Observations on politics and poetry by Australian bush poet, Michael Darby.

Michael was born in Sydney in 1945 and is a former Australian Army Officer who has been writing and broadcasting on politics and economics since 1972.

 


NAUGHTY POWERLINES

Some time ago, the Australian media began to trumpet the claim that a new report proved that powerlines cause leukaemia in children.

The report, by British epidemologist Sir Richard Doll, was interpreted to mean that there is a slightly increased risk of children living near electricity pylons developing cancer. Onto the bandwagon leaped the usual suspects, those who make a career out of frightening people.

Very little publicity was given to the statement by Australian Cancer Society Chief Executive Officer, Professor Alan Coates:

"We should probably be acting on the precautionary principle, that exposure should be reduced where reasonable," he said. "I think you've got to assume that it is true there is a small risk and what you've got to then do is look at the extremely expensive cost of doing something about it."
"The risk from continued advertising of cigarettes on Grand Prix cars is a far greater risk to public health than the risk of power lines".

Since 1991, the Electrical Standards Association of Australia has recommended that ESAA members operate their electrical power systems prudently within Australian health guidelines. ESAA commissioned in 1993 a $1 million laboratory study on the effect upon cancers in mice of exposure to magnetic fields. The study results were negative.

In 1995 the United States National Council on Radiation Protection report on electromagnetic fields recommended an EMF safety limit of 0.2 microteslas.
Standing under a powerline one can measure a magnetic field stronger than .2 microteslas, but that figure is also exceeded by many electrical appliances. A very important point to note is that magnetic fields are not proportionate to voltage.
The wise policy, already being followed in Australia, is to avoid where possible constructing power lines above schools or homes.

In the unlikely event that a genuine large-scale study can demonstrate that a nearby powerline can cause a a risk to a child equivalent to one tenth of the risk imposed by having one parent who smokes, then that will be time to assess whether additional safety precautions should be taken.

In the meantime, let's pay scant attention to the members of the fear industry.

Following are some extracts from a 1997 article in the New York Times, which (to the best of my knowledge) no Australian journalist has bothered to cite recently.

Power Lines Don't Cause Leukemia, Study Concludes
by Gina Kolata
New York Times (July 3, 1997)

For the last 18 years, the debate over whether power lines cause cancer has been passionate and sometimes furious. Even when the National Academy of Sciences last November found no evidence of risk, it suggested further research on childhood leukemia. Now a large, meticulously designed study has found no evidence that electric power lines cause leukemia in children, researchers said Wednesday.

The new study was a collaboration between scientists at the National Cancer Institute and childhood leukemia specialists from the nation's leading medical centers. It involved 636 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the most common childhood cancer, and 620 healthy children who were matched to the cancer patients by race, age and residential neighborhood. Scientists assessed the children's exposure to magnetic fields that power lines produce, measuring the fields in the children's residences, past and present, and where the mothers lived when they were pregnant. They directly measured the fields in the childrens' yards, schools and day care centers and even had the children walk around with measurement devices. Investigators doing the measurements did not know which children had had cancer.

Then the researchers asked, Did the children who developed leukemia have a higher exposure to magnetic fields? The answer, published in Thursday's issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, is "no," with one caveat: Those children whose exposure was above .300 micro Teslas had a slightly higher risk of leukemia.

But, the researchers cautioned, there were very few children with these high exposures -- just 45 out of the 638 children with cancer. And yet at the very highest exposures, the risk went back to almost normal.

What this meant to the researchers was that there was no trackable relationship between level of exposure and level of risk, what is normally called a dose-response curve. Dr. Charles Stevens, a neurobiologist at the Salk Institute in San Diego, and others dismissed the apparent increased risk as insignificant. "If you can't find a dose-response, you can't believe it," Stevens said. Spurious associations are expected when statisticians pore over complex data sets looking for correlations, he added. Stevens was the head of the committee of the National Academy of Sciences that reported on health effects of electromagnetic fields last November.

Dr. Martha S. Linet, a childhood cancer specialist and epidemiologist at the National Cancer Institute who was the lead author of the new study, said the study was not ambiguous: It found no dangers from magnetic fields induced by power lines."

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posted by JR at 12:12 AM

 

PRIVATIZING AUSTRALIA’S PHONE SYSTEM

The expert at populist politics, the member for Kennedy Bob Katter MP is convinced that privatization of Telstra will lead to job losses. In Cloncurry, Bob Katter's home town, there were job losses when Cloncurry became one of the last towns in Australia to switch from a manual exchange to an automatic exchange.

Through the length and breadth of Bob Katter's vast electorate, from near Winton, north to Mount Isa then across to the Coast at Innisfail, there have been job losses as modern telephones have rendered obsolete the old lines hung on insulators from the top of wooden poles. Those job losses all occurred while Telstra was fully owned by the Government. These were technology driven job losses, and like all technology driven job losses, they allowed for the creation of more jobs than were lost.

In North West Queensland one can now run a business which is genuinely in contact with the world. Mining companies can now carry on from the site a host of administrative functions which once had to be duplicated in some city. Real costs of producing our exports of minerals, of beef, of all the agricultural products have been steadily falling.

What is even more significant in terms of new income, is that improvements in communications have made possible a high and rising level of tourist dollars, which are making the difference between decay and prosperity for many country towns. The outback has many problems. Too much technology is not one of them. We should not be frightened of technology, and we should not be frightened of the efficiency which comes from privatization. Sadly, many members of the Queensland National Party are frightened of both.

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FREE MARKET BOOK

Defending Free Trade
by Gerard Jackson

This ground-breaking e-book is a fiercely polemical defence of free trade by a man who does not hesitate to expose the self-serving hypocrisy of those politicians and businessmen who never hesitate to confuse the public interest with their own personal ambitions. Mr Jackson also subjects to mercilessly analytical scrutiny the anti-free trade arguments of those academics, bigoted journalists, and leftwing intellectuals whose economic beliefs would savage our living standards if any government was foolish enough to act upon them.

Given that Mr Jackson has fought this vital battle virtually alone, his is a remarkable achievement. Totally ignored by corporate executives, and forced to work outside the mainstream of what passes for a free market movement in Australia, he has managed to produce a purposeful free traders' battlefield manual in the fight against protectionism.

A book like this has never before been published in Australia. "Free Trade" proclaims the passion, determination, and courage that Australia's free market movement so sorely needs. With his customary humour Mr Jackson dedicates this work to "Protectionists everywhere, and their concern for the public interest."

Defending Free Trade soars beyond its Australian context as a must for free traders everywhere, offering essential ammunition for the struggle against the enemies of the market.

For your free copy, Download This Book Now

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posted by JR at 12:13 AM

 
RESPONSE TO A VEGAN INVITATION

Dear X
Thank you for your courteous email inviting me to visit a vegan internet site.
Let me make my position very clear.

Vegans are a threat to themselves, and what is much worse, a threat to their own children. It is a shocking thing that parents condemn their own offspring to a shortened lifetime of inferior health and impaired physical and intellectual development, for the sake of their parents' cultist obsessions.

Vegans are also a threat to humanity as a whole, because the world is incapable of supporting anything like the present population without the consumption of animal protein. Major exporters of grain -including Australia - would have little left to feed the hungry world if their agricultural resources had to feed their own populations without the use of animal protein.

Humans are incapable of surviving through eating grass. We need animals, in symbiotic relationship with humans, to convert that grass into edible protein, and to mobilise essential minerals, including but not limited to iron, into easily digestible form.

Socialists can survive only if there are plenty of capitalists to plunder. Similarly, vegans can flourish only if there are plenty of meat-eaters to support them, because (with important exceptions) vegans tend to be anaemic, feeble, lacking in initiative, suspicious, envious and bitter, and incapable of doing much more than attack the meat eaters who do the work, pay the taxes and provide the infrastucture which allows the vegan cult to exist.

Do not forget that Adolf Hitler was a vegan. Other vegans include the brutal Khmer Rouge.

There are two explanations for the historical fact that some of the most unpleasant people in history have been vegans (and I am deliberately including animal liberationists in the definition of vegan).

Firstly, because of their artificially reduced capacity for constructive thought and productive work, vegans have great difficulty in accumulating assets through their own efforts. So they develop a mindset that stealing the assets of others is the way to live.

Secondly, denial of the Christian theme that humans are a special creation of God, and the assertion that humans are not superior to any other creature, add up to an attitude which places no worth upon human life.

Veganism is a cult which Australia does not need.
It's easy to escape from the clutches of veganism. Drink a milkshake, then enjoy a good steak, a couple of lamb chops or a battered bream, and you are saved!

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DINE WITH DARBY ON THURSDAY

The regular dinner conducted by Michael Darby at 7.30 at HARRY'S FISH CAFE
(The two-storey building at the Spit Bridge, MOSMAN, Sydney) will continue on Friday 3 January 2003 and Friday 10 January 2003. And thereafter - commencing 16 Jan 02 - will be conducted each Thursday.
Join us for politics and poetry.
Phone 0413 348 843 to book.

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posted by JR at 12:10 AM

 

WHITHER ZIMBABWE?

By: Eddie Cross
Bulawayo, Zimbabwe

AT THE END OF 2002 it´s probably worth just looking back and reviewing what has happened in 2002 and what might happen in 2003. These are not hypothetical issues for us who live here but are of real concern to our very survival.

So far the outcome of the year has been very much as predicted – we forecast what would happen if the MDC was denied power in March and to a very large degree it has turned out that way. We were the first to project the food crisis – many thought we were alarmists at the time, but in retrospect we were pretty accurate. As early as February 2001 we were calling for contingency plans to be made for imports of food on a large scale. We were the first to project import demand of over 2 million tonnes in 2002/03.

We forecast 200 per cent inflation and a 12 per cent decline in GDP if Zanu PF held onto power in March 2002. We are going to be just about spot on in both respects. We forecast export earnings falling to US$1,4 billion or less – they are going to be about US$1,35 billion. We forecast total formal employment declining by one third to 900 000 or less – we were optimistic – employment levels are likely to be even lower than projected.

So what, you might ask? When a bunch of economists make predictions that turn out about right it usually a bit of a fluke. Being right gives us no satisfaction and does little to change our situation on the ground. Zanu PF is still in control and still retains the support of regional governments to a large extent despite their almost complete failure as a government. The position for the average Zimbabwean has simple got worse by the day and is now almost intolerable. What is going to happen in 2003?

As far as the economy is concerned there seems to be no respite – we predict export earnings declining to below US$1 billion. The GDP will decline again – we estimate by 15 per cent in 2003 and that this decline will be manifest in all sectors of the economy. The food shortages will continue at about the present level for the whole year and these shortages will run into 2004. If anything, we see acceleration in the downward spiral with the State no longer able to fund even the most basic services. Inflation will accelerate to between 400 and 500 per cent.

The issue of what is likely to happen in Zimbabwe is an important question for three main leadership groups in the region – Zanu PF as the governing Party in Zimbabwe, the MDC as the only significant opposition and potential future government and the leadership of the ANC in South Africa. The latter have been exhibiting considerable fragility in recent weeks and a major collapse in Zimbabwe would be a serious development for the ANC´s current leadership which has now abandoned any pretense at neutrality on the Zimbabwe issue and is backing Zanu PF as a "sister" organisation and fellow "liberation movement".

There are three main possible scenarios for the evolution of events in Zimbabwe in 2003.

1. Zanu PF is forced (they will not do it voluntarily) to allow a rerun of the March 2002 presidential elections. This could come about through the loss of the court case challenging the outcome or thorough external pressure of some kind. If held under reasonable conditions and on a level playing field (again not possible without external pressure) then I would expect Morgan Tsvangirai to win by a wide margin and the MDC to form the next government. The failure of the present regime is so comprehensive in every field that any other outcome is inconceivable.

2. The Zanu PF regime collapses under the pressure generated by their complete failure as a government and rising internal discontent and violence. The two main parties agree on an interim transitional administration of some kind with a limited mandate to caretaker the country until we can write a new constitution and hold fresh elections under international supervision. The outcome will be the complete elimination of Zanu PF from power and their relegation to a minor status in the countries political system.

3. The economy collapses and in the absence of any initiatives by the political parties the army steps in as the only institution which can force change in the domestic situation and they set up a civilian administration to run the country leading eventually to a new constitution and fresh elections. Zanu PF elements would clearly control the latter process and the MDC would be marginalised or even banned. I can think of a dozen variations of the above but the basic process in each remains the same. If the option one is carried out but elections held under the same system as in March 2002, then I expect the same degree of rigging and violence with an unsatisfactory outcome and no change. But the one thing that people in Zanu PF must appreciate of this option is that at the end of the process Zanu PF would still control over half of the elected seats in the House of Parliament and a blocking one third of the total membership. Their front bench would be unaffected and they have several people who could provide effective leadership of Zanu PF in opposition. On the negative front, if Zanu PF refused to work co-operatively with the MDC during this phase under option one, then Morgan (as President) could dissolve Parliament and hold fresh elections under the present constitution and in so doing wipe out Zanu PF as a significant opposition. This would clearly not be in the interests of Zanu PF and would create a unique opportunity for collaboration on a programme of economic stabilisation and a resumption of growth.

Morgan Tsvangirai would have to implement any recovery strategy and it could be two years before fresh elections are held – either under the existing or any new constitution. Two years in which they could rebuild their image and put their own house in order. Two years of democratic activity in the House and outside. At the end of that process unless the MDC has done an outstanding job of the recovery, which will barely be under way at that time, Zanu PF would at least have a chance of holding onto their status as a major effective opposition. They would also be able to influence intervening events including any new constitution, which would have to get a two-thirds majority to pass.

If the leadership of Zanu PF (excluding Mugabe) were to ignore this strategy then we are left with options two and three. Under option two we have a less than satisfactory outcome – implementation of turn around strategies are delayed, political control over the transition arrangements and the writing of a new constitution are less satisfactory and at the end of it all MDC sweeps the board. Under this scenario it would be years before we have a functioning democracy again with all the threats that this entails.

Option three would be a catastrophe for the country and the region. The new administration would not be recognised, South Africa would have to carry the burden of maintaining stability and starting recovery on its own and the people who have perpetrated the present collapse and crisis would remain in power behind the scenes. I know this is attractive to the military and to certain Zanu PF leaders, but for Africa and Nepad this would be the final straw that broke the camel´s back. African leaders would be obliged to back the new regime and a formal break in ties with major forces in the developed countries would become inevitable. Do not think that this scenario is unthinkable – the recent approaches to the MDC leadership have all the hallmarks of the military. One additional disturbing resonance of option three, is that under certain conditions it might be acceptable to Pretoria.

I think it is now dawning on Zanu PF that their present position is untenable. They no longer command the resources to maintain their activities and the position for them is weakening rapidly. There is also no way out of the political impasse they have got themselves into. Mugabe is not going to be able to recover his position in the global community, no matter what he does. They must start to work on life after Mugabe – and they must do it now, before they lose control altogether.

By entering into negotiations with the MDC on the way forward they will be using what strength they have remaining to secure the best possible outcome for themselves. This could include a secure retirement arrangement for Mugabe and a select few of his close associates. It could also include either a transition mechanism to a new constitution and fresh elections or arrangements for fresh presidential elections that would open the door to a democratic and lawful transition to a new government.

As far as the MDC is concerned it has stated its position very clearly, and any road out of this impasse must include the retirement of Mugabe, a return to legitimacy in national government and the full restoration of the rule of law. Once these conditions are met, Zimbabweans can start the long task of putting their lives back together again and getting the economy back onto a growth track. For this to happen both Zanu PF and the ANC must accept that the MDC holds the key to the gate on any new initiative except the one that leads to disaster. The ANC must see to it that Mugabe and his military cohorts do not use that other key in a desperate attempt to escape reality.

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posted by JR at 12:10 AM

 
HOW TO SUPPORT A CRICKET BOYCOTT OF THE MUGABE REGIME

* Please Click on this link, which takes you to the Australian Cricket Board "Messages to Players" facility.
* Choose the whole team or an individual player.
* Insert your name and email address.
* Type in your own message, or cut and paste the following suggested message or any variation thereof.
* Send by selecting the "submit query" button.

* Kindly forward this article to everyone you know who is likely to care about the sufferings of the people of Zimbabwe.
* Telephone talkback radio programs and write letters to newspapers,

SUGGESTED TEXT OF MESSAGE TO AUSTRALIAN CRICKETERS:

(based on material originating with a Zimbabwe Group named "Peace Warriors").

“CONGRATULATIONS on Australia's comprehensive victory over the MCC.
I know it is asking a lot to suggest that you forgo any opportunity for international competition, but please give me a hearing.

Zimbabwean cricketers deserve admiration for preserving their sport in an environment of dictatorship and regime-induced economic collapse, but we must now accept that the dictator Mugabe intends to use the World Cup for self-aggrandisement, much as Hitler used the 1936 Berlin Olympics to legitimise his National Socialist regime.

Will you feel good about yourself when your sporting talent is exploited to shore up the crumbling position of a ruthless, murderous dictator?

Please refuse to play in Zimbabwe while the illegitimate Mugabe regime is in power.
Does the ICC know that it is illegal for 5 or more people to hold a meeting in Zimbabwe without police permission?

Note that Prime Minister John Howard and Foreign Minister Alexander Downer have described President Robert Mugabe as an illegitimate ruler who will use the World Cup for propaganda purposes, and this view is supported by Opposition Foreign Affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd.

Does the ICC care that while an international television audience is watching talented sportsmen in action, not far from the cricket field opponents of the regime are having electric wires attached to their testicles whilst in police custody?
While the teams stay in 5 star hotels, do the players care that nearly 8 million starving people of the 11.5 million Zimbabweans cannot buy food, even on the black market without first producing cards proving they support the ruling party - ZANU-PF.

Does the cricket fraternity know that if Zimbabweans say or write anything about Robert Mugabe, which is negative in any way they could be thrown in prison for a year?

Are the cricketers aware of the slaughter and torture of a significant proportion of the national wildlife and domestic herd?

Does the ICC know that Mugabe has declared war on his own population in creating an artificial famine similar to the famine imposed upon Ukraine by the Soviet Union in 1932-33?

Does the ICC know that in taking the farms away from commercial farmers, there are now hundreds of thousands of displaced black farm workers, with no food, and no way of supporting their families?

Do the team members know that in fact the land distribution has meant that most of the farms have gone to Zimbabwean ZANU-PF politicians, and their families?

Do the ICC and its members remember boycotting games in apartheid South Africa and Ian Smith's Rhodesia? Is it now OK for blacks to oppress other blacks?
Is it now OK for ZANU-PF politicians to tell mass gatherings that Zimbabwe would be better off if 6 million people died so that only ZANU-PF people were left?
Please do not contribute to the impression that the ICC and its players allow money and glory to draw a veil over horrific abuses.

If you would like to learn the facts about Zimbabwe, please visit this site: http://www.zwnews.com which puts out news on a daily basis from numerous sources. Also, this site: http://www.africancrisis.org has recent satellite photos of Zimbabwe; and photos of animal torture.

Or you might care to subscribe to the Darby Report by sending an email to Michael Darby: darby@tpg.com.au.

Please make a contribution to human liberty by refusing to go to Zimbabwe.”

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posted by JR at 12:06 AM

 

LET'S WAGE AND WIN THIS WAR

We have to face the likelihood that Supremacist Aggressive Islam (SAI)* is seeking to bring down the Indonesian Government as part of its long-term goal of uniting Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines under fundamentalist Moslem domination.

Further, SAI wants to achieve, throughout the Islamic world, the overthrow of each moderate or western-oriented government, and its permanent replacement with a fundamentalist regime.

There can be little doubt that SAI wants armed conflict which can unite all of Islam in a Jihad against America, Israel and western society generally. Wherever there are Moslems, there will be found adherents and even agents of SAI. Let us be clear that a war on terrorism is meaningless, unless that war also embraces SAI, because SAI is daily breeding, nurturing, educating and training hundreds of potential terrorists whose principal aim is the destruction of western civilisation. I want the United States of America to lead a war against Supremacist Aggressive Islam. The clear goals of that war should include:

* The surrender or capture of every individual involved in planning and execution the 11 September 2001 atrocities. Note that their numbers are unlikely to exceed 1,000 and may be as few as 100.

* The strengthening of pro-Western and pro-democracy Islamic leaders.

* The discrediting, disempowerment and isolation of Islamic leaders who promote SAI.

* The practical education of Moslems whose intellectual inputs are presently monopolised by SAI. ú The lifting of living standards and the improvement of opportunities for the residents of all Moslem countries.

* The liberation of female residents of all Moslem countries from varying burdens including genital mutilation, chattel status and exclusion from higher education.

* A massive transfer of resources from military purposes to civilian purposes in countries presently controlled or influenced by SAI, with the specific aim of eliminating weapons of mass destruction from SAI arsenals.

* A voluntary reduction in the birth-rate in countries presently controlled or influenced by SAI, which presently results on average in the birth of one potential terrorist every four years for each woman between the age of 14 and 30.

* The preservation and enhancement of world peace, including the elimination of SAI terrorism.

Note that few if any of these goals can be achieved by air-strikes. I want America to apply to the task of winning the war against SAI the brilliantly effective weapons of modern western society. I want that war to be fought without civilian casualties, without collateral damage, and without the unnecessary loss of American, Australian and allied troops.

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WEAPONS

The United States of America has access to weaponry which cannot be countered by SAI, nor by any other organisation hostile to human progress. These weapons are:

* The American advertising industry.

* The American cinema and television industry.

* American satellite technology. American science fiction writer Isaac Asimov more than forty years ago postulated the use of satellite television for propaganda purposes. Now is the time when reality must imitate art. The American people are willing to support a huge effort to punish the mass-murderers. Here is how that effort should be directed.

* Establish a decentralised institution for the study of Arabic, Farsi, Bahasa, Urdu, Turkish and other languages associated with Islam, plus study of the religion and culture of Islam.

* Form a well-funded mighty coalition of the best brains in advertising, cinema, television and psychology.

* Establish a satellite network which provides high quality multi-lingual television and radio broadcasting which can be received by every Moslem family.

* Develop robust wind-up television and radio sets which may be distributed widely.

* Plan and launch the greatest education campaign in history, with material which is interesting, exciting, stimulating and constructive, and which brings backward nations into the modern era. Australia and America's other allies can each play a part in what will become a giant crusade of the intellect. Within five years the benefits will be seen, and within ten years the effect will be very substantial. This is our best chance for a peaceful world.

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posted by JR at 12:10 AM

 

“HEALTH” FOOD

Associated Press reported recently that the Minnesota Department of Health is refusing to pay for organic food through the federal Women Infants and Children program it administers. One state official noted that the price of organic foods can be as high as "2 times the cost of nonorganic foods."

Curiously, no mention has been made about the health risks associated with eating an organic-only diet, including life-threatening E.coli bacteria from the fertilizing manure used in organic growing. Minnesota officials have also had nothing to say about a 2002 study showing that "natural" and organic foods are 8 times more likely to be recalled for safety reasons," when compared to foods with conventionally-grown ingredients. Ironies abound: it turns out that organic foods, which are marketed as "safer" and "more healthful" alternatives, are neither.

As the American Council on Science and Health puts it, "We have an estimated 5,000-10,000 deaths a year in the United States from food-borne bacteria, but none from pesticides. Does it make sense to use organic farming methods if it even slightly raises the risk of infection? Should we fear pesticides because they are artificial? The science-based answer to both questions seems to be a clear 'no.' “

Source

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THE ARABS WILL NEVER ACCEPT US

In June of this year, Palestinian television broadcast a sermon in a Gaza mosque in which the imam, Ibrahim Madi, made the following statement: "God willing, this unjust state [of] Israel, will be erased; this unjust state the United States will be erased; this unjust state Britain will be erased."

The sheik's gentle homily came to mind this weekend, when Palestinian suicide bombers launched nearly simultaneous attacks on Israeli civilians in Jerusalem, Haifa, and Gaza, killing 26 and wounding nearly 200. If a reminder were needed that the war on terrorism goes beyond Sept. 11 and the campaign in Afghanistan, the Palestinians provided a powerful mnemonic.

............

The American and Israeli situations seem very different to some, but Sheik Madi's remarks show they are not. In both cases, the forces of militant Islam are targeting a Western country with the intention of destroying it. Osama bin Laden years ago declared a jihad against all Christians and Jews while his friend Mullah Omar, the Taliban dictator, provided more specifics in mid-November: "The current situation in Afghanistan is related to a bigger cause-that is the destruction of America. If God's help is with us, this will happen within a short period of time-keep in mind this prediction. The real matter is the extinction of America, and God willing, it will fall to the ground."

'Cancerous Tumor'
Likewise, with an almost numbing routineness, militant Islamic leaders call for the destruction of Israel. The most powerful of them all, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called sometime ago for "this cancerous tumor of a state [to] be removed from the region."

More here.

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ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

At Sunday School they were teaching how God created everything, including human beings. Little Johnny seemed especially intent when they told him how Eve was created out of one of Adam's ribs.

Later in the week his mother noticed him lying down as though he were ill, and said, Johnny what is the matter? Little Johnny responded, "I have a pain in my side. I think I'm going to have a wife."

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posted by JR at 12:12 AM