We're Losing Our Country – But What Can We Do?

(Compiler's note: A must read article.)

by Joan Swirsky

From the moment Barack Obama was inaugurated on January 20th, the leftists who control Congress have – at his behest – gone on a drunken binge of runaway spending vis-à-vis an $850-bilion faux "stimulus" program that rewards failure and punishes success. It is already clear that The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act should be renamed The American Relapse-And-Needs-Resuscitation Act, as is evidenced by both the simultaneous plunge of the Dow and the president's polling numbers, as well as an epidemic case of buyer's remorse.

As Oklahoma Republican Senator Tom Coburn has written, "the stimulus is a step toward a Soviet America."

Or, as Lenin said, "The way to crush the bourgeoisie [the middle class] is to grind them between the millstones of taxation and inflation."

Or, as Winston Churchill so presciently pronounced: "Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy; its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery."

Writer Randall Hoven has elaboratedupon what the president has "accomplished" in his first weeks in office. This is the short list:

• Rewarded abortionists by freeing federal funds to pay for abortions both here and overseas.
• Rewarded terrorists by not interrogating them too roughly.
• Rewarded terrorists by closing Gitmo.
• Punished the U.S. military by halting commissions until Gitmo is "reviewed."
• Rewarded the domestically-held terrorist Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri by "reviewing" his case.
• Rewarded Gitmo detainee Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, an al Qaeda suspect in USS Cole in 200, that killed 17 US sailors, by dropping charges against him.
• Rewarded terrorists from Hamas by granting them up to $20.3 million for the "conflict victims in Gaza."
• Rewarded terrorists by establishing a redress process if those suspected of wrongdoing are delayed or prohibited from boarding a flight.
• Rewarded female career "victims" by signing the "Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act" so women can wage equal-pay lawsuits, not for up to 180 days but for decades in the past.
• Rewarded the American-hating president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, by "reaching out" to him – to which the madman demanded that the U.S. apologize to Iran for its actions for" the past 60 years" and remove all U.S. forces from the Middle East.
• Rewarded labor unions by revoking a former executive order that forced employers to notify employees of their rights.
• Punished faith-based organizations by equating them with "neighborhood partnerships" like Planned Parenthood and ACORN – treating them "like a house of God, in the eyes of the federal government."
• Punished fair-hiring employers by requiring federal executives to hire union-only members.
• Punished the American people by issuing numerous draconian environmental dictates that insure zero energy independence for decades to come, if ever.

In other words, Hoven says, it was all "pay back Democratic special interests…spend really, really huge amounts of other people's money, [and] make terrorism a law-enforcement issue instead of a national-defense issue and watch terrorists and nuclear proliferators be released, from Pakistan to Yemen to Gitmo."

I haven't even mentioned how much Obama has also:

• Punished Americans by appointing chronic tax cheats and craven lobbyists to his cabinet and as advisors.
• Punished Americans by reversing every promise he made about transparency, bipartisanship, and having an economic-growth bill with no pork.
• Rewarded terrorists by authorizing $20.3 million to aid Palestinian refugees from Gaza – read Hamas – to "migrate." But as journalist Judi McLeod and intelligence analyst Michael Travis have asked, "Is Obama opening the floodgates to Hamas" and "What security measures are in place to keep Hamas terrorists from gaining free access into the U.S.?"
• Punished Americans by not firing – or even sanctioning – Attorney General Eric Holder, who called America a "nation of cowards."
• Punished Americans by moving the once-objective census process into the White House's to be overseen by the Chicago-machine flunkie, Rahm Emanuel.
• And then there was the cringe-producing embarrassment he caused by granting his first interview to the Arab media, Dubai-based al Arabiya TV, where he proceeded to apologize for America's "mistakes."

VOX CLAMATO EN DESERTO

On the eve of the "stimulus" bill vote, which took place on February 14th, Fox News' Greta Van Susteren asked Alaska's Gov. Sarah Palin what the president should do.

"He should veto it!" Palin exclaimed. "He should send it back to the lawmakers so they have time to actually read it and understand its impact." Hers was a lonely voice of opposition, but it resonated with millions of Americans who also wondered how their (overwhelmingly Democrat) elected officials had the gall to vote for a 1,100-page bill they hadn't read when recent spending packages of significantly less heft had failed so thunderously:

• $180 billion stimulus program in the spring of 2008: Failed.
• $345 billion housing bailout from the summer of 2008: Failed.
• $700 billion Wall Street bailout from the fall of 2008: Failed.
• Grand total: $1.2 trillion in spending: Failed.

Just a few days later, on February 17th, Louisiana's Governor Bobby Jindal suggested that he might not be interested in taking the $4 billion allotted to his state in the "stimulus" package before reviewing each program and determining "what are the strings" attached to it were. And on February 18th, according to the Associated Press, a number of other Republican governors said they were considering turning down at least some of the money, questioning if it would help the economy at all.

Of course, it was a Democrat, South Carolina Rep. James Clyburn, who sneaked tucked into the package a proviso that allows state legislatures to override a governor's decision. It was also Clyburn who said that the refusal of governors to accept the funds was "a slap in the face of African-Americans." To which Kevin Martin, a member of Project 21 – a leading voice of the African-American community since 1992 – replied: "Liberals such as Congressman Clyburn have always employed tactics such as the race card to shame critics into accepting their heavy-handed demands…to use race as a means of cramming it down these governors' throats is reprehensible, and people should take notice as to how far these people are willing to go to get their way."

Indeed. Americans should be celebrating those governors who have questioned the ability of the bloated, pork-laden, special-interest-favoring bill to create jobs or "save" the economy At this point, their numbers may be small, but their potential for influence is huge.

Let them know what you think of their efforts.

Gov. Mark Sanford (SC): Tel: 1-803-734-2100; Fax: 1-803-734-5167; E-mail.

Gov. Bobby Jindal (LA): E-mail.

Governor Haley Barbour (MISS): Tel: 1-877-405-0733 or1- 601-359-3150.

Governor C.L. "Butch" Otter (ID): Tel: 1-208-334-2100.

Governor Sarah Palin (AK): Tel: 1-907- 465-3500; Fax: 1-907- 465-3532; E-mail.

Governor Mitch Daniels (IN): Tel: 1-317-232-4567; E-mail.

Keep this Contact Your Governor Guide handy.

DON'T TREAD ON ME

Afraid that the Obama agenda includes trampling on states' rights, 22 states are declaring sovereignty or planning to. Sovereignty is not the same as secession, in which a state or states threaten to leave the union. Sovereignty is granted under the 10th Amendment of the Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights. In short, it says that: "Each state retains its sovereignty, freedom, and independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right…"

The states now seeking sovereignty are expressing the fear that a new national government might seek to exercise powers not granted to the government and that states will lose their autonomy. In stark contrast are those who believe that Congress can enact – at the will or whim of the president – just about anything that strikes their socialist fancies.

The states seeking sovereignty believe that if enough states get on board, they could press their claims together and prevail. The federal government, they say, has no physical existence, except for the machinery that runs it, but that the states are the country!

As one blogger stated, "Whether they're using a stick or a club, the states are drawing a line in the sand and placing the Federal Government on notice."

To date, the states that are already sovereign, having passed 10th Amendment resolutions in their legislatures, include:

California (CA): Click here for more info.
Texas (TX): Click here.

States claiming sovereignty include:

Arizona (AZ): Click here.
Georgia (GA): Click here.
Michigan (MI): Click here.
Missouri (MO): Click here and Click here.
Montana (MT): Click here.
New Hampshire (NH): Click here.
Oklahoma (OK): Click here.
South Carolina (SC): Click here.
Washington (WA): Click here.

Hawaii (HI) is actually aiming for total sovereignty, as it claims the state was never really a state of the U.S.A. Click HERE and HERE.

States that are planning motions toward claiming sovereignty include the following:

Alabama (AL), Alaska (AK), Arkansas (AR), Colorado (CO, Idaho (ID), Indiana (IN), Kansas (KS), Maine (ME), Nevada (NV), Pennsylvania (PA), and Tennessee (TN).

Click here for Source # 1 for the "pending / planning" states and Source # 2 for the "pending / planning" states.

That is almost half our country, as you can see by this map:

And more states are joining the Don't Tread On Me juggernaut, including Georgia, Oklahoma, and Ohio.

But there is a rub here. A Resolution carries no weight and only sends a "sense of the state legislature" to the federal government. But a Bill can become a Law. So when you're contacting your state officials, let them know what you think.

According to writer Dave Nalle, it now looks "like at least 22 states have Bills in some stage of development. About half are in the process of being drafted, several are in committee or out for debate, and the pack is being led by Arizona, Oklahoma, and New Hampshire, where the bills have strong support and will likely be voted on within a matter of weeks. As yet, none have passed into law, but we may see that happen in some of the most active states fairly quickly."

Most of the Resolutions, Nalle says, "are originating from inside legislatures and from established state politicians, specifically in response to concerns about unfunded mandates and excessive burdens placed on the states by the federal government. The expense and partisan character of many of the elements of the stimulus bill is of increasing concern and helping to motivate legislators to pass these state resolutions…while the 10th Amendment is central to their argument, legislators are more concerned about retaining power they see being gradually eroded by the federal government…"

YES, YOUR HONOR!

It is not only governors and state legislatures waking up to the shock of dealing with a far-left-cum-socialist-cum-Marxist president and a far-left Congress that echoes his contempt for free-market capitalism and the U.S. Constitution. It is also organizations like Patriots for America as well as individual activists.

A minister, Christ Otto, started the Red Envelope Project that has already resulted in over 100,000 red envelopes being sent to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (zip: 20500), which are marked on the back with the simple sentence: "This envelope represents one child who died in abortion…it is empty because that child was unable to offer anything to the world."

Stephen Pidgeon, a lawyer who has waged one of more than a dozen Supreme Court lawsuits (Broe v. Reed) in an attempt to prove that President Obama is Constitutionally ineligible to hold his office, has launched an effort to empanel a National Grand Jury "to serve as ombudsmen for the citizens of the country in respect to constitutional rights and privileges…and to conduct criminal investigations of members of the federal government, and, if the evidence is sufficient, issue criminal indictments."

The National Grand Jury, Pidgeon says, "is an entirely independent body. Judges of the Supreme Court, the Courts of Appeal, and the District Courts of the United States, United States Attorneys, and Congress of the United States may act only as advisors. They cannot prevent National Grand Jury action unless that action violates the duly enacted laws as originally created in the United States."

He says that a National Grand Jury is empowered to:

• Inquire into the condition and management of branches of the federal government and its agencies.
• Investigate and report on the operations, accounts and records of federal officers, departments, and functions.
• Inquire into the willful or corrupt misconduct in office of public officers.
• Submit a final report of its findings and recommendations, no later than the end of its term, to the Presiding Juror of the National Grand Jury.

To become a Grand Juror, go to this website: www.DecaLogosIntl.org.

So to all people who wonder "What can I do?" to reclaim the America they knew and loved before Obama, I suggest that you join these efforts and also start protests of your own, be they e-mail campaigns, signatures on petitions, letters-to-editors, street demonstrations, and endless petitions to your elected representatives. If they don't respond to your liking, kick the bums out of office in 2010!

Obama eyes intel pick tied to bin Laden

By Aaron Klein

Business dealing, close contacts with family of terrorist mastermind

JERUSALEM – The Obama administration's reported pick for a top intelligence post has financial ties to the infamous bin Laden family – including dealings after Sept. 11, 2001.

Charles "Chas" Freeman, the U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia during the first Gulf War, is slated to head the National Intelligence Council, according to multiple reports. Freeman has come under fire in the Israeli media and on some pro-Israel blogs for his sharp criticism of the Jewish state. He also reportedly heavily criticized American anti-terrorism policy.

Now Ashley Rinsdberg, a Jerusalem-based researcher and blogger for the Daily Beast website has dug up another issue that may cause even bigger worry for the likely Obama appointee – he had business ties to Osama bin Laden's family and strongly defended the connections after 9/11.

Rindsberg documented how as chairman of Projects International, Inc., a company that develops worldwide business deals, Freeman declared in an Associated Press interview just after the 9/11 attacks he was still "discussing proposals with the Bin Laden Group – and that won't change."

The Bin Laden Group is a multinational construction conglomerate and holding company for the assets owned by the bin Laden family. It was founded in 1950 by Sheik Mohammed bin Laden, father of the terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden.

Freeman told the AP companies that have "had very long and profitable relationships are now running for public relations cover."

He said bin Laden remains "a very honored name" in the Saudi kingdom.

In a separate interview Sept. 28, 2001, Freeman told the Wall Street Journal he spoke at the time to two of Osama bin Laden's brothers following the mega terrorist attacks. He said they told him the FBI had been "remarkably sensitive, tactful and protective" of the family during the current crisis.

The Journal noted Freeman's ties to the bin Laden family went beyond admiration and business. He served as president of the Middle East Policy Council, a Washington-based Saudi backed nonprofit that at time was receiving tens of thousands of dollars a year from the bin Laden family.

Freeman maintained to the Journal that the bin Laden family company was closely aligned with American interests and that the group was part of the "establishment that Osama's trying to overthrow."

Osama bin Laden worked briefly in his family business and is reported to have inherited as much as $50 million from his father in cash and stock. The Saudi Bin Laden Group has invested in the Carlyle Group, a global private equity investment firm to which former President George H. W. Bush served as adviser. Former President George W. Bush sat on the board.

Rindsberg noted several investigations by U.S. intelligence agencies and journalists of the bin Laden family's ties to al-Qaida and Osama bin Laden, raising questions about the authenticity of the family's claim of distance from the terrorist chieftain.

Vincent Cannistro, a former CIA counter-terrorism specialist, for example, asserts that some bin Laden factions have not disowned Osama.

Also, Carmen bin Laden, a sister-in-law of Osama, told the German magazine Der Spiegel that the "Bin Ladens never disowned Osama; in this family, a brother remains a brother, no matter what he has done."

Freeman heavily critical of U.S., Israel

Meanwhile, Freeman's likely appointment has sparked concern among the pro-Israel community.

Blogs and Israeli news media websites have been highlighting recent comments Freeman made that are perceived as heavily critical of Israel.

He told the Washington Institute of Foreign Affairs in 2007 that Israeli policy is generating anti-American sentiment while the Jewish state "no longer even pretends to seek peace with the Palestinians; it strives instead to pacify them."

"American identification with Israeli policy has also become total. Those in the region and beyond it who detest Israeli behavior, which is to say almost everyone, now naturally extend their loathing to Americans," he claimed.

Freeman lauded Hamas as "is the only democratically-elected government in the Arab world and claimed the terrorist group "is showing that if we offer it nothing but unreasoning hostility and condemnation, it will only stiffen its position and seek allies among our enemies. In both cases, we forfeit our influence for no gain."

An investigative article by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency in 2005 exposed how Freeman's Middle East Policy Council was peddling to American schools a wildly inaccurate, anti-Israel, Saudi-funded textbook.

His council joined with California-based Arab World and Islamic Resources in selling to U.S. schools the "Arab World Studies Notebook." The JTA found the book described Jerusalem as unequivocally "Arab," characterized Jewish residence in the holy city as "settlement"; labeled the "question of Jewish lobbying" against "the whole question of defining American interests and concerns"; and suggested the Quran "synthesizes and perfects earlier revelations."

"Freeman is a strident critic of Israel and a textbook case of the old-line Arabism that afflicted American diplomacy at the time the state of Israel was born," Steve Rosen, a former top official of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, wrote on his "Obama Mideast Monitor" blog hosted by the Middle East Forum.

Rindsberg notes Freeman also heavily criticized Bush's policy after 9/11. In 2006, in a speech to the U.S. Information Agency Alumni Association, Freeman compared Bush to Caligula and slammed America as a country that "stifles debate at home, that picks and chooses which laws it will ignore or respect, and whose opposition party whines but does not oppose."

MURDOCH WARNS: NATIONS WILL BE REDEFINED, FUTURES ALTERED

Media baron Rupert Murdoch issued an urgent internal communication late Monday, warning his staff: "We are in the midst of a phase of history in which nations will be redefined and their futures fundamentally altered."

MORE

The dramatic call comes as markets continue their plunge and the future of media becomes increasingly muddled.

"Many people will be under extreme pressure and many companies mortally wounded," Murdoch declared.

"Our competitors will be sorely tempted to take the easy beat, to reduce quality in the search for immediate dividends."

He continued: "Let me be very clear about our company: where others might step back from their commitment to their viewers, their users, readers and customers – we will renew ours.

"The direction of the business now and over the next few years will define the character of our company for decades."

Developing...

Lawmakers Cite Economic Crisis in Effort to Ban Death Penalty

By Cristina Corbin

...."We're looking at any way we can to save money moving forward in the state of Kansas," McGinn told FOXNews.com. "This will save significant money -- money that could be used toward education programs and toward community corrections programs," she said.

Colorado, Kansas, Maryland, Montana, New Hampshire, Nebraska and New Mexico are among those states actively considering abolishing executions as a way to cut costs. But in other states, including Texas and California, the debate has gained little ground. ....

Official: U.S. to Provide Substantial Aid for Gaza Reconstruction

FOX News' Nina Donaghy and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

U.S. aid for Gaza reconstruction will be "substantial," a State Department official told FOX News Tuesday after reports that the Obama administration plans to designate at least $900 million to rebuild the war-ravaged strip controlled by the U.S.-designated terror group Hamas

The official could not confirm reports about the size of the package intended to be administered through the Palestinian Authority led by Mahmoud Abbas. The PA, which is headquartered in the West Bank, does not have control on the ground in Gaza, and the U.S. has no formal contacts with Hamas.

"Our pledge will be substantial, that it will contain new funding and funding we had planned for 2009," the official said. "As the secretary said, it is not all finished yet, so can't confirm a $900 million package."

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Tuesday -- as she prepared to make her first Mideast trip as America's top diplomat.-- that details on the package are still being worked out.

"We have made no decisions, and we are working across the government to determine what our approach will be," she said, adding that she's looking forward to attending the international donors conference for Gaza on March 2 in Egypt.

"But you know, there's still a lot of work to do," she said.

Israeli and Palestinian officials said Monday that Clinton will visit Israel and the West Bank during the first week of March. Clinton said during her Asia trip last week that she would attend an international donors conference in Egypt on March 2 to discuss reconstruction in Gaza, which last month was battered in fighting with Israeli Defense Forces responding to rockets fired from the strip

The Israeli officials, meanwhile, said Clinton will arrive in Israel on March 2 for meetings with the country's top leaders. Israel is currently ruled by a caretaker government as Likud Party leader Benjamin Netanyahu cobbles together a new coalition.

The Israeli officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the visit had not been announced by the State Department, which has not released Clinton's schedule for next week.

Yasser Abed Rabbo, a senior aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said Clinton also would visit the West Bank during her stay.

History Unfolding

(Compiler's note: A must read and consider what this lady is pointing out. This is clearly an important read.)

by Pat Dollard

I am a student of history. Professionally, I have written 15 books in six languages, and have studied it all my life. I think there is something monumentally large afoot, and I do not believe it is just a banking crisis, or a mortgage crisis, or a credit crisis. Yes these exist, but they are merely single facets on a very large gemstone that is only now coming into a sharper focus.

Something of historic proportions is happening. I can sense it because I know how it feels, smells, what it looks like, and how people react to it. Yes, a perfect storm may be brewing, but there is something happening within our country that has been evolving for about ten to fifteen years. The pace has dramatically quickened in the past two.

We demand and then codify into law the requirement that our banks make massive loans to people we know they can never pay back? Why?

We learn just days ago that the Federal Reserve, which has little or no real oversight by anyone, has "loaned" two trillion dollars (that is $2,000,000,000,000) over the past few months, but will not tell us to whom or why or disclose the terms. That is our money. Yours and mine. And that is three times the $700B we all argued about so strenuously just this past September. Who has this money? Why do they have it? Why are the terms unavailable to us? Who asked for it? Who authorized it? I thought this was a government of "we the people," who loaned our powers to our elected leaders. Apparently not.

We have spent two or more decades intentionally de-industrializing our economy. Why?

We have intentionally dumbed down our schools, ignored our history, and no longer teach our founding documents, why we are exceptional, and why we are worth preserving. Students by and large cannot write, think critically, read, or articulate. Parents are not revolting, teachers are not picketing, school boards continue to back mediocrity. Why?

We have now established the precedent of protesting every close election (now violently in California over a proposition that is so controversial that it wants marriage to remain between one man and one woman. Did you ever think such a thing possible just a decade ago?) We have corrupted our sacred political process by allowing unelected judges to write laws that radically change our way of life, and then mainstream Marxist groups like ACORN and others to turn our voting system into a banana republic. To what purpose?

Now our mortgage industry is collapsing, housing prices are in free fall, major industries are failing, our banking system is on the verge of collapse, social security is nearly bankrupt, as is medicare and our entire government, our education system is worse than a joke (I teach college and know precisely what I am talking about) - the list is staggering in its length, breadth, and depth. It is potentially 1929 x ten. And we are at war with an enemy we cannot name for fear of offending people of the same religion, who cannot wait to slit the throats of your children if they have the opportunity to do so.

And now we have elected a man no one knows anything about, who has never run so much as a Dairy Queen, let alone a town as big as Wasilla , Alaska . All of his associations and alliances are with real radicals in their chosen fields of employment, and everything we learn about him, drip by drip, is unsettling if not downright scary (Surely you have heard him speak about his idea to create and fund a mandatory civilian defense force stronger than our military for use inside our borders? No? Oh of course. The media would never play that for you over and over and then demand he answer it. Sarah Palin's pregnant daughter and $150,000 wardrobe is more important.)

Mr. Obama's winning platform can be boiled down to one word: Change.

Why?

I have never been so afraid for my country and for my children as I am now.

This man campaigned on bringing people together, something he has never, ever done in his professional life. In my assessment, Obama will divide us along philosophical lines, push us apart, and then try to realign the pieces into a new and different power structure. Change is indeed coming. And when it comes, you will never see the same nation again.

And that is only the beginning.

And I thought I would never be able to experience what the ordinary, moral German felt in the mid-1930s. In those times, the savior was a former smooth-talking rabble-rouser from the streets, about whom the average German knew next to nothing. What they did know was that he was associated with groups that shouted, shoved, and pushed around people with whom they disagreed; he edged his way onto the political stage through great oratory. Conservative "losers" read it right now.

And promises. Economic times were tough, people were losing jobs, and he was a great speaker. And he smiled and waved a lot. And people, even newspapers, were afraid to speak out for fear that his "brown shirts" would bully them into submission. And then, he was duly elected to office, a full-throttled economic crisis at hand [the Great Depression]. Slowly but surely he seized the controls of government power, department by department, person by person, bureaucracy by bureaucracy. The kids joined a Youth Movement in his name, where they were taught what to think. How did he get the people on his side? He did it promising jobs to the jobless, money to the moneyless, and goodies for the military-industrial complex. He did it by indoctrinating the children, advocating gun control, health care for all, better wages, better jobs, and promising to re-instill pride once again in the country, across Europe , and across the world. He did it with a compliant media-did you know that? And he did this all in the name of justice and . . . change. And the people surely got what they voted for.

(Look it up if you think I am exaggerating.)

Read your history books. Many people objected in 1933 and were shouted down, called names, laughed at, and made fun of. When Winston Churchill pointed out the obvious in the late 1930s while seated in the House of Lords in England (he was not yet Prime Minister), he was booed into his seat and called a crazy troublemaker. He was right, though.

Don't forget that Germany was the most educated, cultured country in Europe. It was full of music, art, museums, hospitals, laboratories, and universities. And in less than six years-a shorter time span than just two terms of the U. S. presidency-it was rounding up its own citizens, killing others, abrogating its laws, turning children against parents, and neighbors against neighbors. All with the best of intentions, of course. The road to Hell is paved with them.

As a practical thinker, one not overly prone to emotional decisions, I have a choice: I can either believe what the objective pieces of evidence tell me (even if they make me cringe with disgust); I can believe what history is shouting to me from across the chasm of seven decades; or I can hope I am wrong by closing my eyes, having another latte, and ignoring what is transpiring around me.

Some people scoff at me, others laugh, or think I am foolish, naive, or both. Perhaps I am. But I have never been afraid to look people in the eye and tell them exactly what I believe-and why I believe it. I pray I am wrong. I do not think I am.

Tea Party revolution brewing

by Andrea Shea King

The kettle's whistling. Tea Parties are popping up all over the country. People are flocking to these sites which have cropped up practically overnight in search of information about rallies, demonstrations and Tea Parties in their cities. The revolution is brewing!

....Mark the date: February 19, 2009 when Santelli might have unwittingly fired a shot signaling the beginning of The Great Revolution, spawning dozens of citizen Tea Party Protests across the country. Responding to Santelli's passionate comments, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs suggested Santelli drink a cup of decaf coffee. We prefer tea....

"Somebody in our government needs to finally pay attention. It is what I've been talking about that was coming for a very long time and that is disenfranchisement which will turn into anger and then turn into God knows what," Glenn Beck said Friday on his radio program about CNBC'S Rick Santelli's passionate comments made Thursday from the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange

....

TCOP (Top Conservatives on Twitter) are coordinating simultaneous nationwide rallies and demonstrations for this Friday at noon ET in Chicago, Washington D.C., Fayetteville, N.C., Pittsburgh, Penn., San Diego, Calif., Fort Worth, Texas, Tulsa, Okla., Oklahoma City, Orlando, Fla., Omaha, Neb., Atlanta, Ga., and elsewhere in Missouri. More cities are joining in every day.

Soldier doubts eligibility, defies president's orders

By Bob Unruh

'As an officer, my sworn oath to support and defend our Constitution requires this'

A U.S. soldier on active duty in Iraq has called President Obama an "impostor" in a statement in which he affirmed plans to join as plaintiff in a challenge to Obama's eligibility to be commander in chief.

The statement was publicized by California attorney Orly Taitz who, along with her Defend Our Freedom Foundation, is working on a series of legal cases seeking to uncover Obama's birth records and other documents that would reveal whether he meets the requirements of the U.S. Constitution.

"As an active-duty officer in the United States Army, I have grave concerns about the constitutional eligibility of Barack Hussein Obama to hold the office of president of the United States," wrote Scott Easterling in a "to-whom-it-may-concern" letter.

Obama "has absolutely refused to provide to the American public his original birth certificate, as well as other documents which may prove or disprove his eligibility," Easterling wrote. "In fact, he has fought every attempt made by concerned citizens in their effort to force him to do so."

Taitz told WND she had advised Easterling to obtain legal counsel before making any statements regarding the commander-in-chief, but he insisted on moving forward. His contention is that as an active member of the U.S. military, he is required to follow orders from a sitting president, and he needs – on pain of court-martial – to know that Obama is eligible.

Where's the proof Barack Obama was born in the U.S. or that he fulfills the "natural-born American" clause in the Constitution? If you still want to see it, join more than 250,000 others and sign up now!

Taitz said other legal cases questioning Obama's eligibility filed by members of the military mostly have included retired officers, and courts several times have ruled they don't have standing to issue their challenge.

Easterling, however, is subject to enemy fire and certainly would have a reason to need to know the legitimacy of his orders, she argued.

"Until Mr. Obama releases a 'vault copy' of his original birth certificate for public review, I will consider him neither my Commander in Chief nor my President, but rather, a usurper to the Office – an impostor," his statement said.

Easterling said he joined the Army at age 40 after working in Iraq as a contractor.

"I chose to work … to support my troops and then left that lucrative position when the Army raised its maximum enlistment age to 40. Upon completion of basic training, I entered Officer Candidate School and commissioned as a 2LT in August 2007. After completing the subsequent basic officer leadership courses, I was assigned to Ft. Knox and shortly thereafter deployed to Balad, Iraq," he wrote.

"I implore all service-members and citizens to contact their senators and representatives and demand that they require Mr. Obama prove his eligibility. Our Constitution and our great nation must not be allowed to be disgraced," he wrote.....

Obama’s Homeless Woman Is Actually Real Estate Investor

We all know them. People that abuse the system. People that work a few months of the year, just long enough to qualify for unemployment, and then jump on the unemployment bandwagon. Those that get food stamps to support their families despite being able bodied, often educated and capable of work. And, of course, the people that work “under the table” while receiving government aid intended for the truly needy.

One such image sticks in our minds from a visit last year to a local softball game. Across the street was a truck distributing food for the needy. A brand new Mercedes pulled up and out popped a couple that walked over and jumped in line. How someone driving a $60,000.00 car qualifies for free food is beyond our imagination, but somehow these people find any way they can to abuse the system.

During Obama’s campaign to promote his stimulus package, he staged an event with a woman, Henrietta Hughes, who, as it turns out, appears to be anything but truly needy. Henrietta was given an audience with Obama to beg for a home. When aid was provided via the offer of free rent by an opportunistic politician, the liberal press spouted that Henrietta was actually given a free home and implied it came from Obama. The lie has propagated through the liberal media and, quite honestly, it nauseated us because it was so obviously staged and such a distorted lie. Well, as it turns out, the lie didn’t end there.

As is often the case with such lies, more information seems to shortly rise up from the darkness to expose the truth. This situation is no different and new information about Henrietta has come to light. It appears that the desperate homeless woman owns real estate she shifted into the name of her son to avoid taxes and acquire government aid. Apparently, Henrietta is the teacher and Tom Daschle is just a student. Henrietta also apparently sold real estate at a significant profit in 2005. Henrietta has now become the poster child the Democrats wish to use to justify the massive expense of helping the chronically unemployed, not-so-needy and not-at-all-homeless.

In the spending package forced through by Democrats and signed into law by Obama, there are extensions of unemployment benefits. We believe that the government is better off extending unemployment only for those that are recently unemployed, not those unemployed annually for years, or decades. We also believe that if the government cannot properly verify actual need, they should stop programs intended for the needy until they can. That would save funds which can be used for programs that actually help America as a whole, not just the unscrupulous. We also believe that if Obama himself cannot discern between this woman and a real homeless person, he shouldn’t be expecting government will actually give our tax dollars to the truly needy when the not-so-needy will grab it first. So much for the myth of Robin Hood.

Congressman's aide sneaks secret terrorist rendezvous

By Aaron Klein

JERUSALEM – An aide to a member of the U.S. Congress held a secret meeting in the Gaza Strip with leaders of the Hamas terrorist organization, according to information obtained by WND.

Sources intimately familiar with the meeting told WND the aide, a woman, met in Gaza on Nov. 30 with Ahmed Yousef, Hamas' chief political adviser in Gaza, and Siad Siam, Hamas' "interior minister." Siam served as chief of Hamas' executive force, a guerrilla militia heavily involved in terrorism, until he was eliminated in an Israeli strike last month.

According to the sources speaking to WND, the meeting took place at the Museum, a fish restaurant in the Sudaniya neighborhood of the Gaza Strip, just next to the Gaza port. The restaurant is owned by the brother of Jamal al-Khudari, who heads the Palestinian Authority's Committee for Breaking the Israeli Siege on Gaza.

WND's sources said the aide – whose name and congressman they refused to divulge – entered Gaza under the cover of the United Nations Relief and Work Agency, or UNWRA, which came under fire this past weekend for reportedly handing Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., a Hamas letter to deliver to President Obama.

Kerry's visit to Gaza, which took place last Thursday, coincided with a similar trip that same day by U.S. Representatives Brian Baird, D-Wash., and Keith Ellison, D-Minn.

Hamas' official charter calls for the murder of Jews and the destruction of Israel. The Islamist group is responsible for scores of suicide bombings, shootings and rocket attacks aimed at Jewish civilians.

A spokesman for the State Department confirmed to WND the congressional aide's purported meeting with Hamas would break U.S. law.

Mushir al-Massri, a Hamas spokesman and Hamas parliament member, told WND his group is in direct communication with members of Congress.

"We are speaking to U.S. Congressmen," he claimed, "also members of the European Parliament."

Hamas' Yousef also said his Islamist group was in contact with members of the U.S. Congress, but he wouldn't divulge any names.

Official U.S. policy supports sidestepping Hamas, but the group has been making major inroads toward ending its isolation.

Some trace Hamas' claim of newfound international dialogue to Jimmy Carter's visit in April, when the former president met with top Hamas officials.

Immediately after Carter's meeting, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner confirmed Paris held talks with Hamas, and Norway's deputy foreign minister, Raymond Johansan, admitted meeting with Hamas leader Ismail Haniya.

Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum confirmed to WND that Hamas this year "met a delegation from the European Parliament, from France, and from Italy, and Norway, and from the EU parliament and from Carter."

"All of these are supporting Hamas, and they have a plan to support Palestinian rights and interests," Barhoum said, speaking from Gaza.

Report: U.S. advisers training Pakistan troops

New York Times says Special Forces soldiers helping battle against al-Qaida

Amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Set to Expire in 2009

Several recent amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) will sunset on December 31, 2009.

Section 6001(a) of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Protection Act (IRTPA), also known as the “lone wolf” provision, changed the rules regarding the types of individuals that could be targets of FISA-authorized searches. It permits surveillance of non-U.S. persons engaged in international terrorism, without requiring evidence linking those persons to an identifiable foreign power or terrorist organization.

Section 206 of the USA PATRIOT ACT amended FISA to permit multipoint, or “roving,” wiretaps by adding flexibility to the degree of specificity with which the location or facility subject to electronic surveillance under FISA must be identified.

Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT ACT enlarged the scope of documents that could be sought under FISA, and lowered the standard required before a court order could be issued compelling the production of documents.

While these provisions will cease to be prospectively effective on December 31, 2009, a grandfather clause permits them to remain effective with respect to investigations that began, or potential offenses that took place, before the sunset date.

To read the full report, click here.

Mexico: The Third War - Stratfor Global Intelligence

By Fred Burton and Scott Stewart

Mexico has pretty much always been a rough-and-tumble place. In recent years, however, the security environment has deteriorated rapidly, and parts of the country have become incredibly violent. It is now common to see military weaponry such as fragmentation grenades and assault rifles used almost daily in attacks.

In fact, just last week we noted two separate strings of grenade attacks directed against police in Durango and Michoacan states. In the Michoacan incident, police in Uruapan and Lazaro Cardenas were targeted by three grenade attacks during a 12-hour period. Then on Feb. 17, a major firefight occurred just across the border from the United States in Reynosa, when Mexican authorities attempted to apprehend several armed men seen riding in a vehicle. The men fled to a nearby residence and engaged the pursuing police with gunfire, hand grenades and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs). After the incident, in which five cartel gunmen were killed and several gunmen, cops, soldiers and civilians were wounded, authorities recovered a 60 mm mortar, five RPG rounds and two fragmentation grenades.

Make no mistake, considering the military weapons now being used in Mexico and the number of deaths involved, the country is in the middle of a war. In fact, there are actually three concurrent wars being waged in Mexico involving the Mexican drug cartels. The first is the battle being waged among the various Mexican drug cartels seeking control over lucrative smuggling corridors, called plazas. One such battleground is Ciudad Juarez, which provides access to the Interstate 10, Interstate 20 and Interstate 25 corridors inside the United States. The second battle is being fought between the various cartels and the Mexican government forces who are seeking to interrupt smuggling operations, curb violence and bring the cartel members to justice.

Then there is a third war being waged in Mexico, though because of its nature it is a bit more subdued. It does not get the same degree of international media attention generated by the running gun battles and grenade and RPG attacks. However, it is no less real, and in many ways it is more dangerous to innocent civilians (as well as foreign tourists and business travelers) than the pitched battles between the cartels and the Mexican government.

This third war is the war being waged on the Mexican population by criminals who may or may not be involved with the cartels. Unlike the other battles, where cartel members or government forces are the primary targets and civilians are only killed as collateral damage, on this battlefront, civilians are squarely in the crosshairs.

The Criminal Front

There are many different shapes and sizes of criminal gangs in Mexico. While many of them are in some way related to the drug cartels, others have various types of connections to law enforcement — indeed, some criminal groups are composed of active and retired cops. These various types of criminal gangs target civilians in a number of ways, including, robbery, burglary, carjacking, extortion, fraud and counterfeiting. But of all the crimes committed by these gangs, perhaps the one that creates the most widespread psychological and emotional damage is kidnapping, which also is one of the most underreported crimes. There is no accurate figure for the number of kidnappings that occur in Mexico each year. All of the data regarding kidnapping is based on partial crime statistics and anecdotal accounts and, in the end, can produce only best-guess estimates. Despite this lack of hard data, however, there is little doubt — based even on the low end of these estimates — that Mexico has become the kidnapping capital of the world.

One of the difficult things about studying kidnapping in Mexico is that the crime not only is widespread, affecting almost every corner of the country, but also is executed by a wide range of actors who possess varying levels of professionalism — and very different motives. At one end of the spectrum are the high-end kidnapping gangs that abduct high-net-worth individuals and demand ransoms in the millions of dollars. Such groups employ teams of operatives who carry out specialized tasks such as collecting intelligence, conducting surveillance, snatching the target, negotiating with the victim’s family and establishing and guarding the safe houses.

At the other end of the spectrum are gangs that roam the streets and randomly kidnap targets of opportunity. These gangs are generally less professional than the high-end gangs and often will hold a victim for only a short time. In many instances, these groups hold the victim just long enough to use the victim’s ATM card to drain his or her checking account, or to receive a small ransom of perhaps several hundred or a few thousand dollars from the family. This type of opportunistic kidnapping is often referred to as an “express kidnapping”. Sometimes express kidnapping victims are held in the trunk of a car for the duration of their ordeal, which can sometimes last for days if the victim has a large amount in a checking account and a small daily ATM withdrawal limit. Other times, if an express kidnapping gang discovers it has grabbed a high-value target by accident, the gang will hold the victim longer and demand a much higher ransom. Occasionally, these express kidnapping groups will even “sell” a high-value victim to a more professional kidnapping gang.

Between these extremes there is a wide range of groups that fall somewhere in the middle. These are the groups that might target a bank vice president or branch manager rather than the bank’s CEO, or that might kidnap the owner of a restaurant or other small business rather than a wealthy industrialist. The presence of such a broad spectrum of kidnapping groups ensures that almost no segment of the population is immune from the kidnapping threat. In recent years, the sheer magnitude of the threat in Mexico and the fear it generates has led to a crime called virtual kidnapping. In a virtual kidnapping, the victim is not really kidnapped. Instead, the criminals seek to convince a target’s family that a kidnapping has occurred, and then use threats and psychological pressure to force the family to pay a quick ransom. Although virtual kidnapping has been around for several years, unwitting families continue to fall for the scam, which is a source of easy money. Some virtual kidnappings have even been conducted by criminals using telephones inside prisons.

As noted above, the motives for kidnapping vary. Many of the kidnappings that occur in Mexico are not conducted for ransom. Often the drug cartels will kidnap members of rival gangs or government officials in order to torture and execute them. This torture is conducted to extract information, intimidate rivals and, apparently in some cases, just to have a little fun. The bodies of such victims are frequently found beheaded or otherwise mutilated. Other times, cartel gunmen will kidnap drug dealers who are tardy in payments or who refuse to pay the “tax” required to operate in the cartel’s area of control.

Of course, cartel gunmen do not kidnap only their rivals or cops. As the cartel wars have heated up, and as drug revenues have dropped due to interference from rival cartels or the government, many cartels have resorted to kidnapping for ransom to supplement their cash flow. Perhaps the most widely known group that is engaging in this is the Arellano Felix Organization (AFO), also known as the Tijuana Cartel. The AFO has been reduced to a shadow of its former self, its smuggling operations dramatically impacted by the efforts of the U.S. and Mexican governments, as well as by attacks from other cartels and from an internal power struggle. Because of a steep decrease in smuggling revenues, the group has turned to kidnapping and extortion in order to raise the funds necessary to keep itself alive and to return to prominence as a smuggling organization.

In the Line of Fire

There is very little chance the Mexican government will be able to establish integrity in its law enforcement agencies, or bring law and order to large portions of the country, any time soon. Official corruption and ineptitude are endemic in Mexico, which means that Mexican citizens and visiting foreigners will have to face the threat of kidnapping for the foreseeable future. We believe that for civilians and visiting foreigners, the threat of kidnapping exceeds the threat of being hit by a stray bullet from a cartel firefight. Indeed, things are deteriorating so badly that even professional kidnapping negotiators, once seen as the key to a guaranteed payout, are now being kidnapped themselves. In an even more incredible twist of irony, anti-kidnapping authorities are being abducted and executed.

This environment — and the concerns it has sparked — has provided huge financial opportunities for the private security industry in Mexico. Armored car sales have gone through the roof, as have the number of uniformed guards and executive protection personnel. In fact, the demand for personnel is so acute that security companies are scrambling to find candidates. Such a scramble presents a host of obvious problems, ranging from lack of qualifications to insufficient vetting. In addition to old-fashioned security services, new security-technology companies are also cashing in on the environment of fear, but even high-tech tracking devices can have significant drawbacks and shortcomings.

For many people, armored cars and armed bodyguards can provide a false sense of security, and technology can become a deadly crutch that promotes complacency and actually increases vulnerability. Physical security measures are not enough. The presence of armed bodyguards — or armed guards combined with armored vehicles — does not provide absolute security. This is especially true in Mexico, where large teams of gunmen regularly conduct crimes using military ordnance. Frankly, there are very few executive protection details in the world that have the training and armament to withstand an assault by dozens of attackers armed with assault rifles and RPGs. Private security guards are frequently overwhelmed by Mexican criminals and either killed or forced to flee for their own safety. As we noted in May 2008 after the assassination of Edgar Millan Gomez, acting head of the Mexican Federal Police and the highest-ranking federal cop in Mexico, physical security measures must be supplemented by situational awareness, countersurveillance and protective intelligence.

Criminals look for and exploit vulnerabilities. Their chances for success increase greatly if they are allowed to conduct surveillance at will and are given the opportunity to thoroughly assess the protective security program. We have seen several cases in Mexico in which the criminals even chose to attack despite security measures. In such cases, criminals attack with adequate resources to overcome existing security. For example, if there are protective agents, the attackers will plan to neutralize them first. If there is an armored vehicle, they will find ways to defeat the armor or grab the target when he or she is outside the vehicle. Because of this, criminals must not be allowed to conduct surveillance at will.

Like many crimes, kidnapping is a process. There are certain steps that must be taken to conduct a kidnapping and certain times during the process when those executing it are vulnerable to detection. While these steps may be condensed and accomplished quite quickly in an ad hoc express kidnapping, they are nonetheless followed. In fact, because of the particular steps involved in conducting a kidnapping, the process is not unlike that followed to execute a terrorist attack. The common steps are target selection, planning, deployment, attack, escape and exploitation.

Like the perpetrators of a terrorist attack, those conducting a kidnapping are most vulnerable to detection when they are conducting surveillance — before they are ready to deploy and conduct their attack. As we’ve noted several times in past analyses, one of the secrets of countersurveillance is that most criminals are not very good at conducting surveillance. The primary reason they succeed is that no one is looking for them.

Of course, kidnappers are also very obvious once they launch their attack, pull their weapons and perhaps even begin to shoot. By this time, however, it might very well be too late to escape their attack. They will have selected their attack site and employed the forces they believe they need to complete the operation. While the kidnappers could botch their operation and the target could escape unscathed, it is simply not practical to pin one’s hopes on that possibility. It is clearly better to spot the kidnappers early and avoid their trap before it is sprung and the guns come out.

We have seen many instances of people in Mexico with armed security being kidnapped, and we believe we will likely see more cases of this in the coming months. This trend is due not only to the presence of highly armed and aggressive criminals and the low quality of some security personnel, but also to people placing their trust solely in reactive physical security. Ignoring the very real value of critical, proactive measures such as situational awareness, countersurveillance and protective intelligence can be a fatal mistake.

Al Qaeda calls for attacks on oil facilities

By Tom Regan

A Saudi Arabian terrorist group with ties to Al Qaeda has called for Muslims around the world to attack oil installations – including those in Canada, Venezuela, and Mexico – in order to stop the flow of oil to the United States.

NBC reports that the group, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, posted the message on its online magazine Sawt al-Jihad, or Voice of the Holy War.

Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula said in its monthly magazine posted on an Islamic Web site that "cutting oil supplies to the United States, or at least curtailing it, would contribute to the ending of the American occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan." The group said it was making the statements as part of Osama bin Laden's declared policy. It was not possible to verify independently that the posting was from the terror faction.

Al-Qaida claimed responsibility for last year's attacks on oil installations in Saudi Arabia and Yemen after bin Laden called on militants to stop the flow of oil to the West. The group also was behind the 2002 attack on a French oil tanker that killed one person in the Gulf of Aden.

NBC also reports that until 2004, Al Qaeda had refrained from calling for attacks on oil installations, seeing the money generated by oil as a boon to the Muslim world. But in a message he issued that year, Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden called for attacks in order to cripple the Western economy.

"One of the main causes for our enemies' gaining hegemony over our country is their stealing our oil; therefore, you should make every effort in your power to stop the greatest theft in history of the natural resources of both present and future generations, which is being carried out through collaboration between foreigners and [native] agents," bin Laden said. "Focus your operations on [oil production], especially in Iraq and the Gulf area, since this [lack of oil] will cause them to die off [on their own]."

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reports that in Canada, one of the countries mentioned on Al Qaeda's list of targets, the premier of Alberta – Canada's richest oil province – said security experts were aware of the threat and were monitoring the situation. But some Canadian oil producers feel the threat is very serious and that the group is "motivated to attack."

Greg Stringham, vice-president of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, told CanWest News that they too are taking the threat seriously.

"It's not the first time that it's happened and we have no credible threat to substantiate it, but still, we are taking it seriously and we've informed all of our members and contacts about that – especially those with critical infrastructure — to pay extra attention and be vigilant."

The Houston Chronicle reports that the Department of Homeland Security dismissed the threat saying it had no proof that the group was planning any kind of an attack in Mexico. And while some there are taking the threat seriously, others were openly scoffing at it.

"It would have much more force if it came from one of Osama bin Laden's allies" instead of an unknown writer, said Gabriel Guerra, an international policy analyst. "Pemex [Mexico's national oil company] has much more important things to worry about."

Canada's National Post reports that other experts also believe the threat is minimal at this particular time, but could portend trouble down the road.

Tom Quiggan, a senior fellow at the Centre of Excellence for National Security, at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University, cautioned yesterday: "We should not be overly concerned at this exact moment. Al-Qaeda is an organization has been severely weakened."

Even so, "Sawt al-Jihad has correctly analysed the oil-importing situation of the United States and concluded that it is not just Middle Eastern suppliers that are important," he said. The posting appears to be "intended to send a message to its followers that they should consider a wider set of targets than just those in the Middle East."

Agence France-Presse reports that world oil markets "shrugged off" the threatened Al Qaeda attack. Oil continued to hover around $60 a barrel.

New Study Blasts DHS Container Scanning Process

From National Defense magazine:

A new study adds fuel to an ongoing dispute between Congress and the Department of Homeland Security. The issue: screening U.S.-bound shipping containers.

The report, sponsored by the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, contends that DHS’ cargo scanning process is grossly ineffective.

DHS said last year that it would not meet a 2012 deadline that was set by Congress to electronically screen all containers headed for the United States. Instead, it planned to collect more information about the boxes’ origin and content.

Under this system, only a fraction of the 11 million containers sent to the United States each year would be screened for nuclear or radiological material.

But Congress criticized the move, and accused DHS of making excuses for not meeting the deadline.

FBI Director Warns of Terror Attacks on U.S. Cities

(Compiler's note: All the more reason for our country to regain control of its borders and who comes here -- before it is too late.)

By Carrie Johnson

FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III today warned that extremists "with large agendas and little money can use rudimentary weapons" to sow terror, raising the specter that recent attacks in Mumbai that killed 170 people last year could embolden terrorists seeking to attack U.S. cities.

At a speech to the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, Mueller said that the bureau is expanding its focus beyond al-Qaeda and into splinter groups, radicals who try to enter the country through the visa waiver program and "home-grown terrorists."

"The universe of crime and terrorism stretches out infinitely before us, and we too are working to find what we believe to be out there but cannot always see," Mueller said.

One particular concern, the FBI director said, springs from the country's background as a "nation of immigrants." Federal officials worry about pockets of possible radicals among melting-pot communities in the United States such as Seattle, San Diego, Miami or New York.

A Joint Terrorism Task Force led by the FBI, for instance, continues to investigate a group in Minneapolis after one young man last fall flew to Somalia and became what authorities believe to be the first U.S. citizen to carry out a suicide bombing. As many as a half-dozen other youths from that community in Minnesota have vanished, alarming their parents and raising concerns among law enforcement officials that a dangerous recruiting network has operated under the radar.

"The prospect of young men, indoctrinated and radicalized in their own communities . . . is a perversion of the immigrant story," Mueller said.

For the first time, Mueller also disclosed details about FBI efforts to assist Indian authorities probing a November siege by conspirators with ties to a terrorist group in Pakistan. FBI Special Agent Steve Merrill, a legal attache posted to the bureau's office in New Delhi, had been preparing to play cricket for the American team competing at the Maharajah's annual tournament, the FBI director recalled.

Instead Merrill detoured to Mumbai, where he helped to rescue Americans trapped in the burning Taj Hotel and coordinated the arrival of the bureau's rapid deployment team.

Analysts and agents from the FBI ultimately conducted 60 interviews including one of the lone surviving attacker, Ajmal Amir Kasab. Forensics experts pulled fingerprints from improvised explosive devices and recovered data from damaged cellphones, once "literally wiring a smashed phone back together," Mueller said.

North Korea May Be Ready To Test-fire Missile

from National Terror Alert Response Center

North Korea could be ready to test-fire a missile within days as satellite imagery has shown increased activity at a missile site over the past 48 hours, a defense weekly said.

A significant increase in launch preparations has occurred at the Musudan-ni missile site on the communist country’s northeastern coast, said Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., a senior analyst at Jane’s Information Group who specializes in North Korean defense and intelligence matters.

“The latest satellite images … indicate that North Korea is preparing to launch either a prototype Taepodong 2 intermediate range ballistic missile or a Paektusan 2 space launch vehicle within a matter of days,” Jane’s Defence Weekly said in a report issued Friday in London.

The report comes amid growing international pressure on the North to drop its apparent plans to fire a long-range missile believed capable of reaching U.S. territory. Washington, Seoul and Tokyo have repeatedly warned Pyongyang against firing a missile, saying the move would trigger international sanctions.

Bermudez said satellite images show the activation of launch equipment and radars, and the arrival of numerous trucks and support vehicles. Support facilities for the engine test stand were undergoing expansion, the report said.

North Korea launched a failed long-range Taepodong 2 missile in 2006. That test alarmed the world and gave new energy to the stop-and-start diplomacy over North Korea’s nuclear program. The North is believed to possess up to a dozen nuclear warheads.

Pyongyang also conducted a surprise launch of a Taepodong 1 missile over Japan in 1998.

Return of the Chandra Levy case — and illegal alien sex offender Ingmar Guandique