ThinkFast: August 24, 2006
ThinkFast: August 24, 2006
A House Intelligence Committee report warned that the U.S. is facing “significant gaps” in its intelligence on Iran that could be as serious as the shortcomings in its prewar knowledge about Iraq, leaving Washington ill-prepared to assess Tehran’s military capabilities. “American intelligence agencies do not know nearly enough about Iran’s nuclear weapons program” to help policymakers at a critical time, the report said.
There is “little doubt that Iran has been the chief beneficiary of the war on terror in the Middle East,” according to a new report from a British think tank.
“Three disgruntled state affiliates have severed ties with the Christian Coalition of America,” leaving it with just “a half-dozen strong state chapters and a weak presence in Washington.” The organization was formed in 1989 by religious broadcaster Pat Robertson and was formerly run by Ralph Reed.
$50 million: the cost accrued by a recent Medicare error. “About 230,000 Medicare recipients were mistakenly sent refunds last week averaging about $215 for monthly premiums they paid this year for drug coverage.â€
In Concord, NH, the House Judiciary Committee will hold its 18th in a series of 21 immigration field hearings today, attempting to convince the public of an enforcement-only approach. “It’s a taxpayer-funded road show,†said Rep. Marty Meehan (D-MA) of the hearings. So far, the road show appears to have been successful. The Washington Times reports Bush has failed to win his base’s support for his plan.
“Grave sexual violence against girls and women in Darfur continues to worsen,” warned U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. A new U.N. report concludes that “thousands of children were still actively involved in conflict between May and July, despite the signing of the 5 May Darfur Peace Agreement and earlier ceasefire deals.”
Things could be worse. “For three years, the president tried to reassure Americans that more progress was being made in Iraq than they realized. But with Iraq either in civil war or on the brink of it, Bush dropped the unseen-progress argument in favor of the contention that things could be even worse.”
Thousands of unexploded cluster bombs from Israeli artillery guns are turning up all over Lebanon, injuring innocent children. “They look like fat torch batteries. So they seem innocuous especially to the curious mind of a child,” said the U.N. Mine Action Service’s Chris Clark. “We find that children unwittingly pick them up and then sadly suffer injuries from them.”
And finally: Not all U.S. lawmakers are able to maintain two households with their $165,200 annual salary. Instead of renting an apartment in Wasington, Rep. Jim Marshall (D-GA) sleeps on an air mattress in his office. “I see three or four of my colleagues bunking together in a two-bedroom apartment,” said Marshall. “I’ll go for my office any day over that.”
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August 24th, 2006 at 9:11 am“Significant gaps in intelligence” regarding Iran? This is a serious concern. The United States must never take such drastic action against another country as bombings or sending in our troops without solid, confirmed intelligence from our own sources as well as our allies. Oh wait, I forgot Bush is in charge — do whatever, to heck with what the “intelligence” says.
August 24th, 2006 at 9:12 amYou’ve got:
“In Concord, NH, … hearings. But so far, they appear to have been successful. The Washington Times reports Bush has failed to win his base’s support for his plan.”
Don’t you mean, “unsuccessful”?
It seems debatable in any case. The objective is probably not legislation (which might harm big business), but a rallying of the paranoid Republican base and an opportunity for Congressmen to distance themselves from a severely unpopular President.
I’m so tired of the “fear” party. We’ve got nothing to fear but the fear party.
August 24th, 2006 at 9:21 amTime for a new acronym: IOKIYAI
How is thousands of unexploded cluster bombs not a war crime?
August 24th, 2006 at 9:29 amThis goes to show this administration still has learned nothing over 5 years.A report, written by by some hard liner, says we know enough about Iran to bomb them but don’t have enough intelligence to prove it. To me this only proves-again-that these guys in charge lack the intelligence to be in charge of our country. The administration doesn’t want to talk to Iran because they don’t know enough about them to talk to them (which is usually the exact reason you’ld want to talk to someone)? What a bunch of maroons (as Bugs would say)!
August 24th, 2006 at 9:47 amActually serious gaps in the intelligence is exactly what the administration wants and needs. That will allow them to fill in those gaps with apocalyptic speculation. Full intelligence with realistic analysis based on truth and facts will not aid them at all.
August 24th, 2006 at 9:50 amIsrael can get spies in the highest levels of the Pentagon yet they don’t know about Iranian weapons? More lies.
And the bases in Iraq don’t square with the current administration strategy. More lies.
August 24th, 2006 at 9:51 amGenerals claim to know Iran is supplying weapons to Iraq? But they don’t know about Iranian weapons? More lies.
August 24th, 2006 at 9:53 amRegarding cluster bombs:
No weapons used by U.S.-led coalition forces in Iraq in 2003 caused more civilian casualties than cluster munitions, large weapons that contain dozens or hundreds of smaller submunitions. This briefing paper critically examines the status and quality of current U.S. cluster munition stockpiles and assesses in detail the Department of Defense’s (DoD) fiscal year 2006 (FY 2006) budget requests related to such weapons. It concludes that, despite recent positive developments in its cluster munition policy and procurement practice, the United States retains—and still is willing to use—at least 728 million old, unreliable, and inaccurate cluster submunitions.
http://www.hrw.org/doc/?t=arms_clusterbombs
As Human Rights Watch has said before, a new protocol should prohibit the use of unreliable and inaccurate submunitions and require their destruction. The Billions of unreliable and inaccurate submunitions already in the arsenals of more than 70 nations are the primary humanitarian concern. They must never be used in order to avoid a humanitarian and socio-economic disaster exceeding that created by millions of landmines globally.
Belgium became the first nation to ban cluster munitions last month when its lower house joined its Senate in passing ban legislation. We congratulate Belgium on this bold, far-sighted and most welcome achievement and thank Belgium for its ground-breaking leadership. We believe that many states are ready to take significant steps to deal with cluster munitions—and they should do so immediately at the national level while international efforts continue.
Existing international humanitarian law (IHL) is not sufficient to address the humanitarian problems associated with cluster munitions. This has been shown by the inconsistent interpretation by states of IHL with respect to cluster munitions, and even more so by the lack of compliance with IHL demonstrated by users of cluster munitions to date.
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/03/06/global12768.htm
And the United States rushed a shipment of cluster munitions to Israel for use against the Lebonese.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:00 amGood Morning all, good post Ken……Note how this bunch in office refuses to talk to any one they think may disagree with them…..Block out anyone who is from the opasite party, screen and demand allegancy signatures, surround them selves with the military or have closed photo op’s………The fearing waramongers are terrible scared of everything…..They play war games and send others to fight like they never have done themselves….Soft hands, bloated faces, no neck, old white men trying so hard to be real men and make everyone think they are strong…..It is a sickness that is rampent and run by bloated, inept, impetent rove and cheney…………Blessings…..Peace
August 24th, 2006 at 10:02 amGreat post, as usual BNF………..My heart is broken from all this….I am so ashamed of my country….Lebanon is just the most recent….Our entire country should be on it’s knees asking for forgiveness for all this madness, right after we jail all this administration…….Blessings..Peace
August 24th, 2006 at 10:09 amBush dropped the unseen-progress argument in favor of the contention that things could be even worse.â€
Al I see is his Alfred E. Newman face, and his shoulders in a shrug — oh, and he’s still dripping with blood.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:14 amI’m a Democrat who supports the United States striking Iran and for good reason.
Comment by Koolhandluke — August 23, 2006 @ 11:26 pm
I am a Democrat, and I would expect a Democratic President to stop Iran from obtaining Nuclear Technology.
Comment by GregNewYork — August 23, 2006 @ 11:45 pm
These obvious neocon troll postings appeared last night in a previous thread. We can expect to see more postings like these in the coming days, advocating all out warfare with Iran.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:14 amThousands of unexploded cluster bombs from Israeli artillery guns are turning up all over Lebanon, injuring innocent children. “They look like fat torch batteries. So they seem innocuous especially to the curious mind of a child,â€
This makes me sick. I can’t even express it. It’s horrifying. Technology doesn’t exist to prevent this?
August 24th, 2006 at 10:16 am#10 – Briseadh na Faire,
Sorry, didn’t see your comment. I’ll look at the links this afternoon.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:19 am#15 – RealScientist,
I thought they seemed like the same idiot, er guy. I think you’re right that we should expect to see more of the same. Maybe some of us should start commenting as Repubs who have finally seen the light?
August 24th, 2006 at 10:21 amActually serious gaps in the intelligence is exactly what the administration wants and needs. That will allow them to fill in those gaps with apocalyptic speculation…
Comment by Mark — August 24, 2006 @ 9:50 am
exactly why i think they outed valerie plame…
August 24th, 2006 at 10:22 ambesides wanting to discredit her husband…
Good morning, Sharon
“Soft hands, bloated faces, no neck, old white men trying so hard to be real men and make everyone think they are strong….”
Such a lovely picture over breakfast — you have a true gift! Hug a tree for me today, will you? You pick, but make it a big one. Have a great baiting the red necks. :)
August 24th, 2006 at 10:23 amHello Zooey, I agree…….If only we could ship bush/cheney/rove/rummy and rice over there to remove all those cluster bomb’s we may have a good start on fixing this terrible mess..
Cool and cloudy today, on the way over to you…….I don’t do weather but know how the wind blow’s…….Gonna take the head mistress of my house to the beauty shop today…..Bless her heart she does like to go to the doggie beauty shop now and then…….Blessings to all…..Peace for the children of the world.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:25 amMARK AT 6.
You have it exactly right. We have no intelligence on Iran because Bush, Cheney and the neo-cons do not want any intelligence on Iran.
Do you know why we dont have intelligence on Iran?
I do, and I accuse Bush and Cheney of deliberately trashing our sources, well, one source anyway.
Remember the Plame outing. Outed along with Plame was the front company that the CIA was operating. They were gathering intelligence on Iran and its weapons capabilities. Bush and Cheney knew this and decided that they did not want any intelligence on Irans weapons capabilities because then it would be easier for them to justify attacking Iran, well, because we were not sure what they were doing.
Bush and Cheney not only outed Plame, they outed about 100 other CIA agents who had been working with the firm. They had to shut down operations and do it quickly.
The firm (I forget its name) had penetrated Iran and was furnishing false flag inforfmation to the Iranians. Several members of the firm, CIA agents, had visited Iranian nuclear sites and were assessing their capabilities when your Prez and Vice Prez decided to shut it down by outing it and its officers and workers.
A brilliant move by traitors to this country. They should be arrested and shot for treason at the next daybreak. Will they be? No – because the real damage will never be released to the public.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:28 amThanks for the great weather, Sharon. I can sense the season changing already, which is good. It’s been a long, hot summer.
I’m off to try to do away with the Brideof Frankenstein look, as much as possible, and to work with me.
Play nicely, or at least sneak up quietly behind them!
August 24th, 2006 at 10:30 amWow! Rebel, another great post. I only knew a snippet of that……Some day I hope the public is truly informed to the evil of this bunch in office….Thank’s for the info.
Zooey, this one’s for you……The biggest most beautiful 80 foot cedar behind my little house…The hug is done………Blessings.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:34 ami start my morning looking over google news… found this:
Katrina Survivor Meets Bush at White House
Washington Post – 22 hours ago
President Bush met with a survivor of Hurricane Katrina today who drove a replica of a FEMA trailer to Washington from Louisiana to remind the president “that the job’s not done” on the hurricane-devastated Gulf Coast. …
a replica of a fema trailer? but the linked story doesn’t say that…
hmmmm…
i missed all the hubbub about this yesterday – was that included?
August 24th, 2006 at 10:36 amThousands of unexploded cluster bombs from Israeli artillery guns are turning up all over Lebanon, injuring innocent children
Interesting fact I heard on NPR this morning: the use of these munitions is banned in areas where civilians are present…but of course, Israel can get away with anything.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:39 amYah! Katy, the new’s media slipped right through that quickly. I caught it on the new’s because I have a mind like a steel trap and have learned since before bush and his regime one word in a given sentance is usualy the tip off…….I also slammed the line this dufos wanted bush for four more years….A hint perhaps planted by this merry bunch of waramongers of what is to come……..Disgusting crap and just the beginning of what we have to muck through from now untill election time…….Blessings
August 24th, 2006 at 10:44 amThousands of unexploded cluster bombs from Israeli artillery guns are turning up all over Lebanon, injuring innocent children
Sounds like mines of the 21st Century.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:50 amI watched with interest last night on CNN IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF BIN LADEN.
Of particular interest to people about the incompetence of the Bushies is the fact that CIA Bernsten had retrieved a Bin Laden radio and was listening to conversations.
In this manner he was able to trace the movements of Bin Laden, and after a period of time knew his EXACT whereabouts. He pleaded for a battalion of Special Forces to surround Bin Laden, but got no help at all. Although he had relayed the position of Bin Laden there were no airstrikes, no nothing.
Further proof, in my mind at least, that Bushco did not want his Al Qaeda buddy captured or killed. Lets face it folks, if Bin Laden had of been captured or killed there would have been no reason to go into Iraq.
You see how the Bushies plan things? Through lies, deceptions and inaction.
August 24th, 2006 at 10:59 amRebel,
The name of the firm that was Plame’s cover was Brewster Jennings.
August 24th, 2006 at 11:19 amhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brewster_Jennings_&_Associates
Bush’s language problem solved!
Or so says columnist Kathleen Parker:
More here.
Funny…I don’t recall other past presidents having a language problem as horrible as Bush during their term in office.
August 24th, 2006 at 11:26 amComment by Rebel With A Cause — August 24, 2006 @ 10:59 am
Rebel,
Good posts today, dude! Did you see the segment of Hardball with Paul Hackett? If not, get yourself over to Crooks and Liars and check it out.
Link here.
I agree that Bush wasn’t interested in capturing Osama. He as much as said so when he told the world he didn’t think much about him. However, I still think Bush would have gone into Iraq. At the time of the invasion, the kickoff for the campaign season for the 2004 presidential election was a little more than a year-and-a-half away. Say bin Laden had been captured before the invasion of Iraq. Who would have been our next target in the “war”* on terror? I say Iraq.
However, invading too close to the election would have allowed the opposition to cry foul, and likely would have swayed the electorate. That’s a risk they couldn’t take. Bush invaded when he did to avoid this, and fortunately for him we got bogged down and had to stay for awhile. Bush was counting on voters to keep the “war president” in for 2 terms (well, that and a little help in Ohio); who in their right mind would elect a new president in the middle of a “war”? This is also why we likely didn’t go in with enough troops to quell any insurgency; this would have meant a quick resolution to the “war” in Iraq and would have meant Bush would have to quickly find another country to invade (risky…see above) or fall back on tax cuts and Social Security reform to get re-elected.
*(Note: going forward, I will place references to “war” in quotes because “war” has never been declared. Alberto Gonzales agrees with me. For the same reason, I will not refer to our presence in Iraq as a “war” with Iraq. It will be the “occupation” of Iraq. However, if I should slip, somebody smack me.)
August 24th, 2006 at 12:05 pm#31
The other Presidents were literate.
August 24th, 2006 at 12:15 pmFunny…I don’t recall other past presidents having a language problem as horrible as Bush during their term in office.
Comment by WC — August 24, 2006 @ 11:26 am
I’ve known stroke victims who can speak better than Bush.
Alcoholic cokeheads, not so much…..
August 24th, 2006 at 12:31 pm3: The objective is probably not legislation (which might harm big business)
Actually, big business is strongly behind immigration “reform” (i.e., the massive Senate amnesty). Other supporters of “reform” include: the Democratic Party, far-left racial power groups, and the Mexican government. The latter has given the Senate bill its official blessing.
If you want to see yet another golden opportunity the Dems blew to make Bush look weak on homeland security, remove the underscores from this: lonewa________cko.com/blog/archives/005474.html
A GOP ad attacked another Republican for weakness on an issue on which Bush was also weak, yet all the Dems could do is start race-baiting.
August 24th, 2006 at 1:53 pmThe C.I.A. reports a slam dunk. Intellegence confirms that Iran has a slingshot capable of lauching nuclear bombs into the American heartland.
August 24th, 2006 at 5:53 pm36 – Ho Chi Minh,
August 24th, 2006 at 8:41 pmTo paraphrase Maxwell Smart “Does Oil Tanker mean anything to you?”
I posted this in another thread, but it is on topic in this one too. Here it is:
Israel is carefully watching the world’s reaction to Iran’s continued refusal to suspend uranium enrichment, with some high-level officials arguing it is now clear that when it comes to stopping Iran, Israel “may have to go it alone,” The Jerusalem Post has learned.
Israel may ‘go it alone’ against Iran
I don’t know what makes the Israeli government think they can take on Iran, when they failed to defang Hezbollah in their month long offensive in Southern Lebanon.
August 24th, 2006 at 8:46 pmWalt- No MORE wars for oil.
August 24th, 2006 at 8:50 pmThe biggest most beautiful 80 foot cedar behind my little house…The hug is done………Blessings.
Comment by Sharon Cox
Thank you Sharon, it’s my favorite. :)
August 24th, 2006 at 9:13 pmYou’re welcome Zooey…….Any time and all the time, it’s my favorite to….Blessings
August 24th, 2006 at 9:21 pmNever has so much military and economic and diplomatic power been used so ineffectively. And if after all of this time and all of this sacrifice, and all of this support, there is still no end in sight, then I say the time has come for the American people to turn to new leadership not tied to the mistakes and policies of the past.-Richard M. Nixon
August 24th, 2006 at 10:01 pmThe end of the fight is a tombstone white
a fool lies here
-Rudyard Kipling
August 24th, 2006 at 10:26 pmDon’t believe,
I don’t think that everything in the Jerusalem Post is necessarily inaccurate. It is an Israeli perspective, that is true.
When they mention government sources in an article about how Israel might “go it alone”, I tend to believe that it is an idea that has been discussed at the highest levels in the Israeli government.
It might not happen, but it is a posibility they are/were contemplating.
August 25th, 2006 at 12:52 amThis just in: Founding Fathers of America were Terrorists
August 25th, 2006 at 7:47 am