You are currently browsing the daily archive for December 14th, 2006.
So some AFP photographer watches Sky News? Well, there you have it: proof that AFP is willing to go anywhere and to any lengths to get a great news photo.
[Previous groundbreaking photojournalism here.]
The UK Press Association:
A fourth woman found dead near Ipswich was murdered and died as a result of “compression to the neck“, detectives have revealed…
Which to the rest of the world means “strangled“.
The Associated Press, December 1:
House Speaker-to-be Nancy Pelosi has chosen a Border Patrol agent- turned-congressman to lead the House Intelligence Committee, ending weeks of Democratic debate about who will oversee the nation’s spy agencies.
Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-Texas, takes over the key post next year, as his party tries to intensify oversight of the intelligence community. Critics say Republicans failed to do that, leading to faulty prewar intelligence on Iraq and other stumbles.
“When tough questions are required - whether they relate to intelligence shortcomings before the 9/11 attacks or the war in Iraq, or to the quality of intelligence on Iran or North Korea - he does not hesitate to ask them,” Pelosi, D-Calif., said in a statement announcing her choice of Reyes…
As you may know already, Rep. Reyes, it seems, just has some trouble answering the easy questions. The Times:
…the incoming chairman of a congressional intelligence committee was yesterday struggling to explain his ignorance of al-Qaeda and Hezbollah.
…”I certainly know Hezbollah because I am one of the few members of Congress that has actually been through a Hezbollah checkpoint, on the road from Damascus to Beirut,” said Reyes….
Silvestre Reyes, the Democrat chosen to head the House of Representatives committee, was asked whether members of al-Qaeda came from the Sunni or the Shia branch of Islam.
“Al-Qaeda, they have both,” he answered, adding: “Predominantly probably Shi’ite.”
Don’t worry. That noise you heard was just me . . . bashing my head down repeatedly on the desk.
In fact, al-Qaeda was founded by Osama bin Laden as a Sunni organisation and views Shia Muslims as heretics. The centuries-old now fuels the militias and death squads in Iraq.
Jeff Stein, a reporter for Congressional Quarterly, then put a similar question about Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shia group. “Hezbollah. Uh, Hezbollah . . .” replied Mr Reyes. “Why do you ask me these questions at five o’clock? Can I answer in Spanish? Do you speak Spanish?” Go ahead, said Stein. “Well, I, uh . . .” said the congressman…
The Times edited that last bit slightly from Mr Stein’s original, thus conveying a slightly different tone, but producing no substantive change. As to the substance, I don’t think it is being nitpicking to state that such is simply appalling coming from a US Congressman five years after 9/11. (I’m sure the fact that Rep Reyes at least pretending to claim he needed to use Spanish undoubtedly bothered some, too. Yet if he had at least answered correctly in Spanish, THAT would have been acceptable proof that he knew the answer.)
Ah, but we must never be allowed to forget that President George W. Bush is a moron. After all, almost every weekday evening, Einstein and others never fail to remind us of that. However, as The Times also notes:
…Stein has also caught out Willie Hulon, chief of the FBI’s new national security branch when he was asked to which branch of Islam were Iran and Hezbollah belonged. “Sunni” he replied. “Wrong,” said Stein…
And also according to The Times:
…“To me, its like asking about Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland — who’s on what side? Its been five years since these Muslim extremists flew hijacked airliners into the World Trade Centre. Is it too much to ask that our intelligence overseers know who they are?”…
From Mr Stein’s original, The Times compressed that into one paragraph. Still, it’s hard to disagree with it. But don’t be fooled by what The Times chose to highlight on Rep Reyes, and others, for the entire Stein CQ article condescendingly derides just about everyone for being, essentially, ignoramuses . . . even US soldiers:
Rights groups have urged Egypt to reconsider death sentences handed to three men for their involvement in the October 2004 suicide bombings in Sinai, questioning the fairness of the trials…
“Rights” groups arguing over trial fairness regarding death sentence verdicts for suicide bombing organizers? If the whole situation weren’t so serious and sick, one would really just have to laugh.
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