1 Peace only works when both sides want it, morons.

Praying for your safe return.

2 It is a long time to be held hostage and I don't know how they cope, having just spent a month in the third world myself. I hope they return despite their meddling but I agree that this doesn't look good.

3 And the truth will set you free! Welcome to the truth all ye Western Peace Activists!

4 Does anyone have the video?

5 Although you were one of the two groups to speculate on the IAI as linked to the kidnappers (based on the reported presence of uploaded files on IAI's server)....

I am still skeptical about that connection. As you know IAI was formed with significant membership from Abu Abbas's Palestinian Liberation Front. Moreover, the IAI established an Al Aqsa Martyrs support group a few weeks back. Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade was one of the groups actually calling for the release of these hostages.

The IAI connection does not make sense, especially with the re-emergence of this story after so much down time.

The re-emergence of this story prior to the State of the Union is more consistent with the alternative possibility that the kidnappers are trying to deflect attention away from death squads associated with Iraqi Police Commando units.

The long time off the radar would be consistent with the time needed to disband and bury operations, much like the moving of prisoners from European jails prior to Condi's recent trip to Europe.

6 Yes, these death squads have been all over the news, so attention must be deflected away from them. I can't count all the stories I've seen on these Iraqi police commando death squads. They must number in the zeros!

And the timing, wow, right before the State of the Union address. Yes, that's it, the timing is consistent with burying the operations that no one has heard of. Yes, now that is indeed logical, and here I've accused the Left of not thinking logically in the past, now to be proven wrong. Just goes to show you how people can change.

7 Gee they have went and kidnapped theor own suppoters and fans

8 Cindy Sheehan should be in that line-up if she truly has the courage of her convictions.

9 I've checked Laura Mansfield's site, and she hasn't updated since Friday. Does anyone know where an unaltered version of the video may be hosted?

10 These peace niks will blame bush becuase if we had not gone to war to drive the AL QUEDA out of IRAQ they would never have been over there protesting what abunch of nit wits

11 Well there ya have it folks... sandpiper proof positive that people really are being misled...

Remember the Feb. 2003 tape that the Bush Administration (in the person of Sec. Powell) tried to use to claim there was "proof" of a link between Iraq and al-Qaeda?

"On Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell dropped a bombshell at a Congressional hearing on Iraq and revealed that he had a transcript of an "upcoming" audio message from Osama bin Laden that betrays the links between bin Laden and Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. "

Upon careful scrutiny of the audio message from bin Laden (and broadcast at 3pm EST on the Arabic News Network Al-Jazeerah), it appears the Bush administration may have been so desperate to pin anything on Saddam and bin Laden that they did not wait to actually hear the contents of the message, nor provide adequate and reliable translation.

Here are other links with basically the same conclusion:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2003/02/12/wirq1...
http://www.cato.org/dailys/03-05-03.html

But Wait! It gets Better!!!

re: AQ and Iraq you might be interested in this lil tidbit straight from the horse's mouth: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/01/20030131-23.html

Q One question for you both. Do you believe that there is a link between Saddam Hussein, a direct link, and the men who attacked on September the 11th?

THE PRESIDENT: I can't make that claim.

THE PRIME MINISTER: That answers your question.


I suppose sandpiper is now going to claim it was not Al Qaeda that attacked on 9.11...... but someone else?

Unfortunately, putting everyone you don't like into the "axis of evil" and blaming them for international terrorists muddies the water and loses you allies. That is why even Iran and the Organization of Islamic Countries supported the US invasion of Afghanistan but not even Canada or NATO supported the invasion of Iraq.

==
The only generals in favor of invading Iraq
were General Electric and General Dynamics

12 And don't forget Haliburton, noise. Good thing I bought that stock right before we invaded Iraq. Oops, I might have been for the invasion, too. All that money I made on my stock is just blood money, no doubt, so what should I do with it? Let me see, cash it in, yep, that's what I'll do. 300% profit. Wow, who says war is bad? I hate I missed out on the Generals, dammit, I should have looked you up sooner, noise, and I would now be a gazillionaire, right along with Forest Gump.

13 I am only up a meager 19% on the year across my portfolio. But I sleep well.

14 poker rules Probaly you should read this. poker rules Hope this helps. See you next life

15 Time to fry Kember?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If we are to believe the liberal media Norman Kember is a 'peace activist' who went to Iraq on a Christian peace mission.

However, to those who watch Iraq more closely Norman Kember is a dangerous man.

His mission in Iraq was to do all in his power and the power of his group to give moral support to the terrorists and insurgents and to oppose the democracy that 85% of the Iraqi electorate choose.

He was not in Iraq trying to make peace, he was not in Iraq telling different groups to come together in peace but to lend his moral support to al Qaeda, Insurgents and followers of Muqtadar al Sadr asking them to make human rights allegations against the Iraqi government and the coalition.

That is what caused his capture, he was convinced that the insurgents would welcome him with open arms but those arms closed on him and now he is in captivity.

He is a burden to his captors, a burden to the Iraqi people and the only positive aspect of all this is that he is safely off the streets where he and his group could only encourage further terrorism.

I sincerely hope that coalition forces are doing nothing to assist finding him and that no US troops are exposed to any risks on his behalf.

What the insurgents hope to gain by holding him is anybodies guess, but I hope that they do everyone a favour by continuing to do so.

If they decide to fry him I personally wont shed any tears, anything would be preferable to having him do the rounds on the Western liberal media and the Arab newschannels sowing further bile against the Coalition and democracy in Iraq.