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| Dr. David Marlett, Editor | 5 October 2001 | Vol II, No. 74 | ||
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| Dr. David Marlett, Editor | 5 October 2001 | Vol II, No. 74 | ||
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IN LIGHT OF THE ATTACKS ON OUR COUNTRY YESTERDAY I BELIEVE IT'S TIME WE STOP TALKING ABOUT HOW WE DISDAIN THE TERRORIST BOMBINGS, HOW WE ARE SHOCKED, HOW WE ABHOR SUCH ACTION, HOW WE ARE CIVILIZED, HOW WE MUST BE CAUTIOUS, HOW WE MUST TAKE CORRECT ACTION AND ON AND ON. IT IS TIME TO STOP TALKING. I WANT TO HEAR ABOUT A KILL COUNT. I AM SICK OF "WE SHALL STAND TOGETHER", LET'S GO GET SOMEONE, ANYONE AND EVERYONE ASSOCIATED UNTIL WE FINALLY GET THE RIGHT ONE; I WANT TO HEAR ABOUT SOMETHING BEING BLOWN UP, LEVELED. I WANT TO HEAR ABOUT SHAPE CHARGES, C4 BEING SET AND CRUISE MISSILES ON THE WAY. WE KNOW WHO THEY ARE, QUIT KIDDING THE PUBLIC. I WANT TO HEAR ABOUT THOSE WHO HARBOR SUCH TERRORISTS BEING DECIMATED. I WANT TO HEAR ABOUT THOSE GIVING OUT CANDY AND DISPLAYING THE "VICTORY" SIGNS IN GAZA, THE WEST BANK AND IN JERUSALEM BEING ERADICATED. I WANT TO HEAR ABOUT TROOPS BEING DEPLOYED IN PLACES LIKE AFGHANISTAN. I WANT TROOPS IN YEMEN TO TAKE RETRIBUTION ON THOSE WHO BLEW UP THE USS COLE AND KILLED OUR SAILORS. WHO CARES ABOUT THE FULL RESOURCES OF THE GOVERNMENT BEING "UNITED". WHO CARES ABOUT WORLD OPINION AND THAT REPUBLICAN / DEMOCRAT TALK, THE DEVIL WITH TALKING, LET'S GO KILL SOME PEOPLE. I WANT ALL THIS TALK AND PALAVER STOPPED, I WANT SOME GOOD OLD-FASHIONED AMERICAN ACTION TAKEN. I WANT SOMEONE WHIPPED AND WHIPPED GOOD. HOW ABOUT YOU? SILLY? MAYBE! NOT PREACHER TALK I KNOW, AND I WILL BE PRAYING, BUT THERE ARE TIMES FOR ACTION. A TERRORIST UNDERSTANDS ONE THING AND ONE THING ONLY AND THAT IS FORCE. HE FEARS FORCE, THAT DENIES HIM ACCESS AND KILLS HIS ASSETS. IT IS TIME TO STOP TALKING.
[ Evangelist Chuck Cofty - Vietnam Veteran - Retired Marine ]
"Osama bin Laden's followers are obsessed with the promise of an afterlife in paradise and the 74 virgins who wait there to serve them. (The fanatics apparently have not considered the grim fact that for every waiting virgin there's a prospective mother-in-law). They're peculiarly vulnerable to psy-war [psychological warfare]. Devout Muslims may not fear death, but they are terrified of pork, with or without beans. Many believe that even martyrs will be denied entrance to paradise and the virgins if they are contaminated by the flesh of pigs. . . . So here's a helpful suggestion.
"We learned only yesterday that U.S. and British commanders intend to drop leaflets on Taliban territory in advance of precision attacks on Osama bin Laden's hideouts and training camps, assuring Taliban soldiers and sympathetic tribesmen that the West means them no harm. This is nice, and it might even persuade a Taliban warrior or two.
"The leaflets would be far more effective if they relate the story of how Gen. John J. 'Blackjack' Pershing dealt with Islamist terror in the Philippines in 1911. Pershing detailed a patrol to bring in six known terrorists who had slain women and children in a backwoods village. The terrorists were required to dig their own graves, and then were lashed to stakes to await the firing squad. Several pigs were brought before them for slaughter.
"'When you are buried,' the officer of the detail told the terrorists, 'we will bury the pig offal with you. You'll never see paradise.' And no virgins, either. One of the terrorists was allowed to 'escape' to return to his fellows to tell the awful story, as Pershing knew he would. There was no more trouble in the neighborhood for years, for long after Pershing was long gone to France to command American doughboys in the Great War.
"This was the kind of punishment a society like ours would never countenance today, of course, even for Osama bin Laden's evildoers. But merely telling the story would tell the Taliban warriors, loud and clear, just how mean the
infidels are prepared to be.
[ Pruden on Politics via GOP N&V]
"I am an American Citizen living in Tanzania. Whenever I am stopped in this country by a policeman - for no other reason than to check for the proper papers; no crime is committed - I am always asked something like this, 'Where are you coming from?' or 'Where are you going?' or 'What country are you from?' or 'What are you doing in Tanzania?' or 'What are you going to be doing at the place where you are going?'
"These might seem like innocent questions, but in America this would never happen. I would not even be stopped except for cause. Please do not allow America to become like the other countries of the world. Please stand against these new laws that will diminish the rights of all citizens. Please let me return in two years to a country where I am not going to be stopped to be asked 'Where are you going?' etc.
[ GOPN&V reader Jimmy Gee, Arusha, Tanzania ]
*** The airline bailout enriches stockholders at the expense of taxpayers
In the past few weeks, politicians have been transformed into statesmen, and George W. Bush has perhaps had greatness thrust upon him. But you can't escape your origins. Congress and the president have pulled off the neat trick of rising to the occasion while simultaneously stooping to pork-barrel politics as usual.
I refer to the airline bailout-$5 billion in cash and an additional $10 billion in loan guarantees. You might think that in times like these our leaders would be too busy for everyday pursuits like handing out giant dollops of corporate welfare. You'd be wrong.
Let's be clear about what this bailout will do for the flying public: exactly nothing. It won't keep any planes in the air that wouldn't have been there anyway. Airplanes are flown when it's profitable to fly them, and they're not flown when it's not profitable to fly them. Giving cash to the airlines doesn't change the profitability of any given flight, so it doesn't affect any decision about which flights to offer.
If a given route can generate $100,000 in fares in exchange for $80,000 worth of fuel, labor, and maintenance, somebody will fly that route. If the same route can generate only $60,000 in fares, nobody will fly it. That's equally true whether the owners of the airlines are rich or poor.
What if the airlines go bankrupt? So what if they do? They'll be reorganized, and the profitable flights will continue to be flown-if not by existing carriers, then by new carriers who will step in to fill any breach. All those jumbo jets will still be out there, and as long as enough people want to fly, someone will be flying them.
So, what does the airline bailout accomplish? One thing and one thing only-it enriches the millions of people who own airline stocks at the expense of the millions of others who don't. And in the process, it undermines the very principles that we uphold and our enemies want to destroy.
There has always been some small risk that an unforeseen disaster-whether natural or man-made-would dramatically reduce the demand for air travel. It is one of the glories of our capitalist system that such risks are borne by precisely those people who are willing to bear them. If you want to participate in this particular risk, you buy airline stocks. If not, you buy stock in something else. That's called freedom of choice, and it's part of what we're fighting to preserve.
The bailout is tantamount to canceling everyone's bets after the wheel of fortune has already been spun. That's unfair to taxpayers who will foot the bill (and don't get to share in the bounty when the airlines have a year of windfall profits). It's also unfair to everyone else. Here's why: Risky investments usually yield high returns; that package is frightening to some investors and attractive to others. But if you start bailing out troubled industries, you reduce both the risk of stock market investing and the high returns that go along with that risk. That limits the range of options available to everyone. The risk-averse are forced (through the tax system) to bear the very risks they were averse to, and the risk-preferring are prevented from shouldering other people's risk burdens and earning a fair reward for their courage.
So, if it won't affect air traffic and it's patently unfair, what's the argument for bailing out the airlines? It's the same as the argument for agricultural subsidies-these guys have a lot of political clout, and they're exploiting it. Period. It's not like they're the only ones who are suffering these days. I'll wager that the average airline investor is hurting a whole lot less than, say, the average New York City taxi driver.
In Afghanistan, you can't choose your reading material, your occupation, or the length of your beard. In the United States of America, it just got marginally harder to choose your risk portfolio. The gap between our systems is immense, but we've just taken one tiny step toward closing it. Chalk up a small but disconcerting victory for the bad guys.
[ Slate ]
By now everyone has been hearing the death toll rise and reports of the destruction from the terrorist attacks on the US. These were deplorable acts that we will never forget. But now is a time to look at the other side of the numbers coming out of New York, Washington and Pennsylvania.
The sad but somewhat uplifting side that the mainstream media has not reported yet the SURVIVAL rates and some positive news about the attacks.
The Buildings The World Trade Center The twin towers of the World Trade Center were places of employment for some 50,000 people. With the missing list of over 5,000 people, that means 90% of the people targeted survived the attack. A 90% on a test is an 'A.
The Pentagon, some 23,000 people were the target of a third plane aimed at the Pentagon. The latest count shows that 123 lost their lives. That is an amazing 99.5% survival rate. In addition, the plane seems to have come in too low, too early to affect a large portion of the building. On top of that, the section that was hit was the first of five sections to undergo renovations that would help protect the Pentagon from terrorist attacks. It had recently completed straightening and blastproofing, saving untold lives. This attack was sad, but a statistical failure.
The Planes, American Airlines Flight 77, this Boeing 757 that was flown into the outside of the Pentagon could have carried up to 289 people, yet only 64 were aboard. Luckily 78% of the seats were empty.
American Airlines Flight 11, this Boeing 767 could have had up to 351 people aboard, but only carried 92. Thankfully 74% of the seats were unfilled.
United Airlines Flight 175, another Boeing 767 that could have sat 351 people only had 65 people on board. Fortunately it was 81% empty.
United Airlines Flight 93, this Boeing 757 was one of the most uplifting stories yet. The smallest flight to be hijacked with only 45 people aboard out of a possible 289 had 84% of its capacity unused. Yet these people stood up to the attackers and thwarted a fourth attempted destruction of a national landmark, saving untold numbers of lives in the process.
In Summary,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Out of potentially 74,280 Americans directly targeted by these inept cowards, 93% survived or avoided the attacks.
That's a higher survival rate than heart attacks, breast cancer, kidney transplants and liver transplants - all common, survivable illnesses.
Don't fear these terrorists.,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, The numbers are against them.
*** Belgian law invoked to indict Cuban leader
A legal campaign to bring Cuban president Fidel Castro to court to face charges of crimes against humanity was initiated in Brussels today by Jose Basulto, sole survivor of a humanitarian rescue mission attacked by Cuban Air Force jets in 1996. Other victims of Castro's regime have joined Mr. Basulto's initiative and pressed charges against the Cuban leader. If found guilty under Belgian law, the Cuban leader faces a sentence of between 20 and 30 years' imprisonment.
The law, which has been used recently to bring charges against former Chilean president Pinochet, and others alleging crimes against humanity, was established in 1999. By creating such a law, Belgium paved the way in bringing perpetrators of widespread and systematic violations of human rights to face trial in Belgium, regardless of where these crimes were allegedly committed.
Today Mr Basulto, together with his fellow plaintiffs and their legal representatives, visited Brussels' Palais de Justice to deliver a writ on behalf of all victims of Castro's regime. Mr Basulto said: "My goal is to get justice for the innocent, unarmed men who risked everything to help their fellow countrymen.
"We have spent more than four years collecting evidence that identifies Fidel Castro as being responsible for their deaths, and now have the opportunity to test that evidence through a respected international legal process." According to Mr. Basulto this is only the tip of the iceberg and he hopes that other victims will come forward to further strengthen his action.
Mr. Basulto has already been joined by Eugenio de Sosa Chabau, a prominent Cuban businessman and newspaper editor, who was tortured in a Cuban prison from 1960 to 1980 for opposing Castro's government. Castro confiscated de Sosa Chabau's assets upon imprisoning him after a Cuban court found that he had committed ''dissident political activities'' for speaking out against Castro's regime. After being repeatedly physically and mentally abused, de Sosa Chabau was released in 1980.
Other victims to rally around this case, Sergio Perodin and Maria Victoria Garcia, were aboard a tugboat heading for Florida that was sunk on July 13; 1994 by boats of the Cuban Ministry of Transportation, drowning 41 people, many of them children. Mr Perdolin's wife and 11-year-old son died, and Mrs. Garcia lost 14 family members. The plaintiffs' chief counsel, Mr Larry Klayman, who chairs the American public interest law firm Judicial Watch, said that Mr Basulto's case against President Castro includes evidence from media interviews given by the Cuban leader shortly after the aircraft were shot down.
"In subsequent press interviews with Time magazine and Dan Rather of CBS News, Fidel Castro stated that he personally ordered the shooting down of the unarmed civilian planes, and that he accepted personal responsibility for what happened" Mr. Klayman stated.
Mr Klayman added: "Today in Brussels is an important day for all government leaders who think they are above the law. Belgium should be proud of creating a law that makes it possible to bring such people to justice.
"The recent tragic events in America serve to reinforce the importance of an international framework of law to bring lawbreakers to justice - particularly powerful leaders who believe they are above the law."
*** The Basulto case
Mr. Basulto's case stems from an incident in February 24 1996, when three unarmed civilian light aircraft, conducting a search and rescue mission for Cuban refugees over the Straits of Florida, were attacked by Cuban Air Force jets. Two of the three aircraft were shot down and destroyed in international waters, killing four people on board. One of the survivors was Mr Basulto, who is a member of the Brothers to the Rescue group (Hermanos Al Rescate) of Cuban Americans who help refugees reach and settle in America.
Mr Basulto said: "Already, a criminal court in Miami has convicted agents of Fidel Castro of the murder of Brothers to the Rescue pilots. Now Castro himself must be brought to justice."
*** The Perodin & Garcia case
In 1996 the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which is part of the Organization American States (OAS), investigated the sinking of the tugboat after receiving two complaints. According to the Commission "the events that occurred…are attributable to the Cuban State as a juridical person". It further concluded that the Cuban State was "responsible for violating the life of the 41 people" who drowned and for "violating the personal integrity of the 31 persons who survived".
Mr. Perodin was detained in a Cuban prison for one month, and only a week after being released, he patched up a small boat and left Cuba with his surviving son. Mrs. Garcia was finally able to flee Cuba in 1999.
For more information please refer to http://www.hermanos.org and http://www.judicialwatch.org/
[ Judicial Watch ]
Journalists who have obsessed for three decades over the 18-minute gap in Richard Nixon's Watergate tapes haven't had much to say about Bill Clinton's Oval Office tapes.
On Wednesday the Washington Post reported that Clinton had withheld 80 cassettes from the Office of Independent Counsel, a running commentary he recorded over his eight scandal-scarred years as president.
But at least one Clinton confidante says it isn't so -- at least not the part about Clinton withholding the evidence.
"The tapes were reviewed by the president's lawyer completely," a source close to Clinton told the New York Daily News Thursday.
The "relevant portion" of the Clinton tapes was "turned over [to Ken Starr] in transcript form."
Imagine the scene: Clinton consigliere Bruce Lindsey along with Stonewall Jack Quinn, listening in on their boss's ramblings about Paula Jones, Monica Lewinsky and Juanita Broaddrick -- and then dutifully transcribing every word?
Too bad Nixon didn't think of asking prosecutors if he could get away with transcripts.
[ NewsMax ]
It looks like Jane Fonda's born-again conversion to Christianity last year was just a passing fancy.
A source close to the one-time actress tells MSNBC's Jeannette Walls that she "usually can't get [Fonda] to shut up" about her faith.
But when asked about her church activities during one recent encounter, Fonda waved off the question, explaining that she "didn't have time for that stuff" anymore.
Fonda caused a stir recently when she told an Atlanta radio station that Americans need to understand the "underlying causes" of the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington and cautioned against "saber-rattling and calls for vengeance."
[ NewsMax ]
"A platoon of crack Special Forces soldiers have taken the first steps of reprisal after the past week's incidents in America. The heroic force, composed of Palm Beach, Florida Democrats, have broken into the dog kennel area of the local animal shelter and captured all the Afghans. They reported light casualties. They also rounded up several Arabian horses who were acting suspiciously."
[ GOPN&V ]
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