The New Rendition

Belmont Club » Noblesse Oblige: "When Malaysian naval commandos boarded a ship captured by Somali pirates and rescued 23 hostages in the Gulf of Aden they had a secret weapon. South Korean naval special forces employed the same device, when they “stormed a hijacked freighter in the Arabian Sea on Friday, rescuing all 21 crew members and killing eight assailants in a rare and bold raid on Somali pirates.” The wonder weapon of the Koreans, though less potent than that used by the Malaysians was that they were neither European nor American.

What you can do depends on what papers you carry. In 2008 the Times Online reported that “the Royal Navy, once the scourge of brigands on the high seas, has been told by the Foreign Office not to detain pirates because doing so may breach their human rights. Warships patrolling pirate-infested waters, such as those off Somalia, have been warned that there is also a risk that captured pirates could claim asylum in Britain.” Their chances of doing the same in Korea are probably vanishingly small."

Boo!

Moonbattery: Separated at Birth?: "Quadruplets:"

End Of The Holocene TwoFer Update

New record cold temperatures in Minnesota | Watts Up With That?: "From NWS Duluth, MN, an old record beaten by five degrees:

RECORD EVENT REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DULUTH MN
518 PM CST FRI JAN 21 2011

...RECORD LOW TEMPERATURE SET AT INTERNATIONAL FALLS MN...

A RECORD LOW TEMPERATURE OF -46 DEGREES WAS SET AT INTERNATIONAL
FALLS MN TODAY. THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF -41 SET IN 1954."

You might not only note that these temps are not particularly in line with the end of winter as we know it but you might also note that the Minneapolis Metro area shows almost a text book illustration of the Urban Heat Island effect (UHI; Minneapolis is near the bottom about 1/3 over from the left).

Heh. Unless you're in International Falls that is...

End of the Holocene you ask?


You are on the temperature plateau at the very right end of this graph that shows 350,00 years of temperature history from the Vostok ice core. Al Gore forgot to mention it's hardly impossible that it will end during your lifetime.

And he's sitting in his beachfront mansion laughing at you.

Today's Stopped Clock Watch

Instapundit » Blog Archive » “POLITICS:” ProPublica: Why a Gruesome Pennsylvania Abortion Clinic Had Not Been Inspected for 17 …: "According to the grand jury report [2][PDF] released this week by Philadelphia prosecutors, Pennsylvania health officials deliberately chose not to enforce laws to ensure that abortion clinics provide the same level of care as other medical service providers. . . .

The grand jury report said that one look at the place would have detected the problems, but the Pennsylvania Department of Health hadn’t inspected the place since 1993. Here’s the grand jury report, in surprisingly strong language:

The Pennsylvania Department of Health abruptly decided, for political reasons, to stop inspecting abortion clinics at all. The politics in question were not anti-abortion, but pro. With the change of administration from Governor Casey to Governor Ridge, officials concluded that inspections would be “putting a barrier up to women” seeking abortions.

“Even nail salons in Pennsylvania are monitored more closely for client safety,” the report states. “Without regular inspections, providers like Gosnell continue to operate; unlawful and dangerous third-trimester abortions go undetected; and many women, especially poor women, suffer.”

I’m surprised to see the lefty outfit ProPublica pick up on this."

Cementing The 7th Century

Power Line - "Offensive Jihad": "But in the current context, this means that it is permissible to wage jihad against a country if anything 'necessary' to Islam according to (hard-line) clerics' interpretations is blocked (polygamy, child marriage, special privileges at work places, building mosques anywhere, permitting the wearing of head scarves or burkas).

In practice, according to this doctrine, then, any non-Muslim can be attacked anywhere. Thus, mainstream, powerful clerics are now calling for a seventh century-style jihad against non-Muslim lands even if the victims cannot be accused of attacking Muslim ruled lands. Merely to 'extend God's religion' to others is a sufficient motive. Mustafa says that two of Islam's main schools have always endorsed offensive jihad, but I doubt if he would have made that argument ten or 20 years ago.

Of course, that doesn't mean most Muslims will accept this new stance. But it does mean that radical groups now have mainstream support for their most extreme, aggressive behavior."

Today's Episode Of Dishonest Alarmist Jack*ssism

Trenberth reacts: edits speech to fix copying, leaves “deniers” | Watts Up With That?: "Well that’s what I get for taking a nap today. I had been checking Dr. Trenberth’s manuscript regularly at the AMS website, and of course while napping he (or somebody) changed it. Of course Steve McIntyre caught it and points out the changes. Good for him.

For those that wish to examine the original, I saved it here."