News – Straight from Lynch (1/2)

Lets end the speculation and take it right from the woman herself.

US

In an interview with Jessica Lynch, the woman pretty much ends the argument on her larger than life story according to the Pentagon and others. Not a shot fired, she’s just a survivor. Glad to see she’s not trying to milk things. There is a suggestion, through medical records, that she was sexually assaulted, but she says she doesn’t remember anything like that and can’t account for the first three hours of her capture. The above, I’m sure, was a worry for many when it came to her capture, it’s sad to see that it might have actually happened.

Federal judges in three states have blocked the partial birth abortion ban. OF course, Bush won’t stand for that, he’ll be fighting it. I’m planning on doing an entry on the procedure in question so we can all be on the same page. Either today or perhaps during the weekend. We’ll see.

Bush challenges Iran, Syria and Egypt to try democracy. Ummm.. Bush, this isn’t like challenging someone to try out a new soda. Takes more than empty words. He also says the past policies of supporting non-democratic Arab leaders had failed. Well duh. It’s our supporting of these people in the first place that got us started on the road to enemy status. Been nothing but trouble ever since we started screwing around in the Middle East.

A new Anthrax scare has shut down 11 DC postal buildings. The substance was detected at a US navy mail-handling center, but since the mail there is irradiated it’s unlikely that contamination has spread.

A new covert force has been formed recently, said to be hunting both Saddam and Osama. Nice and good, but results will speak for themselves.

The US has lost its bid on an all out ban of human cloning through the UN. By a narrow vote with many abstentions, the drafting of a treaty has been deferred to 2005.

More on Regan and the general row over just how to portray him. You know, I think that instead of contesting when someone makes a documentary on someone famous, those who disagree with it should band together and make their own interpretation. That way we have two viewpoints to consider. Overall it works far better than simply forcing down the view you don’t agree with.

Iraq

A Blackhawk helicopter crashes, six US solders dead. If this one was shot down, as some are suggesting, it would be the third US helicopter downed in two weeks. A bomb hitting a convoy adds another US death.

Two more missing Iraqi historical artifacts have been recovered. Found, of all places, within a Baghdad cesspool. Were they hidden there to be recovered later? Most of the more important pieces have been recovered, much to general delight and few are damaged at all.

Israel/Palestine

Three militants and another young boy dead in further violence. Despite that, Israel has removed the Ein Arik checkpoint, the first sign that it will be honoring a pledge to ease blockades around West Bank cities.

In a serious security snafu, an Israeli had been beaming a direct feed from the control room of a highly classified missile test firing. This being open to pick up by anyone with a satellite dish. Access codes to defense industry computers were discussed in the area as well. Hopefully this will remind them to not lean against the intercom button next time. :p Likely no damage this time because I’m sure the codes have been changed by now.

A note on the poll that suggested Europeans saw Israel as the greatest threat. The questions themselves were a bit too general, which throws the poll into uncertainty as a reliable source. Though the gist of it remains to be considered. It does suggest Israel might need to look at its policies and consider its place in the world.

Afghanistan

An Afghani minister believes that alQueda has opened up a second front in Afghanistan in a bid to distract and stretch the US’ forces further. It is interesting to note that he says Arabs, Chechens, Uzbeks and Pakistanis are amongst the militants being killed, which suggests a more global organization than the Taliban itself. The evidence is largely circumstantial, but has interesting implications if alQueda is taking advantage of the general state of war in the Middle East to bate the US into stretching out.

Korea

A more focused, two step set of security assurances is being offered to North Korea, according to a Japanese paper. The first would be a security guarantee for the length of the multilateral talks, the second being longer term guarantees based upon certain steps to be taken with regard to the nuclear problem. Question is, will they take the deal and live up to it?