Libyan Updates
[Guest post by Aaron Worthing; if you have tips, please send them here.]
First, I just got a breaking news email from Cnn claiming that Gaddafi said that he will not step down and he wants to die as a martyr in his country. Ah, so we are all agreed, the Muslim Brotherhood, Gaddafi, every decent American and the official Virginia flag…
“Sic semper tyrannis.”*
Of course then next they might have to kill the members of the Muslim Brotherhood, but one fascist at a time…
Moving on, I can’t embed it, but you can watch Gaddafi’s statement last night supposedly proving he was still in Tripoli, here. I am with Doug Powers on this. I am getting a vibe like watching that weird video of Saddam wearing glasses in the early days of the Iraq War, when we were not even sure if it was him. For instance, take a look at the image itself:
That could have been anywhere. So you have to wonder how convincing all of this is to the Libyan people.
And the Washington Post has this coverage:
Libyan strongman Moammar Gaddafi appeared on state television early Tuesday to prove he had not fled the country, as the opposition seized control in some areas and top officials resigned to protest attacks on civilians.
With both the United Nations and the Arab League planning emergency meetings on Libya, Gaddafi’s vicious crackdown against demonstrators appeared to be fast eroding whatever support had existed for his government.
In Washington, Libya’s ambassador to the United States announced he would “resign from serving the current dictatorship.” He called on the United States to “raise its voice very strongly” to help oust Gaddafi, 68, who assumed power in a 1969 military coup.
He asked for this Administration to stand up for freedom? Um, you do know you are talking about Obama, right? The guy who knelt before the King of Saudi Arabia? Really?
(Actually, I should correct the record. As Harvey at IMAO correctly noted at the time it happened, Obama didn’t bow to the King of Saudi Arabia. He bent his knee, so technically it was a curtsy.)
And Haaretz has this account, claiming that Gaddafi is barricaded in his compound:
A Libyan opposition activist and a Tripoli resident say the streets of a restive district in the Libyan capital are littered with the bodies of scores of protesters shot dead by security forces loyal to longtime leader Muammar Gadhafi, who is reported to be barricaded in his compound in the city.
Mohammed Ali…
(Must… resist… urge… to make boxing joke…)
…of the Libyan Salvation Front and the resident say Tripoli’s inhabitants are hunkering down at home Tuesday after the killings and warnings by forces loyal to Gadhafi that anyone on the streets would be shot.
Ali, reached in Dubai, and the Tripoli resident say forces loyal to Gadhafi shot at ambulances and some protesters were left bleeding to death. The resident spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
Western media are largely barred from Libya and the report couldn’t be independently confirmed.
As they say read the whole thing. I am not pleased with that kind of sourcing, but I suspect it’s going to be hard to get reliable accounts of what happened for the next few days.
Meanwhile the New Yorker is already writing the epitaph of the regime. Mmm, I hope I am wrong on this, but that strikes me as jumping the gun. Yes, Gaddafi looks like he is in serious trouble, but it is possible to kill your way out of a thing like this, if your military is sufficiently loyal.
In related news, the National Editor’s Union has issued a statement calling for the ouster of the dictator, if only because no one can figure out how to spell his name. (Yes, that is a joke.)
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* Sidebar: And please don’t go saying I quoted John Wilkes Booth. It was the Commonwealth’s motto long before that idiot used it. And Lincoln well knew that liberators could be mislabeled as tyrants:
The shepherd drives the wolf from the sheep’s throat, for which the sheep thanks the shepherd as a liberator, while the wolf denounces him for the same act as the destroyer of liberty, especially as the sheep was a black one.
I don’t know how to say “Thus always to true tyrants.” But that is how I feel.
[Posted and authored by Aaron Worthing.]
the silence of your president is cowardly and shameful
happyfeet (a55ba0) — 2/22/2011 @ 9:44 amI enjoyed this passage from HuffPo’s coverage:
Anyway, I’m going to start an office pool on just when Ghadafi’s martyrdom will become reality. I doubt the guy will see next week.
Kman (5576bf) — 2/22/2011 @ 9:46 amNothing inspires confidence in any leader and imbues the governed with fear and respect quite like an umbrella. In a car. With a hat. He looks like Tim Conway in “The Carol Burnett Show”.
Bugg (9e308e) — 2/22/2011 @ 10:05 am=Nothing inspires confidence in any leader==
He could have been photographed atop a tank, wearing a space “bunny costume”, or riding a girl’s bike in a helmet. That’s what real leaders do to inspire confidence.
elissa (342ce6) — 2/22/2011 @ 10:11 amKman
well, a mild disagreement, there. if it looks really bad, he will run. and if he stays one step ahead, he just might survive. I am cautiously optimistic, though, that his regime won’t survive.
Aaron Worthing (e7d72e) — 2/22/2011 @ 10:13 amelissa
> He could have been photographed atop a tank, wearing a space “bunny costume”, or riding a girl’s bike in a helmet. That’s what real leaders do to inspire confidence.
that is mean. And I approve.
Aaron Worthing (e7d72e) — 2/22/2011 @ 10:14 amohnoes now it’s raining more than ever
happyfeet (a55ba0) — 2/22/2011 @ 10:32 amAaron, great joke on the editor’s union.
TimesDisliker (3359d9) — 2/22/2011 @ 10:38 amclearly the wolf is a racist and should be denounced
happyfeet (a55ba0) — 2/22/2011 @ 10:51 amNot for nothing…
Scott Jacobs (218307) — 2/22/2011 @ 11:05 amTold a friend that when they go pay the man a visit to make his wish come true to say “Reagan says hello…”
Scott Jacobs (218307) — 2/22/2011 @ 11:07 amLooks like California to me.
Charles Curran (5f92ae) — 2/22/2011 @ 11:28 amdear god please to not let me die on a yacht
oh wait
happyfeet (a55ba0) — 2/22/2011 @ 11:54 am“Um, you do know you are talking about Obama, right? The guy who knelt before the King of Saudi Arabia? Really?”
— Funny (and very timely) that you mention this, Aaron, since just last night Chrissie Leg-Tingle, in the midst of his umpteenth slam on Michelle Bachmann, said that he didn’t know what she was talking about when she brought up the very same incident that you are referring to.
Icy Texan (7cb5e1) — 2/22/2011 @ 11:57 amIt is, in fact, about a twenty-year old joke. Not sure if it originated with SNL, but the Weekend Update the week that we bombed Libya (or about that time) made fun of the fact that at least 10 major newspapers — The NYT, the WaPo, the LAT, etc., all had different spellings for his name from EACH of the others. Not one of them spelled it the same way as any of the other nine. They followed it up with “a poll: ‘How do YOU spell Khaddafy?'” and telepromptered off a long list of a hundred or so variants.
Qwis Maffews (edf445) — 2/22/2011 @ 12:14 pmSensible comments from John Kerry, particularly the warning to senior officers in the Libyan military about potential war crimes prosecution.
Angeleno (6cf5e6) — 2/22/2011 @ 1:21 pmBy tomorrow Gaddafi duck will have turned himself in to the uniformed manager of Tripoli’s Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise.
Larry Reilly (0e1b2d) — 2/22/2011 @ 1:30 pmre#16 – unconfirmed reports Kerry also gave tips to senior officers on how to get qualified for ribbons and medals.
TimesDisliker (3359d9) — 2/22/2011 @ 1:31 pm#18 — Any views on his comments in the Post?
Angeleno (6cf5e6) — 2/22/2011 @ 1:36 pmQwis
ah, didn’t see that one. sounds like the dennis miller era on weekend update. am i right?
he was the best weekend update anchor, period. i mean there were other funny ones. Chase, MacDonald come to mind. but he was the best.
Aaron Worthing (e7d72e) — 2/22/2011 @ 2:27 pmHe could still decide to label himself a communist, at which time he would be absolved for any massacre.
Bill G. (e67b88) — 2/22/2011 @ 3:15 pmDoes Gadaffi look like Jerry Stiller? In that outfit, the picture looks like it could be a scene from a Seinfeld episode. Maybe a Korean War flashback.
Jeff H. (6b02e4) — 2/22/2011 @ 3:30 pmO/T…
FoxNews…Four Americans Killed on Yacht Hijacked by Somali Pirates
From the article: (paraphrase)
No word on where the captured pirates were to be taken for trial…
Suggest the trial be held on the hanger-deck of the carrier that they’re on, with punishment a short step away at the edge of the deck-elevator!
This crap has got to stop.
AD-RtR/OS! (b8ab92) — 2/22/2011 @ 4:16 pmNo need to take a “short step away”, AD – why not give new meaning to the name “hanger deck”? That’s the traditional punishment for pirates, isn’t it?
Dr. Weevil (96bc9f) — 2/22/2011 @ 5:28 pmI don’t know how to say “Thus always to true tyrants.” But that is how I feel.
Seems somewhat oxymoronic, as I have difficulty grasping the concept of faux tyrants.
But as we all know history is written (and rewritten) by the victors
Hrothgar (f051f0) — 2/22/2011 @ 5:37 pmComment by Dr. Weevil — 2/22/2011 @ 5:28 pm
No need to despoil the air in the “hanger deck” as they are already foul meat.
AD-RtR/OS! (74ff93) — 2/22/2011 @ 5:43 pmLet the sharks have them.
Who knows, they might find one who will file an appeal.
Sic Semper Tyrannis
Bernard F. (d80b5a) — 2/22/2011 @ 5:59 pmHas “bernard Yelverton” improved from his prior agressive lies?
JD (d56362) — 2/22/2011 @ 6:21 pmhttp://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=10150096802933435
narciso (28df0c) — 2/22/2011 @ 7:10 pmGreat link, Narciso. Palin gets to the point very well, as usual. That Obama isn’t loudly railing against Libya is embarrassing. Compare and contrast with Honduras, and it’s actually disgusting.
Dustin (b54cdc) — 2/22/2011 @ 7:28 pmWell it’s not only a tragic situation, Dustin, but it’s exactly the kind of crisis she warned about
narciso (28df0c) — 2/22/2011 @ 7:40 pmthreatening our economic and national interests,
back then she pointed to Ab Quaiq, or Venezuela, but
this madman’s destructive rampage, leads to ‘crickets’ at the White House
I wanna see Qadaffi’s all babe bodyguard brigade fight to the death as part of his martyrdom. They looked sort of HAWT when he was tenting in Paris a couple of years ago.
daleyrocks (ae76ce) — 2/23/2011 @ 5:02 amThat guy looks like the love child of Helen Thomas and Lionel Ritchie.
DohBiden (984d23) — 2/23/2011 @ 4:21 pm