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August 30, 2005

Lack Of Posting

I haven't posted the last few days due to a mad scramble to get my affairs in order as I'm leaving on a lengthy, multistate trip tomorrow morning, my itinerary including, among other places, Washington DC, 6 - 9 September, to support Judge Roberts at a rally/counter rally(left wingnuts and other undesirables vs Right Thinkers).

Here's how we handle these things on the right:                

The left, however, is more inclined to do battle thus:   

Anyone wanting to know details about the rally should go to http://rightmarch.com/

I'll be posting again as of tomorrow night or the following morning from Chicago.

Posted by Seth at 06:35 PM | Comments (9) |

August 25, 2005

Another Arafat Heir

If there was ever a reason for a government to indulge in what the KGB used to call mokri dela(wet affairs), the Israelis need to arrange an "accident" for this son of a bitch before he gets comfortable in the Gaza Strip.

He confers often with terrorist groups and regimes and called the attacks of September 11, 2001, "a lesson to the U.S." saying it "was the first time that Arabic names entered every American household."

The PLO charter calling for the destruction of Israel was reportedly amended in 1996, but on an appearance on ANB TV on April 25, 2005, Mr. Qaddumi said that he "does not accept any amendment." Furthermore, in an interview with an Israeli-Arab weekly on January 3, 2003, he openly stated that there is no difference between Hamas and the PLO vis-a-vis calling for the destruction of Israel. He said, "strategically we are no different from it."

The Israelis definitely don't need an asshat like that coming to town.

Posted by Seth at 10:48 AM | Comments (22) |

August 24, 2005

There's Humor Afoot

Some funny stuff to get our Wednesday off to a cheerful start includes the great fisking of one of Bob Herbert's uniformly inane, too liberal to be believed NYT columns at Vince Aut Morire  and gua-run-teed lotta laughs in a lookalikes gallery at Cosmic Tribune, hat tip there to Sister Toldjah

Enjoy!

Posted by Seth at 02:56 PM | Comments (2) |

Jewish Settlement Pullouts Are A Done Deal

The Israeli Defense Force and police involved in the "Disengagement" have completed the job of evacuating residents of the Jewish settlements in Gaza and four in the West Bank, experiencing resistance only in the two West Bank settlements of Sanur and Homesh, resistance they overwhelmed quickly.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has said Israel's withdrawal from all 21 Gaza Strip settlements and four isolated communities in the northern West Bank will improve Israel's security by reducing friction with the Palestinians.

Right, Ariel, you just keep dreaming.

In the Arab-biased Middle East Online, the opinion is that Sharon has made a sound political move.
Right.

Again, there are some snags in the general game plan, such as evacuees not going with the program.

I tend to agree here with Bibi Netanyahu, as anyone who's spent any time at this blog will know, that the evacuation is only going to embolden the terrorist factions among the Palestinians, who already have expressed their gleeful belief that the evictions of Jewish settlers were a direct result of their terrorism, and have stated their intention to increase those murderous operations, knowing now that they work. The end result, if they are successful, will be to realize the late Gamel Nasser's intention of pushing all the Jews into the sea.

Netanyahu, however, said the pullout would only bring more terror. "Even the chief of IDF intelligence told MKs last week that terrorism would likely resume in force around springtime. The head of the Shin Bet concurred, saying terrorism will originate in the Gaza Strip."

"The prime minister is tearing the nation apart and setting a precedent for further withdrawals. The pullout is a tragedy and completely superfluous, a giving in to terror in return for nothing. Sharon has created an Islamic terror state in Israel," the Likud MK added.

The end of Israel ain't happening, friends, the Israelis just happen to possess the most powerful war machine in the Middle East, but ceding the Gaza Strip to the Palestinians will result in an exponential increase in Israeli civilian deaths from terrorist attacks as Gaza becomes the terrorism equivalent of the old American west outlaws' haven called 'Hole In The Wall.'

The evacuation was much easier, even given the pockets of resistance encountered at a few of the settlements in Gaza, Sanur and Homesh, than many had anticipated, and the IDF expects to have all their assets and equipment out of Gaza by mid September.

Mahmoud Abbas expects to take over at that time. He's another dreamer, that one. Hamas has other plans, and they answer to no one, including the Palestinian Authority{PA}, except themselves. In their incarnation as a Palestinian political party, they have their sights set on replacing Fatah(the party that is the PA, the party of the thankfully late Yassir Arafat) as the leaders of the Palestinians.

Abbas may well be out of his depth here: He inherited his position from Arafat, a seasoned terrorist leader who was wanted by the Israelis as far back as the early 1960s as a major player in Palestinian terror. Arafat was a master of the game, a brilliant strategist and a survivor who built the corruption known as the PA in his own image. Abbas is like the son of a seat-of-the-pants businessman who forged a business empire out of a hand-to-mouth existence, who inherits the business and then loses control, eventually ending up in bankruptcy court. Within a year or two, Hamas will eat him alive, one way or the other.

That's when the Gaza Giveaway will really come back to kick the Knesset in the touchas.

Posted by Seth at 01:32 PM |

Diamonds Are A Terrorist's Best Friend

According to the Middle East Intelligence Bulletin, there's more coming out of Africa than stories of starvation, AIDS, oppressive governments and insurrection. 

Although the Bush administration has succeeded in reducing international sources of terrorist financing since 9/11, the Lebanese Hezbollah movement is still flush with cash these days. Over the past three years, the militant Shiite organization has managed to strengthen its military apparatus, greatly augment its strategic rocket arsenal, start up Palestinian terrorist cells, and establish a presence in Iraq, while continuing to develop its extensive social welfare network in Lebanon.

....A glimpse into the scale of Hezbollah profits from the diamond trade came in December 2003, when a Union des Transports Africains (UTA) airliner loaded with Lebanese passengers crashed off the coast of Benin - on board, according to news reports and Western diplomats in Sierra Leone, was a Hezbollah courier carrying $2 million.[5]

Whereas Hezbollah derives revenue in Sierra Leone primarily through extortion of Lebanese merchants, in the Congo, which has been wracked by civil war since 1998, Hezbollah operatives "muscled their way into the business" and began purchasing diamonds directly from miners and local middlemen at a fraction of their market value.[6] The highest quality stones are sold in the Belgian diamond marketing hub of Antwerp, while the bulk are sold in emerging diamond markets where the organization can operate more freely, such as Bombay and Dubai.

After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States, Belgian intelligence discovered that al-Qaeda had bought up to $20 million worth of diamonds from Samih Osailly, who shipped the gems from RUF-held areas of Sierra Leone through Liberia.[7] Although al-Qaeda and Hezbollah are usually mentioned in the same breath when terrorist links to the diamond trade are discussed, the two organizations have been involved in very different capacities. Al-Qaeda buys diamonds as a way of hiding money (there is no inexpensive and reliable method of tracing their source), while Hezbollah is involved to make money.

Another leak that needs plugging, as it were. Definitely read the entire article, it's profoundly interesting.

Posted by Seth at 12:01 PM | Comments (1) |

August 23, 2005

What Reason Do We Really Have For Racial Profiling?

This came in another email from Brenda the Democrat, bless her heart .

Posted by Seth at 01:23 AM | Comments (3) |

August 22, 2005

Michael Graham Fired

Talk radio host Michael Graham, who was recently suspended from his job at WMAL radio, a subsidiary of ABC for making comments linking Islam with terrorism due to complaints from CAIR{Council on American-Islamic Relations} has now been fired.

It seems CAIR, not content with his suspension, kept up the pressure and the network gave in, axing one of their most popular hosts. CAIR, like many other Islamic organizations, does not make a policy of condemning terrorism. In fact, these folks even help arrested Muslim terrorists obtain legal counsel.

It appears that ABC Radio has caved to an organization that condemns talk radio hosts like me, but has never condemned Hamas, Hezbollah, and one that wouldn't specifically condemn Al Qaeda for three months after 9/11.

Read the article, there are links therein that can be used to submit comments both to ABC and WMAL.  

Posted by Seth at 07:35 AM | Comments (2) |

August 21, 2005

A Passing Thought

AT & T paid the price for becoming top dawg in telecommunications -- they got broken up into a bunch of Baby Bells. Didn't someone name a cheese or something after those?

Microsoft is forever paying a price, legal fees not the least as someone, somewhere always seems to be litigating something at them.

So, now here's Mom and Pop, sitting out in their backyard in Harvard, Illinois, Mom sipping coffee while Pop reads the paper.

Pop glances up and says, "Well, they're goin' after Wal Mart now."

What price, success?

Posted by Seth at 09:39 PM | Comments (2) |

More On The "Disengagement"

The Israeli pullout from the Gaza Strip continues, but not without its problems as evidenced by the fierce resistance of anti-disengagement "activists" in Kfar Darom and elsewhere. As much as I believe that this entire evacuation is a colossal error of judgement on Israel's part and personally side completely with the settlers who are losing their homes, I don't for a second condone the actions of the resisters in Kfar Darom; the soldiers and police they assaulted in what they had to know was ultimately a futile attempt at avoiding eviction weren't the enemy, they were civil and military personnel doing their jobs, as dubious as the nature of the assignment may have been. As I opined in a previous post, such behavior only serves to provide the real enemy with entertainment while demonstrating a divided Jewish population(remember the phrase, "divide and conquer?"). The arson episodes were no better than the terrorism of Hamas, and one would have thought well beneath the dignity of anyone raised in the traditions of Jewish belief. Those responsible should be prosecuted as criminals, not given any leeway due to enheightened passions.

Sunday's evacuations include the last three Gush Katif settlements, during which the IDF anticipates more resistance.

With laundered clothes hanging to dry outside some of the homes and the sprinklers watering the manicured, neatly-cut grass, anti-disengagement activists piled up haystacks, wooden planks, garbage cans and a burnt-out car at the entrance to the settlement, which they planned to light up in an almost festive bonfire once the security forces arrive and try to enter the community.

Michael Matza has a column in Jewish World Review about a settler family's last Sabbath in Gaza.

While Mahmoud Abbas{Abu Mazen} works to shore up the PA's (his) authority in the Gaza Strip, Hamas assures one and all that pullout or not, nothing has changed.

But in a new challenge to Abbas, dozens of Hamas gunmen held a press conference in one of the main squares of Gaza City on Saturday, where they announced that they would continue to launch terror attacks on Israel even after the disengagement. PA policemen who arrived at the scene did not intervene.

"This retreat does not mean the end of our battle, but it is the beginning," said one of the Hamas gunmen, who identified himself as Abu Obaidah. "Our battle with the enemy is long and will continue."

And the greatest government blunder in the history of the State of Israel continues....

Posted by Seth at 07:03 AM |

August 20, 2005

Consequences Of Withdrawal

Mike at Your Republic provides some very serious reasons why any early withdrawal from Iraq would be a disastrous error.

Of course, the bloody not-so-long-term results would elicit cackling glee from the liberals as the MSM would be claiming it was all Bush's fault and, spittle dripping down their quivering chins, the libs would, given their perverse worldview, consider it a victory.

Go have a read...

Posted by Seth at 03:18 AM | Comments (2) |

August 19, 2005

Essay

I don’t know exactly where we deviated to begin with, but I remember that when I was a kid there was a lot more American unity – by that, I mean that while our political parties were forever in combat for the most votes, they stood by their government 100% in times of war and other crises. It didn’t matter what the French thought, the media reported all the facts, the folks on the Hill(on both sides of the aisle) made profound, well thought out, patriotic statements that would read well in the history books.

Family values were reflected in places like The Donna Reed Show, sitcoms in general weren’t about sexual relations or politics, films and TV shows could get across intimate themes without the need for graphic depiction and do it quite well(today, our screenwriters apparently suffer from a paucity of imagination in that regard, they can’t show that a man and a woman have slept together without featuring them doing the deed), entertainment was entertainment for its own sake, not for the purpose of pressing an agenda and there was no need for “parental controls.”

Now, we’ve got a left-leaning media that reports selectively, either eliminating relevant information from their product or completely ignoring important facts in order to bias their “news” to meet their political agendas. We are the defenders in the most intense war in our history, yet because they hate our President, the Democrats do all they can to undermine our defense. Can anybody say, “treason?” Democrat politicians, including senators and representatives, make public statements that are as idiotic(they definitely aren’t “profound, well thought out, patriotic statements that will read well in the history books”) as they are anti-American.

We have miscreants like the 9^th Circus – ooops, sorry, I mean 9^th Circuit Court of Appeals, the ACLU and various other left wing entities that continue to undermine the very institutions that have made the United States of America the wealthiest, strongest and freest country on earth.

How far do these people intend to go? Men screwing little boys in the street while fetuses are butchered live on cable TV? Religion(except Islam) outlawed altogether? Sterile, PC, false, revised American History taught in schools? The above-50% taxes they pay in the Euro-countries? Socialized medicine that kills citizens who need immediate treatment? Running a business being synonymous with paying out most of the profits in gratuitous lawsuits? Taxes geared towards penalizing people and companies for their success?

How can anyone belong to today’s Democratic party and consider themselves patriotic? The DNC has moved so far away from the spectrum of American values that they may as well be living in a Socialist country.

So why don’t they?

Why endeavor to destroy the greatest nation in the history of this planet, to convert it to Socialism? Don’t they understand that the freedom they abuse to attack our way of life is the same freedom that allows them to do so?

Unlike those on the left side of the aisle, I am truly proud to be an American.

Posted by Seth at 09:20 AM | Comments (8) |

August 18, 2005

Radical Islam, In Its Own Words

Victor Davis Hanson hits the proverbial nail right on the head in defining the implacable violent intent of Islamofascism through its leaders' own declarations.

“You will find that the Jews were behind all the civil strife in this world. The Jews are behind the suffering of the nations.”

When and where did that venom come from?

This last May — and out of the hateful mouth of a prominent Palestinian cleric, Sheik Ibrahim Mudeiris. He was broadcast on a Palestinian Authority station.

The televised Sheik finished with an even more frightening thought: “The day will come when everything will be relieved of the Jews — even the stones and trees which were harmed by them…The stones and trees will want the Muslims to finish off every Jew.”

Nothing could be clearer than that promise of another holocaust — and promised explicitly on state-run Palestinian television, a public megaphone of the Palestinian Authority, itself the beneficiary of past and apparently promised future American financial aid.

The entire column is, as always with Hanson, a good and worthwhile read. 

Major ten gallon hat tip to Raven. 

Posted by Seth at 07:05 PM | Comments (4) |

August 17, 2005

The "Disengagement"

The evacuation of Israeli Settlers from The Gaza Strip seems to be moving a little more smoothly than anticipated, according to various Israeli military personnel, though there has been more than a little violence in response to the pullout. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon made a plea to the settlers to blame him for the evacuation, not to take it out on the soldiers and police personnel who are merely doing their jobs, rightly saying that things are tough and stressful enough for them as it is. The soldiers and police involved in the evacuation have apparently(no excessive force complaints have been made public at this time) both professional and sympathetic in carrying out what has to be an utterly distasteful task.

Last update - 14:51 17/08/2005

PM to settlers: Don't hurt troops over disengagement, hurt me

By Haaretz Service and agencies

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, beseeching settlers to blame him, not soldiers, for the diasengagement, Wednesday called the images of Gaza settlers being removed from their homes "heartbreaking," and praised the restraint of both settlers and soldiers. Sharon appealed to opponents of the disengagement to avoid physical and verbal confrontation with the security forces. "I want to truly appeal to everyone, not to attack the police, the women and men soldiers and police . Don't blame them. Don't make it hard on them. Don't hurt them, hurt me."                                           There are some excellent links within the article. As far as some of the ads go, remember that Haaretz is Israel's answer to the New York Times.         -"it's Bush's fault!"

Some of the more tragic occurences thus far have included this and this, and Israeli media seems to have skipped lightly over a couple of attacks by Palestinians that fortunately resulted in no injuries.

There is good streaming coverage of all military related aspects of the evacuation at the IDF's website.

And of course, lurking in the background, is the specter of consequences for this entire foolish, unprecedented submission by the Israeli government to terrorism. 

If things hold up and violence does not accellerate, at least the Israelis will show the Palestinians that they are still one people, that this dumb move on the part of their government, despite uprooting so many Jews from their homes, will not drive a wedge between them that the terrorists can exploit.

Posted by Seth at 02:56 PM | Comments (2) |

Amusing, But True...

In today's Jewish World Review, John Stossel has an amusing commentary on the grim realities of food labelling.

None of the food companies that used the deceptive labels would talk to me about this, which is too bad because I'd love to know how an olive company came up with 1.5 olives as its serving size. A jar of smaller olives, which lists 14 as a serving, seems a lot more honest. Who would ever eat 1.5 olives? The folks we talked to at the mall wouldn't. "What, are you going to throw away half of it?" one woman asked.

Read the column here.

Posted by Seth at 12:36 PM | Comments (2) |

August 16, 2005

Not Off To A Good Start

This was, of course, to be expected, people are people and when their own government evicts them from their homes in order to give their land away to people who have been murdering their friends and family... There were bound to be dissenters who would resort to violence.

I can't say I approve, nor can I say I disapprove. I know how disgusted I felt, here in San Francisco back when we invaded Iraq, watching hundreds of complete and total assholes blocking major street intersections in protest so that no vehicles... including ambulances... could get through. Throwing newspaper vending machines across streets, shattering store windows... I don't know what it feels like to be in the position those evictees are in, but I can well imagine. I would be seething. In a previous post about the then pending Jewish evacuation of the Gaza Strip, I referred to it as Enemy Domain, which about sums it up.

But right or wrong, it's unfortunate and it would be better if the Israeli Government reneged on the deal. It would be fine, the Palestinians have made a science of reneging on agreements they've made with Israel and there does, after all, come a time to draw the line.

I say 'unfortunate' because I think that there's a strong chance things could accellerate to the point where Israeli police and soldiers clash with civilians, I say the Knesset should renege because should the settlers decide to take a stand, that clash between uniformed and non-uniformed Jews will not only provide amusement for the Palestinians, it will also send them a message that their terrorism has done far more than simply gain them territory, it has also violently divided the Israelis. The MSM will be sure to juice things up by assembling footage of isolated violent events into a package that depicts widespread chaos and massive government brutality and countries like France that have dreamed of an end to Israel will point to the video as an example of Israel's "brutish, bullying, fiendish nature" or some such poppycock, "which has been directed toward the oppression of these poor, peaceful Palestinians whose land they stole."

Meanwhile,

Settler leaders' pledges for a non-violent resistance lasted only several minutes after the Sunday midnight closure of Kissufim Crossing. Hundreds of anti-disengagement youth attacked an IDF jeep outside of Neveh Dekalim, the largest settlement in Gush Katif.

Witnesses reported that the teens ransacked the contents of the jeep and burned it by the side of the road. Less than a half an hour later, they punctured the tires of an army vehicle. The vehicle's crew reportedly remained inside, surrounded by rioters.

.... A group of approximately 500 youth marched out of the settlement west toward the Mor Bridge, in the direction of the Kissufim crossing leading out of Gush Katif. The youths jammed rods into the joints of the bridge and set down bent nails in order to shred tires of IDF troops coming to aid the disengagement.

Violence against IDF forces was not exclusive to Gaza - an IDF officer was wounded late Sunday night in northern Samaria during a clash between anti-pullout activists and soldiers who had put up roadblocks around settlements due to be evacuated.

My take is that this is a no-win. Sharon will stick to his guns, a lot of people will resist and the inevitable will occur. When the smoke clears, the only winners will be Fatah and Hamas.

Posted by Seth at 03:06 AM |

They Finally Smell The Coffee

A heartening WSJ editorial(today's Opinion Journal) called EUROPE TOUGHENS UP: How do you say "Patriot Act" in Italian and German? talks about the Eurofolks finally wising up to the realities of Islamofascist terror.

Mr. Blair is once again playing a leading role in the war on terror and, unlike in the Iraq war, most of Europe appears ready to follow this time. From Spain, which suffered the March 11, 2004, train bombings in Madrid, to less likely targets such as Sweden, the Continent finally is waking up to the universal and very real threat that terror poses. France, for all its objections to the Iraq war, already has some of Europe's toughest anti-terror laws.

It's about damn time!

Worries of an imminent attack are particularly acute in Italy. A recent poll by the daily Corriere della Sera found that more than 80% of Italians believe that terrorists could strike within months. Since the London attacks, Rome has granted to the military search powers that previously were reserved for police. It has broadened law enforcement's scope by doubling, to 24 hours, the amount of time suspects can be detained and by making telephone and Internet records more accessible to investigators, among other measures. Police will spend more time carrying out raids against terror suspects--authorities made 200-plus raids in one week shortly after July 7--and will keep closer tabs on suspicious mosques.

Italians who think their vulnerability is the result of their participation in the Iraq war should look no further than Germany, which opposed the war yet feels compelled to step up its security. Interior Minister Otto Schily has been outspoken about his belief that Islamic terrorists are at war not just with the U.S. and its allies in Iraq but with Western society in general. Mr. Schily has called for increased search and detention powers in cases involving terror suspects who are known to be a threat but who haven't yet committed a crime.

While the Euro Countries have their unfair share(like we do) of liberals who will naturally rail against their governments taking any really definitive action to defend them, we must hope that those leaders who weren't born with spines grow some and do what has to be done, like George Bush and Tony Blair have and are, despite the inevitable suicidal whining from the left.

With Europe in the game at last, the terrorists will find themselves with many less safe havens in which to coordinate operations, take some R & R, spread their hate and preach their intolerance for all that is not Islamic.

Good.

Posted by Seth at 02:20 AM | Comments (2) |

August 15, 2005

Party Differences

I believe that one of the things that divides the left from the right in this country can be summed up using this old adage:

Give a man a fish, you'll feed him for a day.

Teach a man to fish, you'll feed him for life.

The Democrats, who have shown themselves to be more cosmetically oriented, would fall into the first category of belief. "The problem's been dealt with for today, we'll worry about it some more tomorrow when it comes back. At least we can tell the voters we've addressed it." Another benefit: The guy will have to depend on the Democrats, forever, if he wants his daily fish.

The bottom line, of course, will be that the government will have to buy fish every day to feed the man, and eventually the amount of money spent on fish will leave a dent in the federal coffers. No sweat, they can recover the expenditure by raising taxes. Yahoooo!

The Republicans, on the other hand, are easily in the second category. "Let's solve the problem once and for all, and move on."

The guy is catching his own fish now, he's self sufficient: He doesn't depend on the government to feed him. He can be proud that he is standing on his own two feet, and thanks to the money the government is saving on fish, they don't need to raise taxes-- "Heck, we can even cut 'em some more!"

But the simile doesn't stop there, apply it to the Global War On Terror, including our presence and our activities in Iraq.

The left, true to form, is again thinking in the now, American soldiers are dying, get them out of there! Iraq was none of our business, no WMD, Saddam didn't bomb the WTC, blah, blah, blah...

The right is, as usual, thinking long term.

I completely agreed with George Bush when he said that the best way to bring about world peace is to spread democracy, because in democracies such things as education and opportunity become available to everyone, not just the inner circle of a king, royal family or dictator. People who had given up all hope of ever having a good life are suddenly face to face with the possibility of realizing their dreams because they have a say in how their country is run. In Iraq, school attendance has multiplied exponentially, the people are elated as they exercise the freedom of speech they'd previously only heard rumors about and they are enthusiastically doing their parts to make their country prosper for the good of all. By remaining in Iraq and helping them as we are, we are giving them the opportunity to establish a working democracy rather than another Taliban or a group of warring religious factions. We need to stay the course, remain in Iraq until they are completely able to both defend and govern themselves as a nation.

The easiest young people to recruit as terrorists/suicide bombers are those who have little or nothing to look forward to, anyway. They live miserable existences and are bombarded with hatred and talk of jihad by their spiritual leaders.

If young Mohammed is doing well, his future looking bright,  how likely is he to throw it all away to blow himself up along with a few people he's never met?

And in democracy exists the opportunity for the exchange of ideas, for people to have better access to the foundations of one anothers' beliefs. They talk, they debate, and tell me, with the odd exception of some psychotic like Timothy McVeigh or Unibomber, how often do we free people in democratic countries blow one another up over our political differences? I can't say I've never met a liberal I didn't develop a nasty urge to snatch up by the neck and... but I don't, we talk, we don't, whatever, but we don't kill each other.

The GWOT could conceivably go on forever, in fact we could eventually become prisoners of our own security measures as attacks increase, the terrorist armies ever growing.

Or  we take the only realistic course of action to prevent that: eliminate their recruitment pool. The only way to do that is to spread democracy in the region that spawns terrorists, which is what we are doing. The deaths of a few soldiers now, as tragic as it may be, can well spare the lives of hundreds, more likely thousands of times as many American civilians over the long haul, and that is what a military force is for.

Once again,

Democrats: Short term, cosmetic solutions.

Republicans: Long term, tangible solutions.  

Sounds about right to me...

Posted by Seth at 11:07 PM | Comments (6) |

Possible Reading List Addition

Julia Gorin has an interesting review and commentary in JWR on Ed Klein's book The Truth About Hillary, which alludes to an alarming personality disorder on Hillary's part that could only be called scary when one considers the concept of Bubba's missus as a possible DNC nominee in the 2008(or any other) Presidential election.

The column is here.

For the psycho-broad species, every move, every word, every interaction with a fellow human being is a calculation, a strategic play, a means to an end. Every day is an exercise in manipulating and controlling others with whom her professional future is entwined, the objective being to make it to the next day. (Klein notes that Hillary's loathing of the media stems from her inability to control them.) When such a woman is given that first opportunity by a hapless employer, mentor or public, a day can turn into a month, can turn into a year, can turn into a career—until she becomes unstoppable even though she was out of her league from the start.

I don't always look for peoples' motivations when I decide how I feel about them, I'm more concerned with their actions and how their actions impact others. I've always thought Hillary and Hubby were evil, and that was that, I was never all that interested in the details of their sordid existence, though I was proven right during the latter half of Clinton 1's second term. You could very nearly imagine having Hill & Bill(sorry, back then it was Bill & Hill, and Monica) settle the personal differences that no doubt sprung up in the Residence back then-- "You got caught, you lamebrain!" -- on Jerry Springer, who enjoys the sort of background that would bond him instantly with our former President.

I may buy this book purely for entertainment purposes, however, due solely to having had my curiosity piqed by reading the review.  

Posted by Seth at 03:32 PM | Comments (7) |

August 14, 2005

Rats Already Fighting Over Spoils

Tomorrow is the official day for commencement of the Gaza Strip evacuation by Israelis, and the two principal Palestinian political parties are turning it into a circus, vying for control of the "spoils" of terrorism in a country whose parliamentary majority is so desperate for an end to terrorism that they're grasping at the nonexistant straws of the Palestinians' "word."

Which word that is, I have no idea, because both Fatah(the Palestinian Authority's party) and Hamas are not only arguing over whose terrorism was more responsible for the Likud party breaking an Israeli precedent and kowtowing to terrorists, but they're also both promising more of the same(terrorism, that is) with their boasts that they've only just begun and will have control over all Israel before they're done.

So what the hell are these Israelis thinking?

Hamas and Fatah are having a real outing over there

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- The militant group Hamas came out of hiding yesterday to hold a mass press conference, distributing the phone numbers of 34 multilingual spokesmen in a fight for press exposure as Israel withdraws from the Gaza Strip this week.
    Among Palestinians, the struggle is between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority -- both of which take credit for successfully pressuring Israel to evacuate 21 Gaza Strip settlements and four West Bank enclaves.
    Determined to win the airwaves, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas yesterday inaugurated a special Gaza-withdrawal press center, complete with live-feed points for TV crews, a 24-hour text messaging service for news updates, maps and free hats and T-shirts.

Free hats and T-shirts. Who knows, maybe some all-beef wieners on the grill, some non-alcoholic beer and some live music, a personal appearance by Miss Semtex 2005...

Posted by Seth at 12:48 PM | Comments (6) |

Give Me A Break!

This is just too friggin' much.

Have Jason Alexander, Rhea Perlman, Danny Devito, Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston, pictured at right, spent a tad too much time in the fantasy factory?

http://www.jewishworldreview.com |(KRT) JERUSALEM — After honing his skills as a vampire, international spy and the Grim Reaper, sex symbol Brad Pitt is joining a cadre of other Hollywood stars to tackle a project that no one has ever pulled off: making peace between Israelis and Palestinians.

Read the rest, LOL!

Posted by Seth at 12:34 PM | Comments (2) |

Conservatives' Difficulties With Roberts

Okay, so the man George Bush has nominated to replace Sandra Day O'Connor in the Court has previously been instrumental, on a pro bono basis, in the winning of a gay rights case at the Supreme Court(Romer vs Evans), and we now hear that he also did some work for Playboy, in their winning a case in 1999 vs the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

These are both liberal causes. 

So Judge Roberts' nomination is now getting flak from the right.

The way I see it, we have two factions on this side of the aisle(the starboard side, of course). One consists of those who believe that, since we hold a no-nonsense majority in the Senate, we should put forth a hard core right winger ala Bob Dole and battle the left tooth and nail to get him/her approved. The other consists of those who are satisfied that Roberts will do the right thing(pun intended), and would prefer to see him confirmed without a dog and pony show from the left that might drag on for months, or longer.

John, as he did with many clients at the firm, was available for advice from time to time,” Corn-Revere told HUMAN EVENTS. “In this case, he helped with moot courts in preparing me for oral argument in the case at the Supreme Court.”

Corn-Revere, who left Hogan & Hartson in 2003 and is now a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine, said he worked with Roberts on at least two Federal Communications Commission cases during their time at Hogan & Hartson.

“I never had a sense that John’s work for any clients necessarily represented his own personal views,” Corn-Revere said. “He was being a professional and he was helping out colleagues.” He added, “Just like others in the firm, he was generally available for advice if something came up in his field.”

The liberals are already performing their "he's a Bush nominee and therefore he's evil" number without any real evidence that there's anything wrong with the nominee from the left's perspective, but that's the liberals; Over the last few years, they've gotten over such hang-ups as self respect and personal pride and don't mind looking stupid in front of the rest of the country. I seriously doubt that the Bush Administration will offer them a second nominee with gay rights and porn cases in his/her resume, so what's their problem? Do they simply want to fight?

The conservatives who are criticising the nomination based on the two cases mentioned above(in neither case did he actually address the Court, he mainly helped behind the scenes as a sort of coach for those who did) should take a couple of things into account:

Judge Roberts is, first and foremost, an attorney. A dedicated lawyer(excluding those who work for the ACLU or make themselves rich by victimizing hospitals and other institutions gratuitously-- hmmm, why does John Edwards suddenly come to mind?) believes that every case deserves the best legal representation it can get, on both sides.

 As far as his politics go, those demanding to examine documents from his Justice Department years provide as glowing an endorsement from a conservative point of view as we can hope for.

Speaking for myself, I'm behind the Roberts nomination all the way, and I believe it to be in the best interests of the entire country, with the exception of a small but loud minority of limited-agenda liberals, an unavoidable, gnat-like irritant we must live with.

Posted by Seth at 10:48 AM |

August 13, 2005

Another Video

The videos from this site, Patriot Files, are really cool when you can see them(there's often a backlog of available bandwidth or whatever that is indicated by a notice to try again later). Awhile ago I linked to the Patton's Ghost video. Check this one out.

Posted by Seth at 03:34 AM |

Televised Trials

In today's Opinion Journal's Review & Outlook, there is an editorial titled A Show for the Whole World to See  that discusses televising high profile criminal trials, such as one of the features of Court TV involves. In certain cases, such as Saddam's trial, I believe it is a good idea. I think that for the many people whose lives have been touched by the crimes of such persons, watching their trials can bring closure of a kind. But I'm with the author of the column on the idea that the televised trials should be just that, trials, unsaturated by media circus spectacle.

The prospect of actually watching Saddam in the dock raises a range of emotions. They include fear and distaste at the thought of a media circus injecting elements of entertainment and even farce into a grave proceeding about mass murders and extermination campaigns that killed thousands. At the end of each televised day, would we be subjected to chit-chat about Saddam's hairstyle and what he wore to court?

That kind of stuff really irritates the hell out of me, I can't help it.

It seems that the media, rather than just reporting something, has to milk it for every last nuance in order to fill up their pages or their broadcast segments, like "there's nothing else to say, but we'll say something anyway."  I recall the Gary Condit/Chandra Levy affair and the milking it received, there was simply nothing more to report, so the media started picking away at it by publishing outside "expert" opinions and so forth. I believe what put that affair to bed was 9/11, as a matter of fact.

Back on topic:

The first televised trial seen globally began in 1961, when Adolf Eichmann, who oversaw the deportation of millions of Jews to the Nazi death camps, entered an Israeli courtroom. The case, which ended with Eichmann's hanging in 1962, engendered controversy, partly because he had been kidnapped in Argentina by Israeli agents. Ultimately, though, the trial stands as a triumph, and not only of final justice. It was a major contributor to the enduring record of a terrible era. Since then, there have been other famous attempts at reckoning, but none so revealing. Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic's untelevised U.N. trial at The Hague heads toward a fourth year with no resolution. Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was shot in 1989 after a two-hour tribunal that left no record of his crimes. East Germany's Erich Honecker was allowed to retire peacefully to Chile after a German court ruled that he was too ill with cancer to continue the "cruelty" of a trial. With Saddam, there is now an opportunity to see justice done, to see what terrible things can happen without the rule of law. And then, with the evidence before our eyes, to imagine what future atrocities may be prevented in countries that choose the path Iraq has now taken.

My grandparents were Jewish immigrants, he from the Ukraine, she from Poland. My grandmother had lost her two brothers, after whom I was named, to the Nazis. I grew up in their house in New York.

When the Eichmann trial was televised, the house became dead quiet save for the trial installments, my grandparents sitting together in rapt attention before the T.V. When it was over and the monster was sentenced to hang, they seemed to have a new buoyance about them as though a great weight had been lifted somewhere within them.

Closure.

I believe that televising Saddam's trial(s) would have much the same effect on Iraqis who lost loved ones to or were themselves victimized by the Saddam regime. It might also be a good medium for showing Americans and other westerners who are bombarded by anti-Bush MSM misinformation and Michael Moore/Move-On style treason the real reasons why we overthrew Saddam Hussein and freed Iraq. 

Posted by Seth at 12:45 AM | Comments (3) |

August 11, 2005

You've Got To Read This

One of the columnists I  never miss is Suzanne Fields. Every adjective I could possibly apply to her column is glowing.

This one is a must-read :

That's what the culture wars are all about. Men and women will sometimes die for an abstract idea, but it's usually the specific way of life they love and their love for it that drives them resolutely into harm's way.

Read the column, it's definitely in the masterpiece class.

Posted by Seth at 07:38 PM | Comments (2) |

August 10, 2005

Sorry, I'm Not Done With This Yet.

In about a week, the Israeli population will watch as their government supervises a mass eviction of fellow Jews from their homes in order to cede land to the Palestinians. This is land the Israelis captured while defending themselves against an invasion by their Islamic neighbors, an invasion that, had it succeeded, would have revisited the "Final Solution" strategy of the Nazis.

The Israelis who have fought for this turn of events are obviously either as lemmingly as our own U.S. liberals or simply dumb enough to believe that just because the Palestinians have lied to them or violated every single peace agreement  they've signed off on before, this time they mean it. Once they have Gaza, all violence will cease. Can you fucking believe that? No, let me say it with feeling: Can you Fucking believe that!!!!!!!?

The Knesset has approved what amounts to the construction of a giant terrorist armory and firebase at the expense of Israeli civilians' homes. I suppose we could call that "Enemy domain."

A column by Barry Rubin in the Jerusalem Post kicks butt.

Aug. 10, 2005 10:04  | Updated Aug. 10, 2005 12:50 The logic of the Middle East By BARRY RUBIN It cannot be repeated often enough that Middle East politics are not like those of other places. It make sense once one understands the region?'s history, politics and institutions, but the region often defies the logic that semi-informed outsiders expect. So... * There will be no decline in incitement or change in the public rhetoric of Palestinian officials speaking to their own people. Thus, of course, Israeli suspicions regarding their intentions will be reinforced. * The Palestinian movement will continue to be oriented toward conquest and revenge rather than nation-state nationalism. * No stable government with real control over the territory will be created in the Gaza Strip, and the Palestinian Authority will not even try too hard to do that. On the contrary, it will ignore the road map's provisions about stopping terrorism and disarming radical groups and simply keep insisting on getting a state right away... What the hell do the Utopians in Israel believe they are accomplishing? We ought to send them every year's installment of "I'll hold the football, Charlie Brown, you come running up and kick it...."     No, dammit, I'm still not done!   Here's an article in Haaretz about Netanyahu's say on the subject: Netanyahu urges MKs to act to stop Gaza pullout By Gideon Alon and Yossi Verter, Haaretz Correspondents, and Haaretz Service In his first speech before the Knesset since resigning from the government Sunday to protest the disengagement, MK Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday launched a fierce attack against the government, urging lawmakers to join the struggle to thwart the disengagement plan. "Only we in the Knesset are able to stop this evil," the former finance minister said. "Everything that the Knesset has decided, it is also capable of changing." "I am calling on all those who grasp the danger: Gather strength and do the right thing. I don't know if the entire move can be stopped, but it still might be stopped in its initial stages," said Netanyahu.   Right, like that ever happens. The "Roadmap" is about to become a steaming piece of discarded rubble ignored by those who made it so....

Posted by Seth at 02:54 PM | Comments (7) |

Volcker's Info-Quest Bearing Fruit

It looks like Paul Volcker's investigation into the U.N.'s Oil For Food quagmire is showing results, even to the arrest of one of the principal players. This WSJ editorial could not be more aptly titled than Oil For Fraud.

Oil for Fraud
Paul Volcker's latest report details the graft over which Kofi Annan presided.

Tuesday, August 9, 2005 12:01 a.m. EDT

Indeed. It's pretty cool the way this report arrived just in time for Bolton's arrival at the U.N., and the continuing disclosures on the graft that's been going on under Kofi Annan's auspices should give Bolton all the room he needs to point to reasons for cleaning up the U.N. The last thing Kofi can say is, "You don't fix what ain't broke." 

It'll be pretty interesting to see what comes out at Yakovlev's trial and, if Annan does revoke Benon Sevan's diplomatic status(sorry, no more diplomatic immunity for you, Frenchy!) we get to extradite him, what happens there, too. From what we know of French honor, Benan would roll over on his "longtime friend" Kofi in a heartbeat, if there's something to roll over about, in order to save his own skin.

Even now, the U.N.'s defenders like to paint Oil for Food as a great humanitarian effort slightly tarnished by a few overhyped instances of corruption. In fact, Oil for Food was a huge field of graft, helped by the fact that the man in charge of policing it was, based on the evidence Mr. Volcker has collected, in the service of the bad guys. Mr. Annan might think of this as yet another opportunity for "reform." If he's even remotely serious on that score, he can begin by reflecting a little harder on his own responsibility for the failures over which he, and nobody else, presided.

I'm looking forward to finding out what Volcker has to report in September.

Posted by Seth at 02:11 AM | Comments (2) |

August 07, 2005

Must Be Said

I am really apprehensive about the Gaza Strip withdrawal.

It truly amazes me that the Israeli Knesset(the Jewish State's parliament) has approved this, and that Ariel Sharon is a party to it.

Here are people who have something like 57(no, not the Heinz-Kerrys) years of experience dealing with the Palestinians.

Here are people who have to know that the Palestinians will use Gaza as an explosives and munitions storehouse, and to launch terrorist attacks against Israeli citizens.

Here are people(terrorists)--yeah, it's this link again-- who have no intention of sticking to any agreements they make. Below are some revealing excerpts from the Hamas Charter. Keep in mind that Hamas is rapidly becoming the most popular political party in the Palestinian existence.

Here are people who should know better. By giving the Palestinians the Gaza Strip, they are further endangering Israeli citizens.

When Palestinian groups start attacking Israel out of Gaza, every drop of Israeli blood spilled will be the fault of the Knesset members who approved the evacuation of the Gaza Strip. Their fault 90%, the terrorists' fault 10%.

Because they should have known better.

Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it.

"There is no solution for the Palestinian question except through Jihad. Initiatives, proposals and international conferences are all a waste of time and vain endeavors."

And that is what concerns me.

Posted by Seth at 08:49 PM | Comments (4) |

A Letter I Wrote

A couple of weeks back, Vilmar at Ranting Right Wing Howler, one of my favorite blogs, posted on a Long Island schoolteacher who was forced to resign her job because she was a conservative and not following the liberal dictum of the school district(she had a pic of President Bush in her classroom). Initially, Vilmar had said he would like to post my letter to the school principal at his blog, so I didn't post it here, but I suppose he either forgot about it or changed his mind, so I am posting it here and now. This is how to let a liberal piece of &%&&#%* know that you disagree with his/her agenda:

Dear Ms. Becker-Seddio;

Posted by Seth at 05:40 PM | Comments (3) |

Wi-Fi Country

It's amazing how informative and interesting to read Nicholas Kristof(excuuuse me, Nicholas D. Kristof) can be when he writes about something other than politics. In his NYT column today, he writes about Hermiston, Oregon, a rural farming district that's embraced Wi-Fi technology in a way no place else in America, except maybe Philadelphia, comes anywhere close to. The column is here .

But Hermiston is actually a global leader of our Internet future. Today, this chunk of arid farm country appears to be the largest Wi-Fi hot spot in the world, with wireless high-speed Internet access available free for some 600 square miles. Most of that is in eastern Oregon, with some just across the border in southern Washington.

Driving along the road here, I used my laptop to get e-mail and download video - and you can do that while cruising at 70 miles per hour, mile after mile after mile, at a transmission speed several times as fast as a T-1 line. (Note: it's preferable to do this with someone else driving.)

That really makes me want to bring my Inspiron up there just for the novelty of being bombarded with one continuous, uninterrupted hotspot!

Posted by Seth at 09:19 AM |

August 06, 2005

Ollie North On The U.N.

In his {this week's} column published at Human Events Online, Oliver North Provides some good

Advice for Ambassador Bolton

by Oliver North
Posted Aug 5, 2005

	Text Size:  S   M   L printer-friendly email to a friend respond to this article The Phone Booth Revolution on Trade    More Than a Church Building    Castro Bashes John Bolton as 'Gangster'    The Best of Bolton

Congratulations, John, on your new assignment as the United States' permanent representative to the United Nations. Please know that these good wishes are offered in the same spirit that I would applaud Hercules on his willingness to cleanse the Augean stables.

He, of course, had to divert the waters of the Peneius and Alpheus to accomplish his task. To flush the effluence from the corridors of the U.N., you may have to do the same with the Hudson and East Rivers. Please permit me to assist you in that task by throwing in my two cents -- which is, by the way, more than I think we ought to waste at the United Nations next year.

First, look under every rock. The corruption at the U.N. didn't begin with the Oil for Food scandal and it certainly doesn't end there. The United Nations is nothing more than bureaucracy piled atop waste, wrapped in fraud, covered with abuse -- all of it funded by American taxpayers who foot 22 percent of U.N. dues -- more than any other nation. We also pour billions of dollars more into the coffers of its related agencies.

He's got that right. In the course of the column, North pretty much covers all the bases. Let 'em know that America's largesse can just as easily become considerably-smaller-esse. Go get 'em, John! 

Remind your new "colleagues" that last month the U.S. House of Representatives voted 221 to 184 to withhold 50 percent of U.S. dues to the U.N. until reforms are implemented.

 

Posted by Seth at 03:46 PM | Comments (16) |

On Fisking A Terrorist

Mad Dog Vinnie at Vince Aut Morire offers this priceless post called How To Fisk A Terrorist(Again).

Check it out, only not with a mouthful of coffee.

Posted by Seth at 01:13 PM |

August 04, 2005

A Headline We Like

While reading Best Of The Web Today, I ran across a link to this article at Newsmax.com and thought its headline rather amusing.

Democratic Pollster: We Don't Stand for Anything     

Democratic Party pollster Stan Greenberg said Wednesday that "one of the biggest doubts about Democrats is that they don't stand for anything."

Maybe Greenberg should have run against Bush last year. In so few words, he was able to deliver a message it took Johns Kerry and Edwards an entire campaign season to get across to the American people.

Posted by Seth at 10:45 PM | Comments (2) |

An Old Tradition Explained

Here's something I didn't know, and I'm probably not alone, so I'm going to share it.

If any of you have ever been to a military funeral in which taps were played; this brings out a new meaning of it. Here is something Every American should know. Until I read this, I didn't know, but I checked it out and it's true:

We in the United States have all heard the haunting song, "Taps". It's the song that gives us that lump in our throats and usually tears in our eyes. But, do you know the story behind the song? If not, I think you will be Interested to find out about its humble beginnings.

Reportedly, it all began in 1862 during the Civil War, when Union Army Captain Robert Ellicombe was with his men near Harrison's Landing in Virginia. The Confederate Army was on the other side of the narrow strip of land.

During the night, Captain Ellicombe heard the moans of a soldier who lay severely wounded on the field. Not knowing if it was a Union or Confederate soldier, the Captain decided to risk his life and bring the stricken man back for medical attention. Crawling on his stomach through the gunfire, the Captain reached the stricken soldier and began pulling him toward his encampment.

When the Captain finally reached his own lines, he discovered it was actually a Confederate soldier, but the soldier was dead.

The Captain lit a lantern and suddenly caught his breath and went numb with shock. In the dim light, he saw the face of the soldier. It was his own son. The boy had been studying music in the South when the war broke out. Without telling his father, the boy enlisted in the Confederate Army.

The following morning, heartbroken, the father asked permission of his superiors to give his son a full military burial, despite his enemy status. His request was only partially granted.

The Captain had asked if he could have a group of Army band members play a funeral dirge for his son at the funeral.

The request was turned down since the soldier was a Confederate. But, out of respect for the father, they did say they could give him only one musician.

The Captain chose a bugler. He asked the bugler to play a series of musical notes he had found on a piece of paper in the pocket of the dead youth's uniform.

This wish was granted. The haunting melody, we now know as "Taps" ... used at military funerals
was born. The words are :

Day is done..
Gone the sun.
From the lakes.
From the hills.
From the sky.
All is well.
Safely rest.
God is nigh.

Fading light.
Dims the sight.
And a star.
Gems the sky.
Gleaming bright.
From afar.
Drawing nigh.
Falls the night.

Thanks and praise.
For our days.
Neath the sun.
Neath the stars.
Neath the sky.
As we go.
This we know.
God is nigh.

I too have felt the chills while listening to "Taps" but I have never seen all the words to the song until now. I didn't even know there was more than one verse. I also never knew the story behind the song and I didn't know if you had either so I thought I'd pass it along.

Hat Tip, Jodee, and many thanks.

Posted by Seth at 01:55 PM | Comments (4) |

This Is Funny!

James Lileks has this account of John Bolton's first day on the job.

Now that John Bolton has been installed as United Nations ambassador -- by the time-honored recess appointment or the power-crazed overreach of King Emperor Bush Fuhrer, depending on your point of view -- one can only wonder how he'll do. Here's a hypothetical workday. (Note that he's made it out of Washington without some senators throwing themselves on the train tracks to keep him from leaving. Or, rather, having aides throw themselves on the tracks. Make that interns. Aides might say things under anesthesia.) Anyway. The limo pulls up to the glistening U.N. building at 7:59 a.m....

You know, when I read these comic sketches, especially by those with the savvy of Lileks, I can actually picture them as possible reality. I mean, after what we've seen of totally out-of-the-park statements by liberal politicians, Congressional propositions from the left and the reaching of the Mainstream Media in their continually weakening endeavors to undermine American patriotism, values, religious beliefs and our very survival, it's unfortunately very difficult not to be able to picture these comic applications as possibilities.

Noon -- Bolton presents his credentials to Kofi Annan, who is sweating and nervous. The lunch is amiable until Bolton, his hand still aching from a vigorous game of handball, makes a fist and cracks his knuckles, whereupon Annan takes a stack of papers from his desk, stammers that it has all the details on the oil-for-food scandal, and begs not to be put in a cell next to his son. "He snores," Annan begs.

Check it out.

4:07 -- At the cafeteria, Bolton gets a doughnut and a cup of coffee; the cashier informs him she'll put it on the U.S. tab. Bolton insists on paying himself; she shrugs and asks for $428.26.

Posted by Seth at 04:30 AM | Comments (3) |

August 01, 2005

King Fahd Has Died

Saudi Arabia's King Fahd has died in a Riyahd hospital. King Fahd(website) is succeeded by Crown Prince Abdullah, his brother. Abdullah is 81. I can only hope that whichever of the copious royals who succeeds him in the next few years is a peaceful soul rather than a jihadi. Nonetheless, in this time of loss my condolences go out to the members of the royal family who were close to the king. The king died early today.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Saudi Arabia's ruler, King Fahd, died early Monday in a Riyadh hospital and his brother, Crown Prince Abdullah, has been appointed the country's new monarch, the Saudi royal court announced in a statement.

"With all sorrow and sadness, the royal court in the name of his highness Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdel Aziz and all members of the family announces the death of the servant of the two shrines, King Fahd bin Abdel Aziz," according to a statement read on state-run Saudi TV by the country's information minister.

Saudi TV, which said the king was 84 years old, broke with regular broadcasting to announce King Fahd's death.

Quranic verse recitals followed the announcement by the information minister, Iyad bin Amin Madani, whose voice wavered with emotion as he read the statement.

"He died after suffering an illness," Mr. Madani said in the statement. "God allows the custodian of the two holy mosques, King Fahd, with great mercy and forgiveness to reside in his wide heaven."

King Fahd sought to modernize his desert kingdom while balancing change against tribal tradition and orthodox Islam, but a stroke a decade ago left him a ruler in name only during tumultuous times for the world's biggest oil producer.

The king died early Monday at the King Faisal Specialist Hospital in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, where he was admitted on May 27 for unspecified medical tests, an official at the hospital said. At the time of his widely publicized hospitalization, which caused concern at home and abroad, officials said he was suffering from pneumonia and a high fever.

In recent weeks, Saudi officials have been saying the King Fahd's health had been improving and that he was even preparing to leave hospital.

King Fahd suffered a debilitating stroke in 1995 that confined him mainly to a figurehead role in the kingdom.

A LEADERSHIP ADRIFT • Saudi Monarchy Reacts Slowly to a Dangerously Changing Society 06/30/04
The link just above, Saudi Monarchy Reacts Slowly to a Dangerously Changing Society leads to a superb analysis/article in WSJ by Hugh Pope. I recommend it as a good read.

His half brother Crown Prince Abdullah, 81, has been Saudi Arabia's de facto leader since then and has led the country's battle against Islamic extremism and terrorism.

The king brought the kingdom, holder of the world's largest oil reserves and home to Islam's holiest shrines, closer to the U.S. during more than two decades as monarch.

Posted by Seth at 11:18 AM |