Iran frees British sailors

Ahmadinejad awards a medal to Abolqasem Amangah, who captured the hostages.


Iran today freed its 15 British hostages as ` a gift to the UK' in the words of President Ahmadinejad.

Ahmadinejad, who said his decision to release the captured sailors was a gift to mark the birthday of Islam's Prophet Mohammed and Easter, told the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency IRNA that the Britons will leave Tehran at 8 am Thursday.

"I declare that the people of Iran and the government of Iran -- in full power to place on trial the military people -- to give amnesty and pardon to these 15 people and I announce their freedom and their return to the people of Britain," Ahmadinejad said.

"We were absolutely within our rights, in that our borders were violated, and accordingly had the right to proceed with a trial against the soldiers..but we have decided on humanitarian grounds to be merciful and to free them."

The final scenes in the presidential office, where the 15 naval personnel dutifully thanked Ahmadinejad and the Iranian people for the treatment they had received, was the climax of this particular psychodrama.

So,the question remains: since the mullahs are not exactly noted for `gifts' to their western enemies, what did they receive in exchange for releasing the hostages?

Given that the Brits engaged with Iran's chief negotiator, Ali Larijani, the price was likely a stiff one.

One of my sources tells me that part of the price was Britain's promise to lobby the US for the release of those captured `diplomats' from Iran's Quds Force who were acting as arms importers, trainers and agent provocateurs. And in fact one of them, Jalal Sharafi, was indeed set free by the US Tuesday, and I would not be surprised to see the rest released in the near future.

Britain reportedly even offered to obtain information on the whereabouts of the missing Iranian general Ali Reza Asgari, who defected to the West in February.

I would also not be surprised if Britain did indeed pledge to Iran to `never knowingly enter Iran's waters without permission now or in the future' and refrain from any future retaliation against Iran as I predicted.

This pledge would effectively remove Britain from its commitment in securing the sea lanes to South Iraq and perhaps the entire Gulf. The US Navy will have to pick up the slack.

Iran can celebrate a victory over the West;they have shown that the West is disunited will not respond to an act of aggression, taken the price of crude to a six-month high, boosted Iran's prestige and given weight to Iran's proposition to the rest of the Arab world to consider the mutual security and defense agreements with Iran that were proposed at the Riyadh summit.

And rather than removing tensions, this has only exacerbated Iran's aggression.

The next incident will be much worse and more far reaching...which is how appeasement works.

Watcher's Council Nominations, 04/04/07

Every week, the Watcher's Council members nominate two posts each, one from the Council members and one from outside for consideration by the whole Council. The complete list of this week's Council nominations can be found at the site of our fearless leader, Watcher of Weasels




OK, here's this week's Council lineup:

1. J O S H U A P U N D I T: First Israel, now Britain - the chickens come home to roost This week, I take note of an interesting connection between Israel's hostages and the British ones ones seized in the Persian Gulf...as part of a well defined pattern.

2. Done With Mirrors: Not the End of the World This week, Callimachus has a strong piece that examines the mindset of the Bush Administration, its strengths and weaknesses...and lets us know that our Republic will go on.

3. Soccer Dad: Anti-terror success From Soccer Dad, a nice explanation of an obvious fact; that Islamic terrorism takes means and opportunity, rather than just motive. The Aryan Brotherhood here in America might have the motivation, but lack the means and opportunity to carry out the sort of terrorist acts they might have the motivation to commit.

You can extend that same principle internationally. Without the funding, havens and opportunity the jihadis get in places like Iran, the Palestinian Authority, Saudi Arabia and Syria, their ability to murder innocent people would be severely lessened....food for thought to some of you, perhaps on what victory in the War on Jihad will eventually look like.

4. Right Wing Nut House: BRITS READY TO STICK IT TO THE IRAQIS TO GET THEIR HOSTAGES BACKHere, like me, Rick examines the implications of the collapse of Britain in the face of an act of war by Iran. As I write this, Iran has already decided to release the hostages as `a present to the UK, even though they were guilty of trespassing in Iran's waters' in the words of Ahmadinejad.

I'm sure the price demanded of Britain for this `present' will be a stiff one, and more expensive than the Brits themselves even realize.

5. The Glittering Eye : Securing the Food Supply Dog lover that he is, this week, The Glittering Eye's Dave Schuler writes on
the pet food recall, an issue he has covered in some detail.


6. Rhymes With Right: A Miracle For PJP2 Here, Greg comments on the process of sanctifying Pope John Paul II and the steps being taken within the Roman Catholic Church to bring this about.

7. The Colossus of Rhodey: "Question any excuses ..." Here, Hube and Felix examine the notoriously PC Seattle public school and its take on `white racism' as the reason for low test scores and poor performance by minority students.

The real reason, of course, is the teachers' unions coddling of incompetent teachers and it's tooth and nail battle against any kind of school choice or vouchers programfor working class parents who can't afford to opt out t0 public schools.

8. Leftist media bias, Israeli style : Bookworm Room There is something about the leftist media that simply cannot abide the idea of military success or heroism. This week, Mrs. Bookworm has a great piece that examines the disgusting attempt by the Leftist media in Israel to blacken the name of Yoni Netanyahu, leader of the famous Israeli rescue of Jewish hostages in Entebbe, one of Israel's most famous military heroes.

Mrs. Bookworm retells the story of Entebbe and details how the attempt to destroy Yoni's reputation was repudiated.

Yoni, of course, is the deceased older brother of Bibi Netanyahu, leader of Israel's Likud party and a prospective prime minister in the next election - which, of course, is why this surfaced now, thirty years later.

9. Eternity Road: The Scourging This week, Francis examines the phenomenon of liberal self-hatred ( hence the title) here in America, and discusses the roots and reasons for it.

10. The Education Wonks: Newt Criticizes Bilingual Ed. And Gets Nuked! EdWonk discusses the firestorm caused by ex-congressman Newt Gingrich when he criticized the notion of bi-lingual education and other symptoms such as printing ballots in Spanish. I have my own differences with Mr. Gingrich, but he is right on the money in this case.

I still recall a demonstration in Los Angeles' almost entirely Hispanic Edgeware district by working class Latino parents upset because the LAUSD insisted on teaching their kids in Spanish rather than in English..as their spokesperson put it `the language of access.' Needless to say, it was only sparsely covered by the dinosaur media.

11. Big Lizards: “How to Win/Lose In Iraq” Dafydd Ab Hugh has an interesting post this week that uses a piece by Arthur Herman as a jumping off point.

In it, he examines what it will take to win (and lose) in Iraq, using Lt.Col. David Galula of the French army's successful strategy in Algeria against the FLN as an example. Dafydd also, quite correctly points out the a major cause for defeat was the defeatism of the French Left, just as the American Left took a military victory in Vietnam and likewise turned it into a defeat.

I agree with him, to an extent....we have the ability to stabilize Iraq, and the biggest single obstacle to that we face is the defeatist Left here in America. Unfortunately, that's not a victory, as defined by no less than our commander-in-chief, President Bush. He defined it as `a democratic Iraq that obeys the rule of law, is stable and an ally in the war against terror.'

I would simply say that the odds on Iraq becoming an ally of the US against say, Iran or its fellow Muslims are quite slim, as are the odds of an Islamic Republic ( which is what Iraq is) with its Constitution based on sharia being a free, democratic country. And President Bush himself obviously recognizes that to an extent, which is why he has vastly increased the amount of US visas available to Sunni Iraqi immigrants who are leaving the country in droves.

Perhaps we either need a new focus in this war or a new definition of what constitutes victory in this war that expands it beyond Iraq.

12. Cheat Seeking Missiles: Barbie Vs. The Mullahs Ahhh, I liked this one! Laer writes about a dangerous threat to Iran...the invasion of Barbie! Apparently the mullahs see this doll as a threat to their entire society and are now confiscating them en masse.



That's this week's lineup..enjoy!

SanFranNan in Syria

Speaker Pelosi sporting a nifty hijab....

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi decided that the time was right for her to bulk up her foreign policy credentials. So she decided to visit Syria and experience the joys of interacting with a fascist, Islamist state in a meet n'greet with Boy Assad and his cronies.

She is the latest of a handful of congressmen to do so, following the recommendations of James Bakers' Iraq Study Group report.

The White House has been less than enthusiastic about Pelosi's visit with President Bashar al-Assad, saying it just provides the Syrian leader with a photo-op to exploit.

"We have made it clear to high-ranking officials, whether they be Republicans or Democrats, that going to Syria sends mixed signals," Bush told reporters at the White House. He said Pelosi's meeting would "lead the Assad government to believe they're part of the mainstream of the international community."

"The position of this administration is that the best way to meet with a leader like Assad or people from Syria is in the larger context of trying to get the global community to help change his behavior," Bush said.

The President is quite correct about this. What Congresswoman Pelosi has done is to provide legitimacy to a murderous, jihad supporting fascist dictator and his regime. And to weaken pro-democracy forces that oppose Syria in places like Lebanon.

Even Congresswoman Pelosi had to realize that, as she went shooting off on a quick side trip to Lebanon to reassure political leaders there that she wasn't involved in selling them out to Syria. I have a distinct feeling that they may have taken her assurances with a grain of salt... given what else is going on in the region.

In the cultural lexicon of the Arab world, our sending an envoy to a country like Syria that the US has hostile relations with is a sign of submission and retreat. And it does indeed send `mixed signals' to both our friends and our enemies in the region.

There's also a message to the Arab world when the leader of the opposition party - and a woman - openly defies President Bush and essentially conducts diplomacy on her own.

What people like Congresswoman Pelosi, John Kerry, Bill Richardson, Harry Reid and others screaming about direct `negotiations' with countries like Iran and Syria fail to understand is that it's an entirely different scenario than negotiations with countries like Canada or Australia. To the mullahs and Assad, any commitments made to non-Muslims are mere pieces of paper to be discarded when it's convenient.

The mindset they operate out of is this: infidel, what gifts are you bringing to the table? How much jirzya (tribute) are you offering us to leave you in peace for awhile?

The Black Flag Flying: The Arabs and Iran ally against the West

Last week’s Arab League summit in Riyadh will be looked on by future historians as a major turning point in the War on Jihad. Along with the Mecca Summit and the historic meeting between Iran's President Ahmadinejad and Saudi King Abdullah in Riyadh last month, it symbolized the failure of President Bush's Middle East policy and his efforts to enlist Sunni `allies' against Shiite Iran.

The Saudis, like Iran have taken note of the composition of the new Congress, the tilt towards appeasement and the votes to undercut President Bush's role as commander in chief as well as the West's feeble response to Iran's defiance of the UN and the seizure of British hostages at sea.

The non-Arab guests of honor at Riyadh were Iranian foreign minister Manoucher Mottaki and Iranian Chief of Staff General Hassan Fayrouz Abadi , who were there to solidify the understandings between King Abdullah and Ahmadinejad at their earlier meeting.

The Iranians had a solid proposition for the various Arab delegations: a mutual defense treaty between Iran and the Arabs along the lines of the Iran-Syria pact. Mottaki explained that a treaty of this kind would end any Arab fears of an Iranian nuclear threat, join the Arabs and Iran in a united stance against Israel and set up an Arab-Persian Islamic front against the West.

Mottaki apparently made a great deal of headway. He spent a long time in conference with Saudi foreign minister Prince Saudi al-Faisal, and they ended up agreeing that their defense ministries would assign special negotiating teams to explore the details.

The Saudi foreign minister also arranged a four-way meeting between King Abdullah, Mottaki, and the two Palestinian leaders, Mahmoud Abbas and Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas. Together they discussed how Iran and Saudi Arabia could work together to aid the Palestinians in the War Against the Jews, and work together to help the new Palestinian unity government of Fatah and Hamas. Iran is now assured of the Saudis' approval of the military assistance Iran gives the Palestinians and of formal, collective Arab backing for it.

This was the background for Saudi King Abdullah's characterization of America's occupation of Iraq as `illegitimate', the UAE's demand that American airfields and ports in their countries not be used for attacks on Iran and the harsh ultimatum given to Israel that it unconditionally accept the Saudi Peace plan calling for withdrawal to the pre-1967 lines or face war.

Another significant meeting at the Riyadh summit occurred between the Iranian and Egyptian delegations on the resumption of diplomatic ties. Iran and our `ally' Egypt have not had diplomatic relations since the Islamic Revolution of 1979.

This was a follow up of arrangements made between Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak Egyptian prime minister Ahmed Natif, and Iranian ex-president Muhammad Khatami in Cairo a week ago. At that meeting they agreed that an Iranian delegation would visit Cairo in April to set up arrangements for the two embassies to re-open.

The Bush Administration was under the mistaken impression that they could manipulate the historic Sunni-Shiite conflict for their own purposes. They didn't realize that when it comes to jihad against the West, these two antagonists have always been prepared to bury their differences temporarily to combine against the infidel for the conquest of dar harb.

We face an historic alignment of forces against the West at a time when we seem to be grasping at another isolationist exit from history with both hands.

We continue to ignore it at our peril.

"If you will not fight for the right when you can easily win without bloodshed; if you will not fight when your victory will be sure and not too costly; you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all the odds against you and only a small chance of survival. There may even be a worse case: You may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than to live as slaves."

- Winston Churchill, 1938

The Lion in Winter -

The West, and particularly Britain have suffered a significant defeat by Iran - and a portent of things to come.

Iran's success in taking 15 British hostages, the parading of these hostages on state TV after forced `confessions' and especially the lack of a forceful response by Britain and the West in the face of what amounts to an act of war will not go unnoticed in Iran. Or the rest of the Islamic world.

These British seamen were operating as part of a multinational task force secured by a UN mandate to patrol the waters of the Persian Gulf. Yet, handcuffed by Russia and the Muslim bloc, the UN refused to `deplore' Iran's actions and and merely `condemned' them - a diplomatic slap on the wrist. The EU, which Britain is likewise part of also rejected the UK’s demand for an export boycott against Iran.

For their part, with allied support melting away, Britain has very little choice but to roll over, since Blair's Labour government has already made significant progress in reducing Britain's deterrent with defense cuts.

Almost half of Britain's' 44 ship fleet is scheduled for mothballs, and by this time next year if the scheduled cuts continue, the British navy that once ruled the waves will be reduced to, as the London Daily Telegraph put it "little more than than a coastal defense force."

The mullahs in Iran clearly see today's Britain, with a reduced military, a restless Muslim population at home to pacify and a Labour party dependent on Muslim votes to keep in power as a weak link in the War on Jihad..and one that is likely to continue to on the road on appeasement.

The Mullahs also no doubt took notice of the votes in the US Congress to undercut General Petraeus and the US efforts in Iraq and Aghanistan.

One concession that the British have apparently been discussing as part of the price for their hostages release is a pledge to Iran to `never knowingly enter Iran's waters without permission now or in the future' and refrain from any future retaliation against Iran.

This pledge would effectively remove Britain from its commitment in securing the sea lanes to South Iraq and potentially place British naval and marine forces on an exit course from the Shatt al-Arab, and perhaps the entire Gulf. The US Navy will have to pick up the slack.

If this happens, Iran can celebrate a triple victory: they will have shown the cracks in the Western alliance, helped boost crude to a six-month high, boosted Iran's prestige and given the rest of the Arab world a fresh reason to consider the security and defense agreements with Iran that were proposed at the Riyadh summit.

I can guarantee that Iran will up the ante and capitalize on this success with further aggression.

This will by no means end here.

Iran to stop putting British sailors on TV - for now

Iran has stopped putting the captured British hostages on Iranian state TV because of Britain's `changed stance' . Videos of the captured British sailors and marines had been airing on state TV around the clock.

The television station, which aired new footage of the 15 captured military personnel said all 15 had confessed to entering Iranian waters.

"It seems that Britain has shifted a little bit from its stance in the last one or two days over the undeniable facts and from some of its clamor," said the announcer, according to a Reuters translation. "If this path continues, one can hope that the issue would be resolved in a bilateral process and faraway from fuss and clamor and with achieving Iran's logical demands."

In other words, it's now simply a hostage negotiation - the British government has to meet Iran's `logical demands' if it wants its hostages back in one piece.

The latest images showed other members of the group talking to camera but their voices could not be heard....a very similar situation to the Jill Carroll hostage tapes.

I would guess that the British government has already signified, in some degree, its willingness to roll over, since this concession was made by Iran.

"The Iranians know our position. They know stage-managed TV appearances are not going to affect that position," the spokesman for Prime Minister Tony Blair said, adding that London was awaiting Tehran's response after an exchange of diplomatic notes.

"There's a lot going on behind the scenes," he said without further explanation.

I'll just bet that there is.

School Daze in the UK - jihadi style

Apparently Britain's educational establishment has a new way of coping with domestic jihad - they'll stop teaching about the Crusades and the Holocaust and give courses on "civic leadership" to Muslim `opinion makers' like imams.

Ruth Kelly, the Labour Communities and Local Government Secretary, is going to announce details of a £6 million "hearts and minds" plan to deal with growing radicalism among young British Muslims.

Also part of the plan are school-twinning projects, in which pupils from mainly Muslim schools will undertake joint projects, such as music and drama, with children from predominantly white schools.

Another part of the plan includes civic leadership sessions, in which Muslim `opinion-formers' will be given special training in moderation and tolerance...after which the British government expects these same people, who have now presumably seen the light to go to places like prisons and hardline mosques and affect the hearts and minds of potential jihadis.

At the same time, a study by the UK’s Department for Education and Skills has found that British schools are dropping teaching about the Holocaust or the Crusades to avoid offending Muslims.

The study, funded by the same Labour government Department for Education and Skills found that a fair number of teachers are dropping courses covering the Holocaust because they're afraid that Muslim pupils might express anti-Semitic and anti-Israel reactions in class.

The researchers gave the example of a secondary school in an unnamed northern city (Manchester, I wonder?), which dropped the Holocaust as a subject for GCSE coursework.

The report said teachers feared confronting 'anti-Semitic sentiment and Holocaust denial among some Muslim pupils'.

It added: "In another department, the Holocaust was taught despite anti-Semitic sentiment among some pupils. "But the same department deliberately avoided teaching the Crusades at Key Stage 3 (11- to 14-year-olds) because their balanced treatment of the topic would have challenged what was taught in some local mosques."

A third school found itself 'strongly challenged by some parents for their treatment of the Arab-Israeli conflict-and the history of the state of Israel that did not accord with the teachings of their denomination'.

The report concluded: "In particular settings, teachers of history are unwilling to challenge highly contentious or charged versions of history in which pupils are steeped at home, in their community or in a place of worship."

And no, this is not an April Fool's joke.

"Zionists kidnap Palestinian baby for Passover"

This won't make the dinosaur media, much less al Jazeera or the rest of the jihad media - it doesn't fit with the `brutal occupier' script the Palestinians and their apologists have so successfully sold.

An Israeli ambulance was called in to save a Palestinian baby yesterday. Palestinian officials placed an urgent call for help to Israel after two babies died and a third was critically injured when they inhaled toxic fumes at their daycare in the West Bank town of Ramallah.

Israel's Civil Administration in the Judea (the West Bank ) responded by sending a civilian Israeli ambulance into a hostile area in Ramallah.

The ambulance team was made up of two Israeli Arab medics and was accompanied by Palestinian police escort.

The baby was safely evacuated from Ramallah and transferred to a hospital in the Greater Tel Aviv area. The boy's parents were allowed to accompany him.

Obviously, the Israelis put the child's life first and were willing to accede to a Palestinian request that no Jews be in the medical crew.

Today, an Israeli ambulance crew from the MDA
again risked its life to save a Palestinian in desperate need of medical attention when they crossed into the Gaza strip and stabilized a 31-year-old Palestinian woman who Palestinian medics were unable to revive after a heart attack.

The woman was evacuated to Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv.

Not bad for a racist, apartheid state, hmmm?

I wonder...do you think the Palestinian Red Crescent would be as interested in saving Jewish lives?

Watcher's Council Results, 3/30/07

The Council has spoken! A complete list of results can be found at the site of our fearless leader, the infamous Watcher of Weasels


This week's winner is:

Eternity Road : Demographics And The Medicalization Of Human Existence, Francis' take on the influence of the aging baby boomers on American society. Congrats, Curmudgeon!

In second place was The Colossus of Rhodey: Student Press Rights Hube's fine take on the `bong hits for Jesus' controversy. This is the second week in a row Hube has won second place - will there be a three-peat?


For non-Council, the winner was:

Michael Yon : Tabula Rasa An amazing piece by write Michael Yon detailing his personal history with the Iraq War.

In second place was Kobayashi Maru: Iranian Machinations: Sun Tzu Would be Pleased - Kobayahsi Maru's fine take on Iran's strategy.

Hearty Kudos to all the winners!

First Israel, now Britain - the chickens come home to roost

There's an uncomfortable truth in this world we live in - that the Jews, whatever else they might be, function as a warning sign to civilization. What happens to them first tends to happen to the rest of the civilized world later, and there are numerous examples of this in history.

One modern example is Le Jihad Francais. Back when France's restive Muslim population was mainly concentrating on attacking Jews, the French government was fairly indifferent.....until the `youths' began violently targeting all of French society. Then, the French suddenly began to take notice.

The same thing happened when it came to homicide bombings and Islamist terrorism against Israel prior to 9/11. Virtually all of the jihadist tactics used in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Philipines, Kashmir, Thailand and the whole world over were perfected and tested first against Israel.

Likewise, there's a connection between the British hostages and past events concerning Israel.

Not quite a year ago, three Israeli soldiers were kidnapped in their home territory, at Iran's instigation.

The world was largely indifferent, with many countries finessing any minor condemnation by enfolding this aggression into the Arab-Israeli conflict. Britain in particular was notable for its lip service and lack of support as Israel attempted to recover its hostages, and for its anti-Israel stance when it came to the Israeli offensive in Gaza and the Israel -Hezbollah war that followed.

Now, those chickens have come home to roost as the British are now suffering from the same aggressive behavior from the same source that they more or less condoned when Israel was the victim. Fifteen British sailors have been captured at gunpoint by Iran a day before the UN sanctions vote, based on the false pretext that that the sailors had strayed into `Iranian waters.'

This was nothing less than an act of war against Britain - just as it was an act of war against Israel when Hezbollah and Hamas invaded Israel and took hostages.

Nobody, least of all Britain should be surprised at this. The mullahs see that it worked against the Jews...why should Britain be any different? Why not up the ante?

Iran has been acting in this manner for quite some time. Its aggressive behavior, sponsorship of Islamic terrorism, defiance of civilized norms and continued quest for nuclear weapons, coupled with the threat to annihilate Israel have continued relentlessly, while countries like Britain have confined themselves to the odd verbal condemnation and a few largely meaningless sanctions via the UN.

I have to wonder whether nervousness about antagonizing Britain's restive Muslim population - or alienating their votes - is behind the British government's skittish behavior in this.

Iran, of course, is taking advantage of this uncertainty. It's accelerating both its conventional military and its nuclear weapons program, as well as coming to important agreements with its fellow jihadists in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf at the Riyadh Summit this week. The blatant kidnapping of British hostages is just another signpost.

If the West continues to ignore this, they will be faced with a lot more than a few abducted sailors.

Iran parades Brit hostages

Iran made a point of parading their British captives on state TV today, including Sailor Faye Turney in a hijab whom they coerced a `confession' out of, saying that British boats had "trespassed" in Iranian waters.

The British military said its vessels were 1.7 nautical miles inside Iraqi waters when the sailors and marines were captured at gunpoint, and it released what it said were the GPS coordinates that proved that.Of course, the point is not whether the British sailors strayed in Iranian waters - even if they had, any civilized nation would simply have confronted them and escorted them out of the area.

But then, we're not dealing with a civilized nation, are we?

The Iranian government broadcast a video showing the prisoners on al Jazeera, and released a statement from Turney saying the sailors and marines were inside Iranian waters when they were captured.

"Obviously we trespassed into their waters," Turney said, sitting by herself against a floral curtain and smoking a cigarette.

"They were very friendly and very hospitable, very thoughtful, nice people. They explained to us why we've been arrested, there was no harm, no aggression," she said.

Turney, 26, was also shown eating with several fellow sailors and marines. What appeared to be a handwritten note from Turney to her family said, in part, "I have written a letter to the Iranian people to apologize for us entering their waters."

The Brits, for their part continue to play along.

"It's completely unacceptable for these pictures to be shown on television," the Foreign Office said after the broadcast. "There is no doubt our personnel were seized in Iraqi territorial waters." The statement also demanded that British diplomats be given immediate access to them as a "prelude" to their release.

That still hasn't happened as of yet,and the Iranian government is reportedly asking for the British government to admit that its sailors were in Iran's territory as a pre-condition for `negotiations'.

Stay tuned...

The other shoe drops on Bush's Sunni coalition:The UAE says `Don't launch any aggression against Iran from our soil.'

Hey Boooosh! Face it - you f*#$ed up - you trusted us!

Not only is Bush getting shivved by the Saudis, but to put the icing on the cake, Bush's pals in the UAE - the same anti-Semitic, terrorist supporting allies we saved in the Gulf War, the same `allies' Bush touted to control our ports - put the knife in by saying in no uncertain terms that they would not allow the US to use our airbases or port facilities in their countries for any action against Iran.

The president of the United Arab Emirates, Sheik Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan forbade the US military from using bases in his country to attack or spy on Iran, and said today that the Emirates had assured Iran that it was not siding with Washington in its dispute over Teheran's nuclear program.

`We have reiterated to our Iranian brothers, in a letter delivered recently by the Foreign Minister (Shaikh Abdullah), that we are not a party to the conflict between Iran and the US and that we shall never allow the use of our soil for any military, security or intelligence activities against them,' he was quoted as saying in an interview with the London-based Arabic daily Al Hayat, a report on which was made available through the state-run Emirates News Agency WAM.

The Emirates "refuses to use its territorial lands, air or waters for aggression against any other country, let alone a neighboring Muslim country with which we maintain historic and economic ties," Sheik Khalifa said.

This could prevent the US from using the huge al-Dhafra Air Base near the Emirates capital in Abu Dhabi...not to mention the ports.

A few days ago, Qatari Foreign Minister Sheik Hamad bin Jassem Al Thani issued a similar message, saying Qatar wouldn't permit an attack on Iran to be launched from its soil.

Qatar is home to the enormous al-Udeid air base, the command center of the US Air Force operations in the Mideast.

So, let's see now....The Iraqis, the Turks, the UAE, Kuwait and Qatar have all said that they won't permit those facilities we built to protect them at such an enormous cost and lease from them for millions of dollars a year to be used against their Muslim brothers in Iran.

Gee, what a surprise, eh Mr. President? You may get a nice dollar from these people for that half a billion dollar presidential library you're building over at SMU if you follow orders and keep your mouth shut - but allies against jihad? What were you thinking?

The Saudis bash `illegitimate occupation' as Bush's Sunni pals show their true nature

As I predicted, President Bush's little fantasy about creating a Sunni Bloc against Iran and Syria is a non-starter, with about as much creedence as his `Arab democracy' fetish.

For openers, our `eternal friends' the Saudis took time out from threatening Israel to indulge in some anti-US bashing as Saudi King Abdullah condemned the 'illegitimate occupation' of Iraq.

"In beloved Iraq, blood is being shed among brothers in the shadow of an illegitimate foreign occupation, and ugly sectarianism threatens civil war," Abdullah said.

He also said that Arab nations would not allow any foreign force to decide the future of the region.

If Arab leaders recover trust in each other and regain their credibility, "the winds of hope will blow on the nation, and then, we will not allow forces from outside the region to determine the future of the region, and only the flag of Arabism will be raised on Arab soil," Abdullah said.

Of course, you realize that he's talking about Israel as `Arab soil', and is fantasizing about the US being out of the picture entirely.

Unless they need us infidel slaves to take out Saddam or something.

The Arab foreign ministers also agreed to call for an amendment of Iraq's 2005 constitution to give Sunni Arabs a greater share of power in Iraq. And of course, a bigger split of the oil wealth.

The Saudis also spent a great deal of time massaging our enemy Iran, with Saudi foreign minister Prince Saud saying "We have no inhibitions about the role of Iran...It is a large country. It wants to play a leading role in the region, and it has every right to do so. It is an historic country."

This is a followup to the little covered but historic meeting between King Abdullah and Iran's President Ahmadinejad in Riyadh. This was nothing less than a setting up of spheres of influence and common goals, like destroying Israel and pursuing jihad against the infidels.

However much Sunnis and Shiites might despise one another, they will always put that aside for the common goal of jihad against the West.

Another sign of the increasing distance the Saudis are putting between themselves and the Bush Administration is the Saudi bow out on a scheduled State dinner in Washington on April 17th Bush was planning to honor King Abdullah.

As the WAPO's Jim Hoagland revealed in his column today, Prince Bandar went to Washington and explained that there was a `scheduling conflict' and that a state dinner was `not convenient' for the King.

Jordan's King Abdullah, a poster boy for the Bush Administration as an `Arab Ally' also dialed out on the White House for a state visit scheduled for September...scheduling conflicts again.

It wasn't so long ago that the administration was talking `realignment' and `realpolitik' based on the assumption that the Sunni autocracies President Bush is so enamored of could be trusted as allies. That turgid, wrongheaded notion seems to have melted like a popsicle in the hot desert sun.

Watcher's Council nominations, 3/28/07

Every week, the Watcher's Council members nominate two posts each, one from the Council members and one from outside for consideration by the whole Council. The complete list of this week's Council nominations can be found at the site of our fearless leader, Watcher of Weasels



COUNCIL NEWS: We have someone new on board, Laer from the renowned Cheat Seeking Missiles...check him out!

OK, here's this week's Council lineup:

1. J O S H U A P U N D I T: 3 Card Monte - the Palestinian aid scam continues This week, as the Palestinian unity government whines about the so-called `aid boycott' and attempts to shake down gullible westerners for more jirzyah, I decided to reveal a few truths...that aid to the Palestinians actually increased during the `boycott', and that the Palestinian Authority is far from broke and destitute - in short, as the title suggests, this is one of the most egregious (and successful) con games on earth.

2. Done With Mirrors: O Believers Callimachus uses Charlie Parker as a launching pad to a fine essay that asks the question...how do you divorce pain from art? The answer of course (at least to me) is that art is life and life is art, and they affect each other. And that artists make life choices just like the rest of us that don't necessarily figure in the equation - unless they do.

3. Soccer Dad: Dollars (and respect) for Dahlan Soccer Dad likewise focuses this week on the Palestinian aid scam, particularly as it regards the new respectability of `moderate' Fatah gangleader Mahmoud Dahlan.

One thing Soccer Dad may know but didn't mention is that much of Dahlan's clout comes from his association with the CIA during the Bush Adminstration's first term...not that this stopped three CIA employees from getting murdered by Arafat's Fatah gunmen in Gaza, something no Palestinian has ever been jailed for.One can only imagine the kind of information Dahlan is privy to...

4. Right Wing Nut House : POLITICIZING SCIENCE here, Rick takes on the intersecting of science and political agendas as evidenced by the global warming controversy.

5. The Glittering Eye: Greece and Mesopotamia: Origins of Greek ThoughtThis week, The Glittering Eye's Dave Schuler has a fascinating post on the interaction between Greek and Mesopotamian thought. Interestingly enough, that symbiotic process continued with Alexander the Great's conquests establishing `Greece in Asia' and the subsequent Seleucid Empire.

The roots of Greek and Eastern thought go deep, and the dividing point can be laid
(like many other unfortunate events)to Mohammed and the advent of Islam.


6. Rhymes With Right: Tinker Must Be Preserved Here, Greg comments on the Supreme Court's Tinker v Des Moines
decision that allows students in public schools freedom of speech. He writes in the framework of the recent `bong hits 4 Jesus' controversy.


7. The Colossus of Rhodey: Student Press Rights Here, Hube likewise discusses Tinker v Des Moines in the light of the bong hits 4 Jesus' story.


8. The scary nihilism of the Left: Bookworm Room This week, the erudite Mrs. Bookworm highlights a video of a speech by leftist turned conservative Evan Sayet, an ex-liberal deep in Hollywood’s heart. He claims that he understands the Left’s ultimate goal: nihilism.

I don't necessarily agree with him on that point. The Angry Left's goals, IMO are not nihilism - nothing - but totalitarian power and control.

9. Eternity Road: Demographics And The Medicalization Of Human Existence Francis examines how the most spoiled and selfish generation in America's history, the baby boomers are using their political and financial weight to warp America's culture for their own benefit.

10. The Education Wonks: More Hollywood Idiocy: "Wristcutters: A Love Story" EdWonk discusses a particularly nasty case of Hollywood exploitation - a `comedy' about suicide aimed at teens.


11. Big Lizards: “What the Meaning of "Fizz" Is” Here, Dafydd Ab Hugh examines the controversy over the firing of 8 US political appointees by AG Gonzalez and parses it for the ridiculous non-scandal it is.

12.Cheat Seeking Missiles: NanFran's Cool Investments New guy Laer takes a fun look at the hypocrisy surrounding Nancy Pelosi's statements - as opposed to her actions that directly benefit her financially!





That's this week's lineup..enjoy!

Saudis to Israel `Accept our plan or face war'

The Saudis and the Arab League issued a blunt threat to Israel today, emanating from none other than the Saudi foreign minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal at the Arab Riyadh summit: accept our diktat or prepare for jihad.

"If Israel refuses {the Saudi/Arab League plan}, that means it doesn't want peace and it places everything back into the hands of fate. They will be putting their future not in the hands of the peacemakers but in the hands of the lords of war," he said.

Prince Saud also dismissed any further diplomatic overtures towards Israel. "It has never been proven that reaching out to Israel achieves anything," he said.

In other words, Jews, take what we're offering or face jihad.

Contrary to the noises Condi Rice was making, the Arab league unanimously accepted the Saudi plan in its entirety, without the slightest modification or room for compromise.

The Saudi plan? I've detailed it before. The Israelis give up all of Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), including land legally purchased from the Arabs via the Jewish National Fund. The Israelis also give up half of Jerusalem, which means that Jews will be denied access to their holiest sites and will have to watch their religious shrines desecrated by the triumphant Arabs, just as they were prior to 1967.

Then, having made thousands of their own citizens homeless and having retreated to indefensible borders, Israel allows itself to be flooded by thousands of genocidal Arab `refugees' and their descendants.

In exchange for committing what amounts to national suicide, the Jews of Israel get a guarantee of `recognition' and peace from the Arabs.

The `recognition' will last for as long as Israel manages to survive, and the `peace' will be the peace of the cemetery.

That's the choice the Arabs are giving Israel.

Imagine the sheer arrogance of these people, who Nazi-like, seek to blackmail a neighboring state into self-immolation, these racists who refuse to even allow a single Jew into their country but insist that the Israelis open theirs to any Arab who claims `refugee' status.

The Saudis belong to the UN, and threatening a member state with war is a clear violation of Article 2 of the UN charter...not that Ban Ki-Moon or anyone else is likely to call them on it. As a matter of fact, Ban Ki-Moon is on record as saying that he thinks the Saudi plan is a good base for what he called `a diplomatic initiative for peace.'

And what about the United States? Is George W. Bush or Condi Rice going to say that this is simply unacceptable? Or are they going to continue to twist Israel's arm to accede to the Arab demands and hope for the best?

When is enough enough?

This, of course is the crux of the matter, the main issue when it comes to peace in the Middle East. The Arabs simply refuse to live in peace and equality next to Jews.

They simply want Israel gone.

And those appeasers who support arm twisting Israel into accepting this surrender of their sovereignity need to ask themselves: after Israel, after we give the jihadis the Jews...who's next on the list to be eaten?

Riot at Paris train station by the `youths'

Ah yes, another episode in Le Jihad Francais...and it isn't even Ramadan yet!

This was a little fracas at Paris' Gare du Nord , a major train station and transportation hub.

The fun started when a `youth' without a Metro ticket punched two inspectors during a routine ticket check, according to officials from Paris' RATP public transport authority. A mob of `youths' pitched in and attacked the inspectors and later turned on police patrolling the station.

"The inspectors were hit with projectiles, as were the officers who came to assist them," said Luc Poignant, an official for the Force Ouvriere police union.

The clashes and forced the closure of the Gare du Nord's subway and commuter lines for several hours at the mid afternoon rush hour.

After that, riot police firing tear gas and brandishing batons were called in to deal with the mob of an estimated 100 `youths' who shattered windows and looted shops at the train station.

The mode d'jour of Paris in the springtime - tear gas, broken glass, car b-ques,and rampaging Muslim `youths'.....

Senate votes to support Iraq pullout deadline

The Senate narrowly endorsed the Democrats linkage of emergency spending for the Iraq war with a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq a year from now, voting down a Republican amendment that would have stripped that provision from the $122 emergency spending bill.

The vote was 50 to 48 to reject the amendment, introduced by Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), the top Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee. Like its counterpart bill in the House, the bill included $20 billion in special interest bribes domestic spending.

The bill requires U.S. combat troops to begin leaving Iraq within four months of enactment and sets a goal of completing their withdrawal by March 31, 2008.

Had Congress voted unequivically cut off funding for this war and not confirmed General Petraeus as the commander there after knowing what his strategy would be, that would be one thing. I might not agree with it, but I could respect it as an honest decision. And the congressmen who voted for it would bear the responsibility for that choice, for good or ill.

But to do it in this fashion, at this time, in a bill larded with special interest funding is more than simply wrong. It is an attempt by the Democrats to have it both ways at our troops' expense, to attempt to avoid any politicul onus for `not supporting the troops' while pleasing the Angry Left. It sends a message to the jihadis that all they need do is wait us out, and a message to our friends that we are not to be trusted to keep our commitments.

I'm just as fed up with the Bush Administration's mismanagement of this war as anyone could be. But leaving in this fashion is something that will haunt us and follow us home in years to come.

ICE unable to account for over 600,00 illegal aliens ordered out of US

The Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is unable to account for over 600,000 fugitive illegal aliens ordered deported out of the US, the government reported Monday.

Homeland Security Department's inspector general said that the effectiveness of teams assigned to find the fugitives was hampered by "insufficient detention capacity, limitations of an immigration database and inadequate working space."

Keep in mind that over $204 million was allocated for 52 fugitive operations teams since 2003..but a backlog of 623,292 cases existed as of August of 2006!

Here's a revealing statistic - about 5 1/2 per cent of the 11-12 million estimated illegal aliens in the US are designated "fugitive aliens," in other words, those who have failed to leave the country after being ordered out.

Note the language..`fugitives' are only those who have been ordered out after lengthy and extensive immigration law trials, not those who are merely breaking our laws by entering illegally!

Apparently, the report cited problems like insufficient staffing, inadequate databases and lack of detention space in apprehending and deporting the huge backlog of illegal aliens ordered to leave who have decided that, no thanks, they'd rather stay.

Remember that the next time you hear Dubbyah or some other shill talking about how well a `guest worker program' that calls for people to leave voluntarily in a couple of years would work.

Absolutely amazing that our president would allow our border to become a sieve in a post 9/11 world..

Anyone interested in a wider and contrarian take on the illegal immigration issue might find this interesting: J O S H U A P U N D I T: The Immigrant Song: the USA, abortion and the debate on illegal immigration

Gaza overflowing in its own sewage

The BBC , Reuters and the usual suspects have all covered the deaths of four to six Palestinians from rupturing sewer pipes.

Needless to say, the Palestinians have lived up to their status as professional victims and are blaming so called `aid boycott' for the inability to fix the pipes even though the UN warned them about the problem two years ago.

Here's another little factoid that the Beeb, Reuters and the rest of the Palestinian apologists in the media conveniently overlooked - that the metal sewer pipes are a prime source of purloined material used by the Palestinians for the manufacture of Qassam rockets, mortars and rocket launchers used in the War against the Jews.

The Palestinian Authority has always been full of it - now, they are literally swimming in it.

Blair warns Iran over British captives

British PM Tony Blair warned Iran over British navy and marine captives today,saying things will enter a "different phase" if diplomatic moves fail.

"These people have to be released," the prime minister told GMTV.

"What we are trying to do at the moment is to pursue this through the diplomatic channels and make the Iranian government understand these people have to be released and that there is absolutely no justification whatever for holding them.

"I hope we manage to get them to realize they have to release them. If not, then this will move into a different phase."

"In the end, it is a question really for the Iranian government as to whether they want to abide by international law or not," he said.

The Iranians will not reveal where the captives are being held and interrogated but claim that they're in good health an dare `being treated humanely'.

"If indeed they are being detained in reasonable circumstances then we can see no reason why they should not have contact with people from the British government," British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett said.

Thus far, Iran has not allowed the British Consul in Iran to have access with the captives.