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Now all we need to do is float a rumor that Miller and Bush are secret lovers and Kerry will be a shoe-in!

Yes, perhaps we have forgotten the Palestinian slaughter of infants in the nursery of Kibbutz Ma'alot, but doesn't the murder of over a hundred school children by the Islamic Jihadists today remind us about the essential nature of these people?

September 3, 2004 No.778

London Convention Will Celebrate 9/11



The London daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat reported that the extremist Islamic movement Al-Muhajiroun had announced a convention in London, titled "The Choice is in Your Hands: Either You're with the Muslims or with the Infidels," to mark the third anniversary of the September 11 attacks. The organization had planned a similar anniversary event a year ago, called "The Magnificent 19 [Suicide Attackers]," but had cancelled it at the last minute. The following is a summary of the report:(1)
Al-Muhajiroun leader Omar Bakri, a Syrian residing in London, told the paper by phone that the convention would feature Al-Qa'ida "surprises," with the screening of a never-before-shown video. He said that the convention will focus on "the anniversary of the division of the world into two great camps - the camp of faith and the camp of unbelief," and would take place September 11, 2004 from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Bakri added: "On this day, we will talk about the ramifications of these [9/11] operations for Afghanistan and Iraq... We want the world to remember this operation ... that lifted the head of the [Muslim] nation." Bakri called 9/11 "a cry of Jihad against unbelief and oppression," and said that the aim of remembering it is to "revive the commandment of Jihad among the youth of the [Muslim] nation."

Bakri said that the convention will also feature a lecture about the Islamic religious roots of "slaughtering the infidels," that is, beheading foreigners in Iraq and Saudi Arabia, and that there will be films by Al-Qa'ida, the Tawhid and Jihad organization, and the Brigades of the Two Holy Places in the Arabian Peninsula, and that there will also be a film on the most recent operations in Chechnya. He added that one of the speeches, by Abu Mus'ab Al-Zarqawi, known to be Al-Qa'ida's military commander in Iraq, will be translated.

Another lecture, he said, would be dedicated to the memory of three Al-Qa'ida commanders: Abd Al-'Aziz Al-Muqren (Abu Hajer), killed in June 2004 by Saudi security forces; his predecessor Yousef Al-Ayyiri, killed in June 2003 in a clash with Saudi security forces, and Abu Hafs Al-Masri, a top Al-Qa'ida military officer, killed in the U.S. attack on Kandahar in late 2001.

According to Bakri, the anticipated criticism of Al-Muhajiroun for the organization's insistence on memorializing 9/11 will be "a simple sacrifice in comparison with what we must actually do - that is, support the Jihad led by bin Laden."

Attorney Anjam Choudry, secretary-general of Al-Muhajiroun in Britain, said, "A large hall has already been secured for the convention, but the announcement came only two days ago for fear that the British police would try to cancel it, as happened with the previous convention."

Endnote:
(1) Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), September 3, 2004.

I listen to George's speach last night and must admit it sounded pretty darn good. So that go me suspicious. I really liked his pledge to increase Pell Grant funding for college students, as I myself received a Pell Grant in my third year of college, and that grant is what allowed me to attend.

Here's what I found...these blurbs are from a simple search on "bush Pell Grant". Most of these blurbs are NOT in response to last nights speach. They're dated months ago.

Bush Freezes Federal College Scholarship, or Pell Grant
Just as college tuition is rising and the buying power of grants continues to erode, President Bush has frozen the maximum Pell Grant at $4,050 in his FY 2005 education budget. This is the 3rd year in a row that Bush has frozen or cut the maximum Pell Grant.

Despite Bush’s protests that restoring the buying power of the Pell Grant won’t stop rising college costs, he continues to ignore the tuition problem. Not only has he failed to address rising college tuition, but his budget makes college even more expensive by freezing or cutting student aid and taxing students.

Bush Breaks his Promise to Increase Maximum Pell Grant to $5,100
While campaigning in 2000, President Bush, pledged to make college more affordable and accessible by increasing the maximum Pell Grant for college freshman to $5,100.

Not only has President Bush broken his promise to increase the maximum Pell award to $5,100, but he’s actually frozen or cut the maximum Pell grant for the past three years.

Bush College Aid Update Would Force Students to Pay More for College
In 2003, the Bush Administration made revisions to the information used to determine financial aid eligibility that would have eliminated Pell Grants for 84,000 students, and reduced college aid to thousands more students. Fortunately, a Democratic amendment to the 2004 Education Appropriations bill reversed the Bush cuts, restoring Pell Grants and key college aid to students.

Leaves 99 percent of Pell Recipients Behind with ‘Expanded’ Pell Program
As part of his 21st Century Jobs initiative, President Bush announced an increase of up to $1,000 in the maximum grant for Pell recipients who take challenging high school coursework. What the President failed to mention is that he’s capped his plan so that less than 1 percent of all Pell recipients, and less than three-tenths of 1 percent all of all college students, would benefit.

I nearly laughed aloud when George personally thanked the leaders of his "coalition of the willing" last night. In particular Poland. Did he forget the very angry Polish presidents words just a few months ago?

ALEKSANDER KWASNIEWSKI (translated): They deceived us about the weapons of mass destruction, that's true. We were taken for a ride.

Six countries – Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Spain, the Philippines, Norway, and Nicaragua – have already pulled their troops out of Iraq. Poland, the Netherlands, and New Zealand – are planning to withdraw shortly.

Remember the letter from the US soldier that George read from last night. I guess the idea is that we're supposed to belive that it's just any letter from any soldier, right? Wrong. It was written by Joe Roche, a scholar at the National Center for Public Policy Research – a far right-wing organization. In fact it's on their website.

spiff,

You and I might be the only ones to enjoy this video, but that'll be worth it.

George Bush: Words speak louder than actions.

(courtesy of the Daily Show, of course)

hmmm...this wouldn't really be a 'flip-flop', it's more of a misleading statement, no?

In a second term, Bush pledged to "double the number of people served by our principal job training program." That is a nice idea, but he has spent the last four years cutting funding for job training programs. His 2005 budget, for example, proposed to cut job training and vocational education by 10 percent – that's $656 million – from what Congress pledged to those programs in 2002.

Regardless of whether's he's an elephant or an ass, Zell Miller is a raving lunatic.

This page debunks his entire rant againt Kerry's defense voting record.

It's sad, really. I heard interviews with many republicans after Miller's speech. Most of them could be summed up as saying "Miller was just telling it like it is." Unforunately, Miller had fallen victim to the Republican party's own history-altering propaganda machine.

I detect a sudden sense of desperation in y'all's posts. Not liking the latest polls?

I remember Pell Grants being something like $1100 a semester back in the '80s. As a scholarship athlete I didn't qualify for one unfortunately - apparently my Dad's cushy job as a truckdriver put us in the "affluent" category.

Lots of the other guys qualified though. They bought fancy clothes, new scooters, big gold chains, partied at the high dollar night spots in Waikiki. Considering the modest pace of inflation since then, $5100 sure must buy a lot of bling-bling for today's needy folks.