:: Gandalf23's Blog ::

:: Tuesday, October 21, 2003 ::

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From now on I'll be blogging over on my domain, Gandalf23.com. We've got Moveable Type running on the server, so I'll be using that instead of Blogger. The format looks a little bit different, but I'm still working on it. And I have to figure out how to see it from the house, right now I can only see it if I'm not on our internal network.





:: gandalf23 11:07:00 AM [+] ::
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Reevaluating Weapons of Mass Destruction


"One way or the other, we are determined to deny Iraq the capacity to develop weapons of mass destruction and the missiles to deliver them. That is our bottom line."
President Clinton, Feb. 4, 1998

"If Saddam rejects peace and we have to use force, our purpose is clear. We want to seriously diminish the threat posed by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program."
President Clinton, Feb. 17, 1998

"Iraq is a long way from [here], but what happens there matters a great deal here. For the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons against us
or our allies is the greatest security threat we face."
Madeline Albright, Feb. 18, 1998

"He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he has ten times since 1983."
Sandy Berger, Clinton National Security Adviser, Feb, 18, 1998

"[W]e urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the U.S. Constitution and laws, to take necessary actions (including, if appropriate, air and missile strikes on suspect
Iraqi sites) to respond effectively to the threat posed by Iraq's refusal to end its weapons of
mass destruction programs."
Letter to President Clinton, signed by Sens. Carl Levin, Tom Daschle, John Kerry, and others Oct. 9, 1998

"Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruction technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has made a mockery of the weapons inspection process."
Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D, CA), Dec. 16, 1998


"Hussein has ... chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass destruction and palaces for his cronies."
Madeline Albright, Clinton Secretary of State, Nov.10, 1999

"There is no doubt that..... Saddam Hussein has invigorated his weapons programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Saddam continues to redefine delivery systems and is doubtless
using the cover of an elicit missile program to develop longer-range missiles that will threaten the United States and our allies."
Letter to President Bush, Signed by Sen. Bob Graham(D, FL,) and others,
Dec, 5, 2001

"We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and a threat to the peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandated of the United Nations and is building weapons of mass destruction and the means of delivering them."
Sen. Carl Levin (D, MI), Sept. 19, 2002


"We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons throughout his country."
Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002


"Iraq's search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to deter and we should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in power."
Al Gore Sept. 23, 2002

"We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction."
Sen. Ted Kennedy (D, MA), Sept. 27, 2002


"The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. We are confident that Saddam Hussein retains some stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, and that he has since embarked on a crash course to build up his chemical and biological warfare capabilities. Intelligence reports indicate that he is seeking nuclear weapons..."
Sen. Robert Byrd (D, WV), Oct. 3, 2002

"I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority to use force-if necessary-to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass
destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security."
Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Oct. 9, 2002

"There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working aggressively to develop nuclear weapons and will likely have nuclear weapons within the next five years ... We also
should remember we have always underestimated the progress Saddam has made
in development of weapons of mass destruction."
Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D, WV), Oct 10, 2002

"He has systematically violated, over the course of the past 11 years, every significant UN resolution that has demanded that he disarm and destroy his chemical and biological weapons, and any nuclear capacity. This he has refused to do"
Rep. Henry Waxman (D, CA), Oct. 10, 2002

"In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons stock, his missile delivery capability, and
his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including
al Qaeda members... It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop
nuclear weapons."
Sen. Hillary Clinton (D, NY), Oct 10, 2002

"We are in possession of what I think to be compelling evidence that Saddam Hussein has, and has had for a number of years, a developing capacity for the production and storage of weapons
of mass destruction."
Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), Dec. 8, 2002


"Without question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal, murderous dictator, leading an oppressive regime ... He presents a particularly grievous threat because he is so
consistently prone to miscalculation ... And now he is miscalculating America's response to
his continued deceit and his consistent grasp for weapons of mass destruction ... So the threat of Saddam Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is real..."
Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Jan. 23. 2003


:: gandalf23 9:33:00 PM [+] ::
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The beauty of the Second Amendment is that it will not be needed until they try to take it.


"All right, they're on our left, they're on our right, they're in front of us, they're behind us... they can't get away this time."
- Lieutenant General Lewis B."Chesty" Puller (when surrounded by 8 enemy divisions)



:: gandalf23 10:45:00 AM [+] ::
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Saw this on someone else's blog:

Next time there's a war in Europe, the loser has to keep France.

:)


:: gandalf23 8:20:00 AM [+] ::
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Webcomics to take a look at:

Nowhere Girl

Electric Sheep Comix


:: gandalf23 1:46:00 PM [+] ::
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Most non-criminals hate burglars more than we hate paranoid farmers; farmers don't break into our houses at night, steal our DVDs and piss on the floor. Not even French farmers.


:: gandalf23 9:35:00 AM [+] ::
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Bang Bang.

If you liked Pulp Fiction and Resevoir Dogs, then GO SEE KILL BILL!

It's a little bloody, but it's cartoony, like a bad horor movie. If you watched say, The Way of the Gun, then this is no problem. WotG was, in my opinion, much worse as it was a more realistic portrayal of the effects of violence. Still, I don;t recommedn that my mom go see it. My dad would like it, but not good for the madre.

The music is, like all Tarantino movies, incredible. The opening scene is great, but I don't know how it would've played without Nancy Sinatra's cover of Cher's Bang Bang.



:: gandalf23 8:49:00 AM [+] ::
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Gun fire is the sound of freedom.


:: gandalf23 8:18:00 AM [+] ::
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Give a man a fish and he eats for one day. Teach him how to fish, and though he'll eat for a lifetime, he'll call you a miser for not giving him your fish.



:: gandalf23 8:16:00 AM [+] ::
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:)


:: gandalf23 10:04:00 AM [+] ::
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Wanna be an astronaut? Fluency in Russian and previous space experiance are pluses. :)


:: gandalf23 8:32:00 AM [+] ::
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:)


:: gandalf23 11:52:00 AM [+] ::
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Take this quiz and you're entered to win a 63 INCH plasma TV! 63 inch!!!!!!
The answers are:

1) D $200
2) B 200 kHz
3) C 5.45 mV
4) C 4
5) C 7680
6) B (or anything else, no wrong answer here)

Did I mention it's a 63 inch plasma TV?!!!!

(BTW, the answers are on the site, and it's an open book quiz, so don't feel that having the answers is cheating)







:: gandalf23 1:22:00 PM [+] ::
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Indiana Jones is finally coming to DVD

I'm not sure _why_ it took Speilburg so long to release these movies.


:: gandalf23 8:45:00 AM [+] ::
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It's more important what you stand for than who you stand with. If what you do is right, it's right even if you do it alone.
:: gandalf23 3:11:00 PM [+] ::
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U.N. youth report a 'wake-up call'


HIV/AIDS is spreading fastest, the report said, among youths in sub-Saharan Africa, where about 8.6 million youths are infected -- 62 percent of them female. South Asia follows, with 1.1 million youths infected -- 62 percent of them female.

The report said poverty was a factor in the spread of HIV because some poor girls sell sex for money for school fees or to help their families.

Talking about sex is taboo in many countries so many young people do not know enough about the virus that causes AIDS to protect themselves. In Somalia, for example, only 26 percent of adolescent girls had heard of it and just one percent knew how to protect themselves.
:: gandalf23 10:48:00 AM [+] ::
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Looks like I may have to start a new hobby

:)


:: gandalf23 8:20:00 AM [+] ::
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Interesting.

Schwarzenegger's win marks the first time since Reconstruction that the nation's four most populous states (California, Florida, New York and Texas) have all had Republican governors, three of whom won their 2002 re-election bid by double digits. Two of those states, New York and California, are considered Democratic strongholds.


:: gandalf23 7:52:00 AM [+] ::
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Wow! According to this, muslims discovered america and California is named after them.


:: gandalf23 10:46:00 AM [+] ::
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The oddest thing hapened today at the office. I went to get the mail and started sorting it, and I noticed that one envelope wasin a clear plastic bag that had been taped shut around it. Then I noticed that the envelope was covered in blood! The clear bag had a label on it from the post office saying that they were sorry they damaged out mail.

What the Heck did they do to it? "Now, now. It could be catsup." Nope, didn;t smell catsupy at all, it smelt of blood. Very high on the ewwwwwwww scale. First we had to find some tongs to get the letter out, then a knife to open it and using the knife and tongs get the contents out. Who knows what kind of blood was on it or what was in the blood, but we didn't want to take any chances.

Maybe a mail carrier along the way was injured? Or there was a freak accident at the mail processing plant? Or maybe the mail carrier discovered an injured person and tried to staunch the blood flow with junk mail. Or perhaps the mail carrier is a serial killer who gets rid of his evidence via the mail. I'd kinda like to know.


:: gandalf23 10:43:00 AM [+] ::
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A nurse walks into a bank, preparing to endorse a check.
She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a rectal thermometer
and tries to write with it. She looks up at the teller, pauses for
a moment, and then, realizing her mistake, she says,
"Well, that's great, just great. Some asshole's got my pen."

:)



:: gandalf23 10:32:00 AM [+] ::
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TEXAS

When you're from Texas, people that you meet ask you questions like,
Do you have any cows?" "Do you have horses?" "Bet you got a bunch of guns,
eh?" They all want to know if you've been to Southfork. They watched Dallas.

Have you ever looked at a map of the world? Look at Texas with me just
for a second. That picture, with the Panhandle and the Gulf Coast,
the Red River and the Rio Grande is as much a part of you as anything
ever will be. As soon as anyone anywhere in the world looks at it they
know what it is. It's Texas. Pick any kid off the street in Japan and
draw him a picture of Texas in the dirt and he'll know what it is. What
happens if I show you a picture of any other state?
You might get it maybe after a second or two, but who else would? And
even if you do, does it ever stir any feelings in you?

In every man, woman and child on this planet, there is a person who
wishes just once he could be a real live Texan and get up on a horse or
ride off in a pickup. There is some bit of Texas in everyone.

Did you ever hear anyone in a bar go, "Wow...so you're from Iowa? Cool,
tell me about it?" Do you know why? Because there's no place like Texas.

Texas is the Alamo. Texas is 183 men standing in a church, facing
thousands of Mexican nationals, fighting for freedom, who had the chance
to walk out and save themselves, but stayed instead to fight and die for
the cause of freedom. We send our kids to schools named William B. Travis
and James Bowie and Crockett and do you know why?
Because those men saw a line in the sand and they decided to cross it and be
heroes. John Wayne paid to do the movie himself. That is the Spirit of
Texas.

Texas is Sam Houston capturing Santa Ana at San Jacinto.

Texas is Juneteenth and Texas Independence Day.

Texas is huge forests of Piney Woods like the Davy Crockett National Forest
Texas is breathtaking mountains in the Big Bend.

Texas is the unparalleled beauty of bluebonnet fields in the Texas Hill
Country.

Texas is the beautiful, warm beaches of the Gulf Coast of South TexasTexas
is the shiny skyscrapers in Houston and Dallas.

Texas is world record bass from places like Lake Fork.

Texas is Mexican food like nowhere else, not even Mexico.

Texas is the Fort Worth Stockyards, Bass Hall, and the Astrodome.

Texas is larger-than-life legends like Willie Nelson, Buddy Holly,
Waylon Jennings, Janis Joplin, Kris Kristofferson, Tom Landry, Darrell
Royal, ZZ Top, Eric Dickerson, Earl Campbell, Nolan Ryan,Denton
Cooley and Michael DeBakey, Sam Rayburn, Audie Murphy, Admiral Nimitz, George Bush, Lyndon B.Johnson, and George W. Bush.

Texas is great companies like Dell Computer, Texas Instruments and
Compaq. And LOCKHEED MARTIN AEROSPACE, Home of the F-16 Jet Fighter
and the JSF Fighter.

Texas is NASA.

Texas is huge herds of cattle and miles of crops.

Texas is skies blackened with doves, and fields full of deer.

Texas is a place where cities shut down to watch the local High School
Football game on Friday nights and for the Cowboys on Monday Night Football, and NIOSA River Parade in San Antonio.

Texas is ocean beaches, deserts, lakes and rivers, mountains and
prairies, and modern cities.

If it isn't in Texas, you don't need it.

No one does anything bigger or better than it's done in Texas.

By federal law, Texas is the only state in the U.S. that can fly its
flag at the same height as the U.S. flag. Think about that for a second.
You fly the Stars and Stripes at 20 feet in Maryland, California, or
Maine and your state flag, whatever it is, goes at 17 feet. You fly the
Stars and Stripes in front of Pine Tree High in Longview at 20 feet, the Lone
Star flies at the same height - 20 feet. Do you know why? Because it is
the only state that was a republic before it became a state.

Also, being a Texan is as high as being an American down here. Our
capitol is the only one in the country that is taller than the capitol
building in Washington, D.C. and we can divide our state into five states
if we want to! We included these things as part of the deal when we came
on. That's the best part right there.


And a little funny thing:

Top 10 Signs You Know You're in Texas:

10. You no longer associate bridges with water.
9. You can say "110 degrees" without fainting.
8. You learn that a seat belt makes a pretty good branding iron.
7. When the temperature drops below 95, you feel a bit chilly.
6. You discover that, in August, it takes only 2 fingers to drive your car.
5. You notice the best parking place is determined by shade instead of distance.
4. Hot water comes out of both taps.
3. You break a sweat the instant you step outside at 7:00 a.m. on the way to work.
2. No one would dream of putting vinyl upholstery in a car.

And the No. 1 Sign You're in Texas:

1. You realize that asphalt has a liquid state.
:: gandalf23 10:42:00 AM [+] ::
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Here's part of what I wrote to the Saudi Religous Police:

Peace be upon you my brothers,

I must first apologize for writing in English. My Arabic is very poor at this point. I can speak it enough to get around and be polite (Hello, Thank You, This camel is delicious), but my writing skills are very very poor. I felt that your German would most likely also be poor, and while I speak and write French fluently, I do not enjoy doing so, so I choose to write in English. I hope this is not a problem.

Where to begin? I converted to Islam one year ago, shortly before asking to be transferred to Saudi Arabia. I thought I would be in the next thing to paradise here, but the truth is far from it. I have been in Saudi for only a few months now, but already I have seen crimes against Islam almost unimaginable and innumerable.

Although all the infidels in the compound are breaking the law in some manner, I will start with the French family across from me in the compound. The Cousteaus. They say they are related to the famous diver, but I do not believe this to be true as Jacques Cousteau was a fine upstanding man and I believe he was a devout Muslim. This family is far from it.

The first crime I shall speak of is of the father, Fabron, who, along with his partner in crime, the American Bob Flaa, is manufacturing alcohol in his house. There is a secret passage behind the refrigerator that leads to a small room under the house where they brew the evil spirits. In this cellar as they call it, there is a large apparatus for the brewing of beer and another for the distilling of whiskey. They are growing some plants down there as well. I think it is most likely barley or hops, but I saw at least one plant that looked like marijuana. It has been many years since I saw a marijuana plant, so I could be wrong. Please warn the officers who enter to guard their breath as the cellar smells as foul as the very pits of hell.

I know of this secret hiding place because both Bob and Fabron asked me to smuggle brewing supplies for them as I am in the United States this week, at the company headquarters in Houston. They even gave me a suitcase that has been modified for smuggling. I will be happy to give you this suitcase upon my return to Saudi this next Monday morning. Should I go ahead and purchase the hops and barley they requested so that this may be used against them? Please let me know. I realize that this is more of something for the non-religious police, but I thought you could let them know about it.

The wife, Brigitte, I believe is a whore. I often work late in the evenings so that I may coordinate my time with that of the home office. This leaves me home during the day, and often I see men WHO ARE NOT RELATED TO HER entering the house. I have never seen this woman Brigitte not to wear the hijab, never have I seen more of her than is proper, yet still, I think she is a whore and must be punished.

Speaking of whores, we must now look at their daughter, the evil temptress Azura. Azura! A truer name I have never heard, as her eyes are the color of the sky, and as piercing as a hawks. There are not enough grains of sand in the whole of the Barren Quarter to count the times I have seen her ankles, calves and thighs. Such a wicked woman she is!

When I first moved to Saudi I was working during the day and I would see her everyday as she waited for a ride to school. The first day I went to work, THE FIRST!, she showed me her ankle as I drove by.

A more gorgeous ankle has never been seen on this planet. Perhaps in Paradise all the houri's will have ankles this perfect, but on this world this pair is unique. At first I thought little of it, I assumed that the passage of my vehicle caused the robe to lift slightly. Several days went by with no ankle sightings, so I assumed it was a fluke.

But then, one day as I drove to work I could feel her eyes upon me. I turned my head and she moved her hands down slowly to her sides and grasped her robe, lifting it up just enough to show, quite deliberately, her beautiful ankles.

Thus it began. From this point on, every morning, no matter what time I left, she was there, tempting me, showing me things reserved for her family and husband only. Each day the robe was lifted slightly higher, until I was able to see her full, long, bare legs. There are not words in any language I know to describe her legs. Perhaps when I better learn Arabic, being the language that Allah, praise be his name, designed, I shall be able to describe the features of this girl, this temptress, this succubus, Azura to you, my brethren. The perfect ankles are attached to the perfect calves, knees and, of course, thighs. In my home country the women are more decent than she and do not shave their legs. This she-devil, this djin sent to tempt me, Azura, had shaved off all the hair and her bronzed legs glistened each morning with a faint sheen of oil or sweat, if such a magnificent creature is possible of sweat.

Even now, as I am sitting here several thousand miles away, if I close my eyes all I see are her silky legs glistening in the morning light. I have prayed and fasted for the strength to resist her temptations, but I fear she has cast a spell upon me. I am fasting my whole trip to the United States. My hope is that I will be all the stronger for it when I return. Also, I have heard that since 9/11 the Americans are putting swine into the water supply, and it is better to be safe than sorry, correct?

It goes a bit downhill after this point, but you get the idea. Remember that in Saudi all women must be covered from head to toe when they go out, so a woman brazenly displaying her ankles is about to get beaten by the Religous Police. Alcohol is strictly forbidden. Also, it is not allowed for a woman to be alone with a man who is not her relative. And of course, to eat or otherwise ingest pork products is a big no-no.

Also remember, that the whole point is to get them to read it and waste their time investigating the claims. Or waste their time as the print out copies and pass them back and forth in the break room.



:: gandalf23 1:27:00 PM [+] ::
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