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)
Bush Veto Sets Up Clash on Budget - NEW ALBANY, Ind., Nov. 13 -- A budget dispute erupted into a full-scale battle Tuesday as President Bush vetoed the Democrats' top-priority domestic spending bill and the party's Senate leader threatened to withhold war funding if the president does not agree to pull out of Iraq. (READ MORE)
U.S.-Backed Fighters Attacked Outside Baghdad - BAGHDAD, Nov. 13 -- Fierce clashes between the Sunni insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq and volunteer fighters supported by American troops left at least 20 people dead this week, in one of the biggest assaults so far on the U.S.-led effort to create neighborhood-based armed patrols... (READ MORE)
Russia Casts A Selective Net in Piracy Crackdown - MOSCOW, Nov. 13 -- The newspaper Novaya Gazeta, one of the last outposts of critical journalism in Russia, suspended publication of its regional edition in the southern city of Samara on Monday after prosecutors opened a criminal case against its editor... (READ MORE)
Bhutto Calls On Musharraf To Resign - ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Nov. 13 -- Former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, under house arrest in Lahore, called Tuesday for President Pervez Musharraf to quit and reached out to her main political rivals, opening the way for a common front among anti-government forces that so far have been divided by mistrust and ambition. (READ MORE)
Are We Winning the War? - No one is declaring victory, but cautious optimists on the U.S.-led war in Iraq suddenly find themselves armed with a growing number of indicators that the fighting has taken a new, more hopeful turn. (READ MORE)
GOP Split on Repeal of Real ID - Congressional Republicans are scrambling to defuse the political time bomb they created in 2005 when they allowed states to issue driver's licenses to illegal aliens — but a key Republican and author of the Real ID Act says their new bill is unconstitutional. (READ MORE)
Bhutto Calls for President to Resign - Opposition leader Benazir Bhutto yesterday called on President Pervez Musharraf to resign and ruled out serving under him in a future government after she was placed under house arrest for the second time in five days. (READ MORE)
Bush Wields Veto on Spending Bill - President Bush yesterday vetoed a congressional spending bill and sharpened his attacks on Democrats in a dispute over the federal budget, ridiculing the opposition for "acting like a teenager with a credit card." (READ MORE)
Virginia Targets Criminal Aliens - The Virginia State Crime Commission yesterday passed a sweeping list of recommendations focusing on illegal aliens who commit crimes, and anticipate General Assembly approval because they do not address the more polarizing issue of denying social services. (READ MORE)
Khmer Justice - Cambodians often refer to the Democratic Kampuchea regime, which was responsible for the deaths of nearly a quarter of the population between 1975 and 1979, as the "Pol Pot-Ieng Sary clique." Although few people knew the identities of the secretive leaders of Democratic Kampuchea until after the regime fell, they knew about Ieng Sary by the mid-1970s. By placing his name next to Pol Pot's (the two were brothers-in-law), Cambodians clearly recognize him as one of the masterminds of the genocide. (READ MORE)
The No Farmer Left Behind Act - Perhaps it's beneath the dignity of Members of Congress to shop at a grocery store, but if they did they'd know that food prices are rising faster than at anytime in 17 years. Milk now costs $3 a gallon in many states. Eggs, oranges, peas, tomatoes and rice are selling at or near all-time highs. The biggest winners have been corn producers, as corn prices have doubled in two years -- thanks in part to new mandates for ethanol. (READ MORE)
Hillary Calls 'Time Out' - Her fellow Democrats keep trying to pin Hillary Clinton down on the issues, but they seem only to be driving her to even greater feats of triangulation. Take the Senator's position on trade agreements, which she and her husband championed in the 1990s but which she has, well, you figure it out. A week ago, the former first lady finally announced that she'd support the U.S.-Peru trade agreement that passed the House last week with 109 Democratic votes. But then on Monday in Iowa, speaking to the United Auto Workers, she declared that if elected President she would call a "time out" on trade deals. (READ MORE)
From the Front:
IraqPundit: Clash of the Perspectives - Iraqi volunteer fighters killed at least 15 al-Qaeda members near Baghdad. WaPo's take is: It marked "one of the biggest assaults so far on the U.S.-led effort to create neighborhood-based armed patrols." The WaPo says, "As many as 45 fighters from al-Qaeda in Iraq, a predominantly Iraqi organization that American officials say is led by foreigners, attacked two checkpoints manned by the volunteer fighters." But it wouldn't be a WaPo report without a snide remark... (READ MORE)
Greyhawk: We've Won - Let's Abandon Iraq - Or: "How the War was Won" (Part 2) The previous installment in my on-going rambles from Iraq is here (But you can press on - this piece works as a stand-alone, too...) 1. In the Gardens of Stone - So I'm walking to the gym. Under my feet: four inches of gravel pave the way. When the rains come that will be better than mucking through the sort of muddy paste that the sands of Iraq become when mixed with the slightest bit of water, but in the dry season (and it hasn't really rained here since May) it's just another feature. You want to experience some aspect of life in the camps in Iraq? Find an area with four inches of gravel on the ground (shallower gravel doesn't count - you don't get the full effect) and walk around in it for a half hour or so. Repeat several time a day, sometimes carrying something heavy. Do it every day for a year, then do it for three more months... But I digress. (READ MORE)
Michael Yon: A Consumer Reports: Geared for Combat II - It’s sitting beside me now, taunting me, saying, “You’ve owned me for two years, and have not come close to unlocking the powers within me. You don’t even know how to work all my buttons.” [The Canon Mark II seems to have its own personality, and it seems to be a female camera.] The Mark II 1Ds is for professionals only, and no, it does not have a built-in flash. It’s like a hand-held Hubble Space Telescope. It actually requires the shooter to be part scientist, part engineer—not to mention an artist—and then it begins taunting the person crazy enough to buy it. Irrespective of cost, the Mark II is the best camera I’ve owned. (READ MORE)
Matt Sanchez: Soldiers fighting for U.S. become citizens - At Airbase Anaconda in Iraq, Brig. Gen. Gregory Couch pondered the irony, "We're swearing in new American citizens in one of Saddam Hussein's theaters, a place that was accustomed to a different type of spectacle." For Veteran's Day 2007, 178 U.S. military men and women serving in Iraq became citizens of the country for which they are fighting, the United States. Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff made the trip to Iraq's largest airbase to preside over the legalization ceremony of servicemen and women who traced their birthplaces to more than 53 nations scattered around the globe. (READ MORE)
Yellowhammering Afghanistan: Afghan music videos - Afghan and Persian music is, shall we say, an acquired taste. Still, it's interesting to see and hear those sounds in person. At the recent shura, there were drummers, Islamic prayers and children choirs giving those present musical interludes. I captured some of them on video to share with you. The two drummers greeted everyone to the shura at the entrance. They then joined the procession of the provincial governor and other dignitaries into the meeting. (READ MORE)
On the Web:
Peter Berkowitz: The Insanity of Bush Hatred - Hating the president is almost as old as the republic itself. The people, or various factions among them, have indulged in Clinton hatred, Reagan hatred, Nixon hatred, LBJ hatred, FDR hatred, Lincoln hatred, and John Adams hatred, to mention only the more extravagant hatreds that we Americans have conceived for our presidents. But Bush hatred is different. It's not that this time members of the intellectual class have been swept away by passion and become votaries of anger and loathing. (READ MORE)
Uriya Shavit: Old Fears, New Threats - One rain-soaked evening, in a bus stop on the road leading to a castle overlooking the picturesque German town of Marburg, an especially frank piece of graffiti caught my eye: "To hell with Islam!" In this remote, pastoral setting, the words at first appeared out of place. But in today's Europe, and in Germany in particular, this sort of attitude toward Islam should come as no surprise. Since the September 11 attacks in America, and the subsequent terrorist attacks by al Qaeda on European soil, the Continent has witnessed a rising tide of hostility toward Muslims living there, from violent rhetorical outbursts to physical attacks on mosques and businesses. (READ MORE)
John Stossel: Don't Look to Government to Cool Down the Planet - Recently on "20/20," I said "give me a break" to Al Gore for claiming that the global-warming debate is over and suggesting that all dissenters were in it for the money. I interviewed independent scientists who say Gore is wrong. Some people were relieved to finally hear the other side: "Thank you, thank you, thank you for your report on climate change. … I'm sick of hearing 'the debate's over' and writing anyone who differs off as a nut. (READ MORE)
Walter E. Williams: Congressional and Leftist Lies - An important component of the leftist class warfare agenda is to condemn President Bush's tax cuts for the rich. This claim is careless, ignorant or dishonest on at least two counts. First there's the constitutional issue. Article I, Section 8 reads, "The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes . . ." That means the president has no taxing authority. Presidents can propose or veto taxes and Congress can override vetoes. The bottom line is that all taxing authority rests with the U.S. Congress. (READ MORE)
Austin Bay: On Signing a Bomb - AN AMERICAN AIRBASE SOMEWHERE IN SOUTHWEST ASIA -- Today, I put a note on a bomb. To be specific, I took a jet black marking pen and inscribed a 500-pound Joint Direct Attack Munition -- JDAM, in the jargon. Perhaps putting a note on a bomb strikes some as either romantic, foolish or vicious -- or a combination of the three. The act certainly has shades, colors and dollops of all these characteristics, and a harsh dash of steeling sentimentalism. These are the predictable psycho-babble carps. (READ MORE)
Thomas Sowell: Crusades Versus Caution: Part II - The recently launched crusade to have every child tested for autism before the age of two has as its reason an opportunity for "early intervention" to treat the condition. Dr. Scott Myers, a pediatrician, has been quoted by Reuters news service as saying that autistic children who get earlier treatment "do better in the long run." That may be true if the children are genuinely autistic. (READ MORE)
Michelle Malkin: The Politics of Racial Insult: Who Decides? - The ululations of the aggrieved ebb and flow like the tide. If there's an insult to be milked -- Macaca! Nappy-headed ho! -- the professional victims will rush in, sell some T-shirts, fire up their bullhorns, make the media rounds, issue their 21-point demands, and then recede until the next race-hustling opportunity comes along. Thanks to his bipartisan enablers in politics and the media, leading civil rights charlatan Al Sharpton never lacks a stage. Still surfing on the wave of publicity over the Jena Six case in Louisiana, Sharpton is scheduled to lead an anti-hate crimes demonstration on Nov. 16 in Washington, D.C. (READ MORE)
Jonah Goldberg: The Rich Aren't Made of Money - "The question is, should we be giving an extra $120 billion to people in the top 1 percent?" So asked Gene Sperling, Hillary Clinton's chief economic advisor, at a recent National Press Club panel discussion. Translation: It's the government's money, and anything left over after Uncle Sam picks your pockets is a "gift." Indeed, to hear leading Democrats talk about the "richest 1 percent" - a diverse cohort of investors, managers, entrepreneurs and, to be sure, some fat-cat heirs - one gets the impression that wealthy Americans are a natural resource, to be pumped for as much cash as we need. (READ MORE)
Amanda Carpenter: Hillary’s Immigration Fallout - Since Sen. Hillary Clinton (D.-N.Y.) expressed support for granting driver’s licenses to illegal aliens, backlash against lax immigration policies has intensified in the polls and in Republican presidential campaign politics. In the last televised Democratic presidential debate, Clinton said home state Governor Eliot Spitzer’s plan to permit illegal aliens to apply for driver’s licenses “makes a lot of sense.” The next day her aides clarified: (READ MORE)
Kevin Aylward: Foreign Waitress Scams FBI, CIA, INS, etc. - Nada Nadim Prouty, a 37-year-old Lebanese national and resident of Vienna, Va., pleaded guilty today in the Eastern District of Michigan to charges of fraudulently obtaining U.S. citizenship, which she later used to gain employment at the FBI and CIA; accessing a federal computer system to unlawfully query information about her relatives and the terrorist organization Hizballah; and conspiracy to defraud the United States. The discovery came as part of an investigation into the funneling of $20 million from the La Shish restaurant, where Prouty once worked, to persons (read Hizballah) in Lebanon. (READ MORE)
Lawhawk: The Pakistan Crucible - The situation in Pakistan remains seriously unstable, and while Musharraf vacillates between crackdown and appeasement, Benazir Bhutto remains under "house arrest" or "detention." Bhutto has been trying to claim the mantle of savior of Pakistani democracy, but her niece sees right through this. The reality, however, is that there is no one better placed to benefit from emergency rule than she is. (READ MORE)
Ace of Spades: Official: NY Governor Giving Up On Drivers Licenses For Illegals - The self proclaimed steamroller got rolled by a tidal wave of public outrage. “Struggling with widespread opposition to his driver's licensing policy, Gov. Eliot Spitzer is scheduled to huddle with New York's congressional delegation today in Washington and disclose that he is ditching the controversial plan. ‘I am not willing to fight to the bitter end on something that will not ultimately be implemented,’ the governor told The New York Times, ‘and we also have an enormous agenda on other issues of great importance to New York state that was being stymied by the constant and almost singular focus on this issue.’” (READ MORE)
The Belmont Club: "Dissent is the Highest Form of Patriotism" - IsraelNN.com describes how an Israeli government minister has openly avowed a higher allegiance to Islam than to the country he represents. "The Israeli government's first Arab minister made it clear Wednesday that as far as the Temple Mount is concerned, Israeli sovereignty is nonexistent and Islam rules. The minister spoke in his official capacity as Minister of Science, Culture and Sport, from the Knesset podium, in response to a parliamentary question by MK Aryeh Eldad (NU/NRP) regarding the Temple Mount in Jerusalem." The exchange apparently went like this: (READ MORE)
Ed Morrissey: Bhutto: 'The Terror Of His Own Illegitimacy' - Benazir Bhutto attacks Pervez Musharraf in today's Washington Post as a man afraid to confront Islamists but all too eager to oppose democrats. The former Prime Minister calls Musharraf a dictator who had the opportunity to side with freedom and democracy, but instead remained consistent with his past actions and clung to power for his own personal reasons. If the West wants a fight against al-Qaeda and the Taliban, Bhutto warns that they have backed the wrong horse: (READ MORE)
Don Surber: The stages of a Clinton scandal - Muriel Gallo-Chasanoff meet Elisabeth Kübler-Ross - All I ever needed to know about psychology I learned from “On Death and Dying” by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. She described the psychological steps necessary before an individual accepts the death of another or his own dying. As the planted question scandal unfolds, I notice I can apply Elisabeth Kübler-Ross to a Clinton scandal. The first step is Denial and Isolation. Now any politician denies a scandal. 4 months after he was caught playing footsies in a men’s stall, Larry Craig still denies he’s gay. (READ MORE)
Fjordman: My Farewell to Little Green Footballs - I recently announced my intention to take a long break from posting at the website Little Green Footballs due to the ongoing controversy regarding the participants in the counter-Jihad in Europe. Shortly after, Charles Johnson announced that Fjordman was “taking a permanent break. After the misrepresentations he’s posted about me and my views, despite being corrected many times, he’s not welcome at LGF.” Just out of curiosity, and with no intention of posting anything, I tried to log in to my account at LGF and discovered that it was blocked. I’ve now been officially banned from LGF, after having posted comments there at irregular intervals for several years. (READ MORE)
Baron Bodissey: Mullah Krekar: “Kill the Aussies!” - Mullah Krekar is Norway’s very own pet mujahid. He is notorious for uttering the most vile and provocative statements, advocating violent jihad against non-Muslims, and supporting the killing of Westerners in Iraq and elsewhere. Originally from Iraq, the Mad Mullah has now been officially expelled from Norway, but he’s still sitting there in Oslo, because he might face the death penalty if he returns to Iraq. That’s the way business is done in most of Western Europe: psychopaths who incite violence and sedition may not be deported because — Heaven forefend! — they might be executed. (READ MORE)
Jules Crittenden: Trend Indisputable - Anti-war Bush-bashing news agency cries uncle. Sort of: “‘The sound of an explosion has become a rare and extraordinary thing. Before it was normal,’ said Mohammed Mghamish, a 41-year-old father of six in the Shiite stronghold of Sadr City. ‘I am not worried like before.’ The questions now: What caused the drop in violence? And how long can it last?” It’s a mystery. What caused that drop in violence? After enumerating the many indisputable indicators of less death, less violence, AP opines: “ The reasons for the violence drop are less clear. U.S. commanders cite the surge of nearly 30,000 troops sent by President Bush earlier this year. They also cite a change in tactics, moving more troops out of large camps and into neighborhoods to keep extremists from returning.” (READ MORE)
A Soldier's Mind: Providing A Chance For Soldiers To Tell Their Stories - For those of us who have family members who have served in the military, how much do we really know about their service? For instance, my grandfather served in World War I in France and was exposed to Mustard Gas. That’s about all I know of his military service. According to my dad, my grandfather never talked much about his experiences during the War and it’s too late to ask him, because he passed away when I was 6 years old. The Army Historical Foundation, however, is making possible for family members and the public to learn about a Soldier’s tour in the Army, through a new program their launching. (READ MORE)
Dr. Donald Douglas: Student Press Bias at Long Beach City College - I don't normally comment on campus politics, but my college's student newspaper's published a wildly innacurate article on an Iraq war panel discussion in which I participated. The article, "Panelists discuss Iraq in town hall meeting," badly misrepresents my statements at the college forum. Indeed, the piece is a poorly veiled, miserable attempt to impugn my debate performance and my reputation as an informed commentator on the war.
Here's the piece, in full: (READ MORE)
Pamela Geller: Annapolis --Dark dark days my friend - Is there no one man enough in that paralyzed administration to tell this incompetent to shut the fuck up and go home? GO HOME CONDI. Rice: Israelis must be prepared for "difficult and painful sacrifices" now that they have a negotiating partner in President Abbas Debka: “In an address to the United Jewish Communities meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, Tuesday, Nov. 13, the U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Israelis must sacrifice some of their ‘longest held aspirations’ in talks with Palestinian leaders. A strong Palestinian state was more urgent than ever, she insisted, as a bulwark against threats from violent extremists, Hamas, Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas and to Iran.” Why, in heaven's name' is a Pali terror state more urgent than ever? (READ MORE)
Richard Landes: Thoughts before the Court Viewing of the France2 Rushes - The viewing of the tapes at this afternoon’s trial has created a good deal of excitement, at least in the small corner of the news world that cares about things like Pallywood and Al Durah. At least five journalists have come to Paris for this event, including Stephane Juffa from Metulla, and Esther Schapira from Frankfurt, both of whom made the first documentaries on the story, Melanie Phillips and Tom Gross. Journalists have started taking an interest and making calls. But we don’t know what will happen tomorrow, nor how what happens effects not only the case (February 27), but the direction of this entire affair. So let me present some of the issues I think relevant. (READ MORE)
Bar Kochba: Apocalyptic Trigger - Throughout history, the Jewish yardstick for measuring events or world developments was 'but is it good for the Jews?'. Now that the world is about to decide a very harsh and bad decree for the Jews, namely the division of Jerusalem, it is time for the West to ask itself 'but is it good for the West?'. As we all know, the West is locked in a life and death struggle with the Islamic world. There are literally hundreds of thousands, maybe even millions, of jihadist Muslims in Europe, Canada and the United States who are ready to fulfill Muhammad's command to fight 'until all men say that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is His prophet'. These people hate Western civilization and are ready to conquer to world for Allah. Could giving up half of Jerusalem to be a 'Palestinian' capital possibly diffuse their rage and frustration towards the US as some American policy-makers believe? (READ MORE)
Dafydd: Elite News Media: Reading Between the Lies - I don't know if I'll make this a continuing series; but for today, it's kind of fun (for me, and I'm all that matters in my narcissistic, little bubble-world) to just slalom through a news article and see if we can deduce what's really happening from the way the drive-by media bobs and weaves. Our text today is an AP piece by Devlin Barrett titled "Domestic Spying Inquiry Restarted at DoJ." “The Justice Department has reopened a long-dormant inquiry into the government's warrantless wiretapping program, a major policy shift only days into the tenure of Attorney General Michael Mukasey. The investigation by the department's Office of Professional Responsibility was shut down last year, after the investigators were denied security clearances. Gonzales told Congress that President Bush, not he, denied the clearances.” (READ MORE)
Dr.Tony: A group of mayors – “[F]rom border towns in the US state of Texas has called for sections of the Rio Grande to be dammed as a deterrent to illegal immigration. The mayors want to deepen and widen the natural border with Mexico through a series of low dams or weirs across the desert flood plain. (source)” Come on, bigger river, bigger fence, none of that crap's gonna work. What has to change is the culture in Mexico, both political and economic. People aren't just accidentally falling across the border. They are making a conscious effort to get into the US. Why? Because there is something here they want. Freedom. (READ MORE)
The Captain's Journal: Awakening in the Balance of Iraq: Insurgents Turned Constable - In ‘Are We Bribing the Sheikhs?’ and ‘Payment to Concerned Citizens: Strategy of Genius or Shame?’, I discussed the expansion of one aspect of the Anbar model into the balance of Iraq, this aspect specifically being settling with the enemy and using his services to maintain regional or local stability and security. South of Baghdad this model is having success, but it has potential pitfalls which might have to be be addressed in the future. “JURF AL-SAKHR, Iraq; In this desolate tiny town in what was once called the Triangle of Death, signs of the violent past mix oddly with evidence of today’s more tranquil life. Large plots of land emptied by car bombs sit next to refurbished buildings. A new water treatment plant looks out to blast walls that have not been necessary for months. A newly opened clothes shop is next to one that has been shut for ages.” (READ MORE)
Confederate Yankee: On Will - The media had some rather interesting takes on Fred Thompson's speech at The Citadel this morning in Charleston, SC, or at least takes different than my own. Jim Davenport of AP keyed in on the size of the military that a President Thompson would champion. Jeremy Pelofsky of Reuters parroted the same sentiments. I saw the first half of the speech, and then Roger L. Simon and I were fortunate enough to have Senator Thompson alone for an interview that will run on Pajamas Media Thursday. (READ MORE)
Bill West: Hizballah Mole Case Reflects Depth of Threat - The emerging prosecution case against the former FBI and CIA officer in Detroit who has just pleaded guilty to various Federal felonies stemming from her apparent fraudulent infiltration of those agencies demonstrates the threat posed by operatives and sympathizers of terrorist organizations penetrating the front-line national security departments defending America from those very terror organizations. This is nothing new. This is the way skilled hostile intelligence organizations conduct espionage during wartime. This particular case, disturbingly, may be indicative of the level of sophistication Hizballah’s intelligence apparatus, surely with the assistance of the Iranian government, has reached. (READ MORE)
Flopping Aces: The Turning Tide In Iraq & The Silly Games Played By The Dem's - My how the tide has turned: “U.S. and Iraqi troops killed 15 suspected al-Qaida in Iraq militants in a daylong battle south of Baghdad, the U.S. military said Tuesday. The fighting took place Monday in Adwaniyah, a town near the Tigris River about 20 kilometers (13 miles) south of Baghdad, the military said in a statement.” In years past those citizens would have ran. Now they stand and fight alongside our troops. Meanwhile the worthless Democrat Harry Reid is again posturing: “Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Tuesday that Democrats won’t approve more money for the Iraq war this year unless President Bush agrees to begin bringing troops home.” (READ MORE)
The Foxhole: Does this mean we’re friends again? - Holy crap, if this keeps up I’ll have to put my ‘Eurotrash’ label on hold. “Denmark’s centre-right government of Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, a staunch supporter of President Bush and the War on Terrorhas won a snap election, securing a third consecutive term in office. His Liberal-Conservative coalition and allies won 90 of the 179 seats in parliament, near complete results show.” The internal threat posed by Islamic thugs has finally pushed the Danes to take a stand. Maybe they’ve finally tired of death threats against the government, cartoonists, and knives plunged into the chests of film makers. In further news, Britain and France are vying for ‘America’s best friend’: (READ MORE)
Ian Schwartz: (Video) Anti-War Nuts Vandalize Memorial on Veterans Day - I’m sure the liberal who did this, in their sick twisted mind, thought they were the patriots. Click the image to watch the report: But, whatever you do, don’t you dare question their patriotism! (READ MORE)
Allahpundit: Bush-bashing bridge babes buffaloed! - Tom Wolfe trying to satirize the absurdity of modern “dissent” couldn’t do any better than this. Feeble, cliched, solipsistic, consumed with foreign opinion, and capable of being vented during even the most ridiculously benign activities. To top it you’d need to come up with “Birdwatchers Against the War” or something. “[A] team of women who represented the United States at the world bridge championships in Shanghai last month is facing sanctions, including a yearlong ban from competition, for a spur-of-the-moment protest.” (READ MORE)
Amy Proctor: (VIDEO) Top NCO's in Iraq Refute Former Soldiers' Criticism - On CNN's Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer, the two highest ranking Non-Commissioned Officers in Iraq, Command Sergeant Major (CSM) Ciotola and CSM Hill, spoke from Baghdad on views within the military criticizing the war. CSM Ciotola called GEN Sanchez's perspective that "America is living a nightmare with no end in sight" "dated by a number of years". They also disagreed with twelve former Army captains who penned an op-ed to Washington Times criticizing the war saying there is significant change on the ground in Iraq. (READ MORE)
Bill Roggio: Pakistan: Shangla district falls to the Taliban - The Taliban continue to take territory in the Northwest Frontier Province. After fighting the Pakistani military to a standstill in North Waziristan and forcibly taking over much of Swat, the Taliban have marched eastward into the settled district of Shangla. Over 500 Taliban fighters under the command of Maulana Muhammad Alam poured into Shangla and took control of the district office and police station in Alpuri "without facing any resistance from the government," the Daily Times reported. "All government functionaries, including the DPO [District Police Officer] and DCO [District Coordination Officer], left the area the moment they heard of the fall of Shangla Top police station, located at the border between Swat and Shangla." The district courts are also under Taliban control, Dawn reported. (READ MORE)
Patrick S Lasswell: Shots Fired in Anger - Hiding in my front yard from a shotgun armed maniac last night made me reflect on my libertarian leanings. The Second Amendment never seemed so clear to me as an individual right as I waited for the police to arrive, and waited. I was carrying only a telephone and a flashlight, and updating the 911 operator as the lunatic passed twenty yards from my position it occurred to me how very much I appreciate owning rifles, and how very, very far away they were at the moment. Although I also own pistols, for a shotgun armed assailant in the night, the accuracy and stopping power of a rifle spoke to me with urgent clarity. As the wonderful folks from Box O'Truth say: Rifles are rifles, and pistols are pistols. While running around in my PJ's armed exclusively with a flashlight, telephone, and civic virtue, my libertarian interest in keeping the police from having military weapons died of exposure. (READ MORE)
The Pirate's Cove: WTW: The War On Christmas Has Started Begins Early - Good morning, infidels. Prophet Sallami Sallami Mohammed is in the house on this وهتي ترسه وإدنسداي (White Trash Wednesday.) Its been awhile since I made an appearence. Been doing some of that jihad stuff, working to convince your gullible left to continue their opposition to anything that George Bush does or recommends, along with getting them to work with America’s enemies. Quite frankly, it is just way to easy, so I reckoned I’d find time to do a post. And what a post. Us jihadis thought about branching out to find other ways to divide America, making our job of jihad easier, but, quite frankly, your Left needs no prompting in certain areas, such as their hatred of the Christian religion: (READ MORE)
McQ: Iraq: Concerned Local Citizens repulse AQI attack - Very interesting conversation on Blogger’s Round Table with COL Terry R. Ferrell, Cdr of the 2nd BCT, 3rd ID about a battle that took place Monday, November 12th. The place was Adwaniyah, which is a village south of Baghdad and formerly (pre-surge) an AQI stronghold. With the surge, AQI was pushed out and, obviously, found that not to their liking. So they planned and mounted an attack. But there had been a change in Adwaniya. The week before, a "Concerned Local Citizens" group had been formed and the CLCs were manning checkpoints around the village. (READ MORE)
The Shield of Achilles: From "Top Gun" to "Lions for Lambs" - Unless you have been living under a rock for the last 50 years, you know that Hollywood has changed considerably since the Roosevelt era. They are turning out one film after another where the bad guys are not the terrorists, but Americans. This has gone on since Vietnam, but now the movies are coming out while the War in question is still in progress. Of course, Al-Qaeda couldn't be happier, but Hollywood is paying a price for it. Literally. Maybe I shouldn't gloat in their misery, but lately these films are all huge box office disasters. The reviews for Lions for Lambs are particularly dismal. Professional reviewers overall give it a score of 47 (out of 100). (READ MORE)
Eugene Volokh: Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean Announces Official Democratic Theology - JTA (the Jewish Telegraph Agency) reports: “‘This country is not a theocracy,’ Dean said. ‘There are fundamental differences between the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. The Democratic Party believes that everybody in this room ought to be comfortable being an American Jew, not just an American; that there are no bars to heaven for anybody; that we are not a one-religion nation; and that no child or member of a football team ought to be able to cringe at the last line of a prayer before going onto the field.’”Now I think I understand the message Dean is trying to convey. Many American Jews (the audience here was the United Jewish Communities' general assembly) are uncomfortable with many traditionalist Christians' expressed views that only Christians can go to heaven. (READ MORE)
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