Al Qaeda lead Osama bin Laden is back at doing what he does best these days: issuing threats to the many people, places and things which threaten his world-view of Islam.
This time, he's threatened the European Union with "grave punishment" for the publication of the Danish cartoons, which he believes mock Islam's prophet Mohammad.
In an audio recording posted on the Internet coinciding with the birthday of Islam's founder, bin Laden said the drawings, considered offensive by Muslims, were part of a "new crusade" in which Pope Benedict was involved.
"Your publications of these drawings -- part of a new crusade in which the Pope of the Vatican had a significant role -- is a confirmation from you that the war continues," said the Saudi-born militant leader, addressing "those who are wise at the European Union".
You are "testing Muslims ... the answer will be what you shall see and not what you hear."
It is not known where bin Laden is issuing his threats from, but the al-Qaeda leader is known for not being shy with threatening words when he is powerless to bring about actions.
So apparently, he is impotent.
No jokes, please.
It was bin Laden's first message since November 29 when he urged Europe to end participation with U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
What did bin Laden say to the European Union, exactly?
Read the rest of "Bin Laden's Latest Warning: EU, You're Gonna be Sorry".
by Mondoreb
image/idea: RidesAPaleHorse
Source:
* Bin laden: Warns EU over Danish cartoons
* Bin Laden's Latest Warning: EU, You're Gonna be Sorry
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ALSO posted at DBKP at WordPress: OBL: EU, You'll be Sorry
Montana to Secede? Montana Legislators Warn Supreme Court Not to Violate Compact over Gun Rights
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Montana Legislators Fire a Shot Across the Supreme Court's bow over Second Amendment case
We may move to Montana.
Members of the Montana legislature are hinting that if the Supreme Court rules against and individual's gun rights as protected by the Second Amendment, it would invalidate Montana's agreement it signed with U.S. when it became a state in 1889.
From Reason:
An interesting wrinkle in the gun-rights controversy: Various Montana politicians have signed a resolution arguing that anything other than an individual-right interpretation of the Second Amendment (at issue in the forthcoming Supreme Court case Heller v. D.C.) would violate the compact between Montana and the U.S.
Excerpts from the resolution:
WHEREAS, when the Court determines in Heller whether or not the Second Amendment secures an individual right, the Court will establish precedent that will affect the State of Montana and the political rights of the citizens of Montana;
WHEREAS, when Montana entered into statehood in 1889, that entrance was accomplished by a contract between Montana and the several states, a contract known as The Compact With The United States (Compact), found today as Article I of the Montana Constitution;
WHEREAS, with authority from Congress acting as agent for the several states, President Benjamin Harrison approved the Montana Constitution in 1889, which secured the right of "any person" to bear arms, clearly intended as an individual right and an individual right deemed consistent then with the Second Amendment by the parties to the contract;
............
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the undersigned members of the 60th Montana Legislature as follows:
1. That any form of "collective rights" holding by the Court in Heller will offend the Compact; and.........4. Montana reserves all usual rights and remedies under historic contract law if its Compact should be violated by any "collective rights" holding in Heller.
A more detailed explanation: "Does a "collective rights" view of the Second Amendment breach Montana's contract for statehood?"
The only difference between a compact and a contract in any reasonable usage of the terms as they apply here is that a compact is more generally an agreement between or among states.
UPDATE: 9:10 pm EST Thursday February 21, 2008 Just saw this at the AR-15 forums Secy of State Brad Johnson of Montana delivered a letter to the Washington Times about possible outcomes of the Heller decision. A massive, spirited discussion followed. A few of the comments: Mxpatriot51: "Now that's a kick ass state." Voodoo3dfx: "I can see this happening a lot more in the future as the BOR is being ripped to shreds."' Echoing our thoughts, CM Johnson: "I'm SURE that Sarah Brady, Diane Feinstein, and a fwe other anti-gunners would find this to be rather frighening. I believe Heller will go in our favor. But if not...I'm moving to Montana!" discoJon1975: "I'd become a citizen of Montanastan even if it meant losing my military pension in 9 years!" There are 21 pages of comments, some revealing, many funny. UPDATE #2: This is from last week's AP: Montana has joined 30 other states in urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a lower court ruling, affirming the individual's right to bear arms. |
It's about time that political figures--any political figures--stood up against the ever-encroaching power of the federal government.
Montana's legislators are to be applauded.
As Frank Zappa once sang, "Moving to Montana soon..."
by Mondoreb
images:
* strangesports
* Montana t-shirt
Source: Montana: Wrong Heller Decision Would Violate Its Compact with the United States
Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.
Coming to the USA: the latest in suicide bomber technique.
The Department of Homeland Security has sent out a reminder to law enforcement personnel of the increased use of female suicide bombers worldwide and warning them that the tactic may be used in America.
The reminder also warns of terrorists hiding explosives in devices that "mimic the look of a pregnant woman.”
The unclassified DHS threat assessment, released Monday and obtained by NBC News, shows photographs of “pregnancy prosthetics,” hollowed-out devices that could hold explosive devices. The report says “female suicide bombers have used devices that make them appear pregnant to hide explosive devices.”
The report also reminds law enforcement officials that terrorists are using female bombers more frequently, in part because these attacks generate “more widespread media exposure.”
It adds: “Continued use of female suicide bombers-the most recent example being a 3 February 2008 attack at the main railway station in Colombo, Sri Lanka-indicates that terrorists judge this tactic as effective in increasing defenses and thwarting security measures.”
The report, marked “For Official Use Only,” is one of dozens of threat assessments issued jointly throughout the year by DHS and the FBI. The authors are quick to mention that there’s no immediate threat to the U.S.
“DHS and the FBI have no specific, credible intelligence indicating that terrorist organizations intend to utilize female suicide bombers against targets in the Homeland,” they write.
So now we have to beware of the pregnant woman sitting beside us on the airplane or bus?
This is one of those stories that make the reader pine for "the good 'ol days".
by Mondoreb
[hat tip: Freedom's Phoenix]
image: gabbybabble
Source: DHS: Suicide Bombers May Use "Pregnancy" Prosthetics
Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.
We're never ones to discount warnings: Winston Churchill was our hero. However, the warnings of a coming U.S. war with China continue.
The warnings about war take, in the main, two forms: military and economic. Zachary Hubbard, a retired Army officer, wrote in August about the possibility of military war.
Hubbard now looks at an economic one presaging any military actions.The war on terror grabs headlines, but there are far greater threats to America than terrorism. Conditions are ripe for a shift in the balance of global power, perhaps in the next four to five years. When it occurs, America will no longer be the dominant economic force on the planet. As our economic power wanes, our political and military power will follow suit.
The Roman philosopher Seneca said, “If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable.” His wisdom applies to America’s economic situation today.
Americans must choose a new economic destination and change course soon or we stand to lose much of our national power.
If we fail to act, the world could well end up with a four-way competition among the European Union, a China-dominated Asia, a global oil cartel dominated by Russia and a nuclear-armed Iran, and a U.S.-led North American Union.
Hubbard goes on to list the signs of distress in the United States' economy. He's not the only one to point these out; there's no end of stories alerting of a U.S. economic slide.
Indications of America’s waning economic power are numerous. A mortgage crisis caused by foolhardy subprime lending practices has thousands of Americans at risk of losing everything. Many financial institutions caught up in the scheme are also in trouble.
American consumer debt is at an all-time high and may cause the next major financial crisis.
The Baltimore Sun published an article on Oct. 10 titled, “Credit card debt is ready to blow.” According to the Sun, the financial industry is preparing for major defaults on the credit card debt held by Americans today, which exceeds $500 billion.
General Motors, once a global symbol of American industrial might, has suffered record losses recently and is facing financial disaster. Ford apparently has similar woes.
America’s manufacturing base is shrinking, as U.S. companies continue to ship manufacturing jobs overseas. Meanwhile, China is experiencing record economic growth funded largely by American consumers and U.S. government debt.
Failed energy policies could soon have Americans facing $5 per gallon gasoline. Looming energy shortages threaten manufacturing and other sectors. Every U.S. president since the Arab oil embargo of 1973-74 has failed to exhibit leadership in addressing America’s energy needs. Consequently, today we must buy oil from a rogue cartel dominated by Middle Eastern tyrants who hate us.
The U.S. dollar has tanked on foreign markets. Exchange rates are at an all-time low against the Euro and even the Canadian dollar. Iran has shifted its hard currency reserves to the Euro. China is threatening to do the same. Such a move by China, which holds more than $1 trillion in U.S. debt, would be devastating to the U.S. economy.
After listing some fixes, the writer declares the problems go deeper than just dollars and cents.Our problems are not purely economic. They reach to the very core of America’s national identity. Many politicians talk about repairing America’s reputation, but it’s not just our reputation that is broken.
The way we do business on Capitol Hill needs fixing. American voters must redefine the country economically by facing up to exploding personal and national debt, our disappearing manufacturing base and our dangerous foreign oil dependency. Only then may we hope to preserve our political and military might.
If party politicians continue to skirt these problems, America may suffer the same fate as the vanished democracies that preceded it.
Even the glory of Rome faded. Why should we expect our fate to be any different if we fail to tackle our problems?
Zachary Hubbard is a retired Army officer and freelance writer residing in Upper Yoder Township. He is a member of The Tribune-Democrat Reader Advisory Committee.
America’s reign as world’s economic king in peril
As we stated at the beginning, we're never one to discount warnings. It's hard to not join Hubbard in his concern. However, it would do well to keep in mind the inherent strengths and depth of the United States economy.
That doesn't mean that a close eye shouldn't be kept on various economic indicators. But the demise of big industries never much caused much worry in these quarters.
Capitalism is dynamic: today's ailing K-Mart, was yesterday's number one retailer K-Mart. Who knows where today's number one retailer Wal-Mart will be in 20 years. While warnings of demise should be kept in mind, warnings of capitalism's dynamic nature should also be heeded.
Two of the big employers in the late 1800s were buggy-whip makers and factories using human cigar rollers.
by Mondoreb
images: prisonplanet; slate]
Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.
Pedophiles are mimicking the behavior of inner-city violent gangs. They use distinct, seemingly-innocuous symbols to communicate who they are, their preferences in children--boy, girl or baby--and to designate safe havens.
They don't use the red or black or blue of their more violent brethren. Their markers have soft hues of blue, pink or a combination of both.
They don't use bandannas or baggy pants. Satisfaction and safety come in the forms of hearts, butterflies and triangles.
Their names speak of brightness, happiness even: "Blogo", "Glogo" and "Chlogo". What they represent for both the predator and their prey is sober and haunting.
The above illustration is a sample of a pamphlet available at a European site which serves as a sort of clearinghouse and Internet meeting place for pedophiles and those espousing a "child love" lifestyle. The site is hosted in one of the Benelux countries--Belgium, the Netherlands or Luxembourg--and offers a variety of services to it's users.
In researching this story, we slogged through some dark and disturbing places that served as hang-outs for equally disturbed people. The trips to sites catering to pedophiles could not be avoided: the FBI documents provided no graphics of these sad and sickening symbols, only descriptions.
We went through thousands of symbols on hundreds of search pages looking for them initially. Google "blogo" and it's discovered that there are over six and a half million references. After 40 pages of symbols, the searcher would still would still be searching. The same result would be had after 70 pages.
Later we learned that "GLogo" worked much better and "BLogo" only had 642 possible pictures. One example was found at Boy Chat.org. It's displayed prominently on the site, a "boylovers who need a forum for boy love chat and discussion". It was one of the more subdued sites we visited.
BoyChat.org also offers a BoyWiki. At first, the site was exited without knowing what types of information the BoyWiki contained. After some thought, the site was re-entered. One doesn't have to be squeamish to be thankful the BoyWiki was off-line at that time.
We felt it was important for parents and children alike to know what these logos look like. There are three child pornographer's signs; each is used to designate the bearer's taste in boys, girls or babies.
Pedophiles and those who "produce, distribute, and trade child pornography use special logos to identify sexual preferences according to an internal FBI document. The document, "Symbols and Logos Used By Pedophiles" was found on Spanish "childhood erotica" networks by Wikileaks.
Wikileaks.org is a website that purportedly allows whistle blowers to anonymously release government and corporate documents, allegedly without possible retribution. Wikileaks obtained the document via Spanish "childhood erotica" networks. According to Wikileaks, the unclassified parts of the document were only briefly published by the Ann Arbor, Michigan police department in a newsletter, which was later removed from the Internet.
Three "logos" or "symbols" were mentioned:
The first logo, 'The BoyLover logo' (BLogo) "is a small blue spiral-shaped triangle surrounded by a larger triangle, whereby the small triangle represents a small boy and the larger triangle represents an adult man. A variation of the BLogo is the Little Boy Lover logo (LBLogo), which also embodies a small spiral-shaped triangle within a larger triangle; however, the corners of the LBLogo are rounded to resemble a scribbling by a young child," said the document.
The second logo, 'The GirlLover logo' (GLogo) is "a small heart surrounded by a larger heart, which symbolizes a relationship between an adult male or female and minor girl," the document stated.
The last logo, 'The ChildLover logo' (CLogo), "resembles a butterfly and represents non-preferential gender child abusers," added the document. 
Image - CLogo.org
In our search for an image of the logos we found the website CLogo.org. An interesting find.
CLogo Images
Images of the CLogo can be found here.
The CLogo is a 'butterfly hearts logo' which is used by many to show their solidarity with the four proposed guidelines for physical intimacy in friendships between children and adults. The logo has been registered with the Benelux Trademarks Office since 15 February, 2002.
1. consent of both child and adult,
2. openness towards the parents of the child,
3. freedom for the child to withdraw from the relationship at any moment,
4. harmony with the child's development.
Source - CLogo.org
These are the symbols. We saw illustrations of necklaces, bracelets, and stickers featuring these calling cards of pedophilia. They are all well-known in the world in which they are used. If you have children and see someone wearing one, perhaps as a necklace, take notice.
They serve as a symbol of sickness for the bearer.
But they also serve as a warning for the knowing.
by Little Baby Ginn & Mondoreb
NOTE: This report could have easily been three or four times its length. However, after discussion, it was decided that the primary purpose of this report was to inform and publicize these symbols, especially to parents and children.
Any additional information would have only illustrated depravity and sickness. Most people we know would have a better day without the knowledge. Some may think that is not being a good reporter; that somehow the public wouldn't be served without their knowing it.
If anyone is curious or desires more information, they will be able to do the research on their own. The links and pictures in this story will get them started. We've put this subject away.
We delayed and finally, hurried to finish the story. We had no visions of journalistic excellence; only visions of a long shower.
We'd had enough of that shadowy, forlorn world, with its innocent-looking hearts and butterflies in soft, delicate pastels, to do us for a long, long while.
By LBG
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