Disgusting

A prominent gay Iraqi activist was assassinated in Baghdad.

This morning, I received news from Iraq that the coordinator of Iraqi LGBT in Baghdad, Bashar, aged 27, a university student, has been assassinated in a barber shop.

Militias burst in and sprayed his body with bullets at point blank range.

He was the organiser of the safe houses for gays and lesbians in Baghdad. His efforts saved the lives of dozens of people.

What sickness...

Distracting "Distraction"

Admiral Fallon, who is basically in charge of the military from Afghanistan to Africa, is resigning after reports came out that he opposes Bush on his Middle East policies.

Adm. William J. Fallon, one of the most experienced officers in the U.S. military, said the reports were wrong but had become a distraction hampering his efforts in the Middle East.

Oh, please. Stories known to be true are distractions? If they are untrue, how are they distractions? How distracting is this distraction, and how does it distract? The media will really accept that as an answer?

Here's your real reason:

Gen. David Petraeus, who runs the Iraq war from Baghdad but is technically subordinate to Fallon, was known to have differences with Fallon over the timing and pace of drawing down U.S. troops from Iraq. Fallon has favored a faster pullback.

It's no secret that the higher-ups in the Navy do not like this administration. That they let someone like Fallon stay around as long has he did is rather surprising: these people don't like dissent, however well reasoned and right it may be.

Meanwhile, Petraeus is helping Bush "frame" the war. Bush started by giving a speech mixing "faith and foreign policy" (gag) to those bilking fetishists at the National Religious Broadcaster's convention. I would have a bag handy if you try to read the transcripts.

It seems, perhaps, that no news is good news.

The distinct lack of news from Iraq and an apparently improving situation: 'Good News from Iraq' by our man Hitchens in Slate, It's true: Iraq is a quagmire (for Al-Qaida) is a really good piece. And it must be true that things are getting better because Newsweek and the NYT have chimed in.

Screw the Kurds, Act IV

From Novak-


The morass in Iraq and deepening difficulties in Afghanistan have not deterred the Bush administration from taking on a dangerous and questionable new secret operation. At a high level, U.S. officials are working with their Turkish counterparts on a joint military operation to suppress Kurdish guerrillas and capture their leaders. Through covert activity, their goal is to forestall Turkey from invading Iraq.


Preventing an invasion by doing the invaders work for them. Nice

Atheists In Foxholes

Disturbing discrimination, done on people allegedly bringing "freedom" to the un-Enlightened. No atheists in foxholes? Says who?

Freedom is truly on the march. Wave good-bye to it while you still can.

Why Americans Don't Trust Bush

From his 2000 campaign:

"The facts are stark and the facts are real. . . Our men and women in uniform love their country more than their comfort. They have never failed us, and we must not fail them. But the best intentions and the highest morale are undermined by back-to-back deployments, poor pay, shortages of spare parts and equipment, and rapidly declining readiness."

". . .these are signs of a military in decline and we must do something about it. The reasons are clear. Lack of equipment and material. Undermaning of units. Overdeployment. Not enough time for family. Soldiers who are on food stamps, and soldiers who are poorly housed. Dick Cheney and I have a simple message today for our men and women in uniform, their parents, their loved ones, their supporters: Help is on the way!"

The pot and kettle don't know what to do...except hope that he has finally put a competent general in charge. But after how many years, deaths, and incompetence?

It's the borders, stupid!