The Lexus And The Olive Tree Ball Cap And The Browning

According to a BBC report from Sirte, the Libyan rebel who discovered Qaddafi, a kid named Mohammed al-Bibi, was wearing a New York Yankees baseball cap at the time. That's him in the photo, holding up a gold-plated Browning P-35 pistol that he took from Qaddafi. (An excellent pistol, by the way; I used to have one myself, but just in plain blued steel.)

There are surely more important things to say about the end of Qaddafi, but I'm kind of struck by the weird mashup of cultural artifacts in that photo: dusty peasant militiamen, designer sunglasses, American ball caps, and a pimped-out pistol made in Belgium. There is a story about globalization and consumption somewhere in there, twisted around a political narrative about oppression and post-colonial violence.

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Qaddafi's Misty Watercolor Memories Of The Way They Were

I knew that Qaddafi was hopelessly smitten with ex-SecState Condoleezza Rice. See this post from 2009. He gave her presents, and gushed to Al Jazeera about his infatuation with her:

"I support my darling black African woman," he said. "I admire and am very proud of the way she leans back and gives orders to the Arab leaders ... Leezza, Leezza, Leezza ... I love her very much. I admire her, and I'm proud of her, because she's a black woman of African origin."

Okay, we all loved Leezza. But that wasn't going to happen for him, so you would think that Qaddafi would forget her and move on. But, no.



Now that rebels have sacked Qaddafi's home and pawed through his photo albums, it turns out the poor fool has been carrying a torch for his Leezza, Leezza, Leezza all this time. Talk about misguided affection.



The thought of a lovestruck dictator mooning over photos of an old would-be girlfriend is simply embarassing.



As the Godfather would advise Qaddafi, "you can act like a man! (Slap!) Whatsa matter with you?"

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Qaddafi's #1 Son Drops By Rixos Hotel, Talks To CNN

Saif Qaddafi was looking pretty good for someone who was reported by the Chairman of the Transitional National Council to have been captured by the rebels a day ago.



Posted one hour ago (around 8:30 tonight EDT, 11:30 PM Tripoli time) by a CNN correspondent:

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Has The Qäddaferdämmerung Begun At Last?

Libyan news presenter Hala Masrati had a meltdown on the al-Libiyah television channel early this morning, Sunday August 21.







Source: Al Zajeera Live Blog.

"With this weapon, I either kill or die today, you will not take al-Libiyah channel. You won't take Jamahiriyah channel, Shababiyah channel, Tripoli or all of Libya, and even those without a weapon are willing to be a shield in order to protect their colleagues at this channel. We are willing to become martyrs."

The video is being run by various news outlets this morning, however, they report that it was originally posted by an unidentified social media source, so take that into account.



The news presenter, Hala Masrati, is a well-known Qaddafi loyalist of the over-the-top sort (google her), so I think the video is genuine.

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Qaddafi's Nurse Departs Before The Qäddaferdämmerung

The British press is all abuzz tonight with the news that Galyna Kolotnytska, the Ukrainian nurse who has been closely associated with Qaddafi for nine years, has chosen to leave Tripoli before the operatic climax of the old regime.

In other words, she won't be the Clara Petacci to his Mussolini. If Qaddafi ends up hanging upside down in a public square, he'll have to do it without his female companion. Wise choice.

Galyna Kolotnytska, one of four Ukrainian nurses said to dote on the dictator and by all accounts his favourite, returned to her native Ukraine in the early hours of Sunday morning on a plane that evacuated 122 Ukrainians.

Her daughter Tatyana, who lives just outside the Ukrainian capital Kiev, had previously said she was expecting her mother in the near future after talking to her on the phone last Friday.

"She spoke in a calm voice, asked us not to worry, and said she would be home soon," the daughter, a student, told a local newspaper.

A leaked US diplomatic cable last November described the 38-year-old divorced nurse, as a "voluptuous blonde" who traveled with Col Gaddafi everywhere.

"Gaddafi relies heavily on his long-time Ukrainian nurse, Galyna Kolotnytska, who has been described as a 'voluptuous blonde'," the cable said.

The British press uses the phrase "voluptuous blonde" a lot, doesn't it? By the way, I've seen the pictures, and I don't think either adjective is accurate.

There's more here, from The Guardian, and here, from The UK Sun.

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Has Anyone Ever Seen Them Both In The Same Place?

There are rumors flying around that Qaddafi has fled Libya. Some say he's in Venezuela.

But check out these photos. Has anyone ever considered the possibility that Qaddafi has slipped away disguised as Bob Dylan on tour?


































Dylan is the one on the bottom (I think). I swear, if you just switched their hats, no one could tell the difference. The resemblance is so close, it almost makes me wonder whether the wily desert mad man has been living a second life in Minneapolis as an aged reclusive singer-songwriter.

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