kiltboy

There are other countries that have tried terrorists in open court. There is heightened security but it does happen. Facing terrorism is more than capturing them and stopping further attacks. Part of it is not allowing the fear of terrorism to drastically change the way you conduct your life nor how a government governs. if you change that basic conduct the terrorist has effected your life and has to some extent scored a victory over you as you are now reacting to them. David

I was forwarded this from my lovely fiancee, Read all the way through to the shipping at the bottom http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3146042998&indexURL=0 David

I don't necessarily think of the War on Terror as a war in the classical case so maybe it should be a question of is this happening with a police officer in Atlanta or a Colonel in Iraq. The difference is the domestic area of operation with the law officer or a zone of conflict with the military and the different rules of engagement/ legal juristictions involved. David

Umbligo peloso. About the only Spanish I know. David

Strange question (and it always involves schoolkids for that tug on the heart strings) So are you looking at a domestic scenario or war time scenario as I think that would have an impact on my thinking? David

Are you referring to the contract to support the US military or the contracts to rebuild Iraq? The former could have been with Clinton for all I know (I wasn't in the US then so really didn't give a shit) and I'm guessing that the latter contracts would have been signed with the administration that actually invaded Iraq. If you are referring to the democrats bashing Bush and using the gas prices as a stick then yes once more it is bash Bush et al. but that's politics. If you want my opinion I will get upset if I perceive favoritism in awarding a government contract instead of getting the best deal for the tax payer (i.e. me). I don't care who is in power at the time. For me this is not a party issue but a legitimate public interest question regarding the distribution of government contracts. If Somo was getting the gas at greater than $1.59 then the question wouldn't even have been raised. I do think that some of the points raised here over the last couple of days have went some way to calm me down so I'll wait and see how it pans out in the next few months. David

So we don't have a logistic train with a realistic expectation of fuel consumption for operations? It's not as if the battlegroup is still charging towards Baghdad. Nor are the Ba'athists reorganising for the massed armour counterattack. I would expect the situation to improve with time so I'll put it down to a glitch while the country gets back on it's feet. I used to get around on Shank's Pony and if I needed the gas that badly well I've got a big gun with alot of bullets. "Fill her up" I will agree that the postal study is stupid and you're the first person that I've heard it from. Making them manual mail sorters while the place makes progress is a damn fine idea. There should be controversy over it as that 54 million could do a hell of a lot there right now. I won't call you cynical as your correct about the motivation behind the gas controversy and any waste of money should be addressed regardless of political gain. I also thought part of the 87 billion was going to Columbia and Afghanistan. Gotta spread the love. David

I wasn't ignoring it we'll revisit selective quoting shall we? Damn I hate to repeat myself. The answer was in response to Michelle asking what a reasonable price for gas in Iraq would be The full statement So if it's obtainable for 98 cents I think that's a reasonable price in Iraq I will conceed that maybe it's not of a decent quality diesel to run the US vehicles. Does that mean that the cheap gas for the humanitarian work (paid for out of aid money) isn't suitable. Humanitarian work (I'm assuming static generators for wells, power supplies etc) does not inhibit US troops mobility so I'm not going to agree that using cheap gas for humanitarian work endangers their lives. This story from the BBC is about a guy reuilding in the BAsra oilfields http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3013168.stm Chuck Miles is used to hot summers: he comes from the southern states of America. Looting has dented export hopes But he says he's never been anywhere as hot as this before. The gauge on my vehicle showed a temperature of 52 degrees celsius. Chuck works for the US Army Corps of Engineers and right now he is in charge of repairing a water treatment plant on the Rumeila oilfield near Basra in Southern Iraq. Shows some insight and describes the local Iraqi workers defending the refinery as well as efforts to get it rocking on again. It's dated June 23 and states that there is a security problem and that it should be up and running soon. That was June 23 has the situation went downhill now? You'll see lots of Military guys guarding the installation so the security there is a concern but it's also a deterrent. So were is the extra cost incurred for security? Given that the local population is actively trying to get the place back on it's feet I'm confident there are plenty of people willing to work at the refinery and drive the wagons. They showed up and protected the refinery when they weren't getting paid so I doubt they're holding out for a shit load of cash now. I will admit that this is Southern Iraq and that the situation can change depending on location. However if the cost of the reconstruction is met through aid and future export why are the costs already being added onto the price of gas and not held as a credit to be paid off in the future? As for the RPG into a tanker I've not heard of that yet. Possibly the convoy is too well protected or we've just not heard about it. Most of the activity is happening in the Sunni triangle and maybe it's a problem there. David

I was actually referring to the words Good lord Remi! You still insist that the people in Cuba are there to be put in chamber gas, use as slaves, and we will even pull their gold teeth, and use their hairs, etc, etc, etc? Gee. Same reason right or is it that you see it as EXTERMINATION, or rather to stop TERRORISM? There was a post just up a few to distinguish between concentration and extermination camps I have not seen anyone say that the occupants of Gitmo are being exterminated in a final solution, nor that their bodies are being plundered. The Jews were first concentrated in ghettos and camps before the Nazis came up with the final solution. I don't believe anyone in their right mind can say that the occupants of Gitmo are being treated in the same way as the victime of the holocaust. David

I don't believe Remi said. From your post I believe that the misunderstanding is addressed in a subsequent post with the difference between concentration and extermination camps. David

True and the British used them in South Africa with the Boers (I think that may even be when they were first used). I do think the term concentration camp has become connected with Auschwitz, Buchenwald etc. I haven't read enough about the Japanese american situation to debate it. I understand that there was imprisonment but can't comment about conditions, efforts to be released or the accountability of the government at that time etc. I would believe that Gitmo is closer to Internment in N.Ireland (before it was abandoned). Same idea where there was no communication and there were sweeps of people suspected of terrorism. I don't believe that internement worked and if anything was a recruiting tool but I would say that the same conditions apply where it's based on activity and not race (I will accept though that there is a degree of profiling in the residents of gitmo) David

Well they aren't being systematically killed, or worked to death for profit/war effort so I think the concentration camp analogy is a little extreme. I agree that the situation in Cuba is not good and that those detained are in a legal limbo and I would think that 6 months should be ample time to ascertain if they are terrorists or militia that should be sent home.. I believe those that are terrorists should have access to officials from their embassy who can arrange for suitable representation for their trial. I think they'll end up in front of a tribunal and not a civil court but I hope that will change and they would be tried in civil court. David

You'll see the same thing as you drive into New York. If you live in the UK you'll pay around 4 times as much. Comparing prices here with prices in Iraq does not make any more sense to me than comparing it to prices in the UK. However it would appear that The Iraqi Somo could get it for 98 cents a gallon in Iraq so that would seem to be a reasonable price to pay for gas in Iraq. The point is that the gas is obtainable for 60 cents a gallon cheaper than the Army Corps of Engineers were paying. You cannot compare the prices here with the prices there. The concession I will give is that maybe the cheap gas is not of a suitable octane raiting for the US vehicles and so they want to buy better grade. But to continue the discussion I believe that the Oil fields were protected during the military operations and that several units were specifically tasked with securing them. Given the importance that the fields had on military planning I'm reasonably confident that there is still a military presence securing the main facilities (the miles of pipeline are a different story). I also find it difficult to believe that convoys carrying the gas are not guarded by the military as we all know gas is kind of an important substance and the other supply columns are most certainly guarded. If the work is that dangerous have the military do it. They can after all shoot back and they are engineers. I know the UK has logistic regiments set up for just this type of work as well as getting Ports (they did a lot of work in Basra) and railways operational. David

From John Rich That’s not all I said so lets look at selective quoting shall we? My full post was I filled up for $1.56 this morning. It just struck me that it's hard to get contributions to a rebuilding conference when a company that was awarded a contract (without competitive tender) is exploiting the situation for considerable profit. There is a conference in Madrid for the purpose of raising money for Iraq and here we have what appears to be a gap between what the SOMO could get it for and what Halliburton is charging. Interesting now is the Multi donor trust fund run by the World Bank and the UN and I’m hopeful that the fund will get the best price for the required work. The fact that they are paying 3 cents more for gas than I do is immaterial if it can be obtained for 58 cents cheaper so I don’t buy that argument. Would you still buy your gas at $1.59 if you could get it for $0.98? From John Rich I think the mark up is a little more than 2% at the local gas station and supermarket. Go to Cosco, Sam’s club and do a comparison with buying bulk from a warehouse and what you pay at the supermarket/gas station. If it’s 2% tell me where you shop and I’ll start going there as well. There's also the [ossibility of buying supplies form your own divisions so adding to the profit From John Rich There is certainly the possibility of follow on contracts and even if there isn’t profit is profit it keeps people employed and shareholders happy. As for risking my neck I would be more likely to risk it for 2% of 200 million than 50% of a thousand. 2% of a big number is still a big number. From USMCrigger Making the profit isn’t the issue it’s whether the price is the best obtainable as the people are charging the Army Corps of Engineers/government for the fuel. That means you and I as it’s coming from our tax dollars. Maybe I’d just like to see a couple of quotes from other people but then I do get my car insurance from Progressive. I'm done here, David

I had a similar thought myself but further down the story it says this was an all boys school. Opened up a whole other set of questions. Not that there's anything wrong with that. David

What you trying to say? Do I look like Bob Dole? I've no idea though I was an intern for Pfizer when it launched and got a free Viagra T-shirt. I sent a bunch of Viagra bumpf to my brother when he turned 30 but no pills. David

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/hampshire/dorset/3205747.stm So how pissed would you be if you were this kids dad? David

It was a bit of a mix as Paul is English and Rameh is Iranian so the blending was cool but obviously the bride had a major contribution to what happened. Her mother had stayed with them for a while before they got married and even became a US citizen. Her family (dad, brother, uncles and cousins) and friends had as dancing etc. Really, really good time. David

Warwick's 15-20 minutes from Providence depending on traffic. If you find a place in East Providence then the bad part of the commute is I-195 before going south on I-95 (my fiancee works in Coventry and commutes form E.Providence). There are apartment places around Warwick but I've not lived there so I can't tell you much about it. David

East Providence is a nice part of town and not too expensive but not cheap either. Oso.com and projo.com are two places to start looking. Where in RI are you going to be working as the traffic on 95 can be a bitch? David

I was best man at my two friends' wedding ten days ago. Back... way back.... gone! Home run! It was an absolute blast one of the best I've been to. David

I filled up for $1.56 this morning.

Ok it's from the beeb but maybe there are other sources out there as well. David http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3205105.stm Halliburton, the oil services and construction group, has been accused by US lawmakers of charging "inflated prices" when they sell petrol to US troops in Iraq. Halliburton charges the US government more than $1.59 (£0.95) for a gallon of petrol used by the US Army Corp of Engineers in Iraq, according to US Representatives Henry Waxman and John Dingell. The price charged is much higher than that paid by Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organisation when it imports petrol from Turkey or other neighbouring countries at 98 cents or less for a gallon.

Seems as if some people were upset by the general. I thought his remarks were inappropriate given the job that he has. http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=05THOVCZ51OBMCRBAEOCFFA?type=topNews&storyID=3666969 David

I'll throw my two cents in here. How many of the guys they captured in Afghanistan were actively fighting the US before the US went in there? Those that were actively fighting/training to attack the US and may have intelligence that can assist in breaking the terrorist cells you can keep. Let them be monitired by the Red cross/crescent, give them legal representation and access to embassy representatives from their country i.e. UK, Australia etc. Those that were tribesman fighting as a way of life following their tribal warlord (may not be that bright and may not be a threat to the US in the future) can be sent back to Afghanistan. I believe there have already been a number of those repatriations. David