A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.
In the News: (Registration may be required to read some stories)
Al-Qaeda In Iraq Reported Crippled - The U.S. military believes it has dealt devastating and perhaps irreversible blows to al-Qaeda in Iraq in recent months, leading some generals to advocate a declaration of victory over the group, which the Bush administration has long described as the most lethal U.S. adversary in Iraq. (READ MORE)
The Disciples of Ron Paul, Spreading the Word in N.H. - STRAFFORD, N.H. -- There's no mistaking which house on Lake Shore Drive, about 45 minutes northeast of Manchester, is the one full of Paulites -- the intensely loyal, almost fanatical supporters of Rep. Ron Paul. Signs are everywhere. On the back window of a brand new black Toyota, on the bumper ... (READ MORE)
Reporter For Post Is Fatally Shot In Baghdad - BAGHDAD, Oct. 14 -- On Sunday afternoon, Salih Saif Aldin set out for one of Baghdad's most dangerous neighborhoods. He knew exactly where to go. He nodded, smiled, grabbed his camera. There was nothing he needed to say. (READ MORE)
Turkish General Sees U.S. Ties at Risk - ISTANBUL, Oct. 14 -- The commander of Turkey's armed forces warned that U.S.-Turkish military relations will be irreparably damaged if the U.S. House of Representatives approves a resolution accusing his country of genocide in the mass killings of Armenians nearly a century ago, according to an interview published Sunday. (READ MORE)
Palestinian Statehood Bush's Goal - The Bush administration hopes to get as close as possible to establishing a Palestinian state during its remaining months in office, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said yesterday at the start of a five-day Middle East shuttle mission. (READ MORE)
Turkey, GOP warn Against Vote on Genocide - House Democratic leaders say they will insist on a floor vote on a resolution calling the 1915 massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks "genocide," despite objections from Turkish leaders and Republicans. (READ MORE)
Pork is Healthy at Alma Maters - Senators have earmarked more than $40 million for health care projects at college and university systems they attended — more than one-fifth of all money being sought through a special federal program to help the country's uninsured, records show. (READ MORE)
Big Easy Aims to Host '08 Debate - Two years after being ripped apart by Hurricane Katrina, "the city care forgot" is eager to remind the world that it's back in business by hosting one of the presidential debates next year. (READ MORE)
From the Front:
The Sandmonkey: The Ibn Khaldoun meltdown - Saad El Deen Ibrahim is finally admitting that he is on a self-imposed exile outside of Egypt, fearing his arrest by the authorities. Good. I just hoped that he would've informed the Press that the American Ambassador is the one that relayed the message to him from the egyptian authorities and urged him not to come back. But I guess he didn't want to make a big stink about the fact that the egyptian authorities treat him like an american stooge to the point of using the US ambassador- whom I can't believe agreed to this role- to inform him that they wanted him out. No Point in raising a stink. The man, after all, spent too much time in jail for his views as it is. The Problem lies in the fact that while he is abroad, his life-work is getting destroyed back here. The Ibn Khaldoun center is slowly falling apart. (READ MORE)
Those Wacky Iraqis: Navy Birthday - Since I live, breathe, eat, sleep Army I don't often say anything about the other branches of service. The Navy has been doing their part over here. All Corpsmen (Medics) with the Marines are Navy personnel. Navy personnel supply SeaBee construction efforts, contracting officers, base security, etc. My Nephew's good friend Ryan is in the Navy now and I remember how proud he was the night he told me that he had joined. (READ MORE)
Sgt Hook: Along the Road to War - I was recently reflecting on our road to war and all the activities, training events, briefings, etc. that literally consume that last few months of a unit and the soldiers just prior to deployment and thought about something Castaway Conner said to the Lovely and Talented and Downright Sexy Mrs. Hook a few months ago. CC: Mom, does dad have medics in his company? TLATADSMH: Yes honey, I believe that he does. Why? (READ MORE)
Richard's Deployment to Afghanistan: Caring for the BEST . . . - It is a privilege to fill in and put together a guest blog. The Boss . . . I am 1SG Child, COL Phillips right hand man who makes things happen and takes care of the day to day business of running the hospital. I refer to COL Phillips as the Boss since he is my direct supervisor. The Boss is the father of the group while I (his 1SG) take on the role of the mother of the group taking care of Soldiers and Airmen's needs. It is a full time job and I am happy to be here in Afghanistan doing my trained job. (READ MORE)
Northern Disclosure: Im sh'Allah - There are plenty of political opinions of Iraqi Forces and of the state of security within the borders of Iraq. Being a participant and not a sideline player or arm chair general I sometimes develop my own opinions. I have spent the equivilant of half a tour (6 months) training the Iraqi's the last time I was here so I have seen what they get taught being instrumental in the delelopment of that training. This experience has me always paying attention to their actions so I can see the advancement or regression from what I know. (READ MORE)
Greyhawk: Winning the War - Let's roll into the weekend on a high note. And what could be higher than the NY Times? “BAGHDAD, Oct. 11 — In a number of Shiite neighborhoods across Baghdad, residents are beginning to turn away from the Mahdi Army, the Shiite militia they once saw as their only protector against Sunni militants. Now they resent it as a band of street thugs without ideology.” (READ MORE)
Michael Yon: Achievements of the Human Heart - On April 30, 2007, I published the conclusion of a two-part dispatch, Desires of the Human Heart, about the efforts of the 1-4 CAV to transform an abandoned seminary into COP Amanche, an outpost in a Baghdad neighborhood that had been all but deserted after more than a year of sectarian violence. One of the last photographs, shown below, depicted the 1-4 Commander, LTC James Crider, looking out over the compound which his soldiers had managed to make operational over the course of a single weekend. I captioned the photograph with this modestly optimistic thought: (READ MORE)
Matt Sanchez: Life with the Marines in Ramadi - Thalmer, a former colonel of Saddam Hussein's Iraqi army, but now bedecked in his straw fedora and neatly pressed slacks, looked more like a vacationer on Miami Beach than an ex-military man from the Middle East. Throughout Iraq, I've met so many former colonels of Saddam's army that I'm starting to think it's an honorary title instead of actual rank for time served. (READ MORE)
The Landlocked Sailor: My new best friend ... - I met my new best friend today. I can't tell you his name, for security reasons, but we'll call him Aaron. I forgot what it's like to be brand new in this theater. His group arrived this morning and we stopped by to visit this afternoon. I spent about an hour with them answering some basic questions - basic to us, we've been here for ten months - quite important to them. "How do I plug in my laptop?" (READ MORE)
Jason's Iraq Vacation: ponderings - I'm currently reading a very good book sent to me by my Aunt, who lives in Yosemite Valley (which, by the way, must really suck. I mean, what do you do for a scenic vacation when you live it everyday?) The name of the book is "The Last Season", by Eric Blehm, and its a true story about a backcountry ranger in the Sierra Nevada mountains who goes missing. Great book, so far. But about 1/3 of the way into it I read a few lines that made me put down the book and think, 'Wow, that could really sum up things here in Iraq." (READ MORE)
Jim Golby: Getting Iraq To Work - Outside TIKRIT, Iraq I'm sick of hearing about all the horrible things that happen in Iraq without ever hearing about any of the good ones. That's not because horrible things don't occur here every day; they do. I've witnessed far more death and sadness than I wish anyone ever had to see. And it's not because I believe in some left-wing media conspiracy. If I'm affiliated with a political party at all, I honestly can't remember which one it is. Rather, I'm sick of hearing about all the horrible things that happen in Iraq because I've been deployed here for more than 24 months since this war began, and I think I have a story to tell that's heroic, maybe even noble. (READ MORE)
Fightin' 6th Marines: More from 3/3 - This is another video piece from Pfc. Brian Jones. Taken together with the last entry, you can see a small slice of the diverse and complex mission of Coalition and Iraqi forces here. On one hand you've got a platoon from Lima Company conducting combat patrols while the company commander and another platoon engage with tribal sheiks in the city. Often this engagement comes in the form of a meal, sometimes elaborate, sometimes not. So between this video and the last, you see two "blocks" in the "three-block war" concept. (READ MORE)
The Calm Before the Sand: Ur - The Ziggurat of Ur. Built on the edges of the al-Hijarah Desert in the early 2100's B.C.E., it once served as both a temple and a royal crypt for the Sumerian city of Urim. For half a millennia, it towered over the banks of the Euphrates River, the highest point in a crowded, walled city. Despite being only four kilometers in width, it housed an estimated 250,000 people. (READ MORE)
On the Web:
John Fund: Mad Maps - Gerrymandering--the drawing of district lines to favor a particular party, or incumbents in general--allows lawmakers to choose their voters, rather than the other way around. Almost all incumbents routinely win re-election and form a political elite that California's Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger says has built "a fortress to keep the politicians in and the people out." In the next few days, the governor will have to decide if he will back what may be the last chance to substantially reform redistricting in California before the 2010 census. (READ MORE)
Akbar Atri: Solidarity With Iran - As I write this, close friends of mine are sitting in cells of Evin prison in Iran. They are suffering from torture, solitary confinement and denial of medical care. Despite their suffering, they write and smuggle out of prison essays about the brutality of Iran's government and about how the democracy movement can stay resilient despite mounting repression. Here in America, where I have been living since 2005 as an exiled activist, a controversy has emerged over the Bush administration's pledge to provide $75 million in democracy and human-rights assistance to Iranians. (READ MORE)
Paul Greenberg: Mudfight in the Media: Wesley Clark Takes On Rush Limbaugh - Some of us can vaguely remember a time when Wesley Clark was going to be the next Eisenhower - a general above the fray, a former supreme commander of NATO who had met the great challenges of his time, someone who would Bring Us Together, lift the tone of national politics, a champion of unity above the usual divisive politics, The Nation's Hope, and all the rest of the nominating speech. (READ MORE)
Suzanne Fields: The Tortuous Act of Compromise - Washington is awash in debates where politics collides with principle. Politics is the art of compromise, but players are loath to admit compromise, or even to concede any ground at all. The pols agree with Vince Lombardi, the famous football coach: "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing." But politics, which "ain't beanbag," ain't football, either, though the candidates fumble, flip and flop like a ham-handed running back, backing, filling and shaving meanings. (READ MORE)
Donald Lambro: Hillary's Retirement-Savings Boondoggle - WASHINGTON -- Sen. Hillary Clinton's federally subsidized retirement plan represents one more way to make Americans ever more dependent upon the government for their livelihood. Her proposal is yet another quintessential Democratic idea to strap the country's workers to the apron strings of Big Brother, promising them a refundable tax-credit check of up to $1,000 if they sign on the dotted line for Clinton's campaign savings plan. (READ MORE)
Carol Platt Liebau: Dobson's ultimatum - Dr. James Dobson’s recent announcement that leaders of the religious right might support a third party candidate – or run one of their own – if the pro-choice Rudy Giuliani were the 2008 Republican presidential nominee sent ominous ripples throughout GOP circles. In no small part, that’s because the religious right has become an important part of the Republican coalition, and it’s difficult (if not impossible) for a Republican to win without the support of that group. (READ MORE)
Harry R. Jackson, Jr.: “Gored” By the Nobel Prize - Alfred Barnard Nobel was a Swedish chemist, engineer, and innovator born in 1833. As the inventor of dynamite, he amassed a great fortune through the manufacture and sale of armaments. The Nobel Prize was established through his will in1895. Every year since 1901, the Nobel Prize has been awarded for achievements in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and for peace. It is one of the most impressive accolades any public servant can receive. (READ MORE)
Star Parker: Sen. Clinton ignores Social Security crisis - The lack of attention by candidates of both parties to the huge entitlements crisis facing this country has been, to say the least, troubling. But Sen. Hillary Clinton, in an interview with two Washington Post reporters the other day, put new spin on this. Clinton is now not merely avoiding addressing this difficult problem, but also rejects the premise that the problem even exists. (READ MORE)
Bill Roggio: Violence in Iraq drops dramatically - Ten months after the announcement of the new counterterrorism strategy in Iraq -- often misleadingly referred to as “The Surge” -- and four months after the last combat brigade was positioned and major operations against al Qaeda and the Shia extremist groups began in mid-June, the US military can point to real results in the security field. Violence has dropped in Iraq, and dropped significantly. The Washington Post laid out the evidence of the drop in violence in Iraq. Iraqi deaths are plummeting. US combat deaths -- which can be a poor indicator of success or failure -- are at a near all-time low. Al Qaeda’s declared Ramadan campaign did not materialize. “The evidence of a drop in violence in Iraq is becoming hard to dispute,” The Washington Post reported. (READ MORE)
Melanie Phillips: This ignoble prize - After today, no-one can take the Nobel Peace Prize seriously ever again. Al Gore?? How very unfortunate that in the very same week a British High Court Judge, Sir Michael Burton — in a case brought against the government by a parent who objected to the Gore film An Inconvenient Truth being taught in school as fact when it was trash — ruled that this film contained no fewer than nine, ahem, inconvenient untruths. These nine scientific errors were not minor. They were fundamental to the film’s claim that there was a scientific consensus that man-made global warming was a catastrophe that was already upon us. True, the judge said of the film: (READ MORE)
Jules Crittenden: Success - Washington Post reports the military is ready to declare victory over al-Qaeda in Iraq, but: Nothing would be better for AQ to hand it a victory they can overturn. A greater concern though might be handing Iran a victory it can overturn, goading Sunnis back into war much as al-Qaeda goaded Shiites into war in February 2006, to the end of humiliating the United States and forcing a withdrawal. But here’s some of the good news: (READ MORE)
Bryan Preston: (Video) Nancy Pelosi’s idea of “force protection” - In military terms, “force protection” is what it sounds like: Equipping the military so that it can defend itself in the midst of battle. The phrase tends to conjure up debates about armor, tactics and ammunition, but in a war of ideas like the one we’re fighting now force protection is one of those things that starts at home. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi weighed in on the importance of force protection on ABC’s This Week yesterday. Suffice it to say that I do not think she actually knows what the phrase “force protection” means. (READ MORE)
Allahpundit: WaPo editorial: Let’s face it, the casualty trends in Iraq are cause for hope; Update: Military believes AQI is crippled? - The optimism that dare not speak its name: "A month [after Petraeus’s testimony], there isn’t much room for such debate, at least about the latest figures. In September, Iraqi civilian deaths were down 52 percent from August and 77 percent from September 2006, according to the Web site icasualties.org. The Iraqi Health Ministry and the Associated Press reported similar results. U.S. soldiers killed in action numbered 43 — down 43 percent from August and 64 percent from May, which had the highest monthly figure so far this year. The American combat death total was the lowest since July 2006 and was one of the five lowest monthly counts since the insurgency in Iraq took off in April 2004…" (READ MORE)
Don Surber: Pseudoscientology - Yes, West Virginia, it’s a religion. Back to work after a week’s vacation, while sorting through the e-mail, I found this e-mail from Philip E. Clapp, President, National Environmental Trust. His celebration of Al Gore’s Nobel is an indication that environmentalism is a new religion. Pseudoscientology. Clapp’s statement included this line: “Global warming is no longer an environmental issue, it is a moral issue.” Oh brother. Here we go again. It is Carrie Nation and Prohibition all over again. (READ MORE)
Baron Bodissey: The Modoggies and Caliphate Now Network - As Larwyn reported last night, CNN aired a piece about Lars Vilks which showed the Modoggie artist walking to his supposedly safe house and going in the front door. Tonight, over at Hot Air, Allahpundit reports that he has the video clip, and some additional details: "But here’s the strangest part, which isn’t clear from the Gates of Vienna post: Vilks is aware that they’re filming him in front of the two houses. It’s not some stock shot of the door and the light fixture; it’s him, entering the building, with the camera right in his face. Unless CNN led him to believe that they weren’t filming or weren’t going to use the footage, and there’s no reason to think that they did, it was all done with his willing participation." (READ MORE)
Dymphna: A Letter to my People - A British reader sent this to us yesterday and asked us to post it. It is an appeal to his fellow Britons to unite in order to overcome the dhimmification of their country... A Letter to my People “The time has come”, the Walrus said, “to talk of many thing.” So, with apologies to Lewis Carroll and to the Bard, I ask, “Friends, Britons, countrymen, lend me your ears and consider this: You are under attack; your enemies are both within and without and their malignant intent is to take either your mind or your life.” (READ MORE)
The Belmont Club: Sanchez's Full Statement - General Sanchez's statement is contained verbatim below Read More! and as I noted in my previous post, his criticisms include, but are hardly confined to the Administration. First of all he practically calls the Press names. Here are some of his milder remarks: “In some cases I have never even met you, yet you feel qualified to make character judgments that are communicated to the world…. This is the worst display of journalism imaginable by those of us that are bound by a strict value system of selfless service, honor and integrity. almost invariably, my perception is that the sensationalistic value of these assessments is what provided the edge that you seek for self agrandizement or to advance your individual quest for getting on the front page with your stories! … It seems that as long as you get a front page story there is little or no regard for the "collateral damage" you will cause. personal reputations have no value and you report with total impunity and are rarely held accountable for unethical conduct. ...” (READ MORE)
Eugene Volokh: Cruel and Unusual Punishment - Thomas v. Baca, 2007 WL 2758741 (C.D. Cal. Sept. 21), holds that the L.A. County Jail's practice of having many inmates (pre-trial detainees and post-conviction prisoners) sleep on mattresses on the floor violates the Cruel and Unusual Punishment Clause (as to prisoners) and the Due Process Clause (as to detainees). Interestingly, though, the finding wasn't based on a conclusion that such a practice caused unacceptable physical discomfort, or hygiene problems. Rather, it seems that the court thought that requiring people to sleep on mattresses (presumably with adequate other bedding) rather than on bunks was just an unacceptable indignity: (READ MORE)
Jay Tea: Saving Grace - I've been thinking about the latest manufactured outrage over some right-wing commentator -- Ann Coulter and her theological debate with Donnie Deutsch -- and I have to say I just don't see the big fuss. I think I'm in a fairly good position to discuss religion. I'm an agnostic, so I feel I can be fairly objective. I was raised Methodist and have had several devout, fundamentalist Christian friends, so I have a "window" into that viewset. I spent several years deeply involved with a Jewish woman, so I've had glimpses into that faith. And as a godless infidel American, I've had ample opportunity to learn just what Islam thinks of and wants for me. (READ MORE)
Neptunus Lex: In the mail: “Hard Corps” - Just got done reading the book “Hard Corps,” a copy of which was kindly provided to me by Jed Donahue of the Crown Publishing Group. It’s a muddy-boots story of Marco Martinez, a young man from Albuquerque who went from being a gang banger to a recipient of the Navy Cross as a Marine corporal - our second highest military honor. And “honor” seems the appropriate word. As a troubled young man, Martinez seemed most of all motivated by the need to feel respect, to be a part of something larger than himself. In the “vida loca“, he found the environment he was looking for, but when a friend was sent to prison for felonious assault, he re-examined his life. And ended up a grunt infantryman. (READ MORE)
Scott Johnson: It's the coverup that kills you, part 2 - It’s been another week without word from the New Republic on the status of its "investigation" into the columns of TNR Baghdad Diarist Scott Thomas Beauchamp. "The editors" have not spoken on the matter since their August 10 update. At that time "the editors" spoke grandly of their "commitment to the truth" and their efforts to resolve the "legitimate concerns about journalistic accuracy" that had been raised by the critics of Beauchamp's TNR Baghdad Diarist columns. They also said they took those concerns "extremely seriously." Nine weeks later, however, they have produced no new information and their promises to do so seem empty. (READ MORE)
McQ: Obama, Edwards and Richardson criticize Clinton - For any long-time observer of American politics this should come as absolutely no surprise, however it is contra to the mirage of unity the Dems have attempted to put forward over the months since the campaign began. Democratic presidential hopeful Bill Richardson said Saturday that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is "acting as if she’s won" the nomination. "I think this is a time when voters start making up their minds and we draw contrasts," the New Mexico governor told reporters after addressing a union picnic in Las Vegas. "This race is not over. ... We’ve got three months to go." (READ MORE)
Dan Riehl: Like I Said, They're Dishonest - Bill Scher has a post up after our discussion of S-CHIP and the Frost family on Alan Colmes' radio show. He faults me for claiming liberals are often dishonest in debate ... then goes on to admit a major mis-statement of fact that demon-izes Bush and the Republicans. Some people might call that dishonest, but not a liberal, I guess. Audio here and through post link above. “I did overstate one point. I said Bush is proposing ‘less money’ for SCHIP, which isn't quite right. He is proposing nominally more money, just not enough to maintain the number of kids currently in the program. It's essentially less money, but not literally.” (READ MORE)
ROFASix: Sour Sanchez Speaks Up - For many LTG Sanchez epitomized what was wrong with the military leadership in Iraq beginning in 2003. Why he was chosen to command the coalition forces remains something of a mystery to those who worked for and around him. More than a few have pointed to Sanchez as the reason that the US military strategy there failed to grasp the tactical situation and remained locked in its own hubris of illusion. His command was also tainted by Abu Ghraib. However, the damage it did to achieving success in Iraq probably did not rise to that caused by the US tactics that fueled the emerging insurgency during the period. Retiring last year, his retirement received much less of the usual adoration one sees with General Officers retire. The common feeling was more, "Now lets fix what Sanchez broke." (READ MORE)
John Hawkins: How Many American Soldiers Will Die Because The Democrats Want To Play A Political Game With Turkey? - First, from the WAPO: "A month later, there isn't much room for such debate, at least about the latest figures. In September, Iraqi civilian deaths were down 52 percent from August and 77 percent from September 2006..." As you can see, Iraqi civilian deaths have plunged and the number of US soldiers being killed has dropped precipitously, despite the fact that our troops have been on the offensive. So, with all this good news coming out of Iraq, what are the Democrats in Congress trying to do? They're actually trying to sabotage the progress we're seeing and create some bad news with deliberately bungled diplomacy. (READ MORE)
Some Soldier's Mom: This Story Shall the Good Man [Always] Teach His Son - Traveling... in Colorado... Noah & M are traveling, too... they're in Tucson visiting one of her sisters... and remembering the anniversary of this horrible day. I noticed it last year while at Fort Benning and Noah and his buddies would say, "It's a year today that Sgt. Benford was killed..." and "It's a year today that Matt Bohling was killed..." They all know the dates... they cannot forget. It's the same way Niles Harris remembers the 8th of November 1965 and the way Matt remembers 26 May 2003... No, they cannot forget -- nor would they want to... nor should they.. nor should we. When we forget those who died for us and for our country, we dishonor them and their sacrifice. The rest of the world remembers on Veterans Day or Memorial Day... and that's appropriate. So long as they remember. Families remember every day... but there is also a Band of Brothers that will never forget. (READ MORE)
A Soldier's Mind: In The Company Of Heroes - Friday, just like any other day, my alarm went off at 5am. But this day was going to be a bit different than my usual Friday at the office, because Friday I had a special mission to carry out. I went about my typical morning routine of getting ready, backing out of the driveway at 6:20am and heading towards Fort Hood. But I wasn’t going to my usual destination. Intead of continuing down Hood Road to the Copeland Center, I took a left and headed for the 1st Cavalry Division’s headquarters building, where I met up with several others in front of the building near the flag pole. We had a special destination in mind, in San Antonio, at Fort Sam Houston. (READ MORE)
Huntress: Haunted Hero: A Tribute To Our Troops. - Tonite, I watched a special episode of Ghost Whisperer titled "Haunted Hero". It was a dramatic, touching, sad, moving, authentic, honorable, elegant, dignified, uplifting beautiful, emotional, and evocative tribute to our troops. Tonite, Hollywood done me proud. (READ MORE)
Dadmanly: The Rest of the Speech - Senior General blasts media, Congress, two party political partisanship, and the Bush Administration’s management of the war, and only the last gets reported. Would you have expected any more from mainstream media (MSM)? Soldier’s Dad at MILBLOGS provides a rough transcript of Sanchez’s recent speech. His criticisms are withering, but lo and behold, Sanchez’s indictment of the media makes his criticism of the war effort seem almost collegial. Here’s an extended excerpt of what didn’t get reported by the MSM: (READ MORE)
Dr. Sanity: For The Children - One consequence of the Bush Administration policies in the Middle East is that a decades-long shadow war has been brought out into the open. This shadow war between increasingly mainstream elements of radical Islam and the West, became evident back in the 1970's with the taking of American hostages in Iran. It exists and is often justified by the very existence of Israel, a Western-style democracy, in the heart of the Middle East and the supposed "oppression" of the Palestinians by that state. In the Times of London, Peter Jenkins writes about a letter recently sent by Islamic leaders to the Pope: (READ MORE)
Flopping Aces: Hyperventilating Liberals On Torture - Frank Rich, the always hyperventilating liberal, is at it again today in this column inside the New York Times. As usual with most of the far left he calls Bush another Hitler, and the CIA his Gestapo. This time he also calls those Americans who do nothing about the Bush Administration's use of interrogation techniques "good Germans." The whole article really isn't worth citing from except this part: “Our humanity has been compromised by those who use Gestapo tactics in our war. The longer we stand idly by while they do so, the more we resemble those ‘good Germans’ who professed ignorance of their own Gestapo.” Typical baloney. These are the same kind of liberals who believe putting panties on one head is "torture", and Mr. Rich also obviously believes sleep deprivation is "torture" because he can cite cases where the Germans used that technique also. (READ MORE)
Quid Nimis: And not a moment too soon... - In 1977, I became friends with a woman of Armenian descent. It was from her that I first learned of the massacre of Armenians in what is now Turkey. She didn't go into detail, but it was clear from the context of our conversation that this was something that weighed heavily on her, that it was a part of the history of her people, and in fact, may have been the reason that her own ancestors ended up in the United States. Since then I have read a number of things about the political football that the Armenian Genocide has become. The Turks, you see, deny that any atrocity took place. About 1.5 million Armenians were killed at the hands of the "Young Turks," and another 1 million were exiled. Only in Turkey is this not understood as a fact of history. (READ MORE)
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