Like....DUH:

Is America taking terrorists too seriously? In the wake of continued threats, that might seem like a ridiculous question. But in terms of the psychology of the war on terrorism, it's a question that needs to be asked.

In a brilliant new white paper on public diplomacy, Michael Waller, the Walter and Leonore Annenberg chair in International Communication at The Institute of World Politics, makes a strong case for America's employing a new powerful weapon against the terrorists: ridicule.

"Ridicule raises morale at home. Ridicule strips the enemy/adversary of his mystique and prestige. Ridicule erodes the enemy's claim to justice. Ridicule eliminates the enemy's image of invincibility. Directed properly at an enemy, ridicule can be a fate worse than death," writes Waller.

Apparently someone doesn't read the Jawa Report.

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1 >>>>>Apparently someone doesn't read the Jawa Report. hahaha!!! brilliant.

Posted by: Jesusland Carlos at March 23, 2006 06:36 PM (8e/V4)

2 I couldn't agree more! That's why I'm so excited to announce my development deal with FOX Network for my new sitcom, "O, Sama!" More info at my blog, Osama's Place: http://www.osamasplace.com/?p=27

Posted by: Osama at March 23, 2006 06:56 PM (HcXmZ)

3 Osama : We already have one Osama here. I emailed "our" osama and this is a different one. Jawa Osama asked that I clarify that. Please Osama we like the site and all but in the future if you would do ?? so we can tell you apart.

Posted by: Howie at March 24, 2006 03:32 PM (D3+20)

4 Ridicule does work. In the 1940s there was a lot of concern over a resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan to the levels of power they had in the 1920s. A reporter infiltrated the KKK and learned all their secrets. He then turned over their secrets to, of all people, the Superman radio show. For several weeks Superman would beat up various KKK goons and mock their titles like Kleagle, Grand Exalted Cyclops, and Richard Byrd. The KKK went from a terrible political force, to a joke. So let's all do the same to Al-Qaida.

Posted by: Vox Poplar at March 24, 2006 05:10 PM (jiA7A)

5 Show the AL QUEDA for what they are TERRORISTS and killers of women and children

Posted by: sandpiper at March 26, 2006 03:02 PM (slksM)

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We all know there's good gay and bad gay, but is there such a thing as bad good gay? The NCAA women's tournament from the bad good gay point of view.

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So, if they didn't have warrant, would that mean that Sen. Feingold would like to see these guys go free?

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I know a lot of Mexicans named Jesus. I'm afraid Hillary wasn't talking about any of them.

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The U.S. Treasury Department has designated various Hezbollah owned media outlets as Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) entities. Included in today's listing are al-Manar Television, al-Nour Radio, and the Lebanese Media Group---all affiliates of the Iranian lbacked terror organization, Hizballah.

It would be good to see the Treasury Department go after those internet outlets that support terrorism as well, but I'm afraid the U.S. government just isn't serious about that yet.

Al-Manar is the official global satellite television station of the Hezbollah terrorist organization. Until the 9/11 attacks, Hezbollah had killed more Americans than any other terrorist group. more...

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Why do "radical" Muslims believe that apostates ought to be given the death penalty? Because that is what Muhammed taught, that's why!

For instance, Muhammed is reported as saying:

"If someone changes his deen - strike his neck!" [Malik's Muwatta Book 36, Number 36.18.15]

"The blood of a Muslim who confesses that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and that I am His Apostle, cannot be shed except in three cases: In Qisas for murder, a married person who commits illegal sexual intercourse and the one who reverts from Islam (apostate) and leaves the Muslims." [Sahih Bukhari Volume 9, Book 83, Number 17]

"(He was) a Jew who embraced Islam and has now turned apostate." Muadh said, "I will surely chop off his neck!" [Sahih Bukhari Volume 5, Book 59, Number 632]

Clinton Taylor catches the Yale student Sayed
Rahmatullah Hashemi justifying the imprisonment of Christian converts and missionaries back when he was working for the Taliban:

Their priority was to propagate Christianity which they were not supposed to do here

Given the example of Muhammed, does it come as any surprise that Danish Imam Ahmed Akkari has issued death threats against Naser Khader of the Social Liberals, caught on hidden camera?

If [Naser Khader] becomes the Minister of Foreigners or Integration, why donÂ’t we send out two guys to blow up him and his ministry?

It's frightening to see the intellectual and moral laziness of those who wish to equivocate religous & cultural stances on freedom. The chief culprit are journalists and editors in the MSM who either cannot see the difference between 'extremist' Buddhists and Muslims, or are just afraid to express those differences for fear of the latter.

Rob at Say Anything notices that Reuters has an article noticing the similarities between the Western reaction to the possible death of a man for expressing his inelianable right to leave a religious faith and to Islamic fascistic reaction to the Muhammed cartoons. Except, of course, the rest of the al Reuters story tells of one group standing up for human rights, and the other trying to quash them. They keep using that word similar. I do not think that word means what they think it means.

So, does this mean that we should not wage the war against radical Islam? That going in to Afghanistan was a mistake? That the Iraq war was a mistake?

No, of course not. Afghanistan is headed in the right direction and so is Iraq. Before our invasions of those two countries things were much much worse. As Clint also points out in his article, the Taliban sent Christian converts to re-education camps. There is more religious freedom in Afghanistan now than at any time.

However, we should have guarded optimism about the extent to which Muslim countries can ever achieve universal human rights. Even in moderate countries, such as Malaysia or Jordan, it is illegal to distribute Bibles to Muslims. The difference, then, between moderate Muslim nations and those in the extreme lie in the reaction to apostasy and not in whether or not apostasy is seen as a crime.

Islam is not just another religion like Christianity, Hinduism, or Buddhism. It does not recognize seperate spheres for politics and religion. Muhammed, unlike Jesus or the Buddha, was the founder of both a religion and a government ruled by religious decree.

This does not mean that Islam cannot reform itself to accept the right of an individual to choose their own faith. It just means that it will be far harder for Muslims to buy into the notion given the example of Muhammed and the ideological system founded by him.

It is good to see the White House and State Department urging a quick and favorable conclusion to the plight of Abdul Rahman. But our liberation of Afghanistan and our hopes for it must be tempered by the reality of Islam as more than just a religion as understood in the West--it is a political ideology.

Here is a good roundup of news on Abdul Rahman.

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The eleventy-seven layers of editors at the New York Times have screwed the pooch once more (previous outrageous boner here).

From Editor & Publisher [emphasis added]:

NEW YORK For the second time in less than a week, The New York Times today admitted to a serious error in a story. On Saturday it said it had misidentified a man featured in the iconic "hooded inmate" photograph from Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. Today it discloses that a woman it profiled on March 8 is not, in fact, a victim of Hurricane Katrina--and was arrested for fraud and grand larceny yesterday.

As it did in the Abu Ghraib mistake, the Times ran an editors' note on page 2 of its front section, along with a lengthy news article (this time on the front page of Section B). Again mirroring the Abu Ghraib episode, the newspaper revealed a surprising and inexplicable lapse in fact-checking on the part of a reporter and/or editor.

Also posted at The Dread Pundit Bluto and Vince Aut Morire.

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A great day for those of us following hostages in Iraq closely!! Three peace activists from the Christian Peacemakers Team held hostage in Iraq have been freed by Coalition Forces. Ironically, the CPT activists were in Iraq to document alleged human rights abuses by U.S. mililtary forces. The three rescued are Canadians James Loney and Harmeet Singh Sooden, and Briton Norman Kember.

Scroll down for updates.

American Tom Fox was found murdered on the streets of Baghdad last week by those the CPT claimed were simply 'insurgents' and who the CPT clearly believed were responding to Western aggression.

We are very happy to learn that at least three of the four hostages have been released and wish to congratulate our soldiers who took part in the raid. A job well done.

The Jawa Report's complete archives about these four hostages can be found here. For information about the other hostages still held in Iraq, including American Dean Sadek, please see our extensive hostage archives.

The CPT is a Leftist organization which claims to be pacifist and 'Christian,' but which focuses all of its efforts against Western governments. The four 'peacemakers' were taken hostage near the same mosque where Giuliana Sgrena had been abducted. Also, like the communist newspaper writer, the four activists were at the mosque to interview persons displaced by the Fallujah offensive and to document various 'war crimes' committed by U.S. troops.

Today, the CPT insulted the U.S. and other Coalition troops who daringly rescued the three peace activists by releasing this announcement. In it they compare the taking of hostages and their subsequent murders to Coalition Forces who detain suspected terrorists:

Harmeet, Jim and Norman and Tom were in Iraq to learn of the struggles facing the people in that country. They went, motivated by a passion for justice and peace to live out a nonviolent alternative in a nation wracked by armed conflict. They knew that their only protection was in the power of the love of God and of their Iraqi and international co-workers. We believe that the illegal occupation of Iraq by Multinational Forces is the root cause of the insecurity which led to this kidnapping and so much pain and suffering in Iraq. The occupation must end.

Today, in the face of this joyful news, our faith compels us to love our enemies even when they have committed acts which caused great hardship to our friends and sorrow to their families. In the spirit of the prophetic nonviolence that motivated Jim, Norman, Harmeet and Tom to go to Iraq, we refuse to yield to a spirit of vengeance. We give thanks for the compassionate God who granted our friends courage and who sustained their spirits over the past months. We pray for strength and courage for ourselves so that, together, we can continue the nonviolent struggle for justice and peace.

Throughout these difficult months, we have been heartened by messages of concern for our four colleagues from all over the world. We have been especially moved by the gracious outpouring of support from Muslim brothers and sisters in the Middle East, Europe, and North America. That support continues to come to us day after day. We pray that Christians throughout the world will, in the same spirit, call for justice and for respect for the human rights of the thousands of Iraqis who are being detained illegally by the U.S. and British forces occupying Iraq.

During these past months, we have tasted of the pain that has been the daily bread of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis. Why have our loved ones been taken? Where are they being held? Under what conditions? How are they? Will they be released? When?

The four hostages were abducted by a group calling themselves The Swords of Righteousness Brigade. However, as first revealed on The Jawa Report, the group has been linked to the Islamic Army in Iraq and is probably a brigade or front for the well known Islamist terror organization. The Jawa Report was also the first U.S. media outlet to release the names of the four hostages.

NY Times story about the raid:

The delegation coordinator for the group, Claire Evans, said by telephone that Mr. Loney, a 41-year-old Canadian, had contacted his family this morning from the Green Zone, the fortified compound in Baghdad where some American military forces, Iraqi government offices and the American Embassy are located.

"He said that they were all in reasonable health," she said, adding that the three men were undergoing medical checks.

The men were freed by multinational forces in a military operation.

The hostages were found when American-led forces raided a house in western Baghdad, acting on information from one of two detainees interrogated late Wednesday night, Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, a spokesman for the American military, said at a news conference in Baghdad. The kidnappers were not in the house. The men were in "relatively good condition," he said.

In London, the British foreign secretary, Jack Straw, said the mission had included British forces.

"It follows weeks and weeks of very careful work by military and coalition personnel in Iraq and many civilians as well," Mr. Straw said, adding that it involved a number of countries, including Canadian personnel.

Mr. Straw said that Mr. Kember was in "reasonable" condition and that the two Canadians had to have hospital treatment. He said he had spoken with Mr. Kember's wife. "Of course, it goes without saying that she is absolutely delighted, elated, with this news," Mr. Straw said.

The Loney family released a statement today saying that Mr. Loney had been released unharmed with his two companions.

"What a joyful day this is," the family's statement said. "We have just learned that James is coming home." The statement also expressed sympathy for Mr. Fox's family.

Thank you for the dozens of people who e-mailed tips about this to us.

It would do well for us all to remember that the statements downplaying the hostages' rescue are coming from the CPT, and not from the hostages themselves. I have a feeling that the hostages, who were so critical of the U.S. and so praising of terrorists in the past, will have a different take now. The murder of Tom Fox is a good indication they weren't treated quite as well as Giuliana Sgrena.

Update: No Pasaran notices this from a British peace activist on the BBC:

Of course I would like to thank the Foreign Office and, ,b>if it was the military that helped free him, then them too. But the Muslim community has really behaved in a wonderful way.

And via Small Dead Animals we are pointed to this from Relapsed Catholic who notices this little nugget:

In reaction Kember's friend, Bruce Kent (...) said the miltants holding the hostages 'must have been people of great faith.'

12:30 Update: The Left (see for instance Body and Soul or A Lovely Promise) is already talking as if their release was negotiated. The implication being that it wasn't the military that should get the credit but, instead, diplomacy. However, had the Left removed their tinfoil long enough they would have realized that tips from detainees led to their rescue and that finding hostages alone is not necessarily uncommon. For instance, Roy Hallums was released in a similar manner. A tip led to our troops finding him and when the troops got their his captors had fled. Knowing cousin Achmed just got captured and then hearing the sounds of helicopters and the approach of an Abrams tank might be enough to send even the bravest of terrorists fleeing.

UPDATE 12:45: Families react

Ed Loney said his freed brother "sounded fantastic" when he telephoned their mother in Sault Ste Marie, Ontario - and had apologised for putting the family through such an ordeal.

"He told them that he was well and that he was concerned about us and the family and other people who were worried, which is pretty typical of Jim, to put others first," he said.

His parents issued a short statement saying: "What a joyful day this is. We have just learned that James is coming home... We would like to thank everyone for their support and prayers." ...

Mr Sooden's father, Dalip Singh Sooden, said he had talked to his son.

"It's like it's unbelievable. I just don't remember what I said to him and what he said to me," he said.

"I've seen him on video and he looked like he's probably lost 10kg or something, but it was traumatic today, it was good. I still can't believe it."

Mark Brewer, the brother-in-law of Mr Sooden, said from his home in Auckland, New Zealand, that relatives were planning to go to Baghdad to bring him home.

"We're just looking forward to getting hold of him, giving him a big hug and bringing him back home to his family," Mr Brewer said.

He told TV One News in New Zealand the ordeal had been "excruciating", particularly since the death of Mr Fox.

Weeks of intelligence work in lawless west Baghdad and a rapid response by special forces to information extracted from a prisoner led to British troops' rescue of three Christian peace activists in Baghdad on Thursday.

British and U.S. officials were reluctant to give details of the release of Canadians Harmeet Sooden and Jim Loney and Briton Norman Kember, not wishing to jeopardize efforts to free several other hostages believed still held around the capital.

"It was part of ongoing operations related to hostages," said British military spokesman Wing Commander Tony Radcliffe....

Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said: "It follows weeks and weeks of very careful work by military Coalition personnel in Iraq and many civilians as well."

That suggested that the arrest of the man who provided the final tip was the product of detective work rather than chance.

Special police teams, apparently from Britain and possibly Canada, had been working on the ground since the four men were seized in west Baghdad on November 26, British officials said, stressing the role civilians played in the process.

The dawn raid that found the three hostages tied up and unguarded in a house was led by British troops and involved others from the U.S.-led Coalition, officials said.

They were acting on intelligence obtained three hours earlier from one of two people arrested the night before.

Though not a shot was fired, it is likely the operation was led by special forces ready to quell resistance and, especially, get the captives out unharmed after four months in captivity: "It was a fairly clinical extraction," Radcliffe said.

Update 1:00 P.M.: More from CNN:

Iraqi police Lt. Col. Falah al-Mohammedawi said it was believed the operation took place in Mishahda, 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of Baghdad, AP reported.

Maj Gen Lynch told reporters in Baghdad: "Late last night, coalition forces conducted an operation and it came up with two detainees.

"These two detainees provided actionable intelligence about the location of the Christian Peacemaker Team hostages.

"We got that information at eight o'clock this morning and we conducted the operation.

"We moved to the location in western Baghdad that was reported for the location of the Christian Peacemaker Team.

"We conducted an assault on the house and inside the house we found the three hostages, in good condition.

"There were no kidnappers there at the time. The three hostages were by themselves."

The hostages were then freed, debriefed and taken to a hospital for medical checks.

"The key point is it was intelligence-led. It was information provided by a detainee," he said.

"In this particular case, of those two detainees, one knew where the hostages were and provided that information.

"The operation was planned and executed and the effect was the safe return of the three hostages."

"There seems to be a kidnapping cell that has been robust over the last several months in conducting these kind of kidnappings.

"It was a coalition forces operation so it involved all sorts of members of the coalition.

"The size and magnitude of the operation I'm not going to walk you through, because we have got other operations that continue."...

The early morning operation took place in a rural area north west of Baghdad, between the towns of Mishahda, 20 miles north of Baghdad, and the western suburb of Abu Ghraib, 12 miles from the city centre.

"The operation included representatives from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, other agencies from Canada – and they did a terrific job – as well as the Americans and British staff and those from Iraq," said Straw....

Canadian military personnel were involved in the operation, according to Pentagon sources, but it's not clear how many took part or what their role was. There have been reports that members of Canada's top secret commando unit, Joint Task Force 2, have been working in Iraq.

Also:

Three members of a group of Christian peace activists have been released from a hospital, where they were taken after their rescue by U.S. and British forces in Iraq today.

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Once again coalition soldiers risk their lives to rescue those who would spit on them.

BAGHDAD, Iraq - U.S. and British troops Thursday freed three Christian peace activists in rural Iraq without firing a shot, ending a four-month hostage drama in which an American among the group was shot to death and dumped on a Baghdad street.

Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, the U.S. military spokesman, said the hostages were being held by a “kidnapping cell,” and the operation to free the captives was based on information from a man captured by U.S. forces only three hours earlier.

Read rest and a statement by Christian Peacemaker Teams, it's unbelievable.

Updates posted here: Western Hostages Rescued by Coalition Forces

Posted by: Traderrob at 09:58 AM | Comments (10) | Add Comment
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By US and Brit Special Forces.

Now that they've been rescued unharmed, I feel no reason to have any more sympathy for them, the ungrateful bastards.

stein hoist 6MB

UPDATE: backtiming this because traderrob scooped me and should get the top billing and all the nice comments.

Updates posted here: Western Hostages Rescued by Coalition Forces

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(Damascas) A Reuters report out of Syria details some of the stringent rules imposed on women under Sharia Law. They are oppressive. For example:

Under Syrian law a husband can divorce his wife simply by telling her, "you are divorced," three times, while women seeking separation must navigate a multitude of legal hurdles that usually take two years to complete.

Though such cases are greatly underreported, Da'ad Mousa, a prominent Damascus lawyer and women's rights advocate, said that more than 100 cases of so-called "honour killings" were reported in Syrian newspapers between 2000 and 2003. The majority of the men involved, who killed a female relative suspected of an illicit sexual affair in the belief that the liaison tarnished the family's "honour," went unpunished.

In 2003, Syria ratified the UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, while taking exception to any provisions found contrary to Sharia Law. A lot of good that did.

I have to ask. Where are all the American and European women's rights advocates on this issue? It's an area where feminists could and should focus the public's attention and resources to spearhead reform.

From Interested-Participant.

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Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-MX) wants his party's 11 million votes. That's the number of illegal immigrants estimated to be in the US. Reid has threatened to filibuster a Senate bill to overhaul immigration if Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist goes ahead with a version that doesn't guarantee a "path to citizenship" for the aliens currently evading the INS.

From the Associated Press:

"If Leader Frist brings a bill to the floor that does not have the approval of the Judiciary Committee, it will not get out of the Senate," Reid told reporters at the San Ysidro border crossing, a few steps from Tijuana, Mexico.

Also posted at The Dread Pundit Bluto and Vince Aut Morire.

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Maybe I'm just a hard-headed realist, but, saving the life of Abdul Rahman, the Christian on trial in Afghanistan for converting, should be relatively easy.

Of course, hard-headed realism died out in terms of diplomacy a long, long time ago. All things diplomatic now have to be nuanced and introduced into formal language for one country to tell another country it's not happy with the latter's action on a particular subject.

Screw all that. Bush should explain to Karzai in no uncertain terms that if Abdul Rahman is put to death for becoming a member of "The People of the Book" then:

All U.S. forces will be extricated from the country at once.

All diplomatic ties will be severed.

All U.S. monetary aid (our tax dollars), will cease. Enjoy your poppies.

All U.S. forces extricated, all diplomatic ties, and all U.S. monetary aid (our tax dollars) will be used to overthrow the mullochracy in Iran.

Will it happen? No, of course not. more...

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1 If we only had our way.... Nice thought. I could think of a few other countries we ought to lay that out to!

Posted by: Melissa in Texas at March 22, 2006 07:41 PM (bbxLM)

2 Actually, this guy's case has been one of the few coming out of Afghanistan that has a conservative spin on it. Too many big papers who should know better have been running this under headlines like, "Man to be executed for converting to Christianity." By now everyone should know he's on the docket for apostasy. What religion he converted to, or if he didn't convert to any religion and gave up God altogether, has no bearing on the case. Unfortunately, "Man to be executed for renouncing Islam" doesn't sell papers in a Christian country.

Posted by: ShannonKW at March 22, 2006 08:08 PM (dT1MB)

3 Might be worth trying to win one of the two wars you are already losing before getting involved in losing another one.

Posted by: Sonic at March 22, 2006 08:26 PM (Gsn6c)

4 i think the attention THIS story is ggetting will lead to the freedom of the man. however i propose he come to united states and study here. He is worth more to me and this country and what it stands for than the bleeding liberals and whiners on the streets, and much more than ALL the lawyers in the ACLU. do you notice that the court in afghanistan realizes that the attention his story is getting and know they will not execute him so they use the "he is crazy" argument, instead of admitting they are wrong! ahahah HA HA AFGHANISTAN!

Posted by: billy Faeth at March 22, 2006 08:42 PM (SXXFV)

5 Sonic must be one of those 'Gulf war babies' who believes if a war takes longer than six weeks -- (four weeks of which, is reruns of night-vision camera footage of a precision missile hit on CNN) that America is in a new Vietnam.

Posted by: davec at March 22, 2006 08:52 PM (CcXvt)

6 Unfortunately, we are now looking at the reality of pottery barn rules. Because we have wasted so much in Iraq, we did not focus on Afghanistan. The resurgence of opium trade coupled with tribal warfare makes it impossible for us to exercise any central control outside of Kabul. If we abandon Afghanistan the Taliban will come back in from Pakistan and Waziristan and we'll be dealing with another failed state. Failed states represent a bigger threat to us than anything else because they are the easiest for cash rich terrorists to hang out. Conflict diamonds, drugs, and gold are great sources of infuence when you have corrupt and destitute countries. The real risk (and increasing probability) is that we will be seeing a similarly theocratic state in Iraq.

Posted by: 8ackgr0und N015e at March 22, 2006 08:58 PM (gAXw0)

7 Is it a wasted comment, to point out that Afghanistan was a NATO operation BN? As such, there were many more nations involved than just the U.S, all of those countries are very involved in current peacekeeping operations. Just because CNN keeps an active deathwatch in Iraq, and does not take it's camera's to Afghanistan, doesn't mean the coalition's resolve is any less today, that it was on September 12th 2001.

Posted by: davec at March 22, 2006 09:12 PM (CcXvt)

8 >>>Might be worth trying to win one of the two wars you are already losing before getting involved in losing another one. The only war we're losing is the media war, and that's no surprise considering the MSM is about 98.7% Democrat.

Posted by: Jesusland Carlos at March 22, 2006 09:23 PM (8e/V4)

9 This might be a comment wasted on a real moron, but Thesaurus we're trying to make the Iraqi Police, and Military autonomous -- which means we do not patrol the streets for them, guard their Police stations, flush out the bad guys, etc the U.S military will respond to threats, and engage as needed. I'm guessing you're one of the liberal bedwetting, handwringers who talk about how "U.S won't leave Iraq for ten years" out of one side of your mouth, closely followed by "Bad things happen in Iraq every day!! we're defeated!! squark !! defeated I say!" When would you like the Iraqi military to take over peacekeeping, and security operations? should we make sure every police station in Iraq has armed U.S guards so they can't attack it? Apache helicopter in the air to guard the bus stations, Spectre Gunship on the runway in case someone steals some cheese in the market place? This is all part of making Iraqi's responsible for policing, and security of their own country

Posted by: davec at March 22, 2006 09:54 PM (CcXvt)

10 And it's working, they are automonously blowing away two of your guys every day and have been for three years. Still it's not as bad as Gettysburg, why is everyone worrying?

Posted by: Sonic at March 22, 2006 10:53 PM (Gsn6c)

11 Afghanistan...... here we have a president who literally can not venture outside of his own capital. He must be guarded by Americans, he can not trust his own people to guard him. 50% of the country's GNP comes from opium/heroin. The billions that we have spent on reconstruction show little to benefit the ordinary common people. The taliban are stronger now than at any time since they were thrown out and are still providing sanctuary to Osama bin Laden. Gee there is a name from the distant past !! We hardly ever hear his name any more.

Posted by: john Ryan at March 22, 2006 10:54 PM (TcoRJ)

12 You know Vinnie actually we wouldn't have to threaten him with all of that. All we would have to do is threaten to remove his American bodyguards. He knows that he wouldn't live longer than a week without them.

Posted by: john Ryan at March 22, 2006 10:57 PM (TcoRJ)

13 Sonic, Seeing as you're an expert on warfare, asymmetric and conventional, perhaps you can state an insurgency [country/date] that did not last less than seven years, and did not involve small amounts of soldiers, over a long period of time? perhaps you can also break down and comment on the flaws in U.S counterinsurgency tactics, and tell us the faults?

Posted by: davec at March 22, 2006 11:13 PM (CcXvt)

14 Sonic: Outside of slaughtering Maoris, what war has New Zealand won? Background Noise: I fixed a URL in your "last post ever at the Jawa Report." Prevaricator. John Ryan: 1st comment, I call bullshit. Stop getting your information from Fox News. 2nd comment...eh, I'll buy that. But then we wouldn't get to build our ultra-base on the ashes of Teheran.

Posted by: Vinnie at March 22, 2006 11:20 PM (f289O)

15 Couple comments: Vinnie... I appreciate your fixing that link... it shows you are a decent guy. I don't recall saying it was the last post ever... It was the last post I was going to ever leave on the Tom Fox thread. The way you have handled that distinguishes this blog from most every other one in the Right and most every one on the Left. I have also said here and in other venues that Jawa distinguishes itself from RedState and Townhall by engaging people who disagree. Here is a link to RedState that resulted in banning of several people. You show me where the rules were violated. Truth is, they ... like this administration ... are afraid to defend their positions in honest debate. So, they talk to themselves. I have consistently said that we can agree or disagree..but the fact is we're stuck with each other. We inflict more damage upon ourselves than any terrorists could ever hope to. That's the lesson of Antietam and Sharpsburg. 25 years ago Yasuhiro Nakasone said, "The American mongrel race is inferior." He was one third right. We are mongrels. But we call that diversity. In biology it's called "hybrid vigor," and that is what makes us strong. This is your playground and I know that first amendment issues are not in play here ... so you can decide what you like.. but I believe we need to cherish, celebrate, and cultivate that diversity so we can meet the challenges that face us going forward. I could post only on Dailykos where people are more likely to agree with me, and you could post only on RedState where they will agree with you. That's fine if all you want is to make everyone feel good by having their inner child validated, but that doesn't move the ball downfield. I know what I believe. I know why I believe it. Here's something that will surprise you: I'm willing to be wrong. But you have to bring something to the table to earn the right to that discussion. Invective and bigotry don't persuade me..that's why the jesusland jokers are dead to me. Let me be clear, I'm not accusing you of either ... and frankly if someone wants to mock me... have at it, I've been called worse by better. Like Whittington, I've got thicker skin than George. If you're good, I've got a funny story of how I got kick/banned from #bestiality back in the days when IRC was a wild and wooley place. === davec ... I am not sure about your comment... Afghanistan as a NATO operation? In addition to working with the northen alliance, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, France, New Zealand, Italy, and Germany provided support to us as well. Moreover, we had the endorsement of Iran (the first Islamic country to endorse our action), the Organization of Islamic Countries (representing all the Islamic nations of the world), Cuba, Libya, Russia and China. We also had the backing of the UN Security council with regards to our central demands that the Taliban hand over the perpetrators and close all terrorist bases. That invasion was firmly based in international law. It was consistent with policies and positions of the United States going back to the presidency of Thomas Jefferson. No one...not even Helen Thomas... argues that the US had a legitimate right to invade Afghanistan. I can quote Quakers who endorsed it in print in leading Quaker journals. Please explain your point ..because you are not being clear about it at all.

Posted by: 8ackgr0und N015e at March 23, 2006 12:04 AM (9AVlt)

16 Sorry, I misinterpreted this: In my final post on Jawa at followed by the link to the post as saying you weren't going to comment anymore. Oh well, welcome to the club of "NO, NO, THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!!!!!" It's a blogger's curse, I tellya.

Posted by: Vinnie at March 23, 2006 12:21 AM (f289O)

17 davec said: perhaps you can state an insurgency that did not last less than seven years, and did not involve small amounts of soldiers, over a long period of time? perhaps you can also break down and comment on the flaws in U.S counterinsurgency tactics, and tell us the faults? I'll take the second question first: The Salvador Option...huge mistake. And it's getting worse. Death squads are not a good way to spread democracy. The first question...I think you meant "insurgency that did not last MORE than seven years" right? I'm also assuming you want to only count successful insurgencies too, right? If that is what you were getting at ... I would suggest the Sandinista overthrow of Somoza in Nicaragua would qualify by a few months. Castro's overthrow of Batista only took 3 years. I'm not sure what is magical about the 7 years number, but I would point out that long drawn out insurgencies on foreign soil far from home usually prevail...so long insurgencies are not a good thing as far as our occupation of Iraq is concerned.

Posted by: 8ackgr0und N015e at March 23, 2006 12:39 AM (9AVlt)

18 gee Vinnie ...Sorry if that got your hopes up I'll try to be more precise in the future...

Posted by: 8ackgr0und N015e at March 23, 2006 12:44 AM (9AVlt)

19 I'm with you Vinnie. This isn't what we went to Afghanistan for. If they insist on being neanderthals, then we should leave.

Posted by: Ariya at March 23, 2006 03:18 AM (yHb0A)

20 I still can't figure out how pissing one's pants, wringing one's hands, crying like a baby, and running away to hide under the bed is any sort of winning strategy, but damn if the libtards don't believe in it. I just hope that when there is open war against muslims in the streets of America, the muslims don't hang all the libtards before I get a few.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at March 23, 2006 05:52 AM (0yYS2)

21 Now back to the topic: The best way to handle this is for Bush to grow some nuts and tell them to knock this shit off if they don't want the B-52's to come back. Muslims are animals. Nothing more, nothing less.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at March 23, 2006 05:59 AM (0yYS2)

22 The Philippino citizenry hate our guts? Wow, all of the Philippinos I ran into sure fooled me good.

Posted by: Marcus Aurelius at March 23, 2006 07:43 AM (ffPYG)

23 A good question to contemplate is WHY we had the endorsement of Iran. Was it because of their strong principles? Or because the Taliban too closely and openly displayed the same style of government which might have soon been seen as comparable to Iran? Or because factions in Iran's government were harboring or planned to harbor Taliban or al Qaeda officials and this would put them in a position to be perceived as "good guys"? Or was it simply another example of "taqqiya"? Or ...

Posted by: Oyster at March 23, 2006 08:44 AM (g9UJq)

24 Oyster, I think that is a good question. There is no question that Iran uses terrorists as proxies. However, at the time of that attack, internal Iranian politics was undergoing a power struggle for direction. The overwhelming majority of Iranians are disillusioned with the fruits of Khomeini's revolution. The average Iranian loves the US. Most of Iran's current population was born after the revolution. So it is not surprising they have a different view of the US...especially since they grew up under the strict theocratic rule of the mullahs. This was abundantly clear to everyone involved in the aid relief to Bam... and that was after the SoTU where Bush placed them in the "axis of evil"... I'm sure some saw it as an opportunity to thaw the ice a bit with the US. But that was not the only reason. There was no love lost between Iran and the Taliban. First off, Iran is Shi'ite. Taliban is Sunni. However their relations were in the crapper for more concrete reasons. In 1998, Taliban soldiers seized the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif. They then stormed the Iranian consulate in the city and killed eight diplomats and an Iranian journalist. They also took dozens of hostages. Iran responded by deploying troops along their common border. For some weeks it appeared the two sides would go to war. UN mediation defused the situation and all the hostages were eventually released. However, Iran never established diplomatic relations with the Taliban. They made a precondition for that was the killers had to be brought to justice. In spite of the governmental situation, tribal contacts remained intact. I'm sure the smuggling of Afghani opium through Iran to Europe was a major contributing factor in maintaining local cooperation even to the present.

Posted by: 8ackgr0und N015e at March 23, 2006 09:31 AM (9AVlt)

25 I did this post with tongue firmly in cheek. Work with me here, Aurelius.

Posted by: Vinnie at March 23, 2006 09:51 AM (f289O)

26 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .My brain has sprung a leak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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Posted by: Fisting Fool 81085 at March 23, 2006 10:24 AM (6wxSD)

27 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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Posted by: Fisting Fool 92028 at March 23, 2006 10:25 AM (6wxSD)

28 Your examples are closer to a coup, than the sort of insurgency I was comparing, which would be foreign military in control: like in Palestine, Malay, Cyprus and Brunei where the controlling force has to quell rebel/guerilla forces. re: "The Salvador Option" perhaps you should go to wikipedia and fill it out a little, it seems they barely have an article: "The 'Salvador Option' was a secret military proposal that Newsweek originally reported on January 8th, 2005. The magazine claims to have received its information from military insiders speaking on conditions of anonymity. The program was supposed to have been based on the Reagan administration's still classified support for El Salvador's right wing forces' fight against left wing guerrilas in the 1980's. These right wing forces are alleged to have included so called 'death squads'." Might also be worthy to note Newsweek also claimed the U.S military were flushing the Quran from an "anonymous" source too

Posted by: dave at March 23, 2006 01:25 PM (CcXvt)

29 To quote Newsweek is not to quote a valid source. Good point, dave!

Posted by: jesusland joe at March 23, 2006 04:37 PM (rUyw4)

30 Sonic's problem is that of every other liberal; no balls. And to make it worse, he's not just outdone by real Men, but every woman in the military is a better Man than he. He cannot contribute in any meaningful way to his society, so he feels he must denigrate his betters. He is a worthless parasite, and he and his kind should be exterminated as such.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at March 25, 2006 07:27 AM (0yYS2)

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Via Michelle.

The best thing about this article is that it claims Sheen is a "prominent credible" whistleblower. Charlie Sheen is prominent? Charlie Sheen is credible? Charlie Sheen is a whistleblower?

Charlie. Sheen. Prominent. Credible. Whistleblower.

I need to let that one sink in for a bit.

Posted by: Rusty at 04:07 PM | Comments (50) | Add Comment
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No comment. more...

Posted by: Rusty at 03:53 PM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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Active duty deaths during Clinton's first four years (1993 - 1996): 4302

Active duty deaths during Bush's first four years (2001 - 2004): 5187

Here's where that data is from via Rob at Say Anything.

That's 881 more deaths under Bush's watch in those four years (no data available after that). See especially the sharp decline in the number of homicides and suicides now compared to those glorious Clinton years. Can somebody remind me what the Clinton administration accomplished militarily in those years?

More discussion here.

Posted by: Rusty at 02:57 PM | Comments (10) | Add Comment
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A raging debate has started as to which nation produces the hottest women soldiers over at Military Photos. There are now over 365 pages of pics--the longest thread ever at the website. Who would have thought that our men in the armed services would care so deeply about babes?

So, which nation has the hottest military babes? It's so hard to judge these things. I mean, take an average looking chick. Throw a uniform on her. Have her pose with an M-16. Voila, she is suddenly transformed from girl next door to candidate for Playmate of the Year! Or at least, that's how I see it. There's just something hot about a chick with a gun and an urge to kill terrorists.

What is obvious about this photo series is that there is clearly a hot military babe gap. No, America has produced its share of very hot soldiers, marines, navy babes, and air women, but come on--we're the freakin USA! I mean, are we going to sit back and be comfortable with being among the nations with the world's hottest military chicks? Hell no! This is America, not Canada.

It's high time for our millitary recruiters to head to top modeling agencies, sorority houses, and strip clubs, so that we can boast to the world that we have the hottest soldiers in the world.

All the images below are SFW. Check them out and then answer this poll. more...

Posted by: Rusty at 11:33 AM | Comments (22) | Add Comment
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Yesterday Rusty posted on the bad news that a police station in Iraq was overrun by the enemy. Police were killed and prisoners about 18 of whom were insurgents were released. Today Rusty shows us how they bragged. In fact they were feeling so damn good about it they got sloppy. US and Iraqi forces trapped them in a cross-fire and captured 50 of them.

ABCNEWS : BAGHDAD, Iraq - Insurgents attacked a police station Wednesday for a second day in a row, but U.S. and Iraqi forces captured 50 of them after a two-hour gunbattleÂ… Â…About 60 gunmen attacked the police station in Madain, south of Baghdad, with rocket-propelled grenades and automatic rifles, said police Lt. Col. Falah al-Mohammadawi. U.S. troops and a special Iraqi police unit responded, catching the insurgents in crossfire, he said.

Posted by: Howie at 11:19 AM | Comments (19) | Add Comment
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An umbrella organization for terrorists in Iraq which includes Abu Musab al Zarqawi's al Qaeda group, the Mujahidin Shura Council of Iraq, has released a statement claiming responsibility for freeing 33 prisoners from a jail in the town of Muqdadiya northeast of Baghdad yesterday. The press release also claims that 40 Iraqi police were killed and that 3 helicopters were shot down.

In reality, about 18 police were killed and no helicopters were downed. The press release is below. more...

Posted by: Rusty at 10:55 AM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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Democratic party apparatchiks and their co-conspirators in the mainstream media seem to have placed their hopes for the midterm elections on the perception of American defeat in Iraq. With the economy humming, the Dubai Ports World deal a fading memory, and television viewers nationwide suffering from Katrina fatigue syndrome, the Democratic Party is left to focus on the Global War on Terror, and to downplay the progress made since 9/11.

Thus, we get the recent relentless drumbeat of negative network reporting from hotel balconies all over the Baghdad Green Zone, with the barely concealed hope that civil war will break out soon.

But how much damage is the Left willing to inflict on the United States in order to start winning elections? more...

Posted by: Bluto at 10:31 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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