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7. oktober 2002
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'People of the Book'
A number of news sources have commented on, quoted or paraphrased a recent broadcast on the Arabic TV station al-Jazeeram. Most of the discussion has been about whether the voice is really Osama Bin Laden. Some sources have noted his threats about further attacks against the United States.
One significant aspect of the speech I have not seen noted in press reports is his reference to the 'people of the book':
"Say: O people of the Book! Come to common terms as between us and you: That we worship none but Allah; that we associate no partners with Him; that we erect not from among ourselves lords and patrons other than Allah."
Most people who are not familiar with Islam will miss the reference to "the people of the Book." The expression is indeed from the Koran. Islam teaches that the written revelations to the Jews (the Torah) and the Christians (the Gospels) are indeed holy books, and that Muslems should treat the adherents with tolerance and respect. Naturally, this ideal has been practiced to varying degrees from the very start, and extremists easily find support in the Koran and Islamic tradition for a more hostile position.
Be that as it may, that is the reason Bin Laden can refer to his "common terms" with American Christians. He encourages Americans to withdraw from the Middle East (and, I assume, other Islamic countries) and to stop supporting Israel. That is, Bin Laden seems to say, the only quarrel he has with America.
Does Bin Laden really expect this to make an impact, or even be understood, by those he addresses?
9:27:49 PM 
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"Can you hear me, Maggie Thatcher?"
The Guardian/Observer has choosen the top ten bits of sports commentary ever, naturally from a British perspective. I was amazed to find, on the top spot, legendary Norwegian radio sports commentator Bjørge Lillelien. You are unlikely to have heard of him unless you are Norwegian, and very unlikely (or young!) to not remember him if you are.
In one of his many memorable moments, after Norway's football side shockingly defeated England 2-1 at Wembley in 1981, he burst out in English:
"Lord Nelson! Lord Beaverbrook! Sir Winston Churchill! Sir Anthony Eden! Clement Attlee! Henry Cooper! Lady Diana! Maggie Thatcher - can you hear me, Maggie Thatcher! Your boys took one hell of a beating! Your boys took one hell of a beating!"
It was never boring to listen to sports broadbasts with Bjørge Lillelien. It was not unusual to turn off the TV sound to listen to Lillelien on the radio instead.
I can almost forgive the Guardian/Observer journalist that he strangely misspells Lillelien's name as "Bjorn Minge."
Apparently, you can find it in this list and listen to that specific clip by clicking here (RA req).
3:45:19 PM
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Holy Cow!
The (four) belly-laugh this morning was provided by the animation "I'm a Cow." Beware that it takes a long time to load, and is definately intended for a mature audience.
10:17:47 AM
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Bin Laden Dead or Alive?
The whereabouts of Osama Bin Laden, the world's most wanted man, has been subject to endless speculation since he was forced to flee by coalition forces last year.
Pakistani president Musharraf said to CNN in January that he personally believed Bin Laden was dead, since he was suffering from a kidney disease that would require dialysis treatment he would be unlikely to get while on the run. However, shortly afterwards Musharraf emphasized that this was just "speculation" on his part. Furthermore, some US officials says the stories about Bin Laden's kidney failure is just a 'recurring rumour' that is unconfirmed.
In July, the FBI's counter-terrorism chief, Dale Watson, chimed in, saying that bin Laden is "probably" dead.. However, there was no evidence of this. Shortly before this, the editor of the London-based newspaper Al-Quds Al Arabi, Abdel-Bari Atwan, had said that bin Laden was alive, even though he had been wounded in December. Atwan is one of a few journalists who have interviewed Bin Laden in the past. August Hanning, head of Germany's foreign intelligence agency, agreed: "Given the information we have we are convinced that Bin Laden is still alive."
Coinciding closely with the one year memorial for the September 11 attack, an Islamist web page startled the world by saying Bin Laden had been killed by an American missile at Tora Bora last year. Later, they corrected and apologized, blaming a misunderstanding.
Around the same time, a spy satellite intercepted a telephone conversation between Mullah Omar, the fugitive Taliban leader, and one of his liutenants. He made a reference to Bin Laden being alive and well. However, some intelligence analysts point out that Omar may well have known the call was intercepted, and intended to mislead the Americans. The voice of Bin Laden was also on the intercept, some sources say, and voice analysis may have confirmed his identity.
Afghan president Hamid Karzai now thinks Bin Laden is "probably dead." Yet, at the same time, an Arab television network broadcast a tape where a man they claim is Bin Laden threatens new attacks against the United States. No comment yet from the intelligence services, who no doubt are running their voice analysis software in high gears now.
8:09:39 AM
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One-Click Reference
A tool I installed some time ago and find myself using all the time is Atomica (home). In any Windows application, just alt-click any word and up pops a definition, a biography, a thersaurus, an encyclopedia entry or whatever is appropriate for that word. It's free, easy to install and rarely gets in the way when I don't use it. Recommended.
5:42:01 AM
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© Copyright 2006 Jan Haugland.
Last update: 13.02.2006; 19:14:21.
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