h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

'An Italian prosecutor investigating the apparent kidnapping of a suspected Islamic militant in the streets of Milan served military authorities this week with a demand for records of flights into and out of a joint U.S.-Italian air base in northern Italy.




Italian newspapers have reported that the prosecutor, Armando Spataro, is investigating the possible role of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (news - web sites) in the disappearance of Osama Nasr Mostafa Hassan, better known as Abu Omar, a popular figure in Milan's Islamic community who vanished Feb. 17, 2003.'

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=2027&e=11&u=/chitribts/italyprobespossibleciaroleinabduction

Isn't Italy a member of the Coalition of the Willing? Are they becoming less Willing?

By the way, I hope someone picks up that last one and puts it on the Forum. It needs a broader audience since it is about American agents kidnapping people anywhere, anytime, without consultation with the local government. Every one of us is susceptible.

Wasn't the election supposed to end this?

'A suicide bomber detonated a car near a crowded marketplace south of Baghdad Monday, killing 115 people and wounding 148 in the single bloodiest attack in Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein.'

'If the U.S. government doesn't plan to occupy Iraq for any longer than necessary, why is it spending billions of dollars to build "enduring" bases?'

http://www.occupationwatch.org/article.php?id=9341

and


http://dailywarnews.blogspot.com/

I read something yesterday in our local paper about a man picked up in Macedonia, a German citizen... I've been looking for a link, but I can't find one.

It's scary and important, all right!

I seem to remember that story too. I'll see what I can find.

here you go:

http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/spiegel/0,1518,341636,00.html

If you google german macedonia u.s. and then click on the "news" bit above the search window you'll find a bunch of other versions of the story.

Thanks! I was just checking the site of our local paper, I should have looked further afield.

http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0225/p01s03-woiq.html
A first hand account of a once very hopeful Iraq fellow

The most common injury for wounded American soldiers in Iraq: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-03-03-brain-trauma-lede_x.htm

'A U.S. armored vehicle in Iraq fired on a car Friday that was carrying a freed Italian hostage, injuring the hostage and killing an Italian intelligence agent, according to military sources.'

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,149470,00.html

Seems an odd turn in that war on terror.

In Afghanistan, terror has been replaced by narcotics: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7090585/

And, the U.S. has a nice new torture device -- I mean, crowd control tool -- on the horizon: http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7077

Iran is definitely next:

'A commission due to report to President Bush this month will describe American intelligence on Iran as inadequate to allow firm judgments about Iran's weapons programs, according to people who have been briefed on the panel's work.'

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/030905C.shtml

No knowledge means they can say what they want.

Concerning homegrown terrorists:

'So we don't have to go to Saudi Arabia to find violent religious extremists steeped in hatred for all America stands for. Wake up - they're here.'

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/030905Z.shtml

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I was looking at a RW web site, http://frontpagemagazine.com and to my astonishment, they were calling Giuliana Sgrena a communist, "the red journalist" as if that justified what had been done to her and Nicola! I just cannot be-flipping-lieve it!

If you want unbelievable, check out Fox News. Yesterday Gibson said that democracy would be a good thing because if countries freely elected 'anti-American' governments then the U.S. could 'bomb them back to the stone-age with a clear conscience.'

We live in a dangerous and disturbing world.

Now, here's some progress:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,150066,00.html

And some more good news:

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=13599&Cr=terror&Cr1=

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Oh, my, yes indeed! Frightening.

The War on what?

http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/Investigation/story?id=566425&page=1

Who is it we're looking for?

http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/03/15/musharraf-binladen050315.html