As near as I can figure, the Indians want to make the strait between them and Sri Lanka a little better for navigation. I did not know that it was so shallow. Fundie Hindus are protesting because their God, Ram, built a bridge there, with an army of monkeys. The Tamils, who are not Hindus, pointed out that Ram never went to engineering school. Hilarity ensued.

BBC

The chief minister of India’s southern state of Tamil Nadu is sticking to his controversial statement questioning the existence of Hindu God Ram.

M Karunanidhi also said there was no proof that Lord Ram had constructed a bridge where a new shipping canal is planned between India and Sri Lanka.

Hard-line Hindu groups say the chief minister’s statement is blasphemous.

On Tuesday Hindu activists angered by the comments set fire to a Tamil Nadu bus, killing two people, police said.

Enraged Hindu hardliners in the city of Bangalore, in neighbouring Karnataka state, also attacked the home of Mr Karunanidhi’s daughter, Selvi.

Hindu scripture says the area between India and Sri Lanka – now known as Adam’s Bridge – was built millions of years ago by Lord Ram, supported by an army of monkeys.

But scientists and archaeologists say Adam’s Bridge, or Ram Setu, is a natural formation of sand and limestone. Hard-line Hindu groups say a proposed canal project between India and Sri Lanka will destroy the bridge.

They say Mr Karunanidhi’s statement is blasphemous and have demanded an apology from him.

“You tell me whether Ram lived. I had only stated that there was no person in the name of Lord Ram. What is wrong in that?” Mr Karunanidhi is reported to have told a TV channel.

On Saturday, addressing a public rally, Mr Karunanidhi had asked: “Who is this Ram? From which engineering college did he graduate?”

Take the time this coming Monday. Let this terrorist know that we do not accept him.

Via Michelle Malkin and Atlas Shrugged

DoD
By David Mays, Special to American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Sept. 19, 2007 – Coalition forces have killed an al Qaeda leader who orchestrated a massive bombing in an impoverished Baghdad neighborhood, a U.S. military spokesman announced today.

Army Maj. Gen. Kevin Bergner conducted a televised satellite briefing at Multinational Force Iraq headquarters in Baghdad to announce the killing of Abu Yakub al-Masri.

“He actually directed attacks specifically to incite sectarian violence,” Bergner told online journalists and “bloggers” during a conference call from Iraq after his briefing.

Masri, the so-called “emir of Taji,” masterminded a November car bombing that killed 180 people and wounded 250 others in Baghdad’s predominantly Sunni neighborhood of Sadr City, Bergner said.

The Egyptian-born terrorist was killed in an Aug. 31 raid by coalition forces near the city of Tarmiya, north of Baghdad, thanks to information provided, in part, by Iraqi citizens, the general explained. “They are increasingly the source of actionable intelligence and an important enabler,” Bergner said.

Much like Sunni sheiks who have railed against al Qaeda insurgents and Shiia leaders who are now urging their followers to do the same, Bergner said local citizens working with Iraqi and coalition forces is key to defeating terrorism in the country.

“We are continuing to focus precise raids against the al Qaeda leadership,” Bergner said. “We are also making progress in a variety of other places.”

R News

A soldier from the Rochester area is recovering from gunshot wounds in a Maryland hospital. He didn’t suffer the wounds in battle, police shot him during an apparent confrontation.

The US Army says Private Evan Parker, 22, of Pittsford was AWOL, Absent Without Leave, since August. He joined the military about five months ago. After two months of basic training, he was assigned to the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. The Army says Parker joined the military to become an army mechanic.

Aberdeen Maryland Police were called to a motel Sunday night for a disturbance call. When they got there, they came across Parker. When police found out he was AWOL, they took him back to the Aberdeen Proving Ground.

The next morning, police were called to the motel again, this time for a report of a suspicious person. They say Parker had left the Aberdeen Proving Ground again. Guests had complained Parker was knocking on doors at the motel.

As an officer approached Parker, they say Parker displayed a gun. Police told Parker to drop the gun. They say instead, he waved it at the officer. The officer then fired several shots, hitting Parker in the abdomen, the leg, and upper chest.

“The officer reacted per his training, there is no question about that. When you are confronted with potentially deadly force, you react with deadly force,” says Sergeant Fred Budnick, Aberdeen Police Department.

The Army would not comment on why Parker left the Army without leave. A spokesperson for the Aberdeen Proving Ground says it is rare for a soldier to go AWOL.

“Young men and young women sometimes have a mind of their own. They make choices that are not beneficial to themselves or their military career,” says Aberdeen Proving Ground Spokesperson, George Mercer.

Parker is now in stable condition at the University of Maryland Shock and Trauma Center. Aberdeen Police say, while Parker was being taken to the hospital, he told them and the medical personnel, he wanted police to shoot him. The army would not comment about that.

The weapon that Parker had during the confrontation with police turned out to be a non-lethal weapon, similar to a BB-gun. Aberdeen Police say there is no indication the officer knew it was non-lethal.

ARIMA, Trinidad and Tobago (Sept. 17, 2007) – Lt. Gwen Smith, attached to Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20), performs physical therapy for Marcus Pryce at the Arima Health Facility. Comfort is on a four-month humanitarian deployment to Latin America and the Caribbean providing medical treatment to patients in a dozen countries. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Joshua Karsten