has given Britain:
As he looked into it, he found that the UK, once a bastion of freedom and civil liberties, is now one of the most advanced surveillance societies in the world, ranked third after Russia and China. The average UK adult is now registered on more than 700 databases and is caught many times each day by nearly five million CCTV cameras. Increasingly monitored, citizens are being turned into suspects. Within 100 yards of Bond’s home, he discovered, there were no fewer than 200 cameras.
...
Before going on the run, he made 80 formal requests to government and commercial organisations for the information they held on him. He piled the replies on his floor, appalled by the level of detail. The owners of the databases knew who his friends were, which websites he’d been looking at, and where he had driven his car. One commercial organisation was even able to inform him that, on a particular day in November 2006, he had “sounded angry”. It was more than he knew himself.
Many people believe that, if you have nothing to hide, there is nothing to fear from all this scrutiny. But if you resist the urge to pick your nose while others are present, or close the door when you go to the toilet, you are a privacy advocate. “When you realise that your whole life is under view,” says the Tory MP David Davis, “it’s inhibiting.”
And what if the information about us is wrong? Bond found that the DVLA still keeps on record a youthful driving offence that should have been expunged years ago. He waved it grimly at his uncomprehending daughter: “This is Daddy’s drink-driving record.” Worse was the case of a woman he met, falsely identified by the Criminal Records Bureau as a convicted shoplifter, who’d taken a year to prove her innocence. Or the man who, after someone pinched his credit card details and used them to pay for porn, was arrested, then sacked without notice; when Bond met him, he still hadn’t been able to clear his name.
...
They also worked out where she was due to give birth and phoned the hospital, pretending to be Bond, to get details of her appointments.
(think about that: no ID, no nothing, and the hospital and NHS gave them what they asked for...)
...
The National Health Service is unrolling a multibillion-pound IT project that will upload millions of patients’ medical records on to a database, freely accessed by 250,000 NHS staff and, to a lesser degree, by private health companies, council workers, commercial researchers and ambulance staff. Letters are going out now, strongly urging us all to allow this and making it as hard as possible to opt out.
...
In the film, Gowlett demonstrated how easy it already was to pretend to be Bond and get information about Katie’s antenatal arrangements. For Katie, this totally overturned her previous complacency. “I was a bit freaked out that the NHS gave away our appointments,” she says. “I know what David meant about being data-raped.”
And with NYEffin'C acting like the answer to terrorists is more cameras, other cities working on it and Obamacare and so forth, we're on the same damned road.
Saturday, May 08, 2010
Boot Camp
Trainee has settled in well, and I caught him involved with Sec. Staff(Sr.) in close combat training
at which he seems to show talent
And he's working on his attitude
"Are you supposed to be taking pictures here?"
at which he seems to show talent
And he's working on his attitude
"Are you supposed to be taking pictures here?"
I would like to point out- again- that Rep. Barney Frank(Socialist Dirtbag-MA)
is either a effing liar or a fool. Quite possibly both.
...
It’s no wonder that even after the total collapse of Fannie and Freddie in 2008, at an ultimate cost to tax payers which could exceed $400B, Barney Frank is still adamantly opposed to legislation which would prevent any further federal bailouts of the GSE’s. For Democrats like Frank, continued control over Fannie and Freddie represents the effective nationalization of the entire mortgage industry. It’s a dream come true for those who wish to use the power of the federal government to implement their desired social and redistributive policies.
“This is an important point that has to be repeated – as Fannie and Freddie operate today, going forward, there is no loss,” Frank wrote.These statements by Frank came one day before Freddie Mac requested an additional government bailout of $10.6 billion to cover losses incurred in the first quarter.
...
It’s no wonder that even after the total collapse of Fannie and Freddie in 2008, at an ultimate cost to tax payers which could exceed $400B, Barney Frank is still adamantly opposed to legislation which would prevent any further federal bailouts of the GSE’s. For Democrats like Frank, continued control over Fannie and Freddie represents the effective nationalization of the entire mortgage industry. It’s a dream come true for those who wish to use the power of the federal government to implement their desired social and redistributive policies.
So UCLA has a racist communist professor Updated
calling for- would it be revolution or attack?- against the United States.
“We are revolutionary Mexican organization here. We understand that this is not just about Mexico. It’s about a global struggle against imperialism and capitalism… At the forefront of this revolutionary movement is La Raza. We will no longer fall for these lies called borders. We see America as a northern front of a revolutionary movement… Our enemy is capitalism and imperialism.”
I wonder if 'race cowards' Holder will charge this clown with sedition? I wonder if the major media will bother to mention this?
And I wonder, do these bastards think that stuff like this will make places like Arizona and Texas and New Mexico- and a lot of people in Californicated- less likely to demand a illegal immigration-immigrants clampdown?
Update: according to this, he's a high-school teacher
“We are revolutionary Mexican organization here. We understand that this is not just about Mexico. It’s about a global struggle against imperialism and capitalism… At the forefront of this revolutionary movement is La Raza. We will no longer fall for these lies called borders. We see America as a northern front of a revolutionary movement… Our enemy is capitalism and imperialism.”
I wonder if 'race cowards' Holder will charge this clown with sedition? I wonder if the major media will bother to mention this?
And I wonder, do these bastards think that stuff like this will make places like Arizona and Texas and New Mexico- and a lot of people in Californicated- less likely to demand a illegal immigration-immigrants clampdown?
Update: according to this, he's a high-school teacher
'of the Year' or not, it's a damn good line
"Do we really want to live in a country where when someone busts into your house at night you're supposed to assume they might be cops?"
Pointed to by Insty, who has this to say:
I’d rather live in a country where you get a bounty for shooting people who bust into your house illegally — one that’s doubled if they’re cops. Apparently, though, I’m more likely to get the former. And to those who want to criticize my approach to illegal breakins: Why are you so soft on criminals?
UPDATE: Reader J.A. Lyons thinks a bounty is rather drastic. Well, yes. I’d be happy with stripping official immunity in no-knock raids, so that police — and, more significantly, supervising officials — would become liable for anything that goes wrong. No-knock raids should be extraordinary measures, only used when there is imminent threat of death or great bodily harm. That’s not the case in the vast, vast majority of no-knock raids. And illegal breakins are . . . illegal. They don’t become less so, somehow, when engaged in by those sworn to uphold the law.
Pointed to by Insty, who has this to say:
I’d rather live in a country where you get a bounty for shooting people who bust into your house illegally — one that’s doubled if they’re cops. Apparently, though, I’m more likely to get the former. And to those who want to criticize my approach to illegal breakins: Why are you so soft on criminals?
UPDATE: Reader J.A. Lyons thinks a bounty is rather drastic. Well, yes. I’d be happy with stripping official immunity in no-knock raids, so that police — and, more significantly, supervising officials — would become liable for anything that goes wrong. No-knock raids should be extraordinary measures, only used when there is imminent threat of death or great bodily harm. That’s not the case in the vast, vast majority of no-knock raids. And illegal breakins are . . . illegal. They don’t become less so, somehow, when engaged in by those sworn to uphold the law.
Two feel-good moments from Sondra
First, on Ma'am Boxer:
But the newspaper’s decision to sit on the sidelines for the Boxer race could prove to be the most damaging of all, given the newspaper’s criticism of the three-term senator.
“On the Democratic side, we find that we’re no fans of incumbent Barbara Boxer,” the newspaper said in an editorial Friday. “She displays less intellectual firepower or leadership than she could.”
The Boxer campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Now THAT left a mark. And it only took them how many years to figure this out?
Second, you want to see an illustration of a dead-cat bounce?
But the newspaper’s decision to sit on the sidelines for the Boxer race could prove to be the most damaging of all, given the newspaper’s criticism of the three-term senator.
“On the Democratic side, we find that we’re no fans of incumbent Barbara Boxer,” the newspaper said in an editorial Friday. “She displays less intellectual firepower or leadership than she could.”
The Boxer campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Now THAT left a mark. And it only took them how many years to figure this out?
Second, you want to see an illustration of a dead-cat bounce?
Oh, to put his name to these words must have just about given the President
hemorrhoids...
Children, especially, are spending less time outside running and playing, fishing and hunting, and connecting to the outdoors just down the street or outside of town.
Now, he DID say this as part of a "We need a new Federal Program to deal with this" mess, which his base will love, but those words... the animal rights weenies and anti-gun & -archery clowns must've had collective fits when they heard this.
Children, especially, are spending less time outside running and playing, fishing and hunting, and connecting to the outdoors just down the street or outside of town.
Now, he DID say this as part of a "We need a new Federal Program to deal with this" mess, which his base will love, but those words... the animal rights weenies and anti-gun & -archery clowns must've had collective fits when they heard this.
A bit more on the case against the Hutaree
In a development described as "unprecedented," a federal court official in Detroit filed an affidavit today with the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, saying he wanted to correct claims made by prosecutors in the Hutaree militia case."This affidavit is being submitted to correct the record, and any misunderstanding (Assistant U.S. Attorney) Mr. (Ronald) Waterstreet had about our conversation," Chief Pretrial Services Officer Alan Murray said in a court filing.
Damn. So a federal court official is filing to correct 'errors'- which in some cases appear to be outright lies- in the papers filed by the federal prosecutor.
Michael Rataj, an attorney for Hutaree defendant Tina Stone, said Murray's action is unprecedented. "Obviously, Waterstreet has completely misrepresented what was discussed with pretrial services," he said.
Damn. So a federal court official is filing to correct 'errors'- which in some cases appear to be outright lies- in the papers filed by the federal prosecutor.
Michael Rataj, an attorney for Hutaree defendant Tina Stone, said Murray's action is unprecedented. "Obviously, Waterstreet has completely misrepresented what was discussed with pretrial services," he said.
So either Waterstreet wasn't paying attention, or threw a bunch of crap in to try to steamroll the judge and get what he wanted, from the sound of it. And- I'm guessing- the judge is pissed or Murray knows the judge WILL be pissed and is trying to correct this before it screws things up too badly. I admit to no great knowledge of court works, I do know that for one federal official to try to correct the screwups of another in a case like this, in an official filing, says bad things about the original official's actions and words.
Over at Big Government is this piece on the case. One part:
Judge Roberts, however, pointed out that ” the government may not merely come before the trial court, present its indictment, and thereby send the defendant off to jail, foreclosing any further discussion. Rather the defendant . . . must be afforded the opportunity for a hearing at which he may come forward with evidence to meet his burden of production, leaving on the government the ultimate burden of persuasion.” Order, page 7, citing United States v. Hurtado, 779 F.2d 1467, 1478 (11th Cir. 1985). So the court-appointed federal public defenders submitted their arguments to the court on behalf of the Hutaree, with results that have apparently stunned the prosecutors.
This case is looking more and more like "These guys said nasty things, and we can make an example of them!" as opposed to "These people actually violated the law, and here's the evidence." May not be the case; we'll see.Over at Big Government is this piece on the case. One part:
Judge Roberts, however, pointed out that ” the government may not merely come before the trial court, present its indictment, and thereby send the defendant off to jail, foreclosing any further discussion. Rather the defendant . . . must be afforded the opportunity for a hearing at which he may come forward with evidence to meet his burden of production, leaving on the government the ultimate burden of persuasion.” Order, page 7, citing United States v. Hurtado, 779 F.2d 1467, 1478 (11th Cir. 1985). So the court-appointed federal public defenders submitted their arguments to the court on behalf of the Hutaree, with results that have apparently stunned the prosecutors.
“Defendants believe that because the weight of the evidence is insubstantial, the Court should have serious reservations about denying them bail… the Government failed to persuade the Court that Defendants must be held until trial.”
In essence, the court has smacked the prosecutors in the face by saying that there is so very little weight to the evidence in their case that, even though two of the charges are extremely serious, the defendants cannot be held without bail pending trial:
Nonetheless, the weight of the evidence the Government has against Defendants is an important consideration. In fact, the seriousness of the charged offenses, the weight of the evidence, and whether the Defendants are a danger to the community, are inextricably intertwined; the Court’s own Pretrial Services Agency, which makes bond recommendations, concluded that but for the seriousness of the offenses charged, the Defendants are all people it would normally recommend for release on bond.
Allow me to translate this for you: the evidence was thin enough that the Court would not normally hold these men without bail. However, because two of the charges are so serious, they have been held without bail until now.
Since the charges are so serious, the judge has to be pretty convinced that the government’s case is very weak before she will let the men out on bail. Here is the key to the entire case:
The United States is correct that it need not wait until people are killed before it arrests conspirators. But, the Defendants are also correct: their right to engage in hatefilled, venomous speech, is a right that deserves First Amendment protection. Because speech is so much a part of the Government’s case, Defendants urge the Court to look carefully at the evidence in making its bond decision. Defendants believe that because the weight of the evidence is insubstantial, the Court should have serious reservations about denying them bail. Due to the complexity of the case, and the number of Defendants, Defendants say they could be in jail for a long time, awaiting trial."
Friday, May 07, 2010
A bit of a collection this evening
A therapist in Denmark puts down what he learned while dealing with moslems, inmates and others. Among other things,
The Islamic expression of "holy anger" is therefore completely contradictory to any Western understanding. Those two words in the same sentence sound contradictory to us. The terror-threatening and violent reaction of Muslims to the Danish Mohammed cartoons showing their prophet as a man willing to use violence to spread his message, is seen from our Western eyes as ironic. Muslims’ aggressive reaction to a picture showing their prophet as aggressive, completely confirms the truth of the statement made by Kurt Westergaard in his satiric drawing.
This cultural difference is exceedingly important when dealing with Muslim regimes and organizations. Our way of handling political disagreement goes through diplomatic dialogue, and calls on Muslim leaders to use compassion, compromise and common sense. This peaceful approach is seen by Muslims as an expression of weakness and lack of courage. Thus avoiding the risks of a real fight is seen by them as weakness; when experienced in Muslim culture, it is an invitation to exploitation.
...
The locus of control is central to our understanding of problems and their solutions. If we are raised in a culture where we learn that "…I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul," as William Ernest Henley wrote in his famous poem Invictus in 1875; we will, in case of personal problems, look at ourselves and ask: "…What did I do wrong?" and "…What can I do to change the situation?" People who have been taught throughout their entire lives that outer rules and traditions are more important than individual freedom and self reflection, will ask: "Who did this to me?" and "Who has to do something for me?"
An interesting piece of work.
The Soviet Union nearly lost the war in 1941 and suffered from poor planning, according to Marshal Georgy Zhukov in the frank television interview that has been banned since it was recorded in 1966.
Zhukov, the most decorated general in the history of both Russia and the Soviet Union, admitted that Soviet generals were not confident that they could hold the German forces at the Mozhaisk defence line outside Moscow.
...
After arriving at the front, Zhukov found that the defences in place were "absolutely insufficient".
"It was an extremely dangerous situation. In essence, all the approaches to Moscow were open," he said. "Our troops on the Mozhaisk defence line could not have stopped the enemy if he moved on Moscow."
"I telephoned Stalin. I said the most urgent thing is to occupy the Mozhaisk defence line as in parts of the Western front in essence there are no (Soviet) troops.
Shortly afterwards, Stalin phoned Zhukov back to inform him he had been made commander of the Western Front.
The article says this interview was ordered destroyed, but one copy was missed- or hidden- in an archive.
You are a contemptible lot, over yonder. Some of you are Commissioners, and some Lieutenant-Governors, and some have the V. C., and a few are privileged to walk about the Mall arm in arm with the Viceroy; but I have seen Mark Twain this golden morning, have shaken his hand, and smoked a cigar— no, two cigars— with him, and talked with him for more than two hours! Understand clearly that I do not despise you; indeed, I don’t. I am only very sorry for you, from the Viceroy downward. To soothe your envy and to prove that I still regard you as my equals, I will tell you all about it.
From an interview of Twain by Rudyard Kipling.
Remember those new scanners, that we're not supposed to be bothered by? Nothing too intrusive of privacy or modesty or anything? Great Big Fail. Combined with an idiot-level TSA supervisor, and other TSA versions of a retarded Officer Fife. Which caused Tam to point us to this marvelous piece of work on the subject, from which I will ste- borrow a bit:
There is so much fail expressed there by Willard Shepard and Brian Hamacher that it makes me want to punch kittens and swear at boobies. “Oh, gosh, it sure is funny that these bumbling fucksticks who can’t even make it through THEIR OWN FUCKING TRAINING with any sort of professionalism, dignity, or impulse control suitable to avoid going to jail will be looking at the genitals of everybody trying to get on an airplane! That’s right comedic right there!”
You really should read it all.
And now, I think I shall, first, go out and play with the dogs, and then load some .45 ammo to replace what I shot up today.
The Islamic expression of "holy anger" is therefore completely contradictory to any Western understanding. Those two words in the same sentence sound contradictory to us. The terror-threatening and violent reaction of Muslims to the Danish Mohammed cartoons showing their prophet as a man willing to use violence to spread his message, is seen from our Western eyes as ironic. Muslims’ aggressive reaction to a picture showing their prophet as aggressive, completely confirms the truth of the statement made by Kurt Westergaard in his satiric drawing.
This cultural difference is exceedingly important when dealing with Muslim regimes and organizations. Our way of handling political disagreement goes through diplomatic dialogue, and calls on Muslim leaders to use compassion, compromise and common sense. This peaceful approach is seen by Muslims as an expression of weakness and lack of courage. Thus avoiding the risks of a real fight is seen by them as weakness; when experienced in Muslim culture, it is an invitation to exploitation.
...
The locus of control is central to our understanding of problems and their solutions. If we are raised in a culture where we learn that "…I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul," as William Ernest Henley wrote in his famous poem Invictus in 1875; we will, in case of personal problems, look at ourselves and ask: "…What did I do wrong?" and "…What can I do to change the situation?" People who have been taught throughout their entire lives that outer rules and traditions are more important than individual freedom and self reflection, will ask: "Who did this to me?" and "Who has to do something for me?"
An interesting piece of work.
The Soviet Union nearly lost the war in 1941 and suffered from poor planning, according to Marshal Georgy Zhukov in the frank television interview that has been banned since it was recorded in 1966.
Zhukov, the most decorated general in the history of both Russia and the Soviet Union, admitted that Soviet generals were not confident that they could hold the German forces at the Mozhaisk defence line outside Moscow.
...
After arriving at the front, Zhukov found that the defences in place were "absolutely insufficient".
"It was an extremely dangerous situation. In essence, all the approaches to Moscow were open," he said. "Our troops on the Mozhaisk defence line could not have stopped the enemy if he moved on Moscow."
"I telephoned Stalin. I said the most urgent thing is to occupy the Mozhaisk defence line as in parts of the Western front in essence there are no (Soviet) troops.
Shortly afterwards, Stalin phoned Zhukov back to inform him he had been made commander of the Western Front.
The article says this interview was ordered destroyed, but one copy was missed- or hidden- in an archive.
You are a contemptible lot, over yonder. Some of you are Commissioners, and some Lieutenant-Governors, and some have the V. C., and a few are privileged to walk about the Mall arm in arm with the Viceroy; but I have seen Mark Twain this golden morning, have shaken his hand, and smoked a cigar— no, two cigars— with him, and talked with him for more than two hours! Understand clearly that I do not despise you; indeed, I don’t. I am only very sorry for you, from the Viceroy downward. To soothe your envy and to prove that I still regard you as my equals, I will tell you all about it.
From an interview of Twain by Rudyard Kipling.
Remember those new scanners, that we're not supposed to be bothered by? Nothing too intrusive of privacy or modesty or anything? Great Big Fail. Combined with an idiot-level TSA supervisor, and other TSA versions of a retarded Officer Fife. Which caused Tam to point us to this marvelous piece of work on the subject, from which I will ste- borrow a bit:
There is so much fail expressed there by Willard Shepard and Brian Hamacher that it makes me want to punch kittens and swear at boobies. “Oh, gosh, it sure is funny that these bumbling fucksticks who can’t even make it through THEIR OWN FUCKING TRAINING with any sort of professionalism, dignity, or impulse control suitable to avoid going to jail will be looking at the genitals of everybody trying to get on an airplane! That’s right comedic right there!”
You really should read it all.
And now, I think I shall, first, go out and play with the dogs, and then load some .45 ammo to replace what I shot up today.
Unexpected result at the range
Being sick of the news, and it being a good morning, I hied myself off to the Place of Happy Loud Noises to make holes in some targets. Mostly general practice, but while there wanted to try something.
Remember the Aguila Super Sniper Subsonic .22 ammo? If you're not familiar with it, it's a short .22 case holding a long 60-grain bullet loaded to subsonic velocity. It's a very 'iffy' ammo with most guns; the rifling pitch of a lot of barrels will not stabilize that long a projectile, and accuracy sucks. Some shoot it quite well; the only way to find out is to try it. The first 15-22 wouldn't shoot it well, so wanted to try it in this one. Results:
The top-left diamond is that ammo. Top-right is Federal Champion, bottom-left Champion, bottom-right some old Remington Golden Bullet. The Federal has shot well in almost everything I've ever tried it in; the exception is some .22 pistols, just not quite enough power to cycle the action. The newer Remington GB won't work worth a damn in this 15-22(just fine in everything else, including the conversion for my .45), but this older stuff did. I was really surprised at that group from the Aguila; that's eleven rounds at thirty yards. Not the most steady of rests*; next time I can get to the outdoor range with a bench and rests I'll see what it does at 50 yards. I've read of some guns giving very tight groups at 25, then opening up a lot at 50; we'll see how this one does.
*I was trying a lot harder on this one to keep everything right, which may explain the wider groups with the Federal. The tall rings really help with the scope on this rifle.
Remember the Aguila Super Sniper Subsonic .22 ammo? If you're not familiar with it, it's a short .22 case holding a long 60-grain bullet loaded to subsonic velocity. It's a very 'iffy' ammo with most guns; the rifling pitch of a lot of barrels will not stabilize that long a projectile, and accuracy sucks. Some shoot it quite well; the only way to find out is to try it. The first 15-22 wouldn't shoot it well, so wanted to try it in this one. Results:
The top-left diamond is that ammo. Top-right is Federal Champion, bottom-left Champion, bottom-right some old Remington Golden Bullet. The Federal has shot well in almost everything I've ever tried it in; the exception is some .22 pistols, just not quite enough power to cycle the action. The newer Remington GB won't work worth a damn in this 15-22(just fine in everything else, including the conversion for my .45), but this older stuff did. I was really surprised at that group from the Aguila; that's eleven rounds at thirty yards. Not the most steady of rests*; next time I can get to the outdoor range with a bench and rests I'll see what it does at 50 yards. I've read of some guns giving very tight groups at 25, then opening up a lot at 50; we'll see how this one does.*I was trying a lot harder on this one to keep everything right, which may explain the wider groups with the Federal. The tall rings really help with the scope on this rifle.
BobG brought up another Will Rogers saying:
"Stupidity got us into this mess, then why can't it get us out?"
Unfortunately, as this Mr. Rogers was very aware, stupidity generally doesn't work in GOOD directions.
He also found one hell of a reason to stay out of the water in some places.
Unfortunately, as this Mr. Rogers was very aware, stupidity generally doesn't work in GOOD directions.
He also found one hell of a reason to stay out of the water in some places.
There've been thoughts about sabotage of the oil platform mentioned,
but this is the first I'd heard of this theory.
Suspicions that the Gulf of Mexico oil spill was a deliberate act gained strength with news that North Korea may have played a role in it. Reports that North Korea torpedoed the Deepwater Horizon oil rig by many outlets include reports of a government-ordered a news blackout concerning details. If the oil disaster was caused by an intentional act, the dispatch of SWAT teams to the Gulf by the Obama regime makes sense.
Well, not really; if you suspected the Norks of using minisubs or something to attack a platform, what's a SWAT team going to do? On the other hand, if you suspected someone in a small boat, there you might have a chance at stopping something. IF you had some idea which rigs they might target, etc.
Suspicions that the Gulf of Mexico oil spill was a deliberate act gained strength with news that North Korea may have played a role in it. Reports that North Korea torpedoed the Deepwater Horizon oil rig by many outlets include reports of a government-ordered a news blackout concerning details. If the oil disaster was caused by an intentional act, the dispatch of SWAT teams to the Gulf by the Obama regime makes sense.
Well, not really; if you suspected the Norks of using minisubs or something to attack a platform, what's a SWAT team going to do? On the other hand, if you suspected someone in a small boat, there you might have a chance at stopping something. IF you had some idea which rigs they might target, etc.
Combination here: Idiots With Badges and Journalists Without Conscience
[W]hat hasn’t been apparent until now is how news coverage of this story fundamentally changed the investigation. Law enforcement officials usually say they can't talk to reporters about an ongoing investigation, but there were leaks in this case from the beginning — partly because of the dynamic between two powerful law enforcement forces in New York City....
Details about the Times Square investigation were all over the local newspapers, even as authorities were still trying to puzzle out who was responsible. Any element of surprise that law enforcement might have had was evaporating. To be fair, law enforcement was partly to blame. In many cases, it was the source of the information and leaks. But there seemed to be an extra level of frustration about the leaks in this case. As one law enforcement official told NPR, "Our operational plans were being driven by the media, instead of the other way around. And that's not good."
...
On Monday afternoon, basically a day-and-a-half after the attack, a news organization reported that law enforcement officials were looking for an American citizen of Pakistani descent from Shelton, Conn. (NPR also had the information but didn't report it out of concern that it would affect the investigation before Shahzad's arrest.) Shahzad mentioned that news report after he was in police custody, according to two law enforcement officials familiar with the case. He told the arresting officers that the moment he read it was the moment he knew it was only a matter of time before authorities would close in on him. He also assumed from the report that he was under surveillance. That's an important detail, because surveillance is only effective if people don't know they are being watched. "It was like watching an episode of 24 in real time," a law enforcement official said. The only problem was that Shahzad was able to watch it, too.
...
Then it got worse: Reporters started showing up at Shahzad's house in Shelton, waiting for the arrest to happen. Shahzad was actually up the road at a ramshackle apartment he had rented in Bridgeport. That's where officers were watching him — but apparently that also was leaked. A TV reporter showed up there and waited.
So. Idiots leaking to the media, and idiots in media publishing crap they shouldn't. I wonder if it occurred to either of these idiot groups that with the guy being given damn-near real time information on the investigation he could have set an ambush? Or did they think of it, and it didn't matter to the bastards?
As Insty says, "The country is in the best of hands..."
Details about the Times Square investigation were all over the local newspapers, even as authorities were still trying to puzzle out who was responsible. Any element of surprise that law enforcement might have had was evaporating. To be fair, law enforcement was partly to blame. In many cases, it was the source of the information and leaks. But there seemed to be an extra level of frustration about the leaks in this case. As one law enforcement official told NPR, "Our operational plans were being driven by the media, instead of the other way around. And that's not good."
...
On Monday afternoon, basically a day-and-a-half after the attack, a news organization reported that law enforcement officials were looking for an American citizen of Pakistani descent from Shelton, Conn. (NPR also had the information but didn't report it out of concern that it would affect the investigation before Shahzad's arrest.) Shahzad mentioned that news report after he was in police custody, according to two law enforcement officials familiar with the case. He told the arresting officers that the moment he read it was the moment he knew it was only a matter of time before authorities would close in on him. He also assumed from the report that he was under surveillance. That's an important detail, because surveillance is only effective if people don't know they are being watched. "It was like watching an episode of 24 in real time," a law enforcement official said. The only problem was that Shahzad was able to watch it, too.
...
Then it got worse: Reporters started showing up at Shahzad's house in Shelton, waiting for the arrest to happen. Shahzad was actually up the road at a ramshackle apartment he had rented in Bridgeport. That's where officers were watching him — but apparently that also was leaked. A TV reporter showed up there and waited.
So. Idiots leaking to the media, and idiots in media publishing crap they shouldn't. I wonder if it occurred to either of these idiot groups that with the guy being given damn-near real time information on the investigation he could have set an ambush? Or did they think of it, and it didn't matter to the bastards?
As Insty says, "The country is in the best of hands..."
Hung Parliament, hung Congress...
if only it were literal.
This from Keith in comments the other day:
It is difficult to see how this is going to resolve itself in a good way. I don't think any of them want to tackle the overgrown state sector, and they'll be as unpopular as hell for taxing fuck out of everyone to preserve it.
A coalition of the 3 major parties could share the blame for reform, but the state sector is such a juicy source of captive votes, I don't see any appetite for destroying it, from any of them.
Same problem with unions over here; a lot of politicians understand just what the problem is, but they'd rather let it continue to fester than deal with "The union won't push members to vote for me if I try to fix this."
Because, all too often, the politicians care more about keeping their fat ass in that office than about that 'public service' stuff they're supposed to be there for.
This from Keith in comments the other day:
It is difficult to see how this is going to resolve itself in a good way. I don't think any of them want to tackle the overgrown state sector, and they'll be as unpopular as hell for taxing fuck out of everyone to preserve it.
A coalition of the 3 major parties could share the blame for reform, but the state sector is such a juicy source of captive votes, I don't see any appetite for destroying it, from any of them.
Same problem with unions over here; a lot of politicians understand just what the problem is, but they'd rather let it continue to fester than deal with "The union won't push members to vote for me if I try to fix this."
Because, all too often, the politicians care more about keeping their fat ass in that office than about that 'public service' stuff they're supposed to be there for.
Thursday, May 06, 2010
Well well, Gordon Brown(Socialist Bastard) just got his ass kicked
in fine fashion. Along with, from the sound of it, most of the god-cursed communistsLabour Party
La Raza is nothing but a bunch of racists who the terminally
politically correct won't talk about.
...legendary homeland of the Aztecas... my ass; it's a nice convenient piece of bullshit 'legend' they're using to make a claim on territory the Aztecs, murdering little shits they were, never got near.
If the little racists really wanted to help the Mexican people, they'd be down in Mexico doing something about the cartels and the corruption.
...legendary homeland of the Aztecas... my ass; it's a nice convenient piece of bullshit 'legend' they're using to make a claim on territory the Aztecs, murdering little shits they were, never got near.
If the little racists really wanted to help the Mexican people, they'd be down in Mexico doing something about the cartels and the corruption.
Today was one of those days it was proving that
that 'wind sweeping down the plain' line is serious. Being out in that sucks moisture out of you, and does just about the same for energy. Got a lot done, but pretty much worn down.
Which doesn't prevent this from being very good news:
Navy SEAL Officer 2nd Class Matthew McCabe was found not guilty Thursday evening on charges of assaulting detained terrorist Ahmed Hashim Abed, dereliction of duty, and impeding an investigation based on a false statement.A seven member military jury deliberated for an hour and forty minutes before reaching a verdict. For a verdict to be reached, two-thirds of the jury had to agree on each charge.
This case was bullshit from the beginning, and I'll borrow this from Insty on the matter:
“Pretty amazing that they brought this to trial with little more than Demartino and a jihadi attesting that it happened, but then the point here was always political. They wanted to show that they take detainee abuse seriously and were hoping the accused would accept some sort of deal. No dice. How’d that work out for them?” They were betting on Navy SEALs wimping out. How smart was that? And now we know to regard future charges with skepticism.
We know about the problem of innocent people being screwed over by a prosecutor wanting to burnish their image, or suck up to a politician; this is the other side of the problem caused, we know to regard future charges with skepticism. Any time a prosecutor brings such a case, everyone is going to remember this bullshit, which means even if there were a real case to be brought, every damn word will be doubted.
Speaking of dealing with terrorists, take a look at this: possible use of a military SIGINT aircraft to track the terrorist. All kinds of possible fallout from this.
Which doesn't prevent this from being very good news:
Navy SEAL Officer 2nd Class Matthew McCabe was found not guilty Thursday evening on charges of assaulting detained terrorist Ahmed Hashim Abed, dereliction of duty, and impeding an investigation based on a false statement.A seven member military jury deliberated for an hour and forty minutes before reaching a verdict. For a verdict to be reached, two-thirds of the jury had to agree on each charge.
This case was bullshit from the beginning, and I'll borrow this from Insty on the matter:
“Pretty amazing that they brought this to trial with little more than Demartino and a jihadi attesting that it happened, but then the point here was always political. They wanted to show that they take detainee abuse seriously and were hoping the accused would accept some sort of deal. No dice. How’d that work out for them?” They were betting on Navy SEALs wimping out. How smart was that? And now we know to regard future charges with skepticism.
We know about the problem of innocent people being screwed over by a prosecutor wanting to burnish their image, or suck up to a politician; this is the other side of the problem caused, we know to regard future charges with skepticism. Any time a prosecutor brings such a case, everyone is going to remember this bullshit, which means even if there were a real case to be brought, every damn word will be doubted.
Speaking of dealing with terrorists, take a look at this: possible use of a military SIGINT aircraft to track the terrorist. All kinds of possible fallout from this.
Right now, a bunch of birds in the holly tree outside the window
are making enough noise to almost hurt your ears about something.
And did you know that a bunch of them deciding to hop around on the carport, when it's cloudy, can make you think it started hailing?
And did you know that a bunch of them deciding to hop around on the carport, when it's cloudy, can make you think it started hailing?
Apparently the prosecutors don't care about really pissing off this judge
to wait until five minutes before the deadline to file an appeal. And this really craps on the government's case:
But at two days of bond appeal hearings and in her order, Roberts expressed doubts about the weight of the government's evidence against the members of the militia based in Lenawee County.
She also described the government's motion seeking a stay of her bond order as "woefully inadequate."
It's not known when Roberts will rule on the government's stay request -- filed just minutes before a 5 p.m. Wednesday deadline -- but the soonest anyone will be released is Thursday.
From the AP article:
A federal judge late Wednesday denied a government request for a stay and ordered all nine Hutaree militia defendants released on bond.
"The government simply failed to establish, by clear and convincing evidence, that the seriousness of the charges ... is sufficient for the court to conclude that there were no conditions that will reasonably assure the safety of the community," U.S. District Judge Victoria A. Roberts said in an order.
THAT'S gotta sting. And it makes this look more like a case of "Make noisy arrests with lots of raids on MILITIA PEOPLE PLANNING ATTACKS!!!, because we can use the publicity and it'll make militias and tea party people look bad."
ARE these people dangerous? WERE they actually planning attacks? Right now, we don't know; what has come out so far is looking more and more like bullshit.
But at two days of bond appeal hearings and in her order, Roberts expressed doubts about the weight of the government's evidence against the members of the militia based in Lenawee County.
She also described the government's motion seeking a stay of her bond order as "woefully inadequate."
It's not known when Roberts will rule on the government's stay request -- filed just minutes before a 5 p.m. Wednesday deadline -- but the soonest anyone will be released is Thursday.
From the AP article:
A federal judge late Wednesday denied a government request for a stay and ordered all nine Hutaree militia defendants released on bond.
"The government simply failed to establish, by clear and convincing evidence, that the seriousness of the charges ... is sufficient for the court to conclude that there were no conditions that will reasonably assure the safety of the community," U.S. District Judge Victoria A. Roberts said in an order.
THAT'S gotta sting. And it makes this look more like a case of "Make noisy arrests with lots of raids on MILITIA PEOPLE PLANNING ATTACKS!!!, because we can use the publicity and it'll make militias and tea party people look bad."
ARE these people dangerous? WERE they actually planning attacks? Right now, we don't know; what has come out so far is looking more and more like bullshit.
In some circumstances I might say "Shame on you for wasting ammo;
nine rounds to get the first one!", but considering a range of about 1600 meters, which works out to about 1750 yards...
A British Army sharp shooter has told how he killed five Taliban soldiers in 28 seconds - in a desperate bid to protect a British patrol that the insurgents were preparing to ambush.
L115A3 in .338 Lapua again, in the hands of a rifleman.
A British Army sharp shooter has told how he killed five Taliban soldiers in 28 seconds - in a desperate bid to protect a British patrol that the insurgents were preparing to ambush.
L115A3 in .338 Lapua again, in the hands of a rifleman.
I think the line I once read was "Nature doesn't care that you're human,
just that you're protein."
An American studying at Sotheby's Art Institute in London has been killed in a crocodile attack in India.
As I recall, parts of the Sunderbans are considered are the worst area in the world for tiger attacks; and crocodiles still take a LOT of people in Africa, Asia and Australia every year. Not to mention lions and leopards and such.
An American studying at Sotheby's Art Institute in London has been killed in a crocodile attack in India.
As I recall, parts of the Sunderbans are considered are the worst area in the world for tiger attacks; and crocodiles still take a LOT of people in Africa, Asia and Australia every year. Not to mention lions and leopards and such.
Let's see, the media and leftists yell about violence from the tea parties
that never happened, and ignore actual violence from leftists. And who's doing this
and murdering people in a bank in Greece? Unions and leftists. They don't like the idea of the government acknowledging that the country cannot afford the crap they've been doing for years; they'd rather the country just keep going deeper into the hole.
and murdering people in a bank in Greece? Unions and leftists. They don't like the idea of the government acknowledging that the country cannot afford the crap they've been doing for years; they'd rather the country just keep going deeper into the hole.
So in an American school, wearing a shirt with an American flag
'could be incendiary', but
More than 100 students were spotted wearing red, white and green as they were leaving school. Some had the Mexican flag painted on their faces or on their arms.
isn't a problem.
The Morgan Hill Unified School District issued this statement: "In an attempt to foster a spirit of cultural awareness and maintain a safe and supportive school environment, the Live Oak High School administration took certain actions earlier today. The district does not concur with the Live Oak High School administration's interpretation of either board or district policy related to these actions."
Just effing wonderful, the 'cultural awareness' crap, isn't it?
... Rodriguez did not want any fights to break out among Mexican-American students and those wearing American flags.
Apparently a lot of the little bastards are more interested in being Mexican than American.
More than 100 students were spotted wearing red, white and green as they were leaving school. Some had the Mexican flag painted on their faces or on their arms.
isn't a problem.
The Morgan Hill Unified School District issued this statement: "In an attempt to foster a spirit of cultural awareness and maintain a safe and supportive school environment, the Live Oak High School administration took certain actions earlier today. The district does not concur with the Live Oak High School administration's interpretation of either board or district policy related to these actions."
Just effing wonderful, the 'cultural awareness' crap, isn't it?
... Rodriguez did not want any fights to break out among Mexican-American students and those wearing American flags.
Apparently a lot of the little bastards are more interested in being Mexican than American.
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Dicken Elementary School Principal Mike Madison, a politically-correct racist
An Ann Arbor elementary school principal used a letter home to parents tonight to defend a field trip for black students as part of his school’s efforts to close the achievement gap between white and black students.White students not allowed! This isn't even separate but equal, it is rather separate and unequal by design! And the principle of the elementary school is defending this by pointing out the benefit to the black students that got to go:
Dicken Elementary School Principal Mike Madison wrote the letter to parents following several days of controversy at the school after a field trip last week in which black students got to hear a rocket scientist.
“In hindsight, this field trip could have been approached and arranged in a better way," Madison wrote. "But as I reflect upon the look of excitement, enthusiasm and energy that I saw in these children’s eyes as they stood in the presence of a renowned African American rocket scientist in a very successful position, it gave the kids an opportunity to see this type of achievement is possible for even them.Thus begs a question: would the white children have not gotten the same benefit from attending that event? Would Principal Madison not have seen "excitement, enthusiasm and energy" in the white students eyes as well?
“It was not a wasted venture for I know one day they might want to aspire to be the first astronaut or scientist standing on the Planet Mars.
You want to know what a wonderful place this is?
A handful of parents have complained to district administrators about the trip, the group and Madison. More than a half-dozen parents contacted AnnArbor.com to raise the complaints, but none would agree to talk on the record, citing concerns of reprisals to their children by Madison.
Politically-correct racism: it's what's in schools in Ann Arbor!
But at least they got to wear their ninja suits
and break down doors and shoot a couple of dogs, right?
Gee, I wonder if these two things
might be related?
The Interior Department exempted BP's calamitous Gulf of Mexico drilling operation from a detailed environmental impact analysis last year, according to government documents, after three reviews of the area concluded that a massive oil spill was unlikely.
The decision by the department's Minerals Management Service (MMS) to give BP's lease at Deepwater Horizon a "categorical exclusion" from the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) on April 6, 2009 -- and BP's lobbying efforts just 11 days before the explosion to expand those exemptions -- show that neither federal regulators nor the company anticipated an accident of the scale of the one unfolding in the gulf.
Followed by
While the BP oil geyser pumps millions of gallons of petroleum into the Gulf of Mexico, President Barack Obama and members of Congress may have to answer for the millions in campaign contributions they’ve taken from the oil and gas giant over the years.
BP and its employees have given more than $3.5 million to federal candidates over the past 20 years, with the largest chunk of their money going to Obama, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Donations come from a mix of employees and the company’s political action committees — $2.89 million flowed to campaigns from BP-related PACs and about $638,000 came from individuals.
On top of that, the oil giant has spent millions each year on lobbying — including $15.9 million last year alone — as it has tried to influence energy policy.
Minerals Management, where did I read that before... Oh yeah:
The MMS(Minerals Management Service) is a bureau of the Department of the Interior. President Obama appointed Ken Salazar as DOI Secretary. Attorney Liz Birnbaum is Obama’s Director of the MMS and her Deputy Director is also an attorney, Mary Katherine Ishee. The head of the offshore energy division is a lawyer and political scientist.
Connections, connections...
The Interior Department exempted BP's calamitous Gulf of Mexico drilling operation from a detailed environmental impact analysis last year, according to government documents, after three reviews of the area concluded that a massive oil spill was unlikely.
The decision by the department's Minerals Management Service (MMS) to give BP's lease at Deepwater Horizon a "categorical exclusion" from the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) on April 6, 2009 -- and BP's lobbying efforts just 11 days before the explosion to expand those exemptions -- show that neither federal regulators nor the company anticipated an accident of the scale of the one unfolding in the gulf.
Followed by
While the BP oil geyser pumps millions of gallons of petroleum into the Gulf of Mexico, President Barack Obama and members of Congress may have to answer for the millions in campaign contributions they’ve taken from the oil and gas giant over the years.
BP and its employees have given more than $3.5 million to federal candidates over the past 20 years, with the largest chunk of their money going to Obama, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Donations come from a mix of employees and the company’s political action committees — $2.89 million flowed to campaigns from BP-related PACs and about $638,000 came from individuals.
On top of that, the oil giant has spent millions each year on lobbying — including $15.9 million last year alone — as it has tried to influence energy policy.
Minerals Management, where did I read that before... Oh yeah:
The MMS(Minerals Management Service) is a bureau of the Department of the Interior. President Obama appointed Ken Salazar as DOI Secretary. Attorney Liz Birnbaum is Obama’s Director of the MMS and her Deputy Director is also an attorney, Mary Katherine Ishee. The head of the offshore energy division is a lawyer and political scientist.
Connections, connections...
Civil rights? Bloomberg and Lautenberg only consider those important
if they're rights they approve of; otherwise, screw you:
Being spectacularly wrong in his suspicion that the attempted Times Square SUV bomb was the work of Americans mad about the health care bill, New York Mayor and anti-gun (unless they're held by his taxpayer-funded bodyguards) zealot Michael R. Bloomberg will continue his personal vendetta against domestic freedom today on Capitol Hill. Per The Huffington Post (but curiously, not too many other media sources—it's almost like they're trying to keep awareness low key):
Amazing is right. He wants a fundamental right denied to people who have neither been charged with, tried nor convicted of any crime. And when is this pathological control freak not upset?...
Here's some summary analysis, from Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership:
So not only can't someone purchase guns and ammo, they can't possess them? What will they do if they know you already own some?
But, hey, there's legal recourse if you feel you've been wronged (and why would nayone denied a basic right without benefit of due process feel that?). Thing is, and this is key:
At least the Salem witches got a trial, could face their accusers, and hear all the "evidence" against them. And while there is a provision for "ex parte and in camera" review (by the court—the defense isn't specified) "[t]he court shall not consider the full, undisclosed documents in deciding whether the Attorney General’s determination satisfies the requirements of section 922A or 922B."
So you can be put on the 'terrorist watch list' or the 'no-fly list' with no notice, with no evidence, AND from what I've read it's damn near impossible to find out if you're on it OR get yourself taken off it if you do find out, and based on that you should be banned from owning firearms...
Yeah, this would make Nanny Bloomberg and Dirtbag Lautenberg and 'Shroud' McCarthy wet their collective pants.
Being spectacularly wrong in his suspicion that the attempted Times Square SUV bomb was the work of Americans mad about the health care bill, New York Mayor and anti-gun (unless they're held by his taxpayer-funded bodyguards) zealot Michael R. Bloomberg will continue his personal vendetta against domestic freedom today on Capitol Hill. Per The Huffington Post (but curiously, not too many other media sources—it's almost like they're trying to keep awareness low key):
Bloomberg is upset about a federal loophole that, amazingly enough, allows people on the FBI's Terrorist Watchlist to legally buy guns and explosives.
Amazing is right. He wants a fundamental right denied to people who have neither been charged with, tried nor convicted of any crime. And when is this pathological control freak not upset?...
Here's some summary analysis, from Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership:
In general, this bill would amend the Gun Control Act (GCA) to grant the Attorney General the discretionary authority to deny a firearm transfer or state-issued firearms permit to any prospective transferee or permittee through Brady background checks...
The bill would also amend the GCA provision (18 U.S.C. § 922(g)) that enumerates several classes of persons who are prohibited from shipping, transporting, possessing, or receiving a firearm or ammunition...
So not only can't someone purchase guns and ammo, they can't possess them? What will they do if they know you already own some?
But, hey, there's legal recourse if you feel you've been wronged (and why would nayone denied a basic right without benefit of due process feel that?). Thing is, and this is key:
The proposed amendment would also allow the court to rely upon summaries or redacted versions of documents underlying those determinations, if those documents contained information that could compromise national security...
At least the Salem witches got a trial, could face their accusers, and hear all the "evidence" against them. And while there is a provision for "ex parte and in camera" review (by the court—the defense isn't specified) "[t]he court shall not consider the full, undisclosed documents in deciding whether the Attorney General’s determination satisfies the requirements of section 922A or 922B."
So you can be put on the 'terrorist watch list' or the 'no-fly list' with no notice, with no evidence, AND from what I've read it's damn near impossible to find out if you're on it OR get yourself taken off it if you do find out, and based on that you should be banned from owning firearms...
Yeah, this would make Nanny Bloomberg and Dirtbag Lautenberg and 'Shroud' McCarthy wet their collective pants.
Ok, this brings me from 'some admiration for' to
God-damn Tony Blair, and every other chickenshit miserable little politician and bureaucrat involved in this.
Mrs Hardy is the victim of draconian changes introduced in 2004 by the Labour Government under Tony Blair - the man responsible for waging three wars in six years in Iraq, Kosovo and Afghanistan.
These changes were not put before Parliament, as they were secondary legislation. Only now - six years later - is the MOD updating leaflets to warn Armed Forces pensioners about its powers to claw back widow's pensions.
...
The rule changes gave the MOD powers to claw back pensions they had promised years ago. Crucially, it was decided benefits were only given if there was proof that the death was caused or hastened by their service.
Previously, benefits were paid unless it could be proved that a condition or death was not caused by their service.
The stricter rules gave the MOD new powers to overturn decisions after the death of the veteran. So even if they'd got attributable benefits before their death, the MOD can reassess the case. Instead of getting 90% of their husband's pension, widows got just half. Confronted with the MOD, widows were powerless to challenge decisions.
And the MOD, in a further display of chickenshit,
Crucially, the MOD failed to update leaflets to tell veterans such as Mr Hardy that these attributable pensions could be taken away from their spouse when they die.
There's just not any really good way to describe what kind of slime these people are.
Mrs Hardy is the victim of draconian changes introduced in 2004 by the Labour Government under Tony Blair - the man responsible for waging three wars in six years in Iraq, Kosovo and Afghanistan.
These changes were not put before Parliament, as they were secondary legislation. Only now - six years later - is the MOD updating leaflets to warn Armed Forces pensioners about its powers to claw back widow's pensions.
...
The rule changes gave the MOD powers to claw back pensions they had promised years ago. Crucially, it was decided benefits were only given if there was proof that the death was caused or hastened by their service.
Previously, benefits were paid unless it could be proved that a condition or death was not caused by their service.
The stricter rules gave the MOD new powers to overturn decisions after the death of the veteran. So even if they'd got attributable benefits before their death, the MOD can reassess the case. Instead of getting 90% of their husband's pension, widows got just half. Confronted with the MOD, widows were powerless to challenge decisions.
And the MOD, in a further display of chickenshit,
Crucially, the MOD failed to update leaflets to tell veterans such as Mr Hardy that these attributable pensions could be taken away from their spouse when they die.
There's just not any really good way to describe what kind of slime these people are.
Oh, this is just a WONDERFUL way to start the morning
After identifying Shahzad through the previous owner of the SUV, investigators had him under surveillance when he nearly slipped away.
Authorities initially planned to arrest him at his Connecticut home but lost track of him, two people familiar with the probe told The Associated Press. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to talk publicly about the breach in surveillance.
NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly played down the slip on the morning TV talk shows Wednesday, telling ABC’s “Good Morning America” that “it’s not unusual in an investigation” to briefly lose track of the target.
Emirates airlines also didn’t initially notice when Shahzad purchased a ticket that he had been placed on the government’s no-fly list, according to a law enforcement official.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano credited customs officials with recognizing Shahzad’s name on a passenger manifest and stopping the flight. Agents apprehended him on the plane.
NATO commanders are weighing a new way to reduce civilian casualties in Afghanistan: recognizing soldiers for “courageous restraint” if they avoid using force that could endanger innocent lives.
The concept comes as the coalition continues to struggle with the problem of civilian casualties despite repeated warnings from the top NATO commander, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, that the war effort hinges on the ability to protect the population and win support away from the Taliban.
Those who back the idea hope it will provide soldiers with another incentive to think twice before calling in an airstrike or firing at an approaching vehicle if civilians could be at risk.
I wonder, will they have awards for the dead and wounded who died or were wounded because they didn't fire when they should have, or didn't get fire support when needed, because everyone was playing "Let's obey all the rules" while the bad guys were using some innocent as a shield?
I very much understand "We don't want to kill civilians"; I also understand that if you push it to the extreme it seems to have gone to, we lose more troops because the enemy uses that against us.
Authorities initially planned to arrest him at his Connecticut home but lost track of him, two people familiar with the probe told The Associated Press. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to talk publicly about the breach in surveillance.
NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly played down the slip on the morning TV talk shows Wednesday, telling ABC’s “Good Morning America” that “it’s not unusual in an investigation” to briefly lose track of the target.
Emirates airlines also didn’t initially notice when Shahzad purchased a ticket that he had been placed on the government’s no-fly list, according to a law enforcement official.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano credited customs officials with recognizing Shahzad’s name on a passenger manifest and stopping the flight. Agents apprehended him on the plane.
NATO commanders are weighing a new way to reduce civilian casualties in Afghanistan: recognizing soldiers for “courageous restraint” if they avoid using force that could endanger innocent lives.
The concept comes as the coalition continues to struggle with the problem of civilian casualties despite repeated warnings from the top NATO commander, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, that the war effort hinges on the ability to protect the population and win support away from the Taliban.
Those who back the idea hope it will provide soldiers with another incentive to think twice before calling in an airstrike or firing at an approaching vehicle if civilians could be at risk.
I wonder, will they have awards for the dead and wounded who died or were wounded because they didn't fire when they should have, or didn't get fire support when needed, because everyone was playing "Let's obey all the rules" while the bad guys were using some innocent as a shield?
I very much understand "We don't want to kill civilians"; I also understand that if you push it to the extreme it seems to have gone to, we lose more troops because the enemy uses that against us.
I wonder at what point the RWPP dirtbags like Sharpton
will realize just how much they're pissing a lot of people off by calling them racists, AND how much they're pissing off a lot of blacks by calling them 'not genuine' or 'not black enough' because they don't toe the RWPP line?
Next time someone starts the "Only cops should have guns" crap,
point them to this.
Two civilians were killed and four others wounded in the shootings on September 4, 2005, six days after Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast.
In the first shooting, on the east side of the bridge, one person, later identified as James Brissette, 19, was killed and four people were wounded, prosecutors said.
In another shooting on the bridge's west side, Ronald Madison, 40, a severely disabled man, was killed. Madison's brother was arrested but later released without being charged, authorities said.
Barrios admitted in court that he met with officers after the shooting to get their stories straight, prosecutors said. He also admitted that he lied when he told investigators that he had seen civilians with handguns.
"In the days following Hurricane Katrina, the people of New Orleans were relying upon law enforcement to protect public safety. Instead, the officers involved in this incident and its cover-up abused their power and violated the public trust," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General in Charge of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.
Well, hell, they were just following in the footsteps of Mayor Schoolbus Nagin and Supt. Compass... coverups seem the standard process in NO.
Two civilians were killed and four others wounded in the shootings on September 4, 2005, six days after Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast.
In the first shooting, on the east side of the bridge, one person, later identified as James Brissette, 19, was killed and four people were wounded, prosecutors said.
In another shooting on the bridge's west side, Ronald Madison, 40, a severely disabled man, was killed. Madison's brother was arrested but later released without being charged, authorities said.
Barrios admitted in court that he met with officers after the shooting to get their stories straight, prosecutors said. He also admitted that he lied when he told investigators that he had seen civilians with handguns.
"In the days following Hurricane Katrina, the people of New Orleans were relying upon law enforcement to protect public safety. Instead, the officers involved in this incident and its cover-up abused their power and violated the public trust," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General in Charge of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.
Well, hell, they were just following in the footsteps of Mayor Schoolbus Nagin and Supt. Compass... coverups seem the standard process in NO.
Tuesday, May 04, 2010
I've known gunsmiths who felt like saying this
I cannot remember where I read about it, but one gunsmith said a guy came in the front door with
A: A box in his hands,
B: A seriously pissed-off expression,
C: A guy following him with a very sad look.
Guy put the box on the counter and said "This needs to be put back together." Then reached back, grabbed the other guy by the shirt and yanked him up to the counter and added "My brother-in-law will be paying the bill."
By the way, don't forget that Soldier's Angels
is out there supporting the troops. And with summer coming on, there's stuff they'll need.
Tam had a post the other day about preparation, short version
"If you're ready for the zombies, a broken water line shouldn't be a big problem." Which reminded me of something Insty pointed to a couple of years back, and I finally found it: information on storing water.
Short version: bleach. Non- colored, non-scented, no soap, just bleach. They say 5.25% sodium hypochlorite, but most of the stuff I find is 6%, which seems to work just fine.
And this time of year, I think about it; tornados or windstorms or hail or a downburst can just ruin the day for electrically-driven stuff for a few days.
Short version: bleach. Non- colored, non-scented, no soap, just bleach. They say 5.25% sodium hypochlorite, but most of the stuff I find is 6%, which seems to work just fine.
And this time of year, I think about it; tornados or windstorms or hail or a downburst can just ruin the day for electrically-driven stuff for a few days.
Oh, for God's sake, this bloody plan has been around for years
and the feds never bothered to buy any of the damn things?
If U.S. officials had followed up on a 1994 response plan for a major Gulf oil spill, it is possible that the spill could have been kept under control and far from land.
The problem: The federal government did not have a single fire boom on hand.
The “In-Situ Burn” plan produced by federal agencies in 1994 calls for responding to a major oil spill in the Gulf with the immediate use of fire booms.
But in order to conduct a successful test burn eight days after the Deepwater Horizon well began releasing massive amounts of oil into the Gulf, officials had to purchase one from a company in Illinois.
When federal officials called, Elastec/American Marine, shipped the only boom it had in stock, Jeff Bohleber, chief financial officer for Elastec, said today.
At federal officials’ behest, the company began calling customers in other countries and asking if the U.S. government could borrow their fire booms for a few days, he said.
A single fire boom being towed by two boats can burn up to 1,800 barrels of oil an hour, Bohleber said. That translates to 75,000 gallons an hour, raising the possibility that the spill could have been contained at the accident scene 100 miles from shore.
“They said this was the tool of last resort. No, this is absolutely the asset of first use. Get in there and start burning oil before the spill gets out of hand,” Bohleber said. “If they had six or seven of these systems in place when this happened and got out there and started burning, it would have significantly lessened the amount of oil that got loose.”
But we're supposed to trust all these bureaucrats and politicians to take care of us?
If U.S. officials had followed up on a 1994 response plan for a major Gulf oil spill, it is possible that the spill could have been kept under control and far from land.
The problem: The federal government did not have a single fire boom on hand.
The “In-Situ Burn” plan produced by federal agencies in 1994 calls for responding to a major oil spill in the Gulf with the immediate use of fire booms.
But in order to conduct a successful test burn eight days after the Deepwater Horizon well began releasing massive amounts of oil into the Gulf, officials had to purchase one from a company in Illinois.
When federal officials called, Elastec/American Marine, shipped the only boom it had in stock, Jeff Bohleber, chief financial officer for Elastec, said today.
At federal officials’ behest, the company began calling customers in other countries and asking if the U.S. government could borrow their fire booms for a few days, he said.
A single fire boom being towed by two boats can burn up to 1,800 barrels of oil an hour, Bohleber said. That translates to 75,000 gallons an hour, raising the possibility that the spill could have been contained at the accident scene 100 miles from shore.
“They said this was the tool of last resort. No, this is absolutely the asset of first use. Get in there and start burning oil before the spill gets out of hand,” Bohleber said. “If they had six or seven of these systems in place when this happened and got out there and started burning, it would have significantly lessened the amount of oil that got loose.”
But we're supposed to trust all these bureaucrats and politicians to take care of us?
Well, hell
The South Koreans are all but saying "The Norks sunk our warship", at the same time Britain's Labor Party is doing everything it can to wreck the British Navy. And the Scouts are- well, go read.
And Sondra found this picture:
We OWE you, you bastards? You'll shoot more cops until you get free WHAT, you miserable little canker on the ass of a diseased baboon? How about a free load of buckshot when you try? 00, very good stuff?
Sooner or later these assclowns are going to blow things up entirely, then scream and moan and bitch when the payback happens.
And Sondra found this picture:
We OWE you, you bastards? You'll shoot more cops until you get free WHAT, you miserable little canker on the ass of a diseased baboon? How about a free load of buckshot when you try? 00, very good stuff?Sooner or later these assclowns are going to blow things up entirely, then scream and moan and bitch when the payback happens.
Not dumping on the cops here, just noting that the
"Police saved the day!" stuff from Obama and Bloomberg is a load of crap.
The contents of the vehicle, a Nissan Pathfinder SUV, included two plastic five-gallon containers of gasoline, three metal propane tanks (the type commonly used for outdoor grills), dry fertilizer in a lock metal gun cabinet described as containing "eight bags (over 100 pounds) of an unknown, fertilizer-like substance and an inverted pot with a "bird's nest" of wires. There were two analog alarm clocks wired to arrangements of M-88 firecrackers. The bomber expected the M-88 firecrackers to go off and puncture the gasoline and propane tanks to spark the explosion. This clearly did not happen. Some of the M-88's ignited, as heard by nearby pedestrians and vendors, but failed to penetrate either the plastic gasoline containers or the propane tanks.
Either through bad design or setup, the bomb DID fire, but we got a squib; the police did what they generally do, clear the area, disarm the remainder and look for clues. Again, I'm not knocking them: I do NOT expect them to be able to magically scan every damn car coming into an area for something suspicious.
Have to wonder, is this general suckup to the cops by the Mayor and President, or playing "See, we can save you from the bad guys even after they set the bomb!" ?
Of course, Nanny Bloomberg is busy first trying to blame the bombing on the tea parties, and then demanding people be nice and show no bias, unlike himself.
The contents of the vehicle, a Nissan Pathfinder SUV, included two plastic five-gallon containers of gasoline, three metal propane tanks (the type commonly used for outdoor grills), dry fertilizer in a lock metal gun cabinet described as containing "eight bags (over 100 pounds) of an unknown, fertilizer-like substance and an inverted pot with a "bird's nest" of wires. There were two analog alarm clocks wired to arrangements of M-88 firecrackers. The bomber expected the M-88 firecrackers to go off and puncture the gasoline and propane tanks to spark the explosion. This clearly did not happen. Some of the M-88's ignited, as heard by nearby pedestrians and vendors, but failed to penetrate either the plastic gasoline containers or the propane tanks.
Either through bad design or setup, the bomb DID fire, but we got a squib; the police did what they generally do, clear the area, disarm the remainder and look for clues. Again, I'm not knocking them: I do NOT expect them to be able to magically scan every damn car coming into an area for something suspicious.
Have to wonder, is this general suckup to the cops by the Mayor and President, or playing "See, we can save you from the bad guys even after they set the bomb!" ?
Of course, Nanny Bloomberg is busy first trying to blame the bombing on the tea parties, and then demanding people be nice and show no bias, unlike himself.
I've got an answer for Steyn
He asks Why do public officials so reflexively dissemble and misdirect every time? In the end, all they're doing is undermining confidence in the integrity of their own institutions. That doesn't seem a smart move.
He's referring to this idiocy:
Bloomberg told Katie Couric he thinks it could have been a domestic terrorist acting alone: “If I had to guess 25 cents, this would be exactly that. Homegrown, or maybe a mentally deranged person, or somebody with a political agenda that doesn’t like the health care bill or something. It could be anything.”
Yeah. Right. Another bomb in NYEffin'C, in front of the building whereCowardlyComedy Central is housed, and of COURSE it's probably somebody mad about Obamacare.
It's because people like Geraldo and Nanny Bloomberg WANT it to be a white guy who doesn't like Obama, or the government, whatever the hell he doesn't like as long as the bomber & Co. is a white guy; a white guy they can call names, they can insult the ancestry of, they can belittle wherever he came from and his family and do it safely: the PC police not only won't be upset about it, they'll cheer it on! Whereas if the bomber & Co. is islamic or some other protected species, they have to be very careful with their words, have to make excuses for them, try not to even mention the real reason they did it(if at all possible, and Fort Hood showed just how far these clowns will go to avoid that).
I'd say that's why, Mr. Steyn; because they're PC-at-any-cost morons. Because they're fools like Geraldo who'd rather see a retired cop who's mad about taxes blamed for something because that doesn't conflict with their PC need to blame Americans, preferably American whites, for everything.
He's referring to this idiocy:
Bloomberg told Katie Couric he thinks it could have been a domestic terrorist acting alone: “If I had to guess 25 cents, this would be exactly that. Homegrown, or maybe a mentally deranged person, or somebody with a political agenda that doesn’t like the health care bill or something. It could be anything.”
Yeah. Right. Another bomb in NYEffin'C, in front of the building where
It's because people like Geraldo and Nanny Bloomberg WANT it to be a white guy who doesn't like Obama, or the government, whatever the hell he doesn't like as long as the bomber & Co. is a white guy; a white guy they can call names, they can insult the ancestry of, they can belittle wherever he came from and his family and do it safely: the PC police not only won't be upset about it, they'll cheer it on! Whereas if the bomber & Co. is islamic or some other protected species, they have to be very careful with their words, have to make excuses for them, try not to even mention the real reason they did it(if at all possible, and Fort Hood showed just how far these clowns will go to avoid that).
I'd say that's why, Mr. Steyn; because they're PC-at-any-cost morons. Because they're fools like Geraldo who'd rather see a retired cop who's mad about taxes blamed for something because that doesn't conflict with their PC need to blame Americans, preferably American whites, for everything.
Monday, May 03, 2010
On the Hutaree group,
A federal judge in Detroit today ordered the release of nine members of a Lenawee County Christian militia group freed on bond over the objections of federal prosecutors.
“The United States is correct that it need not wait until people are killed before it arrests conspirators,” U.S. District Judge Victoria Roberts said in a 36-page decision. “But, the Defendants are also correct: their right to engage in hate-filled, venomous speech, is a right that deserves First Amendment protection.”
She said federal prosecutors failed to persuade her that the defendants must be jailed until trial.
It is unclear whether the U.S. Attorney’s Office will appeal the decision.
Y'know if 'hate-filled, venomous speech' were a crime, I can think of a bunch of Evil Party politicians and progressives who'd be in a federal prison. Assuming the feds would actually hold the leftists to the same standards they do conservatives.
Aside from that, this pretty much has the judge saying "You have these recordings, but all they tell me is a bunch of people were talking nasty; you haven't shown me anything I consider bad enough to keep them locked up until trial." Which tells me some things about the government's case, along with them telling the judge "You can't see everything we've got, we don't have to show it now." If they actually thought these people were that big a threat, why not bring out whatever evidence needed to keep them locked up? IF they have that kind of evidence...
Especially since they threw in that 'weapons of mass destruction' bullshit, which the feds seem awfully eager to charge people with. That designation has always been reserved for chemical/nuke/bio weapons, but now someone says they thought you mentioned 'pipe bomb' and out the charge comes. Can you say 'overreach'?
I'll say it again: these people may actually be a threat, may have actually made nasty plans, but it's up to the government to PROVE it beyond reasonable doubt. We'll see if they can.
“The United States is correct that it need not wait until people are killed before it arrests conspirators,” U.S. District Judge Victoria Roberts said in a 36-page decision. “But, the Defendants are also correct: their right to engage in hate-filled, venomous speech, is a right that deserves First Amendment protection.”
She said federal prosecutors failed to persuade her that the defendants must be jailed until trial.
It is unclear whether the U.S. Attorney’s Office will appeal the decision.
Y'know if 'hate-filled, venomous speech' were a crime, I can think of a bunch of Evil Party politicians and progressives who'd be in a federal prison. Assuming the feds would actually hold the leftists to the same standards they do conservatives.
Aside from that, this pretty much has the judge saying "You have these recordings, but all they tell me is a bunch of people were talking nasty; you haven't shown me anything I consider bad enough to keep them locked up until trial." Which tells me some things about the government's case, along with them telling the judge "You can't see everything we've got, we don't have to show it now." If they actually thought these people were that big a threat, why not bring out whatever evidence needed to keep them locked up? IF they have that kind of evidence...
Especially since they threw in that 'weapons of mass destruction' bullshit, which the feds seem awfully eager to charge people with. That designation has always been reserved for chemical/nuke/bio weapons, but now someone says they thought you mentioned 'pipe bomb' and out the charge comes. Can you say 'overreach'?
I'll say it again: these people may actually be a threat, may have actually made nasty plans, but it's up to the government to PROVE it beyond reasonable doubt. We'll see if they can.
In a continuing series of "Government of Mexico,
go screw yourselves", I bring you this from Fausta:
– The Mexican government will bar foreigners if they upset “the equilibrium of the national demographics.” How’s that for racial and ethnic profiling?
Yet they scream and whine if our cops ask for a drivers license, or if they're here legally.
– If outsiders do not enhance the country’s “economic or national interests” or are “not found to be physically or mentally healthy,” they are not welcome. Neither are those who show “contempt against national sovereignty or security.” They must not be economic burdens on society and must have clean criminal histories. Those seeking to obtain Mexican citizenship must show a birth certificate, provide a bank statement proving economic independence, pass an exam and prove they can provide their own health care.
But the bastards push their citizens up here and demand they receive health care paid for by other people.
– Ready to show your papers? Mexico’s National Catalog of Foreigners tracks all outside tourists and foreign nationals. A National Population Registry tracks and verifies the identity of every member of the population, who must carry a citizens’ identity card. Visitors who do not possess proper documents and identification are subject to arrest as illegal aliens.
But we hear "How dare you demand we have a drivers license? And speak English? You racist!!"
And so on.
Not pissed enough yet?
Mexican officials here and abroad are involved in a massive and almost daily interference in American sovereignty. The dozens of illegals milling in the consulate’s courtyard as Velázquez-Suárez speaks, and the millions more radiating outward from Los Angeles across the country, are not a naturally occurring phenomenon, like the tides. They are there thanks in part to Mexico’s efforts to get them into the U.S. in violation of American law, and to normalize their status once here in violation of the popular will. Mexican consulates are engineering a backdoor amnesty for their illegal migrants and trying to discredit American immigration enforcement—activities clearly beyond diplomatic bounds.
Mexico’s governing class is not content simply to unload the victims of its failed policies on the U.S., however. It also tries to ensure that migrants retain allegiance to La Patria, so as to preserve the $16 billion in remittances that they send to Mexico each year. Mexican leaders have thus tasked their nation’s U.S. consulates with spreading Mexican culture into American schools and communities. Given the American public’s swelling anger about illegal immigration, it’s past time for Washington to tell Mexico to cease interfering and for the Bush administration to start enforcing the law.
Just how shameless is Mexico in promoting illegal entry into the U.S.? For starters, it publishes a comic book–style guide on breaching the border safely and evading detection once across. Mexico’s foreign ministry distributes the GuÃa del Migrante Mexicano (Guide for the Mexican Migrant) in Mexico; Mexican consulates along the border hand it out in the U.S. The pamphlet is also available on the website of the Instituto de los Mexicanos en el Exterior, or IME (Institute for Mexicans Abroad), the cabinet-level agency that promotes Mexicanismo in the U.S.
So fuck you, Mexico; you violate the laws of this country constantly and then bitch and whine and yell names at anyone who dares take notice.
And speaking of the corrupt Mexican government,
Mexico backs up the publication with serious resources for the collective assault on the border. An elite law enforcement team called Grupo Beta protects illegal migrants as they sneak into the U.S. from corrupt Mexican officials and criminals—essentially pitting two types of Mexican lawlessness against each other. Grupo Beta currently maintains aid stations for Mexicans crossing the desert. In April, it worked with Mexican federal and Sonoran state police to help steer illegal aliens away from Arizona border spots patrolled by Minutemen border enforcement volunteers—demagogically denounced by President Vicente Fox as “migrant-hunting groups.”
First, you miserable little Mexican bastard, they're not 'migrants', they're illegal aliens violating our border. Second, if you had any sense of honor worthy of the name- but why bother continuing, since you don't.
– The Mexican government will bar foreigners if they upset “the equilibrium of the national demographics.” How’s that for racial and ethnic profiling?
Yet they scream and whine if our cops ask for a drivers license, or if they're here legally.
– If outsiders do not enhance the country’s “economic or national interests” or are “not found to be physically or mentally healthy,” they are not welcome. Neither are those who show “contempt against national sovereignty or security.” They must not be economic burdens on society and must have clean criminal histories. Those seeking to obtain Mexican citizenship must show a birth certificate, provide a bank statement proving economic independence, pass an exam and prove they can provide their own health care.
But the bastards push their citizens up here and demand they receive health care paid for by other people.
– Ready to show your papers? Mexico’s National Catalog of Foreigners tracks all outside tourists and foreign nationals. A National Population Registry tracks and verifies the identity of every member of the population, who must carry a citizens’ identity card. Visitors who do not possess proper documents and identification are subject to arrest as illegal aliens.
But we hear "How dare you demand we have a drivers license? And speak English? You racist!!"
And so on.
Not pissed enough yet?
Mexican officials here and abroad are involved in a massive and almost daily interference in American sovereignty. The dozens of illegals milling in the consulate’s courtyard as Velázquez-Suárez speaks, and the millions more radiating outward from Los Angeles across the country, are not a naturally occurring phenomenon, like the tides. They are there thanks in part to Mexico’s efforts to get them into the U.S. in violation of American law, and to normalize their status once here in violation of the popular will. Mexican consulates are engineering a backdoor amnesty for their illegal migrants and trying to discredit American immigration enforcement—activities clearly beyond diplomatic bounds.
Mexico’s governing class is not content simply to unload the victims of its failed policies on the U.S., however. It also tries to ensure that migrants retain allegiance to La Patria, so as to preserve the $16 billion in remittances that they send to Mexico each year. Mexican leaders have thus tasked their nation’s U.S. consulates with spreading Mexican culture into American schools and communities. Given the American public’s swelling anger about illegal immigration, it’s past time for Washington to tell Mexico to cease interfering and for the Bush administration to start enforcing the law.
Just how shameless is Mexico in promoting illegal entry into the U.S.? For starters, it publishes a comic book–style guide on breaching the border safely and evading detection once across. Mexico’s foreign ministry distributes the GuÃa del Migrante Mexicano (Guide for the Mexican Migrant) in Mexico; Mexican consulates along the border hand it out in the U.S. The pamphlet is also available on the website of the Instituto de los Mexicanos en el Exterior, or IME (Institute for Mexicans Abroad), the cabinet-level agency that promotes Mexicanismo in the U.S.
So fuck you, Mexico; you violate the laws of this country constantly and then bitch and whine and yell names at anyone who dares take notice.
And speaking of the corrupt Mexican government,
Mexico backs up the publication with serious resources for the collective assault on the border. An elite law enforcement team called Grupo Beta protects illegal migrants as they sneak into the U.S. from corrupt Mexican officials and criminals—essentially pitting two types of Mexican lawlessness against each other. Grupo Beta currently maintains aid stations for Mexicans crossing the desert. In April, it worked with Mexican federal and Sonoran state police to help steer illegal aliens away from Arizona border spots patrolled by Minutemen border enforcement volunteers—demagogically denounced by President Vicente Fox as “migrant-hunting groups.”
First, you miserable little Mexican bastard, they're not 'migrants', they're illegal aliens violating our border. Second, if you had any sense of honor worthy of the name- but why bother continuing, since you don't.
A somewhat better shot of the trainee
all 13 pounds, who has a good attitude and a very slurpy tongue.On the other hand, Security Staff(Senior)
has doubts about this. And isn't real thrilled with me at the moment.
Napolitano and her word games are really starting to piss me off
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, who had earlier said there was no evidence that the attack was "anything other than a one-off," noted on Good Mormng America that there is a history of groups trying to claim credit for attacks. But she did not rule out any groups. "What we have is a real attempt at an attack," said Napolitano. "Law enforcement is pursuing leads."
Let's see, guy drives the car bomb into Times Square, parks in an interesting location, turns the stuff on and runs, and this counts as a 'real attempt at an attack'. Whereas if the damn thing had gone off properly she'd be talking about the 'horrendous toll of death and injury'. Though, considering her record, she might still try getting away with 'man-caused disaster'.
Oh, and as to her 'one-off' comment?
U.S. law enforcement officials say there is growing evidence the Times Square bomber had ties to radical elements overseas and did not act alone.
One senior official said there are several individuals believed to be connected with the bombing and that at least one of them is a Pakistani-American.
No, people like that couldn't possibly make more than one attack, right?
Let's see, guy drives the car bomb into Times Square, parks in an interesting location, turns the stuff on and runs, and this counts as a 'real attempt at an attack'. Whereas if the damn thing had gone off properly she'd be talking about the 'horrendous toll of death and injury'. Though, considering her record, she might still try getting away with 'man-caused disaster'.
Oh, and as to her 'one-off' comment?
U.S. law enforcement officials say there is growing evidence the Times Square bomber had ties to radical elements overseas and did not act alone.
One senior official said there are several individuals believed to be connected with the bombing and that at least one of them is a Pakistani-American.
No, people like that couldn't possibly make more than one attack, right?
A piece from Volokh you ought to read
on the targeting of Taliban and other terrorists with drone strikes. Couple of excerpts on where he thinks a lot of this is going:
Just to be crystal clear this time, I don’t think these CIA actions are international or domestic crimes. But the view of the administration, which I think generally legally correct, and that of its critics such as Professor O’Connell, really can’t be reconciled. And if you think it is a matter of international crimes (as, I stress, I don’t), then it doesn’t go away even if the Obama administration decided tomorrow to change course. It has undertaken hundreds of these strikes now, over a series of years; give it a couple of years more until it’s no longer President Obama, and then call it “crimes against humanity.” After all, why not, once the political costs of attacking Democrats, with the genuine intent of finding criminal liability, is gone?
If the stakes are raised, as is currently underway by the soft-law community, to the level of serious allegations of criminality, then the Obama administration now finds itself at the beginning of the process that the Bush administration found itself in regarding detention, interrogation, and rendition. The ACLU is like a dog with a bone; following the relentless logic of collective action coordination failures, it will remain relentlessly focused, gnawing away, and those it seeks to play will be diverted and disorganized in their responses. Death by a thousand paper cuts, I think I wrote in the Weekly Standard. I am as ever stunned by the ability of government officials to think that the advocacy soft law community does not have the ability to set the agenda.
...
The game played by human rights organizations of what I have sometimes called “serial absolutism” is a special case in game theory of serially “moving the goalposts,” which in turn is a special case of serial insincere promising (these are the absolute, unshifting standards, we really, really promise this time!!), serial insincere promising about the procedural and constitutive rules of the game, followed by serial defection (whoops! it’s really crimes against humanity, now that the Republicans are in). ‘Moving the goalposts’ does not get enough attention in the iterated game theory literature, I think. Unstable coalitions in domestic politics — leftwing Democrats aligned with various foreign and international constituencies, “gaming Spain,” as I’ve sometimes called it — prevent a unified American government from recognizing the pattern of repeat defection and trust-breaking and therefore refusing to take the promise seriously.
Thus, the advocacy groups start with the Obama administration, establishing their bona fides so no one can say that they weren’t even-handed, even though they know that it will only become real, a campaign that ripens into a real chase against individual lawyers, officers, and agents (probably starting with any easy-to-cut-out-from-the-herd military contractors), undertaken and underwritten by a concerted NGO campaign, ratcheting up to a crescendo a couple of years into the next Republican presidency. The only way to slow this down is by creating a policy and considered legal views in the Obama administration that can set a stable precedent for those administrations, Republican and Democrat, that follow.)
Just to be crystal clear this time, I don’t think these CIA actions are international or domestic crimes. But the view of the administration, which I think generally legally correct, and that of its critics such as Professor O’Connell, really can’t be reconciled. And if you think it is a matter of international crimes (as, I stress, I don’t), then it doesn’t go away even if the Obama administration decided tomorrow to change course. It has undertaken hundreds of these strikes now, over a series of years; give it a couple of years more until it’s no longer President Obama, and then call it “crimes against humanity.” After all, why not, once the political costs of attacking Democrats, with the genuine intent of finding criminal liability, is gone?
If the stakes are raised, as is currently underway by the soft-law community, to the level of serious allegations of criminality, then the Obama administration now finds itself at the beginning of the process that the Bush administration found itself in regarding detention, interrogation, and rendition. The ACLU is like a dog with a bone; following the relentless logic of collective action coordination failures, it will remain relentlessly focused, gnawing away, and those it seeks to play will be diverted and disorganized in their responses. Death by a thousand paper cuts, I think I wrote in the Weekly Standard. I am as ever stunned by the ability of government officials to think that the advocacy soft law community does not have the ability to set the agenda.
...
The game played by human rights organizations of what I have sometimes called “serial absolutism” is a special case in game theory of serially “moving the goalposts,” which in turn is a special case of serial insincere promising (these are the absolute, unshifting standards, we really, really promise this time!!), serial insincere promising about the procedural and constitutive rules of the game, followed by serial defection (whoops! it’s really crimes against humanity, now that the Republicans are in). ‘Moving the goalposts’ does not get enough attention in the iterated game theory literature, I think. Unstable coalitions in domestic politics — leftwing Democrats aligned with various foreign and international constituencies, “gaming Spain,” as I’ve sometimes called it — prevent a unified American government from recognizing the pattern of repeat defection and trust-breaking and therefore refusing to take the promise seriously.
Thus, the advocacy groups start with the Obama administration, establishing their bona fides so no one can say that they weren’t even-handed, even though they know that it will only become real, a campaign that ripens into a real chase against individual lawyers, officers, and agents (probably starting with any easy-to-cut-out-from-the-herd military contractors), undertaken and underwritten by a concerted NGO campaign, ratcheting up to a crescendo a couple of years into the next Republican presidency. The only way to slow this down is by creating a policy and considered legal views in the Obama administration that can set a stable precedent for those administrations, Republican and Democrat, that follow.)
Oh, the useful idiots and commies in Congress must've blown an artery
when he said this.
Cuba must pay the United States six billion dollars in compensation for expropriated businesses and property before Washington lifts a decades-old trade embargo, a US lawmaker said Thursday.
"We must resolve the over six billion dollars in expropriation claims... before developing a more robust economic relationship with a post-Castro democratic government in Cuba," said Kevin Brady, a Republican US representative from the state of Texas, speaking at a congressional hearing on US trade with Cuba.
Cuba must pay the United States six billion dollars in compensation for expropriated businesses and property before Washington lifts a decades-old trade embargo, a US lawmaker said Thursday.
"We must resolve the over six billion dollars in expropriation claims... before developing a more robust economic relationship with a post-Castro democratic government in Cuba," said Kevin Brady, a Republican US representative from the state of Texas, speaking at a congressional hearing on US trade with Cuba.
Well, that's interesting: Blogger shows my first post
this morning as Sunday, May 02. But the next has the proper date.
Ten years ago Ma Nature did a major vacuuming job
in this state and Kansas:
A total of 74 tornadoes touched down across the two states in less than 21 hours. At one point, there were as many as four tornadoes reported on the ground at the same time. The strongest tornado, rated a maximum F-5 on the Fujita Tornado Scale, tracked for nearly an hour and a half along a 38-mile path from Chickasha through south Oklahoma City and the suburbs of Bridge Creek, Newcastle, Moore, Midwest City and Del City.
As the skies cleared, the states counted 46 dead and 800 injured, more than 8000 homes damaged or destroyed, and total property damage of nearly $1.5 billion.
I wrote about that day here; I lived in the northwest part of OKC, and all we got was a little wind and rain. But people who had to hide from it... some people, for years after, got anywhere from jumpy to scared to death if there were a few clouds in the sky on this date.
Today just a few clouds, light wind, a really nice day. BIG difference.
A total of 74 tornadoes touched down across the two states in less than 21 hours. At one point, there were as many as four tornadoes reported on the ground at the same time. The strongest tornado, rated a maximum F-5 on the Fujita Tornado Scale, tracked for nearly an hour and a half along a 38-mile path from Chickasha through south Oklahoma City and the suburbs of Bridge Creek, Newcastle, Moore, Midwest City and Del City.
As the skies cleared, the states counted 46 dead and 800 injured, more than 8000 homes damaged or destroyed, and total property damage of nearly $1.5 billion.
I wrote about that day here; I lived in the northwest part of OKC, and all we got was a little wind and rain. But people who had to hide from it... some people, for years after, got anywhere from jumpy to scared to death if there were a few clouds in the sky on this date.
Today just a few clouds, light wind, a really nice day. BIG difference.
Sunday, May 02, 2010
All kinds of stuff out there this morning
Like a new book about Obama and his ties to a bunch of, let us say 'unsavory' characters. Unless you consider communists and terrorists savory.
Like various levels of bullcrap being handed out in schools:
The Dean of Students responded that the teacher admitted that she has been distributing handouts all year without required pre-approval from the head of the social studies department. She has been giving these out to all of her classes, not just the AP class. She has always collected the handouts at the end of the class period and has never allowed the handouts to be taken home.
But hey, it was just a 'misunderstanding' of things, yeah. Right.
What? Schoolbus Nagin has responsibility in how screwed up New Orleans is? Whoda thunk it...(except everyone who was pointing out what a jerk he is years ago, but who listens to them?)
The National Socialist Democrats are pushing a national ID card again, supposedly as part of 'immigration reform'.
...The national ID program would be titled the Believe System, an acronym for Biometric Enrollment, Locally stored Information and Electronic Verification of Employment.
It would require all workers across the nation to carry a card with a digital encryption key that would have to match work authorization databases.
Uh, excuse me? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot? Sen. Turban Durbin right in the middle of this:
“The biometric identification card is a critical element here,” Durbin said. “For a long time it was resisted by many groups, but now we live in a world where we take off our shoes at the airport and pull out our identification.
“People understand that in this vulnerable world, we have to be able to present identification,” Durbin added. “We want it to be reliable, and I think that’s going to help us in this debate on immigration.”
I understand that you bastards want control over our lives, and this card is part of that, so screw you, Durbin.
Ever notice how often these leftist protests turn into property damage? And how often the major media downplays it?
The feds knew of the possibility of real trouble from the oil platform explosion right away, but it took so long to act? Wonderful.
This kind of wording isn't just annoying, it's either stupid or Napolitano playing games:
And, totally unrelated to news, there's this thing that arrived in the back yard the other day,
currently classed as Security Staff(trainee). No telling what all's in the mix, but it is an interesting-looking little beast.
Like various levels of bullcrap being handed out in schools:
The Dean of Students responded that the teacher admitted that she has been distributing handouts all year without required pre-approval from the head of the social studies department. She has been giving these out to all of her classes, not just the AP class. She has always collected the handouts at the end of the class period and has never allowed the handouts to be taken home.
But hey, it was just a 'misunderstanding' of things, yeah. Right.
What? Schoolbus Nagin has responsibility in how screwed up New Orleans is? Whoda thunk it...(except everyone who was pointing out what a jerk he is years ago, but who listens to them?)
The National Socialist Democrats are pushing a national ID card again, supposedly as part of 'immigration reform'.
...The national ID program would be titled the Believe System, an acronym for Biometric Enrollment, Locally stored Information and Electronic Verification of Employment.
It would require all workers across the nation to carry a card with a digital encryption key that would have to match work authorization databases.
Uh, excuse me? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot? Sen. Turban Durbin right in the middle of this:
“The biometric identification card is a critical element here,” Durbin said. “For a long time it was resisted by many groups, but now we live in a world where we take off our shoes at the airport and pull out our identification.
“People understand that in this vulnerable world, we have to be able to present identification,” Durbin added. “We want it to be reliable, and I think that’s going to help us in this debate on immigration.”
I understand that you bastards want control over our lives, and this card is part of that, so screw you, Durbin.
Ever notice how often these leftist protests turn into property damage? And how often the major media downplays it?
The feds knew of the possibility of real trouble from the oil platform explosion right away, but it took so long to act? Wonderful.
This kind of wording isn't just annoying, it's either stupid or Napolitano playing games:
First, this 'amateurish' crap is getting very old; had the thing detonated properly it'd be a 'devastating' bomb. Big thing, though, is the 'attempt'. This was not an 'attempt', it was an attack; we're just lucky that it didn't detonate properly, and I wish they'd stop playing word games.Janet Napolitano, the US Secretary of Homeland Security, said today that the unexploded car bomb found in Times Square in New York late yesterday appeared to be an “amateurish” terrorism attempt.
And, totally unrelated to news, there's this thing that arrived in the back yard the other day,
currently classed as Security Staff(trainee). No telling what all's in the mix, but it is an interesting-looking little beast.
One of the things that comes to mind
about this piece of garbage is Why the hell were these two pieces of shit not in jail?
The defendant in the current trial is illegal alien Rudolfo Godinez, who is believed to be an MS-13 recruiter who arranged for gangster wanna-bes to murder random people as an aptitude test.
Godinez had been previously arrested for critically knifing a man during a robbery, but he was released despite the felony charge and illegal status. (Another of the accused is illegal Peruvian Jose Lachira Carranza, who was charged with repeatedly raping a young girl but was out on bail at the time of the murders.)
Illegal alien gang members: these are some of the people the Che-worshippers want to be allowed to come in at will.
And the New Jersey morons in authority who didn't keep these shits in jail have some responsibility in this multiple-rape and murder; and every PC asshole who pressures the authorities to not keep trash like this locked up.
The defendant in the current trial is illegal alien Rudolfo Godinez, who is believed to be an MS-13 recruiter who arranged for gangster wanna-bes to murder random people as an aptitude test.
Godinez had been previously arrested for critically knifing a man during a robbery, but he was released despite the felony charge and illegal status. (Another of the accused is illegal Peruvian Jose Lachira Carranza, who was charged with repeatedly raping a young girl but was out on bail at the time of the murders.)
Illegal alien gang members: these are some of the people the Che-worshippers want to be allowed to come in at will.
And the New Jersey morons in authority who didn't keep these shits in jail have some responsibility in this multiple-rape and murder; and every PC asshole who pressures the authorities to not keep trash like this locked up.
One of the things the British police do
instead of doing something:
A pensioner who put up a red, white and blue election poster telling voters to kick out MPs was accused of racism by police.
After being inundated by canvassing politcians, Roy Newman, 74, decided to tell other voters: ‘GET THE LOT OUT.’
But 90 minutes after he put up the homemade sign up in an upstairs room at his house, two police officers arrived and threatened with arrest.
They said the Union Jack-coloured lettering on a white background could be considered 'racist'.
He was told there had been a single complaint and he was ordered to remove it or change it otherwise he would end up in court .
Here's the bullshit from the police:
A spokeswoman for South Yorkshire Police said : ‘Officers responded to a call from a complainant who had seen the sign and interpreted it as being racist.
‘Given this sign was displayed publicly and seemed to be causing offence we did see fit to attend the address.
Note that, apparently, all it takes is one jerk to decide "I am OFFENDED!" and someone gets threatened with arrest. What (formerly Great)Britain has come to.
‘Officers spoke to Mr Newman and were told that his words referred to councillors and MPs. WE advised him that the wording could be changed to make that fact more clear.
‘Following the officers' visit the complainant was contacted by us and the meaning of the sign was explained . They said that they were no longer offended and were happy to let the matter rest.
‘It is unlikely that any further action will be taken.’
Found over at Five Feet
A pensioner who put up a red, white and blue election poster telling voters to kick out MPs was accused of racism by police.
After being inundated by canvassing politcians, Roy Newman, 74, decided to tell other voters: ‘GET THE LOT OUT.’
But 90 minutes after he put up the homemade sign up in an upstairs room at his house, two police officers arrived and threatened with arrest.
They said the Union Jack-coloured lettering on a white background could be considered 'racist'.
He was told there had been a single complaint and he was ordered to remove it or change it otherwise he would end up in court .
Here's the bullshit from the police:
A spokeswoman for South Yorkshire Police said : ‘Officers responded to a call from a complainant who had seen the sign and interpreted it as being racist.
‘Given this sign was displayed publicly and seemed to be causing offence we did see fit to attend the address.
Note that, apparently, all it takes is one jerk to decide "I am OFFENDED!" and someone gets threatened with arrest. What (formerly Great)Britain has come to.
‘Officers spoke to Mr Newman and were told that his words referred to councillors and MPs. WE advised him that the wording could be changed to make that fact more clear.
‘Following the officers' visit the complainant was contacted by us and the meaning of the sign was explained . They said that they were no longer offended and were happy to let the matter rest.
‘It is unlikely that any further action will be taken.’
Found over at Five Feet
That is one long damned shot
The shooting — which took place while Harrison’s colleagues came under attack — was at such extreme range that the 8.59mm bullets took almost three seconds to reach their target after leaving the barrel of the rifle at almost three times the speed of sound.
The distance to Harrison’s two targets was measured by a GPS system at 8,120ft, or 1.54 miles. The previous record for a sniper kill is 7,972ft, set by a Canadian soldier who shot dead an Al-Qaeda gunman in March 2002.
.338 Lapua Magnum, definitely a 'reach out and touch someone' cartridge in a good rifle.
The distance to Harrison’s two targets was measured by a GPS system at 8,120ft, or 1.54 miles. The previous record for a sniper kill is 7,972ft, set by a Canadian soldier who shot dead an Al-Qaeda gunman in March 2002.
.338 Lapua Magnum, definitely a 'reach out and touch someone' cartridge in a good rifle.
One more reason to never by anything from Gloria Estefan again
She's supporting illegal aliens and illegal immigration. Interesting thing, with all the problem she, her family and friends have had with Castro, she's in bed with a bunch of reconquista marxists and communists.
"If I could live like the famouse environmentalists"
Well, I'd have multiple airplanes and a new mansion by the sea and be part of interesting carbon deals and still claim virtue.
Oh, and all the people who, a couple of years ago, who were saying "If California left all you red-state hicks, you'd starve!", should have considered just what their enviroweenie friends were doing to agriculture in that state; it ain't pretty.
Instead of pink blossoms and green shoots along Highway 5 in April, vast spans from Bakersfield to Fresno sit bone-dry. Brown grass, dead orchards and lifeless grapevine skeletons stretch for miles for lack of water. For every fallow field, there's a sign that farmers have placed alongside the highway: "No Water = No Food," "No Water = No Jobs," "Congress Created Dust Bowl."
Oh, and all the people who, a couple of years ago, who were saying "If California left all you red-state hicks, you'd starve!", should have considered just what their enviroweenie friends were doing to agriculture in that state; it ain't pretty.
Locals say it's been like this for two years now, as Congress and bureaucrats cite "drought," "global warming" and "endangered species" to deny water to this $37 billion breadbasket through arbitrary "environmental" quotas.
Showalter reports, almost unbelievably: "Whatever the excuse, 75% of the fresh water that has historically irrigated California is now being washed to the open sea. For farmers in the southwest part of the valley, last year's cutoff amounted to 90%."
In short, there's something funny about California's dust bowl. It is man-made and has been brought to California farmers courtesy of the government.
Oh, on the federal response to that oil spill?
The MMS(Minerals Management Service) is a bureau of the Department of the Interior. President Obama appointed Ken Salazar as DOI Secretary. Attorney Liz Birnbaum is Obama’s Director of the MMS and her Deputy Director is also an attorney, Mary Katherine Ishee. The head of the offshore energy division is a lawyer and political scientist. With that leadership, no wonder part of the federal government’s initial response has been to call the lawyers: “Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that he is dispatching a team of attorneys from multiple divisions within the Justice Department to New Orleans to meet with the U.S. Attorney and response teams and to monitor the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.”
Update on the non-terrorist bombing in NYC:
seems the governor doesn't agree:
New York Governor David Paterson on Sunday released the following statement on the failed car bombing in Times Square, calling it an ‘act of terrorism.’
“Tonight, we owe an incredible debt of gratitude to the heroic actions of the New York City Police Department and to a single vigilant New Yorker who identified a suspicious vehicle near Times Square in New York City. Luckily, no one is hurt, and now the full attention of city, State and federal law enforcement will be turned to bringing the guilty party to justice in this act of terrorism.”
So, Patterson just being more honest and less PC than DHS, or thinking more clearly?
New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said the car contained three propane tanks, consumer-grade fireworks, two filled 5-gallon gasoline containers, and two clocks with batteries, electrical wire and other components. A black metal box resembling a gun locker was also recovered.
Now I'm wondering what was in the metal box. So either a bad design, a flawed design or something slipped out of place is what prevented a big boom and/or a big damn fireball and a bunch of dead people(maybe they studied at the Bill Ayers School of Terrorist Bombings?). Sooner or later one of these bastards is going to do it right, and it'll be bad.
“We avoided what could have been a very deadly event,” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg at a press conference near the scene of the incident. He described the bomb as being ‘amateurish.’
I'm sure Nanny Bloomberg thinks he's an expert on bomb design; but I think I'd rather hear an actual expert opinion on the construction; for all we know a slipped connection or faulty detonator is all that prevented a big, messy pile of bodies.
And the bastards only have to succeed once to cause all the problems they want.
Added: found this at Hot Air, which links to this pdf file of a NYPD report on the London bombings; note this on page 5 of the pdf:
• The first device was initially described as “potentially viable” and “relatively crude,” but both devices were later considered by police to be “viable” and “clearly linked”
• Such devices, though unlikely to cause significant structural damage, were still designed to inflict mass casualties
Added: from the Telegraph, The location is also adjacent to the Viacom building, fuelling speculation that it might be linked to the company's controversial South Park cartoon which recently depicted Prophet Muhammad in a bear suit.
Surprise, surprise.
New York Governor David Paterson on Sunday released the following statement on the failed car bombing in Times Square, calling it an ‘act of terrorism.’
“Tonight, we owe an incredible debt of gratitude to the heroic actions of the New York City Police Department and to a single vigilant New Yorker who identified a suspicious vehicle near Times Square in New York City. Luckily, no one is hurt, and now the full attention of city, State and federal law enforcement will be turned to bringing the guilty party to justice in this act of terrorism.”
So, Patterson just being more honest and less PC than DHS, or thinking more clearly?
New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said the car contained three propane tanks, consumer-grade fireworks, two filled 5-gallon gasoline containers, and two clocks with batteries, electrical wire and other components. A black metal box resembling a gun locker was also recovered.
Now I'm wondering what was in the metal box. So either a bad design, a flawed design or something slipped out of place is what prevented a big boom and/or a big damn fireball and a bunch of dead people(maybe they studied at the Bill Ayers School of Terrorist Bombings?). Sooner or later one of these bastards is going to do it right, and it'll be bad.
“We avoided what could have been a very deadly event,” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg at a press conference near the scene of the incident. He described the bomb as being ‘amateurish.’
I'm sure Nanny Bloomberg thinks he's an expert on bomb design; but I think I'd rather hear an actual expert opinion on the construction; for all we know a slipped connection or faulty detonator is all that prevented a big, messy pile of bodies.
And the bastards only have to succeed once to cause all the problems they want.
Added: found this at Hot Air, which links to this pdf file of a NYPD report on the London bombings; note this on page 5 of the pdf:
• The first device was initially described as “potentially viable” and “relatively crude,” but both devices were later considered by police to be “viable” and “clearly linked”
• Such devices, though unlikely to cause significant structural damage, were still designed to inflict mass casualties
Added: from the Telegraph, The location is also adjacent to the Viacom building, fuelling speculation that it might be linked to the company's controversial South Park cartoon which recently depicted Prophet Muhammad in a bear suit.
Surprise, surprise.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)