Links and Minifeatures 12 14 Thursday

Carnival of Thoughtful Consideration

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Ban Sworn in As U.N. Secretary-General



He started off right:

He pledged "to set the highest ethical standard" and "work to enhance morale, professionalism and accountability among staff members, which in turn will help us serve member states better, and restore trust in the organization."

However, he then followed it with:

Ban also paid warm tribute to Annan, saying "it is an honor to follow in your revered footsteps."



"Your tenure has been marked by high ideals, noble aspirations, and bold initiatives," he said. "Your courage and vision have inspired the world. ... You have given the United Nations new relevance to the people's lives."

ROTFL! You know, I'm pretty sure you're supposed to tell the icebreaker joke first.



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Palestinian PM returns to Gaza, leaving money behind



Sounds like Israel is being the bad guy, until you are reminded of this:

Israel, the United States and the European Union regard Hamas, which is sworn to Israel's destruction, as a terrorist organization, and imposed sanctions after the Islamist group rejected their demands to recognize the Jewish state, renounce violence and accept existing interim peace accords.

In short, money in Palestine under Hamas control becomes terrorist money. If Mexico was at war with the US, I wouldn't want us to allow people to bring money to the Mexican government, either.



Want evidence?

Gunbattle Prompts Gaza Crossing Shutdown

After dark, two loud explosions rocked the area and police said militants blew a hole in the border fence about a half-mile from the crossing. More gunfire was heard, as witnesses said Hamas gunmen were firing at the Egyptian side, drawing return fire from Egyptians and presidential guards from the rival Fatah movement.

One very interesting moment as a Palestinian leader inadvertently admits to the media the way Palestinians work:

Abu Mujahid, a spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees, said his group supports efforts to arrest those responsible for the killing. "Any person found guilty of killing children deserves to be killed in front of the people, even if he belongs to the PRC," he said. "His factional immunity is lifted, and the PRC is ready to help with any investigation."

Emphasis mine. Until this changes, and Israel can count upon the Palestinians to police their end of things and keep their own people under control, there will be no real peace. Whatever the Palestinians want to call it, when one side gets to attack the other that is not peace, and you shouldn't expect the Palestinians to keep it. Suppose a US Army brigade invaded Mexico, blowing large pieces out of Ciudad Juarez or Tijuana, and when the Mexicans demanded we do something about it, we just told them, "Oh, that was just Colenel Jones, who doesn't like you," and kept Colenel Jones in command of his brigade, maybe even promoted him. You think the Mexicans might have a valid complaint? You think they might be justified in trying to get a little of their own back? That's what Israel deals with every day, and this momentary slip admits to the world how the Palestinians think, and how Palestinian politics work.



They are talking about killing Palestinian children, of course. Killing Israeli children gets you a medal, a bonus, and a promotion.



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Serious developments: Sen. Johnson Critical After Surgery



I hope he recovers, and quickly. I make no secret of the fact that I prefer Republican politics right now, because of the War on Terror and the economy, but the Republicans keeping control of the Senate in this fashion would leave a bad taste in voters mouths while serving no particularly good purpose.



Sorry moonbat conspiracy theorists: No Republican "dirty tricks here, just one of those things that happen sometimes.

Johnson's condition, also known as AVM, or arteriovenous malformation, causes arteries and veins to grow abnormally large, become tangled and sometimes burst. The condition is often present from birth.

and

Arteriovenous malformation is believed to affect about 300,000 Americans, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. The institute's Web site said only about 12 percent of those have any symptoms. The symptoms, which range in severity, can include severe headaches, memory loss and dizziness.

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Iran nukes prompt concerns within Mideast

Ambassador Ross, now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, also said at an event Tuesday that the Saudis are telling the US, "Stop them - or that [nuclear power] is the way we go, too."

If that doesn't get the attention of the Indians and Pakistanis and Russians, I don't know what will. That would leave a Wahhabist Arab nationalist state with nukes when the Saudi monarchy finally comes apart.

"They are saying that if there is to be a Shiite bomb, then they will need a Sunni bomb to counterbalance it," he says. "They don't want that, but if their neighbor Iran goes nuclear in this climate of deepening Shiite-Sunni divisions, they don't see how they could sit aside and not match it."

Civil wars are always the nastiest.



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Foreclosure auctions up. The reason why?

"In California, I saw a billboard that said, 'Own the home you want, not the one you can afford,' " says Thomas DiMercurio, a Denver real estate broker who specializes in bank-held foreclosures. "That was so silly."

Yes, but it's also a widespread attitude. I've had at least eight prospects dump me in the last year because I tried to tell them what they could really afford, so they went and found somebody who would pretend that they could.



You are only kidding yourselves if you buy a property that you cannot afford. Sure you might get lucky and get raises and be able to afford it later. But you also might lose your job, need to relocate to keep it, or any of a host of other issues.



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Calif. Company Faces Immigration Charges

A Southern California fence-building company and two executives pleaded guilty Thursday to knowingly hiring illegal immigrants and agreed to pay a combined penalty of $5 million. The executives could also go to prison.

Put those executives away. The fact that people are willing to hire them is why they break our laws to come here. This was willful and blatant:

"You have show a kind of criminal conspiracy," said Steven Camarota, research director of the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, a group that advocates tighter immigration controls. "The mere hiring of illegals is not enough."



The illegal hiring took place between 1999 and 2005.



U.S. immigration officials said last year that 100 employees at Golden State Fence's Riverside office were unauthorized to work, including three whom the company had been ordered not to employ after a 1999 audit by the government.

Our daily dose of irony:

Among Golden State Fence's projects in recent years was construction of part of a 14-mile border fence in San Diego in the late 1990s.

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It's US vs UK in online geography battle



take the quiz here before the end of the year.



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I think I've been pleasantly surprised! The spokesperson for a national group has declined to claim victim status! Don't change $$$ for us



Perhaps we should chip in and get the man a bodyguard before the professional victims send out a hit squad...



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neo-neocon on war, and how winning decisively is the more merciful option.



Neptunus Lex on the Long War.