News – Indistinct and Potential Danger

With the recent vague, indistinct warnings, some are musing if the Bush administration is just covering it’s back constantly, rather than telling us about real, present threats. I suppose that’s possible, though after time, some people will get tired of this perceived crying of wolf. I heard a bit of Ashcroft and Muller talking and was mystified as to just what to expect. There might be something between now and Sept, but we don’t know what. We want you to look out for these scruffy looking people anyway, as they may or may not be in the country and could wanna maybe do some damage. Where’s the freaking intelligence? This all amounts, in my opinion, to rumor and speculation. Which is what we need less of. Rumor and speculation got us into Iraq. We don’t want anymore of that right now. Heck, they didn’t even tell major US cities about it. If we’re talking a credible threat, why haven’t they been deeply informed?

Ashcroft says(though not in so many words) Osama wants you to vote for Kerry. Back here in the real world we shake our heads and smirk in wry amusement. Doesn’t matter which candidate we elect, Iraq will remain an issue as Kerry and Bush are pretty close on the basics of Iraq policy, though in my opinion Kerry’s version of the same is a bit more palatable and more likely to end positively.

Florida executes John Blackwelder, who was serving life for sexually assaulting a child. He strangled a fellow inmate to intentionally to get the death penalty rather than serve life in prison. If they really wanted to punish him, they should have left him in prison for life.

Lawyers and civil liberties groups say that Brandon Mayfield’s detention as a material witness in the Spanish train bombing was an example of the pattern of governmental abuse and prejudice against Muslims. He was detained because of fingerprint evidence(later found to be faulty) and becomes of his ties to the Muslim community according to government documents.

Kerry offers up a security plan to both fight terror and get in good with allies. He’s also decided he will accept he nomination at the Boston convention rather than delay it. And to top it off, a Kerryism.

Al Gore gets rough on Rummy. But not just Rummy, he wants Condi to bow out as well as George Tenet. Bold.

Iraq

Offensive operations in Najaf have been suspended after a truce offered by al-Sadr was accepted. This would be interesting if confirmed by the US military as they’ve said they’d never deal with Sadr.

Do you think the reluctant Hussain al-Shahristani will be Iraq’s interim PM? He says he’s rather serve his people in a humanitarian capacity, though I think he misses how much he might do(depending on how much power he is given) from such a high, if temporary office.

The question must be asked. If Ahmed Chalabi did give secrets to Iraq.. who did he get them from? The most likely source(short of his organization actually committing espionage against the US) are the neocons he used to be close to. The FBI is on the case.

More Abu Ghraib photos hit the TV screen.

Israel/Palestine

Israeli police have taken visiting journalist Peter Hounam into custody. He’s a British journalist who opened up Israel’s most sensitive military secrets in an interview with clear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu. A government gag order prevents release of much info, but according to the website of the Yedioth Aharonoth newspaper he’s being questioned on suspicion of committing “security offences”. This could get interesting.

Aiming to get support in a cabinet vote, Sharon looks to win over skeptical ministers and finalize details. Whether it gets approved and whether Palestinians like the results remain to be seen.

Iran

With chants of “Death to America” and “Death to the occupiers of Iraq”, Islamic conservatives take the reigns of Iran’s parliament. So.. do you feel safer?

Saudi Arabia

A statement online, said to be from Abdulaziz al-Muqrin, gives steps militants can take to succeed in their campaign against the Suadi royal family. Not good news for Saudi Arabia.

Haiti

Floods and mudslides bring the death toll in Haiti and the Dominican Republic to near 2000. 1000 bodies were found in Mapou, a rural Haitian town. Troops in the US-led peacekeeping force flew food and water to Fond Verette, a town cut off from the ground by a mudslide.

Africa

South Africa says it has foiled an alQueda linked plot to disrupt previous general elections and has passed along info to other countries.

British police have arrested radical cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri in a raid prompted by a US extradition warrant. But the US might not get him. Britain is musing it’s own charges and Yemen wants to extradite him as well.

A new book says Tony Blair sought to stymie a US inquiry into the failure to uncover WMD.

General

The economics of executing hackers.

Today’s Papers has the election taking more a focus on Iraq in the next weeks, Bush reelection bringing budget cuts, a hint that Hussain al-Shahristani has actually mysteriously turned down the interim PM gig and more in the one page news.

Amusements

Flooding closes water park

Public dick shows small private to small public on bus

Postal workers deliver package with labels that read, “Warning, bomb”

Mark Fiore: Homegrown Gun Violence

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