Friday, August 29, 2008

Display of fascism by the Obama team

Peel away the mask of 'concern for the poor' and you find that just about every leftist is at heart a thug.

And Obama is a leftist- ultra-leftist.

Is this display of fascism a preview of what could be in store under the Obama administration?

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

From the LNC Quote Shop, item no.1

Richard Littlejohn in an excellent article-
The Left seems to be gripped with some kind of political penis envy of America, which can be assuaged only by sucking up to tyrants and dictators.

Monday, August 18, 2008

IPCC gives out gas

How did they get there without emitting greenhouse gases?ipcc-nobel-peace_prize
"a small part of the delegation from the International
Panel on Climate Change accepting
their award in Oslo for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize
"

They didn't give a fig about the planet.
Or their own doomsday warnings about greenhouse gases.
Or their own chairman's advice(not that he follows his own counsel).
They had to fly, so many of them, all that distance, to receive the Nobel Prize.
How many tons of deadly CO2 went into the atmosphere to satisfy their vanity? Hundreds? Thousands?
But they didn't care.

They had to have their moment of fame even as the planet groaned in agony, wounded to the heart by the treachery of the most loyal.

When the cop betrays his trust to the public and becomes a gangster, he is morally more perverse than other criminals.

Similarly the scientists who have taken upon themselves to save the planet shall be judged more harshly when they transgress this trust.


Sometime in the near future when, as we are told, Bangladesh and Tuvalu are underwater, when Al Gore's 20 foot walls of water are terrorising Shanghai and Calcutta, when enormous hurricanes caring not to observe the laws of physics are shredding LA, when trees have become deranged psychos, and Gaia is standing on her last legs(mmmm, are they long legs?)- then the dying humanity with it's last breath will utter curse and damnation forever upon the souls of these corrupt guardians of the planet who sold out the earth for a few moments of self-glory.

In brief -If I were to summarize the above in one sentence then this would be it-
If the greenhouse gases are such a mortal danger to the planet and mankind, then why are the IPCC members and it's chairman flying around so much?

(image from Margo's Maid via Andrew Bolt)

Pachauri to us commoners-Shut up and starve for the planet while I have my caviar

This is ironical, to say the least-
If the UN has its way, you'll be spending more time in the office and less time on a plane.

At a meeting in the UK this past week, Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, a climate scientist with the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), strongly urged businesses to cut employee travel, and to fill the void with video conferencing.


Of course, Pachauri (Mr.30,000 feet)didn't mean to include himself-
Where I’ve failed is my impact with regard to air travel. I tell people I was born a Hindu who believes in reincarnation. It will take me the next six lives to neutralize my carbon footprint. There’s no way I can do it in one lifetime!


It would be funny but for the fact that he and his merry band of Global Warming Doomsdayers are trying to shut down the very life blood of the modern civilization -affordable, plentiful energy.

No wonder he was the unanimous choice for the 1st LNC Green Hypocrite prize.


Update -

I should have added this gem-
"As for me, I'm going absolutely crazy travelling (laughs). I can only accept 5 to 10 percent of the invitations I receive, but even that is enough to keep me flying continuously. This doesn't make me feel very good but the message has to be spread."(Pachauri in an interview)

I suppose the message cannot be spread by video conferencing he demands of everyone else. At least Gaia should be thankful that he's turning down 90-95% of the invitaions.

Did I mention hypocrite?

(emphasis mine)

Monckton vs. Littlemore Debate audio

The much anticipated radio debate between Christopher Walter(the Third Viscount Monckton of Brenchley), a global warming skeptic and Richard Littlemore, a global warming alarmist took place just a while ago on the Roy Green show on the Corus Network.

Despite the 24X7 saturation coverage of this issue by the media, mostly in scary, apocalyptic terms, there actually has been very little of a face to face debate between those who fervently believe in man-made climate change and those who are skeptical of it in one way or another.
Here is the debate in four parts(note-the fourth part is listener's phone-in's)







If for some reason you are not able to play the audio or any part out of the four then visit the podcast page here(part 1), here(part 2), here(part 3), here(part 4), or here(main podcast page).

An interesting discovery from the debate and the post-debate conversation(in part 4) was that the moderator, Roy Green himself and some of the listeners who phoned in were more open minded about the issue than the highly-paid millionaire hacks of the mainstream media whose job it is to be objective.

Well worth a listen.

Update- The AGW alarmists at the Littlemore's site, desmogblog, are not pleased with his performance and were going into panic during the debate. A sample-
...at the moment it seems Littlemore's being led around by Green and Monckton. Take back control! Take back control!


Score this one for the skeptics-
I'd have to say that Monckton "won" the debate. He came across as more prepared and had answers at his fingertips, whereas Richard appeared to verbally stumble on occasion. I agree completely with the point Richard made that it is difficult to properly discuss the science in such a format. That being said, my take would be that a number of newcomers to the subject would easily be inclined to side with Monckton and Mr. Green because of the eloquence of Monckton (not realizing that you can be eloquent but still wrong).


No wonder the alarmists so often refuse to debate the skeptics. Even the Imperial Lord Master of Global Warming,the Ever Wise Al Goracle, is wary of this pesky band of rebels.


Update 2 - Richard Littlemore admits defeat

Update 3 -The Heartland Institute has the transcript of the debate

Update 4 -UH-OH! This blog has been struck by the great BOLT of lightening!

Update 5 -This is actually an appeal. While several sites have donate buttons, somehow I never got around to it. However you may help this blog (and me!) by purchasing one of my artworks. This will not only help in keeping this blog going (one of the few anti-alarmist sites in this part of the world) but also encourage good art, help me fight the post-modern ugliness that struts itself as 'High Art' and help me chuck my lifetime STAR ASS card.(STAR ASS =STarving ARtists ASSociation). You may get my perspective on art at What the Heck is Art? You may browse my art works here and buy them directly through me or through India Art Collectors. OK, sales pitch over.



Saturday, August 16, 2008

In India politicians commit murder in all but name

This is as good as murder-
Ambala : The nationwide protests by the VHP over the Amarnath land row have claimed the lives of innocent civilians who were denied crucial medical aid due to the disruption of normal life by the protestors. Shocking apathy displayed by VHP Protestors in cities like Ambala and Kanpur claimed the life of more than one.

A 60 year old heart patient in Ambala suffered a massive attack early this morning - but as his son's efforts to take him to a hospital were in vain- crucial time lost as he couldn't get his father urgent medical help due to the protests. Similar is the case in Kanpur- where a 22 year old boy who got accidentally electrocuted died after his family could not rush him to a hospital. Protestors refused to allow the family to pass the blockade- resulting in the death of the youth.

At around 9:00 am 60 year old Gaindaram complained of chest pain. Immediately, his son rushed him out of the house- hoping to get him to a hospital. However, it was not to be. At about 10 km from Ambala, on the Mullana-Ambala road the vehicle in which they were travelling was stopped by protestors. The heart patient’s son pleaded with the VHP protestors to let their auto go but his pleadings went unheard. Gaindaram's condition worsens, but the protestors refuse to let son cross the blockade. Finally, Gaindaram dies in his son's arm and he was declared dead upon arrival at Saket hospital in Ambala.

---------------------------------------------

The protestors of various organizations, including VHP and BJP, did not allow the ambulance to move ahead despite requests from those accompanying the victim in the vehicle; the sources said adding that lack of timely medical aid resulted in the old man's death.

---------------------------------------------

This of course not the first time politics over a crisis has claimed innocent lives. In August last year (2007) - a traffic jam stood between a 4 yr old boy Rahul and life saving medical treatment. It was two political parties Congress and the BJP in Shimla blocked roads in a spat of their own. The child's mother made desperate pleas to let her son’s ambulance pass. But they fell on deaf ears. She lost her son to political posturing.

Read the whole thing.

A question -what is the state going to do about it
answer -nothing
Another question -will anybody be arrested and punished?
answer -don't be stupid

The same venal set of people who care not a fig about the life of innocents run the Indian state also. A change of government in India simply means one gang of goons in place of another.

Here political fortunes are made on the blood of the common people. Remember this when the ugly mug of some political hack or minister appears on TV preening about his/her concern for the common man.

Friday, August 15, 2008

Turkish journalists attacked in Georgia

Turkish journalists getting shot at in Georgia, apparently by the Russians-





Update- more journalists hit in this invasion of Georgia-

Dutch television journalist was killed Russian warplanes bombed the central Georgian city of Gori

A Georgian television reporter named Tamara Urushadze. She was reporting from Gori when she was shot, apparently by a sniper

A reporter for Israel's Yedioth Ahronot newspaper, Zadok Yehezkeli was apparently hit by Russian army fire while covering humanitarian aid efforts.Video here.

Winston Featherly-Bean, an Alaskan serving as editor of a small English-language newspaper in war-torn Georgia, was among four journalists shot by combatants in a northern province on Friday.........two of the journalists were killed, the reports say.


A GEORGIAN journalist covering his country's conflict with Russia has been killed when a shell hit his car in Gori, an Agence France-Press photographer at the scene said

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Are we allowed to laugh at Gandhi?

This Mahatma Gandhi joke seems to be at several sites but I have only just recently come across it.It is indeed funny in an intelligent way.

More similar jokes(some of them quite good) here.

What Indians need to hear about Russia

What Indians need to hear about Russia but won't-

EU foreign ministers meeting in emergency session today to discuss the situation in Georgia should begin by asking why it took the outbreak of war to focus their attention. They had no cause to be surprised. The warning signs had been apparent for at least a year, and the Georgian government had made strenuous efforts to raise the alarm. This time last summer a Russian jet violated Georgian airspace and dropped a missile north of Tbilisi in what appeared to be a botched attack on a Georgian radar installation. Russia denied involvement, but two separate independent investigations found otherwise. Despite this, Georgia's plea for diplomatic support fell almost entirely on deaf ears.

Whether or not the incident was planned in order to test international reactions to an escalation of Russian military action in Georgia, Moscow clearly took encouragement from the absence of a response. With western governments preoccupied elsewhere - not least with Iran, where they need Russian support for a negotiated solution on the nuclear issue - Russian strategists evidently concluded that they enjoyed a free hand in their "near abroad". In April, Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would be strengthening official links with Georgia's two breakaway regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, including opening formal relations with their political bodies and strengthening trade ties.

This only confirmed what had been apparent for several years - that Russia is actively supporting secessionist forces instead of respecting its mandate and behaving as an honest broker. But it ripped away the final pretence that its role in Georgia is one of peacekeeping. Other steps of escalation quickly followed. Russia moved 400 troops into Abkhazia under the pretext of working on a railway project. Russian planes started shooting down Georgian aerial drones. There was an increase in armed attacks by Russian-backed forces in South Ossetia, including a roadside bomb that injured six Georgian policemen and an attempt to assassinate the head of the pro-Tbilisi provisional administration of South Ossetia.

None of these incidents received much coverage outside the region, so the impression has been created that Georgia initiated the current fighting with an unprovoked assault on South Ossetia. This is quite false. It has surely been a big misjudgment on Georgia's part, but resort to offensive operations came at the end of a long period of rising tension in which Russia had done everything it could to stir up trouble and provoke a reaction.

--------------------------------------

But complexity is no excuse for abdicating moral judgment in situations of this importance. If responsibility for the conflict is not a black and white matter, the picture is not uniformly grey either. By any reasonable measure, the impact of Russian policy has been uniquely destructive in generating instability and political division in the Caucasus. The events of the early 1990s notwithstanding, Georgia's treatment of minorities that have remained under its rule has been generally good. Whatever his faults, Saakashvili is no Milosevic - and wild Russian allegations of genocide have no independent support. Under appropriate international supervision, it would be perfectly possible to turn his offer of autonomy for Abkhazia and South Ossetia into a workable constitutional settlement that guaranteed the security and fundamental rights of people living those territories.

The problem is that considerations of this nature form no part of Russia's vision for the region. It talks about defending the people of South Ossetia, but the Kremlin's aims are geopolitical rather than humanitarian. It seeks to restore the sphere of influence it regards as Russia's birthright, which it lost with the collapse of the Soviet Union (a "major geopolitical disaster", according to Putin). There is no place for an independent Georgia (or Ukraine or Moldova) in this mental picture. When Russian leaders talk about the benefits of "sovereign democracy", they are talking exclusively about their own sovereignty and not at all about democracy. The countries on their borders have no right to foreign policies of their own if they conflict with Russia's. This is especially true of energy supplies, where Georgia's role in maintaining the only east-west pipeline route free of Russia's monopolistic grip causes double offence. This is about the Kremlin's attitude to us, too.

----------------------------------------

There are troubling signs in some of the victory statements coming out of Moscow yesterday that Russia may feel emboldened to impose a punitive settlement, perhaps by annexing territory. This is not something that the EU and its allies should be prepared to tolerate. As so often with bullies, the Russian government's behaviour disguises deep insecurity and a craving for respect. This makes it more susceptible to our opinions than we often think. Further aggressive steps against Georgia would certainly be a reason to reconsider whether Russia should continue to enjoy the prestige that comes with membership of the G8.


From an excellent article by David Clark in the Guardian.Read the whole thing.


Now this is something you won't hear, see or read in the India media unless by some fluke. Ask yourself why some opinions(or rather some kinds of opinion) are shut out from the Indian press.


(emphasis mine)

Anti-imperialists absconding

jholawalasWhere art thou, O Jholawalas* and Jholawalis*



Waiting, still waiting

-for the professional anti-imperialists to condemn Russian aggression

-for jholawalas* to take to the street in support of a tiny country facing the onslaught of an expansionist, imperial power which wants to control oil resources

-for the Indian politicians to condemn 'disproportionate' use of force as they did with Israel

-for our media pundits to get outraged as they do when you mention 'Bush' or 'Iraq' (mention both and they go into an apoplectic fit).

Waiting.....

* Jholawalas and Jholawalis- see the bottom part of this post.

Media tank for Obama gets deeper

My God, is media in tank for Obama or what!
Every time CNN talks about the new NYT no.1 bestseller,The Obama Nation: Leftist Politics and the Cult of Personality, it previews it by saying that is full of lies, and in a harsh offended tone too.

First it was Suzanne Malveaux who when introducing the book kept saying how it was full of mistakes and lies and then it was Larry King who did his best to (unsuccessfully, I must add) slime the author. Neither of them bothered to report or discuss what was in the book apart from being getting outraged that that the book depicts Obama as muslim. From what the author said on the Larry King show, the book presents him not as being a muslim but having had received muslim education for a while when he was a child in Indonesia. But the mult-millionaire anchors at CNN were too stupid to go beyond their obvious rage and understand the difference.

That most of the media is leftist, is biased is plain to see. One has to be particularly blind not to see that.

This book seems to have kicked the Left in the balls pretty hard and CNN seems to be in particularly sharp agony.

Shame on you Larry King and CNN.

Note- I haven't read the book or much about it and therefore do not agree or disagree with it.But the difference with which this book and the author being are being treated in the media compared with numerous slime-jobs on George Bush that are reverentially received is the difference between day and night.


Update 1- Newsbusters has the Suzanne Malveaux outrage video.
Update 2-Earlier the New York Times went after the book with a hatchet
Update 3- Roger Kimball has more. Check out the name callling lefties indulge in in the comments.
Update 4-Red Planet Cartoons nails down the American media in a single image
Biased American media
Update 5-Newsbusters now has the low down on Larry King's disgusting performance


Indian peacekeepers in Congo have been accused of child abuse

A sad day for India when this happens-
After a series of charges ranging from gold smuggling to illegal detention of local citizens to making statements in support of rebel groups, Indian peacekeepers in Congo have been accused of child abuse by an internal UN investigation.


The report, which also contains observations by investigators who have interviewed witnesses, is likely to be made public by the UN OIOS on Wednesday. Sources said that a copy of the report was received by the MEA on Tuesday.

----------------------------------------------
As reported by The Indian Express, a UN investigation had also found that Indian peacekeepers in Congo illegally detained, physically assaulted and “sexually propositioned” a local gold trader who had allegedly sold them counterfeit gold dust.

The three Army personnel identified as “JCO Deepak Singh Nayal , Sergeant Suresh Pandurang Bodhak and Lt Col Talum Duby” were also found guilty by an Army court of inquiry earlier this year. The Indian contingent has been charged with a series of allegations, like gun running and having connections with local militia, that have all been dismissed as a “malicious media campaign” by the Army.


Only one question -how could the top operational commanders remain unaware of all this?
Hard to believe that they were. Or did the usual 'work ethic' of UN peacekeepers made them callous?

Announcing the 1st LNC Green Hypocrite prize winner

Nobel Prize winner Rajendra Pachauri gets the 1st LNC Green Hypocrite prize.

Rajendra Pachauri -green hypocrite

He gets it for reasons well laid out by the inestimable Andrew Bolt-

There’s something about people who win the Nobel Prize for global warming alarmism that make them champion hypocrites, too. Here’s Rajendra Pachauri, chairman of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, answering the question: ”What have you done to personally shrink your carbon footprint?”

I’ve become a vegetarian. I try to minimize the use of cars. Where I’ve failed is my impact with regard to air travel. I tell people I was born a Hindu who believes in reincarnation. It will take me the next six lives to neutralize my carbon footprint. There’s no way I can do it in one lifetime!


An extraordinary example of cricket-loving Pachauri’s failure to curb his air travel here:

The Indian Express reports that Pachauri once “took a break during a seminar in New York and flew to Delhi over the weekend to attend a practice session for a match before flying back. Again, he flew in for a day, just to play that match.”



And for this-
"As for me, I'm going absolutely crazy travelling (laughs). I can only accept 5 to 10 percent of the invitations I receive, but even that is enough to keep me flying continuously. This doesn't make me feel very good but the message has to be spread."(Pachauri in an interview)


Also for this-
He spends much of his time travelling and speaking on climate change at international fora and jokes he "lives at 30,000 feet".

Jokes?!! His emissions (I mean emissions due to him) are destroying the world -doesn't he take his own IPCC's reports seriously?

Even as he constantly roams the world putting tons and tons of planet-killing CO2 in the atmosphere, while joking about it, he wants you to "give up cars or all of the other good things in life that represent achievement for human civilization".

The jury(me only!) also considered Pachauri's weak moral character favorably, as pointed out by Tom Nelson-
Rajendra Pachauri, chairman of the U.N. panel of scientists on climate change, said people are going to have to change their lifestyles to become part of the solution, but "that doesn't mean we have to go back to life in a cave." He said his own children "shamed" him into changing his habits, and he urged young people to realize the influence they have over adults.


Ok, Mr. Chairman: you're telling us with all that allegedly great evidence of impending human-caused catastrophe, you wouldn't even change your own personal habits until your kids shamed you into it?!

What exactly did your kids say that was so much more persuasive than what your UN scientists (allegedly) say?


A distinguished Hypocrite! His award is well deserved. The Liberty News Central congratulates him.

(emphasis mine)

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Headline an editor would give a limb for

Almighty Allah busted on drug charges

Unfortunately it wasn't the real dude.

A poser for the Indian Parliament

A poser for our MP's-
Doesn't anybody find it strange that when Hezbollah provokes Israel into war the world screams disproportionate response......When Georgia does it, the world says you should not be poking a sleeping bear. How is Russia laying waste to civilian cities inside Georgia any different and any less disproportionate?


So, dear members of parliament, when is that resolution condemning Russia coming? Or are there double standards regarding Israel and Russia?

Oh what am I saying -Indian politicians and double standards? They have no standards.

Pravada is back where it started

After a brief flirtation with free and honest reporting, the Russian media is back to it's bootlicking Soviet days. An example-

From Pravda a 'news' headline, "Russia: Again Savior of Peace and Life:"

The international community collectively held their breath waiting for the reaction of Russia after the savage, brutal, criminal attack by Georgia on South Ossetia. After having offered a ceasefire in hostilities, the back-stabbing Georgians immediately violated the ceasefire, invading South Ossetia and causing massive destruction and death among innocent civilians, among peacekeepers and also destroying a hospital.


hat tip- Jonathan Martin

'Barbarian invaders'

Just now live on BBC, Nik Gowing while interviewing Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili asked why he (the president) kept calling the Russians the 'barbarian invaders'.
Saakashvili seemed genuinely perplexed as if he could not fathom being asked such a stupid question and then said-
"What else do you call them?"

Also from the Georgian president -the Russians bombed a railway station and some more apartment blocks and now control the east-west highway cutting off Georgia in half.

They look familiar

Don't they remind you of a couple of, um, monkeys?


two monkeys -chavez with castro

Now wait! Before you get outraged and get your panties in a bunch, remember what we learnt from the tales from the life of Saint Harbhajan and what our blessed media repeatedly sermonised not long ago- monkeys are like gods to the Indians.

panties in a bunch
Don't get them in a bunch

Two of a kind

One moral idiot with another-


morales che

Where are all the anti-war jholawalas?

Where are all the anti-war activists? Is the Russian invasion of Georgia not a war worthy of their attention? Or are they selective in being 'anti-war'?

Imagine if it was America bombing a small country on some pretext - there would would be such a din of protest in many cities all over the world.

Now we have an authoritarian, imperialistic superpower which has a horrendous past of occupying, brutalizing and even decimating whole of nationalities -and not a squeak out our professional keepers of conscience.

Where are the Indian politicians- they were pretty quick to lacerate Israel over Lebanon, even going to the extent of passing a resolution in the parliament?

What about our 'anti-imperialist' comrades? Or is their 'anti-imperialism' just a charade? (They never had a problem with Soviet and Chinese imperialism)

Where are those bearded jholawalas* and jholawalis*, who when you shout 'America' begin to bark like rabid dogs?

Still waiting for shrill condemnations of Russian aggression from seasoned anti-imperialists like Chomsky, John Pilger , Robert Fisk and Arundhati Roy.

Tiger Hawk asks the same question-
Of course, the Russians have no meaningful justification under international law, far less than the imperfect case the United States and its coalition built to justify regime change in Iraq.

That caused me to wonder, where are the anti-war groups?
----------------------
So far, at least, it is safe to conclude that these organizations are not so much anti-war as they are anti-American and anti-Israeli. It is useful to clear that up. And, by the way, if they decide to organize massive anti-war rallies against Russia and belatedly reveal themselves as intellectually honest, I will be the first to say so.

(emphasis mine)

C'mon guys, where are you? There is a war on you know. Just go out and do what you do best -protest a small country from being bombed by an imperial superpower. I'll throw you another juicy bone -there is even oil involved. You must be drooling by now and I am sure we can expect massive street protests, burning of Russian flag and trashing of the Russian embassies anytime.
You won't disappoint me, won't you?

Won't you?


*The colorful Indian language translator-
jholawala -a scornful term for leftists in India, who have the reputation of dressing sloppily, often in kurtas and carrying a shabby, shapeless bag called a jhola, giving a general impression of poverty and simplicity. However, as in many things concerning the left, impressions can be misleading. Their 'simple' kurtas are often sourced from choicest of trendy(and expensive) boutiques, and the 'ethnic' look that is so sought after is achieved by burning a fair amount of moolah.

There is an interesting page about the jholawalas here.

jholawali -female of the above species, often giving the impression of being aggressive and querulous(think Vandana Shiva)

Note -I do not condone trashing of any embassy. I am merely pointing out the hypocrisy involved.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Send in the stingers

How to deal with a brutal warmongering imperialist like Vladimir Putin?
Max Boot has an answer-
send in the stingers

Amen

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Poland and Baltic states condemn Russia

The countries of eastern Europe and the Baltics have been through centuries of misery and tragedy in the grip of the Russian bear.Only recently freed from the Soviet yoke they have the moral focus to condemn Russia without the evasive diplomatese.

I wonder what the Indian official reaction be. Somehow I don't think that it would have the same moral clarity. While India likes to preen on the international stage, the political elites don't have the balls to condemn Russia.

Surprise- external menace lead to larger defence budget

Some Russian, perhaps the ambassador, is currently complaining on live TV that the Georgian defense budget has increased 30 times.
If true, might not that have something to do with the looming Russian menace?

Putin- you sneaky bastard

I leave my blog and the world unattended for a while and this is what happens-
Putin and his boys invade Georgia.

Back from oblivion

I apologize for the longer than expected hiatus. The pressures of the real world outweighed the pleasures of the virtual ones. Reality -I hate you!

However, now that I am back, I hope to be more regular than previously. That's the audacity of hope.