Mosque in Deraa comes under fire as groups opposing President Assad call for army to lead transition to democracy The Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad sent fresh troopson Saturday to pound the besieged southern city of Deraa, as a new opposition group appealed to the army to help the transition to democracy. Tanks and armoured personnel carriers entered the city and troops opened fire in streets close to the Omari mosque as Syria’s government continued to crush dissent in the city, which has been at the centre of the six-week uprising. Activists said that houses in the Karak district of the city were damaged by shelling which started at 5am local time on Saturday, the sixth day of a sustained siege on the city. “They are trying to break the will of the protesters and residents while also arresting any leaders,” said Rami Nakhle, a Beirut-based Syrian cyber-activist. Funerals were also taking place after human rights organisations said more than 70 people were confirmed dead in protests on Friday, bringing the total death toll to above 500. Elsewhere on Saturday five people were reported shot dead in the coastal city of Latakia while 11 of 50 women who protested in central Damascus were arrested. Meanwhile, reports of army defections continued to surface as witnesse s said many soldiers had fled service in Deraa, hiding in residents’ houses. This followed unconfirmed reports from the city last week of clashes between the 4th and 5th Brigades. The Observer could not independently confirm the reports, which have trickled out of the city since the start of the crackdown almost a month ago. Emboldened by the rumours, a group of protesters and activists have appealed to the army to take charge and ensure a transition to democracy. A group calling itself the National Initiative for Change issued a statement saying: “The best option is for the leadership of the regime to lead a transition to democracy. The only institution that has the capability to lead the transition period would be the military.” But most commentators believe calling on the army is wishful thinking. “We may see some splintering of the army, but it is impossible that the whole institution will change sides,” said one local analyst who asked not to be named. As President Assad fails to heed calls for reform, late on Friday the US froze the assets of three senior officials, including Maher, Bashar’s younger brother who heads the elite 4th Brigade. Maher is not believed to have many assets in the US. The new sanctions, already in force on other members, such as Assad’s cousin Rami Makhlouf, are not likely to have significant impact. Many more protesters would need to take to the streets to challenge the army’s might, a diplomat in the capital said: “They are using a lot of troops in Deraa. The regime can control the situation now, but if many more towns came out, the army may be stretched.” Reports out of Deraa paint a devastating picture as communications remain cut and supplies run low. Witnesses said surrounding villagers trying to provide food and medicine are being prevented from entering the city. Unconfirmed reports said six people had been killed yesterday, bringing the likely death toll to well over 100. Residents also reported that the son of Ahmed al-Sayasna, the imam of Omari mosque, a hub for the protesters, had been killed. Sayasna is in hiding, accused by the government of inciting protests. The EU is also preparing to freeze trade deals with Syria and put an embargo on the sale of weapons that might be used for internal repression. It has so far stopped short of the US move of freezing assets, but the EU foreign policy chief, Baroness Ashton, said in a statement that the 27-member bloc will “urgently consider further appropriate and targeted measures”. The move is the latest attempt to increase pressure following a special session of the UN Human Rights Council on Friday, which voted in favour of a resolution condemning the crackdown and endorsed a US-backed call for investigations. Syrian officials have rejected international moves as illegitimate interference as the government continues to insist it is fighting a war against gangs and Islamist terrorists. Syria’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Faisal al-Hamwi, described the council’s session as “an excuse to return to the days of colonialism”. Protesters have renewed calls for daily nationwide demonstrations to call for the breaking of the siege on Deraa and the Damascus suburb of Douma, where communications are also cut and houses have been raided. Katherine Marsh is the pseudonym for a journalist living in Damascus Syria Bashar Al-Assad Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Katherine Marsh guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Mosque in Deraa comes under fire as groups opposing President Assad call for army to lead transition to democracy The Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad sent fresh troopson Saturday to pound the besieged southern city of Deraa, as a new opposition group appealed to the army to help the transition to democracy. Tanks and armoured personnel carriers entered the city and troops opened fire in streets close to the Omari mosque as Syria’s government continued to crush dissent in the city, which has been at the centre of the six-week uprising. Activists said that houses in the Karak district of the city were damaged by shelling which started at 5am local time on Saturday, the sixth day of a sustained siege on the city. “They are trying to break the will of the protesters and residents while also arresting any leaders,” said Rami Nakhle, a Beirut-based Syrian cyber-activist. Funerals were also taking place after human rights organisations said more than 70 people were confirmed dead in protests on Friday, bringing the total death toll to above 500. Elsewhere on Saturday five people were reported shot dead in the coastal city of Latakia while 11 of 50 women who protested in central Damascus were arrested. Meanwhile, reports of army defections continued to surface as witnesse s said many soldiers had fled service in Deraa, hiding in residents’ houses. This followed unconfirmed reports from the city last week of clashes between the 4th and 5th Brigades. The Observer could not independently confirm the reports, which have trickled out of the city since the start of the crackdown almost a month ago. Emboldened by the rumours, a group of protesters and activists have appealed to the army to take charge and ensure a transition to democracy. A group calling itself the National Initiative for Change issued a statement saying: “The best option is for the leadership of the regime to lead a transition to democracy. The only institution that has the capability to lead the transition period would be the military.” But most commentators believe calling on the army is wishful thinking. “We may see some splintering of the army, but it is impossible that the whole institution will change sides,” said one local analyst who asked not to be named. As President Assad fails to heed calls for reform, late on Friday the US froze the assets of three senior officials, including Maher, Bashar’s younger brother who heads the elite 4th Brigade. Maher is not believed to have many assets in the US. The new sanctions, already in force on other members, such as Assad’s cousin Rami Makhlouf, are not likely to have significant impact. Many more protesters would need to take to the streets to challenge the army’s might, a diplomat in the capital said: “They are using a lot of troops in Deraa. The regime can control the situation now, but if many more towns came out, the army may be stretched.” Reports out of Deraa paint a devastating picture as communications remain cut and supplies run low. Witnesses said surrounding villagers trying to provide food and medicine are being prevented from entering the city. Unconfirmed reports said six people had been killed yesterday, bringing the likely death toll to well over 100. Residents also reported that the son of Ahmed al-Sayasna, the imam of Omari mosque, a hub for the protesters, had been killed. Sayasna is in hiding, accused by the government of inciting protests. The EU is also preparing to freeze trade deals with Syria and put an embargo on the sale of weapons that might be used for internal repression. It has so far stopped short of the US move of freezing assets, but the EU foreign policy chief, Baroness Ashton, said in a statement that the 27-member bloc will “urgently consider further appropriate and targeted measures”. The move is the latest attempt to increase pressure following a special session of the UN Human Rights Council on Friday, which voted in favour of a resolution condemning the crackdown and endorsed a US-backed call for investigations. Syrian officials have rejected international moves as illegitimate interference as the government continues to insist it is fighting a war against gangs and Islamist terrorists. Syria’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Faisal al-Hamwi, described the council’s session as “an excuse to return to the days of colonialism”. Protesters have renewed calls for daily nationwide demonstrations to call for the breaking of the siege on Deraa and the Damascus suburb of Douma, where communications are also cut and houses have been raided. Katherine Marsh is the pseudonym for a journalist living in Damascus Syria Bashar Al-Assad Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Katherine Marsh guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Is climate change behind those killer storms? Foxheads eagerly denounce such notions
April 30, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media Hey, folks in the South — you’ll be happy to know those unusually nasty tornadoes that just blew through your towns and killed hundreds of your neighbors aren’t any kind of serious long-term problem. At least not according to Fox News. Because to think so would be to perhaps admit that climate scientists might be onto something to suspect that climate change might have had a hand in these extreme storms. Perish the thought! Filling in for Neil Cavuto yesterday on Fox, Connell McShane invited on Marc Morano of ClimateDepot , fondly remembered by some of us as wingnut Republican Sen. James Inhofe’s ex-communications chief. (I’m sure you’ll be shocked to learn that his outfit is primarily funded by money from corporate sources like ExxonMobil and Richard Mellon Scaife.) Morano was appalled that environmentalists might connect this week’s devastating tornadoes to scientists’ warnings of climate change and global warming: MORANO: Well, this is following them blaming the tsunami on climate change, the record cold on climate change, the blizzards and record snow on climate change. This is them blaming record ice in Antarctica on climate change. This is them blaming any weather event on climate change. It’s the latest incarnation. The problem is, this time it’s even more absurd than the previous times. Actually, Fox News probably isn’t the place you want to be making this charge, considering that Fox anchors have a long and colorful history of using extreme winter storms to claim that it’s evidence global warming is, in Sean Hannity’s words, “the biggest scientific fraud in our lifetimes” . Indeed, one of the more notable such cases involved Neil Cavuto. And of course, Morano also repeats previously debunked falsehoods about the weather. For instance, it is a a lie that Antarctica as a whole is getting record ice: “Antarctica is losing land ice as a whole, and these losses are accelerating quickly.” To claim that the tornadoes had nothing, nussink! to do with climate change, Morano cited previous tornado data and claimed they showed “absolutely no trend” to increasing tornadoes. So don’t worry about it, folks! Nothing to see here! And anyone who thinks so is just like those primitive Aztecs who cut out people’s hearts to make it rain: MORANO: So any way you cut it, tornadoes are not a crisis. For them now to use this is yet another example of climate astrology. They’re trying to peddle the idea that our SUVs are causing severe tornadoes and our light bulbs and our industry and our way of life. It’s no better than in 1450 when Aztec priests encouraged people to sacrifice to the gods to end a drought. We actually are going back to a primitive culture where we actually think that we can affect the weather to this level, like a tornado is caused by our cars. Yes, because being encouraged to drive a hybrid car in place of your gas-hogging SUV is just like having your heart cut out and sacrificed to the gods. Morano then wrapped up by attacking discussions of the tornadoes in the context of climate change as “purely a propaganda tool” without even a hint of irony. In reality, the trends aren’t clear, as Bryan Walsh at Time explains, but there is unquestionably change in the patterns afoot: And the answer is… Scientists really don’t know. It’s true that the average number of April tornadoes has steadily increased from 74 a year in the 1950s to 163 a year in the 2000s. But most of that increase, as A.G. Sulzberger reports in the New York Times, comes from the least powerful tornadoes, the ones that touch down briefly without causing much damage. Those are exactly the kind of tornadoes that would have been missed by meteorologists in the days before the Weather Channel and Doppler radar—scientists today would almost never miss an actual tornado touchdown, no matter how brief or weak. That makes it very difficult for researchers to even be sure that the actual number of tornadoes is on the rise, let alone, if they are, what might be causing it. The number of severe tornadoes per year has actually been dropping over time. It is true, however, that as the climate warms, more moisture will evaporate into the atmosphere. Warmer temperatures and more moisture will give storm systems that much more energy to play with, like adding nitroglycerin to the atmosphere. This month’s possibly record-breaking tornadoes are due in part to an unusually warm Gulf of Mexico, where as Freedman reports, water surface temperatures are 1 to 2.5 C above the norm. The Gulf feeds moisture northward to storm systems as they move across the country, and that warm moist air from the south meeting cool, dry air from the Plains often results in some powerful weather. But at the same time, other studies have forecast that warmer temperatures will reduce the wind shear necessary to turn a routine thunderstorm into a powerful system that can give birth to tornadoes. So in a hotter world we could see more frequent destructive thunderstorms, but fewer tornadoes—although some researchers think we could still end up with both. Moreover, as at ThinkProgress reports, a number of scientists think that climate change is obviously part of the picture here, and ignoring it not only won’t make it go away, it’s profoundly irresponsible: In an email interview with ThinkProgress, Dr. Kevin Trenberth, one of the world’s top climate scientists, who has been exploring for years how greenhouse pollution influences extreme weather , said he believes that it is “irresponsible not to mention climate change” in the context of these extreme tornadoes. Trenberth, head of the Climate Analysis Section of the National Center for Atmospheric Research, added that the scientific understanding of how polluting our atmosphere with billions of tons of greenhouse gases affects tornadic activity is still ongoing: It is irresponsible not to mention climate change. … The environment in which all of these storms and the tornadoes are occurring has changed from human influences (global warming). Tornadoes come from thunderstorms in a wind shear environment. This occurs east of the Rockies more than anywhere else in the world. The wind shear is from southerly (SE, S or SW) flow from the Gulf overlaid by westerlies aloft that have come over the Rockies. That wind shear can be converted to rotation. The basic driver of thunderstorms is the instability in the atmosphere: warm moist air at low levels with drier air aloft. With global warming the low level air is warm and moister and there is more energy available to fuel all of these storms and increase the buoyancy of the air so that thunderstorms are strong. There is no clear research on changes in shear related to global warming. On average the low level air is 1 deg F and 4 percent moister than in the 1970s. Climate scientist Michael Mann, director of the Earth System Science Center at Pennsylvania State University, explains further that “climate change is present in every single meteorological event”: The fact remains that there is 4 percent more water vapor–and associated additional moist energy–available both to power individual storms and to produce intense rainfall from them. Climate change is present in every single meteorological event, in that these events are occurring within a baseline atmospheric environment that has shifted in favor of more intense weather events. But then, at Fox News “profoundly irresponsible” isn’t anything unusual. It’s part of their business model.
Continue reading …Is climate change behind those killer storms? Foxheads eagerly denounce such notions
April 30, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media Hey, folks in the South — you’ll be happy to know those unusually nasty tornadoes that just blew through your towns and killed hundreds of your neighbors aren’t any kind of serious long-term problem. At least not according to Fox News. Because to think so would be to perhaps admit that climate scientists might be onto something to suspect that climate change might have had a hand in these extreme storms. Perish the thought! Filling in for Neil Cavuto yesterday on Fox, Connell McShane invited on Marc Morano of ClimateDepot , fondly remembered by some of us as wingnut Republican Sen. James Inhofe’s ex-communications chief. (I’m sure you’ll be shocked to learn that his outfit is primarily funded by money from corporate sources like ExxonMobil and Richard Mellon Scaife.) Morano was appalled that environmentalists might connect this week’s devastating tornadoes to scientists’ warnings of climate change and global warming: MORANO: Well, this is following them blaming the tsunami on climate change, the record cold on climate change, the blizzards and record snow on climate change. This is them blaming record ice in Antarctica on climate change. This is them blaming any weather event on climate change. It’s the latest incarnation. The problem is, this time it’s even more absurd than the previous times. Actually, Fox News probably isn’t the place you want to be making this charge, considering that Fox anchors have a long and colorful history of using extreme winter storms to claim that it’s evidence global warming is, in Sean Hannity’s words, “the biggest scientific fraud in our lifetimes” . Indeed, one of the more notable such cases involved Neil Cavuto. And of course, Morano also repeats previously debunked falsehoods about the weather. For instance, it is a a lie that Antarctica as a whole is getting record ice: “Antarctica is losing land ice as a whole, and these losses are accelerating quickly.” To claim that the tornadoes had nothing, nussink! to do with climate change, Morano cited previous tornado data and claimed they showed “absolutely no trend” to increasing tornadoes. So don’t worry about it, folks! Nothing to see here! And anyone who thinks so is just like those primitive Aztecs who cut out people’s hearts to make it rain: MORANO: So any way you cut it, tornadoes are not a crisis. For them now to use this is yet another example of climate astrology. They’re trying to peddle the idea that our SUVs are causing severe tornadoes and our light bulbs and our industry and our way of life. It’s no better than in 1450 when Aztec priests encouraged people to sacrifice to the gods to end a drought. We actually are going back to a primitive culture where we actually think that we can affect the weather to this level, like a tornado is caused by our cars. Yes, because being encouraged to drive a hybrid car in place of your gas-hogging SUV is just like having your heart cut out and sacrificed to the gods. Morano then wrapped up by attacking discussions of the tornadoes in the context of climate change as “purely a propaganda tool” without even a hint of irony. In reality, the trends aren’t clear, as Bryan Walsh at Time explains, but there is unquestionably change in the patterns afoot: And the answer is… Scientists really don’t know. It’s true that the average number of April tornadoes has steadily increased from 74 a year in the 1950s to 163 a year in the 2000s. But most of that increase, as A.G. Sulzberger reports in the New York Times, comes from the least powerful tornadoes, the ones that touch down briefly without causing much damage. Those are exactly the kind of tornadoes that would have been missed by meteorologists in the days before the Weather Channel and Doppler radar—scientists today would almost never miss an actual tornado touchdown, no matter how brief or weak. That makes it very difficult for researchers to even be sure that the actual number of tornadoes is on the rise, let alone, if they are, what might be causing it. The number of severe tornadoes per year has actually been dropping over time. It is true, however, that as the climate warms, more moisture will evaporate into the atmosphere. Warmer temperatures and more moisture will give storm systems that much more energy to play with, like adding nitroglycerin to the atmosphere. This month’s possibly record-breaking tornadoes are due in part to an unusually warm Gulf of Mexico, where as Freedman reports, water surface temperatures are 1 to 2.5 C above the norm. The Gulf feeds moisture northward to storm systems as they move across the country, and that warm moist air from the south meeting cool, dry air from the Plains often results in some powerful weather. But at the same time, other studies have forecast that warmer temperatures will reduce the wind shear necessary to turn a routine thunderstorm into a powerful system that can give birth to tornadoes. So in a hotter world we could see more frequent destructive thunderstorms, but fewer tornadoes—although some researchers think we could still end up with both. Moreover, as at ThinkProgress reports, a number of scientists think that climate change is obviously part of the picture here, and ignoring it not only won’t make it go away, it’s profoundly irresponsible: In an email interview with ThinkProgress, Dr. Kevin Trenberth, one of the world’s top climate scientists, who has been exploring for years how greenhouse pollution influences extreme weather , said he believes that it is “irresponsible not to mention climate change” in the context of these extreme tornadoes. Trenberth, head of the Climate Analysis Section of the National Center for Atmospheric Research, added that the scientific understanding of how polluting our atmosphere with billions of tons of greenhouse gases affects tornadic activity is still ongoing: It is irresponsible not to mention climate change. … The environment in which all of these storms and the tornadoes are occurring has changed from human influences (global warming). Tornadoes come from thunderstorms in a wind shear environment. This occurs east of the Rockies more than anywhere else in the world. The wind shear is from southerly (SE, S or SW) flow from the Gulf overlaid by westerlies aloft that have come over the Rockies. That wind shear can be converted to rotation. The basic driver of thunderstorms is the instability in the atmosphere: warm moist air at low levels with drier air aloft. With global warming the low level air is warm and moister and there is more energy available to fuel all of these storms and increase the buoyancy of the air so that thunderstorms are strong. There is no clear research on changes in shear related to global warming. On average the low level air is 1 deg F and 4 percent moister than in the 1970s. Climate scientist Michael Mann, director of the Earth System Science Center at Pennsylvania State University, explains further that “climate change is present in every single meteorological event”: The fact remains that there is 4 percent more water vapor–and associated additional moist energy–available both to power individual storms and to produce intense rainfall from them. Climate change is present in every single meteorological event, in that these events are occurring within a baseline atmospheric environment that has shifted in favor of more intense weather events. But then, at Fox News “profoundly irresponsible” isn’t anything unusual. It’s part of their business model.
Continue reading …While it may have happened, I don’t recall any major media raising the question as to whether Karl Rove’s Crossroads was undemocratic. But as you know, anything is worse when Democrats do it. It would have been more useful if this reporter pointed out that, thanks to Citizens United, the Democrats will never catch up to the amount of money raised by these shadowy conservative groups and their affiliates. Or perhaps they might note that Democrats really have no other choice at this point if they want to win elections. ( Sorry, Russ . I’m not happy about it, but I don’t see many other options.) But false equivalence is the most we can expect , I suppose: MANCHESTER, N.H. — A group including former White House officials, union leaders and one of Hollywood’s biggest producers have joined forces to start an outside effort to help President Obama and Congressional Democrats in 2012 by using the very sort of anonymous, unlimited donations from moneyed interests that the president has so deplored. The Hollywood producer Jeffrey Katzenberg is also a co-founder of the new aid groups. Co-founded by the former White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton and with seed money from the Service Employees International Union and the film producer Jeffrey Katzenberg, the group’s entrée into the early 2012 contest all but ensures that the presidential race will be awash in cash from undisclosed corporate and labor sources with huge stakes in Washington policy making. At the heart of the effort, introduced Friday morning, are two groups: Priorities USA Action, which will engage directly in electioneering backed by donors who will have to be identified but can give unlimited amounts, and Priorities USA, which will advertise about related campaign issues using money from undisclosed sources. The effort is modeled on the one Republicans started last year — with help from the Republican strategist Karl Rove — that attacked Democrats with a barrage of advertisements, mailings and phone calls. It was widely credited with helping the party to take control of the House and diminish the Democrats’ edge in the Senate last fall. One of those groups, Crossroads GPS, was set up under a section of the tax code that allowed its donors to remain anonymous, leading Mr. Obama to refer to such groups collectively as “a threat to democracy” for the way they had shielded corporate interests from view as they sought to sway elections. Democrats had eschewed the formation of such groups last year at Mr. Obama’s public urging, but after the elections in November prominent liberals vowed to form with outside groups of their own to combat the likes of Crossroads. Speaking aboard Air Force One on Friday, the White House press secretary, Jay Carney, said that the president’s views had not changed and that the administration had nothing to do with the new groups. “We don’t control outside groups,” Mr. Carney said. “These are not people working for the administration.”
Continue reading …Tea Partier to MSNBCer: Media That Blame All Criticism of Obama on His Skin Color Are ‘Racers’
April 30, 2011 No Comment
You've heard of Birthers and Truthers. Tea Partier and talk radio host Tony Katz on Thursday, while appearing on MSNBC News Live Contessa Brewer, called media members that blame all criticism of Barack Obama on the color of his skin “Racers” (video follows with transcript and commentary): TONY KATZ, TEA PARTIER: This is Obama failing to do his job. CONTESSA BREWER, MSNBC HOST: That’s what a lot of people are saying it's not a laughing matter. They say that there are questions about him, not because there really are questions about where he is born, but because he is black. […] KATZ: But this whole idea of race, you know what, if there are birthers and they're all crazy and silly for actually wanting to see a birth certificate, well let's talk about the racers, the people who believe that everything is a conspiracy about race. It's Obama’s race that people want to see the birth certificate. It's Obama’s race that people don't like the out of control spending. It's not his race. It's that he's awful. The policies are terrible. ObamaCare is a lie and a failure. QE1 and QE2 didn't work. It's crazy. BREWER: There were people who took that very exact same stand when George W. Bush was president. They said the exact same words that you're saying about President Bush, and they never demand – wait, wait, wait, wait – and they never demanded to see a birth certificate. Brewer was showing quite a touch of ignorance here since nobody questions the citizenship of George H. W. and Barbara Bush therefore making it absurd to want to see George W.'s birth certificate. At the same time she was actually making Katz's point for if the same kind of attacks were being lodged against a white president, they can't stem from racism: KATZ: They didn't say it was race. Everything that comes out of the racers, and they exist – the Washington Post, the New York Times, the Huffington Post”, some people at your very network, and you know I enjoy having these conversations with you. They are so focused. Everything is about race. It's not about race. When we talk about Obama and the policies, it's about the awful policies. It's about the inability to bring down debt. It’s about the inability to tackle the deficit. And when everybody says, “Oh, they're just after this because of race,” it is nonsense. It's a way to stop people from having conversation. Political correctness at its worst. If we want to talk about the issues, let's talk about the issues. Exactly, and all those conflating the issues with accusations of racism are allowing the White House and the Democrats to avoid any kind of serious discussion about the problems facing the nation. Let's hope the term “Racer” catches on, for it indeed represents a sizable percentage of America's media that for over four years have aided and abetted Obama in avoiding any criticism whatsoever as a result of the color of his skin. Bravo, Tony! Bravo! (H/T Breitbart TV )
Continue reading …Michele Bachmann: ‘I Would Have Congress Pass a Mother of All Repeal Bills’
April 30, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media Well, it looks like all of the potential Republican presidential contenders came out to kiss the boots of Americans for Prosperity’s Tim Phillips tonight. You’ve got to love what they called this event — the Summit on Federal Spending & Job Creation . Or in other words, Republicans reciting their conservative wish lists to continue slashing and burning the government and finishing off what’s left of the middle class in America. Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann was the final speaker at the event, which included Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, former Senator Rick Santorum, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, and syndicated columnist, radio talk-show host and Tea Partying presidential candidate Herman Cain. After telling the audience about her wish list for what the Republicans would like to do if they “win the trifecta” of getting both houses of Congress back and the White House, Bachmann proclaimed that she’d like to see the Republicans “pass a mother of all repeal bills” which in her words, “should take committed Constitutional conservatives about a long weekend to get it done.” Michele Bachmann’s lovely list she compiled for America is Tim Phillips and his astroturf Americans for Prosperity and their rich corporate donors’ wet dream, but other than in wingnut world, that little wish list of hers doesn’t work out so well for the peons.
Continue reading …Reports of snipers on roof and tanks moving into area after heavy shelling of restive city’s old quarter Syrian security forces have stormed a mosque in the opposition stronghold of Deraa after heavy shelling of the city’s old quarter, according to residents. One said snipers had taken up positions on the roof of the Omari mosque and that government forces appeared to be back in control for the first time since attacking the city earlier in the week. Tanks were reported to have moved into the area. Troops and heavy armoured vehicles first swept into Deraa on Monday. The city, in the south of the country, has become a focal point of the six-week uprising against President Bashar al-Assad. “Since dawn, we’ve been hearing a heavy exchange of gunfire that is echoing across the city and you do not know what’s happening,” Abu Tareq, a local man, told Reuters by phone. “I saw more than 15 tanks that had entered from the Damascus highway heading in the direction of the old city.” Another resident, Abu Ahmad, also told Reuters that tanks had stormed the old city: “It looks like they [the security forces] want to finish their campaign today. From the new tank deployments, it looks as though they are intensifying their operations.” On Friday, thousands of Syrians defied their government’s bloody attempts to suppress protest, braving gunfire to demonstrate in Damascus and at other locations around the country. Soldiers in Deraa are believed to have killed 19 people on Friday when they fired on protesters who were trying to enter the city from nearby villages in a show of solidarity. Syrian rights groups put Friday’s death toll at 62, pushing the number of deaths since the uprising began to more than 500. The British foreign minister, William Hague, has welcomed the EU’s decision to launch an arms embargo against Syria and to review all EU co-operation with the country “I am extremely concerned by ongoing violence and repression in Syria,” he said. “Yesterday, we once again saw a violent response to protests following Friday prayers, leading to the deaths of many innocent people. There are credible reports that over 500 people have been killed in recent weeks. The Syrian government has failed to heed repeated calls by the international community for restraint.” He also welcomed a resolution passed on Friday by the UN human rights council condemning Syria’s conduct and launching a fact-finding mission to investigate human rights abuses. Syria Arab and Middle East unrest Bashar Al-Assad Middle East Ben Quinn guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Opposition forces claim Libyan leader’s offer is not genuine as they struggle to retain control of Misrata’s port Libyan opposition forces have rejected a ceasefire offer by Muammar Gaddafi and dismissed his regime’s claims that loyalist forces had cut off access to the crucial seaport in the besieged city of Misrata. In a rambling, defiant speech on state television on Saturday, in which he declared that he was “more sacred [to Libyans] than the emperor of Japan is to his people”, Gaddafi called for talks with Nato, which is conducting air strikes against his forces. “The door to peace is open,” Gaddafi said. “You are the aggressors. We will negotiate with you. Come, France, Italy, UK, America, come, we will negotiate with you. Why are you attacking us?” More than two months into the Libyan revolution, loyalist forces are becoming increasing stretched. In the east, they are preventing the rebel advance near the town of Ajdabiya; in the far west, they are trying to quell a more recent uprising near the border with Tunisia. And just 130 miles from Tripoli, the battle for the industrial city of Misrata continues, with at least six people killed before noon on Saturday. In an echo of comments by his son Saif, who said on Friday the regime would fight on for 40 years if necessary, Gaddafi said his own future would not up for discussion in any talks. “No one can force me to leave my country and no one can tell me not to fight for my country,” he said. Around the same time as he was speaking, Nato bombs stuck a government complex in Tripoli. A Nato official told Associated Press that the alliance needed “to see not words but actions” from Gaddafi. Indeed, the regime’s message seemed contradictory, with government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim saying on Saturday that Misrata would face “total fire” if its civilian army did not accept an amnesty offer within four days. The opposition Transitional National Council, in the eastern city of Benghazi, which is under rebel control, said the ceasefire offer was not genuine and vowed to fight on. “[Gaddafi's regime] has repeatedly offered ceasefires only to continue violating basic human rights, international humanitarian law, and the safety and security of Libya and the entire region,” said Abdelhafed Ghoga, the council’s vice-chairman. “The time for compromise has passed. The people of Libya cannot possibly envisage or accept a future Libya in which Gaddafi’s regime plays any role.” Having been forced out of the city centre in Misrata following weeks of heavy fighting against the rebels, loyalist forces equipped with tanks are now trying to defend their positions on the edge of the city. There were more heavy clashes near the airport, where some of the government forces are massed, as well as close to Zawiya Al-Mahjoub, a satellite town about eight miles west of Misrata. Gaddafi’s troops have also stepped up their attempts to take control of the port, which is the city’s lifeline, allowing in food and other humanitarian supplies as well as light weapons from Benghazi. Several days of shelling have affected the coming and going of ships, with boats carrying urgent supplies forced to stay a safe distance from the coast for long periods until the barrage stops. On Saturday morning, a ferry chartered by the International Organisation for Migration to pick up stranded migrants in Misrata was among the ships prevented from docking. On Friday, Nato warships caught Gaddafi’s forces trying to lay sea mines around the harbour. Libyan state television claimed – falsely – the port had been put “out of service” and said all humanitarian aid should be transferred “overland and under the supervision of the armed forces” – an impossible situation given that the city is under siege. The rebels are keenly aware of the importance of the port and have put up strong defences around it. In clashes close to the harbour on Saturday morning, five rebel fighters were killed when their position was shelled. Ahmed Abuhamik, 22, a rebel fighter who was stationed nearby, said Gaddafi’s forces did not have the power to take over the port as long as Nato planes were striking their positions. “Nato are trying, but we need them to hurry up. Too many civilians are dying,” he said. In his amnesty offer, Gaddafi claimed that rebels who gave up their guns would be offered cars and cash. “Does he think this revolution is about money?” said Abuhamik. “It is about freedom. Anyway, if we give up our weapons, he will kill everyone here, trust me.” Libya Middle East Arab and Middle East unrest Nato Xan Rice guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Sarah Palin gets her message across on Fox, all right: She’s dangerously clueless
April 30, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media It’s been quite a whirlwind the past couple of weeks, watching Donald Trump wow the Republican world with his dazzling mixture of aggressive ignorance and utter crassness. He’s like Sarah Palin on steroids. But Palin herself remains a potent spokesperson for the forces of ignorance. And while a lot of her apologists and defenders like to claim that Palin is unfairly victimized by quick sound bites, she really makes a much bigger impression — as someone so utterly clueless they should never be permitted near any public office again — in longer formats, such as her wide-ranging and rambling interview yesterday with Fox News’ Bret Baier. It produced little exchanges like this one, on increasing the debt ceiling: PALIN: Hells no. I would not vote to increase that debt ceiling. Otherwise it just shows the American public we’re not serious yet. We’re still gonna incur more debt. No. And we don’t have to increase the debt ceiling here in the next few weeks. It turns my stomach to hear this assumption articulated that, well, we have to despite the fact that we’re raking in, the federal government, six billion dollars a day. Take that money and service our debt first! And pay down some of that debt. Make sure that we’re showing the international financial markets and our lenders that we’re serious about getting our debt and our deficit problems under control. BAIER: So, what would you say to the Republicans who do vote for it, on the advice of some experts on Wall Street and around the country who believe that not increasing it would really hurt the economy and create a disaster? PALIN: I would say, before you seriously think about voting to increase the debt limit and incur more unsustainable, immoral, unethical debt that is really going to ruin our country, to continue down this path — prioritize, service the debt first, pay for the very essential services that are constitutionally mandated. Let the states take care of a whole lot of these services and projects, and if a state wants to do something a little bit special, like some extra roads or some extra museums and monuments and cowboy poetry, let that state figure out how they’re gonna pay for it. Palin also sort of weighed in on the other presidential candidates, though you’ll notice she actually says nothing at all about any of them, other than that she respects them because they’re good Republicans and by golly she loves to see them running; and then remains firmly noncommittal about her own prospects for running. Then she wraps it all up by suggesting that President Obama had foreign money flowing into his campaign accounts in the 2008 election — which would, of course, be a crime. Baier asks her: BAIER: Before I let you go, are you suggesting that the FEC may find that foreign money got into the Obama campaign in 2008? PALIN: Am I wrong to bring up the fact — and maybe, Bret, at this point you have more information than I do on where a lot of those dollars were that were unaccounted for. Remember that we saw much proof of a lot of the donations to Obama’s campaign — credit-card contributions under fake names, addresses that perhaps weren’t even real addresses in the U.S. You know, I hope that we don’t just give up on making sure that we have free and fair elections — not just Obama’s! Heck, some on the GOP too! Uh, on the GOP side. Let’s make sure that rules are being followed. We are a land of laws. Methinks she’s been dipping into Pam “Atlas Wanks” Geller’s beandip again.
Continue reading …