Representative John Murtha (D, FRANCE) is to appear on CBS' 60 Minutes Sunday to do what he can to weaken the US war effort and get more troops killed. Murtha is the partisan Democrat who called for immediate withdrawal from Iraq (prior to the December vote) and was humiliated when Republicans called his bluff and put the proposal to a vote. It was overwhelmingly defeated.

From Breitbart:

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. Rep. John Murtha, an outspoken Democratic critic of the Iraq war, said in remarks to be aired on Sunday that voter pressure in the November congressional election could force President George W. Bush to pull U.S. forces from Iraq.

"I think the vast majority will be out by the end of the year and I'm hopeful it will be sooner than that," Murtha, a decorated Vietnam combat veteran who retired as a colonel after 37 years in the U.S. Marine Corps, told the CBS "60 Minutes" show.

Past service does not excuse betraying your country later. Just ask Benedict Arnold.

Also posted at The Dread Pundit Bluto.

Posted by: Bluto at 10:30 AM | Comments (71) | Add Comment
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(Lagos, Nigeria) At present, the news reporting on the attack and kidnappings in the Nigerian offshore oil field in the Gulf of Guinea continues to be spotty. It's known that about 40 armed men boarded an oil industry service vessel named Liberty Service and took four foreign workers as hostages. The Nigerian Navy was able to track and locate the kidnappers and hostages on another boat. Contact was made and the four foreigners were reported to be safe.

The names of two of the kidnapped workers have been confirmed: Bulgarian Milko Nichev and Brit Nigel Watson-Clark. A third name was mentioned, Brit Pat Crawlay, but there's been no confirmation. An American was kidnapped according to several reports, however, he has not been identified.

A previously-unknown group called the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND) has claimed responsibility for the kidnappings and has demanded the release of two political leaders from jail. They are former Nigerian state governor Alamieyeseigha, jailed in the capitol of Abuja after being arrested in London for money laundering, and Niger Delta guerrilla chief, Alhaji Asari Dokubo.

The leader of the group of kidnappers has been identified as Brutus Etikpaden, who indicated that his group would fight any rescue attempt and the hostages would die in the crossfire. Notably, but unconfirmed, among the abducted foreign workers is a Honduran or a Hungarian.

In closely-related news, a pipeline explosion killed several people and caused a reduction of Nigerian oil production.

More details are here and here.

Companion post at Interested-Participant.

Posted by: Mike Pechar at 07:03 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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These are excerpts from Pakistani accounts of the attack, which is now reported by Western news agencies to have resulted in the deaths of five senior al Qaeda members. Most of the Pakistani stories speculate that the attack was targeting Taliban fugitives, and carried out by Coalition aircraft based in Afghanistan.

There is some disagreement from supposed eyewitnesses as to whose houses were hit. Much of the information given to Pakistani news agencies came from a local politico, Haroon ur Rashid, who is a hardline Muslim unsympathetic to the West.

I've added emphasis to what may be indications that al Qaeda bodies were removed, though none of the accounts mention al Qaeda or Zawahiri. I've also highlighted what seem to be disagreements as to which houses were struck. Also, one of these stories contains the only report I've seen of live suspects being detained. more...

Posted by: Bluto at 12:15 AM | Comments (21) | Add Comment
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I received an e-mail from N.Z. Bear earlier today inviting me to be one of the original signers of a letter from center-right bloggers to the House Republican leadership. A lot of bloggers have signed on to the letter. I did not. Most of them are people I respect, so it is baffling that they signed it even though one would think they agree with my central argument. The letter is silly and meaningless. Here is my response. more...

Posted by: Rusty at 09:04 PM | Comments (19) | Add Comment
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1 I must confess I really don't see the big deal in this whole Abramoff thing. Should we be shocked or outraged politicians were paid by a lobbyist to influence their decisions? Isn't that was lobbyists do? I know a lobbyist and he is a very decent man and has told me a great deal of how he tries to advance his client's wishes upon politicians. Abromoff was sleazy, but the act of lobbying is just as democratic and American as Freedom of Speech and apple pie.

Posted by: Chad Evans at January 13, 2006 09:51 PM (+DXHJ)

2 I'm with you on this one, Rusty.

Posted by: jesusland joe at January 13, 2006 10:12 PM (rUyw4)

3 Lobbying is just legalized, institutionalized, regulated bribery, and Abramoff is no more or less guilty than anyone else. That being said, I think lobbying must be outlawed.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at January 13, 2006 10:14 PM (0yYS2)

4 You are such a rebel. Heh. Indeed.

Posted by: Vinnie at January 13, 2006 10:22 PM (Kr6/f)

5 Amen, what Rusty said. What would be gained by sending lobbying underground? Power and money will always attract each other. You might as well pass a law against gravity.

Posted by: The Dread Pundit Bluto at January 13, 2006 10:54 PM (RHG+K)

6 Or we could set an example by sending crooks to jail. But then, getting gravity repealed would be much more realistic. Democracy allows us to give ourselves exactly the government we deserve. Good and hard. Sometimes I wished I still believed in God, because at least then I could smile thinking of politicians burning in hell for eternity, but I'm afraid the only justice they'll ever know is what we give them, and we don't seem to care enough to do what needs done, i.e. mass hangings of the sons of bitches.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at January 13, 2006 11:36 PM (0yYS2)

7 Give me 435 unethical, whoremongering, immoral, back room elected Congressman committed to limited government. Keep your transparency. I will gladly let my Congressman get away with just about anything in exchange for protecting me from the bad guys of the world and keeping his grubby paws out of my pockets. Let their paws remain in the pockets of whoever is trying to bribe them. Better their's than mine. I hope every Congressman who is committed to winning the war on terror and getting the hell out of my life will support a candidate who doesn't give a damn what the New York Times or Chris Matthews thinks about them. Now THAT I'd sign. But I ain't signing the other one either.

Posted by: Misha I at January 14, 2006 12:50 AM (UJ8z1)

8 As well as a petition to make your software remember the blockquote around the second paragraph.

Posted by: Misha I at January 14, 2006 12:51 AM (UJ8z1)

9 Rusty, I agree more with you on this one. I'm not against reform in the Congress where lobbying and giving favors is concerned, but I'm more concerned with the issues. Shadegg seems to be a pretty good guy and mostly conservative, but I've only just heard of him. As for Abramoff, from what I can tell, he siphoned money into his own pockets. How this make Tom DeLay or anyone else guilty of anything, I really couldn't say. It's just the MSM trying to make DeLay guilty by association, and it makes me madder 'n hell. I've met DeLay personally, and he was very approachable. I felt at the time that he was a genuinely nice person which is a totally different experience than I have had with other politicians. Why Republicans in power decided not to defend DeLay is beyond me and it really makes me angry that they did not defend DeLay nor Lott when it was crunch time. Thanks for your insight.

Posted by: RepJ at January 14, 2006 11:28 AM (kEpN/)

10 Come on. This is a demonstrable and outrageous example of corrupt sleaze and it ought to have consequences. First, Congress is not the CIA. The CIA is supposed to work with sleazy methods and use sleazy people to accomplish national goals. Congress is not. They should have seen Abramoff for what he was and steered clear. Second, Abramoff's main goals were to fortify and manipulate an enormous government monopoly that is tied to a specific ethnic group. He wanted to give some indian tribes the right to build casinos, and deny that same right to others. Nice libertarian, free-market system you got there. As for who is being "realistic" here: what do you think the effect next November will be if the Republicans show up at the polls fat, drunk, and unrepentant with wads of lobbyist cash stuffed in their pockets? Whether you're right or not, the limited government and strong national defense guys are vulnerable at the ballot box and they need to publicly hose out the monkey cage.

Posted by: See-Dubya at January 14, 2006 01:01 PM (NZHCc)

11 Misha has a point; I'd rather have a known crook in office than a pretend honest man any day. It seems to have worked out well for everyone who ever voted for the Kennedys...

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at January 14, 2006 09:41 PM (0yYS2)

12 All your Abramoff'ds are belong to trash. Don't put officially dirty politicians in visible places of power.

Posted by: A Finn at January 15, 2006 08:42 AM (lGolT)

13 Give me 435 unethical, whoremongering, immoral, back room elected Congressman committed to limited government. Yeah, as soon as you find ONE of those folks, let us know, 'kay.

Posted by: bryan at January 15, 2006 09:04 AM (Pa0YX)

14 I have no problem with the bastards going to Hedonism II either, just let them do it on their own dime like the rests of us...err... like other people do.

Posted by: Digger at January 16, 2006 05:05 PM (Vu+DO)

15 "Give me 435 unethical, whoremongering, immoral, back room elected Congressman committed to limited government." The problem with this idea is if the unethical involves taking bribes to advance special interests, there is no way the will be committed to limited government. Simply isn't possible. Yes, the congressmen will be taking the lobbyists money, but they lobbyists are paying Congress to take your money and give it to them, either directly or indirectly.

Posted by: Dave Justus at January 16, 2006 05:07 PM (Ttn36)

16 Rusty, you are right that the Abramoff thing is not a big deal in truth . . . but it is a big deal in the minds of the Dems and their MSM comrades (but I repeat myself). They will continue to blow on these embers until the fire catches. Then, as usual, it will be up to us blogs and Drudge and FoxNews to set the record straight and hold the MSM's feet to the fire to tell the truth. My sources in the RNC (yeah, I actually do have sources at the RNC) tell me that they are beginning to hear from their members about the "scandal" and, while, as you said, most people do not actually understand the situation or its ramifications, these members say they are "concerned" about it. When you start to hear this sort of thing from the rank-and-file members, you can bet that there are more out there who are thinking that way but simply have not spoken up to date. If it has crossed that threshold, it won't be long until the faux scandal becomes perceptually real. The Dems and the MSM will continue their caterwauling until the public believes it. (But they'll somehow forget that Harry Reid is one of only five official persons of interest in the current case . . . go figure.) I signed the petition. I still think that it is something the Reps should do and do immediately, if only from a political strategy point of view. Getting out in front of a "scandal" is the best way to minimize it.

Posted by: The Artist at January 16, 2006 05:33 PM (FVAyP)

17 While I agree with much of what you say here, especially about how the voters are ultimately responsible through their disinterest, I must question the statement, "My major concern is that the next Majority Leader has a bloodlust for terrorists, will not be shirk from calling fascism fascism when the fascists in question are a group favored by the Left,and who will make sure enough money is spent to win the war on terror." So, are fascist who are favored by the Right acceptable? I think fascism of any stripe should be called fascism, rejected outright, and fought against, regardless of which wing favors it.

Posted by: Jack at January 16, 2006 06:20 PM (ne61C)

18 Unfortunately, to change the rules you've got to play the game. In playing the game, you "forget" that you want to change the rules. That said, I have two proposals to reform Congress: 1) Annual salary should be 10 X whatever it is now (~$160,000?) Free Congressional health care for life and a $30,000 annual pension for each term served (3 terms = $90,000.) These benefits become null and void should the Congressperson ever be convicted of any crime. 2) Term limits. No one may serve in a congressional office more than three terms. Congressional staff may not work for congress more than 7 years. 3) Repeal McCain-Feingold and make every campaign contribution publicly known on the web. (Always underpromise and over deliver) The idea behind these three proposals is to get seasoned, competent people into the Congress. Let's attract talent by the paycheck and not force Congressmen to fulfill their natural desires by short-changing the country.

Posted by: Allan at January 16, 2006 07:31 PM (Veogk)

19 "Give me 435 unethical, whoremongering, immoral, back room elected Congressman committed to limited government." Well hell, I can lower that by one if the bastards would just accept my application. Geez.

Posted by: Hector Vex at January 16, 2006 09:03 PM (fjqPS)

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If this is true, I may break my boycott and buy a bottle of obnoxiously expensive real French champagne.

If it's not, I'll drown my sorrows with Old Milwaukee.

May, might, could have:

DAMADOLA, Pakistan (AP) - An airstrike in a remote Pakistani tribal area killed at least 17 people on Friday, and a senior Pakistani official said the target was a suspected al-Qaida hideout that may have been frequented by high-level operatives, possibly the No. 2 leader Ayman al-Zawahri.

Citing unnamed American intelligence officials, U.S. news networks reported that it was a CIA strike and that al-Zawahri, Osama bin Laden's top lieutenant, could have been at a targeted compound in the Bajur area or about to arrive.

There was no confirmation from either the Pakistani or U.S. government, but a senior Pakistani government official told The Associated Press that "there is 50-50 chance that some al-Qaida personality was at the home" that was hit in the border village of Damadola, about 125 miles northwest of the capital Islamabad.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, said Saturday that he had heard that the al-Qaida figure may have been al-Zawahri and that the information would be clearer later Saturday.

Wasting away again in MargaReuterVille.

Just a thought, if the DNA results come back positive, will there be pictures released i.e. Uday and Qusay?

Failing to do so could result in a we said-they said type deal, with them releasing year old never-before-seen video and audio and claiming it's recent.

Posted by: Vinnie at 07:26 PM | Comments (11) | Add Comment
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Various news sources report that al Qaeda's #1 man Ayman al-Zawahiri, is dead. One more Islamofascist prick dead. Dead. DEAD! I'd say it's definitely true, except I don't want to jinx it (knock on lots of wood).

Since Osama bin Laden is either dead, out of the loop in a cave, or meditating in Africa, this would be the most important al Qaeda kill to date.

To quote Ice Cube, today was a good day. Indeed.

Red at Scared Monkeys cautions that these reports have proven false in the past. True. But I have a good feeling about this one (fingers crossed).

UPDATE: AL Jazeera Zawahiri is "VICTIM" of U.S. attacks. Reports 30 dead, claim U.S. military denying involvement.

ABC News:

A U.S. airstrike in Pakistan targeted al Qaeda's No. 2 Ayman al-Zawahiri but it was unclear if he had been killed, CNN quoted U.S. sources as saying on Friday.

Ayman al-Zawahiri, the No. 2 figure in al-Qaida, was the target of a CIA-ordered strike that killed at least 17 people in Pakistan, according to broadcast reports.

At this time, it is unclear whether al-Zawahiri is among the dead in a remote tribal village named Damadola along the border with Afghanistan

U.S. officials told NBC News on Friday that American airstrikes in Pakistan overnight Thursday were aimed at the No. 2 man in the al-Qaida terror organization — Ayman al-Zawahri.

One official said intelligence indicated a strong possibility that Zawahri was in the Pakistani village at the time of the airstrike, but there is no confirmation that he was killed.

Pakistani officials say U.S. aircraft, apparently CIA Predator drones, fired as many as 10 missiles at the residential compound.

A CIA airstrike on a building in Pakistan may have killed Osama bin Laden's most-trusted aide, sources said.

The building where Ayman al-Zawahiri was thought to be is in Damadola, a small village near the Afghan border.

There has been no confirmation that al-Zawahiri was killed in the attack Friday. However, sources say there was intelligence suggesting he was in the building at the time of the strike.

Pakistani officials were at the scene of the strike, trying to determine if Al-Zawahiri was killed.

A doctor in the area told The Associated Press that at least 17 people were killed in the attack, but other witnesses at the scene said the death toll was higher.

Pakistan's The News newspaper said the dead had been buried after a mass funeral led by Maulana Faqir Muhammad, a cleric wanted for giving shelter to suspected al Qaeda members.

UPDATE: Daily IntelBriefing reminds us that an F-16 fighter wing was just dispatched to the area. Reports seem to speculate that this was a CIA hit, using a drone, but if 10 bombs were dropped that doesn't seem likely. See our Jan. 10th post Military Readying for Air Strikes in *undisclosed* Southwest Asian Country Update within an update via his moongodishness' Link Mecca. NY Times (emphasis mine):

"I was awakened from deep slumber by the noise of the drone and then, together with thousands others who too had been woken up by the plane's noise, saw jets targeting the area," he said. [ie, it wasn't the drones that fired the missiles if this can be believed] "One plane circled the area and dropped illuminating flares and the other planes fired missiles. There were loud explosions."

He said the planes' [plural] targets were three houses, all belonging to jewelry dealers. "The houses have been razed to the ground," said Mr. Rashid, who said he had visited the scene. "There is nothing left. Pieces of the missiles are scattered all around. The impact of the explosions have been huge. Everything has been blackened in a 100-meter radius."

REACTIONS

Lord Blogfather: Pushing Up Daisies?

Jawa sith apprentices agree, Keep your fingers crossed.

Paduan learner says: Keep your fingers crossed.

Yipes! from Vinnie: Associatedantiamerican Press in Full Denial mode, therefore, increasing the likelihood that it may be true.

Little baby jawas: good news if true

Satan, meet thy next bitch. (via Vinnie)

More Zawahiri information that you can shake a camel's turd at. (via Malkin)

Lord, please!!!

I hope that al-Zawahari and other al Qaeda members are now finding out that the 72 virgins are instead 72 fat sows with no teeth, bad halitosis, and a strong resemblance to the offspring of Michael Moore and Cindy Sheehan or Ted Kennedy and Barbara Streisand. Heh.

I hate to see that women and children were killed and if there is to be a justification for their tragic deaths, it is that Zawahiri met his death as well. Sad, but true.

Even if we missed him, we got others

Has he gone to join the martyr farm?

Hopefully he's dead this time, permanently!

GOOD - letÂ’s hope it is al-Zawahiri

Personally IÂ’m not going to celebrate until DNA testing comes back positive

Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease let it be true.

God I hope we got him... and find out what happened to Ben Laden too!!!!!!!!!

al-Kaboomiri

Do cats go to hell with Zawahiri?

these guys have a way of not being quite as dead as we think they are

If we got him, this hurts. Hurts bad.

The world should be so lucky on this Friday 13th as to finally nail this dog of dogs

even if it is a false alarm, the idea of Ayman spread thinly over a substantial surface area is a pleasing one indeed

It always struck us as odd, that people like Ayman al-Zawahiri encouraged others to become martyrs, but they themselves were in never a great hurry, often hiding among innocents.

If true, Yipee! If not, it's a matter of time.

rot in hell you son of a bitch

Tin foil patrol: US intelligence people may have decided that Zawahiri has been making too much noise and that starting a rumor that he may have been killed will hurt his charisma at least in the short term.

"it's time to bring them home." --John Murtha

Posted by: Rusty at 07:21 PM | Comments (42) | Add Comment
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1 Dang, thought I had the JR scoop on this. I even checked to see if anyone had posted before I did. Oh well, that's the way the blogosphere bounces.

Posted by: Vinnie at January 13, 2006 07:33 PM (Kr6/f)

2 Going by our recent track record of targeted killings like this, I have serious doubts that we got him...

Posted by: Ariya at January 13, 2006 07:46 PM (uxW3N)

3 Shut up, Ariya, it's been years since I had a good bottle of Perrier Jouet. So you just shut UP! ;-)

Posted by: Vinnie at January 13, 2006 07:47 PM (Kr6/f)

4 Maybe they got Dean at the same time

Posted by: Filthy at January 13, 2006 07:48 PM (uxn8Q)

5 Hope I can be first in line to piss on his grave.

Posted by: greyrooster at January 13, 2006 07:58 PM (AWtJU)

6 I just reported the same on my blog. Let's keep our fingers crossed Bush has kept his promise to bring those responsible for Sept. 11th to justice, dead or alive. If it's true, it's a good day to be American, regardless of political affiliation.

Posted by: Mad Man at January 13, 2006 08:01 PM (K6g1B)

7 Sounds good - wait and see. Doubt if site is accessible and would require being secured first. Body recovery/identification is a bitch - especially if its grounded up chop meat - ID is a bitch - DNA, Dental and Medical records, fingerprints are great - if this was Las Vegas ala CSI - but its not - its bumfuck nowhere and we don't exactly have these records on all the 6 billion people on this planet. Nay sayers like Ariya want a recognizable body & documentated proof beyond a shadow of a doubt - they are either being deliberately cute or totally ignorant of the reality on the ground in a distant combat zone. Ignore him - if proof available it will be found - otherwise wait for videos and recordings and analyse them for authenticity and time lag. How many years did it take to prove Hitler was actually dead?

Posted by: hondo at January 13, 2006 08:05 PM (3aakz)

8 That big old maggot infested bump in the middle of his forehead made for a whopping good target!!!

Posted by: Wendy at January 13, 2006 08:14 PM (NE9xf)

9 Fiday 13th -- Unluck day fo Ben Ladin and Al-Zawahiri deep-cover reports out of Pakastan suggest both Ben Ladin and Al-Zawahiri killed on Friday - 13 Jan 2006. break a mirro for me, too!! cc

Posted by: Marine 'til I die at January 13, 2006 08:21 PM (JV1Qy)

10 Remember, he is the bad guy. No whining from liberals about due process, his feelings, his family, his disability, his whatever, or why we need to get to the root cause of his problem. He and his demented philosophy are and were just as corrupt as Joseph Stalin, Marx, Japs in WW II, Hitler, Mousolini, et al. One more, UBL !

Posted by: Chief RZ at January 13, 2006 09:12 PM (Fqid7)

11 Just be dead. I guess this makes pervert Zarqawi #1 unless UBL jumps up from limbo. One down. I was wathing the airstrike story today there was a lot of whining at fist that we crossed to border & hit a house. I was wondering what it was. Good deal.

Posted by: Howie at January 13, 2006 09:21 PM (D3+20)

12 Oh, they'll whine. And whine and whine. Ted Kennedy the girl murderer and Jessie Jackson, the thief will both claim Bush is a bad guy for giving us our revenge. Only the she monster Clinton bitch will keep her stupid mouth shut. That is if it's not allready full of you know what.

Posted by: greyrooster at January 13, 2006 09:24 PM (AWtJU)

13 Hahaha.. it'll be pretty funny if it's true. Al Qaeda's main man reduced to a dirty village in the middle of bfe, and then taken out by CIA aircraft. Score!

Posted by: MidnightSun at January 13, 2006 09:58 PM (Rs5sH)

14 I'd be happier with Kennedy.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at January 13, 2006 10:19 PM (0yYS2)

15 I want Zawahiri's rifle. What is all that stuff on the forearm? A grenade launcher, perhaps.

Posted by: jesusland joe at January 13, 2006 11:37 PM (rUyw4)

16 Never mind, people, Zawahiri was just seen pumping gas into his pink cadillac at a truck stop outside of Glenwood, IA. See the Weekly World News for updates.

Posted by: Vinnie at January 13, 2006 11:46 PM (Kr6/f)

17 I wish but I doubt he was there. Ayman is unfortunately alive and well. I bet Ayman is laughing at us from his hideout.

Posted by: George Ramos at January 14, 2006 07:51 AM (5E0ex)

18 False alarm, folks. The self-loathing Libs got their wish. He's not dead.

Posted by: Jesusland Carlos at January 14, 2006 11:24 AM (8e/V4)

19 Yes, unfortuantely the psychopath is still alive. I knew all along he was.

Posted by: George Ramos at January 14, 2006 12:12 PM (5E0ex)

20 No zawahiri still alive, cia had "bad intelligence" yet again, but hey not all is lost the US military incinerated up to 30 innocents, including women and children, i am sure their relatives will be ok with this and not join the "terrorists". good job fighting terror indeed. ya cant just kill people and figure they are backwards because they cannot understand your oppulence...Bush and his supporters are only making the situation worse. ernie

Posted by: ernie at January 14, 2006 12:23 PM (X4Dyg)

21 LOL, Maxmimus is going to love fucking with you. While I am a moderate and support Bush. He could do a better job catching Osama, Ayman and Zarqawi. This blast did kill a lot of civilians. And Ayman is laughing at us. This wouldn't have happened if Clinton had killed Osama when he had the chance.

Posted by: George Ramos at January 14, 2006 02:16 PM (5E0ex)

22 I thought one of the only countries that had Zawahiri's dental records would have been Egypt, where he was incarcerated as a dissident (I believe shortly after the assassination on the Egyptian President.) unless those have already fallen into the hands of the CIA I wonder how soon the CIA could tell his body was not amongst the dead? Do we have his DNA on file? it might be to early to be making an assumption he is not dead. It is unsurprising that women and children are amongst the dead, their culture much like our own, keeps their family close. It is however unlikely Zawahiri would have done this, because he already had one family members killed in a bombing of his residence. Greenlighting a drone strike like this, by the CIA is bad practice these guys are notoriously unreliable, as are their sources. This sort of action should be done by CIA special operations [CSO's] who could engage and ensure civilian casualties are at a minimum. Mistakes in intelligence is only going to make sure Pakistan no longer authorizes any action in it's boarders, and we already have a strained relationship with them as it is. Ernie, I'm glad you are not disappointed he is dead or anything. I'm sure if he was confirmed you would have been here posting joyously? I didn't think so.

Posted by: dave at January 14, 2006 03:04 PM (CcXvt)

23 He is disappointed. He's just upset innocent civilians died. Collateral damage is unavoidable in war. I wish those civilians didn't die but it happened. I never thought Zawahiri was dead. The bastard is too smart. We will never get him. I hate the fact he got away. He's as slippery as an eel.

Posted by: George Ramos at January 14, 2006 04:07 PM (5E0ex)

24 again you fail to notice how a drone aircraft firing on civilians is a WAR CRIME. The USA, had it been anyone else doing this, would call this a WAR CRIME. But agfain, the tactical strategies of the Bush admin are counterproductive and is making the terrorist problem much worse. Every one of these civilians killed now has very angry reltaives hell bent on martyrdom. now about "being disappointed" or not about zawahiri means nothing to me. Al Queada is not a hierarchical centralized unit that runs everything, but an ideology. Kill zawahiri wont mean much about stopping terrorism. Alos, i know in the SAfe ole USA i am much more likely to be killed by a teenage girl talking on the cell phone while driving or being murdered by a handgun from a good american citizen (about 17,000 per year i might add) rather than an agent of osama. so in short i dont quiver in fear all day long as Bush wants us too, sorry, but statistics and probabilities do matter. ernie

Posted by: ernie at January 14, 2006 04:11 PM (X4Dyg)

25 george ramos, would you accept your argument if it was put forth from al queada regarding 911 "oh well, collateral damage happens...." ididnt think so. ernie

Posted by: ernie at January 14, 2006 04:13 PM (X4Dyg)

26 If the CIA is inept, as they surely are, then we have none other than Dhimmi Carter and Bubba Klintoon to blame, as they were the ones who systematically gutted the CIA, and both should be shot. Hell, I'd pay any price to be on the trigger for either of them.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at January 14, 2006 04:33 PM (0yYS2)

27 again you fail to notice how a drone aircraft firing on civilians is a WAR CRIME. Please show me the text of which you speak, as far as I know it is only a war crime when civilians are specifically targetted directly -- knowingly. please only quote convention articles not any DU interpretations etc. I'll be glad to read, and thus educate myself if I have made a misunderstanding. Thanks!

Posted by: dave at January 14, 2006 04:48 PM (CcXvt)

28 Great post.... I sure the heck hope we got him along with some other top MUJA...... AubreyJ.........

Posted by: AubreyJ at January 14, 2006 05:26 PM (84Xxa)

29 Well: Now U.S citizens and U.S have to hunker down because this will bring a mayor hit, as a retaliation, what a sad way of life.

Posted by: Dan at January 14, 2006 05:31 PM (Tfvvl)

30 dave, you really think the US KNEW that there werent civilians in that group of "terrorists" they fired at, or they didnt care? reality will help you. ernie

Posted by: ernie at January 14, 2006 06:09 PM (X4Dyg)

31 Is that your way of saying you know of no such conventions? Bravo. See ernie, I gave you a chance to prove your point, and do so factually. I see you cannot. now head back over to DailyKos, chicken little.

Posted by: dave at January 14, 2006 07:14 PM (CcXvt)

32 read the geneva conventions dave. but no, this isnt my way of saying that killing civilians is a war crime, it is saying that the US military doesnt care. this is obvious. and yes your trite little arguments have led to the deaths of 100,000 iraqis 2200 US soldiers and cost the USA 1 trillion dollars (stiglitz) Take that to the bank. ernie

Posted by: ernie at January 14, 2006 09:10 PM (X4Dyg)

33 and the very fact i have to mention that killing civilians, without care, is at the very least unethical and you cannot "get it" says much about you. do you need a piece of paper to say killing is wrong? i kno, i know, in your violent and trite littel world of inadequacy killing is a part of duty. sorry you have no soul...and we wonder why america is fucked. ernie

Posted by: ernie at January 14, 2006 09:12 PM (X4Dyg)

34 >>>and the very fact i have to mention that killing civilians, without care, is at the very least unethical ernie. Was it unethical that civilians were killed when we assaulted Fortress Europe and drove the Nazis back to Berlin? Lots of civies killed. Tons of them. They died by the boatload. Unethical? No? I guess that pretty much shoots your tired Leftwing memes to hell.

Posted by: Jesusland Carlos at January 14, 2006 09:59 PM (8e/V4)

35 Poor Ernie, now he has to fall back to personal attacks because he cannot back up his rhetoric. Carlos: Hitler is ernie's idle. There isn't a dictator he wouldn't support over America. Ernie: Show me specific section(s) of the Geneva convention or Hague convention that states that killing civilians that were not the intended victim, is a war crime? This isn't DU if you're going to say it, back it up.

Posted by: dave at January 14, 2006 11:31 PM (CcXvt)

36 >>>sorry you have no soul Sorry you have no brain. Honest....you have no brain.

Posted by: Jesusland Carlos at January 15, 2006 01:48 AM (8e/V4)

37 dave, you just dont get it. its not about law, its about your honor. obviously this concept escapes you. Now, if you need an intl agreement to tell you that collateral damage is wrong then we have nothing else to talk about. Sadly, given death threats to my life on this blog, i have to report it because i ahve a feeling thsoe making the threats are real dangers to their communities (i think they are committing violent crimes, they sound insane). so i have to turn in this blog for direct threats over the net, sorry didnt want to, but i have to, ITS MY PATRIOTIC DUTY. improblimus maximus needs to be checked on i have a feeling with his temperment he is committing crimes near his home. so anyway dave, i wont be back. sorry the fun and debate had to end, but when people start opening perosnal threats of death over the net...that is a crime...and i m not going to worry about addressing the exact stature for that, i will allow the appropriate authorities in court deternmine that. bye all, thanks for the debate while it lasted. ernie

Posted by: ernie at January 15, 2006 04:09 AM (X4Dyg)

38 Al Qaeda is not a legitimate army. They simply love killing Americans and any other person who collaborates with them.

Posted by: George Ramos at January 15, 2006 08:44 AM (5E0ex)

39 Al Qaeda is not a legitimate army. They simply love killing Americans and any other person who collaborates with them. They don't care about innocent people dying.

Posted by: George Ramos at January 15, 2006 08:45 AM (5E0ex)

40 No Ernie, You don't get it. You didn't say "It's a crime against humanity" or "civilian casualties make the baby Jesus cry" you said it was a "war crime" [with emphasis I might add.] That is a very specific charge, that pertains to international law, and the American people. Now you're magically saying it's about "honor", before it was about me being unhuman -- I think if you read my first thread, I am against air strikes, and drones ran by the CIA in particular because of their unreliable nature and the threat to civilians. Next time when you charge the Government with a "WAR Crime" you'll have the balls to follow it through, and quote an article -- however I feel it will be the first time you've ever read either articles on the ethics of War, just to attempt to tarnish America -- I believe you called yourself a Patriot once? [A Marine first?] both sound hollow now.

Posted by: dave at January 15, 2006 09:11 AM (CcXvt)

41 >>>you said it was a "war crime" [with emphasis I might add.] Words/terms have no meaning to the Left. They are used purely to further their agenda, even if it means wringing every last drop of truth from those words. Look how they have taken words/terms that we all once agreed upon and turned those words on their head so that they have become all but useless-- like "fascism", "nazi", "torture", "gulag", "war crimes", "hate", "tolerance", "extremist", etc., and the list is growing.

Posted by: Jesusland Carlos at January 15, 2006 10:43 AM (8e/V4)

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In two years remember this: They were for harsh sanctions against Iran, before they were against them.

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The spiritual leader of a New York City Shia mosque, the Al Khoei Islamic Center, has gone on record as a holocaust denyer. Sheik Fadhel al Sahlani told the New York Sun that the Nazi massacre of an estimated 6 million Jews during World War II "has been exaggerated". Al Sahlani joins the radical leader of Iran, President Ahmadinejad, in denying the extent of the Holocaust and calling for an international scholarly conference to reopen debate on it.

The al Khoei Islamic Center was visited by the Jewish mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg in April of 2003. The mosque's website proudly displays images of Mayor Bloomberg with the Holocaust denying al Sahlani. The mayor delivered a speech on how there would be no discrimination against Muslim-Americans. Apparently those Muslims would not be so kind to those of Bloomberg's faith.

Other images show al Sahlani presiding over graduation ceremonies at the Islamic Center's school. One of the pictures shows what appears to be a high school comedy skit. One of the comedic characters appears to be a Jew coming on to a blonde woman.

And there are those who do not think antisemetism runs rampant in mosques?

The photos are posted below. Thanks to Drew who runs Michael Savage's website for the tip on the story. more...

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Yes the cleric on trial this week for inciting violence in Britain is just full peace (or full of shit).

VIA BBC : Killing a Kafir [infidel] for any reason you can say it is OK even if there is no reason for it,"

"Make sure that the person who gave him the licence for that wine shop doesn't exist anymore on the Earth. Finish him up. Give him Dawa".

"If he doesn't respect Dawa, kill him".

"You have to understand that Dawa is good but it doesn't survive alone".

"There is many prophets before Muhammad ... they were killed because they did not have the sword with them".

"They all know their roles as they are slaves of the Jews," he says.

"They hate the Jews more than we do. But the Jews own them. They own everything they have and they own their fantasies as well and they have a file on each one of them that could embarrass them in front of the people if he does not follow what he tells them."

In my book he who feeds a big welfare ass like yours getÂ’s clear title to it. So Britain jail this POS. He is property of your government just like my dog is mine because I feed him. Only difference is a dog is loyal to his master. Yes Al-Masiri you are lower than a mangy old flea bitten hound and Britain is your master as you feed from the trough of British welfare like a pig. Master punish this pigish dog.

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Up 'til now, I've considered radio personality Michael Savage's characterization of liberalism as a "mental disease" to be over the top. Of course there is Post Election Stress Disorder (PEST), so I guess you could argue that the psychological profession has recognized liberal thought as diseased (I propose the clinical term dyscogitofilia© for the next revision of the DSM).

Now it seems that a particularly virulent strain of liberalism is infecting minds in Germany.

From Breitbart:

BERLIN (Reuters) - German's security services faced the prospect of a parliamentary inquiry on Friday, triggered by reports that German agents in Baghdad had helped the United States pinpoint bombing targets at the start of the Iraq war.

The opposition Greens said for the first time they would join liberals and leftists to demand an inquiry, into both the Iraq allegations and wider concerns about the role of the security services in the U.S.-led war on terrorism. The three parties between them have enough votes to force such a probe.

"This accusation about the involvement of German authorities in the Iraq war is a monstrous accusation," said Greens parliamentary leader Renate Kuenast.

Media reports on Thursday said two agents of Germany's BND foreign intelligence service in Baghdad had helped the United States identify bombing targets at the outbreak of the Iraq war in 2003, which the Berlin government strongly opposed.

Also posted at The Dread Pundit Bluto.

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Damn Rusty beat me.
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Say the following mantra one-hundred times while genuflecting: there were no links between Saddam Hussein and terrorism.

Via Hyscience, this pretty damning report. I'll note that the GSPC referenced here is the same group that had planned a 9/11 style attack against the U.S, but which the domestic media overlooked when the plot was foiled.

The Weekly Standard's Stephen Hayes consulted 11 federal officials before concluding that documents U.S. troops captured in Iraq prove that "the former Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein trained thousands of radical Islamic terrorists from the region at camps in Iraq over the four years immediately preceding the U.S. invasion."

Hayes reports, "Secret training took place primarily at three camps - in Samarra, Ramadi, and Salman Pak - and was directed by elite Iraqi military units." Al-Qaida-affiliated fanatics, such as Algeria's GSPC and the Sudanese Islamic Army, were among the 8,000 or so murderers instructed between 1999 and 2002.

Handwritten notes, computer discs and other "exploitable items" confirm Saddam's philanthropy of terror, Hayes says. But America has translated only some 2.5 percent of this huge cache. Federal officials barely discuss what they have learned. Even unclassified papers remain unavailable. Absurd.

Having studied some of these artifacts, one intelligence expert says: "As much as we overestimated WMD (weapons of mass destruction), it appears we underestimated (Saddam's) support for transregional terrorists."

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Somehow I missed this news earlier. Frightening to think that a Saudi would try to smuggle in people from the Middle East. What's worse is that the fraudulent documents were diplomatic visas. There was a time when I thought the immigration issue was boring. No longer. Immigration reform is a matter of national security.

This story also reminded me of one filthy Jawa reader who discovered that one of our e-mail a terrorist victims was an immigration lawyer in Britain. Just what the Western world needs: immigration lawyers with terrorist sympathies. Thanks to that filthy reader's efforts, the lawyer is no longer employed at his immigration law firm.

Sierra Times:

An Egyptian national pled guilty today to using his position at the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington, D.C. to secure fraudulent Saudi diplomatic visas to help aliens enter the United States illegally.

Mohamed Abdel Wahab Yakoub, a.k.a. Mohamed Wardi, a 61-year-old native of Egypt and a resident of Maryland, pled guilty before the Honorable Leonie Brinkema in the Eastern District of Virginia to one count of smuggling aliens into the United States. Yakoub is facing a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years when he is sentenced by Judge Brinkema on April 7, 2006. Yakoub is also facing deportation to Egypt following his sentencing.

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Seriously*. Kevin McCullogh gets censored for suggesting Kennedy deserves a beating. Buckley F. Williams has the top nine statements that would make Ted cry.

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(Berlin) Two news outlets reported on Wednesday that German intelligence agents assisted the United States military during the invasion of Iraq. The German Foreign Minister has denied the allegations.

From Deutsche Welle:

In a front page story in the respected Suddeutsche Zeitung (SZ), renowned investigative journalist Hans Leyendecker and colleague Wolfgang Krach quoted a high-ranking German security source as saying that two Federal Intelligence Agency agents (BND) in Baghdad helped the US military assess targets during the air invasion of Iraq in the war's opening weeks.

The office of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who thrust US-German relations into an ice age through his disapproval of the Iraq invasion, reportedly knew about the cooperation and approved of it, according to the article. The cooperation was made after a "political decision" by Schroeder's coalition government. "This wasn't the decision of some department head," the SZ quoted their source as saying.

The report was indirectly confirmed by a former US defense official in the German television program "Panorama." Whereas the article in the SZ said the agents were involved in reporting targets on the ground that shouldn't be attacked, the US defense official claimed the agents did much more.

The BND gave "direct support" in "selecting targets," said the official. One example of that support: a BND agent drove to the Baghdad district Mansur in an armored limousine in order to confirm US suspicions that a caravan of cars carrying Iraqi officials, including Saddam Hussein, was driving through the area. The information he relayed on April 7, 2003, was reportedly used in an immediate bomb attack on a complex of buildings in which at least 12 people died.

All the German leftists are having a fit.

Companion post at Interested-Participant.

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Apparently Raymond Flowers, one of John Hawkins' readers, has noticed a pattern that might explain the "nose drama" phenomenon I posted about a few weeks ago. It hadn't occurred to me that it might be evidence of yet another dark Bush conspiracy, but the RWN reader doesn't seem to be aware of the use of the "nasals" in older Americans. Heh.

Has anyone noticed the use by George W. Bush and Jeb Bush and the republican party of nasal control implants in children as their family continues to re-entrench itself from World War II where it used the control technology on the German population running the yes sir Nathan Hales of the Hitler youth.

They use stories to continuously bombard students creating day dreams producing what is commonly called attention deficit disorder in addition to hyper activity and they even produced dyslexia using the nasals to get the visual from the optic nerve and a Hewlett-Cray-Motorola computer did a dictionary look up for the current pattern which was regenerated weekly in some locations and is the reason that words written very poorly didn't jumble as the primitive software couldn't figure out what the word was and either left it alone or broke connections between letters to re-arrange what looked like components between humps or risers on the letters.

Well, that sure explains why Mary Baker Eddy is barking at me in Louis Farrakhan's voice. It's a software glitch!

(Cross-posted to Demosophia)

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The Political Teen has posted audio of Joshua Sparling's interview on Sean Hannity's radio show. Sparling is the wounded soldier who received a death wish written in a Christmas card.

Michael Crook, the founder of the vile "Forsake the Troops" website, initially denied involvement, then admitted guilt for the card, which was signed, "Miguel".

But Crook, a notorious media whore, conveniently lost any proof that he had actually sent the card. Crook has a history of making false claims for publicity. In May, 2005 he faked his own death with a post to his website, and Crook originally came to regional notice by claiming to have found a soldier's camera and demanding $1,000 "finder's fee". He later admitted that he didn't have the camera.

Also posted at The Dread Pundit Bluto.

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Originally posted last night, but deleted because I wasn't done yet.

Part one

Part two

Part three (by co-blogger Kyer)

Part four

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Related

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