Another Anti-Bush Anti-Security article In the NY Slimes

Information leaked by the Obama administration about covert ops conducted in both Afghanistan and Iraq, have been released to the NY Slimes to do an attack job on the CIA, Black Water and the Bush administration. The article is here.

Since the days of when McCarthy was nailing commies in our government the left have been on a crusade to dismantle the CIA and all our human Intel, electronic also when they can.

The raids against suspects occurred on an almost nightly basis during the height of the Iraqi insurgency from 2004 to 2006, with Black water personnel playing central roles in what company insiders called “snatch and grab” operations, the former employees and current and former intelligence officers said.

Several former Black water guards said that their involvement in the operations became so routine that the lines supposedly dividing the Central Intelligence Agency, the military and Black water became blurred. Instead of simply providing security for C.I.A. officers, they say, Black water personnel at times became partners in missions to capture or kill militants in Iraq and Afghanistan, a practice that raises questions about the use of guns for hire on the battlefield.

Since The Church Committee, our intelligence gathering operations have had to go to a large scale private, for natural deniability. We are not going to be vulnerable due to the lack of fortitude or the mindless fantasies of some former pot smoking hippies that are now in the majority and have been for 40 years (except one short period.

Man is a hostile species that is always looking to f**k it's neighbor. That is human nature.

George Little, a C.I.A. spokesman, would not comment on Blackwater’s ties to the agency. But he said the C.I.A. employs contractors to “enhance the skills of our own work force, just as American law permits.”

“Contractors give you flexibility in shaping and managing your talent mix — especially in the short term — but the accountability’s still yours,” he said.

Representative Rush D. Holt, a New Jersey Democrat who is chairman of the House Select Intelligence Oversight Panel, said in an interview that “the use of contractors in intelligence and paramilitary operations is a scandal waiting to be examined.” While he declined to comment on specific operations, Mr. Holt said that the use of contractors in such operations “got way out of hand.” He added, “It’s been very troubling to a lot of people.”

Yes to the people in the Blame America First crowd.

Blackwater’s ties to the C.I.A. have emerged in recent months, beginning with disclosures in The New York Times that the agency had hired the company as part of a program to assassinate leaders of Al Qaeda and to assist in the C.I.A.’s Predator drone program in Afghanistan and Pakistan. (more leaked secrets)

We are at WAR, mankind is always at war. It is inteligence information and operations that prevent it from going to or bring to an end shooting stages of the war.

This is just another Democrat Distraction as they try to imprint a Marxist Blueprint over our nation.

It won't work.

AXE INTERTRADE IRELAND

Here is what Intertrade Ireland - a North/South body - has to say about itself;

"InterTradeIreland is the only organisation which has been given responsibility by both Governments to boost North/South economic co-operation to the mutual benefit of Northern Ireland and Ireland."

But now - a REALITY check from TUV Leader Jim Allister.

 “Following yesterday’s assault on cross-border trade by the Republic’s Finance Minister, what is the point in continuing with Intertrade Ireland? Its reason d’etre is supposed to be the encouragement of cross border commerce, the very thing the Republic’s Minister has denounced. If in the eyes of Dublin such commerce is only desirable and good when they are the beneficiary, then there does not exist a durable basis for this cross border body. So, why are we wasting millions every year helping to fund it? This is a question which I am posing to the DETI minister and inviting her to support it being wound up.”

He is 100% right. The entity is without purpose and costs us money we do not have. By all means let Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland co-operate to mutual advantage but it does NOT require another little quango to achieve this end. Agreed?  

A Tale of Two Cities

Two very different Budget reports were given yesterday.  In the Irish capital, the ruling Fianna Fail government opted to put the interests of its own country above the sectionality of party political advantage.  Admittedly the economy of the Republic is in an even more parlous state than our own, but the Irish people can at least take some comfort from the fact that they have a government prepared to recognise the condition of the economy there, and attempt to do something about it.  As the Telegraph reports, the axe was well and truly taken to the State payroll.  There were substantial cuts to public sector wages and concomitant cuts to welfare benefits.  What is the betting that the Irish economy recovers faster and sooner than our own as a result of what was on offer from Brian Lenihan on Wednesday afternoon.

Let's then contrast the performance of Lenihan against the sick joke that passes for our own Chancellor.  Alistair 'how does he manage to have black eyebrows when his hair is grey?' Darling clobbered just about everybody that doesn't fit into the narrow confines of Labour's core vote.  For a party in the throes of the re-emergence of traditional class and wealth envy, punishing everybody who earns over £20,000 with an increase in NI contributions (that includes me!) is the natural course to take.  Make no mistake, for the rampant socialists who cheered on the backbenches yesterday afternoon, the definition of 'wealthy' is no longer confined to the Edward Timpsons, George Osbornes and David Camerons of this country.  It now consists of anyone who has worked hard to attain a comfortable existence as they are asked to stump up the shortfall for Labour's disastrous economic management, whilst the benefit scroungers, the perennially indolent sleazeballs and the baby-making machines who abound in every Labour stronghold are untouched; left to luxuriate in the manner to which they have become accustomed thanks to the toil of the rest of us.

Whatever I may think of Fianna Fail, their rhetorical extra-territorial enunciations and their unease with the identity of Northern Unionism, at least they have proved that they wish to put the fortunes of their own country above those of their party.  Their reason for doing so, in sharp contrast to Labour (who are only interested in maximising their own electoral opportunities whilst not giving a shit about this United Kingdom) lies in the concept of patriotism.  By taking the albeit unpleasant measures on December 9th, Fianna Fail have proved that they are a party still motivated by patriotic sentiment.  The British Labour Party and its core support base are fundamentally incapable of demonstrating any sort of emotional patriotism towards the country they are in charge of.  As I've said repeatedly, the Left only see Britain as a polity over which they exercise and maintain power.  They owe no fealty to its culture, institutions or sense of self achieved through historical endeavours.

A party with patriotic sentiment would not have encouraged an open door immigration policy and the cancer of multiculturalism; would not have allowed Muslim fundamentalists to preach hatred against us and then hide behind the concept of human rights when it came to taking the necessary action to deal with them; would not have embarked on the Frankenstein experiment of devolution that has destablised the Union; would not have signed us up to putative European federation without asking our permission.  All the Labour government cares about, and please take this on board as it's very important, is how to either win the next General Election or else make the economic landscape so bleak for the incoming Conservatives that the latter's chances of retaining power after one term of government would be scuppered.  That is the Alpha and the Omega of their considerations.  Meanwhile, as far as they are concerned, Britain can go to hell in a handcart.  I wish this government could go to hell in a handcart (or any other form of vehicle).  Then again, hell would be too good for Slug Mouth and chums.

A MODEST MAN?

Or a man with much to be honest about? Here is just picking up that lil ol' Nobel Peace Prize for all that earth-shattering work he did to build peace in one week back in February!

ARE THEY BY CHANCE RELATED?

I was wondering if the Ian Paisley Jnr who has this article in this evening's Belfast Telegraph calling for a pact with the Ulster Unionists in order to reclaim two Westminster seats come the next general election in any way related to the Ian Paisley Jnr who has letters in the Newletter on a virtually daily basis attacking fellow Unionists? This curiosity makes Ian Jnr seem like a Mr Jekyl and Dr Hyde figure, one minute all for unionist unity, the next moment seeking to divide. How can such cries for unity be seen as anything other than siren?

ALL YOU NEED IS FOOD!

I see the troughers in the DUP are still enjoying the delights of taxpayer care of the latest batch of expenses revelations...

The documents show that once again some DUP figures, including the party leader Peter Robinson and Ian Paisley, claimed the maximum food allowance of £400 a month.

£400 a month for food. And how many days per month are spent in Westminster? And what are their salaries again? Nice to see that Peter Robinson enjoys his food so much but I am worried that his rich diet may cause him indigestion. That said, I wonder how his electorate in East Belfast can stomach any of this troughery?  

PINK CADILLAC...

I see that Bruce Springsteen is urging his fans to support a controversial bill to legalise gay marriage in his native New Jersey.

"I've long believed in and have always spoken out for the rights of same sex couples and fully agree with Governor Corzine when he writes that, 'The marriage-equality issue should be recognized for what it truly is - a civil rights issue that must be approved to assure that every citizen is treated equally under the law.' 

Stick to the songs, Bruce, like so many others in the rockestablishment you're just an embarrasment when you opine in matters like this.

another image to ponder upon

I post, courtesy of IHTM,  another image, but this time for a forthcoming film.

I particularly appreciated the man chosen to perform as MILITARY CONSULTANT!

GRECIAN RUINS

Where Greece leads today, which other EU nation will follow?

"Former Bank of England policy maker Willem Buiter said Greece may be the first major country in the European Union to default on its debts since the aftermath of World War II.

“It’s five minutes to midnight for Greece,” Buiter, who will join Citigroup Inc. as its chief economist next month, said in a Bloomberg Television interview today. “We could see our first EU 15 sovereign default since Germany had it in 1948.”

The EU’s economic affairs commissioner said late yesterday that officials are ready to help Greece with its budget deficit after concerns about its public finances sparked a rout in Greek government bonds. Fitch Ratings cut its rating on the nation’s debt yesterday to BBB+ and two other major ratings companies are threatening to follow. “Default is not unavoidable,” Buiter said. “But unless there are radical fiscal actions, lasting cuts in spending and tax increases of at least 7 percent of GDP, the writing is on the wall” for Greece.

Expect riots on the streets in Athens should the government DARE to contemplate such savage cuts. Greece is a financial basket case and something has to give here. 

REMOVING THE FREEDOM OF THE SEAS...

Well, some people have been warning of this for some time.

The 400-year-old freedom of the high seas would be lost under United Nations plans to limit environmental damage.

Military forces of several nations are in discussions with conservationists over pooling surveillance resources to enforce the changes. The “freedom of the seas” has given mariners legal rights to roam the high seas — a boundary that usually occurs 200 nautical miles from shore — at will. Specialists gathered at a London conference are saying that fishermen have been pushing the concept too far. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea came into force in 1983 and enshrined the 17th-century concept of the freedom of the seas. But while being on the high seas puts ships outside the jurisdiction of any one country, the small print of the law dictates that nations ensure that no undue damage is caused.

This is another OUTRAGEOUS power grab by the United Nations. This most corrupt of organisations is ruthlessly using the AGW agenda to steamroller freedom and liberty in the name of its one world governmentalism. It should be resisted.

BOMBER KELLY THREATENED BY BOMBERS

Schadenfreude.

The family home of Northern Ireland junior minister Gerry Kelly has been targeted in a bomb threat. The North Belfast Sinn Fein assembly member said his constituency office received a threat on Wednesday. He said a caller claimed a bomb would go off within the hour of the call outside the house, but after police checks nothing was found. Police have said they are investigating the call. Mr Kelly, who is in the United States, condemned the threat.

Mr Kelly, as readers will recall, is a convicted IRA bomber.

Naturally, I condemn any threat against any person by terrorist vermin. One wonders if the republican terrorists making this threat against Mr Kelly were inspired by republican terrorists like Mr Kelly?

THOMAS THE SEXIST TANK ENGINE

So who have guessed it?  Perennial children's favourite, Thomas the Tank Engine, is a sexist.

According to Professor Shauna Wilton, women are under-represented in the stories and what few female characters there are tend to have 'secondary' roles or be bossy.  What's more, she has warned that such negative messages about society subconsciously gleaned from the show might even drive its young fans off the rails in later life. 

The learned professor was inspired to carry out her study after watching Thomas videos with her three-year-old daughter. While the child was enthralled, her mother was dismayed. She was left feeling 'uncomfortable' by the way the colourful steam engines are punished if they show initiative or try to change their rank or role.  

Her research also highlights the class divide, with Thomas and his fellow engines including Percy and James at the bottom of the social ladder and the Fat Controller, Sir Topham Hatt, at the top. Any attempt by the downtrodden workers to show initiative or dissent is met with punishment, she found.  

How very true and what worthwhile "research". But it's worse than that, surely? I mean there are no obviously gay or transgendered tank engines. Come to think of it, there are no Islamic tank engines either. 

I note Professor Wilton hails from Alberta, Canada. It gets very cold there, probably a lot of spare time to fill. I'm sure you understand.

The Voice of Heaven

Do yourself a favor listen to the whole thing

LET US OUT!

It's a remarkable tale!

"The trade union representing bank officials is in the extraordinary position of fighting on behalf of bank employees who claim they have been unfairly selected for retention of their jobs. The Irish Bank Officials Association (IBOA), which had initially planned to resist the 1,000 redundancies proposed by Ulster Bank, has instead found itself fighting on behalf of the 1,800 bank officials queuing up to accept redundancy packages.

The packages are worth between seven and eight weeks per year of service, subject to a maximum of two-and-a-half to three years’ salary, depending on the option. Demand is so great that 400 bank officials have appealed through an internal procedure to be allowed to leave the bank after their applications were initially refused."

DEEPER AND DEEPER INTO THE INFERNO

Terrorists, murderers and rapists are to have their say on how Maghaberry Prison is run, the Belfast Telegraph reveals. 

From tomorrow representatives nominated by the province’s paramilitary and criminal fraternities are scheduled to sit down with senior prison officers and outline how they think the top security jail should be administered and air any grievances.

What a complete and utter disgrace.

Let us trust that our First Minister moves to prevent this obscenity at Maghaberry. Unless, of course, he approves of it????

ATW MIDWEEK JUKEBOX

No doubt we are all motivated by the Comrade Chancellor's leadership today. Yes indeed, with the economy in collapse and unemployment going up like a CRU temperature graph, increased employment taxes are sure to empower us all; let us honour him with a fitting tribute.

Here then, Ireland's real greatest band, fronted and led by one of her greatest sons -

WHY ATW LOVES THE NORTHERN BANK.

Well folks, ATW has had some "communication" today from the Northern Bank via one of its agencies. The Northern Bank is one of the "Big 4" here in Northern Ireland. I am waiting on a call back but here's the issue - it seems that comments made on THIS POST are considered defamatory and libelous and hence potentially actionable. I have studied the post very carefully and can't quite see the problem. (I mean I assume that one is able to publicly disagree with the economic opinion of the Northern Bank's Chief Economist or is that a crime?) 

The Northern Bank is entitled to posit ANY economic point of view it wishes. We are free to differ and when one recalls that the Northern Bank entirely failed to warn Northern Ireland consumers of the profound recession that was approaching one could argue that a healthy cynicism is warranted.

On the subject of Northern Bank's efficiency, I note it lost £69m in the first six months of this year. As I say, taking issue with it's economic forecasts seem a reasonable approach to me.

I will keep you posted.

NO JUSTICE FOR KIRSTY..

I was saddened to read that the campaign seeking justice for the death of singer Kirsty MacColl is to cease its work, it has been announced.

Activists said they made the move after the Mexican authorities announced the case had closed and all lines of enquiry have been exhausted. The committee said it achieved their aims and raised funds for MacColl's mother to pay lawyers' fees. In a statement, the Justice For Kirsty campaign said once the case was closed they had nothing to fight for. "We are not able to bring any more pressure on the Mexicans than we have achieved already," it added. Speedboat deckhand Juan Jose Cem Yam was found guilty of culpable homicide in 2003, fined £61 and ordered to pay damages to MacColl's two sons, who witnessed the accident.

Kirsty's mother, Jean, has fought long and hard for justice and sadly the person responsible for her daughter's death has been protected by the Mexican authorities.

It's approaching the 9th anniversary of Kirsty being killed and so in advance of this, here's a tune for the moment..it's been many years now since the music died.    

BOYCOTT COPENHAGEN...!

As the international political left indulge themselves in Copenhagen, it is good to see one major US political figure urge Obama to boycott it. Can you guess who that someone might be? Clue - HER approval rating is now almost the same as Obama and I suggest will overtake his in the next few months. Climate change I can believe in....

THAT STIMULATING STIMULUS!

Look, there is NO WAY that anyone could consider this other than highly ethical.

Nearly $6 million in stimulus money was paid to two firms run by Mark Penn, Hillary Clinton’s pollster in 2008. Federal records show that $5.97 million from the $787 billion stimulus helped preserve three jobs at Burson-Marsteller, the global public-relations and communications firm headed by Penn.

The highest ethical standards from Ms Hillary. And lucky ol' Mr Penn.