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February 21, 2005

Jeff Gannon/James Guckert to Sue Media Matters?

UPI is reporting that Newsweek says Gannon/Guckert plans to sue Media Matters. Yes, that Media Matters. UPI:

Former Talon News writer Jeff Gannon has threatened to sue the liberal groups and blogs who exposed his lack of credentials, Newsweek said Monday....
Gannon told Newsweek he was the victim of a "political assassination" committed by groups like Media Matters for America, a cyberspace watchdog organization founded by former investigative journalist David Brock, and is considering bringing suit against them, though the group does not seem concerned.
"Everything we wrote about him came from the public record," Brock said.

Was this a political assassination? Yes. Is there cause for a lawsuit? I don't think so.

Reporting that Guckert was a gay prostititue, that's a fact. Reporting that he was a schill, that's an opinion. You can't sue because some one has a poor opinion of you.

RELATED!

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1 Jeff Gannon isnt factually a shill? Rusty yo ureally believe that. Rhetorical skill aside, you really believe that JEff Gannon received his press pass as just being as qualified as the other journalists in the audience who had to prove identities and work for an actual news reporting company? You mean to say that the FACDT that GAnnon was given credentials PRIOR to the creation of Talon News ( A GOP texas) website, that GAnnon was not placed there as nother paid off pundit? At some point , like GE moore says, doubting doesnt make sense. NO matter how conservative you are, I wouldnt try to rationalize this one, that is unless you are in just to sharpen skills of rhetoric...common sense is too obvious here. ernie

Posted by: ernie at February 21, 2005 09:09 PM (ursvs)

2 It turns out that being a schill is all in the eye of the beholder. I heard all of the questions that he aked Fleishcer in all of his press conferences. None of them seemed less stupid than the questions posed by ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN etc. A schill just happens to be the guy who is asking the questions you don't care about.

Posted by: Rusty Shackleford at February 21, 2005 10:16 PM (JQjhA)

3 Just got done looking into more info about the moral value anti-gay marriage patriot jeff gannon. what a story! my god, it amazes me conservatives defend this. this has freud written all over it. really, if this had been clinton the "moral value" people would be screaming for investigations. in this day and age, how does one with a hooker with an alias egt into the white house briefs? who i nthe whitehouse is gannons boyfriend? this is hilarious. Gannon on GOPUSA describes himself as a "conservative man" with who has a gun and drives an SUV (what a man). This is great, the mask is off, we see what actually exists. crazy closet gays wearing their patriotism on their sleeves as they exist in bad faith. just like the movie american beauty, all that right wing hate jsut being a function of sexual frustration.ahhahahahahahhaha ernie

Posted by: ernie at February 24, 2005 10:05 AM (ursvs)

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Yoda Editorializes (Update)

On Hunter S. Thompson Suicide: "Fear and loathing emanate from the dark-side."

On Paris Hilton phone hack: "Not the only Hilton you are. Another sister you have."

On Hugo Chavez's claims Bush is out to kill him:"True, it is not. True, it should be."

On Cartesian philosophy: "Be or be not. There is no think."

Update:
On Bush admitting to have smoked weed: "Adventure. Heh! Excitement. Heh! A Jedi craves not these things. Pass the fritos."

Update II: On man getting penis cut off in Alaska: "Concentrate...feel the Force flow. Oh, sorry, I forgot about that whole 'got my penis cut off' thing. My bad."

Update III: On advice to Democratic Congressman Maurice Hinchey: "Ohhh! Great warrior! Lies not make one great.

Update IV: On the burden a national ID card would place on 'transgendered' persons:"--------. Wait. ------. On, hold please. -----. -----. -----. Laugh, must not. ----"

Update V: On declining civility in Congress: "Stopped they must be; on this all depends."

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GOP Targets AARP in Conspiracy Orchestrated from the Top

Thanks to Joshua Micah Mellancamp Boutros-Boutros Marshall, Duncan 'Atrios' Black, and dKos for pointing out that conservative lobbying group USA Next is going after the AARP (American Association of Retarded People). Something Kos calls "a knife in the back" because the AARP "dance[ed] with the devil" (Atrios' words) by supporting Bush's drug plan and Marshall characterizes as a 'scam' orchestrated by KKKarl Rove.

I am reassured by Marshall, dKos, Atrios, and Cousin Oliver that the left-wing MSM is just an illusion. That's good to know. For a minute there I thought the fact that the first paragraph of this NY Times piece tries to claim that the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth were a front for an "orchestrated attack." Must be one of those illusions.

Speaking for myself, I'd love to see the AARP fall and not get up. They are the largest and most powerful special interest group in the nation and their members are the recipients of the largest entitlement program in the US--Social Security.

So, what is the connection between the Swifties and USA Next? USA Next is hiring the same firm, Creative Response Concepts, that the Swifties hired for their advertising. Do you see the deep dark connection here? They're hiring the same advertising firm.

It gets worse than that, oh yes the evil roots of this conspiracy run deep, you see the people that work for that advertising firm are all Republicans. Yes, you heard me right, Republicans.

Not like at a place like Media Matters or the NY Times where there are an equal number of Republicans and Democrats.

Sounds like the kind of connection that is so important that the NY Times feels it has to run an article about it. Not that there is any agenda at the NY Times. That would be an illusion.

The fact that the NY Times goes on to list the names and incomes of people who were associated with the Swifty ads, and does so in five paragraphs of text, is practically overshadowed by the one sentence that mentions that the AARP has already spent $5 million on anti-Social Security reform advertisments.

See how fair the NY Times is?

And just to show how fair the Times is, they let the unsubstantiated allegation made by unnamed sources that the White House is actually coordinating the attack juggernaut. To their credit, the Times did not ask Carl Rove how long had it been since he stopped beating his wife.

I call that fair and balanced.

I just hope that the USA Next attack dog is somewhat more masculine than Josh Marshall's.

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1 In a recent story regarding Social Security we mentioned that Carl Rove was a wives-beating polyamorist. While the story is correct in its facts, a man named Carl Rove who lives in Plimston, Utah and has claimed to be married to six women was recently convicted of spousal abuse and is serving 3-6 years in prison, was not the campaign advisor to President Bush, Karl Rove. What role, if any, Carl Rove had in President Bush's administration is yet-to-be-deterimend. Times regrets the possible confusion on the part of the reader, if any.

Posted by: BumperStickerist at February 21, 2005 06:07 PM (uB1zh)

2 'They're hiring the same advertising firm.' When all you are is a PR operation, and you ahve the same PR team ...

Posted by: actus at February 21, 2005 06:57 PM (CqheE)

3 I just re-read the Times article with your criticisms in mind, and I found this: In paragraph 1, it is stated that USA Next is "taking its cues" from the success of the Swifties in the pres. campaign and hiring some of the same players to help orchestrate attacks on the AARP. I've just been browsing USANext's site, and it certainly does look like a well-coordinated and pretty intense attack: Art Linkletter interviews with O'Really, USA Next's President appeared on another conservative news show, and then there's that lovely ad in the Am. Spectator. Most of their news info page consists criticizes AARP. I'll assume USAN actually gives their members some tangible benefits for their dues, but to believe what I saw, they seem to be mostly a pit bull set out for the AARP. As for the Swifties, Times neither alledges nor implies that they were a front. Certainly that's not the impression I got when I first read that paragraph. At least they acknowledge that these guys were successful. I didn't find the paragraphs that list the fees paid to the PR consultants scandalous at all-- the intention was to show that the fees paid document the depth of involvement of PR guys in that campaign and the commitment on the part of the Swifties. The fees listed were neither so paltry as to be insignificant, nor overwhelmingly large. So??? I grant that Times mixes facts with a heavy dose of interpretation, and the reader needs to be careful not to confuse the two, but I continue to be puzzled by the allegations of left-wing, or liberal bias that you and so many others level at the Times. The Times always seemed pretty milquetoast to me, and they still do.

Posted by: Mark Harder at February 22, 2005 10:25 PM (j20UN)

4 AARP President Marie Smith Tells Black Leadership "No Social Security Crisis.." Atlanta was the hot spot. Tavis Smiley hosted his annual symposium "The State of the Black Union." The forum was held at Rev. Eddie Long's New Birth Missionary Baptist Church. The program focused on defining the African American Agenda. Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rainbow/PUSH Coalition took opportunity to explain to those gathered that the Black Congressional Caucus has in place a ten (10) point plan of action. But regardless of the question of whether or not the agenda set forth by the Caucus is the substance of this group's covenant the forum did establish that the process will include a community unity. Today, black leaders voiced a need to advance the community. Freedom was the agenda until 1864. Civil rights, voting rights and access to public accomodations followed from 1864 to 1964. Leveraging the black community's collective capital appears to be the new covenant. They voiced a concern that Democrats have taken the black community for granted and the republican party "just takes, using blacks who really have no power to lead." The highmark of the event was when the Honorable Louis Farrakhan, Nation of Islam, explained to the group that "regardless of where we have been, we want to advance our people." He said, " black children can't eat at the table of illusion and hypocrisy." He added, "we can't focus on the house that denied us access for 400 years." He closed, "the hell with democrats and republicans." These African American leaders, carrying the history and weight of the black experience want group unity. They appear to have found meaning in their individuality and heritage. It's more than a common skin pigmentation. It has now become a community based on a social phenomenon of systematic and comprehensive forces that only those challenged by a longstanding history of discrimination and violence may understand. The Need: The level playing field remains more illusion than reality... Since the start of George W. Bush presidency in January 2000 a general concern in the African American community was voiced that on issues that are of the greatest importance to millions of Americans, the President's policies are misplaced priorities. The uncertainty continued into 2004 election. But there's one truth above all others in second term elections. They are referendums on the incumbent. So as hard as it is to accept, there are other Americans outside the African American community that like the job that George W. Bush is doing. And, with re-election he's not an asterisk anymore alone among American presidents. That is, riding the votes of 59 million (other)Americans, he's the president regardless of the fact that majority of African Americans who voted would rather have had the other guy. So... it's time to move on. African Americans must put their differences aside. American identity is not a function of birthright but a way of life. The African American community must keep moving toward the America identity it believes is possible. Isn't democracy great? Some argue "African American leaders judges America from the utopian standard, never comparing America to anything other but the Garden of Eden (immigrants, for example, are said to compare America to their old country)." But, it has been only forty years since separate water fountains of Jim Crow prohibitions and many Americans would now like to proceed as if the slate is clean and the scale is balanced. The upward strides of many African Americans into the middle class have given the illusion that race cannot be the barrier that some make it out to be. However, one in four African Americans continue to live below the official poverty line (versus approximately one in nine whites). The optimistic assumption of the 1970s and 1980s was that upwardly mobile African Americans were quietly integrating formerly all-white occupations, businesses, neighborhoods, and social clubs. Black middle- and working-class families were moving out of all-black urban neighborhoods and into the suburbs. But, the one black doctor who lives in an exclusive white suburb and the few African American lawyers who work at a large firm are not representative of the today's black community. And although most white Americans are also not doctors or lawyers, the lopsided distribution of occupations for whites does favor such professional and managerial jobs, whereas blacks are clustered in the sales and clerical fields. In short, the inequalities run even deeper than just income. One must compound and exponentiate the current differences over a history of slavery and Jim Crow, and the nearly fourteenfold wealth advantage that whites enjoy over African AmericansÂ—regardless of income, education, or occupationÂ—needs little explanation, and add the failure of the education system where African Americans children are the clear victims. The explanations for economic inequality perceives the American political economy as being fundamentally fair with virtually everyone guaranteed an equal opportunity to compete, work hard, and excel in American schools, labor markets, housing markets, and other American social institutions. However, using wealth as a measure of economic inequality, the same top twenty percent of American households controlled over sixty-eight percent of the net worth of the United States, leaving virtually no wealth in the hands of the bottom twenty percent. Economic inequality that characterized the United States at its inception continues to influence contemporary institutional practices and American social institutions routinely discriminate against African Americans denying them the means of acquiring human capital (innate individual capacities such as talent and motivation combined with achieved qualities such as educational qualifications and employment experiences). Limited to segregated neighborhoods, educated in inferior schools, and lacking access to the good jobs that are increasingly located in inaccessible suburban neighborhoods, African Americans bear an unfair share of the costs and economic inequality in the United States constitutes economic injustice. Recurring discrimination in workplaces and elsewhere wastes human capital and seriously restricts and marginalizes its victims. The negative impact of racial animosity and discrimination includes a sense of threat at work or elsewhere, lowered self-esteem, rage at mistreatment, depression, the development of defensive tactics, a reduction in desire for normal interaction, and other psychological problems. The costs of racial animosity and discrimination extends well beyond the individual to families and communities. While many African Americans may have managed to overcome discrimination, their struggle will take a toll in their personal health or on the ability to maximize contributions to the larger society. Discussion: Are some blacks becoming a "black bourgeoisie?" Are some blacks controlling the wealth and power within the black community and turning its back on its own people? Are many members of black America adopting the values, standards and ideals of the white middle class, and are trying to distance themselves from the black poor? In the 1960s, federal entitlement programs, civil rights legislation, equal opportunity statutes and affirmative action programs broke the open barriers of legal segregation. The path to universities and corporations for some blacks was now wide open. More blacks than ever did what their parents only dreamed of Â– they fled blighted inner-city areas in droves. The new frontier, business where the dollar is made and where significant wealth and resources are at stake. But, is there a widening rift between the black haves and the black have-nots that has been blurred by racism, ignored by blacks and hidden from white society? Is black wealth, like white wealth, now concentrated in fewer hands? A study by the Harvard Civil Rights Project, shows progress toward school desegregation peaked in late 1980s. That is a half-century after the Supreme Court ordered the desegregation of American education, schools are almost as segregated as they were when Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. The report said that a massive migration of black families toward the suburbs is producing "hundreds of new segregated and unequal schools and frustrating the dream of middle-class minority families." According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) test report, by the 12th grade, on average, black students (in the United States) are four years behind those who are white or Asain. The "NAEP" test report not only average scores for each racial or ethnic group; they also place each individual test-taker in one of four different "achievement levels." The bottom is labeled below basic, which is reserved for students unable to display even "partial mastery of prerequisite knowledge and skills." In five of the seven subjects tested, a majority of black twelfth graders perform Below Basic. In math, the figure is almost seven out of ten, in science more than three out of four. While this gap may not be hidden from public, black republicans have been inhibited from describing the problem in its full dimensions. But closing the skills gap is the answer to real racial equality in American society. What, in fact, are black republicans doing with what they aggregate? Access to positions of power and prestige Â– and to well-paying jobs in general Â– are limited because blacks typically leave high school with an eighth-grade education. The status of blacks today is different than it was a half century ago, when almost 90 percent of blacks lived in poverty. By now more than 40 percent of blacks describe themselves as middle class, and a third live in suburbs. College attendance rates are as high although a high percentage drop out before getting a four-year degree. African-Americans are CEOs and occupy lofty positions in the federal government. But all is not well. The most discouraging news of all is that which has been barely discussed by black leaders: the appalling racial gap in academic achievement in the K-12 years. Without an education, black children are slaves to the world they live in. Fifty years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court's Brown vs. Board of Education decision struck down legalized school segregation to give equal educational access to African Americans and other minorities. But, today's major American educational issue still involves race. Blacks have no choice but to prepare its young. At least three black men ascended in the aftermath of civil rights movement to become CEOs of Fortune 500 companies and an additional 275 or more senior black executives are now no less than three steps away from the CEO. They've attended the nation's most prestigious schools, learned how to navigate the highest reaches of the systems, and they have thrived.

But, for all their great wealth and enormous resources, it appears most sucessful blacks remain absent from the struggle of educating our young. Recently, Kmart Holding Corp. chose Aylwin Lewis to improve the giant retailer's image and operation. Lewis joins Stanley O'Neal of Merrill Lynch, Richard Parsons of Time Warner, Ken Chenault of American Express and Franklin Raines of Fannie Mae as the only African American chief executives heading top publicly trading companies in the U.S. Corporations today say they do look to a talent pool largely comprising minorities and women for their senior and middle managers. But the level of education and the caliber of schools blacks attended are not equal, and the competition for market share is so ferocious that companies must recruit the best talent. George W. Bush appealed to Americans' best instincts when he declared that no child should be left behind. But? All agree that every child in America should have the same opportunity to reach his or her full potential regardless of the color of skin, gender or the income level of the child's parents. The president's plan has set up millions of vulnerable kids for failure, leaving black youth with another dose of mostly symbolic politics. The education reform accountability system based on annual testing in grades three through eight that financially sanctions schools that do not show quick improvement, will do a great deal of additional damage to the children in America's most-troubled public schools. It is wrong to expect schools to succeed virtually overnight when so little is done to attack inequalities in education. How can he expect the poorest children, who face every disadvantage, to do as well as those who have every advantage? Given Bush's spending priorities there is little left to finance his efforts to leave no child behind. Further, by the time students enter the third grade, when the Bush testing plan would kick in, much already has been determined about whether individual children will succeed or struggle academically. America's schools must be accountable to the children being educated in them and to their parents. But making high-stakes annual tests the sole determinant for students and their schools, and imposing major costs on those who fail, is counterproductive. In closing, assessment should measure, not drive, education reform. Why force schools to spend thousands on consultants to teach test-taking strategies instead of substantive learning? The magic that can happen between a creative teacher and engaged students is too often lost in schools driven by test preparation.

Posted by: kstreetfriend at March 03, 2005 12:20 AM (6krEN)

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Al Jazeera Now Quoting NY Times

An editorial in al Jazeera today quotes Jesus Christ as the basis for why Christian fundamentalists are just like Muslim fundamentalists. The gist of the editorial is that all religious fundamentalism is basically equivalent.

Citing religious scriptures serves as an illustrative example. Prophet Jesus said: "Blessed are the peacemakers" (Mathew 5:9), but he also warned his disciples: "Do not think that I have come to bring peace on Earth, I have not come to bring peace, but a sword" (Mathew 10:34). Prophet Muhammad affirmed: "I am the Prophet of Mercy", but he also said: "I am the Prophet of War".
Most Christians the world over, view Jesus as the Prince of Peace, a belief shared also by Muslims, but Christian fundamentalists in America look at him differently.
In their view, he is not the Jesus known for turning the other cheek (Matt 5:39) but a Jesus "from whose mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations; he will rule them with an iron sceptre" (Revelation 19:15).

As I have argued for some time now, there is a link between Islamic fanaticism and the American left. Not that the left agree with the remedies of Islamism, but they do share the same belief about the source of the world's problems. Hence, it is not surprising that many Islamist diatribes attempt to link the criticisms of the American left with their own. See, they say, even many in America agree with us. The editorial goes on to quote Nicholas Kristoff (who is called a 'courageous journalist) in the New York Times:

We have quite properly linked the fundamentalist religious tracts of Islam with the intolerance they nurture, and it is time to remove the motes from our own eyes. We should be embarrassed when our best-selling books (the Left Behind series) gleefully celebrate religious intolerance and violence against infidels.

The piece really gets silly from there claiming that since Jimmy Carter taught Sunday School that his rule was no different than that of Mullahs in Iran.

If a professor of tafsir (exegeses of the Quran) becomes a president of any Muslim country today, the American media would fiercely condemn him and his rule as a "regime of mullahs", and the French media would condemn him as a "regime des barbus" (regime of the bearded ones).
But President Jimmy Carter was teaching tafsir (exegesis of the Bible here) in one of the churches of Washington DC during his White House years. Carter's book, Source of Strength, is a collection of his biblical lectures at that church; another instance of how religion and politics are intermingled in America today.

The silliness continues as he takes a Baptist minister out of context. The words of Charles Colson which show how Christians do not believe in forced faith are at odds with Islam's explicit fascist tendencies are used to warn Muslims against Christian fanatacism.

While Islamists want to enforce a theocracy, most Christians live peacefully with competing value systems. Christians believe in winning people through love, not conquest.

Right. Equivalence.

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Are we getting close to Zarqawi?

Clue #1) Ansarnet, the radical Islamist webforum, is down. Since Zarqawi's Tawhid and Jihad sites were taken down this is where his al Qaeda in Iraq group has been posting.

Clue #2) Three Zarqawi aids killed--allegedly responsible for web-based propaganda. When I first challenged hackers to take down Zarqawi's site (which they did) I got a lot of e-mails from people saying, "Dude, don't you know they can track Zarqawi through his postings?" I never really believed them, as Zarqawi's folks had to be smart enough to mask their IPs....Maybe I was wrong.

Clue #3) Police seem to be capturing Zarqawi aids on a daily basis now. Take for instance this news from yesterday.

Final Clue) US launches major offensive against terrorist forces in operation River Blitz.

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Oliver Willis Was Jeff Gannon's John

*****Exclusive*****Must Cite Jawa Report****

Oliver Willis admits to first-hand knowledge of Gannongate. How else could he have known?

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My Pet Jawa For Sale

Asking price? $820,000.00. Any offers?

UPDATE: Jeff Goldstein needs cash fast to fend off impending NY Times takeover bid!! Give 'til it hurts!!! For the love of all that is holy give!!!!

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Jeff Gannon NOT Seen at CPAC

Despite the disappointment that our crack young reporter Ace failed to get a pic of Gannon/Guckert at last weekends CPAC, the Llama Butchers pulled through and were able to uncover this photo of Bill of INDC Journal, Gordon the Cranky Neocon, and former White House frontman and gay icon Ari Fleishcer after one too many jello shots from Ann Coulter's belly-button. Needless to say, Matt Drudge was not amused.

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Pro-American Iraqi Reporter Taken Hostage in Iraq

Centcom press release:

MOSUL, Iraq Â– An Iraqi Media Network worker was kidnapped by terrorists in Mosul Feb. 20.
Iraqi Media Network reporter Raaeda Al-Wazan was abducted while on her way to work. Terrorists contacted the station and threatened to continue to target employees.
The Mosul IMN station has been targeted by terorrists several times in the past week because they have been broadcasting programs that highlighted the negative effects of terrorist activity. Those programs have had rapidly growing support from Iraqi citizens and therefore have caused the station to be targeted.
Terrorists continue to disregard their fellow citizens, as Iraqi Security Forces and Multi-National Forces continue to perform operations to ensure the safety of Iraqi citizens.

Chad at In the Bullpen speculates this is the work of the Islamic Army in Iraq. Hat tip: reader Sparky

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European Elections Watch

Medien Kritik notes that Germany's left-leaning anti-American party loses ground in a regional election. Mixed results in Europe this weekend, though, as the Socialist party wins 120 out of 230 seats in Portugal. Incoming Socialist Prime Minister Jose Socrates was against the US led invasion of Iraq. He replaces pro-American Pedro Santana Lopes.

Others: Vodkapundit, Peaktalk

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Effigy Makers Car Pics

Digger has some exclusive pics of the car belonging to Steve and Virginia Pearcy, the couple responsible for hanging an effigy of a US soldier at their Sacramento, CA home. No surprises here.

The car is a Porsche. Remember, Sacramento is their second home. Their first home is in Berkeley.

A placard on the high-priced car reads:

F*ck Bush
F*ck the Police
F*ck the US Government
F*ck Israel
F*ck SUVs
Burn American Flags

Remember, it's the Red Staters who are mean and intolerant.

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COPS in Iraq: Terrorist Confessions Shown on Iraqi Television

In every single beheading and murder video produced by the jihadis in Iraq, the victim is first forced to confess. Earlier this month we reported how the new Chief of Police in Mosul was taping confessions from those responsible for murder and broadcasting them. Images of the terrorists murdering helpless victims are juxtaposed with the same men, now broken and seemingly penitent. It seems the show is a big hit in Iraq and is in syndication. This week the national Iraqiya television station began running taped confessions of terrorists following the same format. Notice that Syria plays a prominent role in the confessions.

Reuters:

Iraq's U.S.-backed interim government is stepping up its propaganda war with insurgents by broadcasting videotaped interviews with suspects who appear to confess to killings, rape and theft on the orders of guerrillas.
The offensive was launched in recent weeks on state-run Iraqiya television, which broadcast lengthy interrogations of Iraqis it said had carried out terrorist acts under the direction of "Abdullah", described as a criminal with close ties to Syria.....
Before each man spoke, Iraqiya showed images of masked insurgents in black throwing a kidnapped hostage to the ground before beheading him.
One suspect questioned on Sunday, identified as Saad Ghanim, said he was paid $500 (260 pounds) to help steal $30,000 and then kill the owner of the cash. He said insurgents took the rest of the money to finance their activities.
"They told me I had to fight a holy war against the Americans. Abdullah told me my children would be killed if I did not obey," he said.
"I used the stolen money for gambling."
The interviewer encouraged the men to speak about "filthy crimes" and constantly mentioned Syria.
"So were these goods smuggled with the knowledge of the Syrian government?" he asked.
A suspect named Farhan first said yes and then no....
Ghanim described how he and several other people, including Abdullah, kidnapped a 20-year-old woman, put her in the trunk of a car and then raped and killed her.
"Don't you have a conscience?" asked the interviewer.
The men replied that intimidation and poverty had driven them to join the insurgents and kill and steal from innocents.
"I and someone else held the girl and then Abdullah slaughtered her," said Farhan.

Bad muj, bad muj, what'chya gonna do? What'chya gonna do when we come for you?

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Al Qaeda Linked Terrorists Killed in Russia

Despite the many differences we have with Russia over Iran, the fact remains that they are a key ally in the War on Terror. The reason Russia supports the Iranian nuclear program is it is because it is in their national interest to do so--they are the ones that sold Iran their reactors. The Russians might be induced to support our policy of Iranian containment if we were more vocal in our support of Russia's fight against the jihadis in Chechnya. Our criticism of the harsh tactics used by Russia in that fight is a major source of tensin between the two countries.

MosNews:

An al Qaeda member known as Abu Dzeit has been killed in the Russian internal republic of Ingushetia, Russian authorities said Monday.
Â“A joint operation with the Interior Ministry was conducted in a private house in a village in Ingushetia on February 16,Â” spokesman for the Federal Security Service Sergei Ignatchenko told reporters on Monday.
Â“The operation first resulted in the death of two of his accomplices. Abu Dzeit hid in a special bunker built under the house. When the entrance was discovered, he blew himself up,Â” Ignatchenko said.
He said investigators identified the body as Abu DzeitÂ’s.
A source in the FSB, RussiaÂ’s domestic security service, told RIA-Novosti that Abu Dzeit, eliminated in Ingushetia, was the leader of the so-called Ingush Jamaat and an emissary of the international terror network al Qaeda. He was also known as little Omar, and Abu Omar of Kuwait.
Abu Dzeit reported directly to Abu Havs, a purported coordinator of all terrorist activities on Russian territory, a source said. Abu Dzeit had received special training in al Qaeda camps in Afghanistan. Later he was appointed al QaedaÂ’s envoy to Ingushetia.
He was in charge of distributing cash funds provided by al Qaeda to radical Islamists in the Northern Caucasus.

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1 "Our criticism of the harsh tactics used by Russia in that fight is a major source of tensin between the two countries." I think you're oversimplifying things with this statement. The tension that underlies U.S.-Russian relations goes far beyond and far deeper than the way they engage the Chechens. While it may have *some* kind of impact on relations, it's not a "major" source. As an aside, it's funny how Russia is now considered an "ally" by a lot of people, when the people who are running Russia are essentially the same as those who ran the Soviet Union. And the policies that have been drafted in the last 10 years in Russia are much more synchronous to what we all saw 20 years ago. I mean, with lines differentiating the pre-glasnost Soviet Union and modern-day Russia becoming increasingly blurred, it's interesting how people considered them "enemies" then and "friends" now. Islamic fascism makes strange bedfellows I guess, but I still wouldn't be throwing a parade for Putin and his ex-KGB cronies anytime soon.

Posted by: Venom at February 21, 2005 01:36 PM (dbxVM)

2 I like Putin. His policies are easy to understand. Very little bullshit. Actions speak best. The muslim trouble makers know where he and Russia stands. He's easy to read. He wants power. He wants Russia to make a buck. He wants his enemies dead. The proof is in the pudding. How many Americans have been killed by Russians? Hating Putin is hating without a reason. As of now we have no reason to hate Russia or its leaders. They have done nothing more than, lets say Canada. Russia didn't join us in Iraq and neither did Canada. Russia is certainly lower on the anti-America list than France. Remember, just a few years ago we armed a bunch of muslim animals fighting Russia. Many Russians died due to our sticking our nose in. Remember Putin has to face the parents of those dead Russian soldiers. I think he's walking a tight wire. The focus should be on those screaming for our blood. One thing at a time. One thing at a time. Syria and Iran first.

Posted by: greyrooster at February 21, 2005 07:28 PM (CBNGy)

3 Oh, I don't hate Putin. I just thought it was interesting how alliances quickly change. One year we (as you mentioned) love the same people we're fighting today, the next we side with the people we hoped they would rally against. Also, let's not make any mistake about the fact that Putin is quickly trying to turn his country into the 21st-century equivalent of the Soviet Union. Communism by name is a thing of the past, but his goals are as hardlined as the Soviet Union's were back in the Cold War. The only difference is that he doesn't have the Warsaw Pact countries to shield his country in the event of a conflict. Anyhow, it'll be interesting to see how things develop over the next 10 years. And I agree, his stance on Islamic fascists is pretty disciplined. I'm just saying let's not forget that these are the same people we "didn't like" 20 years ago. At any rate, this kind of struggle against Islamic fascism may help to mend a lot of fences and the goodwill generated now between the west and Russia may help to avoid conflict in the future.

Posted by: Venom at February 22, 2005 09:26 AM (dbxVM)

4 I say support their anti-terrorism in every way but keep an eye on 'em.

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Posted by: reza_rezai at April 08, 2005 01:21 PM (IQroN)

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Zarqawi Propaganda Chief Killed in Iraq

Al Qaeda in Iraq's propaganda chief has been killed in Iraq! You may know Adel Mujtaba's work from such blockbuster hits as Abu Musab al-Zarqawi Cuts Off the Head of Paul Johnson & Kenneth Bigly Execution: The Video. The best part of Mujtaba's death is that he was apparently in charge of the now defunct websites which Tawhid and Jihad used to run. News24:

Iraqi security forces have killed a propaganda chief of al-Qaeda's frontman in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the government said on Sunday.
Security forces "killed the terrorist Adel Mujtaba, known as Abu Rim, who disseminated propaganda for Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's terrorist network", it said in a statement.
One of Abu Rim's associates, Abu al-Izz, was also killed in the same raid on February 11, it added, without saying why it was only now releasing news of the raid.
"Abu Rim specialised in creating terrorist websites which encouraged terrorism," the statement said.
"He glorified the murder of innocent people and published images which included terrorists torturing hostages."
Abu Rim is the third Zarqawi propaganda chief to be killed or detained after the alleged first and second in command, Abu Sufiyan and Husam Abdullah Muhsin al-Dulaymi, were respectively killed and detained, the statement added, without providing further details.

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Server problems

It's not just you. The mu.nu server seems to be cutting in and out. Sorry.

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Indonesian Hostages Released on Video

Two Indonesian journalists have been released by their captors. A video and still photographs were delivered to the Associated Press today showing the hostages receiving gift baskets, books, and shaking hands with the terrorists who had threatened to murder them only days before.

The two, Meutya Hafid and her cameraman known only as Budianto, were captured on January 31st, but Indonesia did not report their plight until last week [background here]. A hostage video then emerged two days ago and aired by the openly pro-terrorist al Jazeera televison [background here].

The AP reports that one of the masked terrorists in the video says:

"For reasons of suspicion, these two journalists were arrested. Based on the goodwill they showed, and respecting the feelings of brotherhood and Islam between the two countries, and respecting the Indonesian anti-occupation role, we decided to release the two journalists without any conditions or ransom."

Had the two been found guilty of 'collaborating with the Zionist-Crusader forces' they would have been killed. Instead they recieved the consolation prize of not being beheaded and an array of valuable gifts. Included in the gift basket were a copy of the Quran, prayer beads, a skull cap, a pen, and a lovely scarf.

Apparently, their sympathy with the terrorists saved their lives. Those worried about Giuliana Sgrena might be somewhat relieved to hear that.

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Happy President's Day, Biyatches (except Rusty Shackleford)

How does the Department of Political Science at Tattooine University celebrate President's day, you ask?

Wait, TODAY is President's Day? Is that, like, a holiday? You mean the rest of you get A DAY OFF?

Not around here. No-sir-ree-bop. Today is a WORK DAY for me. So if I'm a little more mean-spirited today you know why. Sour grapes.

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February 19, 2005

Terrorists Release Indonesian Hostages Video

Two Indondesian hostages, Meutya Hafid and her cameraman known only as Budianto, appeared in a new video released by a group calling themselves Jaish al-Mujahidin, or Army of Warriors, al Jazeera reports. However, the Associated Press reports that a voice can be heard on the video claiming the group is called Mujahedeen in Iraq.

The AP reports that a voice on the video says, "We are now investigating the reason they are in the country, and we ask the Indonesian government to clarify their position and tell us the reason they are in the country. Otherwise we will kill them."

In response, Indonesia has issued several statements clarifying their anti-war stance. Family members have also emphasized that the journalists were in the country to report on the plight of the Iraqi people.

Image: al Jazeera

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Italians Lobby for Release of Hostage by Calling for End to Occupation

What could possibly motivate a left-wing anti-American Italian journalist to stage her own kidnapping by terrorists in Iraq? Perhaps she knew that left-wingers around the world would blame the USA for her plight. AP:

Thousands of people marched in Rome today to demand the release of an Italian journalist kidnapped in Iraq.
"Free Iraq, Troops out of Iraq," read one banner as the crowd made its way from Rome's main train station along a boulevard skirting the Colosseum.

AP:

Many marchers waved rainbow-colored peace flags, which were draped on windowsills and balconies throughout Italy in the months leading up to the war. Other participants twirled the red flags of Italian Communists.
Another marcher, Irene Corradino, 38, said she came from Milan on behalf of Sgrena and "to deliver a protest message to our leaders who support the war."
Public opinion surveys have indicated widespread Italian opposition to the invasion.

Let me emphasize, again, that this is mere speculation and the larger part of me rejects it. However, some small part of me still thinks this whole thing is a sham.

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1 As an Italian, I am disgusted by these idiots. To me, Quattrocchi is and will be an hero. One of the former hostages who was with him, now has opened a blog: and he's very Pro-US http://salvatorestefio.splinder.com

Posted by: Stefania at February 19, 2005 12:12 PM (l5Y0f)

2 Of course it is phoney. But the MSM loves phoney look at Rathergate as a prime example. Then look at CNN. If phoney smears American ideals the MSM and left-wingers world wide love it. This has been true for at least 60 years.

Posted by: Rod Stanton at February 19, 2005 03:01 PM (fLlQ8)

3 The sign on the left says "Stop the Genocide in Iraq" (should be easy enough to read, even if you don't know the language). Can anyone explain to me how what GWB has done can be fairly described as "genocide," and how Saddam Hussein was a viable alternative in light of that explanation? That's what I thought.

Posted by: Sobek at February 20, 2005 03:28 PM (JOw5u)

4 Italy has to keep its nerve...just as the British and Americans do. Respect to the Italians in Iraq, you are our partners...keep the faith.

Posted by: karl at February 20, 2005 05:14 PM (PM/BC)

5 Is the person on the left a man or women or it. If I looked that bad I wouldn't hate America. I would hate my parents.

Posted by: greyrooster at February 24, 2005 06:21 AM (CBNGy)

6 OK..............so how would getting kiddnapped help her anti- occupation movement.............seems to me it would just prove America was right and she is an IDIOT!

Posted by: Red Wolf at February 25, 2005 12:45 PM (1RznM)

7 Most italian leftists are taught to hate everything American since an early age. They say they are against war but if the war were against the US and Americans were killed, they would be secretly overjoyed. All their violent anti-global rhetoric is grounded in their hatred of America- they're all so uptight about Genetically modified crops (which haven't caused any harm to anyone) but don't mind smoking and don't talk about any of the positive things America has done like vaccines etc. Why they hate America so much is an interesting question and it isn't just Bush (who I didn't vote for)but the USA and Americans as people as well that they loathe. Gianni

Posted by: Gianni at March 01, 2005 10:32 AM (gJ+No)

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WaPo: Gannon/Guckert Is a Gay Prostitute

Here is the scorecard:

Number of times 'gay' appears in the article: 10
Number of times 'escort' appears in the article: 3

The man that sent the left into the frenzied hope that they, like we in the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy, could have some influence in affecting the MSM has spoken out in his own defense at the Washington Post. Unfortunately for the left, Gannon/Guckert is no Dan Rather or Eason Jordan. Here are a few nuggets from the story. Notice how the very first sentence in the WaPo article mentions Gannon's sexuality? Just remember, this is not about the sex you wingnuts!!

Jeff Gannon, the former White House reporter whose naked pictures have appeared on a number of gay escort sites, says that he has "regrets" about his past but that White House officials knew nothing about his salacious activities.

Howard Kurtz does a poor job of defending Guckert-Gannon, if that was his intent. Why does he feel the need to put that front-and-center in the article? I'd expect that in a blog to show the irony of it all, but not in the WaPo. Oops, my bad. I was assuming for a second that there was a difference between a hack like me and Howard Kurtz. Bad assumption.

Gannon chastised his critics, breaking a silence that began last week when liberal bloggers disclosed his real name, James Dale Guckert, and a Web page, which he paid for, featuring X-rated photos of himself. "Why would they be looking into a person's sexual history? Is that what we're going to do to reporters now? Is there some kind of litmus test for reporters? Is it right to hold someone's sexuality against them?"

Sorry if I don't feel too bad for you Gannon, because you are a slime-ball. But Gannon is right, are reporters lives to be scrutinized as if they were public officials.

The WaPo piece seems to be doing little more than rehashing of a press release issued yesterday and published here. Sure they got Gannon to respond to allegations, but some of the allegations are so preposterous that the very fact that they would be taken seriously by a legitimate member of the MSM is telling. Like the press release, it recounts Gannon's sordid past, paints Gannon out to be a self-hating gay hypocrite, and then attempts to link him to the Valerie Plame.

The WaPo article even recounts an accusation that Gannon-Guckert was such an important member of the media with access at the highest levels, that he was privy to Top Secret information:

Aravosis wrote yesterday on his blog that an unnamed television producer says Gannon told him the Iraq war was going to begin four hours before Bush announced it.

If Kurtz was trying to simply refute the moonbat accusations coming out of left-wing sites he could have done some research other than a proven liar's word. The Gannon story was blown way out of proportion in the left-wing blogosphere, but let's not forget that in the end Gannon-Guckert is not the most credible source of information.

I just have to disagree with Paul at Wizbang on this one and find myself in the frightening position of agreeing with the Americablog (in spirit, not on the 'facts'). The article does nothing to refute any allegations made--even the tin-foil ones! Worse, it emphasizes exactly those things which the moonbats have been barking about: gay sex, prostitution, lying, and hidden connections between Gannon and the White House.

Brilliant work Kurtz.

UPDATE: Charles Johnson has more.

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1 There is no possibility that this execrescence could be "blown out of proportion": it is the essential confirmation of the position taken by all those "moonbat" accusations of the notorious "left-wing sites" that evil is merely the beginning word of the definition of all things Republican since the first Bush lied himself into extinction. The fury of those who were discomfitted by Bungle I's defeat has transformed them into the cast of the Evil Dead - Politics, and the true mystery is why MSM is not hourly reporting the dismay of those "swing voters" who voted for the current occupant of the throne of Evil.

Posted by: Conley T. Gwinn at February 20, 2005 10:44 AM (NLv8B)

2 Can someone here explain to me how you can call something anyone publishes on the World Wide Web part of their "private" life? If Ted Koppel had a blog, would that blog be off limits? (One may also wonder what is private anymore in the life of someone who inserts a dick shot of himself into a United States Marine Corps seal and publishes that on the web?) More to the point is to ask why Gannon/Guckert's sexuality is relevant, as it certainly was to Talon (or do you suppose that it was the revelation that Gannon/Guckert has a conservative bias that got him shitcanned from Talon?) Kofman, the reporter that the White House attacked for being gay and Canadian at the beginning of the war didn't lose his job over that. Nah, it's Gannon/Guckert's former conservative friends who are all up in arms about the buttfucking. The liberals are upset - with good reason - about somebody plucking a whore with blackmail potential out of absolute obscurity and giving him better access than other, serious reporters are getting from this White House and using him as a clearinghouse for oppo research during the last election. And by upset, I mean 'jumping up and down with glee' because boy did the WH ever put their foot in it with this one. Schaedenfreude, baby. Schae-den-freud-E!

Posted by: jenniebee at February 20, 2005 11:00 AM (PqlgI)

3 why do you insist on trying to assign ideological motivies to Howie Kurtz, when you yourself admit the case for that is weak? Do you think it's possible - just possible - that he was just trying to write a story, and had no ulterior motivation?

Posted by: derek rose at February 20, 2005 05:20 PM (RTLaK)

4 It doesn't suprise me that a bunch of Republican slimeballs would plant a whore in the White House press corps.. I really think this is just the beginning. How many "reporters" have been found to have been paid off now?

Posted by: Dennis at February 20, 2005 07:07 PM (fvZPD)

5 Can't believe some of the election cry babies are still crying.

Posted by: greyrooster at February 21, 2005 07:35 PM (CBNGy)

6 What? ANOTHER whore in the White House? Gettin crowded over there, have to get a few roll-away beds. Hope the lipstick supply holds out! An anxious nation waits.

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