(2004 MSNBC photo of US Soldiers)
Oh boy. Ox a regular reader here mentioned something about this a few minutes ago (two posts down from this one), but I’m finding some blubs about it online.
Just reported from Alwasatonline reporter in Basra, Mahdi Army managed to arrest 17 American soldiers, and seizes 7 hammer military vehicles, because of these developments the Iraqi government offered to negotiates with MA but Muqtada Al-Sadr refused any negotiations, also 250 Iraqi soldiers gave themselves up to Mahdi Army.
>
Key bridge, connecting Basra city to Al-Kurnah is destroyed by Mahdi Army.
>
Sotaliraq reported that Maliki refused to meet Basra’s mayor “Mohammad Al-Walili (from Al-Fadhilah Party), the mayor threaten if he removed from his position as mayor he will burn all the oil wells around Basra.
>
There is also reports about American warplanes involvement in the fights, and the Green Zone was bombed again at 8 O’clock p.
>
There are fighting in Al-Shurta neighborhood in Baghdad in the Karkh part (East, across the river)
This hasn’t been confirmed yet, but in the meantime, let’s ask ourselves: Is the surge really working or is it just making it worse? How do we win in Iraq too? Any ideas?
I picked up the Alwasatonline piece at Vets Voice earlier today and have been looking all over for an AP or Reuters piece that mentions it and haven’t found one as of yet. Maybe I’ll check BBC. Seems someone else would be reporting it. i hope it’s not true.
But one thing is definitely true: Troops on the ground have known for some time that the lull in the violence in Baghdad has been due mostly to Sadr’s ceasefire. That’s over now as everyone knew it would be sooner or later. I hate this fucking war.
Exactly Gage. Who is in charge over there during the surge? It doesn’t appear to be us, since it is Sadr who is controlling the actual violence level. *shaking head*
Would the American MSM report this? Probably not. I was under the impression by the site above that they have people over there that report to them. We’ll see as the night goes on. Speaking of that, I’ll be going to bed shortly. LOL Hey, I’m getting old for crying out loud! Plus, I wrenched my back last night while sleeping. Not sure how but all day I’ve been bent forward like an old woman. LOL It’s actually worn me out today. Hey, walking like that is tiring!!!
“How do we win in Iraq?”
Kay, there isn’t anything to win in Iraq. That’s not where our enemy is. Our enemy is in Afghanistan and has been all this time.
The Ministry of Truth = CNN, NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, and all the other controlled neocon media outlets. Their sole purpose in life is to control your knowledge and opinion to think in a certain way, and thus control you as a society.
Acrobatic lovemaking last night, Kay?
Same thing happens to me.
Exactly Gage. Where’s Osama again? Hey, he wasn’t in my bed if that’s what you were thinking! LMAO!
Awwww, how cute. The Pentagon thinks all this fighting and killing (and possibly the capturing of our soldiers) is a very good sign:
http://voanews.com/english/2008-03-27-voa2.cfm
Well of course they do! They’ll say anything to make themselves feel better. Besides, they’re going through the merchandise to make sure they haven’t mailed out anymore nuclear missile parts.
That’s right, Ox. The Ministry of Truth is doing it’s job: Throwing the truth out in the garbage to be burned along with the rest of the truth. See?
Here is the latest and no wonder the price of oil is over $105.00 a barrel. The Mayor of Basra has been asked to step down, and he has threatened to set the oil fields on fire.
Ox, do you have a link? If so, please post so we can read it.
Speaking of enemy fire, it appears Hillary was ‘telling the truth’ about taking enemy fire in Bosnia:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHVEDq6RVXc
Hysterical!
(video found on Democratic Underground via FireDogLake tonight. Also, YouTube is down for maintenance at the moment, so you might not be able to view it for awhile)
Here’s a little tidbit I found interesting from RoadstoIraq.com. Ya know, why don’t we smart folks stop and wonder, why are Ahmedinejad, Cheney, and McCain all in Iraq or Israel at the same time? It’s like a Clue game. Can’t believe I didn’t see this before.
http://www.roadstoiraq.com/2008/03/26/the-secret-american-iranian-security-deal-in-iraq-and-how-this-connected-to-mccain’s-visit-to-israel/
MAR 26, 2008
The secret American-Iranian security deal in Iraq, and how this connected to McCain’s visit to Israel
Arab onlinenewspaper published in London, is the only newspaper to report this a week ago but I waited few days to see if there is any development provides evidence to the newspaper claims, and the military campaign in Basra was what i am waiting for.
Arab online says that there are secret Iranian – American negotiations at Ahmadinejad’s visit to Iraq [please remember there were other developments in this week period, like the U.S. embassy refused to meet the Iranian delegation…etc]
The report contains details and names of people who attended the meeting from both sides which we don’t need here, so this is what the newspaper said in short:
Ahmadinejad offered to calm the situation in Iraq, using the three days attacks-free visit to Iraq as a demonstration of what can Iran do, the second offer is to accept the long term Iraqi – American agreement
To remove Iraq from the 1546 U.N. resolution, which gives the permission for the “Coalition Forces†to use force any Iraq’s neighboring country, if intelligence reports give evidence that the country exporting terrorism to Iraq, there is also a chapter allowing American forces to use Iraqi territory to attack another countries.
- To end all American – European political and logistic support for the Iranian opposition, especially Iran’s Resistance Council Organization, Pijac Kurdish organization, and other small opposition groups [Arabs, Turkmen, Azari…etc].
- Stop the secret and public American administration incitement of toppling the Iranian regime.
- End the U.S. and Europe campaign to push for the Iranian Jews immigration to Israel.
- To put an end to the campaign of the need to for pre-emptive strikes against selective and sensitive intelligence, military and nuclear Iranian sites.
The most important part of these negotiations is; What Iran can do for the U.S. in Iraq:
Ahmadinejad mentioned that he is negotiating with a previous blessing from Ayatollah Khamenei, and that’s reassured the Americans about the seriousness of the negotiations.
So, Ahmadinejad commitments are:
- Intelligence cooperation in Iraq and the region, wihle Washington gives Iran a space to maneuver internationally, easing the international pressure and the embargo, as a result, Tehran to postpone uranium enrichment operations for a period of two years, with the approval of Iran’s nuclear programme by the inspection teams of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
- Full cooperation between Tehran and Washington in all areas, and Iran to ensure the submission of several laws in Washington’s favour by the Shiite coalition blocs and Iraqi Kurdistan Alliance, including oil and gas law, the provinces a law, as opposed to because the American President George Bush to use his powers delegated by the military gives him the right to selective attacks on Iranian sites sensitive, to ensure the security of the American forces and the Iraqi people.
This “Iran – American†deal raised concerns in Israel therefore they invited McCain, the Republican candidate to visit Tel Aviv and asked him to visit Baghdad to be informed about what has been achieved talking with the Iranians, promised him that if the mission is successful, then he will get the support of Tel Aviv and the Zionist lobby in America presidential election.
well, i just spent a half hour trying to find veriication of this. i’ll try again tomorrow.
1st to answer Kay’s question – We win by leaving. A Love that has never been, can’t be lost. Ugly as well it may be, it’s time to withdrawal. The Partition is all but done anyway.
2nd – The current uprising has everything to do with the arrests of key Sadrists. The cash flow to them has also been disrupted. I think the Shias were also just re arming and re positioning. The Brits have been in their barracks for months. Basra is theirs.
3rd – Radicalhics – Thanks for the tip. I often think that some of the bluster against Iran and Ahmadinejad’s own bluster is made for Domestic Consumption. However, when I think of Putin, I think how the Bush Regime can be so easily outplayed by the simple expediant of putting on a show of friendliness towards the U.S. I guess time will time.
Peace.
Oh, and did anybody notice the comments on the 17 soldiers link? Just look at what we have become in the eyes of the World.
Peace.
we “win” in Iraq when every single troop is out of Iraq.
until then we are still losing, and so are they.
Also not in our news is the economic war the U.S. is ratcheting up with Iran.
U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), set in motion a process that could make any bank or financial institution in the world that does business with Iran subject to an economic death sentence: complete exclusion from the U.S. financial system…….
During a daily press meeting with reporters on March 19, the State Department’s spokesperson was asked about a deal recently signed between Switzerland and Iran to supply Iranian natural gas to Europe. After condemning the deal, the spokesperson explained that the US is opposed to any “investing in Iran, not only in its petroleum or natural gas area but in any sector of its economy.â€
http://www.chris-floyd.com/content/view/1465/135/
This is a relatively new site* everyone should become familiar with if they aren’t already:
http://thinkprogress.org/wonkroom
From their email they sent me they seem to intend to fact-check candidates, issues and policies much like Media Matters does.
*Actually, it’s a new page on a site that’s been around a while.
Radicalchics, thanks for your tip. Wasn’t that the deal/meeting that was done behind the back of Congress recently?
Randy, thanks for the link to the Wonk Room at Think Progress.
Human, it was rather embarrassing that a rocket was able to be launched in the Green Zone. It appears the surge is not working. If George Bush & Dick Cheney had treated this like a real war from the beginning, a plan would have been in place to secure the country. Nope! They allowed the bee’s to come in and take over the nest.
Exactly Chris. Bring the troops home now!
Grant, the Warmongers are looking for anything to go to war with Iran. I’m surprised they haven’t announced, “Our economy is bad so we must bomb Iran to keep up afloat!”. Bastards.
Kay, i thought i was the only early riser here. Here’s a little bit of Jim Hightower’s wit to start the day that made me LOL. From the recent Lowdown. Paragraph 4 left me in stitches.
HOLES IN THE MEXICO FENCE
By Jim Hightower – Mon., 3/3/08
Over the years, the Texas Observer has been the home of such muckraking editors as Ronnie Dugger, Molly Ivins–and even me. Editors come and go, but the Observer just keeps digging, breaking national stories that big-name media powers miss…or avoid.
Take a recent report by Observerite Melissa del Bosque about the big wall that Homeland Security is erecting across America’s southern border with Mexico. Security Czar Michael Chertoff tells us that this 18-foot-high monstrosity is necessary to keep out terrorists and illegal immigrants. His Czarness asserts that border residents must sacrifice their land, homes, businesses, heritage, and peace of mind for the greater good.
But, wait–reporter del Bosque has uncovered curious gaps in the very tall wall. For example, while it will rip through the backyards of low- and modest-income families in Brownsville, Texas, it miraculously stops at the edge of River Bend Resort, a lush golf course. The wall picks up again on the other side of the resort. Excuse me, but won’t enterprising border-crossers simply learn to dress up as golfers or caddies and putt right through this gap?
Further up the border, there’s another special gap for Sharyland Plantation, a 6,000-acre development of million-dollar homes. Sharyland is owned by billionaire oil heir Ray Hunt of Dallas-who happens to be tight with George W. Ray has donated $35 million to help build Bush’s presidential library. So, no wall for him.
http://www.hightowerlowdown.org/node/1571
have a good one
i meant paragraph 3. well, it’s early is my excuse.
Jim Hightower is the best, yes?
Thanks for stopping by my blog to chat! I wonder how much has gone over in Iraq that hasn’t been reported here yet? I’m sure quite a bit. Blogs rule in getting information out.
Even if this ends not being true, it will prove to me that the MSM needs to start working OUTSIDE the realm of the Bush White House and get in Basra and report what really is happening! Jees. So frustrating at times.
Enjoy your day.
I sleep such odd hours it’s no wonder I can’t make any sense any time of the day.
What day is it? Is it still March?
LOL Randy. My sleep pattern has been a little screwy lately too. And yes, it’s still March! Doh. Give me April, crocuses, baby bunnies, birds….please, please, please!
Okay, going to work.
Haven’t heard anything about the US soldiers but what’s the policy on special forces ops in America?
In the UK, the British government declines to comments on special forces operations – and this was a special forces op. A British soldier was killed in Baghdad (the Gov is no commenting) so he was SAS, and SAS are operating in Baghdad with Delta force. America has admitted to fighting the JAM in Sadr City for the first time since last October. The Da’wa Party came under attack, and in the South, the ISF (Badr) are engaged in fierce battles with the JAM.
The police chief Abdul Hanin al-Amara said, “At least 40 gunmen and four policemen were killed. Around 75 people were wounded,” but not to worry because the Police are in “full control on these neighborhoods,” – move along, nothing to see – then the Basra Zubair-1 pipeline was bombed.
There were low level talks taking place in the holy city of Najaf, between Da’wa MP Ali al-Adib, and the head of the Sadrist faction’s political bureau Liwa Sumaysim.
Iraq is more unstable, there’s a civil war being fought in the South and in Baghdad, American casualties have started to rise significantly, troop numbers are likely to be increased, 70% of Iraqis want an immediate end to the occupation but the surge is working!
We don’t “win” in Iraq. We invaded an innocent country and killed over a million people for oil. The nicest thing we could do is leave and then pay for them to rebuild their own country.Of course our collective Karma took a huge hit.
mohawknationnews has an article up today “taxi to the dark side”. It tells how liberals and conservatives have been stealing Native land and resources since the early 90s’. Seems like the whole continent went to shit about the same time.Uranium is a biggy they want to steal. ladybroadoak.blogspot.com (Great website) says that when uranium is mined…land downstream is contaminated for generations. Fascists don’t care.
Pentagon says new Iraq fighting arises from surge’s success:
Freedom is slavery.
Ignorance is strength.
War is peace.
I get it: Failure is success!!!!
Wanna know why the Bushco criminal empire is SOooo…. bad at anything?
Its because they rely on CLOWNS like these;
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/03/todays_must_read_304.php
I’m proud to present to you a brand new member of the Bush Administration War Profiteer Hall of Shame: 22 year-old Efraim Diveroli, who’s company AEY has been awarded approximately $300 million in contracts by the Pentagon.
How does a 22 year-old get a multi-million dollar defense contract? you ask. “AEY’s proposal represented the best value to the government,” the Army tells the Times. (Never mind that AEY was headed by a guy who’d been busted by the police for carrying a fake ID.)
(rest of story is at link, and it is a good read of just how much incompetence Bush is willing to allow for greed.)
Anyone unemployed? Well the Ministry of Peace is still taking applications to work in Iraq in the secure Green Zone, but wait there is more: Thick black smoke is billowing from inside the heavily fortified home to the US Embassy and Iraqi Government complex.
Steph, you have laid out the reality over there to a tee! Wow. Oh, but Georgie said today the surge is going great and is right on schedule. What an asshole!
Molly, liberals have been stealing native American land? Not sure I buy that, but well, you never know.
That’s right Ox! War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength, and failure is success! It all makes perfect sense now. Spit.
Anonymous (Clif, *wink*), I’m not surprised this little feminine fingered pasty white right winger got a $300 million contract. Why? Because the Bush Regime has done this kind of thing consistently! Even Jenna’s ex-boyfriend was put in charge of NASA (or a level of it) and he was rewriting old reports about global warming to make himself and the Evangelicals feel better about their views! Spit. I hate these people.
Ox, I saw some footage today on CNN and the place was out of control. Of course, they’ll show these vids earlier in the day when Americans are working! Assholes. Hopefully KO will show them tonight.
We all have to be rational about this scenerio because when the US government attacked Iraq based upon a pack of lies the purpose was to give Iraq freedom and democracy. Now in terms of doing this, something went wrong because the end result was US citizens lost all their freedoms and democracy. WTF, was this a con? Well the cost of this foreign invasion is going to cost your grandchildren for decades to come, and what did you get in the deal?
Oh come on you nay sayers don’t you realize that if we don’t fight Al Qaeda over there or if we were to leave Iraq, Al Qaeda would hop on kayaks, canoes, paddle boats, swim, speed boats, cruiseliners, commercial aircraft, Goodyear blimps and fight us here at home. Geez!
UFL am watching always for Al Qaeda and am looking over my shoulder for suspects day and night. I am reporting all suspects to the authorities, and before I go to bed am locking the doors with a glock in hand.
Uncle, they could do the backstroke or the breaststroke to America too. Did you ever think of that? Al-Qaida will get here one way or another….just ask the neocons! They know.
Bah hahahahahahahaha!
By the way, the snow/ice on the garage FINALLY fell off tonight, but guess what? it landed on Jasper! I’m not kidding you. *shaking head* Does it ever end? The madness of my life? LOL When I heard him yelp, I came running out but couldn’t find him right off (he’s on a run-chain). He had ran so fast after his hind end got hit that he landed himself in front of the house and got the run-chain wound around some ice near the house. Traumatized twice in a matter of seconds! Sooooo, he’s been moping around (probably bruised physically & emotionally!) and I’m going to spend the rest of the evening laying on the couch with him (his favorite thing). Have a good night all.
Also, before I leave, there was a very depressed mood over on FireDogLake this morning. Some are picking up on vibes there. They’re thinking something weird is going to happen with the election and with all the Democrats fighting online, they’re feel less than hopeful about the progressive message. The last two years of Democrats fighting each other has divided the party and I think it will last a long time. I know for myself I can’t forgive or forget some of the actions of some online.
Night all.
Kay, unfortunately for me I can beat that… I was picking up a table saw from a friend of mine who is helping me do some work at my moms house. So we loaded it on it’s side into the back of my truck *secured* it so it slide around and as I’m getting off the highway I had suddenly slow down due to some dumbass gawkers checking out a van on the side of the highway and then CRASH!!!! The table saw came unsecured and slid into my rear window, shattering it into a million pieces…Oh happy days!
Correction: So it *wouldn’t slide around* ….
But Ox what if the authorities are the suspects???? Or those in our own government?
Still here.
Wow Uncle! Holy crap! We’re you okay after the glass shattered? Man, that must have scared the crap out of you! When I was reading your story I was reminded of the time my cousin Karen and I (we hung out like best friends do…we were inseparable until she got married) were driving in my car (a Ford Probe…nice one). She was driving (I was probably drinking LOL) it really fast down this very hilly road in her hometown and when we crested this hill…there…halfway down the other side was a car stopped in the road. As soon as she saw it, she slammed the brakes on and I kid you not (it was like a scene out of a 70’s car chase in a movie)…we SCREAMED the whole time the brakes were squealing and only stopped screaming when the car stopped an inch or two from the other car’s bumper. Oh my gawd. Frightening. I said to Karen immediately, “That’s how ABS brakes work. They work good, huh?”. LOL!
Oh man. She and I have had many near-death experiences. If I died tomorrow, she’d have many stories to tell. I would too of her.
Jasper seems to be doing fine. He won’t lay down just yet. He’s still kind of freaked out I suspect! I would be too. Ouch!
Kay…Upthread..This is Canada and it seems that the liberals prior to Harper were similiar to our Clintons. Stole some money. Their MSM made hay with it and Stephen Harper was elected…. just like Clintons’ blow job. Seems orchestrated. Sorry to get off on that. I live near the Canadian border and used to love their tv until Harper got in. Then it just shut down.Just like ours.Feel connected to Native Americans even though it isn’t in my heritage.Hope your back is ok.
If Bill and Hillary destroy the Democratic Party, I may vote for a Republican for the first time since I first registered as a Democrat in 1965. Sorry, but why support a party that has lost its way? I lived through the disastrous Democratic Convention in 1968 and ended up voting for the peace candidate, Sen. Eugene McCarthy. Didn’t the DNC learn anything from Chicago? Of course Robert F. Kennedy, the other “peace” candidate, was murdered only minutes after his victory speech winning the California primary. McCarthy was left out in the cold when the DNC coronated Hubert Humphrey, the pro-war candidate, who never bothered to run in one primary unlike Robert Kennedy and McCarthy. The riots went on for days. For those too young to remember what happens when DNC power brokers anoint a candidate and ignore the will of the primary voters, here are some videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FDuCfRaj5w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrlYRWD_tnA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EeGV-gKnIM
States would send their pledged delegates and be met on the convention floor with another slate of “delegates” from their state ending up in fights between the two groups. Dan Rather was man-handled for trying to interview one of these delegates whose credentials had been challenged.
My biggest fear is that Denver could turn into another Chicago and our party fractured for yet another 40 years. However, I can see “free speech zones” many blocks away behind chain link and barbed wire. Herzlich willkommen in Amerika.
I must inform those that are thrashing about in the swamps of misdirected analysis concerning the Middle East that the real enemy is not in Iraq or Afghanistan, but in the Whitehouse and the Pentagon…!
The entire OBL terrorist scam is simply that a “scam” to enrich the MIC and the “oil patch” oligarchs.
The war on terror is a war against a “noun”. Throughout history there have been malcontents that could be classed as terrorists. There’s never a shortage of violent malcontents!
Concerning this nebulous war on terror; there’s no one to parley, no one to sign a peace accord. It is an endless war that bleeds the U.S. taxpayer white and truly a politicians dream war come true, no different than the war on another “noun”; ie., the “war on drugs”…!
We need to get out of Iraq, Afghanistan and most the 700 bases in over 100 countries worldwide. It’s time to become a responsible, nation among nations and to quit meddling in the business of just about every nation on earth via our ever-meddling MIC sponsored CIA/DIA etc and all for the enrichment of the shadowy oligarchs that own the MIC companies lock, stock, and barrel. The “oil patch” guys always get a derivative benefit from these ongoing engineered conflicts too.
To put it simply we need to cease and desist. It’s time for us to rebuild out military into a superlative homeland defense force and summarily curtail our engineered wars of agression against the people’s of the world. The people of the U.S. “have met the enemy and the real enemy is us”; ie.,to paraphrase a quote from “Pogo” a cartoon series from the past.
Carl Nemo **==
p.s. We also need to end the so-called “war on drugs” another zero-sum taxbase sucking boondoggle too…!
And now, Chapter Three of America’s Descent Into Hell begins:
http://channels.attbusiness.net/index.cfm?fuseAction=viewNewsArticle&nav_id=33&category_name=Washington&article_id=dba43ce2ac4e89036e267f23c7142a15
Grant, if Hillary is on the ballot, I’ll be voting for Barack…again. I can’t vote for McCain or any republican ever.
Molly, check this out:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/27/AR2008032703432.html?hpid=topnews
OT: With Bush’s early attempts to privatize social security and his boasting about an ownership society early on in the sub prime fiascal it makes me wonder if this was all a plan. Just imagine if Bush would have gotten his way with social security.
Kay, I’m still digging bits of glass out of the back of my skull *snark* The window shattering was definitely loud, my only response was a loud *f**k* followed by a few more choice words directed at myself, the table saw and the idiot gawkers.