Who Was More Eager For Bad News?

The dominant story out of Iraq since Saturday has been the overwhelming and unexpected — to liberals, unexpected — success of the election. So, today, the Associated Press and Reuters (at the least) ran with a phony story about an American soldier being taken prisoner and held hostage by the "Mujahedeen Brigades" (or "Mujahideen Squadrons").

So, my quite sincere question is this: who was more eager to bring bad news to America to wipe the smiles off our faces? The Mujahedeen Brigades? Or the Associated Press?

More questions: Can it get any worse? Can they stoop any lower?

Or should I bother asking these kinds of questions? Get a load of this. Here is how a Reuters article was posted at Free Republic, 12:27 PM EST (quoted ellipsis in original):

DUBAI (Reuters) - A little-known Iraqi insurgent group said on Tuesday it was holding a U.S. soldier and threatened to kill him within 72 hours if Iraqi prisoners were not released, according to an Internet statement.

"Our mujahideen ... have managed to capture the American soldier John Adam after killing a number of his colleagues," said the Mujahideen Squadrons in the undated statement.

It carried a picture appearing to show a U.S. soldier sitting in front of a black banner with a rifle pointed at his head. The authenticity of the claim, which did not say where the man was seized, could not be verified.

"We will cut his throat in 72 hours if our male and female prisoners in the occupation jails are not released," it said.

A group using the same name, Mujahideen Squadrons, last month claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of a Brazilian engineer in Iraq (news - web sites).

Insurgents in Iraq, including al Qaeda's wing in Iraq, have been waging attacks on U.S.-led forces since they invaded the country in 2003.

And here is how that story (same URL cited at Free Republic) looks now (quoted ellipsis in original):

DUBAI (Reuters) - A picture of an "abducted" U.S. soldier in Iraq (news - web sites) appeared on a Web site on Tuesday, but suspicion grew it was a hoax after a U.S. toy maker said it appeared to show a model soldier made by the company.

"Our mujahideen ... have managed to capture the American soldier John Adam after killing a number of his colleagues," said the Mujahideen Squadrons in the undated statement on a Web site monitored in Dubai. It threatened to kill him.

But Liam Cusack, marketing coordinator for California-based Dragon Models USA, said the picture appeared to show a special forces operative figure the company had made for collectors.

Defense officials at the Pentagon (news - web sites) in Washington said the U.S. military had no indication any of its soldiers were missing in Iraq.

Cusack said the striking similarity between his company's action figure, which was marketed under the name "Cody," and the published picture, were pointed out to him early on Tuesday by an Arizona retailer.

"I worked on the development of that figure so I had seen the look of that head before," Cusack said. "We don't want to be the ones to say that it is (a hoax) for sure. Because if there is a search and rescue, that needs to be done."

Cusack, speaking from his office at City of Industry, California, noted the rifle being pointed at the figure in the photograph posted on the Web site also appeared to be the plastic M4 rifle included with the figure.

The message and photograph were posted on a site run by a group calling itself al-Muntada al-Ansar, which has in recent months restricted access to the site to registered users in an effort to avoid unknown groups posting messages.

The site has been the main channel of communication in recent months for Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq.

Insurgents in Iraq, including al Qaeda's wing in Iraq, have been waging attacks on U.S.-led forces since they invaded the country in 2003. (Additional reporting by Kevin Krolicki in Los Angeles)

Look. I'm not ignorant. I know the wires update stories continually. They always have. But... like... um... shouldn't there be some acknowledgement in the Reuters story that they had been hoodwinked? Instead, it pretends they're just reporting it as the story of a hoax. It's not as if they can run that kind of jive past the public anymore............

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 02/01/05 09:29:06 PM
Categorized as Media.

Pope John Paul in Hospital

According to this AP story at Freep, today:

Pope John Paul II, suffering from breathing problems and the flu, was rushed to the hospital Tuesday night, Vatican officials said.

The 84-year-old pope has been suffering from the flu since Sunday and apparently suffered a "breathing crisis," according to a Vatican official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Let's keep the Holy Father in our prayers.

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 02/01/05 09:12:51 PM
Categorized as Pope John Paul the Great & Religious.

Catholic Carnival XV

At Living Catholicism this week. Your Humble, Faithful Blogster has an entry in this week's Carnival.

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 02/01/05 05:58:27 PM
Categorized as Catholic Carnival & Religious.

Land of the Naive?

Thanks to Margaret for sending this.

I dare you to try this.

Enter Mexico illegally. Never mind immigration quotas, visas, international law, or any of that nonsense. Once there, demand that the local government provide free medical care for you and your entire family. Demand bilingual nurses and doctors. Demand free bilingual local government forms, bulletins, etc. Procreate abundantly. Deflect any criticism of this allegedly irresponsible reproductive behavior with, "It is a cultural United States thing. You would not understand, pal." Keep your American identity strong. Fly Old Glory from your rooftop, or proudly display it in your front window or on your car bumper. Speak only English at home and in public and insist that your children do likewise. Demand classes on American culture in the Mexican school system. Demand a local driver's license. This will afford other legal rights and will go far to legitimize your unauthorized, illegal, presence in Mexico. Insist that local law enforcement teach English to all its officers.

Good luck! You'll be demanding for the rest of time, or you'll soon be dead. Because it will never happen.

It will not happen in Mexico or any other country in the world. Except right here. Land of the naive.

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 02/01/05 05:46:04 PM
Categorized as Political.

Nuns and SUVs

A lesson in perspective.

A reader writes:

So I was mumbling to myself because I just spent a few bucks to go through the car wash to clean the dirt and sand off my new SUV and then I read this.

A Reuters article at AlterNet, Jan. 26:

One of the last two German nuns who endured years in communist North Korean camps was buried on Wednesday after a service attended by deaf-mute people she helped during more than six decades on the peninsula.

Sister Caritas died unexpectedly but peacefully on Monday whispering "Guardian angel, guardian angel", the head of her priory, Sister Gertrude, told Reuters. Sister Caritas was 91....

Her life-long friend, Sister Bertwina, is now the sole survivor of the original large group of German missionary nuns, monks and priests who came to Korea in the 1930s as Hitler tightened his grip in Germany....

In their latter years in what passes for retirement when you are a nun, the two sisters chatted almost daily about their life in Korea and often conversation turned to their time in North Korea.

They worked there, notably in Wonsan on the east coast, from the mid-1930s until the North Koreans imprisoned them before the 1950-53 Korean War and subsequently sent them to desolate labour camps that cost the lives of many of their compatriots.

Talking with outsiders, they played down their hardships before they were exiled in 1954 but the suffering was great.

"It's not something you can forget," said Sister Bertwina. Cardinal Kim and other priests said both women were remarkable for never expressing hatred for their captors....

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 02/01/05 05:27:13 PM
Categorized as International & Religious.

The Faces of the Democratic Party 2005-2006?

I apologize for having been a bit slow on the uptake lately. I didn't realize at the time that Chappaquiddick Fats... er... I mean the old fart senior socialist senator from the great state of Gaymarriagechusetts Massachusetts was counting on catastrophe in the Iraqi elections.

So was somebody else. That would be the Man from Mope... er... I mean the junior socialist senator from the great state of Gaymarriagechusetts Massachusetts, John "F" Kerry. Why else would he have appeared with Tim Russert on Meet the Press, this past Sunday morning? He (and Russert?) were planning on gloating, no?

Moreover, we find out that Doctor Howard "Cliff" Dean hates Republicans. It seems, too, that he is poised to become the new chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

At a critical turning point in the history of the human race, some of the most visible Democrats are (1) two old-guard politicians who were counting on catastrophe and (2) a new-guard politician who hates the political party responsible for the success. And two of the three were actually big-time losers in the last election cycle.

It looks to me as if the countdown to the 2006 general election is over before it's begun.

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Tue. 02/01/05 07:02:56 AM
Categorized as Political.