The ‘airlift of evil’

Yesterday morning, my Mom told me that she had dreamed about my late Dad. She has been wanting to dream about him ever since he died, on February 28 of this year. I am so glad that she did.

There are two things of note to report today. First, I took my Mom over to a friend's house for lunch. There were eleven people and four dogs there. There was my friend, Marilyn, her three sons (Duke, Jay, and Hudson), the boys' Father, Duke's girlfriend, Lynn, Jay's girlfriend, Jeanette, Marilyn's brother, John, and his wife, Susan, my Mom, and me. I don't know the dogs' names. We all had a great time! Marilyn deep-fried a turkey in peanut oil. There were mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls, butter peas, dressing, green beans, and several pies. Susan had made a cheese pie. It is similar to cheesecake, but it has a denser consistency, and it was delicious!

Secondly, after we had gotten home, my brother, Bill, his wife Kathy, and their twins, Laura and Sara, came over to our Mother's house for dinner. We had a wonderful time, but, because the twins were tired, they left after a couple hours. However, they are coming back on Saturday, which is Bill's birthday. I understand that the day after Thanksgiving is generally regarded as the busiest shopping day of the year, and I'm going to have to brave it, to pick up a gift for my brother.

Pentagon Wants AC-130s in Uzbekistan

According to the Associated Press, Syed Tayyab Agha, a Taliban spokesman, said that the U. S. "should forget the 11 September attacks,'' because "The attacks have taken place in America and the people who performed and did the attacks, they were in America, so this is not something connecting with Afghanistan.'' That drew a sharp response from U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz. "I can assure them we will not forget about Sept. 11,'' Wolfowitz said in Washington. "We are moving on, and I think before long the world will forget about the Taliban.''

"The Sunday Times" newspaper, of London, provides a clearer picture of how the United States military tracked, and "neutralized," some of the Al-Qaeda hierarchy.

"One of the greatest manhunts in history" is how "The Times" newspaper of London describes the search for Osama bin Laden. "The Times" also reports that the Taliban have abandoned bin Laden and "left him to his fate."

Today, as promised, I started my diet and my exercise program. I ate less, cut out foods high in fat, and went for a walk. I feel pretty good about this. Woo hoo! I'm on my way!

Today, I received a letter from my primary care physician informing me of the results of the tests that the lab did on the blood that the phlebotomist sucked out of me. He wrote that my cholesterol level is too high. He suggested that I need to begin a low cholesterol diet, a regular exercise program, and a weight reduction program. I'll start tomorrow.

In "A war that has served notice on all terrorists," Anatole Kaletsky, writing in "The Times" of London, elucidates four convincing reasons why the United States was wise to go after the Taliban.

I have made a few photos with my new digital camera, but I'm still learning how to use it. After I've had a little more practice with it, I'll post a link to some pictures.

Ashraf Nadeem, a spokesman for the Afghani Northern Alliance, has been quoted by MSNBC as saying of the U. S. bombing campaign, "It has had a very good impact in breaking the front lines of Taliban." MSNBC goes on to report the Northern Alliance capture of the strategically important city of Mazar-e-Sharif.

How weird is this?!?! "Woman Lay Dead in Apartment for 10 Months"

Yikes!!!! Cement injections relieve vertebral fracture pain. Does the phrase, "The cure is worse than the disease," spring to mind?

If you would like to sign my guestbook, look in the column with the archives, links, and buttons.

www.dawn.com, the online version of Pakistan's leading English-language newspaper, reports that an al-Qaeda member will soon distribute a new videotape of Osama bin Laden to the Qatar-based al-Jazeera satellite television station. It is my fervent desire not to see this tape! I am of the opinion that the United States media can only hurt our war effort by airing all, or portions, of any tape that depicts bin Laden. If the U. S. media do air it, or any portions of it, they, in my opinion, will be tacitly admitting that bin Laden is smarter than they are.

www.dawn.com, the online version of Pakistan's leading English-language newspaper, reports that an al-Qaeda member will soon distribute a videotape to the Qatar-based al-Jazeera satellite television station. It is my feverent desire not to see this tape! I am of the opinion that the United States media can only hurt our war effort by airing all, or portions, of any tape that depicts bin Laden. If the U. S. media do air it, or any portions of it, they, in my opinion, will be tacitly admitting that bin Laden is smarter than they are.

The New York Times reports--

Pakistan has arrested three of the country's leading nuclear scientists and held them for questioning for most of the last week in connection with American concerns that nuclear weapons technology could have found its way into the hands of Osama bin Laden and the Taliban rulers of Afghanistan.