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Thursday, December 16, 2004 3:11 p.m. EST
DoD News Briefing
GEN. CASEY: Hello, everybody. I think I'm self-introducing. (Laughter.)
Nice to see you back in Washington here. For those of you I don't know, I'm George Casey, the commander of the Multinational Force in Iraq.
I'd like to just talk to you a little about the situation on the ground in Iraq. I've been there almost six months now, and we've just completed a review of the first five months. As I think some of you know, we developed a campaign plan in the July time period, John Negroponte and I, with both the embassy staff and my staff, and we've been working toward that ever since. And so we did our first major assessment here at the five-month point.
I can tell you that I feel that we're broadly on track in helping the Iraqi people complete their transition to a constitutionally elected government at the end of next year. We also believe that this objective is both realistic and achievable.
Now I recognize that that may not be an impression that we all share here, and I by no means want to give you the impression that this process is going to be uncontested or violence-free. That's not going to be the case.
But as we have seen in Najaf, in Tall Afar, in Samarra and in Sadr City, the Iraqi people are fighting to throw off the mantle of terror and intimidation, so that they can elect their own government and build a better life for the Iraqi people.
There is progress across Iraq every day, and every day we and our Iraqi partners are a step closer to accomplishing our objectives.
Now let me just make a couple of points with you. First of all, the insurgency that we're fighting is not 10 feet tall. They're a tough, aggressive enemy, but they're not 10 feet tall. They're the same people who have oppressed the Iraqi people for the last 30 years. They're the reason that over a million Iraqis are missing and why probably several hundred thousand of those missing Iraqis are likely in mass graves around Iraq. They're focused on their return to dominance, so that they can continue to plunder the great natural resources of Iraq. They offer no alternative vision. They offer only intimidation and subjugation.
With the win in Fallujah, with the liberation of Fallujah, they no longer have any safe havens anywhere in Iraq. And also, as a result of the success in Fallujah, it was driven home to them that they cannot defeat the coalition forces.
So they're attacking our will and the will of the Iraqi people, and I personally do not believe that they will defeat the indomitable spirit of 25 million free people who want to build a better life for themselves and for their families.
Second point: The Iraqi security forces are getting stronger every day. Our plan to build the Iraqi military and police forces is broadly on track. By February there will be 70 trained and equipped battalions in the Iraqi army; one of those will be a mechanized infantry battalion.
Progress has also been made in the police and special police forces. By February there will be six public order battalions, a special police regiment, four police commando battalions and some nine regional SWAT teams -- special weapons and tactics teams -- all of them contributing to the fight against the insurgents and the terrorists on a day-to-day basis. As most of you know, we still have a way to go in this area, but as I said, we're broadly on track and generally very pleased with the performance of the Iraqi security forces.
Third point: Reconstruction momentum is building. In June there were only around 230 projects actually what we call turning dirt, actually started, on the ground. By the end of November there were over 1,000, with a value of over $3 billion. All of this in spite of insurgents' efforts to disrupt the reconstruction process. This is a great tribute to the folks that work on those projects, particularly in the embassy and the coalition businessmen and women who are over there working to build a better Iraq.
Fourth point: The interim government and their security forces are broadly accepted by the Iraqi people. Some poll ratings for the government are as high as 70 percent approval rating. The Iraqi people express a generally favorable opinion about their new army and about their police, and more than 60 percent of Iraqis believe that the country is headed in the right direction and they are optimistic about their future.
We're also broadly on track for the elections. Fourteen of the 18 provinces have less than -- four or less incidents of violence a day, and the registration process in most of the country was executed. The Iraqi election committee is working on some alternative solutions for the two areas of the country in which it was disrupted.
I want to be clear: The insurgents and the terrorists will continue to attack and attempt to disrupt the election process. And we see that daily. They won't succeed. And the elections in January will then be but another step forward in our relentless progress toward a new Iraq.
Now if I could just say a word to the home audience here in the United States. As a nation you can take great pride in the role that our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines are playing in helping build a new, and better Iraq. Each and every one of them recognizes the importance that successfully accomplishing this mission holds for our own security, and each and every one of them makes a difference every day. Wherever I go I see their acts of bravery, compassion and selflessness, and I couldn't be prouder of these wonderful men and women.
Our success to date is also a tribute to the great men and women of the Iraqi security forces and the coalition who have given their lives to defeat terrorism and to help the Iraqis to help build a new Iraq. We grieve with the loved ones of all our service members and with those of Iraqi service members who have died. We are humbled by their sacrifice and their contribution in bringing freedom to Iraq, and we are humbled by their sacrifice in enhancing the security of the United States and the coalition.
Lastly, we are, especially during the holiday season, also deeply thankful for the love and support of our families and loved ones, whose sacrifices and strength underpin everything that we do.
Progress towards a constitutionally elected government will not be easy. Nothing worthwhile ever is. But the challenge of helping the people of Iraq build a better future is one that the Iraqi people in the armed forces of 30 freedom-loving countries can take on.
So thank you very much, and I'll take your questions.
Q: General, based at least partly on the candidates the Shi'a are offering, are you concerned on what influence Iran may have over the Iraqi government after the January election?
GEN. CASEY: I missed the very first part of your question.
Q: Based at least in part on what candidates the Shi'a are offering, are you concerned about the possible influence that Iran might have on the Iraqi government after the election?
GEN. CASEY: My personal view -- and this is political, but I'm here every day and I'll give you just my personal view. I don't see substantial Iranian influence on this particular government that will be elected in January. I see Iran as more of a longer-term threat to Iraqi security. But that's just -- that's my view, and from -- I'm a military person who's just -- who's there.
Q: You mean -- from a longer view, are you talking about a possible military attack as opposed to political?
GEN. CASEY: No, I don't -- I'm not talking about that. I'm just saying from a strategic perspective, Iraq is a long-term threat to stability -- I'm sorry, Iran is a long-term threat to stability in Iraq. If you look on the other side, I think Syria is a short-term threat because of the support they provide to the former Ba'athist leaders that we see operating in and out of Syria.
Q: Thank you, General.
Q: General, you talked about how the government is considering alternative solutions in some of those Sunni Triangle areas where registration is a problem. As I understand it, one of those is holding elections over a longer period of time; more than one day, in other words. What's your assessment of the security situation in doing them? Doesn't that just give a longer period of time for potential attacks by insurgents? And also could you tell us what the American role is in security of those election sites?
GEN. CASEY: I do not think the extended election period is still on the table. I know that was discussed, but I've discussed it with some of the leadership in the Iraqi government. I don't believe it's on the table anymore, at least it wasn't when I left.
We are working closely with the Ministry of Interior and the Iraqi election committee (sic/commission) in building the security plan for the elections. It's not finally formed yet. It will be probably by the end of this month. In general the role of the coalition forces will be one of broad-area security, and it will be the Iraqi security forces that will work the specifics of the polling areas and places like that.
Q: General, how concerned are you that the Sunnis will not participate or not turn out in numbers sufficient in this election, not only because of the security situation, but simply because of disaffection? And if they do, what does that mean?
GEN. CASEY: Again, I wish -- my political consultant, John Negroponte, could probably do a better job on this one. My view is -- I'll give you my opinion. My opinion is that there will be Sunni participation in this in a reasonable amount. I believe that the insurgents are pursuing a strategy I call purposeful disenfranchisement by intimidating Sunnis away from the election process so they can say, "Well, the Sunnis didn't vote, so therefore the election is invalid." I don't think that's going to be a successful strategy, but it's one that they're trying to implement. So I think there will be sufficient Sunni participation in this for people to accept the fact that it is a reasonably free and fair election.
Q: You talked about at the polling places it would largely be Iraqi security forces. There's what, 9,000 polling places?
GEN. CASEY: It's undetermined. Somewhere between 6(,000) and 9(,000); 9(,000) is the high end.
Q: And when you look at the number of Iraqi security forces, it seems like there wouldn't be very many Iraqi security forces. If you could talk about that, the numbers at those polling places. And I know you don't want to be too specific on that, but if you'll give us more detail about what the Americans will do. Maybe sort of rapid reaction? What?
GEN. CASEY: Again, we're still working through the process, but it's like any type of security situation. If you want to guard, you don't guard every place just at the point. You guard it away from the point. You restrict access to it. You keep vehicles from moving in the direction of the polling places around it. I mean, there's a range of options that you do to reduce exposure of these particular sites, rather than just taking 20 to 30 people and huddling around the site itself. That's being worked out.
My experience with elections in the past, in Bosnia and Kosovo, again the forces of the coalition, the security forces normally operate away from the polling sites in an area security role and do provide reaction force if there's problems.
And the other thing we do and we will do and are doing is to continue to conduct operations prior to the elections to disrupt the insurgents and to keep them from disrupting the election process. So there's an offensive component to this as well.
Q: General, you talk about the progress in security across Iraq. It seems that that airport road is a symbol of what many people say is a growing insurgency. What is the story with that road? And why can't U.S. and Iraqi forces patrol it effectively to stop the attacks that are happening on it?
GEN. CASEY: I wouldn't necessarily see it as a symbol of a growing insurgency. I would see it as a symbol of the growing use of car bombs in the insurgency. And that really is the question of the airport road. It's a tactic that's been adopted by the insurgents. They don't have to do much. A car bomb a day in Baghdad or on the airport road sends a symbol that the insurgency is very powerful, when in actuality I don't believe that they are. It's a classic technique of the urban insurgent. They are trying to provoke us to do something that will make us look like we're overreacting to them. I mean, you could tie up traffic -- I mean, if you searched every car getting on the airport road, you'd put that part of Baghdad in knots. So it really is the issue of dealing with car bombs. We continually work on that. And we will get -- we will get to a point where the airport road is secure and our people and the people in the embassy are protected against car bombs. But as with any battle, it's an action-reaction-counteraction cycle that we go through with the enemy and the enemy does to us.
Q: So is there a plan for that road or just a broader plan for attacking the terrorists and their ability to make car bombs?
GEN. CASEY: It's a little bit of each, but we're actively working with the minister of interior and his traffic forces on ways to reduce the threats to our forces on the airport road.
Q: Sir?
GEN. CASEY: Behind you, and I'll come back.
Q: Yes, General. This is Drew Brown with Knight Ridder. I know you addressed this in your opening remarks, but in your view, are we winning in Iraq? And how do you define winning? And as a follow- up, do you believe, given the current situation there, that credible national elections will be held or could be held or are possible to be held by January 30th?
GEN. CASEY: My view of winning is that we are broadly on track to accomplishing our objectives, which is a constitutionally elected government that is representative of all the Iraqi people and with Iraqi security forces that are capable of maintaining domestic order and denying Iraq as a safe haven for terror. And I believe we will get there by the end of December '05, and I believe we are on track to get there by December of '05.
Q: What was the second part?
Q: About the elections, do you think that --
GEN. CASEY: I do.
Q: -- given the situation, it's -- that credible elections will be held on January 30th?
GEN. CASEY: I do. I mean, it is going to be hard. They will fight us every step of the way. But I do believe elections are -- credible elections can be held. I mean, again, in the south and in the north, 14 of those 18 provinces, my -- what I believe is that they will be uneventful. They will be contested in the center area of the country, but I believe that we will succeed in that.
Q: As a final -- final question, how do you -- how do you -- what do you tell the families of servicemen who have been killed and maimed over there? How do define victory in Iraq, ultimate victory to these people who are losing their loved ones?
GEN. CASEY: I think I just did. But what I'd say to the families is what I said in my opening statement. These soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines that have died over there have given their lives to help 25 million Iraqis build a better life and to improve the security of the United States and the coalition. And these young men and women went over there knowing that would be a possibility, and God bless them. That's what makes this country great.
Q: On Syria. Could you elaborate a little bit more on the situation up along that border? There was supposed to be a joint border committee that was meeting to work out the cross-border traffic. Has that fallen apart?
And would you also address down in the south, it's my understand you all are still holding some number of Mujahideen-e-khalq at a camp down near Kuwait. What's their status? How many are there? And what's going to finally happen to them? And when?
GEN. CASEY: Last part first. That's more up north. There are -- my last recollection is that there was about 3,000 MEK folks still there at a camp, that we are working their process with the Red Cross. I do not have a timeline of when that process will be completed.
Q: So what will happen to them?
GEN. CASEY: Their ultimate disposition, where they --
Q: Where are they going to go?
GEN. CASEY: Almost every one of them has a different story, so it's a variety of different places.
I'm sorry, what was your first?
Q: And the first one is, what's going on at the Syrian border? You had a committee that was looking at that.
GEN. CASEY: Oh. There was a meeting. That process is continuing. I will tell you, my personal view is the Syrians are making some efforts on the border, but they're not going after the big fish, which is really the people that we're interested in. And we're really interested in them going after the senior Ba'athists that are providing the direction and financing for the insurgency inside Iraq. That's what we're really like to see them do.
Q: Because you guys obviously can't cross the border to go after them.
GEN. CASEY: Right.
Q: Yeah, your emphasis on the elections is making them shape into a fairly decisive element of the entire campaign. What would be the consequences if they are successfully disrupted by the insurgents? What's at stake here?
GEN. CASEY: It has been an important intermediate step in our campaign plan since we started this. But it is a step in the process. You're asking me a hypothetical. I don't really know the answer to that.
Q: Well, you plan for failure.
GEN. CASEY: Well, you also -- you plan for success. I really don't have a good answer to that, and I'd rather not get into a hypothetical situation.
Q: All right, you had said that with the fall of Fallujah for the insurgents, they don't have a safe house inside the country anymore. Mosul, since Fallujah has seen a lot of trouble up there, what is the status of Mosul now? And do you think that is becoming a safe haven for insurgents? And what are you doing to try to alleviate the ongoing problem up there?
GEN. CASEY: Let me talk about safe haven for a minute, what I mean when I say safe haven. For me, a safe haven is a place where insurgents and terrorists can go and plan, and build improvised explosive devices, and bring in recruits and receive them in, give them training, link them up with operations, stage for operations, rehearse operations, with impunity. And that's what they had in Fallujah, and that's what they don't have anymore. That's what they had in Samarra for a while. They don't have that -- (inaudible). That's what the Muqtada militia had in Najaf. They don't have that anymore.
So they've lost the ability to operate any place with impunity. So what's going on in Mosul, in my view, is not a safe haven. It's an area where insurgents have gone and have had some success against the local security forces.
Now our folks, operating with additional Iraqi security forces, have restored the status quo. But I will tell you more work needs to be done there to improve the security situation prior to elections, and it will be done.
Q: General Casey --
Q: I'm sorry. Could I just follow up? Do you see at all that Mosul is becoming a safe haven? Is there an effort at all, any intelligence that shows that these folks have actually started moving into Mosul and they'll make that kind of their Fallujah?
GEN. CASEY: I see no evidence that the terrorists are trying to make Mosul a safe haven as I define "safe haven." It is certainly an area where they are operating and attempting to disrupt the election process and the coalition and Iraqi security force operations, but not a safe haven.
Q: General Casey, if you -- if indeed, as you say, the terrorists and insurgents have lost the ability to operate with impunity, they've lost their safe havens, then how do you explain the fact that they continue to take such a toll, to be so effective against the Multinational Forces?
And what -- a second question -- what, if anything, will the Multinational Force be doing differently between now and January 30th to improve the situation and instill confidence in the Iraqi people that they can safely go to the polls and vote?
GEN. CASEY: To be clear, I said that they could operate with impunity inside the safe haven. They are clearly operating elsewhere around Iraq.
Now these levels of violence since Fallujah have dropped dramatically. And they are actually now down at the levels prior to Ramadan and really right where -- back where we were at transfer of sovereignty. So the levels of violence have come way down.
I do not -- they are not necessarily operating effectively against coalition forces. In fact, when we look back, the numbers of attacks don't necessarily produce a very high volume of casualties. In fact, a lot of the attacks are in fact ineffective against coalition forces. They are frankly more successful against civilians and in some cases against Iraqi security forces.
Q: And the second part of the question. What, if anything, will you be doing differently between now and the end of January to do --
GEN. CASEY: Oh, yeah.
Q: -- in spite of all this, instill the confidence to the Iraqi people that they can safely go to the polls and vote?
GEN. CASEY: That's a great question. We -- I think you know a few weeks ago I asked for some additional forces before the election period. We felt we needed to keep up the momentum, to keep the pressure on the insurgents that moved away from Fallujah after the Fallujah operation took place. And those forces are going to help us both keep the pressure on them and then get a more secure environment prior to the elections.
The other thing that's happening now is, as I mentioned, the Iraqi security forces are graduating. They're coming out of their training. And we're -- 18 of those 27 battalions are on line, and I think 12 of them have come on line in about the last 45 days. And so they are now available to enhance security across Iraq.
Police continue to graduate. We continue to crank out the police commando battalion. So there will be a concerted effort across Iraq, particularly in the greater Baghdad area and the Mosul area and in the Al Anbar province, all the way up to January 30th.
Q: You said in your opening statement you were generally pleased with their performance. That doesn't sound like a ringing endorsement.
GEN. CASEY: I said we are generally pleased with their performance. Everybody knows there have been instances -- Mosul is a good example -- where the police collapsed. But there are 12 provinces where the police are doing very well every day. So it's a mixed bag, but we're generally pleased.
The forces in Fallujah -- the Iraqi battalions that fought in Fallujah did very well. And they'll become the center, really, I think, of what the Iraqi Army becomes.
Q: General, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard have missed their recruiting goals the last two months. The National Guard is announcing new incentives for that. Given the fact that the Guard and Reserve represent about 40 percent of your forces over there and will continue to remain an important part -- a source of your troops in the immediate future, how concerned are you that many of these active duty forces who would normally flow into the Reserve and Guard are not doing so because they don't want to have to go back to places like Iraq and Afghanistan? How big a concern is that to you as the commander of forces on the ground there?
GEN. CASEY: Frankly, it's not something I've thought about deeply in about six months -- when I was the vice chief. But clearly a good flow of active forces into the Guard and Reserve is something that will benefit the Army, the Guard and Reserve over the long haul. And again, I haven't thought about it in a while there, but it's something I think we need to pay attention to and continue to encourage and maybe incentivize active forces to continue to move into the Guard and Reserve.
Q: General Casey, could I ask you a question about the level of sectarian violence? Do you think it's on the rise? There have been several incidents recently -- the bombing yesterday against the Shi'a and bombing of a bus load of Kurdish militiamen up in Mosul. How do you assess that aspect of the insurgency?
GEN. CASEY: I would not assess that there is a high or seriously increasingly level of sectarian violence at this time. There are clearly incidents. It is a troublesome trend, and it is one that we will continue to watch closely.
Q: What do you think the source of it is? Is this -- I mean, Zarqawi in his famous letter talked about trying to foment just this sort of thing. Do you think that's where these things are --
GEN. CASEY: I wouldn't want to guess on that. But you've quoted a potential source.
Go ahead.
Q: General, you said a few times that things are broadly on track. But now that you've been there six months, can you give us any specific areas where you had hoped to be further along than you are at this point?
GEN. CASEY: Fair question, because the analysis that we did did look at that. I'll tell you, I would have hoped we had been further along on the Iraqi -- helping the Iraqi -- particularly the ministries I'm concerned with, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Defense -- in building their intelligence services up. We're working counterinsurgency. Intelligence is key to that. And what we've said, and what we've seen to some degree but not the extent that I think we can if we build these effective intelligence services, is that we benefit from what the Iraqis know about themselves. So that's going to be one of our main priorities for the next year.
The second major thing that we'll be working on for next year is the local police. We are continuing to train folks. We've adapted their training program to make them more able to operate in a counterinsurgency environment. You know, the cop on the beat doesn't normally necessarily think he's going to get attacked by a carload of guys. They need to have some paramilitary-type skills so they can defend and protect themselves and operate in a counterinsurgency environment. So that's the second point.
Third point is I think we've got to do more work on the borders and on the border guards, and that will be another focus for the next year.
Q: General, I want to go back to one thing you said about the insurgency, that they're not 10 feet tall. That's a statement that's been used in the past to describe the Soviet Union soldier, the Viet Cong, and yet we had trouble in Vietnam and it was strung out a long time. What is your best intelligence about the resiliency of the insurgency, its ability to reconstitute? (Inaudible) -- you can cut off a lot of tails but you got to get at the head.
GEN. CASEY: Oh, absolutely.
Q: Should the American public and the Iraqi public expect this insurgency just to go on in some form for quite a while no matter what happens January 30th?
GEN. CASEY: I think we ought to be clear that when they have the elections on the 30th of January, the insurgency's not going to go away. I mean, you mentioned some other cases, but if you look at the history of insurgencies, these are protracted events. They go on for a long time. Now, they won't necessarily go on at the same level and they won't necessarily go on at a level where it will require 150,000 American troops, especially when we're creating Iraqi security forces that we'll work with over the next year to help them build independent counterinsurgency capability, but insurgencies generally go on for a long period of time, and I think you'd expect to see the insurgency in Iraq go on at some level for a long time.
Q: They seem to be more sophisticated. I heard that there was command and control sophistication or the attacks seemed to have picked up. It doesn't seem to be getting less sophisticated, but even more as you kill a lot of them.
GEN. CASEY: We are seeing military capabilities. I wouldn't say necessarily sophisticated, but we are seeing military capabilities in platoon-size attacks that we had not necessarily seen before. But for them to conduct an attack like that takes a lot of their time and their effort, and we're not seeing a lot of these.
Q: General, could you just clarify your statement on Syria, what your concerns are about their role in the insurgency or perhaps the going and coming of foreign terrorists across that border?
GEN. CASEY: I have two concerns with Syria. One, as you suggest, is foreign fighters. And we see a facilitation mode through Syria, foreign fighters coming into Iraq. I do not see direct Syrian government involvement in that facilitation, but it is coming through Syria. And I do believe that they have the capability to stop it if they had the will to stop it.
The second point is we have fairly good information that there are senior former Ba'athists, members of that they call the New Regional Command, operating out of Syria with impunity and providing direction and financing for the insurgency in Iraq. And that needs to stop.
Q: Is al-Douri one of them?
GEN. CASEY: He's back and -- he's a back and forther. He's not necessarily in there.
Q: General, could you -- just a quick --
STAFF: Let's make this -- let's make this the last one, General.
Q: Can I do a quick, you know, question on -- you said to Kathleen that the Iraqi security forces are performing well in 12 of the provinces in your own -- right? But one of the things you also say is that 14 of the provinces are in pretty good shape. So it would seem that in those 12 provinces they haven't really been tested. I presume before Mosul happened, before the most recent violence, you probably thought those Iraqi security forces were performing well. I mean, they're the retrained Iraqi security forces. So if they haven't been tested yet, aren't there still concerns about how they would do? I mean, I guess yesterday in Samarra a police station was attacked and not a shot was fired, and they also left the area.
GEN. CASEY: The 12 or 16 provinces, what I meant, those were police, not necessarily all Iraqi security forces. Just police. And whether or not they've been tested, some of them have. In the south, during the Muqtada militia attacks, there were several police stations that were attacked fairly heavily, particularly the one in Kut for example, and they did fight very well. But there is something to what you're saying about untested.
Now in Mosul, we have seen problems with the police in Mosul over a period of time. And so the fact that all of them collapsed at the same time was a surprise. The fact that they had a chief of police who was not very effective and who many believe was corrupt -- that problem up there had been going on for a longer period of time, so it wasn't a complete shock.
Listen, thank you all very much. Come over here and see us.
STAFF: Thank you all for attending.
Q: (Off mike) -- are they commanding, actually, the insurgency, this new regional command out of --
STAFF: No, that's their name.
Q: That's what they call themselves.
GEN. CASEY: Thank you.


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UNLV Rebels 56, New Mexico Lobos 42
Up Next: New Mexico State at New Mexico Lobos -- Branch Field -- Saturday, 5 p.m. (MT)
By Richard Stevens – Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
It was a history-making game forged by a New Mexico option that racked up 497 rushing yards with the history coming from three Lobo backs cracking the 100-yard barrier.
Three in one game -- for the first time in New Mexico history.
The Lobos ended up with 581 total yards and ruled the clock by more than five minutes. However, the big-play Rebels ended up in control of the scoreboard, 56-42.
Lobo coach Bob Davie didn't hide his frustrations – or his team's need.
"At the end of the day, you got to be able to stop someone and you got to be able to make some plays," he said. "We have to get better on defense. That is a humbling experience. We have to grow up on defense.
"That's unheard of by me to rush for almost 500 yards and not win the football game. There were so many good things (on offense), so many positive things."
The Lobos got 192 yards from Kasey Carrier, 119 yards from Carlos Wiggins and 108 from quarterback Cole Gautsche. UNM averaged 8.4 yards per carry. Wiggins had his 119 yards on three carries and caught two passes for 57 yards.
"Carlos is an explosive guy," said Davie. "He continues to improve."
The two Mountain West teams both ran 72 plays during the Saturday night on Branch Field with UNLV rolling out 568 yards with 248 coming on the ground and 320 coming through the air -- 293 yards from Caleb Herring's arm, which went 25-of-34 with no picks and four scores. UNLV also scored four times on the ground.
"Give him a lot of credit," Davie said of Herring. "He is a guy who a year ago was playing wide receiver, who started out the (2013) season the backup. Since he's come on that field, they've been pretty much unstoppable."
Both teams were pretty much unstoppable in the first half and played to a 35-35 halftime count. UNM had 400 yards rushing in the first half. Both defenses played better in the second half, but UNLV had the edge there holding UNM to 97 rushing yards in the second half.
The Lobos only scored once in the second half on a 43-yard pass from Gautsche to Wiggins that pulled UNM into a 42-42 tie. The Rebels reached the board twice in the fourth quarter. UNLV went up 49-42 with 4:46 to play on a 7-yard pass from Herring to Devante Davis, who had 10 catches for 164 yards and three scores.
After Vegas went up 49-42, the UNLV defense forced the Lobos to punt and UNLV had the ball with 3:03 to play while guarding that seven-point lead.
The Rebels Tim Cornett went around the right side of the UNM defense for 75 yards on the first play to seal the MW win for the visitors from Vegas. UNLV is 3-2 and 1-0 in league play while the Lobos fall to 1-3 and 0-1. Cornett finished with 179 rushing yards.
There were a few little things that turned out to be big things in this loss. The Lobos were penalized six times for 60 yards and UNLV had one flag for 10 yards. "We had a couple of personal fouls that just crushed us," said Davie. "We are so vulnerable on defense that we can not have any mistakes. It's humbling."
The Lobos also fumbled three times and lost two of them while UNLV lost a lone fumble by Cornett.
"Physically, they are a good-looking football team," said Davie. "But, man, to be able to move the ball like we moved on offense and not be able to win the game is frustrating. But we keep plugging away."
The Lobos next play the New Mexico State Aggies, who are coming off a loss to San Diego State.
"The most important game of the year is next week," Davie said of the rivalry with NMSU. "We'll bounce back. We have no choice."
Said Wiggins: "We just have to come back harder next week."
FIRST HALF: New Mexico Lobos 35, UNLV Rebels 35
"I don't know if I've been in a game like that," said Davie. "That first half was just unbelievable. Both teams, every time they touched the ball, there was a chance to score."
The Lobos rolled out 400 yards rushing in the first half with Carrier going for 147 yards on 16 carries. Gautsche and Wiggins each added 84 yards and Crusoe Gongbay had 57 yards. The Lobos got first-half touchdowns from Carrier, Wiggins (2), and Gautsche (2) to get their 35 points.
The Rebels had 308 first-half yards to 442 total for the Lobos, but like the Lobos didn't have much trouble marching down the field. Herring was 10-of-14 in the half for 169 yards and two aerial scores. There was one punt in the first half – by the Rebels on their first possession.


text: I thoroughly enjoyed this book. As a new reader of Stephen King I was a little intimidated, but in the end I thought it was a wonderful work. All the character's are developed so masterfully. And, if you're anything like me, you find yourself loving and hating characters like they are real people. It's a wonderful story of corruption and has many underlying motifs. Powerful novel in my opinion.


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Step Start, Walk n'ride
- Mumsnet Reviews
- Product Information
Your Reviews
"alright, but wouldn't pay alot for it…"
We inherited this off SiL, we never used it as a walker as it was just too 'fast' on our lino and tiled floors.
DD does love to sit on it and trundle back and forth, she's now 18 months and I'm thinking it's time to pass it on as she's just not that interested in it, it's hard to turn corners.
It was fun for a while, glad I didn't pay for it and happy that someone else will get some enjoyment out of it too. It does seem quite tough so could go on for some years.Read moreLess
Mumsnetter kellestar
27Number of total reviews contributed on Mumsnet7Number of Toys and gifts reviews contributed
- kellestar has been a Mumsnetter since Aug 2010
- Has children: yes
27 reviews posted
19 Mumsnetters found them helpful
"This is a fairly good toy to encourage movement and…"
This is a fairly good toy to encourage movement and walking, DS found the extra bit to pull, roll, twist and push fairly interesting for a while.Read moreLess
Mumsnetter HobbitMama1Number of total reviews contributed on Mumsnet1Number of Toys and gifts reviews contributed
1 review posted


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* Miss Temple invites Jane and Helen for tea, and the starving girls eat some delicious cake and converse about Latin.
* Jane's caring for Adele, and feeling sorry for her that her mother abandoned her.
* Jane's first return to Thornfield from Gateshead. She comes ''home'', looking forward to seeing motherly Mrs Fairfax, hearing Adele's nurse Leah's happy greeting and Adele's chatter. The hot summer weather adds to the good feeling.
* Rochester actually bonding with Adele in the carriage scene after insisting he didn't want brats on the trip.
* [[spoiler: Reader, I married him.]] Aww. Narrator, congratulations.


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Liberty Branch
The Liberty Branch
The current Liberty Branch opened in 1992. Before joining the MCPL system, Liberty's library was called the Frank Hughes Library. It opened in 1939. Last year, 310,829 patrons visited the library.
Kids Create
Children at the Liberty Branch explore the work of 20th century sculptor Aberto Giocometti and create "Giocometti-styled" sculptures.
Storytime With Friends
Storytimes are great learning opportunities for kids, but they are fun too! This storytime group visited the fire station next door to the library.
Great Programming
David zum Brunnen portrayed 17 Christmas Carol characters and Charles Dickens himself during the program "Night Before Christmas Carol".


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All In Good Time
Posted: October 06, 2012|
- Date(s):
- Location:
- Details:
- Atul Dutt and his blushing bride Vina exchange vows at a traditional Indian ceremony in front of family and friends. They retire to a bedroom under the roof of interfering Eeshwar Dutt and his wife Lopa, where cracks in the relationship gradually show.
Times: Thu 11.00 7.20
The Pound Arts Centre Pound Pill,Corsham,SN13 9HX
01249 701628
Book a Cab
Local World In Partnership with Minicabit. Easily plan your local or long distance trip by instantly comparing prices from hundreds of licensed cab operators. Now you can book the cheapest and most convenient way to get to your destination in cities, towns and airports across the UK.


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Date: December 16, 2012Time: 9:00 am - 11:00 am
The Bradenton Times Events
Extension Master Gardener Plant ID Tour: Robinson Preserve
Date: December 16, 2012Time: 9:00 am - 11:00 am
Location: Show map Robinson PreservePhone: (941) 722-4524
1704 99th Street Northwest
Bradenton, FL
1704 99th Street Northwest
Bradenton, FL
GARDENER PLANT ID TOUR: 9-11am; Stroll through Robinson Preserve's salt marshes to learn more about Florida's native plants and inhabitants of a coastal habitat. Suitable for all ages. Tour begins at parking area near main entrance at 1704 99th Street Northwest, Bradenton.
Call the Extension Master Gardeners to register.


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FDA Clears Boston Scientific IntellaTip MiFi XP Ablation Catheter and Steerable Sheath
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Boston Scientific's IntellaTip MiFi XP catheter and granted 510(k) clearance for the Zurpaz 8.5 French steerable sheath for electrophysiology (EP) ablation procedures.
The IntellaTip MiFi XP provides information that allows electrophysiologists to pinpoint locations for ablation. Users say it is especially useful in identifying areas of interest for diagnosis and ablation with its high resolution electrogram.
IntellaTip MiFi XP is indicated for ablation of atrial flutter, an arrhythmia that affects nearly 1 million people in the United States. The catheter features sophisticated mini electrodes on the tip designed to provide information about tip location and help clinicians assess lesion maturation and differentiate viable from non-viable tissue.
The products were approved by the FDA in August 2013.
For more information: www.bostonscientific.com


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Unleashed to the masses in September 2008, Google Chrome is a web browser that uses the WebKit layout engine to render websites and pages.
First available as a beta on Windows, versions now exist for the Mac OS X and Linux.
It features a built-in automatic update service.
Chrome is based on the open-sourced project Chromium.
Questions here should be concerned with the interoperability of Chrome with web applications. Questions regarding Chrome's settings, functionality, or features should be asked at Super User.


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Dr. Robert Waraen GibsonName: Dr. Robert Waraen Gibson, DDS
Locaton: Bradenton
Date of Death: June 15, 2013
Age at death: 86
Dr. Robert Warren Gibson, DDS, 86, Bradenton, died June 15, 2013. Born in Detroit, Michigan he moved to Bradenton in 1962 from Mt. Pleasant, Michigan. A Veteran of the US Army during World War II, he was a graduate of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor with a DDS and he attended Sara Bay Baptist Church. Survived by wife, Lora R. of Bradenton, FL; sons, David B. (Kim) of Panama City, FL and Steven B. (Donna) of Bradenton, FL; step-sons, Danny (Heather) Brooks of Japan and Brandon (Nicole) Brooks of Sarasota, FL; daughter, Patricia King of Sarasota, FL; step-daughter, Caitlin (Jared) O'Neal of Bradenton, FL; sister, Barbara (Taylor) Brown of Sanford, FL; 11 grandchildren; 3 great grandchildren.
Funeral Information:
Visitation will be 10:00-11:00AM with Services to follow at 11:00AM Monday, June 24, 2013, at Sara Bay Baptist Church, 415 67th Avenue West, Bradenton, FL 34207. Military Honors 2:00PM Monday June 24, 2013 at Sarasota National Cemetery 9810 State Road 72 Sarasota, FL 34241. Brown & Sons Funeral Homes & Crematory 26th Street Chapel, 5624 26th Street West, Bradenton, FL 34207 in charge of arrangements. Condolences towww.brownandsonsfuneral.com.


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AMARILLO -- The 32nd Annual M*A*S*H Blood Drive is going on right now.
You can donate blood til 7 tonight at the Armed Forces Reserve Center, 4511 NE 24th.
For donating you can receive a long sleeved M*A*S*H shirt, too.
If you can't make it tonight, you can donate Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. or Sunday Noon til 5 p.m.
Copyright 2014 Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.


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Purchasing Services has partnered with vendors and manufacturers, in addition to participating in several purchasing consortiums, and cooperative buying agreements to provide the best value to the University Community. Discount levels vary from commodity, supplier, and/or quantity, so it's always best to work with your USF Purchasing Representative. On average, we are able to negotiate 30-65% off SRP.
Please note: Our Supplier Portfolio is currently being updated. Please check back soon for a list of preferred Manufacturers and Vendors. For immediate inquiries regarding specific commodities, please contact Purchasing and Ancillary Services directly at email@example.com


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Box.net's cloud services store content online providing the ability to share files and collaborate like most large corporations. Personal users have the ability to share a single file or an entire folder. Receive real-time notification when shared files are added, edited or commented on.
Box.net's online platform allows quick and easy uploads and and file access on any device: desktop, laptop, iPhone, iPad, Android phones, tablets and more. Third-party integrations assist in using this platform as a sales tool.
Box.net Plans and Pricing:
- Personal Plan - Starts at $9.99/month for 25GB
- Business Plan - Starts at $15 per user a month for 1000GB
- Enterprise Plan - Have to call for estimate. Unlimited users and storage.
Company Profile:
Aaron Levie and Dylan Smith founded Box.net in 2005 in Palo Alto, CA. They now have more than 115 employees and over 100,000 customers and their client list continues to grow.
Box.net's goal is to provide the same high quality technology and service a big corporation has to any size business or individual. Having partnered with many different companies, Box.net makes their services easily accessible to any individual or business at an affordable rate.


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Stop eBay selling taxidermy & Animal Corpses
In allowing the sale of animals in this way Bay encourages hunters to kill our wildlife for profit.
In allowing the sale of animals in this way Bay encourages hunters to kill our wildlife for profit.
We ask to stop the terrible practice of eating dog meat and tortures to which the dogs are subjected in China.
because if we work together we can end this horrific display of humanity <3
Jindo Dogs are South Korea's national dogs and they are officially designated as South Korea's "Natural Monument No.
Animals are important, no matter what their size or species. It's up to us to save them. Help stop animal cruelty today!
More than six million animals are used annually in research in Australia and New Zealand.
A high school football team in Ohio buys - and then discards - a live tiger cub "mascot" every single football season!
We believe that Facebook needs to remove their animal hate pages and needs to stop their animal cruelty pages.
The animal of the zoo of mayaguez are in poor condition and mistreated.
Stop animal abuse and punish the abusers


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Gio Lupo & Paolo Suriano; After Work Cumfest In The Kitchen
The following tags exist in this scene. You can find similar scenes by combining tags in this scene together using the checkboxes, or just click a tag name to browse...
Starring Gio Lupo and Paolo Suriano, DVD: The Lord Of Dreams
Do you recognise pornstars in this scene? Begin typing a pornstar name, then click on the button to suggest them!
Gio lupo wrestles Paolo Suriano in this gay ass licking fuck fest with playing of cocks and licking of assholes
A police officer inspects a potential candidate for the job by looking at his oral and anal skills
Featured in playlists: Phatbooty (23 Videos), Fav's (94 Videos)
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Robert Rapier
Energy | Aug 28, 2014
Global Biofuels Status UpdateToday I want to take a deep look at the global biofuels picture, drawing mainly from the Renewables 2014 Global Status Report (GSR) that was released in June by REN21, the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century.
Energy | May 15, 2014
How Fossil Fuels Subsidize Us"The subsidies we give fossil energy companies are a rounding error relative to the subsidies fossil energy give to society."
Energy | Apr 25, 2014
Renewable Hydrogen on the Big IslandBecause of the relatively low population density and the abundant natural resources, Hawaii has the potential to do something that will prove to be much more challenging elsewhere: Derive most or all of its energy from renewable sources.
Energy | Sep 24, 2013
Nonrenewable Renewables?What does renewable energy mean? This question isn't as simple as it sounds.
Energy | Aug 23, 2013
The way I saw thingsI often find myself wondering where my life would be today had I not stumbled across The Oil Drum in 2005. I don't know that I would still be writing today were it not for my early experiences with TOD readers. As TOD winds down, I thought I'd share my story, which I have not told before.
Energy | May 2, 2013
The Key to Running the World on Solar and Wind PowerPerhaps the biggest shortcoming of solar and wind power is their intermittency. In locations like Hawaii, where I live, wind and solar power are already competitive on price. My fossil-fuel supplied electricity typically costs above 40 cents a kilowatt-hour, and wind and solar power can compete with that. But since they can't supply power that is available on demand (firm power) they …
Energy | Feb 14, 2013
Book Review: Reinventing FireWhile I disagree with Amory Lovins on many topics, the man is definitely a visionary. In his latest book Reinventing Fire: Bold Business Solutions for the New Energy Era, Lovins and his coauthors make the case for retrofitting 120 million buildings, and for fundamentally changing our transportation infrastructure, the way our industries use energy, and the way electricity is produced and consumed.
Energy | Oct 2, 2012
Hofmeister: A difficult decade ahead for oil prices and suppliesI, along with my editor Sam Avro, recently conducted a broad-ranging interview with John Hofmeister, former President of Shell Oil. The topics touched upon included future oil supplies and prices, climate change, U.S. energy policy, and topics familiar to R-Squared Energy readers such as Peak Lite and the Long Recession. I will present this interview in a series of stories covering some of the …
Economy | Aug 28, 2012
Aaron Wissner interviews Robert Rapier after ASPO 2011Following last year's ASPO conference, I was interviewed by Aaron Wissner of Local Future, which is a non-profit educational organization dedicated to issues of energy, the environment, and sustainability. Aaron just made that interview available, and instead of an R-Squared Energy TV episode this week, I thought I would share this interview with readers.
Environment | Aug 9, 2012
Climate change and developing countriesThis post continues a theme I covered in my book Power Plays. Part 1 covered the impact on oil price and supply in Petroleum Demand in Developing Countries. Here I discuss some of the climate change implications.


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Where to Stay
Chaweng beach, Koh Samui
+66 7741 4248
+66 7741 4249
Located on popular Chaweng Beach, this brand new 4-star resort boasts 42 rooms and bungalows with ocean view over the long sandy beach of Koh Samui.
Guests can have a choice of 2 styles of accommodation; Seaside Bungalows with Thai Southern design on Chaweng Beach amidst private garden setting or Deluxe Rooms with Moroccan style set around the swimming pool. All rooms are equipped with modern amenities for maximum comfort.
The resort will have 2 swimming pools and 2 children's pool, a main restaurant, a beach and pool bar, as well as a spa.
Bhundhari Chaweng Beach Resort offers you a simple but pleasurable holiday experience in Koh Samui.
Soft opening since Nov 2012, and expected to be in full operations in Quarter 2 -2013.
No. of units : 42
High Season : July - April
Low Season : May - July
The closest destination to this result :
See & Do in Koh Samui :


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Michael Stoff, Director 305 East 23rd St, CLA 2.102, (G3600) Austin, TX 78712-1250 • 512-471-1442
Plan II Student Receives Prestigious Scholarship
Manasi Deshpande Honored with Truman Scholarship
Posted: March 28, 2006
She works as a Supplemental Instructor in the Department of Economics and serves as co-Chair of Students for a Sustainable Campus.As founder and president of Students for Access, Manasi is also devoted to improving campus accessibility and disability services. She recently conducted a research study on campus accessibility, and she is now leading a student effort to develop an online interactive accessibility map of campus. Manasi hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in natural resource economics and a career in energy policy.


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The Universal Health Care Experiment
Universal health care has been a hot topic in this year's presidential campaign. Whether you are for and against the idea of providing (or mandating) health care coverage for every American, let's assume that it could become a reality and play out the consequences. Would it improve the quality of care for every American? How has it impacted states which have enacted such legislation?
In April 2006, Massachusetts became the first state in the country to pass legislation for universal health care. In addition to covering more of the uninsured, businesses are required to provide care to their employees, along with an individual mandate for those who can afford health insurance to purchase it. As a result, the percentage of uninsured dropped from 13% in 2006 to 7% the following year but did not eliminate the uninsured population. However, with the same number of providers and an increased insured patient population, the wait times for new primary care visits ballooned to between four and ten months. One contributing factor is that there is one primary care provider for every three specialists in the state. The supply of providers did not increase, only the demand for their services. In response to this, in March 2008, legislation was introduced in the state to increase the primary care workforce. Only time will tell how effective this will be.
While other nations have made active efforts to build a primary care infrastructure, lifestyle and economic forces in the United States have dissuaded medical school graduates from selecting these specialties. No matter how noble one's desire to enter medicine, the weight of massive debt can be overwhelming. Why choose general practice when there is another specialty that will pay you twice as much to work the same amount? As a result of these economic forces, many new physicians choose non-primary care specialties in urban areas, leading to an unequal dispersion of providers. The fall-out is that there are currently rural counties in the U.S. with zero physicians.
Rome wasn't built in a day and neither will a new physician workforce. In fact, efforts to increase and direct its numbers will take close to a decade to see any results. This is because the process of influencing specialty selection begins early in medical school. Even if we were able to get 100% of all incoming medical students to commit to a primary care specialty, they would not be eligible to start seeing patients for at least seven years.
Where does emergency medicine fit in to this? ACEP Workforce studies in 1997 and 1999 demonstrated no change in the workforce of approximately 32,000 emergency physicians. Data for a third study is currently being reviewed to see if the workforce has kept up with the significant increase in patient volume nationwide.
What if we need to increase the overall numbers of physicians in the U.S., as many studies have suggested? Over the past quarter-century, we've turned to foreign doctors to fill the gaps, particularly in the primary care sector. While the U.S. has benefited from this in the short term, future market forces, including a weakening U.S. dollar, may pull these individuals back to their native countries. In the meantime, their native countries suffer as the drain of these resources depletes their respective health care capabilities. Using this workforce as part of a long-term solution makes us dependent upon others to provide the people and training. For better sustainable solutions, we must look within our own borders.
To address this, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) called for a 30% increase in medical school enrollment by 2015. In their 2006 position statement, the AAMC offered support to medical schools to help them increase their enrollment, but did not offer specifics as to how this could be accomplished. Only time will tell if this is a sufficient response, as the AAMC does not have a great record predicting physician workforce needs.
In addition to increasing the number of medical students, the number of residency slots must increase as well. Unfortunately, the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 has kept fixed the number of allopathic and osteopathic residents for the past decade. Because of this, the workforce not only needs to increase to meet future demand but catch up for the past decade.
In the meantime, Baby Boomers are quickly entering the ages where health care consumption will increase. By 2030, the number of adults over the age of 65 will double to more than 70 million. With delays to receive longitudinal care, these patients will receive needed treatment later and present sicker and in greater numbers to our EDs. Not only will we be seeing more patients, but we will have more high acuity patients requiring admission, leading to increasing boarding times and periods of ambulance diversion.
How do we get Washington to accept this fact and move towards much needed reforms? Last May, SAEM invited the health care advisors for the presidential candidates to a town hall meeting. Upon questioning it became clear that they were unaware that a shortage of physicians was a major issue. "Train more doctors" isn't as catchy a sound bite as "health care for all." The proposed plans of both presidential candidates have promised to increase the number of insured in some fashion, increasing the amount of money in the health care system. The trade-off is likely to be increased physician accountability in terms of how this money is spent. To mitigate the increased costs, this is going to lead to an increased burden of reporting by providers to prove that quality, cost-effective care is being delivered in order to be reimbursed.
It is the responsibility of every emergency physician to review the platforms of the two candidates before voting. Will the candidate mandate health care coverage? If so, what provisions will be made to bolster the physician workforce? These details will likely have a significant impact on how we practice medicine over the next four years. The challenge is to look beneath the rhetoric to see what truly lies in store for the future of health care and the patients we serve.
# Gibson GH ER Medical Director — 2008-10-03 18:06
In my small community hospital ER, we have already become too busy. This is going to be hard.
Fascinating account of the law of unintended consequences. In retrospect, it should be obvious that more insured = more demand for preventative primary care = increased wait times in offices = increased visits to the ER
It is a good lesson: if obama wins and implements his (mostly) universal health care plan, and it works to some degree, the country as a whole will experience the same problem of decreased primary care coverage.
Also, what of the supply/demand/p rice curve? If there is decreased supply of doctors vs. increased demand, that will put extreme pressure on prices. This could cause and upward spiral in health care costs.
the answer, is increased supply. And the only way to get that is to make it more palatable to be a PMD: eliminating debt for PMDs could go a long way to do that. And we as a country need to address the issues that PMDs face every day that make practicing so painful, such as regulations, paperwork, pre-approvals/d enials, rejections of payment for services rendered, malpractice risk...and so on.
Thanks for the article.
Creating more administrative regulation is not the best way to dealing with the inequities in the primary care specialties. The biggest step we could take as a nation in dealing with this problem would be to make medical school education FREE. Then, debt would no longer be a driving force in choosing one's specialty. Of course, this would not eliminate the need for other reforms in payment to physicians.
Obviously there has not been a comprehensive review of the present and future state of healthcare and physician workforce on both the state and national level, and I do not see the current presidential candidates doing so either. We can only hope that our medical societies get their say at some time and it is taken to heart. We will continue to see foreign medical graduates filling primary care residency slots and filling the need for US primary care physicians. Emergency Departaments and Urgent Care Centers will become busier, and will need to see more and more patients in less time to remain financially viable. The federal government should reimburse Primary Care better through Medicare payments, give reimbursement or bonuses to medical students who choose primary care,and subsidize residency training for any physician who has been practicing in another specialty who would like to switch to primary care. Canada had a problem getting physicians in their military so they offered a 225k bonus-guess what happened-it worked!
# 2008-10-29 13:53
Universal Health Care coverage in Massachusetts does not affect the number of primary care physicans. Here in KS we have a primary care physician shortage, particularly in rural areas, and do not have universal health care. If Obama is elected, his changes will make a difference and improve health care coverage.
# 2008-10-31 02:32
In hearing Obama's statements and listening to his health policy advisors at SAEM last May, they are unaware that there is a workforce issue. The latter simply doesn't have the same media appeal as the coverage issue. While I am all for universal healthcare, it does not create more providers, especially primary care ones. Massachusetts has one of the highest concentrations of MDs in the country, and they still can't get all of their citizens seen in a timely fashion. Only time will tell, but I anticipate Obama's plan will simply spread the Masssachusetts situation throughout the country.
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Sewer argument wins approval for S. Durham project
On a night when the City Council split on whether to OK one south Durham project with more homes than local policy would allow, members were united in approving a second.
The council unanimously approved annexation, utilities, a policy change and zoning for the proposed 53-home Montclair development off Barbee Chapel and Farrington Mill roads.
The decision came even though the developers' agent, Jarrod Edens, conceded that the project will include 15 more homes than Durham's land-use policy had called for in the area.
Edens said the extra units were needed so Montclair's would-be developer could afford to install the sewage pump station any development on the site will need because it doesn't drain well enough to accommodate septic tanks.
Under previous policy, "in theory, we could do 19 homes on well and septic" without city utilities, Edens said. "In reality, there are zero perc sites on the property. Whether we develop five units, 50 units or a thousand units, we'd have to build a pump station."
Council members – fresh from voting 4-3 to approve a project ticketed for land further east that also broke their government's density guidelines – agreed that the situation merited an exception.
"The project is reasonable at single-family density," Councilwoman Diane Catotti told Edens, a former member of the Durham Planning Commission. "You made a compelling argument."
Montclair and the project that divided the council, Southpoint Trails, each had sparked warnings from the City/County Planning Department about their potential to further erode policy that called for a tapering-off of density in south Durham from Renaissance Parkway to Durham's border with Chatham County.
Southpoint Trails' developer won permission to build 5.5 units an acre – 149 townhouses in all – on land off N.C. 751 that the taper policy said was suitable for now more than four units an acre.
Edens's client, Weekley Homes LLC, got permission to build 2.87 dwellings an acre on land that city policy until Monday had labeled suitable for no more than two an acre.
Catotti joined Councilmen Steve Schewel and Don Moffitt in voting against Southpoint Trails. She cautioned against seeing Montclair as a precedent.
"I would not welcome additional changes in density in" the area, she said.
But developers in both cases argued that there's an implicit contradiction between the city's demands for infrastructure and the density caps suggested by Durham's 2005 countywide "comprehensive plan."
The infrastructure for Southpoint Trail was additional lanes on N.C. 751.
Ken Spaulding, lawyer for Southpoint Trails' developer, said the additions to 751 will cost his client about $300,000. Edens said Weekley Homes had tailored its density request to the cost of the sewage improvements.
Councilman Eugene Brown, a real estate agent who voted for both projects, made it clear in supporting Southpoint Trails that he also saw a discrepancy in the city's demands.
It would be "exceedingly challenging" to develop the Southpoint Trails site to a four-units-an-acre cap and "still make any profit," Brown said. "And obviously a developer is not going to do it unless there's a profit."


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In Jen's Words by Jennifer Brown ~
BEA'S BOOK NOOK "I can't imagine a man really enjoying a book and reading it only once." C. S. Lewis "If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all." ― Oscar Wilde A cozy space for talking about books.
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Excerpt & Book Blitz: In Jen's Words by Jennifer Brown
In Jen's Words by Jennifer Brown ~
2 comments:
This sounds like it going to one intense mystery for sure and I love the sounds of it. Thanks for sharing it.ReplyDelete
Jenea @ Books Live Forever
Ooo I love a little mystery and the excerpt was good! Thanks for sharing this one Bea :)ReplyDelete
Thanks for taking the time to comment, I enjoy hearing from my readers.
Due to a huge upswing in spam comments, I had to disable anonymous commenting. If you have trouble commenting, you can use the Kontactr form at the bottom of the page. It won't show publicly but I'll still get the comment.


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Privacy and Cookies
Finnair will operate its first commercial biofuel flight today when it takes off from Amsterdam Schiphol for Helsinki with an Airbus A319 partially-powered by fuel derived from used cooking oil.
The flight is scheduled to depart Amsterdam at 18:50 local time and arrive in the Finnish capital at 22:10.
Both of the A319's engines will run on a 50:50 blend of regular kerosene and biofuel derived from cooking oil that was previously used in restaurants.
Finnair has sourced the fuel from SkyNRG, a consortium launched by KLM, North Sea Group and Spring Associates.
The carrier plans to operate four flights over the next few weeks using the same type of fuel.
"Biofuel use is still not financially sustainable because biofuel is more expensive than ordinary aviation fuel and no large-scale production or distribution has yet been established," said Finnair vice-president sustainable development Kati Ihamäki.
Despite this, airlines have recently been claiming a series of firsts in the use of biofuel, with Finnair laying claim to operating "the world's longest commercial flight to date using biofuel".
KLM became the first airline to operate a commercial biofuel flight on 29 June, but is not scheduled to operate any further such flights until September.
Lufthansa on 15 July became the first airline to begin regular scheduled commercial biofuel flights when it began a programme of 1,200 biofuel flights between Hamburg and Frankfurt.
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I am a sucker for a good game of heroics. I don't know where it comes from. Perhaps it comes from idealism: I like helping people. Whenever I have the opportunity to play the villain, I cannot do it. I believe the problem is because such behavior is outside of my personality and is incongruent with my ideals. But there is one game I have the pleasure to play lately that perfectly jives with me: Ys Seven for the PSP.
Ys Seven follows the exploits of Adol Christin and his friend Dogi as they arrived in the port of Altago. As usual, they're off for adventure and quickly discover an old shrine the country has forgotten. It is there Adol hears a voice of a dragon. From there, it is up to Adol and friends to save the country (and ultimately) the world from destruction. All in a day's work for one of the most altruistic characters ever created.
The plot is actually a lot of fun. While I'm saddened to see Adol is a silent protagonist, Dogi acts as the player's voice. Whatever our reaction might be, Dogi voices it. It''s rather refreshing to see a game that is serious about its heroics and brave enough to have some fun with it. Sadly, it still falls into the same RPG clichés of yore. Items that are collected are mostly used in their collected area. Then their use is rare. A cloak that allows the party to travel underwater, a rock that illuminates spaces like a lantern and spike-breaking shoes are all present in their archetypical glory.
On the plus side, Ys Seven is downright enjoyable. The game is similar to its roots by providing fast combat. However, it is in done in a hack-'n-slash style, and health can be regained by standing still while outside. Each character/party member has one of three different attack types: slash, pierce (bow and arrow) and bash. As such, you'll have to rotate through each character (especially during dungeons since healing items are required in order to survive) to make certain your party is inflicting maximum damage. Dogi, Adol's wall-bashing friend, is an excellent choice for armor types. Adol and Elk can cut soft creatures, such as slimes, down to size. Aisha and Mishera use bows and energy (respectively) to annihilate flying creatures.
On top of the weapon types, each character has his/her own special skills. Initially, it's tied to the weapon. After so many uses, it becomes a natural part of the character's repertoire. These skills cannot be summoned whenever inspired. You have to have the skill points to activate them. It's easy to gain the points: just attack enemies. Charge attacks restore a greater amount at once. Then there are special attacks that can further cut enemies down.
Graphically, the game looks great with its anime style. Water flows out of fountains, sand blows across the desert, monsters are unique and move around the screen smoothly, and special attacks are flashy. Environments, although not exactly massive, are interesting to look at. A giant tree looms in the background of a forest as Adol travels down the slope to reach the entrance. Daises are the basis for a wind dungeon. Giant flowers are traveled on top of in another. If the graphics were any more refined, they could visually rival games on the PlayStation 2.
Musically, the game just rocks. Granted, it takes its cues from the '80s as the music can be over the top at times. But like I wrote, it rocks. Songs range from pure instrumental orchestrations to those with a mixture of acoustic and synthesized instruments. The main theme is an awesome rock song. Altago's main theme is a breezy town theme with tinkling pianos and strings. Voice acting is meagerly present as it is limited to battle cries and grunts. It's a shame the space on the disc isn't fully utilized. On the plus side, there's no awkward dialogue and helps create a very old-school feel to the game.
Overall, Ys Seven is an excellent game. It is one of those rare games that can and does accept any amount of free time. Only have five or so minutes to play? Need a quick distraction before writing a paper? Sick in bed and have hours to kill? Ys Seven fulfills these needs perfectly. Despite its old-school leanings, it's hard for me not to rant and rave how much fun I had over the hours. This is an excellent game for new and old PSP gamers. Xseed and Falcom have created a game that transcends systems. That's something that is not done with remarkable ease.


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2014 Mini-Vet School
The Mini-Vet School is presented by the Niagara Frontier Veterinary Society and hosted by Medaille College in Buffalo, NY.
Two lectures are presented each evening by some of the most accomplished and dynamic veterinarians in Western New York cover causes and treatments of the conditions that affect pets and their owners, as well as some of the latest advances in veterinary medicine for zoo animals. Each lecture essentially is a "course" in a subject covered in veterinary school. "Graduates" will receive a certificate but won't be licensed to practice medicine. However, they will have a better understanding of their pet's health.
In the middle of these beneficial reciprocal relationships between humans and animals are the dedicated and competent practitioners of veterinary medicine who strive with consummate training and skill to cope with the myriad of diseases and injuries that affect these animals.
The beneficial effects of living with devoted and playful pets on the physical and psychological well being of their owners have been well documented. At the same time, pet owners are committed to maintaining the good health and happiness of their faithful pets.
Registration is required. Cost for the 2014 series was $60 per person, with reduced senior and student rates. Registration is limited to 250 people.
If you wish to be on our communication list for the 2014 program, please email us at email@example.com.
COURSES - 2014 Mini-Vet Speakers/Topics
October 7
Understanding pet food labels - Mary Snyder, VMD
What do you really know about your pet's food?*
*Attendees are asked to bring in the label from their pet's food to this session.
From A to Z: Animal Zoonoses - Alan Lesse, MD
Sharing MERS, Ebola, Leptospirosis, etc. with our pets
October 14
Poisonings and dangers of OTC drugs to our pets - Kevin Fitzgerald, DVM
October 21
What's Science Got to Do With It? - Marcia Ritchie, LVT and Miranda Workman, CBCC-KA
How science speaks for those who bark and purr
November 4
Arf, arf, barf; mew, mew, spew - Samantha Nelson, DVM and Melanie Hall DVM
Medical and surgical causes of vomiting
November 11
A day in the life of a veterinarian - Jim Brown DVM
Blizzards, floods, tornados - Helen Roberts-Sweeney DVM
Including your pet in your disaster preparedness plan
Contact email@example.com to register.
• Download Brochure/Registration Form
• Download


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comments sponsored by
Not by the home run king, but by the prosecutors pursuing him. From ESPN:
Federal prosecutors mistakenly filed court papers Thursday that incorrectly stated that Barry Bonds failed a steroids test in November of 2001 — one month after breaking the single-season home run mark.
U.S. attorney spokesman Josh Eaton now says that the reference in Thursday's government court filing regarding Bonds testing positive was actually referring to a November 2000 test that was previously disclosed in the indictment of Bonds and had already been reported.
Our source observes, "considering how widely reported this was — all over the national media, including CNN-style blanket coverage from ESPNews — during a week when the spotlight is on steroids in baseball already (the Clemens congressional hearings), it had to have been awfully embarrassing for the department."
Based on this post and this one, today is shaping up as Filing F**k-Up Day at ATL.
U.S. filing typo spurs erroneous Bonds drug report [ESPN]
comments sponsored by


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We welcome Gunther Ulbricht, on his tenth visit during our annual Christmas Open House. We are fortunate as The Frame Workshop is only one of a handful of stops across the United States part of the 2014 Ulbricht U.S. tour.
Gunther has inherited great creative ability. Many of the most artistic of the nutcrackers produced today bear his designs. In his private time he is a fine artist, painting both portraits and landscapes.
-- If you have any further questions regarding Gunther's visit or Ulbricht Nutcrackers & Smokers, please Email us or please watch our TV Spot announcing Gunther's 2008 visit on Windows Media Player.
On this page we have displayed only a couple of the new 2014 Nutcrackers from Holzkunst Christian Ulbricht. Please visit our website or our shop to see the entire range of wonderful German wooden products produced by this respected firm. We begin decorating for the Holidays in late September!


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So I just read this piece by Brad Warner on his reaction to Dennis Genpo Merzel's stepping down as a Zen priest and resigning his status within the White Plum Asanga. First, while they are small matters, Warner did not have his facts quite right in two important areas. One is that KC Gerpheide was not being groomed to be ...Read More »
Kanzeon Zen Center to split from Big Mind
As many already know, former head of Kanzeon Zen Center and founder of Big Mind™ Dennis Genpo Merzel has disrobed as a Zen priest and resigned his Elder status with the the White Plum Asanga (the lineage of his late teacher, Taizan Maezumi-roshi) amid revelations of sexual misconduct with several of his students. The Zen center's new leadership will be ...Read More »
Dennis Genpo Merzel disrobes as a Zen priest
Dennis Genpo Merzel, a Dharma successor of the late Taizan Maezumi-roshi and founder of the sometimes controversial Big Mind™, has announced that he will disrobe as a Zen priest and resign his elder status with the White Plum Asanga. He has, however, announced his intent to continue working under the auspices of Big Mind™. This comes on the heel of ...Read More »
The Online Sangha
Some readers are aware that Sweeping Zen sponsors a virtual practice space in Second Life® we call Kannonji Zen Retreat. People will come from all parts of the world to share this virtual space while we sit at our computers at home in meditation. What it does is further advance that idea we have in Buddhism that you can never ...Read More »
Warm Smiles from Cold Mountains – A Sweeping Zen Book Review
Website: Rodmell Press It's very nice to read various books on Zen that discuss all of the various dimensions of the philosophical and theological dimensions of our practice but, when books steep themselves too deeply in to those waters, they often tend to lose the interest of a large sector of readers. Often more scholarly works suffer from this although, ...Read More »
Darlene Cohen, dies at 68; American Zen teacher
Photo © Susan Ji-On Postal Darlene Surei Kenpo Cohen, an influential Zen teacher and author who served as an inspiration for those suffering with chronic illness, died of cancer today at 1:15 a.m. Pacific at her home in Guerneville, California surrounded by her husband Tony (of whom Darlene recently said, "the man is gold."), their son Ethan, and Tony's son. ...Read More »
The Emperor Has No Clothes
While I admit I am very glad to see so many Zen teachers coming out of the woodwork to call for the complete removal of Eido Shimano from any affiliation with the Zen Studies Society, I think that most will admit the silence that led up to these very public and embarrassing circumstances went unchecked for far too long. It ...Read More »
Great Doubt: The Spirit of Self-Inquiry – A Sweeping Zen Book Review
Some books get published that remain relatively unknown to readers who would otherwise love to adopt one and bring it home with them. The book I'll be reviewing is Great Doubt: The Spirit of Self-Inquiry by Roger Shikan Hawkins. This isn't strictly a book on Zen practice, as Hawkins quotes individuals like Adyashanti, Thomas Merton, Muslim sufis, and more. That you ...Read More »
A Light in the Mind: Living Your Life Just as It Is – A Sweeping Zen Book Review
While I love books with a scholarly tone that tell me the who, what and where of things, my heart belongs to books that speak to me on a more practice-oriented level. Surprisingly enough, few books on Zen engage the reader in such a way. A Light in the Mind: Living Your Life Just as It Is is one of ...Read More »
Abraxas no Matsuri, a film by Director Naoki Kato (w/ Trailer)
Abraxas no Mitsuri (or, Abraxas Festival) is the story of a Zen monk who finds himself torn between the spiritual and secular life. The monk Jonen, played by comedian Suneo Hair, is a one-time punk rock musician turned Buddhist monk with a wife and five-year old son. Based on the novel by Akutagawa award-winning zen monk Genyu Sokyu, the character ...Read More »
Elegant Failure: A Guide to Zen Koans – A Sweeping Zen Book Review
Website: Rodmell Press Koans, or kong-ans as they are called in the Korean tradition, have eluded many Zen practitioners since their inception. Richard Shrobe, also known as Zen master Wu Kwang in the Kwan Um School of Zen, has recently authored a book on these enigmatic exchanges between masters and disciples in the book Elegant Failure: A Guide to Zen ...Read More »
New Abbot to be installed at Dai Bosatsu Zendo Kongo-ji – Roko Sherry Chayat
Roko Sherry Chayat Roshi, a Dharma successor of retiring Abbot Edio Tai Shimano Roshi (accused of sexual impropriety over the years), will be installed as second Abbot of Dai Bosatsu Zendo Kongo-ji in the Catskill Mountains of New York on January 01, 2011 at 1:00 PM. Shimano Roshi recently retired on December 08, 2010 at the end of their Rohatsu ...Read More »
Seiun Genro Herbet Koudela, Osho died on November 28, 2010
Seiun Genro Herbert Koudela, Osho, a student of Kyozan Joshu Sasaki and teacher at Bodhidharma Zendo in Austria, died on Sunday, November 28, 2010 at the age of 86. Born in Vienna, Austria on November 22, 1924, Genro Osho relocated to the Netherlands and continued his traveling in England and Canada before settling in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1954 where he ...Read More »
Dans La Lumiere (Into the Light) – Filming of a bio-pic on Aung San Suu Kyi is underway
French filmmakers are finishing location shooting for a film (Dans La Lumiere or Into the Light) on the life of Aung San Suu Kyi, which will be played by Michelle Yeoh (famous for her role in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon). The directors chose Thailand to represent Burma in the film. The film will depict Suu Kyi's twenty-plus year struggle against ...Read More »
Donate Your Dharma Books
Rod Meade Sperry of Shambhala SunSpace suggests that this holiday we give the gift of Dharma to those incarcerated. Every year we send thousands of donated dharma books, free of charge to prisoners and prison libraries. We always need donations of new and used dharma books (or any books on contemplative spirituality, meditation, yoga, NVC, stress reduction, etc) from individuals, ...Read More »
Zen meditation – a cure for unhappiness?
I just finished reading a well done article that gives a basic intro to Zen meditation to readers. It showcases Hazy Moon Zen Center in Los Angeles and the classes that they offer to beginners. The only real qualm I have with the piece is the title itself: Zen meditation, a cure for unhappiness in South LA First I want ...Read More »


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Get a new video tip every week, on topics like shooting techniques, storytelling, audio, and miking.
Discover logistical, business, and storytelling aspects of shooting video for hire and learn how to make your clients happy.
An audio
cookbook with step-by-step
recipes for capturing great sounding audio in situations like conference panels, stage shows, and narrative dialogue scenes.
Discover the gear and video lighting techniques you need to light indoor and outdoor scenes.
Industry-proven techniques for producing and shooting interviews.
Introduces the core ideas behind how video cameras capture moving images, and explains how to light and mic a shoot.
"Your website has become a verb. I had a client tell me today that they were lynda.comming their way through learning new software. You've joined the ranks of Googling, Photoshopping, and Skyping!" —Jill W.
more from our members »


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By Brian Cochran - February 26, 2007
Prey mixes classic first-person shooter action with original gravity rules and a unique out-of-body experience. It's gameplay is both innovative and fun.
Below are the results of running an action-filled sequence of Prey using 1024x768 and 1600x1200 resolutions with the stock iChill 7900GS. Whenever
antialiasing was enabled, Supersampling and Gamma Correct were both enabled.
Not bad. Now, lets see how we do with the same resolutions with the overclocked iChill 7900GS.
Using the results of 8xSAA and 16xAF, we see a 1.4% increase from stock to overclocked at 1024x768 and a 6.6% increase from stock to overclocked at 1600x1200.
Next Page: Oblivion
Last Updated on February 26, 2007


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|Best Western Paola hotels are listed below. Search for cheap and discount Best Western hotel prices in Paola, KS for your upcoming individual or group travel. We list the best Best Western Paola hotels & lodging so you can review the Paola Best Western hotel list below to find the perfect place.
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Need a group/meeting discount? Get quotes from hotels in Paola KS
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BitLocker in Win7
About This Video
I recently had an opportunity to bring Shalu Gupta in to the studio to tell us what's new in BitLocker for Windows 7. Shalu is a Program Manager in Windows Security, and spends some time in this video showing us how BitLocker can be used to encrypt data on removable media like USB drives.
This is a feature that is easily enabled by policy and ensures that any sensitive data you have floating around on various storage devices is protected from unwanted access.
Published Date: January 12, 2009


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- 5
- people in the U.S. have this name View Ralph Nowakowski on Whitepages
Meaning & Origins
From a Norman French name, Raulf, a contracted form of the Germanic personal name Radulf, derived from rād 'counsel' + wulf 'wolf'. The spelling with -ph is due to classical influence in the 18th century.
|193rd in the U.S.
Polish: habitational name for someone from Nowakowa in Nowy Sącz voivodeship, or Nowakowo in Poznań voivodeship.
|8,189th in the U.S.
Nicknames & variations
Ralphie, Ralpha, Ralphe, Ralphy, Ralphia, Ralphi, Ralphae, Ralphh, Ralpho, Ralpf
Nowak, Nowacki, Nowack, Nowaczyk, Nowakowska, Nowachek, Nowalk, Nowaczek, Nowatzki, Nowaski


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Long Island Tai Chi and Internal Arts is a welcoming community of practitioners and martial artists devoted to offering classes to the general public in the traditional internal Chinese Martial and health arts including Northern Wu Taijiquan, Baguazhang and qigong.
Norther Wu Style Taijiquan (Tai Chi). Tai Chi is an ancient Chinese internal martial art that in recent years has become renown for its health benefits. At Long Island Tai Chi, the art is taught from its martial perspective always keeping in sight the fact that it is its martial nature that provides the practitioner with the health benefits. The art's martial power is generated from whole body coordination, relaxation, structure, compression and expansion of joints, continuous lengthening and coiling, and expression of energy. Overriding the physical factors is the necessity to the calm the "monkey mind" by being absolutely present, without engaging in the fantasy of past or future.
Classes begin with a series of warmup exercises designed to emphasize the various foundational principles of tai chi. Northern Wu Style Tai Chi is a classical style originating in Beijing. A complete history of the style's lineage may be found at http://www.northernwutaijiquan.com.
In addition to learning the principals of tai chi and the empty hand form students will also be introduced to push hands, applications, and weapons practice.
Baguazhang. Incorporated into the internal arts curriculum is the internal martial art of Baguazhang. Bagua, as it is also known, also generates its power from the internal principles as stated above in tai chi, however, the footwork of bagua differentiates it from tai chi or kung fu. Bagua practitioners emphasize "circle walking" to grasp the constantly changing nature of the circle, of energy and of a conflict.
Internal Arts - Qigong, Meditation, Tao Yin. As part of all classes, qigong ("energy work") and meditation are also taught, especially zhang zhuan or standing meditation, which masters for generations have emphasized for its benefits in developing "qi" and overall health and power. Qigong employs physical movements, breath work and mind intent to help the practitioner strengthen the body and gather and circulate qi, depending on the type of qigong practiced. Both hard and soft qigong are taught as part of our curriculum. Tao Yin, also referred to as Chinese yoga, are yoga-like exercises where the emphasis is on the opening and closing of joints, lengthening of the connective tissue and the use of the mind to "lead the qi" through the meridians.
Shaolin Hung Mei Pai Kung Fu. All of the instructors at Long Island Internal Arts have as their foundation Shaolin Hung Mei Pai Kung Fu. Shaolin Hung Mei Pai Kung Fu is a traditional external martial art composed primarily of Northern Shaolin traditional forms, weapons, two person sets, and chin na. A complete history of the art can be read at www.shaolinghungmei.org. Although not an official part of the curriculum, the instructors acknowledge the great skills acquired acquired by training in this martial art and the contributions of all of the instructors of the system.
Practical Considerations: Potential students should in good physical condition and any limitations they may have to engage in this practices. They must also advise instructors of any limitations, ailments or pre-existing conditions prior to class. As martial arts, these practices can be vigorous and demanding, although they appear may gentle or may be promoted as "easy" or "therapeutic" like tai chi has been in recent years. Students must also be aware that these arts incorporate two person practices that may involve contact and martial applications. Concerns in this regard may always be brought to the attention of the instructors.
If you have any questions, please contact us via email at email@example.com.


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United States government officials like now-CIA director John Brennan have asserted individuals must be a "legitimate target under the law" in order to be targeted and killed. However, top secret intelligence reports indicate "drone strikes in Pakistan over a four-year period didn't adhere" to such a standard.
From McClatchy's Jonathan Landay, who happens to be one of two establishment journalists who challenged the presidential administration of George W. Bush's propaganda in the run-up to the Iraq War, reports:
The intelligence reports list killings of alleged Afghan insurgents whose organization wasn't on the U.S. list of terrorist groups at the time of the 9/11 strikes; of suspected members of a Pakistani extremist group that didn't exist at the time of 9/11; and of unidentified individuals described as "other militants" and "foreign fighters."
The reports reviewed, according to McClatchy, involved "drone strikes in 2006-2008 and 2010-2011." The period between 2010-2011 featured a "surge in drone operations against suspected Islamist sanctuaries on Pakistan's side of the border that coincided" with Obama's "buildup of 33,000 additional US troops in southern Afghanistan."
The documents, Landay writes, show "drone operators weren't always certain who they were killing despite the administration's guarantees of the accuracy of the CIA's targeting intelligence and its assertions that civilian casualties have been 'exceedingly rare.'"
The review additionally found the following:
– At least 265 of up to 482 people who the U.S. intelligence reports estimated the CIA killed during a 12-month period ending in September 2011 were not senior al Qaida leaders but instead were "assessed" as Afghan, Pakistani and unknown extremists. Drones killed only six top al Qaida leaders in those months, according to news media accounts.
—Forty-three of 95 drone strikes reviewed for that period hit groups other than al Qaida, including the Haqqani network, several Pakistani Taliban factions and the unidentified individuals described only as "foreign fighters" and "other militants."
—During the same period, the reports estimated there was a single civilian casualty, an individual killed in an April 22, 2011, strike in North Waziristan, the main sanctuary for militant groups in Pakistan's tribal areas.
– At other times, the CIA killed people who only were suspected, associated with, or who probably belonged to militant groups.
During Brennan's April 30, 2012, speech at the Woodrow Wilson Center, he unequivocally stated:
First and foremost, the individual must be a legitimate target under the law. Earlier, I described how the use of force against members of al-Qaida is authorized under both international and U.S. law, including both the inherent right of national self-defense and the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force, which courts have held extends to those who are part of al-Qaida, the Taliban, and associated forces. If, after a legal review, we determine that the individual is not a lawful target, end of discussion. We are a nation of laws, and we will always act within the bounds of the law.
This stellar example of investigative journalism by Landay and McClatchy demonstrates what Brennan said is not true. Drone strikes are not only targeting people from al Qaeda. But, with the strikes happening covertly, with little to no oversight from Congress, with the Obama Administration defending secrecy around the program in US courts and with the power to decide who lives and who dies concentrated in the Executive Branch of the US government, there is little that can check this egregious and flagrant abuse of power and force the Obama administration to end such targeted killing operations.
Read the full story from McClatchy here.


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The Kharijites and Their Impact on Contemporary Islam 1
Khabbab, ironically, was one of the first victims of Kharijite brutality. He, along with his pregnant wife, was hacked to death. When the news of this slaughter reached Sayyidina `Ali he set out for Nahrawan with an army of 4,000 men.
The subsequent meeting that ensued between Sayyidina `Ali and the Kharijites merit a separate and full treatment. This we will relate in the 2nd part of this series.
Kharijite principles
Suffice it for us at this stage to know that by now this group of Kharijites – known as the "Muhakkima"- had already resolved upon the following principles: a) The declaration of Kufr (unbelief) on Sayyidina `Ali, Mu`awiyyah, and all those who had participated in and agreed to the process of arbitration b) Takfir (charging with unbelief) of all those who disagreed with them on any theological issues c) The right to kill any of the above. In this context the response of Sayyidina `Ali to their view that the "prerogative of command belongs to Allah alone"2 by saying that it was "a word of truth with a devious end" becomes quite apparent.
It was evident to Sayyidina `Ali that theirs was a political agenda – an agenda that was inspired by an ill-conceived sense of political isolationism owing to their Bedouin status. The spirit of Islam – as yet – had not served to de-tribalise them. Strength, to them, resided in aggression and belligerence; and not in the deeper recesses of the spirit and soul – the wellsprings of genuine faith (Iman).
Sayyidina `Ali understood this for he understood the meaning of the Quranic verse:"The desert Arabs say, 'We believe (amanna).' Say: 'You do not as yet have true faith.' Rather say: 'We have only submitted our wills to Allah (aslamna), for not yet has true faith entered your hearts.'" (49:14).
It is therefore not surprising that the Hurub al-Ridda (the War against the Apostates) that occurred during the time of Sayyidina Abu Bakr was inspired by a group of people with similar backgrounds. It is even less surprising that most of the claims to prophethood after the death of the Prophet (s) also emanated from these localities.
For the Kharijites, on the other hand, to legitimise their agenda and justify their killing of Muslims they had to declare them as Kafir and hence the territories in which they lived as a Dar al-Harb (an abode of war). This they legitimised under the nefarious pretence of "the prerogative of command belongs to Allah." This statement – and more correctly read, in its Kharijite context, as "only we (with our swords) have the prerogative of command" – spawned thousands of little gods who maimed and massacred and killed in the name of the most Merciful of the Merciful.
Sayyidina `Ali's position in that confrontation at Nahrawan is one every Muslim needs to know.
Part 2
1 lit. "with tongues that are moist".
2 "fal-hukmu lillah", Quran 40: 12.
© 2012 As-Sunnah Foundation of America
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