Totten=Timely=informative

Shouldn't the thread title be Totten Interviews Salim al-Sayegh?

Totten Interviews Goldberg

In another excellent column, Michael J. Totten interviews the vice president of Lebanon’s Kataeb (Phalangist) Party: Where the Middle East Fights Its Wars.

I visited Lebanon after wrapping up my last trip to Iraq, and was pleasantly surprised all over again by how much nicer Beirut is than Baghdad despite all its troubles. It’s still a mess, of course, but that’s because the region it reflects is a mess.

Salim al-Sayegh, the Kataeb (Phalangist) Party’s vice president, agreed to sit down with me and discuss Lebanon’s — and therefore the region’s — endlessly dysfunctional and occasionally explosive political problems.

Who is this Goldberg he is interviewing? I don't see Goldberg in the article.

Michael Totten is a treasure.

re: #4 zombie

Who is this Goldberg he is interviewing? I don't see Goldberg in the article.

These Jews get in everywhere!

re: #4 zombie

Who is this Goldberg he is interviewing? I don't see Goldberg in the article.

That danged autofill caught me again.

re: #3 buzzsawmonkey

"Goldberg?"

Goldberg, iceberg -- they're all the same.

re: #7 Charles

That danged autofill caught me again.

I HATE automobile.

Here's the Goldberg interview if you're interested:

[Link: littlegreenfootballs.com...]

Salim al-Sayegh: There is a roadmap for this. The first thing is to delegitimize Hezbollah. The first issue is the issue of the Shebaa Farms villages. The United Nations and the United States under the Obama Administration should courageously pressure Israel to withdraw from the Shebaa Farms. And engage Syria, to get from Syria the necessary documents so that Shebaa Farms can be put under the authority of the United Nations or handed over to Lebanon.

I didn't know Lebanon had a stake in the Israeli Disputed Territories.

/the more you/I know...

re: #10 buzzsawmonkey

It's the Edgar Allen Poe Effect. I'm sure everyone has read his classic story "The Goldberg."

How does autofill come up with "Goldberg"? Is it a default setting?

re: #13 John Neverbend

How does autofill come up with "Goldberg"? Is it a default setting?

Zionist plot.
/

re: #14 Cannadian Club Akbar

Zionist plot.
/

Sadly not. It's a memory thing, as Charles has indicated. It must have remembered a prior occurrence.

re: #13 John Neverbend

How does autofill come up with "Goldberg"? Is it a default setting?

It's because I typed 'Totten Interviews Goldberg' for the title of that previous post. Safari's autofill inserted that title as soon as I typed 'Totten In...', and I forgot to correct it before posting.

re: #10 buzzsawmonkey

It's the Edgar Allen Poe Effect. I'm sure everyone has read his classic story "The Goldberg."

Never more.

re: #13 John Neverbend

How does autofill come up with "Goldberg"? Is it a default setting?

It autofilled with the title of one of Charle's previous Totten posts, sometimes that happens with scroll button mice. It's happened to me too on my blog.

re: #13 John Neverbend

How does autofill come up with "Goldberg"? Is it a default setting?

Charles may have prepared another post with "Totten Interviews" and the autofill grabbed the other name.

It's one of those things in computer world that catches us all.

Ah, here's the joke I was thinking of:

---

A Jewish mand and a Chinese man find themselves sitting uncomfortably elbow-to-elbow at a crowded lunch counter in a diner. Each is eyeing the other with contempt.

Suddenly the Jewish man stands up and punches the Chinese man in the nose. "What in the world did you do that for?" yells the Chinese guy as he dabs his bleeding nose with a napkin.

"That's for Pearl Harbor!"

"Pearl Harbor!?--that was the Japanese--I'm Chinese!"

The Jewish man responds, "Japanese, Chinese--they're all the same."

A few minutes later the Chinese man gets up and belts the Jewish man across the jaw with a right hook, sending him sprawling.

Picking himself up, he shouts, "Why did you hit me?"

"That's for the Titanic!"

"The Titanic?! - what could a devout Jewish man like me have to do with the Titanic?"

The Chinese man responds, "Goldberg, Iceberg--they're all the same."

On Shebaa farms, which Israel conquered from Syria, Israel has said they would withdraw if Syria would drop any claims to the area. Syria refuses.
Thus, the pressure should be on Syria, not Israel.

A Jewish mand = A Jewish man

PIMF

I blame it on autofill!

Are we sure there aren't at least two or three Tottens out there? He's in Iraq, in Afghanistan, and now interviewing VPs in Lebanon.

Or in my case: Autotypo.

re: #22 zombie

A Jewish mand = A Jewish man

PIMF

I blame it on autofill!

"I blame it on autofill" (IBIOA) is going to be as popular as PIMF.

We are fighting to preserve human rights in this country and the state of freedom despite all the terror that has been organized against us. The project of "March 14" is very simple. It is the building up of a modern democratic humanistic society in this country. An attack against "March 14" is not an attack from a loyal opposition. The state has to be sovereign, has to be independent. On the other side we have the negation of the state.

***

If we do not win the elections, it is not a collapse of a party. It is the collapse of a sovereign, free, independent Lebanon. This is the problem. And this is why I consider these elections essential. The international community, the United Nations, have so far tried everything possible to preserve Lebanon. If the majority fails, it means Hezbollah will be in power in Lebanon. It would mean another Gaza.

I know both Christian and muslim Lebanese- they themselves want nothing more than a free, independent, peaceful Lebanon. Just like in Iraq- there are those who find freedom a threat, and will therefore stop at nothing to undermine it. I pray Lebanon can hold on and persevere despite the region.

Google Adsense now promoting "Meet Lebanese Girls"

At least she's not wearing a hijab like in the "Muslima Matrimonials" banner.

Charles, I told you to sign up for JDate banners!

Good Afternoon Lizards!
Hope everyone is well...I wish my dog was feeling better.. We just got home from the Vet..

re: #23 vxbush

Are we sure there aren't at least two or three Tottens out there? He's in Iraq, in Afghanistan, and now interviewing VPs in Lebanon.

You might be confusing Michael Totten with Michael Yon, Yon's in Afghanistan right now.

had a militia that behaved terribly

Quite the understatement.

[still reading]

Ah, that explains why that one dead Hezbo commander's wife was so angry at Syria...

re: #28 HoosierHoops

Good Afternoon Lizards!
Hope everyone is well...I wish my dog was feeling better.. We just got home from the Vet..

I hope your dog is feeling better than I am. 3rd day in a cast, and I'm ready to beat somebody to death with it. Worst of all, my pain meds stopped working and I'm afraid to ask my doc for a different script, my insurance might think I'm a dope addict or something.

Eric Haney (Inside Delta Force) has said Lebanon used to be the Paris of the middle east.

re: #28 HoosierHoops

Good Afternoon Lizards!
Hope everyone is well...I wish my dog was feeling better.. We just got home from the Vet..

I went through that about four months ago. How old is your dog & what's the problem?

re: #16 Charles

It's because I typed 'Totten Interviews Goldberg' for the title of that previous post. Safari's autofill inserted that title as soon as I typed 'Totten In...', and I forgot to correct it before posting.

Blame Googleberg!

re: #24 zombie

Or in my case: Autotypo.

I am so familiar with that!

re: #33 Cannadian Club Akbar

Eric Haney (Inside Delta Force) has said Lebanon used to be the Paris of the middle east.

And now Paris is the Beirut of Europe.

re: #32 Alouette
I must have missed something...
Your in a cast ...because...?
Hope ya feel better!

re: #33 Cannadian Club Akbar

Then it turned into a Human League smash hit.

Good as always.

al-Sayegh seems to think that if the Israelis give up the Shebaa Farms area in the Golan Heights and negotiates directly with Syria, somehow the problems in Lebanon will be solved? I get confused trying to understand that area. That would only solve one problem but leave the 800-lb gorilla in the room alone - Hezbollah. Until something is done with that, there will be no peace in Lebanon. And, that means dealing with Iran.

It appears the last Israeli action in Lebanon made the Lebanese more angry that Israel, than Hezbollah. What a f*cked up place...

We are fighting to preserve human rights in this country and the state of freedom despite all the terror that has been organized against us. The project of "March 14" is very simple. It is the building up of a modern democratic humanistic society in this country. An attack against "March 14" is not an attack from a loyal opposition. The state has to be sovereign, has to be independent. On the other side we have the negation of the state.

Of course we did not achieve all our objectives even though we still have a majority in parliament. Despite this majority, with the use of weapons of terror, and of the ideological opposition to the West and to Israel, Hezbollah is impeding the majority from exerting its strength. But still we are here. We are not letting Hezbollah impose its will on the country. We have succeeded in putting the international tribunal [to indict the assassins of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri] where it is. Sooner or later, it will come to a conclusion and justice will be made.

I'm wondering when Michael Totten is going to do a book, he certainly has enough material for a few.

This is an ideological party. For Hezbollah, anti-Americanism is ideological. Anti-Westernism is ideological. But our identity in Lebanon is a complex identity. We all speak foreign languages. We are all inheritors not only of the Persian Empire and the Arab world. We are also children of the Roman Empire, of the Western tradition. All of this mixes in Lebanon. And therefore we will never accept an identity change. We do not accept any community that is saying it’s anti-Western, that it's against Western values, that it's against the Western way of life. For them, democracy is relative. Human rights are something that is a Western concept, an imported concept.

***

For all your readers who think democracy is only letting the population vote, that it means majority rule: Democracy is voting, but it’s something else, as well. It’s a respect of human rights. Let’s not forget that Hitler came to power after elections. Fascism rose at the same time in Italy. Hamas took over Palestine after elections, okay, but what about respect for human rights? Those people do not have any track record of respecting human rights. They bluntly and publicly reject human rights values. They think there are other values they want to promote, and this is something I’m not going to accept here.

This man is very brave. I hope he has good protection as I'm sure hizzbullah would like to silence him.

From reading this, Israel should be telling Syria that an attack from Hizballah will result in retaliation against Syria. So far, they've only said that they'd consider all of Lebanon a target. Sounds like Damascus would be a better target.

And this guy made the statement that the UN is trying to keep Lebanon together. If so, why haven't they really tried to disarm Hizballah? I don't think the UN is really doing anything to help Lebanon if it involves a real cost.

Speaking of Goldbergs -- I just checked my email and got a notification of a commednt on a YouTube video I posted last year:

---

Malskazz has made a comment on Burning and stomping on Israeli flag at S.F. Gaza rally January 10, 2009:

Fuck all the ignorant people, who thinks you hate Israel for no reason - FUCK.. YOU!

To the flag burners: You got my support, we need to break down Israel and kill the jews..

Regards from a dane.

---

Ah YouTube. Always refreshing in the morning.

re: #38 reloadingisnotahobby

I must have missed something...
Your in a cast ...because...?
Hope ya feel better!

Degenerative iosteoarthritis. It all started with an ankle fracture from 8 years ago that never healed properly. Now there is no cartilige left in the ankle.

Again, I have to express my regrets, because I won't be jumping on the latest right-wing blog bandwagon, and getting all faux outraged about the little girl who asked a question at Obama's town hall, just because her mother has worked for the Democratic Party.

Am I supposed to think it's outrageous that a Democrat would bring her daughter to a town hall event for Barack Obama now? I'd bet that a lot of the people at that meeting were activists for one side or the other.

The outrage is silly.

re: #29 Thanos

You might be confusing Michael Totten with Michael Yon, Yon's in Afghanistan right now.

Hello, that must be it. Thanks for the clarification. Too many "Michaels" in my life.

re: #32 Alouette

I hope your dog is feeling better than I am. 3rd day in a cast, and I'm ready to beat somebody to death with it. Worst of all, my pain meds stopped working and I'm afraid to ask my doc for a different script, my insurance might think I'm a dope addict or something.

I'm sorry to hear that...Boy I've my share of injuries..Broken arms..busted knees..Stitches...It's not pleasant...Get the script..Frig the insurance company..
Don't be in pain over those bureaucrats...Who cares what they think?
Hope you get feeling better soon

A plant is a plant.

re: #47 Charles

I'd prefer to talk about Lebanon, anyway. The threads that involve Israel have been fewer recently, and I've been missing them.

re: #47 Charles

The outrage is silly.

It's silly and selective. There are also plenty of articles and videos of the protesters and their GOP connections. This stuff doesn't effect my opinion one way or the other but people sure like to get wound up about it.

re: #50 Ben Hur

A plant is a plant.

I have seen absolutely no evidence that the little girl was a "plant." This is just a completely silly accusation.

re: #34 opnion

I went through that about four months ago. How old is your dog & what's the problem?

Hi there...Winston is 2 1/2 yrs old and started to poop blood this morning.
I'm not sure what he hates worse...Being sick or me shoving pills down his throat...Poor little guy

OT: Meow mix

re: #44 Kosh's Shadow

From reading this, Israel should be telling Syria that an attack from Hizballah will result in retaliation against Syria. So far, they've only said that they'd consider all of Lebanon a target. Sounds like Damascus would be a better target.

And this guy made the statement that the UN is trying to keep Lebanon together. If so, why haven't they really tried to disarm Hizballah? I don't think the UN is really doing anything to help Lebanon if it involves a real cost.

Nobody seems to want to address Hezbollah. If they were suddenly defanged or just disappeared, Lebanon would have the peace it craves so much. Israel will not attack Lebanon. Iran and Syria are the ones keeping that wound open and festering, yet the UN, Lebanon, Europe, even the USA does not want to get to the heart of the problem - Iran and Hezbollah.

Iran is the single major factor in the instability in and around the Holy Land now. Take away their two pit bulls - Hezbollah and Hamas, and there might just be a chance for peace in that region. With those two still active and strong, there is no chance.

re: #46 Alouette

I know how feel!!
Right wrist from a Boo Boo in 78!!
Lucky I'm left handed!
Hope you find something that will make you
more comfortable!!

re: #56 Desert Dog

Nobody seems to want to address Hezbollah. If they were suddenly defanged or just disappeared, Lebanon would have the peace it craves so much. Israel will not attack Lebanon. Iran and Syria are the ones keeping that wound open and festering, yet the UN, Lebanon, Europe, even the USA does not want to get to the heart of the problem - Iran and Hezbollah.

Iran is the single major factor in the instability in and around the Holy Land now. Take away their two pit bulls - Hezbollah and Hamas, and there might just be a chance for peace in that region. With those two still active and strong, there is no chance.

What about Fatah?

re: #23 vxbush

Are we sure there aren't at least two or three Tottens out there? He's in Iraq, in Afghanistan, and now interviewing VPs in Lebanon.

Could you be confusing Michael Yon with Michael Totten? Yon's in Afghanistan right now.

re: #46 Alouette

((( (((Alouette))) )))

re: #59 eschew_obfuscation

Could you be confusing Michael Yon with Michael Totten? Yon's in Afghanistan right now.

Oops. I got confused, too.

re: #21 Kosh's Shadow

On Shebaa farms, which Israel conquered from Syria, Israel has said they would withdraw if Syria would drop any claims to the area. Syria refuses.
Thus, the pressure should be on Syria, not Israel.

A "teaching moment" during the interview:

Totten: ...The United States is not going to go to war with Iran over nuclear weapons.

Al-Sayegh: No? [Sigh.]

re: #53 Charles

I have seen absolutely no evidence that the little girl was a "plant." This is just a completely silly accusation.

The "why are people saying mean things about reform" question (whch was probably written by her mother) sealed it for me.

In the grand scheme of things, I don't give a sh*t. He bussed them in. We probably bussed people in.

The whole administration is about appearences. Why would anyone think there wouldn't be any?

Not a big deal.

re: #7 Charles

That danged autofill caught me again.

re: #9 zombie

I HATE automobile.

I still think that's the funniest comment I've made all week! Alas, it went unnoticed.

re: #58 MandyManners

What about Fatah?

Fatah seems more interested in enriching themselves these days. If Hamas and Hezbollah loses it's Iranian Sugar Daddy, that region will look dramatically different than it does right now. Fatah is bad and corrupt and wants nothing do with peace...but, if they were suddenly the only game in town, they would be pressured to deal with the Israelis. Right now, nobody tells Hamas they need to deal with Israel...nobody tells Hezbollah either...those two just do as they please without much comment from anyone outside of the area.

re: #62 John Neverbend

A "teaching moment" during the interview:

Totten: ...The United States is not going to go to war with Iran over nuclear weapons.

Al-Sayegh: No? [Sigh.]

Israel will have to; the world will condemn Israel, but they will have saved many people, not just their own.
Anyone who thinks Iran won't find a way to get a nuke to the "great Satan", and settle only for the "little Satan" is deluded.

These right wing bloggers who immediately jump to dig up the personal lives of people who ask questions at town hall meetings are bleeding hypocrites. They would be screaming bloody murder -- they have screamed bloody murder -- when the left did it to them. Now they're reduced to "exposing" 11-year old girls.

I think it's disgraceful.

re: #50 Ben Hur

A plant is a plant.

Well, it's the old mist in a cloud argument. The entire audience was a plant, so it's no surprise to me. She seemed sincere, so I doubt there's anything nefarious there.

O can't take criticism or tough questions. So they have to shield him from it to prevent 'stupidly' moments. Didn't he answer questions the other day wearing an earpiece?

re: #47 Charles

I think the "outrage" comes not from people at the meeting being an activist from one side or another nor even IF the little gorl and her mom were plants, but rather the double standard of saying that a Palin was "using" her brood as props while at the same time this event being billed as totally opened and non-pre screened
Me, I could care less if Obama's people had packed the Rose Bowl with the entire DNC and their families to ask questions!

re: #67 Charles

I think it also smacks of desperation ...

re: #50 Ben Hur

A plant is a plant.

A horse is a horse. Of course.

re: #58 MandyManners

What about Fatah?

Marwan Barghouthi, jailed for life in Israel on charges of organising the killing of Jews, was elected to a top post in Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah group today, initial results showed.

Reform!

/

Source

re: #71 midwestgak

A horse is a horse. Of course.

And here I thought I had the only Gak in town.

The other plant accusation making the rounds right now is that the Obama w/hitler moustache guy is a Dingel supporter. He might be, but these signs are showing up at all the townhalls and appear to have originated with the Lyndon Larouche third waytards.

re: #72 laZardo

Reform!

/

Source

It's not surprising that he was elected.

It's surprising that there are a number of Israeli pols who want him released.

Actually, that's not surprising either.

Or Iran's nuclear ambitions

I don't care about repercussions for Israel. It isn't my problem. My problem is that the center of gravity in the Islamic world will shift from Saudi Arabia and Cairo to Tehran. Imagine after two years what paradigm we might have in front of us.

Tell the French we are not talking about realpolitik here. We’re not talking about a balance of power. Look at what is behind the bomb. Iran is not the Soviet Union. It is not China. We are talking about the Koran, Velayat-e Faqih, and the umma.

Wow- he really doesn't hold back. And it's a great point, though harsh and confirms my suspicions that the House of Saud will pressure the US and west to deal with iran.

re: #42 Thanos

I'm wondering when Michael Totten is going to do a book, he certainly has enough material for a few.

He is working on one as we speak.

re: #53 Charles

I have seen absolutely no evidence that the little girl was a "plant." This is just a completely silly accusation.

re: #63 Ben Hur

The "why are people saying mean things about reform" question (whch was probably written by her mother) sealed it for me.

In the grand scheme of things, I don't give a sh*t. He bussed them in. We probably bussed people in.

The whole administration is about appearences. Why would anyone think there wouldn't be any?

Not a big deal.

The entire concept of the meeting was a botanical garden.

The president doesn't need to campaign anymore. He's the president. Yet he continues campaigning relentlessly.

I'm on the Obama mailing list. Emmanuel is constantly sending out pleas for Obama supporters to help him pass this or that bill by calling their congresspeople, etc.

Obama is running the White House like a community organzier, utilizing his millions of hardcore followers to pressure his opponents.

I blame FDR for all this -- he started the trend with the "Fireside Chats." You wouldn't find Hoover chatting by the fireside, nosiree. Ever since the first Fireside Chat, the presidency has been in full campaign mode all the time.

re: #67 Charles

These right wing bloggers who immediately jump to dig up the personal lives of people who ask questions at town hall meetings are bleeding hypocrites. They would be screaming bloody murder -- they have screamed bloody murder -- when the left did it to them. Now they're reduced to "exposing" 11-year old girls.

I think it's disgraceful.

Are you referring to Joe the Plumber?

I think that's apples and oranges.

re: #50 Ben Hur

A plant is a plant.

Sometimes a plant is just a plant.

Other times it's Audrey II.

re: #69 sattv4u2
We are not stupid!
I found it funny and now? Pathetic!!
They are frantically trying to " Polish a Turd"and sell it as Caviar!
most of the can see that!
I HOPE!

In today's presser, Gibbs is complaining that no one yelled at Obama.

Bizarre.

A Hezbo electoral victory and/or that of their allies/fronts in Lebanon would be catastrophic for the region and the remaining Christians in Lebanon. (The June issue of National Geographic has an article on the declining number of Christians in the Holy Land)

re: #67 Charles

These right wing bloggers who immediately jump to dig up the personal lives of people who ask questions at town hall meetings are bleeding hypocrites. They would be screaming bloody murder -- they have screamed bloody murder -- when the left did it to them. Now they're reduced to "exposing" 11-year old girls.

I think it's disgraceful.

This is what happens when the right adopts Rules for Radicals. Of course- it was completely wrong when people did this to the Palin children, but they're not thinking about that while digging into a democrat's kid.

re: #68 esch

Well, it's the old mist in a cloud argument. The entire audience was a plant, so it's no surprise to me. She seemed sincere, so I doubt there's anything nefarious there.

O can't take criticism or tough questions. So they have to shield him from it to prevent 'stupidly' moments. Didn't he answer questions the other day wearing an earpiece?

That town meeting will not sway anyone one way or the other. The battle lines are drawn and the entire townhall meeting was more of a pep rally and infomercial for Obama and his plan. I wish there was a way to have an actual discussion about this healthcare plan.

No mobs, no screamers, no fawning groupies...actual tough questions with real honest answers. But, that is not going to happen, is it?

re: #74 Thanos

The other plant accusation making the rounds right now is that the Obama w/hitler moustache guy is a Dingel supporter. He might be, but these signs are showing up at all the townhalls and appear to have originated with the Lyndon Larouche third waytards.

Yes, the poster definitely did come from the LaRouche freaks. And if LaRouchians fit anywhere on the political spectrum, it would have to be on the extreme right.

re: #77 medaura18586

He is working on one as we speak.

Very cool, I'll be buying it when it comes out

re: #84 Sharmuta

Agree 100%.

re: #74 Thanos

The other plant accusation making the rounds right now is that the Obama w/hitler moustache guy is a Dingel supporter. He might be, but these signs are showing up at all the townhalls and appear to have originated with the Lyndon Larouche third waytards.

The false flag thing is just a lazy attempt from the right to distance themselves from stupid and offensive behavior. I watched the LLL do it for 8 years. False flag is just as lame as questioning the timing.

re: #75 Ben Hur

What'd he do to land himself in jail though? Just checkin.

re: #76 Sharmuta

Or Iran's nuclear ambitions

Wow- he really doesn't hold back. And it's a great point, though harsh and confirms my suspicions that the House of Saud will pressure the US and west to deal with iran.

Yes, the fear of having Iran at the centre of everything has certainly concentrated the minds of the "moderate" Arab countries in the Middle East. This is why I'm sure that behind closed doors, they'd applaud an Israeli attack against Iran if it happened and was successful.

re: #86 Charles

Yes, the poster definitely did come from the LaRouche freaks. And if LaRouchians fit anywhere on the political spectrum, it would have to be on the extreme right.

Is there positive id on this guy now?

re: #79 Ben Hur

Are you referring to Joe the Plumber?

I think that's apples and oranges.

Exactly. Joe The Plumber was investigated by a member of the government (state government, natch), and when she was caught, she lied about such investigations being standard procedure in the Jobs & Family Services department. IIRC, she also got busted for sending out Obama campaign e-mails with her work e-mail address, on state time.

I forget what the outcome of all this was, but I do remember she was just given a slap on the wrist.

re: #54 HoosierHoops

Hi there...Winston is 2 1/2 yrs old and started to poop blood this morning.
I'm not sure what he hates worse...Being sick or me shoving pills down his throat...Poor little guy

Blydi heck, {HH}!

I fervently hope those pills work!

Virtual licks, wags and wuffs from Madame for poor Winston.

re: #86 Charles

Yes, the poster definitely did come from the LaRouche freaks. And if LaRouchians fit anywhere on the political spectrum, it would have to be on the extreme right.

I agree, but on the extreme edges with absolutely no power or sway whatsoever.

Kissed to death by America

...there is an American (and Israeli) "kiss of death" elsewhere in the Middle East. Why is there a correlation between U.S. and Israeli endorsements of a "two-state solution" and the Palestinian stampede away from it, both Islamist and secular? Every time an American president or an Israeli prime minister declares that a two-state solution is a vital U.S. or Israeli interest, more Palestinians conclude it can't possibly be in their interest.

...Could one devise a more diabolical way to delegitimize a two-state solution in Palestinian eyes than that? Obama claims that "it is not only in the Palestinians' interest to have a state. I believe it is in the Israelis', as well, and in the United States' interest, as well." For Palestinians, that's one reason to support it, and two reasons to oppose it.

Sort of on topic, here's what the "moderates" have to say about Israel:
PA Agency: Jewish State Threatens All of Humanity

With Israel insisting on Arab recognition of Israel’s basic essence as a Jewish State, an Arab news agency responds by calling such an entity a “threat to all humanity.”

Itamar Marcus and Barbara Crook of Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) report that an editorial by WAFA, the official Palestinian Authority news agency, is a “vicious anti-Semitic article stating that a Jewish state… is by definition inherently racist and endangers all humanity.” The official op-ed also accuses Israel of ethnic cleansing of Arabs and Palestinians, thus endangering global security.

Moderates? These guys are starting to make Nazis look moderate.
And Israel is supposed to make concessions to them? The only concession they should make is to let them get out of the Judea, Samaria, and Gaza with their asses intact. And [deleted]

re: #3 buzzsawmonkey

"Goldberg?"

Rube Goldberg?

re: #90 laZardo

What'd he do to land himself in jail though? Just checkin.

Killed 5 Israelis.

Adam Goldberg? The wrestler, and car guy?

re: #46 Alouette

Degenerative iosteoarthritis. It all started with an ankle fracture from 8 years ago that never healed properly. Now there is no cartilige left in the ankle.

{Alouette}

Virtual hugs, and all my sympathy!

re: #86 Charles

Yes, the poster definitely did come from the LaRouche LaDouche freaks. And if LaRouchians fit anywhere on the political spectrum, it would have to be on the extreme right.

re: #91 John Neverbend

Yes, the fear of having Iran at the centre of everything has certainly concentrated the minds of the "moderate" Arab countries in the Middle East. This is why I'm sure that behind closed doors, they'd applaud an Israeli attack against Iran if it happened and was successful.

That is ironic...they hate Israel so much, but will be more than happy to see them take out Iran. They can't do it themselves, that is for sure...

LaRouche is making a big comeback, by the way, along with the John Birch Society and several other previously marginalized far right kook organizations.

re: #98 Mad Al-Jaffee

Rube Goldberg?

Whoopi

re: #86 Charles

Yes, the poster definitely did come from the LaRouche freaks. And if LaRouchians fit anywhere on the political spectrum, it would have to be on the extreme right.

That's a big "if."

I think they are a cult, not a political group. Their ideology defines human comprehension.

re: #93 Athens Runaway

Exactly. Joe The Plumber was investigated by a member of the government (state government, natch), and when she was caught, she lied about such investigations being standard procedure in the Jobs & Family Services department. IIRC, she also got busted for sending out Obama campaign e-mails with her work e-mail address, on state time.

I forget what the outcome of all this was, but I do remember she was just given a slap on the wrist.

Dude was in his yard and the Obama caravan happened by.

bbiab

I think this is one of Mr Totten's better interviews of late, and I hope everyone reads the whole thing.

re: #109 Sharmuta

I think this is one of Mr Totten's better interviews of late, and I hope everyone reads the whole thing.

For such a small country, Lebanon is a very complex place, isn' it?

re: #27 Alouette

Google Adsense now promoting "Meet Lebanese Girls"

At least she's not wearing a hijab like in the "Muslima Matrimonials" banner.

Charles, I told you to sign up for JDate banners!

Lebanese protest babes? Woo-hoo!

re: #78 zombie

The entire concept of the meeting was a botanical garden.

The president doesn't need to campaign anymore. He's the president. Yet he continues campaigning relentlessly.

I'm on the Obama mailing list. Emmanuel is constantly sending out pleas for Obama supporters to help him pass this or that bill by calling their congresspeople, etc.

Obama is running the White House like a community organzier, utilizing his millions of hardcore followers to pressure his opponents.

I blame FDR for all this -- he started the trend with the "Fireside Chats." You wouldn't find Hoover chatting by the fireside, nosiree. Ever since the first Fireside Chat, the presidency has been in full campaign mode all the time.

I have to concur. I was given the impression (and I cannot say where now) that Obama was going to make sure this was a completely open town hall with folks of all stripes there, and yet again it's a staged forum of his supporters. It's frustrating to me to constantly see all these staged events. I know that all presidents stage things to their own advantage, but I feel like Obama hasn't yet had an event where there was any people who truly disagreed with him (excluding meetings with Republican leadership in Washington).

And if LaRouchians fit anywhere on the political spectrum, it would have to be on the extreme right.

What, in your mind, are the essential element(s) that define the difference between right vs. left?

re: #107 Ben Hur

Dude was in his yard and the Obama caravan happened by.

I'm afraid I'd have just told the O and his onto rage "Get off my fucking lawn ,Your trespassing"!
...And still been investigated...

re: #106 zombie

That's a big "if."

I think they are a cult, not a political group. Their ideology defines human comprehension.

Heh... Autofill again?

re: #97 Kosh's Shadow

Sort of on topic, here's what the "moderates" have to say about Israel:

So, is the idea of recognizing Israel off the table now? Was it ever on the table?

re: #106 zombie

That's a big "if."

I think they are a cult, not a political group. Their ideology defines human comprehension.

Any ideas on what the meeting point between LaRouchians and support for this particular politician might be?

re: #53 Charles

I have seen absolutely no evidence that the little girl was a "plant." This is just a completely silly accusation.

Short of a confession, which is very unlikely, there's no way to prove she was a plant.

On the other hand, she delivered her question very well. And the content of her question was incredibly fortunate when the President's objective for the event was to frame the behavior of previous town hall attendees as phony and inexcusable. As if she had rehearsed. Which she wouldn't have, if the attendees were selected randomly a few hours before the event as claimed.

Compare that to the visibly nervous questioners at Specter's town hall.

Like I said, this isn't proof. But I think it is quite reasonable to suspect that the questioners were, at least, pre-selected or, at worst, this was an entirely scripted event from beginning to end.

(Braces for the down-dinging.)

re: #112 vxbush

I have to concur. I was given the impression (and I cannot say where now) that Obama was going to make sure this was a completely open town hall with folks of all stripes there, and yet again it's a staged forum of his supporters. It's frustrating to me to constantly see all these staged events. I know that all presidents stage things to their own advantage, but I feel like Obama hasn't yet had an event where there was were any people who truly disagreed with him (excluding meetings with Republican leadership in Washington).

I blame it on autofill. Yeah, that's it.

re: #111 Ward Cleaver

Lebanese protest babes? Woo-hoo!

Went to an F1 race once and sat in front of a group of Lebanese girls..
My son keep flirting with them the whole race...I don't know how much of the race he saw or cared about...Cute girls drive young men crazy...

re: #115 eschew_obfuscation

Heh... Autofill again?

It's Autotypo on my computer. I really need to bring this thing in for repairs.

re: #119 vxbush

I blame it on autofill. Yeah, that's it.

For me, I just blame the medications... or lack thereof.

1 AM and am headin to bed to combat my ever-recurring sniffles. Nighty!

re: #112 vxbush

I have to concur. I was given the impression (and I cannot say where now) that Obama was going to make sure this was a completely open town hall with folks of all stripes there, and yet again it's a staged forum of his supporters. It's frustrating to me to constantly see all these staged events. I know that all presidents stage things to their own advantage, but I feel like Obama hasn't yet had an event where there was any people who truly disagreed with him (excluding meetings with Republican leadership in Washington).

It's PR. They're trying to foster an illusion that most Americans love this, and him. As time goes on it will get more and more amusing.

Baghdad Bob comes to mind.

May I interrupt to say:

BOOYAH... GO USMC!

DAHANEH, Afghanistan – Helicopter-borne U.S. Marines backed by Harrier jets stormed a Taliban-held town in southern Afghanistan before dawn Wednesday, the launch of a new operation to uproot Taliban fighters from a longtime base and provide security for next week's presidential election.

The troops exchanged heavy fire with insurgents, killing at least seven in an offensive they hoped would also cut Taliban supply lines and isolate their fighters.

May our brave Marines get the job done and walk away without a scratch.

re: #104 Charles

LaRouche is making a big comeback, by the way, along with the John Birch Society and several other previously marginalized far right kook organizations.

Unreal. And LaRouche has always claimed to be a Democrat. I just shake my head when I hear their crap, like the claim that Queen Elizabeth is a major drug dealer. The guy is clearly off his rocker. And who was his lawyer when he was sent to prison? Ramsey Clark. That just figures.

re: #125 Occasional Reader

May I interrupt to say:

BOOYAH... GO USMC!

May our brave Marines get the job done and walk away without a scratch.

Thank you OR...Nice post...

re: #113 NoWhereAlaska

What, in your mind, are the essential element(s) that define the difference between right vs. left?

The LaRouche crowd is completely nuts. They fall more to the far right than the far left, because the kinds of conspiracies they promote are more "right" than left -- New World Order, etc.

re: #121 zombie

It's Autotypo on my computer. I really need to bring this thing in for repairs.

Cash for clunkers!

re: #112 vxbush

I have to concur. I was given the impression (and I cannot say where now) that Obama was going to make sure this was a completely open town hall with folks of all stripes there, and yet again it's a staged forum of his supporters. It's frustrating to me to constantly see all these staged events. I know that all presidents stage things to their own advantage, but I feel like Obama hasn't yet had an event where there was any people who truly disagreed with him (excluding meetings with Republican leadership in Washington).

Even NPR... NPR!... this morning was noting the staged feeling of the event, and the fact that Obama couldn't scare up much in the way of a contrary viewpoint, even when he "sought" one.

A freelancing journo named Totten
Gets right to the heart of what's rotten.
In the world of the mad
He makes us feel glad
To have a smart guide who's not boughten.

re: #116 John Neverbend

So, is the idea of recognizing Israel off the table now? Was it ever on the table?

They only said enough to please the West, and never officially recognized Israel as a Jewish state.
The most they've said is that such a country as Israel exists and they'd have to deal with it. But unsaid, all their demands are such that Israel would cease to be a Jewish state.
The "two state solution" is two Arab/Muslim states to them.

Ironic that if you take Islam out of the Middle East, leaving Christians, Jews, Copts, and other non-Muslims, the place is much more peaceful.

re: #129 Ward Cleaver

Cash for clunkers clickers!

FTFY ;-)

From Wiki:

Lyndon Hermyle LaRouche, Jr. (born September 8, 1922) is an American self-styled economist,[1] a political activist, and the founder of several political organizations, known collectively as the LaRouche movement. He has been a perennial candidate for President of the United States, having run in eight elections since 1976, once as a U.S. Labor Party candidate and seven times as a candidate for the Democratic Party nomination.

re: #86 Charles

Yes, the poster definitely did come from the LaRouche freaks. And if LaRouchians fit anywhere on the political spectrum, it would have to be on the extreme right.

Emphasis on the "if" there... I hope I've made it abundantly clear in the past that I'm no fan of Jonah Goldberg's "liberal fascism" mere, to say the least, but my experience with the fringes suggests that maintaining left/right consistency at all costs can be very strenuous and can do violence to the nature of wackiness involved.

Srdja Trifkovic is as far-right as it gets, paleo/fascist/racist/religious-supremacist of the highest caliber, yet he favors Obama over McCain in strong terms (much of which, doubtless, has to do with their respective stances on Kosovo/Serbia). When the chips are down, extreme wackos can align with any side for the most spurious of reasons.

OT: Going for walkies...

Go check out the LaRouche website. You might be surprised how slick and modern it is -- a glossy surface covering a pit of ugly lunacy.

re: #133 SFGoth

Ironic that if you take Islam out of the Middle East, leaving Christians, Jews, Copts, and other non-Muslims, the place is much more peaceful.

I'm not so sure it's irony in this case.

re: #86 Charles

Yes, the poster definitely did come from the LaRouche freaks. And if LaRouchians fit anywhere on the political spectrum, it would have to be on the extreme right.

LaRouchians don't fit anywhere on the political spectrum. They live in the real world, but you wouldn't know it from listening to them. LaRouche used to have this publication in which he'd assert that a long-forgotten mathematician had solved the energy crisis and the "system" was just ignoring it.

The mathematician was Bernhard Riemann, and he'd never been forgotten, but his work was far removed from that sort of practical question. It very much smacked of scientology.

re: #128 Charles

The LaRouche crowd is completely nuts. They fall more to the far right than the far left, because the kinds of conspiracies they promote are more "right" than left -- New World Order, etc.

Frankly, I have trouble placing LaRouche in any particular spot on the political spectrum, other than just plain "nuts". Sure, they go for the NWO stuff, but so do self-identified fringe "left". And they're also very big into throwing the entire Bush administration in jail; very much a "left" idea. And it's simply hard to categorize as right or left, say, their proposal to build a high-speed train across the Bering Strait...

re: #135 babes

From Wiki:

Lyndon Hermyle LaRouche, Jr. (born September 8, 1922) is an American self-styled economist,[1] a political activist, and the founder of several political organizations, known collectively as the LaRouche movement. He has been a perennial candidate for President of the United States, having run in eight elections since 1976, once as a U.S. Labor Party candidate and seven times as a candidate for the Democratic Party nomination.

Sounds like right-wing extremism to me...

re: #130 Occasional Reader

Even NPR... NPR!... this morning was noting the staged feeling of the event, and the fact that Obama couldn't scare up much in the way of a contrary viewpoint, even when he "sought" one.

The 'we've been had' venom from the left is going to be quite a spectacle once it really gets going. I can see the signs starting already. My leftist neighbors won't talk to me recently. It almost makes me feel sorry for the guy...*snort*...Ok I couldn't type that with a straight face.

re: #131 Cato the Elder

A freelancing journo named Totten
Gets right to the heart of what's rotten.
In the world of the mad
He makes us feel glad
To have a smart guide who's not boughten.

I see you've been endorsed by the Silvers. No relation to each other.

re: #128 Charles

The LaRouche crowd is completely nuts. They fall more to the far right than the far left, because the kinds of conspiracies they promote are more "right" than left -- New World Order, etc.

True, but one of their bete noirs (aloing with Queen Elizabeth) is George Bush Sr. -- as the architect of the "New World Order." They mix in the same sort of anti-oligarchy/anti-country-club-Republican stuff that one sees in various anarchist and hyper-libertarian cesspools -- rants about Bohemian Grove, Rothchilds, etc. I think they truly do defy the left/rught continuum. Think of LaRouche as "down."

re: #110 Desert Dog

For such a small country, Lebanon is a very complex place, isn' it?

If you're using "complex" as a euphemism for "totally f***ed up beyond all comprehension", I think I would agree with you.

My uncle remarried late in life and moved to Israel. One of his stepsons was a fairly high ranking military officer who told me that he had, on occasions, carried out joint operations in Lebanon with the late Bechir Gemayel. You may recall that following Gemayel's assassination, the Phalangists retaliated by attacking the Sabra and Shatila camps. I asked my step-cousin what it was like fighting with the Lebanese as allies. I will never forget his response. He said that he had to keep his eye on how they conducted themselves in battle, adding that "On the outside they look like you and me, but inside they're savages."

Understand that he was referring only to that select group of individuals alongside whom he chose to fight, but I was somewhat shaken to hear this.

re: #56 Desert Dog

Nobody seems to want to address Hezbollah. If they were suddenly defanged or just disappeared, Lebanon would have the peace it craves so much. Israel will not attack Lebanon. Iran and Syria are the ones keeping that wound open and festering, yet the UN, Lebanon, Europe, even the USA does not want to get to the heart of the problem - Iran and Hezbollah.

Iran is the single major factor in the instability in and around the Holy Land now. Take away their two pit bulls - Hezbollah and Hamas, and there might just be a chance for peace in that region. With those two still active and strong, there is no chance.

Obama has done things which indicate there is something going on with Syria, granting Boeing a license to sell airliner engines to Syria, sending an ambassador, etc... . One could read from this that this is a precursur to lifting the economic sanctions on Syria, possibly to encourage or in exchange for Syria breaking with Iran. Just a guess.

re: #140 lostlakehiker

How much is Queen Elizabeth paying you from her smack trade profits to spread these anti-Larouche lies?!

//

re: #141 Occasional Reader

Frankly, I have trouble placing LaRouche in any particular spot on the political spectrum, other than just plain "nuts". Sure, they go for the NWO stuff, but so do self-identified fringe "left". And they're also very big into throwing the entire Bush administration in jail; very much a "left" idea. And it's simply hard to categorize as right or left, say, their proposal to build a high-speed train across the Bering Strait...

Check out the website. On the surface it looks a lot like one of the tea party organizing sites. There's very little "left wing" about it at all.

re: #138 Charles

Go check out the LaRouche website. You might be surprised how slick and modern it is -- a glossy surface covering a pit of ugly lunacy.

What do you have against my puter !?!?!?!

//

re: #128 Charles

The LaRouche crowd is completely nuts. They fall more to the far right than the far left, because the kinds of conspiracies they promote are more "right" than left -- New World Order, etc.

And the personnel are interchangeable - yesterday, I ran into a group of Paulbots. To my amusement, I recognized their leader as a LaRouche-ite who was forever asking about my soul.

re: #120 HoosierHoops

The middle east is a breeding ground for hot chicks.

re: #135 babes

"seven times as a candidate for the Democratic Party nomination."

yup..far right wing all right

/

The fact that LaRouche ran as a Democrat means nothing. I suggest you do some reading about the guy before you decide he's a "left-winger."

re: #150 sattv4u2

What do you have against my puter !?!?!?!

//

It would have to be a loaded gun to my head for me to go to that site.

re: #86 Charles

Yes, the poster definitely did come from the LaRouche freaks. And if LaRouchians fit anywhere on the political spectrum, it would have to be on the extreme right.

I don't know about that. Wasn't LaRouche a prominent communist, before having a "conversion" to the right? Shouldn't we be at least a little suspicious of his motives?

re: #116 John Neverbend

So, is the idea of recognizing Israel off the table now? Was it ever on the table?

They've officially made it impossible for any Palestinian leaders to agree to a compromise... having passed an "all-or-nothing" style resolution.

Barry Rubin has covered this extensively on his blog, and there were a series of Khaled Abu Toameh posts in the JPost on the conference:

1
2
3
4
5

re: #149 Charles

Check out the website. On the surface it looks a lot like one of the tea party organizing sites. There's very little "left wing" about it at all.

But those are non-partisan.

/

re: #152 Mad Al-Jaffee

The middle east is a breeding ground for hot chicks.

I remember Steyn talking about an Iranian lady that he had dated, describing her as an Islamo-hotty.

The more influence the Christians gain in Lebanon, the more likely it will be that Lebanon can co-exist with Israel.

re: #149 Charles

There's very little "left wing" about it at all.

Like I said, I think he's hard to categorize by any ordinary left/right criteria.

re: #128 Charles

The LaRouche crowd is completely nuts. They fall more to the far right than the far left, because the kinds of conspiracies they promote are more "right" than left -- New World Order, etc.

Hmmm... I always thought of the NWO folks as the true wrap-arounds since, for their conspiracy to work, both sides (Right/Left) need to be in on it because they are "two sides of the same coin". Guys like AJ went after Clinton, then Bush, now Obama... well he's still on Bush from time to time.

Of course, we'll be eating our anti-Larouche rhetoric when we're enjoying First Class supersonic bullet-train comfort to go check out Siberia.

re: #64 zombie

I still think that's the funniest comment I've made all week! Alas, it went unnoticed.

I laughed so hard I nearly Chevette myself. However, I was not logged in at the time.

re: #154 Charles

The fact that LaRouche ran as a Democrat means nothing. I suggest you do some reading about the guy before you decide he's a "left-winger."

He's not a left-winger. But that doesn't mean the right has to take responsibility for him. I still think it is a personality cult, with very little to do with politics. Politics is just the veneer. What the LaRouche movement most closely resembles is Aum Shinrikyo.

re: #160 _RememberTonyC

The more influence the Christians gain in Lebanon, the more likely it will be that Lebanon can co-exist with Israel.

Totally agree and upding but someone somewhere will find that offensive...

re: #120 HoosierHoops

Went to an F1 race once and sat in front of a group of Lebanese girls..
My son keep flirting with them the whole race...I don't know how much of the race he saw or cared about...Cute girls drive young men crazy...

OLDER DUDES TOO :)

Lyndon Larouche is basically Alex Jones but within politics rather than the outside looking in. He's Ron Paul when the cameras are turned off. The only reason he runs on the "left" side of politics is that when he went kook, Republicans were the ones in charge.

The troofer movement didn't start in the Democrat party either. It came out of kook land and was embraced by the Dems who had BDS because it fit their narrative. Larouchianism is the same shit with a different suit on.

re: #161 Occasional Reader

Like I said, I think he's hard to categorize by any ordinary left/right criteria.

That's because that dichotomy is flawed. But it doesn't help that recently many on the right seem to not be able to admit to any right-wing extremism.

re: #165 zombie

He's not a left-winger. But that doesn't mean the right has to take responsibility for him. I still think it is a personality cult, with very little to do with politics. Politics is just the veneer. What the LaRouche movement most closely resembles is Aum Shinrikyo.

I didn't say the right had to take responsibility for him. In fact, I qualified my statement very carefully -- "IF he fits anywhere on the spectrum."

It's an obvious fact that the Larouchies are promoting what seem to be right wing causes at the moment; one look at their web site will show you that.

re: #160 _RememberTonyC

The more influence the Christians gain in Lebanon, the more likely it will be that Lebanon can co-exist with Israel.

I think the Druze are a part of that equation as well.

Another gun toting protester at yesterday's Obama Town Hall...
Man With Gun Arrested At Obama Event Yesterday

A 62-year old man was arrested yesterday by the Portsmouth police, and is now being investigated by the Secret Service, for having brought weapons to the site of President Obama's New Hampshire visit.

Hours before Obama's arrival, 62-year old Richard Terry Young of the nearby town of Hampton was found with a pocket knife, and then a subsequent search of his car found an unlicensed gun.

Previous reports of guns at political events turned out to be much less than alarming -- as in Arizona, Tennessee and another in New Hampshire. But this one seems quite serious, if someone got arrested and the Secret Service is looking into it.

re: #166 MikeAlv77

Totally agree and upding but someone somewhere will find that offensive...

Thanks MikeAlv77 ... it was meant as a complement to those who follow the religion that featured the "Prince of Peace." If some find that offensive, that is a shame.

re: #165 zombie

He's not a left-winger. But that doesn't mean the right has to take responsibility for him. I still think it is a personality cult, with very little to do with politics. Politics is just the veneer. What the LaRouche movement most closely resembles is Aum Shinrikyo.

Thats EXACTLY what it's like, a CULT

Just like other marginal and/ro thrid party posers we've seen before. Their followers are cult-like

David Duke
Ross Perot
Dennis Kucinich
Ron Paul
Barry Obama (ummm,, ooppsss!!)

///

I was once accosted by some LaRouchenuts near Dupont Circle here in DC, who were hectoring everyone with contributions by shouting "support the Scooter Libby KY Jelly fund!" (See, it was during l'affair Libby, and they were of course joking about his being anally raped in prison. Keep it classy, LaRouchenuts.)

I said, "no, sorry, but I'm soliciting contributions for the Lyndon LaRouche thorazine fund."

They were not happy with me.

Good afternoon, lizards.
It looks like some semblence of civility has been restored to the DT's.. thank goodness.

OT but I have a chuckle for ya... sent to me from my Marine son who is stationed at Miramar, and maintains the computer systems on our F18's:

Two California Highway Patrol Officers were conducting speeding enforcement on I-15, just north of the Marine Corps Air Station at Miramar.

One of the officers was using a hand held radar device to check speeding vehicles approaching the crest of a hill... the officers were suddenly surprised when the radar gun began reading 300 miles per hour.

The officer attempted to reset the radar gun, but it would not reset and then turned off.

Just then a deafening roar over the treetops revealed that the radar had in fact locked on to a USMC F/A-18 Hornet (Northrop Grumman aircraft) which was engaged in a low flying exercise near the location.

Back at the CHP Headquarters the Patrol Captain fired off a complaint to the USMC Base Commander. The reply came back in true USMC style:

~ ~ ~
Thank you for your letter. We can now complete the file on this incident.

You may be interested to know that the tactical computer in the Hornet had detected the presence of, and subsequently locked on to your hostile radar equipment and automatically sent a jamming signal back to it, which is why it shut down.

Furthermore, an Air-to-Ground missile aboard the fully armed aircraft had also automatically locked on to your equipment location.

Fortunately, the Marine Pilot flying the Hornet recognized the situation for what it was, quickly responded to the missile system alert status and was able to override the automated defense system before the missile was launched to destroy the hostile radar position.

The pilot also suggests you cover your mouths when cussing at them, since the video systems on these jets are very high tech.

Sergeant Johnson, the officer holding the radar gun, should get his dentist to check his left rear molar. It appears the filling is loose. Also, the snap is broken on his holster.

Thank you for your concern.

Semper Fi

re: #171 Flyers1974

I think the Druze are a part of that equation as well.

I was not dogging the Druze. They have a pretty good history with Israel. Although Walid Jumblatt has had to cave in to syria direction on many occasions.

OT:

T-Rex's Rebirthday! Aug 12

Today in 1990, Sue was discovered.

On this day in 1990, fossil hunter Susan Hendrickson discovers three huge bones jutting out of a cliff near Faith, South Dakota. They turn out to be part of the largest-ever Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton ever discovered, a 65 million-year-old specimen dubbed Sue, after its discoverer.

re: #170 Charles

I didn't say the right had to take responsibility for him. In fact, I qualified my statement very carefully -- "IF he fits anywhere on the spectrum."

It's an obvious fact that the Larouchies are promoting what seem to be right wing causes at the moment; one look at their web site will show you that.

I too tremble at the thought of visiting their URL. I imagine it to be a swamp of malware.

I see them in BART stations sometimes. True, they try to dress up like "respectable Republicans." But I've read their newspapers (left on BART seats), and my "cult-o-meter" sprung a sprocket.

Perhaps the best word for them is "oppositional" -- whatever it is, they're against it!

From August 2005: LaRouche Lunatics Act Up.

re: #177 irish rose

Nice to see you today. I thought you might be MIA for a bit.

re: #173 Killgore Trout

Hours before Obama's arrival, 62-year old Richard Terry Young of the nearby town of Hampton was found with a pocket knife, and then a subsequent search of his car found an unlicensed gun.

Color me non-terrified, unless/until further details emerge.

I have a pocketknife in my pocket at this very moment. Almost always do.

And while the "unlicensed" aspect is definitely bad, leaving a firearm in one's car when attending a public event is what's done by responsible gun owners, actually.

re: #154 Charles

I'm a little confused as to why we're trying to place LaRouche at all. He's a raving conspiracist, yes; he's a collectivist, yes; but he doesn't advocate a communitarian style of collectivism, instead advancing an equalitarian, redistributive and technical collectivism.

I have no idea where to place him.

re: #178 _RememberTonyC

I was not dogging the Druze. They have a pretty good history with Israel. Although Walid Jumblatt has had to cave in to syria direction on many occasions.

Didn't think you were. My understanding is that strictly for pragmatic reasons, the Druze are happy Israel exists. Otherwise the Druze would be booted out from the mountains, etc...

For some reason, Google Adsense serves up advertisements for Willie Nelson when you visit that LGF page on LaRouche.

re: #174 _RememberTonyC

Thanks MikeAlv77 ... it was meant as a complement to those who follow the religion that featured the "Prince of Peace." If some find that offensive, that is a shame.

I follow that religion and I appreciate the complement... It is one of the last prejudices that can be used. Was watching The Closer on TNT last night. The father of some murdered guy was a... Christian conservative whacko who keeps his wife scared and silent... The chrsitian is always shown as the bad person. usually not any other religion... My wife and I both commented on it and just laughed that its expected in hollywood.

re: #181 Charles

From August 2005: LaRouche Lunatics Act Up.

It seems to me that their POV is gonna' be the opposite of whoever is in the White House.

re: #176 Occasional Reader

Every once in a while I see them outside Union Station, handing out their flyers or pamphlets.

re: #173 Killgore Trout

Richard Young . Ron Paul!

re: #168 ArchangelMichael

Lyndon Larouche is basically Alex Jones but within politics rather than the outside looking in. He's Ron Paul when the cameras are turned off. The only reason he runs on the "left" side of politics is that when he went kook, Republicans were the ones in charge.

The troofer movement didn't start in the Democrat party either. It came out of kook land and was embraced by the Dems who had BDS because it fit their narrative. Larouchianism is the same shit with a different suit on.

That's the seductive danger of populism. Populists will jump on whatever issue they think will gain them power. Because of this adaptability, it's often attributed to leading towards fascism.

re: #186 Charles

For some reason, Google Adsense serves up advertisements for Willie Nelson when you visit that LGF page on LaRouche.

LaRouche was always on your mind.

re: #186 Charles

For some reason, Google Adsense serves up advertisements for Willie Nelson when you visit that LGF page on LaRouche.

Anti-tax?

re: #186 Charles

For some reason, Google Adsense serves up advertisements for Willie Nelson when you visit that LGF page on LaRouche.

The rabbit hole goes deeper than you can imagine!

re: #188 MandyManners

It seems to me that their POV is gonna' be the opposite of whoever is in the White House.

That's exactly my take on it: "oppositional."

re: #186 Charles

For some reason, Google Adsense serves up advertisements for Willie Nelson when you visit that LGF page on LaRouche.

Maybe it's confusing La ROUCHE for A ROACH!!

inhale ,,, hold ,,, exhale

repeat!

re: #186 Charles

For some reason, Google Adsense serves up advertisements for Willie Nelson when you visit that LGF page on LaRouche.

Q: What has 44 legs and 57 teeth?
A: The front row at a Willie Nelson concert.

~ducks~

re: #184 Dianna

I'm a little confused as to why we're trying to place LaRouche at all.

I made the point because there are some bloggers trying to claim that the people with that Obama-Hitler sign were Democrats. The sign comes directly from the LaRouche website.

re: #186 Charles

For some reason, Google Adsense serves up advertisements for Willie Nelson when you visit that LGF page on LaRouche.

We probably got talking about herb somewhere in the thread.

Just in case anyone is in the market for a new computer:

re: #195 zombie

That's exactly my take on it: "oppositional."

Oppositional defiant disorder! In politics!re: #198 Charles

I made the point because there are some bloggers trying to claim that the people with that Obama-Hitler sign were Democrats. The sign comes directly from the LaRouche website.

Which means it's flat nuts, not right or left.

re: #199 Noam Sayin'

We ... probably got talking about herb somewhere in the thread.

I wasn't here, yet.

re: #198 Charles

I made the point because there are some bloggers trying to claim that the people with that Obama-Hitler sign were Democrats. The sign comes directly from the LaRouche website.

So we can just say that these people are like Crazy Eddie...

Just INSANE!!!

re: #179 Silvergirl

I needed tee-vee; but I got T. Rex.

re: #195 zombie

That's exactly my take on it: "oppositional."

I bet their moms had a hard time potty-training them.

re: #186 Charles

For some reason, Google Adsense serves up advertisements for Willie Nelson when you visit that LGF page on LaRouche.

smoking weed and not paying taxes?? sounds like a larouche supporter...lol

No, the real reason is that Willie Nelson is just Queen Elizabeth's alter ego!

She puts on a pony-tail wig, and hynotizes us with songs of lonely highways.

Think about it: Have you ever seen Willie Nelson and Queen Elizabth in the same room?

re: #173 Killgore Trout

Another gun toting protester at yesterday's Obama Town Hall...
Man With Gun Arrested At Obama Event Yesterday

Um. A pocket knife? Walking around with a pocket knife "hours before Obama's arrival" gets you arrested, searched, your car searched, an "unlicensed" gun confiscated, and you're "investigated"? What if it had been licensed? Same deal?

What condition was the gun in? Loaded, unloaded? Rifle, handgun, scatter? Doesn't matter?

Remind me not to take my Swiss Army knife anywhere near Washington, mmkay?

re: #203 MikeAlv77

So we can just say that these people are like Crazy Eddie...

Just INSANE!!!

But nobody beats The Wiz!

re: #201 Dianna

Which means it's flat nuts, not right or left.

Again, it's much more right than left. Go look at what the LaRouche website is currently promoting.

re: #208 zombie

He's never had a command performance?

re: #184 Dianna

I'm a little confused as to why we're trying to place LaRouche at all. He's a raving conspiracist, yes; he's a collectivist, yes; but he doesn't advocate a communitarian style of collectivism, instead advancing an equalitarian, redistributive and technical collectivism.

I have no idea where to place him.

I define Left as Collectivist, Right as Capitalist, Top as Authoritarian, and Bottom as Anarchism. I'd guess he's somewhere on the Bottom-Left.

re: #191 Sharmuta

That's the seductive danger of populism. Populists will jump on whatever issue they think will gain them power. Because of this adaptability, it's often attributed to leading towards fascism.

Well, insofar as fascist movements are populist in the sense of being deeply nationalist (often) and trading on resentment in their initial stages, populism is deeply amenable to being co-opted by fascist movements.

As a curious aside, Lyndon LaRouche co-authored a book smearing Milton Friedman as a fascist, with David P. Goldman, the man behind the no-longer pseudonymous Spengler of Asia Times.

I believe I read that he thought of his LaRouche days in the context of experimentation with left-wing dogmas, though I can't find the exact quote right now and it's a bit blurry in my head. I'm not touting this as proof that LaRouchism belongs with the Left, but merely as an example of how confused people who self-identify with these bizarre movements are because such quackery defies categorization. Labeling it either right- or left-wing sounds arbitrary.

re: #205 buzzsawmonkey

Whatever it is, I'm against it.

I love it!

re: #47 Charles

Again, I have to express my regrets, because I won't be jumping on the latest right-wing blog bandwagon, and getting all faux outraged about the little girl who asked a question at Obama's town hall, just because her mother has worked for the Democratic Party.

Am I supposed to think it's outrageous that a Democrat would bring her daughter to a town hall event for Barack Obama now? I'd bet that a lot of the people at that meeting were activists for one side or the other.

The outrage is silly.

As a aside, I have a friend that voted for Mccain that asked me to take her to see Obama at the Naval Academy graduation. She was not that big a fan obviously , but she wanted to say she's seen a President speak live. I thought that was kind of a cool American thing to do since I'd gone to see GW myself.
BTW, both gave great speeches to the Mids.

re: #205 buzzsawmonkey

Whatever it is, I'm against it.

See comment #180 above!

re: #186 Charles

Willie is pretty nutty himself. He's a 9/11 truther and he's against genetically modified foods.

re: #211 Charles

Again, it's much more right than left. Go look at what the LaRouche website is currently promoting.

I try to pick up their hand-outs at least once a year. It's always about the economic collapse that's happening right now but being covered up.

If I go to their site, am I going to get malwared, or just spammed?

Got a few minutes to kill, whats up Lizards

re: #208 zombie

No, the real reason is that Willie Nelson is just Queen Elizabeth's alter ego!

She puts on a pony-tail wig, and hynotizes us with songs of lonely highways.

Think about it: Have you ever seen Willie Nelson and Queen Elizabth in the same room?

Not to mention, "Willie's" promotion of pot is of course to plump a gateway drug to WHAT OTHER NARCOTIC?

We're through the looking glass here, people!

Krauthammer on Hillary Clinton’s irate response to the mistranslated question in the Congo:

She lost it. It was not a real good moment. In part, I'm sure it was because she thought she was being treated as an appendage of her husband.

But I think part of it is also the venue. Here you have Richard Holbrooke running Afghanistan and Pakistan — the heart of our troubles in Asia. You have George Mitchell in the Middle East. You have envoys here and there, and she is the secretary of state, and she's sitting in the Congo, in the Congo?

You've got Petraeus running Afghanistan. You've got Odierno running Iraq. She is totally marginalized, sitting in Kinshasa. I'm sure it is a great city — in fact, it's not — but the Congo? Africa is very low on the scale of important interests of the United States.

She was supposed to be the president of the United States at this point. She was going to be queen of the world. Instead, Obama bestrides the world. He gives speeches in the great capitals, in Cairo — and she is in the Congo! You'd be upset, also.

re: #186 Charles

For some reason, Google Adsense serves up advertisements for Willie Nelson when you visit that LGF page on LaRouche.

Pro-weed?

re: #209 Cato the Elder
Man arrested before Obama event had loaded gun

Richard Terry Young, 62, of (XXX_ Redacted) . in Hampton, was arrested around 9:40 a.m., hours before Obama's arrival, and charged with the misdemeanor crimes of criminal trespass and carrying a loaded pistol without a license.

Young was found inside Portsmouth High School, where Obama later in the day held his town hall-style forum. Young was detained by the Secret Service and subsequently arrested by Portsmouth Lt. Corey MacDonald. Young was carrying a pocket knife, police said. A subsequent search of his vehicle, parked on school property, revealed a loaded hand gun, police said.

Police said Young is being investigated by the Secret Service for possible federal crimes resulting from the same series of events.

re: #222 Occasional Reader

Not to mention, "Willie's" promotion of pot is of course to plump a gateway drug to WHAT OTHER NARCOTIC?

We're through the looking glass here, people!

Doritios, Hot pockets and Cheetos

re: #219 Mad Al-Jaffee

Willie is pretty nutty himself. He's a 9/11 truther and he's against genetically modified foods.

Then he must be frantic, because every single thing we eat is genetically modified by selective breeding.

re: #211 Charles

Again, it's much more right than left. Go look at what the LaRouche website is currently promoting.

He hits me more of an opportunist. If the Dems like him, then he's left, if he can appeal to the right, he goes there. Now he gets more play from the right so he pushes it...

re: #68 esch

Well, it's the old mist in a cloud argument. The entire audience was a plant, so it's no surprise to me. She seemed sincere, so I doubt there's anything nefarious there.

O can't take criticism or tough questions. So they have to shield him from it to prevent 'stupidly' moments. Didn't he answer questions the other day wearing an earpiece?

The audience was picked by lottery unless you have proof otherwise. I think he was smart to ask for a few tough questions after not getting many.

A "pocket knife" might mean a little 2-inch knife you hang on your keychain, or it could mean something like this:

[Link: www.amazon.com...]

re: #226 saberry0530

Doritios, Hot pockets and Cheetos

Sounds like you're describing the diet of a professional IT person... add Mt. Dew, and you have the food pyramid.

/not that I would know anything about that.

//who am I kidding, yes I would.

re: #221 Kragar (proud to be kafir)

Got a few minutes to kill, whats up Lizards

Do you fritter?

re: #177 irish rose

Good afternoon, lizards.
It looks like some semblence of civility has been restored to the DT's.. thank goodness.

OT but I have a chuckle for ya... sent to me from my Marine son who is stationed at Miramar, and maintains the computer systems on our F18's:

LOL!
I LOVE IT!

re: #214 iceweasel

Well, insofar as fascist movements are populist in the sense of being deeply nationalist (often) and trading on resentment in their initial stages, populism is deeply amenable to being co-opted by fascist movements.

True- which again makes me leery of populism even when it's a legitimate movement. I think the tea parties are a great example. Although they had been started years ago by ron paul, most people had no idea and wanted to exercise their rights. But now the fascists really have latched on, and the movement is losing steam.

re: #225 Killgore Trout

Well then if it was in his car he wasn't "carrying" it.

Either this guy is the stupidest would-be assassin ever, or he's just a 62-year-old with a pocket knife.

re: #230 Charles

A "pocket knife" might mean a little 2-inch knife you hang on your keychain, or it could mean something like this:

[Link: www.amazon.com...]

Or it could mean he was just happy to see him.

/rimshot.

re: #232 MandyManners

Do you fritter?

Youtube Video

I can frit with the best of them

re: #226 saberry0530

Doritios, Hot pockets and Cheetos

You forgot Mountain Dew.

re: #231 MrSilverDragon

Up ding for the forgotten Dew refer.

re: #177 irish rose

Thank you for that. Sounds just like my Marine Corps!

As for Michael J. Totten, if those who award the Pulitzer Prize were not a pack of leftist poltroons, Mr. Totten would have been awarded one a long time ago.

re: #230 Charles

A "pocket knife" might mean a little 2-inch knife you hang on your keychain, or it could mean something like this:

[Link: www.amazon.com...]

True, but if that's what they found, they probably would have mentioned it.

re: #230 Charles

A "pocket knife" might mean a little 2-inch knife you hang on your keychain, or it could mean something like this:

[Link: www.amazon.com...]

The fact that he was suspicious enough to investigate tells me that something was up. The fact that they found a gun in his car leads me to believe they were right to be suspicious.

re: #230 Charles

Yikes!

That is not what I think of when I read "pocket knife"!

Though I've lived places where it would have come in handy.

re: #230 Charles

Australian: You call that a knife? This is a knife!

Bart: That's not a knife, that's a spoon.

Australian: Alright, alright, you win. I see you've played knifey-spoony before.

re: #237 Kragar (proud to be kafir)

I can frit with the best of them

Do you fret that you frit too much?

re: #230 Charles

A "pocket knife" might mean a little 2-inch knife you hang on your keychain, or it could mean something like this:

[Link: www.amazon.com...]

Randomest thing in the world. That pocket-knife is what my lil' sister in Albania wanted me to bring her from the U.S. She'll get her gift in September.

re: #230 Charles

A "pocket knife" might mean a little 2-inch knife you hang on your keychain, or it could mean something like this:

[Link: www.amazon.com...]

Now THAT'S a knife!

re: #247 medaura18586

That very same model from Amazon...

re: #235 Cato the Elder

Well then if it was in his car he wasn't "carrying" it.

Either this guy is the stupidest would-be assassin ever, or he's just a 62-year-old with a pocket knife.

Not giving any credence to it, but it could have been that he went into the school only with the penknife in his pocket (on a keychain,, an oversight) for RECON purposes with the intnet of IF there was an opening go back to the car and get the gun

Sorry, but I prefer to NOT have guns (save the Secret Service) around my president

re: #217 avanti

As a aside, I have a friend that voted for Mccain that asked me to take her to see Obama at the Naval Academy graduation. She was not that big a fan obviously , but she wanted to say she's seen a President speak live. I thought that was kind of a cool American thing to do since I'd gone to see GW myself.
BTW, both gave great speeches to the Mids.

Obama came to our local High School Gym during the primaries for a speech..
Everybody went.. It was cool seeing all the secret Service around and the snipers on the roof...
Wish McCain would have stopped by...But heck..It was pretty neat for a small town

A knife thread? I sense the ghost of Iron Fist in the room.

re: #252 zombie

Ghost? Did he get banned?

I wish that Lyndon LaRouche
Would stop acting like a big douche
And all I can say
In a french sort of of way
Lyndon, fermez la bouche.

re: #198 Charles

I made the point because there are some bloggers trying to claim that the people with that Obama-Hitler sign were Democrats. The sign comes directly from the LaRouche website.

Correct. And it also did not originate from Republicans. The LaRouche whackjobs are not representative of anyone other than themselves. And I don't believe the people asking question in the town halls, even the screaming ones, are LaRouchians.

I think it's worth noting that the mainstream media is trumpeting the existence of these nuts because the protests are against the Democrats' policy. But they leave Zombie all alone to do all the heavy lifting during left wing protests.

re: #253 medaura18586

Ghost? Did he get banned?

I think so. I missed whatever happened, but I saw comments about it long afterward.