S. Korea the Middleman Linking American Empire To Uzbekistan

[Imperial penetration of Uzbekistan is taking place out of sight because of S. Korea's efforts on behalf of the US Govt.  (SEE:  New freight terminal launched at Navoi airport ;  US Gets Uzbek Air Base ; Charter Air Services to Navoi, Uzbekistan).] 

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak (L) and Uzbek President Islam Karimov hold a joint news conference in Tashkent on Aug. 23. (Yonhap)

S. Korea, Uzbekistan sign string of economic cooperation agreements

By Chang Jae-soon

TASHKENT, Aug. 24 (Yonhap) — South Korea and Uzbekistan agreed to jointly explore rare earth resources in the Central Asian nation and signed other economic cooperation agreements Wednesday, a day after sealing a massive deal to develop a gas field and build a related plant.

A total of seven memorandums of understanding were signed during a forum with about 150 business leaders of the two countries that was also attended by President Lee Myung-bak, Uzbek President Islam Karimov and government officials.

Besides the rare earth exploration agreement, the MOUs also included one about textile technology cooperation, which officials said is expected to help boost South Korea’s exports of textile technology and equipment to Uzbekistan, the world’s second-largest exporter of raw cotton.

The agreements were the latest tangible results of Lee’s two-day trip to Tashkent.

On Tuesday, the two countries signed a US$4.1 billion package of deals to develop the Surgil gas field near the Aral Sea and build a gas and chemical plant, the largest-ever contract between South Korea and Uzbekistan since they established diplomatic relations in 1992.

Also signed on Tuesday was a $7 million contract to export an information technology system to modernize Uzbekistan’s stock market.

During the business forum, Lee and Karimov also watched via video link the unveiling of a commemorative stone at the plant construction site in a symbolic commitment to the project. In summit talks on Tuesday, Lee and Karimov pledged to work together closely for its success.

Lee told the business leaders that he hopes that the Surgil and other joint projects will go smoothly so as to contribute to Uzbekistan’s economic development. Lee also praised Karimov for his role in facilitating the country’s high economic growth, officials said.

The Surgil gas field is believed to be holding an estimated 130 billion cubic meters of natural gas (960 billion tons of LNG, or 830 million barrels of oil equivalent). The project calls for developing the field and building a processing plant, and is expected to cost US$4.16 billion in total.

Also on Tuesday, four engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts were signed involving South Korea’s GS Engineering & Construction Corp., Samsung Engineering Co., Hyundai Engineering Co. and Uzbekistan’s state-run gas corporation UNG, and UZKOR, a 50-50 joint venture set up between the two countries to develop the gas field.

South Korea and Uzbekistan have pursued the Surgil project since Korea Gas Corp. (KOGAS) and UNC signed a memorandum of understanding in 2006. The two sides have since established the joint venture UZKOR in 2008, in which a Korean consortium led by KOGAS holds a 50 percent stake.

Uzbekistan was the second leg of Lee’s three-nation tour of Central Asia. He visited Mongolia earlier this week and is scheduled to depart for Kazakhstan later Wednesday.

jschang@yna.co.kr

You Will Accept Special Forces Trainers, Or Else.

[The delegation of old farts is in Islamabad trying one-on-one extortion/blackmail of the Pakistani government, seeking to force an opening for the re-penetration by pumped-up American killers.  This can easily be compared to a violent rape of Pakistani leaders by an Imperialist aggressor.  Pakistan has one chance to avoid Libya's fate, and that is through concentrated resistance of any military "assistance" from the West.  When all the dust settles, we will either see a world subjugated by the American war machine, or a world liberated from the American Empire, depending upon how, or if, Eastern leaders like PM Gilani resist the assault.]

Restoration of military aid: United States offers quid pro quo

By Kamran Yousaf

Prime Minister Gilani and US Senator Levin during a meeting at the PM House. PHOTO: PPI

ISLAMABAD: The United States has offered to restore $800 million in military aid to Pakistan if it reverses its decision of expelling US military trainers in the aftermath of the May 2 Abbottabad raid that had killed al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.

The offer came from an influential US Democrat, Senator Carl Levin, at a meeting with Army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani at the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi on Tuesday, a Pakistani official familiar with the development told The Express Tribune.

Leading a delegation of US congressmen, Senator Levin – who is the chairman of Senate’s Arms Services Committee – also held separate meetings with President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said Gen Kayani refused to review the decision anytime soon.

Pakistan Army expelled close to 100 US military trainers from the country in June in a show of displeasure over the Bin Laden raid. The Pakistani move, the US said, compelled it to withhold $800 million in military assistance.

At a meeting with the US delegation, President Zardari voiced concern over reports of the proposed cut in assistance for Pakistan. “Any cut in assistance would impact our existing economic conditions,” said an official statement quoting the president as telling the visiting US senators.

Zardari said the move would also send negative signals to the public about the US commitment to the people of Pakistan “when they are suffering heavily in economic terms due to unparalleled toll of the war against terror.”

The president hoped that all such steps would be avoided, the statement added.

President Zardari said drag on our relations due to operational irritants can effectively be avoided if the terms of engagements were clearly defined and followed in their true essence by the two countries.

In a meeting with Prime Minister Gilani, Senator Levin underlined the importance of bringing back US-Pakistan relations on even keel because both the countries are fighting the common enemy who is ‘using violence as IEDs.’

(Read: Pakistan key to regional economic integration, says US)

According to an official handout, Premier Gilani expressed reservations over the failure of the US-led Nato troops to stop infiltration of militants at the Pak-Afghan border.

“One wonders how terrorists dare go to Afghanistan without being eliminated by the Isaf and Nato Forces which are equipped with the most advanced weapons,” Gilani asked.

He underscored the importance of relations between the US and Pakistan to go beyond terrorism and cover other areas of bilateral relations on durable basis for the benefit of people of both countries.

Published in The Express Tribune

Delhi rekindles interest in Iran gas project

Delhi rekindles interest in Iran gas project
Ashok Tuteja
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 22
Notwithstanding American pressure, New Delhi is showing renewed interest in the Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) gas pipeline. Official sources denied that India was reluctant to pursue the ambitious IPI project and was now keen on an early fruition of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline.

“We are an energy-deficient country…to sustain our high growth rate and ensure energy security, we need energy from every possible source,’’ they added.

The clarification came following reports that Iran is peeved with India for virtually abandoning the IPI pipeline and joining the US-backed TAPI project.

Tehran has gone on record saying that it was no longer holding talks with India on the IPI pipeline but has signed a bilateral accord with Pakistan on the project. It has also from time to time given firm indications that China was too keen to replace India in the project. Pakistan also wants China, its ‘all weather friend’, to join the project.

The Indian sources sought to dispel the impression that Washington had been exerting pressure on India not to pursue the IPI pipeline in view of Iran’s controversial nuclear programme.

The US has never told the Indian government that it did not want the IPI natural gas pipeline to be built. “They have said it isn’t a good thing in public but never to us directly – possibly because they know the reply they will get.” the sources added.

They said various important issues, like pricing of gas, delivery point of gas, project structure, payment of transportation tariff and transit fee for passage of natural gas through Pakistan and security of supply had still not been sorted out as far as the IPI project was concerned. “Once our concerns are addressed satisfactorily, we will have no hesitation in going ahead with the project.’’

Asked how the TAPI pipeline would be more viable for India than the IPI project, which was being negotiated since the nineties, the officials New Delhi had no problem with either of the projects.

TAPI project is said to be moving forward fast following the signing of an enabling agreement last year. It has overcome some earlier concerns, including technical feasibility of crossing some of the world’s highest mountains and concerns about the size of Turkmenistan’s gas reserves.

If completed, the Turkmenistan pipeline would also allow India to tap into the gas fields of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan as well.

NATO’s Criminal Assistance

The price of Nato help

The brutal 42-year-old dictatorship of Muammar al-Qadhafi is close to collapse and his own whereabouts are unknown. But the confusion over the Libyan situation cannot obscure the problems caused by the military intervention of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato). Heavy fighting continues in and around the capital, Tripoli, with Nato giving heavy bombing and shelling support to the rebel body, the Transitional National Council (TNC); and atrocities by both sides have been reported. This is, in large part, the outcome of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 — which bars landings by foreign forces but allows member states to use “all necessary means” (diplomatic terminology for military action) to ensure Libyan compliance with the Resolution. Humanitarian intervention as conceived by the United States, the United Kingdom, and France under cover of the U.N. has meant using highly advanced weaponry in helping the TNC, which includes militant Islamists of the sort who have been fighting Nato and other western forces in Iraq and Afghanistan for a decade, to bring about violent regime change. This western commitment to regime change, which could not have been achieved without Nato bombing, amounts to a total U-turn from the time, barely a year ago, when the same leaders were making much of Mr. Qadhafi in order to win access to Libya’s substantial oilfields.

The entire rebellion and the Nato campaign are riddled with inconsistencies. Western proponents initially claimed the campaign would be over in days. It has lasted six months, is yet to end, and has cost the U.S. alone more than a billion dollars. Secondly, there are severe tensions among the TNC’s three main factions; it is still not known who murdered the rebels’ top officer, General Abdel Fattah Younes. Furthermore, many leaders among Libya’s 140 tribes, including longstanding Qadhafi supporters, will want office in the new order. Above all, the western powers will almost certainly exact a heavy price for supporting the uprising. Their demands are likely to include — as they did in Iraq — preferential, if not monopoly, access for western oil corporations. It is no coincidence that as reports emerged of the rebel advance on Tripoli, the price of Brent Crude fell 1.7 per cent to $106.8 per barrel in futures trading. There are also likely to be lucrative contracts for western companies to rebuild Libyan cities; and the European Union members of Nato may want the new government to impose tight controls on Libyan migration to the EU. In effect, the U.S., Britain, and France, with help from Italy, have used the U.N. and Nato to bring about regime change and pull off a gigantic oil-grab.

Karachi operation in selected areas: Wasan

DAWN.COM

Paramilitary soldiers patrol a street in the troubled area of Karachi.—AFP

 

KARACHI: Sindh Home Minster Manzoor Wasan on Wednesday said that an operation had been launched against criminals in nine different areas of Karachi and that every possible step would be taken to restore peace in the city, DawnNews reported.

Speaking to media representatives after attending a passing out parade ceremony at the Razzaqabad Police Training Center, Wasan said indiscriminate action would be conducted to establish peace in the metropolis.

The minister said he could not share details about the operation with the media as it could facilitate terrorists in escaping.

So far, three target killers have been presented before the media and more would be presented once arrested, he added.

Wasan further said that some criminals may have fled while others would be arrested.

Whither Gaddafi and Libya?–The Strange Calm Over Tripoli

Whither Gaddafi and Libya?

The Strange Calm Over Tripoli

by FRANKLIN LAMB

Tripoli.

The large gold framed portrait of Colonel Muammar Qaddafi that adorned the wall behind the reception desk of my hotel since it opened many years ago has vanished.  Also gone are the 72 green flags that flew on the white poles have also been removed.    It’s not polite to inquire of the skeleton staff about who removed these items because the act of removal could become very serious offenses depending on the final outcome here.  But, my friend Ismail, manning the front desk, just grinned at me when I commented on the hotels fine new mirror that hangs in the leader’s space.

Looking over the skyline of Tripoli at 7:30 a.m. 8/22/11 from the 26th floor of the Corinthia Hotel it seems that it’s just about over for the Qaddafi regime.

All night one heard in central Tripoli mainly celebratory gunfire from areas like the nearby newly renamed “Martyrs Square” (formerly ‘Green Square’) but so many questions are on most people minds this morning.  Some ask, Are the Qaddafi forces opening a trap for the rebel forces allowing them to come in quickly and easily and then when they are gathered in public celebrations and seek rest, counter attack?

The claim of the NTC representative this morning that the rebels control 95 per cent of Tripoli seems farfetched.  This is a very spread out city and its clear rebel forces are not deployed everywhere.

A column of 22 camouflaged painted military vehicles full of government fighters slowly passed by our hotel at 8:10 this morning and turned right into the seaside compound which includes the Bab al Bahar Hotel (“gate to the sea”), and on its edge, the unoccupied JW Marriott, from which witnesses said the sniper who shot me in my right leg yesterday morning was perched. My Dr. gave me the bullet as a souvenir and I will be fine although the damned thing hurts. An arriving Hotel worker just reported seeing government forces assembling in Tripoli’s neighborhoods over the past several hours.

On the other side of my hotel I can see rebel pickups filled with fighters and new tricolor Libyan flags driving very slowly towards Green (Martyr’s) Square.  I am thinking what would happen if they make a wrong turn.

Reports of Saif and Mohammad Qaddafi’s capture supports the idea that the government here wildly exaggerated its solid support and that the public largely believed them.  Already among the few staff and some kids who come early the jump the hotel fence and use the swimming pool, and their trademark chants of “Allah, Mohammad, Muammar, Libya wa bass” have ended their chants and now support for ousting “the leader” is widespread. Most hotel staff at my hotel appear crestfallen.

The outpouring of support for Qaddafi’s departure by the same crowds who seemed to adore him at Green Square the past five months I have been monitoring them is surprising but perhaps reveal why all powerful despots are often more form than substance and can collapse quickly under certain conditions.

The questions being asked here this morning by student friends include what happened to the resistance to NATO and its supported rebels, where are the “65,000 professional soldiers waiting to repel “NATO’s rebels” from entering Tripoli, mentioned just last night by Government spokesman, Musa Ibrahim, was there ever a real Libyan army of thousands ready to defend Tripoli, what will the transition be like, will there be tribal conflicts for power, will Libya have to pay for all the infrastructure damage, will NATO countries, given the widespread hostility to NATO killing  so many civilians be granted oil contracts, will the US get another military base (Wheelus was closed by Qaddafi on June 1970), will the new government recognize Israel as NATO  is said to be  demanding, will the National Transition Council fulfill its pledges for a just, quick transition with early elections, and on and on.

Yesterday morning, as I embarked on a bike tour of Tripoli, there were signs that something incongruous was happening. Security guards, normally about 20 outside the hotel were nowhere to be seen. Also, no staff came to work.  Ismail and the IT guy slept at the hotel—and the British lady “Miss Lorraine” who is in charge of hotel Hospitality lives at the hotel and was understandably and visibly upset.

As I left the hotel close to 7:30 a.m. by bicycle yesterday morning I was surprised to see one woman standing alone on the street in front of the hotel. I more surprised when she lite up with a broad smile as chimed “Hello Mr. Lamb!”

She is Marianne, who works with Lorraine somewhere in the bowels of this claimed “7 Star Hotel” I had spoken with her on the phone but we never met personally.  When I asked her why she was standing in the empty street,  she replied, “I need to find a ride to the port!”  That seemed odd, given what is happening here, so I asked her why.  “My two week vacation starts today and I need to get a boat to Malta”.  I was shocked, “Sweetheart, please, for sure there is no boat to Malta now and it’s dangerous for you to go to the Port.”  “But, my boyfriend is waiting for me in Malta” she wailed.  “Ok, but if you find a ride call my room and I will pay half and come with you to the Port”. Marianne agreed. I never saw her again.

The UN delegation left yesterday after their five day “fact finding mission.”  Not sure what facts they found because they mainly stayed in the hotel waiting and waiting, like most other foreigners here do, for a promised appointment with a government official or someone. Their leader, a stellar Palestinian lady from Nazarath in Occupied Palestine, convinced NATO to let some foreigners make use of empty UN planes seats so this hotel was essentially emptied of guests.

There has been no sign of Colonel Gaddafi. A strange calm has spread over Tripoli.

Franklin Lamb is in Tripoli.  He can be reached c/o fplamb@gmail.com.

Defense Against the Psychopath (Full length Version)

Defense Against the Psychopath (Full length Ver…, posted with vodpod

Bailout, Bankruptcy, and Breadlines… Just The Start

Bailout, Bankruptcy, and Breadlines… Just The…, posted with vodpod

magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck the U.S. East Coast

[I just felt it in Ohio.

37.975°N, 77.969°W  epicenter]

Strong earthquake rattles U.S. East Coast

Aug 23 (Reuters) – A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck the U.S. East Coast and Canada from Virginia to Toronto on Tuesday, shaking buildings and forcing evacuation of the Pentagon and U.S. Capitol.

There were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries from the quake, which the U.S. Geological Survey said was centered in Mineral, Virginia, between Charlottesville and Richmond. It was initially recorded at 5.8 magnitude.

Washington office workers scurried into the streets after the quake, which lasted for about five seconds and sent items crashing to the floor from store and office shelves.

Tremors shook New York City office buildings, prompting evacuations of courthouses, City Hall and halting work at the World Trade Center construction site, officials and witnesses said.

It was not immediately clear if there was any damage or injuries in New York, but fire department and police officials in Dutchess County, north of New York City, reported structural damage to some buildings.

A spokesman for the city transit agency said the quake was felt but declined immediate comment on whether the subway system was affected.

Control towers at John F. Kennedy airport and Newark Liberty Airport in New Jersey were also evacuated.

Buildings in Boston were evacuated, while a Reuters witness said the quake was felt as far away as Toronto.

(Reporting by John Whitesides, the World Desk Americas; editing by Philip Barbara)

Uzbekistan Fighting Back Against Western Subversion Efforts

[SEE:  The Amazing, In Your Face, American Subversion Schools]

Uzbekistan: Tashkent airport detained a graduate of the Academy of the OSCE and the “Deutsche Welle” Helen Cooper

Ferghana

Elena Bondar

Evening of August 22 in an international airport in Tashkent at passport and customs control, was detained a freelance journalist Elena Bondar, returning home from Bishkek. In the Kyrgyz capital, Helen was a 10-week training course in the “Central Asian school of modern journalism” of the OSCE Academy and the Academy, “Deutsche Welle”.The plane landed in Bishkek at the airport in the Uzbek capital of 19.20, said Helen over the phone. To her civil passport of the Republic of Uzbekistan border showed special attention. After a thorough review of the document transmitted to the rack Cooper customs control, where no less carefully inspected her luggage and carry-on luggage, finding in it, including electronic media.

Cooper then placed in a detention cell, where she had spent at least an hour. It is now in another room does not provide the staff of the airport whether border guards, or customs, or the National Security Service, in the presence of the journalist a copy on computer service, all data stored on its flash card with pictures and instructional materials OSCE.

23-year-old Elena Bondar this year graduated from the Faculty of Journalism, National University of Uzbekistan. During the years of training, she worked with “Fergana” and a number of other blocked in this country of foreign publications.

Education in the “Central Asian school of modern journalism” with the participation of young, no older than 30 years, journalists from around the region took place from June 13 to August 19, 2011.

The task of the training program of the course – to develop the journalists’ skills with the basic tools for creating high-quality journalistic material aimed at an audience of Central Asia, for print, radio and online media. The ultimate goal – to help journalists improve the quality of the broadcasts and articles in the Central Asian media. “

During training, students learn the basics of school work in print, television, radio and online journalism. The best graduates of the school this fall will be invited for a two-week internship in Germany.

Sob. inf.

The international news agency “Fergana”

Tajiks Reject State Dept. Assessment of Terrorist Vulnerability

U.S. State Department: Tajikistan is vulnerable to terrorist threats

Avaz Yuldashev

U.S. State Department has included a list of countries in Tajikistan are vulnerable to terrorist threats. This is stated in the new annual report, management fight against terrorism the U.S. State Department. The full report is available in English here .

According to the compilers of the report, has been identified serious weakness in the Counter-Terrorism Strategy in Tajikistan and its ability to conduct effective counter-terrorism operations.

“The mass escape from prison in Dushanbe, the attack on a convoy of troops in the gorge Kamarob, fighting between the Tajik border guards and armed groups in Afghanistan demonstrate the vulnerability of Tajikistan to the well-trained international and domestic groups. Armed groups have effectively used the mountainous terrain of Tajikistan and the internal political conflict in the country, “- notes the report.

The report also emphasized that the Tajik authorities, under the guise of combating terrorism, persecuted its political opponents. In addition, the judiciary is subject to widespread corruption in Tajikistan.

The compilers of the report emphasized that most of the measures the Government of Tajikistan against extremism and terrorism have led to restrictions on the rights of citizens to freedom of religion. As a result, heavy-handed tactics of the government, in fact, contributed to the development of radicalism, rather than its retention.

U.S. State Department believes that the Government of Tajikistan could improve the protection of the Tajik-Afghan border with the help of international donors in 2010.

The deputy of the Tajik parliament of Tajikistan Olim said these findings Salimzoda U.S. Department unfounded and able to hit the relationship between the two countries.

“The government of Tajikistan adopted as the civilized world have never considered terrorists by their political opponents. Terrorists around the world, including in the United States were enemies of the government and society, not their opponents.And I think that this report has been prepared by persons who do not have enough information about Tajikistan, on the processes occurring inside the country “- said the MP.

Referring to the opposition, O. Salimzoda noted that the relationship between the government and political opponents are constructive and do not have any hostile tone. ”But I’m sure no one can say killed in 2010-2011 in the Rasht terrorist opponents of the government of the country” – said the deputy.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan, also believes that the U.S. State Department’s findings made in the report, far from reality.

“This is the position the State Department, but it is far from reality. In Tajikistan, know what to do and how to do it. All measures have been taken, based on current realities and give a positive result in terms of building civil society, and ensuring the rights and freedoms of citizens, and ensure the free activity of religious associations.With regard to the fight against terrorism, there also is productive work. And everybody knows about it, “- said in an interview with” AP “Head of MFA RT Davlat Nazriev.

“We are working on the basis of their national interests for national security, and this path will continue. And we regret that our partners will make such hasty conclusions without examining thoroughly the situation in the country, “- Foreign Ministry spokesman said in Tajikistan.

Islam Karimov, Wildcard In Post-Soviet Order

[Not only has the Uzbek President  proven himself to be the fly in Putin's and Medvedev's ointment, over this issue of a Rapid Reaction Strike Force  (SEE: Brotherhood in Resistance–Collective Rapid Reaction Force (RRF)), he has also foiled the snakes from NATO, as they snuck legislation on their pet issues through the UN (SEE: Implementing the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy in Central Asia ), trying to force regional compliance with Pentagon plans.  US/NATO schemes for world domination cannot proceed in the CIS states until Uzbekistan falls in line, no matter how much additional incentive Russia can help supply, to help push through the Imperial mission.]

Islam Karimov will not attend the CIS summit

Avaz Yuldashev

President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov will not participate in the upcoming Dushanbe summit of the CIS. As reported by “AP” in the diplomatic mission of Uzbekistan in Tajikistan in Dushanbe, the Prime Minister will arrive Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyayev.

Earlier it was reported that the participation in the CIS summit also refused to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. Instead, it will be Prime Minister Artur Rasizade.

Also in the Uzbek embassy in Tajikistan reported that the Dushanbe meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of CIS countries will take part, Vice-Premier and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan Elyor Ganiev.

As indicated in the message the CIS Executive Committee in the upcoming September 2 in Dushanbe meeting of CIS foreign ministers will consider 16 issues.

The most important on the agenda is a draft assessment report “Results of the CIS for 20 years and challenges for the future.” It gives a general assessment of the Commonwealth, analyzed the results of cooperation of CIS member states in economic, humanitarian spheres and in the field of security and other priorities. In the final part of the defined objectives of the Commonwealth in the future. The draft document is planned to introduce the next meeting of the Council of CIS Heads of State.

At the meeting of Foreign Ministers scheduled to consider a draft statement CFM “on ensuring the complementary and mutually beneficial nature of the development of integration processes.”
At a meeting of Foreign Ministers will also consider a number of issues related to further development of cooperation in the field of security. Including the draft program of cooperation in fighting illegal migration for 2012-2014, agreement about the transfer of samples of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursors, the agreement on cooperation in the field of industrial safety at hazardous industrial facilities, the provisions of the Office for the Coordination of anti- organized crime and other dangerous types of crimes on the territory of CIS.

DARPA Calls for Ideas for Dominating the Internet

Defense Seeks New Social Network Strategy

BY CAITLIN FAIRCHILD

Got an idea for the latest social network?

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency wants to hear it — and may offer $42 million to make it a reality. DARPA put out a call for proposals on July 14, and officially presented the project on Tuesday at a briefing held at System Planning Corporation, a military contractor.

Specifically, DARPA is seeking approaches that go beyond evolutionary improvements to existing systems and practices in social networking. Instead, the agency seeks a revolutionary idea that would, among other things, measure and track the formation and spread of ideas and memes, recognize patterns of persuasion across communities, identify the effects of these persuasion campaigns and counter them with defense’s own influence operations.

“Entirely new phenomena are emerging that require thinking about social interactions in a new way. The tools that we have today for awareness and defense in the social media space are heavily dependent on chance,” the announcement said. “We must eliminate our current reliance on a combination of luck and unsophisticated manual methods.”

This is not the Defense Department’s first push towards social networking. In June 2009, U.S. forces in Afghanistan set up accounts on established social networks Twitter and Facebook, in order to reach out to Afghan youth.

A year later, the Kabul Embassy explored the idea of building a new social network to connect various groups in the country.

The proposals for the current project are due August 30.

Pentagon Searching for Master Control Program

One Program to Watch Them All: Darpa’s New Snoop Plan

• By Katie Drummond  

The Pentagon’s surveillance net is massive. But it was holes and seams. Spy drone videos and communications intercepts may be aimed at the same target. Analysts have a hard time flipping easily from one kind of intel to the other, however — allowing those targets to get away. So the military is working on an out-there idea to fix the problem: a single mega-system that pulls together and analyzes all every kind of intel you can imagine. If it works as planned, it’ll be a whole lot harder to slip through that Pentagon net.

No surprise that Darpa, the military’s blue-sky research arm, is the agency behind the lofty five-year program, called Insight. The agency’s goal is to replace “largely manual exploitation and…chat-based operator interactions” with a system that mines different inputs, including drone footage and on-the-ground intel, and quickly stitches together the data to identify potential threats.

What Darpa’s calling “a next generation ISR [intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance] exploitation and resource management system” would be faster than human analysts, but it’d still rely on their input. Darpa wants an interface that’s adaptable, letting users provide context and pick the best surveillance combo for a given situation.

The Pentagon’s been investing in super-powered surveillance for years now, and Darpa wants Insight to capitalize on the rapid growth in the recon field. The program will incorporate brand new spy cams, likeARGUS-IS, a 1.8 Gigapixel camera that tracks over 100 square miles in real time. And ongoing Darpa projects might be rolled into the Insight system too. The agency’s solicitation cites a handful, including the recently-launched PerSEAS, a program to design complex algorithms that can somehow spot threats based on little more than “weak evidence.”

And Darpa’s betting big on Insight. The agency’s creating an entire “Insight Test Bed,” to be located at Fort Irwin’s National Training Center, that’ll mimic “real world operational settings,” complete with scripted scenarios. In hopes of fast-tracking ongoing programs, Darpa’s also prepping a “Development Incubator” of unclassified data and evaluation results for contractors. The goal is to boost collaboration and lower the cost of systems testing for developers — not to mention make it easier to integrate their work into Insight’s eventual surveillance depository.

A one-stop-shop for surveillance data and analysis would no doubt enhance threat detection. But despite the perks, Insight would only be as strong as the footage and algorithms it’d rely on. Some of the programs Darpa hopes to include are still in their infancy, and have decidedly out-there aims of their own. Consider GUARD-DOG. Launched just six months ago, the program’s goal is to replace human interrogators with algorithms that can somehow understand and interpret the complexities of “real-world social networks.”

Amassing a ton of surveillance programs, some of them already long shots, and then linking them together — in five years — seems like wishful thinking. Which means that even if it’s deployed, Insight will remain a work in progress. As Darpa’s solicitation notes, the system will be designed to “rapidly integrate new algorithms” and “facilitate continuous development and insertion of nascent technologies.”

Photo: U.S. Air Force

This is a technological and media war to cause chaos and terror in Libya

Conflicting reports of Tripoli’s fate

Libyan rebels are seen in the back of a pick-up truck. (AP Photo/Giulio Petrocco)

TRIPOLI: Libya’s rebels declared the “Gaddafi era” over after taking control of most of Tripoli but the strongman’s son, Seif al-Islam, claimed Tuesday his father was still in control of the capital.

Seif al-Islam, wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, met with an AFP correspondent and two other journalists, after ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo said rebel forces had arrested him.

“Tripoli is under our control. Everyone should rest assured. All is well in Tripoli,” the defiant son of the Libyan strongman told the three journalists at a vacant lot outside his father’s Bab al-Azizya compound in Tripoli in the very early hours of Tuesday.

“You have seen how the Libyan people rose up” to fight the rebels who arrived in Tripoli, he said, referring to battles in the capital between Gaddafi loyalists and rebel forces.

“The West has high-tech technology which disrupted telecommunications systems and sent messages to the people,” declaring the fall of the regime, he said about text phone messages sent Sunday to the residents of Tripoli.

“This is a technological and media war to cause chaos and terror in Libya,” he added, dressed in a Khaki shirt.

Seif al-Islam, who arrived for the meeting in an armoured 4×4, claimed the rebels had suffered “heavy casualties” Monday when they stormed Gaddafi’s compound.

“I am here to refute the lies,” he said about reports of his arrest.

Green-Book-Eng–Muammar-Qaddafi

Green-Book-Eng–Muammar-Qaddafi.pdf 

http://911-truth.net/other-books/Muammar-Qaddafi-Green-Book-Eng.pdf

Offensive in the Balkans–Yossef Bodansky

First Factual Report On Libya from a Mainstream Media Source

[The photo of the puny little rebels on the outside peering over the concrete barrier speaks volumes about the alleged impending "defeat" of the Qaddafi regime, which nearly all Western news sources have been reporting since the escalation by NATO forces over the weekend.  If it was not for the continuous NATO airstrikes, the Libyan insurgency would have already been put-down.  

In Libya, it is the same as it first was in Bosnia, where Western military support for the Islamist forces  were able to effectively:

"Convert NATO into Muslim air force, Western press into Muslim propaganda, and soon - American troops into Muslim combat troops."--Yossef Bodansky, "Offensive in the Balkans"     

Foreign news sources have been reporting that covert Western Special Forces have been leading the charge on Tripoli.  If it were not for NATO support there would be no war.  The only difference between NATO's Balkan wars and its war on Libya is that the world has been made so comfortable with the idea of NATO aggression against weaker countries that world opinion finds it acceptable that US and British Special Forces openly commit these war crimes today.

The more time passes, the more these things remain the same.  The current American govt. is continuing to act as world aggressor.  It will do so until we put an end to it.]

Libya rebels lose territory as battle for Tripoli deepens

A quick rebel victory is fading into uncertainty as Qaddafi gunmen are fighting back and Muammar Qaddafi’s politically powerful son Saif al-Islam reemerges.

Rebel fighters observe the fighting near the main Muammar Qaddafi compound in Bab al-Aziziya district in Tripoli, LIbya, Tuesday, Aug. 23, where some of the heaviest fighting took place. The compound, which has been heavily damaged by NATO airstrikes, has emerged as one of the centers of government resistance since tanks rolled out and began firing at rebels trying to get in.

Sergey Ponomarev/AP

Two days after rebels exulted in their swift takeover ofTripoli, signaling the endgame for Libyan leaderMuammar Qaddafi, the capital has become a stage for a potentially protracted battle between rebels and loyalists.

The rebels expected a decisive victory after entering the city easily this weekend, Bloomberg reports, but they are still locked in battle with Mr. Qaddafi’s fighters inside and outside Tripoli.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the rebels pulled back from much of the territory in the city that they took earlier in the week and seemed to be in control of only a “slice of land leading from the western edge to near the city center.” Qaddafi gunmen have staked out several neighborhoods and Green Square, where rebel supporters celebrated Sunday night, is now a “no-man’s land.”

RELATED: Spots to watch in the battle for Tripoli

The scenes in Tripoli undermined early impressions that forces loyal to Col. Gadhafi, who has ruled the oil-rich Mediterranean country for nearly 42 years, had been all but neutralized. Instead, the leader remains unaccounted for as fighting continues. The unease suggested instead that the regime’s end, while broadly expected, may bring more bloodshed, this time in a densely populated urban theater.

According to the Associated Press, the fiercest fighting took place around the Bab al-Aziziya compound, where Qaddafi, his family, and his closest advisers have barricaded themselves for much of the war. On Monday, government tanks repelled rebel forces attempting to infiltrate the compound.

NATO has put its air campaign in overdrive in the past two days, hitting at least 40 targets in Tripoli – the highest number in one location since its intervention began in March.

In a major blow, Qaddafi’s son and one-time heir apparent, Saif al-Islam Qaddafi, reappeared after rebels had claimed to have captured him, saying that the rebel forces in the city had walked into a trap and that loyalist fighters had broken the back of the rebels.

He walked into the Rixos Hotel, where the government has sequestered foreign journalists, and offered to take foreign journalists on a tour to prove the regime’s continued control over the capital.

“I will take you [the press] on a tour in Tripoli in the most heated areas, and you will see that all is secure, the world will know it’s secure,” he said.

The rebels said yesterday that they had captured Saif and were considering sending him to theInternational Criminal Court, but he denied today that he had ever been in rebel custody. The rebels had also said they captured his older brother, Mohammad, who has now escaped, Al Jazeera reports.

The false reports about the two Qaddafi sons raises questions about the credibility of the rebel leadership, which was already in doubt, The New York Times reports.

Pakistan’s Animal Farm

Madiha Ishtiaque Last week, on my way to office at I.I.Chundrigarh, a rampaging and honking rangers van cornered all the traffic on street. I looked out of the window pane of my car out of sheer curiosity at what might possibly be there causing this not-so-usual activity. I froze at the sight of 8 ambulances passing by with gates wide open revealing blood smeared double dead bodies in each, covered in white sheet with their legs spread out of the ambulance. As the fifth ambulance passed, I came out of the haze and disbelief at what I was seeing and averted my face in a multitude of emotions; of pain, anger and helplessness. Such a mass slaughter of human! It’s been a week I’m living it every second , and every time I sit back in a moment of relief, those flash backs sweep across my mind and sometimes I cry hysterically and the other times, I beg God for mercy.And then there are those numerous talk shows and programs talking about who has done what, who’s responsible for this, how can this be dealt with. It least interests me now, has ceased to for a long time. The fact is no talks, no hurling blames at each other could do anything to better things. This is Politics. And politics in our part of the world is always about power and the saddle. It is inherently animalistic just like the one in Orwell’s “Animal Farm” Aren’t our people who work tirelessly, exhausting themselves to bring some pleasant change in their lives, and trust their chosen leaders like Boxer – the hardworking , low-witted horse that trusted pigs (the rulers). He had one motto , “I’ll work harder” and “Napoleon is always right”. Our people may not be as naive as Boxer but when the time comes to elect their leader, they are all rosy about them, putting a blind trust in those whose very aim is to achieve their ends only. Our naivety is even worse. Look at how many parties do we have? Three lead parties playing musical chairs of ministries for over two decades!! And we are not yet sick of them. We talk about them and their doings with such a fervor as it was just yesterday when they came to the forefront. This is Us, who forgive and forget everything and cry over the spilled milk later on. It seems like no good leader like Snowball can ever stay in our political scene. For all their innovative, welfare and constructive ideas they would be thwarted out by the government’s hired dogs, and later on blamed for every bad thing that would happen to people.The idea of having a Mr. Nobody to blame is thoroughly inspiring for our politicians as well . Last night on one of the talk shows, a government spokesperson was making his point saying, “certain radical elements” have caused this delirious state of Karachi, I wondered what radical elements is he talking about . Doesn’t it sound funny and hilarious now, hearing these people talk incessantly and hosts enjoying grilling them and making their portfolio. What accountability has this brought forth? Oh and yes, when we talk about talking, lets talk about our “silver tongued” dapper interior minister Mr. Malik, who like Squealer, ardently believe in artfully manipulating language to justify all the government’s action, and is responsible to palliate people’s emotions after every of the government’s mis-doings. I say, its God given. His innate communication tactics employed to mandate packages to placate each one of the parties are superb .The use of jargon, the baffling vocabulary (most of it from his own dictionary) and rattling a string of statistics, showing unquestionable loyalty to the leaders and his rhetorical skills are all the part of the natural talents, he’s very well endowed with. The last and our greatest – Napoleon-our innocent opportunist who never had any interest in our Animal farm, was always and is still interested in personal gains!! The only project Orwell’s Napolean takes up is training his puppies -his own private army- to attack and rip apart everyone who comes between him and his goals. This much should be left at reader’s discretion to recognize who Our Napolean is. But what mainly causes the downfall of animals at the Orwell’s farm is the uneducated, illiterate population that is fooled by the clever, educated pigs telling them to believe what they want them to believe in. The seven commandments like our constitution that were the cardinals of Animal Farm, were shamelessly tailored to suit the pig’s personal agenda, transforming, “all animals are equal” to “all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” And over a period of time all the commandments were entirely changed by adding or deleting some words from them, for the animals just couldn’t read and understand and what’s in their memory fades quick. It is far easier to fool and dictate a nation where education rate is less than 30% than those who are educated and conscious of their rights and duties. Easier for us to understand now, why education and health budgets are lowest in our farm. What I saw a week back was only “Boxers” taken from the abattoir to a place from where they can be discarded. Boxer, the dedicated , hardworking labor that is crushed in this political drama being carried out by elites. His pitiful death at the glue factory like our countryman’s ferocious murder illustrates the betrayal of our political leaders. Times haven’t changed really.May be Orwell didn’t write for 1936 civil war , or may be it’s the same old political drama running for centuries in which the poor and the commoners suffer. Our way out of it, as suggested by Orwell is only education and self-awareness. Where so much that the Orwell said was true, let’s try this one . Perhaps, this is our only way out! ——————————————————————————————- Madiha Ishtiaque is the content writer and person-in-charge of the The News Blog. She handles the content development and monitors the social media networking activities of the Blog.

The Fact That There Are “No Go Areas” Explains Why Karachi Burns

[It is total bullshit that the spy guys are trying to blame all this on the BLA.   They are fighting to liberate Balochistan, why would they fight and die for Karachi?  The secret government of Pakistan cannot blame the real culprits in this horror story, since it would mean that they would have to blame themselves and come clean on their policies of ruling Pakistan by terror and by bloodshed.  The goons of Lyari take their orders from London and operate with a free hand because of reciprocal agreements with Pak. spy agencies.  The people of Pakistan understand about all the sanctioned gangs who act-up or lie low, according to the needs of the political manipulators.  Karachi burns now, because they want it to burn.  Until the Pakistani people rise-up against this gang/government tyranny they will continue to live under these hellish conditions.]

Karachi unrest: Baloch insurgents present in Lyari, PM told

Rangers promises peace in 15 days in return for ‘free hand’. PHOTO : AFP

KARACHI: Law-enforcement agencies have revealed that terrorists from an outlawed Baloch insurgent group are present in the troubled Lyari neighbourhood of Karachi and stoking the ongoing violence in the city.

According to sources, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani was told in a briefing on Monday that the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) – which is behind the Balochistan insurgency – has been promised a safe haven in Lyari by ‘some quarters’.

Officials from spy agencies, paramilitary Rangers and police briefed the prime minister on the unabated violence in the financial capital of the country.

Sources quoted the acting director-general of Sindh Rangers as telling the prime minister that his paramilitary force could control the situation within two weeks, if given ‘free hand’ by the political authorities. He sought powers to chase the terrorists and target killers even if they take shelter in the offices of any political or religious party.

The Rangers chief held out a firm assurance that his force could restore peace in the violence-plagued city with the help of police, if given full powers.

However, he added that planning of all operations should be the sole prerogative of his forces.

Officials of the intelligence agencies told the prime minister that they have gathered information about all ‘no-go’ areas in the city. On the basis of this classified data, they said, an operation could be launched against miscreants in the city.

Sources said that the Sindh police chief stood out during the briefing
due to his ‘non-serious attitude’. When asked to brief the meeting on the Karachi situation, he presented a long list of demands to the prime minister. His demands included more armoured and bulletproof vehicles and weapons.

The meeting took notice of the IG police’s ‘non-serious attitude’.

 

Published in The Express Tribune