At night I walk this stinkin’ street
Past the crazies on my block And I see the same old faces
And I hear that same old talk And I’m searching for the latest thing
A break in this routine I’m talkin’ some new kicks Ones like you ain’t never seen This is home
This is Meanstreet
It’s our home
The only one I know
And we don’t worry ’bout
tomorrow
Cause we’re sick of these four walls Now what’d ya think is nothing
Might be something after all Now you know this ain’t no through street
The end is dead ahead The poor folks play for keeps down here
They’re the living dead
Come on down
Down to Meanstreet
They’re dancing now
Out on Meanstreet
It’s always here and now, my friend
It ain’t once upon a time It’s all over but the shouting
I’ll come and I’ll take what’s mine
This is Meanstreet
It’s our home
Only one I know
(This is home) See, a gun is real easy
(This is Meanstreet) In this desperate part of town
(This is home) Turns you from hunted into hunter
(This is Meanstreet) Go and hunt somebody down
(This is home) But hear me now, somebody said “Fair Warning, Lord !”
(This is Meanstreet) Lord, strike that poor boy down
In an exclusive interview given by Colonel Sixx at his command and control center in Cool, Texas, it was learned that he will be the campaign chairman for the Texas Obama 2012 Campaign. Many Democrats were shocked upon hearing the news and pleaded with Obama to change his mind.
Congressman Graft N. Corruption (D-TX) told reporter Bob B. Write that he thinks that the president “will surely regret this move” and that it equates to “political suicide”.
However, Senator Funksalot (D-CA) thought it was a wonderful idea. “Colonel Sixx raised millioins of dollars for Congressman Allen West (R-FL) as his chief military fundraiser west of the Mississippi River”. “The Sixx knows where the money is and how to get to it”. When told that Congressman West was a Republican, Senator Funksalot got into his Bentley and drove off.
He was stopped SIXX minutes later by the Highway Patrol and arrested. When asked why he was being arrested he stated “it is personal matter”. His wife, Hillary Funksalot, came to the scene of the arrest and provided the reporter pictures that had been sent by Twitter to a 15 year old girl in Houston. “Treatment center my ass, he is going to pay for this”. She then shot him and the Highway Patrol left saying “some sumofbitches need shooting”.
One former congressman who spoke on the condition of “please do not tell him I spoke to you” said that he had been “SIXXED” in 2008 and “lost everything I had, including my mind”. “Oh, he will work for you at the very start but I would not advise Obama to keep this thing up”. ” I am getting back on my feet with a 12 step program, but that man ruined my life”.
Colonel Sixx says that the congressman, Wine N. Bitch, had tried to impose taxes on Cool. “That would be completely against the constitution of Cool and not in the interest of the citizens”. “SumBitch got what he had coming”
He said that he looked forward to” helping the brotha out- out of office”.
Colonel Sixx has ruled Cool since 1966 when he staged a coup at 10 years old.
The people of Cool all drive brand new cars or pickup trucks and live in homes worth at least $10,000,000.00. All citizens are provided with new Taurus 9mm pistols every Christmas. The law in Cool requires that all citizens are armed at all times. ” This is a Christian, god fearing nation, by God” “Ain’t nobody gonna change nothing in Cool to fit in with the rest of the world”.
Cool was designated a city nation in 1979 after a SIXX day war that was won by Colonel Sixx, Robert “Cool Breeze Nelson, John “The Gun” Patterson, and members of the Texas Brotherhood. “We set it up like the Vatican, you know a nation in a nation”.
The population was 162 at the 2000 census.
Colonel Sixx had Nelson and Patterson hung in 1984 “to keep peace among the citizens”. No citizens would comment for this story and several pulled pistols on this reporter.
How would the DOJ close airports in Texas? They have no magic wand or authority over transportation. They used the communist lt governor to take the bill off the table after it had been unanomously approved by the House 138-0. They don’t have any authority to close airports or block flights in and out of Texas.
Continental Airlines has it major hub in Houston. Southwest Airlines has it’s headquarters in Dallas. American Airlines has it’s headquarters at Dallas/Ft. Worth airport. Every airline in the world uses the airport in Houston.
I guess the TSA was going to stand on runway 11 west at D/FW airport to stop them from landing. That would only happen once, believe me. There is too much commerce at the major airports in Texas for it’s airports to be “blockaded” All of the countries that have counsalants in Texas could not go and come. The national guard, every cop in Texas, and any persons that try to shut down our airports would be dealt with as though they have declared war on our state and we would use extreme prejudice to stop them.
It is time to stop being civil with the united snakes government. It is time to take matters into our own hands. The Nazi Dewhurst is over in politics in Texas. For the Texas senators not to stand up to this bastard is shameful. They are nothing but cowards in Armani suits. To hell with them. We are going to find out who were the senators that did not speak out against this and fire them. We have done it before and we are going to do it again.
We are going to contact every Texas senator and let them know that they will not be re-elected. We will destroy their political lives and make them pay for being trators to the citizens in Texas. Well, now we are going to act like TEXANS. We are united-black, white, asian, and hispanic. We have fought for our Republic before and this time we have much better weapons.
It may be until the next election until they pay the price. The best thing about this is the fact that :
In the wake of the dramatic Navy SEAL raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound earlier this month, it was perhaps to be expected that some expansive soul would step forward to claim the prestige of a fabricated tour as a SEAL for himself. Such tall tales are not uncommon, after all, amid high-profile military actions.
This time the exposed fabricator was a preacher–though at least one person who monitors this brand of public lie notes that members of the clergy are often tempted into such misrepresentations. More curious still, the prevaricator in question seems to have lifted at least some details of his account from the 1992 Steven Seagal SEAL-themed blockbuster, “Under Siege.”
Yes, as his area newspaper, the central Pennsylvania Patriot-News, pulled together a dispatch on the exploits of the elite Navy operation, Jim Moats, the pastor at Christian Bible Fellowship Church in Newville, Penn., spun some fantastical details of his alleged time as a Navy SEAL during the Vietnam War.
Moats told his church for five years that he was a former SEAL, and even once wore the elite program’s gold Trident medal around town. He elaborated on that tale when his local paper contacted him last week as it was reporting a story about the rigors of SEAL training in the wake of the SEAL raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound.
Among other things, Moats said he was subjected to waterboarding when he trained at Little Creek Amphibious Base in Virginia Beach in 1971 and was assigned dishwashing duty for his bad attitude. “I had almost no discipline. I was as wild as they came. That was my nemesis,” he told the paper. “They weren’t looking for a guy who brags to everyone he is a SEAL. They wanted somebody who was ready but had an inner confidence and didn’t have a braggadocio attitude.”
“We deal with these guys all the time, especially the clergy. It’s amazing how many of the clergy are involved in those lies to build that flock up,” said retired SEAL Don Shipley. Shipley also speculated the waterboarding and kitchen details came from the action depicted in “Under Siege.”
Moats fessed up to his whopper, and admitted he bought the Trident medal at a military surplus store. “I never was in a class, I never served as an actual SEAL. It was my dream. … I don’t even know if I would have met the qualifications. I never knew what the qualifications were,” he told the Patriot-News. Moats did serve in the Navy from 1970-74, but did not fight in Vietnam.
The paper, meanwhile, is unapologetic for printing Moats’ prevarications.
“The Patriot-News regularly interviews veterans to tell their stories. We do not regularly ask those we interview for proof of their service, believing these men and women would not lie and dishonor those who have fought bravely defending our country,” the paper said in a special note to readers about the incident.
The practice of claiming false military credentials is by no means confined to comparatively lesser known public figures such as Moats. Accusations of exaggeration and lies about military service dogged the last election cycle. In 2008, Senate candidates Mark Kirk and Richard Blumenthal were called out for exaggerating their military service, though both still won their races. Kirk’s web site said he served “in Operation Iraqi Freedom,” when he was serving stateside, and Blumenthal incorrectly suggested he served in Vietnam. And it’s not just politicians. In 1996, the Navy’s top officer committed suicide after he learned Newsweek was looking into why he wore two small bronze valor pins, which signify acts of valor in combat.
In 2005, President George W. Bush signed the Stolen Valor Act into law–legislation that made it a federal crime to claim false military honors. A recent federal appellate court ruling determined that the law’s provisions were an unconstitutional abridgment of free speech. A version of the same legislation is now before Congress, with language designed to avoid the free-speech quandaries raised by the 2005 law
NEW YORK (FinalCall.com) – Activists representing a broad coalition of anti-war organizations, the Nation of Islam, the political left, Islamic organizations and a plethora of grassroots community organizations recently stood together on the stage of the Assembly Hall at the Riverside Church, proclaiming that “all roads lead to Harlem” for the Aug. 13 “Millions in Harlem March” to stop the bombing of Libya.
“Where are we going to be on Aug. 13?” asked Sara Flounders, co-director of the International Action Center, the main sponsors of the Riverside Church event. “In Harlem!” the standing room only crowd shouted back.
“President Barack Obama never believed that his actions against Libya could galvanize the movement that will be in the streets of Harlem on Aug. 13”, said Abdul Akbar Muhammad, the international representative of the Nation of Islam, in response to a question from The Final Call. Marching alongside of the Nation of Islam the second Saturday in August will be members of the “White Left and other progressives, Pan Africanists, Black grassroots organizations and national Islamic organizations,” he added.
The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan will be the keynote speaker at the Harlem march. “Min. Farrakhan will deliver a dynamic speech from 110th Street to 125th Street,” said Mr. Muhammad. The march will start at 110th Street.
The United Nations Security Council March 17 passed resolution 1973 by a vote of 10 in favor with five abstentions, authorizing the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to begin a “no-fly zone” over Libyan air space, alleging President Muammar Gadhafi was targeting civilians in the North African nation.
Some Libyans had begun anti-Gadhafi demonstrations in February in the city of Benghazi, which turned into armed rebellion. The UN offered no proof Libya’s leader was killing unarmed civilians, though he vowed to fight those who had taken up arms against the government.
The U.S. and France March 18 started bombing so-called military targets, but the damage done by a “peace effort,” according to some observers, was more costly than what the Libyan leader had been accused of. Then came attacks on personal compounds that killed Libyan officials as well as a son of Col. Gadhafi and his grandchildren. NATO bombs hit the home of Libya’s leader at least twice as Western nations declared he had to go, pushing a policy of regime change.
Cynthia McKinney, a six-term former congresswoman from Georgia, was the keynote speaker for the Riverside Church rally. She told The Final Call she agreed with Mr. Muhammad’s assessment. “This will galvanize public opinion, as people see this as being important to them. Obama certainly stumbled this time,” referring to the president’s continued support for the NATO bombing of Libya. According to news outlets, the Obama administration is sending $10 million a day to NATO for the bombing of Libya.
Ms. McKinney had been on an 11-city tour telling packed audiences about her experiences in Tripoli in the early days of the NATO/UN aggression.
“There is definitely a buzz in the streets around Aug. 13,” said Larry Holmes of the Newark-based Bail Out the People Not the Banks movement. “Expect people to be in the streets of Harlem in numbers,” he said.
Information about the street mobilization for the march may be found at http://www.millionmarchinharlem.com. There are organizing teams in all five New York boroughs that have saturated neighborhoods with green posters announcing the march.
“The people are very excited about the march, and Min. Louis Farrakhan as the keynote speaker is great. We are going to fill up Malcolm X Boulevard,” said one volunteer.
During a June 15 press conference at a hotel across the street from the United Nations, Min. Farrakhan told the media the “United Nations, U.S.-sponsored, NATO-led bombing of the North African country of Libya” was the work of “a coalition of demons,” governments who have joined together to assassinate Col. Gadhafi.
But even some who voted for the initial resolutions and allowed the resolutions to pass have expressed reservation, if not outright regret. The African Union, in particular, has been calling for and working for a negotiated settlement only to be disregarded by Western nations intent on putting a new Libyan government in place.
The South African ambassador to the UN, Baso Sangqu, told the 15-member Security Council July 28 that his country’s delegation “echoes the African Union demand for an immediate pause in the fighting and in the NATO bombing.”
“We have noted the calls that ‘Gaddafi must go.’ We maintain that such statements do not bring us closer to a political solution,” the South African ambassador said. South Africa is occupying a rotating seat on the Security Council and supported the initial resolutions.
In a speech that was not widely covered by the media, Ambassador Sangqu said, “South Africa remains concerned about the implementation of resolutions 1970 and 1973. Taking sides in an internal conflict situation to institute regime change in Libya sets a dangerous precedent that will surely damage the credibility of the Security Council.”
“Clearly action focused on a military solution has not had its intended purpose, instead it has worked to destabilize the country even further,” he added.
Gabon and Nigeria also initially voted yes on resolutions 1970 and 1973, but the African Union has strongly condemned the bombing of any African nation.
The UN Secretary General’s special envoy to Libya announced July 26 through a press office that the “two sides remain far apart on reaching agreement on a political solution.” The two sides are the Gadhafi government and the rebel Transnational Council, which the U.S., France, Italy, Britain have recognized as the legitimate government of Libya.
The two sides, however, “have reaffirmed their desire to continue to engage with the UN in the search for a solution,” said special envoy Abdel-Elah Al-Khatib, a member of Jordan’s parliament. Libyan Prime Minister Baghdadi Al-Mahmoud reiterated his government’s previous positions against the NATO air strikes and against the removal of Libya’s president.
“There comes a time when people have no alternative but resistance,” Viola Plummer, co-founder of the December 12th Movement one of the sponsoring organizations for the Harlem march, said July 30.
“This march will revitalize the Pan African movement. It will broaden our people’s world view and demonstrate the need for Africans to unite in our own political and economic interests internationally,” she added.
“We must expose the UN Security Council machinations, Western imperialism; the attack on Black people in the U.S. and all collaborations at every turn,” Ms. Plummer said.
March organizers say the Harlem event has garnered worldwide attention. One dignitary supporting the march is Father Miguel d’Escoto Brockman, a former Nicaraguan foreign minister and the 63rd president of the UN General Assembly.
During his speech at the press conference announcing the march, Father Brockman said the event was important in light of how the media “systemically deceived” the American people.
Meanwhile the killing of a major rebel commander by compatriots raised questions about how the group could stay together and raised again reports that elements of Al-Qaeda were heavily involved in the rebel effort. (See related story on page 12.)
The Chinese news service Xinhuanet reported July 31 NATO’s claim of bombing three satellite dishes in Tripoli to “stop” what was labeled “terror broadcasts” by President Gadhafi. However, there are Twitter messages, also July 31, that say Libya television is still on the air.
Just before the Aug. 1 start of Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting and prayer, NATO bombs struck Tripoli, and officials in Brussels would not rule other more strikes—though they were worried about a possible backlash in the Muslim world about strikes during the sacred month. “Tripoli shook with the sound of several explosions as NATO warplanes roared overhead doing what they have been doing since March, striking at what are supposedly Al Qathafi strategic infrastructure, particularly in the Libyan capital, Tripoli,” the Tripoli Post reported. “In normal times, much of the economy in Muslim countries world-wide shuts down as everyone enters a 30-day period of all-day fasting, prayer and the strict avoidance of conflict. But for Libyans this year it is an altogether different proposition. Libyans worry about sanctions and NATO strikes during this month.”
“There is an ongoing armed internal conflict as the rebels from the eastern part of the country battle on in order to reach their aim, of toppling or forcing Libyan leader Muammar Al Qathafi to step down from his high chair. They are involved in a battle that is barely making progress at the best of times, and with NATO forces, attempting to bomb Al Qathafi out of office,” the English language publication said.
“The NATO alliance thought it could finish it off before the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in time for a new government to take shape. They failed and this month could become a perilous black hole threatening to undermine their whole campaign,” the Tripoli Post observed Aug. 1. “Muslims are not allowed to fight amongst themselves during Ramadan; they are also not allowed to attack another nation. However, they will fight back if they are attacked first, they are allowed to do that.”
Supporters of Texas Governor Rick Perry are not going to like this article at all. Right now, Republicans all over the United States are touting Rick Perry as the “Republican messiah” that is going to come charging in to save America from the presidency of Barack Obama. Many believe that if Rick Perry enters the race, he will instantly become the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012. Perry certainly looks the part and he knows how to give a good speech, but when ordinary Americans all over the country take a hard look at his record, they may not like what they see. The truth is that Rick Perry is a big-time globalist, he has raised taxes and fees in Texas numerous times, he has massively increased the size of government spending and government debt in Texas, he has been trying to ram the Trans-Texas Corridor down the throats of the Texas people and he tried to force young women all over Texas to be injected with the Gardasil vaccine. No, Rick Perry is not going to save America. In fact, he would likely be very, very similar to both Bush and Obama in a lot of ways.
Right now, Rick Perry is trying to portray himself as a “good conservative” so that if he enters the race he will be accepted by Christian conservatives. If Rick Perry did win the Republican nomination, he would have a great chance of winning the general election because he would very much be an “establishment” candidate.
But before Republicans get too excited about Rick Perry, there are a whole lot of things that they should know about him.
The following are 14 reasons why Rick Perry would be a really, really bad president….
#1 Rick Perry is a “big government” politician. When Rick Perry became the governor of Texas in 2000, the total spending by the Texas state government was approximately $49 billion. Ten years later it was approximately $90 billion. That is not exactly reducing the size of government.
#2 The debt of the state of Texas is out of control. According to usdebtclock.org, the debt to GDP ratio in Texas is 22.9% and the debt per citizen is $10,645. In California (a total financial basket case), the debt to GDP ratio is just 18.7% and the debt per citizen is only $9932. If Rick Perry runs for president these are numbers he will want to keep well hidden.
#3 The total debt of the Texas government has more than doubled since Rick Perry became governor. So what would the U.S. national debt look like after four (or eight) years of Rick Perry?
#4 Rick Perry has spearheaded the effort to lease roads in Texas to foreign companies, to turn roads that are already free to drive on into toll roads, and to develop the Trans-Texas Corridor which would be part of the planned NAFTA superhighway system. If you really do deep research on this whole Trans-Texas Corridor nonsense you will see why no American should ever cast a single vote for Rick Perry.
#5 Rick Perry claims that he has a “track record” of not raising taxes. That is a false claim. Rick Perry has repeatedly raised taxes and fees while he has been governor. Today, Texans are faced with significantly higher taxes and fees than they were before Rick Perry was elected.
#6 Even with the oil boom in Texas, 23 states have a lower unemployment rate than Texas does.
#8 Between December 2007 and April 2011, weekly wages in the U.S. increased by about 5 percent. In the state of Texas they increased by just 0.6% over that same time period.
#9 Texas now has one of the worst education systems in the nation. The following is from an opinion piece that was actually authored by Barbara Bush earlier this year….
• We rank 36th in the nation in high school graduation rates. An estimated 3.8 million Texans do not have a high school diploma.
• We rank 49th in verbal SAT scores, 47th in literacy and 46th in average math SAT scores.
• We rank 33rd in the nation on teacher salaries.
#10 Rick Perry attended the Bilderberg Group meetings in 2007. Associating himself with that organization should be a red flag for all American voters.
#11 Texas has the highest percentage of workers making minimum wage out of all 50 states.
#12 Rick Perry often gives speeches about illegal immigration, but when you look at the facts, he has been incredibly soft on the issue. If Rick Perry does not plan to secure the border, then he should not be president because illegal immigration is absolutely devastating many areas of the southwest United States.
#13 In 2007, 221,000 residents of Texas were making minimum wage or less. By 2010, that number had risen to 550,000.
#14 Rick Perry actually issued an executive order in 2007 that would have forced almost every single girl in the state of Texas to receive the Gardasil vaccine before entering the sixth grade. Perry would have put parents in a position where they would have had to fill out an application and beg the government not to inject their child with an untested and unproven vaccine. Since then, very serious safety issues regarding this vaccine have come to light. Fortunately, lawmakers in Texas blocked what Perry was trying to do. According to Wikipedia, many were troubled when “apparent financial connections between Merck and Perry were reported by news outlets, such as a $6,000 campaign contribution and Merck’s hiring of former Perry Chief of Staff Mike Toomey to handle its Texas lobbying work.”
Rick Perry has a record that should make all Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians and Independents cringe.
He is not the “conservative Republican” that he is trying to claim that he is. He is simply another in a long line of “RINOs” (Republicans in name only).
If Rick Perry becomes president, he will probably be very similar to George W. Bush. He will explode the size of the U.S. government and U.S. government debt, he will find sneaky ways to raise taxes, he will do nothing about the Federal Reserve or corruption in our financial system and he will push the agenda of the globalists at every turn.
Look, the truth is that another four years of Barack Obama would be a complete and total nightmare.
But so would four years of Rick Perry.
America deserves better than the “lesser of two evils”.
Unfortunately, the American people have been dead asleep and have been sending incompetents, con men and charlatans to Washington D.C. for decades.
COLONEL SIXX: WE PLAY REAL FOOTBALL IN THE SEC. THE SEC HAS WON THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP FOR THE LAST 5 YEARS. WE DON’T PLAY THAT PUNT, PASS, AND KICK CENTRAL TEXAS, CHICKEN FRIED STEAK BALL. BRING IT !!!!
Are you ready?
Hell yeah! Damn right!
Hotty totty! Gosh almighty!
Who the hell are we? Hey! Flim flam! Bim bam!
Ole Miss! By damn!
As the A&M train barreling its way from College Station toward the SEC’s Birmingham offices shows no signs of slowing down, the first indications coming from the southern side of the college football landscape that the Aggies may indeed be on the move have surfaced.
According to MrSEC.com, as rock-solid a source for football news in that conference you’ll find anywhere, the SEC has called for a special meeting Sunday to discuss the expansion issues that the conference is reportedly facing. All 12 of the conference’s chancellors/presidents will be involved in the meeting, although at least one may not be physically present and would participate instead via a conference call.
The website notes that it’s unclear if this meeting is simply a fact-finding mission of sorts or if a vote will be involved. Based on the smoke coming out of one part of Texas, the latter may be the case by the time the weekend rolls around.
This move to a special meeting by the SEC, if it does go down as reported, would continue what has been a whirlwind last 24 hours generally, and the last 12 or so in particular. Just today, the Higher Education Committee of the Texas House of Representatives announced a previously unscheduled meeting for Aug. 16 to discuss matters “pertaining to higher education, including collegiate athletics.” A short time ago, and in what was obviously a preemptive move by the school, Texas A&M posted a notice of a special meeting that will take place one day earlier; one of the items on the agenda? “Authorization for the President to Take All Actions Relating to Texas A&M University’s Athletic Conference Alignment”.
It’s believed the A&M Board of Regents at that meeting will vote unanimously to give permission to President R. Bowen Loftin to accept/pursue an invitation to the SEC. To show just how far down the fast track this has come in less than a day, that it’s to the point where Loftin will in short order likely be handed the keys to move his athletic department to a new conference, the agenda of the regents meeting that will be held Monday was originally scheduled for Aug. 22.
The SEC speculation, however, has not been limited to A&M.
Today, both Florida State and Virginia Tech have surfaced as rumored possibilities for an expanded SEC. While officials from both schools have denied those reports, Chris Level of RedRaiderSports.com is reporting via Twitter this afternoon that “[a] high ranking Texas Tech official confirms to me that the SEC is in talks with Texas A&M and an ACC school.” The specific name of the ACC school involved was not named by Level, but it wouldn’t take too great of a leap in logic and deduction to suggest that either the Seminoles or the Hokies are somehow involved.
While some have dismissed the talk of either school moving to another conference, the smoke is sufficient enough that the ACC’s commissioner felt compelled to release a statement addressing the speculation.
“As I’ve said previously, we’ll continue to be mindful of the collegiate landscape and what’s best for the ACC and its member institutions,” John Swofford said in the statement. “With that said, I’ve received no indication from any of our 12 Presidents that they have any intention of being affiliated with any conference other than the ACC.”
Slowly but surely, the timeline for an expanded SEC by way of an A&M defection has become compressed, going from 2012 to Aug. 22 of this year to now where we’re at the point where we could very well know something definitive in the next 72 hours or so. Simply put, it’s to the point where the only pertinent question regarding the Aggies is whether they will be the only domino, or merely the first.
On August 6, a Lebanese newspaper, The Daily Star, reported three men were charged by Lebanon’s Military Prosecutor General with smuggling weapons into Syria. “Wasim Tamim, Samir Tamim, and Ahmad Qabri were charged with allegedly smuggling weapons and drugs outside the country through one of its ports,” the newspaper reported.
The brief article, which appeared on page two of the newspaper’s print edition, did not go into any further detail.
Lebanon’s Al-Akhbar newspaper, however, did report details neglected by The Daily Star, which has business ties with the International Herald Tribune and The New York Times.
According to Sahand Avedis, writing for World Socialist Web Site, who cites Al-Akhbar, Lebanese Army investigators said they uncovered a connection between the smugglers and the political entourage of former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who is backed by the United States and Saudi Arabia.
The cache of weapons consisted of 1,000 assault rifles that were reportedly destined for the city of Baniyas in Syria. “Baniyas is one of a number of cities hit by protests against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the months since the overthrow of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. The Syrian regime has mobilized the Syrian army against these protests, which have been concentrated in majority-Sunni regions of the country, claiming it was trying to repress violent opposition by armed guerrilla movements,” writes Avedis.
Intelligence tracked the group to the March 14 alliance, a Sunni-Druze-Christian coalition that takes its name from the date of the Cedar Revolution, when Lebanese took to the streets in Beirut in overwhelming numbers to demand the end of Syrian occupation. The group is supported by the U.S., Israel, and the Saudis.
“The recently foiled operation is still under investigation, and there has been highly significant information gleaned from those involved who are affiliated with a prominent tendency in the March 14 alliance. This is not the only operation that they have carried out,” reported the al-Safir newspaper on August 8.
Avedis writes that Hezbollah’s Al-Manar television network reports the smugglers “confessed to running over 30 arms-smuggling operations from Marina to Baniyas with the assistance of Mohammad Kabbara, a member of the Al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc tied to Saudi intelligence. Al-Manar stated that the center of operations was Kabbara’s farm in northern Lebanon, adding that this was also a transit point for Islamist (Salafi) fighters traveling to the Syrian city of Homs.”
Homs, Idlib, and the southern province of Daraa have witnessed some of the largest demonstrations in recent days against the Syrian government.
Syrian state television has reported that “armed thugs” have attacked law enforcement in the country. In Hama earlier this month, according to the Ahlul Bayt News Agency, armed groups used live ammo and Molotov cocktails against police departments. In June, the AP reported that 120 Syrian security forces were killed by armed men who also torched government buildings. The AP dismissed the report as Syrian government propaganda.
The corporate media has downplayed the violence against the government while sensationalizing the death of protesters.
Former French General Jean Rannou has outlined a NATO attack on Syria to depose Bashar al-Assad’s regime, a move that reveals that covert efforts against the country are not working.
On Friday, Secretary of State Clinton urged nations to “get on the right side of history” and condemn the regime. She demanded the world to stop buying oil from Syria, in effect calling for an embargo on the Middle Eastern county.
Clinton’s remarks coincided with news that the European Union will extend sanctions against Syria.
On Wednesday the United Nations Security Council warned it would take action to stop the Syrian government from killing its citizens. The effort was spearheaded by Susan Rice, the U.S. envoy to the United Nations.
DES MOINES, Iowa — Texas Rep. Ron Paul has long been regarded as a somewhat entertaining distraction in his two presidential races over the past four years.
But, on the eve of the Ames Straw Poll, the first major organizing test of the 2012 Republican presidential race, there is a strain of thinking that Paul could seriously challenge the likes of Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann and former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty for supremacy on Saturday.
“He’s got the supporter passion of a Bachmann with the organization of a Pawlenty,” said one senior Iowa Republican strategist unaffiliated with any of the campaigns. “He builds on 2007 and the caucus last time, and I think he can turn out the 3,000 votes he needs to win.”
The idea of a Paul straw poll victory — while beginning to be discussed more openly — is still far from expected.
Pawlenty has gone all out — organizationally and financially — to make his mark at Ames, recognizing that if he can’t win or come in a very close second it could very well spell the end of his campaign.
Bachmann, too, is making a major play at Ames — her Friday schedule is packed with five events designed to rally supporters in advance of the straw poll — and, if polling is to be believed, she looks something close to a frontrunner in the Iowa caucuses next year.
The conventional wisdom on the ground in Iowa is that Paul, Bachmann and Pawlenty will finish in the win, place and show slots — with Bachmann still regarded as the most likely first place finisher.
But, Paul is clearly hoping to make his mark; his campaign paid $31,000 for the prime spot at tomorrow’s straw poll (right outside the Hilton Coliseum where the voting takes place) — the same plot of land that former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney staked out in 2007 when he won the straw poll.
Despite that spending, Paul’s campaign team is doing everything they can to lower expectations.
“Michele is pushing full force, Tim Pawlenty has an expensive team of top-drawer consultants and Mitt Romney, the national front runner, is working hard behind the scenes,” said Paul campaign manager Jesse Benton. “We hope to do well, compete with these big names and finish right there with them in the top four.”
Paul’s chances of pulling off an upset are entirely contingent on the number of people of voting. As he has demonstrated by winning a series of straw votes over the past few years, he has a very dedicated group of supporters who would walk over hot coals — maybe literally — for him.
But Paul has also shown — and he did it again in the debate last night — that he has little interest in expanding beyond that base of people. As the electorate gets larger the ability of Paul’s supporters to dominate it recedes. It’s why he didn’t win a single primary or caucus in the 2008 race.
The operative question in assessing Paul’s chances at winning at Ames tomorrow is just how many people will show up.
Virtually no one expects turnout to come near the 1999 Straw Poll when nearly 24,000 people voted thanks to heavy spending by both then Texas Gov. George W. Bush and wealthy businessman Steve Forbes. Bush won the vote that year with 7,418 votes — a massive total that may not be eclipsed for some time to come.
The two more likely voter universe estimates are 2007 and 1995.
In 2007, 14,000 people voted with Romney emerging victorious with 4,516 votes. (Paul finished fifth in that straw ballot with 1,305 votes.)
In 1995, just 10,500 voted as then Sens. Bob Dole (Kans.) and Phil Gramm (Texas) tied for first place by each winning 2,582 votes.
The 3,500 vote difference between overall turnout in 1995 and 2007 may make all the difference in assessing Paul’s chances of winning.
In a 1995 turnout model, 3,000 votes for any one candidate is likely to win it and several smart strategists in the state believe Paul could get to that number. In the 2007 turnout model, though, 3,000 isn’t enough votes to win — although it would likely guarantee Paul a top three finish.
“Turnout under 12,000 favors Ron Paul,” said one veteran GOP straw poll watcher. “Turnout over 14,000 favors Bachmann.”
There is little expectation that a Paul victory at Ames — even if did come to pass — would mean much of anything in the race to come.
Turnout for next year’s caucuses in Iowa could be as much as ten times that of Ames and, as we noted above, Paul struggles in larger electorates. “He won’t win the caucuses or be the nominee, but it will be a recognition that Iowans are looking for someone who will offer bold answers on our fiscal crisis,” said one Iowa Republican strategist.
BART officials acknowledged this afternoon that they shut down cell phone and wireless data service in its downtown San Francisco stations to disrupt a planned protest. Their announcement sparked denunciations from civil libertarians and the apparent threat of a cyber-attack on the BART website.
A statement posted on the transit agency’s website said the communications blackout was ordered in the interest of public safety:
“Organizers planning to disrupt BART service on August 11, 2011 stated they would use mobile devices to coordinate their disruptive activities and communicate about the location and number of BART Police,” the statement reads.
“A civil disturbance during commute times at busy downtown San Francisco stations could lead to platform overcrowding and unsafe conditions for BART customers, employees and demonstrators. BART temporarily interrupted service at select BART stations as one of many tactics to ensure the safety of everyone on the platform.”
BART did not immediately offer details of how the shutdown took place, how long it lasted or what stations were affected.
BART warned Thursday that groups planned surprise protests of the fatal July 3 shooting of a knife-wielding man, Charles Blair Hill, on the platform at Civic Center Station. BART Police said they learned that the groups planned to coordinate their protests using cell phones and text messages, and that they planned to block trains and disrupt service.
Civil libertarians and people concerned about passenger safety objected to the cell service shutdown. BART officials said they stationed additional personnel in downtown stations and on trains in case of emergencies. They also said their prime concern was protecting the safety of BART riders, employees and protesters.
According to posts on Twitter, the civil disobedience group Anonymous, which has coordinated a number of denial of service attacks, was threatening to come after BART.
You have the luxury of not knowing what I know. That Santiago's death, while tragic, probably saved lives. And my existence, while grotesque and incomprehensible to you, saves lives. You don't want the truth because deep down in places you don't talk about at parties, you want me on that wall, you need me on that wall. We use words like honor, code, loyalty. We use these words as the backbone of a life spent defending something. You use them as a punchline. I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom that I provide, and then questions the manner in which I provide it. I would rather you just said thank you, and went on your way, Otherwise, I suggest you pick up a weapon, and stand a post. Either way, I don't give a damn what you think you are entitled to.
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