Free Republic

Aren't you one of the people who thought we went to war based on one man's testimony? Hopelessly naive are two words that come to mind.

the entire establishment had their favorites. DOD liked chalabi. when everybody got together, they could then give the POTUS options. chalabi provided some of the most damning data - if true. if you had an agenda to go to war against iraq, would you choose the most damning evidence or the least damning?

chalabi served his purpose. we don't need him any longer, especially when he makes noise about iraq not needing our services any longer. THAT is what got Bremer's attention. in order to finish him off, we turn him into a spy.

it's pretty amazing there won't be an investigation due to the rock solid evidence. no investigation = no media attention.

anybody recall the republican response when clinton launched cruise missiles?

distraction from monica.

really, you just can't take them seriously on this terrorism fight.

"I have to believe we are closer to Huxley's "Brave New World" than that of 1984."

you might enjoy reading "Amusing Ourselves to Death" if you haven't yet.

6 month rotations? no reason to relocate the whole family then. hard on the families and hard on the local economies where they will be stationed. but we'll save money!

the sooner he can prove he will oppress, the sooner he get's the job.

Teacher317 wrote - So giving in to terrorists' goals and demands (leaving Isrrael isolated, surrounded, unsupported and alone) is your solution? You forget the typical American's psychology... when someone tells you what to do, you do the opposite, just to prove a point. When someone attacks you, and orders you to do as they say, you 'get them back', and then spend a significant amount of time, money, and effort for the exact OPPOSITE cause.

yes, that is my solution. it isn't giving into terrorists though. that is a setup that you have bought into. don't feel bad. it's a GD epidemic.

the typical USAn psychology is meaningless. that is a fairy tale of your own invention (if i'm reading you right?).

RightWhale wrote - No one is more vigilant, more prepared, and more watchful than Israel. They don't talk about their successes, except peer-to-peer.

so it's even worse than we've been led to believe? interesting. thwarting attacks usually calls for a feather in the cap of somebody. they really must be different over there.

we don't need MORE cooperation with israel. that is one of the main reasons we are seen as the enemy. first, we need to convince them to leave the occupied territories, to at least get them to abide by international agreements. then we'll see about other stuff.

oh, my congress critters know my name . . . no worries.

the argument that the CIA may be more effective in some countries (say friendlies) is moot. it is an indication that we do not yet have their attention for mutual interests. if we don't have that, then we aren't really friendlies, are we?

using conventional forces to make our point, while perhaps harsh, is at least honest to a great extent.

interesting thought. i guess that's why we keep them scattered all over the country?

howdy, nightdriver! while they may not come under the purview of the USC, they still are people. all of us are endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights.

it's not nice to mess with the creator.

no need to search. the source is stated at the top.

the problem with the CIA running operations overseas "in our behalf" is that there is precious little oversight. this allows them to provide for their own "needs" and to wage death, terror and destruction against the administrations hand-picked enemies. they are thus unrestrained from constitutional boundaries.

this is way more entangled than what the founding fathers had warned against.

our survival is more important than any supposed links we share with the israelis. whatever they are, cut them, starting with foreign aid.

if we need to know how to avoid suicide belt bombers, let us not take any tips from the israelis, 'k?

angkor wrote - "Just as Hitler said, the Jews run everything. /sarcasm"

maybe you'd care to state just what influence they do have? it isn't none and it's more than a lot, IMO.

gdani wrote - "The reparations that Israel paid were modest and were paid with the understanding that the incident was an accident."

our money returned to us. check out their foreign aid amounts.

dreamweaver wrote - "I and many others totally agree with you, but why for God's sakes has GW protected him in every manner since he took office. Why has GW signed executive orders that would prevent investigations of the former pres.

That is just a few examples."

maybe Clinton used his vast power to get the goods on W?

i can say that about clinton and y'all will lick it up. would W ever do anything wrong? course not.

but back to the subject, a disinterested clinton leaves office and W takes over. pretty much the same folks in the intelligence community now as before (career bureaucrats). they still have the documents and capabilities that clinton ignored. now we all know how engaged W is in things such as international affairs and how open, attentive and involved he is, especially in things involving terrorism and defence of our country. i'm sure the first folks who got in the door were these long-suffering spooks whom clinton had sloughed off! right? wrong!

Tenet had been wandering around the halls apoplectic saying to anyone who would still listen to him that something spectacular and monstrous was about to happen in the summer of 2001. too bad the administration had already tired of his ministrations.

to whom do the CIA and FBI report?

i say this only to counter the total nonsense in this thread, the political back and forth of it's W's fault, it's clinton's fault, it's W's fault, etc.

what we have here is a total breakdown in our intelligence apparatus that allowed these attackers into the country in the first place and was totally incapable of tracking their movements once they were here. that isn't about partisan politics - that is about turf war between agencies.

that stuff needs fixing. it will require a strong executive to carry it through. raise your hands - how may think that Gov. Ridge is da man for the job? come on, don't be shy, get 'em up . . . hmm. i'd call that lukewarm support.

now again, how many think that W should make this his personal, top priority? if you don't recall what the purpose is for the federal government, re-read the Preamble to the Constitution.

if ever there was an opportune time for a "strike" it would be now. there, you've been warned. of course, you'll be waiting for somebody to tell you it's time to panic. happy now?

"Now, if there had been specific information on a threat an Bush had ignored it then we'd have a problem."

"is"

cuniform?? bwahahaha! talk about outta touch, man, we got HAARP now! get with the program! now let's not be too hard on the airlines. they are merely in the money-making business. the government is in the national defence business. OK, OK the government is in the profits business. hey, who isn't?

well, we have Clinton's armed services winning the war on evil. or are we losing? it's so confusing . . .

"The three British nationals in the camp were "able to speak freely and without inhibition," he added."

all evidence to the contrary it would seem. who is 'he'?

what is the objection to treating them like POWs?

oh boy, can't wait to re-contact my assemblyperson who felt that the PATRIOT Act was only a fed issue and would send along my letter of concern to my congressperson.

you can lead 'em to water but you can't make 'em drink.

some work to be done if we are to get on the same page - http://www.yementimes.com/02/iss2/front.htm#4

Al-Qaeda Member Surrenders to President Saleh

Qaed Ali bin Sinian al-Harethi from Balhareth tribe in Shabwa gave himself up to President Ali Abdulla Saleh after a hunt-down for several weeks.

This comes after a mediation brokered by Sheikh Ameen al-Okaimi who was able to persuade al-Harethi to surrender himself to the government on the condition that he would not be extradited to the US authorities. Instead, al-Harethi was promised to be tried in a Yemeni court, not in the USA which accused him of having links to al-Qaeda network. Qaed al-Harethi was on the list submitted by the US administration to the Yemeni government following the September 11 attacks on Washington and New York.

Al-Harethi and eight sheikhs from Abeeda and al-Asharef tribe, accused of protecting and hiding him, were transported by a helicopter to Aden. This comes after a fierce armed fighting between contingents belonging to the Yemeni Special Forces and al-Salah tribe of Abeeda which resulted in the death of 33 troopers and tribesmen beside the injury of 30 others.

Republican Guard forces are building up troops in Mareb governorate to crack down on any potential confrontation, while the Minister of Defense, and a number of military commanders are still there.

The Yemeni authorities have deported 80 foreign students who were studying at the Dar al-Hadeth Institute in the Abeeda tribe area. --

First Human Rights Seminar Concluded

Trainees from different countries such as Egypt, Kuwait, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the UAE participated in the event. The Minster of State for Human Rights, Dr. Whaeeba Farae said Yemen was one of the leading countries that respected human rights. She laid great stress on that Yemen was completely away from terrorist acts which she described as inconsistent with the whole celestial religions and as against the moral values. She added that encountering terror and violence was one of the main responsibilities of the whole peoples of the world.

"Self-defense is a legal right through which human dignity can be achieved. Consequently our stand is stable to condemn terrorism and the Israeli aggression against the defenseless people in Palestine," she added.

The Governor of Taiz delivered a speech in which he thanked trainees for making a success of the seminar. He stressed that the world nations achieved tremendous accomplishments in the field of human rights adding that the first regional training course with regard to human rights was organized in Yemen in cooperation with a number of Arab countries.

In the same context, the British Ambassador to Sana'a said:"I believe that there is a vital role for non-governmental organizations in promoting human rights and in encouraging government to stick to their national and international obligations and I would encourage you all to continue in this very important endeavor."

In a statement to the Yemen Times the Director of the HRITC called for stabilizing human rights principles and disseminating awareness at the regional level, specifically in the Peninsula and the Arab Gulf.