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5. februar 2005
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Abu Mazen's security forces have reportedly arrested three top terrorists after an attack on the IDF.
The three are top officials in the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP).
Very interesting development. If true, really encouraging, but we'll see how Mazen handles the inevitable fallout when the terrorists challenge him.
3:34:06 PM 
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Oh this is a joke. Saudi Arabia is to host a big international counter-terrorism conference, gathering top security officials from all over the world.
To learn about "root causes" first-hand, presumably.
10:20:18 AM
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A New York judge has declared that the gay marriage ban violates the state constitution. If this decision stands, it may open up for gay marriage.
It's worth noting that this is only the decision of a trial court; it will be up to the New York state appellate courts to figure out whether the decision will stand.
I am totally in favour of gay marriage, but I'm not so certain that such court decisions will really be good for the cause in the long run.
8:01:01 AM
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Random Pensées has observed that blogging about the situation in Africa is not likely to inspire many comments. This is unfortunate. Zimbabwe is truly one of the outposts of tyranny, and now it appears South Africa's COSATU trade union has grown tired of Mbeki's "silent diplomacy" and want some action.
The battered (literally!) opposition in the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) was long considering to boycott the upcoming sham elections, but has now decided to brave the abuse, torture and intimidation and again make an attempt to stand against Mugabe and his thugs. For this, they demand our admiration and support. We also owe them to fight our impulse to think Sub-Saharan Africa is a hopeless basket case we could just as well forget.
3:29:32 AM
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Taylor Ostergaard and Lindsey Jo Zellitti, two teenage girls from Durango, Colorado, sound like your dream neighbours. One evening last summer they decided to skip dancing and drinking and instead bake cookies for their neighbours.
The July 31 deliveries consisted of half a dozen chocolate-chip and sugar cookies accompanied by big hearts cut out of red or pink construction paper with the message: "Have a great night."
The notes were signed, "Love, The T and L Club," code for Taylor Ostergaard, then 17, and Lindsey Jo Zellitti, 18.
Isn't that cute?
Wanita Renea Young, a 49-year-old woman, didn't at all think so. She was so scared when someone came to her door around 10:30PM she didn't dare open it, and working herself up through the night, she ended up having an anxiety attack and going to the emergency room. And of course she sued the girls over wanting to give her cookies.
The girls wrote letters of apology to Young. Taylor's letter, written a few days after the episode, said in part: "I didn't realize this would cause trouble for you. ... I just wanted you to know that someone cared about you and your family."
The families had offered to pay Young's medical bills if she would agree to indemnify the families against future claims.
Young wouldn't sign the agreement. She said the families' apologies rang false and weren't delivered in person. The matter went to court.
Judge Doug Walker has now awarded Young almost $900 in medical costs, but no punitive damages. Without, apparently, deducting the cost of the cookies.
2:21:51 AM
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Jack Shafer has written the blog-bait article of the day, and of course I have to bait, eh, bite. Comparing Bush to Hitler is so 2004. Shafer updates it, and blasts out that Bush is really like North Korea's Kim Jong-il. Yes, really. You couldn't make this up, unless obviously your name is Jack Shafer.
The rationale is that Bush is also the first-born son of a powerful father, and that he liked to party when he was younger. Yeah, that's it. And, of course, Bush surrounds himself with yes-men. We all remember that the powerful leftist message in last year's election was that Bush is really Dick Cheney's remote-controlled puppet, but again that was last year. In 2005, Cheney is demoted to a nodding yes-man. How has the mighty fallen!
It doesn't take long for Shafer to work through his painful parallellisms to come to his real gripe, though: Bush's thinly veiled contempt for the mandarins in the press. The press was overwhelmingly supportive of his opponent, so Bush went over its bloated head and connected directly to the voters. How dares he, the evil Kim Jong-Il propagandist!
That's it, Jack. You'll be hauled off to a reeducation camp by men in black suits tomorrow morning. Becuase that is what you really expect, right?
1:32:37 AM
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© Copyright 2005 Jan Haugland.
Last update: 01.03.2005; 01:29:47.
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