Unfathomable Zealotry

When I read this, I realized that I thought the same: Where in the Muslim world did anyone say this man did not deserve to die?

"The world is too much with us," Wordsworth once wrote. This is certainly the way I feel. To be confronted on an almost daily basis with the horrors of Iraq is profoundly disturbing. The torture and decapitation of huge numbers of people, the casual homicides, the constant suicide bombings -- all of this makes you wonder about your fellow man.[snip]

In Africa, Asia, too much of the world -- it is Joseph Conrad much of the time: "The horror! The horror!"

But you can say that these horrors are usually being inflicted by a minority. You say it is a few crazed terrorists of Iraq who are doing the killing. It is not most Iraqis. You can say the same about suicide bombers and torturers and rogue governments, like the one Saddam Hussein once headed. You can take solace in numbers. Most people are like us.

Then comes the Rahman case and it is not a solitary crazy prosecutor who brings the charge of apostasy but an entire society. It is not a single judge who would condemn the man but a culture. The Taliban are gone at gunpoint, their atrocities supposedly a thing of the past. In our boundless optimism, we consign them to the "too hard" file of horrors we cannot figure out: the Khmer Rouge, the Nazis, the communists of the Stalin period. Now, though, this awful thing returns and it is not just a single country that would kill a man for his beliefs but a huge swath of the world that would not protest. There can be only one conclusion: They were in agreement.

The groupthink of the Muslim world is frightening. I know there are exceptions -- many exceptions. But still it seems that a man could be killed for his religious beliefs and no one would say anything in protest.[snip]

Unfathomable Zealotry

This is because, in the Muslim world, which so few people understand, it is very common for men and women to be put to death for leaving Islam or "committing apostasy". In fact, people of other faiths who try to practice their religion in Saudi Arabia or own any religious item such as a bible or a cross, can be killed or sentenced to prison. This is not just Iran with it's Mullahcracy or Pakistan with it's wild half jihadi lands on either side. In Egypt, in Yemen, even in Iraq, where many of the killings are kufirs or takfiris, in SAudi Arabia, are closest ME ally next to Israel or even Jordan; people are put to death, deported or put in prison for practicing their religion when it is not Islam. Worse, in places like Saudi Arabia, the Muttawa (religious police) can have you beaten, imprisoned or even killed for not practicing Islam the "right" way.

It's time that people wake up: that is the entire point of this war. Freedom. That includes the freedom to practice or not practice religion of a person's choice. It's about the Muslim world in the Middle East fearing that our culture is infiltrating their culture and turning Muslims from "true" Islam. In fact, this is true Islam. It is a basic tenet of "true" Islam whether it is Shia or Sunni, Wahhabi, Ashuri, etc.

We are not at war with Islam, but Islam is certainly at war with everything that is not Islam and within itself.

The cure for Islamic terrorism and stultifying autocracies is not simply democracy. True democracy, that we take for granted, requires an enlightenment that Islam has not experienced. It requires a belief in the goodness of your fellow man to the point that you believe you do not have to control his every movement because he will act within the bounds of a social contract that binds all men regardless of religion, race, creed, sex or ethnicity.

None of these things exist in Islam. Those who are not Muslim are less than second class citizens. No creed is allowed beyond the five pillars of Islam. In Sudan, black Muslims are being ethnicly cleansed.

This is reality that the media does not report. This is the reality that cheesy programs called "30 Days As A Muslim" never touched on as it barely gave you the basics of Muslim practices. The reality you will not see on a history program about Islam or the rise of Al Qaida. Al Qaida is not some abberation within Islam. It espouses little ideology that does not exist within "mainstream" Islam. No real media will analyze the true practices of Islam and present the facts because, if it did, people would finally understand that the "religion of peace" only exists where Muslims live within Western democratic states where the rule of secular law prevails. Even in such countries as France, Denmark and England, honor killings and murders of Kufirs or takfiris (one who denounces his faith or does not practice "real" Islam), occurs more than people would like to know.

The only reason this zealotry is unfathomable is because most people know nothing about Islam and never will because they will not search it out themselves and those with the tools and medium to do so will never do it. It's much easier for people to accept that the death and destruction that we have seen in the name of Islam is the product of a few deranged individuals who have twisted the religion to fit their own means (which surely many have). It is less scary to believe that there are just a few that need to be eliminated to achieve peace.

It is only unfathomable because people have chosen to be blind, deaf and dumb. If they didn't, they would find that 80% of Muslims are "conservative" and have no problem with killing a man for not believing in Allah. They would find that the destruction of Al Qaida and the death of bin Laden or Zawahiri will not end this war. That is something that most people cannot accept.

Fukyama was right in many regards. Democracy alone will not win this war nor see the sea change in the Middle East that would be required to end this war. Until we accept that, we will never fight this war the way it should be and we will never understand that the real change does not come when we install the ballot box, but when Western concepts of liberalism and enlightenment have infiltrated the Middle East along with our men and women in uniform, with our music, our movies, our books, our jeans and flip flops.

That is a long way away. Until then I imagine that many more people like the author of this piece will continue to be surprised by such behaviors as killing a man for his religion or murdering a woman for talking to a man.

Wake up, people, this is our war whether we like it or not.

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While We Dither, Borders Wither

I received an email last night with pictures attached showing our borders being infiltrated:

On Sunday 3-19-06 I was out at a friends ranch on the border in San Diego helping them pick up some trash on the south end of their property when we saw something startling. During a curious absence of Border Patrol on the border road; we saw several vehicles drive right up to the fence from the south side. One of the vehicles carried several men who got out and began cutting through the border fence with a cutting torch. One of them appeared to have a rifle. They were almost done with the cutting by the time the Border Patrol showed up to stop them. When that happened all hell broke loose on the Mexican side of the fence. There was a lot of shouting in Spanish as the men quickly loaded up and all the vehicles raced off at a high rate of speed. Since I'm learning photography; I had my digital camera with me and managed to get some pictures (from a safe distance) of all this happening. I also got some pictures of the fence after it was cut and spoke with some of the Border Patrol agents who bravely responded to this incident.

Pic 1: A close up of the first truck to approach the fence from the south side. An orange glow is visible at the fence where the cutting torch is being used. A man with a long gun is standing at the passenger door.

Pic 2: As the cutting was nearly completed; four additional vehicles drove to the fence while a sixth vehicle appeared to serve as a lookout. A lone Border Patrol unit can be seen moving into the area with flashing lights at the top of the picture. Armed only with a .40 caliber handgun and facing heavily armed and violent smugglers; this took grit.

Pic 3: This side of the fence was cut to the ground in less than five minutes.

Pic 4: This side was a few minutes away from completion. The opening would have been large enough to drive a Humvee through. If the fence wasn't there these vehicles and their unknown cargo would be in the United States of America. Thankfully, the US Border Patrol, Army Corps of Engineers, and National Guard have provided these force multiplying deterrents to prevent that.

Name of contact and phone number upon request and verification.

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Mein Kampf, Islam and the Resurgence of Anti-Semitism

I have wondered for sometime why Hitler's "Mein Kampf" would become so popular with Muslims of all walks of life from the liberal to the extreme. As anti-semitism rises across nations and accusations of passive and aggressive "Zionism" is used to explain every foreign policy issue from both the Middle East as well as European and American elitists, I have become determined to review more completely and analytically what messages Hitler's "Mein Kampf" holds for modern anti-semitists. I think it is also imperative to review the language and attitude of those who are obvious anti-semites as well as those who claim to not be anti-semitic but simply anti-Zionist.

In my youth, along with treatise by Marx, Locke, Paine, etc, I had read excerpts of Hitler's book, but never made a thorough study of it, though World War II, militarily and politically, is one of my favorite periods to read and study on. I think I inherently shied away from reading this book perceiving it to be a work of evil, which surely Hitler personified in his egomaniacal demand for perfection or destruction. As with my recent reading of Zawaheeri's "Knights Under the Prophet's Banner", reading "Mein Kampf" reminds you that the writer is not stupid nor insane (at least, not in the accepted idea of insanity meaning a defect in the brain leading to the person's inability understand right or wrong).

The first thing to note is the language of Mein Kampf, which punctuated with numerous descriptive phrases, appearing similar in floridity to modern Arabist and Muslim writers. This must make it easier to read, comprehend and regurgitate within the psyche of these modern readers as it reflects or is reflected in popular modern treatise.

Secondly, because the writing follows a logical progression and brings the reader along with Hitler in his own ideological progression, it does not appear to be the ravings of a madman, but an intelligent well thought out position.

Third, because I am reading chapter three in which he describes his Vienna period and begins his discussion of his anti-Semitic emergence, it is not enough to simply say that Hitler hated the Jews and the Muslims (of all professed conditions of the faith from "liberal" to "extreme") hate the Jews thus their shared hatred's make them the same. It is, in fact, exact language, rhetoric, descriptions and values which match, without any separation I can find to date, both modern and Qu'ranic Arab/Muslim writings/rhetoric and Mein Kampf.

In particularly, beyond the idea that a Jewish minority controls government and economics, the exact idea that Zionism is evil and that every Jew is a Zionist at heart and works towards the Zionist dream of establishing a Jewish state across the entirity of the Arab lands.

Among them there was a great movement, quite extensive in Vienna, which came out sharply in confirmation of the national character of the Jews: this was the Zionists.

It looked to be sure, as though only a part of the Jews approved this viewpoint, while the great majority condemned and inwardly rejected such a formulation. But when examined more closely, this appearance dissolved itself into an unsavory vapor of pretexts advanced for mere reasons of expedience, not to say lies. For the so-called liberal Jews did not reject the Zionists as non-Jews, but only as Jews with an impractical, perhaps even dangerous, way of publicly avowing their Jewishness.
Intrinsically they remained unalterably of one piece.

In a short time this apparent struggle between Zionistic and liberal Jews disgusted me; for it was false through and through, founded on lies and scarcely in keeping with the moral elevation and purity always claimed by this people.

This cannot be taken totally out of context nor be considered an "out of the blue" anger. In fact, as earlier noted, he leads the reader through his progression from being fairly unaware of the existence of Jews, to believing they are simply another part of the "volk" to his uncomfortability with anti-semitism in certain press and conversations to finally "understanding" the "Jewish question" after reading "scientific" pamphlets and books that did not mirror the hysterical meanderings of most anti-Semitics.

Once, as I was strolling through the Inner City, I suddenly encountered an apparition in a black caftan and black hair locks. Is this a Jew? was my first thought.
For, to be sure, they had not looked like that in Linz. I observed the man furtively and cautiously, but the longer I stared at this foreign face, scrutinizing feature for feature, the more my first question assumed a new form:
Is this a German?

As always in such cases, I now began to try to relieve my doubts by books. For a few hellers I bought the first antiSemitic pamphlets of my life. Unfortunately, they all proceeded from the supposition that in principle the reader knew or even understood the Jewish question to a certain degree. Besides, the tone for the most part was such that doubts again arose in me, due in part to the dull and amazingly unscientific arguments favoring the thesis.

I relapsed for weeks at a time, once even for months.

The whole thing seemed to me so monstrous, the accusations so boundless, that, tormented by the fear of doing injustice, I again became anxious and uncertain.
Yet I could no longer very well doubt that the objects of my study were not Germans of a special religion, but a people in themselves; for since I had begun to concern myself with this question and to take cognizance of the Jews, Vienna appeared to me in a different light than before. Wherever I went, I began to see Jews, and the more I saw, the more sharply they became distinguished in my eyes from the rest of humanity. Particularly the Inner City and the districts north of the Danube Canal swarmed with a people which even outwardly had lost all resemblance to Germans.

These "logical", "theoretical" books and "educated thinkers" were able to persuede Hitler to change his mind about the Jew. It is this same logical progression which has been used to convince "moderate" Muslims as well as anti-Israeli xenophobes to accept the overweening, hyperbolic, conspiratorial evinces of their leaders, media and intelligensia; accepting that anti-Zionism does not constitute "intolerance" of Jews. Hitler though, is not so recalcitrant as he willingly admits to his anti-Semitism encompassing the entire "race". Of course, he did not live in a world post holocaust when anti-Semitism must be couched in such away as to express it but avoid being labeled "intolerant" since it may well damage any credibility of that person in front of other Liberals who continue to evince such concepts as a facade to void being labeled "intolerant" as well, surely a death nell in modern "Liberal" society that includes, among other things, many "anti-Zionist" Jews. In which case it is currently expressed as "anti-Zionist" or "anti-neo-con" and is clearly anti-Semitic regardless of it's attempts to pretend otherwise.

Other language is clearly repetitive in it's ideas that Jews are "unclean" and the purveyors of every disgusting evil on humanity from prostitution to pornography to "white slavery" as well as being hygenically "unclean".

One would not be surprised at all to find entire speeches or sections of speeches and this book to have been plagiarised by modern "thinkers" in the Middle East. The only difference is that Hitler looked for justification in science and theory while Muslims seek justification in the writings of Mohammed.

There are other ideas, outside of "Zionism", which Hitler espouses that resonate within the modern European/American intelligensia and Middle Eastern theological prescience.

As I delved more deeply into the teachings of Marxism and thus in tranquil clarity submitted the deeds of the Jewish people to contemplation, Fate itself gave me its answer.

The Jewish doctrine of Marxism rejects the aristocratic principle of Nature and replaces the eternal privilege of power and strength by the mass of numbers and their dead weight. Thus it denies the value of personality in man, contests the significance of nationality and race, and thereby withdraws from humanity the premise of its existence and its culture. As a foundation of the universe, this doctrine would bring about the end of any order intellectually conceivable to man. And as, in this greatest of ail recognizable organisms, the result of an application of such a law could only be chaos, on earth it could only be destruction for the inhabitants of this planet.

If, with the help of his Marxist creed, the Jew is victorious over the other peoples of the world, his crown will be the funeral wreath of humanity and this planet will, as it did thousands l of years ago, move through the ether devoid of men.
Eternal Nature inexorably avenges the infringement of her commands.

Hence today I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: by defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord.

Stay tuned for the next installment.

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This Is Wrong Part II

Call it the scarlet letter for drunken drivers.
A California lawmaker wants to force two-time offenders to attach red license plates with the letters DUI, for "driving under the influence," to their vehicles - a rolling advertisement of their crimes.

Assemblyman Ray Haynes, R-Murrieta, said he is proposing the plates, which would remain on offenders' vehicles for two years, to help tackle a disturbing rise in alcohol-related roadway deaths.

"This notifies the public, 'Here is a guy who may be dangerous,' " Haynes said. "It also alerts cops. If you see a car with a red plate in front of a bar at midnight, maybe it's someone you want to watch. Finally, it frankly does make people think twice about wanting to drive around drunk."
Haynes has put the proposal in a bill, AB 2099, which he expects will be discussed by the Assembly public safety committee in a few weeks.

The bill will be controversial. Early critics of Haynes' proposal complain of its potential cost, while privacy advocates fear unfair scrutiny and labeling of individuals.

But Haynes' effort highlights a sobering reality in California: After several decades of tough legislation and progress, California's efforts to reduce drunken driving fatalities have stalled.

One person already noted in this article, this is "well intentioned", but this is completely wrong. This is the "Scarlet Letter" of modern times. It's the "tincture of blood" and "double jeopardy" rolled into one. Completely against the constitution and any sense of freedom.

This is not sympathy for drunk drivers. I believe that drunk drivers need to receive stiffer punishments, particularly if they are involved in accidents that damage property, injure or kill other people.

In a real sense, this is government taking over the the concept of social stigmatism; that which was once the domain of the community to shame people into appropriate behavior, is now being taken over by government because the community has lost it's power through the loss of accepted social mores and the destruction of family.

When it becomes a legal manouver by the state, it becomes a matter of violating constitutional rights including privacy, double jeopardy, cruel and unusual punishment and possibly the "tincture of blood" since it would also unfairly stigmatize any family or friends. It also negates the concept of "innocent before proven guilty" assuming that any person that has been convicted of a crime is automatically guilty because of the probability or possibility of future crime.

Last, such behavior is the stepping stones of legal fascism. Once this is allowed, then each successive concept becomes more acceptable. What shall we do next? All felons should now have an "F" branded on their back, put on their license so the entire world can know they served time in prison? Maybe gays should where Pink Triangles and Jews a yellow Star of David?

The last may seem hyperbolic, but I believe that, once we invalidate the rights of any citizen, to say that any past behavior or possibility of future behavior, negates their rights.

For the record, I also disagree with public lists of "sexual predators". Don't get me wrong, I don't believe that sexual predators should be given light sentences, but that twisting the law to "protect" people is not the answer. If the crime is sufficient the punishment should be sufficient. If criminals are highly likely to be recidivists, then the outcome of the punishment must be considered and adjusted appropriately. Personally, the crime of sexual assault is hienous and often not punished appropriately. I believe that child molesters are some of the worst types of criminals, above and beyond drug pushers. I believe they should receive life sentences for the destruction of a child's life.

But, I don't believe in double jeopardy and I believe that, as we "select" people to receive this treatment, eventually, every person will be on an alert list or forced to wear a label so they can be "recognized" and treated "appropriately" by society.

California - Red tags of shame for DUI cases? - sacbee.com

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History: Did You Know?

Hitler was recommended for the Iron Cross by a Jewish Officer during World War I?

One of the Army officers in command of Hitler during the war was a Jewish lieutenant who recommended young Corporal Hitler for the Iron Cross first class, a rarity for a common foot soldier. To his dying day, Hitler wore that Iron Cross, passing on all other Nazi decorations and paraphernalia with the exception of his gold Party membership pin.

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Be Careful What You Ask For: Nationalism, Isolationists and World Wars

Francis Fukyama warns people in Europe to be careful what they ask for because they might get it. Basically, he says what we all know: the world does not function without the US providing the strong arm of security and global trade and recent years have shown a greater proclivity for isolationist and nationalist behavior on our part. That's never been good for global economics (usually leads to depression economics) and, worse, every time we've done that in the last 100 years, some big, nasty, sadistic S.O.B usually starts trying to take over the world, kills millions of people and generally starts world wars. Europe forgets how often the big nasty started with them first.

Frankly, we all know what that big nasty will be and we know that Europe will again be number one on the list: Islamists. I just hope we never have to say, "I told you so" because it will likely be over the bodies of our men and women as we rush in to save them one more time. That is, after we sit around dithering about intervention circa 1939.

In this case, it's not just the US that is suffering from Isolationist and nationalist tendencies. Europe continues to see socialist protectionism in the job market drive down economics and productivity while driving up unemployment. To combat this problem, the French have decided to try new labor laws that permit people to be fired before two years have passed. Something that is completely unheard of in the US where most states have adopted laws that allow people to be fired or hired without reason, though we all know othe labor laws protect against discrimination and generally make the companies jump through hoops to document the "cause" regardless of the law. In Europe, that starts riots.

But that isn't the only issue that is promoting nationalism and isolation in Europe. Immigration is high and the unemployed (as well as the usual suspects in crime) largely come from this group. Not to mention the issue of terrorist cells and terrorist activities. This has seen the rise of many ultra nationalist groups. The isolationists have long existed in Europe, demanding tough trade laws and tariffs against American produce, beef and other products as well as insisting on remaining separate from other US activities such as Iraq as well as insisting on limiting their involvement in Afghanistan.

Historically, Europeans have been much more susceptible to ultra-nationalist tendencies. Particularly when long periods have passed between the last great European ultra-nationalist uprising. These groups have never needed large party membership to get their message across and become accepted by the general population. All they need is a weak economy, a little mayhem and a message that includes making the trains run on time, work for every man, soup in every bowl and "law and order". Then, voila, they get a few seats in parliament and it's down hill from there.

Another tell-tale sign that isolationism and nationalism are alive and well in Europe is the rejection of Turkey into the EU. Fears that more immigrants taking more jobs at cheaper wages or being jobless and sucking off the European, socialist, cradle to grave teat are what really fueled this rejection, regardless of insistance that Turkey does not meet EU standards for freedom and human rights. Turkey itself is suffering from a mild case of nationalism.

Where does it lead us?

This is the time, the place and the events that we should fear most. When the US becomes isolationist, world economy falters and brings on depressions, not just recession, in this country and around the globe. That's when some European decides they know how to run the world the right way and starts trying to do it. No European nation is in a position to do so. Yet, Germany required little time to build up its military. It would require little for any of the European nations to do the same. Despite insistence that they learned from history. In the US, we have learned little from our experiences with isolationism.

It may be that Islamist movements are what tips the scale whether that is Islamists inside Europe driving an independent, sub nationalism or whether the effect causes the creation of a "European" nationalist movement. It may be that Islamists are able to effectively control Middle East governments and finally develop the one ideology that brings Islamic nations together. Only this time it won't be the "Third Reich", but the "Third Caliphate". This may threaten Europe that finds itself weakened and unable to resist due to its self imposed pacifism.

There is an ugly possibility that history will repeat itself.

What will America do then? Will we have decided that adventures in the Middle East are too costly and withdraw to our own borders? Will we decide to stand outside and watch as Europe is swallowed by the next pillaging horde looking for "one world order"? Until we realize it won't stop with Europe? Have we ever been good at recognizing the possibility until we're so late to the battle we have to fight tooth and nail to prevent it?

Many would have it that Iraq is due to the strength and nationalism of the US, not a real necessity. A trumped up war for expansionist reasons. But, is it really? Is this just the "last" little war that leads to American withdrawl of military power and the eventual rise of one or more rivals with much less proclivity for freedom?

Will the European trains run on time after all?

Fukyama does not go far enough in his piece when he warns the Europeans to be careful what they wish for when it comes to American isolationist tendencies. For a man that wrote "the end of history" he does not remind them enough of that history. Maybe because, to do so, he'd have to refute the idea that "history" ended with the collapse of the Soviet Republic. I've never agreed with him on that subject. It never really ended. The same players exist. They want the same things. They've just changed their names. Communism and socialist nationalism still exist. A new fascist ideology exists.

History does not repeat itself, but we tend to make the same kinds of mistakes.

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Speaking of Heroes...

It appears that Iraq War veteran, Tammy Duckworth has won the primaries to stand for a senatorial seat in congress for Illinois. Major Duckworth is running as a Democrat for a recently vacated seat in an area that has been held by Republicans for over 32 years. Her views on the war run with the party line. While I don't hold with her political views, here's wishing her good luck.

Duckworth lost both of her legs and had severe muscle and nerve damage to an arm two years ago when her helicopter was shot out of the air by an RPG. Her husband was also in the Illinois National Guard but was not called up.

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Site of Sgt. York�s WWI heroics found? - Europe - MSNBC.com

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Researchers say they believe they have found the site where Sgt. Alvin C. York single-handedly captured more than 100 German soldiers during World War I in one of the U.S. military’s most storied exploits.

The precise location of the fight, immortalized in a 1941 Oscar-winning film starring Gary Cooper, has long been disputed, but two researchers from York’s home state of Tennessee say they unearthed spent shell casings they believe to be from York’s rifle this month from a site near Chatel-Chehery, France.[snip]

York was part of an Oct. 8, 1918, surprise rear attack on a row of German machine gunners. When the sergeant in command was killed, York — then a corporal — used the raccoon-hunting skills he honed in the backwoods of Tennessee to pick off at least 20 gunners, shooting them when they raised their heads to aim.

A total of 132 German soldiers either surrendered or were captured. York, who marched the German POWs to the U.S. lines, was awarded the Medal of Honor and promoted to sergeant.

A team led by Tom Nolan, a geographer at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, reviewed York’s journal, French and German trench maps, and maps drawn by York’s commanding officer. Nolan and Birdwell superimposed that historical data onto a modern topographic map and downloaded it to a handheld Global Positioning System device.

Back when people knew what a hero was.

Site of Sgt. York�s WWI heroics found? - Europe - MSNBC.com

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This Is Wrong

Texas arresting drunks in bars - Peculiar Postings - MSNBC.com

Is this a movie? The Minority Report?

This is government going too far:

SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Texas has begun sending undercover agents into bars to arrest drinkers for being drunk, a spokeswoman for the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission said on Wednesday.

The first sting operation was conducted recently in a Dallas suburb where agents infiltrated 36 bars and arrested 30 people for public intoxication, said the commission’s Carolyn Beck.

Being in a bar does not exempt one from the state laws against public drunkenness, Beck said.

Maybe it's the civil libertarian in me, but this is about as wrong as government can get. "Pre-emptive" arrests because someone might leave the bar and drive drunk.

People...laws protect your freedom or take it away. This is definitely taking it away. Now the question is, will some judge uphold these arrests? Will somebody challenge it all the way to the Supremes? Or, will Texans sit back and let the police state take over?

Stand by for a follow up.

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Where Am I?

Several people have stopped by to ask if I'm okay and have been wondering where I've been since I haven't blogged in almost a month.

First, I was moving for several weeks; packing, throwing things away, cleaning, and finally moving my things to storage. The good thing about moving is that you find all the things that you haven't used or worn in ages that you either throw away or look at in amazement. I tossed alot of clothes to the salvation army and in the trash. I also found a number of items that I had been looking for or forgot that I had. I gave some things away to family and friends. It was a good clean sweep.

It took much longer than I expected because I was moving my mom's things as well. It a strange and bizarre twist, it took three times as many truck loads to move my mom's things from my house than it did mine even though I had furniture.

Second, being too tired to blog during that time and too depressed for various reasons, got me out of the habit of blogging. After two weeks of non-blogging, I just couldn't seem to get back in the swing of it.

Third, I was tired. I mean, tired of writing. It's a bizarre thing to say because I love to write. I loved the freedom blogging allowed to share my views with people, to clarify my own thoughts and express whatever angst, joy, fear, anger, etc I was feeling. But, I realized that I was not writing anything brilliant anymore, just linking to some stories and adding my voice to the thousands that were saying much of what I might have to say. Still, I didn't feel like new ideas or thoughts were forthcoming, but, instead, felt bogged down and unable to write anything new and interesting.

I think I was also tired of writing about the war and its ongoing blood and pain. I still support it, believe we are taking the general right actions and feel that it is a matter of time that we must allow for the outcome to be as expected. However, I was so deep into it that I started losing perspective which contributed to my difficulty in writing anything significant.

So I took an unplanned, unannounced sabatical and have probably lost a number of readers (if not all). I'm not sure if this message actually means anything or has anyone to read it.

I'm not sure if this means I'm back or not.

Looking at the news lately, it seems that the media is still waiting with bated breath for all out civil war to happen in Iraq. Of course, they've been announcing it since the 2005 Iraq elections. It seems as along as people kill each other in Iraq for various reasons, they will keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. The problem is the problem that the media has had for quite awhile: lack of accurate reporting and analytical ability.

There are still days when I wonder if we shouldn't have bombed the place back to the stone age, then there are others when I realize that it wasn't really necessary; it was already a bizarre land of extremes with stone age inhabitants (or, at least people who haven't changed their way of life significantly for a millenia) and people who were living in Stalinesque modernity.

I don't believe it was ever more troops that we needed, but, to change the current outcome, it would have required many more deaths of Iraqis from Berlin like bombing. Fortunately for us, we didn't have to do it ourselves. It appears that these folks are quite capable of killing each other without the presence of a brutal dictator. It's sad, really and I think that sadness just seemed too overwhelming for me for a few weeks. It's hard to believe that some people are willing to kill each other in the name of religion or whatever else they feel the need to kill each other over.

This same sense of despair must have been what overcame the anti-war people. They haven't changed a thing.

I think I was also sick of the partisan crap that continues on in the face of the war when it is obvious that our two choices were to sit back and take the hits on the chin, occasionally capturing terrorists or take the war to the enemy, whoever and wherever that might be. I'm still surprised that people don't get Iraq.

There are days, though, when I feel like we are like water against a stone. We know we are eroding the stone a little at a time, but it's often not visible to the naked eye. In this case, I believe we've made leaps and bounds on occasion while similarly looking at the stone and seeing no visible change. It's hard to accustom yourself to the thought that real change won't be seen for a decade or more. It wil inevitably change because of globalization. It can't be stopped anymore than a stone can stop itself from being shaped by the running water.

But, we're going to suffer the pangs of this change for years and that is something we are just not good at. Thus, our efforts will ebb and flow and the change will be longer than necessary. People will die. It's inevitable. But people will change.

So will we. That's inevitable, too.

That's where I'm at. I'm in the middle of changing my life. I think I'm on to the next phase so I may be back fairly soon.

Stay tuned.

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IRAQ THE MODEL

If you're not reading Iraq the Model, you don't know what's going on in Iraq.

Life is coming back to normal in Baghdad and marketplaces and offices are open again after being shut for 4 days. Although there were a few security incidents today people are mostly looking at these as part of the usual daily situation and not related to the latest shrine crisis.

But, what can we learn from this lesson and how can we make benefit from it in avoiding similar problems in the future.

It's not a secret who was behind the attack on the shrine and I am sure that who did it were the Salafi/Wahabis whether Iraqi or foreigners and with external support from parties planning to disrupt the political process in Iraq.

The reason I believe it's the Salafis who did it comes from their own ideology which considers all mosques built upon tombs as places of polytheism and infidelity and thus must be destroyed. This also applies to Sunni shrines like Abu Haneefa and al-Gailani; Salafis consider the Shia and the Sufis their worst enemies and they commonly refer to them in their speech with the term "tomb worshippers" or Mushrikoon Quborioon in Arabic.[snip]

Now that we have outlined the identity of the perpetrators depending on motives, interests and ideology we can move on to talk a little about the reactions to the atrocity which has a lot in common with the reactions to the Danish cartoons (I'm comparing the reactions here, not the actions that triggered them). The two reactions are similar in two aspects a) Overreaction and b) Exploiting the atrocity to serve political causes.

Two years ago the shrine of Imam Ali in Najaf was attacked and although this is the holiest shrine for Shia Muslims the incident wasn't met with that much angry reactions instead we heard soothing statements like "these are mere stones and we can rebuild them and make them even better than before".
This time things were different because the political situation is different; the Ayatollah called for nationwide protests (and not to attack Sunni mosques) and a week of mourning.[snip]

The reactions and protests were far from spontaneous like clerics claim they were. The protests were organized and under supervision of commanders who have clear goals and those commanders were intent on provoking a reaction that carries clear signs to the Sunni, secular and moderate parties that succeeded in applying substantial pressure on the UIA and won the US on their side.

There's alot of information that is very helpful in explaining the situation. Read this post:

IRAQ THE MODEL

And then scroll down to check out the other posts on the situation at IRAQ THE MODEL

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Female Pilots Get Their Shot in the Iraqi Skies

TALL AFAR, Iraq -- Buzzing over this northern Iraqi city in her Kiowa scout helicopter, a .50-caliber machine gun and rockets at the ready, Capt. Sarah Piro has proved so skillful in combat missions to support U.S. ground troops that she's earned the nickname "Saint."

In recent months of fighting in Tall Afar, Piro, 26, of El Dorado Hills, Calif., has quietly sleuthed out targets, laid down suppressive fire for GIs in battle and chased insurgents through the narrow alleys of this medieval city -- maneuvering all the while to avoid being shot out of the sky. In one incident, she limped back to base in a bullet-riddled helicopter, ran to another aircraft and returned to the fight 10 minutes later.[snip]

"They call her 'Saint Piro' -- she's just that good," said her co-pilot, Chief Warrant Officer Todd Buckhouse, a 19-year Army veteran who has worked with Piro on two tours with the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment in Iraq.

"There was no one I wanted to hear more on a raid than her. She's a spectacular Army aviator," said Maj. Chris Kennedy, executive officer of the regiment, which is returning home this month.

But it's not all kudos and salutes:

Soldiers who didn't know the women would slight them over the radio, or defer to male aviators in mission briefings rather than the higher-ranking women, Buckhouse said. "If she had any emotion in her voice or even a crack, the guys [ground troops] would say, 'Say again, you're coming in soft.' No one would ever tell that to a guy," he said.

As an officer, Piro said, she walks a fine line between leading from the front and not offending male soldiers who want to pay her courtesies -- by opening doors for her, for example.[snip]

Over dinner in a noisy chow hall, Strye agreed that despite their skill as combat pilots, women face restrictions that make it challenging for them to integrate themselves in mostly male units. One rule bars female and male aviators from entering each other's quarters, while another policy requires escorts for women on base. While aimed at maintaining discipline, the segregation can be isolating, Strye said.

This must be a base specific situation. I have not heard that for every base. I wonder if this is due to segregation of the sexes and safety from their male counterparts or if it is because they are in a far forward operating base and they are higher targets for possible kidnapping or killing by any infiltrators? I seem to recall at the end of 2004 that intelligence indicated the insurgents were desperate to get their hands on female soldiers because of the significant political fallout. However, many female soldiers have been in fire fights, wounded and killed by both direct and indirect fire, so this seems like we have passed that necessity. Is it possible that their commander is being overly cautious?

One of the pilots seems to imply that it is a matter of limiting fraternization. I wonder how many women are on base that this is a concern?

Implicit in the separation, Strye said, is a mistrust that grates on her as a professional. "You trust me to make combat decisions to defeat the enemy," she said, "but don't trust what I do when I go into another person's 'CHU,' " -- a containerized housing unit.

Still, I think the rest of the story is great. These ladies take names and kick butt.


You know...go read the rest.

Female Pilots Get Their Shot in the Iraqi Skies

Cross posted at the Castle

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Iraqi leaders sidestep all-out civil war | csmonitor.com

BAGHDAD – After a weekend of sleepless nights, emergency meetings, and an unprecedented three-day curfew, Iraq has managed to stave off its worst fear after last week's destruction of a major Shiite shrine: That the country's small-scale civil conflict was about to bloom into a bloody and wide-ranging war between its sects.

But disturbing signs are emerging that Iraq's sectarian powder-keg is still highly volatile.

I understand the Sunni Iraqi Accord Front says that it has a list of 24 demands which it insists must be met before they will rejoin talks to form the government which is supposed to be formed by March 15 or else the parliament is dissolved and new elections will have to be done in order to form a new assembly.

A list of 24 demands is pretty much a death knell for the formation of a government. Any time anyone puts out that many demands they are expecting that not all of them will be met. Often it's a form of negotiation: start with the highest demands and work down to acceptable demands, but, in the face of the current situation, it seems more like "mission impossible" in order to insist that the others, the Shia parties, are to blame for any disaster because they would not negotiate.

We'll see which one it is within the next week.

Iraq's dominant Shiite parties, led by the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq and Dawa, as well as clerics like Ayatollah Sistani have long nurtured a vision of a unified Iraq dominated by its Shiite majority, replacing the Sunni-minority governments that have dominated Iraq throughout its history. Sunni Arabs, adrift in a country in which sectarian death squads have operated against them out of the Shiite-controlled interior ministry and hoping to regain their past position, are unlikely to stand down.

"All these things are necessary and none of them are likely,'' says Pat Lang, a former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency's Middle East bureau and a retired colonel with a counter insurgency background. Shiites and Sunnis "are contestants for the loot.... it's not about being Iraqis in an idealized Iraq but the real one. These are groups that are contesting power and they'll continue to do so."

I think that sums up the situation precisely. The Shia have been extremely patient with the Sunni insurgent situation. They have been attacked the most with bombs and bullets. For the most part, they turned the other cheek. I believe that the Sunni insurgents and political parties may have taken too long to decide to play politics instead of bullets. There is a delicate balance between guerrilla warfare and guerrilla politics. Too much of one or the other can weaken a groups position and that is what we've seen here.

Even if these groups had little to do with the shrine bombing, the fact that they harbored and assisted AQAM (Al Qaida Affiliated Movements) in Iraq, makes them partly responsible for the disaster.

Which may be why certain people are being given up. This morning on Fox, reports indicated that Abu al-Farouq, an AQAM financier related to Zarqawi's group AQI (Al Qaida in Iraq), and at least four other members of the group were captured about 100 miles west of Baghdad. We may see more of this in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, Al Sadr tries to consolidate his position of power from the center, believe it or not, as he prays with Sunni members of the Muslim Clerics Association. This is interesting since it it widely known that the MCA has ties to the Sunni insurgency and has been known to be the middle men in negotiating release of kidnap victims. Al Sadr is associated with the Shia militias who have also been implicated in sectarian murders of Sunnis.

It would behoove us to keep a watch on that situation as well as keep pushing for AQAM info in the midst of a very poorly decided attack on a religious symbol that may as yet prove to be the final reversal for AQI.


Iraqi leaders sidestep all-out civil war | csmonitor.com

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Saudi Arabia: reality check, by Alain Gresh

I cannot recommend this article enough for a quick view inside Saudi Arabia, it's struggles with change, modernity, Islam and the infiltration and effect of international culture.

Saudi Arabia: reality check, by Alain Gresh

For most who pay attention, this is the one of the three main pillars of war with Al Qaida and it's affiliates. It may, in fact, be the primary issue. Qutb wrote that western culture and values would destroy Islam. Zawahiri was a student of Qutb and bin Laden took his cue from Zawahiri. The problem is not necessarily military hegemony nor an issue with Israel/Palestine. These are the face of the problem along with the major claim that:

since Allah made it flat, created its desert, and encircled it with seas -- been stormed by any forces like the crusader armies spreading in it like locusts, eating its riches and wiping out its plantations.

-Declaration of War

Whenever Al Qaida mentions "riches" or "wealth" of Muslims, they are not simply speaking of oil, though they recognize this as a material representation. In fact, the "wealth" of the Muslims is the Ummah, it's oneness and it's adherence to Islam, which has given the people of the middle east their strength for centuries and allowed them to conquer large swaths of the earth under various Caliphas.

The problem is culture. Ours infiltrating theirs and effecting the practice of Islam which is not simply a religion, but an entire way of life for most people of the region, governing everything from marriage, to clothing, to food, to children, to inheritance, to commercial and criminal law.

So, please, read this article because it highlights a number of changes that are occuring in Saudi Arabia that continues to spur the Islamist civil war.

Saudi Arabia: reality check, by Alain Gresh

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Saudi Arabia, Al Qaida and Oil

Al-Qaida Threatens to Hit More Saudi Sites - Yahoo! News

MANAMA, Bahrain - Al-Qaida suicide bombers will attack more Saudi oil facilities, the terror group purportedly threatened Saturday in an Internet statement that claimed responsibility for the foiled attack on the Abiqaiq plant in eastern Saudi Arabia.[snip]

Two suicide bombers tried to drive cars packed with explosives into Abiqaiq, the world's largest oil processing facility, on Friday afternoon, but security guards opened fire and the vehicles exploded outside the gates, killing the bombers and fatally wounding two guards.[snip]

Saudi Oil Minister Ali Naimi quickly said the attack "did not affect operations" and that exports continued to flow. But the blast made the price of crude oil jump by more than $2 a barrel on the world markets.

I highly suggest, if you drive an SUV you may want to look for a second, cheap car that gets better gas mileage. This, along with Iraq's impending civil war and the volatile Phillipine situation is going to have gas prices shooting through the roof even if the Saudis try to give reassurances that the oil flow will not be interrupted:

Naimi met U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez in Riyadh on Saturday and assured him the kingdom would "ensure the flow of oil despite the terrorist threats,"[snip]

A statement appeared on a militant Web site saying that Friday's attack was "part of a series of operations that al-Qaida is carrying out against the crusaders and the Jews to stop their plundering of Muslim wealth." It was signed "al-Qaida in the Arab Peninsula" — the name of the Saudi branch of the terror network.

The statement did not acknowledge that the attack was foiled. In fact, it claimed that the two "heroic holy warriors" managed to enter Abiqaiq.

"There are more like them who are racing toward martyrdom and eager to fight the enemies of god, the Jews, the crusaders and their stooges, the renegade rulers" of Arab countries, the posting said.

"You will see things that will make you happy, god willing," concluded the statement.

Bin Laden has been threatening attacks against the US, the West in general and Saudi Arabia. What is interesting about this statement is that, as usual, it's directed at their followers more than at the US or Saudi Arabia. The end phrase "you will see things that will make you happy" has appeared in similar videos, audios and written statements preceeding major attacks, but the statements usually get released after the attacks. In otherwords, the followers had the message before we did and that last statement was intended to let them know about the impending attack on the oil refineries. A quick reminder from AP about the AQ/Saudi status:

Al-Qaida is led by the Saudi-born Osama bin Laden, who has long sought to replace the Saudi monarchy with an Islamic government, accusing the royal family of selling out to American "infidels." In late 2004, bin Laden released a video in which he called for attacks on oil facilities to hurt the West.

The posting said Friday's attack was dubbed "Operation Bin Laden Conquest."

This was Saudi Arabia's main refinery:

The huge Abqaiq facility processes about two-thirds of Saudi Arabia's oil for export, removing hydrogen sulfide and reducing the vapor to make the crude safe for shipping. It lies 25 miles inland from the Gulf coast.[snip]

Saudi Arabia holds over 260 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, a quarter of the world's total. It currently produce about 9.5 million barrels per day, or 11 percent of global consumption. Abqaiq processes at least 5 million barrels a day.

Some folks continue to talk about the US at war for oil. In some respects it's true however it is not necessarily the US that declared the war in the region for this reason. Zawahiri and bin Laden have made numerous statements in the past, including their 1998 declaration of war from the World Islamic Jihad Front, in which they accuse the "infidels" of "plundering Muslim wealth".

There is more to the implication of the word "infidels" than targeting US interests, though we are the world's largest consumer of oil. China and Saudi Arabia recently cut a new deal and according to the Washington Post, that makes China Saudi Arabia's number one buyer.

The Saudi kingdom's new largest customer is China.

"Saudi sales to the U.S. have fallen off the table," James Placke, a senior associate at Cambridge Energy Research Associates and former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern Affairs, said Thursday.

Saudi oil sales to the United States peaked in 2002 at 1.7 million barrels per day but had fallen to 1.1 million barrels per day in May, the last month for which U.S. Department of Energy figures are available, Placke said at a Washington forum.[snip]

"I think, while there was what has generally been described as a sufficient degree of cooperation between Saudi Arabia and the United States, (the invasion of Iraq) clearly was not in tune with Saudi Arabia or really anyone else in the Arab world for that matter," Placke said.

"I think what we're seeing is not punishment or retribution, but I think it's a slow recognition by the Saudi side that the 'special relationship' isn't so special anymore," he added.

The fact that we ignored their angst over Iraq also means that we may not view them as "special" anymore, though, it would be foolish to think that we would not be concerned over the status of Saudi Arabia. According to the Washington Post article, Canada and Mexico now vie for the number one position as supplier of oil to the US, though we are still relatively diversified, as are almost all countries, because oil is sold on the open market which means that it's bought as it is available from whom it is available from. Specific deals are largely made through corporations. It's the corporations that make decisions about where to get oil for refining into gas and other products. They make these decisions based on stability of the region, potential for interruption of product, cost of shipping, etc.

In the war on Islamist terrorists, this has certain implications, vaguely alluded to in the Post:

"The only consequence of this is I think a political consequence," Placke said. "This may color how the two parties look at each other as we go down the road."

But they still remain very important on the world oil market:

the details of Saudi oil sales are much less important than Saudi production capacity, which the country often uses to smooth jolts to world oil prices like the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, the Iraq War or strikes in Venezuela.

"The Saudis have basically played the role of the central bank," Gause said. "We're at a point where there's precious little surplus capacity."

A large source of the reduction in the world's excess capacity has been China's burgeoning appetite for oil.

Placke said China recently surpassed Japan in its oil consumption and is currently the world's second-largest oil market behind the United States.

So, while we may shift our main sources from the Middle East to other nations, such as Canada and Mexico, as has been the call from many on the left and others who do not comprehend how the oil market works, the effect on the oil market remains the same: supply and demand = rising prices.

Thus, the US still sees the stability of Saudi Arabia and the longevity of its rulers strategically important to our long term survival. Further, this "supply and demand" of oil has precipitated at least one world war (WWII), though it is widely ignored in history books which favor more simplistic concepts of Nazi and Japanese empire without the underlying cause being mentioned. In fact, most people look at the rise of Nazi power in Germany to be precipitated by the severe reparations imposed after WWI. This is true to a point, but Nazi expansionism included attempts to gain control of major ports, shipping routes and specifically oil fields in the Balkans, Caucuses and the Middle East.

The Japanese were already heading towards war with the US over control of oil and shipping lanes.

This doesn't mean that world war for oil is imminent, but it does mean that every diplomatic, military and economic move in regards to oil producing and consuming countries has a serious effect that may not be seen for several decades. For instance, WWII and Japan again, US expansion into the Philipines and South East Asia at the end of the 19th century largely referred to as the "Banana Wars", along with the growing Japanese economy from newly opened trade with the west (precipitating it's growing military), was an important factor in the world war that began some forty years later.

The same could be said about Nazi Germany and the spread of Communism as well as British and French hegemony in the post WWI Middle East.

A comprehensive energy plan for the US has to include more than simply "disengaging" from the Middle East or diversifying our oil buying to other nations. It does need to include new innovative technologies that will help take some pressure off the supply and demand of oil. This problem is compounded by growing populations and even immigration which means that, not only do we need to replace existing oil consumption with some sort of technology, it has to be able to keep up with the expansion of the need from both expanding individual homes and businesses created through or expanded in the growing economy.

The President's recent tour and subsequent speeches regarding energy technology signal a renewed attention to this part of the long term plan.

Some technologies that are gaining attention or renewed attention:

Windmills, ethanol from corn and biodiesal fuel from soy beans.

Fungi

Solar

And even dog poop.

Unfortunately, the US is currently a long way from being able to replace a significant part of it's oil consumption with any or all of these technologies so the US must be able to remain vigilant and continue to protect strategic interests around the globe as well as maintain the viability of our allies. Which means, whether we buy oil directly form the Middle East or not, "disengagement" is a catchy political slogan, but doesn't have anything to do with reality.

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Chicago Tribune | The tipping point

The bombing of the al-Askari shrine is likely to be the tipping point for Iraq.

We will remember it as the moment when Iraq was doomed to be a failed state riven by sectarian violence, if not civil war. Or we will remember it as the moment when Iraq proved it could rise above the greatest outrage, could resist the natural impulse to meet violence with greater violence, could show its resilience against those who sought to destroy it by exploiting ethnic and religious tensions.

It ain't over 'til the fat lady sings. So, if you're waiting breathlessly for total destruction and chaos, breath into a paper bag and try not to pass out.

Chicago Tribune | The tipping point

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Hey, If You're Reading Here, You Should..

Be checking out Castle Arrggh's Hi-Fires posts and other great posts from John and the rest of Johah's military guys.

I recommend "It's an Odd War" and this one regarding the port issue.

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Oil refinery attack foiled, Saudis say - Mideast/N. Africa - MSNBC.com

Al Qaida is busy this week.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - Suicide bombers tried but failed to storm a major oil refinery in Saudi Arabia on Friday, according to officials and TV reports.

Oil refinery attack foiled, Saudis say - Mideast/N. Africa - MSNBC.com

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In the name of Islam

Until now, Iraq’s neighbours have pretended the turmoil on their doorstep was none of their concern, while giving covert and deadly support to some of the extremists leading the insurgency. Now all can see where such irresponsible meddling leads: to polarisation, desecration and the brink of civil war. The reaction has been as depressing as it is familiar. Most of the Arab world, so angrily denunciatory of the insult perceived in the Danish cartoons, has remained silent.

They are silent because this is a proxy war now. This is the war between Saudi Arabian Sunni Wahabism and Iranian Shia Islamic Revolution for who will control the Muslim world, the new Caliphate. Seeing that AQ was defeated in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Iranians realized they had an opportunity to step into a strange power void. With nukes and a large army, they see themselves as the de facto power in the region. While they consistantly denounce "Zionism" and American "hegemony" in the region, it is exactly that power that they are trying to reach.

No one should be more aware of this danger than Saudi Arabia, a country still struggling with a terrorist challenge inspired by the same religious fanaticism that drives al-Qaeda and the Samarra bombers. The Saudis have a long and shameful record in the treatment of their own Shia minority; and there are still elements within the powerful Sunni clerical establishment that would welcome a continuing crackdown on “heretics”. [snip]

Iraq’s resilience is being tested as never before. It is, however, ominous that religious leaders have begun moving into the trenches with mutual denunciations. The terrorists want a religious war; it is up to Iraq’s spiritual leaders, with the necessary support from the country’s neighbours, to thwart such a dire outcome.

In the name of Islam - Comment - Times Online

Of course, the Pakistani Times indicates that it's a plot by the occupying forces:

So now we can see who has benefited from the sectarian violence in Iraq: Al Qaeda and its surrogates, Shias, Sunnis or the occupying forces? It would be far fetched to say that the perpetrators of sectarian violence in Iraq are agents of the occupying forces. But the fact is they are helping the occupation.

One may have heard about

The “El Salvador Option” for Iraq (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6802629/site/newsweek/), a plan allegedly by Pentagon, talked of targeted killing of ‘insurgents’ using people from rival groups such as Shias and Kurds to the dirty job. But who knows if such operations actually targeted insurgents. And who knows if the recruits were only from among Shias and Kurds. (An analysis of the ‘option’ is available on a rightwing American organisation’s website: http://www.cfr.org/publication/7988/salvador_in_iraq.html).

The cycle of violence, which started with attacks against the occupying forces, has turned into sectarian violence. This shift of target has definitely benefited the occupying forces that now appear to be the accepted arbiter of power in the formation of new government.

In the last elections in Iraq, the Shias had won a dominant majority of seats in the Iraqi parliament. Sunnis feared that they would be marginalised politically and economically. But this paled into insignificance compared to the occupying forces’ fear that Shias could form a truly ‘sovereign’ regime.

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al-Qaida in Iraq Chief Said Killed in Raid - Yahoo! News

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Al-Qaida in Iraq's leader in northern Baghdad was killed in a raid Friday, the U.S. military said.

The military identified Abu Asma, also known as Abu Anas and Akram Mahmud al-Mushhadani, as an explosives expert with close ties to important car bomb manufacturers in Baghdad.

He died in a northern Baghdad raid conducted by coalition forces with the help of Iraqi police, a military statement said.

In the midst of insanity, good news, but possibly too late. Although, after all this time and the many deaths, if it hasn't gone to civil war, I'm not sure even the demolition of the 12th Imam's Shrine is going to force it. The powers that be, such as Sistani, the Dawa and Sciri parties know that they have the country by the horns. They are going to run it, one way or the other. If they allow civil war, it will torn apart, they will have no access to money, they will be relegated to rebel leaders who might even feel compelled to fight against each other for power, completely destroying the base of power the Shi'ites now currently enjoy.

For my money, while the tensions are higher, I'm betting Sistani and the other leaders will prevail. If the Sunni leadership doesn't get to twisted about demanding apologies for reprisal attacks against Sunni Mosques, which seem to have limited damage, if any, can get ahead of this, show they have the power, bring their people into the political process completely, deny involvement, condemn it extensively, and, as one might have heard, offer to help pay for the dome in the spirit of Islamic brotherhood.

As a matter of fact, it would have been very helpful if the Sunni leaders had gotten out front and went on TV, condemning the act and starting a pledge drive for ordinary citizens to contribute. It might not be too late for that idea.

I say this whole thing smacks of AQAM because it is very specific in it's attack on a Shi'ite specific structure. While it may be that many Shi'ite have been killed by bombs, Sunni and other groups in Iraq have suffered as well so that was not enough to draw a sectarian battle. This is. It's an AQAM because other reports indicate that men dressed as officers had went into the Mosque prior to the explosion and are largely considered to be imposters (though, just as likely infiltrators, which goes to my next point). The officers who were on guard apparently left their posts or simply stayed home that day, which means that they were threatened sufficiently not to do their duty. I understand that they were arrested.

In order for that to occur in a largely Shi'ite neighborhood surrounding the Mosque, I imagine that the perpetrators included Iraqis since most folks can spot or hear a foreigner in their midst by their dialect or accent. So, while no one is claiming the deed, I'd guess it was an Iraqi AQAM like Ansar al-Islam or Ansar al-Sunnah.

al-Qaida in Iraq Chief Said Killed in Raid - Yahoo! News

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Do You Know How Many?

While we've heard about some high profile cases such as the Lakawana Six and the men from Lodi, according to this report, there are some figures you may not be aware of:

Since Sept. 11, 417 people have been charged in federal terrorism-related cases, resulting in 228 convictions or guilty pleas, according to the most recent Justice Department data. Justice spokesman Bryan Sierra said the department does not categorize arrests by ethnicity or religion.

Immigration data underscores the extra attention the government has paid to immigrants from predominantly Arab and Muslim nations since the attacks.

Between October 1, 2000, and September 30, 2001, the U.S. deported 589 immigrants to 20 nations around the Middle East and Central Asia. In the next 12-month period, beginning weeks after Sept. 11, deportations to those nations rose to 1,674 and peaked at 1,759 in 2003.

By last year, the number of deported immigrants to the nations had fallen to 1,167, according to Homeland Security Department data.

As I once noted, the people that have the most to lose in the face of another terrorist attack by Islamists, are the American Muslim population.

Also, I would be little surprised if the details of the convictions noted above and the deportations were connected to Hamas and Hezballah support, though, it's clear there have been other cases of people trying to insert themselves into the general "jihad" movement. It's just that the Palestinian "cause" has been around much longer and actively working the Muslim community as well as campuses around the US.

I just wonder how many people knew there have been over 200 convictions for terrorist related activities in the US?

As can be seen by the graph above, the highest number of deportations have been to Pakistan. I think this is an important number because it recognizes Pakistanis as the highest risk immigrants to the US. This should be no surprise to anyone since the Lodi men and the Lawana Six, along with the London 7/7 - 7/21 bombers were Pakistani ex-pats or second generation. Iyman Faris (Brooklyn Bridge would be bomber) was from Kashmir, the war torn disputed country between Pakistan and India. It's also widely believed that Zawahiri and possibly Osama bin Laden are held up in the Pakistan region of Waziristan. Khalid Sheikh Hohammed and several other known terrorists have been captured there. Pakistan has one of the most conservative Muslim populations in Central Asia. It's ISI (Pakistan Intelligence Agency) was involved insupporting the Taliban prior to the US invasion.

All in all, it might not be Saudi's that we need to worry about, but Pakistani's and the government appears to have the same impression by these numbers.

Security Programs Strain Muslim-U.S. Ties - Yahoo! News

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Christian movement moving in - Yahoo! News

Christian movement moving in - Yahoo! News

Sort of funny because this is the kind of stuff that gets the Liberal left exercised about "Christian Fundamentalists". Yet, at the same time, while this guy claims "1200" people signed up on his website, only 20 have moved to South Carolina in the last year, so it seems that Christians in general are pretty smart to recognize a bad politico/cultist movement when they see it.

Not to mention it's association with the "League of the South" which is clearly a wannabe confederate movement reborn. The only difference may be that they are not intent on maintaining slavery, they just want a chance to fight the "state's rights v. federal rights" war again without slavery giving them a bad name. However, I always find these movements a little humorous anyway.

Kind of like Nader with religion.

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CLEVELAND - Three Muslim men from the Middle East were charged Tuesday with plotting terrorist attacks against U.S. and coalition troops i

CLEVELAND - Three Muslim men from the Middle East were charged Tuesday with plotting terrorist attacks against U.S. and coalition troops in Iraq and other countries.

Mohammad Zaki Amawi, 26, is accused of threatening in conversations to kill or injure Bush. He also is charged with distributing information about making and using bombs.

The others are Marwan Othman El-Hindi, 42, a U.S. citizen born in Jordan; and Wassim I. Mazloum, 24, who came to the United States from Lebanon in 2000.[snip]

El-Hindi is accused of trying to get a U.S. citizen with a military background to travel with him in 2004 to the Middle East as part of a plot to establish a terrorism training center. The indictment identifies the military person only as "the trainer."

The Justice Department said the trainer was working on behalf of the government.

This is what we have to be worried about in the future:

Mazloum operated a car business in Toledo with his brother. The indictment accuses him of offering to use his dealership as a cover for traveling to and from Iraq so that he could learn how to build small explosives using household materials.

I think this story is not quite right. More likely this man was planning to use the cars at his car lot and any attached garage in order to make one or many car bombs. If it happens there, it can happen here.

3 Charged With Planning Attacks in Iraq - Yahoo! News

Rueters has more:

"It was part of the conspiracy that one or more conspirators would recruit others to train for violent jihad against the United States and its allies in Iraq, and elsewhere, and would propose potential training sites for use in providing ongoing firearms, hand-to-hand combat, explosives and other paramilitary training to prospective recruits," the indictment said.

The men were arrested over the weekend and indicted in the U.S. District Court in Ohio.

Toledo has a fairly substantial Muslim population.

They worked with a U.S. citizen identified in the indictment only as "the Trainer." The indictment said the Trainer, who was not charged in the case, had a U.S. military background and was recruited by el-Hindi in 2002 to help provide security and bodyguard training.

U.S. Attorney Greg White said information about the three men came from the community. He said the Trainer was one source of the information.

In a Toledo Blade article about a radio host that said we weren't at war with "extremism" we were at war with "Islam", a Toledo community leader was quoted as saying:

Mr. Hammos denied that moderate Muslims would harbor terrorists.

"Even if somebody attends my mosque and, God forbid he's planning something against my country, I would be the first one to tell on him," he said.

Mr. Hammos said Muslim officials met recently with Department of Homeland Security officials, as well as law enforcement officials in Lucas and Wood counties and Cleveland, "to express some concerns about the area and the safety."

The Toledo Blade article was written October 2005.

Reuters continues:

As part of the conspiracy, the men researched and solicited potential funding sources for jihad training, the indictment said.

According to the AP, that "research" included attempting to get federal funding and grants, probably for religious training or education. What does not seem to be clear is whether these men had contacts in the Middle East that pushed them to take action, if they were part of a wider organization or movement or if they were individuals that simply congregated together, decided together to act and then made contacts in the Middle East to get info and coordinate personnel or travel. Left unsaid is whether they actually sent young men to the ME to fight jihad or simply "conspired" to do it. If an infiltrator was inside the group early enough, it may be that a number of young men went east and were scooped up by a sting operating from the other end.

Information on how to prepare for attacks and money were high on the list of items they were searching for:

Amawi was charged with downloading a video, "Martyrdom Operation Vest Preparation," on how to make a suicide bomb vest. He was also charged with two counts of making verbal threats against President George W. Bush.

The Toledo Blade has more about the local situation and other efforts the men made to participate in or support jihad:

The indictment spells out that the men began plotting their training in 2004. In August, Mr. Amawi and “the trainer” flew to Jordan with the alleged intent of delivering five laptop computers to “mujadieen ‘brothers.’ ”

State records show Mr. Mazloum registered two car dealerships — City Auto on North Reynolds Road and Ram Auto on Monroe Street.

Toledo is also the city where a charity, KindHearts, was recently shut down for providing funds to Hamas, the Palestinian organization that is on the US terrorist list. Though investigators say that the investigations are separate, according to the indictment against the three conspirators they had considered setting up a phony "not for profit" organization in order to collect and funnel money.

It's very likely that this operation was brought to an abrupt end due to the NSA surveillance program being outed in the NYT. According to deputy director of the FBI, Joe Pistle, "enhanced surveillance" was part of the operation. Considering that the investigation efforts appear to have gone on for over six months with the man already delivering "laptops" to the "mujihadeen brothers", which would have been plenty to take him and the others in for material support, it seems that investigators were trying to discover the other connections. The issue with warrantless wire taps may have forced them to roll up the investigation earlier than planned.

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Bin Laden Vows Never to Be Captured Alive - Yahoo

I'd like to see the entire message translated, but here are some thoughts:

1) Does anybody really care if we capture this guy dead or alive? People are problaby torn on this since capturing him and holding him prisoner, getting info from him would be nice. He likes the sound of his own voice so he'd be the kind of guy that would say a lot of things he thought would be confusing or lecturing, but would end up giving up info.

2) He offers a long term truce? He's not a state or nation. We wouldn't dane to recognize him as anyone legitmate to negotiate with so that's out. Why would we or he need a long term truce? I can only think of a few reasons. He's stuck in a corner and needs time to coordinate. He sees that his group has been damaged by the stupid mistakes of arbitrarily killing people of their own faith and would like to be able to back off and repair the damage, regain some of the lost support. He's worried about the continuing unrest in Iraq and the region has given his rival Islamist the Shia's an in to become the new, legitimate leaders of the pan Islamist movement, with a state, an army, money and assets. Something he doesn't have and is considerable behind in regards to creating his Sunni version. His continuing actions and our following him is giving Iran the possibility of hegemony over the region, even Saudi Arabia.

Frankly, I'd rather he just died. Martyrdom or not, as long as we got his body and put it on display. Then everyone would know that the Robinhood of the ME was dead and not a legend that could go on forever.Bin Laden Vows Never to Be Captured Alive - Yahoo! News

Also, recommend this site, the Feb 8 comment seems to be urging people to come join the cause. Pretty much a basic recruiting statement, hawking "success" of AQ in Iraq and telling people to come join them. I don't know how often these statements appear. If it was regular, then this would be nothing really except propaganda and recruiting. If this isn't a normal statement, or the statements aren't usually that direct, then I'd say they feel the need to be more direct because recruitment has fallen off which might account for the fewer VBIED/suicide bombings we've seen lately.

Check out the Jan 9 statement which seems to be lecturing people that they are either a Muslim who will commit to fighting or totally supporting jihad, without reservations or doubts, or you are with the "others" whom the comment says are the "Jews", re-enforcing the idea that America and the rest of the world is under the control of the Zionists.

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Raw Politics in Iraq

Good coverage of the curret Iraq political situation if you haven't been following Iraq the model.

From an American standpoint, Iraq's elections have provided a Middle Eastern demonstration of Murphy's Law: Whatever can go wrong will go wrong. Amid the resulting political disarray, the Bush administration is adopting Yogi Berra's famous counsel of patient stubbornness: It ain't over till it's over.

Iraqi politics entered a decisive phase with December's election, which voted in a parliament that will choose the new Iraq's first permanent government. As Yogi might say, this is the ballgame. So far, it hasn't gone the way the United States had hoped.

Read More

Raw Politics in Iraq

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Back in the Fight

Decades removed from the conflict that molded -- and, for some, scarred -- their generation, dozens of Vietnam veterans have signed up for duty in Iraq. Some are still in uniform, graying guardsmen and reservists activated as part of the largest call-up since the last time most saw combat more than 30 years ago.

Back in the Fight

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Iraq's Version of the Broken Window Theory

Laith is Laith Antwan who has been cutting glass for 24 years. Since car bombs, improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and mortars are part of the daily life here, Mr. Antwan and his fellow glaziers have become unsung heroes - reconstruction's trauma surgeons working 20-hour days after large bombings.

"We are the first people who know when an explosion happens. We know before all the satellite channels," says Antwan, taking a break from work in his open-fronted glass shop on an unpaved side street in Baghdad's wealthy Karada district. Home to many of the capital's elite, Karada is a favorite target for insurgents.

"After 15 minutes you will see us at the bomb site, tape measures in hands, measuring the broken windows," he adds. "Especially now, in the winter, the people can't sleep in the cold, so they need their windows fixed immediately."

When bombs go off, Iraqi glaziers follow - Yahoo! News

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Iraq Power Shift Widens a Gulf Between Sects - New York Times

An analysis provided by one family court in central Baghdad showed that mixed marriages were rare to begin with, making up 3 to 5 percent of all unions in late 2002. But by late 2005 they had virtually stopped: the court did not record any in December, and last month registered only 2 out of 742 marriages.

"For the coming 10 years you can record the biggest changes in the Iraqi community," said Ansam Abayachi, a social researcher who works with Iraqi women and families. "The Sunnis will be on one side, the Shia on the other, and there is no mixed family."

Read the rest.Iraq Power Shift Widens a Gulf Between Sects - New York Times

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Iraq Waits

A little update on Iraq's political situation. Which would be good if the concern over Jafari weren't so important. The problem with Jafari is that he was not seen to build concensus and he did not have control over his ministries.

It was like round two of Saddam's cousin lite from 1976. If you don't know the history, the Ba'ath took over, Saddam's cousin was the president and Saddam ran the government from the interior ministry which he used to shut down and kill opponents of the Ba'ath; his cousin had not power and eventually was pushed aside for Saddam to take real power, that is the concern that must face Iraq now with Jafari being a weak front man for the UIA while it operates death squads, payoffs, smuggling and keeps the insurgency going.

But, if you read this, you might understand that Jafari is not a given.

Read them both and get up to date on the Iraq political situation. What happens here decides the future of our Armed Forces, our Success and the Middle East.

Iraq Waits

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The Lessons of Counterinsurgency

Read this and pass it on. This is what happens when real leaders are interested in leadership, committed to the effort and understand the mission.

The Lessons of Counterinsurgency

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Iraq Investigates Alleged 'Death Squads' - Yahoo! News

BAGHDAD, Iraq - The Shiite-dominated Interior Ministry announced an investigation Thursday into claims of death squads in its ranks as police found a dozen more bodies, bringing the number of apparent victims of sectarian reprisal killings here to at least 30 this week.

The probe was announced after U.S. military officials indicated there was evidence to support the allegation of death squads. The 12 men found on Thursday had been bound and shot in the head execution-style.

Really? Steven Vincent's been dead for months now and people have just decided to investigate? The military is just now thinking that the Iraq security forces have alot of rogue elements?

But, I suppose the reality is, the government is not in control. The locals are in control and they control their own areas. Part of that control includes extra-judicial executions and arrests. They are putting into practice what they learned from the original torturous leader. They haven't learned anything about civilization and the rule of law. They've learned to be mobsters and little Saddams.

These are the days when I lose hope for Iraq.


Iraq Investigates Alleged 'Death Squads' - Yahoo! News

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A French �Serpentaire� in Afghan Skies

Who knew?

A French �Serpentaire� in Afghan Skies

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OpinionJournal - Federation

The 2004 election left our country deeply divided over whether our country is deeply divided. For some, America is indeed a polarized nation, perhaps more so today than at any time in living memory. In this view, yesterday's split over Bill Clinton has given way to today's even more acrimonious split between Americans who detest George Bush and Americans who detest John Kerry, and similar divisions will persist as long as angry liberals and angry conservatives continue to confront each other across the political abyss. Others, however, believe that most Americans are moderate centrists, who, although disagreeing over partisan issues in 2004, harbor no deep ideological hostility. I take the former view.

By polarization I do not have in mind partisan disagreements alone. These have always been with us. Since popular voting began in the 19th century, scarcely any winning candidate has received more than 60% of the vote, and very few losers have received less than 40%.
OpinionJournal - Federation

I think somone was reading the Castle Comments

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Italian minister puts Mohammad cartoon on T-shirts - Yahoo! News

ROME (Reuters) - Italy's Reform Minister Roberto Calderoli has had T-shirts made emblazoned with cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad in a move that could embarrass Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government.

Italian minister puts Mohammad cartoon on T-shirts - Yahoo! News

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German court scraps law on downing hijacked planes - Yahoo! News

KARLSRUHE, Germany (Reuters) - A law allowing the German air force to shoot down errant planes to prevent a suicide attack is against the constitution and must be scrapped, the country's highest court ruled on Wednesday. [snip]

But it was challenged in the Constitutional Court by critics who argued the state had no right to "sacrifice" apparently doomed passengers to try to save lives on the ground.

The court ruled that while the constitution allowed the federal government to use the army in dealing with natural disasters and serious accidents, it did not have the right to order the use of military weapons.

The law was also incompatible with human dignity and the basic right to life as the people in the hijacked aircraft would be used to save others and reduced to mere objects, it said.



German court scraps law on downing hijacked planes - Yahoo! News

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Two Afghan Intelligence Agents Killed - Yahoo! News

KABUL, Afghanistan - Suspected Taliban rebels abducted two Afghan intelligence agents in a western province and killed them, dumping their nearly decapitated bodies in the desert, a top official said Wednesday.
Two Afghan Intelligence Agents Killed - Yahoo! News

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Afghans arrest Taliban commander, UK troops arrive - Yahoo! News

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan security forces arrested a Taliban district commander in the east of the country along with two of his men suspected of burning down a school, police said on Wednesday. [snip]

The Taliban commander, Mullah Nazer Shah, had been a district official during the Islamist group's rule. He was detained during a search by security forces in Ghazni province late on Tuesday.

"He had been working as a Taliban commander in Gailan district for three years. Security forces had been hunting for him," said provincial police chief Abdul Rahman Sarjang.[snip]

Also on Wednesday, the first 150 British combat troops of a deployment of about 3,300 British troops to the Afghan south arrived in the country.[snip]

British forces are playing a leading role in the expansion of a NATO peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan this year. The force will expand to about 16,000 troops from 9,000.[snip]

The new deployment of 3,300 will be based in Helmand province in the south where Taliban insurgents and drug gangs are a major problem.

Arriving in Afghanistan on Wednesday were 150 Royal Marines commandos, part of an advance party of 850 British troops deploying to Helmand this month to help prepare for the arrival of the full contingent over subsequent weeks.






Afghans arrest Taliban commander, UK troops arrive - Yahoo! News

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Jordan sentences Zarqawi and 8 militants to death - Yahoo! News

AMMAN (Reuters) - Jordan handed down its fourth death sentence in absentia against al Qaeda's leader in Iraq Abu Musab al-Zarqawi on Wednesday, after finding him and eight others guilty of plotting chemical attacks in the kingdom[snip]

Jordan's state security court said it had evidence that Zarqawi meticulously oversaw plans to use suicide bombers to attack U.S. and government targets. The plan was thwarted in April 2004.

Five of the nine sentenced to death are under arrest. A 10th suspect received a three-year jail term.

The plan included attacking intelligence headquarters and U.S. interests with a series of suicide bombings using trucks laden with chemical explosives in Jordan, a close ally of Washington's.

An audio tape attributed to Zarqawi, posted on a Web site shortly after the arrest of the group, claimed that his group planned an attack on the Jordanian intelligence service but not using chemical weapons as Amman has alleged.

Jordan sentences Zarqawi and 8 militants to death - Yahoo! News

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USATODAY.com - U.S. role in Iraq security shifting

BAGHDAD — The U.S. military says 40% of Iraq's combat battalions are effective enough to have taken the lead role in fighting the insurgency, a key measure for determining when U.S. forces can withdraw[snip]

Currently, 40 of Iraq's 102 battalions have taken over security in the areas where they operate, Col. James Greer, chief of staff for the U.S. military command responsible for training Iraqi troops, said in an interview.

The goal is to build 110 combat battalions. A typical Iraqi battalion, the army's basic fighting unit, has 700 to 800 soldiers.

"It's an essential part of the broader strategy," said Anthony Cordesman, an analyst at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.

With American troops in more of a support role, they will be less visible and not as susceptible to attack, Cordesman said. "But you won't have a situation where Iraqi battalions come on line and U.S. troops leave the next week."

USATODAY.com - U.S. role in Iraq security shifting

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Pakistani Madrasa Education System At Work

Here we see the Madrasa system of education at work in Pakistan.

LAHORE, Pakistan - More than 1,000 protesters stormed into Islamabad's diplomatic district while thousands vandalized Western businesses and torched a government building in another city Tuesday, in Pakistan's worst wave of violence against the Prophet Mohammad cartoons, officials said. At least two people were killed.

Check the picture on the side bar.

Pakistani students run away from tear gas fired by police to disperse the crowd who...

Two banks, a KFC and Norwegian mobile phone co. Telenor.

Apparently, Pakistanis like their chicken "extra crispy". No telling what was substituted in the 12 original spices recipe to make it halal.

One can see that Madrasa classes for the fall semester included:

Speech: Chanting 101 - Better Slogans through Allah
Social Studies: How to organize a protest
Psychology: Instigating "Mob Mentality"
Economics: How to turn your country's economy from crap into petrified dog dookie in 7 days
Poly/Sci: Three proven methods to cut off diplomacy and all foreign aid so your people can starve yet live under the laws of Sharia
Science: Playing with fire
Biology: Tear Gas and Your Respiratory System
Physical Ed: Preparing for the Lahore Marathon - Dodging bullets, batons and tear gas.
Qur'an Studies: It's in the Koran.

thanks John for the free link space

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Islamic Protesters and Counter Protesters Meet

Go here to see a video of what the French Islamic Protests on 2/11 looked like from the ground view.

No Pasaran notes:

"An eye for an eye! A tooth for a tooth!" Echoing protests around the world and wearing all kinds of costumes from the Middle East and the Muslim world, 4,000 Islamic demonstrators march through Paris denouncing the cartoons and the alleged (and convenient) lack of respect towards Islam.

When they arrive at La Nation, they are met with two figures wearing slightly different costumes and slightly different signs.[snip]

One, in red and white, is (silently) wearing a sign with the Danish flag saying "Support Denmark, Support free speech". Besides (silently) wearing a sign reading "Free Cartoonist" on it, the other, the founder of the BAF protest warrior-type organisation, is holding a (fake) severed hand, a pen among its fingers.


Voices start to ring out. "It's provocation!" "You tread on 1.5 million Muslims!" "Connards!" "Rat faces!"

And that is just for starters. Get the rest here.

H/T Dissident Frongman

No Pasaran continues with photos showing Carrefour, the french version of Walmart, has taken down their Danish goods and put up a sign vowing support for their Muslim citizens. And this nifty cartoon, lampooning Chirac.



A commenter at the Gates of Vienna:

I did not escape Communism to live under Sharia.

Sadly, it seems that we may have defeated Communist Russia and are now faced with an even deadlier group of folks seeking Utopia. When will man give up on Utopia? Or, at least, when will man give up killing for Utopia?

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