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Why Al Qaeda is Unlikely to Execute Another 9/11
Posted by Brian in Threat Watch on 2/Sep/2011 20:31
Why Al Qaeda is Unlikely to Execute Another 9/11 is republished with permission of STRATFOR.
By Scott Stewart
It is Sept. 1, and that means we are once again approaching the anniversary of al Qaeda’s Sept. 11, 2001, attacks against the United States. In the 10 years that have passed since the attacks, a lot has happened and much has changed in the world, but many people can still vividly recall the sense of fear, uncertainty and helplessness they felt on that September morning. Millions of people watched United Airlines flight 175 smash into the south tower of the World Trade Center on live television. A short while later they heard that another plane had struck the Pentagon. Then they watched in horror as the World Trade Center’s twin towers buckled and collapsed to the ground.
It was, by any measure, a stunning, cataclysmic scene, a kind of terrorist theater that transformed millions of television viewers into vicarious victims. Excerpts of the just-released memoir of then-Vice President Dick Cheney demonstrate that it was not just ordinary people who were affected by the attacks; America’s leaders where shocked and shaken, too. And judging from the statements of foreign citizens and leaders in the wake of 9/11, those who proclaimed, “We are all Americans,†it was also apparent that the toll on vicarious victims did not stop at the U.S. border.
One result of this vicarious victimization and the fear and helplessness it produced was that many people became fixated on the next attack and began anxiously “waiting for the other shoe to drop.†This spawned an entire industry of fear as dire warnings were propagated by the Internet of the impending “American Hiroshima†that was certain to result when al Qaeda detonated all the nuclear devices it had hidden in major U.S. cities. Chain emails were widely circulated and recirculated quoting a dubious Israeli “security expert†who promised simultaneous catastrophic terrorist attacks against a number of American cities — attacks that never materialized outside of Hollywood productions. Read the rest of this entry »
U.S. increases efforts to get Taliban fighters to renounce violence and return to village life
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News on 2/Sep/2011 16:38
“The top coalition commander in Afghanistan told USA TODAY on Wednesday that he has ordered a “surge” in efforts to get Taliban fighters to renounce violence and return to village life based on recent intelligence suggesting they feel abandoned by their leaders.
Marine Gen. John Allen said the effort aims to quickly capitalize on plunging morale among insurgents in southern Afghanistan, once the backbone of the Taliban movement, and to lure militants back to their homes with jobs and other incentives.
“Now is the moment,” Allen said in an interview from Kabul.
Success on the battlefield is an important component of persuading fighters to lay down their arms and rejoin society, commanders say.
“Nobody reintegrates to the losing side,” said Marine Gen. James Mattis, commander of Central Command, which oversees operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. “That’s just not human nature.”
http://www.usatoday.com/news/usaedition/2011-09-01-afghanistan_st_u.htm?csp=obinsite
Three White House advisors knew about Operation Fast and Furious
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News on 2/Sep/2011 12:37
“…not just one, but three White House advisors knew about Operation Fast and Furious:
Newly obtained emails show that the White House was better informed about a failed gun-tracking operation on the border with Mexico than was previously known.
Three White House national security officials were given some details about the operation, dubbed Fast and Furious. The operation allowed firearms to be illegally purchased, with the goal of tracking them to Mexican drug cartels. But the effort went out of control after agents lost track of many of the weapons.
The supervisor of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives operation in Phoenix specifically mentioned Fast and Furious in at least one email to a White House national security official, and two other White House colleagues were briefed on reports from the supervisor, according to White House emails and a senior administration official.
He identified the three White House officials who were briefed as Kevin M. O’Reilly, director of North American Affairs for the White House national security staff; Dan Restrepo, the president’s senior Latin American advisor; and Greg Gatjanis, a White House national security official.”
US soldiers from Bravo and Delta Company transport suspected Taliban insurgents
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Warriors on 30/Aug/2011 18:13
US soldiers from Bravo and Delta Company transport suspected Taliban insurgents to the Forward Operating Base Pasab in Zahri district, Kandahar, on Aug. 15 following an overnight raid. According to Major Kirby Dennis, operations officer, the operation will reduce the insurgents' offensive capability. (Romeo Gacad/AFP/Getty Images)
Israel sends two warships to Egyptian border
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Threat Watch on 30/Aug/2011 15:48
“Military sources tell AP Israeli Navy sent additional warships to maritime border with Egypt following intelligence indicating viable terror threat.
Military intelligence suggests that an Islamic Jihad terror cell has left the Gaza Strip and intends to infiltrate Israel through Sinai. Minister for Home Front Defense Matan Vilnai has been quoted as saying that the cell may number as many as 10 terrorists.
Meanwhile, Iran set to send 15th fleet to area as well as ‘to thwart pirate activity’
Iran’s Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari:
“The presence of Iran’s army in the high seas will convey the message of peace and friendship to all countries.â€
Staff Sergeant Adam Hendrickson: heading home with his unit of the 101st Airborne Division
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Warriors on 29/Aug/2011 18:09
Staff Sergeant Adam Hendrickson (left), 29, of Winter Park, Fla., tries to fit his assault rifle into the overhead compartment upon boarding a flight at Manas, Kyrgyzstan. He is heading home with his unit of the 101st Airborne Division after completing its deployment in Afghanistan on Aug. 11. President Obama plans to withdraw 10,000 troops from Afghanistan by the end of this year. (David Goldman/Associated Press)
US soldiers from Bravo Company and Afghan security forces prepare their weapons
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Warriors on 28/Aug/2011 18:17
US soldiers from Bravo Company and Afghan security forces prepare their weapons before boarding a Chinook helicopter in Kandahar province on Aug. 14. (Romeo Gacad/AFP/Getty Images)
When Heroes Become Bureaucrats
Posted by Jack Sinclair in Opinion on 28/Aug/2011 12:37
Why cops and firefighters stood by as a man drowned in San Francisco Bay
by Steven Greenhut
“On Memorial Day, a suicidal man waded into San Francisco Bay outside the city of Alameda and stood there for about an hour, neck-deep in chilly water, as about 75 bystanders watched. Local police and firefighters were called to the scene, but they refused to help. After the man drowned, the assembled “first responders†also refused to wade into the water to retrieve his body; they left that job for a bystander.
The incident sparked widespread outrage in northern California, and the response by the fire department and police only intensified the anger. The firefighters blamed local budget cuts for denying them the training and equipment necessary for cold-water rescues. The police said that they didn’t know if the man was dangerous and therefore couldn’t risk the safety of their officers.
After a local TV news crew asked him whether he would save a drowning child in the bay, Alameda fire chief Ricci Zombeck gave an answer that made him the butt of local talk-show mockery: “Well, if I was off duty, I would know what I would do, but I think you’re asking me my on-duty response, and I would have to stay within our policies and procedures, because that’s what’s required by our department to do.â€
Read the rest of this entry »
Why hasn’t crime increased in the current depression?
Posted by Jack Sinclair in Opinion on 28/Aug/2011 12:33
Bruce Graybill responds to this article, which discusses the question of, “Since the economy has gotten worse, why has the crime rate not increased?”:
Crime and the Great Recession
Jobs have fled, lawbreaking hasn’t risen—and criminologists are scratching their heads.
http://www.city-journal.org/2011/21_3_crime-decline.html#.Tlo5zStMrj8.facebook
Graybill says,
“It’s interesting that the author notes the predicted increase in property crime (citing auto thefts, robbery, burglary, etc.), in a recession like today’s, would be worse because the families are weaker and children more independent. But seemed a little puzzled as to why it wasn’t the case.
40 states now have ‘shall issue’ right to carry (concealed) laws, 8 have ‘may issue’ laws, and 2 deny a private citizen’s right to carry a firearm (Illinois and Wisconsin). FBI Uniform Crime Reports verify the states with ‘shall issue’ laws had demonstratively less crime that states that do not have shall issue laws, over the same time periods.
Add to this the 30 or so states that have passed various forms of castle doctrine laws, and you have a pretty simple logical basis for why crime has not increased in this depression.”
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Guarded Despite Hurricane
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News on 28/Aug/2011 11:17
“A lone Tomb Sentinel, 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), walks his tour in humble reverence during Hurricane Irene in Arlington National Cemetery, Va., Aug 27. Members of The Old Guard have guarded the Tomb every second, of every day regardless of weather or holidays since April 6, 1948.”
Soldiers with the 506th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, begin the first leg of return home
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Warriors on 27/Aug/2011 18:08
Soldiers with the 506th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the 101st Airborne Division, begin the first leg of their return home, boarding a plane at a forward base in Paktika province. (David Goldman/Associated Press)
Prosthetics of the future: The Eyeborg Documentary
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News on 27/Aug/2011 18:07
Al Qaeda’s No. 2 Killed in Pakistan, U.S. Official Says
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Threat Watch on 27/Aug/2011 17:57
By MARK MAZZETTI
WASHINGTON — “A drone operated by the Central Intelligence Agency killed al Qaeda’s second-ranking figure in the mountains of Pakistan earlier this month, American and Pakistani officials said on Saturday, further damaging a terror network that appears significantly weakened since the death of Osama bin Laden in May.
An American official said that a drone strike on Aug. 22 killed Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, a Libyan who in the last year had taken over as al Qaeda’s top operational planner. Mr. Rahman was in frequent contact with Bin Laden in the months before the terror leader was killed on May 2 by a team of Navy Seals, intelligence officials have said.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/28/world/asia/28qaeda.html?_r=1
US soldier from the Third Brigade on joint security patrol with Afghan National Army soldiers
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Warriors on 25/Aug/2011 18:04
A US soldier from the Third Brigade passes an Afghan family outside their mudhouse during a joint security patrol with Afghan National Army soldiers in Kandalay village on Aug. 4. (Romeo Gacad/AFP/Getty Images)