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)
Blackwater Call for Cameras Denied - The State Department cited legal concerns in turning down a 2005 request from Blackwater USA to install cameras in official U.S. motorcades protected by employees of the security contractor in Iraq, The Washington Times has learned. (READ MORE)
Rice Orders Training, Oversight for Guards - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice yesterday ordered new measures to improve government oversight of private guards who protect U.S. diplomats in Iraq, including cultural awareness training for contractors and a board to investigate any future killings. (READ MORE)
A Call To End Illegals' Refuges - Fred Thompson yesterday became the first major presidential candidate to embrace attrition as the solution to illegal entry, saying the government should deny illegal aliens a hiding place by cracking down on the businesses and sanctuary cities that shield them. (READ MORE)
S. Korea Moves to Stay in Iraq - President Roh Moo-hyun called yesterday for a one-year extension of South Korean troop deployments in Iraq, saying that closer relations with Washington were vital to his nation's security. (READ MORE)
A Helping of Vermont Politics - The inviting aromas overwhelm a visitor strolling down Bridge Street. It's comfort food, New England style, wafting from hot ovens inside clapboard homes, soon to be consumed at the 104-year-old Richmond Congregational Church. (READ MORE)
Administration Diverges on Missile Defense - President Bush said yesterday that a missile defense system is urgently needed in Europe to guard against a possible attack on U.S. allies by Iran, while Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates suggested that the United States could delay activating such a system until there is "definitive proof" of such... (READ MORE)
Security Firms in Iraq Face New Rules - Private security contractors will continue to protect U.S. diplomats in Iraq but will operate under closer supervision by U.S. Embassy officials and with clearer accountability for their actions, according to new rules approved yesterday by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. (READ MORE)
Photographs Said to Show Israeli Target Inside Syria - Independent experts have pinpointed what they believe to be the Euphrates River site in Syria that was bombed by Israel last month, and satellite imagery of the area shows buildings under construction roughly similar in design to a North Korean reactor capable of producing nuclear material for on... (READ MORE)
Maliki, Under Turkish Pressure, Vows to Curb Kurdish Rebels - BAGHDAD, Oct. 23 -- Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki vowed Tuesday to halt the activities of Kurdish separatists staging strikes into Turkey from northern Iraq, marking his government's strongest declaration yet that it would act to forestall a Turkish invasion. (READ MORE)
NATO Talks Focus on Turkey, Afghanistan - NOORDWIJK, Netherlands -- The mounting tension on Turkey's border with Iraq and U.S. demands for European allies to do more in Afghanistan are expected to dominate a meeting of NATO defense ministers opening Wednesday in the Netherlands. (READ MORE)
China Launches Lunar Probe - BEIJING, Oct. 24 -- China sent a satellite rocketing toward lunar orbit Wednesday evening, the latest step in an ambitious national program to shoot more astronauts into space, build a space station and eventually land Chinese astronauts on the moon. (READ MORE)
From the Front:
Greyhawk: Four Months - ...with the WaPo's David Ignatious. July 20, 2007 - Iraq is an inferno that will spread through the region: July 27, 2007 - too bad we don't have a government like Englands, then we could dump that idiot Bush and get out of Iraq! August 24: Progress? Hah - it's all in Anbar where the Sunnis are playing us for stooges to get arms to fight the Shiites after we leave, and you'll never see al Qaeda in this discussion, brother. September 12 (Petraeus goes to Congress: Okay, there's been a little more progress than I thought, but Petraeus better hurry up cause he doesn't have time to fix this huge mess: October 19 (Insert your own interpretation here*): "Let's assume that the numbers from Iraq are right and that there has been a significant reduction in violence there. Let's even agree that the Bush administration's strategy is finally showing some success." (READ MORE)
Iraqpundit: Forgetting Iraq's Civilians - Didn't Tom Friedman used to be smart? Based on his column today in the NYT, he no longer appears to be. Friedman is terribly disappointed because U.S. politicians are no longer talking about withdrawal from Iraq. Yes, I know that's a popular position. But is the right one? The writer contradicts himself when he promotes withdrawal and says, "Neglect is not benign when it comes to Iraq." (READ MORE)
Eighty Deuce On The Loose In Iraq: Being home is..... different - I have to start off by saying that I am loving being back home. I've been having a great time so far, and I still have much more fun stuff planned in the next week or so that I will be back. Shoot, the Arizona State Fair is in town and I still have yet to go to that! I can't wait, because I hear that they have 14 new rides, bringing the grand total to sowhere around 75. I haven't had the chance to go to the fair in years, because the time when it is normally in town I had been stuck in NC thanks to the Army. So its a nice suprise to have the fair in town and I will definatly be hitting that up here soon. (READ MORE)
Badger 6: Staff Sergeant (P) Ian Freeman - Someone You Should Know - Staff Sergeant (Promotable) Ian Freeman - for the longest time Badger 22, Squad Leader of 2nd Squad, 2nd Platoon for much of our deployment. Staff Sergeant Freeman is an Active Guard and Reserve Soldier, and AGR, a Soldier who works full time for the Reserve components. He is one of the people that makes sure the hard work of running a reserve unit is accomplished. (READ MORE)
Jeff Emanuel: The situation in Iraq is incredibly complex--and the products of the 'Surge' are far too fragile to survive a Coalition drawdown - Samarra, Iraq - In April and May of this year, and again from the beginning of August through October, I was embedded with the U.S. military in some of the most kinetic combat zones in Iraq, observing Gen. Petraeus’s strategy from the ground level in several different locations – including with the undermanned units and in the sparsely covered areas mentioned above -- and I have seen the outstanding effort being made by the coalition forces there, as well as clear evidence of the strategy’s effects on the overall situation. (READ MORE)
The Landlocked Sailor: Turnover ... - It's official, I've begun turning my duties over to Aaron, my relief. He's watching me go through a typical week this week, and next week I'll observe him. After we're done with that ... I'm gone. To say that Aaron was a bit overwhelmed at the scope of the job is an understatement. It's not that the job is that tough, it's more learning about how we do business over here. I had forgotten how bizarre this world can be. Like any military job, we have our own language here. Aaron has spent the last few days listening and giving me that telling look that means, "uhhh, what does that acronym mean?" (READ MORE)
On the Web:
Robert F. Turner: The Surveillance Law That Matters - I have never met Judge Michael Mukasey, and I have no strong feelings on who should be our next attorney general. But after four decades studying and writing about national security aspects of our Constitution, I believe Congress and the American people must understand that some of the issues raised in Mr. Mukasey's confirmation hearings are far more complex than they may initially appear. (READ MORE)
Christopher Hitchens: An Anglosphere Future - Having devoured the Sherlock Holmes stories as a boy, I did what their author hoped and graduated to his much finer historical novels. The best of these, "The White Company," appeared in 1890; it describes the recruitment and deployment of a detachment of Hampshire archers during the reign of King Edward III, a period that, as Arthur Conan Doyle phrased it, "constituted the greatest epoch in English History--an epoch when both the French and the Scottish kings were prisoners in London." (READ MORE)
Barbara Jepson: The Perils of Being a Child Prodigy - When 17-year-old Hungarian pianist Ervin Nyiregyházi arrived in the U.S. in 1920 for a concert tour that included his Carnegie Hall debut, photographers documented the occasion. In Europe, the slender prodigy had won acclaim for his keyboard prowess and youthful compositions, giving his first public performance at the age of 6, playing at Buckingham Palace at 8 and appearing as soloist with the Berlin Philharmonic at 12. By then, he had developed a taste for caviar and an unshakable sense of his own importance. (READ MORE)
Amanda Carpenter: Gender Politics Key to Hillary’s Political Calculation - Hillary Clinton has made a political calculation to capture the women’s vote by playing gender politics to make herself the first woman President. Her approach includes an often made pitch to women that she needs their votes to “make history” and “shatter the highest glass ceiling” by installing her in the White House. (READ MORE)
Michael Medved: How government expansion worsens hard times - For those Americans who know anything at all about the history of the Great Depression and the New Deal, the story line seems simple, dramatic, inspiring and familiar: Capitalists and speculators went wild with greed in “The Roaring Twenties,” leading to a stock market crash and hard times. Banks closed, once prosperous workers sold apples on street-corners or became hobos in shanty-towns, while the Republican President Herbert Hoover did nothing for the destitute and suffering nation. Then FDR arrived on the scene, inspiring new hope with his golden words (“the only thing we have to fear is fear itself”)... (READ MORE)
Ben Shapiro: Dumbledore Waves the Rainbow Flag - I am not a fan of the Harry Potter series. Nonetheless, I, like every other sentient human being, know something about Harry Potter. Most of my friends are fans. My three younger sisters are fans. I've seen the movies. I've read small portions of several of the books. So when J.K. Rowling announced last week that Albus Dumbledore, the aged headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, was gay, I was somewhat confused. When did the old dude with the funky beard turn into Gore Vidal? (READ MORE)
Michelle Malkin: "Profile" Foreign Donors? Of Course! - Asian-American groups don't like the increased public scrutiny that Hillary Clinton's mysterious Chinese dishwasher donors are getting. To which I say, in words that should be universally understood: Boo-freaking-hoo. In the wake of eye-opening investigations by the New York Post and Los Angeles Times of more dubious foreign funny money flowing into Hill's coffers... (READ MORE)
Chuck Colson: How America Treats Its Military - One of the really formative experiences in my life was serving as an officer in the Marine Corps. I thought military service was an honorable profession, so much so that I urged my sons to consider military service—even though that was during the Vietnam War. But after what I have been watching the past few months, I wonder if I would urge my grandsons to serve today. (READ MORE)
Jacob Sullum: The Gap in Mukasey's Testimony - During his recent confirmation hearings, Michael Mukasey, the former federal judge nominated to be the next attorney general, conceded that "the president doesn't stand above the law." Yet Mukasey, who is expected to be easily confirmed, also suggested that the president is entitled to ignore certain laws. Since the law "starts with the Constitution," he said, the president need not obey a statute that interferes with his inherent constitutional authority "to defend the country." (READ MORE)
John Stossel: The Global-Warming Debate Isn't Over Until It's Over - First he won the Oscar -- then the Nobel Peace Prize. He's being called a "prophet." Impressive, considering that one of former Vice President Al Gore's chief contributions has been to call the debate over global warming "over" and to marginalize anyone who disagrees. Although he favors major government intervention to stop global warming, he says, "the climate crisis is not a political issue. It is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity". Give me a break. (READ MORE)
Walter E. Williams: Congressional Constitutional Contempt - Here's the oath of office administered to members of the House and Senate: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God." A similar oath is sworn to by the president and federal judges. (READ MORE)
Tony Blankley: From the Bosporus to the Himalayas: What a Mess - With the steady decline of our selected ally Gen. Pervez Musharraf's ability to govern Pakistan and the growing alienation of the Turkish people and government from their longtime ally the United States, it is fair to say that from the Bosporus to the Himalayas, American interests continue to decline, while American policy drifts. It is ironic, if not mordant, to observe that in that zone, our policy in Iraq stands out as holding more promise for success than most of the other policies we are attempting. This week, let me consider why we are losing Turkey. (READ MORE)
John McCaslin: Hard-Knock Life - John Lockwood, whose recent research at the Library of Congress made headlines after he uncovered a 1922 Washington Post article "Arctic Ocean Getting Warm; Seals Vanish and Icebergs Melt," doesn't normally buy children's books. But bookstore browsing over the weekend "I came across a new edition of Al Gore's 'An Inconvenient Truth' re-written for children — or as the cover phrased it, 'Adapted for a New Generation.' I bought a copy; I couldn't help myself," he insists. (READ MORE)
David Horowitz: Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week Already a Success - The focus was on the violent oppression of Muslim women as thousands of students campuses across the country on attended and in some cases protested against speeches and panel discussions marking the first day of Islamo Fascism Awareness Week. “We have organized students on over 100 campuses across the country, we are hosting over 30 speakers on subjects like the plight of women in Islam and we are leading the discussion on the danger of Islamo Fascism,” (READ MORE)
Wolf Pangloss: A Spur to Action: The Violent Oppression of Woman in Islam - The following video is not safe for work. It is not safe to watch with children. It is not safe to watch if you are easily sickened or horrified. What it is, is a true documentary depiction of what it means for girls and women to be subjugated and oppressed by barbaric and abusive practices associated with Islamic imperialism. Narrated by ex-Muslim Nonie Darwish, its name is The Violent Oppression of Woman in Islam. (READ MORE)
Ilya Somin: Can We Make the Constitution More Democratic? - Recent years have seen a revival of proposals to reform the Constitution in order to make it more democratic. University of Texas law professor Sandy Levinson has recently published a prominent book on the subject, as has well-known political scientist and pundit Larry Sabato. In our contribution to a symposium on constitutional reform , William and Mary law professor Neal Devins and I raise some questions about both the desirability and feasibility of proposals to democratize the Constitution. Here's an excerpt from the abstract: (READ MORE)
Jay Tea: For The Record - The other day, I discussed Senator John McCain and why I respect him -- and why I can't vote for him. As the primary here in New Hampshire draws closer, I find myself thinking more and more about matters, and wondering just how my subconscious judges candidates. And one of them has bubbled to the forefront: a record of accomplishments. Looking at the Republican side, two men stand out in that category: Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney. (READ MORE)
Jim Addison: Diapered donors dodge delimited donations - Finally, a campaign scandal not just Hillary's! Underaged donors giving the maximum to Presidential campaigns is becoming a common way around campaign finance limits for candidates of both parties, reports Matthew Mosk of the Washington Post: “Just how much campaign cash is coming from children is uncertain -- the FEC does not require donors to provide their age. But the amount written by those identifying themselves as students on contribution forms has risen dramatically this year, according to an analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics. During the first six months of the 2000 presidential campaign, students gave $338,464. In 2004, that rose to $538,936.” (READ MORE)
Mark Steyn: No Smoke Without Fire - These stories turn up so routinely you hardly notice them anymore: “Vancouver's hookah-parlour owners are celebrating after winning an exemption Thursday from a proposed new bylaw that will ban smoking on most sidewalks in commercial districts, in bus shelters and even in taxis passing through Vancouver. In giving the bylaw unanimous approval-in-principle, Vancouver city council members bowed to arguments that hookah lounges provide an important cultural space for the city's Muslims and granted them a temporary exemption.” Can that be right, even in Canada? Infidels can't smoke but Muslims can? Apparently so. As the Vancouver Sun report continued, Emad Yacoub "said hookah lounges are essential for immigrants from hookah-smoking cultures, because it helps them deal with the depression common for newcomers and gives them places like they have at home." (READ MORE)
The Sundries Shack: When Pork Trumps “The Children” (or, How Many Health Insurance Plans Could You Have Bought With the Money they’re Spending?) - Man, that Tom Coburn is one smart cookie and the Senate Democrats are a bunch of feckless weasels. Why do I say that? Well, do you remember the past two weeks when you couldn’t swing a dead cat in Washington and not hit a Democrat nearly in tears about how George Bush and the Republicans want children to get sick and die because they were opposed to expanding the S-CHIP program by 35 billion dollars? Do you remember how many times (approximately one bazillion times, by my count) we were told that all that money was for “the children” and how the President was hurting “the children” and how the Democrats simply adored “the children”? (READ MORE)
ShrinkWrapped: The MSM & Superego Lacunae - One of the important components of our Superego is our conscience. Our conscience is what evokes guilt when I we do something that does not fit into our ethical and moral code. Signal guilt allows us to anticipate how we would feel if we followed through on an unacceptable impulse. At the same time, we all have Superego defects, compromises whereby our Superego "looks" the other way and allows us to rationalize or ignore transgressions; such Superego defects can be thought of a Superego lacunae, literally holes in the Superego. An everyday example can be found in those people who proclaim they are honest and would never cheat anyone yes when a clerk makes a math error in their favor, keeps the money that does not belong to them, with the rationalization that the store won't miss the money and its not so much anyway. (READ MORE)
Patterico's Pontifications: Whelan Bashes Sunstein and Miles Piece on Judicial Activism - Ed Whelan takes to the pages of the Los Angeles Times this morning to bash that Sunstein and Miles piece on judicial activism that I criticized here and here. Ed’s most valuable contribution is to put the Sunstein and Miles piece in its proper context, noting that it is but a small volley in the war “to try to defuse the charge of liberal judicial activism” by advancing “shoddy” arguments that redefine “activism” to allow the charge to be leveled at conservative judges. Ed notes that Sunstein and Miles’s analysis of agency actions has nothing to do with the real problem most Americans have with judicial activism: (READ MORE)
Scott Johnson: Mugged by reality in Iraq? - This morning we post the last of the three items from the Fall issue of the Claremont Review of Books (subscribe here). The review/essay by CRB editor Charles R. Kesler addresses three new books on the war. As our situation and strategy in Iraq change, Professor Kesler asks, "Will we have learned anything?" Continuing his series on the intellectual assumptions behind the war, Professor Kesler examines three important new works by conservatives whom Kesler describes as of the neo variety (he also acknowledes the demonology at work in the polemics regarding neoconservative influence on American foreign policy, and it is an adjective that I resist using). (READ MORE)
John Hawkins: The Daily Kos Post Of The Day: Is Congress Being Blackmailed By W.H.? - If the Kossacks didn't exist, conservatives would have to invent them. I mean, DK is an enormously popular and influential liberal blog. So much so, that Democratic politicians, even the ones running for President, fall all over themselves to kiss the rings of the Kossacks -- yet, here's the sort of "crazy" that's being pumped out on a daily basis over there (From Daily Kos diarist rainmanjr), (READ MORE)
Amy Proctor: CNN Has No Bad War News; Focus Shifts to Romney's Hair - The lack of back news flowing from Iraq has apparently created a vacuum on the major news networks forcing them, rather than reporting the progress in Iraq, to switch gears and report on embarrassing puff pieces. Case in point: Wolf Blitzer on CNN’s The Situation Room reporting on the state of Mitt Romney’s hair at the Republican Presidential Debate on Sunday. (READ MORE)
Acute Politics: Shadows - There were six American flags set out in front of the crowd that gathered at Gowen Field to welcome us home. Six flags, guarded by veterans of other wars- one for each soldier our Task Force lost over a year in combat. If we came home today, there would be seven flags standing silent before the formation. Sergeant First Class Tony "Ski" Wasielewski died earlier this month at home in Wisconsin. He had volunteered for Iraq as a veteran route clearance soldier, having already served a tour in Afghanistan. (READ MORE)
Richard Landes: Who Endangers Europe? Islamists or Islamophobes - When discussing the dangers that Europe faces with colleagues, it’s very difficult to get them to take it seriously. Partly this comes from an almost narcissistic sense that Western culture (whose freedoms we academics enjoy to the fullest) is immortal and invulnerable, something like James Dean tooling down the highway on his hog at 120mph without a helmet. Partly this comes from their inability to imagine the Europeans behaving self-destructively, even though many of our own “progressive” values contribute to that behavior. In the asymmetrical warfare between Global Jihad and the West, the role of “progressive” values, aggressively asserted by dupes of demopaths plays a key role. Not only do “progressives” consistently attempt to silence any effort to expose the hate-mongering world of Islamism with cries of Islamophobia, but they aggressively attack anyone who objects. In this, the police seem to play an astonishingly central role. (READ MORE)
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