Nicholas Eberstadt on "Kim's Nuclear Winter"

If you haven't read much about the latest North Korean nuke flap, a good place to start is with Nicholas Eberstadt: here.

North Korea has borne exactly no costs for what is ostensibly an extraordinarily destabilizing nuclear transgression. Quite the contrary: As the alarming intelligence about the Libya-North Korean connection percolated through Seoul, the South Korean government responded with a new outpouring of concessions and blandishments for the North Korean regime. Over the past few weeks, in fact, Seoul has formally declared that North Korea is no longer the "main enemy" in South Korean defense policy, and has acted to discourage North Korean refugees from trying to go South.

No less significant is Seoul's newly revised position on nuclear aid for Pyongyang. Raising the ante and lowering the bar, Seoul now promises to give "large scale economic support" as soon as the North even "starts to give up its nuclear program." Interestingly enough, less than two weeks after the South unveiled this generous new plan, the North officially declared its status as a nuclear power.

We in the outside world can only speculate about the timing of North Korea's self-proclaimed entry into the nuclear-weapons club. As we reflect on the sorry record of events that has led us to this juncture, however, a most worrisome possibility is that the North Korean state has actually been learning from its interactions with the United States and the rest of the world.

To date, an ever more menacing North Korean nuclear program has in practice encountered only token resistance from the United States and others, despite the obvious and increasing threats that program poses to national interests in many countries. Each new round of North Korean nuclear provocations has generated clear-cut benefits for the North Korean state, rather than incontrovertible costs. It will be very unpleasant--and very expensive--to un-teach Pyongyang the lessons of the past two and a half years.

More on the War with Iran (and an aside on Saudi Arabia)

Roger L. Simon calls for Referendum in Iran - A Proposal for Bloggers:

I think the blogosphere should devote itself to this, make the call for a democratic referendum in Iran one of our top priorities. We have been accused of late (falsely, I believe) of being a destructive force, of tearing things down like a mob. Surely, the call for a referendum in Iran is not that. It is the promotion of democracy at its purest. Bloggers on all sides of our political spectrum should be able to get behind that. I'm in.

However much I might support the idea of a referendum, I'm afraid my thoughts remain below like those of a commentor at Mr. Simon's blog:

More seriously, I cannot imagine mullahs ever agreeing to such referendum – why should they? What is in it for them? Tyrants are not interested in hearing the voice of the people. In any case, since they control the ballot box they also control the outcome of the referendum, presence of Havel and Walesa notwithstanding. Also, there are ways to make sure that people will vote the way you want them to vote: international monitors will be gone in short time, but people who go to the voting booths have to continue with their lives: jobs, health, future of children may be at stake. I think that a lot of good people in the West underestimate the power of “persuasion” that tyrants hold over the civilian populations: unless driven to utter desperation people just want to live, so they can go a long way submitting to the will of the tyrants. No matter how much they may yearn for freedom in their hearts.

I'm afraid the freedom seeking people of Iran will not overthrow their tyrants with any more ease than any peoples have ever done. It's not a referendum that will be needed, but that other "r" word - revolution. In the meantime, War with Iran continues in Iraq, Afghanistan and ---Syria.

(an aside on Saudi Arabia - I wonder if those princes are smarter than we know when they let their young purist firebrands rush off to be killed by the Americans in places like Fallujah? Who will be left in Saudi Arabia to lead the assault on the princes themselves- if it comes to that?)

To Keep Our Honor Clean...

Neptunis Lex in Court Martial has an excellent post on the pending court martial of Marine Lieutenant Pantano in which he argues, correctly in my view, that it is important to let the system work in seeking the truth and that those of us on the outside looking in should be careful about a "rush to judgment" of either innnocence or guilt based on what are, even now, initial and partial (in every sense) reports.

In times where seemingly every election and court decision is challenged on some basis or another, we still need to keep the faith the system will be fair. Others are watching our example. This is no place to make an exception.

Hat tip: Mudville Gazette

Sunnis - Let's try a little of that democracy stuff, too.

Captain's Quarters has excerpts of The Guardian article on a change of minds occurring in the Iraqi Sunni community: (link):

"The British newspaper The Guardian reported earlier today that the Sunni hardliners who called for a boycott of the January elections have now admitted the move was a mistake. Rory Carroll confirms that Sunni leaders now want to support the new democratic processes and hope that the new government will reach out to them as a result..."

Shia and Sunni getting together? Amazing.

U.S. Withdraws Ambassador From Syria

Associated Press reports U.S. Withdraws Ambassador From Syria.

The United States pulled its ambassador from Syria on Tuesday, expressing "profound outrage" over the assassination of a Lebanese leader who had protested Syrian influence in his country. Washington stopped short of directly accusing Syria of carrying out the murder.

What's that ticking sound?

The start of a timer running on Assad.

Update: Diplomatic meaning revealed at News Sisyphus

We trust that the patience of President Bush is running to an end. No other act, except maybe for strikes on Iran, would signal our seriousness at changing the chess board in the Middle East than military strikes aimed at Syria's command and control infrastructure. The illusion of Syrian invulnerability must be broken if Syria is ever to have incentive to change its ways.

Syria wages war more-or-less openly on the U.S. in Iraq. Syria provides refuge for terrorists and terrorist organizations. Syria is a Ba'athist dictatorship that allows no dissent and no liberty. Syria is a brutal occupying power that has destroyed the sovereignty of Lebanon. Syria's unreasonable stance on Israel has ruined hopes for peace in the region for decades.

Syria has been bucking for full Axis of Evil status for some time now. What we may be witnessing are the first steps of its promotion to full membership.

Not Ready for Democracy?

Neophyte Pundit, in the post Iraqi Prime Minister: Forming Alliances challenges the skeptics about Iraq to face up to a little reality.

What empire builder goes in and calls for elections and then lets the country create a government?

Ask the Germans, Japanese, Philippines... and lots of others.

North Korea zone: Rally Around the Bomb

North Korea zone: Rally Around the Bomb sets out the complete DPRK statement in all its glory.

Government by goofball has no need to use internally consistent logic.

Enjoy the read.

Syria gets warning- keep weapons in Syria or else

DEBKAfile says that Syria has acquired numbers of Kornet AT-14 anti-tank missiles and has also been warned by the U.S. that none should appear in Iraq or Syria may pay a price.

Syria had better make sure that none of the Kornet AT-14 anti-tank missiles which it recently purchased in large quantities from East Europe turn up in Iraq. US intelligence has recorded their serial numbers to identify their source. DEBKAfile’s military sources add: Because he cannot afford to buy advanced fighter planes and tanks, Assad purchased massive quantities of the “third generation” Kornet AT-14 anti-tank weapons.

Just in case any are found in Iraq, General Casey, commander of US forces in Iraq has already received orders from the commander-in-chief in the White House to pursue military action inside Syria according to his best military judgment.

...[this] therefore incorporates a tangible threat. The American general has the authority to launch military action against Syria as he sees fit and without delay if Damascus continues to meddle in Iraq’s affairs.

Unlike the safe havens provided to the North Vietnamese in Laos and Cambodia for so many years during the Vietnam War, the U.S. and Iraq probably will (and with justification) pursue weapon suppliers to the "insurgents" in Iraq. Syria is very much in danger of putting itself into play. Assad is treading a pretty narrow path.

Is North Korea lying -again?

The Marmot's Hole raises an interesting point - why trust North Korea when it says it has nukes after knowing that it lies about so much else? Read it here.

Hmmm. Well, because we have to go with the worst case possibility. We have to assume they are telling the truth. They have left us no choice.

US military intelligence issues pessimistic report

Regardless of the topic of the story, you can almost always report US military intelligence issue pessimistic report. Why?

It has always seemed to me that intel folks are trained to be pessimists. The problems caused by painting a "rosy scenerio" in an intel report are far worse than those caused by "over warning." As a result, intel tends to be overly cautious -er- realistic. It's a factor that I suppose a commander has to add to the equation when assessing a situation based on intel reports.

Also, it occurs to me that a smart intel officer is a little like the person who writes horoscopes. Keep it general enough and some part of it may come true for someone.

What brought all this to mind was the recent release of the Richard Clarke memo to National Security Director Rice that was featured so prominently in the 9/11 hearings which can be downloaded and read in pdf formhere. What does it say? Even Clarke seems confused:

Two days after Rice's March 22 op-ed, Clarke told the 9/11 Commission, "there's a lot of debate about whether it's a plan or a strategy or a series of options -- but all of the things we recommended back in January were those things on the table in September. They were done. They were done after September 11th. They were all done. I didn't really understand why they couldn't have been done in February."

Seems like a great intel job when no matter which way things go you can either claim credit or shift the blame. Reminds me of another intel report in American history - the one issued right before Pearl Harbor

It was clear, of course, that once disaster struck Pearl Harbor, there would be demands for accountability. Washington seemed to artfully take this into account by sending an ambiguous "war warning" to Kimmel, and a similar one to Short, on November 27th. This has been used for years by Washington apologists to allege that the commanders should have been ready for the Japanese.

Indeed, the message began conspicuously: "This dispatch is to be considered a war warning." But it went on to state: "The number and equipment of Japanese troops and the organizations of naval task forces indicates an amphibious expedition against the Philippines, Thai or Kra Peninsula, or possibly Borneo." None of these areas were closer than 5,000 miles to Hawaii! No threat to Pearl Harbor was hinted at. It ended with the words: "Continental districts, Guam, Samoa take measures against sabotage." The message further stated that "measures should be carried out so as not repeat not to alarm civil population." Both commanders reported the actions taken to Washington. Short followed through with sabotage precautions, bunching his planes together (which hinders saboteurs but makes ideal targets for bombers), and Kimmel stepped up air surveillance and sub searches. If their response to the "war warning" was insufficient, Washington said nothing. The next day, a follow-up message from Marshall’s adjutant general to Short warned only: "Initiate forthwith all additional measures necessary to provide for protection of your establishments, property, and equipment against sabotage, protection of your personnel against subversive propaganda and protection of all activities against espionage."

Of course, with the benefit of 20-20 hindsight, we know that Admiral Kimmel could have done many things if he had been able to figure out what the "war warning" actually meant.

I suppose it is too much to ask, in light of the "cry wolf" problem, that a report read: "THESE PEOPLE WANT TO KILL US BY FLYING AIRPLANES INTO THE WORLD TRADE CENTER." But at least I can understand it.

Transformation and the Army

Intel Dump has a nice post on some radical changes in store for the U.S. Army as it adjusts to the current world instead of the world that used to be:

More than 100,000 Soldiers will move from "Cold War" jobs to positions such as military police and civil affairs as part of Army Transformation, Sgt. Maj. of the Army Kenneth Preston said.

* * *
"We have a lot of troops in `Cold War' jobs," Preston said. "I call these `high density low demand' fields. The Army is going to rebalance those people to 'high demand low density' fields like military police and civil affairs. Somewhere between 100,000 to 115,000 Soldiers will transform to new positions."

Seems pretty smart to me and will ease the burden on the reserves and guard, where many of those "high demand low density" fields were placed during the Cold War.

Good on the Army.

Rangel waxes stupid

The Washington Times says Congressman Rangel belittles 'success' of Iraq vote .

Here's a gem:

Mr. Rangel, who mentioned his Korean War service in yesterday's appearance, responded that Americans "don't want their children to die for other people's freedom."

Tell that to the ghosts of the Civil War vets- who fought to free slaves and to theWWII vets and the other Korean War vets and the Vietnam vets and the Desert Storm vets and the new vets from Afghanistan and Iraq. Meet the Presstranscript.

Rangel also waxed stupid on the social security crisis, accusing the President of mistating the "crisis."

REP. RANGEL:  What a question.  What president's plan?  The president has not presented us a plan.  He talks about cutting benefits.  He talks about taking away the guaranteed benefit and substitute it with the gamble on Wall Street. If the president would give us a plan, there's no question in my mind I could sit down with Charlie Grassley, some Republicans on the Ways and Means Committee, and say, "Mr. President, this is right and this is wrong."

But why should the Democrats, when there is no crisis, and I think the president is backing off of that, when the president is talking about cutting up the taxes by over a trillion dollars, not putting the budget figures for the war in there?  ...

(italics mine)

What was interesting was his reaction here:

MR. RUSSERT:  Charles Rangel, President Bill Clinton, a man that you supported very, very vigorously said this in 1998:  "The looming fiscal crisis in Social Security ... if nothing is done, by 2029 there will be a deficit in the Social Security trust fund which will require ... either a huge tax increase in the payroll tax, or just about a 25 percent cut in Social Security benefits." That's Bill Clinton.

REP. RANGEL:  And that's honesty.  You...

Well, I wouldn't count on him to recognize honesty if it hit him on the nose. He is in the running for an EagleSpeak Dodo award.

I can see the future

Powerline reports Steve Hayward'svision of Ward Churchill:

Steve makes three observations and closes with a prediction: "Whether this guy is fired or not, he is going to be a leading Left celebrity for the next few years. Watch for book contracts, appearances with Michael Moore, TV shows, T-shirts, etc. But all the while don’t ever forget how American represses dissent."

To which I add my "I told you so"

Heard excerpts of his speech on the radio. Full leftist rant. My prediction: definite movie/book deal pending. Watch for the announcement.

My vision was from 2/9/05. Hayward's from 2/13/05.

Wow, I can see the future. New predictions every day...keep tuned.

Tom Friedman goes green

In his NY Times column of 2/13/05, Thomas Friedman goes green in arguing that we are failing to control the mullahs of Iran by allowing our energy demands to provide more cash to them from the sale of oil.

While I greatly admire much of his work, he doesn't seem firmly grounded in economics - such that the expense of developing alternatives to oil are, in and themselves, quite high and that other nations are waiting in the wings to absorb any excess in oil supply caused by a decrease in the U.S. demand (and initially they will pay less). In fact, if we raise the cost of our energy, we can actually become less competitive with countries who don't make the same switch at the same time we do.

In short, nice fantasy, Mr. Friedman. But you won't win the reality cigar.

The War with Iran

Back in August 2004, Rush Limbaugh alleged We're Fighting Iran in Iraq.

Iraq happens to be the surrogate for us and the surrogate for Iran right now. Iraq is the surrogate for both sides, if you look at it this way. Our side reasons -- that we can disarm the (story) weapons of mass destruction in Iran, that we can stop the export of terrorism from Iran, if we can do this, we can end the sanctuary for Al-Qaeda in Iran by succeeding in Iraq. Or at least by getting started with our success in Iraq.

Now, Iran on the other hand knows that it will have a freer hand with weapons, with terrorism, with Al-Qaeda if their surrogates can stop us in Iraq. The Iranian field general, if you will the current field general, this so-called cleric, Muqtada al-Sadr.

Nor was Rush unique in stating this position Hubert London writing for Benadora Associates in June 2004 said much the same:

Iraq is the first step in forestalling Iran. We must realize that and realize as well that this is a regional war in a high stakes effort. To fight half-heartedly won't send the appropriate message. There is much more at stake here than some barren desert land.

The future of mankind is contained in this cradle of civilization. History has anointed the United States as global protector. We cannot shun this responsibility. In fact, as I see it, there isn't any alternative other than defeating Iranian extremists and radical Islamists so that we can win the war on terror.

Others have noticed, too

Newsweek, apparently no grasping that we are already at war with Iran, in January 2005 posed the question Is Iran next?

On The Counterterrorism Blog Larry C. Johnson proclaims"Iran's Great Victory" in that

After twenty years of trying to contain the Government of Iran, the biggest sponsor of terrorism against the United States, we are on the threshhold of creating the second Shia state in the Middle East and opening the door for Iran to consolidate its position as the preeminent military power in the region.

This analysis is based on a Shia victory in the recent elections, which puts the U.S. in the position of fighting against Sunni Muslims while helping to establish a new Shia state:

If, in the coming days, the United States led coalition presses the battle against the Sunni insurgents we will find ourselves acting on behalf of the interests of the Government of Iran at the same time we are threatening Iran for pursuing nuclear technologies that could be developed into weapons. This may be a new definition of Schizophrenia.

Again, the assumption is that an Arab Iraqi Shiite majority state will be an extension of the Persian Iranian Shiite state.

I have found no one else quite as negative as Mr. Johnson (though he may well be correct). Instead, the underlying premise has been that a democratic Muslim state (Shia or otherwise) on the border with Iran may cause the population of Iran to topple the "mad mullahs" without the need of a U.S. led invasion. On the other hand, as I have noted before , having access to Iran from Iraq simplifies matters should a coalition decide to engage Iran. Iran is difficult because it is relatively large, and most of it vital areas are hard to get to because of terrain and distance problems.

But Iran is in some ways a more complicated target than Iraq. It is four times as big and has three times as many people. Most experts consider a full-scale ground invasion impossible. More likely, most regional and proliferation experts believe, would be a bombing campaign to destroy the nuclear materials.

According to Kenneth Pollack, a former National Security Council official in the Clinton administration who supported the attack on Iraq, an air campaign against Iran would have to last 30 days and would be in serious danger of not eliminating Iran's nuclear capability because of its many sites. Such a campaign, he and other experts say, would be likely to unite the Iranian populace, now largely alienated from its government, behind its radical religious leaders and might prove counterproductive.

Other experts, such as John Pike, director of the Web site GlobalSecurity.org, say the administration has no choice but to bomb Iran before the end of next year. If they don't, he says, Israel will, and that would further inflame the Middle East conflict.

"Israel finds the idea of atomic ayatollahs unacceptable," said Pike, an expert on defense and intelligence policy. The Israelis "know terrible things can happen. It [an Iranian attack] may be unthinkable to a bunch of tree huggers here in Washington, but Israel views it very differently."

Newsday: Disarming Option in Iran

Meanwhile, Iran has entered into energy deals with China

China's oil giant Sinopec Group has signed a $70 billion oil and natural gas agreement with Iran.

The deal is China's biggest energy agreement with one of the major Opec producers, the Chinese news agency Xinhuanet reported.

Under a memorandum of understanding signed on Thursday, Sinopec Group will buy 250 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas over 30 years from Iran and develop the giant Yadavaran field, said the news agency.

Iran is also committed to export 150,000 barrels per day of crude oil to China for 25 years at market prices after commissioning of the field.

Iran's oil minister, Bijan Zanganeh, who is on a two-day visit to Beijing to pursue closer ties, said Iran is China's biggest oil supplier and wants to be its long-term business partner.

As noted elsewhere, China is already taking steps to protect this oil flow by building up strategic sea lanes. In fact, one can make the argument that China's interest in the Spratleys and the southernmost Japanese islands, in addition to being about any natural resources there present, also completes a sea line of communication. See the following map for areas where China is actively interested:

Why do I raise China? Iran needs a powerful "ally" to help keep the West from taking action. What better alliance than with the massive land power in Asia? Especially one that needs massive amounts of oil and gas to keep it growing economy going?
Just one of those potentially nasty complicating factors.

What next? The U.S. has been relying on the Europeans to convince Iran that it has no need for nuclear weapons, but it appears the Mullahs believe that they need such weapons, either as a deterrant or as an offensive threat with which to "blackmail" the world into submission to its will in the Middle East. As John Pike notes, Israel is another complicating factor.

For now, the best U.S. hope is that the Iranian people will, after observing the freedom of the Iraqis and the Afghans, will throw off the yoke of the Mullahs and develop their own free and democratic state. As Tom Friedman wrote in the Feb 10, 2005 NY Times:

Democrats do not favor using military force against Iran's nuclear program or to compel regime change there. That is probably wise. But they don't really have a diplomatic option. I've got one: Iraq. Iraq is our Iran policy.

If we can help produce a representative government in Iraq - based on free and fair elections and with a Shiite leadership that accepts minority rights and limits on clerical involvement in politics - it will exert great pressure on the ayatollah-dictators running Iran. In Iran's sham "Islamic democracy," only the mullahs decide who can run. Over time, Iranian Shiites will demand to know why they can't have the same freedoms as their Iraqi cousins right next door. That will drive change in Iran. Just be patient.

The war on terrorism is a war of ideas. The greatest restraint on human behavior is not a police officer or a fence - it's a community and a culture. Palestinian suicide bombing has stopped not because of the Israeli fence or because Palestinians are no longer "desperate." It has stopped because the Palestinians had an election, and a majority voted to get behind a diplomatic approach. They told the violent minority that suicide bombing - for now - is shameful.

What Arabs and Muslims say about their terrorists is the only thing that will protect us in the long run. It takes a village, and the Iraqi election was the Iraqi village telling the violent minority that what it is doing is shameful. The fascist minority in Iraq is virulent, and some jihadists will stop at nothing. But the way you begin to drain the swamps of terrorism is when you create a democratic context for those with good ideas to denounce those with bad ones.

Egypt and Syrian-occupied Lebanon both have elections this year. Watch how the progressives and those demanding representative government are empowered in their struggle against the one-man rulers in Egypt and Syria - if the Iraqi experiment succeeds.

We have paid a huge price in Iraq. I want to get out as soon as we can. But trying to finish the job there, as long as we have real partners, is really important - and any party that says otherwise will become unimportant.

Beyond that, the options become unpleasant to contemplate.

One thing must be clear to the Iranians. Any use of a nuclear weapon will bring a swift and terrible answer.

We must win in Iraq to win the war with Iran.

Update: Iraqi electionresults (Powerline) .

Turnout was a terrific 60%. The Shiite-backed slate (which also includes Sunnis and others) led with 48% of the vote; the Kurdish list got 26%, and interim Prime Minister Allawi's party received 14%. Seats in the new Assembly will be more or less proportional to the vote; somewhat remarkably, I think, only twelve coalitions will be represented in the Assembly.

Update2: The Debka File counters The Counterterrorism Blog pessimism with this:

A public debate is bedeviling the Bush administration over whether the current occupant of the White House helped establish another fundamentalist Shiite regime in the Middle East, this time by fostering Iraq’s first free elections.

The United States is still haunted by the memory of how the newly-established Islamic Republic of Iran under its revolutionary leader Ayatollah Khomeini interfered in the 1980 US presidential election - and effectively cost Jimmy Carter a second term - by delaying the release of US hostages seized in the American embassy in Tehran until Ronald Reagan’s inauguration.

America has stumbled before in rushing to promote regime change in a troubled region. The Taliban was fostered to boot the Red Army out of Afghanistan. Later, these fundamentalists became a key factor in al Qaeda’s September 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington and were subsequently booted out themselves in a second regime change in Kabul.

Washington will find reassurance in the election results released Sunday. The vote reduced the prospects of Iraq becoming an Iran-style theocracy, for the time being. Sistani will certainly fight for a constitution that places the Sharia above secular legislation – or at the very least one that confirms Iraq’s Islamic identity - but he is not as fanatical as his peers in Tehran about the creation of an Islamic republic.

New Marine One?

Air Force Technology - EH101 - Medium-Lift Military Transport Helicopter. Info: here and here.

A new fleet of presidential helicopters will be built by Lockheed Martin and its international partners, the Navy announced yesterday, ending a fierce competition that had both political and international implications.

Saying the president "needs a more survivable helicopter while the nation engages in the global war on terrorism," John Young, assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition, said Lockheed met all of the security and technology requirements at the best price.

The $6.1 billion program to buy 23 high-tech, high-security aircraft is emblematic of the outsourcing of U.S. jobs and the question of how open the U.S. military market is to foreign contractors.

Some members of Congress criticized the decision to put the U.S. president in an aircraft that will be made partially overseas.

"It is difficult to understand why we would use U.S. tax dollars to fund the further development of foreign helicopter technology," said House Armed Services Chairman Duncan Hunter, R-Calif.

But New York lawmakers hailed the decision, which will bring a new manufacturing plant to Owego, N.Y., and as many as 750 new jobs. And Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. said it was a testament to Lockheed’s business leadership.

"The US101 will provide the president of the United States with a state-of-the-art helicopter ... an Oval Office in the sky," said Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., who as first lady spent time in the current Marine One.

Show Me News



Update: comparison photos to current VH-3 Marine ONE




The new helo has one more engine and replaces an aircraft that first flew in 1959 and the new one is already a proven performer in the field.

Virtual Jihad?

Newsweek says beware of the potential Virtual Jihad Postings on Islamic extremist websites spread the know-how:

These postings are reminiscent of an earlier full-scale cyberwar between Israeli and Palestinian hackers—a conflict that Israeli officials believe caused noticeable damage to the country's economy four years ago. They are also a powerful reminder of the continuing threat of cyberterrorism, an issue that has caused growing concerns among national-security experts in recent years. Indeed, many experts say, the potential vulnerability of the United States to a sophisticated cyberattack is far greater than is generally understood by the public.  Among the vital public services in the United States that rely on digital controls, making them potential targets for a cyberattack, are public utilities (including electrical power grids), transportation systems and broadcasting networks, experts say.

Hmmm.

Update: Gwhizkids at alt-ctrl-del links and raises issues of denial of service and the ease of cyberattacks. Absolutely right and supported by recent denial of service attacks on anti-spyware sites here
and here.

A final word on LTGen Mattis

The American Spectator

Foreign Affairs - Home

The contents of Foreign Affairs magazine contains this gem: Did North Korea Cheat?
Two years ago, Washington accused Pyongyang of running a secret nuclear weapons program. But how much evidence was there to back up the charge? A review of the facts shows that the Bush administration misrepresented and distorted the data — while ignoring the one real threat North Korea actually poses. The author Selig S. Harrison is identified as follows:

Selig S. Harrison is Director of the Asia Program and Chairman of the Task Force on U.S. Korea Policy at the Center for International Policy. He is also a Senior Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and the author of Korean Endgame.

I wonder if Mr. Harrison is rethinking his analysis in light of North Korea's admission of possessing nuclear weapons? His comment:

The Bush administration, however, has made a much more serious charge: that North Korea has been secretly making nuclear weapons that might be deployed by "mid-decade" and thus cannot be trusted to honor a new denuclearization agreement. If it turns out that Pyongyang has developed no operational enrichment facilities at all--or only LEU, not HEU, facilities--Washington's claim will be discredited.

seems to have been overtaken by events - what the administration charged is now admitted and the discrediting is of Mr. Harrison's analysis. Unless, of course, North Korea, like bluffing like Saddam is now alleged to have been doing, but in light of Saddam's fate, it seems unlikely that the DPRK would be foolish enough to follow suit.

Yes, I know, I have the advantage of hindsight.

Jay Nordlinger's Impromptus

Jay Nordlinger has a nice compendium of topics ranging from the stunning rise of the star of the new Secretary of State to the continued "Chimp in Chief" slurs by the left on President Bush (can the left have a double standard, or are they, like some racial groups, incapable of prejudice?) to an interesting look at Middle Eastern studies as developed in our universities. Recommended reading: Jay Nordlinger's Impromptus on National Review Online

Otis Sistrunk- Still on the Defense

Always interesting to learn what happens to fomrer NFL players like Otis Sistrunk. For those too young to remember, Mr. Sistrunk was once an outstanding defensive player for the Oakland Raiders in their glory days. Since he never attended college, one introduction of him identified him as being from "the University of Mars."

He seems to have found a good niche for himself.

Australian terror suspect allegedly had multiple meetings with Bin Laden

Australian terror suspect allegedly had multiple meetings with Bin Laden.

Prosecutors told the court that Thomas, a 31-year-old convert to Islam, met bin Laden on more than one occasion while training at an Al-Qaeda camp in Pakistan.

They alleged that Thomas continued to associate with people linked to Al-Qaeda after the group carried out the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

He was allegedly approached by one Al-Qaeda member on behalf of bin Laden to return home to Australia and act as a "sleeper" for the organisation, the court heard.

On the tear-jerking side:

His mother, Patsy Thomas, said her son's imprisonment was emotionally draining for the whole family.

"Not to be able to touch him and cuddle your child and to not be able to touch and cuddle his children is heartbreaking -- we feel it," she told ABC radio earlier Thursday.

"One hour a month Jack is allowed to have contact with his two little girls," she said.

"The rest of the time he only sees them on the other side of the glass with us (for) one hour a week."

It's so sad. I guess all the time he spent in terrorist training camp was not as emotionally taxing on the family...and the allegation that he was an Al-Qaeda "sleeper" bothers them not...

Cuban Centenarians Reveal Longevity Secret

AP reports
Cuban Centenarians Reveal Longevity Secret


Oddly, none of them mentions not speaking out against President for Life, Fidel Castro, as part of living a long time in Cuba.

N. Korean Bluff Is Typical, Experts Say

N. Korean Bluff Is Typical, Experts Say.

Bluffs and bluster, then capitulation and compromise. North Korea has decades of experience dancing a diplomatic tango with its allies and enemies to get what it wants — and leaving the rest of the world guessing as to the real intent of the isolated communist regime.

North Korea played one of its biggest cards yet Thursday when it boldly stated it had nuclear weapons to deter a U.S. invasion, and was staying away from international talks aimed at convincing it to give up its atomic bombs.

Still, experts said the move should be read as a negotiating tactic typical of the North's style and its capricious leader, Kim Jong Il.

"Until the ultimate point they maintain their stubborn posture, but in the end they know when to bend their position in order not to break up the entire process," said Park Joun-young, a political science professor at Ewha Women's University in Seoul.

"The North's move appears to be aimed at improving its negotiating power," Vice Foreign Minister Lee Tae-shik said in a briefing to ruling Uri party officials, according to a party statement.

Well, I'm just an amateur, but I thought I recognized a pattern. Someone tell Jimmy Carter.

Next on Sleaze: Lawyers who forget their roles

Attila at the Pillagge Idiot sums up the conviction of uber leftwing nut job attorney Lynne Stewart as "Another lawyer joke".

A lawyer's job is to serve justice and, in the case of criminal defense, keep the presumption of innocence alive and make the state prove its case. Over identifying with your client and aiding and abetting criminal acts denies your client adequate representation and, as Ms. Stewart may know now, just makes you another criminal.

Here's hint- if Ramsey Clark is involved, run the other way.

Where do all these American-hating lawyers come from?

McAwful's Awful Send Off

National Review's Byron York's reportage on the ghastly farewell to the money-raising but campaign losing and irksome Terry McAuliffe by the Dems.

Reminds me of a funeral in a small town in Wyoming that had a tradition that no burial ceremony could end unless someone said something good about the deceased. When the meanest man in town died, everyone showed up for the funeral, but no one could think of anything nice to say. As the day wore on and the ranchers needed to get back to their duties, the silence was finally broken by an old cowboy who said, "Sometimes he wasn't as bad as he was the rest of the time." And they all agreed that was enough to end the service.

That's about all the Dems had to say here, too. Good riddance.

Navy UDT-EOD Hero

The American Thinker has a review of America's First Frogman a biography of Rear Admiral Draper Kauffman who established much of the naval combat demolition tradition.

Transatlantic Intelligencer Offers More Evidence of UN “Success” in Kosovo

Transatlantic Intelligencer: More Evidence of UN “Success” in Kosovo

This is line with my assessment.

Now, with 50% unemployment, I am more curious than ever about how General Wes Clark could write

...[I}t is important to remember that Kosovo has already held two democratic elections and developed the foundations of a modern, functioning economy."

as he did in the February 1, 2005 Wall Street Journal.

INDC Journal: Eason Jordan Resigns

INDC Journal: Eason Jordan Resigns

Well. Well. Well.

Mudville Gazette reports on a Big Lie: wonders about media fact-checking

Greyhawk at Mudville Gazette has a post about a woman whose tale about a soldier allegedly killed in Iraq turned out to be a huge lie. Read it and then ponder Greyhawk's questions about how this story seems to have gotten throught the media unchecked for facts.

Then consider the continued stories of fake "SEALS" and homeless "Iraq" war veterans and Vietnam war "traumas" - many of them fake and reported as fact. You might even recall this tale:

Do you have any pets that have made an impact on you personally?
I have always had pets in my life and there are a few that I remember very fondly.
When I was serving on a swiftboat in Vietnam, my crewmates and I had a dog we called
VC. We all took care of him, and he stayed with us and loved riding on the swiftboat
deck. I think he provided all of us with a link to home and a few moments of peace and
tranquility during a dangerous time. One day as our swiftboat was heading up a river, a
mine exploded hard under our boat. After picking ourselves up, we discovered VC was MIA. Several minutes of frantic search followed after which we thought we'd lost him. We were relieved when another boat called asking if we were missing a dog. It turns out VC was catapulted from the deck of our boat and landed confused, but unhurt, on the deck of another boat in our patrol.

cite

Why doesn't the MSM fact check better?

Update: Oh, yes. It was John Kerry telling the tale of the "flying dog."

Navy-Army Co-Operation

Navy helps out the Army - to protect the troops.

Navy caption: 50204-A-0000C-001 Camp Buehring, Kuwait (Feb. 4, 2005) - Hull Technician 3rd Class Jessica Curtis, welds side-panel armor for a U.S. Army 5-ton truck at Camp Buehring, Kuwait. Curtis is assigned to the submarine tender USS Emory S. Land (AS 39). She and fourteen shipmates aboard Emory S. Land volunteered to help with the up-armor mission at Camp Buehring for approximately 45 days. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Curt Cashour (RELEASED

USNS Mercy Operations

The Navy hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH-19) is in the Indian Ocean, offering services to tsunami victims. Here's a couple of examples:

Navy caption: 050211-N-6665R-037 Indian Ocean (Feb 11, 2005) - U.S. Navy Hospital Corpsmen and members of the non-governmental organization "Project Hope", take-in a patient following a medical evacuation to the Military Sealift Command (MSC) hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) for treatment. Mercy is serving as an enabling platform to assist humanitarian operations ashore in ways that host nations and international relief organization find useful. Mercy is currently off the waters of Indonesia in support of Operation Unified Assistance, the humanitarian relief effort to aid the victims of the tsunami that struck Southeast Asia. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Jeffery Russell (RELEASED)

Navy caption:050211-N-6665R-019 Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia (Feb. 11, 2005) - Cmdr. Karen McDonald, assigned to the Military Sealift Command (MSC) hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19), comforts a patient during a medical evacuation to the ship for treatment. Mercy is serving as an enabling platform to assist humanitarian operations ashore in ways that host nations and international relief organization find useful. Mercy is currently off the waters of Indonesia in support of Operation Unified Assistance, the humanitarian relief effort to aid the victims of the tsunami that struck Southeast Asia. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Jeffery Russell (RELEASED)

More Navy photos here

Replenishment at Sea

Golly gee, Eagle1, when ships go out to sea and stay out for weeks at a time, how do they get food, and fuel and ammunition and all that good stuff needed to sustain them?

Well, they can pull into port, but much of the time the supplies are brought to them and delivered by "replenishment at sea" - sometimes the supply ship and the receiving ship get beside each other and connect hoses and wires and pass pallets of material and gallons of fuel (including aircraft fuel) over 120 or so feet of ocean between them as them steam parallel at 12 knots or so (underway replenishment or "unrep"). Sometimes helicopters are used to tranfer things (vertical replenishment or "Vertrep"). When the transfer is complete, the receiving ship can continue its mission and the supply ship can head back for more supplies.

I once had a skipper who compared the big ships involved to the "dance of the baby elephants." In their book Keepers of the Sea Fred Maroon and Edward Beach wrote:

...[I]n no fleet maneuver is the steering ability of the helmsman, indeed, the exercise of pure seamanship by all hands so demanding. No evolution is so fraught with potential danger as the high-speed maneuvering of huge ships in close quarters, where the knowledge of one's ship, of the action of the wind and the sea, and of the laws of physics is crucial. At replenishment stations, some individuals seem to have an intuitive awareness of what is happening around them. Such men never seem to lose sight of the ponderously certain outcome of the events they have set in motion. They have eyes in the backs of their heads, a feel for the sea in the tips of their fingers, and the born confidence of a professional juggler or racing car driver. It shows in the way they handle their heavy gear and in the way they drive their ships.."

There are not many higher honors (in my opinion) in the surface Navy than being selected as the underway replenishment officer of the deck, conning officer or as a member of the bridge team. It's a recognition of professional skill and that "feel" that a Commanding Officer bestows on a few, select individuals. (I served as unrep OOD on two different ships for 4 different captains, I note proudly).

Unrep

Vertrep

Approach

Oiler

All photos are from the U.S. Navy photo galleries here.

Ronald Reagan Tsunami Help

According to Argghhh!!! here, the USS Ronald Reagan is in Hawaii "in support of Operation Unified Assistance, the humanitarian operation effort in the wake of the Tsunami that struck South East Asia." It will not deploy to SE Asia, as I first thought, but

The aircraft carrier and its crew of 3,000 Sailors departed San Diego Jan. 11 to conduct local operations off the coast of California and to deliver two C-2A Greyhound aircraft from Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 30 (VRC-30).

The two aircraft are being delivered to Hawai’i and are expected to augment Combined Support Force 536 (CSF-536) airlift assets to assist with tsunami relief efforts.

KHNL

U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 1st Class James Thierry

Denial of service attack on anti-spyware site

There's war going on out there and it's not just in Iraq as TechWeb indicates here

The Web site of anti-spyware researcher Ben Edelman was knocked offline by a denial-of-service (DoS) attack earlier this week, a move Edelman attributed to spyware backers.
Edelman, a Ph.D. candidate and law student at Harvard, runs a Web site that posts news of spyware as well as his own research into the malware. The site was knocked out Monday and Tuesday, as well as several hours last week, by a DoS attack that his hosting company said was the biggest they'd ever seen.

As noted in an earlier posting, Microsoft's new anti-spyware program is also under attack.

Is this just commercial interests fighting back or something else?

One More Reason to be a happy Mac owner

Microsoft Probes Spyware System Attack

Microsoft Corp. is investigating a malicious program that attempts to turn off the company's newly released anti-spyware software for Windows computers.

Stephen Toulouse, a Microsoft security program manager, said the program, known as "Bankash-A Trojan," could attempt to disable or delete the spyware removal tool and suppress warning messages. It also may try to steal online banking passwords or other personal information by tracking a user's keystrokes.

To be attacked, Toulouse said a user would have to be fooled into opening an e-mail attachment that would then start the malicious program. He said the company had not seen any evidence so far that the program is widespread.

Why do we have DWI laws if they can't keep this guy off the road?

34 arrests for driving while intoxicated? Why is this guy not in jail or in rehab? Reported in "Oddly Enough bt the AP

It's outrageous that Mr. Zeller is allowed to continue to flout the criminal justice system," Police Chief Craig Tieszen said.
"Right now it's an interesting news story, but we will all be outraged when he kills somebody on (DUI) number 35."

Some entries on Zeller's criminal record might be duplicates, said Kara Wood, deputy state's attorney in Pennington County. By Wood's count, Zeller has been arrested 16 times and convicted nine times since 1980.

But she added, "I just don't have an accurate number."

Zeller's latest arrest was his second in five months, she said.

A police report said a breath test on Zeller during Tuesday's arrest indicated a blood alcohol content of 0.286 percent. The South Dakota limit is 0.08 percent.

Outrageous.

Update: Changed number of dwis to 34. 35 is next.

More proof that the tipping point has been reached

AFP reports Iraq town remains tense after huge battle with insurgents

US and Iraqi troops kept watch over the town of Salman Pak southeast of Baghdad after one of the biggest battles with insurgents that left dozens dead and scores wounded.

The battles on Thursday saw rebels firing rockets, mortars and machine guns in a full-scale assault on a police station in the town that lies in a region dubbed the triangle of death because of the number of insurgent attacks.

US helicopters were sent to the scene and opened fired to dislodge the rebels. The town was sealed off on Friday by Iraqi and US troops but police said it was calm.

Raids by government security forces appear to have triggered the battle.
"According to our latest toll there were 10 police killed and 75 wounded," a Salman Pak police officer told AFP. He added that 46 police vehicles were destroyed and that the fighting lasted several hours.

National Security Advisor Qassem Daoud said that 20 insurgents had been killed and 21 arrested.

"We have never seen such fighting," said the police officer in Salman Pak.

"Now the interior ministry quick reaction forces and American soldiers are in control."

Proactive and quick reaction. Cool.

More evidence of tipping at GeoPolitical Review

In one of the worst combat zones in Baghdad, the fledgling Iraqi security forces have begun replacing American troops. If this move is successful, it will likely serve as a model for the rest of the country...

Thugs in Iraq: Gunmen Kill 11 People at Baghdad Bakery

As the newly born democracy in Iraq toddles forward, the "insurgents" are reduced to showing only that they are thugs capable of attacking innocent, unarmed citizens as described here.

Killing chunks of the population shows the true thuggish nature of the gunmen.

Nuke Blackmail: North Korea demands bi-lateral talks with US

The DPRK drops the other shoe in its latest blackmail attempt
demands bilateral talks.

Whackos.

Update: North Korea Zone's Rebecca MacKinnon provides thoughts on "What's Going On?"

Pyongyang must have realized that it was going to face a less friendly and less conciliatory bunch of diplomats in the next round of 6 party talks unless it did something drastic. So now it has done something. The game continues.

She cites to the Economist:

But the idea that America should set aside its uranium concerns is given a bipartisan rebuttal in the current issue of Foreign Affairs by Robert Gallucci, who negotiated the 1994 plutonium deal with North Korea under the Clinton administration, and Mitchell Reiss, the just departed head of policy planning in the Bush administration’s State Department. Turning a blind eye to evidence of North Korea’s enrichment work would, they argue, leave Mr Kim with a covert supply of fissile material, whether for bomb making or for export, including to terrorist groups.

So far, despite its tough line, says Gary Samore, of the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies, America has in effect acquiesced in North Korea’s becoming a covert nuclear power. South Korea recently admitted for the first time that it suspects the North of possessing nuclear weapons too.

But that is only part of the story. Its exports of missiles and imports of illicit nuclear goods are being disrupted on land, at sea and in the air under the American-led proliferation security initiative, which Russia has formally joined and which even China has said a few kind words about. Its collaborators, including Iran and Syria, are coming under increasing scrutiny. Its narcotics and counterfeiting activities are being squeezed too. Meanwhile, there have been reports of political intrigues and even some limited anti-regime protests. Mr Kim may soon pick one of his sons as the next dynast-designate, in part to quell rumours that he is losing his grip.

Lashing out under pressure is a Kim trademark. So is demanding hefty bribes, from China and others, for better behaviour. Mr Kim may yet change his mind again about the nuclear talks. But expect him to take his time about it.

2004 Piracy Maps

World-wide piracy reports for 2004 from ICC Commercial Crime Services.

Strait of Malaaca near Bander Aceh and Indonesia seem to lead the world, although Nigeria had a lot of reports.

N. Korea Says it has Nukes, Refuses to Talk

Fox News: N. Korea Admits to Nukes, Backs Out of Talks.

North Korea on Thursday announced for the first time that it has nuclear weapons and rejected moves to restart disarmament talks any time soon, saying it needs the weapons as protection against an increasingly hostile United States.

We can all identify 10 good reasons why the U.S. might want to invade North Korea, right? Maybe 9? 8? 7? 6?...do I hear 3? 2? There must be some good reason why the U.S. might attack the northern half of a peninsula located in between China, Russia and South Korea...oil? no... crops? no...
excellent beaches?

Gasp- Liberalism at NPR

Mickey Kraus notices a return of- gasp- liberalism at NPR:

Here's how NPR's All Things Considered covered President Bush's proposed cuts in Community Development Block Grants--by lobbing softballs to a CDBG supporter! No opposing view. ... This is not just liberal, but dumb liberal--NPR could easily have found a Democrat, maybe even an old Democrat, who believed CDBGs are an ineffective antipoverty program. (Basically they are slush funds for local politicians, who too often sluice the federal money to their developer friends to build ugly downtown hotels.) ... On the other hand, it was good to hear the NPR anchors happy in their blatantly biased work again after the forced Bataan-like march of the Bush inaugural/Iraq elections/State of the Union. ...

Of course, we disagree on the last sentence. But, then again, he's a liberal...

Some days

A boat. Some water. Some peace and quiet.

Navy Humor

Argghhh! offers up some Submariner "humor" via Bubbleheads. Most of us who rode "targets" consider sub-mariners humorous in and of themselves, but we also pick on our own chosen life-style, as is done here or here (yes, they are redundant -welcome to the Navy). Okay, check out the difference between our Marine passengers and the Navy way here.

Pick a six month period when your work and home life are at their busiest, get your neighbor to phone you at 2330 (11:30pm), dress in the dark, and hang a brick on string around your neck and stare at the backyard from your patio. Identify the whereabouts of all bats, crickets, moths and stray dogs by sound and sight, keep a written record of everything you see, and choke down at least one cup of four-day old coffee (preferably black) every thirty minutes. Anytime a critter enters the yard, call your wife on the cell phone to apprise her of its movements. On snowy or foggy nights be sure to blow an air horn at regular intervals to warn the neighbors of your whereabouts.

Update: He forgot the part about having someone throw water in your face and scream in your ears for parts of your watch.

Have a nice day.

Go Tar Heels! Beat Dook!

Big game tonight. UNC at Duke.



Duke must lose!

Go Tar Heels!

Update: ouch 71-70

Palestinians Say Hizbollah Trying to Wreck Truce

Reuters:
Palestinians Say Hizbollah Trying to Wreck Truce

Checked my "Surprise-o-meter"- didn't even register.

Meanwhile on the Road to the World Cup

U.S. Prepares for World Cup Qualifier: the 11th ranked U.S. team to take on Trinidad and Tobago.
Update: U.S. wins 2-1!

The United States, which plays its next qualifier at Mexico on March 27, is 22-0-8 against North and Central American and Caribbean rivals since a September 2001 loss at Costa Rica. The Americans haven't lost to a Caribbean opponent since a 1994 defeat in Trinidad.

Japan and North Korea play today in a fierce rivalry game in Japan.

Update: Japan wins:

Japan defeated North Korea 2-1 in a closely fought soccer World Cup qualifier on Wednesday amid tight security in a match watched as much for its diplomatic overtones as its sporting rivalry.

The battle for a berth at the 2006 World Cup tournament in Germany came as ties between the two, still uneasy after Japan's brutal colonisation of the Korean peninsula in the early 20th century, have been further strained by Pyongyang's admission that it kidnapped more than a dozen Japanese citizens decades ago.

"The North Korean team really tormented our team," Japan coach Zico told reporters afterwards. "But we kept our fighting spirit ... and that's why we scored two goals."

U.N. Asks Tsunami Promisors to Pay Up

Nations promised billions of dollars, but not many ar keeping their pledges so the U.N. Says More Cash Needed for Tsunami.

The United Nations said governments have only given a fraction of the money they pledged for tsunami aid and warned that more cash is needed to fund long-term reconstruction efforts. In Sri Lanka, corruption allegations continued to hamper relief operations Tuesday.

.

Nations have pledged $977 million, but only $360 million has reached the world body's coffers, said Margareta Wahlstrom, special envoy of U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

"This is our key message to government donors: Please convert your pledges into hard cash in the bank. It's only cash in the bank that makes it possible to do work on the ground," she said Monday in Geneva.
Although the United Nations is not short of funds to maintain its humanitarian relief operations, it warned that money is still needed in the long run for reconstruction...

...The State Department said last week that Washington has given nearly $119 million out of $350 million it has pledged in tsunami aid.

(italics added)

Note, it's a shortage of long-term funding, not emergency funding that is being discussed.

Ward Churchill- when in trouble, dig deeper

A defiant Professor Ward Churchill takes on the real world here.

Wonder how many book and movie deals he's looking at? He'll always be a hero to the radically dumb.

Coming soon to a talk show near you.

Update: He may need the money- there are some questions about his academic skills.

Heard excerpts of his speech on the radio. Full leftist rant. My prediction: definite movie/book deal pending. Watch for the announcement.

Speaking of Targeting Journalists

The AP says "gunmen" killed an Iraqi journalisthere.

In Basra, Abdul Hussein al-Basri, the correspondent of Al-Hurra TV station, and his son were both killed Wednesday in the city's Maqal area, 340 miles southeast of Baghdad, said Nazim al Moussawi, a spokesman for the local government administration.

It appears someone doessn't want the truth to get out. And it's not the U.S. military.

More on LtGen Mattis

Here's a really good response to the MSM and others who are whining about a warfighter (my earlier post): Villainous Company: In Defense of Jim Mattis(hat tip:American Thinker)

You are politely requested to read it.

'Stop Loss' Case Dismissed

CALIFORNIA YANKEE: Lawsuit Challenging Army's 'Stop Loss' Policy Dismissed

U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth for the District of Columbia said the enlistment contract does notify those who sign up that the government could extend their terms of service.

So, some contracts do mean what they say.

Polish Commander Heads Iraq Central South Division

DefenseLINK News saysNew Polish Commander Heads Central South Division

Polish Maj. Gen. Waldemar Skrzypczak took command of the Multinational Division Central South at Camp Echo in Diwanyiha Feb. 7.

Skrzypczak, who once served as Poland's chief of land operations for land forces, succeeded Maj. Gen. Andrzej Ekiert, who commanded the multinational division since July.

The division is responsible for the security and stabilization of a southern portion of Iraq.

In his speech, Ekiert told the assembled troops, who included both incoming and outgoing Polish soldiers, that a great deal of work has been achieved in every aspect of line of operations since the third rotation of soldiers to Iraq.

He wished Polish soldiers finishing their rotation a happy return home in his speech. And he wished those arriving for the fourth rotation peaceful service and soldier's luck while performing their tasks.

Incoming commander Skrzypczak told the group that the most important tasks of the division are to help and support the Iraqi government and people in their aspirations to ensure security, stabilization and rebuilding a free and democratic Iraq.

The Ukrainians and Poles control areas in which the division operates.

More help from the newly free.

Senator Reid doesn't like return fire

Senator Harry Reid, the lead Democrat whiner, has taken more than a few shots at President Bush. According to Neil Sinhababu
at the Daily Kos, "Harry Reid can bring it" and a comment says

"Reid called Bush a liar, yes, that L-word, on MTP. Or rather he confirmed he called the prez a liar(on the topic of Yucca Mountain) when challenged by Tim Russert. No Dem used that word on Bush the whole election season. The man seems to have a pair.

(actual quote: MR. RUSSERT:  When the president talked about Yucca Mountain and moving the nation's nuclear waste there, you were very, very, very strong in your words. You said, "President Bush is a liar.  He betrayed Nevada and he betrayed the country."

Is that rhetoric appropriate?

SEN. REID:  I don't know if that rhetoric is appropriate.  That's how I feel, and that's how I felt.  I think to take that issue, Tim, to take the most poisonous substance known to man, plutonium, and haul 70,000 tons of it across the highways and railways of this country, past schools and churches and people's businesses is wrong.  It's something that is being forced upon this country by the utilities, and it's wrong.  And we have to stop it.  And people may not like what I said, but I said it, and I don't back off one bit.")

(transcript here)


Now

The Republican committee plans to send a 13-page document to more than a million people -- including in Reid's home state of Nevada -- analyzing and criticizing his votes and stances before he officially took over as Senate Democratic leader in January.

and Reid is unhappy about it

Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid on Monday urged President Bush to stop the Republican National Committee from calling him an obstructionist and criticizing his Senate record, a tactic the GOP used to help defeat Reid's predecessor.

A link to the document "Reid all about it"here

Let's see - "liar" is okay from Reid talking about the President, but publicizing Reid's Senate record is "unfair?"

Reid has a set all right...

(hat tips: Best of the Web and Sean Hannity(who covered this on his radio show))

Terrorism in the Gulf

Dan Darling has a good three part series on Terrorism in the Gulf at Wind of Change (links to first two parts contained in the linked post). Sample:

The real test for whether Iraq has increased on decreased al-Qaeda recruiting isn't likely to be fully known until a few years from now when and if veterans of the Iraqi jihad start showing up to cause trouble in other parts of the world at the behest of bin Laden or his successors the way their predecessors who served in Afghanistan or Chechnya have. As I noted in my commentary on one of Gerecht's articles for the Weekly Standard, if you're just looking at the 2004 enrollment in the madrassas like Binori Town that supply al-Qaeda's officer corps, the people to be worried about are Thais, not Arabs. This is not to downplay the threat posed by the Iraq-hardened jihadis, but rather to keep it in perspective at this point.

Interesting read.

The return of Richard Clarke

Attilla at the Pillage Idiot on The return of Richard Clarke Among the highlights:

If I understand Clarke, the idea is that Zarqawi is perfectly happy with democracy, so long as the United States is not involved. (I sure hope the Times isn't paying Clarke for this column.)

Good one. Read it.

Laugh or cry that Mr. Clarke is still being given a platform to spread his "truths," depending on your preference.

Update: Atilla updates:

On rereading my post, I realize I may have been unfair to Clarke in one sense: I made fun of him for the wrong thing. Contrary to what I said below, he doesn't appear to be saying that "Zarqawi is perfectly happy with democracy, so long as the United States is not involved." What he does appear to be saying is that Zarqawi would be opposed to democracy regardless of U.S. involvement, and if that is true, Clarke is being ridiculous in blaming Bush for Zarqawi's attacks on democracy, which (on Clarke's theory) would be occurring even if the Iraqis had established democratic institutions on their own.

Which, of course, we all knew because Zaqawi told us he doesn't like democracy - too much freedom involved... Clarke is being ridiculous.

North Korea gets ready for the World Cup: Japan is "Sworn Enemy"

The North Korea Zone says the DPRK declares Japan a "Sworn Enemy". After playing a pre-game in secret, the North Koreans gear up for the World Cup by winning friends and influencing people.

Not really in step with the modern world, are they? You know, sports makes for peaceful relations? Probably not good losers either.

CBC Arts: North Korea calls for ban on 'Team America' in Czech Republic

North Korea calls for ban on 'Team America' in Czech Republic. Gosh, I wonder why?



Update: I swear I posted this before I saw that the North Korea Zone had picked up the same story and even the same picture. Great minds....

What's the Exit Strategy?

So, driving around listening to local talk radio. On comes a man who is irritated with with the Democrats and their attacks on the President. "What," he asks, "is the exit strategy for the War on Poverty?"

Wikipedia notes

"Since 1965 America has never seen more than a 4% drop in the poverty rate."

Now, $5 trillion dollars later, the "war" continues with almost no improvement in the rate of poverty.

n the mid-1960s President Lyndon Johnson declared a "war on poverty." Dozens of government programs were created or expanded with the goal of "abolishing poverty." Three decades and over $5 trillion later, the percentage of American's living below the poverty line is greater than when these welfare programs were established and even many activists who once advocated increasing federal assistance to the poor now agree that the attempt has been a failure.

Foundation for Economic Education

Apples and oranges? Probably, but programs without a defined "victory" goal will go on forever.

Littoral Surface Craft- Experimental

A new surface warfare toy here- zowie! (Update: Navy caption:050204-N-7676W-193 Whidbey Island, Wash. (Feb. 4, 2005) – The Littoral Surface Craft-Experimental (X-Craft), christened Sea Fighter (FSF 1), at Nichols Bros. Boat Builders in Freeland, Whidbey Island, Wash., will be used to evaluate the hydrodynamic performance, structural behavior, mission flexibility, and propulsion system of high-speed vessels. The X-Craft is a high-speed aluminum catamaran that will test a variety of technologies, which will allow the Navy to operate more effectively in littoral or near-shore waters. U.S. Navy photo by John F. Williams (RELEASED))



More info

"Our fleet doesn't battle the Japanese fleet out on the deep, blue sea anymore," said Cmdr. Mark Thomas, leader of the project, which has totaled about $73 million.

Today's conflicts are more likely to involve nations without navies, or terrorist groups that turn a fishing boat into a suicide weapon.

Small vessels that can operate close to shore could be used for a variety of missions, from detecting and defusing mines, to hunting submarines hiding in the shallows and intercepting enemy supply boats, Thomas explained.

The Sea Fighter is able to enter waters as shallow as 11 feet. The catamaran shape gives it a capacious deck, which can carry two helicopters. A wide ramp in the stern can launch and retrieve small boats, underwater drones or remote sensors.

The U.S. is not alone in this, here's a Chinese coastal catamaran Update: Info here.
Close up of the FAC 2208 here.

High speed, low drag (literally).

Gasoline Stock Rises

Bloomberg says gasoline stocks rose while heating fuel demand slid due to unusually mild weather.

Kerry: "What a small man"

Showing a surprising consistency (all the way back to January 30), Senator John Kerry has said he will sign a Form 180 to have his Navy records released and called on the people who have "challenged" him to do the same with theirs (Meet the Press Transcript for Jan. 30 )

"MR. RUSSERT:  Many people who've been criticizing you have said:  Senator, if you would just do one thing and that is sign Form 180, which would allow historians and journalists complete access to all your military records.  Thus far, you have gotten the records, released them through your campaign.  They say you should not be the filter.  Sign Form 180 and let the historians...

SEN. KERRY:  I'd be happy to put the records out.  We put all the records out that I had been sent by the military.  Then at the last moment, they sent some more stuff, which had some things that weren't even relevant to the record. So when we get--I'm going to sit down with them and make sure that they are clear and I am clear as to what is in the record and what isn't in the record and we'll put it out.  I have no problem with that.

MR. RUSSERT:  Would you sign Form 180?

SEN. KERRY:  But everything, Tim...

MR. RUSSERT:  Would you sign Form 180?

SEN. KERRY:  Yes, I will.  But everything that we put in it, Tim--everything we put in--I mean, everything that was out was a full documentation of all of the medical records, all of the fitness reports.  And I'd call on those who have challenged me, let's see their records.  I want to see the records of each of those people who have put up a challenge, because some of them have some serious questions in them, and it hasn't been appropriate...

MR. RUSSERT:  So they should sign Form 180s for themselves as well?

SEN. KERRY:  You bet."

Now the Best of the Web Today" reports that yesterday's Boston Globe published a lengthy interview with Mr. Kerry in which he repeated the same demand:

Kerry also is continuing his feud with the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth:

The furor over military credentials hasn't ended with the campaign. Kerry pledged to sign Form 180, releasing all of his military records, but challenged his critics, including Bush, to do the same.

''I want them to sign it, I want [swift boat veterans] John O'Neill, Roy Hoffmann, and what's their names, the guys on the other boat," Kerry said. ''I want their records out there. They have made specific allegations about my record, I know things about their records, I want them out there. I'm willing to sign it, to put all my records out there. I'm willing to sign it, but I want them to sign it, too."

Kerry later confirmed that his decision to sign the form is not conditional on any others signing, but he expressed lingering bitterness over double standards on military service.

'Let me make this clear: My full military record has been made public," Kerry said. ''All of my medical records and all of my fitness reports, every fitness report involving each place I served, is public. Where are George Bush's still? Where are his military records? End of issue."

(emphasis added)

None of the "challengers" to Mr. Kerry's war record were running for public office, as he was. And certainly none of them made their "heroism" the focus of the campaign, as he did. All of this reveals, for the umpteenth time, what a very small man Mr. Kerry is.

And all he had to do was sign a form that will, according to him, reveal that all of his records have been released.

What a small, small man.

The Prophets of Doom- dismantled

In New Sisyphus: Rhymes with Dubya: The President and His Critics Richard A. Clarke and James Fallows, well-known prophets of doom, are properly whacked over the head by some common sense. Well worth a read! Good stuff:

This is why Democratic carping about an "exit strategy" strikes us as foolish and quite beside the point. The whole of the President's strategy in Iraq and in the Greater Middle East is one big exit strategy; after giving the process a violent supporting push, our goal is to hand over the reins as soon as possible. We will then support local democratic movements wherever they are, however we can. In the President's eyes, Muslims aren't automatons awaiting Uncle Sam to press the "calm" button instead of the worn-out "anger" button we've been pushing for years; instead, they are people, with hopes, dreams and aspirations, who will--if given the chance--lead their countries to their rightful places in the community of nations.

It strikes us as highly ironic that those who scream the loudest about the President's lack of nuance themselves fail to recongize what is at heart a very nuanced policy. We war in Iraq, we talk in Saudi Arabia, we defer to the EU in Iran, we engage in civil-society building in Jordan, all in a coordinated effort to bring about a democratic reformation in the wider Islamic world.

Naviguessing

Over at Bubblehead's The Stupid Shall Be Punished he has been taking on an alleged retired Navy Lieutenant on the issues of navigation pertaining to the recent grounding of the USS San Francisco.

The retired Lieutenant has managed to raise the ire of experienced submarine officers and others. It's worth a visit as they grapple with what may be simple stupidity coupled with an overwrought imagination.

Update: This from Argghhh! ought to be enough until we hear how the investigation comes out.

UNecessary

Clifford D. May at Townhall.com points out more UN foolishness.

Last week, members of a separate U.N. commission appointed by Secretary-General Kofi Annan demurred. They said they were unable to find “sufficient evidence” to conclude that those responsible for the mass murders, rapes, home burnings and ethnic cleansing acted with “genocidal intent.” Instead, they said that what had taken place were “crimes against humanity with an ethnic dimension.”

Predictably, Sudanese officials announced that the U.N. had “exonerated” them.

and

Then there is the World Heath Organization, a United Nations “special agency.” WHO's Director General has just awarded its prize for “best anti-smoking and nutrition” programs to al Manar – the television station owned and operated by Hezbollah, among the world's most lethal terrorist organizations.

In fact, Hezbollah has killed more Americans than any other terrorist organization other than al Qaeda. Al Manar routinely broadcasts programs to millions in the Middle East inciting suicide bombings against Americans in Iraq and against Israelis wherever they may be found. 

Mr. May points out the UN Human Rights Commission has five member, three of which are "Cuba, Zimbabwe and Saudi Arabia."

Mr. May is not a moderate.

Bill Moyers: Another Fraud

Power Line: Bill Moyers Smears a Better Man Than Himself explains how Bill Moyers, a self-styled champion of righteousness, comes up with falsehoods to support his assertion that President Bush=Evil.

I appreciate honest disagreement, but making stuff up is not acceptable. More fraud from the liberal camp.

Update: Mr. Moyers says sorry. (hat tip: Instapundit

Vox Baby: Social Security

Since I don't pretend to have answers on the current social security debate (except to note that I am amazed that the Democrats seem to be putting forth the proposition that we can wait to act until they once again are in power to do anything), I refer to you Andrew Samwick, at Vox Baby, who does have a clue and lots of thoughts in his Vox Baby: Social Security Archive. Happy reading!

Dear Professor Cole: Stick it!

Juan Cole says Lt General Mattis shoud resign here . I think Cole should (expletives deleted).

Given the way the Arab street reacts to blowing each other up, I suspect Professor Cole's concern over the Arab media is a bit over done. And, yes, Professor Cole, I have been there. Oh, by the way,T.E. Lawrence is not an especially good role model for anyone.

Did Thomas Barnett prove the Peter Principle?

The Adventures of Chester questions Thomas Barnett's latest writing and, in fact, it may be that Mr. Barnett's "one good idea" came before he started offering advice to the Bush administration. Sort of, you know, the Peter Principle* in action.

Make sure to read the comments- Chester is stirring up a debate.




*n a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence.

Meet the Press- Rummy good, Kennedy bad

Today's Meet the Press had an adult, Don Rumsfeld, and a non-adult, Senator Kennedy, interviewed by Tim Russert - transcript here.

Mr. Rumsfeld took responsbility and explained his offer to resign ( after Abu Ghraib) as part of that acceptance. He also took Russert to task for misquoting the "up armor" controversy.

Mr. Kennedy, not known for accepting responsibilty for anything in his life, went on the attack on the basis of his misguided insistence on a "withdrawal" schedule and a complete misunderstanding of what it takes to train a modern fighting force, which seems to be based on the training one of his nephews

When we send over Americans that have had 12 weeks of training, like the nephew of my wife, and is a tail gunner on a Striker--12 weeks--and we have the best-trained American servicemen and the best soldiers in the world, there's no reason in the world that we can't expect Iraqis to be trained with four months, eight months, 12 months so that they are going to fight for their country and they're going to be willing to die for it.  And I think that is what is missing when we hear these numbers batted around like we did today.

Well, that's great if we're training a army of Stryker tail gunners, but we have all those other details to attend to like NCOs, officers, a functioning chain of command, etc. etc. Kennedy's understanding of military training is somewhat limited, to say the least.

In fact, it may be time to announce the limits of the Powell doctrine (The Powell Doctrine held that military force should only be used if there was a clear risk to national security; that the force used should be overwhelming; and that the operation must have strong public support and a clear exit strategy. Cato Institute) which has become an albatross around the neck of the military and an apparent "mantra" for our generally militarily illiterate legislators. (The huge reliance on the reserves and guard, now so decried by the MSM, was in fact, in part a way to make sure we don't go to war lightly- either literally or figuratively). As was said early in the GWOT, this is a different kind of war. If the Powell Doctrine had been applied to WWII, I wonder what "exit strategy" General Marshall would have announced?

Rumsfeld gets it, but Kennedy and his cohorts are apparently simply too tied to Vietnam to see the vast differences between now and then. Mr. Kennedy, as predicted in other places, even used the pre-announced post election reduction in troop strength to support his shortly before the election call for 12,000 troops to be brought home. The man simply has no shame.

Of more interest is why he still commands any national attention. He represents a very small state (Massachusetts has a population of 6.5 million - North Carolina has 8.5 million) that has voted consistently Democrat since, roughly, forever. Why isn't Senator Dole, for example, given such attention? Because Mr. Kennedy can be counted on to say reliably anti-Bush administration things and he can say such things because he has the safest seat in the Senate? Or because he reflects the MSM view?

Update: What it takes to build an army.

Behind the scenes in staff work

Here's some fun and "ground truth" from the mouths of staff weenies virtually everywhere.

(Hat tip: Airborne Combat Engineer and the guys he links to.

Another Marine You should know about

Blackfive introduces you to another heroic Marine. Go there!

The Ship of Fools

Too good to pass up Sebastian Brant's Stultifera Navis, The Ship of Fools. Be sure to read "About the Book" first.

North Korea Really has a Nuke Program - an unusual departee tale

Unlike others who left the Bush administration and began flogging books of its internal evil ways,here's a tale of a different sort - two ex-US officials say Bush was right about the DPRK and enrichment programs. Will miracles never cease?

Update: A new typo record wahoo!

OBL Nuclear Plan

Former Washington Post editor waxes on What Bin Laden Sees in Hiroshima

I hope this isn't a surprise to anyone. OBL wants the U.S. crippled and the development of a Caliphate over a big chunk of the world. He continues to misunderstand Americans based on his perception of our reactions in Vietnam, Beirut and Somalia. If he thinks things got hot after 9/11, he cannot imagine who will be looking for him if he goes nuke. I guess the Democrat peace at any price wing is continuing to feed his misperception- but only because the press has failed to announce that Mr. Bush won the last election and is hitting the ground running on his second term.

Hat tip:American Future

A Call to Arms: "hey hey, ho ho, CNN has got to go!"

Okay- I hardly ever even visit CNN anymore, let alone use them as a source for this blog, but Eason Jordan did manage to push my buttons, so I ask you to follow Bill Roggio and cease using CNN as a source or link:

I am requesting all bloggers who are unhappy with Mr. Jordan’s statements and CNN’s reply to remove CNN from your news source links and halt citing CNN as a source of news. If you wish, please link to this post to let your readers be aware of the effort to convince CNN of making Mr. Jordan’s statements public. This would also help me organize the effort as no doubt there are readers out there experienced in conducting these activities.

It is very disturbing to have Mr. Eason apparently contending that the U.S. military is "targeting" media members on a couple of grounds -(1) it just plain wrong and very stupid and (2) if it were true, there would be many fewer media people around (our aim is pretty good). The CNN explanation has been the usual "taken out of context" stuff followed by some other nonsense.

Aljazeera: Foreign "insurgents" surrender in Kuwait

Al Jazeera reports the surrender of three Jordanians and a couple of Saudis in Kuwait following a gun battle with Kuwaiti security forces here.

How are these terrorists "insurgents" in Kuwait? No bias at Al J?

I'll bet they did learn a lesson, but not the one you meant

A couple of teenage girls try to be nice and a grumpy neighbor sues them, even after they apologized and offered to pay for her medical costs? See Act of kindness will cost girls $900.

Wanita Renea Young, 49, said she was at her rural home south of Durango around 10:30 p.m. when she said saw "shadowy figures" outside the house banging repeatedly on her door. She yelled, "Who's there?" but no one answered, and the figures ran away.

Frightened, she spent the night at her sister's home, then went to the hospital the next morning because she was still shaking and had an upset stomach.

The teenagers' families offered to pay Young's medical bills, but she declined and sued, saying their apologies were not sincere and were not offered in person.

You have got to be kidding.

(hat tip: Outside the Beltway)

The Diplomad: "So long! It's been good to know you!"

In a sad moment, the Diplomad hangs it up here. I'm sure we'll see them again some sunny day. Fair winds and following seas, friends.

American Digest: The Choice: Victory or Depravity

Here's a great read to put things in their proper perspective: The Choice: Victory or Depravity.

Reid, et al, still don't get the idea that victory is an exit strategy. Unlike Vietnem, we are not going to simply declare "we win" and get out. The alleged "insurgents" (which now seems to be a simple euphemism for "terrorist") have only one goal, the restoration of their own power over the majority. There have been a couple of recent stories of the majority acting against the bad guys. I hope we'll soon see more.

Turning the Video Tables

Over at Rantingprofs, there is a post on the local Iraqi police turning the video tables on the "insurgents" by putting out their own video tape of captured Egyptian kidnapper pleading for his life in front of a camera. "I am sorry of everything I have done, " he now says.

Seems like a good idea to me and is an excellent way to counter the free publicity ride the terrorists have received to date. Bring more on.

Of course, the usual whiners are upset. Tough.

Earthquake Guam

AP says there was a 6.5 magnitude earthqauke in the Mariana Islands as seen here is inPacific Tsunami Warning Center - Bulletins. The Pacific Daily News (formerly the Guam Daily News?- I used to deliver it when I was a kid) reports that volcanic smog blown on to Guam from another island "vog" has been making some residents ill, but had no news on a quake when I looked earlier.



Update: Pacific Dialy News has the story.

Update: Seems like not too big a deal. Good.