Conspiracy

[SugarInTheRaw]

What is with the conspiracy nuts in the media and even on these boards? Conspiracy theorists, stop making connections between events! Please.

A conspiracy is an agreement by two or more persons to commit a crime, fraud, or other wrongful act. There is no way in hell that there is more than one person doing all this shifty shit in politics. So please, keep the conspiracies to yourself. All you do is confuse people. Thank you.

[fucktopgirl]

Your saying make sense, i concur.

[Bob]

Iraq's hired guns
Privateers under fire

Sep 20th 2007
From The Economist print edition
Will Iraq's government dare to dispense with the West's private armies?

AFP

THE shooting that killed at least 11 civilians at a crowded Baghdad road junction on September 16th may have been just another entry in the city's annals of bloodshed. That is, if it had not involved Blackwater, one of the most prominent, and by some accounts the most aggressive, of the private military companies in Iraq.

The incident has provoked an extraordinary row between America and the Iraqi government over who really runs the country. It also exposes the role of security contractors in Iraq—a private army of some 20,000 to 30,000 men, second only to the American forces—in protecting officials, escorting convoys and guarding buildings.

Iraq's ministry of interior said it had “suspended” Blackwater's licence to operate, in effect stripping American officials, including the ambassador, Ryan Crocker, of the bodyguards they use to venture outside the protected enclave known as the Green Zone. The Iraqi government may utterly depend on America for protection. For the moment, though, America has not dared undermine the proclaimed sovereignty of its insubordinate allies.

Precisely what happened and how many died in the latest of several incidents involving Blackwater is unclear. The State Department says the guards were defending themselves after a diplomatic convoy was ambushed by a car bomb; the Iraqi authorities, backed by eyewitnesses, say Blackwater's men opened fire without provocation. “We will not allow Iraqis to be killed in cold blood,” said the prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki. “What happened was a crime. It has left a deep grudge and anger, both inside the government and among the Iraqi people.”

Condoleezza Rice, the American secretary of state, expressed regret over the deaths and promised an investigation. But unlike previous incidents that have been hushed up, this one would not go away. The American embassy banned its officials from moving outside the Green Zone without military escorts in order to “assess mission security and procedures, as well as to assess a possible increased threat to personnel travelling with security details.” The Iraqi government appeared to retreat from an early threat to throw Blackwater out of the country, although it insisted that those responsible for the shooting would not have “immunity for their mistakes”.

Iraqis may dislike foreign soldiers, but they dislike even more the foreign armed men they often regard as more trigger-happy and bullying. Even among its peers, who want to shed their mercenary image, Blackwater is seen as the most gung-ho of security companies.

Few had heard of it before March 2004, when four of its guards were killed in an ambush in Falluja and two of the charred bodies were strung over a bridge. The incident sparked the first of two big battles over the city. Since then, it has been called the Bush administration's “praetorian guard in the war on terror” and fancies itself as “the FedEx of America's forces”. So some of its rivals have enjoyed a bit of Schadenfreude over its woes. Their worry, though, is that Blackwater's troubles will undermine the whole industry in Iraq.

The privatisation of military functions, from logistics to maintaining weapons, has reached the point that the Pentagon now regards contractors as an integral part of its “total force”. America could not go to war without them. But in Iraq they operate in a legal grey zone. It is unclear, for instance, whether Blackwater has or even needs an Iraqi licence to operate. Security companies are immune from Iraqi law. Though subject to rules on the use of force by governments that hire them, none of the guns for hire in Iraq has been prosecuted; some have been fired or sent home. Will Iraqi leaders dare rescind the immunity and risk losing the vital services of the security companies? That will be a real test of sovereignty.

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Tasers at Ball State

Published Wednesday, September 19, 2007 10:00 pm
by Shelly Sites

University of Florida campus police had asked Senior Andrew Meyer to leave a question and answer session with Senator John Kerry. Meyer demanded the right to finish his questions. It just got uglier from there.

After officers pulled the plug on his mic, the audience applauded. However, it quickly stopped as the officers became more forceful and Meyer pleaded for help from the audience. Footage was seen nationwide on YouTube, as well as national news networks.

"I didn't do anything! Ow ow!" Screams were heard as Meyers was tasered, surrounded by six officers on the floor of the auditorium.

Ball State University officers are issued tasers as well, but only after completion of training and proof of proficiency. University Police taser protocol states that officers may use the taser to stop resistive, aggressive, or combative behavior directed at themselves, the officers involved or any other person. However, the final decision to use the taser is ultimately left to the officer with the gun.

“There's no black and white; there's a lot of grey area. It depends on the situation, that officer's interpretation of the threat, and any information they have, like I said before, they have to make a split second decision," said Sargent David Bell of the Ball State University Police.

Ball State has not had a situation like the one at the University of Florida, however there are scenarios which may merit the use of a taser.

Bell also says, "The person would have to demonstrate some type of illegal, criminal disruptive behavior for us to be involved in that realm. We don't make it a practice to infringe on the 1st amendment right of people to express themselves."

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Secretary of Agriculture Resigns
Jason Vance jvance@farmprogress.com
September 20, 2007



Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns submitted his letter of resignation to President Bush this morning.

In it, Johanns wrote," After careful thought and difficult deliberation, I am writing to inform you that I have decided to pursue a new opportunity to serve this great Nation. Please accept my resignation effective today, September 19, 2007 and my gratitude for the distinct privilege to serve in your Cabinet."

Although he did not specify the new opportunity, there has been speculation that Johanns would seek the Nebraska Senate seat since Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., announced a few weeks ago that he would not seek re-election. The official announcement of his candidacy is expected next week in Nebraska, possibly as early as Monday.

Chuck Conner, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture has been temporarily named acting secretary by President Bush. Conner was previously Bush's agricultural advisor.

With the Farm Bill still not completed, Johanns wrote of his confidence in the people at USDA. "I can assure you that I leave the farm bill finalization in supremely capable hands. Deputy Secretary Chuck Conner has been intimately involved in the deliberations - from the development of our proposals to his attendance at virtually every hearing during the House mark-up. Few people are as knowledgeable and insightful about farm bill policy. He is supported by some of the most dedicated civil servants in the federal government."

Conner is generally credited as the chief designer of the Agriculture Department's farm bill proposal this year. However that might complicate conformation, because his proposal substantially cut subsidies, which many members of the Senate Agriculture Committee oppose.

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"red the Gaza Strip an "enemy entity" and said it would reduce its fuel and power supplies in response to rocket attacks by Palestinian militants. Hamas, which seized control of Gaza in June after fighting the forces of Abbas, described the move as a declaration of war.

Mohammad Abu-Koash, Palestinian representative to the U.N. in Geneva, told the talks: "Israel's recent declaration that Gaza Strip is hostile territory contravenes the Oslo (peace) agreements and mutual agreements in which I was involved."

Israeli raids had caused death and inj"

[SugarInTheRaw]

Prove it!

Ok, let's start with Sean Hannity: The Real American. Just listen up! He proves it every night on Fox News. "You don't want to miss it!"

Sean Hannity is a multi-media superstar. This guy spends at least four hours a day broadcasting in front of millions of Americans on radio, television and the Internet. Sean has, throughout the United States, a loyal, weekly listenership of 13 million!

[fucktopgirl]

haha ok, and what does that prove?

[sam i am]

^^^^
Ahhhh.....fuckedupgirl.....

How I "missed" your rants and ravings.

It's just like riding a bike....you never forget how.:D