On The Third Hand

Florida Cracker, who has some pictures. I particularly like the second picture in this post.

Eye of the Storm is tracking and providing some good info and explanations. Latest update is here

Boudicca’s Voice has an ISP down but still has power and is posting via a friend.

Babalu Blog has things under control… or did yesterday. We haven’t heard from him yet today.

Transterrestrial Musings is blogging and hurricane blogging.

Andrea Harris is still up and running. She’s promising pictures… if her power lasts.

As for me, we are now getting feeder bands through. Fairly wild, but nothing like Charley. We’ve got tropical storm conditions and are under a flood watch.

This is an open thread for hurricane discussions. Please feel free to track it if you are blogging the hurricane. If you are a non-blogger, and in the path of the storm, leave a comment and let us know how you are doing! I’ll update this with other bloggers in the path as I find them. But right now I want to go ahead and publish just in case the power goes out or something.

[update] More hurricane blogging:

GoSC’s Ramblings, located in Melbourne.

WeatherBug, who actually flew down for the hurricane (it takes all kinds!).

Pious Agnostic (love that blog name), from the Orlando area.

[me update] The reason those of us who just went through Charley are worried, even if we may not get more than a tropical storm. This is one of the piles of debris on my street.

Glen Frazier is back. Top post at the moment has a link to a charity for the schoolkids in Beslan.

Ok, yes, he’s been back for a while but I hadn’t noticed since the blogging’s been a bit sparse…

Russia School Hostage Crisis May Have Killed 250

At least 250 people died at the Russian school where terrorists took hundreds of parents and children hostage, Moscow-based Rossiya television said, citing a crisis unit at the scene in Beslan, North Ossetia.

Russian troops stormed the school yesterday, ending a two- day siege by an armed group demanding independence for neighboring Chechnya. A group linked to al-Qaeda terrorist chief Osama bin Laden claimed responsibility for the assault on a Middle East Web site.

“We have had many losses,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a broadcast by Rossiya. “We weren’t preparing to storm. The events were developing in a fast and unexpected way. This terrorist attack was special because children were attacked.”

Troops launched their assault as terrorists fired on hostages escaping the school’s gymnasium, said Valery Andreev, head of the local division of the Federal Security Service. The group planted bombs in the gymnasium and some have yet to be discharged, the Beslan crisis unit told Interfax news agency. More bodies may be found as debris is cleared, the Interfax report said.

There is no excuse for taking children hostage and killing them. None. These creatures have lost all claim to any sympathy. If the local people catch the ones that escaped and lynch them I won’t even blink.

[update] AP now reporting over 340 people killed.

Is it worth it?

He’s talking about the US going into Iraq, and all the problems since.

Seems to me his answer is not just “yes” but “YES“. See what you think.

Former President Clinton Admitted to Hospital

Former President Bill Clinton has been admitted to a New York hospital, a source confirmed to FOX News.

The president is undergoing heart bypass surgery after a source confirmed that Clinton was admitted after encountering a blockage in his arteries.

I wish him the best (and if you don’t, I don’t want to hear about it).

Frances is now Category 3 but is expected to strengthen again. Collier County (Naples area) and Alligator Alley are pretty much out of gasoline. Lee County is rapidly running out (there was none in my area yesterday afternoon but we got some in, and that is also about out). Bring a full can if you are headed this direction. Shelters are open in both Collier and Lee. The shelters are open for east coast refugees, we are being told to stay in our homes.

Russian authorities now believe there may be hundreds more children, parents and teachers being held hostage at a school in southern Russia than originally thought, CNN Correspondent Ryan Chilcote says.

The revised figure comes after tense negotiations with the hostage-takers saw 26 women and children – some of them infants – released from the school Thursday. Security forces in military fatigues carried the children to safety.

Chilcote, reporting from the scene Friday, said one freed hostage says more than a thousand people are inside the school.

The earlier estimate of those being held hostage by armed attackers was 350.

But as the siege enters its third day, authorities believe the figure may be hundreds more than that.

Chilcote said a figure of 1,000 to 1,200 people was also consistent with what relatives waiting outside the school have told him.

Logic and Sanity says that there weren’t 354 hostages, as initially reported, but 354 families. He’s also got some reports from the Russian sources that I’m not seeing in the mainstream media, including reports that two of those wearing bombs had blown themselves up.

[update 6:30 EDT] Just heard a radio report (quoting TASS) that commandos have taken over the school. Looking for online confirmation. I’d heard previous reports of some hostages escaping and troops storming the school but can’t find any confirmation (yet) that they’ve actually taken over.

[update 7:50] Seems the commandos have taken over but there’s some fighting still continuing and I’m hearing (radio) reports that some of the terrorists might have escaped (with or without hostages). Fog of war… I’ll update if I hear anything definite.

[update] Fox is confirming. Thanks to Ken for the link.

Laughing Wolf iscovering Russian sources while waiting for Stan of Logic and Sanity to reawaken.

Logic and Sanity is back to posting updates, check there for more from the Russian wires.

From Logic and Sanity, at least 9 of the terrorists were Arab. He’s also got pictures (I wouldn’t say extremely graphic, but if you have a very weak stomach, don’t look). Scan through the comments for some news and updates by the commentors, too.

Here’s the transcript, for anyone who missed it (or just wants it to quote from).

A Bark From The Den……..

From our friend Bill in Texas, where they understand things very well. Although we’ve not tracked down the authorship, yet [although it is claimed, here], we feel this is too important to pass by…it needs to be passed along, for the message is too good to overlook.

A Military Story – Don’t Close Your Blinds

The other day, my nine year old son wanted to know why we were at war. My husband looked at our son and then looked at me. My husband and I were in the Army during the Gulf War and we would be honored to serve and defend our Country again today. I knew that my husband would give him a good explanation.

My husband thought for a few minutes and then told my son to go stand in our front living room window. He said “Son, stand there and tell me what you see?”

“I see trees and cars and our neighbor’s houses.” he replied.

“OK, now I want you to pretend that our house and our yard is the United States of America and you are President Bush.”

Our son giggled and said “OK.”

“Now son, I want you to look out the window and pretend that every house and yard on this block is a different country” my husband said.

“OK Dad, I’m pretending.”

“Now I want you to stand there and look out the window and pretend you see Saddam come out of his house with his wife, he has her by the hair and is hitting her. You see her bleeding and crying. He hits her in the face, he throws her on the ground, then he starts to kick her to death. Their children run out and are afraid to stop him, they are screaming and crying, they are watching this but do nothing because they are kids and they are afraid of their father. You see all of this son…. what do you do?”

Please.

A Growl From The Den……..

So taking the case of Iran’s nuclear mischief to the UNSC would be perceived as a “threat” by the too-tightly-twisted-turban-crowd™, eh?

Well, isn’t that just too bad. Better to have them react badly to a threat right now while they are still without nuclear weaponry, wouldn’t you say, than waiting for when they do?! Since they have been in violation of their signed agreements with the IAEA for quite some time, delaying any move to the next step just increases the risk of their going ballistic over anything, so it’s better to have them do it now rather than later.

Two separate articles from two different sources, via Iran va Jahan, demonstrate all this to perfection. What the hell are we waiting for…a nuclear disaster of monstrous proportions? Pretty damn stupid, MB would say!

Snapshot of developments in Russian hostage crisis

* Russian authorities rule out for now the use of force to end the day-old hostage crisis at a southern Russia school where gunmen have seized about 350 children and adults.

* President Putin postpones a visit to Turkey as the hostage crisis tests his resolve not to negotiate with “terrorists". Kremlin remains silent on the crisis which bears the hallmarks of a Chechen operation.

* Paediatrician Lev Roshal, who helped negotiate the release of children in a Moscow theatre siege in 2002, makes contact with gunmen. They refuse offers to deliver food and water, but say the children are fine. Gunmen sever telephone contact at 3 a.m. (2300 GMT).

* U.S. President Bush condemns those responsible and tells Putin: “We stand with the Russian people". A White House spokesman says Washington will provide assistance if asked.

* At a special meeting requested by Moscow the U.N. Security Council condemns the gunmen “in the strongest terms” and demands the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.

I’m sure, that since Russia is being so multilateral, that the monsters will say “oh the UN said release the hostages” and will do so. And pigs will fly.

[update] Explosions have been reported at the school. Jeff Quinton and James Joyner are also following the story. Our Russian speaker at Logic and Sanity is continuing to update from the Russian newswires. Check there for the very latest.

[update] They’ve released a few hostages but there are also reports of murders of other hostages. Thanks to Laughing Wolf for the heads up on that.

Note to east coast bloggers. My 4plex has an empty furnished effieciency. We could rent it out for a few nights if someone needs a place. $25 per night. It does have storm shutters. However; I cannot guarantee that we’ll be completely safe here. We are likely to get some wind at the very least but, unless Frances turns completely east, we shouldn’t get hit directly.

Twins for panda shown sex videos

A panda in China who became pregnant after watching sex education videos has given birth to twins.

Hua Mei was born in the US but moved to China in February.

Officials said they had determined that one of the twins was a boy, but they could not check the other one because Hua Mei was still cuddling it.

The news was cause for celebration at the reserve she lives in, because pandas rarely breed in captivity and are endangered in the wild.

“We are all very excited. The cubs are in good condition,” said Li Wei, from the Wolong Panda Conservation Centre in Sichuan, southern China.

Before she became pregnant, Hua Mei had been shown videos as preparation for a series of “blind dates” because experts feared she had little knowledge of mating after living in captivity.

If it works…

Malaysia’s Anwar Ibrahim set free

Malaysian former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has been set free from jail after the country’s highest court overturned his sodomy conviction.

The decision came six years to the day after his mentor-turned-rival, former leader Mahathir Mohammed, sacked him following a row over the economy.

Mr Anwar has always argued that charges against him were politically motivated.

And so they were. I’m glad he’s been freed. (I know most of you don’t know who he is but this is important news in Malaysia.)