Zombie Reagan raised from grave to lead GOP

Satire from The Onion


Zombie Reagan Raised From Grave To Lead GOP

Steve Earle - 'Rich man's war'

Barbie converts to Islam

From an editorial for the Washington Times

Western culture has lost another battle in the clash of civilizations as Barbie dons the burqa. Burkha Barbie, by Italian designer Eliana Lorena, will be among the dolls auctioned by Sotheby's in a benefit for the nongovernment charity Save the Children. The message to little girls worldwide: Abandon all hope.

Barbie has long been a source of controversy. Critics have taken the iconic doll to task for implicitly promoting an unrealistic body image among young girls. In 1992, Teen Talk Barbie was denounced for saying, "I love shopping!" among other things. This year's Totally Stylin' Tattoos Barbie comes complete with a tasteless "tramp stamp" on her back.

But the upside of Barbie and the image Mattel has cultivated is inspiring the notion of unlimited possibilities. Barbie could be anything a girl wanted her to be - a lawyer, a doctor, an astronaut, a homemaker. By extension, this prompts girls to develop lofty aspirations in a society that accepts and nurtures them.

Barbie, however, is viewed as a threat in the Middle East, where subjugation of women is a cherished practice. Western cultural influence in general threatens this "peculiar institution," and Barbie has been singled out as a particularly corrupting influence.

Saudi Arabia banned Barbie in September 2003. The government Commission for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice denounced Barbie's "revealing clothing, lewd postures and accessories" as "symbols of decadence of the perverted West." The Saudis also claimed Barbie is Jewish. "Let us beware of her dangers and be careful," the commission warned.

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Surge to strain supply lines

Afghan War Costs U.S. Far More per Troop Than Iraq

Andrew Scutro reports for Defense News

With presidential orders to surge 30,000 troops into Afghanistan at "the fastest possible pace," in early 2010, U.S. logisticians and planners are scrambling to coordinate the movement of units and tons of materiel over thousands of miles into an exceedingly prohibitive environment.

Although military logisticians had been prepping for months against the possibility of a surge, detailed planning began only after President Barack Obama announced the new strategy Dec. 1. Senior leaders say it's too early to estimate the price tag of moving the new forces rapidly into a landlocked Asian country.

"We have not figured out any of the transportation costs yet, and I really wouldn't want to give a guess at that right now," said Army Brig. Gen. Michael Lally, director of operations and plans at U.S. Transportation Command.

Lally said calculations on airlift and support requirements will not be made until after the Pentagon issues a detailed deployment plan and schedule, which should be available in mid-December.

They won't come cheap.

Delivering just one Army brigade combat team of more than 3,500 troops to Bagram in northern Afghanistan requires a massive airlift of people and weapons to be carefully coordinated with gear-laden, contractor-operated convoys that debark at Karachi and crawl 1,250 miles over vulnerable Pakistan supply routes.

"Afghanistan is an incredibly tough area to deploy forces into," Lally said in a Dec. 3 conference call with defense reporters, "because you've only got a couple airfields you can fly into and going into Karachi and up that [ground route] is a challenge, so we'll work that very closely."

With 71,000 troops there now, recent experience may serve as a guide to effort and expense. In fiscal 2009, the Pentagon spent $4 billion to move troops and gear into Afghanistan: $2 billion for air transport, $120 million for sealift and the balance for port-handling and inland transport, according to figures the Defense Department provided to Congress.

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Jewish group slams Swiss ban on minarets

From Ynet News

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) on Wednesday urged the Swiss government to be vigilant in its commitment to ensuring freedom of religion, following a Swiss popular referendum  that amended its constitution to ban the construction of minarets.

ADL National Chair Robert G. Sugarman and ADL National Director Abraham H. Foxman issued a statement saying, "On November 29, the Swiss Muslim community fell victim to a populist political campaign of religious intolerance, led by the far-right Swiss People's Party (SVP). The Swiss government opposed the initiative during the campaign and underscored its commitment to religious freedom in a statement after the vote.
 
In the statement, the Jewish group urged the Swiss government "to be vigilant in its defense of religious freedom, even though the SVP is the largest party in the Swiss Parliament and has two of the seven government ministries.

"The Federation of Swiss Jewish Communities (FSJC) clearly stated its opposition to the initiative before the vote and expressed its disappointment at the result," the statement added.

According to ADL, "This is not the first time a Swiss popular vote has been used to promote religious intolerance. A century ago, a Swiss referendum banned Jewish ritual slaughter in an attempt to drive out its Jewish population. We share the FSJC's stated concern that those who initiated the anti-minaret campaign could try to further erode religious freedom through similar means."

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Swiss government 'very concerned' over minaret ban / Associated Press

Foreign minister says limitations on coexistence of different cultures, religions 'endangers our security'; stresses ban only on new minarets, not on new mosques  Full story