Fox reporting on air--says Jackson has not yet decided whether to go.

Sheesh! He needs to THINK about this???

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Answers

If he goes (imo) it will be for the photo op.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Hostage opportunity?

Oh please, oh please, oh please...

Y'all familiar with Ransom of Red Chief? I think the parents didn't want to take the brat back.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

LOL YES, YES, YES!

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

ROTFLMAO!

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Taliban invites Jesse Jackson to lead 'peace delegation' to Pakistan

By JENNIFER LOVEN The Associated Press 9/26/01 7:19 PM

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Jesse Jackson said Wednesday that Afghanistan's ruling Taliban militia has asked him to lead a "peace delegation" to the region.

The civil rights activist said he has not decided whether to accept and remains reluctant to do so. But he suggested he is open to making the trip if his involvement could prevent the deaths of innocent Afghan civilians during a U.S. military campaign against terrorism.

"We must weigh what this invitation means. We're not going to be precipitous," Jackson said. "If we can do something to encourage them to dismantle those terrorist bases, to choose to hand over the suspects and release the Christians rather than engage in a long bloody war, we'll encourage them to do so."

Jackson said he spoke with Secretary of State Colin Powell, who repeated the Bush administration position that it will not negotiate with the Taliban but did not urge Jackson not to go.

White House spokesman Ari Fleischer declined to comment. "I would just reiterate what the president has said, that he will not engage in any negotiations or discussions" with the Taliban, Fleischer said.

"Either the Taliban government is going to stand alone and take on this world pressure, or they are going to look for some graceful way out," Jackson said. "I hope that appealing to a peace delegation could be a bridge."

The United States has accused the Taliban of harboring Osama bin Laden, the Saudi multimillionaire suspected of involvement in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.

Jackson said he received the invitation to go to Pakistan in a telegram Wednesday from Mohammed Sohail Shaheen, a spokesman at the Taliban's embassy in Islamabad. The hard-line Islamic Taliban movement controls much of Afghanistan; Pakistan is the only remaining nation that recognizes them as the government of the Central Asian country.

The Bush administration has called bin Laden, harbored by Afghanistan since 1996, the chief suspect in the Sept. 11 attacks in New York and Washington that left nearly 7,000 people presumed dead.

The United States has demanded that the Taliban hand over bin Laden and the top lieutenants in his al-Qaida terrorist network, and extinguish the terrorist training camps in their country.

"We would like to see this situation resolved in a way that preserves the dignity and integrity of all sides ... in the interest of avoiding the humanitarian catastrophe that would befall the people of Afghanistan as a result of military strikes," Jackson quoted the telegram as saying.

Jackson has undertaken several missions to win the release of American hostages overseas. In 1999 he secured the release of three American soldiers captured by Serbs in Yugoslavia.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

He's stuck himself into so many situations that one more couldn't hurt his resume...

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Snitched from Freepers:

The Logan Act:

U.S. Code, Title 18

Sec. 953. Private correspondence with foreign governments

Any citizen of the United States, wherever he may be, who, without authority of the United States, directly or indirectly commences or carries on any correspondence or intercourse with any foreign government or any officer or agent thereof, with intent to influence the measures or conduct of any foreign government or of any officer or agent thereof, in relation to any disputes or controversies with the United States, or to defeat the measures of the United States, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both.

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

Yep. Fox said Powell hadn't told him not to go--but he hadn't told him he could, either!

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

Go Jackson, go!

I'd rather he wasn't imprisoned. we don't need to be supporting him.

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

Barefoot,

In one way or another, we already do support him. :(

Sheeps

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

According to news reports on TV this morning, Jackson has been asked not to go. "His heart's in the right place," they said, but feel it would not be helpful at this time. Or that was the gist anyway.

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

Fox is now saying that although Jesse says the Taliban contacted him the Taliban says Jesse contacted them. Hard to know who to believe, isn't it? LOL!

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001

someone tipped him off to the Logan Act, I guess. dammit!

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001