Hat tips: Midnight Rider and Always On Watch
Friday, August 07, 2009
WELT ONLINE: Er wurde als "Germanenschädel" verspottet, musste Häme von allen Seiten ertragen: Daniel Rouxels Mutter war Französin, sein Vater Wehrmachtssoldat. Jetzt bekam das einstige "Kind der Schande" die deutsche Staatsbürgerschaft. Sein Leben erzählt viel über die deutsch-französische Geschichte.
Für Daniel Rouxel endete der Zweite Weltkrieg gestern in Paris. In der deutschen Botschaft erhielt der Franzose die deutsche Staatsbürgerschaft. Für den 66 Jahre alten Mann aus Le Mans ist dies der versöhnliche Schlussakt einer langen und schwierigen deutsch-französischen Geschichte und zugleich das vorläufige Happy End im jahrelangen Kampf um die eigene Biografie.
Denn Rouxel, der am 2. April 1943 in Paris zur Welt kam, ist ein "fils de boche". Sein Vater war deutscher Besatzungssoldat in Frankreich, seine Mutter Französin. Seine ganze Kindheit hindurch sei er immer nur "der Deutschenbastard" und "Hurensohn" gewesen, sagt Rouxel im Gespräch mit WELT ONLINE, man könne sich gar nicht vorstellen, welche Dimension die dauernden Beschimpfungen für ein Kind annähmen.
Umso froher sei er nun über die deutsche Staatsbürgerschaft. "Für mich ist das eine wundervolle Nachricht", erzählt Rouxel. "Als mich die deutsche Botschaft anrief, habe ich geweint wie ein Kind." Er fühle sich nun mit seiner deutschen Familie wieder vereint, sagt er. Den Namen des deutschen Vaters möchte er nun seinem französischen Nachnamen hinzufügen. >>> Von Sascha Lehnartz | Donnerstag, 06. August 2009
LOS ANGELES TIMES: John Brennan accuses the previous administration of promoting a 'global war' mind-set that served only to 'validate Al Qaeda's twisted worldview.'
Reporting from Washington -- President Obama's counter-terrorism chief on Thursday repeatedly rebuked the Bush administration in a speech designed to make the case for a broader approach to fighting Islamic extremism.
In his first public appearance as the White House counter-terrorism advisor, John O. Brennan said that President George W. Bush's policies had been an affront to American values, undermined the nation's security and fostered a "global war" mind-set that served only to "validate Al Qaeda's twisted worldview."
"Rather than looking at allies and other nations through the narrow prism of terrorism -- whether they are with us or against us -- the [Obama] administration is now engaging other countries and people across a broader range of areas," Brennan said.
The sharp language is likely to extend the war of words between the current administration and conservative critics such as former Vice President Dick Cheney, who has carried out an unusually high-profile campaign accusing Obama of abandoning methods that made the country safe.
Brennan's speech was the latest in a series of addresses by senior administration figures in recent weeks outlining the president's national security agenda.
Brennan emphasized the argument that the United States must move beyond using the CIA and the military to attack Al Qaeda and must work to expand economic and educational opportunities across the Muslim world.
"We cannot shoot ourselves out of this challenge," Brennan said. "If we fail to confront the broader political, economic and social conditions in which extremists thrive, then there will always be another recruit in the pipeline, another attack coming downstream."
Brennan presented what he described as a multi-tiered approach -- including using the U.S. military to train the security forces of allied countries, supporting democratic reforms and directing billions of dollars in aid to impoverished regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan. >>> Greg Miller | Friday, August 07, 2009
BBC: A Polish court has banned a woman from publicly using derogatory terms like "queer" or "fag" to describe her young gay neighbour.
A judge in north-west Poland ruled the 44-year-old woman had infringed Ryszard Giersz's dignity by repeatedly verbally abusing him in public.
The woman, identified in court as Anna S, was also ordered to pay Mr Giersz damages of 15,000 zloty (£3,100).
Polish gay rights groups have hailed the case as unprecedented.
An emotional Mr Giersz said he was very happy with Tuesday's verdict, adding that he may use the damages payment to buy a bigger flat away from his neighbour.
"I'm a normal person and I just want to live with my partner in peace," he told journalists after the court hearing. "The last six months have completely knocked us out."
Ms S, who can still appeal against the verdict, maintained her innocence throughout the proceedings, saying that she was, in fact, the victim.
"All the witnesses lied," she was quoted as saying by the Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza. "This man offended me. He threw things at me from his window. I'm depressed because of this and need treatment." >>> Adam Easton, BBC News, Warsaw | Friday, August 07, 2009
Campaign Against Homophobia (in Polish) >>>
LE FIGARO: À trois jours du premier anniversaire du conflit éclair qui opposa la Russie et la Géorgie en Ossétie du Sud, le président géorgien, Mikhaïl Saakachvili, a invité les États-Unis et l'UE à envoyer un «message clair» à Moscou pour apaiser les tensions entre les deux pays. Alors que le ton monte, Saakachvili a évoqué mardi un «risque» de reprise des combats. «Les Russes exercent une pression constante. Les dernières manœuvres sont préoccupantes, ils refusent de répondre aux appels des observateurs européens, et malheureusement les médias à Moscou annoncent une situation de conflit imminente», a-t-il déclaré mardi sur RTL. De son côté, la Russie profère le même genre d'accusations. Le gouvernement géorgien préparerait pour l'anniversaire «des actions à caractère provocateur», et l'évolution des événements serait «imprévisible» le long de la frontière, selon le vice-ministre russe des Affaires étrangères, Grigori Karassine. Ce dernier a à nouveau accusé Washington de réarmer l'ex-république soviétique. Mardi, toutefois, Barack Obama et son homologue russe Dmitri Medvedev ont eu un entretien téléphonique au terme duquel ils seraient tombés d'accord sur la nécessité de réduire la tension en Géorgie.
[Source: LeFigaro] A. To. | Mercredi 05 Août 2009
DIE PRESSE: Ein Jahr nach dem Kaukasus-Krieg zwischen Georgien und Russland ist die Gefahr einer neuerlichen Eskalation für den georgischen Präsidenten nicht gebannt. Russland wolle weiter die georgische Demokratie stürzen.
Der georgische Präsident Michail Saakaschwili hat zum ersten Jahrestag des Kaukasus-Krieges vor neuen schweren militärischen Auseinandersetzungen mit Russland gewarnt. "Die Gefahr gibt es noch", sagte Saakaschwili am Freitag im deutschen Sender ARD. So sei der russische Ministerpräsident Wladimir Putin noch immer an der Macht, und "er hat sich verpflichtet, mich an irgendeinem Teil meines Körpers aufzuhängen", sagte Saakaschwili laut Übersetzung.
Nach Presseberichten hatte Putin dem vor einem Jahr um Vermittlung bemühten französischen Präsidenten Nicolas Sarkozy gesagt, er werde den georgischen Staatschef "an den Eiern aufhängen". "Russland wollte meine Regierung stürzen" >>> Ag | Freitag, 08. August 2009
NZZ ONLINE: Einen Tag nach der Vereidigung von Präsident Mahmud Ahmadinejad sind in Iran erneut Oppositionsanhänger auf die Strasse gegangen. Sie riefen «Tod dem Diktator». Hunderte Polizisten waren vor Ort und versuchten, die Versammlung aufzulösen.
Augenzeugenberichten zufolge versammelten sich Hunderte Sympathisanten des Oppositionsführers Mir-Hossein Moussavi auf einem Platz in der Hauptstadt Teheran. Sie riefen «Tod dem Diktator», wie ein Augenzeuge berichtete. Hunderte Polizisten seien vor Ort und versuchten, die Versammlung aufzulösen. >>> sda/Reuters | Freitag, 07. August 2009
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: WASHINGTON – The leader of the Pakistani Taliban was killed in a drone strike by U.S. forces, Pakistani officials and one of the man's aides said.
Pakistani news accounts previously reported that the air strike, carried out early Wednesday morning, had killed one of the wives of the militant leader, Baitullah Mehsud. But Pakistani officials said Friday Mr. Mehsud is dead and that the Taliban had cordoned off the area, stopping anyone from getting near the site.
"I confirm that Baitullah Mehsud and his wife died in the American missile attack in South Waziristan,'' Taliban commander Kafayat Ullah told the Associated Press by telephone. He wouldn't give any further details.
Reports of Mr. Mehsud's death have circulated in the past, but a U.S. defense official said Pakistani officials appeared to be more certain this time that Mr. Mehsud had been killed. A U.S. counterterrorism official said there are "strong indications" that Mehsud was killed.
Baitullah Mehsud had emerged as one of the most wanted Islamist extremists in Pakistan's lawless western tribal regions, leading a large army of militants that have fought U.S. and Pakistani forces on both sides of the Afghan-Pakistani border.
Pakistani officials accused Mr. Mehsud of being behind a number of high-profile terrorist attacks, including the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 2007. >>> Peter Spiegel and Jay Solomon | Saturday, August 08, 2009 [sic]
Yet another ‘pious’ Muslim on his way to Paradise or Jannah (جنّة), another pious Muslim on his way (or has he already arrived?) to meet the virgins and beautiful, wide-eyed boys that will surely be awaiting his arrival to tend to his every desire and whim!
"And those foremost (In Tawheed and obedience to Allah and His Messenger in this life) will be foremost (in Paradise). They will be those nearest to Allah in the Gardens of Delight. A multitude of those (the foremost) will be from the first generation (who embraced Islam) and a few of those (the foremost) will be from the later (generations). They will be reclining, face to face, on thrones woven with gold and precious stones. They will be served by immortal boys, with cups and jugs, and a glass from the flowing wine, from which they will have neither any headache, nor any intoxication. They will have fruit from which they may choose, and the flesh of fowls that they desire. There will be Houris with wide, lovely eyes (as wives for the pious), like preserved pearls, a reward for deeds that they used to do. They will hear no vain or sinful speech (like backbiting, etc.) but only the saying of: Salam, Salam, (greetings of peace). And those on the Right Hand, who will be those on the Right Hand? They will be among thorn-less lote-trees among Talh (banana trees) with fruits piled one above another, in long-extended shade, by constantly flowing water, and fruit in plenty, whose season is not limited, and their supply will not be cut off. They will be on couches or thrones raised high. Verily, We have created for them (maidens) of equal age, loving (their husbands only). For those on the Right Hand." [56:10-38]Read more about what awaits pious Muslims in Paradise >>>
If you ever thought that the people at the top were paid to protect you and further the values of our Judeo-Christian civilisation, disabuse yourselves of those notions now! The powers that be have all but given up on defending our way of life. They want the fat salaries, but they don’t want to take the uncomfortable decisions that go with those positions. In short, they are stupid, cowardly, greedy idiots, bereft of all sense of shame or responsibility. They care little about our safety, but a lot about lining their pockets. – ©Mark
THE TELEGRAPH: A doctor cleared of the London and Glasgow car bombings, Mohammed Asha, is to be allowed to remain in Britain after the British government dropped its attempt to deport him.
Dr Asha, 28, admitted being friends with both of the bombers, lending them money, and meeting them at key points in the build up to the plot but he was cleared of involvement at the end of a trial last year.
The Home Office has now dropped its attempt to deport him back to his native Jordan on the grounds that his presence was “not conducive to the national good”, opening the way for him to return to his work as a doctor.
A hearing of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) in January had already released him on bail and expressed the view that it was not in the public interest to prevent him from resuming work in the National Health Service.
A colleague had told the hearing in central London that Dr Asha, who was working as a neurologist in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffs, when he was arrested, had the potential to be one of the country’s leading neurosurgeons.
Bilal Abdulla, and Kafeel Ahmed who died in the attacks, planted two car bombs outside the Tiger Tiger nightclub in London’s West End in June 2007. >>> Duncan Gardham, Security Correspondent | Friday, August 07, 2009
So this soft-thinking president wants us all to play mind-bending games, does he? So, from now on, I suppose ducks are really horses, and tables are really chairs. What has this president been smoking? – Mark
THE WASHINGTON TIMES: 'Jihadists' and 'global war' no longer acceptable terms
It's official. The U.S. is no longer engaged in a "war on terrorism." Neither is it fighting "jihadists" or in a "global war."
President Obama's top homeland security and counterterrorism official took all three terms off the table of acceptable words inside the White House during a speech Thursday at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank.
"The President does not describe this as a 'war on terrorism,'" said John Brennan, head of the White House homeland security office, who outlined a "new way of seeing" the fight against terrorism.
The only terminology that Mr. Brennan said the administration is using is that the U.S. is "at war with al Qaeda."
"We are at war with al Qaeda," he said. "We are at war with its violent extremist allies who seek to carry on al Qaeda's murderous agenda." >>> Jon Ward and Eli Lake, Copyright 2009 The Washington Times, LLC | Thursday, August 06, 2009
Hat tip: Jihad Watch
THE TELEGRAPH: A 26-year old Greek woman has become an overnight national hero after setting fire to the genitals of a 23-year old drunken Briton who allegedly tried to sexually assault her in a crowded bar.
The unidentified woman from the fiercely proud island of Crete won herself even more praise by doing the right legal thing – turning herself over to police and the courts to be put on trial for what she claimed was her "right to self-defence".
She will face a magistrate on Friday to see if the case will go to court.
She is currently facing an investigating magistrate on charges of causing bodily injuries to the Briton and of endangering private property.
The Briton himself, whose name is expected to be released later, is currently in a private clinic in Heraklion, the capital of Crete island, being treated for second degree burns to his testicles and penis.
According to a police statement issued last night the incident occurred at a club in the notorious coastal resort of Mallia, which is dominated by young Britons seeking all-night revelry.
It alleged the Briton took down his trousers and started waving his genitals at a number of girls. He then specifically "forcefully fondled" the 26-year old Greek woman, asking her to take hold of his genitals.
After asking him to stop harassing her, the police said, she poured the alcoholic drink Sabucco on his genitals (an Italian brand type of Greek ouzo or French Pernod drink).
This again allegedly failed to stop his advances, so the woman seized a lighter and set fire to the alcohol-drenched genitals, local press reports said. >>> Paul Anast in Athens | Thursday, August 06, 2009
Thursday, August 06, 2009
YNET NEWS: Does world remember why we needed airline security in first place?
Every time I travel overseas (and I must admit it happens often,) I undergo security checks at airports worldwide. Every time I ask myself how could it be that none of the billions of travelers who have been going the strict and annoying checks for years now dedicate a few seconds to thinking about the reason for this screening process, which has become an integral part of every flight by now. As if it’s pre-destined. Just like one needs a ticket and passport, one needs to stand in line and undergo a security check.
A whole generation (and in fact, two generations) of passengers are convinced that the need for security was born along with the first ever flight. However, we the older ones remember why every traveler now needs to undergo those checks. We also remember that many years ago we could fly from one location to another without any interruptions. The planes were slower perhaps, and there was no in-flight movie, but we could just board a plane and fly.
It is therefore odd that even those who still remember this ancient era do not think, or do not want to think, about the reason for the bothersome addition of security: The fact that one, Yasser Arafat, and the terrorist gangs he commanded, introduced the need of security checks after inventing the notion of hijacking planes for the purposes of extorting the Free World. >>> Noah Klieger | Thursday, August 06, 2009
YNET NEWS: Obama has failed to sweep Israelis, Arabs because his message has remained vague
WASHINGTON – Barak [sic] Obama has been unable to sweep public opinion in Israel, and not because he did not bother to travel to Tel Aviv or Jerusalem or directly address the people. He has failed because his message is vague and it does not enable Israelis to understand what his next steps are, and how exactly we will be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.
Obama was elected US president mostly because he knew how to produce what the American public so direly needed: Hope. Yet among Middle East residents, Obama has been unable to produce hope, because he has not presented an orderly plan accompanied by a timetable. Obama said that the two-state vision is the solution. President Bush also said it before him, yet for eight years nothing happened.
Obama's Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, boasts that he spent his summer vacations on the beach in Tel Aviv. Yet even he cannot explain to his boss the essence of Israeliness: When you push Israelis into a corner, their response is reflected by two constitutive statements: "I won't be a sucker" on the one hand, and "I'll show you who's the boss" on the other hand.
When Obama pressured Israel and demanded that it curb settlement construction without indicating what the other side needs to do, he failed to move Israelis to his side; not even the ones who support his policy and automatically applaud any peace plan. The more he presses, the more assertive they'll become, while also showing him they won't be the neighborhood's sucker.
This Israeli disdain can easily turn into willingness to face a challenge, even if the price is heavy: Israelis only want to know there's a reason to do it.
Meanwhile, Obama also failed to give hope to the Palestinians and to Arab residents of east Jerusalem: He did not present a message that would prompt people to rally around it, such as what the Palestinian state will look like, what will its relationship with Israel be like, what will security guarantees be like, and what will Mideastern residents gain by backing Obama. >>> Orly Azoulay | August 04, 2009
Queen Rania al Abdullah of Jordan (Official Website) >>>
PINK NEWS: The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has visited the Tel Aviv gay youth centre where two people were killed last weekend.
Speaking today at the scene, he said the shooting bore "the markings of a terror attack".
Two people, a 16-year-old girl and a 26-year-old man, were killed and 15 were injured when a masked gunman opened fire on the LGBT venue on Saturday.
Police are still hunting for the gunman. The prime minister assured those present the police had his support.
According to the Jerusalem Post, Netanyahu said: "We need to do this and we must bring security back into our lives. This is not just a blow to the gay-lesbian community. This is a blow to all Israeli youth and Israeli society."
He added: "Anyone who has suffered from gratuitous hatred, as an individual or in a group, knows how painful and unacceptable it is. This is something we must uproot from society as much as possible," he added. "I think Israeli society has made progress towards tolerance, and I hope and feel certain that we can make further progress."
The event was closed to the media. It was the first time an Israeli prime minister has visited a gay organisation. [Source: PinkNews] Staff Writer | Thursday, August 06, 2009
TIMES ONLINE: Members of a nationalist plot to overthrow the Turkish Government planned to attack the Nato headquarters in Turkey and assassinate 12 prominent figures, including the Prime Minister, a court heard today.
Fifty-two additional suspects, including a former senior policeman, were charged with involvement in the alleged campaign of chaos and violence that was to culminate in a military coup. A court accepted the third, 1,454-page indictment in the Ergenekon trial, charging the ultranationalist, ultra-secularist group.
Two four-star generals and senior figures from the security forces, business, politics, academia and the media are among the defendants as Turkey confronts for the first time what has long been known as the Deep State. The network is considered to be the true, military-backed power behind the throne in this mainly Muslim democracy.
Ergenekon, named after a mythical valley where ancient Turks once lived, is considered the latest incarnation of an organisation that has allegedly existed for decades under different guises. It was given a new impetus and its new title after the rise of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Prime Minister, whose party was first elected in 2002. His background as a political Islamist has helped the group to sway public opinion, but it is his reformist, pro-European Union actions and policies that are most offensive to this isolationist and anti-Western group’s hard core. >>> Suna Erdem in Istanbul | Thursday, August 06, 2009
TIMES ONLINE: President Obama’s approval rating fell to just 50 per cent for the first time today as a growing number of Democratic congressmen across the country contend with angry mobs decrying his economic policies.
The screaming groups, who have hung effigies of Democratic politicians on nooses and even issued death threats, are accused of being orchestrated mobs paid for by conservative groups.
Yet they have captured the spotlight and point to the raging national debate over Mr Obama’s increasingly desperate push to reform health care, the centerpiece of his domestic agenda. The clashes also come amid deep concerns about the exploding budget deficit, a ballooning debt which is threatening the president’s entire economic policies.
After a month in which his poll ratings suffered a significant slide, a new Quinnipiac survey had his approval rating down to just 50 per cent. As in other recent polls, and more ominously for Mr Obama, a majority of Americans now disapprove of his handling of the economy and the issue of health care. >>> Tim Reid, Washington | Thursday, August 06, 2009
THE TELEGRAPH: Twitter has gone down after the microblogging website became the victim of what the company believes was a co-ordinated attack.
The site crashed at around 2pm UK time, and remained offline for several hours. Twitter users around the world were unable to use the service, and could not send or receive messages, known a tweets.
Twitter confirmed that the outage had been caused by malicious attempts to overload its servers. This technique, known as a distributed denial of service attack, is widely used by hackers, cybercriminals and spammers to flood a website's servers with access requests, leaving ordinary traffic unable to connect to the server, and causing the system to overload and crash.
Hackers use a network of compromised computers, called a "botnet", to launch these attacks. Computer users are often unaware that their machine has been infected with a virus, worm or malicious software that allows hackers to gain remote access to their PC.
Twitter said that although the microblogging service was up and running again, it was still defending against the attack, and was attempting to recover and provide a normal service. >>> Claudine Beaumont, Technology Editor | Thursday, August 06, 2009
NZZ ONLINE: Iran dürfte eine Phase der Transformation durchlaufen: Die Protestbewegung wird wohl nicht mehr aufzuhalten sein. Selbst wenn die nächsten vier Jahre Repression, Gewalt und Einschränkung der Meinungsfreiheit dominieren werden. Die Zeichen dafür, dass die Islamische Revolution am Ende ist, werden immer deutlicher.
Der Grundstein für vier weitere Jahre unter Mahmud Ahmadinejad in Iran ist gelegt. Am 4. August wurde der Präsident ein weiteres Mal vom obersten Geistlichen Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vereidigt. Die breite Protestwelle, die die Wahlen und allmählich auch das politische System in Frage stellen, scheint an dem Mullah-Apparat buchstäblich abzuprallen. Doch das Establishment in Teheran steht auf immer wackligeren Beinen.
Distanz zur Führung
Ein prominentes Zeichen dafür setzte der frühere Präsident der Islamischen Republik, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. Er blieb sowohl der Ernennung als auch der Vereidigung von Präsident Ahmadinejad fern. Damit setzt der Gelehrte und frühere Staatspräsident ein deutliches Signal, dass auch die Elite des Landes zunehmend auf Distanz zur Führung geht. >>> hoh | Donnerstag, 06. August 2009
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)