CELEBRITY IN CHIEF BARRY O IS LOSING HIS REGGIE LOVE.
THE THEN-26-YEAR-OLD JOINED AT THE HIP OF THE 46-YEAR-OLD MAN IN THE SORT OF RELATIONSHIP THAT ONLY NAMBLA OR DIFFERENT STROKES VIEWERS WHO REMEMBER THE VERY SPECIAL EPISODE WITH DUDLEY CAN UNDERSTAND.
AMERICA'S PRINCESS WILL MISS REGGIE LOVE OR, AS HE REFERS TO HIM, "iREGGIE, WHO HAS MY BOOKS, MY NEWSPAPERS, MY MUSIC ALL IN ONE PLACE" -- SAID IN THE BEST MARIE ANTOINETTE FASHION.
FROM THE TCI WIRE:
In news of the continuing war and occupation, Al Mada reports that State of Law's MP Haider al-Abadi declared on Monday that there is an agreement to give US 'trainers' (in aviation and counter-terrorism) "partial immunity." al-Abadi also sites concerns that there will be an attempted coup by former Ba'athists and that Iraq does not have the capabilities currently to stop such an effort. al-Abadi is identifed in the article as a "prominent" law maker in State of Law. State of Law is the political slate Nouri al-Maliki put together for the 2010 elections. Alsumaria TV adds, "Iraqi Security and Defense Parliamentary Committee assured, on Sunday, that Iraqi Air Force needs 5 years to become ready to protect Iraqi air space. Iraqi government should agree with countries positioned in Kuwait over defense matters, the committee said, warning from current and potential threats against Iraq."
In related news, Dar Addustour notes that the Parliament was scheduled to hold the first reading of a law that would ban the Ba'ath party. Yes, the proposal does seem redundant since the Ba'ath party is already outlawed in Iraq. Reidar Visser (Iraq and Gulf Analysis) states the bill also bans those advocating or embracing "terrorism, racism, takfir (labelling others as unbelievers) and sectarian cleansing -- though it falls short of defining those ideologies it is seeking to outlaw other than the Baath" and Visser emphasizes one area:
In related news, Dar Addustour notes that the Parliament was scheduled to hold the first reading of a law that would ban the Ba'ath party. Yes, the proposal does seem redundant since the Ba'ath party is already outlawed in Iraq. Reidar Visser (Iraq and Gulf Analysis) states the bill also bans those advocating or embracing "terrorism, racism, takfir (labelling others as unbelievers) and sectarian cleansing -- though it falls short of defining those ideologies it is seeking to outlaw other than the Baath" and Visser emphasizes one area:
Perhaps the most important and potentially controversial aspect of the bill is the creation of a committee that will oversee the law and hand over potential cases to the prosecution. This committee will be headed by the minister of state for parliamentary affairs, with members from the ministries of justice and human rights, the head of the consultative state assembly and two judges. As is well known, the minister of state for parliamentary affairs and the ministries of human rights and justices (which also administers the consultative state assembly) are all dominated by members of the grand Shiite alliance to which Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki owes his second term. Of course, this all comes at a time when there is already evidence that vague accusations of Baathism are being used to settle political scores.
Let's move over to the many conflicts between Iraq and its northern neighbor Turkey. Saturday Al Rafidayn reported that, starting Sunday, Turkish planes will no longer be able to land at Iraqi airports in response to the refusal to allow Iraqi planes to land at Turkish airports -- these are commercial flights. Turkey has refused to allow Iraqi planes to land because Iraqi allegedly owes money. KUNA explained, "The Iraqi move followed Turkish authorities' ban of Iraqi airplanes from landing in Istanbul airport because of what Ankara claimed was Iraq's Oil Marketing Company's (Somo) unpaid debt of USD five million."
Today Iraq shut off all of their airports to Turkish flights in retaliation for Turkey having already done the same to them. Mohammed Tawfeeq and Ivan Watson (CNN) reported Sunday that Iraq was willing to reverse its decision if Turkey was but that Turkey states that Iraq owes them $3 million. Today's Zaman added, "Turkey may seize planes owned by the Iraqi government as soon as they land in a Turkish airport due to the State Oil Marketing Corporation's (SOMO) failure to repay its nearly $3 million debt to Turkish businesses, Turkish diplomatic sources have told Today's Zaman." Today, Steve Bryant (Bloomberg News) reports that Iraq is allowing Turkey to land (commercial flights) at Iraqi airport for a week while the two countries try to iron out their dispute over Iraq supposedly owing Turkey millions (which led Turkey to deny Iraqi planes the right to land at Turkish airports). Hurriyet Daily News notes this is a "temporary measure" ("according to a statement by the Turkish Economy Ministry") and that the disupted amount has now risen to $20 million (that's what Turkey claims Iraq owes).
Reuters notes that Turkish military planes bombed northern Iraq again last night in the lastest wave of attacks which began August 17th. Press TV adds, "Turkey has deployed a massive military convoy in a southeastern district that borders with Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, Press TV reports. Turkish sources said the military convoy is comprised of about 200 military vehicles, including those that are resistant to mine blasts, Press TV's Ankara correspondent reported." The government of Turkey maintains the bombings are to 'root out' or kill the PKK.
The PKK is one of many Kurdish groups which supports and fights for a Kurdish homeland. Aaron Hess (International Socialist Review) described them in 2008, "The PKK emerged in 1984 as a major force in response to Turkey's oppression of its Kurdish population. Since the late 1970s, Turkey has waged a relentless war of attrition that has killed tens of thousands of Kurds and driven millions from their homes. The Kurds are the world's largest stateless population -- whose main population concentration straddles Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria -- and have been the victims of imperialist wars and manipulation since the colonial period. While Turkey has granted limited rights to the Kurds in recent years in order to accommodate the European Union, which it seeks to join, even these are now at risk." The Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq has been a concern to Turkey because they fear that if it ever moves from semi-autonomous to fully independent -- such as if Iraq was to break up into three regions -- then that would encourage the Kurdish population in Turkey. For that reason, Turkey is overly interested in all things Iraq. So much so that they signed an agreement with the US government in 2007 to share intelligence which the Turkish military has been using when launching bomb raids. However, this has not prevented the loss of civilian life in northern Iraq. Aaron Hess noted, "The Turkish establishment sees growing Kurdish power in Iraq as one step down the road to a mass separatist movement of Kurds within Turkey itself, fighting to unify a greater Kurdistan. In late October 2007, Turkey's daily newspaper Hurriyet accused the prime minister of the KRG, Massoud Barzani, of turning the 'Kurdish dream' into a 'Turkish nightmare'."
TR Defense notes, "Firat news agency reported that five Turkish war planes had been flying over Iraq's Qandil mountains but said it had not received any information about bombing in the area." Noel Brinkerhoff (AllGov) notes that while the US government plans to use Kuwait as a staging platform for Iraq, it's also supplying Turkey with drones. Hevidar Ahmed (Rudaw) adds, "Kurdish President Massoud Barzani turned down Ankara's request that Iraqi Kurdistan help fight and gather intelligence on the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) but is working on brokering a lasting ceasefire between Turkey and the rebel group, Fuad Hussein, Barzani's chief of staff, told Rudaw in an interview." Meanwhile the Telegraph of London explains that Turkey's efforts currently were focused upon arresting over 70 people in raids throughout the country -- those arrested included attorneys, 5 "BDP [Krudish Peace and Democratic Party] parliamentarians and two prominent intellectuals." As Kurd Net points out, "Turkey refuses to recognize its Kurdish population as a distinct minority. It has allowed some cultural rights such as limited broadcasts in the Kurdish language and private Kurdish language courses with the prodding of the European Union, but Kurdish politicians say the measures fall short of their expectations." Saturday, BBC's Newhour carried a segment broadcast from Turkey. Excerpt:
Robin Lustig: Turkey's been in the business of buying and selling for centuries. I'm in the heart of old Istanbul at the moment, in the spice market, surrounded by the colors, the smells of every spice you could imagine. There's a wonderful smell of coffee wafting on the evening air. These days, though, Turkey is selling something a little bit different. It's selling the idea of Turkish democracy, democracy in a Muslim country.
[chanting is heard]
Robin Lustig: These people are making full use of their democratic freedoms. They're Kurds, they're protesting, noisily, outside the court house, chanting for the release of a young Kurdish student who they say is being held in jail on trumped up charges. Kurds here in Turkey say the country's democratic system is deeply flawed, it fails to protect minority rights.
Robin Lustig: I've come now just a few steps away from the court house and I'm down by the Bosphorus, the strip of water that divides Europe from Asia. And with me here is one of Turkey's best known television stars Banu Guven. She's been telling me that she now has her own reasons for doubting Turkey's democratic credentials.
Banu Guven: I used to work for NTV and I had to quit because a week before the elections here, I was going to host one of the most prominent Kurdish politicians but just three or four days before, the director told me that we couldn't do it. A week before the elections, the government and the prime minister didn't want media to host Kurdish candidates.
Robin Lustig: In many parts of the world now, particularly in the Arab world, people are looking at Turkey as an example of a sort-of model of an Islamic democracy.
Banu Guven: We'd like to be a model for democracy, but we are not any kind of a model to anyone.
Robin Lustig: Turkey's been in the business of buying and selling for centuries. I'm in the heart of old Istanbul at the moment, in the spice market, surrounded by the colors, the smells of every spice you could imagine. There's a wonderful smell of coffee wafting on the evening air. These days, though, Turkey is selling something a little bit different. It's selling the idea of Turkish democracy, democracy in a Muslim country.
[chanting is heard]
Robin Lustig: These people are making full use of their democratic freedoms. They're Kurds, they're protesting, noisily, outside the court house, chanting for the release of a young Kurdish student who they say is being held in jail on trumped up charges. Kurds here in Turkey say the country's democratic system is deeply flawed, it fails to protect minority rights.
Robin Lustig: I've come now just a few steps away from the court house and I'm down by the Bosphorus, the strip of water that divides Europe from Asia. And with me here is one of Turkey's best known television stars Banu Guven. She's been telling me that she now has her own reasons for doubting Turkey's democratic credentials.
Banu Guven: I used to work for NTV and I had to quit because a week before the elections here, I was going to host one of the most prominent Kurdish politicians but just three or four days before, the director told me that we couldn't do it. A week before the elections, the government and the prime minister didn't want media to host Kurdish candidates.
Robin Lustig: In many parts of the world now, particularly in the Arab world, people are looking at Turkey as an example of a sort-of model of an Islamic democracy.
Banu Guven: We'd like to be a model for democracy, but we are not any kind of a model to anyone.
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