While Christians around the world are celebrating Christmas, terror attacks were carried out in Nigeria and Pakistan that killed dozens, a terror plot was thwarted in he Netherlands, and Hamas is again threatening Israel's destruction.
43 were killed in Pakistan when a female suicide bomber struck in Peshawar food market:
Dutch authorities arrested 12 Somalis on terrorism related charges, noting that while no weapons or explosives were found, the attacks were said to be imminent.
Yet, there was some hope, as Iraqi Christians packed a church in Baghdad that was the scene of a massacre of priests and parishioners.
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Holiday Greetings From Apollo 8
This is video shot by the crew of Apollo 8, which was in orbit around the moon during Christmas 1968. It's a shame that we have not been back to the moon in 40 years because of what we could learn.
Friday, December 24, 2010
Anarchists Blamed For Embassy Blasts In Rome
Italian authorities believe that anarchists are behind the attacks on the Swiss and Chilean embassies yesterday. They think that the embassies were targeted because both Swiss and Chilean authorities have cooperated in cracking down on anarchists around the world. Moreover, the contents of one of the package bombs revealed a letter mentioning the name of an anarchist who was killed several years ago:
A ministry official suggested the Swiss had been targeted because they had co-operated with Italy, arresting several anarchists earlier this year.
He added that an anarchist had been killed in Chile in 2009.
Several Italians allegedly linked to anarchist groups have been detained by Swiss authorities.
In April, two Italians and a Swiss resident were picked up in Zurich on suspicion of planning an attack on the Swiss headquarters of IBM.
High alert
Security has been tightened outside embassies and government buildings in Rome.
Police have appealed to staff at the foreign missions to be alert for suspect packages.
BBC map
Investigators have revealed the contents of a blackened note found at the scene of the Chilean embassy blast.
The message was signed by the "Lambros Fountas Cell" of the Informal Federation of Anarchy (FAI). Lambros Fountas was a Greek anarchist killed in a shoot-out with Athens police in March 2010.
Federal Regulatory Agencies Acting When Congress Fails To Act
For the second time in a week, a federal regulatory agency is taking action when Congress has failed to act. First, the FCC promulgated regulations dealing with net neutrality. The net neutrality regulations are a mess, and it appears to be nothing more than a giveaway to wireless providers, because they are held to a different standard then landline providers. That was completely unnecessary and shows the way that lobbyists managed to water down the rules to their benefit. They know that the landline services are a dying breed as more people obtain only cellular services, and wireless providers will not be prevented from limiting services:
The rules should have been consistent across the board - for wireless and standard telecommunications services. Offering up different rules means that a further distortion of the marketplace will occur and not in a good way for consumers or innovators.
Now, the EPA is looking to curb greenhouse gasses in proposing regulations.
The real issue is that Congress has been incapable of dealing with these kinds of issues in any measurable way. Republicans are warning the Administration that they are going to attempt to block even these regulations, noting that they should not enact the EPA regulations when Congress refuses to take such actions.
The companies have said the rules would provide some regulatory certainty. In private, they have acknowledged the proposal could have been much worse. If approved, they “will give some assurances to the companies that are building Web applications — companies like Netflix, Skype and Google — that they will get even treatment on broadband networks,” Ms. Arbogast said. But a wide swath of public interest groups have lambasted the proposal as “fake net neutrality” and said it was rife with loopholes. One group, Public Knowledge, said that instead of providing clear protections, the F.C.C. “created a vague and shifting landscape open to interpretation. Consumers deserved better.”I've got to agree with Sen. Franken (I know!). Having just ponied up for a new smart phone and apps, I know that Verizon Wireless has the Navigator, which charges for the GPS service, whereas Google maps (or Mapquest) have similar free functions. If Verizon Wireless decides that the competition is too much (such as claiming that too much bandwith is going to those apps), they'll insist on users sticking to Verizon Wireless applications and services.
Notably, the rules are watered down for wireless Net providers like AT&T and Verizon, which would be prohibited from blocking Web sites, but not from blocking applications or services unless those applications directly compete with providers’ voice and video products, like Skype.
F.C.C. officials said there were technological reasons for the wireless distinctions, and that they would continue to closely monitor the medium.
Citing the wireless proposal, Senator Al Franken, Democrat of Minnesota, said over the weekend that the F.C.C. was effectively allowing discrimination on the mobile Net, a fast-growing sector.
“Maybe you like Google Maps. Well, tough,” Mr. Franken said on Saturday on the Senate floor. “If the F.C.C. passes this weak rule, Verizon will be able to cut off access to the Google Maps app on your phone and force you to use their own mapping program, Verizon Navigator, even if it is not as good. And even if they charge money, when Google Maps is free.”
The rules should have been consistent across the board - for wireless and standard telecommunications services. Offering up different rules means that a further distortion of the marketplace will occur and not in a good way for consumers or innovators.
Now, the EPA is looking to curb greenhouse gasses in proposing regulations.
In an announcement posted late Thursday on EPA's website, administrator Lisa Jackson said officials "are following through on our commitment to proceed in a measured and careful way" to reduce pollution that contributes to climate change.The increased regulations are likely to increase energy costs, which have already risen significantly since the middle of 2010 to the highest levels in nearly two years.
The new regulations will focus specifically on coal plants and oil refineries, two of the largest sources of greenhouse gases. It will propose standards for power plants by next July and for refineries a year from now.
The real issue is that Congress has been incapable of dealing with these kinds of issues in any measurable way. Republicans are warning the Administration that they are going to attempt to block even these regulations, noting that they should not enact the EPA regulations when Congress refuses to take such actions.
The E.P.A.’s announcement drew swift criticism from Representative Fred Upton, the Michigan Republican who will become chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee next month. “We should be working to bring more power online, not shutting plants down,” he said in a statement.
“We will not allow the administration to regulate what they have been unable to legislate,” he said. “This Christmas surprise is nothing short of a backdoor attempt to implement their failed job-killing cap-and-trade scheme,” he said.
In the conference call, Ms. McCarthy emphasized that the E.P.A. was not imposing a “cap-and-trade” system, a system that sets a ceiling on greenhouse gas pollution while allowing companies to trade permits, at a price that the market determines.
Approved last year in a House bill, cap-and-trade legislation died in the Senate this year. Later, opponents called it “cap and tax,” and it became a rallying cry for some midterm election candidates who were opposed to the expansion of government authority over industry and the economy.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Christmas Comes Early For NJ Taxpayers and Xanadu?
Mall of America is one of the world's largest shopping malls. Its developer has signed a letter of intent to finish and operate the long delayed Xanadu project in the Meadowlands.
The ongoing gloomy retail market means that businesses may not be as willing to expand into what they may perceive as a risky venture, but it also means that secondary retailers or ones that are looking to expand into new markets and are willing to take a chance, might take a flier on the Xanadu project. Triple Five might convince Cabelas to take another look at Northern New Jersey; the outdoor outfitter had originally intended to open one of its largest outlets in Xanadu but pulled out after delays by the prior developers pushed the completion and opening dates beyond what anyone would expect - and it remains shuttered to this day.
Triple Five, which owns the Mall of America in Minnesota and the West Edmonton Mall in Canada, announced Thursday that it has signed a letter of intent with the lenders of Xanadu to develop the 2.3 million square-foot complex in the Meadowlands.If there's any mall operator that can turn this project and white elephant around, it's going to be Triple Five, which had the ability and foresight to do wonders with Mall of America. However, there are significant challenges remaining, including the fact that Xanadu is located within minutes of one of the densest retail shopping corridors in the nation - the Route 4-17 corridor, which already has four major shopping malls and hundreds of major retailers.
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie welcomed the move, saying he has delivered on a promise to revitalize the sprawling $2 billion complex originally slated to open in late 2007.
Two other companies have previously had control of the project.
The ongoing gloomy retail market means that businesses may not be as willing to expand into what they may perceive as a risky venture, but it also means that secondary retailers or ones that are looking to expand into new markets and are willing to take a chance, might take a flier on the Xanadu project. Triple Five might convince Cabelas to take another look at Northern New Jersey; the outdoor outfitter had originally intended to open one of its largest outlets in Xanadu but pulled out after delays by the prior developers pushed the completion and opening dates beyond what anyone would expect - and it remains shuttered to this day.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
I want to wish my friends and readers a Merry Christmas and a joyous holiday season. Tis also the season to engage in massive lighting displays, and this year is no exception. Here are a sampling of lighting displays from around the nation that take the lights to extremes:
This display has 100,000 and 80 inflatables:
Closer to home, this one is down in Absecon, New Jersey:
And I can't forget the photos I took of one of the largest displays - the Freedom Tower decked out in holiday splendor: They not only ran Christmas lights, but they set up several floors with blue and gold lights for Chanukah:
This display has 100,000 and 80 inflatables:
Closer to home, this one is down in Absecon, New Jersey:
And I can't forget the photos I took of one of the largest displays - the Freedom Tower decked out in holiday splendor: They not only ran Christmas lights, but they set up several floors with blue and gold lights for Chanukah:
North Korea Threatens Holy Nuclear War Against South Korea
Anyone want to take a crack at why North Korea would start using religious imagery in its threats against South Korea? North Korea threatens holy nuclear war if the South doesn't back down on its military preparations.
The video makes an attempt at balance, trying to claim that the South Koreans were being provocative by carrying on military training in disputed waters prior to North Korean shelling of a South Korean island that killed four people. That would ignore the fact that a North Korean mine or torpedo sank a South Korean cruiser, killing 46 sailors on board in the worst incident since the truce was signed in 1953.
The military exercises are the most the South Korean government can do short of taking actual retaliatory action against North Korea for the North's repeated attacks. The South Korean government is under tremendous pressure to show that it is taking necessary actions to protect its citizens from the North Korean threats.
The North's latest pronouncements, threatening a holy nuclear war, only adds to the pressure and possibility that the North is trying to force still more concessions at talks and is using the nuclear angle to its utmost advantage.
Tensions are heating up on the Korean peninsula as South Korea continues to stage military drills near the border.The response on Thursday from North Korea's chief of defense, Kim Yong Chun, was blunt:
"To counter the enemy's intentional drive to push the situation to the brink of war, our revolutionary forces are making preparations to begin a holy war at any moment necessary based on nuclear deterrent," Kim said, according to the Korean Central News Agency.
The remarks come as the North prepares to celebrate the 19th anniversary of the day its leader, Kim Jong Il, took power.
The video makes an attempt at balance, trying to claim that the South Koreans were being provocative by carrying on military training in disputed waters prior to North Korean shelling of a South Korean island that killed four people. That would ignore the fact that a North Korean mine or torpedo sank a South Korean cruiser, killing 46 sailors on board in the worst incident since the truce was signed in 1953.
The military exercises are the most the South Korean government can do short of taking actual retaliatory action against North Korea for the North's repeated attacks. The South Korean government is under tremendous pressure to show that it is taking necessary actions to protect its citizens from the North Korean threats.
The North's latest pronouncements, threatening a holy nuclear war, only adds to the pressure and possibility that the North is trying to force still more concessions at talks and is using the nuclear angle to its utmost advantage.
Package Bombs Detonate At Embassies In Italy; 2 Injured
Embassies and consulates in Italy have been warned about possible further attacks after two blasts were reported earlier today in Rome at the Swiss and Chilean embassies.
These bombs came two days after Roman authorities found a bomb under a subway seat that was defective, and it comes less than a month after a dozen bombs were sent to various embassies in Greece - with several detonating in the Russian and Swiss embassies and a third detonated before it could reach the Mexican embassy.
It is quite possibly the work of anarchists or student groups, but no one has claimed responsibility. Someone or some group seems to have a problem with diplomats and the diplomatic services, regardless of the nationality, and they don't seem willing to stop until they kill someone.
Rome's police chief says all embassies have been informed about a pair of package bombs that exploded at the Swiss and Chilean embassies, injuring two people who opened them.Swiss officials aren't sure why they were targeted and law enforcement doesn't have any idea either although there have been violent student demonstrations in Italy. One of those injured was a Swiss worker who was injured when he opened the package and sustained injuries to both his hands.
Chief Francesco Tagliente said a suspicious package found at the Ukrainian embassy turned out to be a false alarm. He spoke to reporters as he arrived Thursday at the Chilean embassy, where witnesses say an explosion was heard shortly after 3 p.m. One person was injured.
Three hours earlier, a package bomb exploded inside an office in the Swiss Embassy, wounding the staffer who opened it. He was taken to the hospital with serious hand injuries but his life is not in danger, the Swiss ambassador Bernardino Regazzoni said.
These bombs came two days after Roman authorities found a bomb under a subway seat that was defective, and it comes less than a month after a dozen bombs were sent to various embassies in Greece - with several detonating in the Russian and Swiss embassies and a third detonated before it could reach the Mexican embassy.
It is quite possibly the work of anarchists or student groups, but no one has claimed responsibility. Someone or some group seems to have a problem with diplomats and the diplomatic services, regardless of the nationality, and they don't seem willing to stop until they kill someone.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
HAMPering Homeowners
The Homeowner Assistance and Modification Program needs modification and assistance itself. The program, touted by the Obama Administration as a means of reducing foreclosures and assisting homeowners in modifying mortgages, remains a mess.
More troubled homeowners are dropping out of the Obama administration’s main foreclosure-relief program, which has been widely criticized for failing to help more people keep their homes.
The Treasury department said Wednesday that about 774,000 homeowners have dropped out as of last month. That’s about 54 percent of the more than 1.4 million people who applied. And it’s up from October, when approximately 756,000 had fallen out.
The program is intended to help those at risk of foreclosure by lowering their monthly payments. Borrowers start with lower payments on a trial basis. The program has struggled to convert them into permanent loan modifications.
Another 505,000 homeowners have secured lower payments permanently. That’s about 35 percent of the number who enrolled on a trial basis, up slightly from October’s reading.
However, the program reached more homeowners in November than in October. The number of new trial modifications increased to about 30,000, up from about 24,000 in October. And the number of trial modifications that turned permanent rose to about 31,000, up from about 26,000.
US Senate Reaches Compromise on Zadroga 9/11 Compensation Fund Package; UPDATE: Passes Senate On Unanimous Consent - Back To House
The James Zadroga 9/11 compensation bill may be approved this afternoon after Senate reached a compromise - reducing the package to $4.3 billion (originally $7+ billion).
What it does is it leaves the VCF open for another five years to allow for new claims- which allows responders who become ill up to 13/14 years after the attacks to file claims. The health registry will also be funded.
Mind you that there are still questions about what ailments are actually attributable to Ground Zero exposures. Proponents of the Zadroga bill say that hundreds have died from Ground Zero exposures, while epidemiologists and medical experts are divided on the actual number of cases attributed to 9/11 exposure.
What will be interesting is how people who were involved in the 9/11 suit with the City respond - with no double dipping, some may lose out on the additional compensation via the VCF. That's going to be a major source of trouble. Rescuers and others who worked at Ground Zero after the attacks were told to take that deal because the $712 million deal would be the best they could hope to get from the City of New York and its co-defendants. If these personnel choose to receive compensation from the settlement, that would prevent them from taking part in the VCF, even if their ailment expresses itself within the next five years.
These people are in a no-win situation.
UPDATE:
Curiously, the readers at Hot Air are miffed at the Republicans for rolling over and accepting even this deal (such as here, here, and here). They are fit to be tied over spending $4.3 billion, ignoring the fact that these people went into the Pile to rescue and recover thousands murdered on 9/11 and were reassured that the air was safe to breath by the US government (EPA) and state and local officials. They are suffering ailments from exposures and now these people think that this is somehow an entitlement for unions and Democrats?
Sorry, but that just doesn't cut it.
The government had a responsibility to look out for these responders and provide compensation for illnesses suffered as a result of their exposure. This bill makes sure that many of these people will get compensated for their health ailments. This isn't a sop to unions or Democrats, and it isn't in the same class of out-of-control spending as the stimulus package or even the Omnibus bill that was defeated. Republican obstructionism did not do the GOP any favors and the reduced price tag on this bill wasn't worth the cost politically.
UPDATE:
The bill has passed on unanimous consent. Because different versions are involved, it has to go back to the House for ultimate passage - but I think this version will ultimately be passed.
The scaled-down $4.3 billion agreement to aid ill 9/11 responders is set to be approved by the Senate as soon as Wednesday afternoon. The initial Zadroga bill called for a 10-year, $7.4 billion treatment and compensation package. To win GOP support, the proposal was trimmed down to 5 years at $4.3 billion.The bill cuts the time frame that the VCF will remain open to five years, which is the main reason that the fund cost is decreased. This doesn't mean that Congress wont go back and reopen the fund, just as they're about to do with this measure.
The last-minute deal also opens the 9/11 Victims' Compensation Fund, but caps lawyers fees at 10%.
And it bars ailing responders from double-dipping on payouts from the recent 9/11 health settlement.
What it does is it leaves the VCF open for another five years to allow for new claims- which allows responders who become ill up to 13/14 years after the attacks to file claims. The health registry will also be funded.
Mind you that there are still questions about what ailments are actually attributable to Ground Zero exposures. Proponents of the Zadroga bill say that hundreds have died from Ground Zero exposures, while epidemiologists and medical experts are divided on the actual number of cases attributed to 9/11 exposure.
What will be interesting is how people who were involved in the 9/11 suit with the City respond - with no double dipping, some may lose out on the additional compensation via the VCF. That's going to be a major source of trouble. Rescuers and others who worked at Ground Zero after the attacks were told to take that deal because the $712 million deal would be the best they could hope to get from the City of New York and its co-defendants. If these personnel choose to receive compensation from the settlement, that would prevent them from taking part in the VCF, even if their ailment expresses itself within the next five years.
These people are in a no-win situation.
UPDATE:
Curiously, the readers at Hot Air are miffed at the Republicans for rolling over and accepting even this deal (such as here, here, and here). They are fit to be tied over spending $4.3 billion, ignoring the fact that these people went into the Pile to rescue and recover thousands murdered on 9/11 and were reassured that the air was safe to breath by the US government (EPA) and state and local officials. They are suffering ailments from exposures and now these people think that this is somehow an entitlement for unions and Democrats?
Sorry, but that just doesn't cut it.
The government had a responsibility to look out for these responders and provide compensation for illnesses suffered as a result of their exposure. This bill makes sure that many of these people will get compensated for their health ailments. This isn't a sop to unions or Democrats, and it isn't in the same class of out-of-control spending as the stimulus package or even the Omnibus bill that was defeated. Republican obstructionism did not do the GOP any favors and the reduced price tag on this bill wasn't worth the cost politically.
UPDATE:
The bill has passed on unanimous consent. Because different versions are involved, it has to go back to the House for ultimate passage - but I think this version will ultimately be passed.
Building the Next Generation US Aircraft Carrier
Construction of the next generation of US aircraft carriers is underway at Newport News Shipyard as the USS Gerald R Ford is being built (satellite view here). It is going to incorporate the latest technologies and design standards to allow for reduced manpower needs while underway, better efficiencies of power systems, and streamlined aircraft and weapons handling systems.
Aircraft carriers are only as useful as the catapults that send the planes aloft, and the steam catapult, which has been in use since just after World War II has reached its limits.
The Navy is testing a new generation of catapult that uses an electromagnetic launch system to bring planes up to flying speed. Tests have been underway at Lakehurst Naval Air Station in New Jersey:
While the Ford retains many of the lines of the Nimitz class, there are notable differences. The number of aircraft elevators has been reduced from four to three, weapons elevators have been relocated to centralized areas to allow rearming at higher rates, and the deck island has been moved further to the rear to reduce the number of times a plane has to be moved around the deck to be ready to be mission ready.
Switching to the electromagnetic catapults requires more electrical power, which a new nuclear power system will do. It also frees up more space below decks for other purposes.
Aircraft carriers are only as useful as the catapults that send the planes aloft, and the steam catapult, which has been in use since just after World War II has reached its limits.
The Navy is testing a new generation of catapult that uses an electromagnetic launch system to bring planes up to flying speed. Tests have been underway at Lakehurst Naval Air Station in New Jersey:
While the Ford retains many of the lines of the Nimitz class, there are notable differences. The number of aircraft elevators has been reduced from four to three, weapons elevators have been relocated to centralized areas to allow rearming at higher rates, and the deck island has been moved further to the rear to reduce the number of times a plane has to be moved around the deck to be ready to be mission ready.
Switching to the electromagnetic catapults requires more electrical power, which a new nuclear power system will do. It also frees up more space below decks for other purposes.
Hamas Up To Old Tricks and Israel Responds; With UPDATES
Hamas is once again up to its old tricks as 2010 comes to a close. The terror group has again been attempting attacks against Israel and Israel has wasted no time in responding with airstrikes. Hamas terrorists have fired rockets and mortars into Israel, hitting areas around Ashkelon and Eshkol. Leave it to the Palestinian Authority spokesmen to claim that Israel's response will be detrimental to the peace process:
At least this time the UN Middle East envoy, Robert Serry, says that Israel has a right to defend itself from such attacks. That's progress.
What would signify real progress is that the Palestinians take responsibility for their own culpability and actions that have led to a complete breakdown of whatever negotiations have been ongoing. Hamas refuses to recognize Israel's right to exist, and Fatah double deals - claiming that they want peace with Israel on the one hand, but then pushes revisionist histories that deny Israel's rights and historic Jewish claims to territories, including the Temple Mount. Fatah and Hamas remain at each other's throats - and Hamas is busy accusing Fatah of torturing its minions (which is rather rich considering that Hamas had no problem tossing Fatah thugs from rooftops when Hamas took over Gaza). Hamas and Fatah can't come to a power sharing agreement so how is it that Israel is supposed to make peace - who exactly are they supposed to make peace with?
The media doesn't get a pass on this either. The rocket and mortar attacks have been going on since this past weekend, and the latest terrorist deaths resulted from Israeli reprisals against those terrorists as they were preparing to fire on Israel. Israel's reprisals are the escalation - ignoring that the rockets fired by the terrorists were being aimed at civilian targets in Israel. Hamas escalates by initiating the attacks, but gets a pass by the media. In fact, those attacks included firing on an Israeli kindergarten class.
Then again, diplomats and former world leaders don't get it either. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair doesn't get it. While saying that he wants Israel to reassure Palestinians that statehood is possible, Blair, like so many other diplomats and pundits, ignores that the Palestinians could have had statehood at any point after 1993 if Palestinian leaders had deemed it in their interest to do so.
Yasir Arafat refused statehood. Indeed, Arafat said that the Palestinian leader who would cede any part of Jerusalem to Israel is not yet born.
Mahmoud Abbas has thus far refused. Palestinians can't even agree on a cohesive voice - Hamas controls Gaza and doesn't acknowledge Israel's right to exist. Fatah controls the West Bank and is willing to accept the status quo since their power structure remains intact and assures a steady flow of foreign aid.
Abbas and Arafat both refused to accept a 2-state solution because it would have meant repudiating decades of standing for nothing but the destruction of Israel as the only acceptable solution. That's still the position of Hamas, and until Hamas ends its control of Gaza, that will not change.
UPDATE:
Abbas is now warning that Israeli aggression threatens the "peace process." Where was Abbas when Hamas and the other terror groups were busy firing the kassams and mortars at Israel. That's the threat to the peace process, not Israel's inalienable right to defend itself from terrorists hell bent on inflicting casualties among Israelis (and anyone else who happens to get hit by the mortars and kassams, including fellow Palestinians, foreign workers, and Israelis of all ages).
Erekat stated that the Palestinian Authority fears Israel will launch a new large scale attack on Gaza, following escalated tensions in the area.Just ignore the fact that but for the Hamas terror activities, Israel would not have engaged in bombing the Hamas arms caches (which are illegal under the Oslo Accords that call for the disarmament of militias operating in the territories) and various smuggling tunnels being dug across the former Philadelphi corridor.
The PA negotiator added that military measures will not solve anything and will only make things worse.
On Tuesday, Israel pounded Hamas targets throughout the Gaza Strip in the most extensive aerial bombardment since Operation Cast Lead two years ago.
At least three Hamas operatives were killed during the bombing of arms storehouses and smuggling tunnels along the border with Egypt, and in the pummeling of tunnels being dug toward Israel.
The IAF strikes came in response to multiple attacks on southern Israel from Gaza.
A Kassam rocket was fired from the Gaza Strip into the Ashkelon area on Tuesday morning, landing in Kibbutz Zikim. The rocket exploded near a kindergarten, as dozens of parents were dropping off their children at school, injuring a 14-year old girl.
The incident followed a spate of attacks emanating from Gaza in the previous days, encompassing the launch of some three rockets and 18 mortars into the regions of Eshkol and Ashkelon. These attacks included the launch of six mortars on Sunday at IDF forces operating near the Kerem Shalom Crossing.
At least this time the UN Middle East envoy, Robert Serry, says that Israel has a right to defend itself from such attacks. That's progress.
What would signify real progress is that the Palestinians take responsibility for their own culpability and actions that have led to a complete breakdown of whatever negotiations have been ongoing. Hamas refuses to recognize Israel's right to exist, and Fatah double deals - claiming that they want peace with Israel on the one hand, but then pushes revisionist histories that deny Israel's rights and historic Jewish claims to territories, including the Temple Mount. Fatah and Hamas remain at each other's throats - and Hamas is busy accusing Fatah of torturing its minions (which is rather rich considering that Hamas had no problem tossing Fatah thugs from rooftops when Hamas took over Gaza). Hamas and Fatah can't come to a power sharing agreement so how is it that Israel is supposed to make peace - who exactly are they supposed to make peace with?
The media doesn't get a pass on this either. The rocket and mortar attacks have been going on since this past weekend, and the latest terrorist deaths resulted from Israeli reprisals against those terrorists as they were preparing to fire on Israel. Israel's reprisals are the escalation - ignoring that the rockets fired by the terrorists were being aimed at civilian targets in Israel. Hamas escalates by initiating the attacks, but gets a pass by the media. In fact, those attacks included firing on an Israeli kindergarten class.
Then again, diplomats and former world leaders don't get it either. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair doesn't get it. While saying that he wants Israel to reassure Palestinians that statehood is possible, Blair, like so many other diplomats and pundits, ignores that the Palestinians could have had statehood at any point after 1993 if Palestinian leaders had deemed it in their interest to do so.
Yasir Arafat refused statehood. Indeed, Arafat said that the Palestinian leader who would cede any part of Jerusalem to Israel is not yet born.
Mahmoud Abbas has thus far refused. Palestinians can't even agree on a cohesive voice - Hamas controls Gaza and doesn't acknowledge Israel's right to exist. Fatah controls the West Bank and is willing to accept the status quo since their power structure remains intact and assures a steady flow of foreign aid.
Abbas and Arafat both refused to accept a 2-state solution because it would have meant repudiating decades of standing for nothing but the destruction of Israel as the only acceptable solution. That's still the position of Hamas, and until Hamas ends its control of Gaza, that will not change.
UPDATE:
Abbas is now warning that Israeli aggression threatens the "peace process." Where was Abbas when Hamas and the other terror groups were busy firing the kassams and mortars at Israel. That's the threat to the peace process, not Israel's inalienable right to defend itself from terrorists hell bent on inflicting casualties among Israelis (and anyone else who happens to get hit by the mortars and kassams, including fellow Palestinians, foreign workers, and Israelis of all ages).
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Did New York's Court of Appeals Shank Golf Case?
The New York Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, ruled that a golfer was not required to shout "Fore" after an errant shot:
As someone who attempts to play golf, fore is an all too frequently used epitaph for shanked, hooked, and otherwise mishit shots. Golf etiquette dictates shouting fore as a warning and there's good reason to do so as it gives other golfers the potential opportunity to avoid being hit by a mishit ball.
This decision would appear to make the "fore" call unnecessary on New York courses because any golfer on the course has consented to the risks (assumption of risk) and was in a foreseeable zone of danger. However, a golfer should try to minimize the potential risks to others during a mishit shot, and therefore calling fore is and should be appropriate. It is possible that the court's decision has made golfers more apt to be hit and injured by mishit balls than if they had allowed the case to proceed.
Dr. Anoop Kapoor and Dr. Azad Anand were playing on a nine-hole Long Island course in October 2002 when Anand was hit in the head while looking for his ball on a fairway, blinding him in one eye. The seven judges on the state Court of Appeals, siding with lower courts, said Kapoor's failure to yell in advance of his errant shot from the rough did not amount to intentional or reckless conduct.The 3-page decision can be found here (Anand v. Kapoor, N.Y.S. Ct. App., No. 222, 12/21/2010).
The court cited a judge's finding that Anand was not in the foreseeable zone of danger and, as a golfer, consented to the inherent risks of the sport.
"The manner in which Anand was injured — being hit without warning by a 'shanked' shot while one searches for one's own ball — reflects a commonly appreciated risk of golf," the judges wrote.
They also broadly outlined the test under New York case law for determining when another golfer crosses the line and could be sued.
As someone who attempts to play golf, fore is an all too frequently used epitaph for shanked, hooked, and otherwise mishit shots. Golf etiquette dictates shouting fore as a warning and there's good reason to do so as it gives other golfers the potential opportunity to avoid being hit by a mishit ball.
This decision would appear to make the "fore" call unnecessary on New York courses because any golfer on the course has consented to the risks (assumption of risk) and was in a foreseeable zone of danger. However, a golfer should try to minimize the potential risks to others during a mishit shot, and therefore calling fore is and should be appropriate. It is possible that the court's decision has made golfers more apt to be hit and injured by mishit balls than if they had allowed the case to proceed.
Loquacious Leaker Wants Leaks Licked; Assange Calls For Investigation Into
Julian Assange is a hypocrite among his other notable traits. His legal team is now trying to get prosecutors to launch an investigation and bring charges against the individual or individuals who has released salacious details relating to the rape allegations brought against him in Sweden.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is irked by government leaks . . . about Julian Assange.Assange doesn't have a problem with obtaining and transmitting hundreds of thousands of classified documents about US foreign policy that can affect US national security, foreign policy, diplomacy, and international relations, but the moment someone releases salacious information about Assange's dirty little secrets and the ongoing investigation into the alleged rapes in Sweden, he gets righteous about confidentiality and the law.
British papers over the weekend printed bits of a police report accusing Assange of committing a variety of sex crimes during a 10-day trip to Sweden this past summer.
Now his lawyer wants the leaker unmasked -- plus a criminal investigation of the leak itself.
Imagine that.
Live by the leak, die by the leak -- isn't that fair, Julian?
US Seeks To Expand Military Strikes In Pakistan
NYTimes: U.S. Military Seeks to Expand Raids in Pakistan. The US is looking at expanding raids in Pakistan to deal with the ongoing Taliban threat. It is one of the policies and hallmarks of the Obama administration that has carried out UAV airstrikes more frequently than his predecessor. However, Pakistanis aren't likely to go along with the change unless additional aid is forthcoming. It is also likely to result in additional problems for Pakistan in the frontier provinces where the Taliban maintain their safe havens.
UPDATE:
These raids wouldn't be the UAV airstrikes we've seen in the past, but special forces operating deep behind the national boundaries of an official ally, even though Pakistan doesn't maintain strict and authoritative control over the frontier provinces. It's a sticky wicket that deserves closer scrutiny and the issue has come up numerous times in the past few years, including during the 2008 presidential campaign when then candidate Barack Obama called for invading Pakistan. Now, some of his military commanders are pushing for that very strategy to go and eradicate the Taliban threat posed by those safe havens. Pakistan has long refused to go fully after the Taliban clans that frequently cross the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan and the last time they made a concerted effort, the Pakistani military didn't come off very well.
This news may be an effort to spur the Pakistani government to once again take more action against the Taliban.
The Times report is most notable for a new development on the fight against the Taliban and al Qaeda - the US has been backing Afghan militias that carry out cross-border raids:
UPDATE:
The Christian Science Monitor reports that NATO is denying the reports that the US wants to expand special forces operations into Pakistan.
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UPDATE:
These raids wouldn't be the UAV airstrikes we've seen in the past, but special forces operating deep behind the national boundaries of an official ally, even though Pakistan doesn't maintain strict and authoritative control over the frontier provinces. It's a sticky wicket that deserves closer scrutiny and the issue has come up numerous times in the past few years, including during the 2008 presidential campaign when then candidate Barack Obama called for invading Pakistan. Now, some of his military commanders are pushing for that very strategy to go and eradicate the Taliban threat posed by those safe havens. Pakistan has long refused to go fully after the Taliban clans that frequently cross the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan and the last time they made a concerted effort, the Pakistani military didn't come off very well.
This news may be an effort to spur the Pakistani government to once again take more action against the Taliban.
The Times report is most notable for a new development on the fight against the Taliban and al Qaeda - the US has been backing Afghan militias that carry out cross-border raids:
Additionally, in recent years, Afghan militias backed by the C.I.A. have carried out a number of secret missions into Pakistan’s tribal areas. These operations in Pakistan by Afghan operatives, known as Counterterrorism Pursuit Teams, have been previously reported as solely intelligence-gathering operations. But interviews in recent weeks revealed that on at least one occasion, the Afghans went on the offensive and destroyed a militant weapons cache.This latter bit may prove to be quite problematic since it shows that the US is backing groups that attack those living on the Pakistani side of the border, and Pakistan may not take kindly to such actions in their official response even if they give them a wink and nod unofficially because the Pakistani government in Islamabad can't directly deal with the Taliban or al Qaeda for fear of upsetting the Islamists who dominate the country.
UPDATE:
The Christian Science Monitor reports that NATO is denying the reports that the US wants to expand special forces operations into Pakistan.
A spokesperson for the US-led coalition in Afghanistan today rebuffed a report that senior US military officials in Afghanistan are seeking to expand raids into Pakistan’s tribal areas.US allies are wary of potential repercussions because their logistics are so thinly stretched and are reluctant to engage in directly fighting the Taliban - leaving those efforts up to the US. Supply lines in Pakistan have come under attack on numerous occasions in the past couple of years, destroying convoys of vehicles and equipment destined for NATO troops in Afghanistan. It is possible that the Times report was accurate, but efforts to win NATO commanders over to the idea hasn't gained traction, which is why the denial was issued.
"There is absolutely no truth to reporting in The New York Times that US forces are planning to conduct ground operations into Pakistan," Rear Adm. Gregory Smith, deputy chief of staff for communication for NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), said in a statement from Kabul, according to Reuters.
The Los Angeles Times adds that Smith's "sharply worded statement underscored the extreme sensitivities surrounding the subject of militant sanctuaries in Pakistan."
Monday, December 20, 2010
Photo of the Day
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What Apps/Widgets Do Folks Rave About?
After buying a new HTC Droid Incredible smartphone, are there any apps/widgets that you can't live without? Are there any free apps that are so essential that you don't know what you'd do without them?
I've found a couple of good ones so far, including access to Yahoo! mail, Facebook, Cellfire, and The Coupons App, but are there others that you can suggest?
I've found a couple of good ones so far, including access to Yahoo! mail, Facebook, Cellfire, and The Coupons App, but are there others that you can suggest?
Sen. Gillibrand: 9/11 Health Bill Has Votes To Pass
You would think that the James Zadroga 9/11 health care/compensation bill would have had the votes to pass long ago, but this bill has been held up by politics for far too long. Now, Sen. Kristen Gillibrand (D-NY) says that the votes are now available after certain portions of the bill have been scaled back.
The bill would reopen the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund for Ground Zero responders and provide additional funds for those responders and additional medical screening services.
Both the House and Senate must approve the bill before the end of the year. If they do not, the matter gets kicked to the new, more Republican Congress in January, where prospects for passage are slimmer.The newer version would reduce the cost of the bill from $7.4 billion to $6.2 billion without reducing the benefits that go to the Ground Zero responders by adjusting tax provisions.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is vowing to do everything possible to get the new version of the bill passed in her chamber before the lame-duck session ends, though it is not clear there there will be time to do so. (The House passed the $7.4 billion version of the bill in September.) Over the weekend, Schumer urged the House to stay in session to pass the bill.
The bill got 57 votes in a recent Senate test vote, three short of the 60 it needs to break a Republican-led filibuster. One of those no votes, however, was Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who switched his vote at the end so that he could bring the bill up again. That means only two votes need to be picked up for passage, assuming no senator switches from yes to no.
The new version of the bill addresses Republican objections that it amounted to a corporate tax increase, the Associated Press reports. They objected to a requirement that multinational corporations pay taxes on income earned in the United States even if they are incorporated in a tax haven.
The new version pays for the costs of the bill with a fee on some foreign companies that get procurement contracts from the U.S. government. It also calls for an extension of some visa-related fees.
The bill would reopen the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund for Ground Zero responders and provide additional funds for those responders and additional medical screening services.
Cordoba House/Park51 Developers Deny Interest In St. Vincent's Properties
A day after an intriguing report claimed that the Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah was investigating the idea of purchasing the defunct St. Vincent's Hospital in the West Village in order to establish a new hospital, even as additional reports seem to suggest that no one else knows that the King was interested, community center, mosque, and housing, developers associated with the Cordoba House/Park51 project claim that they have no interest in the property.
It is interesting that no other major developers are interested in buying the St. Vincent's hospital properties other than the Rudin family. Adding additional prospective buyers would drive up the asking price though, so I wouldn't be surprised that the sellers are hinting at additional buyers so as to get an increase in bids for the properties.
Moreover, the proposed Saudi "plan" would be a more interesting use of the hospital properties, and would provide significant community benefits - including opening a hospital in a underserved area.
The backers of the Ground Zero mosque shot down a report Sunday that Saudi King Abdullah would move the controversial development to the closed St. Vincent's Hospital in Greenwich Village.The Rudin family real estate developers are currently in talks to buy the hospital property to turn it into housing with a medical component.
"No one has contacted me or my husband about it," said Daisy Khan, who has been an adviser on the project. She and her husband, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, are affiliated with the planned construction of a $100 million Park Place prayer space and community center two blocks north of Ground Zero.
"I remain committed to the idea of the creation of a multifaith community center in lower Manhattan," the imam said.
The mosque isn't moving from its proposed Park Place site, a source close to mosque developer Sharif el-Gamal said.
It is interesting that no other major developers are interested in buying the St. Vincent's hospital properties other than the Rudin family. Adding additional prospective buyers would drive up the asking price though, so I wouldn't be surprised that the sellers are hinting at additional buyers so as to get an increase in bids for the properties.
Moreover, the proposed Saudi "plan" would be a more interesting use of the hospital properties, and would provide significant community benefits - including opening a hospital in a underserved area.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Sizing Up A Legendary Lame Session
It's typically understood that a lame duck session doesn't result in significant or notable outcomes. Legislators typically attempt to wind down the session with bills that are still pending.
Usually, significant legislation doesn't pass.
In fact, the 20th Amendment was supposed to eliminate lame duck sessions, but that Amendment hasn't worked out as its backers had envisioned.
The usual outcomes don't apply to the ongoing Congressional lame duck session. In fact, this is shaping up to be a legendary and historic lame duck session because of the issues being tackled.
The era of don't ask, don't tell is about to end as legislation repealing 10 USC 654, the statute that prohibits gays and lebsians serving in the military, awaits President Obama's signature. After the November election, this was not an outcome one would have expected and it is to the credit of its backers that they persevered to get it done.
Congress passed a two-year extension of the Bush tax cuts, which again wasn't a done deal.
The Zadroga 9/11 compensation package for the Ground Zero workers is still pending, and its backers are hopeful for its passage. The START treaty is also pending, and it is possible that the treaty will not go before the session and instead it will be taken up in the new Congress. The same can't be said for the DREAM act. That bill is not going to pass.
Usually, significant legislation doesn't pass.
In fact, the 20th Amendment was supposed to eliminate lame duck sessions, but that Amendment hasn't worked out as its backers had envisioned.
The usual outcomes don't apply to the ongoing Congressional lame duck session. In fact, this is shaping up to be a legendary and historic lame duck session because of the issues being tackled.
The era of don't ask, don't tell is about to end as legislation repealing 10 USC 654, the statute that prohibits gays and lebsians serving in the military, awaits President Obama's signature. After the November election, this was not an outcome one would have expected and it is to the credit of its backers that they persevered to get it done.
Congress passed a two-year extension of the Bush tax cuts, which again wasn't a done deal.
The Zadroga 9/11 compensation package for the Ground Zero workers is still pending, and its backers are hopeful for its passage. The START treaty is also pending, and it is possible that the treaty will not go before the session and instead it will be taken up in the new Congress. The same can't be said for the DREAM act. That bill is not going to pass.
Saudi King Abdullah Proposes Cordoba House Move To West Village?
There hasn't been much action on the Cordoba House proposal since it received approvals from the LPC and Community Board 1, but now comes word that the King of Saudi Arabia, Abdullah, is sounding out officials on taking over the now defunct St. Vincent's Hospital in the West Village and building the community center, mosque, and possibly reopening the hospital in some fashion.
If the Cordoba House developers do go in this direction, it would not only result in a community center far from the community where it was originally proposed, but it would no longer touch the nerve of being so close to Ground Zero. The West Village might prefer a new hospital complex to the St. Vincent's reorganization plan. It isn't clear whether the King would outbid the other real estate developers interested in the property.
A Manhattan lawyer with ties to the Saudi royal family is sounding out officials and community leaders about a plan to move the controversial Ground Zero mosque to the West Village.The hospital closed earlier this year because of being massively in debt and unable to reorganize its expenses. The hospital complex in the West Village is some choice land, and real estate developers are hoping to scoop up the property to turn it into luxury housing (and figure 20-30% of the housing units will be deemed affordable housing). The hospital had been trying to redevelop its properties - turning several buildings in to new medical space, while building new housing, but those efforts failed to garner the necessary support and approvals.
Attorney Dudley Gaffin is claiming King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia might want to buy shuttered St. Vincent's Medical Center and transfer the mosque to a new Islamic cultural center he would build on a plot at the site, say sources who have heard Gaffin's pitch.
The king, worth more than $20 billion, would also save the hospital, reopening most of the units that closed when St. Vincent's filed for bankruptcy on April 14, the sources said.
They say that Gaffin, who heads his own firm in lower Manhattan, is floating the idea to gauge what the reaction might be -- and to ready a bid to rival the Rudin Organization, which is trying to snap up St. Vincent's in bankruptcy court with an eye on tearing down six hospital buildings for luxury housing.
"He's asking what it would take to put in a bid," said one community leader who did not want to be identified.
If the Cordoba House developers do go in this direction, it would not only result in a community center far from the community where it was originally proposed, but it would no longer touch the nerve of being so close to Ground Zero. The West Village might prefer a new hospital complex to the St. Vincent's reorganization plan. It isn't clear whether the King would outbid the other real estate developers interested in the property.
DADT Repealed At Long Last
Despite ongoing resistance by Republicans, the era of Don't Ask, Don't Tell is all but over. Eight Republicans joined the Democratic caucus to pass the repeal 65-31. The federal statute that required the military to discharge servicemembers who are gay or lesbian has been repealed, but the Defense Department has to enact procedural measures to carry out the repeal. That means that the executive order requiring the military to not ask about sexual orientation and servicemembers not to tell or else they would be discharged will come to an end.
It eliminates a civil rights injustice and one that the courts may have resolved if Congress had not acted.
The Pentagon has surveyed thousands of members and found that it would not have been disruptive or caused the kinds of problems that Republicans had warned about.
UPDATE:
Another significant result of the repeal is that college campuses that had previously refused to allow ROTC programs, will now reconsider. Harvard and Yale are already making preparations.
It represented a significant victory for the White House, Congressional advocates of lifting the ban and activists who have pushed for years to end the Pentagon policy created in 1993 under the Clinton administration as a compromise effort to end the practice of barring gay men and lesbians entirely from military service.Ultimately, I'm not sure it will have any measurable effect on military efficiencies or combat readiness, but it will mean that gay and lesbian servicemembers will no longer be discharged if they announce their orientation. More than 14,000 servicemembers have been discharged under the policy, and that affects readiness because of the time and cost of training members and the lost skills that they bring to their service.
Saying it represented an emotional moment for members of the gay community nationwide, advocates who supported repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” exchanged hugs outside the Senate chamber after the vote.
“Today’s vote means gay and lesbian service members posted all around the world can stand taller knowing that ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ will soon be coming to an end,” said Aubrey Sarvis, an Army veteran and executive director for Servicemembers Legal Defense Network.
Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona and his party’s presidential candidate in 2008, led the opposition to the repeal and said the vote was a sad day in history.
“I hope that when we pass this legislation that we will understand that we are doing great damage,” Mr. McCain said. “And we could possibly and probably, as the commandant of the Marine Corps said, and as I have been told by literally thousands of members of the military, harm the battle effectiveness vital to the survival of our young men and women in the military.”
He and others opposed to lifting the ban said the change could harm the unit cohesion that is essential to effective military operations, particularly in combat, and deter some Americans from enlisting or pursuing a career in the military. They noted that despite support for repealing the ban from Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, other military commanders have warned that changing the practice would prove disruptive.
“This isn’t broke,” Senator James M. Inhofe, Republican of Oklahoma, said about the policy. “It is working very well.”
Other Republicans said that while the policy might need to be changed at some point, Congress should not do so when American troops are fighting overseas.
It eliminates a civil rights injustice and one that the courts may have resolved if Congress had not acted.
The Pentagon has surveyed thousands of members and found that it would not have been disruptive or caused the kinds of problems that Republicans had warned about.
UPDATE:
Another significant result of the repeal is that college campuses that had previously refused to allow ROTC programs, will now reconsider. Harvard and Yale are already making preparations.
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