Free Republic

Albanian cartels run Afghan drugs aimed for Europe - UNTIRANA, Albania-Organized crime is becoming more entrenched in the postwar Balkans and threatens stability across a much wider region, including Central Asia, the Caucasus and other parts of the former Soviet Union, the U.N.'s anti-drug chief said. Highlighting one key problem, Antonio Maria Costa said the Balkans has become the most important route for Afghan drugs moving to the rest of Europe. The Vienna-based U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime, which he leads, is preparing a program to help countries in the region combat the illegal drug and weapons trades, human...

The dissatisfaction of the Albanians living in the three towns of Southern Serbia, Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja does not date from yesterday. A 1946 decision by the Yugoslav government to separate these three municipalities from Kosovo and place them under direct Serbian Republic jurisdiction was the beginning of the ethnic tension. In 1974 when Kosovo had been granted autonomy the status of these three towns did not change. In March 1992, during the period of the nationalist fire igniting the former Yugoslavia, the Albanians held an unofficial referendum in which they voted nearly unanimously to re-attach the Presevo Valley to...

MEXICO CITY - The Mexican government, angered by a U.S. proposal to extend a wall along the border to keep out migrants, pledged Tuesday to block the plan and organize an international campaign against it. Facing a growing tide of anti-immigrant sentiment north of the border, the Mexican government has taken out ads urging Mexican workers to denounce rights violations in the United States. It also is hiring an American public relations firm to improve its image and to counter growing U.S. concerns about immigration. Mexican President Vicente Fox denounced the U.S. measures, passed Friday by the House of Representatives,...

Semper Fi to all Marines! Happy Birthday, lets all go down to Tun Tavern for a few then head out to Iraq for business.

ALBANY, N.Y. - Formal complaints of corporal punishment in New York classrooms more than doubled over the past five years, with 4,223 accusations reported in 2004, according to records obtained by The Associated Press. ADVERTISEMENT At the same time, fewer school districts were filing the required semiannual reports detailing corporal punishment allegations, the records show.Many of the allegations involved faculty or staff pushing, slapping and grabbing students' arms. Among those verified were an incident in which a teacher put a misbehaving student outside to cool off in December without a jacket, a teacher who tackled a student who reached for...

The Night Santa Became a Marine !!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- T'was the night before Christmas, he lived all alone In a one-bedroom house made of plaster and stone. I had come down the chimney with presents to give And to see whom in this house did live. As I looked all around a strange sight I did see, No tinsel, no presents, not even a tree. No stockings by the fire, just boots full of sand. On the wall hung pictures of a far-away land. With medals and badges, awards of all kinds, A sobering thought soon came to my mind. For...

Suspicions that there are currently active terrorist camps in Bosnia Herzegovina still rage on despite denials from international organisations that there is no need for alarm. European Union peacekeeping forces have repeatedly quashed claims of terror camps which have surfaced recently through a local news agency which alleged that terrorists involved in attempts to attack the United States are now in hiding in Bosnia. And that the camps have been caught in action training recruits to kidnap and to carry out terror missions. This holds little ground with commentators who believe that there are sinister actions being carried out in...

Iraqi-born Bosnian gets five years for war crime 01 Jul 2005 12:21:08 GMT Source: Reuters SARAJEVO, July 1 (Reuters) - Bosnia's state court handed down its first war crimes sentence on Friday, sending an Iraqi-born Bosnian to prison for five years for helping foreign Islamic fighters abduct three Croat civilians. The court said in a statement that Abduladhim Maktouf had helped members of a unit called Al Mujahid abduct the civilians in late 1993 and driven the van in which they were transported to a detention camp in the central Bosnian village of Orasac. Two Serb civilians were later...

MICHAEL MOORE Bowling for CredibilityMichael Moore Fraud Links: Unmoored From RealityAn ideological con artist is the favorite for an Oscar. www.opinionjournal.com Stupid White Plagiarizers? By Brian Carnellwww.leftwatch.comHollywood Honors A Stupid White ManBy Jan Golabwww.frontpagemag.com Michael Moore's Fictitious Life Debbie Schlusselwww.politicalusa.comViewer beware Ben Fritzwww.spinsanity.orgBowling for Columbine David T. Hardywww.hardylaw.net Bowl-O-Drama Daniel Lyons,www.forbes.comUnfairenheit 9/11 The lies of Michael Moore. By Christopher Hitchens Films to Answers Michael Moore's LiesCelsius 41.11Exposing Lies in Fahrenheit 9/11Learn about the new feature film. Michael Moore Hates AmericaA film by Michael WilsonThe real Michael Moore like you've never seen him before.

After over 2 years of strongly opposing the war in Iraq the French finally gave in and released a small amount of troops to assist with the rebuilding of Iraq. This is a clip of their arrival today.

The man ran off but was quickly caught by police Tuesday night and charged with disorderly conduct. Fonda has been on tour and doing interviews to promote her just-published memoir, "My Life So Far." The thrice-married, two-time Academy Award winner covers a wide array of topics, including her 1972 visit to Hanoi to protest the Vietnam War, during which she was photographed on a North Vietnamese anti-aircraft gun. She has apologized for that photo, but not for opposing the war. Capt. Rich Lockhart of the Kansas City Police Department said that although Fonda did not want to press charges...

Below is an attempt to capture a truly memorable event that took place at Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington DC. The President came to visit five soldiers that were wounded in Afghanistan. SSG Jerry Cortinas was one of those soldiers and the reason I, MSG Samuel Rodriguez, was present for this event. As the President entered the room he spoke Spanish to the family. He said hello to everyone and positioned himself on the left side of SSG Cortinas' bed. Mrs. Celina Cortinas was standing next to him. I was standing on the opposite side of the bed with...

Anheuser-Busch Offers Free Admission to Its Adventure Parks Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc announced its "Heroes Salute" to honor the U.S. Armed Services by offering free single-day admission to its SeaWorld and Busch Gardens parks to active duty military, active reservists, U.S. Coast Guard, National Guardsmen and as many as three direct dependents beginning Feb. 7 through Dec. 31, 2005. Any active duty, active reserve, ready reserve service member or National Guard is entitled to free admission under the program. He or she need only register, either online at www.herosalute.com or in the entrance plaza of participating parks, and show a Department...

When Johnson arrived, a police officer demanded identification; she had none. And after a hospice employee cleared her, another officer halted her for a search with a metal detector. The delays lasted three to four minutes — the last of her grandfather's life. "It's a terrible, extra obstacle to put in front of a family. ... Everything is about Schiavo," Johnson said. "It's all about her and in my family's case, it cost us dearly." Woodside Hospice has 70 patients besides Schiavo, whose parents are desperately trying to have her feeding tube reconnected. Dozens of protesters have arrived from across...

A decision regarding the 3d Annual Decani Monastery Serbian Cycling Challenge's "Pedal in Peace - Bicikiljada za Mir" needs to be made. This is what SCC 2005 is facing: Myself, the main rider, will be shipping overseas but do not know when. Should SCC 2005 still be set up as set to go, or shutdown completely? The ride is firmly scheduled for August. If I haven't shipped yet, it will be ridden. If I've shipped, whatever is collected will be turned over to the Decani Monastery Relief Fund for the second year.I need your feedback as I've emailed similar surveys...

Perspectives An Army grunt stands in the rain with a 35 lb. pack on his back, 15 lb. weapon in hand, after having marched 12 miles, and says, "This is shit." An Army Airborne Ranger stands in the rain with a 45 lb. pack on his back, weapon in hand, after having jumped from an airplane and marched 18 miles, and says with a smile, "This is good shit!" A Navy SEAL lies in the mud, 55 LB pack on his back, weapon in hand, after swimming 10 miles to shore, crawling through a swamp and marching 25 miles at...

Dear brothers and sisters, The House is currently considering House Resolution 244 advocating the Independence of "Kosova". We must oppose this based upon the following reasons: (1) "Bin Laden's Balkan Connections": http://www.balkanpeace.org/hed/archive/dec01/hed4473.shtml "Even without this Yugoslav co-operation, Interpol was already tracking the Al-Qaeda´s Balkan activities. On 23 October this year, Interpol released a preliminary report outlining bin Laden´s personal links to the Albanian Mafia. In this report, Interpol alleges that a senior Al-Qaeda lieutenant had been the commander of an elite UCK unit in Kosovo during the fighting in 1999." (Emphasis added) Bottom Line: Serbia and America have a common...

dria Airways and Croatia Airlines join Star Alliance as Regional Members Effective December 15 Adria Airways and Croatia Airlines are regional members of the Star Alliance network. With the addition of these two carriers, Star Alliance, the airline network for Earth™, further enhances the quality of its network, especially to and from south-eastern Europe, strengthening the alliance’s role as the leading airline alliance to the new and future EU member countries. More importantly, customers in both Adria Airways’ and Croatia Airlines’ respective home markets now benefit from improved access to the world-wide Star Alliance network. Moreover, both airlines’ passengers benefit...

A French news agency says Serbia guarantees the release and accountability of Zemun Mayor Vojislav Seselj and General Dragomir Milosevic until their time for the Hague Trial approaches. They both have been held in The Hague.

Albanian police have arrested four people smuggling in surface-to-air missiles allegedly destined for Albanian separatists in Macedonia. By Neil Barnett in Tirana (BCR No 533, 16-Dec-04) The seizure in Albania of three shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles allegedly destined for Albanian separatists in Macedonia has sparked fears of a brewing security threat in the region. The SA-7B Strela missiles were intercepted on December 13. They are believed to have originated in Bosnia or Serbia and may have been destined for Macedonia, where ethnic-Albanian insurgents fought a brief war against the authorities in 2001. Albanian police arrested four people – Sokol Mujaj, Ilim...