Free Republic

[Martha's Vineyard] The Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation this week issued a public apology and launched an overhaul of its land management practices following the revelation that large numbers of trees and other plants had been dug up from two of its preserves and used to landscape an exclusive private property on the North Shore. *** The two foundation properties, the Caroline Tuthill Preserve in Edgartown and the Priscilla Hancock Meadow in Chilmark, were left damaged by heavy earth moving equipment brought in by contractors hired to landscape the 30-acre property of Dirk Ziff near Lambert’s Cove in West Tisbury.

Outgoing Detroit Mayor Dave Bing says the once-thriving automotive capital of the world had no choice but to file for bankruptcy after it “hit bottom,” buried by high pension and health care obligations and millions of dollars in bond debt. But Bing told The Associated Press that while he anticipated the decision to make Detroit the largest city in U.S. history to seek bankruptcy protection, he remains convinced the state could have done more to help Detroit avoid it. … (Michigan Gov. Rick) Snyder’s office says the governor and legislators have found ways—outside of a state bailout—to help Detroit. These...

Enough is enough already... The Israeli Defense Force's Caterpillar D9R military bulldozer -known affectionately as the 'Teddy Bear' in Israel- is best known (in the west) for scraping the West Bank clean of terrorist nests, etc. The armored behemoth weighs over 56 tons, and is considered a front-line tool in the battle against terrorism.  The CAT D9R rescues damaged AFVs, detonates IEDs, clears paths, neutralizes booby-traps, demolishes terrorist structures and infrastructure (even under fire), and regularly provides cover for IDF soldiers.  Some major terrorists have even been directly killed by them (such as Muhammed Tawalbe in Jenin and Case Adwan...

..... ....In at least one case, that of Migron, the Arabs who claimed the land is theirs withdrew their lawsuit when they were unable to present proof of ownership. There may be good news for the Jewish residents, however: Two of Israel’s leading lawyers, Attorney Dr. Yaakov Weinroth and attorney Dr. Harel Arnon, published a legal opinion on Tuesday, according to which there is already a legal solution to prevent the demolition of the outposts. Weinroth and Arnon found that the solutions are legal under the law which currently applies in Judea and Samaria. In their opinion, the two lawyers...

Video About 3,000 people took part in a prayer ceremony at Givat Assaf, to ask G-d to prevent the community's demolition. Rabbis participating in the event included Rav Dov Lior, Rav Yaakov Shapira, Rav David Chai HaCohen, Rav Yehoshua Magnes, Rav Elisha Vishlitzky, Rav David Dudkevich and many others. The head of the grassroots Binyamin Residents' Council warned that the gathering was a message to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu "and the government of demolition that he heads" that another expulsion will not pass quietly." Givat Assaf was named for Assaf Hershkovitz who was murdered nearby on April 30, 2001, three...

Forces from the Israel Police and IDF Civil Administration raided the outpost of Givat Gal Yosef, not far from Shilo in the Binyamin region north of Jerusalem, Wednesday evening. Jewish residents were not caught by complete surprise, as large forces had been seen leaving the Shaar Binyamin police station in the direction of Hizme and other junctions in the Binyamin area. These forces were apparently put in place in order to prevent Jewish reinforcements from joining the residents of Givat Gal Yosef and making the demolition more difficult. MK Michael Ben Ari (National Union) reacted to the destruction and said...

Member of Knesset Danny Danon visited the Samarian Jewish community of Migron Thursday evening, ahead of Friday's scheduled demolition, by the government, of a number of buildings on the strategic hilltop. Speaking to a solidarity gathering, attended by rabbis and other public figures, the World Likud chairman said, " We won't let the extreme left enjoy the destruction of houses in Judea and Samaria. The government must settle the status of the community for once and for all. We were not elected to destroy communities."

Dozens of US cities may have entire neighbourhoods bulldozed as part of drastic "shrink to survive" proposals being considered by the Obama administration to tackle economic decline. The government looking at expanding a pioneering scheme in Flint, one of the poorest US cities, which involves razing entire districts and returning the land to nature. Local politicians believe the city must contract by as much as 40 per cent, concentrating the dwindling population and local services into a more viable area. The radical experiment is the brainchild of Dan Kildee, treasurer of Genesee County, which includes Flint. Having outlined his strategy...

ISM sending "human shields" to Lebanon to aid Hezbollah By Lee Kaplan Wednesday, August 9, 2006 Adam Shapiro, one of the founders of the International Solidarity Movement, has resurfaced after a long hiatus and has teamed up with Northern California ISM’s Leader, Paul LaRudee, to create a program for ISM "activists" to act as human shields for Hezbollah in Lebanon. The ISM has acted as human shields for Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the PFLP in the West Bank and Gaza for the last four years, according to Shapiro’s wife and ISM co-founder, Huwaida Arraf. LaRudee was recently caught by Israeli...

Manila,14 Feb. (AKI) - Tensions are high on Basilan, an island in the south of the Philippines, where the Muslim community has threatened to attack Christians if the government does not stop its plan to destroy the Ihya Unsunna mosque, one of the oldest mosques on the island, in order to construct a market depot. "This is our place of worship, this is the house of God and destroying the mosque will only bring trouble because the Muslims are angry. We appeal to our leaders to please spare the mosque,” Ustadz Omar Suhod, one of the Muslim religious leaders told...

Children die beneath Mugabe's bulldozers By Alistair Leithead in Harare (Filed: 24/06/2005) A piece of red plastic tape flutters from a post outside the remains of Lavender Nyika's home in Tafara - a place outside Harare which means "we are happy". But there is little happiness here. The tape is a traditional sign representing a loss in the family, and while hundreds of thousands of Zimbabweans have lost their homes, few have lost a daughter. Lavender Nyika's daughter Charmaine was crushed to death Charmaine was two years old and inside the family home when the police came with their bulldozers...

Mugabe's bulldozers push people back to land By David Blair in Johannesburg (Filed: 06/06/2005) President Robert Mugabe's onslaught against Zimbabwe's cities has escalated to claim new targets, with white-owned factories and family homes being demolished in a campaign that has left 200,000 people homeless. Across the country, Mr Mugabe is destroying large areas of heaving townships and prosperous industrial areas alike. Virtually all the areas demolished voted for the opposition MDC Party in the last elections The aim of this brutal campaign is, says the official media, to depopulate urban areas and force people back to the "rural home". Chris...

Israel Defense Forces could violate Palestinians' human rights, a United Nations human rights investigator has warned the U.S. heavy equipment maker. Jean Ziegler, an expert on the right to food in the Geneva offices of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, wrote Caterpillar that Israel used the bulldozers to raze homes and destroy crops, preventing the Palestinians from obtaining adequate food supplies and aggravating their "already precarious living conditions." Caterpillar's actions "might involve complicity or acceptance on the part of your company to actual and potential violations of human rights, including the right to food," Ziegler wrote Caterpillar Chief...

RENO, NV (Mineweb.com) -- Nearly a year ago, this reporter called an old friend, who was the chairman and chief exectuive of Caterpillar (CAT) at the time. During the call, the executive expressed his concern and frustration about the use of CAT equipment by Israel’s military to bulldoze Palestinian settlements. There was no way he would support or in any way condone the use of the equipment to violate human rights. But, thus far, he was helpless to stop it. As far as we were concerned, the most complicated issue was: How can a company control a buyer’s use of...

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Israeli troops demolished 13 Palestinian homes along a Gaza road Monday, after Palestinian gunmen ambushed Jewish settlers there during an outdoor memorial service at the spot where an Israeli family was killed last week. No Israelis were injured in Sunday's attack, but automatic fire kept dozens of settlers, including terrified toddlers, pinned to the ground for 20 minutes. Many crouched behind cars during the battle, before racing to nearby armored buses. One Israeli man shielded his screaming 4-year-old daughter on the ground. An armored personnel carrier drove along the side of the road, kicking up...

The giant Caterpillar bulldozer, used by the Israeli military to destroy Palestinian homes in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, now comes with a controversial new feature: remote control. Israel says its remote-control technology will lower risks to soldiers. But Palestinians fear it will lead to more frequent raids using the machines and make the three-year conflict even bloodier. The remote-controlled D-9 bulldozer and a remote-control version of the Humvee, equipped with machine guns, were developed by the Israeli army and the Technion Institute of Technology. Both machines are U.S.-made, with Israeli modifications. They are expected to go into service...

Foreign reports state that Israel transferred to the United States, shortly before the current war in Iraq, giant bulletproof D-9 bulldozers. The IDF uses them in its counter-terrorism war in Judea, Samaria and Gaza in missions such as plowing roadblocking-ditches and clearing paths for tanks. It appears that the Americans will use them in the upcoming battle in Baghdad.

I never knew that a "bull dozer" as reported by Fox News, had a forty foot verticle reach to tear down buildings. These idiots are as dopey as democrats. There are back-hoes, bucket-loaders, dozers, dump-trucks, etc. When is the media ever going to learn or understand anything?Sheesh!

This is a transcript of AM broadcast at 0800 AEST on local radio. Jenin massacre uncovering AM - Friday, April 19, 2002 8:08 LINDA MOTTRAM: To the Middle East and as more information comes out of the cities of Jenin and Nablus on the West Bank, it's becoming clear that Israel will have to answer allegations that it's committed war crimes and crimes against humanity during its occupation of the West Bank. One British forensic expert says the evidence points to a massacre by Israeli forces. That expert is Professor Derrick Pounder from Amnesty International who's inspected the devastation and...