FalloutStories related to 11 Sept 2001. |
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17/10/2004; 7:50:54 |
| Reckless Administration May Reap Disastrous Consequences: |
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'This nation is about to embark upon the first test of a revolutionary doctrine applied in an extraordinary way at an unfortunate time. The doctrine of preemption -- the idea that the United States or any other nation can legitimately attack a nation that is not imminently threatening but may be threatening in the future -- is a radical new twist on the traditional idea of self defense. It appears to be in contravention of international law and the UN Charter. And it is being tested at a time of world-wide terrorism, making many countries around the globe wonder if they will soon be on our -- or some other nation's -- hit list.' -U.S. Senator Robert Byrd, Feb. 12, 2003 |
| On the road to losing the peace : |
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'It was bad enough for the U.S. to have endured the intelligence failures that led to Sept. 11; it's another thing to know that 18 months, billions of dollars and untold numbers of bombs later that Osama bin Laden and most of his top advisers remain on the loose. This failure ought to be thrown daily in Mr. Bush's face, but he has diverted attention to Iraq, where the United States is about to make a mistake of historic proportions.' -Jeffrey Simpson in The Globe and Mail, 18 Feb 2003 |
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It's clear that both sides are in denial. Arabs about Baghdad being over run. Americans about the impact their actions will have on the rest of the Arab world. Dangerous times. . .< 6:21:02 PM  >BBC NEWS | Middle East | 'This is just a scene from hell' '"This is just a scene from hell here. All the vehicles on fire. There are bodies burning around me, there are bodies lying around, there are bits of bodies on the ground. This is a really bad own goal by the Americans.' . .< 4:59:37 PM >bbc world service Since the war I've been listening to the BBC World Service. I can easily get it on medium wave (AM) 648Khz and have been amazed at their excellent reporting, much of which doesn't show up for hours on other news outlets.
It feels like these journalists are from the 'old school', and probably forgotten by many colleagues, who jockey for position on prime-time slots.
Yesterday I heard the friendly fire report filed by BBCWS veteran John Simpson. I have yet to hear or see such detail of this tragedy elsewhere.
You can listen to the BBC World Service in real audio. [Adam Curry: Adam Curry's Weblog] This is the story I was talking about. It was the closest I've come to appreciating the chaos of war. . .< 4:55:47 PM >Librarians Use Shredders to Counter New F.B.I. Powers "It used to be a librarian would be pictured with a book," said Ms. Snider, the branch manager, slightly exasperated as she hunched over the wastebasket. "Now it is a librarian with a shredder." Librarians in America, specifically those in Santa Cruz, California, have resorted to shredding nearly all documents or records of any sort in order to counter the United States' new Patriot Act (EFF critique), a law passed after 9/11 which significantly broadened the federal authorities' ability to tap into public information in the name of anti-terrorism. Many libraries have begun distributing leaflets to visitors which detail their objections to the increased F.B.I. power and explain that librarians are in the process of reviewing their files to ensure that any and all data they have about borrowing and computer usage histories is absolutely necessary to their operation. [Kuro5hin.org] Impressive. Librarians take a stand. . .< 4:53:07 PM >Baghdad's hospitals in crisis The capital's hospitals are suffering a surge in patients and shortages of water, power and medical supplies, the Red Cross says. [BBC News | World | UK Edition] 'Around the city, casualties have been admitted on an average of 100 per hour, with staff working day and night.
Wards at the five major hospitals treating wounded were already overflowing with injured when American troops made their first incursion on Saturday.' . .< 4:43:47 PM >Adamouski Is Latest Casualty in Iraq War (washingtonpost.com) 'She said the family was granting interviews today "because I want the United States to know what a person we've lost-what an incredible loss he was to the country."' All wars waste valuable lives. . .< 11:51:51 AM >Accident Reminds Some of 1991 War 'After the 1991 Persian Gulf War, when 35 of the United States' 148 combat casualties were the result of friendly fire, the military pledged to do something about it. Since then, the Defense Department has abandoned the most advanced of its friendly fire avoidance technology programs. And the most sophisticated communications systems, designed to give soldiers the broadest understanding of the battlefield, are not used by the forces currently in Iraq.' . .< 11:24:29 AM >'Chemical Ali' Found Dead, British Officer Says Ali Hassan al-Majid, dubbed "Chemical Ali" for ordering a poison gas attack that killed thousands of Kurds, has been found dead, a Monday. [New York Times: NYT HomePage] . .< 2:14:32 AM >Counting the victims of Iraq war One of the biggest and as yet unanswered questions about the war in Iraq is how many people have been killed. [BBC News | World | UK Edition] . .< 2:11:47 AM >BBC NEWS | World | From Our Own Correspondent | A war too big to comprehend 'Who is illegal? The invaders or the invaded? The language of the new liberator to people here is strange indeed. [...] This war is almost too big to comprehend. [...] You see the faces of the soldiers, confused, out of their depth as they try to control the crowds, and you wonder where this is going.
A giant war - the birth of a new liberator with his new language - and the birth of a new world order that feels frightening and strange.' At least 10 people are killed as a US warplane bombs a Kurdish convoy which included members of US special forces. [BBC News | World | UK Edition] I watched a report on this disaster come in on BBC News. Terrifying stuff. The BBC cameraman rolled tape immediately after a US pilot dropped a bomb on his convoy. The first thing you see is blood drip onto the lens. Then you hear the terrified breathing of the correspondant and the frantic hollering of people in the convoy as they try to sort out what has happened. . .< 2:03:20 AM >MidEast press on Baghdad battle Papers speak of a "river of blood" as coalition forces move in on Baghdad, but voice hope that greater bloodshed can be averted. [BBC News | World | UK Edition] . .< 2:02:10 AM >Russian envoys 'caught in crossfire' Diplomats shot at while leaving Baghdad were caught between Iraqi and US forces, a Russian TV reporter says. [BBC News | World | UK Edition] . .< 2:01:31 AM >Summit pressure on Bush Tony Blair will today urge George Bush to internationalise the reconstruction of postwar Iraq. [Guardian Unlimited] . .< 2:00:42 AM >Rule by U.S. and Britain May Pass 6 Months, Wolfowitz Asserts Deputy Defense Secretary Paul D. Wolfowitz said that ceding power to an Iraqi-led civilian authority would take some time. [New York Times: NYT HomePage] . .< 1:59:35 AM >For One Pastor, the War Hits Home The Rev. Tandy Sloan has presided over many a funeral and memorial service in Cleveland. But on Sunday, he wondered why his only child had to die in Iraq. [New York Times: NYT HomePage] . .< 1:56:18 AM >CNN.com - Ex-CIA director: U.S. faces 'World War IV' - Apr. 3, 2003 'He said the new war is actually against three enemies: the religious rulers of Iran, the "fascists" of Iraq and Syria, and Islamic extremists like al Qaeda.' . .< 1:53:33 AM >Al Jazeera - It's just as fair as CNN. By Chris[sgl dagger]Suellentrop 'American TV news has always presented an American perspective, just as Al Jazeera presents an Arab perspective. But in wartime, the American slant has become more obvious, and as a result Al Jazeera's Arab slant has become less objectionable.' . .< 1:49:47 AM >Boston Globe Online / Nation | World / Kerry says US needs its own 'regime change' 'Senator John F. Kerry said yesterday that President Bush committed a ''breach of trust'' in the eyes of many United Nations members by going to war with Iraq, creating a diplomatic chasm that will not be bridged as long as Bush remains in office. ''What we need now is not just a regime change in Saddam Hussein and Iraq, but we need a regime change in the United States,'' Kerry said in a speech at the Peterborough Town Library.' . .< 1:43:37 AM >The Globe and Mail: Rummy's war 'In 1976, Mr. Rumsfeld successfully persuaded the president to kill the SALT II disarmament treaty with the Soviet Union, which Mr. Kissinger had been working on for years. In Mr. Rumsfeld's view, nuclear disarmament, even in limited, strategic form, was simply not an option. He had come to detest the U.S. military bureaucracy during this period. His experience with the Vietnam War led him to believe that military problems were created by Democrats and solved by Republicans. His belief in the military as a dumb, slow-moving beast continues to this day.' |
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On this day in 2003 2002 2001 |
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