Showing posts with label War. Show all posts
Showing posts with label War. Show all posts

Monday, August 22, 2011

Libya's New Regime: Daniel Pipes Fears the Worst

Emphases mine:

Many are ready to party about the political demise of the hated, eccentric, and foul Mu'ammar al-Qaddafi as rebel troops move into Tripoli. I am not partying. Here's why not.

The NATO intervention in March 2011 was done without due diligence as to who it is in Benghazi that it was helping. To this day, their identity is a mystery. Chances are good that Islamist forces are hiding behind more benign elements, waiting for the right moment to pounce, as roughly happened in Iran in 1978-79, when Islamists did not make clear their strength nor their program until the shah was well disposed of. Should that be the case in Libya today, then the miserable Qaddafi will prove to be better than his successors for both the Libyan subjects of tyranny and the West.

I hope I am wrong and the rebels are modern and liberal. But I fear that a dead-end despotism will be replaced by the agents of a worldwide ideological movement. I fear that Western forces will have brought civilization's worst enemies to power.

There have been a series of credible reports that NATO -- in its quest to dislodge Gaddafi -- was actually assisting the rise of Al Qaeda in Libya. Nothing I've read thus far leads me to believe otherwise.

Of course, as Hillary Clinton once promised us during her magnificent efforts to bring peace to the Middle East, perhaps they're like "the moderate Taliban" -- and open to reason.


Hat tip: Dan from New York.


The New Obama-Osama Movie Posters Are Here!

Greenroom Commenter BKeyser claims that Biff Spackle got it wrong when he asserted that this was the new Obama-Osama movie poster:

He says these are the two in play:

It's fair to say that given the timing of the movie's release -- just before the election -- it qualifies as "Obama campaign propaganda".

Leni Riefenstahl would be proud.


Sunday, August 21, 2011

China's war of words escalates--and with its continuing military buildup, the long-term implications ain't good

Hey, I love Mike Shedlock's work at Global Economic Analysis, but his advocacy for a Ron Paul-George McGovern national security posture is naive, to put it kindly. Exhibit 9,305: The threat of China’s aircraft carrier. And Exhibit 9,306: China's rhetoric on its investments in U.S. debt grows ever more ominous.

The U.S. may be on its way to default on its debt despite the U.S. government's ability to print more money, a Chinese think tank researcher said Monday.

There is no guarantee for sovereign debt, which increases the risks the lenders face, said Wang Tianlong, a researcher at the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, a think tank supervised by the country's economic planner, adding that the issuer could be more careless in using the loans.

In the short term, the U.S. doesn't have much ability to reduce its deficit, Wang said in an opinion piece published in Securities Times. He added that the U.S. lacks the political system to guarantee that it will not default on its debt.

There is also no way to punish the issuer country if it falsifies its accounting and there is no way to restructure the issuer either, Wang said.

Wang's comments come after the U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said Sunday the U.S. "never will default" on its government debt and reassured Beijing that Chinese investments in the U.S. are safe.

But I'm sure China's massive military buildup is only motivated by the best of intentions.



Rumor: Gaddafi Dead and Quote o' the Day

There are a lot of conflicting reports regarding the fate of Libya's nut-case dictator Muammar Gaddafi (spelling wrong? I don't care).

He got whacked
He's fled to Algeria and his sons are being held by rebels
He's fleeing to Venezuela and the protective arms of Hugo Chavez
Gaddafi will never flee, stating: "We will fight to the last drop of blood."

But
Dave in Texas wins our Quote o' the Day award.

Can't touch this? Apparently they could.

Of course, Libya is said to own 144 tons of physical gold.

Which, at the current spot price, should yield nearly $9 billion for the rebels.

Which should fund... something or other.


Friday, August 19, 2011

Top 10 Military Robots That You Wouldn't Want to See Near Your House

A tradeshow in Washington called "Unmanned Systems" features the latest in military robotics. The Wall Street Journal features a slide-show of the latest robots and drones. My ten favorites:










Does it ever seem to you like we're getting closer and closer to SkyNet?

Check out the entire slide-show at the Wall Street Journal.



Saturday, August 06, 2011

Tragedy: Did Joe Biden's Loose Lips Sink the SEALs?

The Master Chief reminds us that the dumbest vice president in American history likely played a role in the tragedy that saw 31 special operators killed, 25 of whom served in the ultra top-secret SEAL Team Six.

...It is believed that many of these men were the ones that brought Usama Bin Laden to justice. This is a double tragedy. First, the loss of any American fighting personnel is tragic. Second, SEAL Team Six is the best of the best! Replacing them is difficult at best and probably impossible.

The Taliban has taken credit for this kill. I suspect that they were tracking SEAL Team Six ever since the OBL event. How did the Taliban know who did the OBL job[?] Vice President Biden told the press[!] He blabbed [about] a top secret op in the open to the press to look good! This moron is a danger to the security of America not to mention the lives of American fighting personnel.

SEAL Team Six has been in operation since the early 1980's. It was established by President Reagan. They have accomplished many missions and saved many lives, all under the cover of secrecy. Even their base of operations was classified. Their secret compound was double guarded and secure within the confines of a Naval Training Base. They wore civilian clothes, grew beards and long hair, did not carry military ID cards and did everything in secret. That lasted, until this administration. The Vice President's reckless abandonment of security [practice] has lead to the death of 31 military members including 25 members of this elite team. He should be tried for treason and murder in my book. His desire to "look good to the press" by showing them he knew what was going on, permitted the Taliban to track and kill these men. If this was an enlisted man, he would be in a Courts Martial this morning and hung this afternoon. But not Vice President Biden. No, he will continue to be a threat to the lives of our military and the security of our Nation.

I have known about Six since 1980, when I was the GMG detailer. I toured their facility in 1987 when I was the Force Master Chief of the Surface Forces, U.S. Atlantic Fleet. I am proud to have know some of these men, past and present, who have defended freedom, quietly, secretly, and very effectively for the last four decades. Now I fear they will cease to be viable because their cover has been blown by a politician of the lowest denominator. A politician who will sacrifice anyone, lie about anything, and plagiarize anyone, to look good to the press and to get re-elected. Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely. Remember this event, these deaths in November 2012!

Let's rewind to May of 2011, when London's Daily Telegraph exposed what most of our far left-wing media outlets failed to report.

Since President Barack Obama announced that “a small team of Americans” had killed Osama bin Laden, US government officials have carefully stuck to the line that they will not talk about which units were involved... Obama did not say it was the SEALs. In numerous television appearances, Obama’s counter-terrorism chief John Brennan didn’t and his deputy national security adviser Denis McDonough didn’t. Despite the numerous news reports that named the SEALs, none of the anonymous briefers from the CIA and Pentagon would confirm it.

...But here’s what the legendarily verbose and loose-lipped Vice President Joe Biden said at a dinner at Washington’s Ritz Carlton Hotel last night...

Let me briefly acknowledge tonight’s distinguished honorees. Admiral James Stavridis is a, is the real deal. He can tell you more about and understands the incredible, the phenomenal, the just almost unbelievable capacity of his Navy SEALs and what they did last Sunday...

...Folks, I’d be remiss also if I didn’t say an extra word about the incredible events, extraordinary events of this past Sunday. As Vice President of the United States, as an American, I was in absolute awe of the capacity and dedication of the entire team, both the intelligence community, the CIA, the SEALs...


Biden, as has been proven over and over again, is an outright idiot.

May God Bless our brave warriors and their families.

They are far too brave and far too good for our current breed of feckless politicians. As the Master Chief reminds us: 2012 is coming and we must vote in the most conservative citizen-politicians into office that we can find. We must support men and women who believe in and abide by the Constitution.

More to the point: we must politically obliterate the hapless, lying, power-hungry, political hacks who believe themselves to be some kind of permanent ruling class. In a general sense that translates to primarying RINOs and then defeating Democrats at every level of government. The Democrat Party has been hijacked by the 1960-retread Marxist left. It's bent on destroying this country and capitalism with it. The modern Democrat Party must be politically crushed.

I urge you to remember your anger in 2012.


Hat tip: Tim.

Friday, August 05, 2011

Hypocrisy Of The Left, Example 8,238,792,427 [The Bad]

The Bad:

Q: Hey leftie! Many Americans agree that building a mosque at Ground Zero is (a) legal and should not be restricted by government, but (b) is in horrific taste and insulting to the entire community and country at large. How do you justify your support to build a structure which has and will continue to cause so many people so much pain?

A: You’re a xenophobic, racist, tea-bagging anti-immigrant wingnut to even suggest that a monument of the religion which committed this terrorist act would offend anyone. If you’re offended, then you are a horrible person and the terrorists have won.

Q: Hey leftie! Did you just demand this product be removed from the shelves because it represents a viewpoint in which you disagree?

A: You’re a xenophobic, racist, tea-bagging anti-immigrant wingnut...

Not to mention a hostage-taker.


Holy F'in Crap: Fast & Furious was 'so out of control' that it was arming a massive Mexican drug cartel for all-out war

Has anyone at MSNBC interviewed Eric Holder about this yet?

The failed federal anti-gunrunning program known as Operation Fast and Furious got so out of control in November 2009, it appeared the U.S. government was single-handedly "arming for war" the Sinaloa Cartel, documents show, even as U.S. officials kept lying to fellow agents in Mexico about the volume of guns it helped send south of the border...

The precise number of casualties in Mexico isn't known, but ATF officials confirm the murder of Mario Gonzales Rodriguez, brother of the Chihuahua attorney general, with a Fast and Furious gun.

Erudite as usual, Ace provides the Cliff Notes version of what would be the lock-of-the-week impeachment material for any Republican.

Let's see if I have this straight:

The smartest administration in the history of the world conceived of this plan.

The plan was to just let thousands of weapons flow to murderous drug cartels.

And then take those cartels down.

But they didn't take the cartels down, because they didn't track the guns.

They instead were to follow the money, but they also didn't do that.

A US border agent was killed due to the illegal arms sent to a neighboring sovereign country in this massive covert operation.

In addition, so was the brother of a Mexican attorney general.

So were a number of other Mexican citizens murdered with these weapons -- we don't know the number yet.

In conducting this massive covert action, we lied to officials in this neighboring sovereign country, even though their people (and cops, and officials) were getting killed with our weapons.

As far as I know, we haven't taken any action beyond arresting a few straw buyers... who could have easily been arrested, with the weapons, when they attempted to smuggled them or sell them.

We have not taken down any cartels at all.

In fact, we've not done anything except murdered people by indirect, but perfectly foreseeable, US covert action.

And the only outlet that is following this is FoxNews, so you can tell Fox is biased.

Ace forgot only one element: the DOJ's reaction to their failed attempt at fomenting a Mexican civil war? Promotions all around!


Wednesday, August 03, 2011

Great news: all out civil war breaking out on our unprotected southern border between Mexican military and drug cartels

Stratfor Research reports that a gunbattle broke out yesterday in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. The combatants were the Mexican military and members of the powerful Los Zetas cartel.

Nuevo Laredo is right across the border from Laredo Texas.

You know what I would do if I was Eric Holder?

I'd implement a 3-step plan:

prosecute American citizens interested in protecting their states from drug- and human-smuggling crime cartels...

arm Mexican drug gangs with heavy weapons...

• and try to touch off a refugee crisis that would send thousands of 'undocumented Democrats' into southern states to help influence the 2012 election cycle

Do I have that about right?


Saturday, July 23, 2011

It's come to this: CAIR now tweeting links to LGF

I want you to travel back in time a few years ago to when Little Green Footballs ruled a large swath of the anti-Jihad conservative blogosphere. Charles Johnson, the site's proprietor, was one of the most forthright and talented voices helping expose the post-9/11 tautology of Islam's political agenda.

Now fast forward to 2011.

Clicking on the unindicted co-conspirator's shortened link leads, unexpectedly, to this:

Glad to see that Chaz is now marketing the Caliphate.

Of course, anyone interested in truly keeping tabs on extremism can count stats here.


Linked by: The Other McCain. Thanks!

Awesome: Former federal officials believe cartels may attempt to overthrow Mexican government next year... using U.S. weapons

Nothing instills confidence in truth, justice and the American way like Eric Holder, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama:

Former DEA and CIA Operatives: Los Zetas May Attempt to Overthrow Mexican Government in 2012 (Using U.S. Government Weapons)


By Carmen Álvarez (Translated by Mario Andrade from excelsior.com.mx)

Los Zetas use the border crossings of El Paso-Ciudad Juarez and Palomas-Columbus (both locations along the Texas-Chihuahua border) to supply and stockpile military type weapons, which would give them ability to disrupt the 2012 elections, according to the El Paso Times.

“Many of the weapons have been stored in safe houses. I think Los Zetas are storing them for the upcoming elections of 2012,” said Robert Plumlee, a former CIA pilot who has testified before Congress on drugs and weapons trafficking research.

The report is corroborated with an interview with Phil Jordan, former director of the DEA in El Paso, who stated that the stockpiles, which include anti-aircraft missiles, are transported from a Dallas-Fort Worth Airport. The consultant added that the criminals set up (phony) companies to buy weapons directly through a State Department program.

...The Border Patrol personnel and U.S. intelligence services have recently learned that Los Zetas have been purchasing properties on both sides of the border to store thousands of high-power weapons that were discovered to be part of five or six shipments that left the same airport where the DEA has its air operations center... ...[Los Zeta wants to] reinforce their troops for battling other cartels and possibly disrupt the 2012 elections in Mexico, El Paso Times reported yesterday.

“I believe Los Zetas are storing weapons for the election season (2012). They probably want to be included as part of the (new) government, “said Plumlee... [they are stockpiling] grenades, grenade launchers, antiaircraft missiles, body armor, radios, GPS devices, and night vision binoculars, among other items.

...the stockpiles of weapons are not only held at real estate properties that Los Zetas have purchased on both sides of the border, but in other locations throughout Mexico because it was found that a private company is taking advantage of the Direct Commercial Sales program under the U.S. State Department, which allows businesses to purchase high-power weapons which the U.S. exports worldwide... The global arms report, Small Arms Survey of 2011, from the Institute for International and Development Studies in Switzerland, said that Mexico was the number one importer in the world of RPG’s, and “under-barrel” grenade launchers, with 1,429 units being imported, followed in second place by Latvia with 250.

Speaking of government programs to route weapons to the Mexican drug cartels, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the latest from Sen. Chuck Grassley. He continues to doggedly pursue "Project Gunrunner" (or, as I like to call it, "KillGate").

Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, says the Obama administration may have launched a failed gun-tracking operation along the Mexican border because “they don’t like the Second Amendment” and want to “restrict guns.”

Grassley is leading the Senate’s investigation into Operation Fast and Furious, in which the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) knowingly allowed semi-automatic guns such as AK-47s to be straw-purchased in the U.S., then sent to Mexican drug trafficking organizations.

Operation Fast and Furious began in September 2009 but was halted after two of the weapons were found at the murder scene of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry in December 2010... The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will hold a second hearing on the matter next week, on Tuesday...

Here's another theory: what if Obama, Clinton and Holder really did want to foment a civil war in Mexico? Their rationale: such a war would spark a "humanitarian crisis" and cause a mass exodus of civilians out of Mexico and into the U.S. The majority of this influx, Obama could legitimately assume, would vote Democrat.

Because when it comes to cynical, diabolical plots to weaken America, this administration appears to take a backseat to no one.


Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Obama and Syria: 'Clueless' by design? [Dan from New York]

Dan from New York:

Wherein, leading foreign-policy analyst Max Boot echoes a number of points I made on Big Peace Monday about Obama’s mishandling of the Syrian uprising.

###

Commentary Contentions, 07.20.2011

U.S. Sitting on Sidelines About Syria


That the administration can’t make up its mind about whether to push for Assad’s removal is beyond appalling. It’s puzzling.

Max Boot

It appears I was premature last week in praising the administration for following Ambassador Robert Ford’s lead and finally turning decisively against the Bashar Assad regime in Syria. Now the Los Angeles Times reports the administration is backtracking. The newspaper notes Secretary of State Hillary Clinton “backed off on Saturday, saying the administration still hopes that Assad’s regime will stop the violence and work with protesters to carry out political reforms.” The article goes on to explain:

The change in tone reflects the continuing debate over whether Syria’s ruler is likely to survive the current turmoil, and how best to use the limited diplomatic tools available to pressure him.

For now, a State Department official said, it’s unclear whether the administration will ramp up the rhetoric and officially call for Assad’s departure.

“Whether we take it farther will depend on events on the ground,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of diplomatic sensitivities. We need to think through carefully what we say.”


The headline might as well be “Administration is Clueless.”

Its confusion is especially bizarre given that in May, President Obama gave a speech on the Arab Spring in which he said: “There must be no doubt that the United States of America welcomes change that advances self-determination and opportunity.”

There might be circumstances where it would be appropriate to risk charges of hypocrisy so as not to undermine a valued ally such as Bahrain. But c’mon, guys, this is Syria we’re talking about–Iran’s ally, Hezbollah’s sponsor. That the administration can’t make up its mind about whether to push for Assad’s removal is beyond appalling. It’s puzzling. This is about as big an opportunity as we have faced in the region in decades–and the administration is sitting on the sidelines, mulling its options.

Or perhaps this represents tacit support for Syria, Hezbollah, and -- by extension -- Iran.


Image hat tip: CBC News.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Allen West: Could Someone in the Obama Administration Please Explain Why In Hell We're Selling Tanks to the Muslim Brotherhood?

Of course, I'm paraphrasing. But when it comes to national security issues, there really is no better straight talker in Congress than Rep. Allen West (R-FL).

It has come to my attention that the Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress on July 1, 2011 of a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Egypt for 125 M1A1 Abrams tank kits for co-production and associated weapons, equipment, parts, training and logistical support. One of the greatest threats to Egyptian stability, as well as to regional stability, is the growing prospect of a new Egyptian Government under the leadership of the Muslim Brotherhood. If given control of the country, the Muslim Brotherhood would nominate its own candidates and turn Egypt into a radical Islamic state.

America must continue to stand with the Egyptian people and encourage them to build their own democracy with new political parties and freedoms. However, we must exercise caution with regards to military sales and support to the Egyptian Government until a government is formed absent of the radical elements of the Muslim Brotherhood that will maintain active peace with Israel.

As a Member of the United States House of Representatives, as well as a member of the Armed Services Committee, I strongly oppose any military sales of any kind to the Government of Egypt as long as the Muslim Brotherhood remains active in the political process. Doing so would seriously jeopardize the safety and security of the State of Israel. The last thing I want to see is Egyptian M1A1 tanks rolling through the Sinai towards Jerusalem.

Of course, that may not be the last thing the Obama administration wants to see.

The administration's plans to sell tanks to Egypt represent the product of either ignorance or malevolence. And, based upon its track record, I can't help but suspect the latter.


Sunday, July 17, 2011

Fast and Spurious: ATF facilitated sales of guns to cartel members, who they didn't know were actually FBI informants using taxpayer money

As Mark Steyn describes it: "United States taxpayers were picking up the tab for Mexican drug lords’ weaponry in order that the ATF could identify high-up gun-traffickers. But, as it turns out, these high-up gun-traffickers were already known to other agencies — FBI, DEA, and other big-spending acronyms in the great fetid ooze of federal alphabet soup in which this republic is drowning. And, indeed, some of those high-ups are said to have been paid informants for those various federal agencies. So, in case you’re wondering why Obama’s second annual Recovery Summer is a wee bit sluggish at your end, relax: Stimulus dollars went to fund one federal agency to buy guns for the paid informants of another federal agency to funnel to foreign criminals in order that the first federal agency might identify the paid informants of the second federal agency."

The Los Angeles Times reports today that at least six gun smugglers working for the Mexican drug cartels were also paid FBI informants:

The investigators have asked the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration for details about the alleged informants, as well as why agents at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which ran the Fast and Furious operation, were not told about them.

The development raises further doubts about the now-shuttered program, which was created in November 2009 in an effort to track guns across the border and unravel the cartels' gun smuggling networks. The gun tracing largely failed, however, and hundreds of weapons purchased in U.S. shops later were found at crime scenes in Mexico.

The scandal has angered Mexican officials and some members of Congress. Investigators say nearly 2,500 guns were allowed to flow illegally into Mexico under the ATF program, fueling the drug violence ravaging that country and leading to the shooting death of a U.S. border agent.

...The official said at least half a dozen cartel figures were being paid by one U.S. law enforcement agency while they were being targeted by another.

...two AK-47s purchased during the operation were found at the scene last December where U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian A. Terry was shot to death near Tucson, allegedly by a Sinaloa cartel member.

A second U.S. immigration agent, Jaime Zapata, was slain in a cartel ambush in February in Mexico, and investigators now are trying to determine whether Fast and Furious weapons were used to kill him as well.

The sheer idiocy of this plan resembles the plot of a Three Stooges movie.

We need a special prosecutor.


Tuesday, July 12, 2011

More proof that Holder lied and people died

The Justice Department's "Operation Fast and Furious" supplied more than 2,000 military-grade weapons -- many of them purchased with taxpayer dollars by government informants -- to the Mexican drug cartels. Among the weapons purchased for the cartels by the American people: Barrett .50-caliber sniper rifles, AK-47 assault rifles, and FN assault pistols. Put simply, Eric Holder, probably under the direction of President Obama, was building a case for more gun control laws by shipping military-grade weapons to the cartels.

In sworn testimony, Attorney General Eric Holder denied knowledge of Gunrunner on May 3, 2011.

Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee says he does not believe Attorney General Eric Holder gave accurate testimony under oath to Congress during the House Judiciary Committee on May 3.

Asked in May when he learned of Operation “Fast and Furious” and “Project Gunrunner,” Holder claimed he ‘probably’ learned of it ‘over the last few weeks.’ In the testy exchange that followed, Issa pointed out that two Americans were killed by weapons associated with the botched operation, and that in the end, no major criminals were brought to justice. Issa also implies that the Department of Justice was deliberately slow-rolling the request for documentation about the program.

This was a flat-out lie.

He must have "forgotten" that on February 16, 2011, Senator Charles Grassley personally wrote to Holder to demand documents related to the operation. That was not a few weeks -- it was eleven or more.

I appreciate the staff briefing that Department of Justice (DOJ) and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) officials provided on February 10, 2011. However, the briefers focused on general issues related to challenges in successfully prosecuting gun trafficking cases. They refused to answer specific questions about the facts and circumstances that led me to request the briefing.

Specifically, they refused to say whether the approximately 103 weapons seized according to the Jaime Avila indictment were the only seizures related to the nearly 770 weapons mentioned in the indictment. They refused to say whether the third assault rifle purchased by Avila in January 2010—the one not found at the scene of CBP Agent Brian Terry’s shooting—has been recovered elsewhere. When asked whether ATF had encouraged any gun dealer to proceed with sales to known or suspected traffickers such as Avila, the briefers said only that they did not have any “personal knowledge” of that.

That's not all: on January 31, 2011, Holder was copied on a letter to Acting ATF Director Melson by Senator Grassley.

Again, three months or more prior to Holder's statement, he had been notified by a Senator that this operation was under investigation.

Eric Holder lied to Congress.

We need a special prosecutor. Now.


Update: Breaking story: Grassley & Issa catch Eric Holder with his cover-up underwear down around his ankles

Monday, July 11, 2011

Tin Pot Syrian Dictator 1, Shlemiel-in-Chief 0 [Dan from New York]

Dan from New York:

Our correspondent in Jerusalem, Carl, has all the pitiful details on attacks today at the American and French embassies in Damascus by pro-Assad demonstrators.

How humiliating for our country was it? The French showed more fight than we did, that’s how humiliating. If you have the constitution for it, read Carl’s report with some excellent links right here: "Obama's response to attack on US embassy in Damascus: He's going to file a lawsuit ".

White House insiders say he's also going to put the Syrians on double-secret probation.


Saturday, July 09, 2011

Good news: all-out civil war explodes on our unprotected southern border

Dispatches from the invaluable Borderland Beat:

Massacre at Monterrey Bar Leaves 20 Dead
A bar attack leaves three people fighting for their lives in Mexico.

Authorities say more than 15 armed men rushed into Sabino Gordo killing 20 and injuring five.

The gunmen filled three vehicles a little after 10:00 p.m. on Friday. Officials say the bar, where the attack, happened is considered a meeting ground for the Zetas. State police believe this was an attack made by the Gulf Cartel.

A waitress and two customers were among the dead.

Gulf Cartel arsenal seized in Zacatecas
On Wednesday, July 6, a Mexican Army unit, armed with information from an anonymous tip, seized four vehicles and an arsenal with Gulf Cartel (CDG) identification marks in the municipality of Tepechitlan, Zacatecas ... [including]

• 15 assault weapons (AR-15 and AK-47)

• 4 fragmentation grenades

• 7,601 rounds of live ammunition

• 15 ballistic vests

• 274 magazines

• 16 sets of tactical gear

• 4 vehicles, 1 of them armored.

Fighting reported in Michoacan: Governor's house attacked
Thursday did not begin well in Michoacan. At approximately 11:00am a group of gunmen attacked the offices of Governor Leonel Godoy but were routed and captured by state ministerial police guarding the installation.

It was unknown if Governor Godoy was in his offices at during the attack.

By late Thursday afternoon armed confrontations between Federal forces and gunmen and the appearance of “narco” blockades were reported in at least ten municipalities of Michoacan. The fighting and blockades, which began at 5:00pm, were the result of the violent reaction of Caballeros Templarios to a Federal Police operations in the municipalities of Apatzingan, Aguillia and Paracuaro.

The heaviest fighting was reported in the Apatzingan valley and blockades thrown up to impede movement by the authorities were reported in the municipalities of Morelia, Apatzingan Parácuaro, Uruapan, Aguililla, Los Reyes, Pátzcuaro, Zinapécuaro, Quiroga and Maravatío.

Many of the blockades involved burning automobiles, buses and tractor-trailor rigs.

* * * * * * * * *

But, by all means: let's not secure the border with the failed narco-terror state to the south. Especially since Mexico now appears to be hosting Hezbollah terrorists in addition to bloodthirsty drug cartels.


Thursday, July 07, 2011

Don't Fire Until You See the Whites of Their Mushroom Cloud! [Dan from New York]

Dan from New York:

Hey Iran, we’re on to you now. Did you really think you could get one past our eagle-eyed “Western analysts”?

Analysis - Iran's nuclear steps deepen Western suspicions


Wed Jul 6, 2011
By Fredrik Dahl

VIENNA (Reuters) - Expanding uranium enrichment, a new atomic energy chief said to have military expertise, missile tests -- Western analysts see fresh signs that Iran may be seeking to develop the means to build nuclear warheads. Iran's determination to press ahead with a nuclear programme it says is for purely peaceful purposes suggests that tougher Western sanctions are so far failing to force the Islamic state to back down in the long-running dispute over its atomic aims.

...But even if Tehran decided to make such weapons it could still be years away from having nuclear-armed missiles, possibly giving diplomacy more opportunities to resolve a row which has the potential to spark a Middle East conflict.

...[However,] Britain last week said Iran had carried out covert tests of a missile that could carry a nuclear warhead, an allegation which Tehran swiftly denied.

During a military exercise last week, Iran test-fired 14 missiles on one day alone, including some it says are capable of hitting its arch foe Israel and U.S. bases in the Middle East.

...Tehran says its missiles cannot carry nuclear payloads and insists it is enriching uranium for electricity production and medical purposes. Making atomic bombs would be a "strategic mistake" and would also not be allowed under Islam, it adds.

But in a defiant move that further fuelled Western unease about its intentions, Iran announced last month it would shift its production of higher-grade uranium to an underground bunker and triple output capacity.

...A nuclear scientist, Fereydoun Abbasi-Davani was named head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation in February, after he was wounded in a 2010 bomb attack which Tehran blamed on Israel... The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), a U.S.-based think tank, said Abbasi-Davani's extensive scientific background was "more suited to researching nuclear weapons" than building nuclear power reactors.

Not to worry, folks. With our current administration's approach of treating warfare as law enforcement, all we have to do is prepare for a radioactive crime scene.


Why are Eric Holder and Barack Obama trying an Illegal Enemy Combatant in a Civilian Court? [Allen West]

By Rep. Allen West (R-FL):

...a Somali man accused of having ties to two terrorist groups — who was secretly interrogated for months aboard a U.S. Navy ship — will be prosecuted in civilian court in New York by the Justice Department, the Obama administration said... The indictment, unsealed in the Southern District of New York, charged Ahmed Abdulkadir Warsame with nine counts related to supporting Al Qaeda in Yemen and the Shabab in Somalia terror groups — but the White House didn’t reveal his capture until after he had already been brought onto American soil... [Source]

This suspected terrorist, Ahmed Abdulkadir Warsame, should be tried at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as an illegal enemy combatant, following the Geneva Convention's clear instruction on the manner in which individuals accused of such actions against the United States are to be prosecuted.

The fact that President Obama continues to ignore the Authorization for Use of Military Force(AUMF) law, and the will of the American people, when it comes to this issue is unacceptable.

This suspect is accused of supplying weapons, money and training to Al qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), a known enemy of the United States. We are fighting on a 21st Century Battlefield against a non-state, non-uniform belligerent enemy who has no regard for international borders or boundaries, and therefore does not deserve constitutional rights as would ordinary criminals. The laws are clear about this.

Further, it is unacceptable that the Obama administration notified Congress only after it unilaterally transferred this detainee to New York City despite multiple requests for consultation.

I visited Guantanamo Bay in March, and witnessed a state of the art courtroom, built for these very kinds of cases, that continues to sit empty and unused. I want to know why this administration believes a civilian court is better suited for prosecuting enemy hostile terrorist actions, instead of a military tribunal system. Bringing Warsame to the states, giving him representation and clogging up American courts is a waste of taxpayer resources and sends a confusing message to Americans, as well as our enemies.

To be fair, waging a war as if it were a criminal affair makes about as much sense as anything else Obama and Holder have done -- so I can't say I'm surprised by this particular debacle.