COLLECTIVE MADNESS


“Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."

Saturday, January 02, 2016

Did the Saudi Shitbirds Jump the Shark?

Saudi Arabia's executions were worthy of Isis – so will David Cameron and the West now stop their grovelling to its oil-rich monarchs?

The executions were certainly an unprecedented Saudi way of welcoming in the New Year – if not quite as publicly spectacular as the firework display in Dubai which went ahead alongside the burning of one of the emirate’s finest hotels

Saudi Arabia’s binge of head-choppings – 47 in all, including the learned Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr Baqr al-Nimr, followed by a Koranic justification for the executions – was worthy of Isis. Perhaps that was the point. For this extraordinary bloodbath in the land of the Sunni Muslim al-Saud monarchy – clearly intended to infuriate the Iranians and the entire Shia world – re-sectarianised a religious conflict which Isis has itself done so much to promote.
All that was missing was the video of the decapitations – although the Kingdom’s 158 beheadings last year were perfectly in tune with the Wahabi teachings of the ‘Islamic State’.  Macbeth’s ‘blood will have blood’ certainly applies to the Saudis, whose ‘war on terror’, it seems, now justifies any amount of blood, both Sunni and Shia. But how often do the angels of God the Most Merciful appear to the present Saudi interior minister, Crown Prince Mohamed bin Nayef?  
For Sheikh Nimr was not just any old divine.  He spent years as a scholar in Tehran and Syria, was a revered Shia leader of Friday prayers in the Saudi Eastern Province, and a man who stayed clear of political parties but demanded free elections, and was regularly detained and tortured – by his own account – for opposing the Sunni Wahabi Saudi government. Sheikh Nimr said that words were more powerful than violence.  The authorities’ whimsical suggestion that there was nothing sectarian about this most recent bloodbath – on the grounds that  they beheaded Sunnis as well as Shias – was classic Isis rhetoric.
After all, Isis cuts the heads of Sunni ‘apostates’ and Sunni Syrian and Iraqi soldiers just as readily as it slaughters Shias. Sheikh Nimr would have got precisely the same treatment from the thugs of the ‘Islamic State’ as he got from the Saudis – though without the mockery of a pseudo-legal trial which Sheikh Nimr was afforded and of which Amnesty complained.  
But the killings represent far more than just Saudi hatred for a cleric who rejoiced at the death of the former Saudi interior minister – Mohamed bin Nayef’s father, Crown Prince Nayef Abdul-Aziz al-Saud – with the hope that he would be "eaten by worms and will suffer the torments of hell in his grave". Nimr’s execution will reinvigorate the Houthi rebellion in Yemen, which the Saudis invaded and bombed this year in an attempt to destroy Shia power there. It has enraged the Shia majority in Sunni-rules Bahrain. And Iran’s own clerics have already claimed that the beheading will cause the overthrow of the Saudi royal family.

It will also present the West with that most embarrassing of Middle Eastern problems: the continuing need to cringe and grovel to the rich and autocratic monarchs of the Gulf while gently expressing their unease at the grotesque butchery which the Saudi courts have just dished out to the Kingdom’s enemies. Had Isis chopped off the heads of Sunnis and Shias in Raqqa – especially that of a troublesome Shia priest like Sheikh Nimr – we can be sure that Dave Cameron would have been tweeting his disgust at so loathsome an act. But the man who lowered the British flag on the death of the last king of this preposterous Wahabi state will be using weasel words to address this bit of head-chopping.
However many Sunni al-Qaeda men have also just lost their heads – literally – to Saudi executioners, the question will be asked in both Washington and European capitals:  are the Saudis trying to destroy the Iranian nuclear agreement by forcing their Western allies to support even these latest outrages? In the obtuse world in which they live – in which the youthful defence minister who invaded Yemen intensely dislikes the interior minister – the Saudis are still glorying in the ‘anti-terror’ coalition of 34 largely Sunni nations which supposedly form a legion of Muslims opposed to ‘terror’.
 The executions were certainly an unprecedented Saudi way of welcoming in the New Year – if not quite as publicly spectacular as the firework display in Dubai which went ahead alongside the burning of one of the emirate’s finest hotels. Outside the political implications, however, there is also an obvious question to be asked – in the Arab world itself — of the self-perpetuating House of Saud:  have the Kingdom’s rulers gone bonkers?

142 comments:

  1. Queen "Off With Their Heads" Elizabeth ISat Jan 02, 07:28:00 PM EST

    Doubtful if they jumped the shark.

    Someone should publish a running score card though of executions in Iran v Saudi Arabia.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Does 'beheading' hurt ?

      Hmmm....

      This might make a good question for a PhD thesis.

      Though perhaps not for a research project.

      My own hunch:

      If it hurts it's not for long.

      Delete
    2. Certainly seems superior humanely speaking than hanging.

      Not even a contest as with stoning.

      Compared with a firing squad it would seem to all depend on the talents of the shooters (shooter).

      Delete
    3. Can't recall the last time the State of Idaho put someone to death, though we still have the penalty on the books (I think).

      It used to be thought to have a deterrent effect. Some studies have backed this up.

      But then some studies will back nearly anything up.

      Delete
    4. One would think the idea of going to Hell would have a deterrent effect but there is little evidence to support the idea.

      Delete
    5. The US, Saudi Arabia, and Iran all execution bedfellows!

      Delete
    6. Strike the US and replace with Texas.

      You deserve a good frightening mugging, but not the death penalty, smart ass.

      Delete
    7. C'mon, smart ass Ash, let's see you give a convincing argument for being against the death penalty in all cases.

      Delete
    8. .

      One single person executed by mistake.

      .

      Delete


  2. Iranian Protesters Ransack Saudi Embassy After Execution of Shiite Cleric

    New York Times -

    Iranian protesters ransacked and set fire to part of the Saudi Embassy in Tehran on Saturday after Saudi Arabia executed an outspoken Shiite cleric who had criticized the kingdom's treatment of its Shiite minority.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the update, dead beat dad.

      None of us were aware of that.

      Any more breaking news ?

      Delete

    2. Why, "Draft Dodger" Peterson do you need some resuscitation?

      Delete

    3. Breathe deep the gathering gloom
      Watch lights fade from every room
      Bedsitter people look back and lament
      Another day's useless energy spent.

      Impassioned lovers wrestle as one,
      Lonely man cries for love and has none.
      New mother picks up and suckles her son,
      Senior citizens wish they were young.

      Cold hearted orb that rules the night,
      Removes the colors from our sight.
      Red is grey and yellow white,
      But we decide which is right.
      And which is an illusion

      Delete
    4. Not bad. Who's the author?

      Delete
    5. Drummer Graeme Edge wrote the verses, which were read by keyboardist Mike Pinder at about the six minute mark of the LP version of Nights in White Satin.

      Delete
    6. Damn! Now, I done got trapped in Youtube.

      Spirit in the Sky

      Delete
  3. A Terrorist Group Has Taken Over A Federal Building In Oregon

    BURNS, Ore. (AP) — A peaceful protest Saturday in support of an eastern Oregon ranching family facing jail time for arson was followed shortly afterward by an occupation of a building at a national wildlife refuge.

    Ammon Bundy, the son of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, who was involved in a standoff with the government over grazing rights, told The Oregonian he and two of his brothers were among a group of dozens of people occupying the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.

    Bundy posted a video on his Facebook page asking for people to come help him. Below the video is this statement:

    "**ALL PATRIOTS ITS TIME TO STAND UP NOT STAND DOWN!!! WE NEED YOUR HELP!!! COME PREPARED."

    Ammon Bundy said the group planned to stay at the refuge indefinitely.

    "We're planning on staying here for years, absolutely," Ammon Bundy said. "This is not a decision we've made at the last minute."

    ReplyDelete
  4. "Bloody awful"......."speeding lorries everywhere on carriageway"....."foul play"....


    Nigel Farage's car wheels 'were sabotaged in an assassination attempt': Ukip leader lost control of Volvo when wheel fell off on motorway... and police confirm foul play

    Ukip leader careered off French road after a wheel on his Volvo came loose
    Police told Farage all the vehicle's wheels had been deliberately unscrewed
    He was forced to jump over the road barrier to escape the speeding lorries
    Farage has received death threats during his tumultuous time as Ukip head

    By Glen Owen Political Correspondent For The Mail On Sunday

    Published: 17:00 EST, 2 January 2016 | Updated: 20:09 EST, 2 January 2016

    3.7k
    shares

    1.5k

    View comments

    Nigel Farage fears he has been the victim of an assassination attempt after his car was sabotaged, causing a terrifying motorway crash.

    The Ukip leader careered off a French road after a wheel on his Volvo came loose while he was driving from Brussels back to his home in Kent.

    When the police arrived at the scene, they told him that the nuts on all of the wheels had been deliberately unscrewed, The Mail on Sunday has established.
    'Target': Nigel Farage claims he was the victim of an assassination attempt, after he careered off a French road when a wheel on his Volvo came loose while he was driving back to his home in Kent (pictured)

    'Target': Nigel Farage claims he was the victim of an assassination attempt, after he careered off a French road when a wheel on his Volvo came loose while he was driving back to his home in Kent (pictured)

    Mr Farage, who has received death threats during his tumultuous time as leader, last night spoke about the ‘frightening’ incident, which took place near Dunkirk.

    ‘It was the middle of bloody nowhere, and I was caught in a very bad position,’ he said. ‘There was a huge section of roadworks with cars going back and forth on the same side of the carriageway. I suddenly realised I was losing steering but there was no hard shoulder to pull on to. I slowed down, put the hazards on and then one of the wheels came off. I jumped over the wall as quickly as I bloody well could to get away from lorries and everything.’.........

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3382294/Nigel-Farage-s-car-wheels-sabotaged-assassination-attempt-Ukip-leader-lost-control-Volvo-wheel-fell-motorway-police-confirm-foul-play.html#ixzz3w9wvudiu

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    2. "Bloody bastards removed Nigel's nuts" a Member of Parliament was heard to say.

      Delete
    3. Nigel Farage's car wheels 'were sabotaged in an assassination attempt'

      Thank God and the Queen, Nigel's car wheels survived the assassination attempt.

      Calls are widespread in England now for Nigel to get a Limo, with a wheel inspector, and driver, like Deuce.

      Delete
    4. "Q" used the ol' sabotaged car wheel nuts defense in a DUI case out of Detroit, Michigan once, and got away with it, too.

      Seven of the twelve jurors were female.

      "Q" suggestively juggled the wheel nuts in the air as he spoke to the jurors, his eyebrows slightly raised and a grin on his face, winking at the ladies of the jury.

      Delete
  5. "Once upon a time I was the middle of bloody nowhere, and I was caught in a very bad position....." began the story of overcoming handed down from the graceful ages.....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. (notice the "I was the middle of bloody nowhere" without the 'in'......this is appropriate as our drama is internal, psychological, and not 'out there'.....our heroine herself is the very middle of bloody nowhere.....she must overcome herself...find her way out of herself to something more...)

      Delete
  6. SPEAKING OF SHITBIRD US ALLIES - AN UPDATE ON THE ASS STABBING TURKS:


    Nearly 300 Kurdish rebels, members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), were killed in raids conducted by the Turkish military in three districts in southeast Turkey, the Turkish General Staff said on Saturday.

    The military said in a statement on its website that 179 militants were killed in Sirnak province’s Cizre district, 27 in Silopi, and 55 in the Sur district of the southeastern province of Diyarbakir province, adding that they had also defused dozens of improvised explosive devices in the three districts, which have been under curfew since December. They also destroyed a school that was allegedly being used by militants for training.

    Ankara has been stepping up its military operations on the border with Syria and Iraq since December. The area is a stronghold of the PKK, which is considered a terrorist group by Turkey and NATO. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vowed to continue the operation until the area is cleansed of Kurdish militants.

    About 100,000 have been displaced since the start of the operation, according to Turkey’s General Directorate of Security. Businesses have suffered in the southeastern Turkish towns, leaving many workers without income in the country’s most impoverished region, leaving it even poorer.

    Melek Gumus from the town of Dargecit, located between Cizre and Diyarbakir, told RT that all of her warehouses and a stock were recently destroyed by the Turkish army.

    “There my warehouses…as you can see these are all lost, there is nothing I can do. In fact, the whole district is like this. We were stuck at home for 20 days and there was nothing to eat. It was torture for everybody,” she said. “...we want freedom, we want peace. We don’t want them to be unfair to us.”

    “It was about half past three at night, we were sleeping. Suddenly we felt like the building was collapsing. When we came back in the morning we saw the situation like this. There is nothing left, we are scared,” said a local man describing one of the nights when the Turkish army was conducting its operations.

    A local woman doubted Ankara’s accusations that PKK is responsible for the wreckage.

    “They wrecked the house and said that terrorists have done this. How could terrorists have done that? Do terrorists have armored vehicles or mortars? The government has done this. I hope God will punish Erdogan,” she said.

    The government has vowed to help the region and address the needs of people who have been displaced or lost businesses.

    {...}

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. {...}

      “We have never left any citizen to fend for themselves and uncared for, and neither will we do so in the future ... Anyone forced to relocate due to terrorism can apply to the governor’s office for assistance,” said Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in an address to his party’s lawmakers in parliament on December 22.

      However, Ankara is doing little to help the Kurds because it is essentially at war with them, Ronald Grigor Suny Jr., professor of History at the University of Michigan, told RT.

      “In fact, it’s a kind of open war in certain cities – Cizre, for instance, part of Diyarbakir – it’s going on right now. The government of Turkey has surrounded some areas with tanks. There are reports that there are snipers on roofs, if people go out after curfew they can be shot. And they have been. That region in the southeast now is having trouble supporting itself, people are out of work, businesses are closing. Erdogan and his government have decided to take open warfare as their policy against the Kurds in the southeast and destabilize one more country in the Middle East.”

      Kurds have long been campaigning for the right to self-determination and greater autonomy in Turkey, where they are the largest ethnic minority. In late December, a congress of Kurdish non-governmental organizations called for Turkey’s southeastern regions to be granted autonomy via constitutional reforms.

      https://www.rt.com/news/327742-turkey-kurds-killed-pkk/

      Delete
    2. Those Kurds are terrorists, just like Hezbollah.

      Delete
  7. WHILE OUR NATO ALLY IS KILLING KURDS, ASSAD’S SYRIA IS KILLING NATO SUPPORTED TERRORISTS

    BEIRUT, January 2. /TASS/. Soldiers of the Syrian government army on Saturday recaptured the key city of Sheikh-Miskin south of Damascus at the confluence of roads leading to the southern provinces of Daraa, Al-Quneitra and As-Suwayda, killing at least 50 militants, a regional information portal reported. Another 250 militants were wounded. The operation to liberate the city lasted three days. The Syrian army command said it hopes the recapture of Sheikh-Miskin will make it possible to block all channels of supply of gangs south of Damascus stretching from the border with Jordan. Syria’s Air Force on Saturday made raids on the positions of gangs in the town of Aazaz on the border with Turkey, as well as a base of the Islamic State terrorist organization north of Aleppo. "The terrorists sustained casualties and hardware losses," a military communique says. Russia’s Aerospace Forces started delivering pinpoint strikes in Syria at facilities of the Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist organizations, which are banned in Russia, on September 30, 2015, on a request from Syrian President Bashar Assad. The air group initially comprised over 50 aircraft and helicopters, including Sukhoi Su-24M, Su-25SM and state-of-the-art Su-34 aircraft. They were redeployed to the Khmeimim airbase in the province of Latakia. On October 7, four missile ships of the Russian Navy’s Caspian Flotilla fired 26 Kalibr cruise missiles (NATO codename Sizzler) at militants’ facilities in Syria. On October 8, the Syrian army passed to a large-scale offensive. In mid-November, Russia increased the number of aircraft taking part in the operation in Syria to 69 and involved strategic bombers in strikes at militants. Targets of the Russian aircraft include terrorists’ gasoline tankers and oil refineries. Russia’s aircraft have made 5,240 sorties since the start of the operation in Syria, with 145 of them performed by long-range aircraft. According to UN statistics, fighting between Syrian government troops and militants has killed more than 200,000 people and displaced millions since its start in 2011.

    More:
    http://tass.ru/en/world/848207

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Europe continues to export terrorists to Syria, NATO doing nothing to stem the flow of radicals to Syria.

      Delete
  8. Chivas Regal and Mountain DewSun Jan 03, 03:32:00 AM EST

    January 3, 2016
    Another 'Scientific Consensus' Bites the Dust
    By Jonathan F. Keiler

    The favorite cudgel of leftist climate change fear mongers is the appeal to authority, as in that there is “a scientific consensus” that the earth is warming and that changes over the last century are due to human activity. The problem with appeals to authority on extremely broad scientific topics is that they are not subject to easy proof by experimentation, and are quite often wrong. Here’s a list of ten popular theories ultimately proven false, and it omits some major howlers, like therapeutically bleeding people or the geocentric theory of the solar system. Now we can add to that list the “scientific consensus” that diets rich in processed foods and fats lead to heart disease. This idea, which has dominated medical thinking for at least the last half-century, and led to all manner of government policy making, regulation and just plain tsuris over finishing the brisket, is now in doubt.

    New studies of pre-modern humans, dating back many millennia, demonstrate that arteriosclerosis (the hardening of the arterial blood vessels that causes blockages and heart attacks) afflicted people who (by necessity and not choice) followed that most rigid of diet and exercise regimens -- hunting and gathering. The mummified remains of Neolithic era humans from around the globe demonstrate that arterial disease was about as commonplace in those ancient populations as it is today. Despite the fact that these people had diets low on saturated fats, high in proteins, vegetables and fruits, and engaged in regular and strenuous exercise, they still suffered from heart disease as they aged at about the same rates as modern humans.

    We have heard for a long time now that the so-called “caveman diet” rich in lean meat and low in carbohydrate is a good heart disease preventive. Well throw out the ground buffalo and kale and make up a plate of spaghetti carbonara -- it’s not likely to make a big difference in your susceptibility to heart disease. The same thing is true with the fish oil theory, which is bad news for the diet supplement industry. Neolithic people with diets rich in aquatic fats still suffered from heart disease. Which means that I can now only justify eating sardines because I like them, rather for medicinal purposes. In fact, it appears that there is little significant difference in heart disease rates across the millennia, which means the prevailing scientific consensus, which has dictated dietary health for several decades, was very probably wrong.

    I am not a climate scientist, but I am a historian, and one thing that is certain is that the earth’s climate has obviously undergone dramatic change in both historic and prehistoric time frames. In historic time (that is in the last 5000 years or so) there has been massive desiccation in northern Africa and the Middle East (probably due to long term warming) interspersed with mini-ice ages (countervailing periods of cooling especially in northern latitudes.) On balance, at least for people in the northern hemisphere (which is where most of the human population resides) warming has been a good thing, while cooling (with associated famines) a bad thing.

    What’s pretty clear is that any scientific consensus on broad and dynamic processes that are not subject to experimental verification is a highly questionable proposition. The idea, expressed by President Obama and his allies on the left that we ought to restructure the international economy to accommodate this consensus, is dicey at best, just plain foolish at worst. Now excuse me while I lick the cheese doodle dust off my fingers and grab another caffeine and fructose laden Mountain Dew.

    http://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2016/01/another_scientific_consensus_bites_the_dust.html#ixzz3wAVlg2qK

    ReplyDelete
  9. Gary Kasparov has written that he used his chess skills to escape the Soviet Union.

    Bernie Sanders honeymooned in the Soviet Union.

    Whom do you prefer ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Soviet Union is on the ash heap of history, get with the program, Robert.

      Delete
  10. Common sense is like deodorant, those who need it the most don’t use it.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Replies
    1. There are none so blind, as those that will not see.

      Delete
  12. Saudi Arabia's Wahhabism has fomented terrorism throughout the world and gave us Bin Laden and the 9/11 terrorists. It is 2016 and women are just now being given a vote, but no political status there while Iranian women have been gaining stature for years.

    The Saudis are reaping what they have sown. This is why President Obama has been reluctant to have us play a bigger role in the Middle East and why he has, unlike Bush, distanced the US from the Saudis--- much to the anger of the neocons. He also worked to make us energy independent from the Saudis---which is why they collapsed oil prices in hopes of putting our producers out of business.

    If there is a war, it will be between Sunnis and Shi'ites--not between East and West or Christians and Muslims. That is why the US role should remain minimal. And this is why inflammatory rhetoric from Conservatives, especially the idiocy mouthed by Trump, only serves to put us in crossfire of a fight we have no need to be in.

    ReplyDelete
  13. The Isis militant group has released a new video purporting to show the execution of five British spies, and threatening David Cameron over the UK's campaign in Syria.

    In the video, which appears to have been released by the group's Raqqa-based media arm, the alleged spies are shown wearing orange jumpsuits and "confessing" to spying on behalf of the UK security services.

    Later in the 10-minute video they are shown kneeling on the ground before five executioners, as a militant speaking in a British accent says they have been "abandoned" by the British government.

    The masked gunman can be heard saying: "This is a message to David Cameron," who he describes as an "imbecile" and "slave of the White House".

    The militant compares the Prime Minister to "arrogant and foolish" predecessors Gordon Brown and Tony Blair, and adds that "you children will pay for your deeds".

    The video, which cannot be independently verified, ends with a trailer for a further execution and a brief clip of a young child, wearing militant garb and speaking with a British accent, appearing to say: "We will kill them over there."

    ReplyDelete
  14. I agree with the writer of the following article.

    Adding, these boys aren't exactly your sit at home Detroit style sheeple.

    **********

    Armed militia members seize federal wildlife refuge HQ in Oregon
    posted at 9:31 am on January 3, 2016 by Jazz Shaw



    It appears that we’ve got ourselves another militia standoff out West, this time in rural, eastern Oregon, where armed activists are taking issue with the federal government over control of a wildlife refuge and the fate of two ranchers who are supposed to be on the way to jail. Complicating the issue (at least in the eyes of the media) is the fact that the protest is being organized and led by three sons of Cliven Bundy, who I’m sure you all remember. A brief summary from the Washington Examiner.

    Three of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy’s sons and what they claim are 150 militia members have occupied a federal building in eastern Oregon in order to keep two local ranchers out of prison, according to local reports.

    The group is believed to be heavily-armed.

    According to The Oregonian, the group seized the headquarters building at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge about 50 miles outside Burns, Ore. The remote facility was closed and unoccupied at the time.

    Bundy and his supporters were in Oregon after two men were scheduled to go to prison on Monday for setting fires on federal land, according to a report by Oregon Public Broadcasting. The case has caused a stir in eastern Oregon because the two men were charged under anti-terrorism laws.

    While this case has obviously been simmering for a while, it swelled out of proportion over the last few days. At the heart of the matter are ranchers Dwight Hammond and his son Steven. They were previously accused and convicted of arson for two fires which they set more than a decade ago which burned on parts of the federal wildlife refuge near their property. The first real dispute seems to have arisen over the nature and purpose of the fires, which the Hammonds claim were controlled and for reasonable purposes. (Washington Post)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dwight Hammond, 73, and Steven Hammond, 46, said they lit the fires in 2001 and 2006 to reduce the growth of invasive plants and protect their property from wildfires.

      The two were convicted of the arsons three years ago and served time — the father three months, the son one year. But a judge ruled their terms were too short under federal law and ordered them back to prison for about four years each.

      Prosecutors disagreed with their explanation. Details on this are rather fuzzy, but at least some on the government side believe that one of the blazes was set as a deliberate case of arson to destroy evidence of illegal taking of game. (More on that stupid charge in a moment.) The other seemed to be a small controlled burn which got out of control during a dry period when fires were banned and it spread over into federal territory. John Hawkins at Right Wing News raises some questions about both the charges and the response which may cast the Hammonds in at least a slightly less sympathetic light, while still acknowledging that the government went way overboard here.

      There were two fires involved. The first sounds like a straight up arson designed to cover up poaching. The second one sounded like it was merely irresponsible: A fire set while there was a burn ban that made it onto government property. That being said, the judge in the initial case thought the mandatory five year sentences were too harsh for the crimes committed. Unfortunately, he didn’t have the legal authority to reduce those sentences and both men were re-sentenced to jail.

      Intelligent people can differ over whether the sentences are fair and of course, a peaceful protest is always fine. However, taking over a government building and trying to provoke a violent government response is so irresponsible that it borders on insane.

      I was listening to an interview with one of the Bundys conducted by CNN’s Victor Blackwell this morning and there seem to be two almost completely unrelated issues at stake here. One is the case of the Hammonds. Clearly the protesters feel that the government has come down too hard on them and I completely agree. Even if the facts are as the prosecutors described them, this is pretty minor as far as “arson” goes and the men have already served time in jail. Why were they charged under terror related laws? There’s probably some sort of case to be made here about mandatory minimum sentences, but the other side of the coin is the fact that the Hammonds were (and presumably still are) not planning on defying the government and are ready to go back to jail tomorrow. If they aren’t hiding out with the militia at the wildlife refuge, that part of the showdown seems rather pointless.

      Delete
    2. Domestic terrorists ...
      Those occupying the Federal building ought to be arrested and jailed, at a minimum.

      Delete
    3. The second point that Bundy and his followers are making seems to be that the federal government has unlawfully taken control of this land as a wildlife refuge and that the ranchers should be free to make use of it. In that regard, any sort of federal charges would have been inappropriate to begin with, though the courts clearly can’t (and won’t) see it that way. Look… I’ll be the first to agree that the government sets aside and lays claim to far too much land. Also, when it comes to the matter of “poaching” on federal land I have a huge problem with the idea of Washington restricting the right of people to feed themselves by taking game in The King’s Forrest and streams. I’d like to see a concerted national effort to begin discussing the federal surrender of at least some of these lands to the states and a revamping of hunting and fishing license laws, along with federal restrictions on trapping, hunting and fishing.

      But… with all of that said, I’m with John Hawkins on this one. This is crazy. (And I know that’s not going to sit well with those regularly spoiling for a fight with the feds.) Taking armed troops in to seize control of a federal building and essentially daring the government to come get you is pretty much the course of last resort. This is the fight you choose to draw the line in the sand over? If the Hammonds aren’t seeking protection and are planning to continue their appeal through the normal legal channels, this armed insurrection isn’t being done for their benefit. If you’re doing it to try to stop the feds from exercising control over a wildlife refuge, well… nope. Sorry. Still crazy.

      Harness all of that energy and enthusiasm into getting a legal team to begin challenging the federal government in court over it. It will be a long, hard slog, but you’ll garner a tremendous amount of support around the nation, particularly among conservatives and libertarians. Taking up arms over this will produce just the opposite result. It’s time to get the troops out of the building before somebody gets hurt and this turns into a literally bloody debacle.



      http://hotair.com/archives/2016/01/03/armed-militia-members-seize-federal-wildlife-refuge-hq-in-oregon/

      I suppose I should drive down that way and take a look.

      Delete
    4. I know.

      I'll ask Quirk what to do.

      He's no sheeple.

      Delete
    5. Although there could be justification for a drone strike.
      Those terrorists are heavily armed, no need to risk any lives of law enforcement personnel.

      Delete
    6. jack is back aka d.b.d., you should be arrested and jailed, at a minimum.

      You may already have been, for all we know.

      WiO had you figured as posting from prison.

      He might have been right.

      How is the super secret hush hush security project you are working with the CIA and HS and NSA going off the coasts of Panama, by the way ?

      We are all salivating to know.

      Delete
    7. Since the crapper is a-lurking, I'll go back to bed.

      Delete
    8. Robert, you are the only one among us who has admitted to criminal activity.
      Lest you forgot ...

      bob Thu May 27, 12:52:00 AM EDT

      But I did rip off the bank for $7500 hundred dollars, when I was on my knees, and fighting for my economic life, on my aunt's credit card. But that wasn't really stealing, just payback. …


      Just like a meth head, Robert "Draft Dodger" Peterson, tries to justify his crime by saying that the loot was owed him, by the people or institution he ripped off.

      http://2164th.blogspot.com/2010/05/gloom-and-doom-wednesday.html

      Delete
    9. (the crapper once waxed poetic about leading some of his camo dressed armed buds on a March On Washington, D.C. in the interests of Lady Liberty)

      Delete
    10. Our "Draft Dodger" tried to justify his theft, by saying he really needed that money ...

      Then he institutionalized his Auntie, to avoid the legal repercussions of his actions.

      Delete
    11. Post that, if you can Robert "Draft Dodger" Peterson, but we all know that you cannot.
      He continues to regurgitate his fantasies.

      Delete
  15. SOUTHWEST ASIA, January 3, 2016 — U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

    Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

    Strikes in Syria

    Attack and fighter aircraft conducted six strikes in Syria:

    -- Near Dayr Az Zawr, three strikes struck an ISIL gas and oil separation plant and destroyed an ISIL technical vehicle, an ISIL excavator, two ISIL front end loaders, and damaged a separate ISIL front end loader.

    -- Near Manbij, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed four ISIL buildings and an ISIL vehicle.

    -- Near Ayn Isa, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions.

    -- Near Washiyah, one strike struck an ISIL weapons manufacturing and storage facility.

    Strikes in Iraq

    Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 20 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

    -- Near Fallujah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and suppressed an ISIL mortar position.

    -- Near Kirkuk, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL heavy machine gun and an ISIL fighting position.

    -- Near Kisik, one strike destroyed an ISIL assembly area.

    -- Near Mosul, five strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed 18 ISIL fighting positions, three ISIL command and control nodes, two ISIL weapons caches, two ISIL tunnels, and an ISIL vehicle.

    -- Near Qayyarah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions.

    -- Near Ramadi, seven strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed three ISIL tactical vehicles, two ISIL vehicles, an ISIL vehicle-borne bomb, three ISIL buildings, two ISIL heavy machine gun positions, an ISIL fighting position, an ISIL staging location, suppressed an ISIL vehicle-borne bomb, damaged an ISIL staging location, and denied ISIL access to terrain.

    -- Near Sinjar, two strikes destroyed two ISIL fighting positions and two ISIL light machine guns and denied ISIL access to terrain.

    -- Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.

    -- Near Tal Afar, one strike struck an ISIL-used bridge.

    Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target.

    ReplyDelete
  16. One must wonder, are the Bundy brothers self-described Christians?

    Are those Christian terrorists holding that Federal building, in Oregon?
    Or are they just motivated by economics and politics?

    CNN doing all it can to keep from calling those armed desperadoes "terrorists".

    (CNN)Armed protesters have taken over a building in a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon ...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I find it notable that there is a tendancy to label any enemy, any foe, a terrorist.

      Are they using terror to further a political goal? Does ariel bombardment of people officially called "Shock and Awe" in order to further the political goal of regime change make the USA a terrorist nation?

      Delete
    2. "Shin Bet was referring to a shadowy group of Jewish extremists known as the Revolt, whose manifesto advocates an anarchic vision of redemption. The far-right extremists, many of whom live in unauthorized settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank, call for fomenting unrest to bring about the collapse of the democratic system in Israel and replacing it with a Jewish kingdom based on the law of the Torah."

      http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/01/04/world/middleeast/israeli-extremists-charged-in-connection-with-deadly-attack-on-palestinian-family.html

      Delete
    3. terrorist
      An individual who uses violence, terror, and intimidation to achieve a result. See also terrorism.


      Yes, Ash, the US does use terror as a political weapon.

      Delete
    4. act of terrorism, terrorism, terrorist act - the calculated use of violence (or the threat of violence) against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature; this is done through intimidation or coercion or instilling fear.

      http://www.thefreedictionary.com/terrorist

      Delete
    5. Calls for "Regime Change" in Iran fit the definition of Terrorism.
      The threat of violence against civilians is manifested on a continued basis, by the Israeli.

      Delete
    6. As for the Bundy family, they have political goals in the seizure of that Federal building, in Oregon.

      They are utilizing violence and the threat of continued violence to achieve those goals.

      Delete
    7. You are stretching it- there is a big difference between occupying a building and threatening to fight back if attacked versus blowing people and stuff up to effect political change.

      Delete
    8. No, Ash, if a group of US Muslims seized a Federal building and threatened violence if the authorities tried to recover it, there would be no question that the Muslims would not be described as "protesters", but would be "terrorists".

      Delete
    9. What you are seeing, in Oregon, is media manipulation of the sheeple.

      Delete
    10. And vindication of the Obama administration when they said the primary threat to US is domestic terrorism, not foreign.

      Domestic terrorism is the unlawful use, or threatened use, of violence by a group or individual based and operating entirely within the United States (or its territories) without foreign direction committed against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.

      https://www.fbi.gov/news/testimony/the-terrorist-threat-confronting-the-united-states

      Delete
    11. fools like Bob may do as you suggest Jack but they'd still be wrong.

      Delete

  17. >Mexican marijuana farmers see profits tumble as U.S. loosens laws

    http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2016/01/mexican-marijuana-farmers-see-profits.html

    ReplyDelete
  18. The deal in Oregon is an act of treason, perpetuated by a few racist hicks - afraid that some of their welfare benefits will be taken away, and given to the negroes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "perpetrated" - jeez, coffee

      Delete
    2. treason? I thought what they were doing was right in line with your rationale of guns for all...

      Delete
    3. :):):):):):):)

      afraid that some of their welfare benefits will be taken away, and given to the negroes

      Good ol' Ruf the blog's total moron.

      And what's with the use of the word 'negroes' ?

      You're racism is showing again, this time against the blacks, not your usual whites.


      Ash has it exactly right -

      AshSun Jan 03, 12:09:00 PM EST

      You are stretching it- there is a big difference between occupying a building and threatening to fight back if attacked versus blowing people and stuff up to effect political change.


      These folks aren't even threatening to burn anything down, much less Baltimore or Detroit or Ferguson.

      They ought to disarm right this very minute though.

      Occupying a building ?

      1) The building in question don't amount to much
      2) It's way out there
      3) It was vacant

      They ought to get out of the building though, and just sit in a peaceful circle around it.

      Maybe try to levitate it, or something, lift it into space, as the 'Poet' Ginzburg tried to do with the Pentagon back in the Vietnam Era.

      The incident has hardly risen to the term 'terrorism' yet, nor 'treason'.

      They best get rid of the guns though.

      If shots are fired, no matter who fires first, the anus is on them.

      Delete
  19. A couple of articles Rufus may like:


    Obama, the rational heavyweight
    http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/obama-the-rational-heavyweight/article27946754/

    Could this plant hold the key to generating fuel from CO2 emissions?
    http://www.theglobeandmail.com/technology/science/a-canadian-companys-attempt-to-get-a-grip-on-the-carbon-emissionsproblem/article27970800/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Are they racist articles ?

      Do they talk about 'negroes' ?

      About 'whitey' ?

      Rufus the Racist always likes articles like that.

      Delete
  20. January 3, 2016
    The global warming consensus that isn't
    By Thomas Lifson

    At last, we have a peer-reviewed paper that accurately surveys how much support there is for anthropogenic global warming among relevant scientists. And the news isn’t good for Al Gore, nor for Barack Obama, who sees climate change as our number one national security threat.

    The widely cited figure of 97% of scientists supporting man made global warming theory has always been a fraud:

    …a Canada-based group calling itself Friends of Science has just completed a review of the four main studies used to document the alleged consensus and found that only 1 - 3% of respondents "explicitly stated agreement with the IPCC declarations on global warming," and that there was "no agreement with a catastrophic view."

    "These 'consensus' surveys appear to be used as a 'social proof,'" says Ken Gregory, research director of Friends of Science. "Just because a science paper includes the words 'global climate change' this does not define the cause, impact or possible mitigation. The 97% claim is contrived in all cases."

    The Oreskes (2004) study claimed 75% consensus and a "remarkable lack of disagreement" by the other 25% of the abstracts she reviewed. Peiser (2005) re-ran her survey and found major discrepancies. Only 1.2% or 13 scientists out of 1,117 agreed with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) view that human activity is the main cause of global warming since 1950.

    Investor’s Business Daily reveals the devastating new research:

    ….a peer-reviewed paper showing that only 36% of 1,077 geoscientists and engineers surveyed believe in the man-made global warming crisis as defined by the United Nations' Kyoto model.

    According to the paper, the Kyoto position expresses "the strong belief that climate change is happening, that it is not a normal cycle of nature, and humans are the main or central cause."

    Thirty-six percent is not insignificant. But it certainly is a long way from the oft-cited 97% "consensus" among scientists that man is causing temperatures to change.

    Researchers behind "Science or Science Fiction? Professionals' Discursive Construction of Climate Change," which appeared in Organization Studies, also found "the proportion of papers" collected from a science database "that explicitly endorsed anthropogenic climate change has fallen from 75%" between 1993 and 2003 "to 45% from 2004 to 2008."

    The Heartland Institute's James Taylor reminds us in Forbes that "survey results show geoscientists (also known as earth scientists) and engineers hold similar views as meteorologists. Two recent surveys of meteorologists revealed similar skepticism of alarmist global warming claims."

    A 36% consensus definitely is less impressive than 97%. In fact, it is a minority view.

    Hello, Donald Trump!

    http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2016/01/the_global_warming_consensus_that_isnt.html#ixzz3wCmUMsQb

    ReplyDelete
  21. Much was made of Cliven Bundy's use of the term "the negroes."

    Even the President was poking fun at it.

    Perhaps the use of "scare quotation marks" would have alerted our less informed readers.

    ReplyDelete
  22. I can't get over it !

    negroes !!

    That song about....what was it....true colors....

    Ruf has shown yet once again his true colors shining through.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Read the comment above, you fucking moron.

      Delete
    2. Rufus quote once again -

      galopn2Sun Jan 03, 12:19:00 PM EST

      The deal in Oregon is an act of treason, perpetuated by a few racist hicks - afraid that some of their welfare benefits will be taken away, and given to the negroes.



      That's a keeper, to be hauled out when useful.

      Delete
    3. Ruf can lie his ass off like Hillary, dissemble like Billygoat Bill, but there it is.

      Delete
    4. And to think, I just complimented you !

      :(

      I am heartbroken.

      But we know now for sure where the ol' racist Ruf stands on racial matters.

      He stands with the reds.

      bwabwabwahahaha

      Delete
    5. You are responsible for your own comment, Rufus Red Dufus, the blog's certified moron.

      Even Ash has more sense than you.

      bwahaha

      Delete
  23. Chicago airport police told to “run and hide” in event of active shooter
    posted at 11:01 am on January 3, 2016 by Jazz Shaw


    CNN may give us more than a few reasons to question their coverage of national events from week to week, but they uncovered an important story over the holiday break dealing with the airport police at Chicago area airports. Years ago I used to fly through O’Hare on a fairly regular basis, but for the past couple of decades I normally go through Detroit so I haven’t had the chance to notice this myself. For those of you who do, did you ever notice something odd about the airport police there? They don’t have any guns. (CNN)

    Matt Brandon, secretary-treasurer of the Service Employees International Union Local 73, which represents the aviation police officers, said he doesn’t understand why the officers are prohibited from carrying guns.

    “And that’s amazing these men and women are sent to the Chicago police academy, and trained as police officers, and being a former police officer, I know your first instinct is to go to the problem — not run away from the problem,” Brandon said.

    He said the union has been unable to get the aviation department to change the no gun policy, which dates to the early 1990s.

    But if they don’t have guns, what are they supposed to do when some maniac or terrorist shows up and starts shooting up the tourists standing on line at the ticket counter? Never fear, citizens! There are departmental guidelines in place which instruct the airport police on the proper course of action. They should run and hide. No… that’s not a joke.

    Hundreds of police officers at one of the country’s busiest airports say in the case of an active shooter, they are instructed to run and hide.

    Internal aviation department documents obtained through department sources state, “If evacuation is not possible: hide.”

    The documents advise locking doors, turning off lights and remaining quiet and calm.

    “We must also ensure that unarmed security personnel … do not attempt to become part of the response, but could be invaluable to the evacuation efforts,” the documents said.

    As CNN checked into it further, Chicago is virtually alone in this category. The cops at most all other American airports are armed and are there to be the tip of the spear when responding to a quickly developing, violent situation. But at O’Hare, the primary responders responsible for your safety are the Chicago police. The cops who were interviewed (under conditions of anonymity) for the CNN report were uniformly angry and dismayed. These are not Paul Blart, Mall Cop guys here. They’re fully trained police officers, many of whom also work second jobs with local police forces. They feel that being told to run and hide when danger arises is a complete betrayal of the oath they took and the principles of law enforcement.

    Where did this policy come from originally? That’s not tough to imagine in Chi-Town. They don’t seem to want anyone to have guns aside from the gang members (who they curiously do almost nothing about for the most part) and that probably extends to any cops not under the direct control of the mayor. The city has been run by Democrats since roughly the civil war. The murder and shooting rates there make Kandahar Province look like a cozy, secure vacation destination. If a way can’t be found to talk some sense into the administration, you might want to take some advice from Daniel Greenfield and Escape from Chicago.

    http://hotair.com/

    One of the wags among the commenters who doesn't like O'bozo suggests the Chicago Airport Police should replace O'bozo's Secret Service Detail, who are always drunk anyway.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Cliven Bundy:

    “I want to tell you one more thing I know about the Negro,” he said. Mr. Bundy recalled driving past a public-housing project in North Las Vegas, “and in front of that government house the door was usually open and the older people and the kids—and there is always at least a half a dozen people sitting on the porch—they didn’t have nothing to do. They didn’t have nothing for their kids to do. They didn’t have nothing for their young girls to do.

    “And because they were basically on government subsidy, so now what do they do?” he asked. “They abort their young children, they put their young men in jail, because they never learned how to pick cotton. And I’ve often wondered, are they better off as slaves, picking cotton and having a family life and doing things, or are they better off under government subsidy? They didn’t get no more freedom. They got less freedom.”


    The Atlantic

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It sounds like you are quoting our very own Bob.

      Delete
    2. Bundy knows about living off "government subsidies", his entire ranch is based upon subsidies from the Federal government, then the "Welfare Rancher" wouldn't even pay the minimal grazing fees charged by the BLM.

      Didn't pay 'em for years, accumulating nearly a million dollars in unpaid fees on the 145,604 acres of federal land in Clark County that constitute his "ranch"

      Delete
  25. January 02, 2016, 09:05 pm
    Trump: Iran deal was so bad it’s suspicious

    By Elliot Smilowitz


    Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump says the nuclear deal with Iran is so bad, he is close to wondering whether it was done poorly on purpose.

    “It’s almost like there has to be something else going on,” he said Saturday night at a rally in Biloxi, Miss. “I don’t think there is, I just don’t think they’re competent.”

    Trump said he couldn’t believe the U.S. would agree to a deal with Iran that did not include the return of Americans held prisoner in Iran.

    “Who would make that deal?” he asked, suggesting Tehran was celebrating as the agreement was being negotiated.

    The billionaire businessman said American negotiators should have began the process by insisting on getting the prisoners back.

    He said Iran would have refused, but afterward, “you double and triple up your sanctions” and it would change Iran’s tune.

    Trump pledged of the prisoners: “They will be out before I take office.”

    And of Secretary of State John Kerry: “I can’t believe they didn’t walk from that negotiation.”

    “People want, not that phony Obama change,” he added. “People want strength, they want competence.”

    http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/gop-primaries/264598-trump-iran-deal-was-so-bad-its-suspicious

    *********

    I've had the same feeling.

    Shit, they didn't even the hostages out.

    WTF ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Trump pledged of the prisoners: “They will be out before I take office.”

      This even outdoes Reagan, doesn't it ?

      IIRC the hostages in that go around were out the day or day after Reagan took office.

      Delete
  26. The Saudi Shitbirds have cut diplomatic ties with the Iranian Shitbirds.

    Hell, they might as well.

    They got no Embassy left in Iran, it having been burned down.

    Both sides accuse the other of being supporters of terrorism.

    In this, both sides are correct.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Did I ever mention that the summer I and some friends worked in Honolulu during high school driving cars from the docks into the at that time largest Chevrolet dealership in the world we had a parrot we trained to say, when someone walked into the room:

      "Hello, I'm a Shitbird, I'm a Shitbird"

      Always got a laugh.

      Aloha Motors was the name of the dealership at that time.

      The guy that bought it was from our area.

      Delete
    2. Just to point out the obvious . .
      If Iran, North Korea, Syria, Burma, Afghanistan, France, the UK or just about any other nation on earth, except Saudi Arabia, brutally executed a political opponent, the USA congress critters would be screaming at the top of their lungs on every media outlet they could access.

      Notice that because the USA “hates” Shia, there is just mild rebuke from POTUS and virtually NONE from the congress critters.

      Considering that Al Quaida and ISIS are derived from the Wahhabi state religion of Saudi Arabia, in a reality based world, Iran would be a USA ally and Saudi Arabia would be shunned and punished by the world.

      Note also that Israel wants to be secret buddies with Saudi Arabia because . . . Iran.

      The USA has lots of sources of low cost oil, so the USA should cut ties with Saudi Arabia and throw them to the wolves. Saudi Arabia wants WW3 (at least some of the leadership does – maybe not the king directly).

      When will the USA leadership do what is best for the USA instead of following the old empire pathways that have been PROVEN to be terrible for the USA.

      Over the last 200+ years, the USA has screwed over each and every ally it has ever had, so there is no reason the USA can’t just walk away from Saudi Arabia (and Israel and Turkey and pretty much all of the Mid East).

      As I noted, it is OBVIOUS the USA is backing the WRONG monsters in the Mid East and many other places on earth.

      Delete
    3. Yup, we should always back the Shitbirds that have vowed a world without us, that is for sure.

      And without Israel, as well.

      I get a tingle up my leg every time I see the Iranian Shitbirds marching in the streets of Tehran screaming "Death To America", death to Deuce, Bob, Rufus, Ash, Q......

      Delete
  27. US Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton would “crush” GOP candidate Donald Trump, Jeb Bush says, the Republican who is trying to shake up his struggling presidential campaign.

    "Donald Trump, I don’t believe, is going to be the party’s nominee,” Bush said in an interview with Fox News on Sunday. “And if he is, he’s going to get crushed by Hillary Clinton. I wanted to point that out.”

    Trump leads the Republican field with 35 percent of support, according to the latest RealClearPolitics average of polls, despite making controversial remarks against Mexican immigrants, women and Muslims.

    Many observers say Trump’s appeal among many voters is largely because he comes from outside the political establishment and claims he is not influenced by lobby groups and wealthy individuals.

    Bush, who was once considered the leading candidate for Republican nomination, now sits at sixth place among GOP contenders with 4.3 percent of support.

    With the Iowa caucuses drawing near, Bush has renewed his attacks against Trump, accusing him of being a “strong supporter” of Clinton.

    ReplyDelete
  28. An Iraqi military base north of Baghdad was targeted by multiple suicide bombers, who killed at least 15 security troops and injured at least 22 others. The terrorist group Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack.

    Two bombers detonated their explosive-rigged vehicles at the western gate of Camp Speicher, a former US base outside the Sunni-majority city of Tikrit, Reuters reported, citing security sources. Three others made it to the part of the base used for training Iraqi police.

    IS said the attack targeted Shiite troops stationed at the base.

    The base was captured by the terrorist group in mid-2014 during their lightning campaign in Iraq. The militants executed as many as 1,700 soldiers at the base.

    ReplyDelete
  29. In light of the recent tension between Saudi Arabia and Iran over the execution of an influential Shiite cleric on Saturday, a number of Middle East experts have said that Turkey could be affected by the fallout of the conflict because Ankara has been giving the impression that it is siding with Riyadh and thus should tread carefully so as not fuel the fire of Sunni-Shiite conflict, which has already had disastrous results in the region.
    Shiite leaders in Iran and other countries in the region swiftly condemned Riyadh for the execution of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr and 46 other prisoners, warning of a sectarian backlash, as Saudi Arabia insisted the executions were part of a justified war on terrorism.
    Professor Sedat Laçiner, the former rector of Çanakkale 18 Mart University (ÇOMÜ), told Today's Zaman on Sunday that Turkey should try to alleviate tensions in the Middle East, not further exacerbate them by taking part in a sectarian bloc headed by Saudi Arabia.
    According to Laçiner, Turkey's involvement in a new military alliance headed by Saudi Arabia in a region beleaguered by sectarian violence and bloodshed could spell disaster for Turkey in the near future.
    “Polarization based on religious sectarianism is very dangerous; it starts wars and further bloodies ongoing conflicts,” said Laçiner, who was recently detained for voicing his opposition to the government.
    “Turkey is viewed by the world as being part of a Sunni bloc headed and funded by Saudi Arabia and to a lesser extent by Qatar,” he said, adding that precedents from Turkey's past makes following Saudi Arabia seem abnormal. “Saudi Arabia is not a country that can head a military bloc,” according to the academic.
    Tehran is one of the staunchest supporters of Syria's embattled President Bashar al-Assad and is also suspected of funding and supporting Houthi rebels in Yemen in their fight to overthrow Saudi-backed Yemeni President Abed Rabbuh Mansour Hadi.
    Once a mediator for peace in the volatile region, Turkey has become embroiled in the power struggle between the Saudis and their main rival Iran by becoming involved in a Saudi-led 34-nation military alliance, Laçiner warns.

    {...}

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. http://www.todayszaman.com/diplomacy_latest-saudi-iran-tension-to-cause-new-challenges-for-turkey_408672.html

      Delete
    2. {...}

      ...
      President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan recently dismissed criticism that a newly formed alliance of Muslim countries led by Saudi Arabia was a sectarian initiative. “The alliance is primarily aimed at fighting terrorism,” he said. “It does not have a sectarian nature.”

      Saudi Arabia said last month that 34 nations, including Turkey, have agreed to form a new “Islamic military alliance” to fight terrorism with a joint operations center based in its capital, Riyadh. Shiite-majority Muslim nations Iran and Iraq are among the countries excluded from the alliance.

      Saudi Arabia and Turkey agreed to set up a strategic cooperation council to strengthen military, economic and investment cooperation between the two countries after President ErdoÄŸan’s visit to Saudi Arabia last week.

      Delete
  30. Saudi Arabia has little to worry about – no state has the moral authority or will to attack this butchery

    When Saudi Arabia was elected to the UN Human Rights Council in 2013 – with Dave Cameron’s help – we all regarded it as farce. Now, only hours after the Sunni Muslim Saudis chopped off the heads of 47 of their enemies – including a prominent Shia Muslim cleric – the Saudi appointment is grotesque. Of course, the world of human rights is appalled – and Shia Iran is talking of the “divine punishment” that will destroy the House of Saud. Crowds attack the Saudi embassy in Tehran. So what’s new?

    “Divine” and secular punishment have been variously sought against Middle East leaders for centuries, most recently against Bashar al-Assad of Syria who, according to the French Foreign Minister, did not “deserve to live on this planet”.

    The Saudis were long ago telling the Americans to “cut off the head of the serpent” – Iran’s head, needless to say – but they have obviously settled for the head of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, at least for now. But all the shouting and screaming doesn’t stop the oil flowing from Saudi wells – nor the kingdom’s friends from using the usual weasel language to excuse their outrages.

    The executions are an “internal matter”, a “retrograde step” perhaps, and certainly the executions were “events that don’t help” peace in the Middle East. All of this classic verbiage, I should add, from Crispin Blunt, the Tory chair of the Commons Foreign Affairs Select Committee, came within hours of the mass head-chopping.

    He also told Channel 4 that “we’ve got to judge when it’s right to engage” with the Saudis on such “matters”. You bet we have. “Never” would be my guess. After all, you can’t fly your flags at half mast when the last King of Saudi Arabia dies a natural death, and then get all antsy when the Saudis start slashing at the necks of their enemies.


    {...}

    ReplyDelete
  31. {..}

    There is, however, one little step that those who protest and roar and rage over the latest Saudi butchery might contemplate, if they can calm down enough to concentrate on the small print. For the resolution which established the United Nations Human Rights Council – upon which the Saudis are proud to sit – says that “members elected to the Council shall uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights”.

    Even more to the point, the UN General Assembly, which elects those members who occupy the Council’s 47 seats, is empowered – with a two-thirds majority – to suspend the rights and privileges of any Council member which has persistently committed gross and systematic violations of human rights while a member of the Council.

    But here’s the snag. Quite apart from the fawning Western leaders who would object to such a slur being uttered against Saudi Arabia – Dave, obviously, along with his counterparts in France, Germany, Italy, indeed the whole EU and the US (of course) and any recipient of Saudi largesse – we’d have to witness the absurd vote of Iran against Saudi Arabia. Iran, you see, has hanged an estimated 570 prisoners – 10 of them women – in the first half of 2015 alone. That’s about two lynchings a day – of “criminals” and “enemies of God” – and far outdoes the poor old Saudis who were, scarcely two years ago, advertising for more official executioners. In March, six Sunnis were put to death in Iran in a mass hanging.

    In other words, he who casts the first stone – this would be literal if the Taliban were still in power in Afghanistan (though they may yet return) – had better look at his own track record. And quite apart from the US (28 executions in 2015, not counting drone attacks, “targeted killings” and other extrajudicial murders), we have to remember that on the UN Council we can find such vigorous defenders of human rights as China and Russia.

    So the Saudis have little to worry about from the UN. Or from the US or the EU or Dave. Until the revolution.

    http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/saudi-arabia-has-nothing-to-worry-about-no-state-has-the-moral-authority-to-attack-this-butchery-a6795006.html

    ReplyDelete
  32. Yeah, I guess it's a "good" thing that Iran's Nuclear material is on a ship to Russia, and that the centrifuges are being shut down.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Last I read the centrifuges that were being 'shut down' were the ones that were old and inoperable.

      How you can be such a blind old bat.....well, it's a marvel to behold, I tell you that.

      It must take lots of practice....

      Delete
  33. Saudi Arabia is so confident that it has the US on its payroll, it believes it can push the US into war with Iran. They have tried it before.

    CASE IN POINT:

    Two Men Charged in Alleged Plot to Assassinate Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the United States

    WASHINGTON – Two individuals have been charged in New York for their alleged participation in a plot directed by elements of the Iranian government to murder the Saudi Ambassador to the United States with explosives while the Ambassador was in the United States.

    The charges were announced by Attorney General Eric Holder; FBI Director Robert S. Mueller; Lisa Monaco, Assistant Attorney General for National Security; and Preet Bharara, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

    A criminal complaint filed today in the Southern District of New York charges Manssor Arbabsiar, a 56-year-old naturalized U.S. citizen holding both Iranian and U.S. passports, and Gholam Shakuri, an Iran-based member of Iran’s Qods Force, which is a special operations unit of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that is said to sponsor and promote terrorist activities abroad.

    Both defendants are charged with conspiracy to murder a foreign official; conspiracy to engage in foreign travel and use of interstate and foreign commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire; conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction (explosives); and conspiracy to commit an act of international terrorism transcending national boundaries. Arbabsiar is further charged with an additional count of foreign travel and use of interstate and foreign commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire.

    Shakuri remains at large. Arbabsiar was arrested on Sept. 29, 2011, at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport and will make his initial appearance today before in federal court in Manhattan. He faces a maximum potential sentence of life in prison if convicted of all the charges.

    “ The criminal complaint unsealed today exposes a deadly plot directed by factions of the Iranian government to assassinate a foreign Ambassador on U.S. soil with explosives,” said Attorney General Holder. “Through the diligent and coordinated efforts of our law enforcement and intelligence agencies, we were able to disrupt this plot before anyone was harmed. We will continue to investigate this matter vigorously and bring those who have violated any laws to justice.”

    http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/two-men-charged-alleged-plot-assassinate-saudi-arabian-ambassador-united-states

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can't follow it.

      One day we are on the payroll of the Shitbird Saudis, the next of the Shitbird Israelis....

      Delete
  34. So the question is:

    Has the One trillion dollars spent last year on the US military made us more safe in 2016 than it did in 2015?

    Of course not!

    ReplyDelete
  35. Wrong again, Robert "Draft Dodger" Peterson.

    The Sheriff in Oregon says those terrorists that have take over the Federal building are just that, terrorists that want to dismantle the US government, destroy the Constitution and other no good.


    Oregon sheriff says refuge occupiers trying to overthrow government


    Harney County Sheriff David M. Ward said authorities from "several organizations" are working to peacefully resolve the standoff, which began Saturday when an unknown number of armed activists occupied an uninhabited building at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, about 30 miles outside the town of Burns, Ore.

    "These men came to Harney County claiming to be part of miitia groups supporting local ranchers, when in reality these men had alternative motives, to attempt to overthrow the county and federal government in hopes to spark a movement across the United States,"
    ...
    Those leading what amounts to an armed occupation at the small, remote building say they are the vanguard of a national movement to resist the government’s ownership of vast stretches of land in the West.


    http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-ff-militia-oregon-20160103-story.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Of course the Sheriff would say that. What is he to day ?

      It's a Mennonite Convention ?

      He's the Sheriff for God's sake.

      Those leading what amounts to an armed occupation at the small, remote building say they are the vanguard of a national movement to resist the government’s ownership of vast stretches of land in the West.

      Since you have been preaching this very thing forever I'm was surprised to find you not among them, then realized you can't leave Arizona due to your probation terms, and recalled you are a world class bull shitter, too.

      Delete
    2. It is true that I would like to see the Federals disperse those lands, but armed insurrection is not the way to do it, Robert "Draft Dodger" Peterson.

      We have elections in the United States, the Bundy platform keeps losing them.
      The something for nothing crowd, that is who they represent.
      The Bundys never paid a dime for the land they claim is theirs, not since 1992.
      No lease payments, no property taxes.
      Just dead beat thieves, must be why you think so much of them, they remind you of you.

      Delete
  36. US force begins air landing operation near Mosul

    (IraqiNews.com) Nineveh – On Sunday, a local source in Nineveh Province stated, that 26 elements of ISIS were either killed or wounded in an air landing carried out by an American special force near Mosul.

    The source said in a statement followed by IraqiNews.com, “Last night, an American special force has carried out an air landing operation near Azheleya village in Qayyara near the city of Mousl, killing 15 elements and detaining 11 others including local leaders,” adding that, “The American force managed to withdraw without any losses.”

    Yesterday, another local source in Nineveh Province revealed, that the leaders of the ISIS organization who are holding Arab and foreign nationalities have escaped from the province to the Syrian lands after the air landing operation that was carried out in Hawija.

    TAGSAMERICAMOSULNINEVEHSYRIA

    Iraqinews

    ReplyDelete
  37. Remember Fallujah?

    For the Barack Obama administration, the Iraqi retaking of Ramadi—with substantial US help—is a welcome New Year’s gift. But before anyone gets too excited about moving on to Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, it would be wise to remember that at least two further obstacles remain before that battle can be mounted.

    ...

    The first of these goals will be challenging, and for a very specific reason: Islamic State prefers to control territory, but as Iraq retakes that territory, it forces Islamic State to act as an insurgency. And as the long Sunni insurgency of 2003-2006 should remind you, the Sunni areas of Iraq—where the battle with Islamic State is now taking place—are uniquely susceptible to being harassed by insurgent forces.

    ...

    The Iraqi government’s fight with Islamic State is just getting started. And perhaps the most sobering post-New Year’s realisation must be that if Iraq wins, Islamic State doesn’t necessarily lose.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Security forces kill dozens of ISIS elements in Bruwana, says Haditha Council

    (IraqiNews.com) al-Anbar – The head of Haditha District Council Khaled Salman said on Sunday, that the security forces had killed dozens of ISIS elements and destructed 12 car bombs during armed clashes with the organization in the district of Bruwana in western Anbar.

    Salman said in a statement received by IraqiNews.com, “Today, joint forces from the army and police, backed by tribal fighters began an extensive military operation, with support from the international coalition aviation and as well as the Iraqi Air Force, in order to regain control of Barwana District in the district of Haditha (160 km west of Ramadi).”

    Salman noted, “The joint forces destroyed 12 booby-trapped vehicles for ISIS driven by suicide bombers, in addition to killing dozens of members of the organization.”

    Iraqinews

    ReplyDelete
  39. That's a hell of a flood along the Mississippi.

    Saw one picture of a football field with just the very tips of the goal posts above water.

    ReplyDelete
  40. America's women are fighting back against Hillary in Hillary's War Against Women -



    PAULA JONES HILLARY WARNING...

    Allowed Bill to 'abuse' women...

    No right to be back in White House...

    Clinton heckled in NH by rape survivor...

    Democrats unsure if she can defeat Trump...DRUDGE


    Some of Billygoat's victims are dogging Hillary the Enabler's campaign at every stop.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It is true that I would like to see the Federals disperse those lands, but armed insurrection is not the way to do it, Robert "Draft Dodger" Peterson.

      We have elections in the United States, the Bundy platform keeps losing them.
      The something for nothing crowd, that is who they represent.
      The Bundys never paid a dime for the land they claim is theirs, not since 1992.
      No lease payments, no property taxes.
      Just dead beat thieves, must be why you think so much of them, they remind you of you.

      Delete
    2. As for Hillary, even Jeb Bush thinks she'll win, in November of 2016.

      Delete
    3. "Donald Trump, I don’t believe, is going to be the party’s nominee,” Bush told “Fox News Sunday.” “And if he is, he’s going to get crushed by Hillary Clinton. I wanted to point that out.”

      Trump, the business mogul who is seen by many voters as a Washington outsider, has surged ahead of the establishment Republican candidates.

      He leads the Republican field with 35 percent of support


      http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/264605-bush-trump-would-get-crushed-by-hillary

      Delete
    4. At 3% in the polls after spending over $60 million Jeb!'s opinion don't count for much.

      And, why is Jeb! spending so much money and wasting so much of everyone's time if Hillary is going to win in November ?

      Sounds damned dumb to me.

      Delete
  41. The best way for the 'authorities' to deal with the folks encamped out in Oregon is simply to totally ignore them.

    Instruct the press to also ignore them.

    No press, no Tellie, no impact......let 'em squat out there until they die of old age, long forgotten.

    Alas, the Sheriffs always have to play the re-election card....look 'tough'.....the press needs to sell advertising.....


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Now Robert "Draft Dodger" Peterson wants Mr Obama to censor the media.
      The "Draft Dodger" has abandoned the Constitution, totally.

      Delete
    2. Robert "Draft Dodger" Peterson does not want to read about domestic terrorists ...
      Unless they are Muslims.

      Delete
    3. Why keep on with the terrorist meme ?

      Ash has already shown you how truly stupid you are.

      Give it up, and go to bed now, Dead Beat Dad.

      Your mother is pointing you to the basement.

      Delete
    4. 150 armed men taking over a Federal facility, they are terrorists, "Draft Dodger", their actions speak louder than Ash.

      Delete
    5. Why do want the Obama administtration to censor the media?

      Delete
    6. (hmmm...I don't recall mentioning Obama....did say if the press didn't cover the event, there would be no event.....reality being for the most part created and called into being in our country by the press, these days...ratso asso must be smoking skunk again)

      Delete
    7. Why do you want the Obama administration to censor the media?

      Delete
    8. Read what you wrote, "Draft Dodger"
      The best way for the 'authorities' to deal with the folks encamped out in Oregon is simply to totally ignore them.

      Instruct the press to also ignore them.


      Who do you propose could instruct the press, other than the Federal government?

      You are, as Ash said, an idiot.

      Delete
    9. When the Obama administration tries to ignore the Muslim radicals, those not even in the US, you become livid. Yet when domestic terrorists seize a Federal facility, in the United States, your advice to ignore it, and censor the media into ignoring it as well.

      Delete
    10. (ratso asso once dreamed on these pages of leading a Militia/MinuteMan Armed March on Washington, D.C., a little like an American Mussolini March on Rome.

      Alas for ratso asso, he couldn't find one single solitary follower, and had to give it up. O, he dreamed of glory though, did our skunk smoking ratso asso)

      Delete
    11. Go to bed, Dead Beat Dad.

      You've put in such a long day.

      You must be dead beat.

      You are starting to confabulate.

      Time for you to turn in.

      Delete
    12. "Draft Dodger" Peterson will not even address the fact that he is advising Mr Obama to "instruct" the Press as to what stories they can cover.

      He has abandoned the Constitution and wants Mr Obama to become a dictator, by voiding the 1st Amendment to the Constitution.

      Delete
    13. Did you garner this disdain for the Constitution while dodging the draft at the University of Washington, Robert, or did it come to you later in life ... Sometime after you "ripped off" that bank?

      Delete
  42. Here you go, Robert "Draft Dodger" Peterson, a source you cited just yesterday is confirming my call...

    http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/03/opinions/kayyem-oregon-building-takeover-terrorism/

    Face it, Oregon building takeover is terrorism

    ReplyDelete
    Replies

    1. Face it, Oregon building takeover is terrorism


      (CNN)Who the heck do they think they are?

      Let's begin with what to call the Oregon anti-government protesters who have taken over a federal building. The men, heavily armed, urging others to come support their cause, and claiming somehow that, while peaceful, they will "defend" themselves whatever it takes, are -- by any definition -- domestic terrorists.

      It does not matter that they insist they are peaceful or some sort of lawful militia; I can claim I'm 26 years old and a size 2 and that still doesn't make it true. This group of men is wielding terror, and the threat of violence, as if it were their constitutional right.

      So, let's stop with the wrenching discussions of who they are.

      They are dangerous, they are unforgiving, they are flouting federal law, they have a political purpose and they clearly are willing to use violence to get their way. Simply because they are not Muslim jihadists does not mean they are authorized to threaten or use violence to support their political cause.

      Delete

    2. on't take my word for it. Ammon Bundy, the 40-year-old son of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, who is well-known for anti-government action, exposed his own sense that they were in an armed conflict when, after refusing to answer a CNN reporter's question about how many people were with bunkered down with him, he said he did not want to risk exposing "operational security." Operational security? We are not in Iraq.


      Mr Bundy thinks he is in the midst of a military operation.
      He is a terrorist.

      Delete

  43. Looks like Robert was projecting, again ...
    Guess he went to bed, rather than discuss his disdain for a Free Press

    ReplyDelete
  44. Has anyone here floated the idea that Clinton and Trump are a team?

    Trump, in reality, wants Clinton as president and at some stage will go independent. Thereby splitting the Republican vote a-la Perot, paving the way for Hillary. All part of a grand design from the very beginning.

    ReplyDelete
  45. Foreign Minister Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir announced the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's decision breaking off its diplomatic relations with Iran and requesting all personnel of its diplomatic mission (the embassy, consulate and other affiliated offices) to leave the country within 48 hours.

    ...

    Accordingly, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has taken the following measures:

    FIRST: The Iranian ambassador to the Kingdom was summoned on the evening of Saturday 22/3/1437H. at the headquarters of the Foreign Ministry and was given a strong protest note, holding the Iranian regime accountable of those attacks in its capacity as the host country required to provide the necessary protection for foreign missions according to international relevant agreements and laws.

    SECOND: The Kingdom notified the United Nations Security Council of those hostilities as well as the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Arab League, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and demanded the UN Security Council to guarantee the protection of diplomatic missions and their personnel according to international agreements and laws.


    Relations with Iran

    ReplyDelete
  46. Replies
    1. F-it.

      Been trying to change my pic but go bedward defeated.

      Delete
    2. I see jack is back is continuing to confabulate.

      Jeez.

      I'd think he'd get tired.

      Wouldn't you get tired, Dear Reader ?

      Delete