Archive for September 8, 2006

I am puzzled by the Lebanon branch of Hizb At-Tahrir. In the wake of Hariri’s assassination, the party was legalized by Hariri Inc, and its supporters–long suppressed by Syrian intelligence–started taking to the streets. A year go, they demonstrated in support of Bin Laden and Zarqawi. And then something happened. The party switched and reached [...]

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

“Palestinians forced to scavenge for food on rubbish dumps”

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

The waterfall where Yoshitsune washed his horse, Yoshino, Yamato Province, c. 1832. By Hokusai, Katsushika.

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

New York Times returns the favor to the House of Saud for its support for Israel’s war on Lebanon: “France and Saudi Arabia could be charter members.”

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

“According to new estimates by Thomas Piketty and Emmanuel Saez, the leading experts on long-term trends in inequality, the effective federal tax rate on the richest 0.01 percent has fallen from about 60 percent in 1980 to about 34 percent today. Meanwhile, the U.S. government — unlike any other government in the advanced world — [...]

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

“Early in the Iraq war a prominent Sunni Arab leader said to me privately, “Thomas, these Shiites, they are not real Muslims.”” (And a non-prominent Arab said to you publicly, “Thomas. You are not a real columnist.”)

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

“Many of the harsh interrogation techniques repudiated by the Pentagon on Wednesday would be made lawful by legislation put forward the same day by the Bush administration. And the courts would be forbidden from intervening.”

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

“Saudi Arabia’s religious police, normally tasked with chiding women to cover themselves and ensuring that men attend mosque prayers, are turning to a new target: cats and dogs. The police have issued a decree banning the sale of the pets, which are seen as a sign of Western influence.”

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

So Al-Arabiya TV was banned by the Iraqi government. If the puppet government of Iraq can’t tolerate this most pro-US Arabic TV station, what can it tolerate? This is like the White House banning Fox News from the premises.

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

I find nobody more cunning than Hasan Turabi. If only he put his mind for good causes instead of bad causes.

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

It is time for conspiracy kooks (in the US and in the Arab world) to drop the wild conspiracy theories about Sep. 11. I can assure you and them that Al-Qa`idah and its leaders have admitted responsibility for the attacks on numerous occasions in Arabic. Leftists have a reputation for inclinations toward unproven conspiracy theories. [...]

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

Hasan Turabi’s explanations of his meetings with Bin Laden are as convincing as Saudi royals’ explanations of their numerous meetings with Bin Laden.

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

“Saddam Hussein regarded al-Qaida as a threat rather than a possible ally, a Senate report says, contradicting assertions President Bush has used to build support for the war in Iraq.”

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

Naked US designs. For your information, the US government is delivering its aid to Lebanon through its Lebanese clients. Yesterday, 89 tons of supplies were delivered not to the Lebanese government but to the Hariri Foundation in Beirut. As the late Pope once said: “Lebanon: it is more than a homeland. It is a”…casino.

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

“6 minutes later I brought the kids to look and told them: This is what Israel has done.”

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

For those who care: my (angry) talk on Lebanon at the Commonwealth Club.

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

Since you will not read this in your newspapers. Israeli occupation troops yesterday kidnapped four Lebanese civilians from the village of `Ayta Ash-Sha`b.

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

Joseph Samahah on March 14th Statement.

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

My article “Contraditions in the policies of the US “War on Terrorism” on aljazeera.net.

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad

For those who care, I shall appear on AlJazeera’s special program on the international media after Sep. 11. It will air live on Sunday 7:00PM (Beirut time), and 9:00AM Pacific Time. Other guests are Waddah Khanfar (CEO of AlJazeera) and the director of Sky News.

Posted on September 8, 2006 by As'ad