The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are The "Don't Make Waves!" Theory of Iraqi Politics by Big Lizards, and General James Mattis -- Attacking the al Qaeda "Narrative" by Small Wars Journal.  Here are the full results of the vote

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are My Excellent Adventure At Yearlykos by Right Wing Nut House, and Bread and a Circus, Part II of II by Michael Yon.  Here are the full results of the vote:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are NEA Also Confused About SCOTUS Decision Regarding Race & Schooling by The Colossus of Rhodey, and Baghdad Raid Night by Michael J. Totten. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Little Noted But Long Remembered by Right Wing Nut House, and ON THE FRONTLINE / Cpl. JOHN MATTHEW BISHOP: In the Shadows of Fallen Comrades by The Atlanta Journal Constitution. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Harry Potter and Ostrich Syndrome by Bookworm Room, and Myths and Realities of the George Bush Presidency by TCS Daily. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are High Noonan by Big Lizards, and Interview With Todd Bensman by View From a Height.  here is where you can find the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Guess Where Your President Was Wednesday Morning... Insh'allah by Joshuapundit, and Bless the Beasts and Children by Michael Yon. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are A Stunningly Dishonest Piece of Advocacy Writing About the Supreme Court by Bookworm Room, and The Rupture by Seraphic Secret.  Here is the link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Gaza Becomes Hamastan, Part 2 -- Clarity and an Opportunity by Joshuapundit, and Be Not Afraid by Michael Yon.  Here's your link to the full results of the vote. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Judging People By Their Friends and Their Enemies by Bookworm Room, and Death or Glory Part II of IV by Michael Yon.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote.

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are 3 Spies and Six Days by Soccer Dad, and Four Modest Proposals for Getting Out of Iraq by Dan Simmons.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are A Cure for “Anti-Zionism” by Joshuapundit, and Sticking To What I Know Best by Dr. Sanity.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Israel Faces Its Choices In Gaza by Joshuapundit, and On Dehumanizing the Enemy In War and the Nature of Victory by TigerHawk.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote). 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Cheney's Chess Moves in the Middle East by Joshuapundit, and Don't Bury Your Heads in the Sand. by Iraq the Model.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote) in a post. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Does America Elect Defeatists? by Big Lizards, and “Better a Thousand Israeli Invasions...” by Michael J. Totten.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Cornelia, Mother of the Gracchi by Bookworm Room, and COIN: The Gravity Well by Blackfive.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Earth Day by Done With Mirrors, and The Big White Lie by City Journal.  Here is a link to both winning entries and to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Fighting Back Was Not an Option, Part 2 by Big Lizards, and The Laughter in the Dark by The Belmont Club.  Here's a link to the full results of the vote).

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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Yhe winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Don't Know Your Enemy by Cheat Seeking Missiles, and Orwell, the Left, and 9/11 by American Future.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote).

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are The Scourging by Eternity Road, and Universal Moral Equivalence by Gates of Vienna.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Demographics and the Medicalization of Human Existence by Eternity Road, and Tabula Rasa by Michael Yon. 
Here is a link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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After all, they are not the United States or Israel, so their actions pass with relatively little comment -- even though their actions do, in fact, violate Geneva, something that is not the case with the criticized actions of the US and Israel.

FIFTEEN British sailors and marines arrested by IranÂ’s Revolutionary Guards off the coast of Iraq may be charged with spying.

A website run by associates of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, reported last night that the Britons would be put before a court and indicted.

Referring to them as “insurgents”, the site concluded: “If it is proven that they deliberately entered Iranian territory, they will be charged with espionage. If that is proven, they can expect a very serious penalty since according to Iranian law, espionage is one of the most serious offences.”

The warning followed claims by Iranian officials that the British navy personnel had been taken to Tehran, the capital, to explain their “aggressive action” in entering Iranian waters. British officials insist the servicemen were in Iraqi waters when they were held.

However, as Captain Ed points out, this announcement is a clear statement of intent to violate international law as found in the Geneva Conventions.

The Iranians cannot try the men for espionage if they captured the sailors in uniform. Article 46 of the Geneva Convention states this clearly:

2. A member of the armed forces of a Party to the conflict who, on behalf of that Party and in territory controlled by an adverse Party, gathers or attempts to gather information shall not be considered as engaging in espionage if, while so acting, he is in the uniform of his armed forces.

The indictment of British sailors in uniform as spies will violate the GC. Can we expect the same level of outrage over this explicit violation as the supposed violations of the US government?

Now since the status of those captured in uniform, as opposed to those captured out of uniform (like, for example, al-Qaeda jihadis), they cannot face criminal charges but must instead be treated as POWs. On the other hand, those captured out of uniform can be so tried, according to whatever for their captors see fit. If this situation does not make the matter clear to even the most dense of observers (including BDS-suffering American leftists), then nothing will.

Oh, and by the way -- the Iranians attacked US and Iraqi forces INSIDE IRAQ recently. Sounds like an act of war to me. Too bad Congress won't let us respond appropriately.

Personally, I like the suggestion at the Jawa Report for dealing with this act of naked aggression by the Iranians. So what if we have to print maps that read "Sea of Glass" where "Iran" used to be.

OPEN TRACKBACKING AT Stix Blog, Stop the ACLU, Outside the Beltway, Perri Nelson's Website, The Virtuous Republic, Shadowscope, Stuck On Stupid, The Amboy Times, Pet's Garden Blog, Rightlinx, third world county, Woman Honor Thyself, Pentimento, stikNstein... has no mercy, The Uncooperative Blogger, Pirate's Cove, LaTogaStrappata®, The Pink Flamingo, Blog @ MoreWhat.com, A Blog For All, The Random Yak, 123beta, Maggie's Notebook, Adam's Blog, basil's blog, Cao's Blog, Phastidio.net, The Bullwinkle Blog, Jo's Cafe, Conservative Cat, Conservative Thoughts, LaTogaStrappata®, sissunchi, Allie Is Wired, Faultline USA, The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns, Walls of the City, The World According to Carl, CORSARI D'ITALIA, and Gone Hollywood, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are The Contranomics of Global Jihad by Big Lizards, and Four Years In by American Digest.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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News from the Watcher himself.

As a result of a coming shift in blogging focus, Jimmie Bise of The Sundries Shack has chosen to vacate his seat on the Watcher's Council.  It's been great having Jimmie on board for all this time and I wish him the best of luck with his new blog, but now that he has decided to step down, there is one open seat and I need to find a blog worthy enough to fill it.  Anyone that has a blog, please read the up-to-date version of the rules here and contact me if you are interested in applying for membership.  I plan on choosing a replacement in time for that person to participate in the March 27th nominations process and that week's vote.  (Quentin Tarantino's 44th birthday...  w00t!)

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Serving While Republican by Eternity Road, and Tenured Deceit by Sigmund, Carl and Alfred.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

Posted by: Greg at 06:07 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Between Iraq and a Hard Place -- Why We Went, How It Got So Screwed Up and Where It's Going -- Part 2 by Joshuapundit, and Uncomfortable Questions: Was the Death Star Attack an Inside Job? by Websurdity.  Here is your link to the full results of the votet. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Germany and Iraq, Part 4 by Done With Mirrors, and The Blame Game by From My Position... On the Way!.  Here is where you can findthe full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are A Rock, a Hard Place, and the Deep Blue Sea by Right Wing Nut House, and Islamist Historiography by Cross-Currents.  Here arethe full results of the vote. Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are San Francisco Has Bigger Scandals Than a Debauched Mayor by Bookworm Room, and Flagrant Evil by Gates of Vienna.  Here is where you can find the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Who Is George Soros? by American Future, and Media Mischaracterizes Senate Resolution Vote by The QandO Blog.  Here is a link to full results of the vote. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are 9/11: Just a Real Bad Day by Right Wing Nut House, and New Trend on the Rise: The Patriotic Terrorist by The Huffington Post.  Here is where you can find the full results of the vote. 
Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are On the Possibility of an Embargo of Iranian Oil by American Future, and “Because the Language They Use Is Killing” by INDC Journal.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are MLK Day -- A Singular Holiday by Rhymes With Right, and A Framework for Thinking About Iraq Strategy by Small Wars Journal.  You can find links to the full results of the vote here.) 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

I win! I win!

Not that I've felt down because of a long dry spell or anything. But I will say that this win is a bit humbling, because I was up against some really great competition, as the close vote totals show.

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Why Is There Still a CIA? by Done With Mirrors, and A Strategy for the Long War by Blackfive.  Here is where you can find the full results of the vote. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Religion and Politics: Intolerance Is Growing by Right Wing Nut House, and The Blogosphere at War by The Belmont Club.  Here is where you can find the full results of the vote. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Follow Your Surges by Done With Mirrors, and From Khomeini to Ahmadinejad by Matthias Küntzel.  Here is a link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Directions on Iraq: A Blogging Colloquium (Updated) by The Glittering Eye, and The ROC by The Fourth Rail.  Here is the link to the full results of the vote. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

Congratulations to all participants in this weeks vote, especially the two winners.

And if you are interested in being nominated for the next competition, please visit The Watcher's excellent site to find out about his offer of link whorage.

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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are The Peace Myth by Andrew Olmsted, and The Clash of Convictions and the Remaking of the World of Wars by Winds of Change.NET.  Here are the full results of the vote.

ere are the full tallies of all votes cast:

Posted by: Greg at 02:42 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are On Negotiating with Iran and Syria -- Part II by American Future, and "Come for the Egalitarianism, Stay for the Bestiality and Tyranny" by Dr. Sanity.  Here is teh link to the full results of the vote.

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

Posted by: Greg at 02:25 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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The winning entries in the Watcher's Council vote for this week are Genocide? What Genocide? by Joshuapundit, and Getting the News from the Enemy by Flopping Aces.  Here are the full results of the vote. 

Here are the full tallies of all votes cast:

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