Michelle Malkin: True scandal in hostage tragedy was terrorist payoff

The Union Leader ^ | 11MAR05 | Michelle Malkin

[concrete is my business]

That is a big if on the "idealogy of the insurgents".

There may be no honor among these thieves.

I like your tag line.:0)

Mind if I use it over Easter dinner with the left wing of the family?

[familyop]

Wow! Thank you for "Italy: Who is Manuevering Ransom for Hostages?" What we didn't know about this...! I recommend that everyone have a look at that very important background information (with links to evidence).

But on Berlusconi, there is one thing we need to follow-up. We'll find out whether it's a dead end or takes us further.

See the following comment by elli1.

"According the John Gibson (FoxNews): '...The Washington Times is reporting Monday that the $6 million ransom was not Italian government money, but personal funds of the media mogul Silvio Berlusconi — who just happens to be the prime minister.'"

[familyop]

Alright, here's the result of the first step in the search on whether or not Berlusconi (rich media mogul) pooled the money. ..."pooled," because IMO, if (if) he really did, he did so by collaborating with all parties that he has been able to get his fingers into. Oh, there's so much more I could tell you, and some that I have, in the past... Here's John Gibson's Fox News story.

Here's one Washington Times piece about that, but it refers to the "two simonas" thing and says that Berlusconi paid that ransom. ...might be another Wash. Times piece and maybe more. We'll see.

A thought or two from experience but aside from the facts (and lack of) so far:

Let me tell you, the Mob does get itself popular through media, and it does give a lot to community charities, raising its hands to the applause. You might even remember something about a saddening revelation on the left coast not so long ago--a teeny, weeny look at the dark side of all that. But I contend that that was nada. It gets a lot worse than that.

And a large portion (not all, as some are very anti-) in the cultures of Italy and Greece are the Mob and where one particular operations style of legitimizing crime into government came from.

[familyop]

"Yet, even as his government officially rebuffed reports of a ransom arrangement in the Sgrena affair, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was quoted by the newspaper Il Messaggero conceding: 'We have to rethink our strategy in dealing with kidnappings.'"

Ah, and see that above.

And while we're at it, let's take a look at a teeny bit of Calipari's history. Yes...more of my guesses from observations in Spooky DeVille. Calipari "fought organized crime." So do the bosses (city councilmen, commissioners, chairmen of the boards, businessmen--even mayors) of many who fight organized crime. After their families get into "legit" business, they don't stop competing with competing gangs. They keep one or two illegit accomplices in the shadows at time, for dirty work. They have all others arrested then hold their hands in the air for the community applause, just like they do in the neighborhoods in the USA. They give to the poor and go to parties.

[familyop]

Berlusconi's Casa delle Libertà (House of Freedoms) includes Forza Italia ("Go On Italy" or "Come On Italy") and the Alleanza Nazionale (National Alliance). Only the Lega Nord (Northern League) broke off from the Casa delle Libertà.

I'll get you some references in a little while. ...need to do a couple of other things first.

[monkeywrench]

Good work! Keep going.

[familyop]

Pay particular attention to the last sentence and where the broadcast came from. ...same characteristic ambiguity--same kind of denial and admission.

http://www.agi.it/english/news.pl?doc=200503081218-1055-RT1-CRO-0-NF11&page=0&id=agionline-eng.oggitalia
Today in Italy
Special service by AGI on behalf of the Italian Prime Minister's office

SGRENA: BIANCO, WAITING FOR ANSWERS ON POSSIBLE RANSOM
(AGI) - Rome, March 8 - The parliamentary committee controlling secret services and security services "has not yet received answers" by the government on the possible payment of a ransom for the liberation of Giuliana Sgrena, stated Enzo Bianco, committee president, at the microphones of "Radio anch'io". "The fact that Italy could have paid a ransom is a very delicate topic, talked and written about by media, but we are not sure that this really happened. Certainly in Italy the choice not to pay ransoms was a winning choice against the phenomenon of kidnapping for the purpose of extortion, particularly serious during the 70ies, but Baghdad is a completely different reality, Italy is united in undertaking any possible step to free possible hostages".