Monday - April 13, 2009
The Free World Bars Free Speech.
After years of international scorn, the United States can claim the high ground by supporting the right of all to speak openly about religion. Otherwise, free speech in the West could die with hope of little more than a requiem Mass.
That headline caught my eye this afternoon and I thought, hello. Can it really be that bad outside a few places here and there?
Then I remembered the persecution of Bridget Bardot a couple of times for having the nerve to voice an opinion. And worse yet. She actually wrote a book giving her views on the world.
So I read the article here and while it may appear damned silly of me I must confess. I had no idea it was quite this shaky. I knew the UK was getting pretty bad in some areas. Mostly the usual PC BS.
This is from The Washington Post. It’s quite long so I’m only posting a part of it. The rest of course can be found at the link.
As for the UN .... well nothing surprises me there and I do believe you all know how I regard the UN.
The Free World Bars Free SpeechBy Jonathan Turley
Sunday, April 12, 2009; B03For years, the Western world has listened aghast to stories out of Iran, Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern nations of citizens being imprisoned or executed for questioning or offending Islam. Even the most seemingly minor infractions elicit draconian punishments. Late last year, two Afghan journalists were sentenced to prison for blasphemy because they translated the Koran into a Farsi dialect that Afghans can read. In Jordan, a poet was arrested for incorporating Koranic verses into his work. And last week, an Egyptian court banned a magazine for running a similar poem.
But now an equally troubling trend is developing in the West. Ever since 2006, when Muslims worldwide rioted over newspaper cartoons picturing the prophet Muhammad, Western countries, too, have been prosecuting more individuals for criticizing religion. The “Free World,” it appears, may be losing faith in free speech.
Among the new blasphemers is legendary French actress Brigitte Bardot, who was convicted last June of “inciting religious hatred” for a letter she wrote in 2006 to then-Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, saying that Muslims were ruining France. It was her fourth criminal citation for expressing intolerant views of Muslims and homosexuals. Other Western countries, including Canada and Britain, are also cracking down on religious critics.
Emblematic of the assault is the effort to pass an international ban on religious defamation supported by United Nations General Assembly President Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann. Brockmann is a suspended Roman Catholic priest who served as Nicaragua’s foreign minister in the 1980s under the Sandinista regime, the socialist government that had a penchant for crushing civil liberties before it was tossed out of power in 1990. Since then, Brockmann has literally embraced such free-speech-loving figures as Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whom he wrapped in a bear hug at the U.N. last year.
The U.N. resolution, which has been introduced for the past couple of years, is backed by countries such as Saudi Arabia, one of the most repressive nations when it comes to the free exercise of religion. Blasphemers there are frequently executed. Most recently, the government arrested author Hamoud Bin Saleh simply for writing about his conversion to Christianity.
While it hasn’t gone so far as to support the U.N. resolution, the West is prosecuting “religious hatred” cases under anti-discrimination and hate-crime laws. British citizens can be arrested and prosecuted under the 2006 Racial and Religious Hatred Act, which makes it a crime to “abuse” religion. In 2008, a 15-year-old boy was arrested for holding up a sign reading “Scientology is not a religion, it is a dangerous cult” outside the organization’s London headquarters. Earlier this year, the British police issued a public warning that insulting Scientology would now be treated as a crime.
Sure, I’m aware that there’s a lot going on under the banner of free speech. But some of what we’ve seen and heard over the years does give one pause for thought. And one thought comes to mind is, where will it end?
Posted by peiper
on 04/13/2009 at 08:49 AM
Filed Under: • Daily Life • EUro-peons •
• Comments (1)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Sunday - April 12, 2009
Barack Obama’s brother stopped from entering UK after lying to police over sex allegations.
I wonder if this fella will turn out to be the Billy Carter to Obama.
By MAIL ON SUNDAY REPORTER
Last updated at 7:20 PM on 12th April 2009The half-brother of President Barack Obama was refused an entry visa to Britain after lying to police officers about an accusation of sexual assault.
The deception occurred in November when Samson Obama, who lives in Kenya, was in Britain staying with his mother, who lives in Berkshire.
He was questioned by police about the alleged assault – which he denied – but during the investigation he used a false name and he later received a police caution.
When he applied for another visa, hoping to visit Britain last week, he was refused.
The news will be embarrassing to the US President, who had given his younger half-brother a personal tour of the White House in January when he attended the historic inauguration.
Samson, 41, and Barack, 47, are sons of Barack Obama Snr, a former goat-herder from Kenya.
Samson’s mother Kezia was Barack Snr’s first wife in Kenya. The President’s mother is Barack Snr’s second wife Ann Denham, a white American from Kansas.
Barack Snr left America in 1965 with his third wife to return to Africa where he rekindled his relationship with Kezia and Samson was born. Barack Snr was killed in a car crash when the President was 21.
President Obama and Samson first met in 1987 when Barack traced his family in Kenya.
Samson’s mother now takes pride of place at family gatherings, after the death of President Obama’s mother in 1995.
It is understood that immigration officers scrutinising Samson’s recent visa application had discovered that, at the time of his arrest in November, he had been living illegally with Kezia in Bracknell for the previous seven years.
After the alleged sexual assault, Samson told police that he was a binman called Henry Aloo, giving them his mother’s address.
His DNA, fingerprints and photograph were taken. Samson was given a caution for a public order offence but he denied sexual assault.
Detectives did not take any further action over the alleged attack.
Samson returned to Kenya and successfully applied for a transit visa to the UK in order to travel to his half brother’s inauguration in January.
His plane landed at Heathrow during the trip and he spent a night there.
After returning to Kenya again, he applied for a tourist visa to visit his mother in Bracknell, and immigration officials discovered a mismatch.
His fingerprints matched details for Henry Aloo – the name he had given officers in Britain following the alleged sexual assault.
Samson was confronted at the UK Borders Agency office in Nairobi where he was denied a visa on the grounds of deception.
It is understood that Samson denied that the offences related to him and claimed his passport had been stolen.
To support his visa application, Samson is believed to have submitted documents showing that he had a business in Nairobi. Last night it was reported that the documents were forged.
A spokesman for the UK Border Agency said: ‘We oppose the entry of all individuals to the UK where we believe their presence is not conducive to the public good.’
In President Obama’s 1995 book, Dreams From My Father, he writes of meeting Samson for the first time and how he expressed disappointment that the portable tape recorder Barack brought for him as a gift was not a Sony.
Posted by peiper
on 04/12/2009 at 01:39 PM
Filed Under: • Miscellaneous • UK •
• Comments (6)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • US sea captain ‘released’ by Somali pirates. NAVY SEALS … RESCUE .. 3 GREMLINS BYE,BYE!
The American sea captain held hostage by Somali pirates was freed unharmed last night when the US Navy mounted a rescue mission, according to news reports.
By Mike Pflanz in Mombasa
Last Updated: 7:04PM BST 12 Apr 2009Richard Phillips, the captain of the Maersk Alabama, was captured last Wednesday when four Somali pirates stormed his ship in the Indian Ocean. He was held in one of the ship’s lifeboats, adrift in the Gulf of Aden, while the cargo vessel itself managed to escape. At least three American warships, including the USS Bainbridge, a guided missile destroyer from the Fifth Fleet, kept watch near the 15ft dinghy holding the American and his Somali captors.
Mr Phillips, 53, has now been released in an operation which saw three of his pirate captors killed and the fourth arrested, an American official told CNN. If so, this would be one of the few successful rescue missions mounted against Somalia’s pirates, who have captured scores of ships and hostages in recent years.
Earlier, Mr Phillips was hailed for his response to the attack on his ship. “He is a hero, he saved our lives,” said Ken Quinn, the second mate of the Maersk Alabama, which is now anchored in the Kenyan port of Mombasa. The sailors described how the pirates fired in the air and boarded the ship using “hooks and ropes”. One crew member, who gave his name as ATM Reza, said he lured one of the four armed pirates into the engine room. Then Mr Reza attacked the Somali with an ice pick, overpowering him and tying him up.
Meanwhile, Mr Phillips ordered the rest of his men to lock themselves in a cabin. He tried to ensure his colleagues’ safety by offering himself to the pirates as a prisoner.
Mr Phillips then suggested that they release him in return for their captive colleague. A deal was reached – and the American crew handed over the Somali. But the pirates reneged and bundled Mr Phillips into a lifeboat before escaping.
Before the rescue mission, the pirates were believed to have demanded their own freedom, as well as a ransom, in return for releasing Mr Phillips. This was seen as unacceptable. “The weight of American public opinion will not allow that,” said a diplomatic source in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. “It would be too much of a humiliation for four guys with a couple of rifles to outwit the combined might of the USA.”
H/T GRAYJOHN who alerted me . Thanks John.
ARTICLE APPEARS IN THE TELEGRAPH
UPDATE
BBC NEWS REPORTS,
An unnamed US official told the Associated Press news agency that Capt Phillips was freed in what appeared to be a swift firefight.
Reports say he jumped overboard for a second time, and the pirates were shot and killed before they could take action to get him back.
US forces apparently took advantage of the fact one of the pirates was negotiating on the USS Bainbridge when the incident happened.
Posted by peiper
on 04/12/2009 at 01:18 PM
Filed Under: • Pirates, aarrgh! •
• Comments (10)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • POSSIBLE SYMPATHY FOR HIJACKING PIRATES? YOU GOTTA BE CRAZY OR PLAIN STUPID. OR BOTH.
I am not going to post the whole article. Not that it doesn’t have some interest. If you’re interested, the link is below.
Some background.
A journalist named Colin Freeman, working for the Telegraph, was kidnapped in Nov. of last year while covering the pirate story along with his photographer. They were held captive for six weeks.
That’s he on the left in the photo.
Now then, I have a gripe with one statement he makes in the article, and I truly believe it’s indicitive of the thinking among many hand wringers who’d rather kiss and make up. It also appears to me, though I may be entirely mistaken, that his thinking is very much a part of Brit mindset these days. It’s as though they feel awful when they have to hurt someone who is hurting them. ?? I’ll never understand that sort of thinking.
Mr. Freeman says the following, and he can not be more wrong.
“When pondered for real, the mere thought that somebody might die because of you ---
even if it’s a kidnapper ---
---- is hard to face.”
Photo appears to have been taken while in captivity.
Posted by peiper
on 04/12/2009 at 12:54 PM
Filed Under: • Philosophy • Pirates, aarrgh! • Stoopid-People •
• Comments (6)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • FRENCH RESCUE AND PHOTOS ….
Are you folks seeing this in the states?
Rescued French yacht captain Florent Lemacon may have died in friendly fire
The Frenchman who died during a military operation to free his yacht from the clutches of a Somali pirate gang may have been a victim of friendly fire, France’s government said on Saturday.
By Colin Freeman and Mike Pflanz in Nairobi
Last Updated: 2:22PM BST 12 Apr 2009In admission that will cast fresh doubts over the controversial decision to free Florent Lemacon and four other hostages by force, defence minister Herve Morin said he could not rule out the possibility that he had been hit by a French commando’s bullet.
Ok..take a good look at that woman’s face. Can there be any question at all that the French authorities acted correctly? Fresh doubts? Only among total stupid idiots! Btw, one of the pirates was below deck shooting up through the deck. French marine fired back. There is a report that a third pirate went into the drink but no report on anyone saving the savage. But it hasn’t been confirmed officially that I’m aware of. If true, I hope something with fins gets him. Stingers will do also.
An admission that will cast fresh doubts over the controversial decision to free Florent Lemacon and four other hostages by force, defence minister Herve Morin said he could not rule out the possibility that he had been hit by a French commando’s bullet.
“There will be a judicial inquiry and therefore an autopsy,” he told French radio. “One cannot exclude that during the exchange of fire between the pirates and commandos the shot was French,”The French navy also released dramatic footage of the hostage drama aboard the Tanit, the yacht on which Mr Lemacon was travelling with his wife Chloe, three year old son Colin, and another French couple.
The images, shot from a French military craft, show them sitting down in the yatch surrounded by Kalashnikov-wielding pirates on all sides. In one shot, a female hostage - looking visibly frightened - stared out to sea as a gunman pointed his assault rifle right at her head.
Other footage showed Friday’s ill-fated rescue mission itself, with a boatful of black-clad French commandos speeding toward the stricken yacht and clambering aboard. Mr Lemacon is believed to have died in an exchange of fire as he tried to duck down the yacht’s hatch. Two pirates also died in the operation, while another three were caught and are expected to be taken to France for trial.
The French government, which prides itself on taking a tough line on piracy, claimed that it launched the military operation after negotiations with the pirates broke down.
Officials said the gang had refused a ransom offer, and were intent on taking the hostages back to the mainland, where it would have been far harder for them to have been rescued. That Mr Lemacon, 28, ended up dead illustrates how potentially risky such operations are, even for special forces troops trained in hostage release. Supporters of such tactics argue, however, that the alternative tactic of paying ransoms simply encourages pirates further.
“The French assault does illustrate the real risks that are faced by ship owners, and explains why most of them agree to pay ransoms,” said Leslie Edwards, a British-based negotiations advisor with Clayton Consultants, who has handled numerous Somali hijack cases. “Their first duty is to the safety of their ship. As we say in most of the kidnaps that we deal with, it is better to be ransomed alive than rescued dead.”
The four remaining ex-hostages from the Tanit were due to arrive home in Paris today aboard a French-chartered plane. The death of the boat’s idealistic young captain, who was from Vannes, Brittany, brought to a tragic end what should have been the journey of a lifetime.
Mr Lemacon, an engineer, and Mrs Lemaçon, a sales engineer, had given up their jobs to restore the 33-year-old Tanit before setting sail last year, saying that they wanted to flee “the consumer soceity and its routine”.But as they sailed into the Indian Ocean, the dangers of the wilder, more lawless world they were entering into were spelt out to them in no uncertain terms. Last month, when they crossed paths with a French frigate participating in a European Union anti-piracy operation, they were “strongly advised” against continuing their intended voyage to Zanzibar.
The couple carried on however. In a blog of their journey, they said that they had merely been told to keep away from commercial shipping routes - although they also indicated a laissez-faire attitude to the risk of being hijacked.
“The danger is there and has indeed become greater over the past months, but the ocean is vast,” they wrote. “The pirates must not be allowed to destroy our dream.” In the end, that was exactly what happened.
The pirates claimed a fresh victim yesterday after hijacking an Italian-flagged tugboat with 16 crew - including 10 Italians - off Somalia’s northern coast. A Panama flagged bulk carrier that was also attacked yesterday managed to drive the pirates away by spraying them with waterhoses, although not before an unexploded rocket-propelled grenade landed in the commanding officers’ cabin.
Posted by peiper
on 04/12/2009 at 12:17 PM
Filed Under: • Pirates, aarrgh! • Terrorists •
• Comments (3)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • FROM AN ARTICLE BY WELL KNOWN NATIONAL DJ (PRESENTER) ON PIRATES.
There’s a very well known radio personality here named Terry Wogan, who also has a newspaper column.
It called, WOGAN’S WORLD.
From the one today I lifted this part of it and thought it deserved it’s own post.
Sorry, no link. It came from The Telegraph.
From Wogan’s World
Sunday, April 12
Terry Wogan
A listener queries the supposed technical omniscience of superpowers who claim that they can
spot a car number - plate from an orbiting satellite, and that their submarines can detect a sea-
horse breaking wind from a mile away. How then, prey, can scruffy pirates, in large rowing boats,continue to hijack the same superpowers’ shipping? We even know who these pirates are, and where they live. What’s the problem?
Don’t tell me it’s a tax dodge.
Posted by peiper
on 04/12/2009 at 11:18 AM
Filed Under: • Pirates, aarrgh! •
• Comments (2)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • NEWS …. Pirates and hostage drifting to shore.
Breaking News
Just booted and found this ... or has it already been on the news in US?
‘Pirates and hostage drifting to shore’2 hours 48 mins ago
ITNA lifeboat used by Somali pirates holding a US ship captain is drifting toward Somalia’s coast, as US warships track it to keep the pirates from escaping to shore. Skip related content
‘Pirates and hostage drifting to shore’
The boat, which has been out of fuel for some time, had drifted to within 20 miles of the Somali coast by late on Saturday, according to US military officials.
Somali pirate sources and coastal residents said they do not think the lifeboat is anywhere near that close to shore.
A Somali mediator headed to sea to try to secure his release.
Three US warships including the destroyer USS Bainbridge are in the area around the lifeboat.
Posted by peiper
on 04/12/2009 at 10:43 AM
Filed Under: • Pirates, aarrgh! •
• Comments (0)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Saturday - April 11, 2009
Lift Rock, Find America Living Under It
I really hate to admit that the American news media is a bit egocentric, but come on. We’ve been covering the Somali pirate thing here for well over a year. Now that ONE American ship has been hijacked, freed itself and resulted in the pirates having ONE American captive, suddenly it’s all over the news nonstop. Oh noes, what should we do? I just pulled up Fox News, and these are the top headlines ...
Who would have guessed that one of President Obama’s biggest foreign tests in his first 100 days would come from a ragtag band of pirates and a high-seas hostage drama?
Um, we did. Because it was going on for Bush too, and pretty much nobody was willing to man-up and solve the problem
FBI agents planned to interview the crew of a U.S. cargo ship Saturday as the bureau began building a criminal case against Somali pirates who attacked the ship and took the captain hostage.
Boy, if nothing else lets you know that the Clinton Cabinet is back in power, this ought to. Terrorism is back to being a law enforcement issue, so let’s use an enforcement agency that is pretty much limited to national scope to “build a case”. What a bunch of idiots.
At the height of the U.S. housing boom, when building materials were in short supply, American construction companies used millions of pounds of Chinese-made drywall because it was abundant and cheap.
Now that decision is haunting hundreds of homeowners and apartment dwellers who are concerned that the wallboard gives off fumes that can corrode copper pipes, blacken jewelry and silverware, and possibly sicken people.
Dudes, I’m pretty certain I covered this one a full month ago. Where have you been??
On Friday, Somali pirates have recaptured American ship captain Richard Phillips after he jumped from a lifeboat and tried to swim to nearby U.S. Navy ship. The drama was witnessed at some distance by the U.S. Navy, but it reportedly happened so quickly they could not provide assistance. For more on this story, click here.
YOU DECIDE: As the pirate standoff continues, what should the U.S. do? Share your thoughts. Click on “Leave a Comment” below.
Me, Peiper, Christopher, Macker, and about 100 other commenters have figured this one out ages ago. Here’s the simple answer, using no words at all:
I almost feel sorry for people who don’t get their news from the internet. Usually they’re anywhere from a day to a couple weeks behind on global events. But this is almost insulting. Especially since you and I both know that Fox and CNN troll the net to get a large part of their news stories. Let’s sit back and wait another month and then laugh when the news media discovers Obama is a bolshevik, and all his past associates are either commies, crooks, or terrorists. What a hoot that will be.
Posted by Drew458
on 04/11/2009 at 09:17 PM
Filed Under: • News-Briefs • No Shit, Sherlock •
• Comments (10)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Woman watches live online as burglars break into her home.
I wasn’t certain if I should post this as it’s in the USA and I thought maybe all of you might have seen it by now.
So, for those on both side of the water who haven’t, put your eyes on this. It’s from Florida.
The video runs 5 minutes, the still photos though I think are better.
Technology when it works. OH, BTW.
Just to give my American countrymen and women a taste of what many Brits are saying about their law enforcement, by all means scroll down at the end of the article and take a look at the comments made by Brits who watched this and read the article. Gives you some idea of what the people here have to put up with.
Terrified woman watches live online as burglars break into her homeBy Richard Luscombe
Last updated at 6:48 PM on 10th April 2009
* Comments (29)
The two burglars wander through the house, munching on cheese from the fridge. They take time choosing their loot, safe in the knowledge that no one is watching. But as it turns out, someone was – from 25 miles away.
The lady of the house, Jeanne Thomas, had spent £200 on a video security system that allowed her to monitor her living room from her office desk via a live internet feed. And at the time the men walked into the room she happened to be sitting right in front of the screen.
Mrs Thomas, 43, rang police and gave them a running commentary as the men sauntered in and out of the picture with her jewellery, flat-screen TV and other belongings. Within a few minutes, officers had arrived and caught the men in the act.
They later arrested two others for planning the crime, and all four are facing charges of burglary and grand theft. Last night, footage of the raid was released by police in Boynton Beach, Florida. Towards the end of the five-minute sequence the men realise that police have arrived.
‘You could see them on the video freaking out,’ Mrs Thomas said. Four policemen then appear at the front door with their guns drawn. Mrs Thomas bought the system after her home was burgled last year. She had not checked the camera at work for three months until that day. ‘All of a sudden I had a strange feeling something was going on at the house,’ she said. ‘I thought my dogs were maybe doing something they shouldn’t have been doing.’
Watch the webcam video of the burglars here
I have intentionally posted the link to the Daily Mail site for the video, rather then use the embed feature at YT. Please see the Brit comments.
Posted by peiper
on 04/11/2009 at 08:40 AM
Filed Under: • Crime •
• Comments (2)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • PIRATE UPDATE Somali clan elders try to mediate in pirate stand-off.
PIRATE UPDATE
Well now who’d a thought this new wrinkle?
Could it be a ruse? Doesn’t seem like it.
Somali elders were preparing to sail on Saturday to where pirates were holding an American cargo ship captain hostage in an ongoing high-seas hostage crisis.
By Mike Pflanz in Mombasa
Last Updated: 10:19AM BST 11 Apr 2009The team of men from the pirates’ home town plan to “calm” the gunmen holding Richard Phillips and arrange for his hand-over to US forces, according to a Kenyan maritime official.
“They are just onshore waiting for permission from the US Navy, and then they will go,” said Andrew Mwangura, head of the Seafarers’ Assistance Programme in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa.
“They want to calm the people holding Phillips, then arrange to give him to the Americans on the agreement that the pirates will not be harassed.”
A back-up force of pirates aboard a hijacked German boat had threatened to sail to reinforce their colleagues, perhaps using their 24 foreign hostages as a human shield.
But they were forced to turn back on Saturday, saying they had failed to locate the scene of the hijack, some 400 miles north-east of Mogadishu.
Mr Phillips, 55, has been held in a small lifeboat adrift in the Indian Ocean since a botched attempt to seize his ship, the US-flagged, Danish-owned Maersk Alabama, on Wednesday.
He tried to escape early on Friday by slipping overboard under cover of darkness, but was immediately recaptured when at least one of the four armed men holding him jumped into the sea after him.
He is said to be unharmed. The lifeboat has enough supplies for 34 people for ten days.
The US Navy has sent three warships and a surveillance aircraft to the area to try to force the pirates to capitulate and give up their hostage, but the tense stand-off entered its fourth day on Saturday.
The gang is understood to have demanded a $2 million ransom for the safe release of Mr Phillips , and have threatened to kill him if it is not paid.
Abdi Garad, a pirate commander in the Somali town of Eyl, said on Saturday that there were plans to move Mr Phillips to another, larger ship because “there are not any developments on the standoff with the American officials”.
“I’m afraid this matter is likely to create disaster because it’s taking too long and we are getting information that the Americans are planning rescue tricks like the French commandos did,” he said.
Florent Lemacon, a Frenchman whose yacht was hijacked last week, died on Friday when French commandos mounted a raid to free him with his wife and three-year-old son and another couple.
The other hostages were rescued safely. Two pirates also died and three more were captured during the operation, which was ordered by France’s president, Nicolas Sarkozy.
His office defended the mission, saying that France was determined ‘not to give in to blackmail, and to defeat the pirates’.
But the commando raid illustrates the dangers faced by the Americans as they consider their options for releasing Mr Phillips.The Pentagon, the White House and other US officials have stressed that they are doing all they can to secure a peaceful, negotiated outcome.
The Maersk Alabama was due to arrive in Mombasa later on Saturday. Its remaining 19 crew members, all Americans, are safely aboard.
Posted by peiper
on 04/11/2009 at 08:11 AM
Filed Under: • Pirates, aarrgh! •
• Comments (4)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Somali pirates holding a US captain hostage said using force to rescue him would result in “disaster
Breaking News
Oh good. So now the press is awarding titles to these .... people? Commander? The pirate “commander?” Ok the guy in charge I get that but when the press does this is almost elevates these scum to something legitimate.
Kind of like when the police arrest someone for a particularly brutal crime, and continually refer to him as, Mister.
I once heard a newscaster back home refer to Charles Manson as, Mr. Manson. Mister? For that creep? Jeesh.
Say, why can’t we hire the French to get this done for us? They’ve already done it three times.
I guess we and the capt. will have to wait and see.
Somali pirates issue hostage warning34 mins ago
AFPSomali pirates holding a US captain hostage said they planned to move him to another ship and warned that using force to rescue him would result in “disaster”.
“There are not any developments still on the standoff with the American officials,” pirate commander Abdi Garad told AFP by phone from the northern Somali pirate lair of Eyl.
“We are planning to transfer the hostage on to one of the ships our friends are holding around Garacad area so that we can wait,” he added without specifying which ship.
Only four pirates have been guarding Captain Richard Phillips on the lifeboat, and transferring him to a larger ship could give them better defences as the US military seeks to free him.
Garad’s comments came after French commandos on Friday stormed a yacht held by Somali pirates in an operation that left one French hostage and two gunmen dead.
“I’m afraid this matter is likely to create disaster because it’s taking too long and we are getting information that the Americans are planning rescue tricks like the French commandos did,” Garad said.
Posted by peiper
on 04/11/2009 at 03:49 AM
Filed Under: • Pirates, aarrgh! •
• Comments (9)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Friday - April 10, 2009
What’s Your Solution?
I got an email asking what my solution for the illegal alien problem would be. Instead of an email response, I posted it. It may not be perfect, but it will be a start. I’m more than willing to hear your alternate solutions, but they need to be SOLUTIONS. And machine gunning 23 million people is not an acceptable one. So think hard, then argue and suggest. Consider this a big open thread, as long as it’s talking about the illegal alien situation.
From my email:
I have a silly question to ask. (and you knew I probably would, but I am interested in the answer, since I doubt anyone has bothered to fully think this out enough)
Being that just about everybody realizes we have a serious problem with illegal aliens in this country, what exactly would YOU do with the ones we currently have here?
Well, off the cuff, here it goes:
a) build a special prison for the illegals who are committing crimes. Or at least add some “deport” tag to their file, so that when they have served their time they get kicked out. We transport them back to southern Mexico, not give them a push over the Texas border.
b) the government already knows where every single one of these people is. Please. You know they do. They know what you had for lunch. Put a law into place that any business will be fined $10,000 per person per week for knowingly employing non-citizens who do not have H1-B papers. Put in a multi-point accessable database containing all SSNs of citizens. Heck, this database already exists, but proof it and purge it first. Send every business owner a registered letter with a unique password. Instruct them to put together a list, with SSNs. Enter your employer ID number, which the government already has, and knows whether you are a sole propreitorship or a corporation or whatever. Enter the list. What comes back is the people with bad SSNs. The employer must verify those people’s name, address, etc. Resend the ones who popped up after verification. Those that fail again are flagged, and the INS pays them a visit. At first the fines against the employers will be token; $10,000 for the whole crop of illegals, regardless of how long they’ve been there. After that, it goes per person per diem. You may have to have agents stand outside the factory gates with list in hand, just in case the employers decide to “forget” to mention some folks.
c) Known abusers will be raided on a regular basis. This includes the meat packers, the fruit pickers, and the entire construction industry. And every restaurant, hotel, and hospital in the country. Round them up and deport them. Period.
d) extreme pressure needs to be brought to bear on the SCOTUS to reinterpret the “anchor baby” thing. No citizenship if your parents are here illegally. Period. And no more of this extended family bullshit. Anyone legally here is legally here, but that does not give them the extra right to bring over granny, uncle Pedro, second cousin twice removed Juan, great neice Carlotta, etc. Screw that.
e) examine and establish a reasonable quota of legal immigration. Throw out Teddy Kennedy’s 1963 idiotic act. We want the world’s best, screw the rest. You want to come here, then show us your qualifications, and be disease free. Then we’ll let you join the line. We have quite enough unskilled labor of our own, thanks. Maybe lettuce will have to be picked by prisoners for a couple years, but they will be paid minimum wage.
f) citizenship is checked at hospitals. Treatment is not denied, but INS is called.
Yes, people are going to freak. They will use the “jews going to Auschwitz” meme when my trainloads full of guarded illegals start heading south. Too bad. And with a fascist in the White House, this kind of thing can be done. Fascism/Socialism has an advantage here. So use it. Obama’s Volunteer Corps needs to be turned into INS-Plus.
The media admits that 12-20 million people are in this country illegally. We have a population of 300 million. If I had to bet, I would say the real numbers of illegals number 30 million or more. 10-15% of the entire population. Maybe as high as 25%. Because we overlook the Chinese problem - yet a large number of the people making your General Tso Chicken to go are illegals. We turn our eyes away from the Brazilian / Portuguese problem - yet who do you think is catching the fish you eat? NY and Boston are crawling with illegals from Ireland. Who can tell? They don’t stand out in a crowd of white folks, but they shouldn’t be here either. Every single Rosa vacuuming rugs in a hotel is an illegal. Nearly guaranteed.
As for asylum, that needs to be granted very carefully. Maybe refugees should get a 5 year renewable pass, but if they don’t check in every month, INS hunts them down and they get the boot.
We have to make tough choices. And the people on the illegal end are going to get hurt. Some will die. Some will be sent home to die. That’s unfortunate. But they should not be here in the first place.Once the word is out that the Purge Is On, millions more illegals will leave of their own accord. Let’s not forget that they are invaders, and heads on spikes is the treatment that invaders can expect. So just sending them home is the nice way. Heck, I’ll even give them a backpack full of food, 5 gallons of good water, spare socks and underpants, a sleeping bag, and a little tent.
To the argument that ... maybe we should keep X million? ... I say no. We already did that under Reagan. Let’s not do it again.
To the other argument that ... these poor people are only doing the jobs Americans won’t do ... I say bullshit. Believe me, I know. Because I’m the American cleaning windows and scrubbing toilets to get by. But I’m doing that for a good wage, not for half a peanut.
Gosh Drew, are you going to require regular Americans to prove their citizenship on a regular basis? At restaurants, ballgames, whenever they use a credit card? Maybe so. For 4 - 5 years it might be necessary. Swipe your ATM card, and the cashier gets a picture of you on her little screen. It had better match up. The technology is already there, and you know damn well both the federal and the state government have your picture if you are 18 or over. The only time this record is saved is when things don’t match.
In the long run, this will also purge us of all identity theft, save welfare and health care billions, and reduce crime by a huge amount. So do it. In the short run, just making the announcement that such a plan is going into place will cause millions of illegals to flee the country.
UPDATE: Today I’m wondering if my ideas were too severe. Maybe we should first just ask them to leave? Because I don’t think we’ve tried that one. Let’s start with that, then escalate the pressure one turn of the screw at a time. But turn the screws fully inside of 18 months, not 100 years.
We also need to attack some of the root issues. The idea that everyone in America should go to college and then get a job in an office has to be put aside. Many people are not college material. Many jobs exist that don’t require college, but can pay very well. We have to reject the idea that hard physical labor has no dignity. We need to stop sending jobs oversees just to save a few dollars. We need to stop buying cut-rate crap from China because it costs a couple pennies less. Be American, Buy American, Hire American. Even in this current recession there would be ZERO unemployment if out of work citizens did the jobs that illegals now do. But no, they wouldn’t be making the big bucks being a fry cook. And they’d have to learn some new skills ... because very little of what we think of as “unskilled labor” is actually unskilled. Granted, some of those skills are minimal, like knowing that you should cut the lettuce off at the ground, and not in the middle of the head.
We need to rethink the Great Welfare Society idea so that the working poor can still get some help, and wind up living far better than those who just collect a check. Taper off benefits as your income goes up. In my state, even somebody earning $35,000 a year could still use some help, but not a whole lot. $150/month in food stamps or something.
We’ve already gold plated the education system with tax money. It has not worked. What comes out the other end is generations of under achievers who think they deserve to walk into $45/hr jobs and get a big pat on the back every 90 minutes just for showing up.
We need to rebuild the work ethic, and we need to rebuild nationalism. And we need more secure borders. Unfortunately, I think we also need a decade or two of the British game of “rat them out” to purge our country, along with an active government that takes their ratting duties seriously. Task Force Terrier, or something like that.
Cut the business tax rate to zero. Nada. Capital Gains are just another kind of income. No more death tax. I’m all for giving Flat Tax a 10 year try. We need to encourage people to work, and we need to encourage people to succeed. So stop taxing the shit out of those who have made a successful effort. Stop hating on the rich, because almost anybody can become rich in America.
I would also suggest that we foment a revolution in Mexico. Topple their corrupt government and microscopic ruling class that owns everything. Then, if we absolutely have to have outsourced production, we can build all sorts of factories and depend on them. Why go to China for everything when Mexico is right there? Right now the answer is that we can depend on the chi-coms more than we can on the Mexicans. That’s a really sad state of affairs. Mexico needs to grow up; they have to get past the 500 year old Spaniard Problem. 70 years ago they stole nationalized the US owned oil infrastructure. Did you know that that theft is still a national holiday? That’s the wrong environment for doing business. The same thing goes for our island neighbors to the south. Without the Castros Cuba could be a huge producer. This isn’t exploitation, but opportunity. But there has to be a government there that we can depend on, or else nobody in their right mind is going to front them the necessary capital investment. We already have the technology to make most production fairly “green”. So we wouldn’t be raping the islands of our Caribbean neighbors by bringing jobs to them. Let’s get past that. But those island nations have to have the work ethic, and they have to have a stable mature government. Right now many of them have neither.
Posted by Drew458
on 04/10/2009 at 10:22 PM
Filed Under: • Illegal-Aliens •
• Comments (16)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • VIVE LA FRANCE!!! French hostages freed off Somalia BY FRENCH TROOPS!
Have no idea why, when warned ahead of time, these ppl went ahead and sailed into dangerous waters.
French troops risked their lives of course. It’s their job.
Bottom line however is that at least this one time, the good guys won a round. And two nigger golli-gremlins* are graveyard dead!
This story comes from BBC Radio News
One French hostage has died and four others have been freed in a rescue operation by French troops on a yacht off Somalia, French officials say.
Two pirates were killed in the operation and three were captured, the French presidency said.
Officials said the rescue was launched when talks with the pirates broke down and threats became “more specific”.
Two French couples had been seized with a child, who was among those freed from the yacht, Tanit, seized last week.
News of the operation came after a US captain made an unsuccessful overnight bid to escape from another seized vessel off Somalia.
Captain Richard Phillips managed to jump overboard off the lifeboat on which he was being held by pirates, US media reported.
But his attempt to reach a nearby US military ship was thwarted before it could come to his aid.
US troops in the area are continuing to monitor Mr Phillips’s situation. He was captured after a struggle on his ship, Maersk Alabama.
Reports said the French rescue operation was not thought to be in the vicinity of the US fleet and the Maersk Alabama.
In another development on Friday, pirates released a Norwegian cargo ship, the Bow Asir, and its crew, the vessel’s owners said. The Bow Asir had been held since 26 March.
French Defence Minister Herve Morin said the hostage who died was Florent Lemacon, the owner of the Tanit and father of the boy on board.
“During the operation, a hostage, Florent Lemacon, unfortunately met his death,” he said.
“The other four, including the child, are safe and well. The president of the republic and the government offer all their condolences to the family of Florent Lemacon and to his friends and share in their distress.”
It is unclear whether Mr Lemacon was killed by his captors, or by a stray French bullet.
Mr Morin also praised the French soldiers for their efforts to free him.
The operation to free those on board the Tanit - the third time French troops have freed hostages from pirates - began late on Thursday, five days after the yacht was seized, the office of President Nicolas Sarkozy said.
We have got rid of the television and everything that seemed superfluous to concentrate on what is essential
Florent Lemacon describing his family’s journeyNegotiations with the pirates had begun earlier this week, the president’s spokesman said.
But when talks broke down troops immobilised the vessel before moving in for an operation that lasted six minutes, the BBC’s Emma Jane Kirby reports from Paris.
“With the threats becoming more and more specific, the pirates refusing the offers made to them and the [yacht] heading towards the coast, an operation to free the hostages was decided upon,” the president’s spokesman said.
Mr Morin said his country had shown determination to oppose piracy.
“France has shown its determination not to give in to blackmail, [to] prosecute the criminal acts and liberate the hostages every time that a ship under a French flag is captured,” he said.
Earlier in the week, Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner had left open the possibility that troops could launch an effort to free the French hostages, telling reporters French officials knew the location of the Tanit.
However, it also emerged that the families on board the yacht, which was reported to be heading down to Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania, were urged not to travel through the Gulf of Aden.
A spokesman for the French foreign ministry said Florent Lemacon and his wife Chloe were “repeatedly warned” not to travel through the area.
“It is difficult to understand why these warnings were not heeded,” spokesman Eric Chevallier said.
The couple had refurbished the Tanit, a 12.5m (41ft) boat, and given up jobs in a bid to escape consumer society and navigate a route along the African coast to Zanzibar.
Speaking to French newspaper Ouest France, Mr Lemacon said they wanted to change their priorities in life.
“We don’t want our child to receive the sort of education that the government is concocting for us. We have got rid of the television and everything that seemed superfluous to concentrate on what is essential,” he said.
Yeah well, that government and it’s troops have just saved your bacon. Be thankful!
[* Drew editorial: It is a shame that one of the French captives is dead. But I think it is more important that the message of retribution be sent. One of our commentors called this the Russian Attitude - They’re already dead, so get revenge. I support that, mostly. I accept that there is a balance point. Use negotiations if you feel that will work. But once you have paid the ransom and got your people back, then you go in and burn down the village and sink all the pirates. When negotiations don’t work, you move immediately to utterly overwhelming force. And then you go and burn down their village. And the village next door. The lesson will not be learned until the repercussions exceed the benefits, and since these pirates have nothing to lose those repercussions are going to have to be severe, continuous, and overwhelming.
And we that post will continue to use the BMEWS stylebook ... which right now contains one item, specified in the other pirate post today. Capice? ]
Posted by peiper
on 04/10/2009 at 03:06 PM
Filed Under: • Pirates, aarrgh! •
• Comments (10)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Eh Canada!
Crowder’s latest ...
... love the fwenchie at the end!
Posted by Drew458
on 04/10/2009 at 01:21 PM
Filed Under: • Fun-Stuff •
• Comments (0)
•
Trackbacks(0)
Permalink • Five Most Recent Trackbacks:
LAAR She Blows! Part One
(2 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Planes Ideas Blog
[...] CABLY SUBMIT TO THE JURISDICTION OF THE AMERICAN COURTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEB [...]
On: 07/12/11 01:57
The Tactical Cowboy
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Sights Service Blog
[...] E LAWS APPLICABLE IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY, THEN THIS WEBSITE IS NOT INTENDED TO BE [...]
On: 07/10/11 08:30
Nasty Dirty Money
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Money Reviews Blog
[...] ONS WHO ARE SUBJECT TO SUCH LAWS SHALL NOT BE ENTITLED TO USE OUR SERVICES UNLES [...]
On: 06/17/11 08:31
Amazing aerial images taken by daring Allied pilots on secret missions during WW 2
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Hookers and Booze
peiper over at Barking Moonbat EWS found some absolutely kickass aerial photos from WWII. I grabbed this one because I’m a big fan of the movie A Bridge Too Far.…
On: 11/23/09 04:14
Clear Thinking and Straight Talk
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at baldilocks
Let Them Fight or Bring Them Home Read all of it--and tell every American you know to do so. (Thanks to BMEWS) UPDATE: The author of the above blog is…
On: 10/02/09 09:29
DISCLAIMER
THE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE HOSTS OF THIS SITE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF SATISFACTORY QUALITY, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OR ANY MATERIALS.
Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:
It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.
- Keep a firm grasp of Right and Wrong
- Stay involved with government on every level and don't let those bastards get away with a thing
- Use every legal means to defend yourself in the event of real internal trouble, and, most importantly:
- Keep talking to each other, whether here or elsewhere
THE INFORMATION AND OTHER CONTENTS OF THIS WEBSITE ARE DESIGNED TO COMPLY WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THIS WEBSITE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND ALL PARTIES IRREVOCABLY SUBMIT TO THE JURISDICTION OF THE AMERICAN COURTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPLICABLE IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY, THEN THIS WEBSITE IS NOT INTENDED TO BE ACCESSED BY PERSONS FROM THAT COUNTRY AND ANY PERSONS WHO ARE SUBJECT TO SUCH LAWS SHALL NOT BE ENTITLED TO USE OUR SERVICES UNLESS THEY CAN SATISFY US THAT SUCH USE WOULD BE LAWFUL.
Copyright © 2004-2008 Domain Owner
Oh, and here's some kind of visitor flag counter thingy. Hey, all the cool blogs have one, so I should too. The Visitors Online thingy up at the top doesn't count anything, but it looks neat. It had better, since I paid actual money for it.
RSS 2.0 
Atom 
