Whiskey Annex

Open Thread 6 Jul 09

This thread is offered as a backup, if needed, to the current open thread at MoA, and pending repairs to LS. If anyone would like to post on a specific topic please contact me, and I will arrange posting rights for you (some already have these rights, from way back when).

Open Thread - 17 Aug

A long-overdue open thread.

To start off, I have placed the text of three interesting articles at a new location here.

Two articles, from the excellent Long Island Newsday, deal with the well-known reports of US soldiers robbing Iraqi citizens. We need to keep stoking the outrage, and tearing down the myth that "Americans don't do xxx", be it rob people, torture innocents, wantonly kill civilians, etc. As LIN said in an accompanying editorial:

In ancient times, looting was as much of an invading army's prerogative as soldiers' pay. But this is the 21st century, and such a practice must have no part in the operation of a modern army - in particular the armed forces of the United States. Yet, in Iraq, thievery has besmirched the reputation of U.S. forces in the world's eyes.

...The real question, of course, is whether the soldiers' looting is condoned by higher authority or whether it is the contemptible act of a small minority of troops. On this, military authorities are ambiguous. A Pentagon official said soldiers may confiscate items, such as weapons or money, from suspected insurgents if they believe what they take could be used against U.S. forces or to aid the resistance. Such seizures must be reported to commanders and receipts issued for confiscated items. Clearly that's not always done; Army investigators are already probing 20 felony cases against U.S. soldiers. Prosecutions are mandatory, but so should be unambiguous mandates from top officials against pillage.

The other is a Telegraph article about efforts to seal the Mexican border against Islamic infiltrators. This one puzzles me, and I'm interested in your perceptions. It seems like the Bushies would be trumpeting this effort in light of the many valid criticisms of their "do nothing" approach to domestic security (I refuse to use the loaded word "homeland"). Instead, the article quotes a border patrol agent saying they've been told not to discuss it. It also introduced an immigration term new to me: "OTM" (Other Than Mexican).

Several possible reasons come to mind - 1) they fear the implication that talking about this effort highlights previous inaction, 2) it has to do with immigration policies and the Latino vote, 3) the knowledge that rules that treat some illegals differently from others will cause a furor. Any speculation?

Open Thread 21 July

Unlike most of the rest of the SCLM, apparently the Denver Post didn't get the memo from Karl that the prisoner abuse scandals are now a forbidden topic.

Sexual Wrongs Beyond Abu Ghraib:

Iraqi prisoners allegedly were stripped of their clothing and exposed to harsh conditions at two war-zone detention facilities separate from the notorious Abu Ghraib prison, according to Pentagon documents obtained this week by The Denver Post. The Army is investigating whether a detainee was sexually humiliated during an interrogation at Forward Operating Base Summerall near Bayji, Iraq, and whether several prisoners were forced to stand naked in the rain for 12 hours at a Balad, Iraq, base earlier this year, records show.

And this, brought to you by the Neocon "War is Peace" department:

US to develop 30,000-lb bomb

If that terrorist-appeasing Congress won't let you have bunker-busting tactical nukes, this is the next best thing.

Not an Open Thread

This thread is not open to insults or flames or past grievances or ganging up or fist fights or spitting.

So if you have something else to contribute, you can do so here.

Open Thread - 10 July

(insert OT comment here)

Open Thread 6 July

Once more, with feeling...

Open Thread 5 July

The previous Open Thread will be left open until it dies naturally.

It will then be sanctified, pumped full of chemicals, and placed in the Capitol Rotunda for mandatory viewing. That's the 'murcan way.

Open thread

For all topics (except Marlon Brando, the Annex, poetry or science...)

Open Thread - 30 June

Use this thread to talk things other than our future home.

This is Okie, btw - Glimmung is the name on my TypePad account. Free drinks for anyone who understands the reference (without googling :^) )

Speakeasy

This is a thread for personal and cultural and creative discourse and smartassery (pretty much what we're here for, yes?)

I'm taking the liberty of calling it a Speakeasy, creatively repurposing a leading contender for the eventual name of this Annex, from the Whiskey Business Reloaded thread. I felt "Speakeasy" was more fun than "Open Thread"... if you folks don't like it, I'll never do it again. If, on the other hand, it's OK, we can spawn new Speakeasy threads whenever desired.

If you have Inner Straussian kinds of remarks or business, please continue to use Whiskey Business Reloaded. If you want to start a specific topic, author a new post -- if you haven't got author privileges yet, email me the title and content -- happy to help out, especially while Okie's being reconstructed.

And a reminder -- if anyone wants to resume commenting on Might is Right, please do so. It's by no means a dead thread -- remember, this is not like Billmon's, where a thread is pretty much finished once it's no longer at the top of the Main page. I feel we have nowhere near exhausted Might is Right...

And Okie, let us know how it goes! My first impulsive thought was to congratulate you on getting the surgery done before snowboarding season; then I remembered that Oklahoma has neither significant hills nor significant snow. (I lived there as a kid -- I remember sledding in the gully in our neighborhood when there was an ice storm.) :-P