Gee and I thought it was the Mormons all along. How wrong I was.

There will be much suffering before this is over.

That doesn't make it any easier to take.

Let the appeasements begin........

But Islam is a religion of pieces!

Off topic but somewhat relevant
Max hastings is an idiotarian. Via Melanie Phillips

A grotesque choice - Israel's repression of the Palestinian people is fuelling a resurgence of anti-semitism

Memo to Mr. Hastings - anti Semites such as Max Hastings are responsible for anti Semitism.

Where does Abu Hafs al-Masri call home?

There won't be a salvo, Spain will pull out of Iraq and will vote the lefties in.

All for the sake of peace.

I hope you're watching, Paul. Canada isn't safe either.

Someone pointed this out on a previous thread, but "linked" to al Qaida is, in effect, al Qaida. Think "franchise", "outsourcing", etc.

I suspected as much- the ETA has nothing to gain from this. Al Queda has everything to gain from this. We may need another regime change or two. I don't see any other alternatives that have not been pursued already. This echoes the Russian subway bombing and is a clear threat to other highly congested transit systems such as NYC.

I actually had been entertaining the possibility that it was the ETA. I'm such a goose.

According to AP, al Qaeda claiming operation was called Operation Death Train

Charming.

Now that AQ has claimed credit for the massacre, how long before Chirac takes back his terrorism statement and calls it a millitant act?

This may be the opening salvo, but there have been numerous misfires.

A total of 13 bombs were planted around the capital to target morning rush-hour rail commuters.

How many actually went off?

I've been carefully checking statements made by the Spanish about homicide bombing in Israel and thus far Spain has been unqualified in its strong condemnations.

If there is something that shows Spain is sympathetic to the PA I'm like to hear about it, thanks.

#7 Sandy P

Why don't we give the Spanish the benefit of the doubt until the election, m'kay? We won't have to wait long.

#7 Sandy P.

Don't be so quick to write them off. We'll have to see how this plays out over the next few weeks.

The Sky News website in the UK has been carrying this Al Q story for at least an hour. But the BBC site still makes no mention of this claim, or the finding of a van in Madrid with detonators and an Arab tape.

How strange. The enormous BBC news operaqtion can't keep up to date ? Or is it afraid of offending the Muslims ?

It ought to be renamed -

Bloated Biased Crap-station

to zulababy-- I think 10.via drudge

#7 Sandy P.

Aznar will win, and the troops will stay for the forseeable future. The Spanish have their faults, but they aren't the French.

What's that ringing in my ears? I hear it everywhere. Too much coffee? (maybe) Or is it time for the rest of Europe to join the sane world (Bush is its leader) and do something about Islamism. Wake up Germany, France, Belgium, Canada, et al. Wake up dems.

This makes no sense at all.

First, the Europeans aren't Americans. They're better than the Americans, so much more fair and broad-minded.

Second, Islamists do not kill people, belonging to a Religion of Peace, as it were.

I'll bet you this turns out to have Bush's fingerprints all over it. He's in collusion with the Jooos, to defame the RoP.

Ok, returning to reality, I wonder if the Islamists will start targeting more European soft targets - even if just those in nations who have actually stood up to the thugs. If so, will other leaders finally begin to realize that appeasement only makes the eventual task that much more difficult?

And the big question - will world leaders continue to endorse John Effing Kerry (as he claims)?

levi from queens, thanks.

How this will play out in Spain will be telling. Will they do the right thing and help crush those that attacked them. Or will they take the route of appeasment in the hopes that they will avoid future bloodshed.

Appeasement will probably work for them because the US will continue the fight and eventually win. All the while the appeasers will launch moral attacks on us from the safety of hiding behind us. All because they are to ignorant to realize that if the US does lose they will be next.

I hope and believe that Spain will not choose this route but will choose the moral route and fight for civilization, democracy and equality in the world.

Someone page bigel. It's starting...

It didn't sound like ETA's modus operandi, which usually includes warnings before the strike.

I think Europe will rise to the challenge, unlike many crocodile-teared pessimists on this site.

See Spanish blogger, in English:

[Link: www.iberiannotes.blogspot.com...]

The most recent figures are 175 dead and 898 wounded in Madrid. Prime Minister Aznar just spoke to the country, encouraging calm and security and emphasizing that the terrorists would be defeated through legal means. There will be no military coup. If this had happened in 1979, say, there might have been at the very least a declaration of martial law. Aznar emphasized that he is in control here, as Al Haig once wisely said. Aznar, in his speech, made a reference to Franklin Roosevelt's Pearl Harbor speech, saying that March 11 was a day of infamy. Aznar explicitly referred to the "international struggle against terrorism", and made all of our feelings very clear when he said, "We will defeat them."

NO SAUDI ENTITY; NO TERROR.

#15 zulubaby

10 exploded, 3 were found and safely detonated.

----------------------
[Link: www.foxnews.com...]
A total of 10 bombs, nearly all in backpacks, exploded in a 15-minute span along nine miles of the commuter line — running from Santa Eugenia to the Madrid hub of Atocha — killing 190 people and injuring more than 1,240, Interior Minister Angel Acebes said.

Police found and detonated three other bombs.

i was talking to my wife that it had all the 'hallmarks' of AlQueda when we went to lunch today...

anniversary, multiple locations/targets, massive causualties, and relatively precice timing.

thought that the basques would have been out of their league to pull this one off... thiir biggest attack previously to day 'only' killed 20.

People on this list seem to have pretty good insights. For months they've been posting about this eventually hitting Europe. Not if or maybe, but when and probably soon. IslamoFacists don't respect weakness.

And someone posted on the earlier thread that this is exactly 2 1/2 years after 9-11 (and 1/2 of 5 years).

I hope Spain and the others who will be hit don't cower but fight back. I hope they look at GWB and not John Kerry for a role model.

I never thought I'd say I'm grateful for MSNBC, but Lester Holt has been focused on these attacks, right now he's interviewing Steve Emerson.

One thing these wastes of genetic material don't seem to understand is that while the west may be slow to react, when it does it's freaking nasty. And yes, I'm including Europe in that statement as well.

They may look inept and pacifistic, but Europe has the potential to provide a very, very nasty shock to the Islamic world, particularly in conjunction with the US.

In any case, I just wanted to add that all of this "chickens coming home to roost" crap that's been passed around today disgusts me. No one, and I repeat, no one deserves this. Spain especially. I'll be praying for all concerned, and hope that this pushes us closer to realizing what we're eventually going to have to do about this problem, and not emboldening the desire to appease.

I call upon Spain not to take any action that might hinder peace negotiations with the militants or that might continue this most unfortunate cycle of violence. Such terrorism is terrible, but Spain must be careful not to enflame the situation further. Peace, not retaliation!

How long before we hear the first cries that it's
Bush's fault? "If the evil USA hadn't invaded Iraq,
this would never have happened."

My guess is that we'll hear the first blame Bush
from the lefties before 24 hours has passed.

Call me paranoid but I think there is a connection between rising oil prices and the European 9/11. Lots of "folks" are going to be expressing themselves this election season.

gordon #28:

You love muslims even though muslims hate you. Therefore, you must hate yourself.

Never mind ...

This does appear to be the first attack in Al-Queida's European theatre and is a horrendous reminder that the Islamofacist war is against all of the West. It has nothing to do with a shitty little strip of land called Gaza, or the occupayshun.

Fortunately, they don't read much history and have chosen to go Hitler's route. Hitler ended up blowing his own bloodthirsty little brain out on his own. Many people will still lose their lives in the war against Islamic terror but I am confident they too, will blow their own brains out and the west will win. The posts I have seen in other threads have been very sympathetic to the loss of innocent lives in Spain as other places where the ROP fanatics have slaughtered young and old.

OT: An excellent article by Barbara Amiel on Antisemitism-The Plague Without a Cure

Here's a nice quote from a Canadian MP:

"Liberal MP Pat O'Brien from London, Ont., joined the bandwagon with his Commons remarks suggesting the [security] fence has created "concentration camps."

Thom, MSNBC has definitely moved on, and quickly.

#28 Gordon

Different European countries will have different reactions to terrorism in their own countries. Having your own citizens blown up tends to focus a nation's attention to it's own needs and interests.

If the gloves really have been off in the WoT, it is time to put the brass knuckles on. This should mute European/Democratic opposition for a time.
Does anyone know of any overt ways that Americans can show support for the Spanish at this time; donations, petitions, etc.?

I just find this AQ claim and the Koranic tape left in a van a bit too "hinty" towards Al-Qaida. Not that AQ wouldn't hit a European country, but... close to the elections? same materials used by ETA? ETA suggestin "Arab resistance"?

Does anyone think it could possibly still be ETA, despite the recent Al-Qaida claim?

First, they declared war on Israel...

The world did nothing.

Next, they declared war on the U.S...

The world did nothing.

Now, the MUSLIMS declared war on the world...

Bad Boys, Bad Boys, whatcha' gonna' do, whatcha' gonna do?

Isn't it time we turn these primatives into glass?

Thom-please give us a summary of Mr. Emerson's statements. Emerson is a classic anti-idiotarian of long standing. I got to meet him when he was here in Winnipeg and I was most impressed with him.

Way off topic:

heard something on fox news at lunch today...

Kofi Anan's son is implicated in the corruption called the oil for food program.

Toronto El Cubo talk radio host John Moore upon hearing that al Quaeda had claimed responsibility for the massacre: "I guess George Bush really made the world a safer place by going after Saddam Hussein, someone who had nothing to do with terrorism."

Could someone please lend this guy a clue?

All the terrorists are united to a certain degree, and I'll not be surprised if we hear that AQ were helped by ETA.

Also, I wonder how long it will take "progressive" Spaniards to start blaming their own government rather than AQ for today's attacks?

Two thoughts:

1) We need to get serious about security on our trains here in the States. They are an open target.

2) Europe, prepare for war. You have sowed appeasement of Islamic terror, you are reaping the fruits of thy labor!

This may be the first successful AQ attack on European soil (Istanbul aside - we can nitpick later), but it is not the first attempt. AQ tried to blow up a Strasbourg marketplace during Christmas 2000, among other thwarted plots.

#40 -

"Liberal MP Pat O'Brien from London, Ont., joined the bandwagon with his Commons remarks suggesting the [security] fence has created "concentration camps."

London, Ontario is 10% Muslim.

Gee, A-Q? No Sh!t. I hope the reaction by Spain is proactive.

More fun in EuroLand:

Muslim Dutch boys train to put holes in dykes

#37 David2

Try this one...it might answer your question...
and curl your hair:

[Link: www.americanthinker.com...]

Sort of not entirely OT: Transcript of new Bush Ads.

Bush-Cheney ‘04 TV: 30 "100 Days"

President Bush:I’m George W. Bush and I approve this message.

VO:A President sets his agenda for America in the first 100 days.
John Kerry’s plan:
To pay for new government spending.
Raise taxes by at least $900 billion.
On the War on Terror:
Weaken the Patriot Act used to arrest terrorists and protect America.
And he wanted to delay defending America until the United Nations approved.
John Kerry: Wrong on taxes. Wrong on defense.

If you've ever been to rural Spain, you'd know that half the small Iberian towns still celebrate "Moros y Cristianos" festivals, which ritually re-enact the re-conquest of Spain from the "Moros," or Muslims. It's a traditional, must-beloved holiday all over the country -- a bit like Guy Fawkes Day in the UK or Thanksgiving in the US. The struggle between Christianity and Islam is still fresh in the Spanish memory (and Al-Qaeda's memory too, it seems), which is one of the main reasons they're less likely to appease the terrorists. To Spain, this is reminiscent of the 8th century, when the forces of Islam conquered the whole country. Spaniards think of this every day. They will not back down now and allow another conquest. I'm sure of it.

And now will begin the agonized self-criticism in the left European press; it's because Spain supported Bush in Iraq, it's the fault of the Israelis (read: Jews), etc.

The real answer; it's because you're kuffar. You're "Crusaders". That's all the motivation they need to kill you. Stop trying to find rational cost-benefit calculations in their methods; we're dealing with a psychotic fantasy ideology.

Also: Charles, please delete #16. Thanks.

#46 Judith

90% of it was talking about al Qaeda and terrorist tactics - nothing new to lgfers.

Oddly enough, he ended the segment saying that he still had a hunch that it was ETA. I'm not sure what to make of that!

Fuckin Terrorists...

Let me at em...let me at em.....WHY I aughta.....

on a serious tone...this is just bthe beginning people...

The Algerians, Morrocans, and Tunisians in France are starting to get rev'ed up and ready for their jihad which is about to take place....VERY SHORTLY.

let me put in perspective this way...

France has roughly 54 million people or so....
The muslim population is about 5 million give or take a few hundred thousand...and growing everyday....

thats 10 percent of the population...a VERY LARGE MINORITY. There are parts of France that do not speak French anymore...

I predict that within the next month or two...France is going to have a very terrible terrror attack...on the basis of how "successful" this bombing went today...

I hope that the French government can foil the plans....but I can't really see that happening.

Let's just assume that roughly one percent of this 5 million are Jihadists....that means...FRANCE HAS 50,000 terrorists in their own borders...FESTERING and getting ready to explode!!!

Even if it were only HALF of ONE PERCENT of the MUSLIM population...that still means 25,000 wackos running around...

Keep that in mind....and pray that the French are doing the right thing....

It's not a matter of "IF"...but more a question of WHEN, WHERE and How many people will die...

I know I sound grim, but we are the beginning of something REALLY REALLY BAD.

Andrew B.

F***ING MUSLIMS

#51 Colt

You're right and there are probably many other attempts that were thwarted that we'll never hear about.

They certainly have been painstakingly laying the groundwork for attacks by using Europe as a base of operations and organizing themselves there in various cells for a very long time.

#53 FreakyBoy

Muslim Dutch boys train to put holes in dykes

There are too many jokes in that...

#44 CastorOil

Does anyone think it could possibly still be ETA, despite the recent Al-Qaida claim?

I'm kinda looking for a fatter lady to sing too...

13 bags of dynamite and no suspects yet?

#41 zulubaby

LOL, sadly. Sorry about that. :(

One thing these wastes of genetic material don't seem to understand is that while the west may be slow to react, when it does it's freaking nasty.

I sure hope you are right.

#53 Freaky Boy

Maybe you wanna rethink your headline? It souns like a buncha randy Muslims want to get with lesbians.

People may remember the earlier link between Arab terrorism and ETA - Colonel Ghadaffi helped to fund and supply arms and explosives to both ETA and the IRA.

On this sad day for Spain, at least it is now more likely that the PM will be returned in Sunday's election. So that Spain can continue to stand as part of "New Europe" against the Old Europe appeasers, France and Germany.

Colt #51:

AQ tried to blow up a Strasbourg marketplace during Christmas 2000

I believe it was a cathedral, not a marketplace?

In December 2000, four suspected al Qaeda members were arrested in Germany for plotting to blow up Strasbourg's ancient cathedral.

Link

Just got here.

Who was the first to blame the Jews for this?

In case anyone was still wondering if the U.N. would get a clue...

In quotes: Global outcry at Madrid blasts

Once again we see senseless killing of innocent people. Killing of innocent people cannot be justified regardless of the cause. I offer my deepest sympathy. I hope that the perpetrators will be brought to justice swiftly. - UN Secretary General Kofi Annan

Not hunted down and exterminated. "Brought to justice" as if the perpetrators of this massacre were guilty of parking violations. F*ck you Kofi

I really hope that Germany and France are watching VERY VERY VERY VERY closely at what happened today in Spain...

If Europe doesn't wake up soon...you know the rest...

Andrew B.

David2 #37:
I read Platts' oil industry reports, every day. The recent price rises were the result of intentional OPEC production cutbacks. I believe that the Saudis initiated this to pressure US action against increasing Shiite power in Iraq.

Both candidates will discredit themselves in the election campaign. Whoever wins will be in Congress' pocket. And Congress will be in no mood to subsidize quixotic nation-building follies in islamania. I don't post that pompadoured weasel, Cal Thomas, but yesterday he expressed concerns about the result of muslim-democracy (read: Islamofascist plebiscitory dictatorship) in Iraq. I believe that by next year at this time, Iran will control a jihad-corridor direct to Israel, and the US President - whoever - will be prisioner of the laughable "freedom" rhetoric that has spewed in the last year.

IT IS TIME FOR EVERYBODY TO STAND BACK, TAKE A LOOK AT THE BIG PICTURE, AND ASK: WHAT THE FUCK HAVE WE GOT? THEN WE NUKE MECCA.

#53 FreakyBoy

Muslim Dutch boys train to put holes in dykes

Nah, not going there...

Are we certain that this isn't just wishful thinking on the part of Al Qaeda? It wouldn't be the first time they claimed responsibility for an attack they didn't do. Remember when that plane crashed in NY just after Sept. 11--but it turned out to be mechanical failure?

Just reading this makes me totally unwilling to rule out the ETA: [Link: edition.cnn.com...]

(Unless AQ was inspired by that attempt and decided to try it for themselves.)

BTW, Did you know the ETA tried to truck-bomb the Picasso Tower (designed by the WTC architect) in Madrid in 1999?

Folks, let's take a minute and say a prayer (or have a simple moment of silence) for those who were killed in the train bombings.
...
My deepest sympathies out to the shattered families.

One thing these wastes of genetic material don't seem to understand is that while the west may be slow to react, when it does it's freaking nasty.

Sometimes, I wonder what would happen if the Islamists managed to decapitate the governments of the US, the UK, Australia, and the USA... and instead of being protected by the Kabuki dance of diplomacy and "statesmanship," had to confront the raw energy of an engaged citizenry with an intact military.

Just goes to show you...HOW FUCKING USELESS THE U.N. IS!!!!!

God..they are so fucking useless...

U.N......What is it good for....

Absolutely nothing.....

U.N.....What is ti good for.....

Absolutely NOTHING!!!!

Andrew B.

Who wants to bet we start hearing, within days, about how it's the jews' fault that the arabs have so many grievances that drive them to such 'militant' acts?

E-Mail: Attack on U.S. 90 Percent Ready

"We announce the good news for the Muslims in the world that the strike of the black wind of death, the expected strike against America, is now at its final stage — 90 percent ready — and it is coming soon, by God's will," the claim said.

(Hat tip: Thom)

Gordon:

It didn't sound like ETA's modus operandi, which usually includes warnings before the strike.

Yeah, right - they give incorrect warnings, with the wrong time or location, in an attempt to kill police bomb squads.

I believe the ETA collaborated with al-Qaeda, just as they have collaborated with the IRA and Palestinian terrorists for years. The type of explosive used was apparently identical to the stuff Basque terrorists were recently apprehended with.

#57 Occasional Reader

CHARLES: I concur; please delete #16.

#68 Occasional Reader

A BBC documentary (highly recommended, but for obvious reasons no link) on al-Qa'eda showed the video footage taped by the terrorists. The target was the marketplace (as they admitted in the interview), but it was adjacent to the cathedral - that may be the source of confusion.

I'm telling you, we did it!

#75 fat kid

Amen. A moment of silence, followed by a howling roar for vengence.

muslimPigs, it will come the day we will pay you back with all the interests.
You will be a shame in history, forever.
For one million generations you will regret all this.
Pigs are actually better than you, I will stop mixing Pigs with muslims.
You are not even intelligent as a virus.
You are just evil, a spit of the shadow. May you all be cursed forever.
You are already in hell, your sub-minds are hell, your stupidity, hatred and ignorance are hell.
You are already defeated, you are not humans.

Also from that article:

"Is it OK for you to kill our children, women, old people and youth in Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine and Kashmir? And is it forbidden to us to kill yours?" the claim asked.

Hat tip from Charles - Very nice
Hat tip from Zulubaby - Priceless

LOL. dB^)

Thom, right after the Oklahoma bombing he "guessed" it was likely Islamic extremists and he was crucified by Muslim groups for inciting racism against Muslims and he was extirpated from most press,. That is, right up until 9-11 when suddenly he was the smart boy darling prescient again. I suspect he's covering his bases so he doesn't get caught with his pants down again.

pompadoured weasel

I'm going to have to use that, Camel Prophet :-)

#83 Euskadi Ta Askatasuna

Speaking of deletions (and bannings, and posting of IP addresses ...)

#70

Yeah the U.N will bring the "perpetrators" to justice. Just like the Hague brought to justice a Serbian murderer of 10 Muslims. He got 18 years!!!!! That's 1.8 years per person!!! Makes me ill.

Story here.

A letter doesn't mean al Qaeda is involved. Wouldn't they have a lot to gain from claiming responsibility for the attack? They haven't done much to fight back since losing in both Afghanistan and Iraq. Why not claim responsibility? It would make them look like they're doing something, give heart to the lonely jihadis hiding in caves everywhere.

As to a bad side, there isn't one. Let's say the ETA is really responsible. Well, the trail of evidence will lead back to the ETA, not AQ. Let's say this causes Spain to crack down on AQ. Spain has been rounding up al Qaeda members since 9-11. This attack isn't going to cause Spain to be much more zealous about cleaning house than it already is.

I don't know. I don't see much of a reason to take AQ at its word. There's good handful of reasons to believe it's ETA (most importantly, ETA-style bombs).

Spain doesn't deserve this, no matter who is responsible. No on deserves this, but the Spanish, in particular, are good allies.

Geez....you guys all have dirty minds.

I never thought of that when I posted... ;-).

I guess there's a thin line between subtle and perverse.

#62 Colt and #73 papijoe JINX!

#83 "Euskadi Ta Askatasuna" will you please get the hell out of here and FOAD!

#83 Euskadi Ta Askatasuna

That's not appropriate.

76 V the K- please don't go there. I don't like to contemplate that scenario. (If DC gets hit Frederick will not be spared certain small inconveniences.)
However, I have no doubt that we would make them beg for mercy and then annihilate them.

It wil be very interesting to see the french muslim reaction to this, especially of the Spanish gov't comes down hard. If Aznar hangs tough on Iraq and continues to stand with the US, it will rile up the french muslims -who are already screaming about the anti-hijab law.

If Spain succumbs to the "if we leave them alone, they'll leave us alone" sentiment, europe is screwed. That will only invite more attacks. With such a high percentage of radicalized indigenous muslims, you can bet there are terror cells a'plenty just waiting for the call to start the fireworks.

The europeans have been tolerant too long to move immediately (even if they were so inclined) to stop any more attacks in the near future. I'm afraid there will be more attacks before something changes.

I'm praying for the victims and the leaders, but holding my breath.........

Who told 10,000 Joos not to ride the trains in Madrid?

So, now do they investigate in search of the bombers:

jai alai Courts or

(Dare I even say it outloud?) Mosques?

#86 zulubaby: And of course, plenty of Western LLL types believe that this is an excellent point. Chomsky and Michael Moore basically parrot this exact line, with only cosmetic changes.

CBC Radio hasn't heard that al Quaeda has claimed responsibility and is still attributing the massacre to ETA. My tax dollars at work. Doesn't anyone at the CEEB ever go on the Internet. I heard about the Islamist connection an hour ago on CFRB.

#74 Sarah

I would like to believe that Flight 587 was an accident but in my mind the jury is still out on that one. If it was a sabotage or bombing, there we had a tremendous psyops interest in attributing it to mechanical failure, both to deny al queda a victory and propaganda tool, as well as to mitigate damage to the US economy and airline industry.
If it was an accident, it was stunningly coincidental statistically.

Occasional Reader (#100)

The terrorists always get a free pass. Unless they're not Muslim, of course.

#76

In that situation, they would realize in full the meaning of the term: "Hell on Earth."

#92 john jay

A letter doesn't mean al Qaeda is involved.

The same group, the the Brigade of Abu Hafs al-Masri, claimed this in the same way they claimed the Istanbul bombings, to the same newspaper.

103 Zulubaby

The terrorists always get a free pass. Unless they're not Muslim, of course.

Non Muslim terrorists? Is there such a thing?

#98 HouTexJew:

Quién voló el buho? Quién?

(Or maybe Spaniards use "lechuza" for "owl", I'm not sure)

Charles, please delete #16, we don't need that crap here.

Glen Wishard (#80),
I agree.
It's evident to me that this is classic ETA MO, just on a larger scale (though that 1999 truck bombing would have been pretty big). I don't understand why people are saying it's not.

Zulubaby (#79)
Dear Lord. My mom is in an airplane at this very moment.

#93 FreakyBoy

I never thought of that when I posted... ;-).

Uh-huh... :-)

#94 WriterMom

LOL!

Andrew Napolitano just quoted a letter from Al-Q saying 'an imminent attack on the U.S. 90% ready to go.

Question:

Did the ETA claim responsibility in the first place?

The story on the CEEB at the top of the hour: the story about the Vancouver Canuck who broke the other hockey player's neck.

Second story: whistle blowing in the Federal Governnment.

Still waiting for an update about Madrid.

#106 Nekama

Non Muslim terrorists? Is there such a thing?

ETA...?

#112 RIP Ford

No, they specifically denied it.

#112 RIP Ford

To my knowledge the only claim of responsibility has been in Al Quds al Arabi.

#112 RIP Ford

Nope, their 'political-wing' denied it and said it was possibly the 'Arab resistance'.

Charles please delete #85 and block that idiot, thank you.

For the record-Not all Muslims are pigs.

CBC radio-4:00 pm news.

Story #1- Reaction to hockey player being suspended and hockey team being fined 250,000

Story #2-Spanish bombing.

WTF!?!

No news yet on whether or not there were any Canadian victims.

If any place or thing in Canada must be bombed by AQ (and I most sincerely hope it never happens) please let it be the CBC.

Hockey. It's just a friggin game for cyring outloud!

Excuse me while I laugh, sort of. But the French are upgrading their terror alert status. Seems they have a four stage color-coded program like we do. Of course, the LLL and the media mock Bush and Ridge for doing it. I guess now that the French do it, it will become an acceptable and prudent measure for the LLL and, of course, John Kerry.

Each stage of the French system involves a greater level of police and military presence as the risk of terror increases. Although not mentioned in the article, I believe the Fifth Stage, to be resorted to in the event of a terror attack, is to repeal the ban on the Hajib.

#115 Thom
#116 Jaffar abu Grand Vizier
#117 Colt

Thanks, that is what I thought. Interesting.

It may be time to get this old battle cry back out. "Santiago y cierra España!"

If DC gets hit Frederick will not be spared certain small inconveniences.

If it came to that, me and the boys could retreat to the farm in Michigan. I come from a long line of heavily armed hilljacks.

I don't want it to come to that either, but as a thought experiment, it is interesting.

RE: #16--

Thank you, Charles.

(Nice smoking hole there, by the way)

#106 Nekama:

Non Muslim terrorists? Is there such a thing?

Umm, you're not serious, right?

Sarah e.g. (#109)

I honestly don't believe that they'll use planes when they attack us next. I'm sure she's safe, don't worry.

[Link: www.americanthinker.com...]

The Middle East Institute (headed by ex-Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Edward Walker) is the home of one of President Bush’s fiercest critics, Joseph Wilson. Mr. Wilson was at the center of a scandal that plagued the White House when Wilson charged that the White House had leaked to columnist Robert Novak the information that Wilson’s wife was a CIA agent, thereby putatively endangering her.

Wilson has proudly declared that his goal in life is to destroy George Bush’s Presidency. It is telling that this man, who has no campaign experience, was recently hired by the Kerry campaign. Given that Wilson is also a fierce critic of Israel, the Saudis seem to have spent their money wisely.

absolutely Must read

Here's a sweet BBC story about the first mosque built in Granada in 500 years. Of course the residents of Granada had fears of Islamifascits, but that's all soothed over according to the BBC; but I'm betting it's not so fine now.

[Link: news.bbc.co.uk...]

I love Spain, always wanted to have a second home there, was glad to see them join the coalition of the willing. God bless them now. Let's just hope they don't think the lesson to be learned is to give in. I don't think they will.
BTW, does anyone know a site to express condolences?

114 Colt

ETA...?

You sure they don't do the 72-Virgins-Let's-Have-A-Wet-Dream thing?

But the French are upgrading their terror alert status. Seems they have a four stage color-coded program like we do.

In pastel colors, of course.

Their highest level is, of course,white , signifying surrender.

Did someone mention Emerson? Perhaps something from his 1860 essay on beauty iis appropriate:

"A deep man believes in miracles, waits for them, believes in magic, believes that the orator will decompose his adversary; believes that the evil eye can wither, that the heart’s blessing can heal; that love can exalt talent; can overcome all odds."

Like in 1860, we are facing evil times. The forces of oppression and evil must be faced everywhere.

#105 Colt

The same group, the the Brigade of Abu Hafs al-Masri, claimed this in the same way they claimed the Istanbul bombings, to the same newspaper.

Hm. I could certainly be wrong. I'm just being skeptical until I hear more evidence. Thanks for the historical context. I can't keep track of all the terrorist splinter groups.

As I read on another board, today is approximately 911 days after 9/11/2001...

Does Spain participate in the upkeep of Arafat? It's time Europe sent a message to him. Unless they decide to surrender. Although I don't think Spain would do so. France, maybe.

107 Occasional Reader

In the Spanish version of a Harry Potter book, they use lechuza for owl. FWIW :)

#106 Nekama

ETA, Provisional IRA, UVF, FARC, UAC, Tamil Tigers, Shining Path, Baader-Meinhoff, Red Army Faction, Aum Shinrikyo...need I go on?

Who told 10,000 Joos not to ride the trains in Madrid?

LOL! Who blew up da train? Who?

#118 Judith

If any place or thing in Canada must be bombed by AQ (and I most sincerely hope it never happens) please let it be the CBC.

Great paraphrase of Ann Coulter. After Oklahoma City she said "My only regret is that it wasn't the New York Times building".

Sask/Man LGFers and Ed- check this out!

WOCN11 CWWG 112109
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT ISSUED FOR REGIONS OF SOUTHERN MANITOBA BY ENVIRONMENT CANADA AT 3:09 PM CST THURSDAY 11 MARCH 2004.

LATEST INDICATIONS POINT TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF A SIGNIFICANT LATE WINTER STORM OVER SOUTHWESTERN SASKATCHEWAN FRIDAY EVENING. THE STORM IS EXPECTED TO INTENSIFY THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT AS IT TRACKS INTO NORTH DAKOTA BY SATURDAY MORNING. AS THIS SYSTEM MOVES ACROSS NORTH DAKOTA ALONG THE INTERNATIONAL BORDER IT IS EXPECTED TO DROP 15 TO 25 CM OF SNOW OVER MUCH OF SOUTHERN MANITOBA ON SATURDAY. VERY STRONG NORTH WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS STORM WILL GIVE BLOWING SNOW AND NEAR ZERO VISIBILITIES RESULTING IN HAZARDOUS DRIVING CONDITIONS THROUGHOUT SATURDAY.

WEATHER WARNINGS WILL LIKELY BE ISSUED ON FRIDAY AS DEVELOPMENTS PROCEED AND ARE MONITORED.

FURTHER DETAILS FOLLOW IN THE NEXT REGULAR PUBLIC FORECAST AT 4.00 PM CST.

#118 Judith

The CEEB has its priorities. It finally got to Madrid right before the Pig Farm story. It just got around to mentioning that al Quaeda and not ETA is responsible.

Well, I must say I am somewhat surprised to find that Islam may be behind this attack also...

Can I say at this time of great sadness for people in the Iberian penisula, that perhaps some good will come out of this horrible day....

And that being....just mayby our European cousins will awaken to the real enemy.......and that enemy is Islam........not just some abberation of this cult but ISLAM!!

And not only awaken Europe, but us also in North America!!

If you love your freedoms, whether you are a Christian (myself) or a Secularist or Jewish, then you must awaken that Islam means to take that all away from you.....

Can I just restate that I really really hate Islam....not the people that hold to such a facistic belief system but the ideology..........I do not hate Persians or Arabs or Berbers who have had the sad experience to have been born into this cult but I do hate Islam....

As one who has followed this relig......er........murderous cult for over 20 years, I do feel vindicated in the sense that people are being awakened to its terrorists ways .......... but we still have much work to do.........Until people actually fully are aware that Islam is INHERENTLY violent and brutal to its core, we will continue to have to sound the trumpet...

Islam, like its cousins, Marxism and Nazism, deserves to be thrown into the Dustbin of History....

It is a 1400 year cancer upon the world.........and its first victims are Muslims...

Please visit the brave ex muslims at...

www.faithfreedom.org

Thanks

Devon in Cowtown

"The killing of innocent people cannot be justified regardless of the cause."

~ Secretary-General Kofi Annan

Only G-d knows how much I despise this man. Fucking hypocrite.

Today is exactly 912 days from 9/11/01.

Meanwhile CNN has this security analyst on earlier this afternoon by the name of Steiner, who swore black was white that it was ETA and couldn't be Al-Qaeda. So now we find out it is an Al-Qaeda franchise. BTW "al-Masri" means "the Egyptian" so this Haif guy is Egyptian.

Why do I think we'll end up finding out Arafat is behind a lot of this stuff? I don't know but the moment I saw the first tower in flames on 9-11 and wondered who was responsible I thought of the Palestinians.

Someday I think we may find they have more to do with all this evil than we suspected, even though Al-Qaeda was the school that taught them everything they know.

As I read on another board, today is approximately 911 days after 9/11/2001...

I think it's actually 912 days, but within 1/10 of a percent.....yikes

141 Lawrence Schmerel

Is the time differnce between EST and Madrid time factored in to that? Or are the b*stards just really bad at math?

To the Dunderheads who insist on asserting that the heinous attacks in Madrid mean that, by going after Al Qaeda, George Bush has made the world a more dangerous place, I've got a great analogy (very simple so that you won't be unduly addled by the concept) for you:

Let's say someone has a condition for which the known treatment is antibiotics. While antibiotics work very well at combating infections and other maladies, they tend to make the condition worse before curing it altogether. Does this negate the value of the treatment?

Of course not. Perhaps the War on Terror does incite some factions of Al Qaeda. But it others factions are destroyed immediately, and eventually the remaining ones are destroyed as well. Like a disease, Al Qaeda thrives on weakness, and the presence of weakness encourages its spread to areas previously unaffected. Only by treating the problem at its source, and without mercy, are each destroyed.

#140 zulubaby

Well said.

Now is this bombing going to wake people up.

- rhetorical question, sadly I already know the answer.

So, 913 days from today...

#127 Nekama

You sure they don't do the 72-Virgins-Let's-Have-A-Wet-Dream thing?

100% certain. And you can add the IRA, FARC, Vietcong, Red Brigades, Japanese Red Army and many, many others to your list.

#130 john jay

Hm. I could certainly be wrong. I'm just being skeptical until I hear more evidence. Thanks for the historical context. I can't keep track of all the terrorist splinter groups.

No problem. Just a friendly nitpick: al-Qa'eda translates to 'the base', a collection of Islamist groups. To call them splinter groups is inaccurate, though there are probably factions. There are essentially all parts of the same machine.

#140 Zulubaby

The exposure of the fraud and corruption of the UN Oil for Food program is getting closer to that wanker - I read one report that his son was involved in getting graft from Iraq - as part of the company in Switzerland he works for.

#133 JC:

In the Spanish version of a Harry Potter book, they use lechuza for owl.

Hm. I like "buho" better, because: 1) It sounds sort of onomotopaeic, and 2) "lechuza" sounds too much like "lechuga", raising the horrifying possibililty that in a Spanish burger joint you could inadvertently order a large cheeseburger, with extra owl.

Meanwhile;

European Parliament declares 3/11 to be "European Day of Victims of Terrorism". Okay. Nice declaration. So, in the words of Sean Connery from The Untouchables: What are you prepared to do?

Glen Wishard wrote:

The type of explosive used was apparently identical to the stuff Basque terrorists were recently apprehended with.

But the only source we have for that claim is the Spanish government, who immediately began blaming the ETA, even though the style of this mass murder has the stink of Al Qaeda all over it.

I take that claim about the type of explosives with a large grain of salt.

If it turns out to be A-Q, then AP and al-Reuters are going to have to stop using the t-word. I can visualize big meetings at long conference tables. What to call them? Militants? Freedom Fighters? Enthusiasts? Fans?

BTW, does anyone know a site to express condolences?

If there's a Spanish Consulate in your town you could pay your respects and sign a condolence book.

Their highest level is, of course,white , signifying surrender.

LOL! Very good.

To the none Muslim list of murderous terrorists I would like to add the Front de liberation du Quebec. They were small time on the great terrorists scales but they did murder Pierre LaPorte in 1970.

Trudeau was obviously not a true Frenchmen. He instituted martial law, suspended civil rights and brought in the troops, and arrested anyone remotely associated with Quebec separatism. When asked how far he was prepared to go, he replied

"You just watch me."

Memo to Paul Martin: Please read up on Trudeau's reaction to the FLQ.

In a very sick yet real sense, the extreme bloodshed caused by Islamist attacks will be thier ultimate undoing. That is the good news for civilization. As someone pointed out, the biggest ETA toll was 20, a tragedy, but more likely to cause poeple to be angry at the government as much as the terrorists.

Remember the 1st World Trade Center attack? Not quite big enough to firm people to the grisly business required to exterminate these insects. Buckets of blood beyond a certain threshold tend to shock the system of even the most liberal of hearts.

The bad news is that the threshold will move upward even further. Today, only the most self-hating human being can blame anyone but the perpitrator of this massacre. Putting this bloodbath in the "context" of the US deposing of Hussain, or anything else that these little pea-brains can think of, is the second greatest evil perpetrated on this day.

#151 Charles

There's also the possibility that ETA provided AQ with the explosives.

# 24 aFriend

Ok, returning to reality, I wonder if the Islamists will start targeting more European soft targets - even if just those in nations who have actually stood up to the thugs. If so, will other leaders finally begin to realize that appeasement only makes the eventual task that much more difficult?

Israel Radio just reported that in addition to taking 'credit' for today's murders, al-Qaeda also said that it has just about completed preparations for another attack in the US.

Maybe Kerry can arrest them first.

/sarcasm

# 35 Kofi Anan

LOL.

# 98 HouTexJew

I don't think there are 10,000 Jews in all of Spain. I was in Madrid (and Toledo, Cordoba and Grenada) three years ago and the Jewish community there is quite small.

#151 Charles

Regardless of who ultimately is found to be responsible, they would have acquired their explosives locally, possibly with local help from the ETA. Al-Qaeda and its offshoots have access to more funds than does ETA. I think that an informal collaberation between ETA and al Qaeda is a real possibility.

SBR (#102)

I haven't researched flight 587, but I'm not prepared to accept conspiracy theories about it, you know? It's possible, and I certainly wondered at the time. For one thing, though, I highly doubt AQ would have gone to all that trouble to let the US take their glory from them. They would have gloated, and released detailed information about how they did it, and painted murals and stuff.

As for statistics, the fact that four planes crashed recently (due to terrorism) doesn't have any bearing on the chances of other planes to crash. That's the Gambler's fallacy--if you flip a quarter and it lands 'heads' 500 times in a row, the chances are still 50/50 on the next throw.

Zulubaby (#124)

Thanks, you're right, of course. I know I shouldn't worry logically, but sometimes my heart doesn't listen to my brain.

First things first ... this is absolutely appaling, just like all terrorist attacks.

The terrorists probably hope that the attack will cause people to elect a more appeasenik political party. It is plausible. When Bali happened, a lot of people blamed Howard and his support of Bush with regards to Iraq - and this was before the war took place! As far as I can tell though, terrorist attacks just before elections backfire (Israel is the only case I can think of though).

There's another disturbing thing about this attack. Previously, the terrorists were more and more doing attacks in Islam's heartland. September 11 happened in a majority non-Muslim country. Then there was Bali, an attack in a majority Muslim country but in a majority non-Muslim area. Then there was Jakarta, Turkey, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, etc., terrorist attacks happening in mainly Muslim areas. (I know pre-1967 Israel isn't majority-Muslim, but the terrorists come from "Palestine", which is majority-Muslim) This attack in Spain is bucking this trend (I know Spain or parts of it (I'm not sure) were once Dar-Al-Islam, but I don't think that means that this attack isn't bucking the trend)

Sarah e.g. (#159)

I understand. My brothers tease me that I worry if I have nothing to worry about :-) Your mom is safe, she really is.

It's actually only 911 days and change.

My theory is proving itself to be a possibility.

I believe that this was possibly a coordinated/cooperative effort between more than one terrorist group. I believe the ETA knew about the attack but that al-Qaeda provided the brains of the operation so-to-speak. I also theorize that the bomb threats in France, purportedly made by the AZF, were to distract attention while also giving a "warning/clue" about the attacks that occurred in Spain.

I may be way off, but it seems like an ok theory.

# 118 Judith

We can tell you're in Winnipeg and not in Montreal or Boston. Hockey is life :-)

OT, and apoogies if this has been posted elsewhere...
----------LGF gets ted rall fired----------

"But, that's not the main point. The three bloggers Rall identifies as having urged their readers to write emails, Radley Balko at The Agitator (who encouraged his readers to write to Yahoo by the way, not the NYT), Sullivan at the Daily Dish (who didn't encourage his readers to write any emails at all in the post cited), & Charles Johnson at Little Green Footballs (which isn't mentioned by name for some reason) all made their posts back in 2002. Yes, you're reading that right. Apparently, Rall is claiming that emails generated by warbloggers back in 2002 got him fired in 2004 =D."

from
right wing news

#35 Kofi Anan

LOL! The hypocrasy is astounding isn't it! Good post, very funny!

bad elvin (#165)

You just made my day :-)

#153 Dirk Diggler

I just sent a note to the local consulate
Here are some contacts.

I agree, it's possible the ETA collaborated with Islamozoids. The Basque spokesman's reference to "the Arab resistance" really raised my antenna.

I'm just saying that the initial reports about the type of explosives made the meter on my BS detector quiver.

Quotes from official statement of demads of the FLQ Octobre 6, 1970:

The Front de liberation du Quebec supports unconditionally the American blacks and those of Africa, the liberation movements of Latin America, of Palestine, and of Asia, the revolutionary Catholics of Northern Ireland and all those who fight for their freedom, their independence, and their dignity.

The Front de liberation du Quebec wants to salute the Cuban and Algerian people who are heroically fighting against imperialism and colonialism in all its forms, for a just society where man's exploitation by man is banished.

The more things change the more they stay the same.

clarification: by 911 and change I mean, I believe that the numerology was intentional and part of the message.

#44 CastorOil

I aggree with you. It's still ETA, I think. Why?

- The electoral timing. This is an internal Spanish political thing. Al Queida does not know about elections does it.

- The materials used, the modus operandi, the previous attempts from December up to a couple of weeks ago that were stopped by the police, all the captured police intelligence pointing to ETA prior to today.

- The immediate finger pointing by Otegi (ETA's PR man) to "The Arab Resistance" Note the wording. Do you detect some sympathy between assasins there?

- As you say, the abandoned Koran etc seem too "tidy".

What I think is becoming more probable is that ETA may have collaborated, even outsorced the unpleasant stuff to Al Quaida. After all, the ETA operatives are too busy spending the money they get from their extorsion operations and from their friends in the Basque regional government to risk getting their hands dirty.

#165 bad elvin 3/11/2004 02:27PM PST

That is the first good news I've heard today!

Charles should be full of pride! And we should be proud of our Lizard Master!

Go, ahead Charles, buy yourself a new wheelset!

Carl- and it's not even playoff season!

B'nai Brith just announced another serious rise in anti-Semitism in Canada.

#169 Charles

ETA al-Qaeda links go back a while...

Eta has Stinger missiles bought from Bin Laden

It's an al-Ghardyan link, so make sure everyone has your bucket of salt handy.

Must have been those pesky Presbyterian terrorists ,yet once again.

You know what? In the French news they said 'terrorists', not activists.
And they were really sympathetic to the Spanish.

bad elvin (#165)

Fabulous news in an otherwise horrendous news day.

SPANISH CONSULATES IN THE UNITED STATES

Email addresses for consulates, in case anyone else would like to express their condolences to the people of Madrid, thank Spain and Mr. Anzar for their friendship and alliance, etc.

RE: 911 days since 9/11. Anyone figured this out yet?

I was wondering if they forgot that there was a leap year or something...

I mean, they do use a different calender than we do...

What I think is becoming more probable is that ETA may have collaborated, even outsorced the unpleasant stuff to Al Quaida.

More jobs lost to outsourcing

#158 Jaffar

Best theory I've heard yet.

I mean, they do use a different calender than we do...

It's more like, they live in a different century than
we do.

#153, my town is NYC and I'll get over to sign the condolence book, but internet signings are somehow more immediate, and more accessible to the citizens of those for whom the condolences are meant.

Al Qaeada doesn't usually take credit for things. The fact that it, or someone trying to speak on its behalf, is claiming credit is a sign that it's getting desparate, ie it's been taking major hits.

#175 Jaffar etc.: From your link:

t was unclear how the Stinger missiles, originally given to Bin Laden by the CIA when his group was fighting the Russians,

I recall that reaganite once commented that the 1980s-era Stingers that the CIA provided to the mujahedin were probably useless now, since they had been deliberately designed with a short shelf-life. So the Company boys were thinking ahead a bit, it seems.

Now that we have yet another reminder of the brutal nature of terrorists, let us all ask ourselves this question:

Who d'ya think would be better at fighting these scumbags? George "Bring it On" Bush, or John "Call the UN" Kerry?

I know who I'm voting for. How about you?

Forgive me for such an ignorant question...but isn't Spain 9 hours ahead? Or is it 9 hours behind? If it is 9 hours ahead that would have made the attack "last night" for the US and that would have been 911 days, correct?

Either way, it is interesting and seems intentional.

#186 Occasional Reader

True about the half-life of the Stingers, but it's fascinating that a quasi-Marxist nationalist terror group like ETA can work hand in glove with al-Qaeda. Anytime I hear/see/read some terrorism 'expert' claim that radically differnet terror groups won't or can't work together, I taste bile.

#188 CuriousGeorge

Yes, their time zone is ahead of ours. I'm not sure on the 9 hours, though. Then again it depends on which time zone you are in...

#189 Jaffar: I mean, of course an islamist group wouldn't work with an atheistic bunch like ETA! Why, that would be like... I dunno... as if Hitler and Stalin got together and signed some sort of "non-aggression pact"! Preposterous!

#188 Curious George: Spain is 6 hours ahead of US Eastern Standard Time.

#72 Sarah & #102 SBR:

I would like to believe that Flight 587 was an accident but in my mind the jury is still out on that one. If it was a sabotage or bombing, there we had a tremendous psyops interest in attributing it to mechanical failure, both to deny al queda a victory and propaganda tool, as well as to mitigate damage to the US economy and airline industry.

Sorry, but there's no fire from whence that smoke comes.

In September 2002 Vanity Fair magazine wrote and indepth article on the crash of flight 587, and I went on to discuss that article with my brother Dan, a commercial pilot (CRJs). In the article, a pattern of malfunctions tied to Airbus model A300-600 (American 587 was this model) which were known to expereience serious problems with tail control in high turbulence situations. Flight 587 had experienced this phenomena at least twice prior to it's crash, as recorded in the aircraft's mechanical log.

Other reliable sources have cited the role of wake turbulence from aircraft departing immediately prior to Flight 587 (some say it was a 747, others a 757). 757 aircraft are known to spin vortices that can flip over jets following closer than 10 miles behind. 747 aircraft spin similar-strength vortices, but aft-located aircraft are not required to maintain the same distance as with 757. An interesting paralel to this is that immediately following the Air France Concorde crash in Paris, investigators were not willing to rule out the possibility that Concorde had been adversely affected by turbulence created by the aircraft that departed before it ... a Boeing 757.

Does the possibility exist that AA 587 was brought down by Al Qaeda? A small one, but a real one does. It's a very small chance, however, for a number of reasons. I think there's too much empirical evidence out there having to do with near-catastrophic malfunction of A300 aircraft (I know several pilots who will not fly or be a passenger in that aircraft), and it doesn't seem likely that Al Qaeda would be able to commandeer an aircraft's cockpit during it's takeoff (the point in AA 587's journey at which the crash occurred), and I don't believe they'd want to hijack an aircraft that was A) full of passengers and B) those passengers were almost entirely ethnically citisens of the Dominican Republic and not Americans. Not their modus operandi.

The French, and less loudly the other members of the Airbus consortium, have denied any mechanical problem inherent to the A300, and the theories continue as to what caused its' crash, as is always the case in any aircraft disaster (both pre- and post-9/11). An interesting source of material regarding the crash of Flight 587 into Jamaica Bay off Long Island can be found in the following link:

Associated Retired Aviation Professionals

Anytime I hear/see/read some terrorism 'expert' claim that radically differnet terror groups won't or can't work together, I taste bile.

Do you feel the same when someone claims "secular" Saddam Hussein (who inserted "Allah Ahkbar" onto the Iraq flag) can't work with "Islamist" Osama Bin Laden, or that tolitarian governments of different ideologies can't work together?

Al Qaeda has made lots of threats but hasn't had a successful operation in several months. My guess, they did this operation with a little help from ETA. They are claiming credit to show their supporters and the infidels that they are still capable of terror. (So keep sending the checks, please.)
Remember that Sheikh Masood (sp?) was killed in Afghanistan a day before 9-11? I always worry after an attack like this that something even bigger is just around the corner.

#194 Andjam

Exactly. Does the phrase 'allies of convenience' not register with these fools?

Sheikh Masood

Shah Masood. Please don't mix up your Iranian Shahs with your Arabic Sheiks. (Shah Masood is a Tajik, which is a Turkish (or something) word for Persian, which is the main ethnicity (out of many different ones) of Iran)

Jaffar:

... it's fascinating that a quasi-Marxist nationalist terror group like ETA can work hand in glove with al-Qaeda.

I'd call them Marxist, not quasi-, but note that Marxist-Leninists and Islamicists have been working side by side in Palestinian terrorist organizations for years, and note how easily Yassir Arafat evolved from being a Marxist revolutionary to an Allah-pestering rug beater ("Martyrs, martyrs, martyrs, martyrs by the millions!")

Urged by Spain, UN Council Condemns ETA for Blasts

The Madrid blasts seems to have happened on 11 March, Madrid time. Factoring in the time difference between NY and Madrid, 911 days between the 2 attacks.

I don't see why eta could not have supplied the explosives. After all its alot easier to hook up with pre positioned hardware then to bring it in country.

#198 Glen Wishard

You are exactly right. Arafat was a Marxist back in the day, an Islamist now, a murdering bastard throughout.

The Spanish Justice Minister was just asked on the BBC how other nations could help stop terror in Spain, and the response was:

Stop calling ETA militants and start calling them terrorists.

Whilst my heart goes out to the Spanish people, I can't help wondering whether this Justice Minister calls the PLO militants or terrorists. If the former, maybe after today she'll start making it the latter. Or is oil still thicker than blood?

I also can't help wondering if the Spanish govt is going to insist this was ETA even if the ROPMA were involved.... what with the million plus people out on the streets of Madrid one year ago demonstrating against the USA.

Anybody have any stats on Spanish public opinion RE the USA, WOT, ME etc.?

Can Al-Qaeada count to nine hundred and eleven? Wouldn't 2 and a half infidel years be an easier anniversary?

Messages of condolence and solidarity can be sent to the following:

Spanish Embassy-2375 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W. - Washington, D.C. 20037 - Estados Unidos de América

Phone number is 202.452.0100.

#44 CastorOil

Yes, I still think it could be ETA (and it could be someone else), I'm waiting for clearer evidence to come up in the Spanish investigation.

What I find odd is that ETA is not claiming responsibility. The idea that they meant something a lot smaller and it just got out of hands is ridiculous. It's obvious who ever planned it meant a large scale massacre.

But it could be that someone in ETA (say the "new guard" of more radical youngsters) decided to act on their own and ETA washed their hands off it.

I don't know, I'm waiting for further investigation.

#116 Jaffar abu Grand Vizier

When I first heard the news about it (Israeli media) they said that some Spanish radio stations received some sort of notifications from supposedly Islamist organisations claiming responsibility for the attacks.

Athos (#149)

So he's a corrupt POS, just like his father. Massive surprise.

I wonder if they waited until after Kerry had cinched the nomination?

Mass-murder in Europe. A fine example of "Muslim talent."

Are there any pictures of Muslim populations cheering the destruction yet?

#206 the new kid

When I first heard the news about it (Israeli media) they said that some Spanish radio stations received some sort of notifications from supposedly Islamist organisations claiming responsibility for the attacks.

Do you have a link? That would seem to strengthen the claim made via email to Al Quds Al Arabi...

Condolences to the victim's families and friends; horrible. 3-11 is Spain's 9-11; will this attack be the European wake-up call in the public? I doubt it will be longer in the European media than the usual anti-Americanism (with too few exceptions).

#200: bigel

To PM Aznar & his government, which showed great courage in going against the anti-Americanism and raging Jew-hatred of his people to support us in Iraq, I send you my deepest sympathy. You are a principled and brave man.

I think there were many motivations behind Aznar's behavior.

Just a question - is it 912 days due to leap year? Would it be possible that Arabs, working with a different calendar, failed to take this into account?

Without a specific mention of the 911 days, I don't think this is a significant indicator, but still...

-BF

And so it continues. More innocent blood. More victims, more spectacular TV coverage.

This is a sign of weakness, not strength my friends. Al-Q dosen't have the chops anymore, so they collaborate with ETA, Hizbullah, FARC, whoever.

They are being hunted down, and with these antics they are surely going to cause a backlash which will set thier odious cause back ten more centuries.

*if you set a backwards culture back further, is that moving ahead?*

In any case, they couldn't possibly get any lower on the moral, cultural or darwinian scales.

I believe that they will regret having f*cked with the Spaniards. Hat tip to #56 Zombie, great post, dead on the mark.

¡ SANTIAGO Y ESPAÑA !

I've been to Madrid and I know the Atocha Station.

I live in NYC and I take the subway every day.

I will continue to take the subway.

I have no choice. Just like working people in Israel have no choice: they have to take the bus. Just like those people in Madrid: they were just going to work in the morning.

I had an after work drink today (okay two) with two New Yorkers who are *finally*, belatedly getting it. They have begun to remove the "but" from their "we are in a war. . . but."
How weirdly apropriate that people who lived through 9/11 kept their heads firmly up their asses since the liberation of Kabul, but begin to peek out when one of the great European cities get bombed.
They still "hate" Bush, and think Kerry would do a better job, but that's just because they are Democrats and must toe the line or lose their party card. I think, at least these two, were finally starting to acknowledge the situation we are.

The subway brings it home. We all take the subway.

#209 PDM 3/11/2004 03:05PM PST

Are there any pictures of Muslim populations cheering the destruction yet?

Kinda curious myself, its late in the middle east so the kiddies would be in bed. Maybe tomorrow when the news spreads regarding the AQ claim we will see some 'celebration'

Where's the West Bank Cam when you need one

Excellent Spanish blog here.

What did Aznar know, and when did he know it?

*runs for dear life*

#157 Carl in Jerusalem

I don't think there are 10,000 Jews in all of Spain. I was in Madrid (and Toledo, Cordoba and Grenada) three years ago and the Jewish community there is quite small.

You have just proven my point... someone tipped off the Joos in advance... almost none of them are in the entire country.

And didn't the Zionist foreign ministry recently announce that no Joos or Zionists had been hurt or killed in the attacks?

That Sharon of yours is a crafty one.

/tinfoil helmet off

#183 locutus

It's more like, they live in a different century than we do.

They do, actually. They live in the 15th century. The Islamic calendar uses a different numbering system than we do. They number their years as AH (after hijra) so to them it’s 1425 AH.

They are, however, not quite as civilized as 15th century Europeans.

#169 Charles

I'm just saying that the initial reports about the type of explosives made the meter on my BS detector quiver.

They were mighty quick to pin it on ETA. I'm not sure why, though. Aznar's been kicking ass and taking names for several years now - to pin a massacre like this on them would look bad for him.

But I agree, something doesn't ring true about it.

"We announce the good news for the Muslims in the world that the strike of the black wind of death, the expected strike against America, is now at its final stage — 90 percent ready — and it is coming soon, by God's will," the claim said.
September 10, 2003"

I see this elswhere about the "black wind of death"

>>>>>>>>>>>>&g t;>>>>>>>>>>>

Both the nearness of Mars and the November 2003 eclipses may have special significance in Islamic eschatology because it was prophesied that when a constant beam of light from the star (the planet Mars), shines brighter than the moon and appears in the East, it will be the time of the appearance of Imam Mahdi.
From the "Wild Horse Prophecy" -
"A signal sounded, the flag was raised, and the skillful horsemen emerged from a heated, desert sun..."

Has The Banner Been Raised?
We will send down on them signs from the sky, and their necks will remain bent submissively to them. (XXVI 4)
...The chest and face of man will appear in the centre of the sun, who will be recognized by his standing and genealogy

A prophecy in ancient Islamic tradition (usul) indicates a black wind (huayra yana) will rise up at the beginning of "The Day" [of judgment] and then a great earthquake will shake the land so much that it will almost be swallowed up; "before the one who will arise (al-qa'im), there will be red death and white death; there will be locusts at their usual time and at their unusual time like the colours of blood. As for red death that is (from) the sword, while white death is (from) plague." (1)

[Link: www.stevequayle.com...]

#45 Bubbaman.

Thank you. I concur wholeheartedly.

165 bad elvin

It would appear congratulations are in order. Congrats Charles and lgf'ers and of course, et al. ;)

#219: bigel

I agree 100%! If the day were not so tragic, this would be a reason to slamdunk a Früh Kölsch. I will refrain from doing so in respect of the victims.

A photo of a statement issued by Al-Quds an Arabic newspaper, faxed to the Associated Press, making a claim of responsibility which it received Thursday, March 11, 2004 for the Madrid train bombings, issued by The Brigade of Abu Hafs al-Masri in the name of al Qaida. The claim received by email at the paper's London offices said the brigade's 'death squad' had penetrated 'one of the pillars of the crusade alliance, Spain'. The claim said: 'This is part of settling old accounts with Spain, the crusader, and America's ally in its war against Islam.

#54 Kestrel
Thanks.
"The Saudi War on George Bush" is an excellent article. And chilling.

#56 Zombie
Also, it wont hurt to re-read this:
The Real History of the Crusades By Thomas F. Madden Article 01 April 2002
[Link: www.crisismagazine.com...]

"For starters, the Crusades to the East were in every way defensive wars. They were a direct response to Muslim aggression—an attempt to turn back or defend against Muslim conquests of Christian lands. . . .

"Islam was born in war and grew the same way. . . .

"But, in traditional Islam, Christian and Jewish states must be destroyed and their lands conquered. . . .

"With enormous energy, the warriors of Islam struck out against the Christians shortly after Mohammed’s death. They were extremely successful. Palestine, Syria, and Egypt—once the most heavily Christian areas in the world—quickly succumbed. By the eighth century, Muslim armies had conquered all of Christian North Africa and Spain. In the eleventh century, the Seljuk Turks conquered Asia Minor (modern Turkey), which had been Christian since the time of St. Paul. The old Roman Empire, known to modern historians as the Byzantine Empire, was reduced to little more than Greece. In desperation, the emperor in Constantinople sent word to the Christians of western Europe asking them to aid their brothers and sisters in the East. . . ."

#79 Zulubaby
Thanks for link. And thanks to Thom. Note - "one of the pillars of the crusade alliance, Spain"

I will just refer you all to these very prophetic words of wisdom from an Israeli girl who lost her mom and infant daughter in a bombing two years ago."Your Next Buddies".She knew then what Europe and the rest of the world is now finding out about the true pure evil nature of the Islamic terrorists [Link: www.jayreding.com...]

#213 Martel-Sobieski

This is a sign of weakness, not strength my friends. Al-Q dosen't have the chops anymore, so they collaborate with ETA, Hizbullah, FARC, whoever.

You're wrong. Al Qaida to begin with tries to be a sort of "umbrella organization" that works with a network of international Islamist terrorist organizations. The link with ETA though, if exists, is only opportunism and not ideological.

At the end of the day, the muslims are not even a half step closer to re-taking Spain, or whatever they choose to call it.

And they have accomplished nothing else.

CBC talking head Bill Cameron queries Spanish official about today's attack, asks if ETA might have planted Arab stuff in van to make it look like al Quaea's handiwork. Spanish guy concurs that it very well may have happened that way.

RIIIIIIIGHT!

re: the explosives

If the "dynamite" being used is a commercial product then it really does not say much about the connection. They probably get what they can.

If it is homemade then it may well say something. I doubt that any group could clandestinely make make dynamite without some work accidents, the stuff is just too touchy. Lots of folks in the newsmedia call any explosive 'dynamite" just like they call excavators and loaders "bulldozers".

ABC news people showed the stuff that was found in bags and cartridges which means it's most likely an AN based product. If so, it is probably one of the most widely available commercial explosive - so no real smoking gun.

today someone's mother father brother husband wife son or daughter got up , had breakfast get on a train go abut his daily affairs, and died horribly horribly horribly ... families where destroyed forever....
unfortunately, I know how you feel , poor people of Spain. i feel you pain. We live with this every day here in Israel.
to the familes of the dead, and all their hopes dreams, talents , and expectations that ended in a second today , my sincere and deep sadness. may their memories of your loved ones be blessed..
the only consolation the poor country of Spain may have in their time of sorrow, often denied us in Israel, is at least the sympathy and anger of the world.,,, and not a " they deserved it"as we get often here in Israel.
no one this world deserves to experience the indescribable horror of a terrorist attack. no one. and a world that says that anyone deserves this is a world that's not worth living in.

#34 Hank Scorpio :
Nobody here is gloating or suggesting that Spain deserved to suffer such an attack.

Most people are pretty sympathetic to Spain and entirely disgusted by this attack on innocent commuters.

But people here have correctly pointed out that they saw it coming. An attack on a European city was fairly inevitable given the nature of the Islamofascists.

#52 castor oil: "London, Ontario is 10% Muslim."

Excuse me, I believe London, Ontario is 1% mooslim, no matter what they like to claim.

We report. You deride.

the fabulous Wretchard

Lizzy 233

.....the only consolation the poor country of Spain may have in their time of sorrow, often denied us in Israel, is at least the sympathy and anger of the world.,,, and not a " they deserved it"as we get often here in Israel.

Unfortunately so true. But beautifully stated.

Israeli lefties among the first to condemn Spain for the terrorist attacks.

I'm just in the mood to commit suicide.

235 Pork Eating Whisky Drinker

London Ontario, is not an essential part of Canada....

let them have their own state

#233 Lizzy I say AMEN to that.

ETA - Qaeda connection -

"In November 2001, Spanish authorities arrested eight men suspected of being al-Qaeda operatives, one of whom reportedly had past links with Batasuna [ETA's political wing]."

[Link: news.bbc.co.uk...]

This is unconfirmed but someone told me that they had read that the terrorists from the Church of the Nativity takeover that Spain has gien safe haven to have been implicated with the bombers.

Darlings, there is no such thing as 'pure evil''.

Also, #10, your comment contradicts itself.

And, you really are a bunch of racists, aren't youse...?

Back from the hospital. They told me to come back tomorrow.

Local Madrid news agency reported they found seven bombs that did not go off. It is apparent that they intended to time them to blow up a whole station, just not the train. Estimated casualties would have reached 9/11 proportions.

the new kid (#238)

Don't say things like that. Are you okay?

CNN Anderson Cooper (can't stand him, but he was blaring away in my gym) stated that CNN intelligence sources have repeatedly told them that the "Brigade of Abu Hafs al-Masri" only purports to speak for al Qaeda, but does not actually do so; the implication was, they're wannabes. For what it's worth, but coming from CNN, I don't think that's much.

#243 Savoury Jesus:

And, you really are a bunch of racists, aren't youse...?

Yes, condemning islamist terrorism means that we're racists. How very sophisticated of you. Sorry, of "youse"--it's just amazing how well you manage to imitate our crude American patois! Now FOAD.

#246 Occasional Reader

GAZE works wonders on that idiotarian wanker (Savoury Jesus).

Oh, no, Jesus, please don't strangle me!

#243 Savoury Jesus

There may not be such a thing as "pure" evil, darling, but terrorist groups, whatever their alleged "Noble cause" is: saving the whales, saving the planet, some-kind-of-national liberation movement, come pretty darn close, don'tcha think?

Darling?

And what the heck is a "Savoury Jesus", anyway? Do you spread it on toast, or make a sandwich out of it, or broil it on the barbecue?

Youse really are a ding-donged, bat-brained twit, aren't you? Go make yourself into sandwich.

#243 Savoury Jesus

Can you have a "Savoury Buddha" too, or do they just have to be vegetarian? And can you have "Edible Mohammed", or "Explodable Mohammed", or, maybe, "Yum-yum Dali Lama?"

The marketing possibilities seem endless.

/Can you spread "Savoury Jesus" on crackers?

3/11 Never forget.

God bless the victims, families, and Spain itself.

Islamists, please die. Now.

abu-Hoo-Hoo 3/11/2004 03:21PM PST

It would appear congratulations are in order. Congrats Charles and lgf'ers

I concur. The "chill wind" keeps on a-blowin', and the idiotarians are flip-floppin' around.

#125: ploome

Thanks for that article! Excellent read. The house of Fraud...

Geez so it was members of the RoPMA. Who would have thunk it?

#193 Sharona
Re: AA 587

Thanks for the informative response. I had heard the turbulence story, but your account makes it more persuasive.
The only reason I am still a bit skeptical is the fact that BOTH engines broke off the aircraft in midair. From what I have read, this has never happened before in the history of commerical aviation. This would seem to provide evidence of sabotage. Correct me if I'm wrong about that.
Also, from the blackbox transcript, there were supposedly two "bangs" I think, an initial one and a very loud one.
The point I'm making is, it doesn't seem like the rudder broke off then the plane crashed due to being out of control. It seems that the thing literally broke up in midair.
If you have any more comments on this I would like to know, to put this matter to rest.

Just one more lesson: If you let Arabs or Moslems in, you are joined by terror. The only way to be relatively free of terror is to eliminate Moslems from civilized countries.

ATTENTION ALL NYC AREA LGF'ERS

Tomorrow, Friday March 12, 2004 there will be a "silent ceremony to condemn the attacks of March 11th" at the Cervantes Institute 211 East 49th Street, Manhattan.

As posted by Amy in the Sympathy thread, it is important that as many as can attend do so, to further evidence our solidarity in the WoT.

I remember Spains sympathy and support of us on 9/11.

Time is 1:00PM

I guess Mr. Baruch Goldstein was perfectly right...

How much longer untill the LLL starts saying that the Mossad (ie Jews and Israel) caused the bombings in Spain to make people sympathetic to the Zionists... just like 9-11?

Sorry, but if asomeone here really thinks that a statement by "Abu Hafs al-Masri" is credible it is time for a reality check.

"Abu Hafs al-Masri" probably only exists as a "cybergroup", claiming responsibility to get attention. They even climed responibility for the NYC blackout a few months ago.

#260 Pakistani - They carried out the Istanbul bombings.

Storey is very simple !
US were helped by Al-Q and,
Al-Q were helped by ETA.
In short, CIA's Master plan (started from sep-11) is really on its climax now.
Enjoy it.

Just somehow create proof of Al-Qaeda's invovement. Don't slow down your struggle. Keep saying it's al-Qaeda and attack on syria now. Kill them all. Declear the crudase and be unite.

P. Heng -

China helped Pakistan obtain nukes, which in turn engaged in massive proliferation through out the Islamic world.

So (unless you forgot the "sarcasm" tag), kindly FOAD.

#263 -

t somehow create proof of Al-Qaeda's invovement.

Like the fact that they've ACTUALLY DECLARED RESPONSIBILITY FOR IT ALREADY?

Asswipe.

Go bow to your idol in Makkah already.

#263 Raju - was that a hit&run or would you like to tell the west how to solve terrorism?

500 bonus point if you don't mention Israel, the Jews or Zionist entity etc.

Frank IBC

Go bow to your idol in Makkah already

Muslims don't have idols. They do not bow down to idols. Therefore, I'm led to believe the kabaah does not exist ;)

Charles -

Are #260, #261, and #262 the same?

#266 Smit -

And also they don't worship Muhammad, even though they're required to utter his name at least 20 times a day.

Declear the crudase and be unite.

I hereby nominate this as an official LGF slogan. Charles, please consider including this in your rotating roster of mini-messages (along with, e.g., "don't indiscriminately go wild!").

Frank - I think the cognitive dissonance of believing:

the CIA is the brains behind everything and yet is incredibly inept,

that you can bow down five times a day towards a special rock and yet not be an idolater,

that the Jews are more powerful than everybody else put together, but only have a tiny country to show for it

is part of what is causing Islamic rage {for want of a better term}.

#269 Occasional Reader

I'm with you! That immortal line should be our official slogan! I love it!

#263 Raju

What the heck is a "Crudase" anyway? is it anything like a "Savoury Jesus", and is it good to eat?

Smit -

Sort of like GW Bush, the diabolically conniving moron that drives them up the wall.

#271 TalkinKamel:

and is it good to eat?

It certainly sounds like it. "Crudase"... "crudités"; coincidence? "Garcon, je prend les crudases, s'il vous plait."

Served with Grey Poupon Mustard Gas

C'mon guys, we shouldn't mock people who can't spell or punctuate. Next thing you'll be demanding that they form a coherent sentence with a logical point, and maybe related clauses.

Where will it end? You'll end up demanding they provide proof to back up their statements, and then the terrorists will have won.

;)

Frank IBC (#274),

LOL!

(I don't say that every time I Laugh Out Loud at your jokes, cuz my fingers would get tired from all the typing.)

Smit, you too.

Cheers Geepers, but we all bow before V the K {damn him}

Declear the crudase and be unite.

Now you guys, that's pretty good advice, really.

Don't worry guys, take it easy meantime.
We are not having our WMD for 'display only'. Let the situation a bit more suitable for us , then we will create about 57 Hiroshima for these 57 mooslim states, Ops - - - - 57 axis of evil.

#37 David2 3/11/2004 01:36PM PST

Call me paranoid but I think there is a connection between rising oil prices and the European 9/11. Lots of "folks" are going to be expressing themselves this election season.

Some interesting thoughts along those lines

As far the the numerology goes, it's the following:

From: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 08:45:00
to: Thursday, March 11, 2004 01:39:00
It is 911 days, 15 hours, 54 minutes and 0 seconds between those dates

or 21879 hours

Using the websites

[Link: www.timezoneconverter.com...]

and

[Link: www.timeanddate.com...]

I know the Oklahoma city bombings occurred on the same date as the Waco raid; is there any truth that the Muslim terrorists use numerology?

#279 Mark

Christians

C-riminals and Captured by Satan
H-ypo crates
R-apist
I-nsulting
S-ick minded
T-orturers
I-gnorant
A-bnormal
N-aked
S-hameless

^^^G-AZE^^^

I am from Madrid. We don´t know who made it yet, but...
Why do I think it was ETA?
1. ETA members were caught some time ago with a van going to Madrid with 500 kg. of explosives. They had a map of the area where they have put the bombs this time.
2. Last December, 24th, a terrorist attack was stopped: several cases with explosives were discovered on a train that was going to Chamartin, another important railway station in Madrid. ETA members were caught soon after: their plan was to blow the station.
3. ETA perform terrorist attacks before elections, as this time.
4. The discovered materials used for the explosives have been made in Spain, and have been used before by ETA.
5. The backpack with explosives detonated by a cell phone has been a method already used by ETA.
6. The witnesses who saw the terrorists with the backpacks and the witness who saw the terrorists of the van, say that they were not arabs, but European.
7. ETA have killed civilians before, many. They put once a bomb in a supermarket.