Yemen, Gitmo, and jihadi revolving doors
My column today spotlights Yemen’s dangerous catch-and-release program for terrorists — and ours. But before you read it, please inform yourselves of this sad passing: American sailor/U.S.S. Cole bombing survivor Johan Gokool died in Florida yesterday. He lost a leg in the attack and suffered severe PTSD. Gokool was 31. R.I.P. and never forget.
In the latest Undy-Bomber-related news, we now learn that the CIA knew of “The Nigerian” in August and had the name of a Nigerian Muslim fanatic meeting with terrorists in Yemen in November, but somehow Abdulmutallab was allowed to fly and retain his active, U.S.-issued visa because the CIA didn’t share its vital file on Abdulmutallab outside its agency. Barry-come-lately acknowledged systemic failures yesterday afternoon — and the White House is finally running away from Janet The Clown-itano’s flirtation with the lone-nut theory.
Now, if they’ll only stop releasing terrorists.
***
Bleeding hearts and jihadi revolving doors
by Michelle Malkin
Creators Syndicate
Copyright 2009
Sen. Joe Lieberman was right to sound the alarm about Yemen in the wake of the Undy-Bomber’s Christmas Day terror attack over American skies. But he was wrong to call it “tomorrow’s war.” The Yemen-based jihadist network has been at war with us for years – since before the Iraq and Afghanistan invasions, since before 9/11, and well before our current commander-in-chief had begun his vaunted work as a community organizer.
The bleeding-heart ostriches of the Left are blaming (who else?) cowboy George W. Bush for radicalizing poor, oppressed Yemenis. But the killer fruits of botched bomber Abdul Farouk Abdulmutallab’s loom have nothing to do with poverty, social injustice, Western imperialism, or Bush Derangement Syndrome. The fundamentalist Muslim is the privileged son of a Nigerian public official. He lived a “gilded life,” as the Independent of London described it, studying engineering at one of Britain’s most prestigious universities before training for terror in Yemen.
Media sympathizers have spotlighted Abdulmutallab’s web postings bemoaning his “loneliness.” But more compassion and empathy – the remedy Barack Obama prescribed in an infamously clueless Chicago community newspaper op-ed after the 9/11 attacks – are useless salves to the terrorist’s damned soul. Like so many of his wealthy, educated jihad brothers and sisters before him from Osama bin Laden to Khalid Sheikh Mohammed to Fort Hood mass killer Nidal Hasan, M.D., Abdulmutallab targeted us for who we are – dirty, unbelieving infidels – not anything we’ve denied him.
And for his failed act of self-eunuch-ery and mass murder, the all-too-enlightened leaders of al Qaeda in Yemen and beyond hailed Abdulmutallab as a “hero.”
Another of these “heroes” in Yemen is Jamal Mohammad Ahmad Al Badawi, the convicted mastermind of the U.S.S. Cole bombing that took the lives of 17 American sailors in October 2000. Despite being sentenced to the death penalty, escaping twice from jail, and being indicted in the U.S. on terrorism charges, the Yemeni government freed him in 2007 in exchange for a promise that he renounce his old infidel-murdering ways. More than two dozen of Badawi’s jailbreak buddies, including bin Laden’s former secretary, Nasir Wahayshi, reunited to form the jihadi training team that now claims it supplied Abdulmutallab with his incendiary device.
Yemen human rights activist and blogger Jane Novak has reported for years on how Yemeni intelligence and military officials have facilitated al Qaeda training camps – often providing “safe houses, training and passports to the jihadists that travel to Iraq to attempt to kill US troops.” The Yemeni government, Novak also points out, has also used al Qaeda mercenaries to fight northern rebels and to train tribal militias. Jihad spiritual advisor Anwar Awlaki, linked to the 9/11 hijackers and Fort Hood mass killer Nidal Hasan, also calls Yemen home – and reportedly blessed the Crotch Bomber attack, according to the Washington Times. (See also Bill Roggio: “Yemen permits wanted al Qaeda leaders to operate in the open.”)
Now, the Yemen government has the gall to blame the West for not providing enough assistance to stop the breeding of hundreds of future, flying Crotch Bombers.
America, unfortunately, is hardly in a position to criticize Yemen’s jihadi revolving door. ABC News reported this week that two of the four jihadi leaders behind the Christmas Day terror plot were released from Gitmo during the Bush administration in November 2007. (What a quandary for Bush-bashers who have stubbornly denied that Gitmo recidivism threatens our national security.) The freed detainees were shipped off to terror-friendly Saudi Arabia, where they underwent “art therapy rehabilitation” – the ultimate bloody brainchild of the jihadi-as-victim mindset.
In January 2009, the two “rehabilitated” recidivists released a video vowing to wage jihad to “aid the religion,” “establish the rightly-guided caliphate,” and “to fight against our enemies.” One of the duo, Said Ali al-Shihri, is suspected of involvement in a deadly bombing of the United States Embassy in Yemen’s capital, Sana, in September 2008.
Another Yemeni at Gitmo, Ali Hamza al Bahlul, was convicted by a U.S. military tribunal in the last days of the Bush administration for conspiring with al Qaeda, soliciting murder and providing material support for terrorism. He had scripted the videotaped wills of two September 11 hijackers and boasted of making a two-hour al Qaeda commercial designed to recruit suicide bombers, according to FBI testimony. The recruitment ad celebrated the U.S.S. Cole bombers in Yemen.
Hundreds of Yemeni detainees at Gitmo abandoned the benefit of the doubt years ago. Yet, Attorney General Eric Holder’s law firm, Covington and Burling, has provided dozens of them pro bono legal representation and sob-story media relations campaigns. True to form, former Covington and Burling lawyer Mark Falkoff dedicated a book of Gitmo detainee poetry to his Yemeni suspected terrorist “friends inside the wire.” And the White House is rolling out the red carpet to bring them to U.S. soil for civilian trials.
At a time when we should be disabling the jihadi revolving door, its rotating shaft is spinning out of control.
See what others have said
Note from Michelle: This section is for comments from michellemalkin.com's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that I agree with or endorse any particular comment just because I let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with my terms of use may lose his or her posting privilege.
Trackbacks
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Categories: Gitmo,Homeland Security,Islam,Terrorist attacks,War
Doug Ross @ Journal
» Don't Bogart Those Poll Numbers: Barbara Boxer's Campaign Is So Depressing, Her Aide Was Caught Smuggling Pot Into the SenateConservatives4Palin
» Obama Couldn't Even Get 1200 People to Come to a Free Event in Cleveland on a College Campus Without Begging (Update)Ed Driscoll
» Barbara Boxer to Unveil New Campaign Theme SongEd Driscoll
» It’s Deja Coakley All Over AgainAmSpecBlog
» The Success of a Failureprotein wisdom
» Jerry Brown embraces his inner Pelosi [Darleen Click]
Nah.
The won’t do that.
It sounds too much like right.
RWR
http://www.rightwingrocker.com
But as the post-”USS Cole” investigation showed, a very political resident Ambassador can be the pivotal factor in how hard the Embassy adheres to the principles of oversight and fidelity with US rules vis-a-vis sucking up the native corruptocrats.
….”versus” sucking up to….
Can’t wait to see O’s poll numbers next week.
Paging Jaime Gorelick….
Yes, some people really are that stupid.
Ignorance of your Ignorance is no excuse.
As Aloha said. The (Jaime) Gorelick Wall is what slows or stops communication between CIA & FBI. She should have been under oath giving testimony instead of being on the panel.
or so they, the Obamanites, say. The Leftist of this administration so hate the CIA that I find it hard to believe anything they say about the CIA–but then I find it hard to impossible to believe anything they say about anything. This bunch of Leftist/internationalist/One Worlders is little interested in protecting his country and our people-they will do only what they have to do to stay in power.
Hopefully some future government type will read all this and learn so when they come to government they can avoid this mess. President Bush’s cumbersome rules need to be voided-get back to the Rules of Land Warfare: illegal combatants need to be treated as illegal combatants. The execution of German Spies after the Battle of The Bulge and the hanging of young German youth who killed captured American Airman downed over German should suffice as precedence. On our soil the Nazi saboteurs landing in America from U-boats were given MILITARY TRIBUNALS-their only appeal was to the Supreme Court and soon hanged. If they were given copies of Mein Kampf as we give our Gitmo guests copies of the Koran I do not know but hanged they were.
Enough is enough. For the Fort Hood terrorist and the NWA terrorist, get them before a military tribunal, try them, convict them, and execute them.
In the meantime, hire consultants from El Al, and let’s get airport and airline security up to snuff with Israeli standards. It’s time to realize that the War on Terror is back in our homeland.
It is a rather ugly motto these people live by:
All Mohammed Atta needed was a hug
Has it occurred to anyone that this raft of mini-Hitlers currently running the United States, The U.N., and Europe actually want a terrorist attack?
It would give them the “crisis” they need to suspend what little is left of the Constitution. Thus, completing the subjugation of the United States, and ergo the rest of the socalled “free world”.
Just look at how they are using this latest incident to try to get machines in place that will strip everybody naked for the power lusting eyes of Big Brother to view. Just think what “our masters” could get away with if a jet actually went down (or worse).
What with the controlled media (which includes Fox News) screaming and yelling, and every blog (left and right) screaming and yelling. The “government” could really go to town.
This guy was aided and abetted by someone somewhere, and who knows if it was actually Al Quieda (the convenient bogeyman). Perhaps it was a bogeyman closer to home … the U.N.? The E.U.? Operatives within the current administration? Who knows? But it damned sure smells like a rat! And, it ain’t purely an Islamic rat!
In case you didn’t know, Interpol (the police force of the U.N.) now operates within our borders with powers above and beyond those of the FBI. “They”, with the help of this traitor we call “President”, are getting ready to impose their will on the U.S.A. … “They” just need the catalyst of a good “crisis” …
Now, if only these yahoos could just get it right and bring down a plane instead of only burning their genitals off, then Big Brother could stage a real take over!
Perhaps the CIA did so out of fear of being
prosecutedpersecuted, perhaps they did as they assert and attempted to share the information as is mentioned in the same story quoted here by the Communist News Network. In any event, the system that worked for eight years is broken. But will it be fixed or just wallpapered over.I guess we’ll know when there are pieces of bodies and parts of airplane(s) scattered somewhere in the US. In the meantime, we’re to sit quietly in the last hour of flight and not use the restrooms because that was what the last terrorist did. In a display of narrowly focused reactive thinking that showcases the lack of intelligent thought in the DHS and TSA hierarchies.
This will continue to happen since, as a society, we have lost the desire to protect ourselves in a realistic way. The powers that be believe in unicorns and rainbows and teaching the world to sing in perfect harmony.
It won’t change as long as the children are in charge.
Not that I could hope to improve perfection but, if I could, I would have added:
Can’t you just picture the Boy Queen?
.oO I released 12 terrorists the weekend before Christmas and what did I get? A terrorist who attempted to blow up one of my planes on Christmas. Gawd they are so stupid.
No Barry, you are the stupid one. Just keep on with the “err on the side of Islam” thinking. Some of us are going to pay with our lives.
Remember American sailor/U.S.S. Cole bombing Johan Gokool Barry? Probably not. I fear you would have your monsters try and prosecute him for trying to kick an incoming missile and denying a terrorist his right to blow sh!t up.
YHWH rest Johan Gokool’s soul.
“We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity” – remains the best way to achieve peace.
As far as I can tell, the reason that they haven’t been more successful has less to do with anything our inept liberalized PC government agencies manage to do correctly and a lot more to do with al qaida’s inability to attract intelligent people into its ranks and brainwash them into killing innocent people let alone killing themselves in the process.
The few really smart people who turn to crime almost always favor finding a non-violent means to get rich stealing from others and rarely get caught doing it,(most of them are in Congress).
There are a few notable exceptions to that notion such as Ted Kazynski who is very smart but is also certifiably insane (IMO). There’s no question that even someone like him would laugh at the idea of killing himself because … being dead would prevent him from killing more people.
There are 10′s of millions of engineers, scientists, technicians, etc. each perfectly capable of circumventing this silly facade of ‘aviation security’ to commit death and destruction beyond our wildest imagination – and yet it is difficult to find even a handful among them who would have the slightest thought of actually doing it.
For that we should be thankful and count our many many blessings.
This actually happened a long, long time ago, when we stopped caring about thugs running the streets in our inner cities.
It was back in the late 1950′s, early 1960′s. That was when we moved from prison as punishment to prison as ‘rehabilitation.’ That was when we decided criminals were people, too, really no different from the law abiding, with all of the same dreams and aspirations. Crimes were just ‘mistakes.’
We stopped recognizing individuals as each making choices defining who we are, each personally responsible for the consequences of those choices.
Instead, individuals are just animals. Their choices are always just whatever makes the animal happy. We are all the same that way. So we were told.
Once we decided on that (‘we’ being our elites and our teachers and our judges), the slow decay was inevitable.
Now foreign jihadists trying to mass murder Americans are just people, too, struggling with their own pain and confusion. We have to have compassion and understanding for them.
Obama said as much after 9/11. And the American people elected him President of the United States of America in 2008, along with an overwhelmingly Democrat Congress to give him whatever he wants.
As you sow, so shall you reap. It’s not always true of individuals, but it is certainly true of societies. Once we stopped caring about the victims of inner city thugs more than the thugs themselves, the death of our society became inevitable. Poison spreads.
It seems to me that Obama now has the conflict of authorizing an attack in Yemen, which is rapidly becoming the most politically expediant thing to do.
Napalitano will go for sure, but will he throw his medal under the bus as well?
Once again, if you were a CIA analyst and you have seen what is being done to those CIA operatives that were running intergotaions at GITMO coupled with Holder’s press release after Obama’s June Cairo speech (which basically said that Justice would go after anyone targeting Muslims wrongly) would you stick your neck out.
Obama, Holder, Pelosi, and all the Dem’s that have backed these peoples policies have alienated the CIA to the detriment of our nation.
My first thoughts upon learning that the CIA had interviewed the father, is that Jamie Gore-Lick should be strung up from the highest tree.
Sen Lieberman should be reminded that there have already been military assaults, with US assisstance, against terrorists in Yemen.
Actionable intelligence existed and it was acted upon. Much the same way it was acted upon in Pakistan and Somalia.
As for the detainees in Gitmo, they should have been dealt with a long time ago. When it was decided that the Geneva Conventions would not apply to these individuals they should have been summarily put to death. Seems choices had been made without realizing the consequences of those actions.
What is curious is that many of the detainees spoken about are Nationals of Somalia, Yemen, Saudia Arabia but not Iraq.
Of course we all know how the left likes to re-write history. They tend to forget that quite a few of the Jihadi’s that have been held (and are still being held) at GITMO were captured on the battlefield in Afghanistan after 9/11. They were there before Bush was in office for quite some time.
Could it be because we did not ignore Iraq? Just maybe?
Regardless of what they say, this Administration’s actions reflect the beliefs of the truther bunch.
And you know where that shaft is aimed. It isn’t lubricated either.
This is all just a reminder to watch the annual “Three Stooges New Year’s Marathon”!
Yes, and we know where you’ll be
This is so straightforward:
People captured on the battlefield are enemy combtants
By international law captured enemy combatants can be held until the end of hostilities
The enemy has chosen to keep fighting.
Why the “enlightened” cannot grasp these three facts is pretty pathetic.
Rogue,
Save me a seat. I’ll bring snacks and beverage.
The citizens of the US are not, in general, “dirty, unbelieving infidels”.
Lets see, Obama vowed to protect the American safety then goes back to his golf game. When are the people going to wake up? This guy is the “great pretender” he knows nothing of what a president is suppose to be. And he is to self centered to learn.
What kind of wine goes with cheese popcorn?
Because they are being handled by the US Army and Marines.
He’s had no experience in diplomacy and foreign affairs. The international community is laughing at him. I always believe that he “dances” to Reid/Pelosi’s tune. Certainly, all those fantasy dreamers in his adminstration can’t help him. Keeping him out of D.C., allows them to dictate policy, quietly in the background.
It’s just ear leader waiting for his Reichstag moment.
Blackberry. I’ll also bring dark chocolate.
nuk, nuk, nuk…..
We need to stop profiling blue haired GRANNYS, WWII MEDAL OF HONOR holders, BLUE EYED BLOND women with large chests… We will PC ourselves right into the GRAVE… Now the O-BOZO people will do what they will try to do with ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS, change the rules… All they really need to do with “THE WAR AGAINST TERRORISM” is plug the HOLES, and enforce the rules already in place… This ANIMAL didn’t get through because of lack of RULES, he got through because of INCOMPETENCE… The rules are there, just FOLLOW THE DAMN RULES…
Ripple of course. If you want to class it up a bit, add champagne and make some champipple.
Can I join in? I have the ripple!
Finally. Someone else agrees with my husband…why do I always get extra scrutiny?
To paraphrase AJ: Women with multiple chests is always a good thing.
The only cure for Islamic fundamentalism is death. Let’s invite them to a quick trip top their Paradise.
Perhaps Obama thinks Allah will strike him dead if he ever says “Islamic extremist terrorists” out loud. We are in serious trouble and need a serious leader. J. Gorelick (the wall)got away with murder under the Clinton administration.
Support our troops! They are today’s heroes and none should ever be prosecuted for keeping us safe. We cannot and must not let this happen.
Remember this: the knicker-bomber succeeded. His junk just didn’t detonate.
aloha, you never fail to hit the bullseye with wit and wisdom. obviously our state department has been educating the saudi regime in how to influence terrorists and have everyone just get along.
drudge has dave berry’s year in review, a funny and oh too accurate column.
What ever will he do now with his 72 virgins?
***
Laura Ingraham’s blog has a story that the Butt Bomber’s Nigerian dad was interviewed by the CIA at our embassy in Lagos on November 19th.
***
Two business / economic principles come to mind. One–Peter Principle?–states that people move up in an organization until they have been promoted one level above their competence skills.
***
The other–name?–that as an organization grows in size it becomes less efficient. More coordination meetings, turf wars, etc.–up to the point where outside tasks and work output from the organization diminish. And at some point the (taxpayer!) funded “business” sustains itself doing nothing useful.
***
President Bush 43 did not really want to set up the Dept. of Homeland “Security” and the T”S”A. But his hand was forced by the hue and cry from the press and Congress to “to something–anything!”.
***
The CIA was set up after the end of WW2 to replace the OSS–a WW2 military security agency that tried to prevent more intelligence failures like the Pearl Harbor attack.
***
The OSS specialized in real direct action against our country’s enemies. When they found out that Japan’s best military man–Admiral Yamamoto–would visit a forward island base in preparation for an attack–they sent out 50 fighter aircraft and shot his transport plane down in flames.
***
After the Munich Olympic terrorist attack (not “man caused disaster”) Israel decided that the only way to punish the murdering Jihadis was to hunt them down and kill them–OSS style. Within a few years all were dead.
***
A radical reorganization of our myriad “intelligence” agencies needs to happen. And OSS style HUNTER / KILLER TEAMS need to do targeted assassinations of high value Jihadi targets and of their enablers. Predator drones and Hellfire missiles are a start. The only good Jihadi is a dead Jihadi. Forget trying to get “intelligence” from them–send them on to meet and greet their 72 virgins.
***
We have reached the limits of getting much useful protection from our present approach to fighting terrorists. The TSA’s next rules may be to have all passengers disrobe at the security check point so the inspectors can check for fuzes sticking out from rear ends!
***
John Bibb
***
The easiest solution, therefor the one they WILL NOT use, is to make Muslims persona non-grata until they can get their act together. No visas, no travel, no students, no non-profits, no madrassas, NO MONEY, etc.
We don’t isolate ourselves, we isolate them just as you would a plague. They want to operate under 7th century rules, fine, but we do not have to play along.
Every time there is a Muslim demonstartion in this country there are non-US citizens out in front inflaming anti-US rhetoric. Deport them immediately. They have every right to their opinion- IN THEIR OWN COUNTRY. In our country it is called sedition and is an actionable offense- If you have the ‘stones’ to deal with it.
No pop in the weasel may indicate prostate problems. Did the TSA check his PSA?
Rocketman, hell yes. We need a new version of the CIA that still performs clandestined “wet-work.”
Of course! All are welcome! Zeroangel will be reading favorite bible passages during commercial breaks! Get your requests in early!
“Say, what’s a good word for scrutiny?” “Scrutiny.”
- Moe and Shemp (HOLD THAT LION!, 1947)
1 Curly 2:4-5
4) and the high court asked, “do you swear?”
5) “No but I know all the woids.”
Must be a little bit of Hell right now-think?
Soprano Abdulmutallab Mohammed Gotnonuts Senior Enuch and First Perpetual Virgin, Thomson Correctional Center.
Poll Question: Should we pay for skin grafts for panty bomber?
http://bellalu0.wordpress.com/2009/12/29/should-we-provide-panty-bomber-with-skin-grafts/
Many otherwise seemingly reasonable conservatives who regularly comment here think we cannot violate their right to the free exercise their religion. Objecting to America’s failure to follow shariah law is basic to the way most Muslims see their religion. Fact.
Until we have managed to fix that screwy misperception the great majority of Americans seem to have about the rights of foreigners in our country, and until most Americans realize Islam itself really is dangerous to our values, we have no chance in this struggle.
Errah
Its been playing nonstop on CSPAN for weeks now . . . .
How non-pc of them. The religion of death is in need of counseling.
/s
Moe: Yo, Joe! How is Napolitano like the Katrina situation?
Joe: Duh, I don’t know, Moe.
Moe: The same principle applies…inadequate dykes put in place by the federal government may lead to disasters.
Haw !
ROFL – THAT just made my day!
With the way this administration goes out it’s way not to offend Muslims in general I am waiting for the Muslim only express lane that TSA will be told to put in at the airport while the rest of the passengers will be given extra scrutiny.
*snerk!*
I enjoy profiling ugly moon god worshiping terrorists like those two in the above pictures.
Murder the service man in Little Rock, Fort Hood murders from SoA, five lovers of allah caught in Pakistan carry American passports, the allah worshiping shoe bomber, and the panty bomber for allah, but don’t call it terrorism.
I was just talking to a co-worker about the undy-bomber and it got us thinking. IF he had been successful and detonated his udies he would have blown his junk off.
Then he goes to meet Allah and receive his 72 virigns only to figure out he is no longer equiped to enjoy the 72 virgins….
The “war” we are fighting is the cancer of political correctness. These piles of pig s*** at Gitmo would have been dropped in the ocean, or tried in military tribunals and locked away or killed if this happened 40 years ago.
Now we even have repubs acting and sounding like imbecilic brain dead libs, all adding up to dead Americans. This Country wont defeat anybody as long as we think the military exists to make civilians of other countries feel good, rather than to kill the enemy and all those who give aid and comfort to the enemy.
What? Obama, Biden, and Pelosi are having a New Years marathon?
Lit’l Joe: Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk
Big O: Why you…
She P: Look over there. Whoop whoop whoop.
Special guest “Curly” Reid: Watch this: (puts Big O in a Ben “half-wit” Nelson) Ha, ha.
Strawberry Ripple or Boonesfarm.
Instead:
Political Correctness Makes Airport Security A Farce
Don’t you feel so much better knowing that the people they put on the Terrorist Watch List are not actually being watched? What’s the point of having the list? Is it just to make the public think they’re actively working to keep us safe?
Just last Monday U.S. intelligence officials were saying that they did not pursue the information about Umar because it was “deemed insufficient”. Apparently, so many parents are falsely accusing their children of being Muslim extremists that it’s overloading the system.
Today it comes out that the CIA really was keeping tabs on him (sort of). So, did they lie to us on Monday because they would rather have us think of them as stupid rather than incompetent?
Undies bomber FAIL + self PWN
http://cheezburger.com/View.aspx?aid=3012661760
The CIA is so restricted in what it can do that CIA now stands for:
Can’t Investigate Anything.
Re: CIA Operatives killed in Afghanistan
My heart go out to their families.
I know they’re supposed to be “silent soldiers” but is there any fund or memorial one can contribute to for these people far behind the lines in the maul of harm’s way? I really want them to know that we (or most) honor them too!
James Greenidge
Queens NY
Yes. Politicians can point to the list and say that they are “actively” working on our security. You’ll notice that everything the government does, is mostly inept. This is the same government that wants to run our health care. Lord, help us.
I’ve thought for some time that the amount of foreign aid we send to hundreds of countries allows them to not only breed without thought to sustainability, but relieve them of the duty to work and achieve. We send Yemen $70 million to enhance security now, and with this latest incident we’re considering doubling it. Cut off the foreign aid, allow them to sort out their own problems but do isolate them. One nutcase going postal on an aircraft in his belief of rewards of raisins/virgins and no civilized country should allow any of them to enter their countries. We have met the enemy and it is us.
The only good thing I can see with the use of body scanners is that burqa’d women will not travel. Or will there be special screenings for them?
There is, one small silver lining to the Abdulmatullab story, Al Qaeda is fixated on aircraft or aircraft bombings still following the words of Osama bin Laden.
By now I’d have expected something more along the lines of the VBIED and suicide bomber attacks that occur in Iraq. Imagine if you will what might have happened if several suicide bombers had self-detonated in say, the Mall of the Americas on Black Friday?
or a VBIED along the packed route of the Macy’s parade route in NYC? So far, only one such attempt in Dallas that fizzled. A single bomb in a theater full of moviegoers to something like Avatar would also have been devastating.
While its true that the aircraft bomb incidents and our comic law-enforcement based ‘Security’ efforts and increased spending on full body scanners and costs of enhanced ‘security’ do cripple us economically to a far greater extent than the investment in bombers and ‘bombs’. It is also far less than might occur in another scenario.
This silver lining may in part be due to our efforts to identify and eliminate bomb makers in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere across the globe (except for Europe where Interpol and various national security forces seem to be highly ineffective). It also may be due to rival factions attacking each other e.g., Wahabbis vs. other Sunni and Shia in Pakistan. It may also be in part due to the leadership of Bin Laden or Zawahiri too.
Whatever it is, so far it has not been employed as it was in Spain, Italy and Britain.
So there are some blessings to be counted even in the outpouring of concern over this latest act of terror.
Why flight 253 out of so many flights to choose from? I mean there is a reason they picked this particular flight, who was on the passenger manifest? It seems nobody is asking that question. Did Alqeada have a particular target, they were targeting on that flight? If they are targeting someone or some people in particular does that mean they have identified some of our intelligence people or US Citizens? If so did they get sensitive information from say Major Hassan? What kind of security clearance did he have? There is more to this story we are not being told.
Who, What, When and Where, the lamestream media is only reporting the most sensational aspects of this incident. Who uses flight 253 on a regular basis “Frequent Flyers” The KEY appears to be Dubai.
From January until July 2009, he attended a master’s of international business degree program at University of Wollongong in Dubai.[69][70][71]
Most passengers on Daallo’s Mogadishu route are Somali. The carrier’s website calls it the national airline of Somalia’s neighbor Djibouti. About 1,800 U.S. troops are stationed in Djibouti; Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, would offer the greatest range of westbound flights.
U.S. officials investigate Somali case for links to Detroit incident
Last month a man allegedly carrying chemicals and a syringe was arrested before boarding a plane in Mogadishu. Similar items were allegedly used in the attempted bombing Christmas Day.
My knowledge of Islam is only sketchy at best, but can somebody explain to me why a martyr can expect to be serviced by 72 virgins in paradise, while he should also be expected to murder a female relative in this life for promiscuity? I should think that promiscuity is bad in this life and the afterlife.
There are a couple of things I haven’t seen discussed much amid all of this -
Like, whether Napolitano really meant that The System Worked from start to finish (some thoughts on THAT) or whether she actually meant the version that she backpedalled into later – that she was only talking about the 60-90 minutes after the attack started – what I’m not hearing discussed is what The System didn’t do.
I’m also barely hearing a thing about the new report on Gitmo recidivism that the Obama White House is keeping ‘classified’ rather than releasing it to the public, as that eeevil Bush did with previous versions… all the while, doing the polar-opposite of the very things he’s previously said ‘As simply as possible’…
Oh yes, also…
I keep hearing The One talk about how, if successful, the Christmas Day bombing (notice, he doesn’t mention ‘Christmas’ nor utter the word ‘Islamic’ at any point) would have ‘cost the lives of nearly 300 people’…
Couple of points:
1)Abdulmutallab tried to detonate during the plane’s descent into Detroit.
2)International flights into Detroit make a northerly approach into the airport.
Now take a look at THIS and tell me that this would have been ‘at a cost of nearly 300 lives’…
Past the soap opera drama of this person’s life, we are not being told anything. And that is what the powers that be think of us.
I have lots of questions, and none are being answered by cable news sound bytes.
Al Qeada planned this out, that means someone was doing the reconnaissances who picked flight 253, and why that flight, and that destination. Who uses this flight on a regular basis, who flies home for Christmas ? Hint NOT Muslims.
Any way to delete my last post? I meant only to reply to Laree’s post about some special significance to flight 253.
The left seems unable to grasp the fact that at some point they have to take responsibility for something or other(bad or good) or become non-existent and totally ineffectual. When someone mentions the left the day is coming when poeple will look preplexed and ask ‘Who?’ ‘What?’
http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2009/12/flight_253_passenger_kurt_hask.html
what does this all mean? Was some foreign official in on this thing?
It is a shame that the American public has lost confidence in their government. The biggest shame;however, lies in the corruption and underhanded politicians that brought this about.
As a sad issue, it is not entirely the fault of the CIA.
“Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat, said “restrictive” counterterrorism policies were partly to blame by discouraging authorities from placing Abdulmutallab on a “no-fly” list, or from revoking his U.S. visa.
The policies, Feinstein said, should be changed so the U.S. government can watchlist and deny visas to anyone who is “reasonably believed to be affiliated with, part of, or acting on behalf of a terrorist organization.”
Republican Representative Michael Castle singled out the National Counterterrorism Center, or NCTC, the agency that was “designed to connect the dots on terrorism.”
“Red flags” were missed across the board, he said. Abdulmutallab had no checked luggage; he paid for his ticket with cash; and British officials had rejected his visa renewal application and had his name on their own watch list.”
To everyone here, and especially to Michelle and her family, I wish the best in the coming New Year. Sitting at home watching a Moody Blues concert. We oldtimers remember them well.
Bonne Annee! S Novym Godom! Aide Shoma Mobarak! Frohe Neue Jahre! Haouli Makahiki Hou! or just plain ol’ Happy New Year Y’all!
You may also wish to read the English translation of Al Qaeda in Arabia’s version of the events of NWA Flight 253 and its aftermath here from Al Ansar.
This is their ‘take’ on the story.
todays news of how our cia agents died is further proof of the pc incompetence and can’t we all just get along of this government. the cia INVITED this jihadist onto the base, didn’t frisk him, because instead of wanting to kill the (_*_) they wanted to “turn him” to work for us. so 1 jihadist kills 8 cia agents and wounds another 6. what, was this a cia convention? does it really take 15 americans to pitch a proposal to 1 muslim? does anyone in d.c. get the message, these are our enemy, KILL THEM, DON’T SIT DOWN TO TEA WITH THEM!
On January 1st, 2010 at 8:55 am, cheapseat said:
It’s a risk of the job. One of the primary needs in a war like this is to identify not only the enemy but more importantly the enemy leadership. Even better is to know what the enemy and its leadership are doing in advance in order to thwart them and render ineffective key members of the enemy organization. In all likelihood, the guy was not a ‘foot soldier’ in the Taliban or Al Qaeda organization (not sure which at present) so the precautions were not the same as those undertaken when dealing with an ‘expendable’ asset. It probably didn’t take 14 agents to try to ‘turn’ this enemy operator. More likely the others were nearby working on other things. But, while you may not believe it, I’m certain that the potential risk had been evaluated and deemed acceptable. It’s the risk associated with the job.
I’ll wait for several days, perhaps weeks before finding out whether any of the casualties were people I know. The costs of that job even if you aren’t killed by a jihadi are high.
Anyway, Happy New Year.
The first road sign leading to Destruction Ave is Political Correctness Blvd.
I think they are desperate and feeling the heat….of predator drones. I guess they don’t get that there are more than 12 CIA agents in the whole program. They just moved themselves up an operational chart I am guessing
CIA base attacked in Afghanistan supported airstrikes against al-Qaeda, Taliban
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/31/AR2009123100541.html