Month: April 2007

Posted on

Coalition of the Gobbling vs Iraq 111

This story from the UK Independent, on the 600,000 and more Iraqi casualties slaughtered by the Coalition of the Gobbling, received pathetically little coverage in the dailies.

As it’s such a significant and horrific admission on the part of the United Kooks, we’ll help air the facts some more. The Coalition of the Gobbling is certainly way ahead of Saddam’s efforts at this stage and is not looking like letting up. But what the hell – when the West kills en masse, it’s only collateral damage and a necessary side effect of creating “democracy” – yet when some tinpot dictator created and coddled by the West till he’s served his purpose does it, it’s genocide.

British backtrack on Iraq death toll
By Jill Lawless

British government officials have backed the methods used by scientists who concluded that more than 600,000 Iraqis have been killed since the invasion, the BBC reported yesterday.

The Government publicly rejected the findings, published in The Lancet in October. But the BBC said documents obtained under freedom of information legislation showed advisers concluded that the much-criticised study had used sound methods.

The study, conducted by researchers from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and the Al Mustansiriya University in Baghdad, estimated that 655,000 more Iraqis had died since March 2003 than one would expect without the war. The study estimated that 601,027 of those deaths were from violence.

The researchers, reflecting the inherent uncertainties in such extrapolations, said they were 95 per cent certain that the real number of deaths lay somewhere between 392,979 and 942,636.

The conclusion, based on interviews and not a body count, was disputed by some experts, and rejected by the US and British governments. But the chief scientific adviser to the Ministry of Defence, Roy Anderson, described the methods used in the study as “robust” and “close to best practice”. Another official said it was “a tried and tested way of measuring mortality in conflict zones”.

Posted on

Coalition of the Gobbling vs Iran IX

More info has come to light on the whereabouts of the Brit sailors. Looks like their GPS may contain the incriminating evidence of transgression into Iranian waters.

Last Wednesday, the British produced Global Positioning System coordinates to support their claim, even though the coordinates were from a helicopter that London says hovered over the Indian ship that the sailors had inspected, and not the GPS coordinates of the sailors themselves.

Iran was quick to produce its own evidence. The GPS unit of one of the British sailors, confiscated by the Iranian authorities, showed that the British were not only in Iranian waters at the time of the incident, but that they had crossed over into Iranian waters on five earlier occasions as well, according to Tehran.

Despite the United Stupids’ recent show of force with posturing naval exercises in the Gulf, Iran is remaining intransigent, and despite the bellicose bleatings of Doodoo, Bliar is taking the diplomatic route. Perhaps the United Stupids should get the hint that matters might move faster if they returned the Iranian consulate members they abducted in Iraq in January this year.

What’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.

On December 24, US troops arrested several Iranian officials in Iraq – of whom at least two were diplomats. A few weeks later, an office the Iranians say was a consulate in Iraqi Kurdistan was raided. Another five Iranians were detained there. They are still held by the US, and Tehran has had no access to them.

In addition, Ali Reza Asgari, a senior Iranian official who served in the cabinet of former president Mohammad Khatami, went missing in Turkey in February. His family and authorities in Tehran say he was kidnapped by the Israelis. The US says he defected.

Whether the arrested Iranians were diplomats or not and whether Asgari defected or was kidnapped, in two short months the detentions of the Iranians, the imposition of financial sanctions on Iran, and the passing of two United Nations Security Council Resolutions have seemingly provided the US with the leverage it was seeking. Washington is suddenly feeling confident and is hinting a vague willingness to talk to Tehran from its perceived position of strength.

It could be that the United Stupids are so irritated about Iran’s increased trading of oil in non USD currencies despite expanded sanctions, that releasing *their* hostages or even allowing the Iranians any form of contact with them is the last thing on their minds.

Iran’s efforts to switch from U.S. dollar to other currencies in crude oil deals appear to be progressing.

An official with Iran’s oil ministry says 60% of payments are now made in non-dollar currencies.

The U.S. has been trying to prevent overseas banks doing dollar deals with Iran, a move which Washington leaders think could undermine the Iranian economy.

However, Tehran has proved those efforts ineffective by introducing a currency shift in crude deals.

Iran has succeeded in ensuring that almost all European and some Asian clients have agreed to pay in currencies other than U.S. dollars, a senior oil official said on Thursday.

UPDATE 5/4: In releasing the 15 Brits, Ahmadinejad seizes the opportunity to appear magnanimous. 10 cookies to Iran – Amaddy has stage-managed a spectacular media event which has capably drawn attention away from Iran’s enrichment program.

On the occasion of the birthday of the great prophet (Muhammad) … and for the occasion of the passing of Christ, I say the Islamic Republic government and the Iranian people – with all powers and legal right to put the soldiers on trial – forgave those 15.

One has to wonder what strings the Brits pulled behind the scenes – did they make an offer too good to refuse? Bliar accepts the release of the sailors graciously.

Will the United Stupids now release their Iranian hostages? If they don’t, we can expect more ominous grunts from Iran.

Posted on

Shock horror – Ruddock protects free speech rights

Ruddock has stood up for the rights of Asstralians against the United Stupids! Team Rodent may be so keen to make up poll losses that they are saying something right (read electorally popular) for a change.

A plea deal condition that prevents David Hicks speaking to the media for 12 months would not be enforceable in Australia, Attorney-General Philip Ruddock says.

Mr Ruddock said Australia had no law making it a crime for Hicks to talk, and the United States would only be able to act on a plea bargain breach if Hicks came “within their reach”.

But for Australia to agree to an extradition, a charge similar to the one laid overseas must exist under Australian law, Mr Ruddock said.

“In Australia, we have a position about freedom of speech,” Mr Ruddock told ABC’s Lateline program.

“I’ll leave it to your imagination as to a way in which somebody seeking extradition in relation to a party for breaching a so-called gag order would be able to be delivered up through the judicial processes in Australia.”

Asked if the gag order meant nothing, and Hicks would be able to speak to the media, Mr Ruddock responded: “I suspect you are probably right”.

Mr Ruddock said the United States included the clause in the plea bargain and it was a matter for the United States, Hicks and his advisers.

“I don’t think it’s a matter for us to enforce,” he said.

Will the gobblement still be able to grab Hicks’ story proceeds if the US Supreme Court declares the kangaroo court under which he was “sentenced” null and void at some time in the future? At the time of his arrest, Hicks had not broken any Whorestralian laws.

Although prisoners in Oz jails can’t hold press conferences, if he was released pursuant to the above, Hicks may become a *very* rich fellow from the telling of his sorry tale sooner rather than later. Perhaps there would also be a potential for an action against the US government for unlawful imprisonment and maltreatment. Sadly, on the 2 April, despite the dissent of 3 judges, the US Supreme Court did not uphold the habeas corpus rights of two convicted defendants.

Hicks is to pursue his education during his Australian jail term. It would be deliciously ironic if he decided on a legal career.

Posted on

Chief Seattle’s Speech

Delbard Matisse Rose

Thanks to 40c for reminding us of Chief Seattle’s wonderful speech which we reprint here to help spread the word.

THE EARTH IS PRECIOUS

In 1854, the “Great White Chief” in Washington made an offer for a large area of Indian land and promised a ‘reservation’ for the Indian people. Chief Seattle’s reply, published here in full, has been described as the most beautiful and profound statement on the environment ever made.

Chief Seattle Speaks (1971 Revision)

How can you buy or sell the sky, the warmth of the land? The idea is strange to us. If we do not own the freshness of the air and the sparkle of the water, how can you buy them?

Continue reading “Chief Seattle’s Speech”

Posted on

Slog Plog or Plog Shag?

The avante garde blogospherical catchword describing a political blog apparently is plog.

Would that make Beyond the Fringe, as a satirical, political blog, a slog plog, plog slog, stog plog, plog stog, shag plog or plog shag?

Plog Shag, whilst rolling off the tongue, reminds one of those ubiquitous, self-congratulatory, neocon, pundit plogger circle jerks – plogshaggers, the lot of them.

So what about Sharplog? Beyond the Fringe – the Essential Sharplog.

Something for the semiotically obsessed gits prancing round the pocket pissing Asstralian blogocracy to grogblog and plogshag about.