I don't usually listen to Rush Limbaugh. Nothing against Rush, but the local station runs his show from 1 to 3 in the afternoon, and I'm usually doing other things. But today I happened to be driving down to Target to get some new golf spikes, the better to tread on the faces of the proletariat like a good capitalist pig.

Roger Hedgecock was filling in for Rush and he said something so outrageous that I thought he must be joking. Hedgecock claimed that the problems with the insulating foam on the Space Shuttles only cropped up after Freon was replaced with other materials due to environmental concerns. It doesn't get much press, but apparently Hedgecock was right.

From Richard Bennett's Mossback Culture (February 2, 2003):

So concerns about the effects of freon on the ozone layer lead directly to the crash of the Shuttle, apparently. You'd think NASA would be able to get some kind of a waiver on this stuff.

As recently as last September, a retired engineering manager for Lockheed Martin, the contractor that assembles the tanks, told a conference in New Orleans that developing a new foam to meet environmental standards had "been much more difficult than anticipated."
The retired Lockheed engineer, who helped design the thermal protection system, said the switch from a foam based on Freon — also known as CFC-11 — has "resulted in unanticipated program impacts, such as foam loss during flight."

NASA officially blames foam loss during flight on hand spraying techniques that leave voids in the foam in this document, but this News Max story lays the blame squarely on the Freon substitute:

As recently as last month, NASA had been warned that foam insulation on the space shuttle's external fuel tank could sheer off as it did in the 2003 Columbia disaster - a problem that has plagued space shuttle flights since NASA switched to a non-Freon-based type of foam insulation to comply with Clinton administration Environmental Protection Agency regulations.

Cross-posted at The Dread Pundit Bluto

Posted by: Bluto at 04:57 PM | Comments (10) | Add Comment
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It was bound to happen sooner or later - finally, it appears that we are begining to see a few rays of truth about Islamic terrorism appear on the printed pages of the mainstream media, and albeit it's an opinion piece, nonetheless, it's a good one and damned timely.

So let's get right to the point:

Islam is linked from the beginning with the practice of divinely sanctioned warfare and lethal injunctions against apostates and unbelievers. Islam experienced no period of wandering and exclusion; from its inception, Islam formed a unitary state bent on military conquest.

(...) Most commentators argue that Islamic terrorism is a fanatical perversion of Islam which deviates from its true teachings. They call for a Western-style modernization of the Muslim world, hoping thereby that radical Islam will be tamed.

(...) This analysis misses the point. The nature of the terrorist threat is unambiguously Islamic and is not so much a deviation from Muslim tradition as an appeal to it.

(...) the oft-quoted remark that Islam is a religion of peace is false. It is historically illiterate to claim that war is foreign to Islam and it is theologically uninformed to argue that jihad is merely a personal inner struggle with no external military correlate.

(...) The Prophet died a successful military leader who created a single Islamic polity that expanded - through warfare - all over the known world. The caliphate combined the double logic of a religious community and an imperial state.

(...) While the Koran enjoins that there shall be "no compulsion in religion," Islam still regards it as a holy duty to extend militarily the borders of the House of Islam against the demonic world of unbelievers.

(...) When extremists say they are killing in the name of Islam, they are in part appealing to Islamic traditions of long standing.

(...) Al Qaeda sympathizers avidly read European fascist literature and pursue religious ends via atheist methods. Recruits to the cause are not the excluded uneducated poor, they are intellectuals with a radical critique of Western society and its impact on Islam.

(...) there can be no accommodation with an ideology that seeks to fashion the whole world in its own image. The essentially Islamic nature of this terror demands nothing less than a reformation in the name of an alternative Islam.

Read the entire article, then sit back and ask yourself, "isn't time to lock and load?

Cross posted by Hyscience

Hat tip - Mark In Mexico

TAGS: Islam, Muslim, terrorism, Al Qaeda

Posted by: Richard@hyscience at 03:34 PM | Comments (10) | Add Comment
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As the MSM continues to be focused on Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Middle East, the Brussels-based International Crisis Group (ICG) has warned that the West should begin paying more attention to Somalia because this East African country, torn apart by rival warlords and tribal gangs, provides a logistic center for al-Qaeda.

The warning was contained in a recently published research report entitled "Counter-terrorism in Somalia, Are we loosing hearts and minds?", edited by Suliman Baldo, the ICG's Africa programme director:

"Away from the spotlight, a quiet, dirty conflict is being waged in Somalia." writes Baldo in the introduction. "In the rubble-strewn streets of the ruined capital of this state without a government, Mogadishu, al-Qaeda operatives, jihad extremists, Ethiopian security services and Western-backed counter-terrorism networks are engaged in a shadowy and complex contest waged by intimidation, abduction and assassination." The United States "has had some success but now risks evoking a backlash." It is not surprising: after the huge failure of the international peace efforts carried out between 1992-1995, Somalia still finds itself in total chaos, despite an October 2004 agreement reached to establish a transitional federal government.

You may recall that on Dec. 12, 1992, about five weeks before the expiration of his term as President of the United States, George H.W. Bush launched Operation Restore Hope and committed the Clinton Administration and 26.000 American troops to a humanitarian effort in Somalia. Twenty other nations committed 13,000 troops to provide both food supplies and security to war-torn Somalia. Gen. Mohammed Farah Aideed, whose rebels controlled most of the beleaguered nation, welcomed the relief effort, believing he would be able to successfully exploit the Americans into helping him defeat his arch rival, the al Qaeda-backed warlord Ali Mahdi Mohammed who controlled the city of Mogadishu. When Clinton took office, his Defense Secretary, former Wisconsin Congressman Les Aspin, cut the UNOSOM-2 force to 4,000 regular Army troops(3000 of which were support troops, NOT combat troops) and 400 Army Rangers. Earlier, in September, 1993 Gen. Colin Powell, Bush-41's carryover Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, asked Aspin to let him beef up the weakened American forces in Somalia with tanks and armored vehicles.

Aspin declined Powell's request, and we all know what followed. There was no military response to the resulting humiliation, and there was no resolve to see the new mission goals to fruition. The only remaining superpower in the world withdrew from Mogadishu with a whimper, and left like a beat dog. Hopefully, we have since learned the lessons and repercussions of such a 'cut and run' decision - now, we have the potential of having to go back and finish the job Clinton ran from. Our friends on the left calling for a hasty retreat from Iraq should heed well the lessons of Somalia, and strongly consider what's happening now in Somalia, and it's contribution to worldwide terrorism. more...

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Yeah I had a few minutes to give to the blog today so here goes.

Is or was Air America supported by dollars intended to feed the hungry? Michelle Malkin has more. Hey maybe weÂ’ll make Air America again.

Also see MichelleÂ’s post on the leftover bombs from the 7/7 terrorists.

Is terrorism a perversion of Islam? Mark in Mexico has more. Mark has tracked back to the Jawa several times before. Reciprocation is called for here.

Here is another story from Mark, about an Iraqi boy who learned first hand about America. He does not want to go home. LetÂ’s all wish him a safe and happy return home and an invite back.

Also for those of you who have noticed IÂ’ve been pretty busy and unable to blog much. But the good news is. I got that adapter and at least now I have a keyboard I can live with. Yep no more chicklets for me.

If you guys would like to annoy a terrorist supporter. Check this guy out, on this thread. IÂ’ll post a partial quote below the break. Spoofer?? I'm not sure but the email address certainly sucks. There are also several other candidates to annoy on this thread. As for his wish against the south and great midwest. Lick me freedomkiller.

more...

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Captain's Quarters writes in his "Further Collapse Of AQ Bombing Cell," that British investigators have now added nine more people to the list of those arrested after the botched bombings of July 21, where all four bombs failed to detonate properly and left a treasure trove of evidence for police. Police confirm that they have arrested 20 suspects, including one of the erstwhile bombers.

As offered by Captain Ed in his post, the investigation has occured with great speed and effectiveness. However, the deeper investigators delve into the nests of the terrorist underground the deeper and wider the pit appears and the more we realize just how far amuck a captured religion has departed from reality. It's now obvious that the London cell(s) are extensive and that participants, collaborators, and supporters are literally spread out across the globe, with suspects having fanned out beyond Britain to Morocco, Pakistan, Zambia, with connections to all the way to Oregon in the U.S, Egypt, and elsewhere. This as India is reporting that terror camps are being revived in Pakistan. And this is only a small part of an incredible series of connections that have continued to exist since prior to August 2004 between the remote and harsh border regions between Pakistan and Afghanistan, the burning land of Iraq, and Europe, and particular France, Spain, Italy, and Great Britain. Networks such as these don't collapse over a few weeks of investigations and arrests of low level ground troops that are expendible - after all, that's their job, to expend themselves while killing as many other people as possible.

And while terrorists have been 'nesting' all over Britain and the rest of Europe, the EU is just now waking up to the idea that gee, they ought to stop the funding of terrorists!

For a possible remedy for all of this madness, and an approach to truly collapsing al-Qaeda and the Islamic terrorist-conducted war on civilization, Efraim Halevi's "Rules Of Conflict For A World War" are begining to make more sense:

Efraim Halevi (Jerusalem Post) The multiple, simultaneous explosions that took place on the London transportation system were the work of perpetrators who had an operational capacity of considerable scope. There was careful planning, intelligence gathering, and a sophisticated choice of timing as well as near-perfect execution. We are faced with a deadly and determined adversary who will stop at nothing and will persevere as long as he exists as a fighting terrorist force. We are in the throes of a world war, raging over the entire globe. We are in for the long haul and we must brace ourselves for more that will follow.

The executives must be empowered to act resolutely and to take every measure necessary to protect the citizens of their country and to carry the combat into whatever territory the perpetrators and their temporal and spiritual leaders are inhabiting. The rules of combat must be rapidly adjusted and international law must be rewritten to permit civilization to defend itself. There is no doubt that international cooperation is essential. Yet this cannot replace the requirement that each and every country effectively declare itself at war with international Islamist terror and recruit the public to involve itself actively in the battle.

Cross posted by Hyscience

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***Note, this poll is non-binding. It's up to the good Dr. as to what he wishes to do with his own blog. That being said, however, it's become rather obvious that someone has become quite the pest.

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The man arrested for his involvement in the "Millenium Plot" has been sentenced today for a whopping 22 years. Twenty-two years?

SEATTLE (AP) — An Algerian [Ahmed Ressam] who plotted to bomb the Los Angeles airport on the eve of the millennium was sentenced to 22 years in prison Wednesday by a judge who used the opportunity to sternly criticize the Bush administration's anti-terrorism tactics.

"We did not need to use a secret military tribunal, detain the defendant indefinitely as an enemy combatant or deny the defendant the right to counsel," U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour said. "The message to the world from today's sentencing is that our courts have not abandoned our commitment to the ideals that set our nation apart."

Wrong! A man who attempted to kill hundreds of Americans gets sentenced to twenty-two years in prison is an outrage. Not only was this case blown in terms of an inadequate sentence, a connected case in England and one in Germany will not be able to proceed without the testimony afforded. If this had been a military tribunal, there may have been a way to provide testimony to these other two cases.

When taken into context of another case which wrapped up this past month, that of Islamic cleric al-Timimi out of Virginia was sentenced to life in prison for encouraging jihadis to fight U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan, this is a slap on the wrist. Ressam intended on setting off explosives, found in his trunk by an alert Border Patrol agent, at LAX which again would have killed hundreds of U.S. citizens. This plot is believed to be connected to Al Qaida, so now we've sentenced an Al Qaida henchman who has tried to kill U.S. citizens to 22 years in prison. Good job.

In other terrorism-related jurisprudence, a man believed to be connected to the brutal killing and decapitation of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl was found and arrested in Pakistan.

Cross-posted at ITB

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With the majority of precincts reporting, San Diegans voted overwhelmingly yesterday to transfer the historic Mount Soledad cross site to the federal government. The site contains a 43-foot concrete cross that has been at the center of the controversy since a 1989 lawsuit.

The city-owned land has long been recognized locally as a war memorial. Surrounding the cross are more than 1,600 plaques commemorating military veterans who have participated in the defense of America. By attaching an amendment to a military appropriations bill last November, area congressmen Duncan Hunter and Randy "Duke" Cunningham provided a way where a federal transfer of the site could occur, provided the city would allow such a move. The vote on Tuesday (July 26) -- in which more than 75 percent of voters chose to transfer the property to the federal government as a national war memorial -- sent a clear message that the public supports the move.

In 1989 attorney James McElroy, representing atheist Philip Paulson, sued the City of San Diego for maintaining a religious symbol on public property. McElroy made it clear before yesterday's vote that he intends to continue challenging the case in court. "This will be resolved in the courtroom where it deserves to be resolved -- and not in front of the voters," McElroy told the North County
Times.

Typical liberal moonbat mindset, don't let the people decide, let courts overrule the public will through some nimrod judge with a similar ideology. For the most part the left can't win at the ballot box on most issues, their last and only refuge is the courts.

Companion OpiniPundit

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Lori Allen, a University of Chicago anthropology graduate student, conducted research in the West Bank under a Social Science Research Council-GSC Program fellowship and wrote an article that first appeared in Middle East Report 223 (Summer 2002). In that article she wrote that the "Average Bomber" was not driven to self destruction by dispair, all Palestinians living under 'occupation' are desperate, and that neither does poverty explain the motivation for self destruction (to which I add - 'and the murder of innocents'), rather, that a combination of faith and conviction motivates (suicide) bombers: "Religion is the factor that creates the bravery in [the suicide bomber] to be a martyr. And religion makes him (or her) highly sensitive to the issue of justice [to which I add - a perverted blind since of his/her distorted (by the Islamist's definition and teachings)] view of what constitutes justice.

After reading Lori's article, I reread the words, "Religion is the factor that creates the bravery in the bomber to be a martyr. And religion makes him highly sensitive to the issue of justice." Subsequently, the first thought that came to mind was, "That's one hell of a distortion of reality to get out of a 'religion,' and when did murder, suicide, and maiming innocent people have anything to do with God or a religion? But of course we're not talking about just any religion, where talking about Islam. And, we're in the year 2005, three years after Lori's report, so are the motives the same?

Today, for a more up to date analysis, we can look to Andrew Cochran writing at The CounterTerrorism Blog on his appearance on MSNBC's "Connected" program to discuss the 7/7 London attacks (you can see video of the segment on the linked page). One of his fellow guests was Pierre Rehov, a French filmmaker who has filmed six documentaries on the intifada by going undercover in the Palestinian areas. Pierre's upcoming film, "Suicide Killers," is based on interviews that he conducted with the families of suicide bombers and would-be bombers in an attempt to find out why they do it. It's a post that I think you'll find very interesting and informative.

Cross posted by Hyscience

Posted by: Richard@hyscience at 08:29 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 Those cursed suicide bombers are blowing things up for clearly secular-nationalist goals.

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 27, 2005 09:57 PM (ScqM8)

2 "Terrorists may indeed be driven by hate and resentment, but their actions are also determined by geopolitical considerations, as professor Robert Pape of the University of Chicago, among others, has pointed out. Many terrorists—and they include persons with formal educations—have reasons for carrying out their horrible deeds: “The central fact,” notes Pape, “is that overwhelmingly suicide-terrorist attacks are not driven by religion as much as they are by a clear strategic objective: to compel modern democracies to withdraw military forces from the territory that the terrorists view as their homeland” (interview in The American Conservative , July 1 . This statement, far from empathy, is an effort to explain terrorism—which we have no choice but to understand if we want to overcome it."

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 27, 2005 10:59 PM (ScqM8)

3 Your medication you idiot. Take your medication.

Posted by: greyrooster at July 28, 2005 06:19 AM (eVGfQ)

4 KlanRooster, Racist hog-beating prairie Rove-Bidet, medication will not help you. Only Jesus can bring you back.

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 28, 2005 06:30 AM (ScqM8)

5 Let me tell you a story: Once upon a time there was a devoted Muslim, He was a quiet one and never bothered anybody. He prayed 3 times a day towards Mecca, dismissed un-believers and quietly read his Quran. Until one day when an old Muslim friend returning from Afghanistan came by and told him another aspect of Islam. He said; this is how you interpret Jihad and it's something every faithful Muslim must do. Nonsense! would be the first thought that should come to mind he didn't want to kill anybody, but the devouted Muslim had thoroughly read the Quran, memorized every bit and it was all there, he had to do it.. They desire that you should disbelieve as they have disbelieved, so that you might be (all) alike; therefore take not from among them friends until they fly (their homes) in Allah's way; but if they turn back [to their homes], then seize them and kill them wherever you find them, and take not from among them a friend or a helper. Mein Quran, excerpt 004:089 Comming up next: DSM manages to get banned from Jawa report, tries to harbour secular suicide bombers and gets beheaded in reward.

Posted by: Ren at July 28, 2005 07:24 AM (a9tRx)

6 there is poverty in South America,Central America, Mexico, Africa,and yet i dont see any suicide bombers in those countries???....and also most of these countries are mostly of the Christian faith which prohibits suicide and murder....hmmmm, the Middle East and most of South ASia is what religion????oh yea, ISLAM....and MOST of it is poor, excluding Saudia Arabia and Kuawait which seem to be very well to do including its rulers....gee, ISLAM does allow murder of the infidel, and even though the Koran states that suicide is forbiden it laters says that suicide is okay if done for the glory and spread of ISLAM, so the Muslims have a thin but possible excuse for suicide/mass murder bombings and slaughters....seems to me and many others that the problem is what is taught from the Koran/ISLAM

Posted by: THANOS35 at July 28, 2005 09:44 AM (9gFP6)

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Dr. and Mrs. Shackleford take a well deserved romantic stroll alone at the pool.

(Note to Rusty....Dude, lay off the In-n-Out Double Doubles) more...

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1 I have concluded that Dr. Shackelford is a wealthy man.

Posted by: Brad at July 27, 2005 06:04 PM (pO1tP)

2 Is that a keffiyeh on Rusty's head?

Posted by: See-Dubya at July 27, 2005 08:32 PM (IDj0S)

3 That would be the hood of his Jawa cloak. He never takes it off, not even in the shower. But really, See-Dubya, what the hell you lookin at Rusty's head for? sheesh!

Posted by: Mad Dog Vinnie at July 27, 2005 08:50 PM (Kr6/f)

4 He looks good in a thong.

Posted by: Mike at July 28, 2005 05:24 PM (6krEN)

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Somebody, please actuate the nanny-state overload alarm. Alcohol ads may no longer feature sexy guys because it makes a connection between drinking and seduction. It's considered to be the cause of binge drinking.

From Timesonline:

Drinks companies have been ordered to hire paunchy, balding men for advertisements to meet new rules forbidding any link between women’s drinking and sex. Watchdogs have issued a list of undesirable male characteristics that advertisers must abide by in order to comply with tougher rules designed to separate alcohol from sexual success.

But there's more. The British Committee of Advertising Practice ruled:

"We would advise that the man in the picture should be unattractive -- overweight, middle-aged, balding etc."

Companion post at Interested-Participant.

Posted by: Mike Pechar at 04:29 PM | Comments (11) | Add Comment
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Arthur Chrenkoff posts today on what he calls. "A fascinating glimpse on the authorities' search for the common intersection in the otherwise diverse lives of the eight London bombers," and reminds us that the same pesky Finsbury Park mosque with the hate-spewing mouthy imam was "also the launching pad for the "shoe bomber" Richard Reid and the "19th hijacker" Zacarias Moussaoui."

Although Arthur finds it "amazing how much trouble can come out of one place - and by extension, what a timely action of the type only contemplated now against those inciting jihad (such as deportation) could have possibly achieved to prevent the current troubles," I find it to be more an example of too little, too late. It's a weakly punative action following too much hate and violence that's been allowed to be taught to Muslim youth from mosque pulpits by Islamist clerics, for far too long.

On the other hand, few can disagree with Arthur's observation that "we shouldn't think there are easy solutions," because there aren't any. Yet, we have to start somewhere, sometime, doing what is necessary to end the insanity of Islamofascism and the mindset and actions of those that tolerate, support it, and facilitate it. As Arthur writes in his closing, "It's going to be a long, long conflict."

Just how long and how costly in terms of innocent lives lost and dollars spent on terrorism that could be much better placed on making our lives healthier, more comfortable, and more useful, may very well depend upon our immediate recognition of our enemy's agenda, our collective(as a civilization) willingness to speak and act as one voice against Islamofascism and all it's tenets and acts, and on the speed and actions taken to stop the madness of the Islamist's agenda to "establish a world dominated by Muslims, Islam, and Islamic law, the Shari'a. Or, "to cite the Daily Telegraph, their "real project is the extension of the Islamic territory across the globe, and the establishment of a worldwide ‘caliphate' founded on Shari'a law."""

That agenda must be stopped dead in it's tracks!

As Mark Steyn has said, "Terrorism itself will end only when the broader culture refuses to tolerate it. There would be few if any suicide bombers in the Middle East if "martyrdom" wasn't glorified by imams and politicians, if pictures of local "martyrs" were not proudly displayed in West Bank grocery stores, if Muslim banks did not offer special "martyrdom" accounts to the relicts thereof, if schools did not run essay competitions on "Why I want to grow up to be a martyr."" To which I add, "and when we in the West stop tolerating such crap!"

Yet, on the matter of "tolerating the madness of that broader culture, the culture of Islam," aren't many in the West just as guilty when we look the other way or offer excuses and pretend that gee, it's just a few extremists and if only the moderate Muslims will speak up?

Even if truly moderate Muslims exist, which some doubt, again, borrowing from Mark Stein, "Why are we surprised that "Muslim moderates" rarely speak out against the evil committed by their co-religionists when the likes of Mr Paddick keep assuring us there's no problem? It requires great courage to be a dissenting Muslim in communities dominated by heavy-handed imams and lobby groups that function effectively as thought-police.""

It's true that the vast majority of Muslims are not terrorists, or involved in terrorism, and this needs to be said strongly if people assert otherwise. But if the Metropolitan Police really believe what Brian Paddick says, if they really, truly think that the words "Islam" and "terrorism" must not be linked, then we have little hope of catching the killers, of understanding how the terrorism works, or of preventing new atrocities.

If you substituted the phrase, "politicians and apologists for Islam," for "Metropolitan Police" in the above paragraph, you'd be reading a statement that is 'right-on' target. Let's leave the issue of contribution to terrorism for just a moment to digress to the terrorism conducted by the IRA: more...

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1 “Oxford Law Prof alarmed at "police’s Mossad-style execution" of innocent ’suspect’ Police state: Like many of my fellow-Londoners I am less alarmed by suicide bombers than I am by the police’s Mossad-style execution of a ’suspect’ (who turned out to be a completely innocent passer-by) on Friday 22 July. This is not because we are at greater risk of death at the hands of the police than at the hands of the bombers. (Both risks are pretty tiny, but of the two the risk posed by the police is clearly smaller). Rather, it is because, all else being equal, it is worse to be killed by one’s friends than by one’s enemies, and worse to be killed by people in authority than by people not in authority. Here are some other important things to remember in thinking about the police actions of 22 July: (1) There is no general legal duty to assist the police or to obey police instructions. Rice v Connolly [1966] 2 QB 414. (2) There are special police powers to arrest and search. But there is no special police licence to injure or kill. If they injure or kill, the police need to rely on the same law as the rest of us. (3) The law allows those who use force in prevention of crime to use only necessary and proportionate force. Jack Straw and Sir Ian Blair say that officers are under great pressure. But this is no excuse. In law, as in morality, being under extra pressure gives us no extra latitude for error in judging how much force is proportionate or necessary. R v Clegg [1995] 1 A.C. 482. (4) Arguably, the police should be held to higher standards of calm under pressure than the rest of us. Certainly not lower! (5) The necessity and proportionality of the police use of force is to be judged on the facts as they believed them to be: R v Williams 78 Cr. App R 276. This does create latitude for factual error. In my view it creates too much latitude. The test should be reasonable belief. The police may be prejudiced like the rest of us, and may treat the fact that someone is dark-skinned as one reason to believe that he is a suicide bomber. But in court this reason should not count. (6) It is no defence in law that the killing was authorised by a superior officer. A superior officer who authorises an unlawful killing is an accomplice. R v Clegg [1995] 1 A.C. 482. (7) The fact that those involved were police officers is irrelevant to the question of whether to prosecute them. It is a basic requirement of the Rule of Law that, when suspected of crimes, officials are subject to the same policies and procedures as the rest of us. ( Some people say: Blame the terrorists, not the police. But blame is not a zero-sum game. The fact that one is responding to faulty actions doesn’t mean one is incapable of being at fault oneself. We may blame Tony Blair for helping to create the conditions in which bombing appeals to people, without subtracting any blame from the bombers. We may also blame the bombers for creating the conditions in which the police act under pressure, without subtracting blame from the police if they overreact. Everyone is responsible for their own faulty actions, never mind the contribution of others. This is the moral position as well as the position in criminal law.” Bellacio

Posted by: Menezes' Ghost at July 27, 2005 03:38 PM (/+dAV)

2 Greg, you better stop stealing other people's material. That's called plagarism and it's against the law. We're going to turn you over to the police. Think about all that dope you have in your possession. You will be found out to be a traitor for sure, and the Patriot Act looms large. I don't know it you can make it in prison, Greg. Think about this the next time you steal posts from the inmates at Indymedia.

Posted by: jesusland joe at July 27, 2005 05:33 PM (DDXXI)

3 Jesusland, Go to Finsbury, I gave you the map earlier

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 27, 2005 06:49 PM (ScqM8)

4 No, DSM, you didn't give me no map. That was Greg you gave the map to. You know you and Greg have some business at the mosque with your jihad buddies. You probably want to beat up some girls and old women. That's about your speed.

Posted by: jesusland joe at July 27, 2005 07:00 PM (DDXXI)

5 the death of that brazilian guy is exactly why the nuclear option fr mecca looks so good. we end up trading liberty for safety. we need to make the muslim terror problem a problem that muslims solve at their expense and not ours.

Posted by: Mr. K at July 27, 2005 07:20 PM (VudXl)

6 Haysooos, I gave the map to Finsbury to everyone, including you! Beating up old women and girls? That is immoral and illegal. However, BUSH says it's ok to gun them down at checkpoints in Iraq and call them collateral damage. I'm much more Christian than that charlatan is.

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 27, 2005 07:57 PM (ScqM8)

7 "Both British and Pakistani officials were “FURIOUS” with the Americans for helping to unmask their spy, according to the New York Daily News, and the Brits had to launch a series of high-speed chases to catch Khan’s fleeing cabal. A senior Pakistani official told the Associated Press “this intelligence leak jeopardized our plan and some Al Qaeda suspects ran away.” BUSH, in all his clowning glory is a TRAITOR TO AMERICA!!!!

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 27, 2005 08:01 PM (ScqM8)

8 Greg is not after the young girls. Its the young boys. I see the crazy Downing Street Moron is in bed with him/them. Mr K: Okay, I agree. But how?

Posted by: greyrooster at July 28, 2005 06:11 AM (eVGfQ)

9 Klanrooster - racist pigskinner Rove-Bidet - the boys ran away from you and asked me where the police station was.

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 28, 2005 06:32 AM (ScqM8)

10 I'd like to thank all those of you expressing your support for us here in London. It's nice to know we're not alone. I'd like to make an observation about the recurring threat here in London. Following 9/11, how many attacks have there been in the US? Nil! In London, we have been attacked twice in the space of two weeks and are being advised to expect further attacks. I think the reason behind this is our government's insistence on putting human rights, free speech and civil liberties above the basic right to life. 9% of British Muslims are sympathetic to the London Bombers. That's 45,000 people. Even if only 1% of those are fanatical enough to contemplate jihad, that means there are another 450 home grown bombers waiting to strike. We have so far tracked down 8 (4 suicide bombers and 4 in custody). Also we are consistently told by our government to carry on as normal and show that we are not afraid and that we will not be terrorised. That's OK for Tony Blair and his buddies to say but they don't have to travel on the London Transport System. They have armed guards and chauffeur driven cars. I am very afraid ! So much so that I am aiming to build up clients for my accountancy business as soon as possible so that I can work from home rather than in the city. We have tolerated this Islamic evil for too long but our politically correct government would rather stand up for the terrorists and their sympathisers than for decent law abiding British citizens.

Posted by: Lloyd at August 02, 2005 08:41 AM (mxFdI)

11 Lloyd: Take heart. Our prayers are with you. Right win triumph over these goons.

Posted by: Young Bourbon Professional at August 02, 2005 11:35 AM (x+5JB)

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Yesterday I went to my alma mater to chat with some professors. In my mind, the highlight of the day was going to be having lunch with a good friend of mine, Bill Dautierieve. Instead, the highlight of the day was visiting the bathroom, one floor down from my old office, last stall, next to the painted over window. There is something comforting about the familiar feel of porcelain, the 'grout' jokes written in pencil in the tiny space between tiles, and the tag announcing that some one from the 32nd Street Crips had shared the experience in 1999. Ah, how rare the toilet induced melancholy!

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From Mehr News (Iran)

Iran announces readiness to resume nuclear activities: source
TEHRAN, July 27 (MNA) -- In a formal letter to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Mohamed ElBaradei, Iran has announced that it is prepared to resume nuclear activities at some nuclear centers in the next few days, a European diplomat said in Vienna on Wednesday.

AP: Iran achieves solid fuel technology
TEHRAN, Iran - Iran said for the first time Wednesday it has fully developed solid-fuel technology in producing missiles, a major breakthrough that increases the accuracy of missiles hitting targets.

The Shahab-3, with a range of 810 miles to more than 1,200 miles, is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and reaching Israel and U.S. forces in the Middle East.

Cross-posted at The Dread Pundit Bluto.

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Conservative Friends has started a new weekly feature called Featured Blog of the Week. Each week I pick a blog that impresses me and highlight the blog and its author. This week's featured blog is Libertarian Leanings Look for it every Tuesday.

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By Demosophist

Four dissident unions representing about one-third of the union members in the US will boycott the upcoming AFL-CIO Convention. The boycott is more than symbolic. Two of the unions, the Service Employees Union and the Teamsters, have already withdrawn from the federation. The reason given for the withdrawal, as announced by MSM, is that the AFL-CIO has placed too much emphasis on political lobbying at the expense of membership recruitment, and for once MSM isn't far off the mark. more...

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This almost completely passed me by. I heard a snippet of this report on the radio today, and made a mental note to get a post up about it. I damn near forgot. Time to wake up, dhimmis:

July 26, 2005 — Five Egyptian men with maps of the New York City subway system and video of New York landmarks have been arrested by the Joint Terrorism Task Force in Newark, N.J., ABC News has learned.

FBI and law enforcement officials told ABC News the five men — four illegal immigrants and one law enforcement fugitive — were arrested Sunday night following a tip to the Newark Police Department. In addition to the subway maps and video, the men had train schedules and $8,000 in $20 and $50 bills.

It's not a game, it's not happy happy funtime. What happened in London can happen here, what happened in Egypt can happen here, what happens in Israel every goddamned week can happen here.

Richard's post below was exactly right. This was going on well before Iraq, well before 9/11. I'm old enough that I watched the coverage of the 1972 Munich Olympics, where 11 Israeli athletes were murdered by Palesimian terrorists. And it's not going to stop until Islamofascism is defeated, the dream of the global ummah crushed, and the jihadis who believe in it killed, incarcerated, and humiliated into reform.

CP@VAM

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By Demosophist

To The Michael Yon [Not Wretchard. Sheesh one would think you guys would've saved me some embarrassment by cluing me in to the mistake. At least I had the link right.]:

The enemy in Iraq does not appear to be weakening; if anything, they are becoming smarter, more complicated and deadlier. But this does not mean they are winning; to imply that getting smarter and deadlier equates to winning, is fallacious. Most accounts of the situation in Iraq focus on enemy "successes" (if success is re-defined as annihiliation of civility), while redacting the increasing viability and strength of the Iraqi government, which clearly is outpacing the insurgency.

(Cross-posted by Demosophist to Demosophia)

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The story about Bin Laden attempting to poison cocaine is just dying for a contest. A headline/post title contest.

Here's an example: "That Snow Jihad." (groan)

The winner will have the satisfaction of knowing that he/she made thousands of people spew drinks on screens, hit their head from falling off the chair, or even peeing their pants.

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First - an update on the Islamists and what the world is and isn't doing about their primitive, base, archaic, and inhuman views, actions, and perversions. (News)

In the name of Allah: A World Bank "Country Assistance Strategies" report on Pakistan estimated that 15-20% of madrassas are involved in military-related teaching and training. The World Bank maintains that the radicalization process started with their politicization during the 1980s.(So we see that the Islamist view of religion is to use God's name to further their political agenda steeped in a perversion of what moderate Muslim's, sitting outside what has become mainstream Islam, view as their faith)

Open Season For Jihadis: KARACHI - Sophisticated terror attacks using the minimum possible resources to target civilians are the issue of the day, whether it be in Egypt, the United Kingdom or Spain. (And the U.S.; I suggest that it's time to make it open season ON jihadis and those even dreaming about it)

Terror war officially recast as 'struggle': The Bush administration is retooling its slogan for the fight against Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups, pushing the idea that the long-term struggle is as much an ideological battle as a military mission. (A little late to get started in the right direction, but better late than never!)

Blair: World slept after 9/11 - British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Tuesday that much of the world had dropped its guard to the threat of terrorism after the "wake-up call" of the 9/11 attacks of 2001. (In his saying that "Britain would not give "one inch" to terrorists and said it was time to confront them "on every single level,"" it looks like we've just seen the first yawn in Britain's wake-up to the fact of Islam being a threat to their continued existence, as they now know it,)

Turkey al-Faisal wants intensified search for Bin Laden: The new Saudi Arabian ambassador to the USA, Prince Turkey al-Faisal, called for the deployment of more forces and weapons in the search operation for the leader of al-Qaida movement, Osama Bin Laden. Prince Turkey said that "we know that Bin Laden is in an area where it is very difficult to chase him, and therefore there is a need for more assets, people and ammunition." (Now, let's see if he can walk the walk)

Egypt terror probe widens: Police said Monday they were searching for five Pakistani men in their widening investigation into Egypt's deadliest terror attack, which killed scores of people at this Red Sea resort. (Egyptian authorities continue to portray the Taba bombings as an extension of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, instead of openly recognizing it as a homegrown Islamic militant movement or an al Qaeda-linked operation.)

Islam Dominates Iraq's Draft Constitution: Framers of Iraq's constitution will designate Islam as the main source of legislation - a departure from the model set down by U.S. authorities during the occupation - according to a draft published Tuesday. The draft states no law will be approved that contradicts "the rules of Islam" - a requirement that could affect women's rights and set Iraq on a course far different from the one envisioned when U.S.-led forces invaded in 2003 to topple Saddam Hussein. "Islam is the official religion of the state and is the main source of legislation," reads the draft published in the government newspaper Al-Sabah. "No law that contradicts with its rules can be promulgated." (They get the right to vote, then the guys that won the election totally give in to the Sunnis, the guys that wouldn't even show up at the polls, and turn the whole country back to the stone age. Well, that must make sense to somebody, but not me.)

'BIN LADEN'S COCAINE PLOT': Osama bin Laden tried to buy a massive amount of cocaine, spike it with poison and sell it in the United States hoping to kill thousands, according to reports. (Well, it would deter drug use, would it not?)

BLAIR'S ATTACK ON TERROR: The Prime Minister has said Iraq is just an excuse for terrorists, insisting there is no justification for what they do. And he said he wants to "expose the obscenity" of the terrorists' "warped logic". Speaking passionately at his monthly news briefing, he said the roots of terrorism go much deeper than Iraq or Afghanistan.(I think Tony is right-on here, my only question is what logic of the terrorists is he refering to as warped? In my mind, the Islamic terrorists have NO logic or mind to be logical with! They are simply mindless inhuman criminals)

And all of this is happening because of Iraq, you say. Well ....

We all awakened this morning to yet another day of tension in the world brought upon it by a group of people that our governments have been lying to us about for years, telling us over and over about those peaceful, kindly, loving, Islamists.

In case you've been in a cave with no contact with the outside world since the late 1960s, assuming you are old enought to do so, you should recall that it was then that the Palestinian secular movements such as Al Fatah and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) began to target civilians outside the immediate arena of conflict.

That was when the creation of Israel gave birth to a series of Marxist and anti-Western transformations and movements throughout the Arab and Islamic world, and it was these nationalist and revolutionary style movements, along with their view that terrorism could be effective in reaching political goals(a key component of the Islamic agenda), that the first phase of modern international Islamic terrorism was established. And ever since that time, the Islamists have been using Israel as one of their excuses for murder and mayhem to further their political agenda throughout the world with the ultimate goal of establishing the Caliphate.

But it was in 1979 that a turning point occured in international terrorism. It was then that throughout the Arab world and the West, the Iranian Islamic revolution sparked fears of a wave of revolutionary Shia Islam. Meanwhile, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the subsequent anti-Soviet mujahedeen war, lasting from 1979 to 1989, stimulated the rise and expansion of terrorist groups. It was the growth of a post-jihad pool of well-trained, battle-hardened militants that began the key trend in the international terrorism and insurgency-related violence that we see today.

It was then that, in a manner that we see repeated today, volunteers from various parts of the Islamic world fought in Afghanistan, supported by conservative countries such as Saudi Arabia. In Yemen, for instance, the Riyadh-backed Islamic Front was established to provide financial, logistical, and training support for Yemeni volunteers. So called "Arab-Afghans" and their counterparts of today, have - and still are - using their experience to support local insurgencies throughout the Middle East, North Africa, Kashmir, Chechnya, China, Bosnia, and the Philippines.

Jumping ahead a few years, we come to Osama bin-Laden. It was on August 23, 1996 that he made the statement, "it is essential to hit the main enemy who divided the Ummah [Arab world] into small and little countries." That enemy, he said, is America and Israel.

With those words, he made it clear that Al-Qaeda's objective is not limited to U.S. withdrawal from the Middle East, the 'out of Iraq' demand made by Islamists and suggested by liberal appeasers of Islamic terrorism. Rather, Al-Qaeda views getting the West to pull out of Iraq and the Middle East as a necessary prerequisite to the attainment of its ultimate goal: the establishment of an Islamist super-state ruled by the harshest version of Islamic law, primed to re-conquer formerly Muslim lands and pursue an aggressive expansionist agenda. more...

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1 "In the name of Allah: A World Bank "Country Assistance Strategies" report on Pakistan estimated that 15-20% of madrassas are involved in military-related teaching and training. " And 100% of the Israeli youth serve in the military.

Posted by: greg at July 26, 2005 04:22 PM (/+dAV)

2 And 100 percent of Greg's brain is dog vomit. It is the dog vomit he eats every time he goes to DU(not Ducks Unlimited, a wonderful organization) and Indymedia. He continues to throw up and eat the same dog vomit over and over. Greg, you idiot, just how many people do you think Israel has? A very small number, so yes, to survive, almost all of Israeli youth serve in the military. Why don't you go post on your own sucky blog? Or better yet, go smoke some dope with your buddy Downing Street Memo moonbat. Then go to Indymedia and stay there and post with your loser friends.

Posted by: jesusland joe at July 26, 2005 04:38 PM (DDXXI)

3 Oh, by the way, Greg, you and your loser friends better watch out. Osama has been trying to find a way to poison the cocaine supply. I sure wouldn't want anything bad to happen to you. Regards!

Posted by: jesusland joe at July 26, 2005 04:44 PM (DDXXI)

4 Only religious fanatic Bush could take two secular countries where men and women were equal, militarize it, put wackos in power there and then let it be taken over by repressive nutcases. Hint: Mesopotamia is just one, guess the other after you look down at your feet!

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 26, 2005 04:52 PM (ScqM8)

5 JESUSBOY: Osama has been trying to find a way to poison the cocaine supply." He'd have better luck with the opium supply that is blooming now in Afghanistan.

Posted by: greg at July 26, 2005 05:01 PM (/+dAV)

6 UBL is a SCUMBAG!

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 26, 2005 05:07 PM (ScqM8)

7 I hope he does poison the cocaine and heroine supply....

Posted by: Mr. K at July 26, 2005 06:12 PM (COM7H)

8 'BIN LADEN'S COCAINE PLOT': Osama bin Laden tried to buy a massive amount of cocaine, spike it with poison and sell it in the United States hoping to kill thousands, according to reports. OMG, that is brilliant! Imagine a world with no stinky stoner hippies! Gee, maybe this Osama dude's not so bad after all.

Posted by: Princess Kimberley at July 26, 2005 06:22 PM (LNA9X)

9 Sewermouth Kimberley, You are such a Coulter wannabe - go to Saudi Arabia and fight your counter-jihad!

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 26, 2005 06:29 PM (ScqM8)

10 Kimberly, I think you touched a nerve, and I like it! Keep up the great work. Greg, why don't you answer the question or respond in a logical way to what's being said? I know the answer. You're nothing but a stupid troll, and you should have been banned from this site a long time ago. Rusty, you are a patient man.

Posted by: jesusland joe at July 26, 2005 07:52 PM (DDXXI)

11 Haeseussland - Taliban are having a bumper crop of juicy opium poppies, just for you! Too much opium means a lower price and angry warlords. Therefore, UBL wants to divert cash flow out of Latin America's cartels and back into the Taliban by poisoning the Coke. All the coke addicts scared of Coke will switch and pay the Taliban, get it??

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 26, 2005 07:59 PM (ScqM8)

12 UBL is DSM's daddy. Birds of a feather. One as much a danger to American troops as the other.

Posted by: greyrooster at July 26, 2005 08:23 PM (CBNGy)

13 Klanrooster, Bush and Bin Laden are jealous when you get between them.

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 26, 2005 09:02 PM (ScqM8)

14 maybe Osama will do something really stupid, like tring to steal a good amount of Coke and that will start a war between Al-Quada and the South American drug cartels....how wonderfull that would be....it could happen, as evil has a tendency to turn on itself...you know, no honor among thieves...actually makes me think how good it would be if DSM and greg turned on each other....hmmmmm

Posted by: THANOS35 at July 26, 2005 09:17 PM (9gFP6)

15 TANOS, if goddamn goat-jumper Bin Laden was stupid, he wouldn't be such a cursed problem to us, now would he?

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 26, 2005 10:12 PM (ScqM8)

16 i didnt say he might be stupid, just the chance that he would make a mistake.....the criminal type are great for doing that, specially the onees who think they are so smart....they get so cocky that they fuck up and do something really stupid and/or desperate...you really dont read into the posts much, do you???

Posted by: THANOS35 at July 26, 2005 10:41 PM (9gFP6)

17 BIN LADEN IS TOAST when we catch his sorry ass!!!!!!!

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 26, 2005 10:54 PM (ScqM8)

18 Downing Street Moron: Take your medicine. You must take your medicine or they will lock you up again.

Posted by: greyrooster at July 28, 2005 04:24 AM (CBNGy)

19 Lock your own ass up Klanpigporkerrooster.

Posted by: Downing Street Memo at July 28, 2005 06:40 AM (ScqM8)

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