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Thomas Paine

To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.

Monday, August 29, 2011

29 August - News Notes & Libya

Jakaya Kikwete, left, the president of Tanzani...Image via Wikipedia

The Psychopathology of Evil Children

Some children—thankfully few—are born without a conscience or the ability to feel compassion.  

A Catholic Sect Crazy Enough For The Teabaggers?

 

Canadian sUAS used by Libyan rebels.

The Aeryon Scout is a small, easy-to-fly man-packable flying robotic reconnaissance system design for operation in real-world, harsh conditions. It weighs just 3 pounds, packs into a suitcase or a backpack and can be quickly and easily deployed and operated by soldiers in the field. Instead of using joysticks, the Scout uses a map-based, touch-screen interface that allows new users to pilot the system in just minutes. The Scout essentially flies itself allowing the operator to focus on acquiring imagery.

Related posts:

Flying saucer makes debut at Washington show

29 August 2011
By
Flying saucer makes debut at Washington show
An American start up company from Arizona continues to grow and make the right connections with an interesting circular winged platform. Chris Mc Nair from AttoPilot sent us news of a very successful AUVSI 2011. AttoPilot International (API)  have teamed up with AeroBat Aviation in a cooperative partnership to produce high quality low cost sUAS and RPA systems. API is...

DRS Provides UAV Operators Counter Adversary Training

23 August 2011
By
DRS Defense Solutions, a developer of advanced electronic systems, has been contracted by the U.S. Navy’s Fleet & Industrial Supply (FISC) in Norfolk to provide counter-adversary training for operators...


UPDATE No contact with Nazemroaya since late Thursday EDT
 
The journalists who had been trapped inside the hotel Rixos in Tripoli since Sunday were evacuated yesterday, 24 August 2011, at 5 p.m, by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The four members of the Voltaire Network team - journalists Thierry Meyssan, Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya, Mathieu Ozanon and Julien Teil - were among them. However, after their release, the rebels tried to detain Thierry Meyssan, well known for his articles exposing the crimes of NATO. The ICRC intervened to prevent his arrest.
The journalists were taken to another hotel, where they are no longer under ICRC protection

Deaths in suicide attack at Algeria base
The role of the army and security forces

“The situation is complicated by the fact that there is considerable evidence that the
original GIA (Groupe Islamique Armé) was infiltrated by the Algerian army’s military security service, under the
command of General Mohamed “Tawfig” Mediène. This is the most occult part of the
army structure and the least accountable and has, virtually since its creation by
Abdelhafidh Ben Tobbal during the war of independence between 1954 and 1962,
exercised a dominant and sinister influence over the political process in Algeria. The
result has been that, since the mid-1990s, many of the GIA’s activities have been
indirectly controlled by the security services and have been used to discredit the
movement overall. There has also been evidence of direct exploitation of these
Islamist groups, often for personal advantage. This was particularly evident after
1994, when land privatisation proposals, required by the IMF economic restructuring
programme, resulted in violent land clearances especially on the edges of major
towns where land values increased because of potential building demand. There is
also growing evidence that the army was engaged in counter-intelligence operations
that involved the killing of civilians, camouflaged as killings by Islamist groups, as
well as punishment killings of large numbers of civilians.
(h/t jpmassar) Juan Cole's Top Ten Myths About The Libya War

   1. Qaddafi was a progressive in his domestic policies.
    2. Qaddafi was a progressive in his foreign policy.
    3. It was only natural that Qaddafi sent his military against the protesters and revolutionaries; any country would have done the same.
    4. There was a long stalemate in the fighting between the revolutionaries and the Qaddafi military.
    5. The Libyan Revolution was a civil war.
    6. Libya is not a real country and could have been partitioned between east and west.
    7. There had to be NATO infantry brigades on the ground for the revolution to succeed.
    8. The United States led the charge to war.
    9. Qaddafi would not have killed or imprisoned large numbers of dissidents in Benghazi, Derna, al-Bayda and Tobruk if he had been allowed to pursue his March Blitzkrieg toward the eastern cities that had defied him.
    10. This was a war for Libya’s oil.

He devotes a paragraph or two to each of his myths.


You are in the 239th Witness Revolution diary, bearing witness to pro-democracy movements in North Africa, the Middle East and beyond. This is a special edition to cover the unfolding events in Tripoli, the last stand againstof the Gaddafi Forces. (see links to previous diaries for this event at the bottom of the diary.) (h/t Athenian for pointing out that the grammatical error.)
please note that this evening we will have one of our regularly scheduled diaries updating us on all of Arab Spring.
Twitter tags #feb17 #libya #tripoli #mermaiddawn
The big news last night was the appearance of Saif al-Islam Gadaffi after the Freedom Fighters (their preferred moniker) said they had captured him (story about that below). Here is what one Libyan has to say:
feb17libya Feb17Libya
Saif is irrelevant. There is nothing he could do to take away our revolution. The people of Tripoli have tasted freedom. #Libya #FightGoesOn
13 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply
and a NATO spokesperson has this to say about Col Gadaffi:
Brussels: Nato does not know where Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is and the military alliance does not view him as a target, a spokesman said on Tuesday.
"If you know, let me know. I don't have a clue, and I'm not sure actually that it really does matter, in the sense that the resolution of this situation will be political," military spokesman Colonel Roland Lavoie told a briefing from his base in Naples, when asked if Nato knew where Gaddafi was.
"I think everybody recognises that Gaddafi will likely not be part of that solution. He's not a key player anymore," he said.

Some inspirational messages from Libyans:


(h/t petral)

@taimur_ly تيمور عبد العزيز Benghazi taught us courage, Misrata resistance, Nafousa determination, Zawiya perseverance, Tripoli patience. This is Libya @tripolicouncil
54 minutes ago via Echofon

(h/t downsouth ) Good Tweet

hishamjmatar Hisham Matar, Author
We've defeated Qaddafi in the battlefield, now we must defeat him in our imagination. We mustn't allow his legacy to corrupt our dream.
6 minutes ago

A more practical message from the Libyans:


(h/t  angry marmot ) TNC comments on post-Q role for NATO

AFP via Al-Ahram     Libya's rebel government envoy to the Cairo-based Arab League said Monday that his country will not allow NATO bases in Libya after Muammar Gaddafi's ouster, official MENA news agency said.
    "Libya is an Arab and Islamic nation before NATO and after NATO," he said, adding, "the Libyans revolted from the 1970s against Western bases and there will be no non-Libyan bases."
Good reporting sources:
Al Jazeera English live TV

Al Jazeera English liveblog

Guardian Middle East liveblog

Feb17.info
news aggregator and local reporting (live video feed), excellent resources such as maps and reliable Twitter streams to follow
BBC live coverage (video and text)

A Vision of a Democratic Libya
- the guiding document of the revolution



Follow on Twitter:

Feb 17 voices

Al Jazeera English

LibyanYouthMovement

Sultan Al Qassemi


UPDATES FROM THIS POINT ON most recent on top (also in comments):
Why is their confusion about whether Saif al-Islam Gadaffi was captured?
(h/t lawrence) Gaddafi Regime forces in Tripoli seem to be resorting to the dirty tricks that they used elsewhere in Libya:


Danya Bashir (@CEOdanya)
Posted Tuesday 23rd August 2011 from Twitlonger
PHONE call with my friend who is in contact with the NTC
''Just got off the phone with a Commander from Itihad Shabab Elaasema (Capital Youth Union). He confirmed the following:
1)
“A group from Alkataib (Pro Qaddafi) imposing as Thuwar contacted Feb
17 Thuwar claiming to have Saif Qaddafi in their custody. In turn the
Feb 17 Thuwar notified the NTC in Benghazi " Which led to the statement
by Mr. Abdeljalil.

2) “Approximately 3 hours ago a caravan of
cars left Bab Alazizia Barracks from Souk Ethalath side raising
independence flags and when they approached check points manned by the
real Thuwar of Feb 17 they fired on them." No details of casualties
known yet.

(h/t Lawrence) The storming of the Bab Al Aziziyah commences:
[Updated at 7:01 a.m. ET, 1:01 p.m. in Libya] Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's Bab al-Aziziya compound is under attack, a rebel spokesman and opposition fighters in Tripoli told CNN.



(h/t evergreen2) twitter:

mimi_mato Mimi Mato
    RT: @mchancecnn Mr G Troll, do u mind if I ask u 2 show a M.Chance photo with a 1st page of a TODAY newspaper? cc @cnnbrk @CNN @ShababLibya
    3 hours ago

There is ongoing speculation that the CNN journalist Matthew Chance's communications may have been taken over by a Gadaffi "troll."  This speculation is enhanced by the fact that mchance is tweeting at a time when the power is out in the area of the rixos hotel.
This is why mimi is requesting the above photograph.



(h/t Lawrence) Excellent news for the Tripoli residents, but terrible news for the remaining Gaddafi Regime hardcore loyalists and mercenaries in Tripoli:

ChangeInLibya Mhalwes Misrata military council: 2,000 fighters entered Tripoli from the east today. Most are experts at counter-sniper & anti-tank tactics


(h/t
Phil S 33 ) Ha!!! Josh nails it on McCain...

joshtpm Josh Marshall
Shorter McCain: Obama didn't do a good enough job letting me know this Libya thing was prolly gonna work tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/08/mccain…
44 seconds ago Favorite Retweet Reply

(h/t amk for obama ) Markets rally on hopes of end to Libya conflict
Stock markets in Europe have rebounded, led by shares in energy firms, on hopes that fighting in Libya may soon end. At close on Monday London's FTSE 100 was up 1.08% and the Cac 40 in Paris by 1.14%.
The rally follows a 5% to 10% slump on most markets on Thursday and Friday on recession fears in the US and Europe.
Oil prices initially fell on hopes that Libyan crude would soon come back on tap, before rising again on greater optimism about the global economy.

(h/t jpmassar) Juan Cole's Top Ten Myths About The Libya War

   1. Qaddafi was a progressive in his domestic policies.
    2. Qaddafi was a progressive in his foreign policy.
    3. It was only natural that Qaddafi sent his military against the protesters and revolutionaries; any country would have done the same.
    4. There was a long stalemate in the fighting between the revolutionaries and the Qaddafi military.
    5. The Libyan Revolution was a civil war.
    6. Libya is not a real country and could have been partitioned between east and west.
    7. There had to be NATO infantry brigades on the ground for the revolution to succeed.
    8. The United States led the charge to war.
    9. Qaddafi would not have killed or imprisoned large numbers of dissidents in Benghazi, Derna, al-Bayda and Tobruk if he had been allowed to pursue his March Blitzkrieg toward the eastern cities that had defied him.
    10. This was a war for Libya’s oil.
He devotes a paragraph or two to each of his myths.

Map of neighborhoods in Tripoli (click on image for larger version):

From @4adam on imageshack


map of West Libya, towns surrounding Tripoli (click on image for larger version):
updated as of AUG 22

From feb17.info


(h/t Oujdi) This interactive google map is more up to date


View Larger Map again, I can't get google map embed to work here


(h/t bumblebums) I can't get the embed to work
there's an interactive Google map of Tripoli indicating where fighting has broken out.
This is the best map we've seen of Libya and what's happened where.

From Feb17.info



@IbnOmar2005 Ibn Omar
EXCELLENT PIC. How the media covered the "stalemate" in #Libya. Every outlet should see this. @CNN @BBC



(h/t
Lawrence)

A blog post from a Libyan on Al Jazeera that I
would like to repost here.
I know from personal experience just how grateful Libyans are to all who gave them their solidarity and this blog post expresses that well:
    LibyaInAbstentia
    Thank you to all the people here who have stood with the Libyan people to what I hope will soon be the end.  I hope that any of you who would like to visit Libya and see all the places you have been talking about and meet all the people you have been supporting will be able to.  I know that I do mention God in my posts, I do not mean to offend anyone and I know that you are all good people no matter what your belief or you would not be here.  I have to believe in God, I go to funerals for these young men, I have seen them badly hurt and I have tried to calm my children while they tried to sleep listening to battles in the neighborhood.  Because I believe, I do pray for the best for each one of you who has given up time doing something else so that you could be here.  That you know more about a place and people that you might not have thought of a year ago, means to me that there is hope not only for the future of Libya, but the future of the world.  Apathy is the biggest threat to freedom and democracy.  No matter what your opinions, you are not apathetic and you are all fighters for freedom and democracy.  To those who consider themselves believers, God bless you, to those who do not, my sincere thanks and appreciation.
(h/t Lawrence)
If a picture speaks a thousand words, then this video about the early days of the Libyan Revolution speaks millions.  Not only does it clearly show that the Revolution was initially peaceful, but also that it was an uprising that took place in basically every major town and city in Libya.


Links to previous Tripoli Battle diaries:
The Battle for Tripoli Part II
Breaking: The Battle For Tripoli Has Begun. W/ Updates. "All Hell Has Broken Out in Tripoli."
Witnessing Revolution #227: Battle of Tripoli or #MermaidDawn
Witnessing Revolution Diary #228: Battle of Tripoli continues
Witnessing Revolution Live Blog #229 - Libya
Witnesssing Revolution #230: Battle of Tripoli continues
Witnessing Revolution Live Blog #231 - Libya
Witnessing Revolution #232 - Battle of Tripoli continues
Witnessing Revolution #233: Zero Hour for Libya is really here
Witnessing Revolution #234: Libya Celebrating, Seeking Gaddafi
Witnessing Revolution #235: Libya Celebrating, Seeking Gaddafi
Witnessing Revolution #236: Libya NTC Rejects Notion of NATO Bases
Witnessing Revolution #237: Fighting continues in Libya
Witnessing Revolution #238: Fighting continues in Libya

UN 'plan for post-Gaddafi Libya' leaked 

Iraq haunts plans for post-Gaddafi Libya 

The 70-page plan, obtained by London's The Times, charts the first months after the fall of the Gaddafi regime. The document was drawn up by the National Transition Council in Benghazi with Western help.
Officials say the blueprint draws on lessons from the disastrous regime change in Iraq in 2003 and the rebel takeover in eastern Libya in March.
The plans are highly reliant on the defection of parts of the Gaddafi security apparatus to the rebels after his overthrow. This is likely to prove not only risky, but controversial, with many rebel fighters determined to sweep away all vestiges of the regime.
The document includes proposals for a 10,000-15,000 strong "Tripoli task force", resourced and supported by the United Arab Emirates, to take over the Libyan capital, secure key sites and arrest high-level Gaddafi supporters.
It claims 800 serving Gaddafi government security officials have been recruited covertly to the rebel cause and are ready to form the "backbone" of a new security apparatus.

Witnessing Revolution #239: Do the Gaddafis Even Matter Anymore?+


Tweets of a hero: implores media to stop telling life-destroying lies
Aug 25th, 2011 by Syd Walker

The brave man whose tweets I reported yesterday has tweeted since.
He returned to Twitter to post updates from the front line fight in Tripoli, describing first hand the reality of the sordid war western taxpayers have funded.
I respect his brave decision to fight and defend his values and culture, but I’m appalled western societies have put him in this cruel dilemma.

CEASE-FIRE NOW!



Understanding Clinton's Statement on Libya

As the battle for parts of Tripoli and swathes of Libya continues, the “international community” has released $1.5 billion of Libyan assets, much of which will basically be used by the National Transitional Council (NTC). It is already well known that NATO’s involvement in the Libyan conflict means that they are effectively dictating the terms of Libya’s future, and the release of these funds is a part of the same process whereby the United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made it quite clear in a written statement Friday 26th August what is expected from the NTC (who have been conferred “legitimacy” by most of the “international community”):
“As funds are released, we look to the Transitional National Council to fulfill its international responsibilities and the commitments it has made to build a tolerant, unified democratic state—one that protects the universal human rights of all its citizens.”

'Gaddafi is no saint' - 'Oh yes he is'

In Pictures: The other side of famine 

Physicist's Letter On 911 PHYSICS To Rocky Mountain News 


Rocky Mountain National Park: A user's guide

 

Solar Power

Love the Scent of Fresh Laundry? That Fragrance Isn't as Clean as You May Think

Mistress  and Commander ,Royal Navy

A woman is to command a frontline warship for the first time in the 500-year history of the Royal Navy.

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