Saturday, 25 January

COMMANDO SOLO ACTIVE: Defensetech Blog reports that 'Commando Solo' has broadcast a briefing by Secretary Rumsfeld over Baghdad on Jan 23 and describes the specs of the type of airplane being used for this purpose. Iraqis have been alerted to tune their radios to Solo's daily broadcasts by leaflets dropped on them.

Thursday, 23 January

TOURIA TIOULI SITUATION: A support committe has been established for Touria Tiouli, the French woman who was assaulted and raped while on a business trip in Dubai and then arrested and put on trial on charges of engaging in illicit sex. You will find the link for it here. The perverse evil which punishes the women who are victims of violence functions as an enabler to generate more and more violence which is the obvious goal of such a society. You can participate in various ways to help. You can get the e-mail and other addresses for her support group on the site, too. It is important to keep in mind one other thing: the court in Dubai has freed a violent predator, perhaps more than one, who is at large and enabled to assault and batter other women. He has not been publicly identified and, thus, can move around in anonymous darkness like Jack the Ripper.

Thursday, 23 January

CHINESE TYCOON MURDERED: The BBC reports that one of the richest men in China has been shot dead in his office by a man who then killed himself. Li Haicang was the chaiman of the privately-run Haixin Iron and Steel Company. His office was near the city of Yuncheng in the northern province of Shanxi.

Thursday, 23 January

SOME FANCY FOOTWORK: Bigwig reports that the Chief Justice of the Afghani Supreme Court has issued a ban on cable television for being un-Islamic, but . . .

DOOMED HOSTAGES: Iraqi General Amr Al-Saadi said he had been approached by Washington and London with proposals that he defect from Iraq, according to Al Bawaba News. He declined the proposal because: 'I have a family. When I say I have a family, I have an extended family, all the Al Saadis, which is a whole tribe.' Do you need a translation of that?

Wednesday, 22 January

CARNIVAL OF VANITIES #18: There are some very funny pieces in this week's compilation of writers' choices. One, in particular, caught my eye late last night by Solonor which is a tongue-in-cheek e-mail letter allegedly 'spammed' to the High Command of the current Iraqi regime. There are other pieces of a more thought-provoking variety as well. So far, I have only dipped a toe into the list of selections. How about you? If you are tempted by the prospect of some intellectual stimulation, you can find the collection at Yourish's weblog linked here.

Wednesday, 22 January

IN SEARCH OF DEADLY CHAINS . . . An Indian company called NEC has been identified as part of a supply chain that has allegedly supported Iraq's weaponry program prohibited by UN sanctions. They allegedly delivered materials which included atomized aluminum powder and titanium centrifugal pumps that could be used to produce chemical weapons. --from a Menare report called Smoking Gun? appearing on Al Bawaba today.

Tuesday, 21 January

BAGHDAD IN WAITING: The current weather in Baghdad is wet and cold; it has been raining a lot with some hail. A blogger there tells us more, but the Iraqi censor he has nicknamed 'Mr. Site-wiper' sometimes blocks some websites or weblogs so that the blogger cannot not access the internet freely. Here are three more excerpts:

- Electricity: two hours off every four hours; my cousin is calling this psychological training for harder times. He spends his two hours . . . with only candles and the sound of the rain. While I use my nifty 'converter' which basically is a car battery I recharge every time we have electricity, good for light and a small TV (for half an hour, otherwise I drain the battery too fast) . . .

- Internet: For some reason the ISP does not have uninterrupted power supply for the servers or something because they also go down with the blackouts. I don’t know, but something happens which knocks people off the server in certain areas at a time and does not allow them to log back on until after two hours, which is the scheduled time for a power cut these days. And three more governorates are going to get internet this week, Tamim, Anbar and Salah al-Deen. Happy porn surfing to all.

- The Jordanian Border: there is now a special area in the Jordanian part of the border-point where they keep 'unwanted Iraqis' until they find a ride back into the country. Best way to go to Jordan from Iraq (if you are an Iraqi, that is): Take a plane; don’t use the much more affordable bus. You have a better chance of getting thru the border if they think you have money. Book a return ticket even if you plan on staying; see above. If you plan on coming back, use the bus on the trip back and cash in your return ticket. Either have a visa to another country or give a believable reason that you can’t stay for longer than 10 days; a signed paper from your workplace stating that this is a business trip for so-and-so days is good. Be prepared to wait for a couple of hours in a room with ten other people until the officer is ready to see you. Good luck. Alternatively, go to Syria. They still have their borders open to Iraqis, maybe not for long.

You can read more via this link. When you get there, look on the sidebar to your left; then click on Salam's name.

Tuesday, 21 January

QUIT OR DIE: An ominous item reported on LGF about a border area in India. 'Women in Rajouri were directed by the local Moslem authorities to quit their jobs by January 25 or they will be killed. They must also stay home indoors all the time and if they go outdoors must be completely veiled. And from now on they must be immediately married by the age of fifteen.'

Tuesday, 21 January

SURFING AROUND THE NET: Some fun items I've come across while cruising around. An extraordinary animated cartoon called Gulf War 2 which I came across at Buzz Machine. This animated clip is done as if it is one of those games that boys seem to be so fond of these days. The craftsmanship is superlative and it is very funny. Don't look for any lofty messages or serious themes on it; it's just a lot of fun to watch as long as you don't take it too seriously. In it, the Bush Administration strategizes the approaches it will take for the prospective upcoming campaign, but as careful as their planning is, mayhem ensues. Be there as chaos breaks out all around you. And don't take it too seriously. This is a very well done little opus!

CELEBRATING THE SIMPSONS RENEWAL: Over the weekend Michele at A Small Victory hosted a thread for Favorite Simpsons Quotes to mark the occasion of the animated series being signed to 2005. Do you have a favorite quote or memorable tidbit from the series?

Sunday, 19 January

TOURIA TIOULI COURT PROCESS: First report in on the Tiouli proceedings. Ms. Tiouli pleaded NOT GUILTY to the charges against her. The court will issue its verdict on January 26, the lawyer who was defending her said. The lawyer's name was Ali Abdullah Al-Shamsi.

Journalists were allowed to observe part of the trial at the Dubai courthouse and France's vice-consul (not identified by name) was also present.