Ashraf Fahim is a self-described "freelance writer" and "news analyst" operating out of Brooklyn, New York and publishing primarily in Middle eastern and Asian "news" outlets unfriendly to the US.

Fahim is so long-winded and boring that I'm not going to reproduce the entire propaganda piece here; I'll just fisk a few choice paragraphs. The density of Fahim's drivel is by design - repeating lies over and over breaks down resistance and enures the reader to the obvious distortions and pretzel logic.

From The perils of colonial justice in Iraq:

Among its more vociferous opponents, the American project in Iraq is characterized as a classic colonial adventure, indistinguishable in nature or intent from the deepest, darkest chapters in Northern oppression of the South: America is to Iraq as Britain was to India or Belgium to the Congo. Proponents, on the other hand, argue the inherent benevolence of American empire - the export of democracy and egalitarianism in contrast to the transparent racist imperialism of yore.

Cross-posted at The Dread Pundit Bluto. more...

Posted by: Bluto at 04:15 PM | Comments (13) | Add Comment
Post contains 806 words, total size 5 kb.

It may be an off day for millions world-wide, but for Al Qaida, there's no such thing as an off day. Fresh off of claiming responsiblity for the terrorist attack on the Sinai Peninsula which killed around 90 people and injured close to 200, Al Qaida in Iraq has released a video of the now executed Egyptian diplomat Ihab al-Sherif saying there is a large Jewish presence in the Sharm al-Sheikh region.

Al-Qaeda in Iraq issued a 1:30 minute video today, July 23, 2005, depicting a "confession" of the Egyptian ambassador to Iraq, Ihab al-Sherif, as he discusses the Jewish presence (permission to stay) in Sinai. It is interesting to note that this video was released just hours after the triple bombing in Sharm al-Sheikh, Egypt, perhaps indicating some kind of connection between al-Qaeda in Iraq and the attack.

Not only does this video might show proof of a possible Al Qaida in Iraq connection, this video is intended to spark the ridiculous calls by some television "experts" claiming Israel had something to do with the terrorist attack.

It really matters not whether Al Qaida in Iraq carried out the attack in the Sinai as the other groups who claimed responsibility do have an operational connection to Al Qaida in Iraq and Al Qaida as a whole. We already know Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has attempted to stretch his arms outside of Iraq therefore it's hardly surprising there may in fact be a closer connection than previously thought. Then again, this very well could be well-timed propoganda to try to get Al Qaida in Iraq's name in the news again.

Infovlad has the video

Cross-posted at ITB

Posted by: Chad at 02:17 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
Post contains 298 words, total size 2 kb.

VandalÂ’s torch U.S. Flags at slain soldiers home:

WCPO—Not even 24-hours after Private First Class Tim Hines's wife and family said goodbye at his funeral, American flags that had adorned their Fairfield yard were piled beneath a car and burned. [. . .]

Private First Class Timothy Hines Jr. was severely wounded by an IED that exploded near his HMMWV in Iraq; he died July 14th at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington D.C.

Timothy Hines gave his life defending liberty, and some sicko shows up at his home to burn U.S. Flags under a car...what kind of sick people do things like that?

Cross-posted at OpinionBug.com

Posted by: OpinionBug at 01:19 PM | Comments (28) | Add Comment
Post contains 120 words, total size 1 kb.

If you have never had an In-N-Out Double-Double, you have never lived life. If you've had an In-N-Out Burger, and didn't like it, then there is no need for me to tell you to go to hell. You're definintely heading there anyway.

Tbanks to Bill Dautierieve for snapping this photo today at lunch.

Posted by: Rusty at 12:33 AM | Comments (30) | Add Comment
Post contains 63 words, total size 1 kb.

This post is dedicated to those night owls like me who stay up late surfing the net for something interesting to read.

Patrick al-Kafir writes a weekly column every Friday worthy of a paid publication. Go read it while it's still free.

This Jewish girl from Brooklyn trying to make her way in the world is not happy with the world as it is today.

Like the Nazis they aspire to be, the Taliban are pressing children into service.

The American Civil Liberties (for terrorists) Union gets thumped on the melon.

"Sire, it is said the people are revolting!" President Saleh: "You bet! They stink on ice!"

For the rest of you late night losers, give yourself a fatwa on me. Link to this post in your post, and t/b it.

Or, have yourself a happy drunken comment party. I'm going to look for a good picture for the caption contest.

Posted by: Vinnie at 11:54 PM | Comments (13) | Add Comment
Post contains 165 words, total size 1 kb.

I ran across this time article that shows the heinous acts of these terrorists for what they are gruesome murder for gruesome murders sake. These people will murder many of their own just to get a few tourists. If you sympathize with them think again they would murder your whole family just for the hell of it or maybe to get one Israeli or Brit or American.

"I saw about eight dead bodies lying on the ground, and seven or eight other people badly wounded," Chilton said. "One guy had no torso, just legs and chest held together by nothing but skin. There was another girl with her leg gone, and a guy with two legs gone, trying to get up. He didn't realize he had no legs." There was relatively little blood; the explosion was so hot it cauterized most of the wounds".

The Abdullah Azzam Brigades has claimed responsibility but the unknown group Mujahedi Masr or “holy warriors or Egypt has diluted that claim. Although they seem to have the details wrong. My money is on Abdullah Azzam Brigades

More on the Abdullah Azzam Brigades where they come from and how they are related to the current war on terror is below. Heck they are the originator of this whole mess. Al-qaida related yes they founded Al-qaida.

The Abdullah Azzam Brigades are apparently named after Abdullah Azzam, a Palestinian who led Islamic militants in Afghanistan and was killed in 1989 by a roadside bomb. He was regarded as the one-time spiritual mentor of al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden.
Azzam studied Islamic theology in Egypt before traveling to Saudi Arabia where he lectured in Islamic law. During the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Azzam was financed by Saudi Arabia and other Islamic states to establish camps for Muslim militants who joined the fight against the Russian forces.

More here too.

Born in Palestine in 1941, Azzam moved to Jordan and then to Saudi Arabia before migrating to Pakistan at the start of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. In Peshawar, Azzam set up the Office of Services of the Holy Warriors (Mujahideen) and set about re-igniting the Islamic power rage against those non-Islamic powers that had conspired against Islam since before the Crusades. Darting off with not much more than a storefront in Peshawar, Azzam would ultimately succeed in rejuvenating the concept of jihad among the Arab masses.

Those who met Azzam were dazzled by his spellbinding oratorical skills, his capabilities as a military strategist, his religious leadership, and his interminable energy. Azzam helped bring about the mobilization of the Muslim Brotherhood movement more than any other leader. Today, the military wing of Hamas in the West Bank is called the Abdellah Azzam Brigades.

On an earlier note from Vinnie, yes I noticed the main coverage today seems to all be about the guy that was shot in London. Not matter that he was carrying a bomb or not, the suspicious nature of his actions added to the current climate in London made for a perfectly understandable mistake. In fact IM suggested the possibility that it was possibly an orchestrated mistake. For whatever reason, this man chose to act suspiciously and also disobey a direct police order in a time and place where that was the last thing any innocent person would do. Also IÂ’ve noted that so far a Jamaican and now one Brazilian have been involved in the London incidents in various ways. Rusty has been telling us of danger from the south for some time now. While slow to come around and I donÂ’t think itÂ’s widespread more and more evidence comes out that he is correct. There is a danger from the south. I ask all Mexicans criminal and otherwise if you are approached by one of these jerks. Take his freaking money and kill him. Us border patrol give them a freebee for every one they kill and drop over the Rio Grande for us. Just paint terrorist on his back.

Posted by: Howie at 07:55 PM | Comments (28) | Add Comment
Post contains 677 words, total size 4 kb.

In the wake of the second terrorist attack in England, radical Islamic cleric Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammed seems to be more of an idiot than previously believed. The English government is drafting new laws to make this type of "hate speech" outlawed and deciding whether certain clerics who are urging jihad and terrorist attacks are worthy of deportation or imprisonment.

This doesn't stop Mohammed though as today he said attacks will continue until British soldiers are out of Iraq and Afghanistan (via Euphoric Reality).

"What happened yesterday confirmed that as long as the cause and the root problem is still there ... we will see the same effect we saw on July 7," Bakri said.

"If the cause is still there the effect will happen again and again," he said, adding he had no information about future attacks or contacts with people planning to carry out attacks.

Bakri, a Syrian-born cleric who has been vilified in Britain since 2001 when he praised the September 11 hijackers, said he did not believe the bombings and attempted attacks on London were carried out by British Muslims.

The 'root cause', as Mohammed sees it is not radical Islam or his asinine ramblings, it is the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. We must continue to remind these people of low intellect that there were in fact terrorist attacks before either war.

Mohammed tries to condemn the attacks against innocents, yet he supports the killing of Muslims throughout the Middle East. What is Mohammed's goal?

"I would like to see the Islamic flag fly, not only over number 10 Downing Street, but over the whole world," he said.

That too is the goal of radical Islam as a whole. I cannot say this enough even if I sound like a broken record. Radical Islam wants to turn the entire world into a Caliphate state where Sharia Law is the only law and we are all mindless followers of the only religion people like Mohammed sees fit. As I've said before, I refuse to be a pawn.

Cross-posted at ITB

Posted by: Chad at 03:12 PM | Comments (37) | Add Comment
Post contains 362 words, total size 3 kb.

The Timesonline, without citing a source, reports that the man shot dead as he fled police and jumped onto a tube carriage was not carrying explosives:

It is understood that he was found not to have been carrying a bomb.

Three officers had followed him to Stockwell station after he emerged from a nearby house that police believed to be connected with ThursdayÂ’s attempted bombings.

The suspect, described as being of Asian appearance and wearing a thick, bulky jacket, vaulted over a ticket barrier when challenged by police and ran down the escalator and along the platform of the Northern Line.

Dan Copeland, a Northern Line passenger, told BBC News: “The man burst in through the carriage door to my right and grabbed hold of the pole and a person by the glass partition near the door, diagonally opposite me.

Police are describing him as an “intimate accomplice of the cell”. His name and address were thought to have been found among the possessions left by the would-be bombers on Thursday.

Police sources said he did not live at the address from which he had been followed.

A man shot dead by police hunting the bombers behind Thursday's London attacks was unconnected to the incidents, police have confirmed.

A Scotland Yard statement said the shooting was a "tragedy" which was regretted by the Metropolitan Police.

Posted by: Bluto at 11:45 AM | Comments (57) | Add Comment
Post contains 279 words, total size 2 kb.

1 The dumbass got "Darwined". All he had to do was let them do a quick search and he would have been on his way, but nooooo, he had to run. He was probably on his way to pick up a bomb. Serves the moron right.

Posted by: Improbulus Maximus at July 23, 2005 12:07 PM (0yYS2)

2 The guy was followed by 3 plain-clothed officers, then he started running because 3 people were following him. He probably thought they were thugs. The police likes to say he didn't obey their instructions but failed to mention what they were... "Oi Paki get the f*ck down!"...? I would not be surprised. Then they lunge onto him and pump 5 bullets into his head, when all they had to do was handcuff him, search him and question him. Looks like the police got trigger happy.

Posted by: John at July 23, 2005 12:33 PM (Ua699)

3 >>>"Looks like the police got trigger happy." trigger happy is the only reasonable way to be when you're hunting suicide bombers. I agree with IM, the guy got darwined.

Posted by: Carlos at July 23, 2005 12:37 PM (8e/V4)

4 John: are we to assume then, that you would be happy to pat down suspected suicide bombers? good luck in your new career!

Posted by: dave at July 23, 2005 12:43 PM (DO6vD)

5 anyone who critizes police officers, you try and put youreself in their spot....as a police officer, in any city,country, and in any given situation of where youre life is in mortal danger, you have only a split second to make a life or death choice....do you not open fire and have the perp shoot you or set off a bomb he may/may not have under his heavy jacket and now youre dead and many others around the criminal, or do you shoot him, possibly kill/wound him and you and many others around you live another day....till you have been a police officer where many times the criminals you face are better armed than the cops, i suggest you keep youre mouths shut and look up some more info.....i speak from some indirect experiance as my father was a police officer in Essex County, NJ, for 36 years, now retired....he faced many dangerous, armed criminals for those 3+ decades and he knew it was either him going home/or in a meat wagon or the criminal was....who do you think wanted to live even more???

Posted by: THANOS35 at July 23, 2005 01:16 PM (9gFP6)

6 and another comment, once you run from ANY police officer, you immedialty become a suspect....if you are told to freeze/raise youre hands/drop to the floor and you run, youre life is in danger of being shot and its youre own fault....i dont give a flying fuck if the officers are plain clothesed or not, once you run, thats it, you have become a possible criminal and the police have the right to not take chances with you....how do they know if youre not an armed man willing to use a gun or whatever weapon youre carrying....and if youre not carrying a weapon such as a knife/gun/axe if you act or make any sudden moves the police have a right to defend themselves....who ever expects the police to just stand there and do nothing, are fucking wacked out of their minds and havent a fucking clue what they are talking about

Posted by: THANOS35 at July 23, 2005 01:21 PM (9gFP6)

7 Given that 1 out of 4 British muslims sympathize with the terrorist's cause, I wouldn't be surprised if this guy was a decoy sent to provoke the cops into "abusing" him in order to gain sympathy for muslims and make the government look bad. They probably didn't expect the cops to unload an entire clip into him, but it doesn't hurt their cause. They're wily.

Posted by: Carlos at July 23, 2005 02:19 PM (8e/V4)

8 Carlos: here here a conspiracy theory that works for me.

Posted by: Howie at July 23, 2005 03:17 PM (D3+20)

9 Here here Carlos that is a conspiracy theory I can live with.

Posted by: Howie at July 23, 2005 03:18 PM (D3+20)

10 The bombers have this guy's blood on their hands. Their mass execution of fifty-plus people two weeks ago and their failed attempt just recently was the indirect cause of this man's death.

Posted by: Young Bourbon Professional at July 23, 2005 03:21 PM (sstgd)

11 Bomp, Bomp, Bomp another one bites the dust.

Posted by: greyrooster at July 23, 2005 03:52 PM (CBNGy)

12 John: Come on man. The Brits have to get permission and have good reason just to carry guns on a arrest. If they didn't have prior knowledge of something wrong with this guy they wouldn't have been carrying guns. In London the police don't shoot minorities and muslims. The mayor hugs them and makes excuses for their behavior. Time to get real.

Posted by: greyrooster at July 23, 2005 04:31 PM (CBNGy)

13 Klanrooster you are an ignorant pig - the guy was GUNNED DOWN in COLD BLOOD by UNDERCOVERs. THANOS - Screw you with a fire hydrant, his blood is solely on the hands of the guy who PUMPED FIVE BULLETS INTO HIS HEAD.

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 23, 2005 06:50 PM (ScqM8)

14 God save the Queen, cause TOURISTS ARE MONEY.. and our figurehead is not what she seems!

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 23, 2005 07:46 PM (ScqM8)

15 DSM, are you saying that the Queen is actually...Elvis Presley??!! I've suspected as much ever since the tombstone misspelled his middle name! What better way for the KING to go into hiding than by becoming the QUEEN!

Posted by: The Dread Pundit Bluto at July 23, 2005 08:03 PM (RHG+K)

16 Just got back to Texas. I’m wasted. A couple of quick comments before bed. I. “LONDON — The man gunned down yesterday by police as he ran onto a London subway train had no connection to this week's terrorist attacks, police said today. They called the death "a tragedy." Police identified the man as Jean Charles de Menezes, 27, and said he was a Brazilian citizen. Residents in the Tulse Hill section of London, near where de Menezes was first spotted by undercover police, said they did not know him. "We are now satisfied that he was not connected with the incidents of Thursday 21st July 2005," the police said in a statement. "FOR SOMEBODY TO LOSE THEIR LIFE IN SUCH CIRCUMSTANCES IS A TRAGEDY AND ONE THAT THE METROPOLITAN POLICE SERVICE REGRETS." GREG- IN POLITICAL PARLANCE, THIS IS A TACIT ADMISSION THAT THE MAN WAS INNOCENT. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002398723_weblondon23.html GREG-A HISPANIC MAN, SEES 3 MEN WHO APPEAR TO BE HOOLIGANS RUNNING AT HIM WITH DRAWN GUN AND RUNS FOR HIS LIFE. THIS COULD HAVE BEEN CARLOS. “ NO GREG, I WOULD HAVE STOPPED WHEN THE POLICE IDENTIFIED THEMSEVES’ DID THEY IDENTIFY THEMSELVES? WHAT DOES, ‘HE WAS CHALLENGED’ MEAN? WITNESSES CLAIM THE MEN SAID ‘GET DOWN, GET DOWN’. NO ONE REPORTED THAT THE POLICE IDENTIFIED THEMSELVES. II. Hours after the shooting, Police Commissioner Ian Blair said the victim was "directly linked" to the investigations into attacks Thursday and July 7. In the latter, suicide bombings on trains and a bus killed 56 people, including four attackers. Police initially said the victim attracted police attention because he left a house that was under surveillance after Thursday's bungled bombings, in which devices planted on three subway trains and a double-decker bus failed to detonate properly. Stockwell is near Oval station, one of those targeted. "He was then followed by surveillance officers to the station. His clothing and his behavior at the station added to their suspicions," police said Friday. But Saturday, a police official said on condition of anonymity that Menezes was "not believed to be connected in any way to any of the London bombings." "FOR SOMEBODY TO LOSE THEIR LIFE IN SUCH CIRCUMSTANCES IS A TRAGEDY AND ONE THAT THE METROPOLITAN POLICE SERVICE REGRETS," A SPOKESMAN SAID ON CONDITION OF ANONYMITY, WHICH IS POLICE POLICY. However, police did not explain what went wrong or say whether Menezes had done anything illegal. Menezes' family was Roman Catholic. When asked if he had become Muslim in Britain, Agostino Ferreira Rosa, a policeman in Gonzaga said: "According to his family, he had nothing to do with Muslims or Islamism. He was Catholic." http://www.ajc.com/news/content/shared-gen/ap/Europe/Britain_Underground.html GREG-POLICE CHANGE THEIR STORY. LIARS! THIS WAS A GOOD CATHOLIC BOY, YBP AND BRAD. III. SAO PAULO, Brazil — Brazil's government demanded an explanation Saturday for the fatal police shooting of Brazilian citizen on a London subway car. London police initially said the man chased down and shot to death by plainclothes officers was tied to the recent terror bombings, but conceded Saturday that they no longer believed that was the case. http://www.ajc.com/news/content/shared-gen/ap/Latin_America_And_Caribbean/Brazil_Britain_Bombings.html GREG- WILL NO ONE JOIN ME IN CONDEMING THIS ACT? NO ONE? WHEN FIRST REPORTED MANY OF YOU TOOK COMFORT IN THIS MAN’S DEATH. MANY OF YOU REJOICED AT IT. AND YOU’RE CHRISTIANS? YOU ARE WORSHIPPING THE ANTI-CHRIST! BASTARDS! DSM- YOU”RE KICKING SOME SERIOUS ASS.

Posted by: greg at July 23, 2005 09:40 PM (/+dAV)

17 greg+DSM=idiots of a feather flock together proves true once again

Posted by: THANOS35 at July 23, 2005 09:46 PM (9gFP6)

18 had some already greg????...bet ya couldnt have just one, could ya???

Posted by: THANOS35 at July 23, 2005 10:01 PM (9gFP6)

19 now isn't that interesting. Greg believes that the London bombings were a Government plot, yet today posts this man was killed in cold blood. Tell us O'King of Bacofoil: if they were running PsyOps as you claimed the other day, Why didn't they link this man to the terrorist plot thus avoiding responsibility of killing an innocent man? Your opinions the other day was the bombers where innocent Muslim lambs set up by the man, now this guy can't be linked? So which is it Greg, you can't have it both ways.

Posted by: dave at July 23, 2005 10:02 PM (DO6vD)

20 not only is greg and idiot but it seems from his last post that maybe he is a child molester perhaps....delicious young boys to be had in Italy for only a few bucks.....nice, real nice there ole greggy boy

Posted by: THANOS35 at July 23, 2005 10:08 PM (9gFP6)

21 i mean, thats not even remotely funny...not in the slightest...talking about having sex with children is fucking sickening and makes greg a sub-human in my and many others eyes...i would hope, for youre sake greg, that you where either making a sick joke, or youre high/drunk when you posted that

Posted by: THANOS35 at July 23, 2005 10:11 PM (9gFP6)

22 >>>"Tell us O'King of Bacofoil: if they were running PsyOps as you claimed the other day, Why didn't they link this man to the terrorist plot thus avoiding responsibility of killing an innocent man?" greg, dave makes a good point. If the Brits are bombing themselves then why are they shooting people who appear to have been perfectly innocent? Is the illuminati really this incompetent? You can't have it both ways. They are either brilliant beyond our ken or they are apparently perfect morons.

Posted by: Carlos at July 23, 2005 10:11 PM (8e/V4)

23 Read Operation Northwoods or watch "Judge Dredd" for Godssakes - GUbbamint does shit to their own to consolidate power!

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 23, 2005 10:59 PM (ScqM8)

24 Greg, whaddafunk - kids?! That's immoral and illegal!

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 23, 2005 11:11 PM (ScqM8)

25 HAHA! did Down Syndrome Meme just reference the "Operation Northwoods" ? where did you read about that? "Flying Saucer Watch" magazine? Tardboy, that document has long been debunked please note the wording of 'holiday' (European) in the document, vs. "Vacation" the American wording. God, just when you thought asshats couldn't get any stupider, someone scraped the bottom of the barrel and scooped out DSM.

Posted by: dave at July 24, 2005 12:15 AM (DO6vD)

26 DSM says read Northwoods, because it is a real government document in the national security archives! It may be downloaded free here: http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/news/20010430/

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 24, 2005 12:30 AM (ScqM8)

27 DSM: I've scraped stuff off my boot with more intelligence than you. Try actually READING the whole document, then compare the wording in it's entirety. Please stop embarrassing yourself.

Posted by: dave at July 24, 2005 12:44 AM (DO6vD)

28 and Judge Dredd????....a comic book/movie????....oh yea, im gonna get my info on the goverment from them...oh yea......someone give DSM a nice long pull on a crack pipe. please

Posted by: THANOS35 at July 24, 2005 10:33 AM (9gFP6)

29 Man, I'm just glad shit like that isn't happening in NYC. It's bad enough that the cops here are being rude and busting through everyone's bags. Like that would keep anything from happening? Just think of how much explosives you could shove up your ass...Gayrooster will tell you that an eager ass can accommodate a huge payload. How easy is it to sneak into the subway tunnels in NYC? Very easy. What happened to that Brazilian guy? I wasn't there...but obviously he was scared shitless and was killed by some fuckers. There's no excuse for what they did: If someone runs, you contain them alive!!! Leg shot, arm shot...not a fucking 5 to the head!! What if he was a terrorist? Even more important to keep him alive and get information from him to prevent future attacks. What those limeys did was absolutely stupid and they know it. They have admitted it, so everyone in here should stop sounding like dumb fucks and stop defending their actions.

Posted by: osamabeenthere at July 24, 2005 12:22 PM (perrS)

30 By the way, there are lots of delicious young boys to be had in Italy for only a few bucks. The exchange rate kicks ass! Posted by greg at July 23, 2005 09:58 P I DID NOT MAKE THIS POST. THIS IS THE 3RD TIME IN 3 DAYS THAT SOMEONE HAS IMPERSONATED ME. DAVE ADMITTED TO IT THE FIRST TIME. RUSTY, THIS IS BULLSHIT! PLEASE FIND OUT WHO IS IMPERSONATING ME AND BAN THEM!

Posted by: greg at July 24, 2005 01:19 PM (/+dAV)

31 Contain suicidebombers alive.. what bull The guy panicked and was stupid enough to run, the police chased him through the entire station and only shot him when he got on a train full of people, imagine what could have happened if he had detonated a beltbomb.. It's a no brainer, they took no chances and wasted him right there. What I don't get is how could they could let a suspected terrorist get that far. Why didn't they stop him earlier if they were tailing him all the way from his house?? Something must have gone wrong.

Posted by: Ren at July 24, 2005 01:24 PM (Ey6Mw)

32 Carlos:'dave makes a good point. If the Brits are bombing themselves then why are they shooting people who appear to have been perfectly innocent? Carlos and Dave, These psyops are so compartmentalized, that the right hand and the left hand don't know what the left finger nail is doing. AGAIN, I DIDN'T MAKE THAT FUCKING PEDOPHILIC COMMENT. FUCK YOU, WHOEVER DID IT! NEXT TIME I WILL HIGHER A PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR AND AN ATTORNEY AND SUE THE SHIT OUT OF YOU FOR DEFAMATION AND SLANDER.!

Posted by: greg at July 24, 2005 01:29 PM (/+dAV)

33 Anyone deliberately posing as another poster will be flushed on the first offense.

Posted by: The Dread Pundit Bluto at July 24, 2005 01:36 PM (RHG+K)

34 BLUTO, THANK YOU. PLEASE FIND THE IP ADDRESS OF THE PERSON WHO POSTED: By the way, there are lots of delicious young boys to be had in Italy for only a few bucks. The exchange rate kicks ass! Posted by greg at July 23, 2005 09:58 P AND BAN THE SON OF A BITCH.

Posted by: greg at July 24, 2005 01:47 PM (/+dAV)

35 Ok, lets start with the premise that what the police here did was wrong, and that they should certainly not have shot this man. Now please explain what the police should do in future situations to: A) Avoid shooting anyone who is suspected of carrying a bomb, jumps a turnstile at a security checkpoint, and runs onto a subway train. B) Avoid having a real bomber who has a bomb, jumps a turnstile, and runs onto a train from detonating said bomb and killing dozens or hundreds of civilians. C) Avoid having a bomber, once ordered to the ground by police, wait and set off his bomb to take out the police trying to peacably subdue him. Somehow I can't picture avoiding all of A, B, and C; but maybe I'm not as clever as the people who are certain the police got this wrong. Please clarify the appropriate responses to avoid all 3 of these situations. Gekkobear

Posted by: Gekkobear at July 24, 2005 02:18 PM (XWr9N)

36 Thing is, what is there to argue about? A non-terrorist was killed, and the police have admitted to screwing up. End of story & hope it doesn't happen again. The only pathetic thing is anyone in here without remorse who diss the guy for running...I bet if the guy was related to you, you'd turn your tune real fast. Don't be a bunch of fucking dicks. Wasting a civilian non-terrorist who was obviously scared or confused is no "Darwin": it's a tragedy.

Posted by: osamabeenthere at July 24, 2005 05:21 PM (perrS)

37 Greg: first: I did not impersonate you, I told you I had made a mistake, as my message was clearly addressed TO you, and contained no speech that claimed to be from you, negative or otherwise. second: You'll hire a attorney and a private investigator over comments that were posted in the name 'Greg' are you the only Greg in the world? did it contain material that was unique to you, and only you were personally defamed? give me a break. Shouldn't you and your Attorney be filing under the FOIA's regarding roswell? I'll also give you a clue: without a subpoena no one is under obligation to fork over logs, IP or web to You, your Attorney, Private investigator or otherwise.

Posted by: dave at July 24, 2005 06:24 PM (DO6vD)

38 Greg: Quit being a liberal crybaby and begging for Rusty and Company to interfer for you. You sissy. Many of us has had others to the same to us. Me, I just tell the son of a bitch about his low class whoreing mother. But crying seems to be the path you always take. Friggin baby. It was probably osamabeenthere. He wants to be white so much he would even pretend to be white sissy like you.

Posted by: greyrooster at July 24, 2005 07:12 PM (CBNGy)

39 Yeah, 'hired'. So, I was pissed and my circadian rythm is off by 7 hours. Rooster, Shut up. You've asked for me and others to be banned on many, many occasions. Dave, I'm glad to hear it wasn't you. I take the matter very seriously and I will attempt to determine the identity of the offender. And yes, the slander was obviously directed at me as it references my trip to Italy. A suit may push the envelope in that I am a semi-anonymous entity on this blog. But it is also reasonable to assume that my actual identity can be easily determined. I don't really blog anonymously because I have given so many details about myself that anyone with half a brain could figure out who I am with a little research. I'm prepared to push the envelope.

Posted by: greg at July 24, 2005 08:37 PM (/+dAV)

40 Greg, some fucknut spoofed me about indecent acts, too. Bunch of chickenwads. I think it was Rooster.

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 24, 2005 08:48 PM (ScqM8)

41 Greg...hope you find the imposter. Gayrooster, I'm white as fuckin' wonder bread, cracker-jack. Listen, just because you like being rammed by black cock doesn't mean you have to be mean to me every time I post.

Posted by: osamabeenthere at July 24, 2005 09:16 PM (perrS)

42 Rooster's just pissed all the time 'cause he caught his daughters getting long-stroked by some Mississippi Black Snake.

Posted by: greg at July 24, 2005 09:28 PM (/+dAV)

43 If someone in my family was incoherent mentally ill or just beyond stupid while endangering others, IÂ’d definitely not blame the police for that. The way this guy wasted his life.. I have no pity. Let's face it, what the guy did was stupid, it cost him his life and that's the big tragedy. Brazil was shocked and perplexed, and expected a full explanation from the UK authorities. UK authorities should demand an full explanation from Brazil to why one of their countrymen was running away from the law on to a subway full of people, wearing a winter jacket in middle summer during a serious crisis and manhunt for terrorist out to bomb London. The police f'ed up because they did not stop him earlier, the guy FUBAR, they had to shot him. How else do you safely disarm and apprehend a suspected belt bomber who is not complying? Any suggestions?

Posted by: Ren at July 24, 2005 09:52 PM (Ey6Mw)

44 Rooster! Grunt, grunt!

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 24, 2005 11:38 PM (ScqM8)

45 osamabeenthere sounds like one of those idiots who follow Al Sharpton around New York screaming remember Towanna Brawley. Yea, I can see it now osamaneverbeenanywherebutharlem, Al Sharpton and Jessie Jackson. Nuts of of feather run together. Again Greg the traitor who claims to be a good catholic returns to his roots. Just because his wife (ex wifes) and mother preferred black snakes to white he thinks others would sink as low as his family. Maybe thats why his 1st two wifes left him. Wasn't much change switching from a white nigger to a black one.

Posted by: greyrooster at July 25, 2005 02:28 AM (CBNGy)

46 Klanooster, what is that THING wriggling out of your ass??

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 25, 2005 02:36 AM (ScqM8)

47 Man, this is getting too funny. Oh, Gayrooster: that's TOO funny, not TO funny. Anyway, are you still confused about my race? I figured if you hate me I HAD to be of color, right? Hahaha. I can see your future hell now: being stuck in a hot little room with 20 ebonics teachers and 400 boom-boxes blasting NWA...for eternity. Ren, how about a few leg shots or arm shots before blowing someone's nose out the back of their head? Fact is, if the police had their shit together they never would have let him enter that subway station!!

Posted by: osamabeenthere at July 25, 2005 10:08 AM (perrS)

48 "Ren, how about a few leg shots or arm shots before blowing someone's nose out the back of their head?" While you're at it, Wyatt Earp, why not shoot the detonator out of his hand? The point is to kill the suspected suicide bomber before he can detonate his device so that bystanders don't get blown up. That's the reason for the head shot.

Posted by: The Dread Pundit Bluto at July 25, 2005 11:18 AM (RHG+K)

49 Exactly, there is no other way "There's no point in shooting at somebody's chest because that's where the bomb is likely to be," "There's no point in shooting anywhere else because if they fall down they detonate it. It is drawn on the experience from other countries including Sri Lanka When he was challenged by police in the Tube station, he fled, reportedly leaping the ticket barrier. Over the past year there have been an increased number of immigration checks at Tube stations - a policy widely reported in Brazilian papers in London. BBC home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said the type of visa Mr Menezes had been given would normally be valid for one-and-a-half to two years. Mr Menezes had not renewed the visa, adding: "That wouldn't explain why he was shot, but it might provide an explanation as to why he ran away if - that is indeed what he did do.BBC home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said the type of visa Mr Menezes had been given would normally be valid for one-and-a-half to two years. He said Mr Menezes had not renewed the visa, adding: "That wouldn't explain why he was shot, but it might provide an explanation as to why he ran away if - that is indeed what he did do. Source: BBC

Posted by: Ren at July 25, 2005 12:37 PM (Ey6Mw)

50 Ren, I knew I remembered reading the man described as an "illegal immigrant" but couldn't find a citation for it later. Do you have a link?

Posted by: The Dread Pundit Bluto at July 25, 2005 04:20 PM (RHG+K)

51 Sure thing, here you go: bbcnews - Police shot Brazilian eight times

Posted by: Ren at July 25, 2005 05:38 PM (Ey6Mw)

52 Man, you guys are blatantly ignoring the fucking fact that if they were following him, they NEVER SHOULD HAVE ALLOWED HIM INTO THE STATION!! Oh yeah, and since when does anyone have to shoot someone in the head 7 times? Was there anything left? Those fuckers should be discharged from the police force. Or would you guys like me to "suspect" you of being a suicide bomber and just waste you guys before asking you questions?

Posted by: osamabeenthere at July 25, 2005 06:20 PM (perrS)

53 osama, He ran into the station. He ran down the stairs and jumped the turnstile. Then he ran onto a carriage, and, by one eyewitness account grabbed another passenger. You seem to be having trouble understanding the concept that this guy was fleeing, perhaps because his visa had expired. I think you're just disappointed that the last batch of bombs fizzled.

Posted by: The Dread Pundit Bluto at July 25, 2005 06:34 PM (RHG+K)

54 Man, you guys are blatantly ignoring the fucking fact that if they were following him, they NEVER SHOULD HAVE ALLOWED HIM INTO THE STATION!! No shit Sherlock I was the first one to mention that. Speaking hypotetically, the guy probably was not considered dangerous and they only wanted to ask him about the activity in the house they were watching, that was until he jolted the police and started to run like crazy down the tube.. police had their orders, THANOS35 clearly explained why the police had to act the way they did. Had they stopped him outside the subway station it's possible he'd not be foolish enough to run away and he'd still be alive today. But the guy wasn't considered a threat and the kind of hindsight we're blessed to have on this right now they did not have back then..

Posted by: Ren at July 26, 2005 06:01 AM (Ey6Mw)

55 If the police weren't drinking so much jolt soda pop and rotting away their yellow rat's teeth, maybe they would have been able to deal with the problem without making sure the guy had a closed casket funeral. Bluto, the only thing that fizzled in here was that fart of a post you just laid on us all. So let's just start shooting anyone who runs from now on, ok? That way we can always be sure no one....er...dies in subways anymore. Pblththt. Shiiiiiiiiiiiit. When I think of how many times I've run into a subway in NYC, I'm lucky to be alive for not living in London! Still haven't been searched by NY's finest yet.

Posted by: osamabeenthere at July 27, 2005 04:24 PM (5NVVZ)

56 Maybe we will get lucky and osamaneverbeenthere will meet NYC's finest.

Posted by: greyrooster at July 28, 2005 03:16 AM (CBNGy)

57 Looks like someone found out about Greg the traitor and the little boys. He sure takes it personal. Like guilty people do. Not only a traitor but a pedophile. Knew it the whole time. And Greg we have already figured who you are. A traitorous pedophile. They say animals like you cannot be helped. Why don't you do one good thing in your lousy sick life and end it for the good of all? You can do it sicko. Just find a tall building and think of young boys on your way down. Filthy sick bastard.

Posted by: greyrooster at July 28, 2005 03:28 AM (CBNGy)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

As more information is reported, the situation just gets worse.

From the AP:

The attacks appeared well coordinated. Two car bombs, possibly by suicide attackers, went off simultaneously at 1:15 a.m. just more than 2 miles apart. A third bomb, believed hidden in a sack, detonated around the same time near a beachside walkway where tourists often stroll at night.

A total of 83 people were confirmed dead, said Dr. Saeed Abdel Fattah, manager of the Sharm el-Sheik International Hospital where the victims were taken. Among the dead were two Britons, two Germans and an Italian, he added, and Czech officials said one Czech tourist was also killed. Rescue workers were still searching for victims at some attack scenes.

Several hours after the attacks, a group claiming ties to al-Qaida claimed responsibility for the explosion on an Islamic web site. The group, the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, al-Qaida, in Syria and Egypt, was one of two extremist groups that also claimed responsibility for October bombings at the Egyptian resorts of Taba and Ras Shitan that killed 34. The group also claimed responsbility for a Cairo bombing in late April.

Posted by: Mike Pechar at 10:54 AM | Comments (12) | Add Comment
Post contains 208 words, total size 2 kb.

Animal researchers have recently described the Canine Play Bow, which is recognized not only by domesticated dogs but also wild canine species such as foxes and wolves. It seems to be a way for a dog to say, "Let's play! We'll romp and nip...even sniff butts!"

Canine Play Bow more...

Posted by: Bluto at 10:47 PM | Comments (41) | Add Comment
Post contains 74 words, total size 1 kb.

It's breaking news and I've gotten some indications that it's worse than described as follows.

From The Courier-Mail:

THIRTY people died and about 100 more were wounded when four car bombs rocked the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh and hotels at nearby Naama Bay today.

A police source said four car bombs appeared to have exploded - one near the Sharm el-Sheikh bazaar, and three in Naama Bay, at a tourist bazaar, the Ghazala Hotel and the Moevenpick Hotel.

Sources said the explosions had killed up to 30 people and wounded about 100 others.

By the way, on a somewhat related issue, am I the only person that's noticed that when Rusty leaves town, London gets bombed?

[Update 2230 EDT]

From Aljazeera.com:

A series of explosions hit the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm al-Sheikh early Saturday, killing at least 49 people and wounding 150 others, witnesses and police said.

Police officials in Sharm el-Sheik said there may have been as many as seven blasts; three in Naama Bay, which is packed with hotels, and four in the nearby Old Market area.

"Many of the injuries are very serious and they are in critical condition," said one doctor at Sharm el-Sheikh International Hospital.

Posted by: Mike Pechar at 08:44 PM | Comments (23) | Add Comment
Post contains 240 words, total size 2 kb.

***Note: I moved this down the page because I'm too tired to keep up with developments. Mike, on the other hand, has got it goin on. Go Mike go!

(title hat tip to Aaron)

Nothing to see here, just another isolated incident.

CAIRO, Egypt — As many as seven explosions, including at least four car bombs, struck the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheik early Saturday, hitting several hotels packed with foreign and Egyptian tourists and killing at least 36 people, witnesses and police said.

Saturday's explosions at 1:15 a.m. shook windows more than five miles away. Smoke and fire rose from Naama Bay, a main strip of beach hotels in the desert city popular with Israeli and European tourists, witnesses said.

At least four car bombs were used in the attacks, said a security official in the operations control room in Cairo monitoring the crisis. One went off in the driveway of the Ghazala Gardens hotel, a 176-room four-star resort on the main strip of hotels in Naama Bay, the official said.

Let's not be quick to judge, this could very well be the work of the CIA. greg will be happy to fill us in on the details, I'm sure.

***Update: Not to offend our English friends, but does anyone else notice the difference in coverage between this isolated incident and yesterday's isolated incident, or the isolated incident 2 weeks ago?

updated Fox website coverage (the channel is running this story as a crawl on the bottom of the screen, with a short mention every half hour)

Sharm el-Sheik, abutting the Red Sea on the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, is a popular vacation spot for Europeans — including Britons — and Israelis.

Notice that the resort was popular with Israelis.

Posted by: Vinnie at 08:42 PM | Comments (11) | Add Comment
Post contains 304 words, total size 2 kb.

Man, that boy sure knows how to have fun.

Posted by: Vinnie at 07:58 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
Post contains 17 words, total size 1 kb.

What is it with Hollywood and their incessant hatred of America?

US News & World Report—David Koepp, who wrote the screenplay for War of the Worlds, says the Martian attackers in the film represent the American military, while the Americans being slaughtered at random represent Iraqi civilians. I see it differently. I think the Martians symbolize normal Americans, while those being attacked are the numbskulls who run Hollywood. Perhaps the normals went a bit too far in this easy-to-understand allegory, but think of the provocation. [. . .].

American's are making this guy rich and he slams our guys like this? I like what John Leo said, "numbskulls..."

Cross-posted at OpinionBug.com

Posted by: OpinionBug at 01:38 PM | Comments (17) | Add Comment
Post contains 117 words, total size 1 kb.

this just in.

You're receiving this email either because you have contributed to the Carnival of Liberty or supported it in some fashion in the past four weeks.

The Carnival is going very well, lots of articles, good readership (about 1200 folks this week alone) and lots of links from other blogs. Thank you for all of your support and contributions.

Carnival of Liberty #4 is coming soon. We'd love to have your contributions and support. The link announcing the Carnival is available here:

Thanks,

Eric

http://grumbles.mu.nu/

http://liberty.quincysblog.com/

Posted by: Howie at 01:38 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 95 words, total size 1 kb.

Building on Suzanne's post below and Michelle's observations here, let me tell you what happened on our trip coming to sunny California. My entire family was singled out for security pat down. Twice.

The geniuses at the TSA decided that they had to search my six year old daughter, my three year old son, and my one year old infant. You know, cause terrorists could be anybody.

Just before we boarded plane number 3 (yeah, it took 4 planes to get here) they pulled us off the boarding line to pat us down again. I'm talking the full search on us all, including tearing apart our diaper bag, swabbing our little portable DVD player and Barbie Princess and the Pauper video for bomb residue, and running the metal detector over our one-year old.

I'm thinking it was the flip-flops I was wearing. Or maybe the In-'n-Out Burger tee-shirt. Nothing says terrorist more than that.

Alright, I'm off to the beach. Let's hope the Baywatch lifeguards don't take my pasty-white skin as a tell-tale sign of potential terrorist. And, no, that bulge in my bathing suit is not bomb. I'm just happy to see you.

Posted by: Rusty at 01:14 PM | Comments (36) | Add Comment
Post contains 212 words, total size 1 kb.

What does random mean, anyway?

NEW YORK -- Alarmed by a new round of mass transit attacks in London, police in New York began random searches of bags and packages brought into the city's vast subway system.

The inspections started on a small scale Thursday in Manhattan and were expanded during Friday morning's rush hour _ a development welcomed by some commuters.

"I'm not against it," Ian Compton, 35, a computer consultant, said at Grand Central Terminal in midtown Manhattan. "I think any measures for safety that aren't terribly intrusive are worth doing."

Officers, some with bomb-sniffing dogs, were stopping people carrying bags as they entered subways, commuter trains, buses and ferries at various points in the city, police said. Anyone who refuses a search will be turned away, and those caught carrying drugs or other contraband could be arrested.

One man was arrested during Thursday evening rush hour at the Brentwood Long Island Rail Road station after police became suspicious, stopped his van and allegedly found a machete and other weapons. Gilbert Hernandez, 34, had been convicted of possessing a pipe bomb in 1996, police said.

Good for them...now do you think they'll start getting the guys who are really a threat to our society?

Michelle Malkin thinks the measures are laughable:

WHAT'S the point? In the wake of the latest terrorist attacks in London, Mayor Bloomberg and the NYPD announced plans to conduct random searches of packages and backpacks carried by subway riders.

"Random," of course, is a synonym for blind. And we all know what it means when you put blind bureaucrats in charge of homeland security: Grannies and toddlers, prepare to be on heightened grope alert.

Reassuring al Qaeda operatives everywhere, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly pledged that his officers would not engage in "racial profiling." He also emphasized that passengers would be free to "turn around and leave" instead of consenting to a search.
Combined with New York City's inane sanctuary policy, which provides safe haven for illegal aliens, these new security-in-name-only measures prove that political correctness still trumps public safety.

A few weeks ago, I noted the vapidity of the trite phrase "heightened alert." New York's response yesterday underscores the point. It is madness to pretend that no profile exists of possible Islamist bomb plotters. It is reckless to prevent law-enforcement authorities from taking obvious national-security profiling factors (racial, ethnic, religious, nationality, behavioral or otherwise) into account. And it is deadly to refuse to enforce immigration laws in a manner that results in, yes, profiling.

"Look for things that are unusual," Commissioner Kelly implored. "Look at things through the prism of 9/11." Uh-huh. But don't dare note the obvious...

Further proof that The right people aren't getting screened:

Last October, Ann Coulter was pied by two idiots who weren't bold enough or smart enough to combat her verbally. I'm sure you've all heard about them. However, their inanity is not my reason for bringing up Coulter---rather, that she was 2.5 hours late for her speech because of airport security gone awry:

Coulter arrived two and a half hours late due to airplane delays and incorporated her experience into the speech. She said she thinks airport security needs to make changes in who they search and not be afraid to racially profile.

She said she was in a special line to be further searched for explosives and weapons.

"I realized the only people that need to be searched were the people doing the searching," Coulter said.

She said all of the people being searched were blonde women.

As a blonde woman, I can attest to this fact. When I flew back to college after Thanksgiving break in 2001, I was thoroughly patted down by a 50 year old man who could barely speak English. And yet, while on my layover in Chicago, four Middle Eastern men in full Muslim garb checked into my flight right ahead of me without any additional questioning. This was a little over two months after 9/11, kids.

Let me also say that there were many people working at the TSA counters looked really suspicious... and I think that given the recent firing of someone sympathetic to the Taliban, I think Coulter's onto something. I'd be interested to see what kind of screening process the screeners are subjected to before we put our safety in their hands.

Good luck, NYC...I just hope this will make a difference.

As Malkin says:

"Political correctness is the handmaiden of terrorism."

Posted by: Suzanne at 12:28 PM | Comments (20) | Add Comment
Post contains 763 words, total size 5 kb.

Most people read only a couple of paragraphs deep into news stories; some only read the lead before moving on. That's why journalists tend to pack so much information into the first paragraph of a breaking story. For example, this is the lead for the tube shooting story at MSNBC: "Hours after chasing down and shooting to death one man on the subway..."

So how does al-Jazeera serve their Arab audience? Like this [emphasis added]:

Police have confirmed that they shot dead a man in an underground train station in south London.

The man was shot apparently while trying to board a train on Friday morning at Stockwell station in south London.

This isn't just a matter of style, this is how propaganda is done.

Cross-posted at The Dread Pundit Bluto.

Posted by: Bluto at 12:09 PM | Comments (13) | Add Comment
Post contains 177 words, total size 1 kb.

Get out the duct tape, kids...

And this guy lives in London?!

LONDON (Reuters) - Militant Islamists will continue to attack Britain until the government pulls its troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan, one of the country's most outspoken Islamic clerics said on Friday.

Speaking 15 days after bombers killed over 50 people in London and a day after a series of failed attacks on the city's transport network, Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammed said the British capital should expect more violence.

"What happened yesterday confirmed that as long as the cause and the root problem is still there ... we will see the same effect we saw on July 7," Bakri said.

I love how he takes adavantage of a FAILED bombing to threaten that similiar incidents will occur until the Brits pull out of Iraq.

Bakri, a Syrian-born cleric who has been vilified in Britain since 2001 when he praised the September 11 hijackers, said he did not believe the bombings and attempted attacks on London were carried out by British Muslims.

He condemned the killing of all innocent civilians but described attacks on British and U.S. troops in Muslim countries as "pro-life" and justified.

He's been vilified? Awww. I feel so sorry for him. I mean, he only justified mass murder while living in the place where the mass murder occured. It's kind of like walking into a black church and justifying the KKK.

In an interview with Reuters, Bakri described Osama bin Laden, leader of the radical Islamist network al Qaeda, as "a sincere man who fights against evil forces."

Bakri said he would like Britain to become an Islamic state but feared he would be deported before his dream was realized.

"I would like to see the Islamic flag fly, not only over number 10 Downing Street, but over the whole world," he said.

That is a dare, my friends. Deportation? You'd better believe it. If Tony Blair has an ounce of courage, he'll deport this guy for treason. Let him put his money where his mouth is right alongside his terrorist homies in the Middle East.

Posted by: Suzanne at 11:50 AM | Comments (14) | Add Comment
Post contains 365 words, total size 2 kb.

From the Dayton Daily News:

City officials want the 250-pound, 6 1/2-foot, American flag-toting beaver back. They are offering a $500 reward for information leading to its recovery.

Hansley said tracking devices will be put in at least some of the remaining beavers, which includes Vincent Van Beaver, To Be or Not to Be Beaver, Golfing Beaver, Beaver Beaver, Disco Beaver and Pop Goes the Beaver.

My only thoughts are that $500 is a pricey beaver and probably worthy of a tracking device.

Posted by: Mike Pechar at 10:20 AM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
Post contains 126 words, total size 1 kb.