The Terrorism Warning Process: A Look behind the Curtain

By Fred Burton
Stratfor
TERRORISM INTELLIGENCE REPORT

"U.S. and German officials fear terrorists are in the advanced planning stages of an attack against U.S. military personnel or tourists in Germany, ABC News reported May 11. The report followed the issuance of a Warden Message by the U.S. Embassy in Berlin on April 20 announcing that U.S. diplomatic and consular facilities in Germany were increasing their security posture in response to a heightened threat situation. The message, which remains in effect, also encouraged Americans in Germany to increase their vigilance and take appropriate steps to bolster their own personal security. Continuing chatter from a number of sources indicates the threat is real.

The warning comes as no surprise. Like much of Europe, Germany has a large Muslim population, and within that population is a small but dedicated radical element. It was in Germany where a diverse group of Muslim students from various countries was radicalized and later organized into the "Hamburg Cell." Members of the cell, including Mohamed Atta and Ramzi Binalshibh, would go on to attend al Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan, where they were selected to form the nucleus for al Qaeda's 9/11 operation. Even after the Hamburg Cell was dismantled, the jihadist network in Germany has remained active in publishing Internet propaganda and recruiting and sending young Muslim men to fight in places like Iraq."

Continue reading ....

JOHN MCCAIN AS THE PERFECT LIBERAL

In the last Republican debate John McCain was given a scenario whereby a fourth set of suicide bombers was captured off the coast of Florida after successful missions were carried out in three U.S. shopping centers by fellow jihadists, killing hundreds and injuring thousands, but before this 4th group could put their plan into action, and with U. S. intelligence believing that another larger attack was in the works and could come at anytime. He was asked how aggressively we should interrogate these prisoners.

While answering the question, part of his response was: "The use of torture -- we could never gain as much we would gain from that torture as we lose in world opinion."

Dr. Jack Wheeler correctly states that it sounds like John McCain would rather have countless Americans die in a terrorist attack than have people in foreign countries not like us.

Further, Dr. Wheeler observes:

"..... pathological caring for what others think, especially in a foreign policy/national security context, what non-Americans in foreign countries think of America, is the core psychological mind-set of what makes a liberal a liberal."

ABOUT IMMIGRATION REFORM

You know it's a bad policy when Ted Kennedy Boosts Immigration Deal.

Immigration Bill Prompts Concern All Around
Reaction to the “Bush-Kennedy” immigration reform bill is drawing strong condemnation from many conservatives, and part of the anger stems from the fact that it was crafted in secret -- and will now be rushed straight to the Senate floor. Some liberals also criticized the compromise bill, saying it doesn’t go far enough to protect a new “underclass” of workers...

Washington Times:
Immigration Bill Offers Path to Citizenship

USA Today:
Key provisions in the immigration proposal

Boston Globe:
Adversaries praise a relentless Kennedy

Take a Deep Breath: Immigration
By Rich Galen

The Immigration Bill which was announced with great fanfare yesterday will (a) be about 738 pages long and (b) will not pass the House as it is currently written. Amendments anyone? This deal is a long, long way from being done.... more.

Understanding the Worth of Our Nation
By Frank Salvato

It is difficult to value something when its worth is unknown. This basic truth applies to our American heritage and the continued welfare of our nation. Most of us have never had to take up arms to protect our freedoms, our liberties, and our rights. Today, our country faces both a threat from abroad and a threat, in the form of ideological conflict, from within. Some among us choose to accentuate the imperfections of our nation. Some condemn our culture. And still others literally champion our nation’s defeat and demise. Those who choose to diminish the significance of the United States’ contributions to the world, do so in ignorance of the intent of the documents that charted the course for this great nation … more

Israel Attacks Hamas Targets As Rockets Fall
Jerusalem – More rockets slammed into southern Israel on Friday morning, and in response to the continuing provocation, the Israeli Air Force attacked additional Hamas targets inside the Gaza Strip. Israeli Foreign Minister met Tzipi Livni met with foreign ambassadors on Friday morning to explain Israel’s position...

Bush Doctrine Is ‘Only Option,’ Expert Says
(CNSNews.com) – Urging the United States to press on with its mission in Iraq, a policy expert argued Thursday that the Bush Doctrine is the “only option we have.”

The New Penance doesn't Offset Much

By Victor Davis Hanson

"What do leftist, mostly secular elites share with medieval sinners?

They feel bad that the way they live sometimes doesn't quite match their professed dogma." Continue.

Democrat opponents of free speech squash that "Dissent Is Patriotic" stuff

By Jon Sanders

'Why don't you go f--- yourself?'

"That was how House Democrat Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel reportedly responded to a Politico reporter's request – made 'in the effort for openness and disclosure' – to sit in on a caucus debate over the language of a lobbying bill.

The incident is emblematic. The Democrats this year have taken a disturbingly statist downturn in their approach to governing, especially regarding speech by political opponents and presumed unfriendly press.

An early sign of this tendency was the orchestrated walkout by Democrat presidential candidates from debates co-sponsored by Fox News over the networks' presumed conservative bias. The spectacle was clownish at first glance, but it revealed a deep-seated aversion to question or debate that is not only unattractive in political leadership, but also downright ominous." More...

House GOP Forces Democrats to Back Down on Unaccountable Tax Hikes

By John Boehner

"This week, House Republicans were united in backing down an attempt by Democrats to rewrite House rules to make it easier to raise taxes on middle-class families and increase government spending without having to vote and be held accountable. We stared them down, and we won."

More....

You’re Listening to Radio Free Congress

"I had planned on talking a bit today about Venezuela. The president there doesn't like the way his media is covering him, so he's doing away with the free press. He's established rules on what he thinks is fair, and he’s denying licenses to television and radio stations that don't play by government rules.

I can't criticize him now, though. After all, how would it seem for me to complain about another country, when our own congressional leadership is trying to put the same sort of rules in place here? To do so, they're pulling the Fairness Doctrine out of the dustbin of history.

The Fairness Doctrine is an artifact ....."

More of You’re Listening to Radio Free Congress by Fred Thompson.

Who says it's wrong to take sides in a civil war?

"Without much notice and even less discussion, 'civil war' has become the new abracadabra phrase for American foreign policy.

Sen. Joe Biden leads the magicians who've seemed to convince everybody that......"

More by Jonah Goldberg.

Forget winning 'hearts and minds' - win the war

'This fight depends on securing the population, which must understand that we -- not our enemies -- occupy the moral high ground.' -- Gen. David Petraeus, May 10, 2007

"Oh, they must, must they?

With his single sentence, Gen. Petraeus reveals what's wrong with our Iraq policy. Success depends not on our own actions, but on a politically correct expectation of how Iraqis will react to those actions. It seems that victory depends on something over which we have no control -- the point of view and behavior of people in Iraq."

More by Diana West.

Illusion of Safety:The False Promise of Gun-Free Zones

By Ken Blackwell

Republicans Really Are the Stupid Party

"The 'stupid party' moniker has often been applied to the GOP, but seldom has it been more applicable than it is to today's Republican Party.

The Republican politicians, insulated from .... "

By John Hawkins

Congress is choking on corn-based fuel.
BY KIMBERLEY A. STRASSEL

Fred Thompson isn't yet running, but he's running a great campaign.

By Peggy Noonan

Wolfowitz's resignation offers a window into a corrupt institution.

“In order to become the master, the politician poses as the servant.”
—Charles de Gaulle

Shame on you Noah.....

“Every child in America should be acquainted with his own country. He should read books that furnish him with ideas that will be useful to him in life and practice. As soon as he opens his lips, he should rehearse the history of his own country.” —Noah Webster

Didn't you know that this might lead to patriotism and love of country? And this always leads to bad ideas and bad policies? What were you thinking?

Big Business Proposes Health Care Reform

A jackpot or a worker rip-off?
By Ronald Bailey

"Big business jumped on board the health care reform train earlier this week with the announcement of ...."
Read more at Reason Magazine.

Rev. Robert Sirico: Free Economies and the Common Good
(Acton Institute)

Science Teacher Shows Class Two Different Global Warming Films ........

Says ‘Science Is Not about Consensus’
(Daytona Beach News-Journal)

Islamists always believed the U.S. was weak.

Recent political trends won't change their view.
BY BERNARD LEWIS

What you didn't read about Jim Comey's Senate testimony.

Democrats and former Deputy Attorney General James Comey put on quite a Senate show Tuesday over the National Security Agency's wiretapping program. With New York's Chuck Schumer directing, the players staged ...."

China and Japan, pursuing power--and trying to keep it.

BY EMILY PARKER

Paul Wolfowitz's judges may have ethical issues of their own.

BY BRET STEPHENS

Congress's dodge: They're for the war but also against it.

Global Warming on Hold?

From: National Climactic Data Center, NOAA Satellite and Information Services

UNITED STATES

Climate Summary

April 2007

The average temperature in April 2007 was 51.7 F. This was -0.3 F cooler than the 1901-2000 (20th century) average, the 47th coolest April in 113 years. The temperature trend for the period of record (1895 to present) is 0.1 degrees Fahrenheit per decade.

2.09 inches of precipitation fell in April. This was -0.34 inches less than the 1901-2000 average, the 30th driest such month on record. The precipitation trend for the period of record (1895 to present) is 0.01 inches per decade.

Growing Number of Scientists Convert to Skeptics After Reviewing New Research

Following the U.S. Senate's vote today on a global warming measure (see today's AP article: Senate Defeats Climate Change Measure,) it is an opportune time to examine the recent and quite remarkable momentum shift taking place in climate science. Many former believers in catastrophic man-made global warming have recently reversed themselves and are now climate skeptics. The names included below are just a sampling of the prominent scientists who have spoken out recently to oppose former Vice President Al Gore, the United Nations, and the media driven “consensus” on man-made global warming.

The list below is just the tip of the iceberg. A more detailed and comprehensive sampling of scientists who have only recently spoken out against climate hysteria will be forthcoming in a soon to be released U.S. Senate report. Please stay tuned to this website, as this new government report is set to redefine the current climate debate. Read on.

"Guard with jealous attention the public liberty. Suspect every one who approaches that jewel. Unfortunately, nothing will preserve it but downright force. Whenever you give up that force, you are inevitably ruined."

-- Patrick Henry, 1778

Clinton, Obama Back Iraq Fund Cutoff

REV. FALWELL

GOP Field Wants Lower Taxes, Spending

Boldly Live Your Faith!

By Jerry Falwell -- (may you rest in peace!)

"In the May issue of my National Liberty Journal newspaper, we featured the story of Megan Chapman, who last year was forced to make a choice between standing up for her faith in Jesus Christ or allowing school officials to silence her.

She chose not to be silent, even though Russell Springs, Ky., school officials told her she could not mention Jesus or her faith in her ........"

Federal Judge Releases Cuban 'Terrorist'

"Two years ago, a Cuban exile and former CIA operative named Luis Posada Carriles entered the U.S. and was promptly arrested for illegal entry.

Mr. Posada had volunteered for the Bay of Pigs Invasion, and later joined the U.S. army emerging as a 2nd Lieutenant. After retiring from the U.S. Army, he worked for the CIA putting out Soviet-started fires throughout Latin America. Among other projects, Posada helped the Reagan team squash communism in Nicaragua by helping arms and train the Nicaraguan Contras.

A few years later, in Guatemala, a Castro-appointed death squad ambushed Posada, riddled him with bullets, and left him crippled.

Let's cut Mr Posada some slack for his arrest upon entering the U.S. The man ....."

Hillary's Ideology Speaks Volumes

By David Limbaugh

"Any time I write something about Hillary Clinton I hear catcalls from the left accusing me, alternatively, of obsessing over her or unfairly attacking her.

Truthfully, none of us has obsessed over her enough, considering she is far and away the front-runner in the Democratic presidential field and could be the next president.

More than that, conservatives have a duty to spotlight Hillary's record, since the mainstream......."

Catholics to Hillary: Stop Using Mother Teresa in Ad

"A Catholic advocacy group is urging Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign to remove an image of Mother Teresa from a campaign video narrated by former President Bill Clinton." Continue...

American Legion Leader Rebukes Edwards

NEW YORK (AP) - Democrat John Edwards' call for voters to speak out against the Iraq war on Memorial Day weekend has drawn criticism from a leader of the American Legion, who called the effort 'revolting.'

In an e-mail message and on his Web site, Edwards asks supporters to honor and pray for the troops over the Memorial Day weekend and to send them care packages and treats. But the presidential candidate also urges supporters to use the holiday to denounce the war—an effort Paul Morin, national commander of the American Legion, decried as an attempt to 'politicize' the day.

'Revolting is a kind word for it. It's as inappropriate as a political bumper sticker on an Arlington headstone,' Morin wrote on the Legion's Web site. Read on.

Mexico Asks U.S. to Help Stop Arms Flow

MEXICO CITY (AP) - A top Mexican anti-drug official said the United States must do more to stop weapons from being smuggled into the hands of drug traffickers who are using them to kill Mexican soldiers and police.

Mexican authorities are facing gunfire from increasingly well-armed traffickers and officials say the vast majority of the weapons are smuggled from the United States.

Assistant Secretary of Public Safety Patricio Patino made a fresh appeal Tuesday for U.S. authorities to cut off the supply.

'The firepower we are seeing here has to do with a lack of control on that side of the border,' Patino said in an interview with The Associated Press. 'What we have asked the American government ... is that they put clear controls on the shipments of weapons.' Read on.

A Communism for the 21st Century

"I’ve received some criticism for trying to figure out the ideological and historical roots of Multiculturalism. Critics claim that it’s all about hate, about a desire to break down the Established Order at any cost. Many of the proponents don’t believe in the doctrine of Multiculturalism themselves, so we shouldn’t waste any time analyzing the logic behind it, because there is none. A desire to break down Western society is certainly there, but I do believe there are some ideas about the desired end result articulated as well.

On one hand, we’re supposed to “celebrate” our differences at the same time as it is racist and taboo to recognize that any differences between ....." Read the rest at The Brussels Journal.

NEWS HEADLINES

The Thought Crimes Bill of 2007
By David Davenport

"When former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole frequently voted 'no' on new legislation, he explained: 'There are a lot of bad ideas in Washington and someone needs to stop them.'

Another of those bad ideas has surfaced and we need some courageous senators to stop it. The House recently passed the 'Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act,' which I would rename the 'Thought Crimes Bill.'

The bill makes it a felony to commit a crime with thoughts or motives spurred by the victim's gender, sexual orientation or gender identity.

It's not enough to punish the underlying crime, or to rely on hate-crime laws on the books in all 50 states, but now we need a federal law to punish thoughts and motives.

The president has promised a veto, but it shouldn't come to that. We need 50 senators to say 'no' to the Thought Crimes Bill of 2007."

ABOUT THE MINIMUM WAGE

“Many minimum wage supporters, like [House Speaker Nancy Pelosi], are hypocrites, but most supporters are decent people with an honest concern for the well-being of their fellow man. True compassion for our fellow man requires that we examine not the intentions behind public policy but the effects of that policy. There’s no question that Congress can mandate the minimum wage at which a person is hired, but Congress hasn’t found a way to mandate that a person have a level of productivity commensurate with the wage. Moreover, Congress hasn’t chosen to mandate that an employer hire a person whose productivity is less than the minimum wage. This means higher minimum wages cause unemployment for the least-skilled workers.” —Walter Williams

“No free Government can stand without virtue in the people, and a lofty spirit of patriotism; and if the sordid feelings of mere selfishness shall usurp the place which ought to be filled by public spirit, the legislation of Congress will soon be converted into a scramble for personal and sectional advantages.” —President Andrew Jackson

The new strategy in Iraq can work. But Washington has to give it time.

BY MAX BOOT

World Bank Jobbery

More evidence the Wolfowitz accusers chose to ignore.
OpinionJournal

"The World Bank board meets today to consider the fate of President Paul Wolfowitz, and the truth is that the verdict may already be in. The board will consider the report of an investigating committee dominated by the same European nations that have been orchestrating the media campaign to depose him.

As almost daily newspaper leaks have disclosed for weeks--in violation of bank rules--the committee concludes that Mr. Wolfowitz violated bank rules in awarding a promotion and salary increase for his girlfriend, Shaha Riza. We've previously reported on the World Bank documents that make it clear this was at worst a misunderstanding--if not a setup by bank officials who wanted his fingerprints on any raise for Ms. Riza. Mr. Wolfowitz had tried to recuse himself, only to be told he couldn't do so and would have to be the one to give her the raise and new job. (See 'The Wolfowitz Files,' April 16.)

But we've now seen two other documents that reveal the investigating committee's clear bias against Mr. Wolfowitz. They concern its key ....."

Putin wants to disbar Russia's most distinguished human-rights lawyer.

BY BRET STEPHENS

FBI, security officials warn of growing threat from Islamic extremists 'next door'

Cite alleged N.J. plotters, others with no direct ties to al-Qaeda

By Richard Willing
USA TODAY

"Plots by American-based Islamic terrorists with no direct ties to international terror networks form a large and growing threat to the American homeland, FBI and other security officials say.

'The trend we're seeing is that we are uncovering more instances of people here who have been radicalized … where there is not a direct thumbprint of al-Qaeda,' says John Miller, the FBI's assistant director for public affairs." FULL STORY HERE.

Terrorist's Death Seen As Big Blow to Taliban

"The weekend killing of a top Taliban terrorist in Afghanistan is being described as the most severe blow to the fundamentalist group since U.S.-led forces ousted it from power in the aftermath of 9/11.

Mullah Dadullah, sometimes referred to as the 'Zarqawi of Afghanistan' because of his training and ......."

Abortion Provider Caught Encouraging Minor to Lie About Age
Planned Parenthood is under fire after one of its employees was recorded encouraging a student -- who was posing as a pregnant minor -- to lie about her age to obtain an abortion without the abortion provider having to report the "statutory rape" to the police...

NYC Mayor Agrees to Follow Virginia Law in 'Gun Stings'

"New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is under federal investigation regarding 'rogue sting' operations against gun dealers in five states outside his jurisdiction, has agreed to abide by Virginia law when undertaking any future operations in that state."
Full story here.

GREAT ORATORS OF THE DEMOCRAT PARTY

NOT!!!

"My granddaughter Julia is 3 years old. She goes to preschool. Even in preschool, they gang up and they bully. The parents at that preschool tell me that my Julia steps in and she stops it. She will not put up with bullying and unfairness. It is our turn. Be as brave as a 3-year-old. Vote for HR 1592."--Rep. Lynn Woosley

31 year old grad student at Hamline University in St. Paul MN gets in trouble for employing our First Amendment rights to defend others' Second Amendment rights.

DON'T TELL ME WE AIN'T GOT NO MONEY

From Opinion Journal - Best of the Web
By JAMES TARANTO

Oh No, Not Agana!
Who says the Democratic Congress isn't getting anything done? By a vote of 288-133, the House last week approved the Guam World War II Loyalty Recognition Act, described by Congress.org as follows:

Recognizes the suffering and the loyalty of the people of Guam during the Japanese occupation of Guam in World War II.

Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to make specified payments to: (1) living Guam residents who were killed, injured, interned, or subjected to forced labor or marches resulting from, or incident to, such occupation and subsequent liberation; and (2) survivors of compensable residents who died in war or survivors of compensable injured residents (such payments to be made after payments have been made to surviving Guam residents). Defines "compensable Guam decedent" and "compensable Guam victim."

In fairness, the bill, whose text you can read by clicking here and going to the fourth version listed, doesn't actually refer to "living Guam residents who were killed." Still, isn't there something screwy about the idea that the U.S. taxpayer should be paying reparations for atrocities committed by the enemy more than six decades ago? No wonder we can't afford the war in Iraq.

FBI's Mueller: Bin Laden's Trying to Nuke Americans

FBI Director Robert Mueller declined to say how bin Laden communicates, but U.S. efforts have forced him to return to "horse-and-buggy days" when conveying his wishes. Whatever the means of communicating, Mueller says al-Qaida's paramount goal is clear: to detonate a nuclear device that would kill hundreds of thousands of Americans. Full Story Here.

Imus Producer: Sharpton a 'Race-Baiter'

Tancredo: Amnesty a 'Slap in the Face'

Fred Thompson Likely Off 'Law & Order'

"NBC's top entertainment executive said Monday that he doesn't expect actor and potential Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson back on 'Law & Order' next season.

NBC Entertainment President Kevin Reilly claimed no insider knowledge of Thompson's political plans, but his statement indicated the seriousness of Thompson's presidential musings. The former Tennessee senator has been making speaking appearances and blogging on issues in recent weeks as he considers a candidacy.

'It's pretty clear that Fred is going to be leaving the cast of the show no matter what,' Reilly said at a news conference on NBC's fall schedule.

He later left the door slightly ajar by saying it was .........."

Poll: Romney Takes GOP Lead in Michigan

"Mitt Romney, who last week led a New Hampshire poll of 2008 GOP presidential hopefuls, now finds himself leading in his birth-state of Michigan." More.

Gingrich: 'Great Possibility' of '08 Bid

The Former Speaker of the House Warns GOP Hillary Clinton Has a Good Chance of Becoming President

"Newt Gingrich for president? It could happen.

In an interview with Diane Sawyer on "Good Morning America," the former Republican speaker of the House said there was a "great possibility" that he would run for president. "

Read more at ABC News.

Iranian leader threatens retaliation

"ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates - The Iranian president said Monday Iran will retaliate if the U.S. strikes the country — a tough response to recent comments by the Vice President
Dick Cheney that Washington would prevent the Islamic republic from dominating the Middle East.

Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also said Iran had agreed for the benefit of the Iraqi people to meet with the U.S. in Baghdad to discuss security in
Iraq.

'They (the U.S.) cannot strike Iran,' he said at a press conference during a two-day visit to the United Arab Emirates. 'The Iranian people can protect themselves and retaliate.'

The Iranian president's comments followed those ....."

Yahoo! News

U.S.-Iraqi Forces Battle Insurgents

"BAGHDAD (AP) - U.S. and Iraqi forces exchanged fire with suspected Sunni insurgents on Monday, killing two and wounding four of them during a massive search for three missing American soldiers in a volatile area south of Baghdad, the Iraqi army said.

An al-Qaida front group, the Islamic State in Iraq, claimed Sunday that it had captured U.S soldiers in a deadly attack on a U.S. convoy the day before in Sunni area south of Baghdad that is known as the 'triangle of death' - a longtime al-Qaida stronghold.

Meanwhile, 4,000 U.S. troops backed by........."

My Way News

Fort Dix terror plot will lift Rudy Giuliani's approval rating

By Dick Morris and Eileen McGann

"The aborted terror plot to kill American soldiers at Fort Dix in New Jersey reminds us all of the imminent threat of attack in today’s dangerous world. It will remind Republican primary voters that terrorism, and our response to it, is still the issue of the day.

After the Republican presidential debate, Rudy Giuliani was clearly on the defensive, trying to compensate for his pathetic “that would be OK” answer to questions about the possible overruling of Roe v. Wade. His passivity and seeming acquiescence in either a pro-life or pro-choice outcome appeased none of the partisans on either side of the abortion issue. When he finally settled on a concise and forceful restatement of his basic pro-choice principles, he stood out in stark ..."

Islam's reformation

By Dinesh D'Souza

"Faced with the specter of Islamic radicalism and the terrorism it has spawned, many in the West have come to the conclusion that Islam needs a Reformation. This notion is based on the assumption that the Muslim world was left behind by modernity. As historian Bernard Lewis notes, the great events of Western civilization—the Renaissance, the Reformation, the Enlightenment, the Scientific Revolution—went largely unnoticed in the Islamic world. Isn’t it about time, Lewis and others say, for Islam to reform itself?

The only problem with this recommendation is that Islam is in the middle of a reformation. What is the rise of Islamic fundamentalism if not a sign of the Islamic Reformation of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries? The term “fundamentalism” is, of course, misleading. In Christianity it refers ............"

Mike Wallace - You've got some nerve

By Carol Platt Liebau

"Must everything be about sex – or at least have a sexual component – these days? Remarkably, in the course of an interview for “60 Minutes,” Mike Wallace actually had the nerve to ask presidential candidate and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney whether he and his wife had engaged in premarital sex.

What with the Iraq war and Islamofascist terrorism, the twin threats of North Korean and Iranian nukes, health care, federal spending, and a host of other issues, one might think that Wallace would have other ........"

The Fort Dix Six

By Hugh Hewitt

The arrests of the Fort Dix Six should do more than alarm Americans, it ought to introduce a new resolve in the fight against Islamic terrorism which has been lost and a new realism where politics has driven out common sense. These six men had been plotting since early last year to, in their own words, "kill as many soldiers as possible."

Not only are we reminded of John Ashcroft's requests to be vigilant as we go about our lives--it was a store clerk who spotted the DVDs that brought these plotters to the attention of the FBI--we also need to realize that the Bush administration is simply not manipulating the threat of terror for political purposes. If they had been doing so, surely the arrests would have been last October's surprise.

I don't expect the president's political opponents to note such things, but hopefully less partisan Americans will understand again that the war on terror isn't a political football but a deadly serious race against jihadists who will kill every American they can--regardless of political affiliation.

Cutting the Grass

Congressional Democrats prepare another assault on the First Amendment.
By John Fund

"A recent Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll shows 6 in 10 Americans think the Democratic Congress "hasn't brought much change." Eager to change this impression, the Democrats are frantically trying to pass legislation before Memorial Day. First on the agenda is a bill restricting lobbying, which is heading for the House floor with lightning speed. The House Judiciary Committee is expected to pass it tomorrow, sending it to the full House for a final vote next Tuesday or Wednesday.

When a bill moves that quickly, you can bet an someone will try to make some last-minute mischief. Hardly anyone objects to the legislation's requirement that former lawmakers wait two years instead of one before lobbying Congress. Ditto with bans on lobbying by congressional spouses and restrictions on sitting members of Congress negotiating contracts with private entities for future employment.

But the legislation may be amended on the floor to restrict grassroots groups that encourage citizens to contact members of Congress. The amendment, pushed by Rep. Marty Meehan of Massachusetts, would require groups that organize such grassroots campaigns to register as "lobbyists" and file detailed quarterly reports on their donors and activities. The law would apply to any group that took in at least $100,000 in any given quarter for "paid communications campaigns" aimed at mobilizing the public." Read on.

Illinois Tax Implosion

The political limits of 'universal' health care.
Opinion Journal

'Universal' government health care has once again returned as a political cause, with many Democrats believing it's the key to White House victory in 2008. They might want to study last week's news from Illinois, where Democratic Governor Rod Blagojevich's tax increase to finance health care became the political rout of the year.

The Democratic House in Springfield killed the proposal, 107-0, after Mr. Blagojevich came out against his own idea when it became clear he was going to be humiliated. Only a month earlier he had said he was prepared to wage 'the fight of the century' in defense of his plan to impose a $7.6 billion 'gross receipts tax' on Illinois businesses.

Easily re-elected in November, the Governor used every trick in the 'progressive' political playbook to sell his proposal. Instead of a general tax increase, he claimed it would be ......

"To prevent crimes, is the noblest end and aim of criminal jurisprudence. To punish them, is one of the means necessary
for the accomplishment of this noble end and aim."

-- James Wilson, 1790

SUV's CAUSING GLOBAL WARMING ON NEPTUNE?

We skeptics of "MANMADE" global warming have found more support in the research findings of G. W. Lockwood and H. B. Hammel. Their findings recently appeared in an article (Suggestive correlations between the brightness of Neptune, solar variability, and Earth's temperature) published in the Geophysical Research Letters (VOL. 34, L08203, doi:10.1029/2006GL028764, 2007). Their research linked solar output with the planet Neptune’s brightness and Earth's temperatures.

Hammel and Lockwood are from the Space Science Institute in Boulder Colorado and the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, respectively. They inform us that measurements of visible light from Neptune have been taken at the Observatory since 1950.

And what those measurements tell us is that Neptune has been getting brighter for the last 1/2 century, or since around 1980. Moreover, infrared measurements of the planet (since 1980) also show us that Neptune has been warming steadily as well during this period.

They took the changes in visible light from Neptune (over the last 50 years), changes in temperatures on Earth during that period, and changes in total solar irradiance (solar radiance is radiant energy emitted by the sun which is a Nuclear fusion reaction that creates electromagnetic energy) and plotted them on a graph.

What did they find? They found:

the correlation between solar irradiance and Neptune’s brightness was nearly identical.
the correlation between changes on Earth and solar output, according to a report on the research appearing on World Climate Report was also nearly perfect.

“When the sun is more energetic and putting out more energy, the Earth tends to warm up, and when the sun cools down, so does the Earth,” World Climate Report notes. “The Hammel and Lockwood article reveals that the same is true out at Neptune — when the sun’s energy increases, Neptune seems to warm up and get brighter . . ."

“How is it possible that the Earth’s temperature is so highly correlated with brightness variations from Neptune?"

Hmmmmm...?

Also, let's not forget that in recent weeks it has been reported that Mars has warmed recently as well.

Could it be that solar activity and its' inherent fluctuations of the only source (the sun) of energy we have is causing our planet to warm up just as Mars and Neptune are doing? Or are our SUV's causing their rising temperatures as well?

The World Climate Report says: “If nothing else, we have certainly learned recently that planets undergo changes in their mean temperature, and while we can easily blame human activity here on the Earth, blaming humans for the recent warming on Mars and Neptune would be an astronomical stretch, to say the least.”

What say you, Al?

FBI Agent Sticks Up for Ann Coulter

Ann Coulter was reported to have possibly committed voter fraud. Of course this was big news at first. And after hearing about it several times in a couple of weeks time, I heard no more. I wondered what the status was as I had not seen or heard anything more recent.

I feel a little foolish now, looking back. I should have surmised it must have been good news for her (and bad news for the Dems and 'mainstream media' - but I repeat myself) because it was not being reported on anymore. News Max reports the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office began an investigation but was closed on April 12th, 2007.

Conservative pundit Ann Coulter has been cleared of charges that she falsified her voter registration and voted illegally — thanks to the intervention of an FBI agent.

Coulter had been embroiled in controversy after she registered using an address that wasn’t hers and allegedly cast her ballot in the wrong precinct in Palm Beach, Fla., in February 2006.

The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (PBSO) launched an investigation, and the local press routinely reported on the case. Coulter’s attorney said she might have used the wrong address when registering to protect herself from a stalker.

Enter Supervisory Special Agent Jim Fitzgerald of the FBI Academy’s Behavioral Analysis Unit, a serial-killer specialist who worked on the Unabomber case.

He spoke with a PBSO detective and confirmed that he had been “working a stalking incident” involving Coulter, Palm Beach Post columnist Jose Lambiet reported.

The PBSO closed the investigation on April 12."

The Real Illegal Alien Threat

"As details emerge from the plot to kill American soldiers at Fort Dix, New Jersey, one thing is clear. The United States may have more of a homegrown terrorist problem than some people imagine."

By Linda Chavez

"A temper tantrum can cause the loss of friends, a career, a marriage, even a life.

Nations can have temper tantrums too, and the consequences can be equally disastrous.

Last November, American voters had a collective temper tantrum. They lost their temper at Republicans and voted against them. They didn't vote for any positive reasons, they went strictly negative.

The voters lost their temper at George Bush, at the war in Iraq, at bridges to nowhere in Alaska and no fences along our southern border, at... it was a long, long list of complaints.

What voters did not do last November is vote for surrender and defeat in Iraq, higher taxes, more government spending, and national security imperiled. Yet that's what they got with the Democrats.

And our country is in grave risk because of it. The risk is growing by the day."

-- Dr. Jack Wheeler