From Cindy Sheehan's love slave, Angela Brown at the DNC's Associated Press:

 

Colorado soldier to surrender to Army

By ANGELA K. BROWN, Associated Press Writer

… On Thursday, a year and a half after going absent without leave before his second deployment to Iraq, Army Spc. Mark Wilkerson plans to return to Fort Hood to face his fellow soldiers and superiors.

"I just could not in good conscience go back to a war I felt was wrong," Wilkerson, 22, of Colorado Springs, Colo., said Thursday at Cindy Sheehan's protest camp site.

About 50 protesters joined Wilkerson at Sheehan's site near President Bush's ranch. Roughly a dozen in the group planned to travel with him about 40 miles south to the central Texas Army post near Killeen…

Simple desertion has been decreasing in the military in recent years — about 2,500 troops last year simply didn't show up for work, down from almost 5,000 in 2001, according to the Pentagon public affairs office.

Wilkerson was just 17 when he enlisted in the Army. He wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father and grandparents, who also served in the military. Then after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, he felt even more sure of his decision, he said.

Wilkerson went to Iraq at the start of the March 2003 invasion and returned to the U.S. a year later, having lost one friend in his unit. He began seeing more news of Iraqi civilians killed and reports on whether American companies were profiting from the war, he said.

Wilkerson said his views of the war changed and he realized he could no longer stay in the military, so he applied for conscientious objector status. But his request was denied a month before his unit was to return to Iraq…

When Wilkerson decided to stop his life on the run, he heard that Sheehan's new site near Bush's Crawford ranch was a "war resister refuge."…

After talking to protesters, Wilkerson finalized his plans recently and came to Crawford. He has met with group members camping there, including Iraq Veterans Against the War, which Wilkerson has since joined.

Wilkerson, now separated from his wife, said he knows some people disapprove of his decision…

Deserter Mark Wilkerson is "interviewed" by pretend war hero Geoffrey Millard.

Notice this minor detail:

Wilkerson was just 17 when he enlisted in the Army.

Which means Wilkerson enlisted at the time when everyone knew the US was planning to invade Iraq.

His change of heart seems to be based upon believing the seditious agit-prop from people like Cindy Sheehan and the despicable Veterans For Peace.

And of course as we have oft mentioned, Mother Sheehan is breaking the law by encouraging desertion within the military.

But as we have also regularly noted, laws don't apply if you hate America.

Also, note how the article claims there are fifty supporters down there. But all of the photos from Camp Casey are cropped so as to avoid showing any of the "crowd."

That’s our media at work.

(Thanks to NavyCopJoe for the heads up.)

If you think all this talk about the rising tide of Nazism in the world is a lot of bunk, you just need to look around.

It's happening everywhere. Even in the animal world.

From CatsThatLookLikeHitler.com:

Does your cat look like Adolf Hitler? Do you wake up in a cold sweat every night wondering if he's going to up and invade Poland? Does he keep putting his right paw in the air while making a noise that sounds suspiciously like "Sieg Miaow"?

Latest Kitlers

Neighborhood Cat (owned by Cara) Wed Aug 30 2006 at 18:29:23	Kate (owned by Kristine) (347) Wed Aug 30 2006 at 13:47:21
Granby (owned by Kathy) (346) Tue Aug 29 2006 at 21:43:11	Ella (owned by Mo) (345) Tue Aug 29 2006 at 16:44:51

Sometimes the resemblance is a little too much:

My current favorite:

This is what comes of appeasement.

From the UK’s Daily Mail:

Stereotyping is leading to terror, says first Muslim Miss England

31st August 2006

The first Muslim to be crowned Miss England has warned that stereotyping members of her community is leading some towards extremism.

Hammasa Kohistani made history last year when she was chosen to represent England in the Miss World pageant.

But one year on, the 19-year-old student from Hounslow feels that winning the coveted beauty title last September was a "sugar coating for Muslims who have become more alienated in the past 12 months.

She said: "The attitude towards Muslims has got worse over the year. Also the Muslims’ attitude to British people has got worse.

"Even moderate Muslims are turning to terrorism to prove themselves. They think they might as well support it because they are stereotyped anyway…

But at the same time, she said, "there is this hostility, which comes "mainly from the Government…

Miss Kohistani said: "Tony Blair addressed Muslims in particular, telling them that they need to sort out the problem within. That was a huge stereotype of the Islamic community. Even the more moderate Muslims have been stereotyped negatively and feel they have to take actions to prove themselves.

Born in Uzbekistan and raised in Afghanistan, Miss Kohistani divided Muslim opinion when she entered and won the Miss England pageant in Liverpool.

Several community leaders openly declared her to be betraying the laws of Islam while radical Muslims sent the teenager and her family death threats.

But after a busy year travelling around the world as an ambassador for England, Miss Kohistani said she feels Muslims are unfairly being branded as terrorists…

She continued: "The bridge I have made is slowly being broken by more and more wars. Now the Iran situation is brought up and another Islamic country is under scrutiny - and the recent Heathrow scare. I guess I am needed even more now than last year to an extent because of what has happened.

"It is not for me to answer how to get people to turn away from terrorism. The politicians don’t know what to do and I am just a 19-year-old."

I wonder what has caused people to start looking askance at Muslims?

But I am sort of missing the logic. Muslims are forced to do acts of terrorism to overcome the stereotyping that they are terrorists?

Right.

Also, note that Miss Kohistani and her family received death threats — from Muslims — when she entered the pageant.

But I guess that was also Bush’s Blair’s fault.

From the UK's Telegraph:

The front page of the liberal Turkish newspaper Radikal, which first reported the story.

Pinocchio and friends converted to Islam

Malcolm Moore in Antalya
(Filed: 31/08/2006)

Pinocchio, Tom Sawyer and other characters have been converted to Islam in new versions of 100 classic stories on the Turkish school curriculum.

"Give me some bread, for Allah's sake," Pinocchio says to Geppetto, his maker, in a book stamped with the crest of the ministry of education.

"Thanks be to Allah," the puppet says later.

In The Three Musketeers, D'Artagnan is told that he cannot visit Aramis. The reason would surprise the author, Alexandre Dumas.

An old woman explains: "He is surrounded by men of religion. He converted to Islam after his illness."

Tom Sawyer may always have shirked his homework, but he is more conscientious in learning his Islamic prayers. He is given a "special treat" for learning the Arabic words.

Pollyanna, seen by some as the embodiment of Christian forgiveness, says that she believes in the end of the world as predicted in the Koran.

Heidi, the Swiss orphan girl in the tale by Johanna Spyri, is told that praying to Allah will help her to relax.

Several more books have been altered, including La Fontaine's fables and Victor Hugo's Les Miserables.

The clumsy insertions by Islamic publishing houses have caused controversy in Turkey, which has been a strongly secular state since the 1920s.

Other books contain insults, slang and rude rhymes which mock the president and the prime minister.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is Turkey's first Islamic premier, has called for swift action to be taken against the publishers.

The education ministry has threatened to take legal action against any publisher which continues to issue such books.

Huseyin Celik, the education minister, said: "If there are slang and swear words, we will sue them for using the ministry logo."

Is nothing sacred?

From the latest issue of the American Spectator:

From the FBI surveillance tape, Murtha: "I’m not interested. I’m sorry… at this point."

The Full Murtha

Washington is a forgiving town, at least to Democrats. Generally, scandal-tainted Republicans are given little quarter. John McCain is the most outstanding exception, and campaign finance reform is his ongoing penance. In the absence of such surrender to the Democratic agenda or a retreat from Washington altogether, the disgraced politician does the smart thing: lies low. Congressman John P. "Jack" Murtha (D-PA) did precisely that for almost 25 years after his entanglement in "Abscam," an FBI investigation in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Then last November, Murtha re-emerged as the Democrats' main spokesman on the war in Iraq, loudly advocating the withdrawal of American forces. No flash in the pan, Murtha appears intent on remaining a media darling. In June, hoping that Democrats take over the House, he mounted a brief campaign for U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer's position as the number-two Democrat in the chamber.

Despite months of Murtha's noise, the media have offered little more than an abridged account of his 16-term tenure in the House of Representatives. When he made his splash last year, newspaper reports suggested that Murtha was a well-known hawk, a conservative even, who reluctantly, heroically, turned against the war. Yet to most political junkies, he was unknown. A flattering profile in the Washington Post last fall devoted all of one sentence to Murtha's "ethical scrape" in Abscam. Some outlets have reported the basic facts of Murtha's run-in with the law, but have pretty much ignored the rest of his career.

So who is Jack Murtha? One of the greatest behind-the-scenes operators in the House, he is an old-school congressman whose recent outspokenness is out of character-and perhaps a sign of desperation.

Before Abscam, Jack Murtha was a rising politician. A native of southwest Pennsylvania, Murtha twice enlisted in the Marine Corps and served one tour in Vietnam, where he was highly decorated. From the Pennsylvania statehouse, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in a special election in 1974. He was quickly noticed by House leadership and apparently headed for its ranks, earning a slot on the Appropriations Committee and a role as a floor whip.

But his power-broker style made him a ripe target for the Abscam investigation. A sting operation hatched by the FBI in the late 1970s, Abscam had undercover agents offering bribes to senators, congressmen, and local politicians in return for official services on behalf of fictional Arab sheiks. After Abscam became public in 1980, six congressmen and one senator were convicted of bribery and conspiracy. Murtha wasn't among them, but he was named an unindicted co-conspirator in the case. Although Murtha did not accept a bribe, he failed to turn the undercover agents away.

The media's avoidance of Abscam isn't for lack of colorful details. According to reports, an FBI videotape of the meeting shows Murtha, quite confident in his large influence with Congress and the Carter White House, interested in dealing with the undercover agents. A 13-second clip of the meeting was discovered by conservative media earlier this year and disseminated on the Internet.

TAS has filed a Freedom of Information Act request for the full tape, which the FBI was still processing at the time of publication. But an August 6, 1980, Washington Post column by the sometimes controversial, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative columnist Jack Anderson, overlooked in recent reporting on Murtha, fills in some of the gaps. Anderson framed Murtha's performance as "perhaps the saddest scene on the secret Abscam videotapes…. He refused to take the money, but his reason was hardly noble."

The column continues, quoting Murtha speaking to the undercover agents:

"I want to deal with you guys awhile before I make any transactions at all, period…. After we've done some business, well, then I might change my mind…."

… "I'm going to tell you this. If anybody can do it - I'm not B.S.-ing you fellows - I can get it done my way." he boasted. "There's no question about it."…

But the reluctant Murtha wouldn't touch the $50,000. Here on secret videotape was this all-American hero, tall and dignified in a disheveled way, explaining why he wasn't quite ready to accept the cash.

"All at once," he said, "some dumb [expletive deleted] would go start talking eight years from now about this whole thing and say [expletive deleted], this happened. Then in order to get immunity so he doesn't go to jail, he starts talking and fingering people. So the [S.O.B.] falls apart."…

"You give us the banks where you want the money deposited," offered one of the bagmen.

"All right," agreed Murtha. "How much money we talking about?"

"Well, you tell me."

"Well, let me find out what is a reasonable figure that will get their attention," said Murtha, "because there are a couple of banks that have really done me some favors in the past, and I'd like to put some money in….["]

In the following exchange with an undercover agent, part of which appears on the 13 seconds of available videotape, Murtha leaves the door open for later negotiations:

Amoroso: Let me ask you now that we're together. I was under the impression, OK, and I told Howard [middleman Howard Criden] what we were willing to pay, and I went out, I got the $50,000. OK? So what you're telling me, OK, you're telling me that that's not what you know….

Murtha: I'm not interested.

Amoroso: OK.

Murtha: At this point, you know, we do business together for a while. Maybe I'll be interested and maybe I won't…. Right now, I'm not interested in those other things. Now, I won't say that some day, you know, I, if you made an offer, it may be I would change my mind some day.

It is damning stuff. But the mainstream media have yet to question Murtha aggressively about even the short snippet of available tape, much less the full reel.

More »

From the heroic site, MEMRI:

'Pleasure Marriages' in Sunni and Shi'ite Islam

By: Aluma Dankowitz August 31, 2006 No.291

Introduction

For over a decade, the phenomenon of marriage without commitment, called misyar marriage, has been spreading throughout the Sunni Muslim world, particularly in Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf countries. In such marriages, the woman relinquishes some of the rights that Islam grants her, such as the right to a home and to financial support from her husband, and, if he has other wives, the right to an equal part of his time and attention. In most cases, these marriages are secret, without the knowledge of the man's other wives – even though a marriage contract is drawn up in the presence of witnesses, and although consent is commonly obtained from the woman's guardian, and the marriage is registered and documented at the courthouse. Demand is high for misyar marriages on online matchmaking sites, as well as through services using text messages and email.

Due to the substantial increase in the number of misyar marriages in recent years, and in light of the arguments over this issue among clerics as well as among the public, the Institute of Islamic Religious Law, which is a part of the Muslim World League in Mecca, decided to address the matter.

In a fatwa issued on April 10, 2006, the institute permitted marriages in which "the woman relinquishes a home, financial support, and her part [in joint life] with her husband, or part of it, and consents to the man's coming to her home whenever he wants, day or night."

The fatwa also permitted marriages known as "friend" marriages, in which "the girl remains at her family's home and she and the man meet any time they want, either at her home or anywhere else, as they have no [joint] home and livelihood." Such marriages are aimed primarily at meeting the needs of young Muslims in the West, who are influenced by male-female relations around them but who want their relationships to have religious legitimacy.

Advocates of misyar marriage argue that such marriages meet the needs primarily of women who have little chance of finding a husband for ordinary marriage. These include widows, divorcees, and especially single women who are beyond marriageable age [awanis]. Those opposed to misyar marriage – including the vast majority of women – claim that it exploits the difficult social situation of unmarried women in Arab society, and is designed primarily to sate men's lust, with no concern whatsoever for women's needs and the needs of children born of these marriages.

These non-binding marriages are to a great extent similar to the "pleasure marriages" (in Arabic, mut'a; in Persian, sigheh) that have been accepted in Shi'ite Islam since its beginnings. Unlike misyar marriage, mut'a marriage in Shi'ite Islam is contracted for a particular period of time, and divorce is not necessary to end it. For the most part, misyar marriages also do not last, and ending them by divorce is no problem. Over the years, mut'a marriage has been a major bone of contention between Shi'ite Islam and Sunni Islam – the latter seeing it as licentiousness in religious guise. The Sunni clerics reject the comparison between mut'a and misyar marriage, stressing misyar's formal aspects which meet religious requirements; however, at the same time, they disregard its essence as well as the fact that such a marriage is no basis for a family.

Based on their generally critical approach to mut'a marriage and to marriages contracted for a limited duration, the April 2006 fatwa by the Institute of Islamic Religious Law banned marriages in which the man declares that the marriage will be null and void if the woman becomes pregnant. The institute clarified that "such marriages are flawed, as they contain an element of pleasure [mut'a], and since setting a particular time period such as one month, or one that is not known [in advance] like the date of the birth of children, makes the marriage mut'a, and it is unanimously agreed that mut'a marriage is forbidden."

Another kind of marriage banned by the institute in its fatwa is "marriage with intent to divorce" – that is, marriage in which "the husband conceals in his heart [an intent] to divorce the wife after a certain period, such as 10 days, or after a period unknown [ahead of time] such as the date of the end of his studies or the date on which he will fulfill the purpose for which he came [to the place where he met the woman]." Although some clerics permit this kind of marriage, the fatwa clarified that "the Institute of Islamic Religious Law has prohibited it, because it includes ‘deception and fraud’, since had the woman or her guardian known this ahead of time, they would not have agreed to this marriage contract."

More »

From Waco’s KWTX:

File photo

Sheehan Arrested For Unpaid Traffic Ticket

(August 30, 2006)—Anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan’s stay this month in Central Texas has not been a pleasant one.

First she was admitted to a local hospital for treatment of exhaustion and dehydration and to undergo gynecological tests. Last week she underwent a hysterectomy.

Then Tuesday night police from the Waco suburb of Woodway arrested her near Crawford on traffic warrants.

She was cited for following too closely and failure to appear.

Sheehan was released after she paid a $400 fine….

Hey, aren’t celebrities — especially America-hating celebrities — supposed to be above the law?

And speaking of "failure to appear," didn’t Mother Sheehan claim to be so sick she couldn’t attend the big pro-terrorism rally in Salt Lake City?

What was she doing gallivanting around?

It looks like she’ll do just about anything to stay in the news.

From the DNC's Associated Press:

The left photo is the original photograph. The right photo is an edited version from the September issue of Watch magazine, which is owned by CBS.

CBS magazine slims down Couric in photo

NEW YORK - No, Katie Couric didn't suddenly lose 20 pounds. The incoming "CBS Evening News" anchor appears significantly thinner in a network promotional magazine photo thanks to digital airbrushing.

The touched-up photo of Couric dressed in a striped business suit appears on the inside of the September issue of Watch! which is distributed at CBS stations and on American Airlines flights…

The original picture was snapped in May and was widely circulated to the media as an official photo of Couric.

Couric, 49, said she hadn't known about the digitally reworked version until she saw the issue. The former NBC "Today" show host told the Daily News, "I liked the first picture better because there's more of me to love." …

Couric debuts in the anchor's chair Sept. 5. CBS has spent millions on marketing to prepare viewers for her arrival.

The spirit of Dan Ra ^th er lives on at CBS.

Of course one could argue that the network is just giving what the public wants.

Less of Katie Couric.

This message was so important the DNC bypassed their usual mouthpieces in the media and just issued a press release:

DNC: America Needs Real Leadership From Rumsfeld, Not Political Attacks

NEWS RELEASE

News from the Democratic National Committee:

Washington, DC - With President Bush’s foreign policy blunders becoming clearer with each day, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld again engaged in partisan political attacks today at the American Legion national convention in Salt Lake City, despite a promise by the Commander-in-Chief that the White House would not question the patriotism of their opponents.

"There is a lesson of history that clearly the Bush Administration and his political henchmen haven’t learned: tell the truth and face the facts," said Democratic National Committee Communications Director Karen Finney. "The truth is that under Republican watch, five years after 9/11, our nation is neither safer nor better prepared because of the blunders of the Bush Administration. Let’s look at the facts: Iraq is sliding into civil war, Iran and North Korea are growing nuclear threats, the Taliban is resurging in Afghanistan, Osama Bin Laden is still on the loose, and it appears that Al Qaeda has moved to a new location in northwest Pakistan. And, gaps still remain in our security right here at home.

"Given that a majority of Americans trust Democrats over Republicans to handle the war on terror and the war in Iraq, it’s not surprising that the President’s political henchmen are campaigning on fear, falsely attacking Democrats to distort and distract from the facts. And, the fact is that President Bush and his Administration have only their own incompetence to blame for these blunders.

"Democrats have been fighting for a defense policy that is both tough and smart. That means tracking down terrorists, providing our troops and agencies with the tools they need to stop future attacks, implementing the 9/11 Commission recommendations to close the gaps in our security, and properly equipping our National Guard."

President Bush Last Week: "I will never question the patriotism of somebody who disagrees with me." [Press Conference, 8/21/06]

It seems like only yesterday Ms. Hillary Rodham (D, Iran) called a special public Senate hearing just so to give Mr. Rumsfeld an uninformed (and fallacious) partisan tongue lashing.

Ms. Rodham then announced that Secretary Rumsfeld should resign:

"The secretary has lost credibility with the Congress and with the people," she said. "It's time for him to step down and be replaced by someone who can develop an effective strategy and communicate it effectively to the American people and to the world."

The Democrats' hypocrisy is simply breathtaking.

From the Bay area Mercury News:

A wedding photo believed to be about two weeks old shows Omeed Aziz Popal with his new bride Nahid in Afghanistan.

Relatives: Rampage suspect may have been stressed over wedding

By James Hohmann and Katherine Corcoran

Relatives of a Fremont man connected to Tuesday's deadly driving rampage said he may have been distraught after returning recently from Afghanistan without his newlywed wife who is waiting for a visa.

Omeed Aziz Popal, 29, who sources said was being held by the San Francisco police, was normally a kind and gentle person, said Hamid Nekrawesh, 43, a first cousin in Fremont.

But a recent trip to Afghanistan to participate in an arranged marriage could have caused him a lot of stress, Nekrawesh said.

"He was a very respectful, quiet, nice guy,'' Nekrawesh said. "I've never seen him do anything violent.''

Zarghona Ramish of San Jose, who also identified herself as Popal's cousin, said he had been having strange dreams since returning a month ago from Afghanistan…

He was born in Afghanistan, but came to the United States at a young age. Three months ago, he returned to his home country to marry, relatives said, and his wife's family was very traditional and strict.

"He grew up as a Western boy in the United States and went to Afghanistan to get married culturally over there,'' Nekrawesh said…

An earlier video report from San Francisco's KTVU does not describe the perpetrator in any way. It offers no physical description of the driver or even any mention of his name.

All that is allowed to be said about him is to have some witnesses remark upon his placid demeanor.

However the KTVU piece does deign to mention that the apparently indescribable driver ended up near a Jewish community center. And that "one witness said he referred to himself as a terrorist."

Of course the reporter quickly goes on to assure us, "but police say this case might have been many things, but it wasn't an act of terrorism."

But why is this so certain?

Note that the Mercury News article mentioned Popal's cousin, Hamid Nekrawesh.

Mr. Nekrawesh appears to be a devout follower of Islam, or at least greatly interested in it. He is also interested in the progress of the reconstruction of Afghanistan.

Nekrawesh is also a contributor (of $50) to the anti-war Bush-hating crackpot Lyndon Larouche.

Another cousin of Popal’s mentioned, Zarghona Ramish, has been issued an order from the state of California ( view pdf file ) to desist and refrain from selling fraudulent securities as part of her "charity" work:

7. During 2001, 2002, and 2003, Ramish, Ghias, Farzana, Tamiz, Abawi, and Aziz were active participants in an organization operating under the name of Women Helping Women (WHW), Women Empowering Women (WEW), Women Helping Women Dinner Party (DP), or The Women’s Garden Party or Garden Circle (WGP).

8. WHW, WEW, DP, and WGP operated as a pyramid scheme.

9. Women in these groups operated by inviting women to a "potluck" gathering at individual’s homes and/or community centers or conference rooms. The gathering was described as a "support group." During the gatherings, women would be recruited to contribute money to the group.

Ms. Ramish is the head of Women Helping Women (whw.org) in Alameda County.

Women Helping Women raised money for women suffering in Pakistan after the 2005 earthquake. And we now know the plotters who wanted to blow up all those planes from the UK to the US last week were also raising for Pakistan quake relief, and funded their plans with some of it.

But perhaps I am needlessly suspicious.

Still, it was just six months ago we were talking about another mixed up and murderous SUV driver of Middle Eastern heritage.

Nobody wanted to call the clean-cut UNC student Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar a terrorist, either.

Of course Mr. Popal might just be crazy.

But so are a lot of terrorists.

From the Australian:

Red Cross slams Downer hoax claim

Mark Dodd and Martin Chulov
August 30, 2006

The International Committee of the Red Cross has rebuked Foreign Minister Alexander Downer for relying on an unverified internet blog to claim an Israeli missile strike on one of its ambulances in southern Lebanon was a hoax.

A spokeswoman for the ICRC in Geneva said yesterday there was no evidence to support Mr Downer’s assertion that the international media had been duped in reporting that Israel had deliberately targeted the ambulance.

An image of the roof of the ambulance showed what was purportedly an entry hole allegedly made by an Israeli rocket which had pierced the centre of the red cross symbol.

The July 23 incident, in which two ambulances were fired on, injuring six people - including one man who lost his leg in the attack - provoked worldwide condemnation of Israel’s apparent direct targeting of an ambulance in breach of the Geneva convention.

Israel apologised for the incident but made no admissions.

The blog site, Zombietime.com, claimed photographs of the interior of the ambulance showed there was not enough damage to have been hit by a missile through the roof, as claimed.

On Monday, in a speech to the National Newspaper Publishers Conference on the Gold Coast, Mr Downer criticised the Australian and international media for sloppy reporting and failing to check facts in their coverage of the Lebanon conflict.

He accused the media of being hoodwinked by Lebanese claims that "Israel had bombed deliberately a (Lebanese) Red Cross ambulance". And he accused "some of the world’s most prestigious media outlets", including Time magazine, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times and The Australian of falling for a hoax.

"After closer study of the images of the damage to the ambulance, it is beyond serious dispute that this episode has all the makings of a hoax," he said.

In an internal report, a copy of which was obtained by The Australian, the ICRC claims that on July 23 near the village of Qana, two Red Cross ambulances were "struck by munitions".

Last night, the group manager of the first-aid team for the Lebanese Red Cross, George Kettneh, insisted that two LRC ambulances had been attacked on the night of July 23, near Qana in southern Lebanon.

"I was on duty that night and every ambulance that moved in Lebanon I had to know about," he said.

"I received phone calls from the ambulance drivers and it took us one hour to negotiate a ceasefire through the International Committee of the Red Cross."

Ambulance driver Qassem Shalim was closing the doors of the ambulance when the vehicle was hit. "I am sure the missile was fired from a drone. The blue light was flashing on our roof, the red cross was clear and there was a light on the Lebanese Red Cross flag above me. Everything I said happened did happen," he told The Australian in Beirut.

But yesterday, Mr Downer’s spokesman, Tony Parkinson, said the minister was standing by his comments. "Those (website) pictures do not show an ambulance that has been struck by a missile nor do they sustain the argument the ambulance was struck by a missile."

Federal Opposition foreign affairs spokesman, Kevin Rudd, said Mr Downer needed to come clean on his sources.

Sorry, but I believe Zombietime (PBUH). And my apparently lying eyes.

The big round hole is clearly where the red (or blue?) "gumball" light goes, and not where a "missile" entered the van. A larger version of the top photo, which is from the IRC, can be viewed here.

That said, I still suspect the ambulance washit was some flying shrapnel — which did cause some damage and injuries. (As I have said before.) A piece of shrapnel undoubtedly took out the light as well.

The lieis the claim that the IDF deliberately targeted the ambulance and hit it with a missile large enough to make that sizable round hole.

Of course, if they had, there would be no ambulance left.

I especially liked this quote:

Federal Opposition foreign affairs spokesman, Kevin Rudd, said Mr Downer needed to come clean on his sources.

Er, maybe the photographs and some common sense were Mr. Downer's sources.

From a US Department Of Justice press release:

Justice Department: Fifteen Individuals Indicted for FEMA Fraud in Alabama

8/29/2006 2:56:00 PM

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Aug. 29 /U.S. Newswire/ — Fifteen individuals have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Alabama on allegations of fraud and theft resulting from claims filed with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), U.S. Attorney Alice H. Martin, Special Agent in Charge J. Christopher Murphy and Assistant Special Agent in Charge Roy Sexton, both of the U.S. Secret Service, announced today. The indictments filed allege fraud and theft of federal disaster relief funds from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita which devastated parts of the south in 2005.

"The defendants are charged today with consciously setting out to steal money meant for Hurricane victims," U.S. Attorney Martin stated during a press conference today. "They will now face the consequences of the federal justice system."

Special Agents from the U.S. Secret Service led the investigations that resulted in indictments filed against the following individuals:

– Wyshondra Latricia Coleman, 22; Angenica Michelle Jackson, 24; Emily Jackson Bibbs, 41; Shannon Yvonne Bibbs, 23; Jaquetta Shuna Jackson, 23; and Tequica Piketa Jackson, 24, all of Bessemer, Ala., have been charged with false claims against the government and theft of government money or property. The defendants filed with FEMA, claiming to be residents of Texas during the landfall of Hurricane Rita. They reported property damage on their claims for emergency relief funds. A $2,000 U.S. Treasury check was issued to each individual based on the fraudulent information provided. The defendants allegedly cashed the checks knowing the information they provided was false.

– Larry Williams, 36; Pearlie Mae Jefferson, 48; and Talonya Laquese Jackson, 27, all of Bessemer, Ala., have been charged with making false claims against the government and theft of government property or money. As alleged in the indictment, the defendants submitted requests for FEMA funds and each received a $2,000 U.S. Treasury check. The defendants allegedly cashed the checks knowing the information provided was false and untrue.

– Derrick D. Pettus, 27, of Birmingham, Ala., has been charged with making false claims against the government and theft of government money or property. Pettus filed a claim with FEMA and claimed to be a resident of New Orleans during the land fall of Hurricane Katrina. As a result of the FEMA claim, a U.S. Treasury Check in the amount of $2,000 was mailed to Pettus at his address in Birmingham, Ala.. Pettus cashed the Treasury check knowing the information he provided was false.

– Lakeysha L. Wyatt, 29, of Birmingham, Ala., has been charged with making false claims against the government and theft of government money or property. Wyatt made a claim for immediate assistance claiming to be a resident of Galveston, Texas, during the landfall of Hurricane Rita. As a result FEMA issued a U.S. Treasury check in the amount of $2,000, and mailed the check to Wyatt at her address in Ensley, Ala.. Wyatt then cashed the check knowing the information submitted was false and untrue.

– Steve Small, 30, of Birmingham, Ala., has been charged with making false claims against the government and theft of government property. A claim was filed with FEMA for immediate assistance on behalf of Small. In the request for emergency relief funds, Small claimed to be a resident of New Orleans during the landfall of Hurricane Katrina. FEMA mailed an emergency relief check to Small at his Birmingham address. Small then cashed the check knowing the information submitted was false and untrue.

– Nanette Williams, 39; Terkesha Linette Smith, 31; and Ashley Shatara Johnson, 20, each of Birmingham, Ala., have been charged with making false claims against the government and theft of government money or property. It is alleged that the defendants submitted a request for FEMA funds and received a $2,000 U.S. Treasury check. Williams, Smith, and Johnson each allegedly cashed the check knowing the information provided was false and untrue.

"These indictments are just the tip of the spear regarding the investigations of fraud and theft of disaster relief funds provided by FEMA," states Special Agent in Charge J. Christopher Murphy of the U.S. Secret Service. "We follow a zero tolerance policy regarding theft of taxpayer dollars, therefore we intend to fully investigate and present the evidence of fraud and theft for prosecution of the person or persons who perpetrated it."

The maximum penalty for making false claims against the government is five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 or both. The maximum penalty for theft of government property or money is ten years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 or both.

In September 2005, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales created the Hurricane Katrina Fraud Task Force to deter, investigate and prosecute disaster-related federal crime, such as charity fraud and insurance fraud. This task force, chaired by Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher of the Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice, includes members from the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Federal Trade Commission, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Alabama as well as law enforcement in the Northern District are members of the Task Force.

These cases were investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Secret Service. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John H. England, III, and E. Vincent Carroll are prosecuting these matters on behalf of the U.S. Government.

This is good news of course.

But we’re still waiting to hear what progress the DOJ is making in landing the big fish — like the Veterans For Peace.

From the NEA's Associated Press:

Drop in SAT scores biggest in 31 years

By JUSTIN POPE, AP Education Writer Tue Aug 29, 2006

The high school class of 2006 recorded the sharpest drop in SAT scores in 31 years, a decline that the exam's owner, the College Board, said was partly due to some students taking the newly lengthened test only once instead of twice.

Fatigue wasn't to blame, the College Board insisted, even though this year's class was the first to take a new version of the exam which added an essay. It now takes an average of three hours and 45 minutes to complete the test, not counting breaks, up from three hours previously…

The average critical reading score fell from 508 to 503, while math dropped from 520 to 518. On the new SAT writing section, the class scored 497 on average, with girls scoring 11 points higher than boys…

In addition to the new writing section, the exam taken by the class of 2006 had other new features, including higher-level math and the elimination of analogies.

The College Board noted the drop in math scores amounts to one-fifth of one test question, and the reading to one-half of one question. But over about 1.5 million test-takers such drops are significant, and this was the biggest year-to-year decline since the class of 1975.

The results come two weeks after it was announced the class of 2006 had posted the biggest score increase in 20 years on the rival ACT exam. The ACT, which is also accepted by almost all colleges that require standardized tests, is generally more focused on material covered in high school classes than the SAT, which is more of a measure of general ability. But more students in traditional SAT states like Connecticut and New Jersey appear to be taking both exams to try to improve their applications to selective colleges…

And aforementioned report via the Associated Press:

ACT scores highest since 1991

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

(AP) — The high school class of 2006 posted the biggest score increase on the ACT college entrance exam in 20 years, and recorded the highest scores of any class since 1991.

Average composite scores on the exam, which measures students' readiness for college-level work, rose to 21.1 from 20.9 last year. Both boys and girls posted gains, as did all racial groups except Hispanics, whose scores held steady. ACT scores range from 1 to 36.

Officials at the independent, nonprofit ACT said an increase of 0.2 points is significant when considered across a record 1.2 million test-takers nationwide, or 40 percent of graduating seniors.

"It takes an enormous amount of change for that large a group to move even a little bit, particularly when that group is changing and we're seeing more students take the ACT for the first time," said Richard Ferguson, CEO of the Iowa City, Iowa-based organization.

Some of the improvement may come from the ACT's growing popularity among high-achieving students in states where the rival SAT exam has traditionally been more popular. The ACT is more attractive to some students because it focuses more on material covered in high school classes than on general ability…

Of course one can expect some disparity between the two college board exams.

But what are the odds that they would both set records, but in the opposite direction?

Reuters does it again. A classic propaganda Kodak moment courtesy of Reverend Jesse Jackson (and son):

US civil rights leader Jesse Jackson (R) inspects buildings in Beirut's southern suburbs that were damaged by the recent conflict between Israel and Lebanon's Hizbollah, August 29, 2006. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir.

And to think some say Reuters "stages" their photos.

It turns out that the "Made In USA" sign was put up by the Hezbollah in advance. This has become a popular propaganda tool for them:

Even the red banner has gotten around:

But certainly Jesse Jackson is media savvy enough to notice to have noticed the sign and realize how it and he were being used for the photos.

Jackson was at least complicit, if not eagerly willing to help advance Hezbollah's and Reuters' anti-American propaganda.

And when will the Reverend inspect the damage inflicted by Hezbollah upon Hymietown
Israel?

This is from the rabidly pro Hezbollah site in Iran, Moqavemat.ir:

 

A house and school hit by Hizbollah rockets in the northern Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona.

Twelve Thousand Buildings in Israel Hit by Hezbollah

Some 2,000 buildings destroyed during war in north; compensation to cost government tens of thousands of shekels

Some 12,000 buildings, including 4,000 public structures, were damaged by rocket attacks waged by Hizbullah from Lebanon during 35 days of confrontation with the Israel Defense Forces, a report by the Ministry for the Environment showed.

The Ministry for the Environment is drafting plans to get rid of tons of rubble from destroyed buildings, as the Prime Minister`s Office estimates that 2,000 buildings and apartments were destroyed during the war.

Grinding and disposing of the rubble in an environmental friendly manner will cost the government between NIS 80-115 (about USD 18-26) per ton of rubble.

The report estimated that 85 percent of the rubble could be buried underground at the cost of NIS 4.25 million (USD 974,770) and 15 percent could be grinded at the cost of NIS 900,000 (USD 200,000).

The report said 400 bush fires were started by Katuysha rockets during the war, burning up to 12,000 dunams of bush and forestry.

In Kiryat Shmona alone over 7,000 dunams were burnt.

The cost of extinguishing bush fires and preventing from covering larger areas stood at NIS 20 million (USD 4.6 million), the ministry said.

The report warned that 25 buildings made from asbestos were hit in the war, releasing the dangerous substance and creating a great public health hazard.

The buildings are owned by industrial and agricultural firms, it was reported.

In some cases asbestos concentration reached 2,300 fibers per square meter.

Eliminating the danger posed by asbestos to public health requires special removal procedures, the cost of which could reach tens of thousands of shekels.

In addition to damage to life and property, animal rights groups and local authorities say that some 700 dogs were found abandoned during the war.

Of course Hezbollah is crowing over this Israeli report. But isn’t it odd that we only hear about the destruction that Israel has endured from the braggadocio of its enemies?

Our one party media doesn’t seem to think it is newsworthy.