Dolphin species try common language

Have you ever thought how Dolphins communicate with each other? If yes is the answer for this, it would be probably by their sounds. But do you think that dolphins all around the world sound same? No Dolphins produces different sounds. When two dolphin species come together, they try to find a common language, preface research suggests.

Bottlenose and Guyana dolphins, two faintly related species, often come together to socialize in waters off the coast of Costa Rica. Both species make unique sounds, but when they gather, they change the way they communicate, and begin using a middle language. That raises the possibility the two species are communicating in some way.

It is not yet clear exactly what is taking place between the two dolphin species, but it is the first proof that the animals modify their communications in the presence of other species, not just other dolphins of their own kind.
Biologist Dr Laura May-Collado of the University of Puerto Rico in San Juan made the discovery studying dolphins swimming in the Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge of the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica. Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) are larger, measuring up to 3.8m long, with a long dorsal fin. Guyana dolphins (Sotalia guianensis) are much smaller, measuring 2.1m long, and have a smaller dorsal fin and longer snout, known as a rostrum. Both species swim in groups made up of their own kind.


When bottlenose dolphins swim together, they emit longer, lower frequency calls that are modulated. In contrast, Guyana dolphins typically communicate using higher frequency whistles that have their own particular structure.

But often, the two species swim together in one group. These communications are usually aggressive, as the larger bottlenose dolphins pester the smaller Guyana dolphins.
When the two dolphins meet, they produce quite dissimilar calls, Dr May-Collado has discovered.
Critically, calls emitted during these multi-species encounters are of a middle frequency and duration. In other words, the dolphins start communicating in a style that is somewhere between those of the two separate species. This may be weird news but it was a surprise when we came to know about this. Scientists were expecting both species to accentuate, perhaps embellish, their species-specific signals. Instead the signals recorded during these encounters became more homogenous. This was a very thrilling discovery.

As yet, Dr May-Collado cannot be sure if both species are changing the way they communicate, or whether it is one species attempting to call more like the other. That is because her sound equipment could only record the total calls produced by mixed species groups of dolphins, and could not separate out sounds made by individuals. This limits how much the scientist can say about how much they are communicating with each other.

However, dolphins are known to have an unusual ability to change their calls when 'talking' to other individuals, or to ensure they are heard over the din of background noise pollution.
So it should’nt be surprise that they can modify their signals to mimic, and even possibly communicate with other species. Particularly when their home ranges force them to interact on a daily basis, which is the case of this study. It is also unclear whether the two species are simply learning to communicate using a common language, or whether the Guyana dolphins alone are making the new sounds due to stress. It could even be that the Guyana dolphins are attempting to emit threatening sounds in the language of the intruder in a bid to make the bottlenose dolphins stop.

ABIGAIL REYNOLDS - MY INTERVIEW ON MY JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB + GIVEAWAY

Mr Darcy's Obsession is her latest book just coming out in October for Sourcebooks. Abigail Reynolds  is a lifelong Jane Austen enthusiast and a physician.  In addition to writing, she has a part-time private practice and  enjoys spending time with her family.  Originally from upstate New York, she studied Russian, theater, and marine biology before deciding to attend medical school.   She began writing From Lambton to Longbourn in 2001 to spend more time with her favorite characters from Pride & Prejudice.  Encouragement from fellow Austen fans convinced her to continue asking ‘What if…?’, which led to five other Pemberley Variations and her modern novel, The Man Who Loved Pride & Prejudice.  She is currently at work on another Pemberley Variation and sequels to The Man Who Loved Pride & Prejudice.  She is a lifetime member of JASNA and lives in Wisconsin with her husband, two teenaged children, and a menagerie of pets.  

Read my interview with Abigail Reynolds on My Jane Austen Book Club and you'll have the chance to receive a copy of Mr Darcy's Obsession directly from Sourcebooks. The giveaway is open to US and Canada readers only. The winner will be announced next Wednesday October 6th. Don't forget to add your e-mail address!

Aliens are damaging British and US nuclear missile

Aliens have landed on earth, penetrated British and American nuclear missile sites and sabotaged weapons, according to US Air Force officers. Six retired officers and one former non-commissioned officer claim to have gathered witness proofs from more than 120 military personnel enlightening the penetration of nuclear sites by aliens as recently as 2003.

In some cases, nuclear missiles supposedly went wrong while a disc-shaped object drifted nearby. Captain Robert Salas, a former Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Launch officer was on duty during a missile disruption incident at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana in 1967. And he stated that an object had come over and drifted the site.

The missiles shut down – 10 Minuteman missiles. And the same thing happened at another site a week later. And it seems that they have strong interest in the missiles, wherever they come from. They are not supposed to be on the planet earth. The US Air Force is lying about the national security implications of unidentified aerial objects at nuclear bases and we can prove it.

Colonel Charles Halt said he watched Unidentified Flying Objects directing beams of light into RAF Bentwaters airbase near Ipswich and heard on the radio that they landed in the nuclear weapons storage area.

Col Halt has said that the security services of both the United States and the United Kingdom have attempted – both then and now – to challenge the significance of what occurred at RAF Bentwaters by the use of well-practised methods of disinformation. The group of officers alleged they would distribute declassified government documents on Monday that would prove there had been alien interference at nuclear weapons sites stretching back to 1948.

Premature baby insulated in sandwich bag

Have you ever heard a baby insulated in a sandwich bag? This would be something new and interesting too.

Lexi Lacey was born 14 weeks early weighing just 14 ounces (396 grams) and her parents were told she had a ten per cent chance of surviving in this world.

Medics had to use the smallest insulating jacket they could find - a 15cm plastic sandwich bag from the kitchens at Worcestershire Royal Hospital.

Lexi is now 11-week-olds old and weighs 5lbs 6oz.

The doctors told us they had never known a baby born as prematurely as Lexi survive.
She was so tiny the only thing they had to keep her body temperature warm was a sandwich bag from the hospital cafeteria - it's unbelievable to think that saved her life.

People looked quite shocked when doctors said them that she’s okay and also people did not like to talk with the doctor at first. But when they see her now better than before people never believed him when the doctor told them how premature she was.

Miss Rowberry and her partner Lee Lacey, 24, feared she was having a miscarriage when she suffered agonizing stomach pains when she was 26 weeks pregnant on the evening of June 26.

She rang the maternity suite at Worcestershire Royal Hospital in Worcester but was told it was nothing to worry about and to go back to sleep.

But the pain sustained and she was again carried to the hospital. And she was taken to the labour.

Worcestershire Royal Hospital only has the facilities to care for premature babies born from 28 weeks onwards and doctors wanted to transfer her to a specialist unit at Birmingham's Heartlands Hospital but there wasn't time.

Lexi was kept in the baby unit at Birmingham Heartlands Hospital for three days before being transferred to Shrewsbury Royal Hospital before spending 11 weeks recovering at Worcestershire Royal Hospital. And now she is allowed to her home.

Iraq: Veterans and the stalemate

"War veterans' care to cost $1.3 trillion" (Shaun Waterman, Washington Times):
The expense of caring for veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars is an unfunded budget liability for U.S. taxpayers that in years to come will rival the cost of entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare, lawmakers will be told Thursday.
The House Veterans' Affairs Committee will hear new estimates of the cost of lifetime medical care and benefits for returning troops disabled by their service — a total of more than $1.3 trillion.

The gang's planning on being at the hearing tomorrow so look for it to be reported in the snapshot but I hope you're paying attention to how many members of Congress are floating notions of cutting veterans' benefits.

Last week, for example, US Senator Jim Webb attacked VA Secretary Eric Shineski's decision to expand the benefits and recognition for Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange and, for months now, Webb has been whining about the costs.

I think it will be much too late before Americans grasp that when Barack says everything is on the table, he does mean veterans benefits. This will become more evident after the mid-terms.

"Politics may be driving some Baghdad attacks" (Steven Lee Myers and Thom Shanker, New York Times):
The heavily fortified Green Zone in Iraq's capital has in recent weeks come under an intensifying barrage of rocket attacks, prompting a senior U.S. military commander on Wednesday to suggest that Iranian-backed militias were behind the attacks in an effort to influence the formation of a new government.
The attacks -- 23 in the last month, including two on Wednesday -- have alarmed U.S. officials and raised questions about the ability of Iraq's security forces to stamp out attacks on the capital's governmental and diplomatic core.

I really find it amazing how few people are following the political stalemate -- or probably even aware of it. C.I.'s been charting it and counting down the days. March 7th, elections were held. It's 6 months and 22 days later and no government formed. In addition, C.I.'s done the math to find out how long it took to form a government following the December 2005 elections: "In 2005, Iraq took four months and seven days to pick a prime minister."

That's what they want to call progress? It is now taking longer to form a government than it did four years ago. That's not progress. Progress would be the formation of a government taking two or three months after the election.

It really is amazing how this is going down and how so few are even commenting on it. What happened to Iraq in left media?

It never really mattered, it turns out. They weren't against the Iraq War. They just needed a club to clobber George W. Bush with. He left and they dropped their 'concern' about the Iraq War.



"Iraq snapshot" (The Common Ills):

Wednesday, September 29, 2010. Chaos and violence continue, Robert Gates gets a tough question from a conscientious objector and the Secretary of Defense replies with what is an attack on Christianity, Senator Daniel Akaka receives an honor for his work on veterans issues, a House Veterans Affairs Subccomittee wonders why -- a year later -- no progress has been made on employment issues for veterans, the British pullout from Basra is examined, new rumors surface that Nouri will remain prime minister in Iraq, and more. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates is currently taking questions at Duke University as I dictate this. He's grandstanded on the back of veterans and the military as he always does in that mincing manner he has. (Still crying over the death of PG, Bobby Gates?) We'll note his awful speech later in the snapshot but Gates got a little bit of a surprise when a 2006 Conscientious Objector stood up to ask a question. The C.O. spoke of the demonization he received when he was going through the process and Gates grew visibly nervous and began shifting from foot-to-foot while his eyes darted wildly around the lecture hall at Duke's Bryant Center. "As a Christian," the CO expalined, "I'm concerned that I'm not able to respond to the denominational body I belong to when they deem certain wars unjust" as they did the Iraq War. He noted that, in contrast to the religious training and beliefs, soldiers are encouraged to "forfeit their moral agency to the officers" above them. And he wondered, "What your office might do to correct this tarnishment on our national integrity?" By this point, Gates looked as if he was sucking on a lemon. War Hawks don't like being confronted. He began a snippy performance that seemed to prove true the rumors that he does a nasty camp Bette Davis impersonation. "I would say, first of all, this goes to the heart of my remarks tonight. In an all volunteer army, one does undertake a contractual obligation when enlisting. But there is certainly no obligation to re-enlist. And one should know -- anyone who has joined the military since 2002 has known -- that they are going into war with all of the moral challenges that can face people with -- So I think, ultimately, it has to be the choice of the invidivual." Robert Gates is not a lawyer. He is a spinner. He's a damn good spinner if your goal is to advance illegal war or lies. If it's not, he's just a tired spinner who needs to create a job by retiring. Volunteer army or not, the conscientious objector status is always recongized as a possibility or is Gates unaware that it remains on the books, has remained on the books since the draft ended, has remained on the books and has remained practiced for over thirty years? Is Gates so stupid that he doesn't know that? (No, he's just a liar.) As for 2002, the CO was specifically referring to the Iraq War. The Iraq War had not broken in 2002. All the lies Gates tells, it gets so hard for him to keep facts straight. The Iraq War started in March 2003. That's a fact. Equally true is that the administration lied repeatedly and the press went along with it. Finding out the truth about the Iraq War required real work. Lt Ehren Watada is one example of someone who had to do the work for themselves. In 2005, he was informed he would be deploying to Iraq in the summer of 2006. He began researching the war. He wanted to be able to answer any questions those serving under him might have. In researching the Iraq War, he discovered the realities including that it was an illegal war. Lt Watada knew what Gates appears to have never learned: His pledge was to uphold the Constitution and he was required to refuse any illegal order. Is Gates unfamiliar with the Uniform Code of Military Justice? Gates does a vicious camp routine but he appears woefully short on the facts. He also appears hostile to Christianity. Many Christian faiths are based on baptisms and on the Christian receiving the word of the God, a religious awakening. Gates appears completely ignorant of that fact. Anyone who joined before 2002 (or after) could very well have a religious awakening or a deepening of their religious beliefs -- those are core components and beliefs of Christian faith. Gates' bitchy little answer didn't recognize that reality.and showed extreme hostility to -- and prejudice against -- the Christian faith. In a functioning government, Gates would be called to the carpet and told to issue an apology. That won't happen which will further lead to the suspicion among some Americans that defending religious freedoms only matters to the White House when the religion is Muslim. I'm not saying it's right, I'm not saying it's fair. I'm saying you're an idiot if you're ignoring the public perception of the White House -- demonstrated in multiple polls -- at this late date . And to allow your Secretary of Defense to launch what many Christians will see as an attack on the Christian faith and to not call it out will deepen the perception that some religions enjoy a "most favored nation" status at the White House. "Some of the witnesses testifying before the Subcommittee may recall that we previously held a Federal Contract Compliance hearing on May 14, 2009," Subcommittee Chair Stephanie Herseth Sandlin declared this afternoon at the House VA's Economic Opportunity Subcommittee hearing. "In that hearing we received testimony from stakeholders highlihgting several concerns. The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs lack the resources to enforce federal laws, the Vets 100 List was not available for public viewing and job listings -- as required by VEVRAA [Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act] -- were not available or easily accessible to veterans seeking employment. Unfortunately, the written testimonies we received for today's hearing express the same sentiments -- such as limited outreach by contracters and a failure to post announcements in the appropriate job listing services." Herseth Sandlin was chairing a hearing on Federal Contractor Compliance and the two departments most responsible for contracting with regards to veterans are the Defense Department and Veterans Affairs but DoD was 'too busy' to appear before the Subcomittee today. Ranking Member John Boozman noted in his opening remarks "what appears less clear is the government's committment to enforcing the law." DoD elected to skip the meeting today at a time when veterans unemployment is a serious issue. The full House Veterans Affairs Committee met this morning for a legislative hearing and US House Rep Cliff Stearns explained of his HR 3685, "Unemployment is at a record high today and unemployment in our veteran community is higher than at any time I can remember." This week Laura Clarizio (Examiner) noted of the weekly unemployment data that last week saw "[n]ewly discharged veterans claiming benefits totaled42,633, an increase of 537 from the prior week." Yesterday on PRI's The Takeaway, John Hockenberry and Celeste Headlee were joined by Stand Down's Dr. Casi Crockett and financial contributor Beth Kobliner to discuss the issue of veterans employment. Excerpt: Beth Kobliner: If you look last year for unemployment for post-9/11 vets, then the general population or the non-vets. The rate was 10.2% for post-9/11 vets versus 9% for non-veterans. But the real story is when you look at young veterans, 18 to 24-year-olds. They have seen last year unemployment at 21% compared to 16% for non-veteran peers. So really, it's clear that the the job prospects for veterans are certainly no better than non-vets and, for young [veterans], they're much worse. This is a pressing issue. And DoD chose to ignore the hearing. And yet, US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, the head of the Defense Dept, had the nerve to call out Americans for what he saw as "apathy." Gates spoke this afternoon at Duke Unveristy's West Campus. (Pentagon Channel streamed the speech live.) Completing his speech, Gates reached for a water bottle and proceeded to chug it. You'd probably be parched if you too had trashed Americans. Americans are apathetic, only 1% of them are serving Gates stated, and serving in the military is something the American people see as a task for "other people to do." Really? Well first of all, Gates clearly sees testifying to Congress as something "other people to do" since his lazy and inept ass couldn't send a single representative to the economic hearing today. And his grandstanding on the backs of veterans is rather weak since he and the DoD have done little to nothing to improve the employment rate for veterans. As for whether or not Americans are meeting challenges, the Iraq War is an illegal war. Bush administration hold over Gates has blood on both hands -- once for the last administration, once for the current. He needs to stop grandstanding, he actually needs to leave because he's doing such a poor job. If there's any apathy he's experiencing, it's the apathy that allowed him to remain Secretary of Defense when Bush was replaced with Barack. 21% is the unemployment rate for veterans aged 18 to 24 and Gates wants to offer quotes from letters John Quincy Adams wrote to his son -- yeah, like that'll put bread on the table. Gates needs to answer as to why DoD refused to send a representative to today's hearing. The first panel was made up of Christina Roof (American Veterans), Joseph Sharpe Jr. (American Legion), Rochelle Webb (National Association of State Workforce Agencies), Richard F. Weidman (Vietnam Veterans of America) and Joe Wynn (Veterans Entrepreneurship Task Force) while panel two was composed of the Dept of Labor's Les Jin and the Dept of Veterans Affairs Jan Frye. Excerpt of the first panel: Subcommittee Chair Stephanie Herseth Sandlin: I'd like to just start out the questioning with a general one and it may touch on the end of Mr. Wynn's testimony, but I know that some of you have commented either in your testimony today or your written statements about perhaps the need for a compilation, some sort of a national listing, an official listing. For anyone that wishes to respond, who -- who's in the best position to compile and maintain that in your opinion? Rochelle Webb: Madame Chairwoman, NASWA believes that a accurate list is needed and that it needs to be through a collaboration of all the federal agencies that are involved in contractor compliance. So we would look for not only OFCCP [Dept of Labor] to be involved but agencies such as ODEP [Labor's Office of Disability Employment] dealing with disability employment as well as representatives from the state work force agencies through our association, through the veterans program for DVETs [Directors for Veterans' Employment and Training] -- we also believe needs to be involved. One part of the puzzle will remain one part of a puzzle. We need all pieces working together to have a comprehensive solution that will work for both state and federal level agencies. Thank you. Joe Wynn: Madame Chair, I'd just like to say that between the Veterans Employment Training Service Dept and Labor OFCCP -- between the two, they should be maintaining a list of federal contractors who are required to submit information about employment opportunities for veterans. And it's very important, too, that we get information included in that listing -- or if it needs to be in an additional listing -- on subcontractors. There are a lot of employment opportunities available through subcontracts. There are thousands of subcontracts tied in to each prime federal contractor. But that list needs to be compiled, made readily available and made available throughout the year -- not just at one time when the submission of the Best 100 [yearly Vets 100 Report due out each September] is done. Thank you. Subcommittee Chair Stephanie Herseth Sandlin: Well thank you, Mr. Wynn. Any -- Ms. Roof? Christina Roof: Just a really quick comment. AMVETS is looking forward to seeing the outcome of the presidential executive order bringing these agencies together: DoL, OFCCP, SBA [Small Business Administration] so that they can get a good understanding and stop doing things like duplication of efforts, taking this knowledge -- this wealth of knowledge and building a data base. So we're looking forward to seeing what comes out of that as well. Thank you. Subcommittee Chair Stephanie Herseth Sandlin: That's a good point. We know how important the interagency collaboration is in so many other areas. But I think, in addition to the collaboration, if we're going to make this happen, one -- somebody needs to ultimately have the -- bear the responsibility of maintaining it, right? And being the point of communication. And that leads me to my follow up question in terms of the Vets 100 Report. A number of you made different suggestions. Mr. Wynn just made mention of subcontractors. I think,, Dr. Webb, you may have in your written testimony as well. What kind of oversight and verification is needed over the Vets 100 Report to make it a meaningful exercise? Rochelle Webb: Madame Chairwoman, NASWA believes that the oversight needed is first of all to review, and perhaps a study would be useful here, to see what type of information reported on the Vets 100 could actually help increase the effectiveness of contractor compliance. The way the Vets 100 Report is now, it's an annual report, it's a static snapshot in time. It's immediately outdated once it's submitted and, as Mr. Wynn has indicated earlier, it's very difficult for state agencies to know within your state who are the entities that receive subcontracts because the major contract could have been in another state. But there are employment opportunities that are lost unless they are uncovered by our DVOPs [Disabled Veterans' Outreach Program] and our LVER [Local Veterans' Employment] staff within the states on their outreach. But in Arizona where we have over 140,000 employeer, it's very difficult for a staff of just over 60 veteran staff to outreach that many employers to try to uncover which of those jobs are out of compliance or should be listed and are not. Brief excerpt of panel two -- again composed of the Dept of Labor's Les Jin and the Dept of Veterans Affairs Jan Frye. US House Rep Gus Bilirakis: Mr. Jin, what are your concerns with regards to NASWA's job central system? Les Jin: Congressman, I think that the key thing is that we want to make sure that there's a system in place so that the priority referral provision for veterans is-is-is handled in a way that works for everybody, works for the veterans, works for the state and local organizations that put this together. So I don't have a specific concern but I think that we got a system in place that was developed and, you know, we would be happy to have conversations with the organization about any issues they want to raise. As far as I know, we have not done that and they have not reached out to us in that regard. One thing that I want to mention is that we have regulations, proposed regulations, as I mentioned, and during that process, we took a lot of comments from a lot of different stakeholders. My Director [Patricia] Shiu met with a lot of organizations, she had a webinar where she talked with over a thousand organizations and individuals concerned about veterans issues. She did townhalls in New Orleans and Chicago and San Francisco. She's got a lot of input and we just want to make sure that whatever changes we make are fully reviewed and-and-and everything is integrated into that decision. Subcommittee Chair Stephanie Herseth Sandlin pointed out to Jin that NASWA recommended last year that "an official list of federal contractors" be generated by his department and she wondered if that had taken place? Jin danced around the topic in his immediate reply leaing to a redirect by the Chair ("Well, it was a recommendation made a year ago.), Jin stated "I was not hear until the last few months." But, in those months, he had no conversations on that topic. From the US government to efforts in Iraq to form a goverment, Syria's Day Press reports, "President [Bashar] al-Assad's received on Wednesday a delegation from the Iraqi List led by Iyad Allawi. Talks dealt with the latest developments in Iraq and the ongoing efforts and negotiations among different Iraqi blocs to form an Iraqi government." DPA adds, "Allawi's meeting in Syria comes as a coalition of Iraqi Shiites, known as the National Alliance, are due to hold a third day of talks Wednesday evening after they failed to meet their own deadline to nominate a candidate for the position of prime minister." While that meeting was going on, Alsumaria TV notes, "Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al Moallem discussed with UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon the situation in Iraq. [. . .] The Syrian Foreign Minister affirmed that Iraq's security is bound to the country's national unity stressing the necessity for all Iraqi components to take part in shaping up Iraq's future." And if you're late to the ongoing stalemate, March 7th, Iraq concluded Parliamentary elections. The Guardian's editorial board noted last month, "These elections were hailed prematurely by Mr Obama as a success, but everything that has happened since has surely doused that optimism in a cold shower of reality." 163 seats are needed to form the executive government (prime minister and council of ministers). When no single slate wins 163 seats (or possibly higher -- 163 is the number today but the Parliament added seats this election and, in four more years, they may add more which could increase the number of seats needed to form the executive government), power-sharing coalitions must be formed with other slates, parties and/or individual candidates. (Eight Parliament seats were awarded, for example, to minority candidates who represent various religious minorities in Iraq.) Ayad Allawi is the head of Iraqiya which won 91 seats in the Parliament making it the biggest seat holder. Second place went to State Of Law which Nouri al-Maliki, the current prime minister, heads. They won 89 seats. Nouri made a big show of lodging complaints and issuing allegations to distract and delay the certification of the initial results while he formed a power-sharing coalition with third place winner Iraqi National Alliance -- this coalition still does not give them 163 seats. They are claiming they have the right to form the government. In 2005, Iraq took four months and seven days to pick a prime minister. It's six months and twenty-two days with no government formed. Suadad al-Sahly and Waleed Ibrahim (Reuters) note that "despite increasing acrimony," the talk is Nouri will be nominated by the Iraqi National Alliance (State Of Law already has him as their nominee) and he will be Iraq's 'next' prime minister. Hurriyet Daily News reports, "A group of prominent Iraqi nongovernmental groups have gone to court to try to break the political deadlock that has left the war-torn country adrift without a government and, according to many, vulnerable to insurgent attacks and worsening social conditions, a report said." Brian Murphy (AP) reports that US Brig Gen Rob Baker states that the continued stalemate is not only encouraging violence among 'insurgents' but could lead other Iraqis not to report suspect behavior to the Iraqi forces or the US forces. Youchi J. Dreazen (CongressDaily) reports similar concerns expressed today by the Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm Mike Mullen: "I'm extremely concerned about their inability to stand up this government. The politics there are from my perspective too slow . . . and the longer that lasts, the more I and others worry about what does the future hold." It takes a lot of stupid for the US government to deny their own involvement in all of this. I'm not just referring to their continued backing of the unpopular Nouri al-Maliki. I'm also referring to their allowing him to push back the elections to begin with. This first happened under Bush and was okayed by Barack when the elections were pushed back to fall/winter of 2009. Once Barack was sworn in, other push backs took place. Nouri intentionally dragged his feet. That was obvious to all international observers. Which is how Iraq repeatedly missed one deadline after another -- all the while the US government insisting that elections would take place before the end of 2009 -- and that is how elections which should have taken place in mid-2009 did not take place until March of 2010. The six months and counting spectacle is shameful. But never forget that the US encouraged it and allowed it by repeatedly allowing Nouri to push back the date and to interfere with the passage of needed legislation by Parliament that would have allowed the elections to take place in 2009. It takes a lot of stupid to hail 'progress' in Iraq when they have no government, when elections took place over six months ago and the results were not honored. When Nouri's term long ago expired but he remains in office, not as a 'caretaker,' but as a tyrant. And if you're missing the point, Alsumaria TV reports, "The Iraqi cabinet Tuesday approved a $733 million deal for Leighton Offshore Private Ltd. Singaporean Oil Company to build a new oil export terminal in the southern city of Basra, a spokesman for the Iraqi government said." That's not the actions of a caretaker government. A caretaker government ensures that electricity is supplied, that trash is picked up -- all the things Nouri's government has FAILED to do. A caretaker government does not negotiate a multi-million dollar contract. The violence continues. Bombings? Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad roadside bombing wounded two people, two Baghdad bombings (one after the other) left five people injured, a mortar attack on the Green Zone and, in Beshdar, a man crossed over the border from Iran to Iraq and was reported to Kurdish intelligence who attempted to detain him but he set off a bomb taking his own life and injuring two Kurdish intelligence agents. Reuters notes a Saqlawiya home bombing which injured "three woman and a man" and, dropping back to last night for the following, a Baghdad roadside bombing which injured six people and a Kirkuk roadside bombing which injured a police officer. Shootings? Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Samarra home invasion in which police chief Major Saeed was shot dead (it was his home). Reuters notes that last night 1 "tribal leader" was killed when his Mosul home was invaded. Turning to England and its role in the Iraq War, Defence Management Journal reports: The British withdrawal from Basra in 2007 was "a huge mistake" and a "defeat" for the British Army, according to senior American commanders. In the BBC's Secret Iraq documentary, one US General said the move by British troops from Basra Palace in the city centre to Basra International Airport left local people to be "terrorised" by militias. General Jack Keane (ret'd) told the BBC's Secret Iraq programme: "I think it was a huge mistake to pull out of Basra and to go out to the airfield and to leave the people of Basra to be subjected to the Iranian surrogates who brutalised them, intimidated them, terrorised them." In real time, we noted the regional withdrawal and then the Basra one and how embarrassing it was for the British military. Since, we've noted how the Iraq Inquiry has bent over backwards to avoid exploring those realities. (Known realities. Shortly before the Basra pullout, there was the abandoned base in the area, abandoned due to attacks, which the British military fled and which was torn apart by attackers in less than 24 hours.) Few outlets noted the reality on the British military mission in Iraq -- and even fewer of US outlets noted it. The Telegraph of London always covered it and today their Thomas Harding reports: Some of the evidence in BBC Two's Secret Iraq was not given to the Chilcott Inquiry into Iraq. The comments will revive debate about whether the British pull-out from Basra in September 2007 was a prudent tactical move or a humiliating retreat. The retired US general Jack Keane says: ''I think it was a huge mistake to pull out . . . and to leave the people of Basra subject to the Iranian surrogates who brutalised them, intimidated them, terrorised them." A US colonel, Peter Mansoor, who was executive officer to the US commander Gen David Petraeus, says Basra was in "dire straits". "I don't know that you could see the British withdrawal from Basra in 2007 in any other light other than a defeat," he said. BBC News adds that 45 women were killed immediately after the British left Basra and quotes one Basra resident stating, "They started killing unveiled women. I had to buy an Ak-47 for personal protection. They started killing people who sell alcoholic drinks and barbers who shave beards." There's plenty of news that should be in this snapshot but there's just not room and I note that because we're closing with two press releases. The first one is from Senator Daniel Akaka's office. He is the Chair of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee and he has won an honor. I've called him out in past snapshots so it's certainly only fair that we note he has received an honor: THE MILITARY COALTION HONORS AKAKA FOR HIS ADVOCACY FOR VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILIES Washington, D.C. -- Today The Military Coalition (TMC) presented U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii) with one of its highest awards in recognition of his leadership on behalf of veterans and their families, especially his role in passing the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act. Akaka received the 2010 Award of Merit at the Reserve Officers Association Building on Capitol Hill. "I thank The Military Coalition for this honor, and for their service to veterans. I look forward to continuing our shared work on behalf of America's troops and veterans, as well as the families who support them," said Akaka, Chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee. "Senator Akaka has taken the lead on almost every aspect of veterans' benefit improvements this year. We're especially grateful for his leadership in winning compensation and health coverage for caregivers, many of whom have had to sacrifice their jobs and homes to provide full-time care for a wounded loved one," said Joseph Barnes, TMC Co-Chair and National Executive Driector of the Fleet Reserve Association. The Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Service Act was signed into law by President Obama on May 5, 2010. The law includes provisions to establish an unprecedented permanent program to support the caregivers of wounded warriors, improve health care for veterans in rural areas, help VA adapt to the needs of women veterans, and expand support services for homeless veterans. The Military Coalition represents the interests of more than six million members around the world, including active duty, National Guard Reserve, and retired members and veterans, as well as their families. For more about TMC, click here [.] Kawika Riley Communications Director and Legislative Assistant U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii), Chairman http://veterans.senate.gov We're closing with a lengthy release by the VA. We're doing that due to the attacks on moves made by VA Secretary Eric Shinseki to ensure that Vietnam era veterans receive what they are owed. If you're late to the attacks -- the Congressional attacks -- on Shinseki, see last week's "Iraq snapshot" and "Iraq snapshot," Ava's "Senator Roland Burris (Ava)," Wally's "Senate Veterans Affairs hearing (Wally)," Kat's "Jim Webb: The new Bob Dole" and The Third Estate Sunday Review's "No friend to veterans." Here's the press release from the VA: Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki today announced the publication of a final regulation in the Federal Register that makes it easier for Veterans to obtain Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care and disability compensation for certain diseases associated with service in Southwest Asia (including Iraq) or Afghanistan. "This is part of historic changes in how VA considers Gulf War Veterans' illnesses," said Secretary Shinseki. "By setting up scientifically based presumptions of service connection, we give these deserving Veterans a simple way to obtain the medical and compensation benefits they earned in service to our country." The final regulation establishes new presumptions of service connection for nine specific infectious diseases associated with military service in Southwest Asia beginning on or after the start of the first Gulf War on Aug. 2, 1990, through the conflict in Iraq and on or after Sept. 19, 2001, in Afghanistan. The final regulation reflects a determination of a positive association between service in Southwest Asia or Afghanistan and nine diseases and includes information about the long-term health effects potentially associated with these diseases: Brucellosis, Campylobacter jejuni, Coxiella Burnetii (Q fever), Malaria, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Nontyphoid Salmonella, Shigella, Visceral leishmaniasis and West Nile virus. With the final rule, a Veteran will only have to show service in Southwest Asia or Afghanistan and that he or she had one of the nine diseases within a certain time after service and has a current disability as a result of that disease, subject to certain time limits for seven of the diseases. Most of these diseases would be diagnosed within one year of return from service, through some conditions may manifest at a later time. For non-presumptive conditions, a Veteran is required to provide medical evidence to establish an actual connection between military service in Southwest Asia or Afghanistan and a specific disease. The decision to add these presumptives was made after reviewing the 2006 report of the National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine (NASIOM), titled, "Gulf War and Health Volume 5: Infectious Diseases." The 2006 report differed from the four prior reports by looking at the long-term health effects of certain diseases determined to be pertinent to Gulf War Veterans. Secretary Shinseki decided to include Afghanistan Veterans in these presumptions because NAS found that the nine diseases are also prevalent in that country. The 1998 Persian Gulf War Veterans Act requires the Secretary to review NAS reports that study scientific information and possible associations between illnesses and exposure to toxic agents by Veterans who served in the Persian Gulf War. While the decision to add the nine new presumptives predates VA's Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses Task Force (GWVI-TF), the overarching responsibility of the GWVI-TF is to regain Gulf War Veterans' confidence in VA's health care, benefits, and services and reconfirm VA is 100 percent committed to Veterans of all eras. The GWVI-TF began in fall 2009 and is not a static, one-time initiative but will continue to build on its work with annual reports issued every August. The group's focus centers on unanswered Gulf War Veterans' health issues, improving access to benefits, ensuring cutting edge research into treatments, and to make sure Veterans' concerns are heard and addressed. This includes continuing to solicit Veterans, experts, advocates and stakeholders to share their views to better inform the important work of the GWVI-TF. The GWVI-TF Report can be found at www.VA.gov. Disability compensation is a non-taxable monetary benefit paid to Veterans who are disabled as a result of an injury or illness that was incurred or aggravated during active military service. Last year, VA received more than one million claims for disability compensation and pension. VA provides compensation and pension benefits to over 3.8 million Veterans and beneficiaries. Currently, the basic monthly rate of compensation ranges from $123 to $2,673 for Veterans without any dependents. For information about health problems associated with military service in Southwest Asia and Afghanistan, and related VA programs, go to www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/gulfwar/ and http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/oefoif/index.asp. For information about how to apply for disability compensation, go to www.va.gov or http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/gulfwar/compensation_benefits.asp. iraq day press dpa alsumaria tv defence management journal the telegraph of london thomas harding bbc news yochi j. dreazen the associated press reuters suadad al-salhy pri the takeaway

Cherubs swim to break guinness record!

A swimming contest, eager to break the Guiness World Record for the most babies swimming together, was organized at a stadium in Beijing recently.

Hundreds of Chinese babies accompanied by their parents prepare to take part in a baby swimming contest, which the organizer hopes to break the Guinness World Record for the most babies swimming together, at a stadium.

China's government maintains that the one child policy has averted 400 million births since the strict policy implemented in 1979 and has vowed to enforce it until at least 2033, when the population is expected to peak at 1.5 billion people.

Babies prepare to take part in a baby swimming contest, which the organizer hopes to break the Guinness World Record for the most babies swimming together, at a stadium.

'Mumbai-Style' Terror Attack frustrated in Europe

A commando-style terror plot that purportedly called for simultaneous attacks in multiple European cities has been disrupted after the CIA launched a barrage of drone strikes in Pakistan to help thwart the plot.

The plot, which included concurrent attacks on hotels in London, as well as cities in France and Germany, was in an advanced but not imminent stage. The plotters are ostensibly of Pakistani or Algerian origin and have been trained in Pakistan's tribal areas.

While officials are still working to understand the plot, a leading concern is that the plotters were modeling their European attack on the 2008 attack in Mumbai, India, in which armed gunman killed more than 200 people in harmonized attacks at hotels and other easily accessed venues.

Several U.S. officials haven't seen a terror threat as serious as the European plot for many years. This isn't just your typical Washington talk about how the threats have evolved. People are very worried about what they're seeing.

Intelligence important to their arrest had resulted in heightened security at airports across Europe.

The CIA had stepped up buzz strikes in Pakistan in an effort to help thwart the plot. The more than 20 strikes this month represent a monthly record, according to a tally by the New America Foundation.

The government knows [Al Qaeda] wants to attack Europe and the United States. And they persist to work closely with our European allies on the threat from international terrorism, including Al Qaeda.

Without speaking directly of the European plot, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano warned last week such attacks on publicly accessible areas are a major concern.

European governments have not commented on what plots may have been disrupted, though security officials in Britain have said that the Obama administration's stepped-up attacks in Pakistan has disrupted the ability of Al Qaeda in Pakistan to plan terrorist strikes on the west.

The U.K., which has the second-biggest foreign troop pledge in Afghanistan after the U.S., said the attacks are a matter for the U.S. and Pakistan.

Oh those silly liars

"Operation Recovery Announcement" (Iraq Veterans Against the War):
On October 7, in Washington DC, the 9th anniversary of the Afghanistan invasion, Iraq Veterans Against the War will announce our first-ever strategic campaign, Operation Recovery: Stop the Deployment of Traumatized Troops. We recognize that we must stop the deployment of all soldiers in order to end the occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, we see the deployment of soldiers with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Traumatic Brain Injuries, and Military Sexual Trauma as particularly cruel, inhumane, and dangerous. Furthermore, we know that without the repeated use of traumatized soldiers on the battlefield, the occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan could not continue. This is how we will end these wars, by winning our Right to Heal.

We are reaching out to you, our loyal supporters, before we make the campaign announcement public. In building up to the announcement we need you to help us inform others about this issue and get them to pledge their support for the campaign. Sign the Pledge of Support today.

Registration

Registration Deadline:

Monday, September 27, 2010 - 5:43pm

So that's our peace aspect right at the start. Now we're going to move over to Kendra Marr's silly nonsense for Politico. Upfront, I don't care if you're religious or not. Upfront, I've been told since 2007 that Barack's not a Christian by his neighbors. That doesn't bother me. It doesn't even bother me that I believe he's a non-believer who pretends to believe. (I was told he was a non-believer by his neighbors. I'm being kind and not naming them. But anyone who's read this journal for very long will know exactly who the neighbors were. "Non-believer" -- not a Muslim for anyone who hasn't followed.)

But if you're going to lie, at least lie well.

Marr's bad article has Barack explaining he 'chose' to become a Christian. Uh, no. No, Barack that's not how it works. You may choose to accept Jesus as your savior in many Christian faiths; however, you are chosen by God. God speaks to your heart and that is why you become a Christian if you do. (For the record, if you haven't figured it out, I don't believe in any god. If you do, more power to you.)

So, Barack, please, please, lie better or just don't lie. On the latter, I do understand that being a non-believer can upset some. Repeating, I am not at all appalled that my understanding of Barack is he is a non-believer and he pretends to be otherwise. That doesn't bother me a bit, one of the few things about Barack that doesn't bother me.

His lying doesn't bother me. When I watched Contact, I thought, "This is such a movie." In the real world, Jodie Foster's character would have just lied and said she believed in God.

But that's a lie I can stomach.

Other lies I can't. Like Kendra Marr's nonsense:

For years, Obama was a member of Trinity United Church of God in Christ in his hometown of Chicago, but he quit after videos of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s fiery, racially-tinged sermons surfaced on the internet, threatening to undermine his 2008 presidential campaign.

Stop lying, Marr. It's a damn lie. It's not an error, it's a lie. How do I know that? Because of the Christ-child's big speech. Remember how it was amazing and powerful and all that other nonsense? Wright became an issue. Barack gave his speech 'on race.' He tarred his soon-to-be-dead Grandmother as a racist and then went on to say he could no more turn his back on Jeremiah than he could on his own racist granny.

Barack did not leave that church.

Not then.

Jeremiah Wright -- who is homophobic and was homophobic on PBS -- began talking even nuttier (AIDS was planned by the US government, etc.) and also noted that Barack was the typical politician. That was too much! Barack and Michelle were on Today the next morning denouncing him.

When Wright insulted Barack, Barack left that church. That's reality.

Now we turn to Mayhill Flower who mainly lies to herself. In this post, she announces she will Huff Po no more. Why? They won't pay her.

I don’t recall either of them writing the story about Barack Obama waxing large on “clinging to guns and religion,” which seems more and more as time goes by to be the one big story out of the last presidential election to live on. Or at least it is the one that journalists and pundits are quoting regularly now.

That's Mayhill Flower. Remember that, I'll be back to it.

They wouldn't pay her and didn't love her ideas. This one would net her $2500 a month:

I pitched Arianna on covering whatever it is that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is up to. Partly because of media budget cutbacks, but also because the reporters assigned to the State Department are a less-than-entrepreneurial lot, this story is not being told. I offered to split the costs. I was willing to move to Washington, D.C. to get this story and commute home one weekend a month, because I thought the story was and is important. Because travel on trips abroad is expensive, I told Arianna and she and I together would determine what few trips I would make. I wanted $2500 a month, with the understanding that after six months we would review whether or not we would go forward, and with the commitment on my part to train a younger person to take my place down the road. (I said this because I am sure that Obama will have second term.)

Are you getting that she hates Hillary? Because she does. We'll come back to the Hillary hatred in a moment. But let's note this comment first:

bk, on September 27th, 2010 at 9:57 am Said:

“I pitched Arianna on covering whatever it is that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is up to. Partly because of media budget cutbacks, but also because the reporters assigned to the State Department are a less-than-entrepreneurial lot, this story is not being told. ”

Are you kidding? CLinton’s administration is probably the most accessible and transparent one in the cabinet, if not Washington. The State Dept website regularly has her answering questions, posts nearly every meeting she makes, and has regular updates from throughout the department. And it is all pretty comprehensively covered in the media as well.

I agree journos should be paid–but you also need a story. I don’t think you really pitched any.

Mayhill in reply: I believe you make my case for better coverage of Secretary Clinton. The daily press conferences at State are Orwellian. She, like most politicians, “answers questions” only in the sense that she replies with words–but those words are what she wants to get out there, her own talking points. She does not give reporters what they really want to know. And the State Department, by the way, is a world unto itself, much bigger than Hillary Clinton. It is hidebound, antedeluvian, set in century-old ways. It is an enormous bureaucracy resistant to change. The job of covering the State Department is much harder than reading press releases or event transcriptions on a web site.

I hope you paid attention above. If you need some help, the Hillary Clinton 'proposal.' Note what she said about it above. She loves her pitch. It was apparently perfect and recaptured in total to hear her tell it above.

Bobbie Garner, on September 27th, 2010 at 11:49 am Said:

I appreciate your work – but cannot imagine any business responding to your iphone email demand.
It’s too late now but why would you not ask for a face to face talk and suggest a new program or a tweak to current program? Or do the leg work and draft a suggested plan and submit? As a journalist you have to know communication is key to change – ultimatums are rarely effective.

Mayhill in reply: I cannot imagine that you are a marketer because you have not listened to what I said. Did I not outline several proposals I pitched? Can you not deduce for yourself the amount of leg work it took to come up with those proposals? So here is a piece of advice for you. Successful people in any field are good listeners.

Now she's insisting that if you read her 'pitches' (as she recounted them) then you should understand how much "leg work" went into them. Get ready because here comes the turn.

chris, on September 27th, 2010 at 8:43 pm Said:

Mayhill–I’d never heard of any of this (or you or your work) before today – but since people are chiming in, a few things jump out at me –

You – “I told Arianna and she and I together would determine what few trips I would make. I wanted $2500 a month, with the understanding that after six months we would review whether or not we would go forward, and with the commitment on my part to train a younger person to take my place down the road. (I said this because I am sure that Obama will have second term.)

Me – You were asking for a $15,000 payroll for one story based on the log line – “I pitched Arianna on covering whatever it is that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is up to.” She actually discussed this with you with a straight face based on that pitch?

You – “I’m not even including the opinion pieces, even though I am one of only a handful of national pundits who totally get Barack Obama. ”

Me – Did someone in charge appoint you officially as an “Obama Getter” along with this handful of other select journalists? Do you have any sense at all at how many questions that line begs?
I clicked on a piece of yours – up top i read this – “Am I the only writer with some connection to journalism who judges that the former CEO of eBay is likely to be the next governor of California? ” – “a writer with some connection to journalism”????

Mayhill, journalism is a wonderful profession – exciting, intense, frustrating, unforgettable – but to truly experience it you have to be a “journalist” – as well, a crisp, efficient writing style devoid of awkward personal commentary goes a long way in helping to establish a writer as the real deal. Good luck to you.

Mayhill in reply: Now Chris, think for a minute. Is it likely my pitch involved one line? My pieces are long enough without going into every detail. I always hope that my readers will have a modicum of deductive reasoning at their command. And my offer was not for one story. It was a pitch for covering the State Department, which would have involved my moving to DC, paying my own expenses to fly home once a month, Arianna and I sharing the cost of the foreign travel. $2500 a month works out to how much a year? Do the math. In the end, I think Arianna was simply not interested in covering State and Sec. Clinton et al. I said “six months” because I did not want either of us to feel bound to something that might not pan out. It would have been something new for Huff Post, after all. As for my comment on Meg Whitman, I stand by it. My comment about Obama was probably unwise in the moment; but I say let history judge in the long term.

All of the sudden, the pitch she recounted, that recap that she insisted showed "leg work" on her part? Now she's insisting her proposal was more in depth.

She's such a damn liar. Such a Hillary Hater as well.

She's a little nobody and she always will be. She had a moment of fame and wasn't able to make anything of it because she loves Barack more than she loves her so-called profession.

Doubt it?

Emily, on September 27th, 2010 at 10:20 am Said:

You didn’t “report” Obama’s comment, you repeated it. And made yourself a name. The fact you weren’t able to profit from it more is not anyone’s fault but your’s.

Mayhill in reply: If I had wanted to “profit” from Bittergate, I could have done so. I could have hired an agent, a PR person; I could have gone on cable TV and talk radio. I did none of those things. I am not Joe the Plumber. The Monday after the Friday the story hit, I was back on the road reporting on the Pennsylvania primary.

She's not Joe the Plumber. She insults a lot of people, doesn't she? A woman who can't find paid work as a writer wants to hurl stones at others? The story hit on Friday, she tells you. This was Barack's speech. His appalling speech. His insulting speech.

Her story hit Friday.

She forgets to tell you above that the speech -- which she was present for -- took place April 6, 2008 and, you can check your datebooks, that was a Sunday. She published on the speech five days later. On Friday, when the weekend mode sets in. When it's really too late to enter the news cycle.

Unless you have someone to promote the item. For example, the author of the piece. But she didn't want to promote the story.

That's why she & Huff Po buried it for five days. (In real time, Arianna was asked about the long delay and claimed it took that long for a transcript of Barack's remarks. Tell us another, Arianna.)

She sat on the story for five days, released it too late to influence the news cycle unless she was willing to promote it on TV which she wasn't willing to do.

She's not a reporter, she's a joke. She's a liar and she's a whore for Barack. She should be apologizing to everyone for the five day delay in 'reporting.'

Instead she foolishly thinks she's ever accomplished anything in her life.






"Iraq snapshot" (The Common Ills):

Tuesday, September 28, 2010. Chaos and violence continue, Barack declares the Iraq War ended and brags that he ended it, in the shadow of that huge ego the political stalemate continues, 3 US service members have died in Operation New Dawn in less than a week (7 since Barack announced 'combat' was over), Alsumaria celebrates six years of broadcasting, and more. In less than a week, 'Operation New Dawn' has claimed the lives of at least 3 US military service members. Yesterday's snapshot noted: "Saturday's news noted that Marc Whisenart was killed in Kuwait while on his second tour of duty in the Iraq War. Middletown Press reports Pfc Gebrah P. Noonan died Thursday in Falluja and that Governor Jodi Rell has ordered that state flags be lowered on Noonan's behalf. Friday USF announced: 'CAMP LIBERTY – Two United States Forces - Iraq service members died of injuries sustained in a non-combat-related incident today. One other service member was injured and evacuated to a military medical facility for treatment'." That's three. And correction, it's Marc "Whisenant." My apologies. Whisenant's death is announced by DoD here. The Walton Sun notes, "The mission of Whisenant's regiment was providing escort security for personnel and equipment from Iraq into Kuwait as part of the drawdown of forces under Operation New Dawn. The unit was deployed January 2010 and is expected to return home December 2010." Noonan's death is covered in this DoD announcement: The Department of Defense announced today the deaths of two soldiers who were supporting Operation New Dawn. They died Sept. 24 in Fallujah, Iraq, of injuries sustained Sept. 23 in a non-combat incident. They were assigned to 3rd Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga. Killed were: Spc. John Carrillo Jr., 20, of Stockton, Calif. Pfc. Gebrah P. Noonan, 26, of Watertown, Conn. For more information, the media may contact the Fort Stewart public affairs office at 912-435-9879 or 912-435-9874. Mohammed Tafeeq (CNN) report Spc Neftaly Platero is currently in military custody and suspected of killing Noonan and Carrillo. KCRA (link has text and video) reports that's John's mother Dsiree Carillos was not told her son might have been killed by another US soldier when the military broke the news that her son was dead. She states, "It was very devastating to find out he was shot by a fellow soldier. (It) is unbelievable. The military should be embarrassed." BBC News quotes US military spokesperson Barry Johnson stating that there was a "verbal altercation" which allegedly resulted in Platero shooting the other three soldiers. Leila Fadel (Washington Post) notes Platero is 32-years-old. CNN adds, "Several people posted rest-in-peace messages on what appears to be Noonan's Facebook page. The page of 'Gebrah Noonan' also lists 'Neftaly Platero' -- the same name as the suspect -- as a Facebook friend." Kent Pierce (WTNH) quotes Gebrah Noonan's high school track coach, Dean Street, stating, "He was certainly a patriotic guy. He would mention things about it time to time, big into politics, everything that was going on." On his Facebook page, Gebrah's likes include Rob Simmons and Sarah Palin. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's office issued the following: Gov. Schwarzenegger Issues Statement on Death of Stockton Soldier Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today issued the following statement regarding the death of Spc. John Carrillo Jr. of Stockton: "Maria and I were deeply saddened to learn of the death of Specialist John Carrillo Junior. He was a brave soldier who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving our country, and we join all Californians in remembering his courage and commitment. Our thoughts and prayers are with John's family, friends and loved ones during this difficult time." Carrillo, 20, died September 24 in Fallujah, Iraq, of injuries sustained September 23 in a non-combat incident. He was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, GA. In honor of Spc. Carrillo, Capitol flags will be flown at half-staff. So DoD is announcing 3 deaths above in 'Operation New Dawn.' 4425 was the DoD count on Thursday so the count is now 4428. And since Barack announced 'the end of war' and 'combat operations,' 7 US soldiers have died serving in this allegedly ended war. 'End of war'? Yes, that's what Barack and the press attempted to sell the American people. The current liar in chief learned a great deal about linkage from George W. Bush (who loved to link 9-11 and Iraq -- a trick Barack now echoes). Doubt that was the point of Barry's Oval Office minute? When I was campaigning, I was very specific. I said, "We are going to end the war in Iraq, that was a mistake," and I have done that. That's Barack purring into Jann S. Wenner's ear for the latest Rolling Stone Interview. "I have done that." He has ended the Iraq War? That's what he brags about. His gross exaggeration is only matched by his preening ego. The Iraq War has not ended. Repeating, since his 'ending' of that illegal war, 7 more US service members have died. 50,000 remain in Iraq. And that should scare the hell out of the Cult of St. Barack. If you never doubted how likely it was that US troops would remain in Iraq after 2011, grasp that with 50,000 present currently, Barack's telling Rolling Stone he's already ended the Iraq War. Saturday, Parks & Recreations' Amy Poehler returned to Saturday Night Live as the host and, on Weekend Update, she and Seth Meyers did their "Really" sketch (click here to stream the episode at NBC, click here to stream it at Hulu and click here to stream the Weekend Update clip at Hulu). Seth Meyers: But you know what else is crazy? Anyone who says we need to attack Iran because we're definitely in two wars already. Yes, two. Because saying combat operations are over in Iraq when they're are still 50,000 troops is like saying, 'Hey, I quit drinking . . . tequila shots!' Amy Poehler: Really. Seth Meyers: Really. Monday, Gabriel Gatehouse (BBC News) spoke with John Hockenberry and Celeste Headlee on The Takeaway (PRI) about the continuing Iraq War and shared the voices of some US soldiers in Iraq. Capt Paul Cluverius: We have some soldiers, they were a little angry about it, saying, 'Hey, we're still over here. My personal standpoint? I thought it was humorous that they're saying combat operations are stopped because, I mean, combat operations are stopped? And what are we still doing here now? But our families, the people who know us, they know what we're doing. There is no switch that you can throw to say combat operations are stopped. I believe it was more of a media -- It was something built for the media. Cluverius is correct, the Iraq War continues. You really think he'd find it humorous that Barack Obama's claiming -- to Rolling Stone -- that he has already ended the Iraq War? Really? You think the families and friends of the seven who have died since Barack declared 'combat' over and (in his mind) ended the war think it's cute that Barack's lying to Rolling Stone that the Iraq War is over? John: I mentioned the combat operations in Afghanistan not to get your commentary on them because, obviously, you're in Baghdad but most Americans are going to wake up this morning and hear the headline from "American's war" -- singular, in Afghanistan. You would say there are two wars right? Gabriel Gatehouse: I would definitely say that and I think Captain Paul Tuesday, September 28, 2010. Chaos and violence continue, Barack declares the Iraq War ended and brags that he ended it, in the shadow of that huge ego the political stalemate continues, 3 US service members have died in Operation New Dawn in less than a week (7 since Barack announced 'combat' was over), Alsumaria celebrates six years of broadcasting, and more. In less than a week, 'Operation New Dawn' has claimed the lives of at least 3 US military service members. Yesterday's snapshot noted: "Saturday's news noted that Marc Whisenart was killed in Kuwait while on his second tour of duty in the Iraq War. Middletown Press reports Pfc Gebrah P. Noonan died Thursday in Falluja and that Governor Jodi Rell has ordered that state flags be lowered on Noonan's behalf. Friday USF announced: 'CAMP LIBERTY – Two United States Forces - Iraq service members died of injuries sustained in a non-combat-related incident today. One other service member was injured and evacuated to a military medical facility for treatment'." That's three. And correction, it's Marc "Whisenant." My apologies. Whisenant's death is announced by DoD here. The Walton Sun notes, "The mission of Whisenant's regiment was providing escort security for personnel and equipment from Iraq into Kuwait as part of the drawdown of forces under Operation New Dawn. The unit was deployed January 2010 and is expected to return home December 2010." Noonan's death is covered in this DoD announcement: The Department of Defense announced today the deaths of two soldiers who were supporting Operation New Dawn. They died Sept. 24 in Fallujah, Iraq, of injuries sustained Sept. 23 in a non-combat incident. They were assigned to 3rd Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga. Killed were: Spc. John Carrillo Jr., 20, of Stockton, Calif. Pfc. Gebrah P. Noonan, 26, of Watertown, Conn. For more information, the media may contact the Fort Stewart public affairs office at 912-435-9879 or 912-435-9874. Mohammed Tafeeq (CNN) report Spc Neftaly Platero is currently in military custody and suspected of killing Noonan and Carrillo. KCRA (link has text and video) reports that's John's mother Dsiree Carillos was not told her son might have been killed by another US soldier when the military broke the news that her son was dead. She states, "It was very devastating to find out he was shot by a fellow soldier. (It) is unbelievable. The military should be embarrassed." BBC News quotes US military spokesperson Barry Johnson stating that there was a "verbal altercation" which allegedly resulted in Platero shooting the other three soldiers. Leila Fadel (Washington Post) notes Platero is 32-years-old. CNN adds, "Several people posted rest-in-peace messages on what appears to be Noonan's Facebook page. The page of 'Gebrah Noonan' also lists 'Neftaly Platero' -- the same name as the suspect -- as a Facebook friend." Kent Pierce (WTNH) quotes Gebrah Noonan's high school track coach, Dean Street, stating, "He was certainly a patriotic guy. He would mention things about it time to time, big into politics, everything that was going on." On his Facebook page, Gebrah's likes include Rob Simmons and Sarah Palin. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's office issued the following: Gov. Schwarzenegger Issues Statement on Death of Stockton Soldier Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today issued the following statement regarding the death of Spc. John Carrillo Jr. of Stockton: "Maria and I were deeply saddened to learn of the death of Specialist John Carrillo Junior. He was a brave soldier who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving our country, and we join all Californians in remembering his courage and commitment. Our thoughts and prayers are with John's family, friends and loved ones during this difficult time." Carrillo, 20, died September 24 in Fallujah, Iraq, of injuries sustained September 23 in a non-combat incident. He was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, GA. In honor of Spc. Carrillo, Capitol flags will be flown at half-staff. So DoD is announcing 3 deaths above in 'Operation New Dawn.' 4425 was the DoD count on Thursday so the count is now 4428. And since Barack announced 'the end of war' and 'combat operations,' 7 US soldiers have died serving in this allegedly ended war. 'End of war'? Yes, that's what Barack and the press attempted to sell the American people. The current liar in chief learned a great deal about linkage from George W. Bush (who loved to link 9-11 and Iraq -- a trick Barack now echoes). Doubt that was the point of Barry's Oval Office minute? When I was campaigning, I was very specific. I said, "We are going to end the war in Iraq, that was a mistake," and I have done that. That's Barack purring into Jann S. Wenner's ear for the latest Rolling Stone Interview. "I have done that." He has ended the Iraq War? That's what he brags about. His gross exaggeration is only matched by his preening ego. The Iraq War has not ended. Repeating, since his 'ending' of that illegal war, 7 more US service members have died. 50,000 remain in Iraq. And that should scare the hell out of the Cult of St. Barack. If you never doubted how likely it was that US troops would remain in Iraq after 2011, grasp that with 50,000 present currently, Barack's telling Rolling Stone he's already ended the Iraq War. Saturday, Parks & Recreations' Amy Poehler returned to Saturday Night Live as the host and, on Weekend Update, she and Seth Meyers did their "Really" sketch (click here to stream the episode at NBC, click here to stream it at Hulu and click here to stream the Weekend Update clip at Hulu). Seth Meyers: But you know what else is crazy? Anyone who says we need to attack Iran because we're definitely in two wars already. Yes, two. Because saying combat operations are over in Iraq when they're are still 50,000 troops is like saying, 'Hey, I quit drinking . . . tequila shots!' Amy Poehler: Really. Seth Meyers: Really. Monday, Gabriel Gatehouse (BBC News) spoke with John Hockenberry and Celeste Headlee on The Takeaway (PRI) about the continuing Iraq War and shared the voices of some US soldiers in Iraq. Capt Paul Cluverius: We have some soldiers, they were a little angry about it, saying, 'Hey, we're still over here. My personal standpoint? I thought it was humorous that they're saying combat operations are stopped because, I mean, combat operations are stopped? And what are we still doing here now? But our families, the people who know us, they know what we're doing. There is no switch that you can throw to say combat operations are stopped. I believe it was more of a media -- It was something built for the media. From that broadcast, we'll note this excerpt: John Hockenberry: I mentioned the combat operations in Afghanistan not to get your commentary, on them obviously, you're in 'Bagdhad, but because most Americans are going to wake up this morning and hear the headline from "America's War," singular, the one in Afghanistan. You would say there are two wars, right? Gabriel Gatehouse: I would definitely say that and I think Capt Paul Cluverius and Sgt Chris Williams would agree with me. I think most of the US soldiers who are based outside of the large FOBs, outside of the large bases, partnering with Iraqis on a daily basis would agree with you. This war is not over yet. Of course, the people explaining reality? They're not trying to lie, cheat and spin in order to do well in mid-term elections. It's a damn shame that Barack's been able to tell Rolling Stone magazine that the Iraq War ended and everyone and their dog has gone on to comment since the story broke this morning but no one's zooming in on the Iraq comments (we zoomed in this morning as soon as the story went online). And it's not just the mainstream media ignoring Barack's LIE (although over 420 articles have been published by them since this morning), it's also our left 'independent' press. There's more to point out. Journalist Ann Jones has new book which was just released this month War Is Not Over When It's Over: Women Speak Out from the Ruins of War. She is Matthew Rothschild's guest this week on The Progressive Radio Show and the two discuss wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Sierra Leone and elsewhere. At one point, Matthew Rothschild brings up the issue of rape. Ann Jones: [. . .] we think of wars as being fought by soldiers -- mostly men -- and they fight with each other and then some sort of peace is concluded at which men sit down at the negotiating table and make a deal -- one that usually involves their coming to some sort of a power sharing agreement so everybody gets a piece of the pie. And then we say 'the war is over and now this country is at peace.' But in fact, all the time the men are at war and all the time they're talking about peace at the negotiating table, they are raping women and girls all over the country all the time. And when this so-called peace is concluded, they continue to do that. And, what's more, because civil structures, judicial structures, law and order have generally broken down during wartime, civilian men say 'Well look what the soldiers did all this time during the war and nothing bad has happened to them.' And they begin to rape as well so that very often the violence against women not only does not stop with the end of the war, but very often it increases. And the one significant thing that changes in many places is that where the militias have actually been disarmed and weapons have been taken away, men are now on their own. And it's easier for a man on his own, without his buddies to do a [. . .] rape, or to force a woman. It's easier for that man on his own to rape a little girl than it is to rape a grown woman who's going to put up a fight. But that didn't happen. Ann Jones notes that despite the UN, over a decade ago, passing a resolution that women needed to be involved in all parts of any peace proces, that hasn't been happening in any stages in Iraq or Afghanistan. Maybe that's why US troops remain in both? Suadad al-Salhy (Reuters) notes yesterday was the self-imposed deadline that the Iraqi National Alliance announced last week by which they and State Of Law would have selected a nominee for prime minister and that they missed the deadline. Selected a nominee? From two people. Last week, it was also announced that they were choosing between Nouri al-Maliki (State Of Law) and Iraq's Shiite vice president Adel Abdul Mehdi (National Alliance). Supposedly an announcement would emerge today. DPA adds: Though candidates in the National Alliance want the prime minister to come from their ranks, some are opposed to al-Maliki being head of government and favour his competitor, Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi. In particular, followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al- Sadr have yet to forget al-Maliki's attacks on their strongholds in March 2008, which killed and injured hundreds of Sadrist supporters. What happens now? Sam Dagher (Wall St. Journal) states that 14 leaders will vote on one or the other and then there will be a nominee. Has it ever been that easy? Maybe so? Alsumaria TV reported at 5:00 a.m. EST that Hassan Al Sunaid (State Of Law) was insisting that the candidate will be named "within the coming hours." A few hours came and went, then many, many more. No announcement. The political stalemate continues. March 7th, Iraq concluded Parliamentary elections. The Guardian's editorial board noted last month, "These elections were hailed prematurely by Mr Obama as a success, but everything that has happened since has surely doused that optimism in a cold shower of reality." 163 seats are needed to form the executive government (prime minister and council of ministers). When no single slate wins 163 seats (or possibly higher -- 163 is the number today but the Parliament added seats this election and, in four more years, they may add more which could increase the number of seats needed to form the executive government), power-sharing coalitions must be formed with other slates, parties and/or individual candidates. (Eight Parliament seats were awarded, for example, to minority candidates who represent various religious minorities in Iraq.) Ayad Allawi is the head of Iraqiya which won 91 seats in the Parliament making it the biggest seat holder. Second place went to State Of Law which Nouri al-Maliki, the current prime minister, heads. They won 89 seats. Nouri made a big show of lodging complaints and issuing allegations to distract and delay the certification of the initial results while he formed a power-sharing coalition with third place winner Iraqi National Alliance -- this coalition still does not give them 163 seats. They are claiming they have the right to form the government. In 2005, Iraq took four months and seven days to pick a prime minister. It's six months and twenty-one days with no government formed. While the US wants Nouri al-Maliki to remain prime minister -- so much so that they pretend it's normal he's remained prime minister all this time despite his term expiring -- Jason Ditz (Antiwar.com) points out, "Iraqis seem far from on-board for a second Maliki term, however, and voted in large numbers for blocs that clash openly with Maliki's. It seems that only foreign force could impose another Maliki government, but the cost to Iraq's fledgling democracy of such a move could be incalculable." The US supports Nouri because Nouri's promised to extend the SOFA (that's not Jason, that's me). AFP reports that US Vice President Joe Biden bellowed over the phone today that an "inclusive" government needed to be formed and that someone needed to speed up. Someone? Allawi. Biden only hectors Allawi. Nouri he feeds out of his own hand -- like a goat at a petting zoo. An Iraqi correspondent for McClatchy Newspapers shares thoughts on the stalemate at Inside Iraq: We feel so sick because we heard the word MECHANISM for thousands times during the last few days. As normal people, we do not know anything about this word and it looks that our GREAT POLITICIANS also do not know anything about it. The search for this mechanism cost us a lot. Many innocent people die everyday, corruption increases widely and life becomes more difficult. And the violence never ends. Bombings? Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad sticky bombing which left police Lt Col Salam Meer wounded, a Baghdad roadside bombing which wounded six people, 2 Baghdad roadside bombings going off one right after the other injured four people, another Baghdad roadside bombing exploded as people were exiting the Muhammed Mosque and 2 were killed with eight more wounded and, dropping back to Monday, a Baghdad roadside bombing wounded three people. Reuters notes a Kirkuk home exploded as police and Iraqi military were raiding the house and three Iraqi service members were left injured. , Shootings? Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Mosul home invasion in which Sehikh Hussein Ali was shot dead and, dropping back to Monday, 1 military officer was killed in a Mosul roadside bombing and an Iraqi soldier was left wounded. Last week, Reporters Without Borders issued a statement noting that finally two people believed to be resonsible for attacks on journalists Iraq -- in this case, kidnapping, were sentenced. In 2004, Christian Chesnot, Georges Malbrunot and their unnamed Syrian guide were kidnapped and held for over 120 days: "We hail this conviction and we hope that the impunity so long enjoyed by the murderers and kidnappers of journalists will cease to be the rule in today's Iraq," Reporters Without Borders secretary-general Jean-François Julliard said. "It is good that justice has been rendered," Malbrunot told Reporters Without Borders. In a report entitled "Iraq War: a heavy death toll for the media 2003-2010" released on 7 September, Reporters Without Borders condemned the failure to punish those responsible for killing so many journalists since the start of the US-led invasion in March 2003. The report noted that majority of the journalists killed have been Iraqis. Yesterday Iraqi journalist Alaa Muhsin was injured in a Baghdad bombing. In addition, many news outlets have been closed (Paul Bremer was the first official to close a publication in Iraq after the start of the illegal war). In that climate, Alsumaria TV has a right to brag, not just celebrate: September 27, 2004 was the start of a successful journey that made of Alsumaria today a star turn in the media sector. Alsumaria celebrates its sixth anniversary. For all the past years, Alsumaria has embraced a moderate speech for One Iraq that stands at an equal distance from all Iraqis. Through its programs and news bulletins, the network continuously strives to promote democracy, freedom as well as political and economic openness. A competent personnel, experienced anchors, skilled technicians and proficient cadre are the backbone of Alsumaria TV which eyes to present the best for Iraqi families. Backed by a strong production know-how, Alsumaria TV produces almost all of its 24/7 programs in-house giving the chance for Iraqi actors to rise again in addition to a significant compilation of live entertainment, social, political, and game shows hosted by young Iraqis. Alsumaria rallies high viewership among Arabs and Iraqis according to accurate statistical studies. Leading the way has not come for granted. Alsumaria earned its success thanks to its objectivity, neutrality and concern towards the Iraqi people. Alsumaria is dedicated for all Iraqis regardless of their political, religious or social backgrounds. It aims to gather Iraqis all over the world around the same interest. Alsumaria vows to keep breathing life into Iraqis' homes bringing along new hopes for a bright future. Happy anniversary! Congratulations to Alsumaria and all the Iraqi media, forever under the threat of attack from the government, forever under the threat of bombings or shootings (you don't even have to be a journalist to be targeted, you can just answer the phones for a news outlet or be one of their security guards and that's enough to get you targeted), but trying each day to inform their readers, viewers and listeners. One of Iraq's long running issues has been the PKK -- a rebel group which is housed in northern Iraq and uses that area as a staging platform for attacks on Turkey. AFP reports that Turkey's "mandate for military strikes" on the PKK expires October 17th but they will be reviewing renewing it. If renewed, it will be the third renewal. AP reports that the top US commander in Iraq, Gen Lloyd Austin, is in Turkey where he will discuss the PKK with military officials. Hurriyet reports that Turkish government officials today pressured the US to do more with regards to the PKK including pressuring the Kurdistan Regional Government (which governs the northern area) to crack down on the PKK. Over the weekend, Ed Milband was elected leader of the Labour Party in the UK. The political party held their conference in Manchester today and Ed gave his first speech (other than acceptance speech) in his new leadership post during which he noted the Iraq War. Iraq was an issue that divided our party and our country. Many sincerely believed that the world faced a real threat. I criticise nobody faced with making the toughest of decisions and I honour our troops who fought and died there. But I do believe that we were wrong. Wrong to take Britain to war and we need to be honest about that. Wrong because that war was not a last resort, because we did not build sufficient alliances and because we undermined the United Nations. As disclosed before, I know Ed and David Milband. The speech in full will either go down as Ed charting a brave direction for Labour (some are seeing an attack on unions in it, there is a very clear call for a living wage) by speaking of the party's strengths (lifting all boats) and renewing the commitment to that (a comitment New Labour tossed aside) or it will be seen in ten years as pretty words that were never backed up. (Labour is currently the out of power party in England -- the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats formed a power-sharing coalition after the May elections allowing David Cameron to be Prime Minister.) (And to be clear, I don't read Ed's remarks on unions as an attack -- but I'm also aware that Ed has not been elected the head of any union and, as a result, has no say in whether a union strikes or not.) The Iraq comments are receiving worldwide attention and some of the press includes the Gulf Times, Sky News, Manchester Evening News, Iain Martin (Wall St. Journal), Mu Xuequan (Xinhua), The Economist. Amnesty International issued the following: Amnesty International has welcomed comments on human rights from the new Labour leader Ed Miliband in today's conference speech. In his party conference speech Mr Miliband said his party had "too often" "seemed casual" about British liberties, in particular identifying attempts by the previous government to introduce 90-day pre-charge detention periods and sweeping use of anti-terrorism powers. Amnesty International UK Director Kate Allen, who listened to the speech in Manchester today, said: "We've waited years to hear the Labour leadership say - in effect - that it has got the balance wrong on counter-terrorism and that, from now on, it is going to do more to defend human rights. "This was an important moment and I was delighted to hear these words from the new Labour leader. "Mr Miliband should certainly ensure that the opposition mounts a robust defence of human rights, including by calling for 'control orders' to be scrapped and the forthcoming torture inquiry to be rigorous and far-reaching. "Amnesty has always said that defending this country must also mean defending our country's key principles of liberty and fairness. I look forward to meeting Ed Miliband and his colleagues to see how we can help make these aspirations real." Amnesty recently made a 17-page submission to the Home Office as part of the Coalition Government's review of counter-terrorism measures. The organisation has also written to the head of the inquiry into alleged UK involvement in the mistreatment of detainees held abroad. Both interventions come against the backdrop of repeated criticism from Amnesty and other human rights organisations of the previous government's record on counter-terrorism policy and practice. In April, for example, Amnesty described the UK as "the most influential and aggressive" promoter in Europe of the policy of seeking "diplomatic assurances" as a means to deport people it labels a threat to national security. Amnesty has long said that these "no torture" deals are unreliable and unenforceable and endanger those deported under such arrangements. Tom Walker (Great Britain's Socialist Worker) reports, "Ed Miliband made one important break with Blairism in his conference speech on Tuesday when he condemned the war in Iraq. He said, 'I do believe that we were wrong. Wrong to take Britain to war and we need to be honest about that.' There was nervous applause. But he was strongly in support of continuing the occupation in Afghanistan. Miliband tried to balance between those who want an end to Blairism and those on the right of the party. But trying to balance in practice will mean that the Tories win the ideological battle -- and it won't build resistance." Another thread of the story is David Miliband's reported reaction to the speech, specifically the critique of the Iraq War. George Eaton (New Statesman) reports, "During the leader's speech, ITV news cameras picked up the elder Miliband, with a look of pure murder on his face, leaning towards Harriet Harman as she happily applauded his brother's condemnation of the Iraq war. According to the station's lipreaders, he said: 'Why are you clapping? You voted for it.' To which Harman is said to have replied: 'I'm clapping because he's leader and, as you know, I'm supporting him'." Helene Mulholland (Guardian) adds, "The exchange suggests that the shadow foreign secretary, who was defeated in his leadership bid by his brother by a narrow margin, may choose not to add his name to the list of nominations for the shadow cabinet ahead of tomorrow's deadline." Iain Martin (Wall St. Journal) offers, "This is expected to be all over the bulletins later, and will be viewed through the prism of the brothers psycho-drama and the elder Miliband's struggle to come to terms with being beaten by his younger sibling. It is also quite funny." And BBC News points out, "BBC political editor Nick Robinson said the unscripted aside from David Miliband illustrated how he, and other former Labour ministers, 'deeply resent' the way in which Ed Miliband used his 'rather less than public opposition to the war' to win the party leadership." We'll be kind and not name the left writer in this country (US) who couldn't get it right (we've named him many times before), the Iraq War does matter in England. As Labour Pary polling confirmed -- which is why Rebecca and I both knew about it to begin with -- the Iraq War -- continuing the Iraq War, was an anchor around Gordon Brown's neck and is part of the reason -- a big part according to internal polling within the party -- Gordon is no longer prime minister. It was also a big reason Ed was able to pull ahead of his brother when few (including me) thought he was sincere about winning when the race for leadership first began. (As I've noted before, I was obviously wrong about Ed beging serious about this race.) iraq cnn mohammed tawfeeq kcra the associated press holly ramer rolling stone jann s. wenner nbc saturday night live amy poehler seth meyers pri the takeaway bbc news gabriel gatehouse ann jones matthew rothschild dpa reuters suadad al-salhy the wall st. journal sam dagher antiwar.com jason ditz mcclatchy newspapers sahar issa the wall st. journal iain martin the guardian the new statesman the socialist worker the economist amnesty international the guardian helene mulholland