TGIF Open Thread
Heads up! You can catch Governor Dean on CNN's The Situation Room today at 5:10 p.m. and on MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews at 5:20 p.m.
[Updated with earlier times!]
This is an open thread...
Comments (287) «
Gotta go get my son a birthday gift. His birthday is Monday. He's lucky sharing his birthday with M.L. King Jr. he gets a three day weekend for his birthday every year. See ya. Think Peace.
From the cynic (a faultfinding captious critic; especially : one who believes that human conduct is motivated wholly by self-interest): Bush knows his "surge" won't work. He expects the Democrats in congress to stop it. He is then home free. Failier not his fault. Catch 22 for Dems. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. We should! Take the heat and save our guys. Then put on our thinking cap and do what is right and smart.
This deserves posting on the new thread:
Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 09:34 AM,
No, Minnesota_Thomas, you're missing the point!! When you come in here and post a comment abdicating A huge list of "terrorist attacks" and try to associate all of them to Democratic presidents. Like there were no attacks Reagan/Bush/Bush/Quayle? For that matter, what in the hell did these three administrations (12 years) before Clinton do? Iran Contra? You, Sir or Madam, are nothing but a sniveling little hypocrit that thinks, in all your assininity, that being inciteful makes you appear insightful; somehow. Even though we know it's not a fair world that does not mean it's okay to post your misinformation and then expect to not get rebuked.In summary, let me add, go to hell!!
Posted by davidual on January 12, 2007 at 10:02 AM
I think this is what Minn. Th. was trying to do:
2001
1. Israel Terrorism against Israel in 2001.
2. Russia February 5: A bomb blast in Moscow's Byelorusskaya metro station injures 15 people.
3. Kosovo February 18: Podujevo bus bombing, 13 Serbian civilians are killed by a bomb attack on a bus in Northern Kosovo.
4. United Kingdom March 4: A car bomb exploded outside the BBC's main news centre in London. One London Underground worker suffered deep cuts to his eye from flying glass and some damage was caused to the front of the building.[41] (See 4 March 2001 BBC bombing)
5. Russia March 24: Twenty people die and 93 are injured in three bomb attacks on Russian towns near the border of Chechnya.
6. Israel March 26: 10 months old Israeli infant Shalhevet Pass is intentionally and fatally shot in the head by a Palestinian sniper in Hebron.
7. United Kingdom May 6: The real IRA detonate a bomb in a London postal sorting office. One person was injured.[42]
8. Israel June 1: 21 civilians, mostly teenagers from the former Soviet Union, are killed by a Hamas suicide bomber in the Dolphinarium massacre in Tel Aviv, Israel
9. Sri Lanka July 24 A suicide squad of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) staged an attack on Sri Lanka's Bandaranaike International Airport and the adjoining air force base at Katunayake. The 14 man-squad destroyed or damaged about 20 aircraft and killed seven Sri Lankan workers and soldiers.
10. United Kingdom August 3: The last (at time of writing) IRA bomb on mainland Britain explodes in Ealing, West London, injuring seven people.[43] (See 3 August 2001 Ealing bombing)
11. Israel August 9: A suicide bomber in Jerusalem kills seven and wounds 130 in the Sbarro restaurant suicide bombing; Hamas and Islamic Jihad claim responsibility.
12. United States September 11: Attacks killed 2,997 in a series of hijacked airliner crashes into two U.S. landmarks: the World Trade Center in New York City, New York, and The Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. A fourth plane, originally intended to hit an unknown, but likely prominent, Washington, D.C. target, crashes in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, after an apparent revolt against the hijackers by the plane's passengers; by Al-Qaeda.
13. France Paris embassy attack plot foiled.
14. India October 1: A car bomb explodes near the Jammu and Kashmir state assembly in Srinagar, India killing 35 people and injuring 40 more.
15. Israel October 17: Israeli tourism minister Rehavam Zeevi is assassinated by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
16. United States Anthrax attacks on the offices the United States Congress and New York State Government offices, and on employees of television networks and tabloid.
17. United States December 12: Jewish Defense League plot by Chairman Irv Rubin and follower Earl Krugel to blow up the King Fahd Mosque in Culver City, California and the office of Lebanese-American Rep. Darrell Issa, foiled.
18. India December 13: Terrorist attack on Indian Parliament.
19. United States December 22: Richard Reid, attempting to destroy American Airlines Flight 63, is subdued by passengers and flight attendants before he could detonate his shoe bomb.
2002
1. Israel Terrorism against Israel in 2002.
2. Singapore Singapore embassies attack plot foiled.
3. Pakistan January: Kidnapping and murder of journalist Daniel Pearl.
4. Israel March 27: A Palestinian suicide bomber kills 30 and injures 140 during Passover festivities in a hotel in Netanya, Israel in the Passover massacre.
5. Israel March 31: A Hamas suicide bomber kills 15 and injures over 40 in Haifa, Israel, in the Matza restaurant massacre.
6. Tunisia April 11: A natural gas truck fitted with explosives is driven into a synagogue in Tunisia by an al-Qaeda member, killing 21 and wounding more than 30 in the Ghriba Synagogue Attack.
7. Pakistan May 8: May 8 Bus Attack in Karachi kills eleven Frenchmen and two Pakistanis.
8. Russia May 9: A bomb explosion in Kaspiisk in Dagestan kills at least 42 people and injures 130 or more during Victory Day festivities.
9. India May 13: Twelve people are killed in the Jaunpur train crash in India, caused when Islamic extremists cut the rails.
10. Pakistan June 14: Car bomb at US Consulate in Karachi kills twelve.
11. Israel June 18: A Hamas suicide bomber detonates himself on a bus in Jerusalem in the Patt junction massacre. The attack kills 19 people and wounds over 74.
12. United States July 4: An Egyptian gunman opens fire at an El Al ticket counter in Los Angeles International Airport, killing two Israelis before being killed himself.
13. India September 10: A train derailment in India kills 130 people in the Rafiganj rail disaster. Naxalite terrorism is suspected.
14. India September 25: Two terrorists belonging to the Jaish-e-Mohammed group raid the Akshardham temple complex in Ahmedabad, India killing 30 people and injuring many more.
15. United States October: John Allen Muhammed and Lee Boyd Malvo conduct the Beltway Sniper Attacks, killing ten people in various locations throughout the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area from October 2 until they are arrested on October 24.
16. Yemen October 6: Limburg tanker bombing in Yemen.
17. Indonesia October 12: Bali bombing of holidaymakers kills 202 people, mostly Western tourists and local Balinese hospitality staff.
18. Philippines October 17: Zamboanga bombings in the Philippines kill six and wounds about 150.
19. Philippines October 18: A bus bomb in Manila kills three people and wounds 22.
20. Russia October 19: A car bomb explodes outside a McDonald's Corp. restaurant in Moscow, killing one person and wounding five.
21. Russia October 23: Moscow theater hostage crisis begins; 120 hostages and 40 terrorists killed in rescue three days later.
22. Israel November 21: Hamas orchestrates the Jerusalem bus 20 massacre. Eleven people were killed and over 50 wounded when a suicide bomber detonated on a crowded bus in central Jerusalem.
23. Kenya November 28: Kenyan hotel bombing.
24. India December 21: Kurnool train crash, Islamic extremists derail a train and kill 20 people in India.
25. Russia December 27: The truck bombing of the Chechen parliament in Grozny kills 83 people.
2003
1. Israel Terrorism against Israel in 2003.
2. Iraq Suicide attacks in Iraq in 2003.
3. Colombia February 7: Car bomb kills 36 and injures 150 at the El Nogal social club in Bogotá, Colombia; FARC rebels are blamed.
4. Philippines March 4: Bomb attack in an airport in Davao kills 21.
5. Israel March 5: A Hamas suicide bomber kills 17 people and wounds 53 when he detonates a bomb hidden under his clothing in the Haifa bus 37 massacre.
6. Iraq March 23: SGT Hasan Akbar, USA, murdered two officers and wounded 14 soldiers in a grenade attack at an Army base in Iraq.
7. Saudi Arabia May 12: Bombings of United States expatriate housing compounds in Saudi Arabia kill 26 and injure 160 in the Riyadh Compound Bombings. Al-Qaeda blamed.
8. Russia May 12: A truck bomb attack on a government building in the Chechen town of Znamenskoye kills 59.
9. Russia May 14: As many as 16 die in a suicide bombing at a religious festival in southeastern Chechnya.
10. Morocco May 16: Casablanca Attacks by twelve bombers on five "Western and Jewish" targets in Casablanca, Morocco leaves 41 dead and over 100 injured. Attack attributed to a Moroccan al-Qaeda-linked group.
11. Russia July 5: 15 people die and 40 are injured in bomb attacks at a rock festival in Moscow.
12. Russia August 1: An explosion at the Russian hospital in Mozdok in North Ossetia kills at least 50 people and injures 76.
13. Iraq August 19: Canal Hotel Bombing in Baghdad, Iraq, kills 22 people (including the top UN representative Sergio Vieira de Mello) and wounds over 100.
14. Israel August 19: Jerusalem bus 2 massacre: A Hamas suicide bomber detonates himself on a crowded bus carrying mostly Orthodox Jewish Israelis, including many children returning from the Western Wall. 23 people are killed and over 130 wounded.
15. India August 25: At least 48 people were killed and 150 injured in two blasts in south Mumbai - one near the Gateway of India at the other at the Zaveri Bazaar.
16. Russia September 3: A bomb blast on a passenger train near Kislovodsk in southern Russia kills seven people and injures 90.
17. Israel October 4: A Palestinian suicide bomber kills 21 and wounds 51 in a Haifa restaurant in the Maxim restaurant massacre.
18. Palestinian National Authority October 15: A bomb is detonated by Palestinians against a US diplomatic convoy in the Gaza Strip, killing three Americans.
19. Turkey November 15 and November 20: Truck bombs go off at two synagogues, the British Consulate, and the HSBC Bank in Istanbul, Turkey, killing 57 and wounding 700 in the 2003 Istanbul Bombings.
20. Russia December 5: Suicide bombers kill at least 46 people in an attack on a train in southern Russia
21. Russia December 9: A blast in the center of Moscow kills six people and wounds at least eleven. (See Red Square Bombing)
2004
1. Israel Violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict 2004.
2. Iraq Suicide attacks in Iraq in 2004.
3. Israel January 29: Jerusalem bus 19 massacre: Hamas and Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades orchestrate a suicide bombing on a bus in Jerusalem, Israel killing eleven people and wounding more than 50.
4. Russia February 6: Bomb on Moscow Metro kills 41.
5. Philippines February 27: Superferry 14 is bombed in the Philippines by Abu Sayyaf, killing 116.
6. Iraq March 2: Ashoura Massacre: Suicide bombings at Shia holy sites in Iraq kill 181 and wound more than 500 during the Ashura.
7. Pakistan March 2: Attack on procession of Shia Muslims in Pakistan kills 43 and wounds 160. (See also: Ashoura Massacre in Iraq.)
8. Turkey March 9: Attack of Istanbul restaurant in Turkey.
9. Spain March 11: Coordinated bombing of commuter trains in Madrid, Spain, kills 191 people and injures more than 1,500. Suspected Al-Qaeda authorship.
10. Israel March 24: Israeli soldiers arrest Hussam Abdo, a 15 year-old Palestinian boy with explosives strapped to his chest at the Hawara Checkpoint. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades sent Abdo on a suicide mission to bomb the checkpoint.
11. Saudi Arabia April 21: Bombing of a security building in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia kills five.
12. Saudi Arabia May 1: 2004 Yanbu attack kills six Westerners and a Saudi in Saudi Arabia.
13. Israel May 2: Pregnant Israeli commuter Tali Hatuel and her four young children are gunned down at close range by militants from the Popular Resistance Committees and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
14. Saudi Arabia May 29: Al-Khobar massacres, in which Islamic militants kill 22 people at an oil compound in Saudi Arabia.
15. Russia August 24: Russian aircraft bombings kill 90.
16. Russia August 31: A blast near a subway station entrance in northern Moscow, caused by a suicide bomber, kills ten people and injures 33.
17. Russia September 1 – 3: Beslan school hostage crisis in North Ossetia, Russia, results in 344 dead.
18. Indonesia September 9: Jakarta embassy bombing, in which the Australian embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia was bombed, killing eight people.
19. Egypt October 7: Sinai bombings: Three car bombs explode in the Sinai Peninsula, killing at least 34 and wounding 171, many of them Israeli and other foreign tourists.
20. Thailand October 28: Two people killed, 38 injured by two explosions in southern Thailand.[44]
21. Saudi Arabia December 6: Suspected al Qaeda-linked group attacks U.S. consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, killing five local employees.
22. Philippines December 12: A bombing at the Christmas market in General Santos, Philippines, kills 15.
2005
1. Iraq Suicide attacks in Iraq in 2005.
2. Thailand January 7: Explosion at a railroad crossing - no casualties. One Buddhist shot dead in southern Thailand.[44]
3. Thailand January 16: One person dead, over 50 others injured in an explosion in a commercial area in southern Thailand.[44]
4. Lebanon February 14: A car bomb kills former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri and 20 others in Beirut. See also: 2005 Lebanon bombings.
5. Thailand February 17: Seven people dead, 40 injured by a car bomb outside a hotel in southern Thailand.[44]
6. Israel February 25: A suicide bomber in Tel Aviv kills five Israelis and undermines a weeks-old truce between the two sides.
7. Thailand March 6: A Buddhist monk was killed by gunmen in southern Thailand.[44]
8. Thailand March 7: Two policemen and three unknown attackers were killed in a shootout with five gunmen disguised as veiled Muslim women at a police station in southern Thailand.[44]
9. Thailand March 15: One policeman was killed, three injured by bomb in southern Thailand.[44]
10. Qatar March 19: Car bomb attack on theatre in Doha, Qatar, kills one Briton and wounds twelve others.
11. Thailand March 19: 15 people, ten of them policemen, injured in two explosions. One of the bombs was detonated via a cellphone.[44]
12. Thailand March 26: One Buddhist dead, two injured, in two attacks by gunmen in southern Thailand.[44]
13. Thailand March 27: Two bombs used to stop an armoured train patrolling in southern Thailand, terrorists then fired on the policemen on the train. Approximately 20 policemen and some other passengers were wounded.[44]
14. Thailand April 3: 2005 Songkhla bombings: Two people killed (possibly five), 54 injured, by three explosions in Hat Yai -one at the airport, one at a hotel, and another at a department store.[44]
15. Egypt April: April 2005 terrorist attacks in Cairo – On April 7 a suicide bomber blows himself up in Cairo's Khan al Khalili market, killing three foreign tourists and wounding 17 others. In two further attacks on April 30, suspected accomplices detonate a bomb and spray a tourist coach with gunfire.
16. Myanmar May 7: Multiple bomb explosions across Myanmar's capital Yangon kill 19 and injures 160.
17. Afghanistan June 1: A suicide bomber blows up in a mosque in Kandahar, Afghanistan, killing 20 people.
18. Iran June 12: Bombs explode in the Iranian cities of Ahvaz and Tehran, leaving ten dead and 80 wounded days before the Iranian presidential election.
19. India July 5: 2005 Terrorist attack on Ayodhya – Six terrorists belonging to Lashkar-e-Toiba storm the Ayodhya Ram Janmbhomi complex in India. Before the terrorists could reach the main disputed site, they were shot down by Indian security forces. One devotee and two policemen were injured.
20. United Kingdom July 7: London bombings – Bombs explode on one double-decker bus and three London Underground trains, killing 56 people and injuring over 700, occurring on the first day of the 31st G8 Conference. The attacks are believed by many to be the first suicide bombings in Western Europe.
21. Israel July 12: Islamic Jihad takes responsibility for a suicide bombing in Netanya, Israel, which kills five people at a shopping mall.
22. United Kingdom July 21: Attempted London bombings - Small explosions in three London Underground stations and one double-decker bus. This was pronounced as a "major incident" rather than an attack, and only minor injuries were reported. These four bombs were designed to cause as much damage as the 7 July 2005 London bombings, but the explosives had deteriorated and failed to detonate.
23. Egypt July 23: Sharm el-Sheikh bombings – Car bombs explode at tourist sites in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, killing at least 88 and wounding more than 100.
24. India July 28: Jaunpur train bombing: 13 are killed when militants detonate a bomb on a commuter train in India.
25. Israel August 4: Jewish settler in an IDF uniform opens fire on a bus in Shfaram, Israel, killing four Israeli Arabs and wounding five.
26. Bangladesh August 17: 17 August 2005 Bangladesh bombings: Around 100 homemade bombs explode in 58 different locations in Bangladesh, killing two and wounding 100.
27. Indonesia October 1: A series of explosions occurs in resort areas of Jimabaran Beach and Kuta in Bali, Indonesia.
28. Russia October 13: A large group of Chechen rebels launched coordinated attacks on Russian federal buildings, local police stations, and the airport in Nalchik, Kabardino-Balkaria. At least 137 people, including 92 rebels, were killed.
29. Iran October 15: Two bombs exploded at a shopping mall in Ahvaz, Khuzestan in Iran. Six people died and over 100 were injured.
30. Iraq October 24: Multiple car bombs explode outside the Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq, killing at least 20. It is thought that the attacks were targeting journalists inside the Palestine Hotel and the Sheraton Ishtar.[45]
31. Israel October 26: A Palestinian suicide bomber detonates a bomb near a falafel stand in Hadera, Israel that kills himself and six others. Twenty-six people were also wounded.[46]
32. India October 29: Multiple bomb blasts hit markets in Delhi, India, leaving at least 61 dead and more than 200 injured.
33. Indonesia October 29: In Poso, Central Sulawesi, four Christian schoolgirls aged 15 to 17 years on their way home from school were assaulted by six masked muslim men who beheaded three of them, Theresia Morangke, Alfita Poliwo, and Yarni Sambue, with machetes and placed their severed heads in front of a church and a police station. The fourth girl, Noviana Malewa, survived but suffered serious machete wounds. The terrorists belong to the group Tanah Runtuh whose leader Hasanuddin confessed at his trial that the well-planned assault was inspired and financed by Guru Sanusi, a former Muslim rebel (Moro Islamic Liberation Front) from Mindanao.[47] [48]
34. Jordan November 9: Three explosions at hotels in Amman, Jordan, leave at least 60 dead and 120 wounded.
35. Israel December 5: A suicide bomb attack kills at least five people in Netanya in north-western Israel.
36. India December 28: Two or more unidentified gunmen open fire at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India, killing a retired professor of mathematics and wounding four others.
2006
1. Israel 2006: Qassam rockets fired by Hamas into Israel, especially the cities of Ashkelon and Sderot, injures many citizens.
2. Iraq Suicide attacks in Iraq in 2006.
3. Iraq February 22: Al Askari Mosque bombing ignites sectarian strife in Iraq.
4. Pakistan March 2: Bombing in Karachi, Pakistan kills four, including a U.S. diplomat.[49]
5. United States March 3: Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar, an Iranian-born graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, drives an SUV onto a crowded part of campus, injuring nine.
6. India March 7: Bombings in the Hindu holy city of Varanasi, India kill 28 and injures more than 100.
7. Israel March 30: Palestinian suicide bomber kills himself and four others at Kedumim Junction in the West Bank.[50][51]
8. Pakistan April 11: A suicide bomber explodes himself in Karachi, Pakistan, and kills 57 Sunni worshippers.[52]
9. Israel April 17: Sami Hammad, a Palestinian suicide bomber, detonates an explosive device in Tel Aviv, Israel, killing eleven people and injuring 70.
10. Egypt April 24: Bombings at three locations in Dahab, Egypt kill 20 Egyptians and three foreigners, and injure 62 others.
11. Pakistan May 11: Six policemen die and twelve are injured when five bombs go off in a police academy in Quetta, Pakistan.[53]
12. Sri Lanka June 15 : The LTTE detonate two claymore mines targeting a bus carrying 140 civilians in Sri Lanka. 68 civilians, including ten children, three pregnant women and their unborns, are killed. Approximately 60 civilians are injured.
13. Israel June 25: Eliyahu Asheri, an Israeli citizen, was kidnapped and murdered by the Palestinian terrorist group, the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC).
14. Iraq July 9: 40 Sunni civilians are massacred by Shia militants in Baghdad, Iraq.
15. India July 11: A series of explosions rock commuter trains in Mumbai, India, killing 209 and wounding another 714 civilians.
16. Pakistan July 14: Suicide bomber in Karachi, Pakistan kills a Shiite Islamic cleric Allama Hasan Turabi and his nephew.
17. Iraq July 17: Explosions and gunmen kill 48 people in a market in Mahmoudiya, Iraq.[54]
18. Iraq July 18: Car bombing near a Shiite shrine in Kufa, Iraq kills 53 and injures 103.[55]
19. Germany July 31: Two suitcase bombs are discovered in trains near the German towns of Dortmund and Koblenz, undetonated due to an assembly error. Video footage from Cologne train station, where the bombs were put on the trains, led to the arrest of two Lebanese students in Germany, Youssef al-Hajdib and Jihad Hamad, and subsequently of three suspected co-conspirators in Lebanon.[56] On 1 September 2006, Jörg Ziercke, head of the Bundeskriminalamt (Federal Police), reports that the suspects saw the Muhammad cartoons as an "assault by the West on Islam" and the "initial spark" for the attack, originally planned to coincide with the 2006 Football World Cup in Germany.[57][58]
20. Afghanistan August 4: A suicide car bomber struck a market in Kandahar, Afghanistan killing 21 people.
21. United Kingdom United States August 10: A major anti-terrorist operation disrupts an alleged bomb plot targeting multiple airplanes bound for the United States flying through Heathrow Airport, near London, UK.
22. Moldova August 13: Two grenades explode on a trolleybus in Tiraspol, Moldova, killing two people and injuring ten.[59]
23. India August 16: A bomb exploded in a Hindu temple near Imphal, India, killing five and injuring nearly 50 other.[60]
24. Iraq August 20: Gunmen spray bullets on Shiites in Baghdad, killing 20 people and wounding more than 300.[61]
25. India September 8: At least two bomb blasts target a Muslim cemetery in the western town of Malegaon. The blasts kill 37 people and leave 125 others wounded.
26. Syria September 12: Four attackers armed with grenades and machine guns attempt to storm the U.S. embassy in Damascus, Syria. Three of the gunmen and one Syrian guard are killed during a battle between the attackers and Syrian security forces. One Syrian employee of the embassy and at least ten bystanders are wounded, among them, seven Syrian telephone company workers and a senior Chinese diplomat. Police recover a car laden with explosives and other IEDs. Syrian Ambassador to the United States Imad Moustapha announces that his government suspects a group called Jund al-Sham is responsible.[62] See Damascus terrorist attacks.
27. Yemen September 15: Four suicide bombers and a security guard are killed in early-morning attacks on the Safer refinery in Marib and the al-Dhabba terminal in Hadramout, Yemen. Although no group has claimed responsibility Islamic extremists are suspected. See the September 15th Yemen attacks page.
28. Thailand September 16: 2006 Hat Yai bombings: four people killed, 82 injured, by six bombs along the main commercial street of Hat Yai. The devices were placed approximately 500 meters apart, and were remotely set off every five minutes.[63]
29. Somalia September 18: Eleven people, including the presidents brother and six attackers, are killed in an assassination attempt on the Somalian president.[64] See 2006 Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed assassination attempt.
30. Afghanistan September 30: A suicide bomber detonates his explosives outside the interior ministry in Kabul. The attack kills twelve and wounds over 40.[65]
31. Sri Lanka September 18: An LTTE suicide bomber rams a truck packed with explosives into convoy carrying unarmed Sri Lankan Navy personal going on leave, killing at least 92 sailors.[66]
32. Northern Ireland November 1: The Real IRA detonates a series of firebombs in a large hardware retailers, a sports store and toy shop all in Belfast, the hardware retailers and sports store were completely destroyed. No fatalities.[67]
33. India November 20: A suspected terrorist bomb explodes on a train in India. See 2006 West Bengal train disaster
34. Lebanon November 21: Assassination of Pierre Amine Gemayel, an anti-Syrian politician and scion of Lebanon’s most prominent Christian family blamed on Syria, Iran and Hezbollah despite their denials.[68]
35. Iraq November 23: A series of car bombs and motar attacks in Sadr City, Iraq kills at least 215 people and wounds a further 257. See Sadr City bombings for details.
36. Northern Ireland November 24 Michael Stone, prevented from murdering members of the Sinn Fein political party.[69][70]
37. Spain December 30: A bomb explodes at the Madrid airport, killing two Ecuadorians and injuring 26 people. The ETA a Basque terrorist group has claimed responsibility.
38. ThailandDecember 31: Eight bomb explosions in seven areas of Bangkok, Thailand's capital city, three people died, nearly 40 injured.
2007
1. Palestinian National Authority As of January 9th since December 2006 forty seven attacks in the Gaza Strip by pipe bomb and rocket lauched granades by the Swords of Islamic Righteousness on individuals and business it considers immoral.[71]
2. Philippines January 10 Three bombs kill six and injure twenty seven in the southern part of the country. Muslim militants trying to disrupt Asian Summit suspected.[72]
3. Greece January 12: Explosion at the US Embassy in central Athens; police suspect rocket. No injuries reported; at least one window blown out.[73]
If the current pace continues there will be 36 attacks by year’s end.
I think that makes his point, don't you?
{{{Veneita}}}
it's almost like Bush's phoney 'war on terror' is not really working at all, isn't it?
ps, did you see the Republicans out arguing that the Democrat's idea of checking everything coming into our ports now is going to cost billions of dollars? hmmmm, maybe we can take a week off from the Iraqi occupation and use that money for it, instead, so that at long last, we start some REAL efforts to stop terrorism from getting into this country! Hopefully, the next step will be to raise the border agents and patrols to levels where they were before Bush got in. Maybe as they start getting back our troops from Iraq, we can give them jobs really fighting terrorism, instead of sitting ducks in a Civil war !~
Posted by Veneita on January 12, 2007 at 10:40 AM
Great post. That will be reposted again and again.
The trouble with Hitler's and the Chimp wimp's Mesianic view of the World is that there is no Mesiah to back them up. That's why there plans can never work!!!
"GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK".
If a complete time line of radical Islamic activity was what M-T wanted to do why would he/she preface the post with: Terrorist Attacks 1992 - 2000 during President Clinton's years of office?
McCain out there today defending and applauding Bush's escalation to send more boys into this quagmire of a Civil War.
You go, John. Keep it up. Your chances of getting any American's votes for Pres are getting slimmer and slimmer! Makes you appear as senile as you really are!
The U.S. Military may have officially signed off on President Bush's new Iraq plan, but there is still a healthy dose of skepticism about the so-called surge strategy. Many officers have taken to using the acronym "JEL" to characterize the number of troops dedicated to the new effort. It stands for “Just Enough to Lose." "Look, is this a national effort, or more of the same mid-level one" asked a senior officer who has served in Iraq. "What I heard last night is more of the same. We either needed to go big — and that means 100,000 soldiers to fight, take on the nastiest elements like Moqtada Al Sadr, and police that country alongside Iraqis — or we should have found a way out."
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1576676,00.html?xid=site-cnn-partner
lINK TV had a program called TIME-BOMB WHICH SHOWS HOW the Chimp Wimp's deficit spending can lead to a complete callapse of our economy. The program also talked about the Repug's using deficit spending in order to cut entitlement programs, food stamps, veterans benefits, medicare, etc.
TIME-BOMB.ORG
"GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK".
The best thing about the Chimp Wimp's and his followers Strategy's are what is helping us take control of Congres and the Senate for a long time.
He's the best thing we have hurting his own party!!!
"GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK".
The Arsenal of Tools Congressional Democrats Can Use To Force the Bush Administration To Cooperate with Their Efforts To Undertake Oversight
Was not the increasing rise in terrorism inevitable? These terrorist attacks are occurring not only against US interests but against countries all over the world.
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 12:00 PM
It certaining was. It will continue to get worse by the actions of this administration.
thomas
what you are missing as the point here is, YES, the plot for 9/11 was in the works prior to bush coming into office, BUT the Bush administration, in a determination to not use anything Clinton passed on to them, IGNORED the Richard Clarke Al Qaeda report, and the IGNORED the report " Al Qaeda to strike within the USA" which outlined planes being used to crash into buildings!
This is what we rail against. No one here professes Terrorist attacks only started when Bush took office, only that he refused to give them the proper attention that was necessary.
BUT YES, Bush HAS increased muslim anger and hatred towards us. His unwarranted, illegal, deceitful attack on Iraq has made the entire world, but especially the Middle East countries, hate us all the more. His Iraqi deaths spawn more and more enemies towards us. Countries which used to respect and ally with us, now view us negatively.
Posted by PamB on January 12, 2007 at 09:03 AM
Are ALL people in the State of MN simple, or are we just unfortunate enough to have them drawn to this blog????
I hope you do not consider me simple just because I live in MN. There are pockets of the unenlightened. I live in the district that elected (R)Michele Bachmann, now lovingly referred to as 'Baghdad Bachmann' in reference to an interview she gave last week. Read this column by Nick Coleman today concerning that interview it is hilarious!
Interesting tidbits. I wish the text was posted.
6. H.J.RES.12 : Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States authorizing the Congress to prohibit the physical desecration of the flag of the United States.
Sponsor: Rep Murtha, John P. [PA-12] (introduced 1/11/2007) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Judiciary
Latest Major Action: 1/11/2007 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7. H.J.RES.13 : Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relating to school prayer.
Sponsor: Rep Murtha, John P. [PA-12] (introduced 1/11/2007) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Judiciary
Latest Major Action: 1/11/2007 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
An authoritative US intelligence report pooling the views of 16 government agencies concludes America's campaign in Iraq has increased the threat of terrorism.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1880275,00.html
I know it's old news to most of us here...
Olbermann's special comment on the SOTU:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/Media/Download/13477/1/Countdown-SC-Surge.wmv/
{{lav}}
not at all, in fact you and Dors remain the voices of sanity from there.
I threw that out, because of the trolls.
Coleman's article is hilarious. I watched a Rep from MN on C-Span this morning talking about those MN guards who thought they would be home in March, now on hold through the summer! Those poor families .
Gotta love this:
"This is diplomacy by skimming; it is internationalism by drawing pictures of Superman in the margins of the text books; it is a presidency of Cliff Notes.
And to Iran and Syria — and, yes, also to the insurgents in Iraq — we must look like a country, run by the equivalent of the drunken pest, who gets battered to the floor of the saloon by one punch, then staggers to his feet, and shouts at the other guy's friends, "ok, which one of you is next?"
Mr. Bush, the question is no longer "what are you thinking?," but rather "are you thinking at all?""
Would he have attacked the training camps in Afghanistan and if so, would not have those actions enraged the Muslims? I think so.
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 12:16 PM
One this question, I agree with you. Yes & yes.
had to have made some respoLet’s say Gore won in 2000 and the 9/11 attacks occurred on his watch (remembering these were originally intended to happen while Clinton was in office so keep in mind Bin Laden has no party affiliation); “President Gore” would have
thomas, most of us here believe that 9/11 would not have happened at all, or as catastrophically had Gore been elected!
He was with Clinton while the investigation of Al Qaeda was being drawn up. They were very, very aware of the increasing danger of them.
Do you really imagine Gore would have gotten a report "Al Qaeda to Strike in the US" a few weeks before it happened, and not done anything?
Posted by SalutetheDems on January 12, 2007 at 10:11 AM
You wrote, "Bush knows his "surge" won't work. He expects the Democrats in Congress to stop it. He is then home free. Failure is not his fault. Catch 22 for the Dems. Damned if you do, damned if you don't."
Bush is going to have to answer to the American people for what he has already done, and not just what may happen in the future. He started this war, it unpopular now, and most Americans blame his administration for the predicament that we are now in concerning Iraq. All the Dems have to do is to be seen by the American people as being for doing whatever it takes to try to bring this situation to an end. For example, they will have to be seen as trying to compromise with this Administration as much as possible while holding this President's feet to the fire, and not letting him get us deeper into this predicament. They can stick to their guns about rejecting this
Administration's plan that was put out on Wednesday. They can come up with solutions of their own that they try to persuade the Administration to adopt. They can also go ahead and plan to use the Constitutional authority of "the power of the purse" if Bush does go ahead and implement his newest strategy and it hasn't started to work well in 6 months time. And, they can also hold hearings to get this Administration to give an account of how he has been conducting this war.
If they do all of these things, and the situation is still not what it should be in another 6 months to a year, then I think that the Dems will be in the clear, and this Administration will have to take most of the blame for the situation.
Bush may also try to get the Iraqui government to share in any blame that may befall him. And, although it will probably be true that they will be to blame also, that will not absolve Bush from his part in the blunder, and he will have to answer to the American people for it.
Also, if we are still in this situation come 2008, that may also hinder the asperations of the Republicans that seek the Presidency in 2008, which would almost guarantee that a Dem will be our next President in January of 2009.
Belive me, this situation is Bush's to lose and not the Dem's!
Of course, in a way, it is all of ours to lose because we keep losing some of the brave young men and women of our armed services, not to mention 2 billion dollars a week!
Posted by PamB on January 12, 2007 at 12:23 PM
Of course Pam, ol Al would have gone off to his phony cowpoke ranch to clear brush. Waitaminute! He doesn't have a phony cowpoke ranch! Doh!
You have a bit of a short fuse David. I restrain for personal attacks, try it yourself. Really helps with general discussions.
Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 11:38 AM,
OOhhoh, I'm sorry Mr. Cool! Of course, you are correct. Maybe I should check into Rush Limbaugh's clinic and get something for that anger. Not!!
What a twit! You know the purpose of your post, you associated anything that happened from 1992, which was before Clinton took office, to 2000. I'm not backing up Clinton, but when you go back to Carter and not mention the 12 years of Reagan/Bush/Bush/Quayle your post loses relativity to what you say you are saying.
In terms of me having a short fuse I totally detest lies and misinformation. Maybe if the 104th - 109th Congress' felt the same then our country would not be in the mess that it is in. If there is one thing (one and the same) that will set me off it is lies and misinformation. I guess that's why I'm not a Republican!
Condi might want to think about putting those shoes out on consignment....
Republicans in Congress who do not want to be quoted tell me that the State Department under Condoleezza Rice is a mess. This comes at a time when the U.S. global position is precarious. While attention is focused on Iraq, American diplomacy is being tested worldwide -- in Afghanistan, Iran, Israel, Korea and Sudan. The judgment by thoughtful Republicans is that Rice has failed to manage that endeavor.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/10/AR2007011002021.html
Gates Urges Increase in Army, Marines
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates yesterday proposed adding 92,000 troops to the Army and Marine Corps, initiating the biggest increase in U.S. ground forces since the 1960s to shore up a military that top officers warn is on the verge of breaking from prolonged fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The permanent increase of 65,000 soldiers and 27,000 Marines would cost more than $10 billion annually and take five years to achieve, underscoring the Pentagon's conviction that today's wars and anti-terrorism operations will endure for many years. "We call those 'long war' forces," a senior military official said.
John Stewart on the eerie similarities between Prince George and Lincoln:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/Media/Download/13464/1/TDS-Bush-Lincoln.wmv/
Would he have attacked the training camps in Afghanistan and if so, would not have those actions enraged the Muslims? I think so.
Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 12:16 PM,
All Muslims are not extremists!! By attacking the training camps, yes, we would have angered extremist Muslims. However, we would not alienated ourselves the way we are now. Mr. Bush seems intent assisting bin Ladens Jihad, in reigniting the Crusades, of pitting Christians against Islamics. Nobody wins a holy war. But who has more to lose? We do, and that is exactly what we are doing, losing more. Furthermore, the longer we stay, the more embroiled we become, the more the extremist Muslims win. Death means nothing to them. The more we kill, the more we lose because we become like the ones that we persue.
Can't you see the contrast? The more we lose, the more they win; and it's not a horse race, it's not a football game. We lose by expending all of resources, including human, in trying to defeat an invisible enemy. They can keep us fighting over there for the rest of this century, and they will if we are stupid enough to do it.
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 12:49 PM
Do you support the increased troops in Iraq as decided by the current president?
This is how we lose!
...initiating the biggest increase in U.S. ground forces since the 1960s to shore up a military that top officers warn is on the verge of breaking from prolonged fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Esmeralda, thanks for the link.
The Bush Legacy.
What George Bush has done is to expose in clear ways, Foreign Policies of the US Government of decades of implementation by all Administrations.
Yes, Bush will go down in history as the "worst" President ever, responsible for the lowest level in history, regarding US reputation abroad. He has precipitated a National and Foreign economic crisis by acting so boldly and in such imperialistic way with no regard for diplomacy or any other International Law.
He's legacy: "exposing in clear terms to the rest of the world, the policies of those dark forces who got him into power and keep supporting him today"__ The cat is out of the bag and the whole world knows now and are taking steps to protect themselves...
If there existed any doubt, those doubts have been made very clear.
This has long term negative consequences into the future for all Americans.
Minnesota_Thomas,
Do you favor hitting Iran with low-level Nuclear weapons? If so, How is that going to help stop this holy war?
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 12:16 PM
You wrote, "Let's say Gore won in 2000 and the 9/11 attacks occured on his watch (remembering these were originally intended to happen while Clinton was in office so keep in mind Bin Laden has no party affiliation); "President Gore" would have had to have made some response to al Qaeda.
Would he have attacked the training camps in Afghanistan and if so, would not have those actions enraged the Muslims? I think so."
First of all, we don't know that 9/11 would have occured on "President Gore's" watch. And, even if it had, I say yes, the extreme Muslims would have been enraged by "President Gore" attacking their training camps. But, "President Gore" would have been justified in doing so, and we would have had most of the world on our side in fighting al Qaeda, and we would probably have found Bin Laden and the rest of the terrorist that attacked us on that terrible day.
But, that kind of thing would be vastly different from what happened with President Bush. He lost track of his mission to find Bin Laden and the other terrorists that attacked us. He has made enemies of countries around the world that used to be our allies, has gotten us into an unjustified, seeminly unending War in Iraq, has brought more terrorists into Iraq than were there prior, and have even turned a lot of moderate Muslims against us.
And, that is the real difference, Minnesota_Thomas, we now have moderate Muslims (and people who were moderate before Bush's invasion) against us. There is no way that "President Gore" would have done that!
Sure, there were always going to be some extreme Muslims against us, but when we lost the good will of some of the moderate Muslims, that is what people mean when they say that, "Bush has made the Muslims hate us more." They are talking about the moderate ones (or previously moderate ones before Bush's unwarrented attack in Iraq)!
Posted by PamB on January 12, 2007 at 12:20 PM
Yeah I knew it was for the trolls but I just had to...;)
I must have missed the MN rep, I watched all morning until around 10 CST. Darn! One thing I do know it wasn't 'Baghdad Bachmann'. She could care less.
We just stand still and take their best shots and keep muttering through broken teeth... we win, we win, we win?
Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 01:06 PM,
Of course, you're being irrational, but probably with the intent of inciting me so you can accuse me of going off easiy.
No, we don't just do what you said, we work through global intelligence agencies to bring the perpetrators to justice. Has this so-called "War on Terror" brought bin Laden to justice? No, but it sure has aided and abetted the splintering of bin Laden's organization making them ever more difficult to stop, and henceforth, destabilized the globe in the process.
Al Gore Q and A on the approproate response and action re: Global War on Terror.I'm guessing 9/11 would not have happened had Al Gore been the president of the United States.
http://www.commonwealthclub.org/archive/02/02-09gore-qa.htmlQ: Your administration did little to evict Osama Bin Laden from Afghanistan after the terrorist attacks in the embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Why?
A: We took many steps to try to eliminate him and his terrorist network. The support here at home, much less overseas, for a land invasion of Afghanistan by the armies of the United States was not present in any way prior to the attack on September 11. We did attack with our military forces from the air. We did use many of the assets that we have available to us, covert as well as overt, in an effort to dismantle his network. And we did not succeed in that. I think that the proposal now pending to have an independent investigation of what went wrong in the intelligence community during the last year and a half and before ought to be put in place. You know, having spent eight years reading the intelligence briefings every morning at the start of the day, six mornings a week, and knowing what was in those reports for the final two years I was there, I was amazed to read just a few days ago that on September 11 the FBI had one agent assigned to monitor Al Qaeda and to protect us against Osama Bin Laden. I found that absolutely incredible. Well, I bite my tongue about the rest of it.
'No timetable' for Iraq progress
The US defence secretary says there is no timetable for Iraq to comply with President Bush's new strategy. Full Story:
Hi to LavoniaW, PamB, BlueinIdayo, Michigan_Dave,Olivia, Lavndrblue, and any I may have missed answering the beckoning of Minnesota_Thomas.
US soldier jailed for Iraq deaths
A US soldier has been sentenced to 18 years in jail after pleading guilty to murdering three Iraqis. Full Story:
Blast at U.S. embassy in Athens called 'terrorism'
Read more >
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20070112/greece_embassy_070112/20070112?hub=World
Bush faces rebellion over Iraq
Congress and public opposed.
Isolated Bush faces rebellion over Iraq
Congress to reject plan
Public against extra troops
Full Story:
US Activists Campaign to Block Iraq Troop Increase
By Andy Sullivan
Rule no. 1: always default to "death to America" for any issue. Clear-thinkers.
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 01:06 PM
Ever stop for a minute and ask, Why??
Ever stop and think "Man, I wonder what that Shite or Sunni Muslim felt when we blew his effin' house up in front of his face??"
Ever stop and wonder what it feels like to hold your dying Muslim child with half their body burnt to a crisp from a misguided american bunker buster??
Ten years ( and we're only talking about Iraq here) under UN Sanctions and miserable lives under a dictator, starvation and "Hooorray, here come the Yanks to bomb the rest away".
I suppose regardless of whether I was Muslim, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish or Gnostic, I'd probably be tempted to be real effin' extreme.
We can sit here and speculate all day long about what President Gore would have done before and after 911.
The one thing is for certain. With the Democrats in control, we will find out who was at fault for 911, one way or the other. And we will find out just what George did or didn’t do leading up to 911.
And that my friends will be very interesting! It should once and for all set the Republicans back 20 years in this country. I think things will start to heat up in just a few weeks. Then as we say in Indianer – poop will hit the fan!
Keep on Rockn'
Contact your Senators and Representatives now, tell them you're against sending more troops into Iraq and demand that all funding of the war be cut off and end the war now. Click on links below to take action. Do it now!
DKA thanks for the link...
New militant groups like the Revolutionary Struggle are opposed to the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq.The same group claimed responsibility for a May 2006 bomb attack on Culture Minister Giorgos Voulgarakis, in which nobody was injured
Bush's policies are breeding terrorists all over the world, not stopping them. I heard on Air America that this terrorist group hasn't been active since the 70's(?) I believe and have now resurrected because of Bush's policies.
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 01:27 PM
How about Option #3??
Diplomacy. An example of where to begin below. Start there, develop allies in the region and use them and their influence on "The Global War on Terror"
http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=6366
The Iranian regime is undoubtedly odious. But one of the requirements of an effective foreign policy is to engage with unpleasant regimes when America's national interest requires that step. This is one of those cases.
Moreover, do hawks genuinely believe that the alternative to a grand bargain -- preventive military strikes, perhaps involving up to 400 targets, some of them beneath densely populated urban centers -- is sensitive to the plight of Iranians?
Are we to believe that such a policy, which would involve thousands of civilian deaths, is the policy that best serves the interests of the Iranian people?
Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 01:27 PM,
I have two exceptions with your theories:
1. Many retired and current military commanders say that we would need 300 - 500 thousand troops to secure Iraq. Even Mr. Bush's additional 20,000 will not be enough.
2. It is our presence in Iraq that is driving the force behind the Jihad. We could put a million troops in Iraq. Kill 'em all, until "the blood flows bridle deep" to take a phrase from Revelations, all we'll end up doing killing is ourselves.
To take another phrase from the Bible, "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." I do believe you know who said this. I also believe you know that the speaker, who was definitely without sin, did not cast the first stone, henceforth no stone was cast.
Violence begets violence, and is not in keeping with God's word no matter what religion you may choose for worship.
Oh, yeah, notice that worship is spelled with an "o" not an "a"! Do you know what I mean?
Posted by davidual on January 12, 2007 at 01:30 PM
Dude :):):)
Well, I guess I've had enough rational irrationality for this afternoon. It's been real, it's been fun, so I guess that means it's been real fun.:)
Take five to strive and avert the dive!!
PURGE THE SURGE!!!
See ya!
"conventional bombs would do that but I think Israel would do that long before we would. They are the intended target"
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 01:40 PM
IAEA: Iran Nuclear Report 'Outrageous'
U.N. Blasts House Committee Claims On Tehran's Weapon-Making Capability
The letter, obtained by The Associated Press on Thursday outside a 35-nation board meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency, says the report is false in saying Iran is making weapons-grade uranium at an experimental enrichment site, when it has in fact produced material only in small quantities that is far below the level that can be used in nuclear arms.
The dispute was reminiscent of the clashes between the IAEA and Washington over whether Saddam Hussein was trying to make weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear arms. American arguments that Saddam had such covert arms programs were given as the chief reason for invading Iraq and toppling Saddam.
Ya Buddy, let's go blow those f***er's up. Horses ass. That's exactly the mindset that got us in to this mess in the first place.
The solution is dialogue and diplomacy. Period. We need to start making friends over there and plenty of them.
The solution is not Bunker Busters, Patriot's or M-1's and certainly not anything remotely resembling pre-emptive or unilateral action.
Political Nightmares 2006
They call themselves servants of America,
Employees of American Independent voters.
“We the PEOPLE” Constitutional guarantees,
Give us Liberty motto, serving US proud.
Oh, how you have failed US dearly!
You failed to walk the talk of the streets,
Instead you prostate yourself in shame,
Adorned on rich mirrors of country clubs.
Fraternity of extreme political abuse,
Dismantling Constitutional protections,
Executive Privilege of one divine Party
Aborting check and balanced power!
Political Creative Corporate Accounting,
Enron of Republican fraternal cronyism,
Absorbent Medicare Halliburton favoritism,
Right wing green blooded wealthy nepotism.
America needing Freedom and Democracy,
Needing a patriotism act for civilian people.
Not a Bush Patriot Act of private invasion,
Guantanamo Presidential White House justice.
People Constitutional Liberty Bell Party,
Statue of Liberty singing a patriotic verse,
Country united together upon a diverse love
That will never divide for special interests.
David L. Young 01/12/07
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 01:54 PM
Brahahahah. ROTFLMAO
Surely you jest, Dude.
"If this was the rule, you and I would be speaking German,( You must be referring to Hitler I guess and then assuming after he conquered France and Great Britain, He would aspire to swim the Atlantic with his troops and take over the United States) "unless of course your were Jewish then you would be silienced forever." (This one is killing me. Do you mean the same Jew's in Israel that just carpet bombed Lebanon?? Those silent Jewish people?)
Veneita,
Most of the junk you listed have nothing to do with USA.
Wasn't it the pug reich that kept repeating USA is not the world police man!!!???!!
Now were you lying for them for their past actions or are you lying today regarding your position?
Or are you a flip-flopper?
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 01:54 PM
"Sanctions only work if all countries who signed onto them followed them and were not going around secretly selling arms to the sactioned or trading oil for cash like Kojo Annan."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/07/AR2005090701646_2.html
It also accused U.S. officials of approving "the single largest episode of oil smuggling" out of Iraq, by Jordan, in the weeks before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003. The United States and Jordan declined Volcker's requests for interviews and documents, the report said, saying his panel had no authority to investigate oil smuggling outside the oil-for-food program.
You are so right!! Look at these bastards. Oooops, it was us.
Michigan_Dave at 2:06Pm...Right on the money...nice to "see" you again, Dave...you may not have seen this...it's an email I sent out to every Democratic Senator who has an email address in DC....if you have seen it...disreguard it and scroll past........
..................“PURGE THE SURGE”
I have just read an extensive explanation on the proposed details of Mr. Bush’s proposed troop increase and economic incentives for Iraq. We have lost over 3000 of our children to Mr. Bush’s miss-administration of the war in Iraq. If we do an about face and start bringing our troops home right now, we will have still wasted ½ a trillion dollars of the tax payers’ money on “Bush’s Folly” in Iraq. Billions of dollars have been lost and stolen with no accountability by either the Iraqi government or Mr. Bush’s administration.
The Iraqi government has failed to even attempt to bring peace and stability to Iraq. They have not tried. They are more interested in killing each other off in an attempt by the various factions to gain total control. While we have been spending money and lives in attempting to build schools in Iraq, 20% of our own children live in poverty.
While we have been attempting to rebuild hospitals in Iraq, our own people have one of the poorest health care systems of any industrialized nation.
While we have been attempting to rebuild the electrical grid in Iraq, our own electrical grid is obsolete and easily vulnerable to terrorist attack.
We can not be the world’s policeman and should not try. That’s what the UN is for.
And we should not be the charity blank check for the world. We can not afford that either. Economics should determine what a country attempts to do. We never could afford Mr. Bush’s Folly and we sure can’t afford to go forward with it.
Mr. Bush claims to be “a man of faith,”…I don’t think so, for it is written, "But if any provide not for his own and ‘specially for those of his own house (nation), he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel”… 1 Timothy...5-8
To follow Mr. Bush’s proposed course of action would be to throw more lives and money after that which has already been lost…..
If Mr. Bush wants “a troop surge,” he should go to Iraq and lead it himself.
Signed …John Harris
Co-Author of ‘”Journey Through Cancer Land”
I was told by Mercedes Benz Human Resources a few years back that I could not write Poetry in my own home. I was also denied the right to post any kind of Poetry on the Internet. Can Congress have a Bill to restore the right of American Corporate employees to use the Artmosphere and culture inside their own homes of Freedom and Democracy.
I was 'Terminated for Poetry', but I want Congress to give civilians the right of Constitutional guaranttes of Free Speech, especially while in their own Home Sweet Home. That they cannot terminate someone for something done inside one's home, without a trial. That they cannot use Guantanamo corporate justice with this Executive Privilege of passing over Constitutional rights.
They also got upset that I was supporting Kerry, over Bush, said it was unpatriotic to be a Liberal. It seems one has to have a conservative skin to have employment rights of self expression.
QUOTE OF THE YEAR
(and one that should be engraved on the walls of Congress!)
Out of the mouth of a hard core Republican caller on the Washington Journal, expressing her anger at the Right and Lefts failure to say good things about Iraq and picking on poor Condi during the Foreign Relations hearing yesterday:
Them Republicans have turned into Democrats.
The only real Republican left is Joe Lieberman.
PUG REICH DEMAND ATTACK OF IRAN FOR GREEK REVOLUTIONARY GROUP ACTIONS OF BOMBING AN EMPTY BUILDING!!!
Gee this seems too much like the Gulf of Tonkin to me!!?!?
It seems the pug reich is wrong again. These attackers were part of the Greek Revolutionary group, they were not Arabs, were not Iraqi, were not Iran, were not Al Qaeda, were not Hezbollah.
Another Gulf of Tonkin 2007!?!?
The Greek Revolutionary group is a group upset about not being able to participate in the 2004 Olympic, they support the street peoples rights to sell stuff on the roads.
Someone took something I wrote on my own time to work.
Poet,
What kinds or poems? XXX lymrics are certainly going to raise an alarm!
""I was told by Mercedes Benz Human Resources a few years back that I could not write Poetry in my own home.""
"How would they even know?"
I date all my poetry with a date. So I could not write any verse against Bush, nor have any public opinion that might conflict with any puvblic official.
XXX lyrics are Free Speech, but I find them offensive for one must use reason over four letter obsenity. You could take all my poems combined and find maybe a few that have strong words. The language of the workers on the floor was so bad at times I had to ask women not to use the F word.
Poet,
Take an advice from Robert Kiyosaki, Rich Dad Poor Dad. If you run around waving hundred dollar bills yelling what can I do with this money. Someone will tell you what you can do with it and you will no longer have it.
Please take a little personnel reponsibilty for your own stuff. The world is not your mother or guardian.
I noticed the reich wing pugs are pushing freedom of speech to it edge. Just like the ultra-left that is funded by the right too. Hum? All the idiots who do not have any self control profess their freedom of speech is getting robbed.
Best method to deal with these abuse of freedom of speech is to not play with them.
So, you're saying Bin Laden would have backed down completely, not changing his plans to accommodate discovery of his plans? He would have said, "Oh well, they caught me, I'll just give up my intended desire to eradicate western civilization and go back to tending goats"? I think not.
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 12:30 PM
you don't pay attention! but then, you and Martha never did!
I said over and over, Gore would have been paying attention to the reports and done things to catch those Saudis before they had a chance to do what they had planned! Or at least have caught most of them.
I am taking responsibility of my poetry, and living the dream of writing my roller coaster. The dollar bills I wave around is my retirement account dream that one cane be a Free Spirit.
All I want is to be, somewhere in America not on compasny time, de-terminated to succeed on this impossible path.
So in failing, I may succeed, but Corporate America cannot ban Poetry in the home "At Will". So I will lose everything to have lived in Free Verse of Constitutional Freedom and Democracy.
2. Leave. Yes, this will cut our losses but then the massacre will begin. The Sunnis and Shiites will go after each other in a massive power struggle and soon no only Iran but other surrounding countries will get in to support their chosen side. Meanwhile, the streets will run red with the blood of men, women and children who could care less what religious sect is bigger/better/holier/stricter. These people only wish to live, worship and mind their own business. In addition, the Kurds lose huge as they are on neither side
hmmmmm, sounds exactly like what is going on right now, right down to iran and Syria sending in help. Does our being in the middle of it help? Nope!
Our presence there merely FUELS them into attempt to get rid of us.
some GOOD news:
Convicted lawmakers to lose pensions
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/politics/4466445.html
and for those who wonder why I despise Lieberman SO much:
Bush’s Best Democratic BuddyJoe Lieberman gives the president a pass on Katrina.
I'll be watching HOWARD!!!
MURTHA! WAY TO GO!! you're so right.
THE SURGE IS UNACCPETABLE!
STICK TO YOUR GUNS DEMS
AND BRING OUR TROOPS HOME NOW!!!
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 01:27 PM
I agree with your assessment to a degree. However, I question your lack of conclusion to the first option loosely titled, "fighting to the end". End of what? A general that basically wrote the book on winning a war such as this estimates that to "end" or win a war under these circumstances would require an increase of over 300,000 troops. Ready to sign up?
Leaving will embolden the terrorists to make even more horrific attacks against the US, here and abroad.
How do you come to this conclusion? First and foremost, our invasion of Iraq was not in response to an attack from Iraq. IMO, staying will cause more attacks, leaving will save more American soldier. The choice for me then is easy.
Poet...most of the large corporations have inhouse legal staff or law firms on retainer to advise them as to what they can and can not do reguarding terminations. In some states an employee can be terminated "without cause" or for "no cause'. Thats state law which most corporations rely on. However, being the mean spirited, vindictive person that I am, I would have tried to file under federal law with the EEOC. I might have lost but I might have had the satisfaction of forcing them to spend their time and money to defend themselves......and off course, there is always the ACLU.......
Promising Troops Where They Aren’t Really Wanted
BAGHDAD, Jan. 10 — As President Bush challenges public opinion at home by committing more American troops, he is confronted by a paradox: an Iraqi government that does not really want them. Full Story:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/11/world/middleeast/11iraq.html?em&ex=1168750800&en=45aa77c1b6e65274&ei=5087%0A
Britain Signals Plans to Reduce, Not Increase, Troop Levels in Iraq
By ALAN COWELL
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/12/world/europe/12britain.html?_r=1&ref=worldspecial&oref=slogin
So much for Bush's fake promise when he said that if the Iraqis want us to leave we will leave. Damn liar!
Bomber Attacks Foreign Convoy Near Kabul
A suicide bomber rammed his explosives-filled car into a two-vehicle convoy carrying foreigners south of Kabul on Friday, wounding at least one Afghan civilian, police said.
Full Story:
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/w-asia/2007/jan/12/011203047.html
Posted by Minnesota_Thomas on January 12, 2007 at 03:23 PM
Not a damned thing? From which Fox news station did you get that false rhetoric? Clinton tried everything and was strongly rebuked for it everytime by the same rightwingers that are dripping blood from their lips today.
You cannot rewrite history, no matter how hard you try.
CLINTON: No, no. I authorized the CIA to get groups together to try to kill him.
The CIA, which was run by George Tenet, that President Bush gave the Medal of Freedom to, he said, "He did a good job setting up all these counterterrorism things."
The country never had a comprehensive anti-terror operation until I came there.
Now, if you want to criticize me for one thing, you can criticize me for this: After the Cole, I had battle plans drawn to go into Afghanistan, overthrow the Taliban, and launch a full-scale attack search for bin Laden.
But we needed basing rights in Uzbekistan, which we got after 9/11.
The CIA and the FBI refused to certify that bin Laden was responsible while I was there. They refused to certify. So that meant I would've had to send a few hundred Special Forces in helicopters and refuel at night.
Even the 9/11 Commission didn't do that. Now, the 9/11 Commission was a political document, too. All I'm asking is, anybody who wants to say I didn't do enough, you read Richard Clarke's book.
CHRIS WALLACE: Do you think you did enough, sir?
CLINTON: No, because I didn't get him.
WALLACE: Right.
CLINTON: But at least I tried. That's the difference in me and some, including all the right-wingers who are attacking me now. They ridiculed me for trying. They had eight months to try. They did not try. I tried.
So I tried and failed. When I failed, I left a comprehensive anti-terror strategy and the best guy in the country, Dick Clarke, who got demoted.
American patience is limited, and obviously if the Iraqis fail to maintain their commitments we'll have to revisit our strategy,” said Gates.
At one point Gates, just three weeks on the job, told lawmakers, “I would confess I'm no expert on Iraq.” Later, asked about reaching the right balance between American and Iraqi forces, he told the panel he was “no expert on military matters.”
Committee members pressed Gates, who replaced Donald H. Rumsfeld at the Pentagon, on an exit strategy for the U.S.
“At the outset of the strategy, it's a mistake to talk about an exit strategy,” he said.
OooooKaaaaay....now I get it, in order to be Secretary of Defense in the Bush Administration you don't need to be an expert on Iraq or.....unbelievably.....know anything at all about military matters. Good Grief Give Me a Fu....g Break!! If this man is so stupid that he admits publicly and under oath that he is unqualified for the job than by Golly Give the dude a chance.........This is our New Sec. of Defense??? Knows nothing about Iraq and less about the military and Bush gives him this job?? Am I missing something or am I as stupid and uninformed as Bush believes me to be???
peace
Impeach this President!!!!!!!!!!
Condi Rice filed Richard Clarke's report in "file 13"....Donald Rumsfeld did the same thing with Gen Zinney's repot "Desert Crossing"....anything that did not agree with the contrived intell they were feeding the American people and Congress was hidden....
Thomas,
Then what? Bin Laden would've stopped? Not likely PamB. All Gore would have caught was a 19-man squad on one mission. Surely you don't believe that would have been the end of it?
You don't think stopping the death of 3000 people and a plot that was 3 years in the making would have been a victory ??
Of course Bin laden is STILL plotting out there, and hates the USA more than ever. PLUS, if Gore had been President, he would not have halted the search for Bin Laden like Bush did. For Bush to catch Bin laden, is to signal to the country that that is the end of the war on Terror, and he sure does not want that------not while there is still all that oil to be obtained!
PamB at 4:o6PM...Right on!!!...one of the reasons Iraqi oil was so enticing to Bush and Cheney is that the cost of extraction on Iraqi oil is much lower than oil from other areas, about $5 per barrel vrs as high as $15 to $20 per barrel in other areas. Too rich a prise to not go after when all you have to do is fabricate the intell to justify the invasion...who needed bin Laudin?....
Going back at the start of the Iraq war President Bush said that the war would be paid for by oil revenues in Iraq yet the United States has spent over half a trillion dollars on this war. Why isn't anyone questioning this in public? It appears that the American people have been lied again! Why isn't anyone demanding any answers about this? Where is the accountability? The American people deserve to know the truth and it's time to stop funding this failed Iraq policy. Bring the troops home now. It's time to draw the line and end this war.
Posted by Esmeralda on January 12, 2007 at 12:16 PM
Why is Murtha sponsoring flag-desecration and school prayer amendments right now? Why is he even screwing around with amendments? What is up with that?
Hi People,
Yesterday MoveOn.org staged an impromptu rally across the states standing against the escalation in Iraq.
My brother and I decided to go, made a huge sign reading, "Iraq Escalation? Wrong Way!", and planted ourselves at the designated corner of 47th & Broadway at The Plaza of Kansas City, MO.
What amazed me was the fact that about 175 people showed up for that rally on less than a day's notice. There were young kids from a local school, former Vietnam protesters, average folks of all income levels, a wide mixture of people!
Almost every car that drove by (and that was a constant bumper-to-bumper flow in all directions for hours) honked in support. Clearly, it appeared about 80%-90% agreed with our stand.
I took lots of pictures. The local ABC news channel came to shoot and interview. Even the Dos Mundos news publication shot photos and interviewed many of us. It was very encouraging for me to see it all.
Once home, I turned on the ABC local news station and waited and waited for them to play the piece on the rally. Finally, they showed maybe 5-10 seconds of the rally and used it as a lead-in to show 30+ seconds of Bush and soldiers getting ready for the surge. I was really pissed... and disappointed. Clearly, ABC is a right-wing demigod. Having spent most of my career in advertising, it don't take much to know their agenda.
Posted by DPD on January 12, 2007 at 05:05 PM
Anyone else think that the rules in Congress need to be changed a bit? Instead of just Yeas and Nays (or Ayes and Noes) they need to give a short reason for their vote also. I mean, they do have reasons for the way they vote, right?
get your popcorn makers tuned up for this one:
Libby perjury and obstruction trial set to begin
Case comes to court as public concern over Iraq war heightens
By Joel Seidman
Producer
NBC News
Updated: 18 minutes ago
WASHINGTON - Trial is set to begin in the perjury and obstruction trial of former top White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby. Libby is the only person to be charged in the three-year probe into who leaked the name of C.I.A. agent Valerie Plame.
It's a trial that may have little or nothing to do with the Iraq War, but still it may go to the heart of the war debate that is consuming America - involving allegations of forged documents, covert operations, the machinations of political operatives, and a spy's cover blown - events that eventually led to a U.S. invasion of Iraq.
Doomsday clock ticks
Nuke programs push world to 'perilous period'
Warning that the world has entered "the most perilous period since Hiroshima," the keepers of the famed nuclear Doomsday Clock plan to move it closer to midnight.
The symbolic clock now stands at 7 minutes to midnight, with midnight representing global catastrophe.
(more at link)
now I wonder if this was planned or not.........
Baghdad Suffered Total Power Outage During Bush Speech. Talk about a "Surge!"
American troops may not only be responsible actually carrying out the Bush "surge" plan. As reported in an AP story today, "Soldiers found themselves explaining the new U.S. strategy to Iraqis, many of whom said they hadn't seen Bush's speech on television because they had no electricity."
A match made in heaven! Lies, spin, deceit, distortions, will be their vows!
"WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice let slip her news media preferences Thursday, saying, "I love every single one" of Fox News network's correspondents and also favors CBS anchor Harry Smith.
In comments overheard on an open microphone between morning television interviews, including one with Fox, the top U.S. diplomat said: "My Fox guys, I love every single one of them."