Nutjobs Ranting About Politics.

[sgtclub]

http://www.captainsquartersblog.com/...ves/002202.php

[spree: letter from swiftvets attorney in response to Kerry legal action]

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Condoleeza Rice admits that the administration disclosed Khan's name "on background" to the press, and says she did not know that he was working as a double agent for the Pakistani government. Quel fuck-up. One more case where the Bushies quest for PR points hurts national security, it would seem.

I know, let's talk about the swift boats instead.

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Tyrone Slothrop
Condoleeza Rice admits that the administration disclosed Khan's name "on background" to the press, and says she did not know that he was working as a double agent for the Pakistani government. Quel fuck-up. One more case where the Bushies quest for PR points hurts national security, it would seem.

I know, let's talk about the swift boats instead.

He's a double agent? I thought he was a real AQ guy who was caught and sent out some email to help catch some others. you do understand that the half-life of AQ not knowing a guy was caught is short, don't you?

What possible reason is there for ratting out a guy for poitical points now? Especially when he could, if he were a real double-naught double agent like you was explaining, help catch more of them. Wouldn't that play out better in October?

The guy's undercover was played is my bet. what kills me is when the admin doesn't tell the press stuff its because it's paranoid, but when it does tell the press stuff it's oprtunistic.

Ty, unless the story pans out, and I don't mean by blog story, I will now assume you are a SPED. In fact, I may make you new Gilligan now that GGG has admitted to being my dog.

[Skeks in the city]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
Ty, unless the story pans out, and I don't mean by blog story, I will now assume you are a SPED. In fact, I may make you new Gilligan now that GGG has admitted to being my dog.

You might break Ty in, but just as your dog's bitch.

I'd like to believe the Bush administration didn't screw up. I really would. However, but I can't really trust them after their various intelligence failures. Still, Bush is more trustworthy than Kerry. Kerry, saying he'd internationalize military assistance to the Iraq government!!! Hah. Kerry can't possibly believe he could persuade the French, the Germans and the Russians to start sending troops to Iraq.

The only way to internationalize the conflict is to pull the US' 100,000-plus troops out of Europe and its 30,000-plus troops out of South Korea. Although we can't force Europe and Asia to help the US defend the Iraq government, we we can force them to defend themselves.

[sgtclub]

Originally posted by Skeks in the city

I'd like to believe the Bush administration didn't screw up. I really would. However, but I can't really trust them after their various intelligence failures. Still, Bush is more trustworthy than Kerry. Kerry, saying he'd internationalize military assistance to the Iraq government!!! Hah. Kerry can't possibly believe he could persuade the French, the Germans and the Russians to start sending troops to Iraq.

The only way to internationalize the conflict is to pull the US' 100,000-plus troops out of Europe and its 30,000-plus troops out of South Korea. Although we can't force Europe and Asia to help the US defend the Iraq government, we we can force them to defend themselves.

This looks like a fucked up, but I don't think for political ends. What political end could be served by releasing his name? I'm not following Ty's logic.

2 on the rest.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

It's Kevin Drum's logic, not mine, and the facts are that the administration leaked to the press last weekend (+/-) that they were getting information from this guy the Pakistanis were using as a double agent, apparently because they were feeling the heat over raising the threat level to orange on the basis of pre-9/11 stuff -- they wanted to prove they had something else going on. I missed the original stories myself, but I saw a piece on FOX News yesterday confirming the details of Drum's first piece but not adding anything else.

It doesn't make much sense to me that they did it, either, but there doesn't seem to be any dispute about it, since Rice confirmed it on CNN.

[sgtclub]

Originally posted by Tyrone Slothrop
It's Kevin Drum's logic, not mine, and the facts are that the administration leaked to the press last weekend (+/-) that they were getting information from this guy the Pakistanis were using as a double agent, apparently because they were feeling the heat over raising the threat level to orange on the basis of pre-9/11 stuff -- they wanted to prove they had something else going on. I missed the original stories myself, but I saw a piece on FOX News yesterday confirming the details of Drum's first piece but not adding anything else.

It doesn't make much sense to me that they did it, either, but there doesn't seem to be any dispute about it, since Rice confirmed it on CNN.

Understood, but what do they gain by giving the guy's name? And if they didn't give the name, would it have compromised anything? That's where I think the screw up was.

[Atticus Grinch]

This joke, told at 43's expense in the middle of a church, is going to go down in history as the most awkward political joke since Dukakis tried riffing on 41's name at the 1988 debates.

Yeeesh.

[Atticus Grinch]

Anyone think this bodes well for Western-style democracy in Iraq?

PM imposes 30-day ban on Al Jazeera.

I'm not a constitutional scholar. Can we ban Fox News for 30 days for inciting the war?

[Shape Shifter]

Originally posted by Atticus Grinch
This joke, told at 43's expense in the middle of a church, is going to go down in history as the most awkward political joke since Dukakis tried riffing on 41's name at the 1988 debates.

Yeeesh.

Heh. He said "ball."

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by Atticus Grinch
This joke, told at 43's expense in the middle of a church, is going to go down in history as the most awkward political joke since Dukakis tried riffing on 41's name at the 1988 debates.

Yeeesh.

I thought it was a golf joke, in which case the standards are a lot lower. (And at 41's expense, not 43's.)

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by Atticus Grinch
I'm not a constitutional scholar. Can we ban Fox News for 30 days for inciting the war?

No, but we can try to have Chalabi and his nephew arrested.

[Atticus Grinch]

Originally posted by Tyrone Slothrop
I thought it was a golf joke, in which case the standards are a lot lower. (And at 41's expense, not 43's.)

Ah, but you see, that's the beauty of a parable, e.g., the Parable of the Mustard Seed is not really about mustard seeds.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

• ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- The effort by U.S. officials to justify raising the terror alert level last week may have shut down an important source of information that has already led to a series of al Qaeda arrests, Pakistani intelligence sources have said.
  
  Until U.S. officials leaked the arrest of Muhammad Naeem Noor Khan to reporters, Pakistan had been using him in a sting operation to track down al Qaeda operatives around the world, the sources said.
  
  In background briefings with journalists last week, unnamed U.S. government officials said it was the capture of Khan that provided the information that led Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge to announce a higher terror alert level.
  
  * * * * *
  
  [O]n Friday, after Khan's name was revealed, government sources told CNN that counterterrorism officials had seen a drop in intercepted communications among suspected terrorists.
  
  Officials used Sunday's talk shows to defend last week's heightened alerts, amid widespread claims the White House disclosed Khan's arrest to justify raising its terror alert level.

CNN

In other news, September is National Preparedness Month. We've never had one before, but apparently there's no time like just before a national election to remind people about these things.

[Atticus Grinch]

Until U.S. officials leaked the arrest of Muhammad Naeem Noor Khan to reporters, Pakistan had been using him in a sting operation to track down al Qaeda operatives around the world, the sources said.

Meet our new Secretary of Homeland Security.



BTW, "Secretary"? Treasury, yes. Interior, maybe. But Homeland Security? Can't we find a tougher name for this job? It sounds like he's wearing both cat-eye spectacles and an apron.