as Botswana is. And secondly, I wonder as Ed points out, how Botswana, along with other African countries alledgedly hard hit by AIDS could manage to grow at such high population growth rates if people are supposedly dying in such large numbers from AIDS. And if, as you point out, they are only infected by HIV and not necessarily dying, then that calls into question the whole theory that HIV=AIDS=death. On the subject of a 'white' conspiracy, I do not believe in such things as conspiracy theories, but I will say that the Western nations tend to be extremely one-sided in their view of most things African. Little or no attempt is made in the Western media to report posiive news from Africa, whilst wars, disease and AIDS tend to be 'hot' news. Being black or white has nothing to do with it. Black and white people exist in the West, and black and white people coexist in Africa also. It is very interesting to me though, that the African countries which tend to shun the West, or at least are not afraid to publicly stand up or speak out against them seem to be those with the highest HIV infection rates, whilst the inverse seems to be true for those countries in favour with the West. Botswana and Zimbabwe have both, in different ways, shunned the West in recent times and are rewarded with high HIV infection rates, whilst countries such as Uganda and Kenya, who have in recent times received praise and support from Western countries for economic and democratic reforms, have seen their HIV rates declining On the question of promiscuity and 'diminished respect for women's sexual rights' as you put it, there is no way one can make a quantitative judgment over whether one culture is more promiscuous than the next. One may appear to be more promiscuous, but that does not necessarily make it the case. I think it is disrespectful in the extreme to imply that AIDS has spread in Africa because of promiscuity whereas it has not in other parts of the world. You mention truck drivers, but it is very naive to think that African truck drivers are more or less promiscuous than truck drivers in other parts of the world. By the nature of the work, where ever they are in the world, truck drivers may feel the need to... how shall I put this... ammeliorate their loneliness. As regarding education, as someone born in Africa, and who has regularly visited there over the past 20 or so years, I can assure you with my hand on my heart, that the average African is far more informed about AIDS and its alledged causes than the average European. Huge roadside billboards advertising condoms and safe-sex are commonplace in Africa. There are numerous educational programmes on the subject of safe-sex both on television and radio. These are things which I have not witnessed living in Europe. The last advert on television regarding such things I can remember seeing on British TV was perhaps around 1990 or thereabouts. I do not wish to pour scorn upon anyone, but the idea that AIDS is the scourge of Africa is not my own opinion having visited there many times, and being culturally involved with the people. Yes, people are dying, but of what we don't know. To take an example, one member of my family recently died in a rural part of Africa from where my family hail. It is not known what she died of. The explanation I was given was 'malaria', but I can tell you that malaria is used often in the sense that 'flu' is used in the West, or at least in Britain. People when they get ill say they have the flu, but that does not necessarily mean they have the influenza virus. There are countless cases like these where people die of tropical illnesses and have no official diagnosis of what they died from. In a land where poverty is rife and doctors charge such high fees, there is little incentive to visit a doctor in your illness. The idea that cheap and reliable HIV testing is available and done in Africa is laughable. Therefore, causes of death are very often a matter for speculation. This is from my own personal experience. To say that so many are dying because they have been infected with HIV and developed AIDS is an easy answer. No argument is so unreasonable as not to warrant a discussion, as you suggest at the top of your post. It has never been proven that HIV causes AIDS conclusively, regardless of the media's attention to this philosophy, and it is therefore sad in my mind that Africa has been tarnished with this brush of being the victim of an 'epidemic'. All science needs to be challenged, and there have always been alternative ideas as to the origin of AIDS, yet they have not always been treated fairly, just as Africa has not been treated fairly over this subject. Africa, anyway is a land of over a thousand different cultures and attitudes to life, to women and to sex. Even within one country, there are different communities with different cultures and opinions. It is easy for the Western media to oversimplify the situation so that Westerners can 'understand' the situation, but oversimplification it is. To me, your position of saying 'blame the white man' is intellectually indefensible is oversimplistic and patronising to Africans. It is neither the white man nor the black man's fault that so many die from disease in Africa, it is however, the Western community (which includes blacks) who have decided (without reason in many minds) that Africa is suffering from an epidemic which in their own countries only afflicts those at the bottom rungs of society - homosexual men and intravenous drug users.

Posted by: jimbo at June 23, 2005 07:45 AM (HTTxf)

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via Charles Johnson

PS-Can you name that hand?

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Parousing Internet Hagganah today to see what I had missed I found this message from the Islamic Army in Iraq, first published at an Islamist BB in French. Freeper Penguino's original translation can be found here:

"The year 2005 will be one of misfortune for America," affirms this group in an official statement sent on-line from an Islamic site published Monday, whose authenticity couldn't be immediately verified.

"The next days of this new year will see the biggest surprises that the Mujahideen have prepared for your children outside and inside America," he writes, adding that the fighters "will carry the battle from inside our country (Iraq) to inside yours."

"We address you after your New Year's celebration hoping that you have sobered up...We are going to make you American civilians taste that which our civilians endure," continues the group in "a message to the American people," who behave "uncivilized" and "very ignorantly."

"The entire world hates America and hates the American people... Did you know that the number of them who support the idea of attacks against America on her own soil has increased enormously this year?," also says the group.

"Last year was a walk in the park for your soldiers in Iraq. The year 2005 will see a quantitative and qualitative change in the operations against your soldiers, who will enter the annuals of history," he adds.

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AP via Globe and Mail:

Gunmen killed a representative of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's most senior Shiite Muslim cleric, along with the aide's son and four bodyguards in a town south of Baghdad, an official in the cleric's office said Thursday...

Sheik Mahmoud Finjan, Mr. al-Sistani's representative in the town of Salman Pak, 20 kilometres southeast of Baghdad, was shot dead Wednesday night as he was returning home from a mosque where he performed the evening prayers, the official said on condition of anonymity. His son and four bodyguards were also killed, the official at Mr. al-Sistani's office in this Shiite holy city said.

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Like South Ossetia, Abkhazia wishes to leave Georgia and become part of the Russian Federation. The election changes none of this. While war between Russian and Georgia is not imminent, it still remains a real possibility. Xinhua:

Opposition leader Sergei Bagapsh won a landslide victory in Wednesday's presidential election in Georgia's breakaway republic of Abkhazia, the republic's Central Electoral Commission (CEC) announced Thursday.

CEC chief Batal Tabagua said Bagapsh won 91.1 percent of the vote, demolishing his only rival, the People's Party leader Yakub Lakoba, who took just 4.5 percent, the Itar-Tass news agency reported....

Abkhazia has enjoyed de facto independence from Georgia since fighting a separatist war in the early 1990s following the collapse of the Soviet Union. The region has been seeking to integrate with Russia against the wishes of Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili who has vowed to regain control over the republic and another rebel region, South Ossetia.

Bagapsh said Thursday that any future dialogue between Abkhaziaand Georgia must be held under the premise that both sides are equal and independent states.

He regarded with great optimism relations with Russia and advocated further integration with Moscow, stressing that Abkhaziawill have no future without financial and legal assistance from Russia.

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