Al Qaeda (The Base) is not a network

POLITICS - It might surprise you to learn that the "international network of terrorists" Al Qaeda is not a network. It is actually a very tiny group of less than 12 men. The word Al Qaeda (which means "The Base") isn't even the real name of the group. There was no name for it until after September 11th 2001.

Here's what happened. One of Osama bin Laden's former buddies stole money from him, went to the United States claiming political asylum, talked to the CIA bragging about his work for bin Laden and mentioned the words 'Al Qaeda' referring to the base where Osama bin Laden was staying at the time.

On September 11th 2001 the CIA quickly started pointing fingers at Al Qaeda as the possible culprit, not realizing that Al Qaeda doesn't really exist, it was just Osama bin Laden and a few of his buddies. Furthermore because a lot of the people talking about didn't really know what they were talking about the fact and the fiction got mixed up pretty quickly, with Al Qaeda suddenly becoming an international organization of sleeper cells operating in 50 to 60 countries.

Which is funny, because that is really more a of Hollywood idea of what a terrorist group is like. The big bad James Bond villain with his hundreds or thousands of followers, his secret underground lair (the Base) and plotting in secret to destroy the American way of life.

Remember the drawings of WMD in Iraq and so-called mobile laboratories? That was just a theory someone in the CIA managed to draw up. The same thing goes with Osama bin Laden's underground bases built in caves. Just a drawing. Looks more like a set from a Hollywood movie, but nothing like what he really lives in.

Meanwhile the real Osama bin Laden is living in a tent in the desert, has an extremely tiny group of close friends and has nothing resembling a super villain's base or a network. It is no wonder nobody has found him. He's just a speck hiding in some remote location no where near the fighting in Afghanistan.

Even bin Laden is guilty of inflating himself, trying to appear more important than he really is. In the photo to the right he hired extras to pose and walk around with him to make it look like he has more men working for him than he really does.

So what does this mean? Well its just like Iraq and the so-called Weapons of Mass Destruction that were never found. Its another CIA intelligence cock up. Intelligence agencies seem to have problems sometimes separating fact from fiction, and the real facts only come out years later.

In fact if we look at Osama bin Laden and his buddies closely, what we see is that since September 11th 2001 they haven't committed any acts of terrorism at all. They just release videos to the media (which eventually make their way on to YouTube)... and then those videos (combined with the ongoing violence in the Middle East) inspire others to follow in the footsteps of terrorism.

Other groups calling themselves "Al Qaeda" have no formal connection to bin Laden's group. They are just calling themselves that.

Even the CIA has realized this. In 2008 they even released Salim Ahmed Hamdan, Osama bin Laden's former driver from Guantanamo. He managed to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, and won. Hamdan's story is also the subject of a bestselling book and an upcoming movie starring George Clooney as his defense lawyer.

Hamdan's unique circumstances were relatively simple. At the age of 26 he went to Afghanistan to help fight the Soviets. The Mujahideen were being financed by the CIA at the time and Russia ended up wasting so much money in Afghanistan they eventually went bankrupt and Communism in the Soviet Union fell apart.

Not much of a warrior, Hamdan ended up doing simple tasks like driving Osama bin Laden around, who during the 1980s was a well-liked leader of a small group of Mujahideen and getting funding directly from the CIA. Not that bin Laden needed it, his family in Saudi Arabia is filthy stinking rich. He ended up leaving bin Laden's employ after September 11th and was captured as a suspect in 2002 during the invasion of Afghanistan. Because he had worked for bin Laden for many years he was considered a person of extreme interest.

Hamdan now works as a taxi driver in Yemen where he has a wife and two daughters.

And this is just one example. There are 800 other detainees in Guantanamo, mostly captured because they were foreigners living in Afghanistan at the time of the invasion and the vast majority of them having no connection to Osama bin Laden's little group. Or if they do have a connection, its because they happened to meet him briefly years ago.

In the end, is Osama bin Laden a threat to the United States? Not really. No more than anybody else is. He is more of a symbol. Capturing him would be nice just so the symbolism would eventually die down. Just so long as he doesn't become a martyr and an inspiration for a lone terrorist or small groups of people.

The real threat therefore isn't Osama bin Laden. Its the mythology around him.

Lenzr Photo Contest

CANADA - There is a new local photo contest in Toronto for locals only! It is being sponsored by Lenzr, a company that makes digital cameras for phones.

The judging will be done by members of the site, which means anyone could win. All you need is photos of the local area.

There are three ways to win:

Summer in Toronto

Emergency in Toronto

Best Toronto Skyline

Prizes include smart phones, iPhone, BlackBerry or Palm and your choice of cellphone plans so you can get the best cell phone deals.

PERSONAL NOTE:

Of course if you are like me, remembering to take part in such a contest can be a problem. Its not just an issue of time management or procrastination, its that I see contests all the time and forget to take part because I am just too busy.

But in theory there's no rule saying you can't use a photo of the Toronto skyline or Summer in Toronto-ish photo you took years ago... no need to go out and take new shots. The exception to this would likely be the emergency contest, which suggests in my mind that it should be recent.

Stephen Harper refuses to eat the body of Christ

CANADA - The shit has his the proverbial fan as Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper refused to eat a communion wafer during the funeral last week for former governor general Romeo LeBlanc. Video of the moment has been posted on YouTube, which shows Harper sticking the communion wafer (basically its a cracker representing the body of Jesus Christ) into his pocket.

The act has infuriated die-hard Christians, the very foundation of the Conservative Party's voters.

Harper himself has normally been pretty preachy when it comes to Christianity, snuggling up to his voter base as often as he can, but this single act suggests to many Christians that Harper is all fig leaf and no balls. (In other words he is a liar who just pretends to be a devout Christian to get votes.)

COMMENTS FROM PEOPLE UPSET BY WHAT HARPER DID:

"If you are going to participate in a cultural proceeding, participate fully. If your beliefs preclude you from taking part, by all means, offer your explanation and act accordingly."

"Honor your hosts and honor yourself; be clear and honest about your intentions and your actions. Steven Harper surely doesn't see this as important."

"This is an affront to all Christians, not just Catholics. Many other sects of the Christian faith also have communion (Lutherans for example). And saying it is not a serious affront implies you don't take those religious beliefs seriously."

Chinese government kills 140 protestors

POLITICS - At least 140 people were killed by riot police and more than 800 were injured in bloody ethnic clashes on the city streets of Urumqi in northwest China last night, Chinese officials confirmed this morning.

Chinese state television aired footage today showing cars and buses being attacked, police vehicles overturned and ablaze and riot police trying to restore order.

The death toll is the single largest admitted by the Chinese government since the Tianenmen Square Massacre and a clear indication that anger in the province of Xinjiang – and its capital of Urumqi – has reached violent and explosive levels.

The clash, between ethnic Uighurs and China's dominant ethnic Han, erupted Sunday after a rare public protest expressing Uighur discontent turned violent. Eyewitnesses estimated that as many as 3,000 people participated in the protest.

Uighur students gathered to protest the Chinese government's inaction following a June 26 attack against Uighur migrant workers by ethnic Han in the southern city of Shaoguan. In that incident, at least two Uighur migrant workers were killed and dozens critically injured. Uighur students and others complained publicly that none of the Han combatants involved in the June attack had yet been arrested.

Yesterday, when students gathered in the city's Peoples' Square demanding justice, the Chinese government responded with legions of riot police.

Liu Yaohua, the region's police chief, said today that the death toll stood at 140 and was "still climbing."

The bloody clashes are a dark reminder of those that erupted in Tibet in March of 2008 just months before the Olympics, when ethnic tensions also boiled over.

Significant numbers of Tibetans, as well as Uighurs in Xinjiang, both bridle under Beijing's rule and have movements demanding a larger degree of autonomy for their ethnic minorities.

Many Uighurs refer to the Chinese region of Xinjiang as belonging to "East Turkestan," a region they hope will one day be independent.