11/19 Morning Report

The news from Europe is nothing new. Speaking to Kosovo, EU officials basically said independence is OK…IF…the rest of the world agrees.

European Union countries on Monday urged Serbia's breakaway Kosovo not to rush into a declaration of independence, with its backers insisting any such move should be coordinated internationally.

The EU did a bad job of addressing issues in the 90’s, which is how the US got tied up in the peacekeeping force. The US backs independence, while the EU wants to wait until the UN gives approval. And, of course, the Kosovo Albanians just want independence.

"This is a European challenge. It is not one we can ask the United States to solve for us," British Europe Minister Jim Murphy told reporters.

(…I suppose that’s why our troops are still on peacekeeping duty there…right?...)


Meanwhile, in Iraq, even the NY Times is having to recognize that violence is below 2006 levels.

Data released at a news conference in Baghdad showed that attacks had declined to the lowest level since January 2006. It is the third week in a row that attacks have been at this reduced level.

Having said that, of course, they downplayed it. They also pointedly stated that American data does not effectively measure sectarian violence, and Iraqi people seem to be exhausted by the violence. They notably failed, among other things, to make mention of the Sunni insurgent groups that have come to support the government and coalition forces.

(…maybe I just hope too much for a change from the MSM from just doom and gloom and failure reporting…)


And what do you think of this? King Juan Carlos’s “Shut up” rebuke to Hugo Chavez is a ringtone hit across Spain!

An estimated 500,000 people have downloaded the insult featuring the words "Why don't you shut up?", generating a reported 1.5m euros ($2m).

All kinds of items—mugs, t-shirts, etc—are showing off the row between the two leaders. The ringtone is even being downloaded by protesters in Venezuela! It’s really disgusting that Chavez can get away with being rude and arrogant, but everyone else gets blamed for it.

(…hhhmmm…can I get it downloaded to all the cell phones of the radical lefties without getting arrested for hacking?...just a thought…)