Patterico's Pontifications

8/20/2014

ISIS Beheads Journalist James Foley on Video

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 7:47 am



Just awful. The video was apparently on YouTube yesterday but was removed by Google, and Twitter has begun suspending accounts that share images of the beheading.

Poking around Twitter and the blogs, it seems that most people seem to be in agreement that this is the right thing to do. I guess I am an outlier here, but while I certainly understand the concerns of those who don’t want such images out there, it’s my personal view that violence should be confronted head-on. I think videos of what happened at the World Trade Center should be available. When Nick Berg was beheaded, over ten years ago, I believed people should have the ability to view that video.

For what it’s worth, at least one version of the video (which I assume is the same one pulled yesterday, though I have no way of knowing it) has popped back up on YouTube and was linked by Ben Howe on Twitter. If you want to view it, Howe’s tweet is here — at least until Howe gets suspended from Twitter, or the new upload of the video is pulled by Google.

If you don’t want to watch it (and I can’t blame you), I have a brief description below. If even that is too much, go on to the next post. I’ll bury the description under the fold.

But I would like to note, authorities are trying to determine whether the voice of Foley’s murderer — a man who speaks proper English with a British accent — was one of the people we released from Guantanamo.

R.I.P. James Foley. This is just horrible.

P.S. Apparently the Obama administration had been warned before the release of the video of the threat to Foley’s life, as well as threats to a second journalist, Steven Sotloff, also depicted alive in the video.

The video begins with footage of Obama announcing his airstrikes in Iraq. There is then a cut to Foley on his knees in an orange jumpsuit (as Berg was — an evident reference to the orange jumpsuits worn by Gitmo detainees). Foley gives a statement in which he blames America for his death. He personally addresses his brother, who he says is a member of the U.S. Air Force, and tells his brother that his colleagues signed Foley’s death warrant the day they dropped bombs on Iraq. A man wearing black, including a black ski mask, stands behind Foley, holding a knife in his left hand. That man delivers a warning to America in a British accent. In this video, only the beginning of the beheading is shown, but an image is shown of Foley’s body lying what we would normally call face down, with his severed head resting on his back with the face turned towards the camera.

The video ends with another captured journalist, Steven Sotloff, in an orange jumpsuit on his knees in front of the same man in black. Sotloff is alive, and is being gripped at the nape of the neck by the man in black, who says: “The life of this American citizen, Obama, depends on your next decision.”

125 Responses to “ISIS Beheads Journalist James Foley on Video”

  1. Ding.

    Patterico (9c670f)

  2. Can’t he just eat his waffle?

    SarahW (267b14)

  3. They also named a second person they would execute if the Obama continued bombing.

    James Foley was taken captive two years ago in Syria, but executed in Iraq, after making a statement against U.S. intervention.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  4. Very interesting:

    http://hotair.com/archives/2014/08/20/report-qatar-scuttled-gaza-cease-fire-for-not-having-seat-at-cairo-table/

    the Levick Group was very big in furthering the innocent shepherd/student meme, in the 00s, it got much more traction oversees, Begg, the Tipton 3, which were not as innocent as first glance, (where have I heard that before)

    narciso (ee1f88)

  5. Totally agree the videos should be available for viewing. Let people know the type of people we are bombing. They’ll make a big show over killing an American on video, but they do this same thing to thousands of people across their conquered territory.

    That being said, I have little faith that the US will do anything more than drop bombs.

    Dejectedhead (a094a6)

  6. And yet Obama heads to another vacation….

    Drakkir (aed6a3)

  7. WINS 1010 reported that Obama will have a statement soon, but that (he or his people) think they have to be careful about what he says.

    The killer had a London accent.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  8. That was horrible. Make the videos available, but tag them somehow so that kids and the more sensitive can’t see them.

    carlitos (c24ed5)

  9. Nice people, lets hope Obama realizes that some people are killers – proved that they are killers and we need to round them up and try them in front of the world – of course those that resist…

    EPWJ (992ed5)

  10. One of the signs that Law and Order, had ‘jumped the shark’ was when they wrote an episode that in not so many words, tried to rationalize Zarquawi, the predecessor to Baghdadi

    narciso (ee1f88)

  11. I agree the video should be made available. We need to see, first hand, the barbarism we are fighting. The world needs to see the lack of respect for humanity that the leaders and fighters for the “Islamic Caliphate” have. They are religious and ideological zealots of the highest order, and like all zealots of that level, there is nothing more important than their movement, not even life itself.

    PatHMV (0267c5)

  12. I agree, reluctantly, that the video should be available. Since the Western media are not on our side, we need to see the full savagery of the enemy. Yes, they are the enemy, just like in the olden days of WWII. “Dialogue” and other such faculty lounge governance and appeasement is still an utter failure.

    Patricia (5fc097)

  13. Jay-Vee. Wiping out an investment of $1.7 Trillion, 10,000 patriots, and years of MSM BS, over several weeks.

    Is it Treason yet, wake me when you can count to 50 misdemeanors.

    gary gulrud (46ca75)

  14. It’s not that Youtube is against showing graphic content.

    Perhaps there is another reason? First one doesn’t hold water.

    papertiger (c2d6da)

  15. With a suitable splash page informing any viewer about what they are
    about to see, I see no problem with this video being available.

    There’s even an argument that could be made that by suppressing
    the availability of the video, that we gloss over this heinous act.

    I think it should be on everyone’s mind exactly what these people stand for,
    are capable of and intend to perpetrate on the rest of the world.

    This is what they wish to do to all infidel(kaffir).

    And that means anyone not Muslim.

    (they’ve even gone so far as demand that non Muslims deny their faith,
    repeat the Shahada (acknowledging Allah as the only God) and then
    cutting their heads off anyway.

    They cannot be trusted, they will not negotiate in good faith they are forever
    a threat to peace.

    There are NO “moderate” Muslims.

    jakee308 (ba1e65)

  16. I haven’t seen the video, don’t plan to,
    but, assuming Foley’s face is clearly recognizable, would it be ok to blur it out for the sake of his family?
    maybe it’s a meaningless gesture, but the grief of the victims’ families is my only concern showing it.
    yes, barbarism to be seen if not already understood.
    Maybe someone should make a “cartoon” of moral equivalence, waterboarding vs. beheading.

    MD in Philly (f9371b)

  17. I am all too aware,there was very little attention to Foley, a recent Vanity Fair piece mentioned him in passing

    http://therightscoop.com/no-faith-teaches-people-to-massacre-innocents-obama-on-isis-murder-of-james-foley/

    narciso (ee1f88)

  18. The video needs to be seen. Perhaps — it’s a long shot — the outrage of “civilized” Muslims will begin the Islamic Reformation, which has been needed for a couple of hundred years. Sadly, it’s more likely to inspire idiots to attack those Muslims who are equally outraged, but retain enough self-control not to engage in non-useful violence.

    htom (412a17)

  19. How soon before a leftwing journalist compares the ISIS beheading to Hobby Lobby not wanting to pay for abortion?

    JVW (638245)

  20. I’m gonna go ahead and wager “never.”

    Leviticus (f9a067)

  21. Perhaps — it’s a long shot — the outrage of “civilized” Muslims will begin the Islamic Reformation, which has been needed for a couple of hundred years.

    Mark Steyn has a piece up today which throws some cold water on that idea. According to him, more British Muslims are serving in ISIS today than in Her Majesty’s Armed Forces. If Britain can’t produce a strong majorty of “civilized Muslims” among its own Mohammedans than it’s pretty far-fetched that anyone in the West can.

    JVW (638245)

  22. I’m gonna go ahead and wager “never.”

    Great. Now I have to actually read Slate just to prove you wrong. Sigh.

    JVW (638245)

  23. i’m solidly on team “the more sensitive” I think

    i haven’t even seen a saw movie my whole life

    happyfeet (8ce051)

  24. “There are NO “moderate” Muslims.”

    – jake308

    See, that’s just dumb. I’ve played soccer with a whole passel of Muslims who’ve never demanded that I repeat the Shahada.

    Leviticus (f9a067)

  25. “Great. Now I have to actually read Slate just to prove you wrong. Sigh.”

    – JVW

    Hahaha we’ve each made our beds, now we’ve gotta lie in them.

    Leviticus (f9a067)

  26. Patrick, you say ” it’s my personal view that violence should be confronted head-on.”

    Probably not the best phrase to use in this case………….

    Hangtown Bob (352813)

  27. most muslims aren’t even moderate they’re just normal people and if you accidentally tell them merry christmas they just smile a big smile and say merry christmas to you too

    i’m not sure what their theme song is but i bet it’s jaunty and cheery like this one

    happyfeet (8ce051)

  28. Leviticus, do I get credit if I find it on Jezebel, or is that just shooting fish in a barrel?

    JVW (638245)

  29. Saeed Shah, the fellow who cut off Daniel Pearl’s head, was an honors graduate of the London School of Economics

    narciso (ee1f88)

  30. and?

    the London School of Economics hates jews

    this is who they are

    happyfeet (8ce051)

  31. “Perhaps — it’s a long shot — the outrage of “civilized” Muslims will begin the Islamic Reformation, which has been needed for a couple of hundred years.”

    htom – I think there is an argument to be made that folks like the Taliban, Muslim Brotherhood and ISIS do represent the Islamic Reformation, getting Islam back closer to the roots of its founding and not the pansy azzed dormant versions we’ve seen for so long.

    daleyrocks (bf33e9)

  32. Obama built that!

    daleyrocks (bf33e9)

  33. Just wondering how many people had their twitter accounts closed because they threatened George Zimmerman?

    scrubone (c3104f)

  34. ISIS/ISIL murderous weasels must wear hoods so that they remain anonymous… cowards that they are. Their reward awaits them at the hands of a just God.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  35. Compared to the number of people who supported George Zimmerman’s right to an open and fair hearing before an impartial tribunal and were subsequently audited by the IRS.

    ropelight (ffcd8e)

  36. See, that’s just dumb. I’ve played soccer with a whole passel of Muslims who’ve never demanded that I repeat the Shahada.

    Leviticus (f9a067) — 8/20/2014 @ 11:54 am

    you are fortunate they weren’t playing using your head for a ball.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  37. Isn’t it about time that Qatar got put on the list of states supporting terrorism?

    Senior Fatah Source: Qatar Pushed Hamas Back to War

    Qatar financing ISIS jihadists: German minister

    You’ll noticem by the way that Qatar is misisng from the list of states taht obama wants to help defeat ISIS (it’s the UAE and Saudi Arabia)

    Sammy Finkelman (d22d64)

  38. Just how many Americans are being held hostage in Syria? Apparently, enough to warrant a rescue mission…

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  39. Obama says he’s determined to show the terrorist scum who’s boss and then returns to the golf course.

    Continue… RAMP UP the air strikes… show the world you actually care.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  40. It amazes me how calm these men are before they are murdered. I pray the end came quickly.

    Obama has such a strange affect in that speech, like a man whose world view and personal identity are crumbling in tandem.

    patricia (5fc097)

  41. nrciso @ 4

    http://hotair.com/archives/2014/08/20/report-qatar-scuttled-gaza-cease-fire-for-not-having-seat-at-cairo-table/

    That headline gets it wrong. It was Hamas that was insisting that Qatar be given a seat.

    Qatar threatened to expel Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal if Hamas agreed to a ceasefire. (the egyptian proposal)

    Qatar is giving Hamas orders.

    Sammy Finkelman (d22d64)

  42. The united States attempted a rescue not so long ago of James Foley and some otehr hostages.

    The rescue mission failed when it turned out that hostages were not at the rescue site.

    ISIS Qatari intelligence is very very good.

    Sammy Finkelman (d22d64)

  43. http://republicbroadcasting.org/blowback-u-s-trained-isis-at-secret-jordan-base/

    Not clear, like this seems to only imply, if any these “good” Ssyrian rebels were actually or later became ISIS members.

    Sammy Finkelman (d22d64)

  44. It’s a shame that the administration for once chooses to be transparent and its about the failed rescue missions in Syria, I guess to show the world just how ineffectual these guys can be?

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  45. one of the people we released from Guantanamo

    where’s this “we” coming from

    vajajay jarrett, food stamp, and our loser-assed secretary of trannies-in-the-military chuck hagel are in charge of freeing the terrorists

    it’s not a we thang

    happyfeet (8ce051)

  46. It may be one of these,

    http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/20/isis-militant-islamic-state-james-foley-guards-british

    the Brit contingent at Gitmo was very small, there was Deghayes, the Libyan, Begg, who’s in trouble again, Jamil Al Banna, and a few others,

    narciso (ee1f88)

  47. They released Ma’balz es-Hari and then Haid d’Salaami back in 2009

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  48. 25. “There are NO “moderate” Muslims.”

    – jake308

    See, that’s just dumb. I’ve played soccer with a whole passel of Muslims who’ve never demanded that I repeat the Shahada.

    Leviticus (f9a067) — 8/20/2014 @ 11:54 am

    And you, who think it’s bright to go by what your soccer playing pals don’t know about Islam, are calling other people dumb?

    And yes, just because they’re Muslim doesn’t mean they know about Islam. During the original Muslim jihad (which made the crusades necessary, by the way, as a reaction to the Muslim holy wars) the treaties the Muslim conquerors imposed on the pre-Islamic Christians and Jews forbade them to learn the Koran. In this one way the Islamic conquerors were not treating the dhimmis any differently than they were treating their own people. Muslims aren’t allowed to study the Koran on their own. Lest they become disobedient and form their own ideas as opposed to obeying the religious authorities without complaint. The Madrassas in Pakistan are noted for their excellence because they produce students who can recite the Koran in perfect Arabic. One problem, if you’re of a western mind. The students have no idea what the sounds they are forming mean, since they don’t speak or understand Arabic.

    Islam means submission. A Muslim is one who submits. It is entirely possible, according to the hadiths, to be a Muslim but not a believer in Allah. Why? Because a Muslim is simply one who has submitted. No actual belief is required.

    What are the hadiths? They are supposedly the traditions and beliefs of the the early Muslims. They are roughly equivalent to the Jewish Talmud (and Mishnah). While the Torah would be roughly equivalent to the Koran.

    But to stick with the Koran a while longer before delving into the hadiths, recall Michael Adebalajo. He was the Muslim who along with a few friends ran over Drummer Rigby with a car, then hacked him to death with knives and cleavers. As he went on to proclaim with his still bloody hands, he only did it because his religion commanded him to do so. This is the Surah (5:33) of the Koran he referred to.

    http://quran.com/5/33

    Indeed, the penalty for those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and strive upon earth [to cause] corruption is none but that they be killed or crucified or that their hands and feet be cut off from opposite sides or that they be exiled from the land. That is for them a disgrace in this world; and for them in the Hereafter is a great punishment,

    Well, Drummer Rigby was definitely killed and maimed, as Adebalajo had been taught he must do if he wanted to save his soul. After all, Drummer Rigby was a machine gunner in an infidel army, and is there any worse corruption than that?

    Muslim extremist front groups like CAIR would like to convince you that Adebalago “hijicked” a great religion and took that portion of the Koran out of context. The hadiths provide context. And the two most reliable collection of hadiths are Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. Sahih meaning in Arabic “correct” or “authentic or “reliable.” And if you read them, and the context, you can only conclude Adebalajo got it right. If you’re not inclined to buy these collections, they can be found online here.

    http://sunnah.com/

    Never listen to groups like CAIR. Anyone who listens to groups like CAIR is too lazy to think for themselves, which is of course what groups like CAIR is counting on. Slogging through the Koran or the hadiths isn’t easy as they aren’t organized in any sort of rational way. The Koran is basically organized in descending order according to length. But it is absolutely necessary for you to do your own work and not rely on your soccer playing buddies before pronouncing anyone else dumb for instinctively getting it.

    You can get Al-Azhar approved English translations of seminal works on Islam and Islamic law and bypass the CAIR propaganda. Such as this.

    http://www.amazon.com/Reliance-Traveller-Classic-Manual-Islamic/dp/0915957728/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

    There is no higher authority in Sunni Islam than Al-Azhar university. And if I may cut to the chase, if you wish to believe that your soccer playing buddies are the authorities on Islam, you will not like what you read.

    It takes work. And most people, Muslim and non-Muslim, do not put in the work. But consider, what is ISIS doing that Saudi Arabia hasn’t incorporated as part if it’s legal system.

    http://blog.amnestyusa.org/middle-east/an-execution-and-crucifixion-in-saudi-arabia/

    It’s all there. The beheadings, the cruxifictions, the maimings, and the expulsions. There is nothing ISIS is doing that the keepers of the two holy places of Mecca and Madina, the House of Saud, isn’t doing.

    Open your eyes man.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  49. on the other arena:

    http://www.egyptindependent.com/news/azhar-s-grand-sheikh-says-ready-support-hamas-fatah-reconciliation

    the Blind Sheikh is a proud Al Azhar graduate,

    narciso (ee1f88)

  50. moderate and muslum
    stoopid and american
    nation crumbler

    mg (31009b)

  51. …the penalty for those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and strive upon earth [to cause] corruption is none but that they be killed or crucified or that their hands and feet be cut off from opposite sides or that they…

    I should probably point out that this Surah was supposed to moderate Muhammad’s excesses, because apparently according to the hadiths Allah was displeased with how his prophet went to far. Some visiting Arab tribesmen fell ill in Arabia’s hostile climate and Muhammad advised them to go off into the nearby countryside and drink the traditional medicinal concoction of camel’s milk and urine. And they went off, killed the camel drivers, denounced Islam, and tried to steal the camels. When Muhammad’s forces tracked them down, Muhammad ordered them to cut off both hands and both feet, drive nails into their eyes, toss them down from a high place onto rocks, and deny them water when they were begging for it as they were exposed to the Arabian desert sun. And so Allah delivered this Surah because Muhammad took things too far. So the punishment for making mischief must be limited to (none but) execution, crucifixition, maiming on alternate sides, or expulsion.

    Not all of what Muhammad did.

    On the other hand, I’m not indicting all Muslims. The problem is the Salafists think that the only example of pure Islam is what the first three generations of Muslims did. Muhammad and his companions, the followers of Muhammad’s companions after he died, and then their followers. All else is a corruption of Islam. And the reason you don’t see many “moderate” Muslims speaking up against them is because the Salafists have a lot of religious authority on their side.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  52. No soccer for steve.

    nops (1467a4)

  53. …Some visiting Arab tribesmen fell ill in Arabia’s hostile climate…

    I should probably correct myself and say I was talking about Bedouin tribesmen. Most of whom never lived in the Arabian peninsula. Because it sounds kind of silly to say Arab tribesmen weren’t used to Arabia. But not all Bedouins were.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  54. The killer should be easy to identify. Look at the radical mosques and find out whose family has very recently gone into hiding.

    Patricia (5fc097)

  55. 55. No soccer for steve.
    nops (1467a4) — 8/20/2014 @ 7:02 pm

    Thank you. I despise soccer. Why if I could issue a fatwa against soccer I’d…

    Oh, wait. I don’t have to. Your friendly neighborhood Muslim clerics already have.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  56. Oh, and I heard comment from a French colleague of Foley, and he said Foley was singled out for harsh punishment while in captivity with him, punishment “based on the US War on Terror.” He came dangerously close to “tit for tat, your chickens have come home to roost.”

    We should be in full Blame Bush mode by tomorrow evening.

    Patricia (5fc097)

  57. Well, Doughty’s Arabia Deserta, possibly the most extensive work on the region, which mostly focuses on the tribes of the Ukwan, the Ateyba, from whence the would be Mahdi came, the Quahtani, of the 2Oth hijacker, the Mutayr, it was written in 1889, in between Wahhabi kingdoms,

    narciso (ee1f88)

  58. Saeed Shah, the fellow who cut off Daniel Pearl’s head, was an honors graduate of the London School of Economics

    Sheesh. I didn’t know that. It certainly runs counter to the assumption (popularized by the left) that violent, despicable, extremist people are incubated in desperate, meager, backwards, hardscrabble (non-socialistic) environments.

    I couldn’t watch the video of Pearl’s beheading several years ago and I can’t watch the video of Foley’s murder today. The most I can stomach are photos of the depraved scenes in Mexico of cut-off heads, limbs and brutalized bodies left scattered about as calling cards by narco-gangs. We in North America don’t have to go too far to see Medieval-type savagery up close and personal.

    In all of this, if the average American doesn’t at least know the brutal, vengeful, bloody history of Mohammed, the founder of Islam, then they’ll still be totally clueless about basic reality. Or they’ll be like George W Bush and his “religion of peace” moment back in 2001, or the more recent PC-zipped lips of military enlistees surrounding a character like Nidal Hasan.

    Mark (14a4db)

  59. an old Steyn passage:

    Three weeks ago, Robert Fisk, the Middle East correspondent of Britain’s Independent, offered a familiar argument to Pearl’s kidnappers: Killing the American would be “a major blunder, an own goal of the worst kind,” “the best way of ensuring that the suffering” — of Kashmiris, Afghans, Palestinians, whatever — “goes unrecorded.” Others peddled a similar line: If you release Daniel, he’ll be able to tell your story, get your message out. Somehow we keep missing the point: the story did get out; the severed head is the message. By now, the tape has been duplicated, and re-duplicated, and copies are circulating through the bazaars and madrassahs. It’s a recruitment video — join the jihad, meet interesting people, and behead them –and a training video, too: this is how you do it — the statement, the knife, the defilement of the corpse. But in a more profound sense it’s a boast, an act of self-congratulation, a pat on the back for a job well done: the smile on the face of the tiger.

    narciso (ee1f88)

  60. He came dangerously close to “tit for tat, your chickens have come home to roost.”

    I overheard a garden-variety liberal at lunch today say as much about the gruesome murder of Foley. The person in question, when someone at her table mentioned the horror of Foley’s beheading, apparently found her pangs of moral equivalency being triggered because she said that since the US has its own method of killing humans (referring presumably to the military and things like missile drones), we therefore shouldn’t be quite so harsh on ISIS for the way it goes about slaying people.

    Mark (14a4db)

  61. The short version:

    Incompatible with Western Civilization. Has declared WAR on Western Civilization. Has shown the capacity and determination to carry out its brand of warfare. Is NOT willing to negotiate – on ANYTHING.

    Your move, Mr. President, Commander-in-Chief, Leader of the Free World, etc, etc.

    A_Nonny_Mouse (748167)

  62. Your move, Mr. President, Commander-in-Chief, Leader of the Free World, amateur golfer, raconteur, Bon vivant, ne’er-do-well, Choom Patrol Capitan, sissy baseball pitcher, Fundamental Deformer, etc, etc.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  63. 60. Well, Doughty’s Arabia Deserta, possibly the most extensive work on the region, which mostly focuses on the tribes of the Ukwan, the Ateyba, from whence the would be Mahdi came, the Quahtani, of the 2Oth hijacker, the Mutayr, it was written in 1889, in between Wahhabi kingdoms,
    narciso (ee1f88) — 8/20/2014 @ 7:12 pm

    I have no reason to doubt you.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  64. 61. I couldn’t watch the video of Pearl’s beheading several years ago and I can’t watch the video of Foley’s murder today.

    Mark (14a4db) — 8/20/2014 @ 7:54 pm

    I could watch it. I don’t see the point. I just get enraged and I can’t do anything about it. If, IF, we were going to do something about it I’d watch another beheading video. But judging by Obama’s rush to end his statement on the beheading so he could make his tee time, it’s not happening. Sorry for the other guys. What we should be doing is killing lots of people. I could contribute to that even if I wouldn’t be on the tippy tip end point of the spear. But then nobody needs that sort of thing in this Obamanation, which a lot of you voted for. Enjoy your beheading.

    Sincerely,

    Your no load, trying to hide behind some chick’s skirts, never risked anything in his life, Friendly Neighborhood Intel Guy.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  65. I could watch it. I don’t see the point.

    All the chaos throughout the world or right here in the good ol’ USA, in Ferguson, Missouri, in a way is a blessing to Obama because it has taken attention away from his irresponsible, foolhardy opening of the southern border.

    So an ISIS fanatic cuts off the head of one guy!? Pffft. Here’s a whole bunch of them, scattered about, located far closer to this friendly corner of the globe.

    Humanity descends, and the left nurtures it along.

    Mark (14a4db)

  66. Also, I’ve been searching on “James Foley beheaded” and “James Foley beheading” for most of the day and all I get are sanitized versions that won’t show the whole thing. It reminds me of 9/11 when the MFM decided we Americans couldn’t be trusted to see people diving off the twin towers to their deaths to escape the fires. Because of course we are worse people than those who crashed the planes in the towers in the first place. The Arab street has a point which we must acknowledge. We Americans? Never, according to the MFM. Those were our just desserts, per the journalism school grads.

    We just saw a similar dynamic at play in the latest Hamas-Israeli war. In which the MFM suppressed the truth about Hamas because they’ve chosen sides.

    I learned in Catholic school that hate is a bad thing. But I hate our media.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  67. There. I said it.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  68. Steve57 (99bd31) — 8/20/2014 @ 11:58 pm

    It reminds me of 9/11 when the MFM decided we Americans couldn’t be trusted to see people diving off the twin towers to their deaths to escape the fires.

    Exactly. Our nerves can’t take it. Supposedly.

    They also stopped broadcasting the exact statements of Osama bin Laden. That was not good because you could do some analysis.

    And you’d understand better how evil he was.Bit enough was shoen early and quoted later anyway.

    Obama claims (or his people did) that he did not se ethe video, but he knows what is on it, and he didn’t want to see the video because he didn’t want to give them the satisfaction of him seeing it.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  69. Mark (14a4db) — 8/20/2014 @ 8:04 pm

    the US has its own method of killing humans (referring presumably to the military and things like missile drones), we therefore shouldn’t be quite so harsh on ISIS for the way it goes about slaying people.

    Some U.S. states should hire him as an executioner, maybe.

    It’s quite besides the point how humane that execution was. The execution itself was cruel and unjust.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  70. 46. Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 8/20/2014 @ 4:57 pm

    It’s a shame that the administration for once chooses to be transparent and its about the failed rescue missions in Syria, I guess to show the world just how ineffectual these guys can be?

    I guess there’s no reason any more to keep it secret, and they can show they tried.

    The question is, are they drawing the proper lessons? (about bad intelligence, double agents, etc.)

    http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/21/world/middleeast/us-commandos-tried-to-rescue-foley-and-other-hostages.html

    <b< “We’re not sure why they were moved,” a Defense Department official said. “

    Because you’ve been penetrated, dumbbells! Or maybe you told some “allies” who perhaps also were supposed to have prisoners there, except maybe that was a lie. Or it was all disinformation in the first place. Or whoever determined they were there in the first place was an idiot.

    Apparently, they didn’t even make any determination as to what went wrong even afterwards.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  71. That is hardly the first mistake that was made combatting ISIS.

    Obama even cleared the way for the Caliph Ibrahim to rise to power by killing his predecessors – it was maybe not skill that made that assassination in 2010 successful.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/20/world/middleeast/20baghdad.html

    Top Qaeda Leaders in Iraq Reported Killed in Raid ….

    Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki announced Monday that two top insurgent leaders had been killed, including a somewhat mythic figure who has operated under the name Abu Omar al-Baghdadi. Mr. Baghdadi has been reported dead or detained several times previously, and his very existence had been called into question a few years ago by American military leaders.

    After Mr. Maliki’s press conference, the American military released a statement verifying that Mr. Baghdadi was killed in a joint raid between Iraqi and United States forces in the dark hours of Sunday morning near Tikrit, near Saddam Hussein’s hometown.

    Also killed, according to Mr. Maliki and American officials, was Abu Ayyub al-Masri, the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq, also known as Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia, a largely Iraqi group that includes some foreign leadership….

    “The death of these terrorists is potentially the most significant blow to Al Qaeda in Iraq since the beginning of the insurgency,” said Gen. Ray Odierno, the top American military commander in Iraq, in a statement. “The Government of Iraq intelligence services and security forces supported by U.S. intelligence and special operations forces have over the last several months continued to degrade A.Q.I. There is still work to do but this is a significant step forward in ridding Iraq of terrorists.”

    And then, after that, there was an announcement of new leaders, including Abu Bakr al Bagdadi (the future Caliph Ibrahim) and everybody in the U.s. government was saying: “Who’s he?”

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  72. Because you’ve been penetrated, dumbbells! Or maybe you told some “allies” who perhaps also were supposed to have prisoners there,

    Sounds like what happened to the Clinton administration’s attempt to kill Osama bin Laden. Richard Clarke blabbed to his friends in the UAE, and suddenly the camp got evacuated.

    Milhouse (9d71c3)

  73. The thing is, as one of my friends pointed out this morning, we have no real reason to believe this alleged rescue mission even happened. A self-serving leak from the administration? That’s evidence, now?!

    Milhouse (9d71c3)

  74. Caitlin Hayden, the National security spokeswoman said they never intended to make this public, but went public because reporters were going to wrote about this anyway. (does that mean the family of James Foley leaked it, and then sources in the Pentagon confirmed it?)

    Two Defense Department officials who spoke separately to the New York Times expressed anger at the leak.

    One said that revealing this now alerted “the militants” to the desire to the rescue hostages (like maybe they would have thought the commando attack, and then quick departure from, the oil refinery in Syria was for some other reason??

    I could see maybe revealing plans before they were attempted could give them the idea that rescue missions would not be attempted, but afterwards? Maybe this could alert hostage takers in some other part of the world.)

    There was an oficially sponsored conference call by some people whose names had to be kept secret. They claimed they had kept it secret in an attempt to preserve future opportunities to do it again.

    (how does that make sense? Maybe Jordan or Turkey might not give its permission? Or had been misled about what the mission was?)

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  75. James Foley was actually captured by the forces of Bashar al Assad, it is believed.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  76. The person who did the execution went by the name of “John” according to others who were held captive. He and two others were known as “the Beatles” because they were British.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  77. This is the most recent post up at Powerline.

    http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2014/08/gao-obama-administration-violated-law-in-releasing-gitmo-detainees-to-qatar-in-bergdahl-deal.php

    GAO: Obama administration violated law in releasing Gitmo detainees to Qatar in Bergdahl deal

    It is interesting in and of itself. But it raises the question. What was the hurry, again, about getting Bergdahl back that they couldn’t comply with the law? As I recall they thought his health might be deteriorating.

    Yet they definitely knew ISIS was going to behead Foley and they didn’t do anything like this.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  78. What was the hurry?
    Have to go back and look at the ‘daily’s’ for that time-period to see what they were trying to crowd off the front page.

    askeptic (efcf22)

  79. Boston Globe just published an obit for Foley. He sounds like he was a smart, grounded, decent, good guy who was fully aware and accepting of the risks he was taking in a war zone. I’m linking it below. And apparently he had a strong religious faith which I hope helped him at the end.

    Mr. Foley, who was 40, had endured captivity once before. On April 5, 2011, forces loyal to Moammar Khadafy detained Mr. Foley and two other journalists, and they spent 44 days in Libyan prisons. Clare Morgana Gillis, held captive with Mr. Foley, wrote about the experience in an essay posted May 1, 2013, on the Syria Deeply website.
    “We shared a cell for two and a half weeks,” she wrote, “and every day he came up with lists for us to talk through. Top 10 movies. Favorite books. The fall of the Roman Empire and the rebirth of Western civilization. Which famous person would you most like to meet? What’s your life story? How does war change you? How can we be better people when we get out of here? When I was in tears after a six-hour interrogation that ended at sunrise, he observed matter-of-factly, ‘It’s their job to break you. They did it to you today, and they’ll do it to me tomorrow. Get some sleep.’ ”

    …..Following the lead of his mother, friends said, Mr. Foley also developed a strong faith, which he drew on while in captivity. One day while being held in a Tripoli jail, he heard a knock on the wall. Holding an ear close to a wall socket, he heard a captured US contractor reading from the Bible.

    “In a very calm voice, he’d read me Scripture once or twice a day,” Mr. Foley told Marquette Magazine for a profile posted on its website. “Then I’d pray to stay strong. I’d pray to soften the hearts of our captors. I’d pray for God to lift the burdens we couldn’t handle. And I’d pray that our moms would know we were OK.”

    In 1996, Mr. Foley graduated from Marquette University, a Jesuit school, with a bachelor’s degree in history.

    https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2014/08/20/foleyobit/Eup7bzlaLcK7gY0ZLmp55M/story.html

    elissa (e9e9a1)

  80. “As I recall they thought his health might be deteriorating.”

    Steve57 – That was one of the many rationalizations for which support seemed sketchy based on information given to Congress if I recall correctly.

    daleyrocks (bf33e9)

  81. Steve57 (99bd31) — 8/21/2014 @ 2:31 pm

    Yet they definitely knew ISIS was going to behead Foley and they didn’t do anything like this.

    According to CBS, they attempted the rescue mission in July, and the intelligence was good but not great or something. ISIS now probably has separated the hostages.

    What somebody seems not to be saying is that some of them weren’t American or even British. 3 Americans a dozen in all.

    Now if some belonged to Country A, County B Country C and Country D. I could see Country D, which wanted to pay ransom, being notified and telling ISIS.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  82. What a breath of fresh air tonight on CBS!

    Bob Shieffer was the anchor of the news instead of the lame Scott Pelley (it seems he wasn’t pulled out because of the poor quality of his broadcasts, but because he is on assignment for 69 Minutes. Except that they didn’t bring in somebody new, they brought in Bob Schieffer.

    In the first segment before the commercial he covered a whole bunch of stories pretty well.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  83. Last night Scott Pelley explained that the acronym President Obama used , ISIL stood for Islamic State of (on in?) Iraq and the Levant and “explained” that the Levant was an old term for Syria and Lebanon.

    No! Syria, Lebanon, Israel or Palestine, and Jordan.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  84. Both of the people in Atlanta infected with ebola have been released from the hospital, the first yesterday and the second today. There is said to be no trace of the virus, and they are also now immune. They say they learned some things about treatment and are sending a report to Africa.

    They were probably infected outsdie from a health care aide who contracted ebola and died. It is not taht infection control didn’t work.

    Meanwhile, not on the CBS Evening News, there was a raid on what was supposed to be a place for ebola patienst and blanlets and optehr stuff were stolen. I wonderr if that is the reason a whole (slum) section of the city was quarantined. Police shot at people who attempted to leave the area.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  85. Chuck Hagel says this ISIS/ISIL poses a threat unlike any America has seen before… well-funded, super sophisticated… meanwhile, Obama hits the golf course, Biden does whatever that fool does on a daily basis and Holder issues empty threats to bring the full weight of the U.S. criminal justice system down on these terrorist scum. America’s resolve and mettle are about to be tested over the next several years and it’s going to shine a harsh spotlight on America’s election choice in November 2012.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  86. Gee, Sammy, I always turn to Scotty Pelley and CBS News for all of my news needs!

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  87. Colonel,
    And Amnesty International is in Ferguson as well.

    MD in Philly (f9371b)

  88. “Chuck Hagel says this ISIS/ISIL poses a threat unlike any America has seen before… well-funded, super sophisticated”

    Colonel – Meanwhile, Marie Barf from the State Department says that in spite of ISIS saying they are at war with the United States, they are not really at war with us because, you know, they say all sorts of things, you know.

    daleyrocks (bf33e9)

  89. 89. Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 8/21/2014 @ 4:05 pm

    Chuck Hagel says this ISIS/ISIL poses a threat unlike any America has seen before… well-funded, super sophisticated… meanwhile, Obama hits the golf course,

    He made a nice resounding statement – but no announcement of any action, or of meetings.

    Biden does whatever that fool does on a daily basis and Holder issues empty threats to bring the full weight of the U.S. criminal justice system down on these terrorist scum. America’s resolve and mettle are about to be tested over the next several years and it’s going to shine a harsh spotlight on America’s election choice in November 2012

    On Obama.

    CBS News anchored by Bob Schieffer – who is a whole lot better than Scott Pelley – even the slight bias toward Michael Brown was OK – reported that Joinmy Chiefs of Staff head Martin Dempsey had said they would need to do things in Syria to defeat them, but didn’t say they were actually going to do it.

    Sammy Finkelman (d22d64)

  90. Attacking in Syria: It’s a problem. For Obama anyway. Obama apparently is afraid that attacking ISIS in Syria would mean siding with Bashar al Assad.

    That may not be a problem very much longer.

    http://www.slate.com/blogs/business_insider/2014/08/20/how_james_foley_fell_into_the_hands_of_isis_a_group_bashar_al_assad_helped.html

    It may not be too much longer till they sign a 10-year non-aggression pact. On the other hand, the head of Hezbollah seems to be worried about ISIS.

    Sammy Finkelman (d22d64)

  91. Jen Psaki and Marie Harf. What a pair of thirty-something incompetents and history illiterates “speaking” for the U.S State Department.

    elissa (e9e9a1)

  92. Not that I think that’s necessarily a great idea either, but I am starting to suspect that senior State officials and senior military are going to increasingly work together to push aside or ignore ValJar as the primary administration decision maker on international policy.

    elissa (e9e9a1)

  93. Elissa, this is a particularly bad nightmare for me. These folks all speak and act just like folks during faculty meetings here on campus. They keep spraining their shoulders from patting themselves on the back, using awkward language, avoiding tough decisions, and passing the buck.

    Sad times.

    Simon Jester (c8876d)

  94. Can we just call iSiS what they truly are: iSatan

    Hyman (7aeb38)

  95. …incompetents and history illiterates…

    You just described this whole administration, from King Putt on down. Why should Psaki and Harf be any different?

    Actually, you can’t describe this administration without using the word feckless but incompetent and history illiterate covers a lot of ground.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  96. well no, steve, they are full of feck,ISIS is just the latest stage of the Syrian branch of the Moslem Brotherhood, the ones that went overboard in 1982, and were nearly annihilated in Hama, hence ‘Hama
    rules’ there was a similar process in Libya, by which bin Qumu and Abu Khattalah were released from
    Abu Salim

    narciso (ee1f88)

  97. food stamp calls it ISIL

    he always has to be different because he’s a cheesy whore

    happyfeet (8ce051)

  98. Perhaps they really don’t bother with history, because previous history went bad because the right people were not in charge,
    now that “we”(they) who are the ones we’ve been waiting for are in charge, past history isn’t supposed to mean anything, because we are going to finally get it right.

    If things continue to not work out like they think they should, maybe they’ll start to ask questions.
    But then again, if the main idea is to “get the US out of messing up the rest of the world”, then the world can do whatever it wants, the only real issue for them is domestic spin control.

    MD in Philly (f9371b)

  99. 99. Hyman (7aeb38) — 8/21/2014 @ 4:55 pm

    Can we just call iSiS what they truly are: iSatan

    No, that’s Hezbollah.

    http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/Muslim-scholar-Hezbollah-is-the-party-of-Satan-316018#! (Hezollah means “Party of God (Allah)”

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  100. “These folks all speak and act just like folks during faculty meetings here on campus.”

    Simon – I am surrounded by them in the academic peoples republic in which I live.

    daleyrocks (bf33e9)

  101. ohnoes they got Mr. daley surrounded

    remember your training Mr. d

    kick kick swivel swivel parry lunge parry

    if that don’t do the trick then start talking about how you just read ayn rand for the first time and you’re not 100% sure yet but you find some of her ideas to be really interesting

    happyfeet (8ce051)

  102. 85. …According to CBS, they attempted the rescue mission in July, and the intelligence was good but not great or something. ISIS now probably has separated the hostages.

    I’m aware of that. But according to everyone who was in the AOR they were searching for Bergdahl for months. When those searches failed to find him, just as the attempted rescue failed to find Foley, this administration traded essentially the Taliban cabinet for Bergdahl because they had questions about his health (or so they say).

    The similarities between the Bergdahl and Foley situations? They military failed to find either one. Both were being held by listed terrorist organizations.

    The differences between the two situations? They only had questions about Bergdahl’s health; they knew what was going to happen to Foley. They negotiated to get Bergdahl back from his captors, the Haqqani network despite the fact it’s a listed terrorist organization. They didn’t for Foley.

    What somebody seems not to be saying is that some of them weren’t American or even British. 3 Americans a dozen in all.

    Now if some belonged to Country A, County B Country C and Country D. I could see Country D, which wanted to pay ransom, being notified and telling ISIS.
    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7) — 8/21/2014 @ 3:53 pm

    And the final difference. The Haqqani network wouldn’t have traded Bergdahl in exchange for Taliban prisoners. Only one of the five was even arguably more allied to the Haqqani network than the Taliban. And the Haqqani network wouldn’t have insisted on that guy if they were interested in a prisoner swap. We still hold far higher ranking Haqqani network prisoners, if the Haqqanis were interested in a prisoner swap that benefited them and not the Taliban, which is an entirely different outfit.

    But the Haqqani network doesn’t care about prisoners. It cares about money. That’s the only thing they’d have traded Bergdahl for. And they were willing to give up Bergdahl. So there’s only one obvious conclusion. This administration paid the Haqqani network’s asking price to get Bergdahl back.

    But they weren’t willing to ransom Foley as well. That’s how all the other countries got their prisoners back. In fact, until they seized the banks in places like Mosul ransoming hostages was how ISIS bankrolled its operation. It’s how the Haqqani network bankrolls its operations.

    Again, the final difference. We no doubt financed one US-designated terrorist organization for years to get Bergdahl. But not for Foley.

    Steve57 (99bd31)

  103. Jen Psaki and Marie Harf. What a pair of thirty-something incompetents and history illiterates “speaking” for the U.S State Department.

    elissa (e9e9a1) — 8/21/2014 @ 4:28 pm

    These lefties sure don’t embarrass easy, do they.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  104. I’m only surprised that the NAACP didn’t request the United Nations to “intervene” in Ferguson, MD. And daley… I may not have always agreed with State Dept. spokespeople, but I never thought the bench would be this shallow… good grief, this has to be calculated to fall in line w/Obama’s grand plan to decimate America’s standing in the world. He’s starting to make that Rev. Wright a-hole look like a patriot.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  105. 107. Steve57 (99bd31) — 8/21/2014 @ 5:48 pm

    But according to everyone who was in the AOR they were searching for Bergdahl for months.

    I think it was for a shorter period of time. They concluded he was out of the area after a while. What they were doing was supposedly trying to prevent him from being taken out of Afghanistan. Probably long after he was gone.

    This remained in the background of all their missions. If there were extra casualties it was elsewhere, where they ulled away people.

    When those searches failed to find him, just as the attempted rescue failed to find Foley, this administration traded essentially the Taliban cabinet for Bergdahl because they had questions about his health (or so they say).

    I think it was that Obama wanted to be out of Afghanistan. Were Bergdahl still there a year or more from nowe, there would be something tying the United States to Afghanistan.

    As for problems with his health, that was probably something the jihadists found out the United States wanted to hear, because then maybe there would be a deal. So they told teh United states what it wanted to hear.

    They negotiated to get Bergdahl back from his captors,

    It helped that he was originally a soldier and not a civilian. Obama could be accused of leaving someone behind, as he could not with a kidnapped civilian, who was not hs responsibility originally.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  106. Steve57: And the final difference. The Haqqani network wouldn’t have traded Bergdahl in exchange for Taliban prisoners. Only one of the five was even arguably more allied to the Haqqani network than the Taliban. And the Haqqani network wouldn’t have insisted on that guy if they were interested in a prisoner swap. We still hold far higher ranking Haqqani network prisoners, if the Haqqanis were interested in a prisoner swap that benefited them and not the Taliban, which is an entirely different outfit.

    But the Haqqani network doesn’t care about prisoners. It cares about money. That’s the only thing they’d have traded Bergdahl for. And they were willing to give up Bergdahl. So there’s only one obvious conclusion. This administration paid the Haqqani network’s asking price to get Bergdahl back. No, the obvious conclusion is that the Haqqani network and the Taliban are controlled by the same people (in Pakistan’s rogue military intelligence agency, the Inetervioces Intelligence agency – the ISI.)
    \
    And also that the people in the Obama Administration believed whatever cockamamie story they came up with to explain why the Haqquani network would give up prisoners in exchange for Taliban people.

    You may not think so. I do. I think that’s exactly what happened.

    I think the cockamamie story is either that they didn’t know the Taliban were going to release them, or that the Taliban paid ransom or both.

    Had the United States actually paid a ransom, it wouldn’t have been possible to keep ths a secret.

    But they weren’t willing to ransom Foley as well. That’s how all the other countries got their prisoners back. In fact, until they seized the banks in places like Mosul ransoming hostages was how ISIS bankrolled its operation. It’s how the Haqqani network bankrolls its operations.

    The United States has a policy of not ransoming people. Bergdahl was considered a prisoner exchange, and I don’t believe they paid any ransom.

    They said to themselves in the Obama Administration that the Taliban prisoners being released were too distant from the battlefield, and they wouldn’t make trouble in the year remaining for American troops to remain in Afghanistan. That’s all they were concerned about: that a released prisoner might be tied to the death of an American. Afghans they didn’t care about. Justice they didn’t care about.

    It was all rationalization.

    Obama just wanted nothing left tying the United States to Afghanistan, an American POW held by the Taliban would tie the United States there.

    Qatar was going to keep watch on the released Taliban.

    Which reminds me. Isn’t it about time the United States organized a coup in Qatar? I mean the British changed the governments of both Iran and Iraq during World War II, because they were too close to the Nazis. (The new emir doesn’t seem to be that much better than the old emir. The old emir abdicated and the long term Prime Minister cum Foreign Minister resigned, but that didn’t
    seem to solve the problem)

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  107. Again, the final difference. We no doubt financed one US-designated terrorist organization for years to get Bergdahl. But not for Foley.

    ISIS was supposedly asking for $132 million (according to CBS News) When they mention numbers like that, they’re not serious.

    As I said, I don’t think the United States gave any money to them. They bought the story, whatever the story was, that would explain why the Haqqani network would release a prisoner in exchange for Taliban officials.

    Sammy Finkelman (3ba0b7)

  108. Bob schieffer wnchored the news again today. CBS reported that the family of James Foley was attempting to raise $5 million as a counter-ofer, although actually paying the money to ISIS would have been illegal (material support for terrorism)

    Sammy Finkelman (13370e)

  109. That cartoon would have been better if it was TOTUS who was being threatened, rather than agolf club.

    Sammy Finkelman (13370e)

  110. Some corrections:

    1. “John” may not have beheaded James Foley.

    The video cuts off right after he puts his knife to his throat. The knife is considered too small to have killed him, and the knife shown next to his body after the fact is a different knife, and bigger.

    2. “John” may be a hip-hop” artist. He and two other English speaking jihadists (whose prsence always made the lives of the captives more miserable” were nicknamed “the Beatles” by the prisoners. The other two were known as “Paul” and “Ringo” Ringo? Not “George?”

    3. There seems to be a difference among the sources about the size of the ransom demand from November, 2013. The wall Street Journal says $123 million, but other sources say $132 million. This goves me the idea that they may not have demanded Dollars at all. $132 million is about equal to 100 million Euros. I wouldn’t know where the $123 million figure came from.

    http://www.x-rates.com/calculator/

    The ransom note itself has never been quoted. The family had not heard from him in a long time. When they got the ransom demand they asked a number of “proof of llife” questions, that only he should be expected to be able to asnwer, and the answers that came back weer satisfactory. Then there was silence aagin. On August 12 they got the message saying he was going to get killed, and they were preparing to offer $5 million.

    Sammy Finkelman (13370e)

  111. 94. It may not be too much longer till they sign a 10-year non-aggression pact. On the other hand, the head of Hezbollah seems to be worried about ISIS.

    Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 8/21/2014 @ 4:28 pm

    The situation is a little unclear to me. I guess it could be like the situatin with the Khmer Rouge in 1975, when they seem to have suddenly wound up apart from Hanoi, and under the control of China.

    Syria may have started fighting ISIS around mid-June 2014, bit they still have not attacked theie military headquarters in Raqaa, but only civilians there.

    There were some storues about the history Saturday in the New York Times and Wall Strete Journal.

    ISIS was on the verge of being wiped out in January, 2014.

    ISIS was

    Sammy Finkelman (13370e)

  112. I can’t figure out what the ISIS strategy is. It will all make sense later.

    There was an alliance betwene the Syrian government and jihadists. Is it off or on now, I don’t know. Hamas firing rockets only made sense if rockets are goinbg to be fied later on from the borth – and 5 were last night – but those rockets are controlled by the syrian government and Hezbollah.

    I don’t know what’s going on.

    Is it:

    1) Assad wanted to make a deal with ISIS, but discovered he was on the menu and the deal is just with Iran?

    2) ISIS pretended to be interested in a deal, but intends to occupy all of Syria?

    3) The deal is contingent on Syria and Hezbollah attacking Israel?

    Sammy Finkelman (13370e)

  113. James Foley made an attempt to escape, which the other prisoners didn’t really consider a serious escape attempt.

    He got out into the Syrian desert, but had no place to go, and was shortly re-captured, after which he was treated worse.

    Sammy Finkelman (13370e)

  114. yes, our relations with Qatar tie us to ISIS, somewhat like our rapprochement with China, tied us to the Khmer Rouge

    http://hotair.com/headlines/archives/2014/08/24/u-s-strikes-in-syria-against-islamic-state-would-be-hindered-by-intelligence-gaps/

    narciso (ee1f88)

  115. The person in the video with James Foley is probably second generation Al Qaeda (except he went with the break-away faction)

    Sammy Finkelman (c2ec36)

  116. James Foley’s family evidentally was not told about the rescue attempt – and his brotehr was not entirely certain last week it happened, but he hoped it did.

    Sammy Finkelman (c2ec36)

  117. 119. narciso (ee1f88) — 8/24/2014 @ 11:28 am

    somewhat like our rapprochement with China, tied us to the Khmer Rouge

    Well, you know, Jimmy Carter prolonged the rule of the Khmer Rouge for 2 years. He stopped Thailand from invading in 1977.

    Rpnald reagan sided with China in being against the invasion from Voetname in 1979, andcontnued to recognize the Pol Pot government. Or their colaition government.

    They had a strip of territory along the border with Thailand for about ten years. And U.S. arms I think were supplied to the allies of Pol Pot and a war was fought for about ten years for the sake of a vote in the United Nations General Assembly.

    Sammy Finkelman (c2ec36)

  118. Jen Psaki and Marie Harf. What a pair of thirty-something incompetents and history illiterates

    She’s a press agent, Elissa. That’s what she does. She might be better at her job if she had more background in the substance of what she reports. As far as Mr. Kerry is concerned, she’s optimal as his mouthpiece. Your problem is at the top.

    Art Deco (ee8de5)

  119. “She’s a press agent, Elissa. That’s what she does. She might be better at her job if she had more background in the substance of what she reports.”

    Art Deco – It’s the competence of Psaki and Harf that’s the issue not job itself. You can have competent spokespeople representing incompetent administrations. In this case it’s incompetence all the way around.

    daleyrocks (bf33e9)


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