Everyone is my friend until they prove otherwise.
“Franken — You’re Fired!†It’s not as far a stretch of the imagination as you might think that this conversation could take place. Air America has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the state of New York.
“Franken — You’re Fired.”
It’s not as far a stretch of the imagination as you might think. This conversation could take place.
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Air America has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the state of New York.
Under bankruptcy law, in chapter 11 cases normally the debtor, in this case Air America, tries to have themselves appointed as trustee over the bankruptcy. However in cases of mismanagement, the court and the creditors can appoint the trustee.
Continue reading “Franken, You’re Fired!”
In the end it boils down to this: we’ve got the dream, all they’ve got is the spleen.
UPDATE: I could not have been more wrong…. Â
I’m going on record with my election prediction early: The Republicans will retain majority control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Why do I say this?
Because even after days of salacious scandal, weeks of questionable polling, months of frothing hyperbolic editorials, and two solid years of “We are doomed in Iraq, We are doomed in Afghanistan, We are doomed in the War on Terror” everyone I know who is conservative to moderate is still planning on voting.
Continue reading “Republicans Keep Both Houses”
In a contrast to that, is this an exceedingly clever move to flush Al Qaeda and Taliban leadership, or just bone-headed? You be the judge
Earlier I reported on the Musharraf Assassination attempts, now we probably know why they happened.
Continue reading “Musharraf Assassination Attempts update”
The fact that major Italian media outlets are ignoring Genocide in Darfur is not surprising with the treatment Orianna Fallaci received, not surprising at all. This from Italian Blogs for Darfur
The fact that major Italian media outlets are ignoring Genocide in Darfur is not surprising with the treatment Orianna Fallaci received, not surprising at all.
Continue reading “Italian Media Ignoring Darfur”
There is a concerted attack in the western mainstream media to tar the Waziristan accord and President Musharraf along with it, however it’s the story framing that reveals the agenda in our press.
There is a concerted attack in the western mainstream media to tar the Waziristan accord and President Musharraf along with it, however it’s the story framing that reveals the agenda in our press.
Our press is united in opposition to the accord because President Bush is supporting it, reporters tend to take the most nihilistic view of anything they cover, and besides it’s easy to take shots at Musharraf when Pakistan’s in election season.Â
Continue reading “In Support of Musharraf”
The Frontier Post has a new article regarding Bin Laden, which might relate to the prior reports of his death. In this version, he has spinal problems — earlier stories regarding his death, since disavowed by intel services reported that he had paralysis of the legs. The article quotes unamed sources as saying that he has placed Al Zawahiri and his sons in charge of Al Qaeda operations
UPDATE: Al Arabiya TV is also reporting that Bin Laden lives and is in good health, there aren’t references to possible spinal problems or paralysis in the report.
UPDATE II 9/26 Also from Peshawar, The News:
PESHAWAR: Top Taliban military commander Mulla Dadullah Akhund has claimed that al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden was alive.
Talking to The News from an undisclosed location, he said there was no truth in reports that bin Laden died from typhoid in Pakistan in August. “Shaikh Osama is alright. He is safe, Dadullah maintained. There was no way to verify Dadullah’s claim.
In the past also, Dadullah issued statements to the effect that bin Laden and Taliban leader Mulla Muhammad Omar were alive and leading the resistance against US-led foreign forces in Afghanistan.
When pressed for evidence to show that bin Laden was alive, Dadullah hinted that there was a possibility of a tape being sent to media organizations to prove that the al-Qaeda head was not dead. However, he declined to say as to when such a tape would be made available.
The Frontier Post has a new article regarding Bin Laden, which might relate to the prior reports of his death. In this version, he has spinal problems — earlier stories regarding his death, since disavowed by intel services reported that he had paralysis of the legs. The article quotes unamed sources as saying that he has placed Al Zawahiri and his sons in charge of Al Qaeda operations. Bolding below is mine.
From the Frontier Post:
Aqeel Yousufzai PESHAWAR: Osama bin Laden, the elusive al-Qaeda chief, is suffering from a serious backbone problem, a well-placed sources told The Frontier Post on Sunday. However, the source rejected as groundless a media report regarding the death of the world’s most wanted fugitive of typhoid in a Pakistani hospital. Because of the severe spinal-chord ailment, the Sheikh (Osama bin Laden) has assigned al-Qaeda command to his trusted lieutenant Dr Aiman Al-Zawahri and his son Mohammad, revealed the source. He described the French newspaper report on Osama’s death as propaganda of the dissident Saudi billionaire’s enemies. Osama is very much alive and kicking, he insisted. What’s new about Osama bin Laden is that he has been suffering from an acute backbone pain over the last few months, forcing him out of direct al-Qaeda command. As a result, the Sheikh has delegated his powers to his trusted friend Dr Aiman al-Zawahri and his son Sheikh Mohammad. As of now, Zawahri is also assisted by his son-in-law Abu al-Qama and son Hamza in running al-Qaeda affairs. Speaking to The Frontier Post from an undisclosed location over the telephone, the former mujahid observed. “Al-Qaeda has long become an organised movement in many parts of the world, pursuing an ideology.” He added the dreaded outfit was not a by-word for an individual or a personality, and that it would not perish with the passing of one leader. Shiekh Osama will have to die one day but his ideology will continue to inspire generations to come. We have thousands of Osamas in our ranks and every Muslim youth with al-Qaeda could grow into an Osama in future, the man continued. The al-Qaeda has set up a new shura commanded by Dr Zawahri and composed of 11 senior leaders from different countries. All the shura members are reportedly committed to the ideals of the Saudi dissident. A formal statement or videotape proving that OBL is a live to the effect will be released to the media in a few days. It’ll will also belie the report of the French newspaper, he maintained. According to Pajhwok Afghan News, Afghan President Hamid Karzai termed the report of the French newspaper sheer speculation. However, he hastened to add it would be good news if it turned out to be true….
……The note by the DGSE, dated September 21 and published Saturday by l’Est Republicain, stated that Saudi intelligence officials are now convinced that Osama bin Laden is dead. It said information gathered by the Saudis from a source they considered reliable indicates that bin Laden might have succumbed to a very serious case of typhoid fever resulting in partial paralysis of his lower limbs while in Pakistan on August 23, 2006. His geographic isolation provoked by constant fleeing is believed to have made medical assistance impossible (and) on September 4, 2006, the Saudi security services received preliminary information of his death. It said the Saudis were waiting to obtain further details and notably the exact place of burial before officially announcing the news. The DGSE refused to confirm the report, which L’Est Republicain said had been sent on Thursday to Chirac, Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy and Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie, and no immediate official reaction was forthcoming from Saudi officials.
This might be more believable, the Frontier Post in the past has printed favorable stories on Bin Laden. This also could signal that there has been a coup within Al Qaeda, and that Al Zawahiri has forcibly taken control (Pure speculation on my part.) If you have noted the past few weeks there have been a lot of Al Qaeda leaders captured, and there are many changes going on, it could all be related.
Visit CT blog, scroll down the right side-bar newstories tonight, there are quite a few. Regardless of whether this rumor is true or false, something has shaken and stirred Al-Qaida. (BTW: Kudos to the folks at CT, they really do a great job at picking out the significant stories.)
More intel, and speculation on Al Qaeda movements in this article at CBS.
We also have a follow up to the earlier report, apparently the original cable came from an embassy party in Pakistan, where French personnell overheard the rumor from Saudi Chief of Mission, Abdullah Zahani, and thereafter cabled it in. Full story at the Blotter.
One of the paid mystery middlemen reportedly told the Saudis that he had heard from an Arab in Pakistan that “al Qaeda’s Arabs are now leaving Pakistan in throngs because Bin Laden died of typhoid”.
Pakistani intelligence sources say few, if any, of the Saudi sources “are of any value” and that “the Saudis repeatedly get conned by these individuals who claim to have exclusive information.”Pakistani intelligence sources say they have been receiving reports for the past 12 months that some al Qaeda militants are leaving Pakistan for Sudan, Yemen and now Somalia, but certainly not on the scale suggested by the “middleman”.
My previous articles on Bin Laden here.
when you come to an election cycle there are so many spinning constellations of political philosophies migrating together that it’s like Galaxies Colliding. What comes out the other side and why is nearly impossible to predict or to backtrack on after the fact. Unless of course you are Karl Rove.
As we run into the stretch for the Mid-terms both parties have studies, the media has studies, and the pundits have studies all saying that x, y, or z will or should be uppermost on voter’s minds as they head to polls in November. However all of these organizations have the intent of making their the issues uppermost in voter’s minds. In other words it’s galactic-scale spin that speeds up as we draw closer to the election.
This is my attempt to clarify — most things in life nowadays are never simplex. There isn’t a silver bullet issue that will win for either party, no matter how many pundits will try to convince you that one simplex problem cost so-and-so their seat, or got so-and-so their seat.
The world is more than complex today, it’s multiplex. Issues influence each other, and when you come to an election cycle there are so many spinning constellations of political philosophies migrating together that it’s like Galaxies Colliding. What comes out the other side and why is nearly impossible to predict or to backtrack on after the fact. Unless of course you are Karl Rove.
Using this multiplex theory, it’s easy to see why disentangling the war in Iraq from the war on Terror is an impossible task, just as trying to pry gas prices lose from Future Energy Policy and past Environmental Policy is a loser as well. There are too many stars, planets, and gas clouds spinning into each other to sort those out for the average voter.
So when it comes to this election here are some key nuclei of the multiplex universe:
1. Local Issues: if there are large ones this will influence outcomes.
2. GWOT
3. Future Energy and Environmental Policy
4. Immigration / protecting the borders
These appear to be the nuclei of the galaxies colliding in November, notice how they all cross over and influence each other. Also take note that if the stars are larger and brighter in your LOCAL galaxy, the gravity of the situation in the other three are not going to influence you as much as the sooth-sayers with their galacto-scan pundit hats and telescopes might have you believe. If you look behind the curtain of the pundits who profess to influence somewhere between one eigth to one sixth of the electorate, you will see they have their scopes focused on a warped mirror reflecting some alternate, mythic universe.
Since the genesis of this sensational story was purported Saudi intel memos I have to chalk this up as another false report, like others that have come out near elections.
Since the genesis of this sensational story was purported Saudi intel memos I have to chalk this up as another false report. Here’s the ABC story.
The Saudi Government has pulled the rug from under a French newspaper report about the alleged death of Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
In a statement the Government says it “has no evidence to support” the contention that the world’s most wanted man is dead.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has no evidence to support recent media reports that Osama bin Laden is dead,” the Saudi Embassy in the US said.
“Information that has been reported otherwise is purely speculative and cannot be independently verified.”
The question remaining is who put this report out there, and why? The possibilities might be that this was a ploy to get UBL to prove he’s still there, it could be election fodder: something put out to decrease the urgency terror, or it could be UBL trying to distract.
India is accusing Pakistan as noted in my previous report.
Reuters speculates that this is a ploy to cause UBL to surface, one which might be needed if the Waziristan pact has actually caused him to relocate.
It was fun while it lasted, but I’m not playing here anymore, Bin Laden lives, we still need to find him and figuratively put his head on a pike at ground zero.
The French Press paper L’est Republicain and the Hindustani Times are reporting of Osama Bin Laden’s death, this coming from leaked security memos that included information from Saudi Arabia intelligence services. France is investigating the leaks, but the memos report UBL dieing in Pakistan from Typhoid in late August. Article below:
 
 UBL DEAD! ?? Not
Les services secrets saoudiens auraient acquis la conviction que le fondateur d’Al-Qaïda est mort.
Chirac said he was “a bit surprised” at the leak and has asked Defense Minister Michele Alliot-Marie to probe how a document from a French foreign intelligence service was published in the French press.
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The French Press paper L’est Republicain and the Hindustani Times are reporting of Osama Bin Laden’s death, this coming from leaked security memos that included information from Saudi Arabia intelligence services. France is investigating the leaks, but the memos report UBL dieing in Pakistan from Typhoid in late August. This might explain a few things, like Clinton’s recent rant, the funeral not fired upon report, and the recent tactics of the Taliban, which caused 1000-1500 Taliban deaths the past month. UPDATE: CNN carrying this story at 9:11 AM central. Update: Fox News now carrying the story. 11:40 central
Update: Un-named Saudi sources are quoted by Times.com as saying that UBL was ill etc., however Fox News just flashed a letter onscreen from the Saudi Government denying the report. Interesting, could this be another “faked intelligence memo” of the sort that tend to come out at election time? Is this an attempt by the left to sidetrack the issue of terrorism? The last two fake memos regarded Bush’s guard duty, and the yellow-cake plame affair; these past fakeries should by now have us suspicious at least. I will keep playing however, Osama is dead until proven otherwise.
Update: This quote from the Sauds: Saudi Arabia’s Interior Ministry offered no details. “I’ve heard the reports, but I have no information at all. I have no idea,” spokesman Mansour al-Turki told The Associated Press..
Continue reading “Reports of Bin Laden’s Death”
Following up on the Waziristan Treaty, we have tribal leaders and elders verifying that the pact was with the tribes, not the Taliban as ABC mis-reported
Following up on the Waziristan Treaty, we have tribal leaders and elders verifying that the pact was with the tribes, not the Taliban as ABC mis-reported. We have this article from the Pakistan Observer
 Continue reading “ABC Mis-reports on Waziristan Treaty”
