|
Anti-Jewish Racists Deny the Jewish Right to Live in Judea-Samaria
2008-06-18 05:14:00 It seems that the Palestinian Authority is the tail that wags the Western dog, making its overly generous Western benefactors jump through the hoops of "politically correct" Judeophobia and anti-Jewish racism, particularly, but not only, on the "settlement" issue. Do Jews have the right to live in Judea-Samaria, the heart of the ancient Land of Israel? The palestinian authority denies this right. Its brothers in the Arab League delightedly pick up the relay baton to beat the Jews with, and major Western powers fall in line. Saudi Arabia shares the denial of Jewish rights with other Arab League members and has great influence over American policy as well. Saudi money also influences other Arab states. Indeed, one report claims that a proposed UN Security Council resolution against Israeli "settlements" actually originated with the Saudis, not the palestinian authority.Meanwhile, Condoleezza Rice has accepted the Arab claims and joined in the hate chorus against Israel. She does not w...
By: Emet m\'Tsiyon
Hezbollah?s Shadow War
2008-05-31 15:38:00 For their part, Hezbollah’s leaders remain coy on specifics, but have not disputed the characterization that their capabilities are greater than prewar levels. In mid-2007, Nasrallah said his militia has missiles “able to hit every point in occupied Palestine.” Still, finding independent sources on Hezbollah has proven difficult. Western military assessments tend to agree that ...
By: 1913 Intel
Diplomats eyed for Iraq duty
2008-05-28 14:29:00 Diplomats eyed for Iraq duty next year WASHINGTON - The State Department has begun to identify diplomats who could be forced to serve in Iraq next year unless enough volunteers come forward to fill about 300 positions, The Associated Press has learned. A department-wide notice issued Tuesday says officials have looked through the files of all foreign ...
By: TexasFred's
Pakistan?s Other Border
2008-05-24 02:37:00 South Asia’s nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan resumed peace talks May 20 amid reminders of how vulnerable the two nations are to terrorism. Bombings in Jaipur (IANS) allegedly by Bangladeshi extremists and heightened tension (CSM) with Pakistan across the long-disputed border in Kashmir has New Delhi on edge. The U.S. State Department’s 2007 report on ...
By: 1913 Intel
State Department Daily Press Briefing, 05/09/08 VIDEO, PODCAST, TEXT
2008-05-10 04:25:00 State Department Daily Press Briefing Sean McCormack, Spokesman FULL STREAMING VIDEO Washington, DC May 9, 2008 1:15 p.m. EDT PODCAST OF THIS ARTICLEMR. MCCORMACK: Good afternoon, everybody. I have a couple things to start off with here, the first of which is a Media Note we?ll put out after the briefing here, and just encourage you to make note of the fact that the Secretary is going to be having an event on Monday in the afternoon.This is at the One Woman Initiative. It?s the Fund for Women?s Empowerment. This is something the Secretary has been deeply involved in, as you know, hosting a number of meetings. The focus on this issue and the centerpiece of this particular meeting is going to be the announcement of a public-private partnership of corporations, foundations, and the U.S. Government that will apply $100 million to projects aimed at empowering women. So we?ll put out a Media Note for you on that after the briefing.And second, I?d like to update you on some of the phone ca...
State Department Daily Press Briefing, 05/09/08 VIDEO, PODCAST, TEXT
2008-05-10 04:18:00 State Department Daily Press Briefing Sean McCormack, Spokesman FULL STREAMING VIDEO Washington, DC May 9, 2008 1:15 p.m. EDT PODCAST OF THIS ARTICLEMR. MCCORMACK: Good afternoon, everybody. I have a couple things to start off with here, the first of which is a Media Note we?ll put out after the briefing here, and just encourage you to make note of the fact that the Secretary is going to be having an event on Monday in the afternoon.This is at the One Woman Initiative. It?s the Fund for Women?s Empowerment. This is something the Secretary has been deeply involved in, as you know, hosting a number of meetings. The focus on this issue and the centerpiece of this particular meeting is going to be the announcement of a public-private partnership of corporations, foundations, and the U.S. Government that will apply $100 million to projects aimed at empowering women. So we?ll put out a Media Note for you on that after the briefing.And second, I?d like to update you on some of the phone ca...
US State Department Loses 1,000 Laptops
2008-05-08 17:19:00 Ouch! From vnunet: An audit at the US State Department has revealed the loss of over 1,000 laptops, some of which held security information. Around $30m worth of computing hardware is “unaccounted for”, the bulk of it laptops. These include over 400 from the Anti-Terrorism Assistance Program, some containing security material. Nita M. Lowey, a representative on the House ...
State Department Terrorism report
2008-04-30 15:49:00 The State Department’s Annual terrorism report is being released today. Following is the text of the Department announcement. -0- Special Press Briefing and Release: Country Reports on Terrorism 2007 The Department of State will release the annual Congressionally mandated Country Reports on Terrorism 2007 on Wednesday, April 30 at 11:00 a.m. Coordinator of the Office for Counterterrorism Dell L. Dailey and Deputy Director of the National Counterterrorism Center Russ Travers will provide opening...(read more)
State Department Forbidding Use Of Words Jihad And Jihadist
2008-04-23 22:25:00 Talk about political correctness gone crazy! This from Jihad WatchA reliable source has informed me that Condoleeza Rice has approved a new lexicon for State Department usage, absolutely forbidding the use of the terms "jihad" and "jihadist" by any State Department official.The argument, of course, is the old Streusand/Guirard claim that by using the word jihad, we're validating the jihadist claim to be waging jihad. Of course, it's ridiculous to think that the U.S. State Department carries any validating authority within the Islamic world to determine what is Islam and what isn't. This would be the first time that unbelievers have set the meaning of Islamic theology for Muslims.Also, the claim is that by using the word "jihad," we are insulting the peaceful Muslims who are waging the daily jihad of the struggle against sin, the struggle against the dirty dishes, etc. And that's great, if that's what any Muslim actually believes is the sum and substance of jihad, but it is an u...
State Department Daily Press Briefing, 04/21/08 VIDEO, PODCAST, TEXT
2008-04-22 01:28:00 Daily Press Briefing Tom Casey, Deputy Spokesman FULL STREAMING VIDEO Washington, DC April 21, 2008 12:50 p.m. EDT. PODCAST OF THIS ARTICLEMR. CASEY: Okay. Good afternoon and happy Monday, everyone. I don't have anything to start you out with, so Matt.QUESTION: Yeah. Tom, can you expand at all on what you said this morning about President Carter and his talks with Hamas? And also, I don't know if you've seen these latest comments from Khaled Mashaal, but he's saying that they won't recognize Israel, but they are prepared -- apparently, prepared to be its neighbor in peace and they've offered a 10-year ceasefire.MR. CASEY: Well, first of all, I think we'll let former President Carter speak for himself. But he made this trip on his own initiative. As you know, we counseled him against engaging with Hamas, in keeping with longstanding U.S. policy. But in terms of the nature of his discussions, I think I'll leave it to him and others to talk about.What is clear to us, though, is...
Get Thee to Iraq Demands State Department!
2008-04-16 14:32:00 The United States State Department has informed its diplomats they may be required to do a tour of duty in the hell hole known as Baghdad. A similar call-up notice last year created an uproar among foreign service officers who apparently don’t want to be placed in a war situation. Unfortunately, the State Department is ...
Condoleezza Rice Embraces Anti-Israel Terrorists -- Her Friends in Kossovo
2008-04-14 14:52:00 We have long known that Condoleezza Rice [riso amaro] is partial to Arab terrorists who believe that they have the right to murder Jews. We don't know whether Condi goes so far as to share that attitude. But she has spoken in a favorable way in the past about both Fatah & Hamas. Meanwhile, we also know that Condi and the State Department, even before she became secretary of state, favored the ethnic Albanian terrorists in Kossovo. Support for the breakup of Yugoslavia and for the several ethnic groups there hostile to Serbs appeared as early as the first Bush administration, in the days of Daddy Bush. Recently, George Junior's State Dept, led by Condi, has been promoting Kossovo independence, although it has been known that scores of thousands of ethnic Serbs were "ethnically cleansed" from there since the 1999 war, not to mention Serbs driven out of Kossovo starting in the 1970s when the area was under ethnic Albanian government within the Yugoslav framework.Now it turns out ...
By: Emet m\'Tsiyon
State Department Warns Loose Lips Can Hurt In China
2008-03-24 14:01:00 The Unied States State Department has warned Americans traveling to China for the upcoming Olympic Games they may discover while in the supposed privacy of a hotel room, people are listening into their conversations. The State Department warning suggests tourists can be under surveillance even when resting in a hotel bed. The State Department comment ...
Presidential passport breach: Why do contractors have easy access to sensit
2008-03-23 19:25:00 The accessing of private passport-based travel data of all three Presidential candidates by contractors working for the State Department has finally galvanized Capitol Hill to address the issue of privacy–something we’ve been begging them to do for years. Ron Wyden sums it up succinctly: “The Government Accountability Office has been warning about this problem for a decade. And it seems to me in this administration, there’s been pretty much a culture of disregard for privacy, and that’s part of the problem,” he said. Wyden may have been referring to a 2006 report from the GAO documenting the lack of oversight in sharing Social Security Numbers with contractors working for various federal agencies, including the IRS and the FBI, as well as within the private sector. It is but one of many reports the investigative agency has issued documenting the serious vulnerabilities our government’s mad drive to outsource its functions to the private sect...
State Department Briefing Passports and Presidential Candidates VIDEO PODCA
2008-03-22 01:29:00 Daily Press Briefing. Sean McCormack, Spokesman. FULL STREAMING VIDEO. Washington, DC. March 21, 2008, 12:12 p.m. EDT. PODCAST OF THIS ARTICLEMR. MCCORMACK: Good afternoon, everybody. Before I get to your questions, I wanted to provide a little bit of a recap and a little bit of an update on where we are with respect to the questions surrounding unauthorized access of Senator Obama's passport file. Just to do a little bit of a recap, in case you missed the Secretary's words upstairs, she reached out to Senator Obama to say that she was sorry that this had happened, that there were these unauthorized accesses to his passport file. She assured the Senator that we took this seriously and that we were going to do a thorough investigation as well as to take steps to do the - try to ensure that this kind of unauthorized access doesn't happen in the future. Now, a little bit of an update on where we are. We had talked earlier this morning about our doing a search to see whether or not t...
Data voyeurism occurs outside of the State Department
2008-03-21 19:25:00 Low-level employees browse personal data for sport all the time. Outside of the occasional public flogging, little has been done to stop this unnerving practice.
Passports, Obama and the State Department
2008-03-21 18:35:00 As I thought about this last night, it was hard for to imagine that this only happened to Barack Obama. Now, we know that it happened to Hillary Clinton, John McCcain and Barack Obama. The State Department’s press conference was less than reassuring. The fact that a trainee could access a Senator’s ...
[News] State Department confirms breach of Barack Obama?s passport data - t
2008-03-21 01:52:00 MSNBC
Moyers on State Dept. Contractors, Corruption, and Accountability
2008-03-19 10:17:00 Bill Moyers investigates the State Department and the Government Oversight Committee with respect to Contractors, Corruption, and Accountability. This is a two part video. Please wait for the videos to load before viewing: Part One Part Two
By: What's Going On
State Department (Mildly) Decries Anti-Zionism as Anti-Semitism
2008-03-14 19:24:00 Yesterday, the State Department published a report, in which it drew a long-ignored connection between Anti-Zionism and/or opposition to Israeli policy, and Anti-Semitism. In its introduction, the 94-page report states: “Anti-Semitism has proven to be an adaptive phenomenon. New forms of anti-Semitism have evolved. They often incorporate elements of traditional anti-Semitism. However, the distinguishing feature of ...
By: Jewneric
Russia Appealing to State Department to Free Bout
2008-03-14 17:47:00 Well, that did not take long. According to my sources, confirmed by Bill Gertz in the Washington Times, Russia is actively seeking to get the State Department to help spring Viktor Bout from his Thai prison home. One of the reasons the DEA held its sting operation that led to Bout's arrest so close to the chest was precisely because the agents understood the high risk of political interference in the case. There is a strong desire in the State Department, derived partly as a legitimate function of...(read more)
US State Department releases annual report on human rights
2008-03-12 08:43:00 Ignoring America's own plethora of human rights violations, the US State Department published its annual report grading other countries on their human rights records.
State Department Daily Press Briefing, 03/04/08 VIDEO, PODCAST, TEXT
2008-03-05 02:15:00 U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing by Deputy Spokesman Tom Casey FULL STREAMING VIDEO Washington, DC. March 4, 2008, 12:34 p.m. EST. PODCAST OF THIS ARTICLEMR. CASEY: Okay. Good afternoon, guys. I don?t have anything to start you out with, so let?s see what might be on your minds.Yeah, go ahead.QUESTION: Do you have any update on the case of Mr. Levinson in Iran? Apparently, his wife was going to be meeting with some State Department officials on Thursday.MR. CASEY: Well, as you know, we?re approaching the one-year anniversary of Mr. Levinson?s disappearance. We still continue to work closely with the FBI as well as through our protecting power, the Swiss embassy in Tehran, to try and locate him and find out what has happened. We do maintain contact with the family on a regular basis and I know the FBI does as well.Unfortunately, what we still don?t have is a good understanding of what happened to Mr. Levinson or where he is currently located. We are continuing, again, to...
2008 State Department Report Targets Afghan Opium, Mobile Payments Issues
2008-03-01 04:50:00 The 2008 edition of the International Narcotics Control Strategy Report was released by the U.S. State Department today. As in the 2007 edition , this year's report targets the explosive growth in opium production in Afghanistan and warns of the corrosive impact on counterterrorism operations there: "Narcotics production in Afghanistan hit historic highs in 2007 for the second straight year. Afghanistan grew 93 percent of the world’s opium poppy, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs...(read more)
State Department Foot And Mouth Disease On Kenya
2008-02-16 19:14:00 The Bush adminisltration constantly proclaims its commitment to democracy and the rights of nations to pursue their own destinies because our beloved president does not wish to repeat the failed policies of Bill Clinton’s nation building. Kenya is in the midst of a crisis and former UN Secretrary General Kofi Annan is hard at work to find a compromise solution. However, Jendayl Frazer, Assistant Secretary of State for Africa recently commented: “We’ll find an international mechanism if they can’t find it internally(within Kenya).” Of course, the US embassy in Kenya, immediately contradicted the Frazer comment. T.J. Dowling bluntly stated, “The U.S. has no plan B and an intervention plan will certainly not come from us. However, the UN and the African Union will intervene if major problems occur, but that is a very long shot.” The only certainty about a Bush foreign policy in any area of the world is that at some point contradictions regardi...
"Peace in the Middle East -- An impossibility," quoth Moshe Sharon
2008-02-10 21:18:00 Professor Moshe Sharon has clearly asserted the impossibility of peace in the Middle East. I would amend this to say that under present and foreseeable circumstances peace between the Arabs and Israel is impossible. As Sharon points out the main obstacle to peace is the Arab-Muslim attitude toward non-believers, especially the Jews whom they have oppressed as dhimmis for more than a thousand years. Their religion commands the Arabs/Muslims to make perpetual war against non-Muslim states --with truces allowed when this is for the ultimate benefit of the Muslim war machine, to give it time to rearm and regroup-- until the whole world is brought under the rule of Islam. The name that Muslims give to war for conquering the lands of non-believers [kuffar] is jihad. When non-believers are overwhelmingly militarily superior to the Muslims and are perceived by the Muslims as willing and able and ready to use that military superiority against them, then the Muslims can be very peaceful.Sharo...
By: Emet m\'Tsiyon
U.S. State Department Denies Amy Winehouse
2008-02-08 00:01:00 The United States State Department has denied Amy Winehouse a visa to enter the U.S. to perform at this year’s Grammy Awards. After the decision came down, her publicist issued the following statement: “Amy has been progressing well since entering a rehabilitation clinic two weeks ago and although disappointed with the decision has accepted the ruling ...
"State Department Official" Involved in Leaking Nuclear Secrets to Pakistan
2008-01-29 15:14:00 Times Online An investigation into the illicit sale of American nuclear secrets was compromised by a senior official in the State Department, a former FBI employee has claimed. The official is said to have tipped off a foreign contact about a bogus CIA company used to investigate the sale of nuclear secrets. The firm, Brewster Jennings & Associates, was a front for Valerie Plame, the former CIA agent. Her public outing two years later in 2003 by White House officials became a cause celebre. The claims that a State Department official blew the investigation into a nuclear smuggling ring have been made by Sibel Edmonds, 38, a former Turkish language translator in the FBI Washington field office. Edmonds had been employed to translate hundreds of hours of intercepted recordings made during a six-year FBI inquiry into the nuclear smuggling ring. She has previously told The Sunday Times she heard evidence that foreign intelligence agents had enlisted US officials to acquire a network ...
State Department Daily Press Briefing, 01/14/08 VIDEO, PODCAST, TEXT
2008-01-15 02:39:00 Daily Press Briefing. Sean McCormack, Spokesman. FULL STREAMING VIDEO. Washington, DC. January 14, 2008, 12:41 p.m. EDT. PODCAST OF THIS ARTICLEMR. MCCORMACK: Good afternoon, everybody. Let me just start off with one note of interest. I know people were asking about it this morning and I anticipate that I will get questions about it, so let me pre-empt those questions. We did do a notification to the Hill this morning about part of the Gulf Security Dialogue arms packages. As you know, we do these in and they're of a piecemeal fashion. As they are ready and prepared to go up to the Hill, we go ahead and do the notification. So today's notification was just about one part of this overall package that I know you all have been writing about over the past several months, I guess.Under the auspices of the Gulf Security Dialogue, the Administration today initiated the formal 30-day congressional notification process for the proposed sale of 900 Joint Direct Attack Munitions. The acronym...
State Department’s Travel Site
2008-01-08 17:13:00 Current Travel Warnings….are they useful? Sure, the information about Kenya is valid: The Department continues to recommend that private American citizens in Kenya evaluate their personal security situation in light of continuing terrorist threats and increasing incidents of violent crime. But is anyone travelling today, especially travelling on such a long flight, not paying attention to the news? Sure, Kenya may not be such an exotic destination to some, but if they’re familiar with the country — they’d be aware of the current situation. Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan… none of these are surprises. Nor should most of the others be to someone who is paying any attention to world events. Now I know that the major news networks here in the US would like us to believe that the only thing of any importance is the presidential elections but I can’t imagine travellers unaware of what’s going on in their destinations. On the ...
Tripoli pays first visit to US state department in 35 years
2008-01-04 04:40:00 Condoleezza Rice, US secretary of state, yesterday welcomed her Libyan counterpart to the state department, the first such visit in more than 30 years.
By: Get rich
Looking for Resolution in Kenya VIDEO
2008-01-04 02:27:00 Daily Press Briefing. Sean McCormack, Spokesman. FULL STREAMING VIDEO. Washington, DC. January 3, 2008, 12:52 p.m. EDT. PODCAST OF THIS ARTICLEMR. MCCORMACK: Good afternoon, everybody. I don't have any opening statements, so we can get right to your questions. Whoever wants to start, the field is open.QUESTION: And we're okay?MR. MCCORMACK: Not that open, Goyal. (Laughter.) Yes, go ahead, Goyal.QUESTION: Happy new year.MR. MCCORMACK: Happy new year to you.QUESTION: Yes, sir. My question is that as far as so much has been written and said from here and from around the globe about the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto --MR. MCCORMACK: Right.QUESTION: -- which was also known or called as the (inaudible) of India. My question is now that she had really -- I understand according to many reports and many Pakistanis here and in Pakistan, that she had the blessings from this building, from the Administration as far as going back to help and run the democratically elect...
America’s Shame-State Department Congragulates Kibaki!!
2007-12-31 16:26:00 As thousands of outraged Kenyans marched in protest against the blatant action by President Kibaki to steal an election, US State Department spokesperson, Robert Mcinturff, announced the Bush administration reaction to the theft: “The United States congratulates the winners.” Apparently, for President Bush democracy is equated with another government’s willingness to go along with his foreign policy of fighting terrorism. President Kibaki was a loyal supporter of Bush policies and therefore he must receive support, even though he stole an election. Over 100 Kenyans are dead, bodies in the morgue reveal multiple wounds since police have orders to shoot on sight. The police refused to allow supporters of Raila Odinga– who actually won the election — to leave the slum area of Kibera and fired on those seeking to conduct a mock swearing in ceremony for Odinga. The Bush administration continues to claim it supports “democracy.” The brave people o...
State Department Countertterrorism Coordinator's Integrated Approach
2007-12-13 17:55:00 The State Department’s relatively new Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Ambassador Dell C. Dailey, http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bi-og/87639.htm has outlined a broad integrated approach to countering the international terrorism threat downplaying the military role although he was an Army three-star general who headed the Special Operations Command. In his appearance at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Ambassador Daily also called Ben Ladin a marked man who will eventually be caught.....(read more)
State Department Daily Press Briefing, 11/29/07 VIDEO, PODCAST, TEXT
2007-11-30 01:25:00 Daily Press Briefing. Sean McCormack, Spokesman. FULL STREAMING VIDEO. Washington, DC. November 29, 2007, 12:38 p.m. EDT. PODCAST OF THIS ARTICLEMR. MCCORMACK: Good afternoon, everybody. I don't have anything to start off with, so we can get right into your questions.Yes.QUESTION: So the emergency will be lifted on the 16th of December?MR. MCCORMACK: Right. I've seen the press reports about that. It's a positive and significant step. We look forward to the elections taking place in early January. I believe the day has been set by President Musharraf. This announcement, combined with the fact that President Musharraf has taken off the uniform and is now sworn in as President of Pakistan as a civilian, are all positive steps that will help get Pakistan back on the pathway to democratic and constitutional rule.Now, it's going to be very important that once you have the state of emergency actually lifted that during that run-up to the election, which will be several weeks now if tho...
State Department Fails To Say Anything On Teddy Bear Issue
2007-11-29 06:59:00 Apparently the State Department doesn't find it necessary to speak out about this women being persecuted for simply naming a bear Muhammad. My question is does the State Department ever take a stand on any issue when it relates to Muhammad or Islam?Question: What is the U.S. reaction to the case of the British teacher who faces charges of ?insulting Islam? after the primary school class named a teddy bear Mohammed?We are following the situation of the British teacher closely and with concern. We understand the British government is pursuing this with the Sudanese government directly.SOURCE
5 Contractors Taken Hostage in Iraq May Still Be Alive
2007-11-21 23:21:00 Five Western security contractors kidnapped a year ago in Iraq are still alive, according to their employer, Crescent Security. The four Americans and an Austrian colleague employed by Kuwait-based Crescent Security Group were among 14 people kidnapped Nov. 16, 2006, by men in Iraqi police uniforms who ambushed a convoy they were escorting near the southern ...
By: The Hot Joints
US State Department Goes Soft On Human Rights Violation In Saudi Arabia
2007-11-21 03:05:00 This Article from the AFP sums up the blindness that the leadership of our country has to Islamic fascist. No one in our leadership had the guts to stand up and say "This is a human rights violation." Apparently the lashing of a rape victim is just a cultural "misunderstanding" according to those running the country. WASHINGTON (AFP) ? The US State Department Tuesday voiced its "astonishment" at the sentencing of a Saudi victim of rape to 200 lashes and six months in jail but stopped short of calling for it to be changed."I think when you look at the crime and the fact that now the victim is punished, I think that causes a fair degree of surprise and astonishment," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters."But it is within the power of the Saudi government to take a look at the verdict and change it," he said, referring to the case of the 19-year-old woman whose punishment was ordered by a court Wednesday after the woman was gang-raped.Asked if the US government was ...
State Department official and brother queried on Blackwater
(Reuters)
2007-11-17 00:00:00 ef="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dail-ynews/rss/topstories/*http://ne-ws.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071116/ts_n-m/iraq_usa_blackwater_dc"><-img src="http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.-com/p/afp/20071115/capt.sge.adr-11.151107201652.photo00.photo.d-efault-512x317.jpg?x=130&y=-80&sig=NfRfXZMG3NERHsfhv7ws-Cw--" align="left" height="80" width="130" alt="A US private security company Blackwater helicopter flies over Baghdad in 2003. A guard from the US security firm Blackwater says his motorcade came under fire and that he feared for his life in a deadly shootout in Iraq.(AFP/File/Ali Youssef )" border="0" /></a>Reuters - The State Department's top investigator and his brother will both be asked to testify to a committee of Congress about the brother's link to the Blackwater security firm, the committee announced on Friday.</p>
State Department Daily Press Briefing, 11/08/07 VIDEO, PODCAST, TEXT
2007-11-09 02:09:00 Daily Press Briefing. Sean McCormack, Spokesman. FULL STREAMING VIDEO. Washington, DC. November 08, 2007, 12:55 p.m. EDT. PODCAST OF THIS ARTICLEMR. MCCORMACK: Good afternoon, everybody. I don't have anything to start off with. We can get right to your questions.QUESTION: What's the status of the review of Pakistan aid?MR. MCCORMACK: It's still ongoing, underway.QUESTION: Can I just follow up on that? (Inaudible) I mean, Negroponte yesterday seemed to indicate that the Administration wants aid to continue. He's urging Congress to not block it or cut it. I mean, does that seem to indicate that this review is not going to be striking any of this aid out, that the U.S. policy towards Pakistan is not going to be changing in the light of Saturday's events?MR. MCCORMACK: Well, what I think he's saying, if you look at all of his testimony, is that we are going to conduct a review based on the actions in Pakistan, what are the realities on the ground and our law and our regulations. A...
Meltdown at the US State Department
2007-11-04 15:08:00 by Rosemarie Jackowski You almost have to feel sorry for Condoleezza Rice these days. Seems that the Secretary of State is under attack on all fronts. Dissension in the ranks - possible insubordination - resignations - forced assignments. About the forced assignments in Iraq, Jack Croddy, senior Department official, commented, "...It's one thing if someone believes in what's going on over there and volunteers, but it's another thing to send someone over there on a forced assignment...I'm sorry, but basically that's a potential death sentence and you know it. Who will raise our children if we are dead or seriously wounded?" What's a Secretary of State to do - a gigantic, new, luxurious Embassy and department employees who don't want to serve there. Too bad the Embassy can't be turned into a gigantic planter. Because of its size, maybe it should be turned into a rain forest. Better yet, turn it over to the Iraqi people as partial payment on the reparations that a...
State Department officers wimp out over Iraq assignments
2007-11-04 14:54:00 At a meeting at the State Department in Washington late last month, hundreds of angry diplomats protested a government plan to force them to accept assignments in Iraq. Previously, assignments in Iraq had been on a voluntary basis, but because of the present risks involved there, as many as 50 vacancies currently exist. The State Department plans to make up the shortfall by ordering some of its personnel to serve at the American Embassy in Iraq, whether the diplomats like it or not. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice tried to stop the revolt by reminding the diplomats that it is their duty to serve their country regardless of the risks involved. Indeed, all foreign service officers sign an agreement and take an oath to accept any diplomatic posting worldwide, regardless of the danger involved or any personal feelings they may have about such an assignment. “Our mission in Iraq is the most essential foreign policy and national security priority for our nation,” said Rice...
MSM Headlines Characterize State Department Assignments to Iraq as Forced
2007-11-02 17:50:00 The mainstream media has glommed onto another narrative courtesy of activists within the State Department who object to ?the potential? assignment to a post in Iraq. Opponents within the State Department and their union representatives have characterized the staffing assignments as being ?forced? to take a position that is a ?potential death sentence?. ?It’s one ...
By: Webloggin
Whinig Within The State Department? Really?
2007-11-02 05:39:00 Many of you that know me personally and those of that 'know me" via the blogosphere, have heard me say time and time again how vitally important I take my Oath of Service and how I loathe those that swore the SAME oaths I have and then turn around and defecate on that said same oath.No one held a nuke to our heads as we swore the oath of Service. Everyone that serves this country from law enforcement to the highest political offices, swear an oath of service and not an oath of convenience. Most of us take it seriously ans when it come time tom remove the uniform, whatever that might be, the oath remains with us until the day we die. The Oaths of Service is permanent to the vast majority of us. That's just the way it is.Apparently, there are some Wimplomats that are saying their job is too hard and it is dangerous. Really? Moron. What. Did you expect some slick and posh detail in like Sau Paulo or something?BlackFive is on a rant and rightfully so:...For you State Dept w...
Whinig Within The State Department? Really?
2007-11-02 05:39:00 Many of you that know me personally and those of that 'know me" via the blogosphere, have heard me say time and time again how vitally important I take my Oath of Service and how I loathe those that swore the SAME oaths I have and then turn around and defecate on that said same oath.No one held a nuke to our heads as we swore the oath of Service. Everyone that serves this country from law enforcement to the highest political offices, swear an oath of service and not an oath of convenience. Most of us take it seriously ans when it come time tom remove the uniform, whatever that might be, the oath remains with us until the day we die. The Oaths of Service is permanent to the vast majority of us. That's just the way it is.Apparently, there are some Wimplomats that are saying their job is too hard and it is dangerous. Really? Moron. What. Did you expect some slick and posh detail in like Sau Paulo or something?BlackFive is on a rant and rightfully so:...For you State Dept w...
Revolt at State
2007-11-01 05:14:00 The other day we reported on the Sate Department Draft for personnel for Iraq. Well the State Department folks are not happy campers.New Iraq policy prompts angry words at the State Department WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Calling it "a potential death sentence," several hundred diplomats expressed their resentment Wednesday over a new State Department policy that could force them to serve in Iraq or risk losing their jobs.Some at the hourlong town hall-style meeting questioned why they were not told of the policy change directly, learning about it instead from news organizations last week.Others pointed out the risks of such a rule, considering the dangers of a war zone, lack of security and regular rocket attacks on U.S. personnel.One State Department worker complained she was not provided medical treatment for her post-traumatic stress disorder after she voluntarily served in Iraq.The session was marked by angry exchanges, according to an audio recording of the meeting held at the State De...
State Department Turns Employees Into Sitting Ducks
2007-10-31 21:29:00 Apparently we can't draft into the military, but hell, we can draft civilian employees. Said one foreign service officer;"It's one thing if someone believes in what's going on over there and volunteers, but it's another thing to send someone over there on a forced assignment, I'm sorry, but basically that's a potential death sentence and you know it. Who will raise our children if we are dead or seriously wounded?"Oh, like they really care. There is no limit to the number of Americans they'll send to die in the desert rather than admit they've made a colossal mistake.
By: Nicks Notes
State Department sheltering Blackwater guards from Prosecution
2007-10-30 15:46:00 Jurist The US Department of State [official website] has sheltered bodyguards working for private security firm Blackwater USA [corporate website; JURIST news archive] from prosecution related to a September shooting incident [JURIST report] in Baghdad, according to AP on Monday. The guards, who allegedly fired on civilians, killing 17 and prompting the Iraqi government to withdraw ...
By: Current Era Blog
The Desperate State Department
2007-10-27 18:16:00 Contuining with theme that this administration is great at putting the cart before the horse, they have just realized their behemouth embassy in Iraq isn't really attracting many it's workers.Seeing that diplomats do not have any interest in serving in a country as disastrous as Iraq, the state department is FORCING some employees to go and work in the largest bullseye in the Middle East.Has this ever happened before? Yes;In 1969, an entire class of entry-level diplomats was sent to serve in Vietnam, and on a smaller scale, diplomats were forcibly assigned to work at embassies in West Africa in the 1970s and 1980sAgain, Iraq and Vietnam has yet ANOTHER thing in common.
By: Nicks Notes
|
|
 |
|
 |
