October 23, 2006

Web Reconnaissance for 10/23/2006

A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention.


In the News: (Registration may be required to read some articles)
Troops to remain in Iraq, Bush says “President Bush implicitly acknowledged yesterday that the war in Iraq will continue for several years, saying he could not see any way that U.S. forces could be withdrawn from the country while he is president.” (READ MORE)

Muslim veils prompt bans across Europe “When Nora Labrak arrived at a private employment agency in the summer near the French city of Lyon, the first question she was posed was not about her resume.” (READ MORE)

Direct talks urged with N. Korea “Two Republican senators, including the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, yesterday called for direct U.S.-North Korea talks over Pyongyang's nuclear program.” (READ MORE)

Rising star Obama weighs White House run “Sen. Barack Obama acknowledged Sunday he was considering a run for president in 2008, backing off previous statements that he would not do so.” (READ MORE)



News from the Front:
Iraqi Government fighting violence “Iraq’s governmental leaders are rising to confront “an array of complicated issues” amid a spike in insurgent violence, a senior U.S. military officer said Oct. 19.” (READ MORE)

Afghan Road, Electricity Projects Move Ahead “Steady progress is being made to provide new roads, electric power and water distribution systems to the Afghan people, the U.S. Army’s top engineer said today.” (READ MORE)

New York’s Finest Serve Global Mission “Five years after the Sept. 11 attacks, two New York City police officers continue to serve, except they’re not in the uniform one would expect.” (READ MORE)

NPs SEIZE IEDs IN ALl KUR MOSQUE “Iraqi National Police from 3rd Battalion, 5th Brigade, 2nd National Police Division, seized weapons and munitions when they searched the Al Kur Mosque and nearby houses Thursday in Mansour, a muhalla in western Baghdad.” (READ MORE)



On the Web:
Hugh Hewitt writes Sebastian Mallaby Has A Question “Washington Post columnist Sebastion Mallaby: ‘But has there been a worse moment for American power since Ronald Reagan celebrated morning in America almost a quarter of a century ago? I can't think of one.’ 9/11, Mr. Mallaby, 9/11. I find this column to be a perfect expression of the MSM's combination of historical amnesia and contemporary paralysis. Mr. Mallaby writes about Somalia, for example, that ‘it is assumed that the world's sole superpower can't do much but watch.’” (READ MORE)

Jay Tea writes The Boston Globe rediscovers the Constitution “The Boston Globe is out this morning with yet another editorial against Mitt Romney's nascent run for the presidency. The Mormon lame-duck governor of Massachusetts has been talking with leaders and other figures in the Church about his campaign. They remind us that the "separation of church and state" is designed to not only keep the government from meddling too much in churches, but churches from meddling in the affairs of government. It's a refreshing change of attitude for them, and I welcome it.” (READ MORE)

Dafydd writes "Flip Flopping" to "Stay the Course" “…First, I completely agree with Patterico that we must never ‘invade a country without a compelling enough reason.’ Where we differ is the definition of "compelling enough.’ But more to the issue, what does ‘stay the course’ mean? Let's start by getting rid of the straw ham: what does the phrase not mean? It does not mean you must rigidly maintain identical tactics throughout the war, never changing your orders even in response to an evolving enemy. Knock that off the table right now. In fact, while Bush says ‘stay the course,’ his generals frequently switch tactics and even general strategy (or strategery, if you prefer): we run a riverine campaign; we fight along the borders; we attack in the provinces; we go door to door in Baghdad.’ (READ MORE)

Michelle Malkin writes Follow-up questions for Byron Calame and the Times' Bush-bashing allies “I am sure that the New York Times public editor, Byron Calame, is hoping we will all go away now. Fat chance. Three months after defending his paper's decision to blow the cover of a top-secret terrorist banking data surveillance program, he issued a weasel-worded retraction yesterday in his Sunday column. You may have missed it--and who could blame you? It was buried in a column titled ‘Can Magazines of The Times Subsidize News Coverage?’” (READ MORE)

Michael Yon writing at The Weekly Standard writes Censoring Iraq “In a counterinsurgency, the media battlespace is critical. When it comes to mustering public opinion, rallying support, and forcing opponents to shift tactics and timetables to better suit the home team, our terrorist enemies are destroying us. Al Qaeda's media arm is called al Sahab: the cloud. It feels more like a hurricane. While our enemies have "journalists" crawling all over battlefields to chronicle their successes and our failures, we have an "embed" media system that is so ineptly managed that earlier this fall there were only 9 reporters embedded with 150,000 American troops in Iraq. There were about 770 during the initial invasion.” (READ MORE)

Cassandra writes Bloggers, Embeds, and OPSEC, Oh My! “When it comes to the war on terror, many contentious issues continue to divide us. Most Americans, however, are united on one question: we're losing the battle for hearts and minds here at home. But ask about the reasons for the erosion in public support for the war and that fragile consensus dissolves quickly. Why is the information war being lost? Who is to blame? The press? The administration? The military?” (READ MORE)

Bill Roggio writes Coming Soon: The Bajaur Accord “Just days after the signing of the Waziristan Accord, which ceded administrative and security control of the North Waziristan agency to the Taliban and al-Qaeda, we warned that Bajaur agency was next to fall to the Taliban. Several weeks later, UPI confirmed the Pakistani government was seriously considering further negotiations in Bajaur and other agencies in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.” (READ MORE)

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