Month: February 2006

"We must believe in the fact that Islam is not confined to geographical borders, ethnic groups and nations. It’s a universal ideology that leads the world to justice. We don’t shy away from declaring that Islam is ready to rule the world. We must prepare ourselves to rule the world and the only way to do that is to put forth views on the basis of the Expectation of the Return. If we work on the basis of the Expectation of the Return [of the Mahdi], all the affairs of our nation will be streamlined and the administration of the country will become easier. Some politicians think we had a revolution so that some could hit others in the head and have one party ruling for some time and another party in opposition for some time. But we had a revolution to achieve a lofty goal, on the basis on the Expectation of the Return," – Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, clearly explaining the role that faith in a looming Apocalypse and global Muslim domination plays in the ruling faction in Iran.

One thing I’ve learned from history. It’s good to listen to what our enemy says. And it’s good to believe him.

Purged from the CIA after a long career, Paul Pillar gives a riveting account of what went wrong in the biggest intelligence failure in the U.S. since, er, 9/11.

Jon Rauch has a fascinating new piece up, analyzing the fate of Independent voters over the past few decades. There are fewer genuine independents than you might think – most are weak partisans of either side. Republicans have become the more ideological party, with the clearer brand and higher loyalty, even though their numbers are not, in fact, that impressive. Independents have only themselves to blame for declining influence, because they are staying home on voting day more and more (hence the Rove strategy). But a real centrist candidate emerged, who could galvanize the center from a Democratic label, then the gains might be huge (think what Perot did). Independents have become far more hostile to the Republicans in their Bush-theocon incarnation, making a centrist campaign more plausible. If Hillary wins the Democratic nomination, she could kill off this Democratic opportunity. If McCain ran as an independent, all bets are off.

"America’s idea of what is torture is not the same as ours and does not appear to coincide with that of most civilised nations," – British High Court Judge, Justice Collins, yesterday. The British High Court is not al Jazeera. It’s the highest legal authority in America’s closest ally. By endorsing and practising torture, as defined by U.S. law and international treaties, the Bush administration is turning this country into a rogue nation.

A group of Israelis launch a contest: for Jewish cartoonists to produce the most anti-Semitic cartoons imaginable. Nothing could better distinguish the difference between the West and the Arab-Muslim world.

Josh asks a good question. A reader also wonders:

"But wasn’t Byron York talking about classification in his column?  The authority for declassification is not the same as classification under the Executive Order as amended.  As I understand it, Big Dick could only declassify something that he classified in the first place (which is n/a with respect to the NIE or the Plame disclosures). Of course, the unknown is the existence/extent of a classfied Executive Order that further addresses declassification! The mind continues to reel at the unending Orwellianism of it all … "

Maybe we’ll clear some of this up tomorrow. I have a deadline now …

Michelle Malkin asks, not without reason:

"Readers have been e-mailing all day the question the MSM needs to answer: Why the Abu Ghraib photos, but not the Mohammed Cartoons?"

But one might ask Michelle the reverse question about her blog: why the Muhammad cartoons and not the Abu Ghraib photos? Both are legitimate news stories; both are invaluable to people trying to understand the state of our current war. But I have yet to see any depiction of the AG photos on her blog. Did I miss something?

A heartening account of military success in Iraq. Notice one thing: the unit most adept at fighting insurgents has a firm no-abuse-of-detainees rule. "Every time you treat an Iraqi disrespectfully, you are working for the enemy," is how the commander educates his troops. That’s the American way. And it works. Someone may want to tell Rumsfeld.

Dahlia Lithwick pulls some themes together in, as usual, an insightful piece on the growing scandal of Guantanamo Bay. Money quote:

"Guantanamo is a not-place. It’s neither America nor Cuba. It is peopled by people without names who face no charges. Non-people facing non-trials to defend non-charges are not a story. They are a headache. No wonder the prisoners went on hunger strikes. Not-eating, ironically enough, is the only way they could try to become real to us."

It’s raging in Bangladesh.