There's so much disinformation being thrown around about Iran right now. Remember the 2002 propaganda campaign that led up to the Iraq war? Anonymous defectors running their mouths in the New York Times? Underground nuclear facilities? Covert Iraqi support for terrorist organizations?
There's a handful of people in Washington who are still eager for war on Iran. Some of them were involved in the marketing of the Iraq war. It's unclear how much real political power they wield nowadays, but they still have the capacity to float all kinds of bullshit into the press.
Remember the "yellow badge" story from a few months ago? Supposedly Iran had passed a law requiring all Jews to wear a Nazi-style yellow badge. Although the story was discredited almost immediately, it was sensational enough to be widely reported. I'm betting most people didn't catch the correction on page A19 the next day.
Or Ahmadinejad's claim that Israel should be "wiped off the map". Is it a coincidence that his speech was reported in an inaccurate and highly inflammatory translation? More on both of those here
This morning we have stories that soldiers carrying Iranian documents have been found in Lebanon. Anonymously sourced, no verifiable details as to location or context. Would Iran really be dumb enough to send people into a guerilla war carrying their passports? It's absurd on the surface. But over time these stories create a powerful perception that Iran is mad, bad, and dangerous.
Ahmadinejad is pretty foul. There are real reasons to worry about Iran - not least because our fuckup in Iraq created a regional power vacuum which the mullahs are skillfully exploiting. But I'm guessing the August 22nd thing comes from the same idea factory as Saddam's mobile bioweapons laboratories.
Yeah I know, I know... and I understand the impetus behind the dissemination of this information. "Free Iran" and everything.
But like I said, whether or not there's validity in this thing, I think the whole situation in general has be incredibly stressed. And I was invited to go to Israel yesterday. I doubt I'll be able to and all. I want to, but shit is just too fucked up.
But I'm guessing the August 22nd thing comes from the same idea factory as Saddam's mobile bioweapons laboratories.
This is most likely. One guy tells all his homies that this other dude is talking shit just so they all have a reason to go fuck him up (in layman's terms).
I spent all day planning my wedding. I want to actually see it, you know.
I actually had the same thoughts C*$. Like, "Shit, if I am gonna pay this much and spend this much time planning, I better be there!" I even entertained thoughts of earthquake and terrorist attack. And then I chilled the fuck out and popped a Valium.
Terrorists will less than likely ruin your wedding (unless you have a loose definition of "terrorist" that includes your mother-in-law! j/k)
Serioiusly though, the best wedding gift I got was a massage the day of the wedding. Chilled me out proper so I could enjoy all the work I put in.
I wouldn't trip. I had this convo with Aser earlier.
I don't know if the mainstream media blackout is becuase it's ridiculous, or not to cause a panic.
My guess is the former. I mean, who the fuck is gonna say "hey um, in a month we're gonna shoot some nuclear missles and start WWIII. Just thought you should know."?
However, this article did bug me out a bit:
A top expert on the Mideast says it is possible Iran could pick Aug. 22, the anniversary of one of Islam's holiest events, for a cataclysm Shiite Muslims believe will forever resolve the battle between "good" and "evil."
Princeton's Bernard Lewis has written an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal advising that the rest of the world would be wise to bear in mind that for those who believe the end of the world is imminent and good, there is no deterrent even to nuclear warfare.
As WorldNetDaily has reported, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has urged his people to prepare for the coming of an Islamic "messiah," raising concerns a nuclear-armed Islamic Republic could trigger the kind of global conflagration he envisions will set the stage for the end of the world.
He's also said, in a WND report, that Islam and its followers must prepare to rule the world, because it is a "universal ideology that leads the world to justice."
Now comes Lewis, who notes that the world must be concerned about a leader for whom the possibility of death is not a deterrent.
"In this context, mutual assured destruction, the deterrent that worked so well during the Cold War, would have no meaning," Lewis wrote. "At the end of time, there will be general destruction anyway. What will matter will be the final destination of the dead ??? hell for the infidels, and heaven for the believers.
"For people with this mindset, MAD is not a constraint, it is an inducement," he said.
Lewis noted that Ahmadinejad has referred to Aug. 22 several times, including when he rejected ??? until that date ??? United Nations requests for nuclear program information.
Lewis, joining several other Mideast experts who have expressed similar concerns, said Aug. 22 corresponds to the 27th day of the month of Rajab of the year 1427.
"This, by tradition, is the night when many Muslims commemorate the night flight of the prophet Muhammad on the winged horse Buraq, first to 'the farthest mosque,' usually identified with Jerusalem, and then to heaven and back," Lewis wrote.
In Islam, as in other religious, certain beliefs describe the "cosmic struggle" at the end of time. For Shiite Muslims, Lewis wrote, this will be "the long awaited return of the Hidden Imam, ending in the final victory of the forces of good over evil."
The significance, he said, is that there's a "radical" difference between Iran and other governments with nuclear weapons.
"This difference is expressed in what can only be described as the apocalyptic worldview of Iran's present rulers," he wrote. Iran's leaders now "clearly believe that this time is now, and that the terminal struggle has already begun and is indeed well advanced."
As for intent, a passage from the Ayatollah Khomeini, quoted in an 11th-grade Iranian schoolbook, reveals priorities: "I am decisively announcing to the whole world that if the world-devourers (i.e., the infidel powers) wish to stand against our religion, we will stand against their whole world and will not cease until the annihilation of all them. Either we all become free, or we will go to the greater freedom which is martyrdom."
Lewis wrote, "This might well be deemed an appropriate date for the apocalyptic ending of Israel and if necessary the world. It is far from certain that Mr. Ahmadanejad plans any such cataclysmic events precisely for Aug. 22. But it would be wise to bear the possibility in mind."
Lewis, the Cleveland E. Dodge professor emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University, specializes in Muslim history and interaction between Muslims and the West.
His comments echoed those made just a few days earlier by Robert Spencer, another scholar of Islamic history, theology and law and the director of Jihad Watch.
In an article for FrontPageMagazine.com, he wrote that Farid Ghadry, president of the Reform Party of Syria, noted the commemoration of Muhammad's ascent to heaven from the Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
Spencer said the Night Journey, or Miraj, is what makes Jerusalem a holy site for Islam, and Islamic tradition believes Muhammad, along with the angel Gabriel, went to the Temple Mount, and then to heaven in a bathing of light over Jerusalem.
Spencer reported that Ghadry talked of Ahmadinejad's plans for an illumination of the night sky over Jerusalem to rival the light of that Islamic belief.
Ghadry said what the Iranian president is "promising the world by August 22 is the light in the sky over the Aqsa Mosque," Spencer said.
He said a nuclear attack on Jerusalem, or even a conventional attack, would be consistent with the references that have been made, including Ahmadinejad's talk that Israel "pushed the button of its own destruction" by returning fire for Hezbollah's rocket barrage.
Also, "Atomic Iran" author Jerome Corsi notes that it's less significant whether Hezbollah survives, "but it's really the first chapter in the play for Iran and the Shiite Islam nation to come to ascendancy in the Muslim world."
First is the battle against Israel and the United States, he said, then against Sunni Islam. Where that group is more dominant, he said, is in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, where group members are "not unhappy to see Iran contained."
"They may launch an attack, but I still think if they had a weapon they would just go ahead and use it," Corsi said. "Terrorists don't brag about things they're going to do until after they do it."
He said the recent comments are more typical of terrorists' efforts to get attention.
"When Ahmadinejad is capable of taking action he will do it without any warning or bravado; he'll just do it," Corsi said.
In the updated edition of "Atomic Iran: How the Terrorist Regime Bought the Bomb and American Politicians," now available in paperback from WND Books, Corsi discusses many of the disturbing developments related to Iran.
Meanwhile, Tanzanian customs officials have uncovered an Iranian smuggling operation transporting large quantities of bomb-making uranium from the same mines in the Congo that provided the nuclear material for the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima 61 years ago, according to a recent report in the London Sunday Times.
A United Nations report, outlining the interception last October, said there is "no doubt" the smuggled uranium-238 came from mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's mineral-rich Katanga province.
The smuggled uranium discovered by Tanzanian customs agents was hidden in shipment of coltan, a rare mineral used to make chips in mobile telephones. According to the manifest, the coltan was to be smelted in the former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan after being shipped to Bandar Abbas, Iran's largest port.
Uranium-238, when used in a nuclear reactor, can be used to create plutonium for nuclear weapons.[/b]
Well, it looks like the changed the date for the end of the world.
TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran, set to reply on Tuesday to an offer by world powers aimed at defusing a nuclear standoff, has insisted it would not stop enriching uranium as they demand by an August 31 deadline to avoid possible sanctions.
Refusing to suspend the work, which Iran says is aimed only at generating electricity but which the West sees as a disguised bid for atom bombs, would be tantamount to rejecting the package of incentives offered in return, Western diplomats say.
But a rebuff would not yet trigger immediate action by the U.N. Security Council, which passed a resolution on July 31 giving Iran a month to halt enrichment or risk sanctions.
``We are not treating (Tuesday) as a deadline because it is not the Security Council deadline,'' one Western diplomat said. ''If Iran flatly refuses to suspend enrichment, then there will, fairly soon, be more talks in the Security Council.''
Ali Larijani, chief nuclear negotiator, will hand Iran's written response to foreign ambassadors in Tehran at 4 p.m. (1230 GMT) at the Supreme National Security Council, which handles the nuclear file, a senior Iranian nuclear official said.
Tensions rose further as diplomats close to the U.N. nuclear watchdog said its inspectors were denied access to an underground site under construction where Iran plans industrial- scale production of enriched uranium.
A senior diplomat said blocking inspectors this way could be a violation of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty since the U.N. inspectors have a right to verify design information during the construction of a nuclear facility.
Iran denied hindering access to the Natanz installation for an International Atomic Energy Agency team visiting to gather information for an August 31 report to the Security Council.
The United States, France, Britain, Germany, China and Russia offered a package of economic and other incentives in June, aiming to persuade the Islamic Republic to stop work that the West says is helping build nuclear warheads.
Iran, which has denounced the deadline as illegal and worthless, said it would reply by the end of the Iranian month of Mordad, August 22.
The world's fourth largest oil exporter insists it will not abandon what it calls its right to enrich uranium for use in nuclear power stations.
The response will be handed to all six countries, with the Swiss ambassador taking a copy for the United States which has had no representation in Tehran since after the 1979 revolution.
Oh man, I hope it's not worse than that Y2K fiasco!
...better than Y2K beats. (this thread is a dumper. let's all go to the beach and listen to reckords!)
These "Soul Strut Analyzes The News" threads are only SLIGHTLY worse than those killjoy, fun-spoiling "I'm getting tired of record collecting" threads.
i work in times square and the building managment got a pretty serious "threat" a few days back regarding today. i know this shit happens all the time, but our work didn't want to risk it, so everyone is working from home today.
i work in times square and the building managment got a pretty serious "threat" a few days back regarding today. i know this shit happens all the time, but our work didn't want to risk it, so everyone is working from home today.
wearing your pajamas all day =
pending apocalypse =
i was wondering if this was going to be happening any where. What's the 'vibe' in NYC right now? Are people taking this seriously? No one around me is even talking about it.
I work and live in NYC and we all know that this is just one more lie concocted by the current administration to scare us all into supporting their unjust and illegal oil war and the criminal occupation of Iraq.
i was wondering if this was going to be happening any where. What's the 'vibe' in NYC right now? Are people taking this seriously? No one around me is even talking about it.
it looks like most folks are just going about their day. i assumed the threat had little to do with 8/22 when i first heard it, but my homie told me that there was some significance with this date. i doubt anything will happen, and i don't think most nyc'ers even are thinking twice about it.
Ain't a damn thing gonna happen. Every one will continue on with their lives as usual. Period, point blank. End of story.
If something does happen please make sure to post it here, as I am completely disconnected from the outside world (no TV, Radio, Papers). It's very comfy in my bubble.
i didn't know what was up either, so i took cosmo up on this and checked it out.
these are the 3 results:
-Could Aug. 22 Be the End of the World Thanks to Iran? - FOX News - 11 hours ago -"NOW 22" edges out DMX on albums chart - Reuters - 11 hours ago -World to end on August 22 - Guardian Unlimited - 16 hours ago
the 2 sources and the "which item doesn't belong in this group" help to ease any concerns.
Yeah... and see it's Fox and The Guardian. Really not the most valid news sources. But I read the facts and, blustering and fearmongering aside, something about it makes me not feel right.
Is the Guardian really regarded as not valid by people? Fox I'll definately give you.
Also would it be the 22nd Iranian time or 22nd US time. It's 8 oclock at night there now, they'll just be settling down for a bit of TV and family time. No one wants to cause the end of the world after a hard day at work.
Also would it be the 22nd Iranian time or 22nd US time. It's 8 oclock at night there now, they'll just be settling down for a bit of TV and family time. No one wants to cause the end of the world after a hard day at work.
Don't these type of things usually happen in the early morning historically?
I work and live in NYC and we all know that this is just one more lie concocted by the current administration to scare us all into supporting their unjust and illegal oil war and the criminal occupation of Iraq.
I know you're kidding, but I'm actually curious what role the Bush administration has played in this. It seems marginal, if any at all. This is starting to look like a strictly media-hype affair. I could be dead wrong, though, as I can't say I've been paying very close attention.
Is the Guardian really regarded as not valid by people?
snort
While I can imagine those from the right side of the fence, may not agree with a lot of it's content, I cannot see how it can be dismissed out of hand as not valid. I have to admit though, I can't argue from much of a position of knowledge of American papers / news, apart from picking up bits & pices of Fox around frinds houses.
Okay so maybe August 22 only marks the completion of Love Break 2. That's better than nuclear holocaust I guess.
Nice! Do you mean completion as in you "just finished recording it" or completion as in "its a wrap, design done and everything". Volume 1 was good, look forward to hearing the new joint.
Comments
Yeah I know, I know... and I understand the impetus behind the dissemination of this information. "Free Iran" and everything.
But like I said, whether or not there's validity in this thing, I think the whole situation in general has be incredibly stressed. And I was invited to go to Israel yesterday. I doubt I'll be able to and all. I want to, but shit is just too fucked up.
This is most likely. One guy tells all his homies that this other dude is talking shit just so they all have a reason to go fuck him up (in layman's terms).
Terrorists will less than likely ruin your wedding (unless you have a loose definition of "terrorist" that includes your mother-in-law! j/k)
Serioiusly though, the best wedding gift I got was a massage the day of the wedding. Chilled me out proper so I could enjoy all the work I put in.
PS Congrats...
I don't know if the mainstream media blackout is becuase it's ridiculous, or not to cause a panic.
My guess is the former. I mean, who the fuck is gonna say "hey um, in a month we're gonna shoot some nuclear missles and start WWIII. Just thought you should know."?
However, this article did bug me out a bit:
That is not good.
...better than Y2K beats. (this thread is a dumper. let's all go to the beach and listen to reckords!)
-NY Times
These "Soul Strut Analyzes The News" threads are only SLIGHTLY worse than those killjoy, fun-spoiling "I'm getting tired of record collecting" threads.
wearing your pajamas all day =
pending apocalypse =
i was wondering if this was going to be happening any where. What's the 'vibe' in NYC right now? Are people taking this seriously? No one around me is even talking about it.
it looks like most folks are just going about their day. i assumed the threat had little to do with 8/22 when i first heard it, but my homie told me that there was some significance with this date. i doubt anything will happen, and i don't think most nyc'ers even are thinking twice about it.
Every one will continue on with their lives as usual.
Period, point blank. End of story.
If something does happen please make sure to post it here, as I am completely disconnected from the outside world (no TV, Radio, Papers). It's very comfy in my bubble.
Is the Guardian really regarded as not valid by people? Fox I'll definately give you.
Also would it be the 22nd Iranian time or 22nd US time. It's 8 oclock at night there now, they'll just be settling down for a bit of TV and family time. No one wants to cause the end of the world after a hard day at work.
Don't these type of things usually happen in the early morning historically?
Ain't shit going to happen
snort
I know you're kidding, but I'm actually curious what role the Bush administration has played in this. It seems marginal, if any at all. This is starting to look like a strictly media-hype affair. I could be dead wrong, though, as I can't say I've been paying very close attention.
Doomsayer's Anthem
While I can imagine those from the right side of the fence, may not agree with a lot of it's content, I cannot see how it can be dismissed out of hand as not valid. I have to admit though, I can't argue from much of a position of knowledge of American papers / news, apart from picking up bits & pices of Fox around frinds houses.
http://www.easports.com/madden07/
Okay so maybe August 22 only marks the completion of Love Break 2. That's better than nuclear holocaust I guess.
Nice! Do you mean completion as in you "just finished recording it" or completion as in "its a wrap, design done and everything". Volume 1 was good, look forward to hearing the new joint.