Amazing

U.S. commanders in Iraq began the new year Friday by trumpeting a milestone -- their first month without a combat death since the start of the war -- and by sending a clear signal that their focus in 2010 will be on getting out of the country that American forces invaded nearly seven years ago.

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Thought for the Day

Maybe if Obama staged a massive stunt, like landing on an aircraft carrier in an oversized codpiece, Dick Cheney would say he was making us safer.

Thoughts on the decade.....

You know that over cited apocryphal Chinese curse, "may you live in interesting times...?"

I guess any decade that begins with the sham of Bush v. Gore....

Rush Limbaugh to hospital with chest pains

...and Sean Hannity starts planning a new wing on his house....

The "16 words" on Iran

The AP is "given" an intelligence report claiming that Iran and Kazakhstan signed a secret deal to transfer 1,350 tons of yellowcake. Denials from both parties, and the US, IAEA, etc sound very careful in their comments, meaning this is isn't exactly rock solid intel. (But the AP prints it with headline the "leakers" wanted.)

This claim seems a pretty unbelievable bit of "intelligence" as it seems impossible for me to believe that the two could clandestinely transfer 1,350 tons of uranium without anyone noticing. It's not like the US and Israel aren't watching both Iran and all the major uranium producers.

The report was drawn up by a member nation of the International Atomic Energy Agency and provided Tuesday to the AP on condition that the country not be identified because of the confidential nature of the information.

(PS. The "intel" is so weak they had to "leak" to the AP? NYTimes and WaPo wouldn't bite?)

Thought for the Day

President Obama is personally responsible for one whackjob boarding a plane in Nigeria.

President Bush was not to blame for 9/11, 19 hijackers, some on the watch list, in the US for months, attending flight schools, and hijacking four planes out of major US airports. (Bin Laden determined to strike US.)

Party of No

An alleged attempt to blow up a transatlantic flight from Amsterdam to Detroit on Christmas would be all-consuming for the administrator of the Transportation Security Administration -- if there were one.

Instead, the post remains vacant because Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) has held up President Obama's nominee in an effort to prevent TSA workers from joining a labor union.

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The Palin's prep for their Jerry Springer appearance

Bristol Palin sues Levi Johnston for sole custody of their child. The Palin lawyers (understandably) want to close the proceeding, but Johnston's lawyers want to keep it open (supposedly to protect him from being steamrolled.)

Here's hoping it stays open.

Counter opinion

Isn't the lesson that they can't blow up an airliner. that they're not this all capable, cartoonish, evil cabal?

I mean, how many attempts have they plotted and how many airliners have they blown up?

(And yes, they may someday succeed, but, at this point, I'm counting five failed "plots" in a row.)

Later: Including 9/11, "Therefore, the odds of being on given departure which is the subject of a terrorist incident have been 1 in 10,408,947 over the past decade. By contrast, the odds of being struck by lightning in a given year are about 1 in 500,000. This means that you could board 20 flights per year and still be less likely to be the subject of an attempted terrorist attack than to be struck by lightning."

Quote

Joe Lieberman on FoxNews. (where else?)

"Somebody in our government said to me in Sana'a, the capital of Yemen, Iraq was yesterday's war. Afghanistan is today's war. If we don't act preemptively, Yemen will be tomorrow's war," Lieberman said, during an appearance on "Fox News Sunday". "That's the danger we face."

(PS. Anyone want to ask enthusiastic Iraq war supporter Lieberman why Afghanistan wasn't the day before yesterday's war?)

Still on holiday

I'm around. I'm just kind of enjoying the blogging vacation.

So, light blogging for the next couple of days. Be back soon.