Petraeus 'Hopeful' on Final Battlefield Tour as Commander in Iraq

By Bret Baier

But as Petraeus greeted locals in Arabic and shook hands Wednesday, he was on his final battlefield tour of the country before handing over command of U.S.-led forces in Iraq next week and taking on a new job as head of Central Command.

Petraeus gave his final U.S. interview before the transition to FOX News, and expressed optimism -- significant coming from a commander often cautious about signs of progress in Iraq.

"There's a lot left to be done. You'd like to complete everything but that's not possible," he said. "It's been very, very hard. There’s been nothing easy about this … In the beginning we said it was hard but not hopeless. I think now it’s still hard but it’s hopeful."

As Petraeus walked with minimal security -- no helicopters overhead, no flak jackets and no helmets -- the commander said much has changed since the start of the troop surge. ....

FDA: Melamine found in baby formula made in China

The Food and Drug Administration is alerting Asian and ethnic markets across the USA that infant formula made in China may be contaminated.

The FDA is working with state health agencies across the country to make members of Chinese-American communities aware of the danger.

Chinese newspapers report that some infant formula has been linked to kidney problems and kidney stones in babies in China because the formula contains melamine — the same industrial contaminant from China that poisoned and killed thousands of U.S. dogs and cats last year.

Sanlu Group, the major Chinese dairy that produced the formula, has recalled 700 tons of the product, state Xinhua News Agency reported today.

No baby formula approved for use in the USA is manufactured in China, the FDA says. ...

Terrorism takes backseat to economy

(Compiler's note: Based on the material outlined below, more people need to follow this blog. rca)

Seven years ago today, the roar of exploding planes and the spectacle of collapsing buildings riveted the nation's attention on a single topic, terrorism - and in the terrible aftermath, it seemed that focus would never waver.

But it has. Just 2 percent of Americans identified terrorism as their nation's top problem in a Gallup survey in early August - the lowest level since the 2001 attacks. And in new poll results released Wednesday, just 38 percent of respondents said they were at least somewhat worried that they or their families would become victims of terrorism - a nine-point drop since the question was asked last year and the lowest level since mid-2005.

"The majority of Americans are now not fearful of terrorist attack," said Frank Newport, Gallup's editor in chief. "Americans do not report to us that terrorism is the top issue for them in this election. It is the economy."

In a separate question in the most recent poll, when asked to pick from a short list of issues the one that would be most important in deciding their vote for president, about 42 percent of people picked the economy, Newport said. Just 12 percent picked terrorism, putting it in a tie with the Iraq war, health care and energy. ...

...."The next president ... must prevent al Qaeda, or a Qaeda imitator, from gaining control of a nuclear device and detonating it in America," Jeffrey Goldberg wrote in a recent opinion piece in the New York Times. "Everything else - Fannie Mae, health care reform, energy independence, the budget shortfall in Wasilla, Alaska - is commentary." ....

On-the-job injuries, deaths plague oil workers

....At least 598 workers died on the job between 2002 and 2007, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. During that period, the number of deaths per year rose by around 70 percent, from 72 victims in 2002 to 125 in 2006 and a preliminary count of 120 in 2007. ....Workers at drilling sites are surrounded by heavy machinery that can kill or maim in an instant. About half the workers who die are struck by equipment or are killed in motor vehicle accidents. Others fall from catwalks, are crushed by falling loads or are burned in explosions. ....Many experienced oilfield workers left the industry in the mid-1980s during the oil bust, when a barrel sold for less than $10. Now, with prices over $100 a barrel, many drilling companies are hiring workers with little or no experience. ....

Wall Street's $300 billion scandal

A federal grand jury in Brooklyn indicted two former Credit Suisse Group brokers last week in the unfolding crisis with auction-rate securities issued by major financial institutions, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The criminal indictments are expected to be the first of many, as federal authorities and the Securities and Exchange Commission try to establish responsibility in what is yet another Wall Street credit mess.

As Red Alert previously reported, the crisis with auction-rate securities has left thousands of individual investors without retirement savings and scores of institutional buyers and charities with losses yet to be measured. ....

Iran renews nuclear weapons development

By Con Coughlin and Tim Butcher

Nuclear experts responsible for monitoring Iran's nuclear programme have discovered that enough enriched uranium, which if processed to weapons grade level could be used to make up to six atom bombs, has disappeared from the main production facility at Isfahan.

American spy satellites have identified a number of suspicious sites, which the Iranians have not declared to nuclear inspectors, that intelligence officials believe are being used for covert research.

The new discoveries emerged as it was revealed that Israel had asked America for military supplies, including "bunker buster" bombs and re-fuelling planes, suitable for an attack on Iranian nuclear installations.

The Israeli paper Haaretz reported yesterday that Israel has also asked for permission to use an air corridor through Iraqi airspace, currently controlled by America, to Iran.

So far the requests have been turned down by Washington, which is currently not as keen as Israel to consider a military strike against Iran.

But concern that Iran has resumed work on building atom bombs has deepened following the revelation that large quantities of uranium has gone missing from Iran's conversion facility at Isfahan.

The Isfahan complex, which enriches raw uranium "yellow cake" into material that can be used for either nuclear power or atomic weapons, is supposed to be subject to close supervision by the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). But the Iranians only allow IAEA inspectors access to the final stage of the production process, where the uranium in gas form - UF6 - is stored.

By conducting a careful study of the amount of material stored at Isfahan, and the amount of "yellow cake" known to have been processed at the plant, nuclear experts believe between 50-60 tons of uranium - which if enriched to weapons grade level would be sufficient to produce five or six atom bombs - has gone missing from the plant.

IAEA officials believe the Iranians have deliberately removed the uranium at a stage in the production process that is not under their supervision. "The inspectors only have limited access at Isfahan, and it looks as though Iranian officials have removed significant quantities of UF6 at a stage in the process that is not being monitored," said a nuclear official. "If Iran's nuclear intentions are peaceful, then why are they doing this?" Nuclear inspectors have also been concerned to discover that Gholamreza Aghazadeh, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation, recently ordered scientists to increase the amount of UF6 being diverted from Isfahan to another storage facility.

IAEA officials have no idea where the missing uranium is being stored, but suspect it could be held at one of several suspicious installations that have been spotted by American spy satellites.

The Iranians will be asked to give a full account of the missing enriched uranium when the IAEA's board of governors meets in Vienna later this month to discuss the continuing crisis over Iran's nuclear enrichment programme.

The mounting concern over Iran's nuclear intentions has intensified Israeli efforts to prepare for a possible pre-emptive strike on Iran, which has led Jerusalem to presenting Washington with a "wish list" of military equipment.

In the past America has been prepared to provide Israel with "bunker buster" bombs, known by their serial number GBU-28. They weigh over two tons each and are designed to penetrate deep underground, even through reinforced concrete, before detonating.

Israel used them in unsuccessful attempts to take out the leadership of Hizbollah, the militant Shia group, during the war of 2006.