Have Some links,some Cryptography an explanation and a goat

Well lets start with the explanation .. due to staff shortages (cough) this site will not be updated until tuesday the 2nd august, evening (uk time). Comments will be read and responded to where possible but new stories will not be posted until then. My RSS feeds will still be running and any scoops i find will not be missed but will be late. so i would like to recommend this lot instead.

which brings me to the links which is the best place to find the latest on Iraq the london bombs al-qaeda and all the stories normally covered here

in the US

First on the board is Daily Dissent. A fantastic site who often succeed in being ahead of the trend. Then we have Americancentered for those undecided between the left and right.

In the UK

I would recommend Logical voice who I know nothing about but from what I have read, they seem to be what the title suggests.

For news stories;

a few random sites CBS Fox BBC Aljazeera CNN ITV SKY ABC australia that should do.

If you want to read a paper ,

then this is one place you can read 6000 newspapers on line from around the world Thepaperboy .

If you want to watch TV from around the world, including Iraqi tv

then goto wwitv

If you have an hour to spare and are bored out of your mind goto Bored.com

If your looking to the answer to lifes conspiricies then you will fight the right one (erm along with all the wacky nutty absurd wrong ones) at Totse
If your aged over 25 and you wonder what happened to all those games you used to play on the old computers, you can get most of them for free at home of the underdogs

This next one comes with a warning . If you really, really want to know what is happening in the world without the lovely editing that all the above news companies will do, then this next one is the best .. but please .. they show real life . They show real war .. they show the death and destruction that comes with war and they dont pick sides, but they do show you the things CNN and Fox wont. If you are not sure you can handle seing real images from real war and real horrible death then DO NOT GO HERE. But if you really want to know for example what we are doing in Iraq then there is no better place on earth then Informationclearinghouse

If you know something doesn't sound right but you dont know why, check out these guys. They are often ahead of the trend when it comes to what really happened.

If all this is driving you crazy and you just want to get back to the good old manufactured truth, then there is no better place on earth to calm (or create) your fears the whitehouse .

If your angry about the Downing Street memos then dont be angry alone. Join the crowd at afterdowningstreet . As for more links , well there are thousands and these are just a few that happened to be on top of the pile. More links next time.

As for cryptography:

Well for anyone really bored, here is a simple cypher to decode. The question is who said this and what is it they said:

pei kjkdzkq mik zjjprmvzrk mjb ikqpeitkyes mjb qp mik wk vxkg jkrki qvpu vxzjlzjn

mopev jkw wmgq vp xmid pei tpejvig mjb pei ukpusk mjb jkzvxki bp wk

and finally here is the goat

ALL four would be bombers arrested

After a set of dramatic raids the three remaining suspects from last weeks failed suicide bomb attack on london have beeen arrested

Two London arrests are thought to be the men wanted for the 21 July Oval Tube and No 26 bus attacks. A third bomb suspect was already being held

The fourth suspect, wanted for the attempted Shepherd's Bush Tube attack, has been arrested in Rome and named as Somali-born UK citizen Osman Hussain

for all the details click Here

Today in Iraq (at a glance)

The last 24 hours of the latest "last throws" as reported by reuters


Following are security incidents reported in Iraq on Thursday, July 28 as of 1400 GMT.

U.S. and Iraqi forces are battling a Sunni Arab insurgency against the Shi'ite and Kurdish-led government in Baghdad.

BAQUBA - Six Iraqi soldiers were killed in clashes with insurgents in two Iraqi towns north of Baghdad, security sources said. The fighting began when guerrillas fired mortars and light arms at three checkpoints in Baquba and two in Khan Bani Saad, the sources said.

BAGHDAD - Six civilians were killed and eight soldiers were wounded on Wednesday when a suicide car bomber targeted an Iraqi Army checkpoint in Mansour district, western Baghdad.

An Iraqi military statement said on Thursday that two civilian cars were destroyed in the attack.

KIRKUK - A bomb hit an oil pipeline that provides Baiji's refineries with oil from Kirkuk's oil fields, 90 km (55 miles) south-west of Kirkuk, a source at the northern oil protection force said.

A gas pipeline that supplies Baiji power station was also damaged during the attack.

HADITHA - The assistant chief of Haditha police station was shot dead by gunmen in the town, 200 km (125 miles) northwest of Baghdad, chief of Haditha hospital Dr. Waleed al-Hadithi said.

BAGHDAD - Two Iraqi soldiers were killed on Wednesday when their patrol struck a bomb in north Baghdad. A military statement said one other soldier was wounded in the attack.

* BAGHDAD - A captain at Azzuhur police station was assassinated on Wednesday night near his home in al-Sha'ab district, northern Baghdad, a police source said.

BAGHDAD - One policeman was killed and four injured by a roadside bomb in front of a police station in Baghdad's southern district of Doura.

* FALLUJA - One US soldier died on Wednesday in a vehicle accident at Camp Taqaddum in Falluja, 50 km (32 miles) west of Baghdad, a military statement said on Thursday.

North American Muslims Issue a Fatwa Against Terrorism

Fox news (yes i know) have reported that American Muslim scholars who interpret religious law for their community issued an edict Thursday condemning terrorism against civilians

"It is the civic and religious duty of Muslims to cooperate with law enforcement authorities," according to the Fiqh Council. The term "fiqh" refers to Islamic legal issues and understanding the faith's religious law

"We pray for the defeat of extremism and terrorism," the scholars wrote. "We pray for the safety and security of our country, the United States, and its people. We pray for the safety and security of all inhabitants of our planet."

i wonder if the right wing extremists will notice this

full story Here

Look and learn George .How to stop terrorism

The IRA today has made a historic statement renouncing terrorism and giving their full support to the democractic process

To watch this statement in full at the BBC click Here

Can we say we have won ? .. .well no you can't win against terrorists . by trying you just end up creating more of them

So what happened ? ....we found a way through talking and listening to live together in peace

We allowed the political wing of the IRA (Sinn Fein) into the democratic process .

As the world has been telling you George , try using your ears instead of your mouth

Look at why people are so angry
Look at what you have done to iraq
Look at the israel/palestine issue
Look at letting the middle east run its own affairs
Look at the INJUSTICE in the world and being the 'leader' of the free world .

Address it !

Of course you can never stop all terrorists , we know that , they have existed since time began

that is no excuse not to listen

Do you really think the british government wanted to listen to the IRA ! .. of course they didnt , but they did want peace , and going in with all guns blazing just seemed to make more terrorists then we killed

Terrorists are not born that way .. ask yourself what happens to make a small innocent child grow into someone so angry that they want to blow themselves up taking so many innocents with them

for those few who still do not get it ... i am not and never will justify terrorism , it is horrific , barbaric , inhumane and evil

if you read my words and think that i do , i would advice you to go back to watching Fox

Nine overnight arrests as London goes on 'High alert'

Police have revealed that they have made nine arrests overnight in tooting south London.
All the arrests are believed to be connected to the failed attack on London last thursday
two houses have been raided resulting in six arrests at one property and three at another
it is not thought any of the arrests are of the three 'suspects' spotted on CCTV attempting to plant the previous devices

Police said the suspects, arrested under the Terrorism Act 2000, had been taken to a central London police station for questioning.

A spokesman said searches of the addresses were ongoing.

London Is on High alert today with the three main suspected bombers presumed to be still at large . Armed police are guarding many tube and bus stations

as a step to help ensure public safety it has just been anounced that 'Devon and Cornwall Police' and British Transport Police are carrying out high-profile checks of rolling stock on the rail network to London.

'Armed officers and dog teams will check carriages to ensure public safety.'

'Police say they are not acting on any specific information but are working to reassure the public.'


for more of the updating story goto the BBC

Thursday in London (London bombings)

My thoughts....

The last two attacks on the city have happened on a Thursday .
Three of the four attempted bombers are still on the loose
There is evidence that the flats already raided contained plenty of explosives for many more such attacks.
The three (at least) remaining bombers may well feel that they would rather go with a bang then be captured and spend there lives in jail

These are all reasons to suggest that an attempted attack could happen today

On the other hand ,

There was a two week gap between the last attacks .
One of the Bombers has been captured and four are presumed dead
The police and MI5 (leaving aside killing an innocent and the report stating we lowered our security threat level ) have done a fantastic job
Many 'unknown terrorist houses' have been raided
The three suspects are bound to be running scared
Security will be at it's highest level ever
The people of London will have eyes like hawks

So it seems there is equal reason to suggest there will not be an attack today

I comment on this site often and without shame about the suffering that happens around the world sometimes at the hands of our Governments , sometimes at the hands of Terrorists but always to the detriment of people .

In the end it is always the people that suffer

It is impossible to imagine what it must be like to live and work in Baghdad , every single day they cope with this and every single day families are being torn apart by bombs

Today as the clock works its way round to 07:30 my thoughts are with the people of my city ,the people of London

I pray today ends without event

'End to Iraq, Palestinian conflicts would help halt terror'

The Prime Minister of Egypt Ahmed Nazif who's Country was attacked by terrorists only a few days ago has added his name to the growing list of people who feel that the situation in Iraq and palastine is helping to breed terrorists

The two conflicts "are definitely breeding grounds" for terrorism, Nazif told Sky News television

Egypt's fight against terrorism included steps to protect its own citizens and that of foreign tourists as well as "to uproot the reasons for having terrorism, and one of the reasons is the presence of those conflicts," he said.

"Hand in hand we need to work on the peace process between the Palestinians and Israelis," he said.

"We need to work on the situation in Iraq and make sure the Iraqis can govern themselves, that the foreign troops leave Iraq and to end up with a system there" that is democratic, he said.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair rejected claims that the US-led occupation in Iraq, in which British troops are involved, is fuelling terrorism, saying it was a pretext by extremists to launch attacks

full story Here

New government , New police force , Same old torture

Iraq's new police force is facing mounting allegations of systematic abuse and torture of people in detention, as well as allegations of extra-judicial killings. The minority Sunni community in particular claims it is being targeted by the Shia-dominated police force

"The police started to beat us, tied our hands and blindfolded us," he said.

"We were left from 5.30 that evening inside a kind of container that had no air vents. After one hour, we lost consciousness and some people began to die, the others were dead by one o'clock in the morning"

full story Here

When all other lies fail ,blame Jane

I am amazed to see how quickly the American right wing puts on its boxing gloves and starts to fight in a manner that if employed by anyone else would probably get you arrested.

News that the actress and activist Jane Fonda is planning an antiwar bus tour, which by the look of things would have been a low key, barely noticed event ,has enraged the right wing so much that they have gone out of their minds with anger !

Doesn't this kind of personal attack stink of desperation to you ?

Why is it that being rude,offensive and down right nasty is a tactic the right thinks will bring them more support

A few examples

The Conservative zone : said

"This B-I-T-C-H is a traitor twice now in my eyes. She has the right to voice her opinions, but her past actions have branded her a traitor and she deserves to be treated like one."

Simi Valley Sophist : said

"No matter how you slice and dice it, a traitor is still a traitor"

GOP Bloggers said

"I wonder if she'll have herself photographed wearing a suicide-bomb belt?"

this valentine from

Bad Example : sets a very inhumane example in

AN OPEN LETTER TO JANE FONDA

"Haven't you already done enough damage for one lifetime?

"Please die soon. "

Righties, knowing that they have little ammunition to justify this war in Iraq, are positively jumping for joy at Fonda's stepping out against the invasion. It gives them something to get their teeth into !

To paraphrase a sentence that is doing the rounds at the moment , it seems to me that

"The anger is being built around the policy"

or to quote even better from the motto of the excellent Daily Dissent

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."

Theodore Roosevelt

It's Not Weak to Ask 'Why?'

An excellent article that touches upon the same subject as my post 'This is not about taking sides'

a snippet here

'This week's nominee for Orwell's Dustbin is the phrase ''blame-America first.''

It's just one of the argument-avoiding insults on the right wing's long list of synonyms for ''liberals.''

"To make the term sound like it carries some intellectual weight, you'll often hear right-wing brothers and sisters talk about how open-toe sandal wearin', tree-huggin,' bunny lovin', latte drinkin', terrorist-sympathizin', weak-on-defense, liberals engage in too much ''self-introspection.'' So, not only are ''liberals'' out to destroy America with their bleeding hearts and soft-headedness, they're also Jean Paul Sarte-reading navel-gazers.

Now, to see how ridiculous this is, imagine if this real-men-don't-introspect logic was applied to, say, police homicide investigations.

Detectives routinely ask why. Why would someone kill this particular person? What was the motive? In doing so, cops aren't ''justifying'' murder. They're not making excuses when they speak of what environmental circumstances provided the opportunity or the encouragement to kill.'

It's not ''feel-good'' utopianism to explore the roots of terrorism. It's downright pragmatic. You may not be able to change the heart of evil through knowledge. But it can lead to more effective strategies in fighting terrorism, which is why it so intellectually dishonest when conservatives accuse people interested in what fuels terrorism of wanting to ''offer therapy (to) our attackers,'' to quote Karl Rove's psychobabble

to read the full article on Alternet click Here

and thanks go as always to Daily Dissent for linking to my site . if your in The US there is no better place to stay informed

Independent US panel says 'Bush Was Unready for Postwar Iraq'

An independent panel headed by two former U.S. national security advisers said Wednesday that chaos in Iraq was due in part to inadequate postwar planning

"A dramatic military victory has been overshadowed by chaos and bloodshed in the streets of Baghdad, difficulty in establishing security or providing essential services, and a deadly insurgency,"

full story from ABC News Here

Suspected Bomber arrested with Taser gun

'Suspected bomber Yasin Hassan Omar has been arrested by police in Birmingham investigating the failed 21 July attacks in London'



Omar, 24, suspected of the attack near Warren Street Tube station, was held in a dawn raid after being stunned with a Taser gun, the BBC has learnt.
It is believed a rucksack he was carrying at the time was thrown out of a window by officers.

Full story at the BBC

News is also coming in of a raid taking place NOW by armed officers in Stockwell i will bring you more when i have it

This is not about taking sides

I have just read an article in the Guardian discussing the need to look at dialogue as a means to go forward in the battle against terror.

It seems when George Bush said those famous words "you are either with us or you are with the terrorists", some people took this as the new 11th commandment .But as most political commentators will accept the world is never that simple.

There are millions of us in the world who not only feel disgust that someone would choose to blow themselves up, taking many lives with them, but we also hold at the same time the view that dropping cluster bombs on a town called Fallujah is also disgusting .

when a poll suggests that 85 percent in britain connect the London attack to Iraq, that doesnt mean that 85 percent support the terrorists or as is claimed "justify the terrorists"

To understand what motivates someone to become a terrorist is not to justify a terrorist

I agree without question with Tony Blair when he says that there is no justification for suicide bombings . you dont need to be Einstien .. he is right

I also agree without question that the war in Iraq and the deaths of 25000 innocent Iraqi's has no justification ....

I know , we have had WMD, we have had Saddam was a bad bad man , we have had "the war on terror" but none of these arguments stand firm to much scrutiny

the best argument given has to be that saddam was a bad man .. and i for one dont argue this point . but when you look at the numbers of dictators in the world and wonder why Saddam and Saddam alone was selected, you have to admit it does look a little shaky

Yes he was bad , he wasn't the worst

The article brings up an important point that often gets overlooked . Both sides in any argument usually 'only' have an incredible ability to remember facts that help their case

ask someone who supports the people of Palistine why they feel so angry and they will quite likely tell you the story of a 12-year-old Palestinian boy, crouching behind his father, trying to avoid the Israeli bullets that killed him

ask an Israeli the same question and again they may tell you the story of two young Israeli men who crossed a boundary into Palestinian territory. They were killed, torn apart by an angry crowd.

But neither will have much of a memory for the facts of the other , both these stories are true , both these stories are well documented

So Mr Blair yes .. you are right , there is no justification for suicide bombing , there is no justification for ALMOST all killing

The 'terrorists have commited acts of evil even against their own people yes and against us

But just because the actions of the coalition in Fallujah were not broadcasted on main stream TV, dont think that we have not noticed that too.

To say they are evil is one thing you know we all agree on. Nobody from the left or the right will disagree with you there.

To imply that our hands are squeaky clean is yet another


anyway here is the Article

Yet another day of Carnage in Iraq

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Gunmen opened fire on a bus carrying employees home from a factory in Abu Ghraib, west of Baghdad, on Tuesday, killing up to 17 people, police and hospital sources said.
A source at a Baghdad hospital said it had received the bodies of 17 people killed in the attack. Police sources said 12 people had been killed and nine wounded.
The police sources said the al-Faris factory worked on reconstruction projects. Insurgents often target Iraqis seen as working for the U.S.-backed authorities.
U.S. and Iraqi forces are battling an insurgency led by Sunni Arabs resentful of the Shi'ite and Kurdish-led government in Baghdad

The true spirit of the Liberal Americans shows through

For the first time, a majority of Americans, 51%, say the Bush administration deliberately misled the public about whether Iraq had weapons of mass destruction — the central justification given for invading. The administration's credibility on the issue has been steadily eroding since 2003 after stores of the weapons weren't found.

Here

Al Qaeda or Al Fayda

These gentlemen are the moral equivalents of America's founding fathers." (Ronald Regan while introducing the Mujahideen leaders to media on the White house lawns. (1985)

"Americans are asking: why do they hate us? They hate our freedoms-our freedom of religion, our freedom of speech, our freedom to vote and assemble and disagree with each other." George W. Bush, in his speech in US Congress in the aftermath of 9/11. (2001)

These two statements reflect the so-called transition of freedom fighters of which US administration was proud to the same one's being called enemies of US. When Tony Blair in the aftermath of 7/7 uttered his feelings that our resolve to uphold our values is stronger than their resolve to break it, he was referring to the people with same ideology and politics whom Regan praised to the sky and about whom GW Bush had the totally contrary view.


read the rest of this article Here

the U.S. defies order to give up Abu Ghraib abuse photos

'Lawyers for the Defense Department are refusing to cooperate with a federal judge's order to release secret photographs and videotapes related to the Abu Ghraib prison abuse scandal. '

The lawyers said in a letter sent to the federal court in Manhattan late Thursday that they would file a sealed brief explaining their reasons for not turning over the material, which they were to have released by Friday. ''

full story Here

The ever growing case for the link with Iraq

Though there are some that can never see the wood for the trees ,the evidence in the minds of the public, the politicians ,the security services and "non partisan research groups" continues to grow towards an understanding that the failed policies on iraq have not helped and have only made things worse.



This is an interesting piece just published in the Toronto Sun written by Eric Margolis whose web site i would recommend to anyone .

A small snippet below

"Two weeks ago, from London, I wrote that the underground bombings were the despicable but inevitable retaliation by angry young Muslims for Britain's invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.

Unsurprisingly, I received a good deal of flak. Still, an embarrassing leaked report from MI-5,
Britain's security service, and a study by Chatham House, a leading UK non-partisan research group, confirmed links between the attacks, Afghanistan and Iraq. Polls show a majority of Brits agreed. "

85 percent in britain connect London attack to Iraq

Nearly 85 per cent of all Britishers believe that the 7/7 London blasts were connected with Britain's participation in the US-led Iraq war, with a quarter of them believing, that it was a direct outcome of the war

The YouGov survey for the 'Daily Mirror' and GMTV revealed that 23 per cent of the total population believes that the Iraq war was the "main cause" of the attacks, while 62 percent said it was only a "contributory factor", the 'Daily Mail' reported.

Only 12 per cent of the Britishers were of the view that the attacks on underground trains and a bus were "not a significant cause" of Britain's involvement in the Iraq war, the survey found out.
According to the paper, the UK government had consistently rejected the argument that the bombings were the result of Britain's involvement in Iraq, insisting that extremist Islamic terror attacks began long before the invasion.
While, a majority of people, nearly 58 per cent, said that they did not believe the security forces could have done any more to prevent the attacks, 71 per cent thought the police could not have done anything to prevent the attacks.

Blair accepts Link to Iraq

It took long enough to say what was already obvious to the rest of us but Tony Blair has accepted that Iraq could be motivating the recruiment of terrorists

'He acknowledged Iraq was being used to recruit terrorists, but insisted the roots of extremism were much deeper.'

more Here

The insurgents are joining the Iraqi police

It is so keystone cops i dont know if i should laugh or cry

'Iraq's police force is recruiting insurgents and former criminals to its ranks, according to a report released by the US defence department'

"Even more troubling is infiltration by intending terrorists or insurgents. There is sufficient evidence to conclude that such persons indeed are among the ranks of the [police]."

Erm .. well that would kind of explain the problem !

I am very rarely speechless but this one has got me

Full story Here and for good measure also Here

Yet another 'Al-qaeda' statement

DUBAI : A group linked to Al-Qaeda said on Friday it carried out the latest London attacks, warning it will not relent until all "infidel" forces quit Iraq, according to an Internet statement.

"Our strikes in the heart of the British infidel capital are nothing more than a message to all European governments that we shall not relent until all infidel forces quit Iraq," the group known as the Brigades of Abu Hafs al-Masri said.

"This is a warning to all those who follow the policies of the president of infidel America," said the statement, whose authenticity could not be confirmed.

real ? who knows .. probably not

More details of the Guantanamo hunger strike

More details are emerging from lawyers in New York, about a hunger strike by detainees at the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba.

The US military has confirmed that a number of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay have refused nine consecutive meals.

The Centre for Constitutional Rights said the lawyers first heard of the strike from prisoners frustrated by their indefinite detention and what they described as the inhuman conditions at Guantanamo, specifically in a facility known as camp five.

According to the lawyers, prisoners had said that as well as a hunger strike, they were planning to boycott showers and recreation time.

They had listed nine demands which they said they were planning to put before the Guantanamo command.

The demands called for respect for their religion, including an end to what they described as desecration of the Koran and religious discrimination, and fair trials with proper legal representation.

They also said they needed adequate supplies of food and clean water, and needed direct sunlight and not to be forced to go for months without seeing daylight.

It is not known if Australian terror suspect David Hicks is among those participating in the hunger strike

Saddam to be executed soon

An Iraqi government newspaper said Saturday that toppled President Saddam Hussein was expected to be sentenced and executed within weeks. The government-financed al-Sabah daily quoted unidentified sources close to a special court hearing Saddam's case that the verdict will be issued in the next three weeks against the former leader and his top former aides. The sources said they expected the first death penalty against the former regime officials to be handed to Saddam after the special court convicts him on 12 charges of "crimes against humanity." Here

Italian court issues arrest warrants for 6 more CIA agents

An Italian court on Monday issued arrest warrants for six more purported CIA operatives, accusing them of allegedly helping plan the 2003 kidnapping of a radical Egyptian Muslim cleric

more Here

Blair "desperately sorry" over shooting of innocent

watch the speech as shown on the BBC

Here

The four powers behind the al-Qaeda conspiracy

From the Times newspaper. a fascinating read Here on the manufactured 'fear' that comes along with the use of that word 'Al-qaeda' .

For the few of you that dont know 'Al-qaeda' means 'The Base' and applied to terrorist training camps in Afghanistan that were in use by Osama Bin Ladens group , those camps were bombed and 'the base' no longer exists .

The terrorist groups being formed each day now , have NO link to Osama , No link to 'The base'
To call these groups Al-qaeda is like calling a fat Japanese gentleman in a Karaoke bar the real Elvis just because he happens to be singing jail house rock

They are copies , the horrific attacks in London and the tragic bombing's in Egypt are not the work of some world wide group .. they are separate events carried out by seperate groups with no link in between , there is no evidence to suggest that Osama Bin laden and his group (if even alive) had any idea these attacks would happen.

to create a climate of fear by using the A word everytime something goes bang adds a certain justification to actions that can not exist if these events are taken in isolation

anyway if you still don't know the four powers behind the Al-qaeda Conspiracy then you have spent to long reading me instead of the article.

Brazil demands answers

UPDATE : A man shot dead by police hunting the bombers behind Thursday's London attacks was a Brazilian electrician.

there are no links between this man and terrorism and the Brazillian govenment is asking 'strong questions' of the britsh government on how one of there citizens lawfully working in the UK could have been shot by the police

the Brazilian Government has released a statement

"we look forward to receiving the necessary explanation from the British authorities on the circumstances which led to this tragedy".

more details Here