In my last post I wrote about the amazing job the young men and women aboard the USS Carl Vinson were doing off the coast of Haiti. The aircraft carrier is playing a major role in providing much needed relief to the poor victims of the earthquake.

But we should also remember that we are at war and our troops are in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Washington Post has written a very good piece  on an amazing Green Beret, Major Jim Gant, whom one official called the “Lawrence of Afghanistan.”  

If you want to know how we can, and will, win the war in Afghanistan, read the piece about this Army officer.   

Tags: terror & war by Paul Davis
1 Comment »

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the would-be-bomber of an American airplane on Christmas Day, is being treated like he held up a candy store. As Charles Krauthammer said so well in his recent column, this is nuts!

[Read more →]

Tags: on the law, terror & war by Paul Davis
2 Comments »

With the year and season turning; perhaps also the decade and undoubtably the aging of the millenium that seemed so young moments ago, Americans high and low, both bailed and swamped are reflecting on their lives, their faith, the state of the world and the state of their relationships. Many find themselves feeling trapped in arrangements they made joyously and optimistically; wedded in haste and in public, they now regret at length and in the dark privacy of their hearts. Not exempted from this is the enthusiastic practitioner of plural, whimsical marriages, our fine and debonair President, Barack Obama. [Read more →]

Tags: environment & nature, politics & government, terror & war by Ken Watson
No Comments »

A commander-in-chief’s first and foremost duty and responsibility is protecting American citizens. Obama gave a speech and announced that a terrorist’s ability to board an American airliner with explosives in his underwear was a “systemic failure.”

But as Toby Harnden, the U.S. editor of the British Daily Telegraph noted in his column , Obama is in charge of that system.

I agree with Harnden that Obama gets an F for national security.

[Read more →]

Tags: terror & war by Paul Davis
8 Comments »

One question I have concerning full body scans at airports, and the threats they pose to personal liberties, travelers’ dignity, yada-yada-yada … what about the poor schmucks who will have to look at way-too-many images of way-too-many travelers such as myself?
[Read more →]

Tags: technology, terror & war by Jeff McDonald
No Comments »

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has been justifiably criticized for her odd statement that “the system worked” in the case of a would-be terrorist on several watch lists who boarded a U.S. commercial with explosives in his underwear.

[Read more →]

Tags: terror & war by Paul Davis
No Comments »

Today marks one year since Israel’s military incursion into the Gaza Strip, known officially as “Operation Cast Lead.” On December 27th of ’08, Israel began a week of targeted air-strikes which included, according to the Palestinian Center for Human Rights, “37 houses; 67 security and training sites; 20 workshops; 25 public and private institutions; seven mosques; and three educational institutions” in the Hamas-governed territory. This was followed on January 3rd by an air-land phase which lasted until Israel withdrew all combat forces on January 17th. At the end of the offensive, somewhere between 1150 and 1450 Palestinians had been killed — three different pro-Palestinian human rights sources estimated 1444, 1409, and 1387, respectively, while the Israel Defense Forces counted 1166; thirteen total Israelis had died at the end of operations. [Read more →]

Tags: politics & government, terror & war by Calvin Pollak
No Comments »

November 2009 — It is Sunday here in Africa. The sun is pretty strong for it being a “Dark Continent” and all. Regardless, the weather is predictably hot but not near as bad as what I call “The Devil’s Breath” or what others might call Kuwait. Wait… let me back up…

…I flew up to Cleveland, Ohio to meet with the small group of guys that were picked for this unique mission. I wonder what I can say about the mission, as most of what I specifically do is classified. Please don’t mistake that for actually being cool. I just simply can’t talk about it. If I did tell you, you most likely wouldn’t think it was all that cool. Real secrets aren’t like in the movies. They are, in actuality, pretty boring. [Read more →]

Tags: terror & war, travel & foreign lands by Jeffrey Maryak
No Comments »

I recall Christmas, 1970, when I was an 18-year-old sailor stationed aboard a swaying aircraft carrier off the coast of North Vietnam.

We young sailors, like our civilian counterparts back home, thought of ourselves as young, hip and cool guys. After all, we were teenagers during the swinging 1960’s, a time noted for drugs, sex and rock music. The 1970’s promised to be cooler still, we believed.

As we were eating our Christmas dinner the 1MC, the ship’s public address system, offered Bing Crosby singing his Christmas classic, White Christmas. A lot of young, hip and cool guys became misty-eyed.

[Read more →]

Tags: music, terror & war by Paul Davis
No Comments »

Following up on my earier post about the court martial of three Navy SEALs who are accused of roughing up a known, brutal terrorist in Iraq, I’m pleased to report that there are a good number of people who are also outraged over the criminal charges against the SEALs.

One outraged American is Bill Bruhmuller, a retired Navy SEAL Master Chief Petty Officer.

[Read more →]

Tags: politics & government, terror & war by Paul Davis
No Comments »

The “Sunday Talk Shows” were a-buzz yesterday with Obama Administration statements of commitment to the War in Afghanistan, reports the NYT. A couple of samples:

“We have strategic interests in South Asia that should not be measured in terms of finite times,” said Gen. James L. Jones, the president’s national security adviser, speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “We’re going to be in the region for a long time.”

…

Appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” General Petraeus said that the Obama administration was not planning a “rush to the exits” in Afghanistan, and that depending on the security conditions there could be tens of thousands of American troops in Afghanistan for several years.

[Read more →]

Tags: politics & government, terror & war by Calvin Pollak
No Comments »

Today, December 7th, is Pearl Harbor Day. 

On this day in 1941, the Imperial Japanese launched a sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, our naval base in Hawaii. 

[Read more →]

Tags: terror & war by Paul Davis
1 Comment »

A friend sent me the link to an interesting piece from the German magazine Der Spiegel — not exactly a publication of the vast right-wing conspiracy, as my friend pointed out — that criticized Obama’s speech at West Point.

Obama has been criticized from both the left and the right for the speech, and the West Point cadets looked a bit underwhelmed at his less than rallying call-to-arms.

[Read more →]

Tags: politics & government, terror & war by Paul Davis
17 Comments »

Notoriously heedless of his own safety and well-being, President Obama plunged into the Global Struggle Against Man-Caused Disasters by appearing before an array of thousands of young, savage fighters from, as reported by respected frontline journalist Chris Matthews, the enemy camp. The rest of us know this institution as the US army service academy located at West Point, NY. [Read more →]

Tags: terror & war, trusted media & news by Ken Watson
1 Comment »

Yesterday, President Obama requested that additional troops be sent to Afghanistan, the New York Times reports. The actual number of soldiers is unknown, but according to the Times piece, “senior advisers to the president have said Mr. Obama intends to commit roughly 30,000 more troops.” [Read more →]

Tags: terror & war by Calvin Pollak
3 Comments »

It was not so long ago that Americans and the rest of the world marveled at the ability of the U.S. Navy SEALs to take out the pirates holding a merchant ship captain captive on a life boat off the coast of Africa. 

To prevent the pirates from killing the captain, the SEALs had to shoot them as they sat on a small boat swaying in the sea. The SEALs took this amazing action from the deck of a nearby Navy ship, which was also swaying in the sea – no small feat indeed.

Yet, the U.S. Navy has now placed on trial three Navy SEALs who captured a well-known, brutal and murderous terrorist in Iraq. Instead of a medal for capturing him, the Navy has accused the SEALs of abuse. You see, the poor, misunderstood terrorist claims he was struck by the SEALs.  

[Read more →]

Tags: politics & government, terror & war by Paul Davis
6 Comments »

Let us agree, outrageously and perhaps treasonously, to speak as if things are exactly as they seem. I am not saying that things ARE exactly as they seem, that would be preposterous. Let us just proceed hypothetically.

It seems that Global Warming is an utter fraud. Not a mistake. [Read more →]

Tags: politics & government, terror & war by Ken Watson
7 Comments »

Philadelphia is known for its soft pretzels and cheesesteaks, but as the Philadelphia Inquirer reported today , an alleged arms dealer for the terrorist organization Hezbollah believed he could also pick up a couple of stinger missiles and a few machine guns here.

For nearly two years an FBI undercover operation sucked in the alleged arms dealer and a baker’s dozen of cohorts by selling them stolen cell phones, PlayStation 2 systems (training aid for terrorists?) and counterfeit Nike shoes (why buy real Nike shoes if you are only going to blow yourself up?)

Then came the sting with the offer of stinger missiles and machine guns, which led to the arrests here in Philadelphia.

Congratulations to the FBI undercover agent and the FBI team.     

Tags: terror & war by Paul Davis
No Comments »

Over the weekend military prosecutors officially charged Nidal Hasan for his shooting rampage at Fort Hood in Texas. The Senate has already started an official investigation, and cable news (depending on which network you watch) is done trying to convince you that this was an act of terrorism or an act of disgruntled behavior. Now comes a whole new venue for terrorism, as state side trials for the 9/11 conspirators loom. But before we move on, let us go back to Fort Hood for a second. Do we really know what terrorism is anymore? Maybe we should find out before going another year presuming we would know what it was if we saw it. [Read more →]

Tags: terror & war by Robert O'Hara
1 Comment »

Anyone interested and plenty who are not have seen the Attorney General, Eric Holder, making his arguments as to why the transfer of Khalid Sheik Muhammed from Guantanamo to the Southern District of New York for trial is not just Good; not just Superior to the previous status quo, but rather Necessary. Indeed, he claims to be correcting a derilection, committed by You Know Who. [Read more →]

Tags: on the law, terror & war by Ken Watson
No Comments »