Theodore's World

May 7, 1945: “Germany has surrendered unconditionally.”
This time the news was real. There had been two earlier reports; one was erroneous and the second officially premature.
On April 28, as the war continued in Europe, as Russian and American troops met on the River Elbe, there were rumours from San Francisco, the site of the conference leading to the founding of the United Nations.
The second report came on the morning of May 7, when there was a flash from The Associated Press saying Germany had surrendered.
The military surrender agreement for the German armed forces was signed at a schoolhouse in Rheims, France, at 2:41 a.m. local time on May 7, 1945, by Colonel General Gustav Jodl, chief of staff of the German army; Lt.-Gen. Walter Bedell Smith, chief of staff for the Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower; General Ivan Susloparov for Russia; and General Francois Sevez for France.
But there were no confirming bulletins from other news organizations – Allied headquarters had ordered the news withheld for 24 hours, even though German radio had announced the surrender.
Churchill went on the air, it was afternoon in the U.K.
In his speech, Mr Churchill said:

“We may allow ourselves a brief period of rejoicing; but let us not forget for a moment the toil and efforts that lie ahead. Japan with all her treachery and greed, remains unsubdued.
“We must now devote all our strength and resources to the completion of our task, both at home and abroad. Advance Britannia.”

He then declared “Victory in Europe Day,” soon shortened to VE-Day.
And President Truman……………..
Broadcast to the American People Announcing the Surrender of Germany
May 8, 1945
[Delivered from the Radio Room at the White House at 9 a.m.]

THIS IS a solemn but a glorious hour. I only wish that Franklin D. Roosevelt had lived to
witness this day. General Eisenhower informs me that the forces of Germany have surrendered
to the United Nations. The flags of freedom fly over all Europe.
For this victory, we join in offering our thanks to the Providence which has guided and sustained
us through the dark days of adversity.
Our rejoicing is sobered and subdued by a supreme consciousness of the terrible price we have
paid to rid the world of Hitler and his evil band. Let us not forget, my fellow Americans, the
sorrow and the heartache which today abide in the homes of so many of our
neighbors-neighbors whose most priceless possession has been rendered as a sacrifice to
redeem our liberty.
We can repay the debt which we owe to our God, to our dead and to our children only by
work–by ceaseless devotion to the responsibilities which lie ahead of us. If I could give you a
single watchword for the coming months, that word is–work, work, and more work.
We must work to finish the war. Our victory is but half-won. The West is free, but the East is
still in bondage to the treacherous tyranny of the Japanese. When the last Japanese division has
surrendered unconditionally, then only will our fighting job be done.
We must work to bind up the wounds of a suffering world–to build an abiding peace, a peace
rooted in justice and in law. We can build such a peace only by hard, toilsome, painstaking
work–by understanding and working with our allies in peace as we have in war.
The job ahead is no less important, no less urgent, no less difficult than the task which now
happily is done.
I call upon every American to stick to his post until the last battle is won. Until that day, let no
man abandon his post or slacken his efforts. And now, I want to read to you my formal
proclamation of this occasion:

“A Proclamation–The Allied armies, through sacrifice and devotion and with God’s help, have
wrung from Germany a final and unconditional surrender. The western world has been freed of
the evil forces which for five years and longer have imprisoned the bodies and broken the lives
of millions upon millions of free-born men. They have violated their churches, destroyed their
homes, corrupted their children, and murdered their loved ones. Our Armies of Liberation have
restored freedom to these suffering peoples, whose spirit and will the oppressors could never
enslave.
“Much remains to be done. The victory won in the West must now be won in the East. The
whole world must be cleansed of the evil from which half the world has been freed. United, the
peace-loving nations have demonstrated in the West that their arms are stronger by far than the
might of the dictators or the tyranny of military cliques that once called us soft and weak. The
power of our peoples to defend themselves against all enemies will be proved in the Pacific war
as it has been proved in Europe.
“For the triumph of spirit and of arms which we have won, and for its promise to the peoples
everywhere who join us in the love of freedom, it is fitting that we, as a nation, give thanks to
Almighty God, who has strengthened us and given us the victory.
“Now, therefore, I, Harry S. Truman, President of the United States of America, do hereby
appoint Sunday, May 13, 1945, to be a day of prayer.
“I call upon the people of the United States, whatever their faith, to unite in offering joyful thanks
to God for the victory we have won, and to pray that He will support us to the end of our
present struggle and guide us into the ways of peace.
“I also call upon my countrymen to dedicate this day of prayer to the memory of those who have
given their lives to make possible our victory.
“In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States of
America to be affixed.”

Antiwar Groups Use New Clout to Influence Democrats on Iraq
NYTimes
WASHINGTON, May 4 — Every morning, representatives from a cluster of antiwar groups gather for a conference call with Democratic leadership staff members in the House and the Senate.
Shortly after, in a cramped meeting room here, they convene for a call with organizers across the country. They hash out plans for rallies. They sketch out talking points for “rapid response” news conferences. They discuss polls they have conducted in several dozen crucial Congressional districts and states across the country.
Over the last four months, the Iraq deliberations in Congress have lurched from a purely symbolic resolution rebuking the president’s strategy to timetables for the withdrawal of American troops. Behind the scenes, an elaborate political operation, organized by a coalition of antiwar groups and fine-tuned to wrestle members of Congress into place one by one, has helped nudge the debate forward.
On Thursday, leaders of the liberal group MoveOn.org, including Tom Matzzie, the group’s Washington director who also serves as the campaign manager for the coalition, sent a harshly worded warning to the Democratic leadership.

“In the past few days, we have seen what appear to be trial balloons signaling a significant weakening of the Democratic position,” the letter read. “On this, we want to be perfectly clear: if Democrats appear to capitulate to Bush — passing a bill without measures to end the war — the unity Democrats have enjoyed and Democratic leadership has so expertly built, will immediately disappear.”

The letter went on to say that if Democrats passed a bill “without a timeline and with all five months of funding,” they would essentially be endorsing a “war without end.” MoveOn, it said, “will move to a position of opposition.”

The antiwar coalition combines the online mobilization capabilities of MoveOn with the old-school political muscle of organized labor. They have been working in tandem with Democratic leadership in both the House and the Senate on a systematic strategy to unify Democrats, divide Republicans and isolate the president.
Many of the major players in Americans Against Escalation in Iraq earned their stripes not from sit-ins, marches and other acts of civil disobedience but as Democratic operatives on Capitol Hill and in political campaigns. The sophisticated political operation they have built is a testament to how far the antiwar movement has come since the Vietnam era.

“The principle under which we’ve been operating is more like a political campaign,” Mr. Matzzie said. “The central strategy is creating that toxic environment for people who want to continue this debacle.”

The discussion at the retreat mirrored that of planning meetings for traditional political campaigns, with presentations on polling, strategy and field operations.
The National Security Network, a collection of liberal-leaning military and foreign policy experts headed by Rand Beers, former national security adviser to the presidential campaign of Senator John Kerry, has deployed former generals and officials to persuade individual lawmakers.
After the president’s veto this week, the coalition organized 358 rallies and more than 20 news conferences across the country. Organizers had met with leadership staff members the week before to coordinate.

“The latest word from them is they are talking more and more about a short-leash option,” she said, referring to a plan in the House that would finance the war for only about three more months and require the administration to report back on progress being made by the Iraqi government. Congress would then vote again on the rest of the money requested by Mr. Bush.

Members of the Senate appear to be cool to the idea, but it has currency among some liberal advocates and members of the coalition.
Mr. Matzzie, of MoveOn, was clear about the stakes in the coming weeks, saying his group was only getting started. He emphasized that the next emergency spending bill must be one “to end the war.”

“This is act one of a three-act play,” he said. “Act two will be the summer. During the summer, our job is to create a firestorm of opposition.”

Wild Thing’s comment…….
Amazing that this was in the NY Times, it is an excellent article of how the pressure is kept up on the Dems in power to stay on target with their agenda, and the agenda of Soros and all the America haters. They are much more then anti-war as they are called. They are anti-America, loath America and are bound and determined to destroy this great country.
They are well organized and as the article says ( see complete article) will destroy their own party if their demands are not met.
They are communist and socialist groups all joining together for one purpose.
“Every morning, representatives from a cluster of antiwar groups gather for a conference call with Democratic leadership staff members in the House and the Senate.”
The Democrats have majority control of the congress and moveon.org, ie, George Soros, has majority control over them. George Soros is leading the Coup d’état against President Bush and the USA.
Can this country survive fighting two wars, one at home and one away? I believe we can, but we need to stay sharp and vigilant and aware always. The left with all the smarts they have in knowing how to promote their agenda lack one thing and that is the reality in what they are dealing with in our enemy theirs and ours…..ISLAM. They are not showing the respect to the enemy in what IT can do to a person, and to a country. I will always respect my enemy for what he is capable of ie. Islam. Not a respect as in admiration, but in the dedication it has for it’s goal. Our military is more powerful then any insurgents group, any terrorist cell on earth. But the enemies goal is embedded deep in their DNA from childhood and that is a force that cannot be scoffed at under any circumstances.
The Democrats turn their head at reality of the enemy, they just will not accept that fighting back keeps the enemy away as much as possible. Add into that factor their deep seeded hate for the right, for Bush especially and their greed for power and control over the American population. Perhaps the similarities in the left and Islam are too close keeping the left from seeing the true image in the mirror.
Soros would have been one of the first to jump out of a window on 9-11 probably pushing others aside to make his way out. He is a control freak and people like that seem to be the first to fall apart when they are faced with real confrontation like an attack. He is not a leader but an evil in human form paying for his own death march into hell and wanting to take others with him.
Years ago during the Clinton regime, I used to post on a forum about politics. One day one of the lefties admitted by mistake that he was being paid to post there. He told of being in a room with many others sitting at computers and being paid to post his support for Clinton and the propaganda ( my word) of the left. In his admission it was his ego that brought him out of the closet of what he did for a living. A LIVING a JOB paid for by the DNC.
They are more organized now then back then, we know this, the article is not huge news, but it is telling in how organized they are and to what extremes they are threatening to take if not listened to by the politicians on the hill in the Democrat party.
The expression they are Dead On Serious comes to mind with DEAD being the key word. God help us if they succeed in their goals, because it will end up to be a gift wrapped America to Islam.

Hamas steals Mickey Mouse image to teach hate and Islamic supremacy
PMW
The Hamas Television is using a clone of Disney’s Mickey Mouse to teach children to hate Israel and America, and aspire to Islam’s inevitable and impending world domination.
The squeaky-voiced Mickey Mouse lookalike, named Farfur, is the star of a weekly children’s program called Tomorrow’s Pioneers on the official Hamas TV station (Al-Aqsa TV). Farfur and his co-host, a young girl named Saraa’, teach children about such things as the importance of the daily prayers and drinking milk, while taking every opportunity to indoctrinate young viewers with teachings of Islamic supremacy, hatred of Israel and the US and support of “resistance” – the Palestinian euphemism for terror.
Farfur tells children that they must pray in the mosque five times a day until there is “world leadership under Islamic leadership.” The earnest and soft-spoken Saraa’ explains that the nucleus of this world Islamic leadership will be from “all of Palestine,” i.e., including Israel. Farfur refers to Israel as “the oppressive invading Zionist occupation,” which the children must “resist.”
Using a character based on an appealing, world famous and beloved icon like Mickey Mouse to teach Islamic supremacy and resistance as Islamic duty is a powerful and effective way to indoctrinate children.
The effectiveness of this program is heightened by including child viewers, who phone in to the show and recite poems with images of hate and violence; for example, “We will destroy the chair of the despots, so they will taste the flame of death;” and, “Rafah sings ‘Oh, oh.’ Its answer is an AK-47. We who do not know fear, we are the predators of the forest.”
To see the Video……..Click here to see selections of Farfur – the Mickey Mouse clone
Also there are excerpts from three recent programs…..script only. One has to scroll down the page to see it.

Wild Thing’s comment…….
I have to wonder why they would steal something that is so tied into American culture and consumerism? Couldn’t they make something up that isn’t so tied to the infidels?

Or it could be called……….18,000 Mexicans With Too Much Time On Their Hands

Thousands of naked people fill Mexico City’s main Zocalo plaza during the massive naked photo session with U.S. photographer Spencer Tunick in the early hours of Sunday May 6, 2007. Associated Press photo by Claudio Cruz

MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AP)
SFGate
More than 18,000 people stripped down and bared it all in Mexico City’s vast main square Sunday for U.S. photographer Spencer Tunick’s biggest nude shoot yet.
Standing up to salute, crouching in fetal positions and lying prone on the tiles of the Zocalo plaza, the volunteers formed a sea of flesh that Tunick snapped from balconies and a small crane in the morning light.

“What a moment for the Mexican art scene!” Tunick said in a news conference. “I think all eyes are looking south from the United Sates to Mexico City to see how a country can be free and treat the naked body as art. Not as pornography or as a crime, but with happiness and caring.”

The Brooklyn, N.Y., artist has become famous for photographing thousands of naked people in public settings worldwide, from London and Vienna to Buenos Aires and Buffalo.
But the Mexico City shoot dwarfed all others. Previously his best turnout had been 7,000 models in Barcelona in 2003.

“I just create shapes and forms with human bodies. It’s an abstraction, it’s a performance, it’s an installation,” Tunick said. “So I don’t care how many people showed up. All I know is that I filled up my space.”

The heart of this city since it was founded by the Aztecs in 1325, the Zocalo measures about 21,000 square yards — the size of five football fields.
For Tunick’s first photo, the models stood upright and gave a military-like salute to their national flag. In another, they lay down to form a blanket of flesh around a naked man in a wheelchair. Between shots, they burst out into verses of Mexican folk songs such as “Cielito Lindo.”
Public nudity is hardly a novelty in Mexico City, where protesters often march through the streets wearing only their underwear or nothing at all.

Wild Thing’s comment……..
Somebody tell Tunick that artists have been treating the naked body as art for thousands of years. And I would not call this art, at least not the kind of naked art that think would be good. yuck!
I wonder how many of them ate bean burritos before the shoot. heh heh
Public nudity is hardly a novelty in Mexico City, where protesters often march through the streets wearing only their underwear or nothing at all
Now that IS scary to me, I really don’t need to see the illegals here in America protesting naked on street corners……augh!

From an Army Rangers mouth about Iraq…….

Click To Play

That was one of the most intense and passionate exhortations I have ever heard.
This man has done 2 Tours in Iraq and as he speaks you hear him tell of how he is going back for a 3rd tour and how he feels about what the Dems have been trying to do.
It will be something that will stay with you for a very long time.
God bless this man, we owe him so much, I wish we could all thank him personally.

Paris riots follow Sarkozy victory
theagecom
Riot police fired tear gas at stone-throwing protesters gathered in central Paris today to demonstrate against the presidential election victory of right-winger Nicolas Sarkozy, an AFP journalist said.
The clashes took place on the Place de la Bastille where about 5,000 supporters of the defeated Socialist candidate Segolene Royal had gone to await the election results.
Up to 300 rioters, some of whom were masked, made running attacks on riot police who took up positions at the entrance to boulevards leading onto the square.
Earlier a small crowd of protesters, brandishing black and red anarchist flags, set fire to an effigy of Sarkozy in the square before tearing it limb from limb and then stamping on it.

Wild Thing’s comment……
Typical socialist liberal reaction. Don’t like the vote, riot. Don’t like the law, ignore it. Don’t like the speech, ban it.

Al-Qaida No. 2 Mocks American ‘Failure’
CAIRO, Egypt – A new video of al-Qaida’s No. 2 leader released on Saturday mocks President Bush and U.S. legislation requiring the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, saying the bill would rob the group’s fighters of the chance to kill more Americans.
Osama bin Laden’s deputy Ayman al-Zawahri derided the new U.S.-backed Baghdad security plan, recounting an April 12 suicide bombing in Baghdad’s heavily protected Green Zone when an attacker slipped through security and killed a Sunni legislator in the Iraqi parliament’s cafeteria. An al-Qaida-led amalgam of Sunni insurgents in Iraq claimed responsibility.

Actual photo from Video

“And lest Bush worry, I congratulate him on the success of his security plan, and I invite him on the occasion for a glass of juice, but in the cafeteria of the Iraqi parliament in the middle of the Green Zone,” al-Zawahri said.

The video was obtained Saturday by U.S.-based monitoring groups who released a transcript to media.

“This bill will deprive us of the opportunity to destroy the American forces which we have caught in a historic trap,” al-Zawahri said, according to a transcript released by the monitoring group SITE. The bill is evidence of American “failure and frustration,” he added.

“We ask Allah that they (U.S. troops) only get out of it after losing 200,000 to 300,000 killed, in order that we give the spillers of blood in Washington and Europe an unforgettable lesson,” he said.

He made no mention of Bush vetoing the bill on Thursday _ an indication the video may have been made beforehand.
Al-Zawahri encouraged minorities around the world to join the holy war, or jihad.

“Al-Qaida is not merely for the benefit of Muslims,” he said. “That’s why I want blacks in America, people of color, American Indians, Hispanics, and all the weak and oppressed in North and South America, in Africa and Asia, and all over the world.”

Al-Zawahri claimed al-Qaida fighters in Iraq were “nearing closer to victory over their enemy, despite this sectarian fighting” that has convulsed the country.

He discussed other topics as well in the 67-minute video, including fighting in Afghanistan, Chechnya, Algeria, and Somalia. He made references to Saudi Arabia, Egyptian constitutional changes meant to cement the government’s hold on power, and the Pentagon’s release of the confessions of al-Qaida No. 3, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed _ the alleged Sept. 11 mastermind who was captured in Pakistan in March 2003.
Saturday’s video was the fifth message _ including posted video and audio tapes _ by al-Zawahri this year.

Wild Thing’s comment……
Besides being a terrorist, this guy is the typical liar that Muslims have been taught to be. He is so full of it and himself. He can take his Allah the moon god and himself and put everything to do with his cult where the sun does not shine.

New Immigration Rules Could Allow Foreign Terrorists to Live in U.S. as Refugees
Fox News….for complete article
WASHINGTON — Today’s foreign terrorists could become tomorrow’s U.S. refugees if the Bush administration gets its way.
The intent is to grant refugee status to rebels who have fought repressive governments or advanced U.S. foreign policy objectives, particularly in Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America.
But proposed changes to immigration rules also could cover U.S. enemies such as Al Qaeda members and fighters for Hamas and Hezbollah.
To some lawmakers, the revisions under consideration by the administration are too broad and potentially dangerous.
Officials say the changes are meant to reverse the unintended consequences of post-Sept. 11 restrictions that have kept thousands of otherwise eligible people from a haven in the United States.
The administration wants the authority to waive those restrictions so it has as much flexibility as possible in deciding who can and cannot enter the country.
Under current law, virtually all armed nongovernmental groups are classified as terrorist organizations and the U.S. is prohibited from accepting their members and combatants as refugees.
There is limited ability to grant waivers to supporters of those groups who can prove they were forced to provide assistance. But more than 10,000 people have been barred. That includes many from Burma, Laos and Vietnam, including some of whom fought alongside U.S. forces in Vietnam.
Last year, the government planned to accept 56,000 refugees; the actual number was 12,000 less, primarily due to the restrictions.
In addition, about 5,000 people already in the United States as refugees have been blocked from seeking U.S. citizenship because of the rules. Some 600 people asking for political asylum have had their cases put on hold.

“This has had a devastating impact on the admission of refugees and asylum seekers,” said Jennifer Daskal, U.S. advocacy director for Human Rights Watch, which supports the proposed changes.

Amendments to the Immigration and Naturalization Act would permit the government to waive the rules for active members and fighters of terrorist groups on a case-by-case basis.
They would cover any foreigner who has engaged in terrorist activity, said Gonzalo Gallegos, a State Department spokesman.

“This amendment thus provides the executive branch with the authority to admit aliens who have engaged in armed action against oppressive regimes or in furtherance of U.S. foreign policy or both,” he said.

Lawmakers, however, are skeptical of the need for such expansive changes.

“The provision in this bill would extend the waiver authority in current law to groups that are definitely not friends of the United States,” said Republican Sen. John Kyl, who is leading an effort to revise the amendment.

“I do not think that there is a single member of this body who believes that any member of al-Qaida, Hamas or Hezbollah should ever be considered for admission to this country,” he said.

Acting on behalf of a bipartisan group, Kyl in late March blocked the amendment from appearing in the Iraq war spending bill that President George W. Bush vetoed on Tuesday.
Kyl’s office is working on wording that would cut out what he called the bill’s “excesses.”
A new version, giving the executive more limited waiver authority, could be ready as early as this week, according to aides.
The State Department and advocacy groups see no reason for concern, saying that members of Al Qaeda, Hamas or Hezbollah never would benefit.

Wild Thing’s comment…….
Oh My God, ok I am not an alarmist but some things make sense and some things don’t! And this has got to be one of the worst ideas to do something like this.
Sure let’s let a few good ole boys come in as Refugees. They only want to be Americans and oh yes they also want to learn how to fly planes. But they are so sincere about being Refugees so they must be OK. Good giref!
“keeping one’s enemies close,” but this may be taking it a bit too far. ….to put it mildly. How far can the American public, THAT CARES ABOUT AMERICA, be pushed by a utopian administration and Congress? Where does the line get drawn in the sand ?
Some quotes from over the recent years:

“Islam is a revolutionary faith that comes to destroy any government made by man. Islam doesn’t look for a nation to be in better condition than another nation. Islam doesn’t care about the land or who own the land.
The goal of Islam is to rule the entire world and submit all of mankind to the faith of Islam. Any nation or power in this world that tries to get in the way of that goal, Islam will fight and destroy.”
-Mawlana Abul Ala Mawdudi, founder of Pakistan’s fundamentalist movement

Do you remember this quote????
Osama bin Laden on one of his fatwas on al-Jazeera TV. On
February 14, 2003 — about six weeks before troops from the
United States and Britain entered Iraq, bin Laden said:
“The interests of Muslims and the interests of the socialists coincide in the war against the crusaders.”

“We do not differentiate between those dressed in military uniforms and civilians; they are all targets in this fatwah.”- Osama Bin Laden

” We are not fighting so that you will offer us something. We are fighting to eliminate you.” – Hussein Massawi, former leader of Hezbollah

The Kansas Adjutant General’s Department said it had confirmed reports of eight tornadoes touching down.
Vienna Janis, spokeswoman for Osborne County Emergency Management, said the twister hit around 6 p.m., ripping the roof off the Circle N restaurant and smashing windows in a Pizza Hut.

“It touched down and would then go back up and then touch down and go back up,” Janis said.

The National Weather Service said it had received reports “well into the double digits” of twisters touching down in six southwest Kansas counties. Numerous tornadoes were reported from South Dakota south into Oklahoma as forecasters scrambled to keep issuing warnings.
The new storms forced rescuers to abandon search efforts Saturday in southwest Kansas, where crews had spent the day hurrying through the wreckage from Friday night’s giant tornado. That twister left little standing in Greensburg beyond the local pub.

UPDATE in last few minutes ( 23:30 Saturday)…………..

GREENSBURG, Kan. — A fresh wave of tornadoes ripped through southwest Kansas on Saturday evening, a day after a tornado destroyed this town, killing nine and injuring dozens more.
The National Weather Service said it had received reports “well into the double digits” of twisters touching down in six counties.
Among them were a series of half-mile wide “wedge” tornadoes — similar to the one that devastated Greensburg on Friday night, meteorologist Mike Umscheid said.
“We’re going to expect quite a lot of damage,” he said.
The twisters were reported just after emergency crews called off the search for more victims of Friday night’s tornado.
Rescuers had spent the day hurrying through the wreckage from that giant tornado, which left little standing beyond the local pub.
City Administrator Steve Hewitt estimated 95 percent of the town of 1,500 was destroyed and predicted rescue efforts could take days as survivors could be trapped in basements and under rubble.

Wild Thing’s comment………
Prayers for all that have lost a loved one, have friends and familiy missing and injured. And praying too for those that physically are OK but have lost everything they have. This is so sad.

Wild Thing’s comment………
The female violinist should have gone and changed into a burka like this.
Below is the story of why.

.

Iranian Walks Out Of Dinner With Condi
(CBS/AP)
Iran’s foreign minister walked out of a dinner of diplomats where he was seated directly across from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, on the pretext that the female violinist entertaining the gathering was dressed too revealingly.

“I don’t know which woman he was afraid of, the woman in the red dress or the secretary of state,” State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Friday, regarding the actions of Iran’s Manouchehr Mottaki.

Rice herself was questioned by reporters about the lack of a direct conversation with Mottaki, even though it appeared she was “chasing” him.

“Uh, well, you could ask him why he didn’t make an effort,” she replied. Then she laughed. “Look, I’m not given to chasing anyone.”

So the face to face between Rice and Mottaki never happened, reports CBS News correspondent Charlie D’Agata. Instead, U.S. and Iranian delegations met at a lower, “expert” level, which while significant, is not a first.

“Our officials did, as they did in Baghdad, have an opportunity to exchange views about the substance of this meeting,” Rice said.

The dinner episode Thursday night amid a major regional conference on Iraq perfectly revealed how hard it was to bring together the top diplomats of the two rival nations.
Going into the summit, the Iraqi government had hoped for a breakthrough meeting between Rice and Mottaki. Instead, their only direct contact was a wary exchange of pleasantries over lunch Thursday, punctuated by a wry, somewhat mysterious comment by Mottaki.
Mottaki walked out of the diplomats’ dinner on the pretext that the female violinist entertaining the gathering was dressed too revealingly.