A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.
In the News: (Registration may be required to read some stories)
Protecting Iraq's Oil - The expected withdrawal of British forces from southern Iraq highlights a critical but little discussed aspect of the conflict: The security of the southern oil sector, which is essential to Iraqi stability and important to the international oil market. The central and northern regions of the country have been the scenes for most of the attacks on Iraq's energy infrastructure by terrorists, insurgents, tribes and criminals, and they have drawn most of the press coverage on the subject. (READ MORE)
The U.N.'s Flawed Kosovo Plan - Twice in the early 1990s, the international community prematurely supported the independence of a former Yugoslav territory before addressing the concerns of its Serb minority. In both cases, Croatia and Bosnia, this failure triggered a bloody ethnic war between secessionists and fearful local Serbs, who perpetrated inexcusable war crimes. Fighting ended only when Serbs were either granted autonomous regions and police forces to patrol them, or when they were ethnically cleansed from the territory. (READ MORE)
The Uses of DDT - Last year, the World Health Organization reversed a 25-year-old policy and recommended using the pesticide DDT to fight malaria in the Third World. A new study published in the public health journal, PLoS ONE, provides more evidence that the decision was long overdue. (READ MORE)
An Early Clash Over Iraq Report - Senior congressional aides said yesterday that the White House has proposed limiting the much-anticipated appearance on Capitol Hill next month of Gen. David H. Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker to a private congressional briefing, suggesting instead that the Bush administration's progress... (READ MORE)
Rumsfeld Resigned as Defense Secretary on Day Before Elections - CRAWFORD, Tex., Aug. 15 -- Donald H. Rumsfeld, who came to symbolize the Bush administration's problems in the war in Iraq, resigned as secretary of defense one day before last fall's elections, although President Bush did not announce the move until the day after the elections. (READ MORE)
Domestic Use of Spy Satellites To Widen - The Bush administration has approved a plan to expand domestic access to some of the most powerful tools of 21st-century spycraft, giving law enforcement officials and others the ability to view data obtained from satellite and aircraft sensors that can see through cloud cover and even penetrate... (READ MORE)
Peru Quake Kills 337 - A powerful 7.9-magnitude earthquake shook Peru's coast near the capital, killing at least 337 people and injuring 827, the Civil Defense said early today. (READ MORE)
Petraeus to Suggest Cuts - The top American commander in Iraq said yesterday he is preparing recommendations on troop cuts for an upcoming report to Congress, while Iraqis dug out hundreds of bodies from the worst terrorist massacre since the war began. (READ MORE)
GOP Hits 2008 Candidates on Illegal Aliens - The Republican Party's national chairman scolded his party's two top presidential candidates this week for their tough stance on illegal immigration, even as both men moved to try to one-up each other in calling for stricter enforcement. (READ MORE)
Iranian Guard Holdings Extensive - Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, which faces the prospect of severe U.S. financial sanctions as a "terrorist organization," represents a tempting target given its multibillion-dollar commercial empire ranging from oil fields to honeybee farms. (READ MORE)
From the Front:
Eighty Deuce on the Loose in Iraq: Sweet dreams are made of these... - So the other day I was off in la la land when I began to have, not suprisingly, a dream about being here in Iraq. I was walking across this parking lot on my way to the chow hall when mortars started coming in. They wern't landing close to me so I just continued to walk on my way. I distinctly remeber looking over and seeing the dust clouds rise from the impacts, one, two, three. Then small arms fire erupted... (READ MORE)
Acute Politics: Beauty in the Dirt - Last night was beautiful. Iraqi cities look something like others that I've seen, and the fertile stretches along the river are less impressive than green farmland back home. The desert, though- the desert is different. The sky was clear of dust and haze- we were far past the lights of the city, and the stars shone soft and brilliant. The Milky Way stretched out overhead like a band of cotton. I heard bats launch from their hiding places in the abandoned buildings, and shrill aloft on their hunt for food. Somewhere overhead and out of sight, an owl hooted and stooped for his own dinner. (READ MORE)
321st War Diary: Hot and getting hotter - August 15, 2007 Camp Ali Al Salem, Kuwait It's difficult to believe that it could get any hotter but Kuwait is still a few degrees warmer. That's not surprising, it was warmer last year in May when I was here with the 1016th. Today the high is supposed to get up to 120 and the low 95. People were asking me how the heat was affecting me at Ramadi and to be honest, it didn't seem as bad as I had feared. I think that the hot July in Pocatello prepared me in a way for the high temps. Don't get me wrong, it was definitely hot and I tried to stay out of the direct sunlight between 2 and 4, that seemed to be the extreme time of day. (READ MORE)
On the Web:
Michael Fumento: Global Warming and James Hansen’s Hacks - In retrospect, you knew there would be trouble when you put the people responsible for the Space Shuttle program in charge of tracking U.S. temperatures. So perhaps it shouldn’t have come as a big surprise when it was revealed that NASA committed a bit of an oopsie regarding data constantly used by the mainstream media and other global warming proponents. (READ MORE)
Ken Blackwell: American Private Equity: A Cow to Milk or Butcher - A general good rule of thumb is to expect that someone will be soaked whenever Congress starts talking about making the tax code fairer. Another good rule is if you want less of something, tax it. Such is the case with a proposed adjustment to an established tax rule with far reaching implications for the American economy. (READ MORE)
Cliff May: Petraeus's progress getting harder to deny - 'The only thing this surge will accomplish is a surge of more death and destruction.' That was the prediction of blogger and anti-war activist Arianna Huffington back in December of last year -- one month before the Senate unanimously confirmed Gen. David Petraeus as commander in Iraq. (READ MORE)
Matt Towery: The Real Issue In 2008 - Those outside the insulated bubble of Washington, D.C. -- remember us? -- nevertheless recognize the real issue for the 2008 elections. (READ MORE)
William Rusher: Sorting out the Middle East - If you want to pose as an all-purpose expert on the Middle East, just assume the demeanor of a wise old owl and announce, "It's all about oil." Why did the United States invade Iraq? "Oil." What are the Sunnis and the Shiites battling over? "Oil." What is Iran's motive in its Byzantine power plays? "Oil." Don't try to explain the details of your analysis: Keep it simple, and just blame everything on oil. (READ MORE)
Donald Lambro: 'A pox on both parties' - The bewilderingly shifting dates in next January's early presidential primaries may complicate the candidates' timing and tactics, but is it wreaking havoc in our American political system? I don't think so. The major primaries and caucuses will be held a little earlier than usual in January, as anticipated by the candidates. But Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Florida and now Nevada will remain the entry portals to the Feb. 5 Super Duper Tuesday when it is likely that the nominees will have been all but chosen by their parties. (READ MORE)
George Will: Panic in the markets!...again? - Exactly a century ago, panic seized financial markets. The collateral for perhaps half the bank loans in New York was securities whose values had been inflated by speculation. (READ MORE)
Larry Elder: Elizabeth Edwards: John Needs Affirmative Action - Elizabeth Edwards, Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards' wife, wants affirmative action -- for white males. Okay, she didn't put it exactly that way. Here's what happened. (READ MORE)
Emmett Tyrrell: From Rove to Hastert - It is indicative of the bias that gusts through our media that when the most successful political strategist in memory, Karl Rove, retires from his powerful position in the Bush White House, the press reports his departure tsk-tskingly. (READ MORE)
Ann Coulter: If at first you don't succeed, lie, lie again - All the Democrats' most dearly beloved anti-war/anti-Bush heroes invariably end up in the Teresa Heinz Kerry wing of the nut-house. (READ MORE)
Amanda Carpenter: Obama Flubs Again on Foreign Policy - At an August 13 New Hampshire campaign stop, Obama said that as President he would move more U.S. troops to Afghanistan to “get the job done there, and that requires us to have enough troops so that we’re not just air-raiding villages and killing civilians, which is causing enormous problems there.” (READ MORE)
Peter Hannaford: Table Scraps - So far it's only affected California, but that means it soon may be heading your way, for what begins in California often spreads across the land. Take, for example, auto emissions, clean air standards and talentless Hollywood "celebrities" In this case, it's a new strategy devised by the California Republican Party. Call it the Table Scraps strategy. (READ MORE)
Daniel Henninger: The Death of Diversity - Diversity was once just another word. Now it's a fighting word. One of the biggest problems with diversity is that it won't let you alone. Corporations everywhere have force-marched middle managers into training sessions led by "diversity trainers." Most people already knew that the basic idea beneath diversity emerged about 2,000 years ago under two rubrics: Love thy neighbor as thyself, and Do unto others as they would do unto you. Then suddenly this got rewritten as "appreciating differentness." (READ MORE)
WSJ Review & Outlook: Toy Story - Mattel's second major toy recall in as many weeks is giving executives a public-relations migraine and investors the jitters. The episode is another example of China's difficulties in meeting Western quality standards. But in the rush to apportion blame for this latest safety scare, China is coming in for more than its fair share. Senator Dick Durbin (D., Illinois) jumped right in, calling for a new requirement that all toys from China be tested for lead paint at the border. Never mind that 97% of the recalled products had nothing to do with lead paint. (READ MORE)
Washington Times Editorial: Serial Killers of Americans - The Bush administration's decision to designated Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the elite military arm of the radical Islamist regime in Tehran, as a "specially designated global terrorist" (SDGT) organization strikes a huge blow against one of the world's most deadly jihadist groups. The IRGC, through its longstanding relationship with Hezbollah, has the blood of hundreds of Americans on its hands — among them the 241 American servicemen who were killed in the Oct. 23, 1983, bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut, Lebanon. (READ MORE)
David Tate: Return to Tora Bora - US-led troops in eastern Afghanistan kicked off a major offensive Sunday designed to root out Taliban, al Qaeda, and Hizb-i-Islami-Gulbadin fighters hiding in southeastern Nangahar province. So far, the fighting has killed at least three American GIs, two of whom were Green Berets. Local government officials say up to 50 militants are dead with another 40 "under siege." The fighting has forced as many as 100 families in the area to flee. Early reports say at least seven civilians have been killed. The US troops, augmented by the Afghan National Army and close air support, are targeting "hundreds of foreign fighters" who are well-entrenched. (READ MORE)
Bill Roggio: Iraq Report: Lightning Hammer update - US and Iraqi security forces are pushing forward on two fronts against al Qaeda in Iraq and the Shia terror groups. In the regions north and east of Baqubah in Diyala province, Operation Lightning Hammer is in its third day. Nationwide, US and Iraqi security forces continue the intelligence-driven operations against the rogue Mahdi Army, Iranian-backed Special Groups cells, and al Qaeda. (READ MORE)
McQ: Firedoglake demands an apology - Does this hit anyone else the wrong way? Firedoglake has issued a press release. A press release? They're a freakin' lefty blog. What, a blog post wasn't good enough? It seems that Senator Susan Collins' Director of Internet Strategy, Lance Dutson, characterized the blog as "the foul-mouthed fem-blog FiredogLake." (READ MORE)
Allahpundit: (Video) Hannity clashes with Geraldo over Newark illegal alien suspect - The full segment ran upwards of 15 minutes. I pared it down here to a cool five, being careful to include Geraldo’s immortal malaprop at Kimberly Guilfoyle’s expense. You’ll know it when you hear it. Oh, and he also coins a new word. You’ll know that when you hear it, too. (READ MORE)
Don Surber: The right way to bring our soldiers home - AP reported that General David Petraeus said the Surge is working so well that American troops can start coming home. Iraqis are beginning to rise against al-Qaeda. “Petraeus said the shift in loyalty among many Sunni insurgents in Iraq’s western Anbar province, Baghdad’s Amariyah district and a similar hotspot in the city called Ghazaliyah was ‘a pretty big deal.’” (READ MORE)
Bryan Preston: Libel tourist stands down in case against the Washington Institute - This case concerns a book that traces Hamas’ use of charities to raise terror dollars, published by the Yale University Press. And it’s a clear victory for free speech: “(WASHINGTON) — Yesterday, KinderUSA and Dr. Laila Al-Marayati dismissed with prejudice their libel suit, recently filed in California, against The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, its senior fellow Dr. Matthew Levitt, and Yale University Press. The suit involved passages contained in Dr. Levitt’s critically acclaimed and carefully researched book Hamas: Politics, Charity, and Terrorism in the Service of Jihad, published by Yale University Press.” (READ MORE)
Kim Priestap: General Patraeus' Impressive Approval Ratings - Considering how emotional the war in Iraq has become, American public's views of Patraeus are very important because they indicate how much they'll trust his report come September: “The poll of 1,012 adults, taken earlier this month, found that 47% give him a favorable rating, and only 21% unfavorable. The rest had not heard of him or had no opinion.” (READ MORE)
H. Numan: Bangkok Reporting - As an avid reader of the Gates of Vienna, and living in the land of smiles, I would like to contribute as well with news and facts from my spot on the globe in a column Bangkok Reporting. My first report will be an essay to brief you about the general situation: Thailand is a beautiful country in Asia. It has never been colonized, something the Thais are quite proud about. In fact, it was the result of luck and skillful bargaining. Thailand, or rather Siam as it was called then, was exactly on the borders of French Indochinese and British Indian influences. (READ MORE)
Jihad Watch: NYPD warns of homegrown threat - As far as one can tell from this article, there is not that much useful information in this report, except for a restatement of possible outward signs of radicalization among Muslims living in the West. But the article then takes a contradictory turn as the report shifts its focus to how easy it is for jihadists to blend in when they choose to do so (as the al-Qaeda playbook suggests). (READ MORE)
Blackfive: One Courageous Teacher You Should Know -Below is an interesting story. Mike Yon told the story of an American Battalion Commander and the Mayor of Baqubah making a difference. And, now there's this story of one Iraqi woman's courage and determination for the children of Baqubah: “Baqubah Teacher Risks Life So Students Could Learn - By Sgt. Armando Monroig 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment BAQUBAH, Iraq - She carried a bag full of what she considered to be precious cargo – precious enough for her to risk her life delivering its contents. She made several trips across the Diyala River, armed only with a pistol and a few friends as body guards.” (READ MORE)
Neptunus Lex: Sanity rallies, still under siege, prognosis uncertain - A committee of the San Francisco board of supervisors rejected a proposal to ban the Navy’s Flight Demonstration Squadron from performing during Fleet Week celebrations, dealing a blow t0 Bay Area barkers and other assorted busybodies who chiefly concern themselves with the banning of everything not otherwise compulsory: (READ MORE)
Paul Mirengoff: The Israel-Hezbollah war, what went wrong? - It's been about a year since the beginning of the war between Israel and Hezbollah in south Lebanon, and there's little doubt that Israel failed badly in that war. Israel's objectives were to obtain the release of soldiers being held captive, to crush Hezbollah in south Lebanon, and to ensure that Israeli cities and towns could no longer be attacked by rocket fire from Lebanon. A year later, the soldiers (if alive) are still prisoners. Hezbollah was never crushed, and by all accounts is just about fully reconstituted. (READ MORE)
John Hinderaker: Never Let the Facts Stand in the Way of a Meme - ABC News has been doing some research, and they seem to think they are on to a scoop: "Romney in Stem Cell Biz, Despite Political Opposition." Mitt is in the "stem cell biz"? Sounds like he's carrying out experiments in his garage. Well, not exactly. It turns out that something less than one one-thousandth of Romney's fortune is invested in a company called Novo Nordisk, which carries out some kind of stem cell research. ABC portrays this as a "gotcha" moment, in which they have caught Governor Romney in a contradiction. (READ MORE)
Flopping Aces: Withdrawing from Iraq: reviewing the consequences - I posted an article earlier this week in which the nation is on a countdown to the Sept. 15 joint Ambassador Ryan Crocker and General David Petraeus report, which outline progress made in the recent surge. I felt the urge to discuss the consequences of the withdrawal in the hope that we can perhaps influence our elected officials. The question to ask our congressman/woman or senator is this: have you fully contemplated the dangers of withdrawing American combat troops TOO EARLY? (READ MORE)
Counterterrorism Blog: HLF Trial Update: 2nd Israeli Witness Takes the Stand - The usual tranquility of the overflow courtroom in the Earle Cabell Federal Building and Courthouse in Dallas was disturbed Wednesday, as supporters of the defendants in the government’s case against the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF) were forced to leave the main courtroom of Judge A. Joe Fish, as the prosecution called an expert witness from Israel. The man, testifying under the pseudonym “Avi,” is an attorney for the Israeli Security Agency (ISA) and is an expert in the global HAMAS social structure. (READ MORE)
Victor Comras: Will Designating the IRGC as Terrorists Really Have an Effect? - Today’s announcement that President Bush intends to designate the Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorism supporting organization is certainly welcome, even if it is somewhat redundant. The IRGC has major commercial and investment interests throughout Iran and internationality. It has also been used as a principal investment vehicle for Iran’s leading Mullah’s and other leaders (see my congressional testimony on this here). Hitting the IRGC should also hit Iran's leaders where it hurts -- in their pocketbook. (READ MORE)
Ed Morrissey: The Ongoing Futility Of UN Peacekeeping - Last year, the world rushed to expand the UNIFIL force in southern Lebanon as a resolution to the Israeli-Hezbollah war that the terrorists initiated last summer. Of course, the previous UNIFIL force had allowed Hezbollah to arm themselves to the teeth with missiles, rockets, and the entire spectrum of guns, thanks to Syria. Hezbollah forces even dug in next to UNIFIL positions, which UNIFIL never actively opposed, and it resulted in several deaths from an Israeli counterattack. Now Israel wants better rules of engagement for UNIFIL forces so that they can actually fulfill their mandate of enforcing UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which forbids arms to Hezbollah in the region -- and the UN responded with its usual futility: (READ MORE)
Lawhawk: Al Qaeda Bombings In Iraq Kill 500+ - Yesterday's horrific bombings in Northern Iraq have killed upwards of 500 people. Expect people to claim that the attack is a sign that the surge isn't working, which is precisely why al Qaeda would attempt spectacular attacks - precisely for media consumption, not necessarily because al Qaeda is winning. It's all about perceptions, and al Qaeda knows that these kinds of attacks are good at swaying the media elites, especially in the US. (READ MORE)
The Shield of Achilles: The Beauchamp controversy: Many Foots in Many Mouths [UPDATED] - This is one of the few articles that has been pure joy to write. A lot of pundits are now eating crow over the Scott Beauchamp affair. I know it's unseemly to be a gloating winner, so I'll refrain from sarcasm and keep the side comments to a minimum. I'll give a brief background primer for those that haven't been following this: (READ MORE)
Dan Riehl: US Prof Putting Out Enemy Propaganda Overseas - I thought this was a joke, but it isn't. I found it as I have spent several days trying to ascertain the fate of Taliban Leader Mansoor Dadullah, targeted in a recent air raid in Afghanistan. Despite the best efforts of Taliban propagandists, claiming massive civilian causalities, as Rusty eventually posted, there were hardly any civilian causalities at all when the story was fleshed out. Now weeks later, here comes an atrocious article illustrated with the worst of images (graphic depiction of a child in hospital) claiming massive civilian causalities and giving our enemies all the propaganda it could want under the heading of a US-based college professor: Marc W. Herold. (READ MORE)
Right Truth: Iraq Situation Interim Report, Right Truth Exclusive - Right Truth Exclusive. 16 August 2007 We have been given a copy of Reflections on the Iraq Situation Interim Report, a document released by Shaikh Ali Al-Muthaba, (aka Albrecht Gero Muth) the Senior Commander of the JAM Political-Military Affairs Command of Jaish Al-Mehdi, the Mehdi Army. The document has this date been sent on to the High Command of U.S. Forces in Iraq, the Administration, the U.S. Congress, and the Permanent Members of the U.N. Security Council. (READ MORE)
ROFASix: US Army Suicides - The news that Army suicide rates has reached new levels is pretty much top line news across the world. For those that oppose the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan it is proof positive that it is because troops are unable to stand the "immorality of what they do." Nothing of course could be further than the truth. Visit some of the 'we support the troops - not the mission' web sites and you will find that charade falls apart fast when you read some of the 'yippie-yahoo' comments by those site readers. No one could be happier about troop suicides than these folks, and it just happens to give them something new to blame Bush for. (READ MORE)
Armed Liberal: Man, People Are So Gullible... - ...as long as the things they are gullible about confirm their prejudices. I've got a newfound - interest - in military welfare these days. So I pay particular attention to news items that cross my computer screen that touch on issues about the welfare of our military. A few weeks ago, I saw the release about rising suicide rates in the military, and to be honest I was concerned. "Army soldiers committed suicide last year at the highest rate in 26 years, and more than a quarter did so while serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to a new military report." (READ MORE)
Augean Stables: The Coming Urban Terror - The following is an article that delineates my fears. It also illustrates the incredible danger of justifying resentments expressed as terror — i.e., you end up being the target, as Muslims the world over, but especially in Iraq, are beginning to realize. Unlike the writer, who emphasizes military forms of security, I prefer cultural ones - like making it clear that engaging in this stuff is not okay - (i.e., the opposite of what the world told the Palestinians from 2001 to present). (READ MORE)
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