What Kind Of Reader Are You? or Literati R Us

What Kind of Reader Are You? Your Result: Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm You're probably in the final stages of a Ph.D. or otherwise finding a way to make your living out of reading. You are one of the literati. Other people's grammatical mistakes make you insane.
Dedicated Reader
Literate Good Citizen
Book Snob
Fad Reader
Non-Reader
What Kind of Reader Are You? Create Your Own Quiz

This is close. Once one of my aunts said about my paritcular part of the family, "You can't bring up any subject, but one of the Kauffmans will look up and say, "I read a book once---""
Technorati Tag:Reading*** Books

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The Open Trackback Alliance XLXII
UPDATE: Denmark Exports Soaring

After blogger Judith Klinghoffer and an army of Davids declared a "Buy Danish" campaign to combat the Muslim boycott. The Guardian says "fervent rightwing Americans" participated in the buying spree and implies that the cartoonists were responsible for the deaths of 139 people.(like it was the cartoonists who killed those people instead of the ones who shed their blood, how like the Progressive TransNazi viewpoint)

For your listening pleasure while you browse

"Der er et yndigt land" (There Is A Lovely Land)

Words by: Adam Gottlob Oehlenschlager
Music by: Hans Ernst Kr?yer
Adopted: 1844

"Derer et yndigt land" was first performed for a large gathering of Danes in 1844, and became popular quickly with the Danish people. It was adopted later that year by the Danish government as a national anthem, but not the sole national anthem. This anthem is on equal status with "Kong Christian",which is both the national and royal anthem.

When the Danish anthem is usually performed or sung, the first verse is played in its entirety, then it is followed by the last four lines of the last verse. (This is true whether the lyrics are sung or not



Recentlty I have been posting music to Illustrate the Diversity of America, this week I have a different motive to express Solidarity with DENMARK

I maintain my Support of Denmark, and will later today, post links to and my thoughts about a Danish Editorial "We are being pissed upon by Per Nyholm "

I think I shall title my Post, "There is no "But" in "Freedom of Speech".




When I first started upon my journey through the blogverse I created a Statement of Purpose
Now upon reading it, one can realize that I did not hold to every detail of that original statement, but from it's basic premise, I have never swayed, in my belief that the Blogs are in fact the Committees of Correspondence of the Second American Revolution.

And that it is a Revolution of Information, no longer can we afford and allow elite gateways to control what we can see, hear and discuss.

For I believe that those bloggers who find their way, here and in particular from the Blogs associated with Sam.

HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY.

Some of us are more Serious, some of us are more lighthearted and some post the common ordinary things that make one smile and recall that Life without the simple things to treasure is meaningless.

And it is important that all have a platform from which to speak.

As I understand this process you can link to this post and trackback to this post on ANY subject or post you think important. It is open. I will repeat this every Monday.

The Committees of Correspondence welcomes your intelligent comments. And also welcomes you to join the

OPEN TRACKBACK ALLIANCE

This week I also have shortened my usual introduction for a more inportant message.

In it's struggle for Freedom of Speech.

Sign the Petition NOW!

JEG opstille hos Danmark!

47130 Total Signatures 4:51 PM CST November 27, 2006 We can do better pass the word~!

From Agora a call to Support the Manifesto online by signing another Petition, why not sign both?


MANIFESTO: Together facing the new totalitarianism
Created by Mark Jefferson on March 1st, 2006 at 5:42 pm AST

After having overcome fascism, Nazism, and Stalinism, the world now faces a new totalitarian global threat: Islamism.
We, writers, journalists, intellectuals, call for resistance to religious totalitarianism and for the promotion of freedom, equal opportunity and secular values for all. "

Blogs that Trackback to this Post:

On Monday
Freedom Is Not Free from Rightwing Guy

Y'al come back now, Y'heah? ;-)
Technorati Tag:Denmark***Free Speech***Jihad***Army of Davids

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Nation of Aztlan They Say They Are In A Civil War
Topic: Immigration

the fuse is lit!

My Video

They also say, we should support affirmative action because some day we will need it. I think that is something like what one of the Swedish ministers said about the rise in Crime among the Muslim immigrant population. That native Swedes should be tolerant, because some day they would need the Muslims to tolerate them, when they had become a minority in their own land.

In 1846 as we all know the US went to War with Mexico and we ended up with the Southwest. What you may not know is that in 1846 the Dineh,(Navajo) the REAL inhabitants of that region also kicked Mexicos Chicano Civilizer tails back south of the Rio Grande.

Nope they do NOT belong or own the North.

My own ancestors also stood their ground. Cortez with 140? Conquistadores conquered the Aztecs. Pizzaro with 400 Conquistadores conquered the Incans.

DeSoto with 600 Conquistadores entered the Cherokee homeland and--

We kicked their tales back to the Gulf of Mexico.

Maybe something like that needs done again.

It irks to think our tax dollars pay the salary of that professor ranting about the overthrow of the United States of America and the creation of the Nation of Aztlan.

Hey if any reading this ever has their driver's license revoked and gets caught driving anyway?

Just tell the Judge you were not driving Illegally, but that you are just an undocumented driver.

Technorati Tag:Aztlan***La Raza***Chicano ***Latino

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From the Gunny Fw: ain't this the truth
Got a new Email from the Gunny. If you recall I introduced him in
There Is No Such Thing As An Ex-Marine.
I think what you will find below is worth spending a quiet moment thinking on during this Holiday Season.

Different Christmas Poem

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.
Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.
The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.
My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know, Then the
sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.
Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.

A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.
"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,
"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!"

For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..
To the window that danced with a warm fire's light
Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,
I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."
"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.
No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.
My Gramps died at 'Pearl on a day in December,"
Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers."
My dad stood his watch in the jungles of 'Nam',
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.
I've not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile.

Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue... an American flag.
I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.
I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..
Who stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall."

"So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."
"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,
"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you've done,
For being away from your wife and your son."
Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.
For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us."

PLEASE, Would you do me the kind favor of sending this to as many people as you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our U.S.service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities. Let's try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe. Make people
stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for
us.



LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN
30th Naval Construction Regiment
OIC, Logistics Cell One
Al Taqqadum, Iraq

Technorati Tag:Iraq***America***Pearl Harbor ***Al Taqqadum

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I Watch This From Time To Time To Remind Myself Just Why I Am So Proud To Be An American

Thank you Americia

the fuse is lit!

Technorati Tag:Kurdistan***America***Thankyou America***The Other Iraq

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The Open Trackback Alliance XLXI
UPDATE: Denmark Exports Soaring

After blogger Judith Klinghoffer and an army of Davids declared a "Buy Danish" campaign to combat the Muslim boycott. The Guardian says "fervent rightwing Americans" participated in the buying spree and implies that the cartoonists were responsible for the deaths of 139 people.(like it was the cartoonists who killed those people instead of the ones who shed their blood, how like the Progressive TransNazi viewpoint)

For your listening pleasure while you browse

"Der er et yndigt land" (There Is A Lovely Land)

Words by: Adam Gottlob Oehlenschlager
Music by: Hans Ernst Kr?yer
Adopted: 1844

"Derer et yndigt land" was first performed for a large gathering of Danes in 1844, and became popular quickly with the Danish people. It was adopted later that year by the Danish government as a national anthem, but not the sole national anthem. This anthem is on equal status with "Kong Christian",which is both the national and royal anthem.

When the Danish anthem is usually performed or sung, the first verse is played in its entirety, then it is followed by the last four lines of the last verse. (This is true whether the lyrics are sung or not



Recentlty I have been posting music to Illustrate the Diversity of America, this week I have a different motive to express Solidarity with DENMARK

I maintain my Support of Denmark, and will later today, post links to and my thoughts about a Danish Editorial "We are being pissed upon by Per Nyholm "

I think I shall title my Post, "There is no "But" in "Freedom of Speech".




When I first started upon my journey through the blogverse I created a Statement of Purpose
Now upon reading it, one can realize that I did not hold to every detail of that original statement, but from it's basic premise, I have never swayed, in my belief that the Blogs are in fact the Committees of Correspondence of the Second American Revolution.

And that it is a Revolution of Information, no longer can we afford and allow elite gateways to control what we can see, hear and discuss.

For I believe that those bloggers who find their way, here and in particular from the Blogs associated with Sam.

HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY.

Some of us are more Serious, some of us are more lighthearted and some post the common ordinary things that make one smile and recall that Life without the simple things to treasure is meaningless.

And it is important that all have a platform from which to speak.

As I understand this process you can link to this post and trackback to this post on ANY subject or post you think important. It is open. I will repeat this every Monday.

The Committees of Correspondence welcomes your intelligent comments. And also welcomes you to join the

OPEN TRACKBACK ALLIANCE

This week I also have shortened my usual introduction for a more inportant message.

In it's struggle for Freedom of Speech.

Sign the Petition NOW!

JEG opstille hos Danmark!

47021 Total Signatures 12:16 AM CDT November 20, 2006 We can do better pass the word~!

From Agora a call to Support the Manifesto online by signing another Petition, why not sign both?


MANIFESTO: Together facing the new totalitarianism
Created by Mark Jefferson on March 1st, 2006 at 5:42 pm AST

After having overcome fascism, Nazism, and Stalinism, the world now faces a new totalitarian global threat: Islamism.
We, writers, journalists, intellectuals, call for resistance to religious totalitarianism and for the promotion of freedom, equal opportunity and secular values for all. "

Blogs that Trackback to this Post:

On Monday
Name The Turkey Contest 2006 from 123beta
We Told You This Would Happen from Rightwing Guy

Y'al come back now, Y'heah? ;-)
Technorati Tag:Denmark***Free Speech***Jihad***Army of Davids

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How About A Nice Game Of Hide And Seek?
Is 'Invisibility Cloak' for Combat Uniforms/BDUs Here Right Now?

by David Crane
david@defensereview.com

Over the last several months, DefenseReview has been reporting on a visual cloaking technology (a.k.a. adaptive camouflage technology a.k.a. electro-optical camouflage technology a.k.a. chameleonic camouflage technology) that's claimed to have been developed by Advanced American Enterprise (AAE) for manned ground vehicles, UGVs (Unmanned Ground Vehicles)/Ground Robots (including weaponized UGVs like SWORDS), infantry warfighters (i.e. human beings), and helicopters (both manned and unmanned). AAE claims that it's developed visible-light-spectrum, thermal/IR (infrared), and night vision (NV)/near-infrared cloaking technology that's viable, i.e. ready-to-go right now for use by U.S. and Coalition forces. The reason we bring this up is that AAE has just released information on their IR/NV-Stealth 4 system, which can be incorporated into flexible materials, including clothing like standard combat uniforms a.k.a. battle dress uniforms (BDUs). AAE claims that any clothing that's treated with its IR/NV-Stealth tech will become invisible to any/all night vision equipment/night observation devices (NVE/NODs) and thermal/IR sensors/viewers, as well as untargetable by IR laser designators sighting equipment (i.e. laser sights), when the wearer flips the switch to "On".

These are some pretty bold claims, but the AAE document on the IR/NV Stealth 4 tech states that AAE can conduct live field demonstrations for interested parties/organizations. So far, DefenseReview has only seen short video clips of certain versions of the Stealth Technology System (STS) being demonstrated. We have not yet seen it demonstrated in person. We're hoping to get the chance to see the STS tech applied to a manned vehicle and/or a UGV (Unmanned Ground Vehicle) at some point in the not-too-distant future--in person.

In the meantime, click on the link below to view the IR/NV-Stealth 4 fact sheet:...

IR/NV-Stealth 4 Fact Sheet (PDF Format)

Now that that's out of the way, it should perhaps be noted that there have been a lot of stories lately about the potential use of "metamaterials" a.k.a. negative-index materials a.k.a. negative-index metamaterials a.k.a. left-handed materials for visual cloaking, a.k.a. adaptive camouflage a.k.a. optical camouflage. A number of scientists believe that these metamaterials can be used to bend/redirect light around an object covered in the material, so that the light waves literally flow around the covered object instead of bouncing off it, making it invisible. Light waves are just another form of electromagnetic waves (electromagnetic radiation), which is what metamaterials have already shown to be capabable of bending/redirecting. This electromagnetic wave redirection capability is made possible by an aspect of metamaterials known as negative refraction, in which light is refracted in the opposite direction from the natural positive refraction that all natural materials (like water, glass, diamond, etc.) create when lights hit them. So far, only, specially-engineered composite materials (metamaterials) have been shown to have a negative refractive index, or "index of negative refraction".

One example of a metamaterial is a split-ring structure etched onto a copper circuit board along with copper wires. The metamaterial that's created exhibits negative permativity and negative permeability. R. Colin Johnson explains this, along with its relation to its potential for cloaking objects in an EE Times article.

According to David Schurig of Duke University (and formerly of the University of California, San Diego), metamaterials that can shield objects from microwave radiation will probably be available this year (2006). However, Schurig speculates that using these materials to create an invisibility cloak is perhaps ten years out. He also pointed out while metamaterial cloaks are possible, the first "invisibility devices" would most likely be rigid "shells" rather than flexible/supple cloaks. Mr. Schurig is an associate of David Smith (David R. Smith), who heads a research group on "Novel Electromagnetic Materials" (metamaterials, etc.) at Duke.  Like Mr. Schurig, Mr. Smith also came to Duke by way of UCSD.  Looks like Duke's been busy stealing all of UCSD's best metamaterials talent. 

Mr. Schurig's statement that viable metamaterial-based invisibility cloaking technology is somewhere around 10 years out makes AAE's currently-available "Invisibility Stealth" cloaking tech all the more impressive, if it works as well as the company claims, especially since various versions of the Stealth Technology System, including IR/NV Stealth 4, can be incorporated into clothing like military flight suits, combat uniforms/BDUs, and coveralls. In fact, AAE claims that the U.S. Army Advanced Combat Uniform (ACU) BDU can be treated with the Stealth 4 tech when its sent in for cleaning by its owner!  While DefenseReview hopes that the AAE Invsibility Stealth cloaking tech lives up to the hype and does everything the company says it does, we have to maintain a healthy level of skepticism until we either see it operate in person, or a reliable third-party source whom we trust validates it.  Until then, we're in a wait-and-see holding pattern.

Advanced American Enterprise (AAE) can be contacted by phone at 714-287-0490, by fax at 714-870-6385, and by email at aab@ix.netcom.com.

Now you see me
Me with Stealth-OFF (Near a white marker)

Now you don't
Stealth-ON, Unspotable me at same location.
Neither the eye nor the camcorder can spot me.

Battle Field Live Demonstration: person in a bunker will rise & shoot blanks at observers & camcorder 20 feet away without being spotted by the observers or by the video. Image analysis determines the percentage of visibility reduction.


American casualties caused by roadside I E D (Improvized Explosive Devices) triggered by insurgents are reduced by concealing the army carriers & Strykers. The Pentagon solution of 4-video-screens on the 4 sides of the vehicle is too expensive. The Senate-approved 230,000 side armor (3.2 Kg) are too heavy extra burden for Army Secretary Francis Harvey to accept. Also, the full body armor did not help the embedded Journalist ABC Anchor Bob Woodruff.


However the Senate approved but not-spent-yet budget can outfit our 6,000 carriers in the region within 4 months. With visibility reduction of 85-100%, the carriers at more than 20 feet distance are unspottible by insurgents for subsequent I E D targeting.

The visibility Stealth with ON/OFF switch is:

$1,600 for person	$29,000 for APC Hummer	$49,000 for Stryker

Reducing American Casualties in Iraq With

Technorati Tag: Stealth tech ***chameleonic camouflage***visual cloaking
View blog reactions


Open Trackbacks Weekend from The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns

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What Religion Fits You?
This is fun.

You fit in with: Taoism Your ideals mostly resemble those of the Taoist faith. Spirituality is the most important thing in your life. You strive to live by all of your ideals, and live a very intellectually focused life. 60% spiritual. 20% reason-oriented.

Take this quiz at QuizGalaxy.com

Technorati Tag: Taoism ***QuizGalaxy***Spiritual

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The Challenge of Protecting Pope Benedict XVI in Turkey
Pope Benedict XVI will begin his first papal visit to a predominantly Muslim
country Nov. 28 when he arrives in Turkey for four days of private meetings,
public masses and other events. The trip, which already has generated some
death threats against the pope, has both Turkish and Vatican security on high
alert.

Tensions between Muslims and Benedict XVI flared up inSeptember when the pope made remarks at Germany's University of Regensburg that seemed to refer to Islam as "evil." Although the pope later sought to clarify his comments, the incident reopened Muslim wounds caused by the controversy earlier in the year over cartoons
of the Prophet Mohammed.





In light of recent incidents -- as well as the ongoing militant
threat in Turkey -- security officials in Turkey, Vatican City and Italy
are taking threats against the pope very seriously. On Nov. 2, a Turkish man
fired several shots at the Italian Consulate in Istanbul and threatened to
shoot Benedict XVI during his visit to Turkey. The man, who was subsequently
arrested, is believed to have acted alone. In Turkey, Mehmet Ali Acga, who
attempted to assassinate Pope John Paul II in 1981, said from prison Sept. 20
that Benedict XVI should not visit Turkey, and suggested that the pontiff's
life would be in danger if he went ahead with his plans.



That same
day, Rome's city prosecutor launched an investigation into threats against
the pope posted on the Internet by Iraqi jihadist groups. The head of the
prosecutor's anti-terrorism department said the investigation would focus on
statements intended to incite people to take action against a head of state.
Because the pope is the head of state of the Vatican, threats against him
receive the same level of attention from intelligence and law enforcement as
do threats against any other head of state. His status as head of state also
affords him the highest level of protection.

At home in Vatican City,
the pope is protected by two modern security corps: the centuries-old Swiss
Guards and the Gendarmerie Corps of the State of Vatican City. Additional
security is provided by plainclothes agents and Italian Carabinieri, federal
police who patrol outside the square and stand ready as sharpshooters atop
buildings during public ceremonies.

While abroad, the pope travels
with a plainclothes security detail of Swiss Guards, which operates in a
manner similar to the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) or the U.S. State
Department's Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), organizations charged with
protecting the president and U.S. diplomats overseas. The Vatican's security
forces are every bit as proficient as the USSS and DSS.

It is
important to note, however, that the host country ultimately is responsible
for protecting visiting heads of state. Thus, Turkey will collect
intelligence on the national level in advance of and during the trip. In
addition to Vatican and Turkish efforts, various other intelligence agencies
will be looking for possible threats to the pope's safety.


Arrangements between Vatican and Turkish security forces would have been
made months before the pope's visit, starting with an agreement between the
two on how they will operate together. As part of the agreement, agents from
Vatican security would have been deployed to Turkey about a month prior to
the visit in order to assess the security situation and determine potential
vulnerabilities at the sites the pontiff will visit. During this time,
Vatican security will be working closely with the Turkish Security General
Directorate and National Intelligence Agency, which will be compiling its own
security assessments.

Sweeps for potential troublemakers already are
under way in the cities the pope will visit, and Turkish police will pick up
suspected subversives and mentally disturbed people who have made threats
against the pope's life. To this end, Vatican security will provide a list of
people who have attempted to contact the pope with threats. As the visit
approaches, Turkish authorities will likely announce that several "thwarted
plots" against the pope have been uncovered during these sweeps.


However, as media coverage heats up in the lead-up to the visit, the
furor over the Regensburg remarks, and possibly the cartoons, could
re-ignite, especially in a country that is more than 99 percent Muslim. In
any case, demonstrations by religious and student groups can be expected,
most likely at pre-authorized locations. In that case, vigilance by security
forces will be high to ensure the protests do not get out of hand.

As
the pope's arrival date approaches, security forces will take their positions
around the locations on his itinerary. Sweeps for explosives will be
conducted in these areas and countersniper support will be scanning rooftops
and windows. Once in Turkey, Benedict XVI will travel in motorcades of
armored vehicles, which will include decoy cars.

The pope plans to
spend one night in Ankara and two in Istanbul, though information on his
lodgings has not been released. Choices include the Holy See Embassy
Residence in Ankara and the Hilton Istanbul hotel, where U.S. President
George W. Bush stayed on his visit to Turkey in June 2004.

A hotel
stay would present more security challenges for the pope's protective detail
than would a stay in a state-owned residence. Should he lodge at a hotel,
security will have to run checks on all the other guests staying there during
his visit. Moreover, the day-to-day commercial operations of the hotel will
present many security vulnerabilities, especially with caterers, laundry,
cleaning staff and other personnel constantly coming and going.

A
residence owned by the Vatican, on the other hand, can be better secured, and
occupants and staff more thoroughly vetted to screen for infiltrators or
individuals with nefarious agendas. There also would be less vulnerability
from caterers, laundry and other hotel staff coming and going.

The
pope's itinerary includes several stops in Ankara and Istanbul, as well as at
the sites of ancient Christian communities in Smyrna and Ephesus. In Ankara,
the pope will meet with Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and Turkey's
highest Muslim authority, Grand Mufti Ali Bardakoglu, who is deputy prime
minister and head of Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate. In addition to
Vatican security, the pope will be protected by the high security that
normally surrounds Turkish leaders. These meetings, as well as others with
Turkish Christian, Muslim and Jewish religious leaders, will take place at
controlled venues and will be attended by screened and invited guests only.
These venues also can be easily locked down and screened for improvised
explosive devices.

Potentially vulnerable points will be at Meryem
Ana Evi Shrine in Ephesus when the pope celebrates mass there Nov. 29, and at
Istanbul's Cathedral of the Holy Ghost, where he will deliver a homily Dec.
1, the last day of his trip. Although those events are open to the public,
the venues will be thoroughly swept for bombs beforehand, and all
participants and the entire congregation will be screened for weapons and
explosives.

Even without the tensions surrounding Benedict XVI's
visit to Turkey, the history of attacks and plotted attacks against his
predecessor requires that security be high at all times. The most serious
attack in recent memory came when Acga shot Pope John Paul II twice in the
abdomen as the pope entered St. Peter's Square in an open-air convertible.
Almost a year after that attack, on May 12, 1982, an ultraconservative
Spanish priest who believed the pope was an agent of Moscow approached John
Paul in Fatima, Portugal, with the intent of stabbing him with a bayonet,
though the man was stopped and arrested before he could reach the pontiff. In
1995, Abdel
Basit
plotted to kill Pope John Paul II during a visit to the
Philippines.

Any papal visit to a foreign country presents
significant security challenges. However, given the recent tensions between
Christians and Muslims -- and particularly between this pope and Muslims --
this visit will require an even higher level of vigilance.

Send questions or comments on this article to analysis@stratfor.com.

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Technorati Tag:Pope Benedict XVI ***Turkey***Vatican ***Swiss Guards

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Not Jane Fonda
After I wrote the post about Hanoi Jane, I got to thinking about another story, about another actress from the Vietnam Era.

But Ann-Margaret was not Jane Fonda.

From "Truth or Fiction?"

Full size

Ann-Margret's Spontaneous Tribute to Vietnam Vets at a Book SigningTruth!
Summary of the eRumor:   A warm story about a Vietnam vet who wanted actress Ann-Margret to sign a snapshot he had taken of her when she once performed for troops in Vietnam. He and his wife went to a bookstore where Ann-Margret was autographing books, but an announcement was made that she would be signing books only, not other memorabilia. The vet decided to get in line anyway to at least show her the picture and tell her how much visits like hers meant to troops so far from home. When she saw the photo, tears came to her eyes and she called him one of her "gentlemen from Vietnam" and said she would sign the photo for him. She gave him a kiss and told the crowd how much she appreciated the veterans for what they had done. It was emotional for those in the crowd, but especially so for the vet who later told his wife it had been the first time anyone had thanked him for his service in the Army. Like other Vietnam vets, he returned to an America that had been tormented by the controversial conflict and did not offer the warmth, gratitude, and enthusiasm enjoyed by soldiers returning from other military actions.
The Truth:   This story is true. We have confirmed it with both a spokesperson for Ann-Margret and a member of her family.  Her web site receives hundreds of emails from veterans asking about the story as well as many emails from former soldiers who appreciated Ann-Margret's trips to Vietnam or Korea to entertain troops.
A real example of the eRumor as it has appeared on the Internet:
From a Viet Nam veterans' wife Richard, (my husband), never really talked a lot about his time in Viet Nam other than he had been shot by a sniper. However, he had a rather grainy, 8 x 10 black & white photo he had taken at a USO show of Ann Margaret with Bob Hope in the background that was one of his treasures.  A few years ago, Ann Margaret was doing a book signing at a local bookstore. Richard wanted to see if he could get her to sign the treasured photo so he arrived at the bookstore at 12 o'clock for the 7:30 signing. When I got there after work, the line went all the way around the bookstore, circled the parking lot, and disappeared behind a parking garage.  Before her appearance, bookstore employees announced that she would sign only her book and no memorabilia would be permitted. Richard was disappointed, but wanted to show her the photo and let her know how much those shows meant to lonely GI's so far from home.  Ann Margaret came out looking as beautiful as ever and, as 2nd in line, it was soon Richard's turn. He presented the book for her signature and then took out the photo. When he did, there were many shouts from the employees that she would not sign it. Richard said, "I understand. I just wanted her to see it".  She took one look at the photo, tears welled up in her eyes and she said, "This is one of my gentlemen from Viet Nam and I most certainly will sign his photo. I know what these men did for their country and I always have time for "my gentlemen". With that, she pulled Richard across the table and planted a big kiss on him. She then made quite a to do about the bravery of the young men she met over the years, how much she admired them, and how much she appreciated them. There weren't too many dry eyes among those close enough to hear. She then posed for pictures and acted as if he was the only one there.  Later at dinner, Richard was very quiet. When I asked if he'd like to talk about it, my big strong husband broke down in tears. "That's the first time anyone ever thanked me for my time in the Army", he said.  Richard, like many others, came home to people who spit on him and shouted ugly things at him. That night was a turning point for him. He walked a little straighter and, for the first time in years, was proud to have been a Vet. I'll never forget Ann Margaret for her graciousness and how much that small act of kindness meant to my husband. I now make it a point to say Thank You to every person I come across who served in our Armed Forces. Freedom does not come cheap and I am grateful for all those who have served their country.  If you'd like to pass on this story, feel free to do so. Perhaps it will help others to become aware of how important it is to acknowledge the contribution our service people make.

Technorati Tag:Jane Fonda***Hanoi Jane***Vietnam***Ann-Margaret

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