The Thunder Run

The Thunder Run Site of the Day is: My War Stories

The 3rd Battalion, 103rd Armored Regiment Soldiers building relationships with the local population by providing supplies and support.

News and Personal dispatches from the front and the home front.

In their own words:
Michael Yon: Hurricane Afghanistan - The long journey back to Afghanistan is complete. Starting in the mountains of Nepal, with several days’ walk to Pokhara, then a long drive to Kathmandu, a flight to Bangkok where I bought some combat gear (my regular gear is in Iraq and Washington), then to Dubai, and a circuitous journey from India and finally Kabul, where I landed several days ago. I hired a taxi to the British Embassy, passing horse-drawn carts, vendors selling sunglasses, and old men who looked older than time. The streets of Kabul are not war-ravaged like Baghdad, but the fact that there is a war on is unmistakable. The weather was clear, bright and cool, and Afghan and foreign troops were all about, armored convoys could be seen. After a meeting at the British Embassy, I asked for a taxi to the Serena Hotel, but one of the Afghans working the embassy gate suggested there was a kidnapping threat if I took a random taxi. (READ MORE)

Cheese's Milblog: I'm back.... - Again, sorry about the huge break in posting. It's been really busy lately...just ask my fiance the last time she's talked to me. Things are actually going reasonably well right now. Things are still up in the air as far as the reorganization, so we're all just hoping for the best. In the meantime, we've done a lot of humanitarian aid missions lately. My platoon does all of the CMA (civilian medical assessment?) missions in the area. We did the first one and apparently did a good enough job to warrant making it one of our permanent missions. A CMA is a humanitarian mission where we bring doctors and medics to a certain area and treat locals. They're a different style of mission because of all the coordination that must be done among foreign military, Afghan forces, etc. Granted, they take all day, but it's better than sitting at Bagram all day while KBR guys buy Pizza Hut and Popeye's. The other day I got a care package from my old unit in Syracuse. (READ MORE)

IraqPundit: Obama the accidental McCain endorser - Barack Obama meant to tell us he would make the better president, but he actually gave us plenty of reasons why John McCain would be better for the job. After listening to Obama's speech, one can't help but wonder how he plans to improve U.S. relations with Muslim and other countries. For example, he said, he "made clear that we must take out Osama bin Laden and his lieutenants if we have them in our sights." For one thing, Obama implies that all those Americans working day and night in counter-terrorism and other jobs have been twiddling their thumbs instead of going after al-Qaeda. Obama said, "John McCain likes to say that he'll follow bin Laden to the Gates of Hell - but he won't even go to the cave where he lives." (READ MORE)

Fearless 1st Marines’ blog: Ramadi officially welcomes Municipal Building - RAMADI, Iraq – Ramadi citizens, along with city and provincial leaders, came together Aug. 24, to take part in the grand opening of the 17th Street Municipal Building. The municipal building, also known as the “Red Building” by the locals because of its distinctive color, will serve as the local government’s city hall. The building will be occupied by the mayor, city council members, and other elected and appointed city officials. “This building will help serve the people of Ramadi,” said Latif Obaid, the mayor of Ramadi. “Now, the city’s officials have an official place to work and focus on the public.” (READ MORE)

Bill Roggio: Pakistani forces thwart triple suicide bombing attack - Pakistani paramilitary forces from the Frontier Corps repelled a deadly Taliban suicide attack on a military camp near the Kohat Tunnel. Three suicide vehicles were used in the attack, Geo TV reported. The first bomber attempted to breech the main gate of the complex but was stopped just outside the gate after troops opened fire on the truck. The casualties were sustained in the first explosion. Two civilians were killed in the blast. Thirty-two Pakistanis, including 25 paramilitary troops, were wounded. The chief of security for the tunnel was among those wounded. The second suicide bomber detonated his explosives after hitting the camp wall. The third suicide bomber left his vehicle at the main gate and ran away. (READ MORE)

Matel-in-Iraq: The Wisdom of Solomon - It always amuses me that private businesspeople come to government officials for advice about business issues. What do guys who work for the government, who never met a payroll and have retirements backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government know about the risks & rewards of business? Some authorities & businessmen in Baghdadi were at odds with a general contractor who does jobs around there and on Al Asad. They all asked us (the Marines and me) to intercede. In the interests of literally keeping the peace, we did. The big complaints involved the contractor not hiring enough local guys, not buying enough from local vendors and not paying either vendors or workers on time. It reminded of the ward/union boss problems you might face in an old industrial establishment. I could almost hear the familiar accents. (READ MORE)

Navy Gal: Soap Box - Let me preface this post by saying that I'm taking a big risk by posting this and that ignorance knows no ethnicity, education level or background. With those things being said, let me just hop right up on my soap box and tell you all about a nice little conversation I had the other night with a civilian contractor who was waiting for a flight out of the country. I'm sure most of you know that the Democratic National Convention has been going on in Denver, CO the past two days and if you don't what rock are you living under?? Anyway, I'm sitting in the terminal on my laptop listening to the convention via the tv over my shoulder when the afore-mentioned contractor starts to ask me questions, random questions that I don't even remember now. He then lands on the topic of the convention on tv. He states that he didn't like either of the candidates and was not going to vote. I stared at him in disbelief at what I was hearing. (READ MORE)

Big Tobacco: The Global War on Pubic Hair - I did not smoke while writing this. “Who are you voting for?” I pick at my mashed potatoes and look at Sergeant Speakerphone. He sits across from me, staring at me intently. “You know I can’t answer that,” I say. “Oh, come on!” He says. “Why not? I’m voting for Obama.” “It’s because I am in a leadership role and I will not subject my privates to undue influence.” “That’s fuckin’ stupid, sarn’t.” “It’s not stupid. It’s the right thing to do.” I find myself pointing a plastic fork at Sergeant Speakerphone. “But if everybody in the platoon is voting for Obama anyway, and you are voting for Obama, then how can you exert undue influence?” “I never said I was voting for Obama!” “So you are voting for McCain!” (READ MORE)

Zen Traveller: The Littlest Indicator - I was answering a question for a friend last night on identifiable progress in Iraq, and I began thinking about the definition of "progress". In graduate school thirteen years ago the political science buzzword for progress was "development", and of course that meant various things to various people depending on what their viewpoint was. Some, including myself, approached development from an economic standpoint, others looked at social or political conditions, still more were concerned with infrastructure. All of these are good indicators to consider when determining the development or progress that is taking place in Iraq. While there is not a catch-all indicator of development, there is one that is pretty close, the condition of a nation's children. My theory is that in every society it's citizens love their children, they provide for them, sacrifice for them, and therefor the kids become a great indicator of how well or not well the family is doing. (READ MORE)

Two Brothers, Two Countries, One Army: Too close for comfort.... - Well hello to all again! Like always, I want to thank everyone for your support to my brother and I and also all the other men and women fighting over here! THANK YOU! First and most important: please say a special prayer for the Soldiers and their families of those over here. I can't say why, but there are people in special need tonight. Thank you. We are about to enter a "bad" time of the year. Forgive me if I spell this wrong....but Ramidad is about to start. It's a month long religious fasting period that means a lot to them...Forgive me, I'm a Southern Baptist/Contemporary Christian so I'm not too up on that particular religion. All I know is that it raises issues with the safety of our Soldiers over here. It's pretty dangerous time of the year from what I understand. So please keep us in your prayers. (READ MORE)

The Left Captain: Another Mission - My second mission this week came and went uneventfully. It was short notice and the commander specifically requested my presence on the trip—a quick visit to FOB Altimore, which is up towards Logar Province. It is a small outpost out in the desert at the bottom of Tera Pass (which we drove over). I rode in the relatively bombproof confines of an RG31 MRAP, second truck in a four vehicle convoy. It is an uncomfortable ride, even on pavement, so I can’t imagine a few hours on nasty dirt roads. That said, I will always celebrate the MRAP over the Humvee. In contrast with my ride with the engineers we were heavily armed this time. These guys roll on trips loaded for bear: every vehicle has a 50 cal or a Mark 19 grenade launcher and these are backed up by squad automatic weapons and personal weapons. (READ MORE)




News from the Front:
Iraq:
Iraqi National Police graduate Carabinieri training (Baghdad) - Baghdad – Members of the Iraqi National Police graduated from the specialized Carabinieri training, led by the Italian Police, August 28, at Camp Dublin in Baghdad. Graduates marched before a stand filled with dignitaries in the late morning heat and performed demonstrations of skills they learned in the eight-week course. More than 400 Iraqi National Police completed this session of Carabinieri training, bringing the total Iraqi National Police graduates of the course to 2,013 since last November when the courses started here. (READ MORE)

Al-Qaeda network in Hamrin Mountains decimated - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces detained eight suspected terrorists Thursday and Friday as they continued to run down the al-Qaeda in Iraq network, especially in the Hamrin Mountains region, where they detained four wanted men. One of the wanted men, captured Thursday near Qara Tappa with one alleged associate, is assessed to be a senior advisor for AQI operations around the Hamrin Mountains. Three other wanted men in the region were captured in a Friday operation with one additional suspect. (READ MORE)

Local resident turns in munitions, MND-B Soldiers find cache - BAGHDAD – A local resident turned in munitions and Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers discovered a weapons cache in Baghdad Aug. 28. At approximately 5 p.m., a local resident brought six mortar rounds to an entry control point north of Baghdad. Soldiers serving with Company C, 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, called in an explosive ordnance disposal team to assess the munitions. The EOD team identified the munitions as a 120 mm high-explosive mortar rounds. (READ MORE)

IED kills civilian in marketplace (Kirkuk) - KIRKUK, Iraq – A mortar round was remotely detonated in the Domies Market in Kirkuk city killing an Iraqi citizen, Aug. 28. Additionally, seven more Iraqis were wounded in the blast. All casualties were evacuated to the Kirkuk General Hospital. “Random acts of violence in public places are the only plan these savages have for the future of Iraq,” said Maj. Peggy Kageleiry, a spokeswoman for Coalition forces north of Baghdad. (READ MORE)

ISF seize weapons caches throughout Baghdad - BAGHDAD – Iraq Army Soldiers and Iraqi National Police seized weapons caches throughout Baghdad Aug. 28. Soldiers serving with the 54th Brigade, 6th Iraq Army Division seized numerous weapons during a search operation in the Mansour district of Baghdad at approximately 7 a.m. The munitions included 100 AK 47’s, four Seminov rifles, an SKS rifle and four pistols. (READ MORE)

Interior Ministry holds first conference on forensics - Baghdad – With growing use of forensics in Iraq, scientists in Iraq are helping police make discoveries that solve crimes. The accomplishments and plans in this area were discussed Wednesday at the First Conference on Forensic Sciences held by the Ministry of Interior. “This is a noble cause,” said Iraqi Interior Minister Jawad al-Bulani, “to make sure we have justice. We are trying to build a country built on the constitution and all of these efforts by our expert investigators will help the police to establish the truth and uphold the Rule of Law.” (READ MORE)

Al-Qaeda bombing facilitator killed (Baghdad) - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces killed a terrorist in Tikrit during a daytime operation Thursday targeting associates of al-Qaeda leaders in central Iraq. Coalition forces targeted a facilitator involved with providing bomb triggers for several attack cells in the Tigris River Valley bombing network. As they attempted to apprehend the wanted terrorist, the man rushed toward the security element and grabbed one soldier’s rifle. Responding to the hostile threat, Coalition forces engaged and killed the man. (READ MORE)

Salvadoran's Give Demo for Incoming Troops - FORWARD OPERATING BASE DELTA — Leaders from El Salvador’s Cuscatlán Battalion gathered at Bunker 7 for a quick reaction force demonstration Aug. 23. The demonstration gave the Soldiers an opportunity to show the incoming troops and Salvadoran media the high level of training they achieved in their six months here. (READ MORE)

Iraqis Put Proud Face on Budding Businesses at Joint Base Balad - JOINT BASE BALAD — In a region where many men are often judged on their ability to thwart progress, he is counted among a growing number that can make things happen. And he has been making good things happen for his fellow countrymen since long before coalition forces arrived six years ago. His name is Hashim Abd Al-Amir Mahdi and he is an Iraqi business leader who has been able to sustain long-term contracts with Coalition forces and provide valuable jobs for local nationals. (READ MORE)


Afghanistan:
Prince Harry wants to return to the Afghanistan frontline - London, Aug.29 : Britain's Prince Harry, who did a tour of military duty in Afghanistan last year, wants to silence his critics by taking another shot at the Taliban. His last mission was a success, despite being cruelly cut short. Harry feels his rightful place is on the front line with his men, reports The Sun. (READ MORE)

Three Afghan civilians die in shooting at German Kunduz checkpoint - Berlin - Three Afghan civilians have been killed and a number of others injured in a shooting incident at a checkpoint manned by German troops and Afghan security forces near the northern city of Kunduz, the German Defence Ministry said in Berlin Friday. The incident, which occurred to the south-east of the city in a region where German troops lead the operations of the international Security Assistance Force... (READ MORE)

US: More than 24 militants killed in Afghanistan - AMKABUL, Afghanistan -- More than 24 militants were killed in two separate battles with U.S.-led coalition troops in Afghanistan, the coalition said Friday. More than a dozen militants were killed after they attacked a coalition base in Shaheed Hasas district of the southern Uruzgan province on Thursday, the coalition said. Two Afghan guards also died during the attack. (READ MORE)

Afghan Commander calls for help to protect key districts - KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — The top Canadian soldier in Afghanistan conceded Wednesday that two-thirds of the Zhari and Panjwai districts just outside Kandahar city are under the control of the Taliban and said more ground forces are needed to bring security to the province. (READ MORE)

Coalition forces eliminate nearly a dozen militants in E Afghanistan - The U.S.-led Coalition forces in an operation eliminated almost a dozen militants and arrested two others in an operation to disrupt militant activities in eastern Afghan province of Paktika province, said a Coalition statement released here on Friday. (READ MORE)

Afghan president fast losing his popularity - Afghan President Hamid Karzai is fast losing popularity in the streets of his capital, as he is being blamed for the absence of peace in the country, where the Taliban insurgency is gaining momentum despite the presence of over 8,000 soldiers of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). 'Since his appointment as president he has never thought about the people of Afghanistan. (READ MORE)

Taliban claim capture of former Afghan minister - PESHAWAR: Afghan Taliban are claiming abduction of former minister Amanullah Zadran in Logar province, who is also an adviser to President Hamid Karzai. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid while speaking from an undisclosed location said Zadran and one of his cousins were seized on Wednesday in Logar while coming from Pule Alam. (READ MORE)

100 rebels killed in Afghanistan - KABUL: A four-day battle that began with an ambush on a joint U.S-Afghan patrol in southern Afghanistan has killed more than 100 Taleban soldiers, the coalition said yesterday. Taleban soldiers wielding rocket-propelled grenades, guns and mortars attacked the joint patrol in the southern province of Helmand multiple times starting on Monday, the coalition said. The combined force called in fighter aircraft for support (READ MORE)

Diggers build bridges in Afghanistan - The Australian Defence Force (ADF) says Australian troops have played a major role in reopening a main Afghan supply route which was sabotaged by Taliban fighters. Soldiers from the Reconstruction Task Force rebuilt two bridges along the highway linking Kabul and Kandahar. (READ MORE)

Militants detained, killed in Paktika province - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 28, 2008) – Two militants were detained and one was killed during a Coalition forces’ operation to disrupt militant activities in Paktika province, Wednesday. Coalition forces searched compounds in Gayan District targeting an individual affiliated with anti-coalition militant leaders facilitating the movement of foreign fighters from Pakistan into Afghanistan. (READ MORE)

A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.


In the News: (Registration may be required to read some stories)
McCain picks Alaska Gov. Palin as running mate - (CNN) -- Sen. John McCain has picked Alaska Gov. Sarah as his running mate, a senior McCain campaign official told CNN on Friday. 1 of 2 Palin, 44, who's in her first term as governor, is a pioneering figure in Alaska, the first woman and the youngest person to hold the state's top political job. (READ MORE)

Obama accepts, vows change - DENVER -- Barack Obama on Thursday night completed his historic journey from a freshman lawmaker with soaring oratory to America's first black major-party presidential candidate, accepting the Democratic nomination and promising a stadium full of supporters a bold change that would fix "the broken politics of Washington" after years of Republican rule. (READ MORE)

'Rainmaker' lobbyist aids Biden - When Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. started a new political fundraising committee three years ago, he turned to a longtime Washington insider for help - the partner of a lobbying firm co-founded by his son. (READ MORE)

McCain won't be ignored nearing VP pick - DENVER John McCain and other Republicans have been masterful this week at inserting themselves into Barack Obama's Democratic National Convention, repeatedly stealing part of the limelight with hard-hitting ads, an aggressive effort to court disaffected Clinton supporters and tantalizing visits by possible Republican vice-presidential candidates. (READ MORE)

Carter: Bill Clinton 'hurt his wife's candidacy' - DENVER Taking a rare shot at another White House alumnus, former President Jimmy Carter tells The Washington Times that Bill Clinton became an unwittingly divisive figure during the Democratic primaries who hurt his wife's chances to win the presidency with a series of verbal gaffes. (READ MORE)

Obama readies attack strategy - DENVER Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama will use the 68-day sprint to the election finish line to unleash a hard-hitting campaign attack that casts Republican opponent Sen. John McCain as a well-heeled, aging war hero who is out of touch with most Americans. (READ MORE)

Democrat criticizes 'shadowy' practices - DENVER Maryland Rep. Chris Van Hollen, the House Democrats' chief fundraiser, said Thursday his Republican counterparts are using "shadowy organizations" to skirt campaign finance laws and target Democratic candidates nationwide. (READ MORE)

U.S. economy jumps in second quarter - The U.S. economy grew at a surprisingly vigorous 3.3 percent pace in the second quarter, much faster than first reported, the Commerce Department said Thursday. Gross domestic product (GDP) during the April-June period increased much faster than the 1.9 percent rate the government reported last month. The upward revision was much larger than economists expected. (READ MORE)

Pentagon Reports U.S. Airstrike Killed 5 Afghan Civilians, Not 90 - A U.S. military review of an airstrike last week in western Afghanistan maintains that only five civilians were killed, Pentagon officials said yesterday, a finding that starkly contradicts reports by the United Nations and Afghan officials that the civilian death toll from the bombing... (READ MORE)

Obama, Accepting Nomination, Draws Sharp Contrast With McCain - DENVER, Aug. 28 -- Sen. Barack Obama, the first African American to lead a major-party ticket, accepted the Democratic nomination for president Thursday night, sharply criticizing Republican John McCain and casting the election as "our chance to keep, in the 21st century, the American promise... (READ MORE)

GOP Considers Delaying Convention - Republican officials said yesterday that they are considering delaying the start of the GOP convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul because of Tropical Storm Gustav, which is on track to hit the Gulf Coast, and possibly New Orleans, as a full-force hurricane early next week. (READ MORE)

Putin Asserts Link Between U.S. Election and Georgia War - MOSCOW, Aug. 29 -- Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Thursday that he had reason to think U.S. personnel were in the combat zone during the recent war in Georgia, adding that if confirmed, their presence suggested "someone in the United States" provoked the conflict to help one of the... (READ MORE)



On the Web:
Charles Krauthammer: The Perfect Stranger - Barack Obama is an immensely talented man whose talents have been largely devoted to crafting, and chronicling, his own life. Not things. Not ideas. Not institutions. But himself. Nothing wrong or even terribly odd about that, except that he is laying claim to the job of crafting the coming history of the United States. A leap of such audacity is odd. The air of unease at the Democratic convention this week was not just a result of the Clinton psychodrama. The deeper anxiety was that the party was nominating a man of many gifts but precious few accomplishments -- bearing even fewer witnesses. When John Kerry was introduced at his convention four years ago, an honor guard of a dozen mates from his Vietnam days surrounded him on the podium attesting to his character and readiness to lead. Eerily missing at the Democratic convention this year were people of stature who were seriously involved at some point in Obama's life standing up to say: I know Barack Obama. I've been with Barack Obama. We've toiled/endured together. You can trust him. I do. (READ MORE)

John E. Schwarz: Tax. Spend. Create Great Jobs. - The mantra of the free market has gained such a hold on Americans that Sen. John McCain recently aired an ad exclaiming, as if it's a given: "Higher taxes, more government spending, so fewer jobs." A similar obvious "truth" for many Americans these days, in the words of Rush Limbaugh, is that "the government can't create wealth; it can only destroy it or confiscate and redistribute it." If it is true that higher government taxation depresses job creation and that the government can't create wealth (only the free market can), it becomes rational for struggling workers to vote Republican on economic grounds. They don't need cultural issues to get them to vote that way, as author Thomas Frank famously says occurs in Kansas, and across the nation. Democrats have failed to provide a compelling counter-mantra about the economy. For all their emphasis on connecting with the middle class, they will have a hard time winning votes until they have a narrative that competes effectively with the GOP's. (READ MORE)

Michelle Malkin: Barack "The Silencer" Obama's Gangland Assault on Free Speech - Where are all the free speech absolutists when you need them? Over the past month, left-wing partisans and Democratic lawyers have waged a brass-knuckled intimidation campaign against GOP donors, TV and radio stations, and even an investigative journalist because they have all dared to question the radical cult of Barack Obama. A chill wind blows, but where the valiant protectors of political dissent are, nobody knows. On August 11, I called the American Civil Liberties Union national headquarters in New York for comment about the Chicago gangland tactics of one of these groups -- a nonprofit called "Accountable America" that is spearheaded by a former operative of the Obama-endorsing MoveOn outfit. "Accountable America" is trolling campaign finance databases and targeting conservative donors with "warning" letters in a thuggish attempt to depress Republican fundraising. (READ MORE)

David Limbaugh: Obama: Too Cool by Half? - Obama is the perfect candidate, not for the nation, but for Democrats, who have been waiting for Godot since George W. Bush's first-term inauguration -- someone to deliver them, to deliver America from the wretched George W. Bush. The paradoxical Democratic Party, which holds itself as the party of the people, often manages to find a presidential candidate that is anything but a man of the people. From Adlai Stevenson to John F. Kennedy to Michael Dukakis to Al Gore to John Kerry, and now, Barack Obama. Elite, intellectual, erudite, sophisticated? Arguably so in most cases. But common? Someone who can relate? Only in their Utopian dreams. This year, the party's unspoken, perhaps even unrealized yearning for a super-elitist nominee is an outgrowth not only of the party's self-perception as superior to red-state, flyover America but also eight long years of perceived suffering under the "reign" of George W. Bush. (READ MORE)

Burt Prelutsky: Singing the Blues in a Blue State - I have no idea who decided that liberal states would be called blue and conservative states would be red, but I suspect it was a left-winger because it makes absolutely no sense. Red, after all, has always been the color associated with the far left. Thanks to the flag of the late, unlamented, Soviet Union being the hammer and sickle on a field of red, Communists have always been referred to as reds, except of course when they were referred to, even more appropriately, as morons and imbeciles. Be that as it may, I live in California, a state that is bluer than the blue Pacific. My state is not only on the left side of the map, it’s to the left of Barack Obama. This is a state that is represented in the U.S. Senate by Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, for crying out loud! Allegedly, we have a Republican governor, but Arnold Schwarzenegger is only slightly more conservative than his wife, Maria Shriver. (READ MORE)

Jon Sanders: Lying is Moral When Your God is Electing Democrats - Called "the definitive Democratic insider" by The News & Observer of Raleigh, campaign adviser Gary Pearce has worked for several notable North Carolina Democrats, from Sen. John Edwards to four-time Gov. Jim Hunt, former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker, and Senate candidate Erskine Bowles (who was White House Chief of Staff under President Bill Clinton and is now the president of the University of North Carolina). Right now Pearce co-writes the "Talking About Politics" blog about politics with longtime Republican adviser Carter Wrenn (whose clients included the late Sen. Jesse Helms). Pearce recently told the N&O, "I'm willing to be more candid than are most partisans. I'm not spinning anybody anymore." That candidness was on display this month when this definitive Democratic insider wrote the following: "liberals (or progressives or whatever you prefer) have to understand that your candidates don’t have the luxury of the right-wingers: (READ MORE)

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann: A Strategic Opening For McCain - Many political campaigns run against the wrong candidate. The opportunity to pick on a vulnerable target is so tempting that they are lured into attacking someone who isn’t running. In 1992, the Republicans unleashed their convention barrage at Hillary and left Bill unscathed. In 1996, Dole still ran against Clinton the liberal and ignored the changes in his political positioning. Campaigns go after the flaming red cape, so glittering a target, and leave the matador alone. That’s what the Democratic convention has been doing in Denver. They are so anxious to run against Bush, their animosity is so pent up, that they persist in running against a man who is not seeking a third term. In speech after speech, the Democrats knock the Bush record and then add, lamely, that McCain is the same as Bush. Or they call the McCain candidacy Bush’s third term. It was no accident — or Freudian slip: (READ MORE)

William Rusher: Will the Democrats Win? - The Democrats did what everyone knew they had to do: nominate Barack Obama by acclamation on the first ballot of their convention in Denver. But Hillary Clinton made everyone wait until nearly halfway through the balloting before making that inevitable motion, and in so doing underlined the chief lesson of the convention. The delegates were almost evenly split between her and Obama, and the deep division in the party was painfully evident. The reservation so many delegates had about Obama had one clear cause, and it had nothing to do with the fact that he is black. On the contrary, the fact that he is an African-American counted heavily in his favor, and may have been the decisive factor in his victory. The reservation has to do with his lack of experience. Obama became an attorney, served as a member of the Illinois State Senate for eight years, and was then elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004. (READ MORE)

Oliver North: Report From a Forgotten War (4th in a Series) - HERAT, Afghanistan -- A Taliban sentry fired the first shots shortly after 2:30 a.m. as Afghan commandos and U.S. Special Operations Command troops surrounded the compound at Aziz Abad. Though the Marine Special Operations Team had employed a daring deception to achieve surprise, they were engaged heavily by gunfire from AK-47s and machine guns almost immediately after deploying at the objective. For the next 2 1/2 hours, the 207th Afghan Commandos and their U.S. Army and Marine counterparts were in a running gunfight with heavily armed Taliban fighters inside the walled compound. When enemy combatants on rooftops and in narrow alleyways could not be dislodged by fire from U.S. and Afghan troops on the ground, they were hit by supporting fire from manned and unmanned aircraft overhead. By dawn Aug. 22, it appeared that the commandos and their American advisers had achieved a stunning success. (READ MORE)

Linda Chavez: Crying Wolf on the Economy While Ignoring Real Pains - America is in its darkest hour -- again. It happens every four years when the Democrats take center stage for their national convention. In 2004, we heard that we were in the midst of another Great Depression. For the last week, we've heard more economic doom and gloom. It must have been disappointing news to Dems to read on Thursday that the U.S. economy grew 3.3 percent in the second quarter. It's hard to turn those numbers into a recession, much less a depression. But if the Democrats see disaster on every domestic front, they seem oblivious to the real threats to the United States. There was hardly a word about terrorism, and scant mention of national security during the weeklong gabfest. Wednesday's proceedings, which convention organizers had promised was going to be devoted to national security themes, barely touched on the issue. That is unless you think Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks are experts on national security. (READ MORE)

Cliff May: The Big Chill: Islamists Inted to Muzzle Americans' Free Speech - Freedom of speech is under attack. Let us count the ways. The first and most obvious: Those who criticize militant Islamists – from novelist Salman Rushdie to Danish cartoonists to memoirist Ayaan Hirsi Ali – are routinely threatened with deadly violence. It would be black humor to say this is having a chilling effect. The second is “political correctness.” On campuses and within Western governments it is increasingly taboo to label terrorists who slaughter in the name of Islam “Islamist terrorists.” In Canada, “human rights commissions” attempt to enforce this taboo by putting such writers as Mark Steyn and Ezra Levant on trial for the “crime” of expressing opinions that offend Islamic grievance groups — and also for quoting Islamists accurately and thereby casting them in an unfavorable light. If that’s not Orwellian, what is? But it is the third approach that could be most consequential for Americans. (READ MORE)

Dinesh D'Souza: White Men Can't Run - I've been watching with patriotic interest the Olympic track and field events. And I notice something about the results that is both remarkable and fascinating. Even so, this something is never commented on by NBC or any of the analysts. Consider the sprints. The winners seem to be overwhelmingly of African, specifically West African, origin. The man and woman who blew away the field in the 100 meter dash were both from the tiny country of Jamaica . Indeed the contestants in general seem to originally come from the same part of the world. Virtually no one from a different race and region even qualifies. Sure there are Canadian and French and American sprinters, but they too tend to be blacks of West African heritage. These races come down to our West Africans against everyone else's West Africans. Now consider the long distance races. The winners once again are overwhelmingly black, this time from East Africa . (READ MORE)

Donald Douglas: The Stealth Superstar of Mile High - Barack Obama, in his acceptance speech tonight at Invesco Field in Denver, demonstrated more powerfully than ever why he's the country's greatest public orator since Martin Luther King, Jr. Obama delivered his address to a crowd of roughly 85,000 people, and there's no gainsaying the Illinois Senator's decision to accept the nomination outdoors, turning what should normally be a insider's partisan rally into a town hall meeting for the masses. Barack Obama is America's incomparable political superstar. Obama's speech was less uplifting than combative, but he did what he had to do: He took aim at the Bush administration, and he tied John McCain to the last eight years of GOP rule with more than one pithy turn of phrase. Speaking of the Republican National Convention next week in Minneapolis, Obama put McCain in the partisan crosshairs, warning against four more years of the same: (READ MORE)

Adventures of a Former Detailed Recruiter: I wonder who they will vote for now? - I wonder if the counter-recruiting folks are finding themselves in a bit of a dilemma. For years they have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars, and tens of thousands of man hours opposing military recruiters in schools. Anti-recruiting initiatives across the country have sought to prevent military recruiters from having the same access to high school campuses that college recruiters enjoy. All of this to prevent military recruiters from being able to offer these eligible students the opportunity to say "yes" or "no". Senator Obama wants to make every child over the age of 10, attending public school, serve the government. If military recruiters calling high school students to see if they want information about the military is enough to make someone bomb a recruiting station, I can't imagine what mandatory community service will make these people do. Hell, they might be mad enough to try and blow up court houses. (READ MORE)

Lawhawk: A Historic Moment - I congratulate you Sen. Barack Obama on your achievement. To be nominated, and to accept the nomination to run for the highest office this nation has, is a tremendous accomplishment. This is the kind of situation you've been hoping for from the moment you threw your hat in the ring. I suspect it would bring a tear to the eye of Martin Luther King, Jr., were he alive to witness today's events. Your speech, though I disagree with much of your rhetoric, will be well received. You do know how to give a speech before a crowd. Maybe not in the Bill Clinton league, but close and with practice, you could get there. You are in your own element here, but this is where the rubber hits the road. You have to do more than convince those who already believe in your cause. You have to convince the rest of the nation that you're capable of leading, despite demonstrable the lack of experience (try out your own words on the subject if you need a refresher). (READ MORE)

Gabriel Malor @ Aces of Spades: Marine Acquitted in Civilian Trial for Alleged Crimes Committed While In Iraq - The jury returned a verdict after six hours of deliberation. Jose Nazario Jr. was accused of killing four prisoners in Fallujah in 2004. Following his honorable discharge (with a medal of valor) in 2005, an overzealous NCIS investigator recommended to prosecutors in the U.S. that Nazario be charged with murder. “The defence, which did not call any witnesses, argued there was not enough evidence to prove a crime had been committed and told jurors a guilty verdict could endanger US service members by making them second-guess their actions in combat. Nazario, who did not testify, was found not guilty of all charges, including manslaughter, assault with a deadly weapon and use of a firearm. If convicted, he could have faced 10 years in prison. One of the jurors speaking after the verdict was read said the panel acquitted him because there was not enough evidence.” (READ MORE)

Pamela Geller: Why hasn't ACORN been stripped of its eligibility? - ACORN has been caught red handed registering dead people many, many times so why are they still allowed to do this? Why is anyone allowed to do this? Why the need for corrupt organizations to "register voters"? If it were done properly, as it should be, every voter would register to vote on their own. Voting is a privilege. If you won't get off yer fat keyster to register, you don't deserve the honor of voting of a free republic. Remember those women in Afghanistan crossing over mountains and valleys just to vote? And Iraq? Think about it. Organizations such as ACORN seem to exist to hijack the system. As early as Novemer 2006, I ran it post,"I SEE DEAD PEOPLE... voting on election day" - appararently a federal grand jury in Kansas City indicted four persons working for the group Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), accusing them of submitting more than 40,000 voter registration forms with fictitious names, phony signatures and bogus addresses. (READ MORE)

Dafydd: Some Very Heartening Numbers That Aren't Getting Nearly Enough Attention, You Know - Most of the polling buzz seems to center around the Gallup tracking poll -- which for the first time during the Democratic National Convention shows a small bounce (up to +6) for Barack H. Obama. But there are some other numbers that belie the idea that the convention has spawned a significant -- or even noticible -- surge towards the Democrats (yet). Gallup notes that the pre-convention tracking poll found Obama and John S. McCain in a dead-even tie, 45-45; so this represents a 6-point bounce on this particular poll. But -- and this is a very big but -- Obama's support still remains below 50%; he has a 48-42 lead over McCain. This is significant because, in the history of this tracking poll, from the end of March until today, Barack Obama has never been above 50%; and John McCain has never been below 40%. In fact, Obama was up to 49% in late July -- a point higher than today -- and McCain was a point lower then. (READ MORE)

The Belmont Club: American idle - The National Review has a long piece addressing two questions: a) whether examining a Presidential candidate’s public background is ever legitimate journalism and b) what happens when you do and the candidate is Barack Obama. Describing the importance of Kurtz’s look into the Chicago Annenberg Challenge (CAC) the National Review wrote: “The CAC was a major education reform project, proposed by Ayers, which was underwritten by a $49.2 million grant from the Annenberg Foundation, complemented by another $100 million in private and public funding. The project ran for about five years, beginning in 1995. As the liberal researcher Steve Diamond has recounted, Ayers ran its operational arm, the ‘Chicago School Reform Collaborative.’ Obama, then a 33-year-old, third-year associate at a small law firm, having no executive experience, was brought in to chair the board of directors, which oversaw all ‘fiscal matters.’” (READ MORE)

Freedom Eden: William Ayers and 47-Year-Old Barack Obama - An ad from the Obama campaign asks: “With all our problems, why is John McCain talking about the sixties, trying to link Barack Obama to radical Bill Ayers? McCain knows Obama denounced Ayers' crimes, committed when Obama was just eight years old.” Ayers committed his crimes when Obama was eight years old. So what? That's irrelevant. Obama, as a 47-year-old man, knows about Ayer's crimes. That's what matters, not that he was eight at the time. Obama wasn't eight when on September 11, 2001, in a New York Times article, Ayers said, "I don’t regret setting bombs. I feel we didn't do enough." To this day, Ayers stands by his acts of terrorism against America. (READ MORE)

The Foxhole: More National Secrets in the New York Times - Arthur Sulzberger, Qaddaffi and Ahmadinejhad thank you. “The CIA recruited a family of Swiss engineers to help it thwart the Libyan and Iranian nuclear programs as well as an underground network of Pakistani nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan, The New York Times reported Monday. The newspaper said the operation involved Friedrich Tinner and his two sons, who have been accused in Switzerland of dealing with rogue nations seeking nuclear equipment and expertise.” Switzerland has that ass-backwards: They used their expertise to help thwart dangerous rogue nations. You’d think they would be glad, fer Christ’s sake. “The Swiss case against them has been hampered by the destruction of relevant documents, which Swiss officials have said was to prevent their falling into terrorist hands. But the Times said the real reason for the destruction was pressure from the US Central Intelligence Agency, which feared that its ties with the Tinners would be exposed.” Well, thanks to the ever-traitorous NYT, they are now. (READ MORE)

Don Surber: Welcome back Carter - President Olympics Boycott mocks the military service of Republican Sen. John McCain. Showing the same judgment he showed in facing hostages in Iran, the Soviet Union in Afghanistan and Large Rabbits in his imagination, President Carter told CNN: “‘John McCain was able to weave in his experience in a Vietnam prison camp, no matter what the question was. It’s much better than talking about how he’s changed his total character between being a senator, a kind of a maverick … and his acquiescence in the last few months with every kind of lobbyist pressure that the right-wing Republicans have presented.’” If he thinks his return to presidential politics will help get the Democrat elected this year and redeem his failed presidency, then the man is delusional. The biggest challenge Democratic Sen. Barack Obama faces this year is convincing voters that we can return to 1970s “solutions” without getting 1970s results. (READ MORE)

Dymphna: The Irish Travel to Copenhagen - Ever since Ireland’s citizens voted a resounding NO on the referendum regarding the Lisbon Treaty, there have been mutterings about what the EU will do to the Irish for such temerity. Heaven knows that referendum result was a clear case of the average citizen ignoring the media, the intelligentsia, the politicians, and the whole array of public support for the Treaty, to say loudly and with firm conviction, “no way, José” (take note, American MSM, academia, etc. Your boy is not in until he’s voted in, despite your desperate efforts to pull the lever for everyone). Now, according to The Irish Times it seems that some of Ireland’s civil servants took a quiet trip to Copenhagen earlier this month to ask for advice. The Department of Foreign Affairs and the Attorney General’s office sent representatives over to ask about the Danish opt-out decisions: (READ MORE)

Ed Morrissey: “It wasn’t intended for you” - I’m reading one comment over and over again in response to criticism here and elsewhere about Barack Obama’s speech — that those who criticize it weren’t the audience for it anyway. I admit that I’m a Republican who has no intention of voting for Barack Obama. However, shouldn’t that have been the audience for this speech? Presidential candidates rarely win office by only holding their own partisans. That happened in 1992 and to a lesser extent in 1996 because of strong third-party bids by Ross Perot, but otherwise presidential elections become almost entirely binary affairs. One can help tip the scales by energizing the base, but presidential elections are won by convincing skeptics, not just by pandering to the faithful. When Obama (and John McCain) hit the campaign trail, they know that the audience comprises the faithful. (READ MORE)

Quid Nimis: The Speech - Soaring rhetoric? I don't think so. It sounded like every State of the Union Speech you've ever heard, except the 2002 speech. "We will get rid of government programs that don't work." I've never heard that before. The real challenge for Barack is to name one. The whole speech, except for the part about his parents, sounded exactly like Al Gore's convention speech in 2000, without the "lock box." I started getting all nostalgic. Then he started talking about his patriotism, and all Democrat's patriotism. "We all love our country." That's when the cognitive disconnect started. His adorable wife calls America a "mean" country. She only started feeling proud of her country when her husband started winning primaries. William Ayers, Obama's long-time political crony, is an unrepentant terrorist who enjoys having his picture taken standing on a crumpled American flag. (READ MORE)

neo-neocon: The big yawn of political oratory - I’ve said before that I’m not an auditory learner. Although dialogue is fine, and I never had a problem listening intently to clients, the prepared speech has always been an enormous bore to me. This was a big problem when I was growing up. Classes were mainly a bunch of blah-blah-blah (see above cartoon), and this included most of college, which was heavily based on the “lecture to the multitudes in a huge auditorium” system. Religious sermons were something I came to dread. Even poetry and literary readings that interested me made my brain go on walkabout, no matter how many times I resolved that this time it would be different. And my efforts at listening to Books on Tape were laughable. After the first few paragraphs I would invariably start daydreaming and totally lose the thread as the voice became a meaningless drone. Try finding your place in a recorded book once you’ve lost it; it’s hopeless. (READ MORE)

Pros and Cons: SPIEGEL ONLINE - Urban Development: The Battle for the World’s Skyline - SPIEGEL ONLINE - Urban Development: The Battle for the World’s Skyline, suggests that the West is losing the really crucial battle. “A building frenzy is raging in Asia, Russia and on the Persian Gulf. And cities like London and New York don’t have the money to compete. Will Western urban landscapes soon look outdated?” Oh my God!! We’re going to look outdated!! Faux fright aside, the article has some real flaws. He cannot figure out what he thinks the problem is. (He never mentions that most of the world is getting the logic of development for the first time.) Instead, he vacillates. Is it the weak dollar or the strong Euro? I’d say it’s the welfare state and the punitive to savings’ tax regimes that must accompany them - that and the fact that we actually have built up urban cores. Except in the former Soviet Empire, it’s expensive to tear down OK, safe, functional buildings to build megaliths. (READ MORE)

McQ: Obama’s Speech - it should provide red meat for the Republicans - If these are the specifics Obama plans to run on, it should be open season for Republicans. Before I get to a couple of those, did anyone else notice these moments in the speech? Here is Obama denigrating the philosophy of self-reliance: “In Washington, they call this the ‘Ownership Society,’ but what it really means is that you’re on your own. Out of work? Tough luck, you’re on your own. No health care? The market will fix it. You’re on your own. Born into poverty? Pull yourself up by your own bootstraps, even if you don’t have boots. You are on your own.” Yet his self-identified "heroes" did precisely what he denigrated earlier: “In the face of that young student, who sleeps just three hours before working the night shift, I think about my mom, who raised my sister and me on her own while she worked and earned her degree, who once turned to food stamps, but was still able to send us to the best schools in the country with the help of student loans and scholarships.” (READ MORE)

Jay Tea: Smelling Smoke In The Ayers - I like to consider myself a reasonably good writer, and one of the hallmarks of a good writer is the general avoidance of cliche's. But there's a reason why a phrase degenerates into a cliche': it's because it has more than a grain of truth. And as I consider the story of the relationship between Senator Barack Obama and unrepentant domestic terrorist Bill Ayers, and in particular the actions taken by Senator Obama's presidential campaign, I keep hearing certain tired and trite phrases: "Where there's smoke, there's fire." "When you find yourself taking the heavist flak, you know you're over the target." "Methinks the lady doth protest too much." And as much as I eschew cliche's, I also try to avoid conspiracy theories. Hell, some of my favorite pieces were aimed at debunking some of them. (READ MORE)

This Ain't Hell: Shiftless hippies unimpressed by IVAW - Readers may remember back in March the IVAW put out a call to ANSWER, World Can’t Wait, Code Pink, et al. to hold off their protests on the March 15th anniversary of the Iraq War so that the IVAW/VVAW/VFP/SEIU could conduct their Winter Soldier II theater at Silver Spring, MD without competing for the attention of the media. WSII fizzled and got virtually no attention from the media (despite a large presence of media) and a result, the protest against the war which happened five days later, on a Wednesday, drew less than a thousand protesters and, in turn, fizzled out, too. Many of the non-IVAW protest organizations blamed the IVAW for their piss poor performance. Well, that bit of history seems to be repeating itself. According to one of the shiftless hippies caught in the theater of the IVAW yesterday; “It was at this point I started to wonder that we’re doing as well in Iraq as we are. If these tactical geniuses are any indication of the military resources we have at our disposal, it’s a wonder every one of them hasn’t been slaughtered. Anyway, back at Larimer and Speer, the I.V.A.W. negotiated some more (with someone), declared that the delegates had heard their message (somehow), and disbanded.” (READ MORE)

Have an interesting post or know of a "must read?" Then send a trackback here and let us all know about it. Or you can send me an email with a link to the post and I'll update the Recon.

The Thunder Run Site of the day is: Shelby Monroe's - 101 Days With The 101st Airborne Division: The Sequel

Road 2 Recovery is a program designed to help make a difference in the lives of vets by assisting with their mental and physical rehabilitation programs.

Longtime friend of this Blog Danjel Bout award winning author of the blog 365 Days and a Wake that chronicled his time in Iraq, sends this personal message about the validity of this program along with a plea for help.

More then two years have passed since those fire bright days in Iraq, but several Soldiers I served alongside still struggle to recover from the physical and psychological wounds of our deployment. Within the last year the Veterans Administration (VA) has started to implement a new recreational therapy program to help my Soldiers, and others like them, begin to become whole again. The program utilizes cycling to help injured Soldiers regain a sense of normalcy and accomplishment during their recovery process. Cycling is a low impact activity that combines the health benefits of physical activity with the psychological benefits of being outdoors, and it has been shown to reduce depression and accompanying issues.

The Fitness Challenge Foundation and the VA would like to expand this program to allow more Veterans to take advantage of this important program, and I am committed to helping them meet this challenge. On September 28 of this year I will take part in the Road 2 Recovery, a charity ride from the San Francisco VA facility to the West Los Angeles VA facility to help fund the expansion of this program. 100% of the funds raised from this ride will be used to expand the cycling trauma recovery program to other Soldiers in need.

You can help expand this important program, and help build a therapeutic path that injured Soldiers can use to reconnect with their community by making a tax deductible donation to the Road 2 Recovery. Making a donation takes only a moment, but it will have a profound impact on those most in need of help. To make a donation simply navigate to: http://www.r2rriders.com/sponsor/, annotate Danjel Bout as the rider you are sponsoring, and make your donation.

America's heroes didn't hesitate to sacrifice their very lives in the defense of this nation, please don't hesitate to help me support them in their time of need.

Thank you for caring,
Danjel Bout - Thunder 6 / 365 Days and a Wake

Lets give our recovering troopers a hand, its the least we can do to thank them for their service and sacrifice.

UPDATE: Edited for typos.

What if a Chinese rebel pulled off the biggest practical joke in history, and nobody got it?




In contrast to architect Paul Murdoch's dirty trick (trying to plant a terrorist memorial mosque on the Flight 93 crash site), Zhang Yimou's trick at the Beijing Olympics was moral, beautiful, and hilarious.

In case you missed it, the Beijing closing ceremony was an extended dramatization of the sexual act, ending with the fertilization of an egg.

Here is a still image of the final tableaux. After the circle of a thousand yellow-clad egg-girls has finally been penetrated by the couple hundred bouncing sperm-boys, the sperms rush to the center to form the nucleus of the fertilized egg, while the egg girls spread out to form the albumen:



Here is the video (two minutes):


If this WMV file won't play on your computer, you can try reading this post over at Error Theory, where Alec's original Blogger Video upload might still be working. (Access to the video is difficult because the NBC footage cannot be posted at YouTube or Google Video. The full video has been available at uZood. We claim that our shorter clips are FAIR USE, based on news value.)

Zhang Yimou's drama began with WHAT LEADS to the fertilization of an egg (1 minute):



In between The Act and its result was a parade of floats, dramatizing the journey of the sperm through guess which body part:

Anatomical drawing, for comparison.

Wondering where the ovaries are? Floating 40 feet above the entire production:



No anatomical drawing needed to recognize this. Georgia O'Keefe would be scandalized.

But the performance wasn't just a sex scene followed by a biology class. The whole production is rendered out of passion and spirit, which connect to the wellspring of spirit in the middle part of the performance, where the circulatory "chi" of the Tai Chi masters is depicted by lit circular bicycles, circulating through bordered pathways around the still pulsating sexual center:


Chi bicycles circulate the pathways of spiritual energy before passing through the red center itself, presumably symbolizing the delivery of the chi to the zygotes.

The philosophy behind this representation may be Taoist or Buddhist, but the result is hardly distinguishable from Catholicism, which also sees the spirit inhabiting the body at conception (an idea that the Chi-Coms, with their policies of forced abortion, might prefer to suppress).

In all a beautiful, profound, life affirming, and wonderfully amusing practical joke. The fertilization of the egg at the end is meant to be the punch line, confirming everyone's suspicions about the obvious POSSIBLE sexual connotations of the preceding. This is not hidden folks. You are SUPPOSED to get it. (Original expose here.)

Choreographer Zhang Yimou is China 's most decorated film-maker, with a long history of butting heads with Communist censors, and of making sexy female-centered movies. It is not surprising that he would find a female-centered ode to procreation irresistible.

If some of his Communist overseers were in on the trick that is great news. If they have that much humor, maybe we can feel a bit better about them. The other possibility is that Yimou was able to keep his overseers from seeing enough of the production at once to figure it out. That would be a magnificent story of defiance, which will be lost if people don't get it!

Life affirming vs. murder-cult affirming

This makes two examples of semi-hidden symbolism in a mega-scale production. We have architect Paul Murdoch's dirty trick and Zhang Yimou's wonderful, beautiful and very funny trick. Zhang is the good twin to Murdoch’s evil twin. In contrast to Zhang's life-affirming symbolism, Murdoch is hiding the most disgusting tribute to evil and murder ever concocted.

If we can break the story of the good twin, and see Zhang's production properly celebrated for what it truly is, that spotlight will shine on the evil twin as well, and reveal him for what he truly is. Zhang's trick should also be a much easier story to break, and not just because half the world saw his production. If people are loathe to witness evil, either out of political calculation, or simply because they want to give the benefit of the doubt, everybody loves a good joke.

Zhang and Murdoch (Zhang is the surname) both needed for their symbolism to be semi-hidden. If it was too obvious, the hidden meaning would erupt in controversy and threaten the completion of the project. But the meaning couldn't be too hidden. Once the production is a fait accompli, people have to get it. The symbolic accomplishment has to be demonstrable, or all is for naught.

The positive morality of Zhang's display explains how he was able to get away with it. There can't be a woman in that fertilized egg scene who, after multiple rehearsals, did not know that she was dramatizing the fertilization of an egg. There cannot be a man on spring shoes who did not know he was playing a sperm, but because it was beautiful and fun, everyone was willing to go along with the joke.

Ditto for any Chi-Coms who figured it out (probably as the performance date loomed). And why not? With such a lovely trick, if it comes out that the party knew, it will be to their credit that they let it proceed.

These dynamics of positive morality are not available to Paul Murdoch. For his evil scheme to advance, he needs a very different moral dynamic to be in play, a dynamic of willful blindness, where people look at the world in terms of what they think is most advantageous for them to see, instead of in terms of what is actually there. Unfortunately, this is the dominant cognitive style in much of America today.

It is no surprise that people who could choose a memorial that is laid out in the shape of an Islamic crescent and star flag would be determined not to be concerned that the crescent actually points to Mecca. After all, the crescent and star flag configuration is obvious:



Click for larger image.

Anyone who can be willfully blind to THAT can easily ignore what seems to them to be much more esoteric, like the orientation of the crescent. It doesn't matter to them that the orientation of the crescent is actually the most important thing to Muslims, turning the crescent into the Mecca-direction indicator around which every mosque is built. What MUSLIMS think? Why that is positively arcane, to anyone who finds it advantageous to think so.

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US Soldiers Firefight With Taliban Fighters In Afghanistan

A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.


In the News: (Registration may be required to read some stories)
U.S. to Hand Over Security Duties in Anbar to Iraqi Forces - The top Marine Corps general said yesterday that the U.S. military will hand over security responsibilities to Iraqi forces next week in Iraq's western province of Anbar, paving the way to reduce the 25,000-strong Marine contingent there and free up more Marines to go to Afghanistan. (READ MORE)

Obama Team Works With Hill Democrats - Eager to avoid the missteps that plagued the first months of the Clinton administration, aides to Barack Obama have begun working in concert with top Democrats in Congress to craft a preliminary legislative agenda that would guide the senator from Illinois should he capture the White House in... (READ MORE)

Peaceful Protests In Kashmir Alter Equation for India - SRINAGAR, India -- Inside dozens of cramped kitchens in this Kashmiri city on Saturday, mothers and daughters prepared to make packets of rice for the hundreds of thousands expected at a sit-in two days later. Outside, their sons and brothers collected change from motorists to buy water and juice. (READ MORE)

Obama seizes nomination, history - DENVER In a historic changing of the guard, Democrats formally anointed Sen. Barack Obama as America's first black major-party nominee for president Wednesday night and bade farewell to the party's two-decade domination by Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton. (READ MORE)

Archbishop grabs spotlight from Dems - DENVER In retrospect, maybe the Democrats should have included Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput in their convention activities after all. The party was accused of deliberately snubbing the outspoken archbishop by failing to invite him to lead prayers or participate on its religion panels. (READ MORE)

100 militants killed in Afghanistan - KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – A four-day battle that began with an ambush on a joint U.S-Afghan patrol in southern Afghanistan has killed more than 100 militants, the coalition said Thursday. (READ MORE)

Giuliani warns of union vote - Republicans are aggressively courting blue-collar votes by adding a plank to their policy platform that demands workers retain the right to unionize through secret-ballot elections. One of the party's iconic law-and-order figures warned on Wednesday that Democratic efforts to change the labor voting system would leave workers vulnerable to corruption and intimidation. (READ MORE)

Convention swoons over Bill Clinton - DENVER For the third time since leaving office, former President Bill Clinton tried Wednesday to turn the reins of the Democratic Party over to a successor. This time, maybe it will stick. (READ MORE)

Obama votes cast him left of his own party - Sen. Barack Obama will portray himself Thursday night as an agent of change for mainstream America, but his eight-year voting record in the Illinois Senate shows the Democrat was on occasion an agent of isolation who took stands - particularly on anti-crime legislation - that put him to the left of his own party. (READ MORE)


On the Web:
Phyllis Chesler: The DNC: A Night of Political Soap Opera - It was an evening of political soap opera. Senator Biden’s wife, Senator Obama’s wife, each wept a little in their seats. Biden and his son hugged each other. In full view, both Democratic candidates kissed the other candidates’ female relatives. And although the speakers at the DNC got one rousing ovation after the other, even though I myself was sometimes moved by the theatrical tactics–the platitudes did not move me so much as sadden me. The speeches were fraught with promises which bore no relationship to reality and which failed to deal with the existential peril to America posed by Islamic jihad. (READ MORE)

Lawhawk: Only In California - Only in California could an idea as backwards as this could be even considered for statewide ballot for consideration in November. The ballot initiative would not only impose new taxes, but would actually impose a one-time tax on those who seek to leave the state to avoid paying those taxes, which is endearingly labeled the Hasta La Vista Tax. And that's not the half of it. This bill is proffered by one Paul McCauley who clearly thinks Karl Marx had economics right, and wants to engage in massive redistribution of wealth. Apparently, the progenitor of this proposal thinks that wealth is concentrated in too few people, and to rectify the situation, the money will be confiscated and redistributed. (READ MORE)

Donald Douglas: Avoiding an Invesco Fiasco for Barack Obama - Barack Obama's acceptance speech tonight at Denver's Invesco Field at Mile High Stadium represents the challenge of a lifetime. The nominee's acceptance speech is the year's most anticipated campaign event before the post-Labor Day general election battle begins. For Obama, the stakes are the highest: He's not simply "the candidate of change" because of his biracial background. He's genuinely different in ideology and outlook than any presidential candidate before him. Doubts about his affinity to nation haven't gone away, because the more we learn of him, the more it seems he has something to hide. (READ MORE)

Chickenhawk Express: It's Not Nice to Criticize The One.... - While the Obamatrons are weeping for joy in Denver, The One has initiated another attack on free speech. Howard Kurtz, who has been researching the facts of the Ayers-Obama connection, is scheduled to be on WGN Radio for 2 hours this evening. Kurtz wrote the incredibly detailed piece on Obama's past connections in the Weekly Standard a few weeks ago, has been digging through the just released Annenberg Challenge files. Well you can guess what happens next....Yes - the Obama hit squad sent out an email blast calling for supporters of The One to call the station and complain. Now just forget that the Station Manager invited a rep for Obama to be on the show at the same time but the Obama camp said "nope".... that's just not good enough. You can't speak ill of The One. (READ MORE)

Confederate Yankee: Ayers: Bombing America Not A Big Deal - Someone should ask Barack Obama point blank: at what point during his 21-year relationship with domestic terrorist Bill Ayers (and to a lesser-documented but no less real extent, Ayer's terrorist wife and Charles Manson fan, Bernadine Dohrn) did Ayers and Obama discuss Ayer's involvement with the Weather Underground, and what was said? In over two decades of knowing each other and running in Chicago's political cauldron of aging New Left radicals, SDS leftovers, graying Weatherman, Marxist-Leninists, angry activist priests and fringe religions, the "glory days" of the 1960s and 70s must have come up in conversation. Did the bombings ever come up in conversations at one another's homes? (READ MORE)

Dadmanly: Boxing for Obama - AP triumphantly proclaims, Clintons throwing a one-two punch at McCain. If that’s true, I think the Fix is in. I also think the AP is trying to carry water for the DNC and the Presidential Candidacy of Sen. Obama, based on their straight-faced portrayal of the Clintons as gone all pugilistic against Sen. McCain. McCain’s not the guy staggering at the ropes with his eyes starting to swell. Completely ignoring insider complaints, and supporter controversies swirling around the Clintons, tepid support for Obama, and numerous Clinton affronts and insults to the presumptive Democratic Party nominee, the AP sticks to the script: (READ MORE)

Don Surber: The Kos PUMAs - While the liberal Kos blog says PUMA are a myth, where are its PUMA bloggers who went on strike in March? So Kos thinks the Party Unity My Ass people are a figment of Rupert Murdoch’s imagination. From yesterday: “PUMAs though are a rare breed. To put things into perspective, a rally for Clinton here yesterday reportedly drew about 1,000 people. Keep in mind there are about 50,000 here for the convention. Yes, they do exist, but in small, clustered numbers, and by all measures, they are an endangered species of voter. A March 2008 Gallup poll showed that 28% of Clinton voters would vote for McCain in the fall. Now, that same poll shows that number standing at just 16%. Other polls have the number in closer to 20%.” 18 million Hillary voters, times 16% equals 3 million votes, which equals the margin of victory in 2004. But they don’t exist. The party is united. So where is Alegre? Alegre is the Kos poster who, on March 15, went on strike: (READ MORE)

Ed Morrissey: Dems getting nervous about the Temple of O - Politico reports that “senior Democratic officials” have had second thoughts about the wisdom of the scope, scale, and setting for tonight’s Barack Obama speech at Invesco Field. The Greek temple set design appears to have been the last straw, and they now worry about the “rock star” impression that this will leave with American voters who increasingly see Obama as a fad and not a serious candidate. Democrats failed to foresee this despite nominating their least qualified and experienced candidate in decades, if not in their entire history: “From the elaborate stagecraft to the teeming crowd of 80,000 cheering partisans, the vagaries of the weather to the unpredictable audience reaction, the optics surrounding the stadium event have heightened worries that the Obama campaign is engaging in a high-risk endeavor in an uncontrollable environment.” (READ MORE)

Allahpundit: McCain to air ad tonight directly addressing Obama - Between this and Drudge’s teaser about possibly leaking the VP pick, they’re clearly very nervous about letting this speech go off without the GOP getting a word in edgewise. I can’t imagine what he’d have to say “to” Obama unless it’s a challenge for more townhall debates.
Tonight, John McCain will talk directly to his opponent in a television ad his campaign is airing in battleground states, around the time Barack Obama accepts the presidential nomination, McCain’s campaign said…McCain campaign communications director Jill Hazelbaker said in an MSNBC appearance that the battleground spot is ‘an historic ad — I think this is the first of its kind.’” (READ MORE)

Michelle Malkin: Next, the Obama thugs came for Stanley Kurtz - First, they came for TV stations daring to air an independent ad about Barack Obama and unrepentant Weather Underground terrorist Bill Ayers. Next, they came for GOP donors. Now, they are shamelessly attacking National Review investigative journalist Stanley Kurtz — one of conservatism’s most thoughtful and penetrating writers on academic and educational affairs. Kurtz has been at the forefront probing Obama’s relationships with left-wing ideologues. It was his public information request and public call for help that led to the University of Illinois - Chicago finally releasing tons of files that shed light on the Obama/Ayers working relationship. The Obama camp is condemning Kurtz in harsher terms than it ever condemned the terrorist Ayers. Kurtz has been attacked now as a “right-wing hatchet man” and “slimy character assassin.” Here are the Kurtz-smearing talking points the Obama campaign sent to its worshipers. (READ MORE)

Paul Mirengoff: So, how are they doing so far? - The Demcrats came to the convention with two imperatives: win over Hillary Clinton's feminist supporters who are angry with Barack Obama and win over independent voters who are fearful of him. As I wrote here, "there is an obvious tension between these two vital objectives; Clinton’s core supporters are liberal feminists, while independent voters tend toward political moderation." The Democrats have tackled these two challenges one night at a time. On Tuesday, Hillary Clinton made a strong case for why liberal feminists should vote for Obama, not McCain. It's a case that basically makes itself, but, given the audience, it's also a case that may prevail only in slow motion. On Wednesday, the convention turned to a broader audience, and Bill Clinton, the only living Democratic politician who has had sustained success with that audience, took center stage. (READ MORE)

Right Wing Nut House: OBAMA’S FULL COURT PRESS AGAINST FREE SPEECH - With many liberals cheering them on, the Obama campaign is putting on a full court press on several fronts to silence critics and quash Conservatives attempts to publicize the candidate’s relationship with former Weather Underground terrorist William Ayers. In effect, the Obama camp is putting the entire nation on notice; screw with us and we will make your life so miserable you will wish you had never heard the name “Bill Ayers.” I can sympathize with their frustration. Their attempts to carefully craft an image and narrative of a political moderate who could bring both sides together may not be able to stand the revelation that not only did Obama seek out radicals in his spiritual life by joining the church of a conspiracy minded bigot but also made alliances with political radicals like Ayers (and the Maoist New Party) to advance his career. (READ MORE)

Winds of Change: A Completely Non-Hostile Question About Liberal v. Conservative Thought - Tensions are getting higher with the election's approach, so I want to emphasize that this post is in no way intended to be disrespectful of either side. A liberal friend brought up an interesting point, and I wanted to bring it to your attention here because of Winds' location right at the center of the blogosphere. My only interest is to expose the question to a larger community, to see if the observations hold true in a broader sense than in the smaller community that reads Grim's Hall. We were recently welcoming a new reader, and asking her to tell us a bit about herself. In return, I thought perhaps we should all tell her a bit about ourselves. (Which is a useful exercise, actually -- it might make a good concept for the Winds community as well.) (READ MORE)

Ron Winter: What If McCain Picks A Woman VP? - Well, what if McCain does select a woman as his running mate? Personally, I think it would be the death knell for the Democratic campaign, based of course on the assumption that his selection is a good one and can stand up to campaign scrutiny. I've heard the same point made by quite a few of my veteran friends - male veterans - and if you can convince that crowd, I think the American voter is more than ready for a woman in one of the top executive posts. There are at least two Republican women whose names have been mentioned as possible VP selections, but the MainStream Media, well, actually, all the media, have given them short shrift. They are Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, and Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. (READ MORE)

Lorie Byrd: Free Speech for Me, Not Thee (if thee is a Republican) - MSNBC is not even trying to hide their partisan Democrat bias any longer. I used to watch MSNBC from time to time, but rarely do anymore. It is just hard to take seriously any network that tries to pass off Keith (Kos diarist) Olbermann as objective, or as a journalist for that matter. I have been channel surfing during the convention this week though and was surprised to find that the network is even farther in the tank for the Democrats than they were when I last watched. I didn't think it was possible. To call the "coverage" of the convention provided by Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann a lovefest does not quite go far enough to tell the story. (READ MORE)

Harmless Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: Who Serves in the Military? - Remember Senator John Kerry’s pronouncement in 2006 that “if you study hard and do your homework, and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.” I know that Senator Kerry intended it to be a joke, but humor (at least good humor) is based on either fact or a person’s perception of fact. Otherwise, it’s just not funny. Senator Kerry was trying to play to the commonly-held idea that people volunteer for the military because they’re from low-income, disadvantaged homes, they cannot find another job, or they’re too dumb to make it anywhere else. Nothing can be further from the truth! (READ MORE)

Have an interesting post or know of a "must read?" Then send a trackback here and let us all know about it. Or you can send me an email with a link to the post and I'll update the Recon.

Or...within the TTLB Ecosystem at least.

How can a blog go from a Large Mammal with a ranking of 1205 on Wednesday evening to a Wiggly Worm with a ranking of 234022 over night?

I don't know why I get upset about things like this, but that overnight change is insane.

**Bonus points if you can give me the name of the movie the title of this post comes from. **

A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.


In the News: (Registration may be required to read some stories)
Warner positions Virginia in spotlight - DENVER Seizing his moment in the national spotlight, former Virginia governor and current Senate candidate Mark Warner on Tuesday night framed the fall election as a "race for the future" that Sen. Barack Obama and Democrats must win with new ideas and pragmatic politics. (READ MORE)

Hoyer hedges on McCain as 'bad president' - DENVER House Democratic Leader Steny H. Hoyer said Tuesday that Republican John McCain wouldn't necessarily be a bad president, but his problem is he has embraced President Bush's policies. (READ MORE)

Hijackers of Darfur plane surrender - TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) – Two hijackers who commandeered a jetliner from Sudan's Darfur region and diverted it to a remote desert airstrip in southern Libya surrendered Wednesday after a 22-hour standoff, an airline official said. (READ MORE)

Nearly 600 detained in immigration raid - LAUREL, Miss. (AP) The largest single-workplace immigration raid in U.S. history has caused panic among Hispanic families in this small southern Mississippi town, where federal agents rounded up nearly 600 plant workers suspected of being in the country illegally. (READ MORE)

Flights delayed by FAA glitch - Airports across the country experienced major delays Tuesday after a Federal Aviation Administration facility in Georgia that processes flight plans for the Eastern U.S. developed communications problems due to software issues, the FAA said. (READ MORE)

Russia dismembers Georgia - UNITED NATIONS Russia on Tuesday recognized the "independence" of two breakaway Georgian regions, responding to what Russian U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin called "a completely new reality" and expanding de facto Russian territorial control for the first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union. (READ MORE)

Shi'ite resistance to Sunnis threatens progress of surge - The Iraqi government is resisting U.S. efforts to incorporate former Sunni insurgents into Iraqi security forces, threatening a strategy that helped make the surge a success thus far and could allow U.S. forces to withdraw from Iraqi cities next year. (READ MORE)

Power-Sector Emissions Of China To Top U.S. - The carbon emissions of China's electric power sector will jump by about a third this year and surpass the total emissions of the U.S. electric power industry for the first time, according to a report by the Center for Global Development - a Washington-based think tank. (READ MORE)

U.N. Finds Airstrike Killed 90 Afghans - ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Aug. 26 -- United Nations officials in Afghanistan said Tuesday that there was "convincing evidence" at least 90 civilians -- two-thirds of them children -- were killed in a U.S.-led airstrike last week that caused the Afghan government to call for a review of U.S. and NATO... (READ MORE)

N. Korea, Angry Over Terror List, Threatens to Rebuild Nuclear Program - TOKYO, Aug. 26 -- Angry that the United States has not removed it from a list of states that sponsor terrorism, North Korea said Tuesday that it has stopped disabling its nuclear reactor at Yongbyon and will consider rebuilding it. (READ MORE)

Pakistani Push in Tribal Areas Triggers a Flood of Refugees - NOWSHERA, Pakistan -- Lal Bahadur walked down from the mountains about two weeks ago. With his back to Afghanistan and his wife and five children alongside, he descended steep inclines through the northern edge of Pakistan's tribal areas as artillery fire boomed around them. It was nearly a full day before the family found a place to rest. By the time they reached the district of Nawagai, the price of a ride to safety in the nearby city of Peshawar had already increased 10-fold. (READ MORE)

U.N. Farce - IT HAS BEEN ALMOST a year since the world was stirred by thousands of Burmese monks and ordinary people taking to the streets to demand freedom -- and being bloodily crushed by one of the world's cruelest regimes. Governments everywhere proclaimed that such violence and repression could not stand, and they insisted that U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon do something. (READ MORE)

Russia Says 2 Regions in Georgia Are Independent - MOSCOW, Aug. 26 -- Russia recognized the independence of two breakaway provinces of Georgia over the strong objections of the United States and much of Europe on Tuesday, escalating tensions in the region as Russian troops dug in on Georgian soil and U.S. warships prepared to deliver humanitarian aid to an occupied port city. (READ MORE)



On the Web:
CJ: Exclusive: Obama VP's New World Order Aspirations - Everyone (except Hillary Clinton's supporters) seems to be pleased with the choice of Senator Joseph Biden as Senator Barack Obama's choice of VP. There's a lot of attention on Biden's negative comments about Obama and positive comments towards McCain, but that's really semantics. The real issue that everyone should be focusing on isn't even in the press yet. And I doubt they'll even investigate or publicize this if they knew anyway. Prepare for something you'll only find on ASP. Joe Biden has claimed multiple times Saddam "illegally used American aid to buy arms", "slaughter[ed]…his own Kurdish citizens", and used American intelligence to aid in his invasion into Kuwait. That's not even the most damning of Biden's own claims. He boldly proclaimed, "Saddam provided safe haven for the world's most infamous terrorists." WHAT!?!?! I thought this war was NOTHING about terrorism! But, that's not all. (READ MORE)

Kathleen Parker: Pope Pelosi At the Gate - WASHINGTON -- When Democrats decided they wouldn't let the GOP be "God's Only Party," they weren't kidding. Thanks to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, none other than St. Augustine has been summoned to Denver. He was resurrected as Pelosi was trying to respond to the question that refuses to die: When does human life begin? This time, it was Tom Brokaw asking on Sunday's "Meet the Press." Citing Barack Obama's recent pass on a similar question -- "At what point does a baby get human rights?" -- Brokaw asked Pelosi what she would say to Obama were he to ask her advice. Pelosi didn't finesse her answer, as Obama did when he said the question was above his pay grade, but she may wish she had. (READ MORE)

Michelle Malkin: What I Saw At the Discombobulation - DENVER -- Never was so much hype created by so few to simulate the appearance of so many. The hard-core left vowed to turn out 50,000 protesters for the Democratic National Convention this week. They pledged to "Re-create '68" and cause the kind of tear-gas-infused revolutionary havoc that marked the DNC in Chicago four decades ago. Police prepared for the worst riots. Media from around the world anticipated the best pictures. But when rhetorical push came to real-life shove, the nostalgic, Marx-adoring organizers of Re-create '68 seem to have mustered no more than, oh, 68 bodies. Their presence here is dwarfed by the massive show of police, press and camera-toting looky-loos. You can't take a picture without someone else taking pictures of everyone else taking pictures of not much else getting in your frame. (READ MORE)

Michelle Bernard: The Shattered Glass Ceiling: Women Voters after Hillary Clinton’s Run - The Democratic National Convention is upon us, and much of the press commentary revolves around “her.” Hillary Clinton, that is, and whether she and her supporters will unite behind Barack Obama. Both campaigns are now developing strategies to attract the votes of women. The best way to do this is not to play gender politics, but to craft sensible solutions to the problems that affect women, men, families, and children. The Democratic race was unusually hard-fought, and the antagonism of women of a certain era to Senator Obama remains strong. Disgruntled Clinton supporters have created a “Just Say No Deal” coalition including 250 internet groups to oppose his nomination. An NBC/Wall Street Journal poll finds that 21 percent of Democrats plan to vote for Senator McCain. That is likely to change by November 4th, but even a small number of Democratic defectors could cost Senator Obama victory in a tight race. (READ MORE)

Walter E. Williams: Is College Worth It? - As parents pack their youngsters off to college, they might ask themselves whether it's worth both the money they will spend and their children's time. Dr. Marty Nemko has researched that question in an article aptly titled "America's Most Over-rated Product: Higher Education (www.martynemko.com/articles/americas-most-overrated-product-higher-education_id1539)." The U.S. Department of Education statistics show that 76 out of 100 students who graduate in the bottom 40 percent of their high school class do not graduate from college, even if they spend eight and a half years in college. That's even with colleges having dumbed down classes to accommodate such students. Only 23 percent of the 1.3 million students who took the ACT college entrance examinations in 2007 were prepared to do college-level study in math, English and science. (READ MORE)

Jonah Goldberg: Obama Flubs the 'Presidential' Test - Vice president. Who among us can contain their excitement? Not me. I can't wait to hear more from the man for whom brevity is a Rubicon he will not cross. Ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you something about Joe Biden, as Joe Biden himself might say: Joe is the guy who will tell the hard truths, say the unsaid things - literally, not just figuratively - to ensure that he has gone the extra oratory mile in service to this great cause, America, for which he will give not merely his last breaths but an unknowable number of breaths in service of the country he loves, never once tiring or being distracted by the grammatical ballast of the period, the wedge issue of the paragraph break or the thud of his audiences' heads soporifically smacking the tables in front of them. No, never let it be said that Joe won't say what needs to be said, not only when it needs to be said but the other times as well, again and again and, ladies and gentlemen, again. (READ MORE)

Mona Charen: This Historic Candidacy - I so wish I could support Barack Obama. It would be great -- truly magnificent -- to elect a black president of the United States. Watching the convention coverage on Monday night, I was moved by my friend Juan Williams' almost tearful reaction to Michelle Obama's address. He shook his head in amazement that an African-American woman was in the position she was. And it moved me to see how moved he was. I wish I could send Michelle Obama -- so attractive, so poised, so stylish -- a cyber hug. I'd wager that millions of other Americans, like me, would love to see someone like her as First Lady. Or at least I would love to support the person Michelle Obama has conjured for us this week -- successful working-class girl who worked hard, upheld traditional values, and was rewarded by a great nation. But in her case, as in Barack Obama's case, there is just too much artifice and not enough reality here. (READ MORE)

Ben Shapiro: Barack Obama's Big Mistake: Successfully Distributing His Message - Campaigns usually collapse because of gaffes -- off-the-cuff actions that accidentally reveal the true nature of candidates. And the Barack Obama campaign has had more than its share of revealing gaffes: Obama's statement that rural voters turn to God, guns and racism because they have no jobs; his explanation that proper tire gauge use would fix high gas prices; his self-aggrandizing exhortation that he has "become a symbol of the possibility of America returning to our best traditions"; his associations with Jeremiah Wright and Bill Ayers and Tony Rezko; the list goes on and on. But gaffes are not the real reason for the stagnation of the Obama campaign. That stagnation is due to one factor: successful distribution of the Obama message. (READ MORE)

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann: Magic Words: "I Love This Country" - 'I love this country": Those are the magic words that Michelle Obama said at the Democratic National Convention last night. They're the words we've wanted to hear from her ever since we saw her say that she was proud of her country "for the first time in my adult life" now that her husband was winning primaries en route to the White House. Did she buy into the American dream? Was she part of our national aspiration - or part of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright's twisted view of us? Those were the questions we wanted answered. Last night, she answered - loud and clear. We've watched the scripted familial intimacies Hillary Clinton always shares from the podium and wondered if they had been focus grouped. We've watched Theresa Heinz Kerry's vaulting ambition at the 2004 Democratic convention and wondered if she was really human. (READ MORE)

John McCaslin: It's Unity, Stupid - Democrats are boasting about the pair of "prominent Republicans" addressing this week's Democratic National Convention, including former Iowa Rep. Jim Leach Monday night and Jim Whitaker, mayor of Fairbanks, Alaska, on Tuesday night. Both politicians earlier endorsed Sen. Barack Obama for president because of his desire to unify the country. Wouldn't you know, Democrats are now finding it difficult to unify their own party. MINY OR MOE? On Nov. 4, voters will choose "the lesser of two evils" to become president of the United States. "This is a battle to become the lesser of two evils, rather than the best of the bunch," says Washington political pollster Frank Luntz, who in a memo obtained by Inside the Beltway on Monday writes that so-called floating, or undecided voters, "have huge hang-ups with both candidates," albeit for different reasons. (READ MORE)

Smooth Stone: Slouching towards Armageddon - BabbaZee, at her excellent blog The Outraged Spleen of Zion, has written a masterful post about Condoleeza Rice’s insistence that Jerusalem be divided between Israeli Jews, its rightful owners, and Israel’s enemies, the undeserving and historically and internationally inappropriate Palestinian Arabs of Arabia. BabbaZee begins her post with Dore Gold’s discussion of his book, The Fight For Jerusalem, where Dore Gold talks about the Muslim Arab’s denial of the existence of the Temple of the Jews, a denial which started with Arafat but did not die with him, viewable here: BabbaZee then reminds us of her post from June 2008 where she writes about how Mahmoud Abbas, the current leader of the Palestinian Arab thieves, who is also the engineer behind the heinous murders of the Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics in 1973 in this post Abbas: Temple Mount “100% Islamic”. (READ MORE)

The Belmont Club: Shameful honor or honorable shame? - John Kerry’s “finest moment”, according to Bill Ayers, was the day he threw his medals away. Should we listen to him? Is it possible to even discuss the video without somehow being accused of bigotry? Some have implied that society’s “finest moment” should be the ability to throw the information about what is implied about Ayers, as exemplified by the anecdote he himself tells, away. Yet Ayers himself doesn’t cast aside the information, but shouts it from the housetops as in the recent interview. How does one listen, yet not listen to Bill Ayers? The implied answer is to wear a filter where the Ayers story about Kerry becomes a noble anecdote - a kind of modern Horatius Not At the Bridge story. The AP writes that “Barack Obama is striking back fiercely and swiftly to stamp out an ad that links him to a 1960s radical, eager to demonstrate a far more aggressive response to attacks than John Kerry did when faced with the 2004 ‘Swift Boat’ campaign.” (READ MORE)


John Hawkins: Obama's Unquenchable Love Of The Grandiose - Let's see; the McCain campaign is successfully cutting you to pieces with ads portraying you as an inexperienced, yet arrogant novice who's more of a rock star than a politician. So, what do you do? If you're Barack Obama, you have Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen open for you, have a Hollywood actress sing the national anthem, and then...I think I will just let the rest of the story speak for itself: “Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's big speech on Thursday night will be delivered from an elaborate columned stage resembling a miniature Greek temple. The stage, similar to structures used for rock concerts, has been set up at the 50-yard-line, the midpoint of Invesco Field, the stadium where the Denver Broncos' National Football League team plays.” (READ MORE)

Kings of War: ‘Why can’t the Americans stop this?’ - So what does success and ultimate victory mean in Afghanistan, for the Taliban and for us? I’m always amazed by the spirit of international forces fighting in Afghanistan with few resources in wildly unfavourable circumstances. Equally, I would echo the views of the Faceless Bureaucrat below, that some recent statements by ISAF commanders suggest a disturbing partial (or mis ) understanding of the conflict. Consider this: “The road from Kabul to Kandahar is even more treacherous, according to other drivers. ‘If the Afghan Army isn’t there, a fly cannot pass,’ said Bashir, a lorry owner, pointing to the scorched shells of three vehicles he retrieved from a Taleban raid on the Kandahar road last week. Of 60 lorries, 13 were destroyed, he said. ‘Why can’t the Americans stop this?’” (READ MORE)

Matt Sanchez: Canada’s Guantanamo problem - In Afghanistan, on July 27, 2002, U.S. medic Sgt. 1st Class Christopher J. Speer of Alberquerque, N.M., attached to the 3rd Platoon of Bravo Company, 505th Infantry Regiment was killed by a Toronto born Canadian citizen. Today, Omar Khardr sits at the American naval base of Guantanamo awaitng trial. Internationally Guantanomo invigorates America haters to protest with clenched fists and shake their collective heads in self-righteousness. Unfortunately, the press has done a horrible job of explaining the Guantanamo detention center and the reason why is probably because too many journalists were busy shaking their heads and clenching their fists. Guantanamo is the place no one wants to claim despite the niffty service it provides. A randy group of suspects, most of whom caught on the battlefield, have been held at “Gitmo”, a sliver of freedom on the prison island of Cuba. (READ MORE)

Phyllis Chesler: Michelle and Joe Looked Grim as Hillary Endorsed Obama in a Masterfully Minimal Way - As Hillary addressed the DNC, the unforgiving cameras kept panning back to Michelle Obama who was sitting with Joe Biden. Neither Michelle nor Joe managed to crack more than one smile apiece-well, perhaps two, even as Hillary insisted, over and over again, that the Democratic Party must unite behind Obama-not because he is an astounding leader, or The One, but simply because he is the Democratic candidate. During every ovation, both the future First Lady and his Vice-Presidential choice remained grim-lipped, expressionless, sometimes even angry-faced. (Joe Biden was caught on camera warmly embracing former President Jimmy Carter. So much for "change.") In a sense, just as Hillary stood by her man Bill, she is also, just as strategically, standing by her man Obama. But not exactly. (READ MORE)

This Ain't Hell: Back to the IVAW Theater - The street theater that got Adam Kokesh in trouble last summer in DC has been brought to Denver. Pretending they’re on a patrol, IVAW members start face-planting random spectators as if they were suspects in terrorist attacks; “Suddenly one of the soldiers announced that they were looking for a suspect wearing an orange bandana, who they suspected of planting roadside improvised explosive devices (IEDs). At that the GIs began forcing nearby pedestrians face-first up against a wall and yelling at them to ‘shut the fuck up.’ One man was pinned to the ground in what looked like a stress position. The police officers, from Denver and surrounding towns, did nothing. They had been informed days before, one officer told me, that the Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) were coming to town and preparing to engage in nonviolent street theater on Tuesday and Wednesday. The scared pedestrians pinned to the wall and the sidewalk, I learned, were volunteers. This was all just acting.” (READ MORE)

Meryl Yourish: Durban II: Heading right down the same anti-Semitic path - UN Watch has another report on the upcoming UN anti-Israel and Democracy Conference The World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance. It seems that not only is Durban II going after Israel, but it’s really going to try to codify anti-Islamic blasphemy. UN Watch’s Hillel Neuer, a modern-day Don Quixote who bangs his head against the windmill called United Nations, spoke against the declaration. “The declaration makes only one reference to a country situation, ‘reiterat[ing] its concern about the plight of the Palestinian people under foreign occupations.’ Neuer asked, ‘Why is a non-African situation mentioned in a declaration about Africa, one that references neither Sudan’s racist killings, nor any other country in Africa?’” (READ MORE)

Jay Tea: The Illness That Dare Not Speak Its Name - A terrible affliction is sweeping the nation today. A condition that is so shameful, that almost no one can bring themselves to even say it aloud. But here at Wizbang, we are sturdy souls, we are hardy and hearty, and we will do that which others fear to do: we shall speak (well, type) the name of this dread disease: Sudden Jihadi Syndrome. This is that terrible illness that strikes completely at random, when perfectly normal, peace-loving, tolerant Muslims and drives them into committing horrific feats of terror. One such sufferer is 25=year-old Mohammed Taheri-Azar, who was living out a calm, routine, uneventful life when he was suddenly afflicted with SJS and drove his SUV into a pedestrian area at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, hoping to kill as many infidels as he could before he himself was, in turn, struck down by police. (READ MORE)

Lorie Byrd: The Non-Obama Convention - If you missed Hillary's speech tonight, let me summarize it for you: Obama is the Democrat nominee so I will support him, since he is the Democrat and I am a Democrat. She also talked about her campaign and how her candidacy inspired women and little girls. She looked great and her video was great. She just didn't make the case for Obama. She didn't talk about how he is qualified to lead. She said his name plenty of times, but she really didn't talk about him. Tomorrow night Bill Clinton will speak. We all know what he will talk about, because it is all he ever talks about, and it ain't Obama. The other speaker tomorrow night will be Joe Biden. Biden is known for his love of the sound of his own voice so I expect he will be talking more about himself than Obama. (READ MORE)

Warner Todd Huston: Despite Soft Polls in US, Bloomberg News Tells us Germans ‘Overwhelmingly Favor Obama’ - On August 25 Patrick Donahue of Bloomberg breathlessly informed us that a recent poll showed that Germans love Barack Obama. In a week where Obama’s soft polling numbers with Americans who will do the actual voting, you’d be excused if you wondered who cared, but apparently Bloomberg thinks this Obama puffing “news” is worth reporting. It’s more reason to be suspicious that the Old Media is in the tank for Barack Obama, in any case. This particular Bloomberg story has little substance and is centered on a population that cannot even vote for Obama in the first place. Interestingly, however, this story makes no effort to contrast high polling numbers in Germany with the much softer support Obama finds in the U.S.A. At least such a comparison might have served a more newsworthy purpose. (READ MORE)

Right Wing Nut House: HALFWAY HOME AND DEMS STILL CAN’T FIND UNITY - Allow me to take off my partisan hat for a moment and try to give a coldly analytical view of the Democratic convention at the halfway point. It seems to me that the major themes of the convention have largely been subsumed by the Clinton drama and that the more the Obama camp tries to assuage the hurt feelings of the PUMA’s, the Hillraisers, and the bitter end Hillaryites, the more they become resistant to the call for unity. Frankly, I don’t know what else the Obama people could be doing to rectify this situation. They have bent over backwards to accommodate the wishes of Hillary’s campaign and, by extension, her supporters. And all that they seem to be getting for their trouble are leaks about how “arrogant” they are and how they have been disrespectful to Hillary and her supporters. What this has done is elevate the level of tension in the hall so that rather than coming off excited and confident, the Democrats seem hesitant and worried. (READ MORE)

Dan Riehl: Obama Caught In Perfect Storm Of Events - A series of events are coming together to create, perhaps not a perfect storm, but certainly in-climate weather for Barack Obama given that he hoped to capture lightening in a bottle with a rhetorical whirlwind Thursday night at Invesco Stadium. The first wave was Hillary Clinton, who endorsed an agenda last night in Denver which included at least slight personal praise for John McCain, yet yielded no such thing for Barack Obama. The second big wave to crash into him is coming tomorrow with Hillary's, even if sometimes inappropriately engorged, lessor half. Then after two nights of Clinton convention domination, Obama will still not have Thursday evening entirely to himself. While the speech will certainly dominate political coverage it isn't really news. And as we saw with Obama's Veep circus, the media will be forced to speculate, spy and continuously ask who is John McCain going to be rolling out as Veep come Friday afternoon. (READ MORE)

Ed Morrissey: Video: Behind the scenes at Invesco and the “regal” stage - Earlier, I wrote about Barack Obama and the Temple of The One, but the picture we had didn’t give quite the same perspective as this taken by “See Swann”. The intrepid correspondent’s narrative gets a little tiresome, but his access to the field at Invesco/Mile High Stadium gives the best possible look at the staging for Obama’s acceptance speech on Thursday night: Greek or Roman architecture? Based on my limited recollection, the Romans used similar construction but copied it from the Greeks. Perhaps architects can answer that question, but what hasn’t been answered is why Obama decided to go with this theme rather than use a more traditional, American theme for his staging. Should a man who is trying to push back against being defined as an elitist opt to speak from an ersatz Greek temple? What screams elitist more than a Mount Olympus reference? (READ MORE)


Have an interesting post or know of a "must read?" Then send a trackback here and let us all know about it. Or you can send me an email with a link to the post and I'll update the Recon.

As NOTR reminds us to Never Forget that Some Gave All.

Sergeant James J. Regan, 26, of Manhasset, New York, died February 9, 2007, in northern Iraq of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle while on combat patrol. Regan was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Fort Benning, Georgia.

Read more...

The Thunder Run Site of the Day is: Soldier's Mom

A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.


In the News: (Registration may be required to read some stories)
More Pay for Good Teachers - AT BOTH ends of the country, high-profile fights have broken out over teacher contracts. At issue in both cities -- the District and Denver -- are proposals tying big salary increases to improved student achievement. Some union leaders don't countenance the idea of being held accountable, and that's bad news not just for the children but also for the many teachers whose good work is being shortchanged. (READ MORE)

Cheney To Visit Georgia Next Week - Vice President Cheney will travel next week to war-ravaged Georgia as part of a swing through several former Soviet republics, making him the highest-level U.S. emissary to visit the country since hostilities between Russia and Georgia broke out this month, officials said yesterday. (READ MORE)

For Those From Swing States, The Watchword Is...Worry - DENVER, Aug. 25 -- The anxiety comes in several forms, but particularly common is the pained look, followed by the quick glance away and the lengthy pause, in the face of a simple question: How is Barack Obama doing? (READ MORE)

Maliki Demands All U.S. Troops Pull Out by 2011 - BAGHDAD, Aug. 25 -- Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki demanded a complete U.S. military withdrawal from Iraq by 2011 as he embarked Monday on an attempt to win support among Iraqi leaders for a draft security accord with the United States. (READ MORE)

Governing Coalition Collapses in Pakistan - ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Aug. 25 -- Pakistan's ruling coalition broke apart Monday amid a political battle over the presidency, paralyzing the U.S.-backed government at a time when Taliban insurgents here and in neighboring Afghanistan appear to be gaining ground. (READ MORE)



On the Web:
Michael Totten: The Truth About Russia in Georgia - Virtually everyone believes Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili foolishly provoked a Russian invasion on August 7, 2008, when he sent troops into the breakaway district of South Ossetia. “The warfare began Aug. 7 when Georgia launched a barrage targeting South Ossetia,” the Associated Press reported over the weekend in typical fashion. Virtually everyone is wrong. Georgia didn't start it on August 7, nor on any other date. The South Ossetian militia started it on August 6 when its fighters fired on Georgian peacekeepers and Georgian villages with weapons banned by the agreement hammered out between the two sides in 1994. At the same time, the Russian military sent its invasion force bearing down on Georgia from the north side of the Caucasus Mountains on the Russian side of the border through the Roki tunnel and into Georgia. This happened before Saakashvili sent additional troops to South Ossetia and allegedly started the war. (READ MORE)

Lt. Nixon: Why the DNC Makes Me Hate America - It's often been remarked by my cohorts and I that we should just get out of this damn country and open a go-go bar with babes on roller skates in Thailand or something. You know, just sort of give up on life. At no time has that feeling been more sharp than tonight's viewing of the MSNBC coverage on the Democratic convention. The weeping delegates, the chortling MSNBC commenters practically in a fit of lust over their messiah, the stupid fucking signs, the dorky white people dances to crummy songs you hear on your local "soft rock" radio station, and the grandiose setup in a secured building that is presumably supposed to be speaking to the "common man". The festivities started off with Ted Kennedy looking all schmoozy and smug on his yacht followed by a wretched speech about how he was the savior of America by directing taxpayer dollars from one group of Americans to another under the guise of healthcare. (READ MORE)

Michael Rubin: Biden's Blink on Iran - In selecting Joseph Biden as his running mate, Barack Obama acknowledged the importance of foreign affairs to this year's election. His Web site trumpeted Biden as "an expert on foreign policy" and a man "who has stared down dictators." As chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Biden is well versed in policy debates and carefully choreographed trips. But his record on the Islamic Republic of Iran -- perhaps the chief national security threat facing the next president -- suggests a persistent and dangerous judgment deficit. Biden's unyielding pursuit of "engagement" with Iran for more than a decade has made it easier for Tehran to pursue its nuclear program, while his partisan obsession with thwarting the Bush administration has led him to oppose tough sanctions against hard-liners in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. (READ MORE)

Eugene Robinson: The Worrywart Party - DENVER -- If they want to win in November, Democrats have one task to accomplish this week: Snap out of it. Somehow, tentativeness and insecurity have infected a party that ought to be full of confident swagger. It's not that Democrats don't like their odds of winning the presidency and boosting their majorities in both houses of Congress. It's that they are even bothering to calculate and recalculate those odds. That's what you could catch Democrats doing last weekend as they assembled for the convention. We'll win, they would say, but we just have to do this or Barack Obama just has to do that or the Clintons have to do this, that and the other. And the stars have to align just so. (READ MORE)

David Limbaugh: Party Unity My, er, Eye - In one sense, it's incomprehensible that Barack Obama would forgo an opportunity to reunite his party by picking Hillary Clinton as his running mate. But in his place, wouldn't you be willing to sacrifice a little if it guaranteed you'd never have to view and smell Bill Clinton's sock feet propped up on the Oval Office desk? But whatever will this messianic emissary of change do to unite his party? That is a legitimate question, is it not, since unity, harmony, love and bliss have been Obama's main campaign themes since his entry onto the presidential campaign stage? How, inquiring minds wonder, can Obama join us all together -- bitter clingers and all -- in one big communal bond of sentimental good will if he can't even inspire unity in his own party? That's unfair, you say? It's not his fault? It's those grudge-holding Clintons and their die-hard supporters who won't bury the hatchet? (READ MORE)

Cal Thomas: Biden's Toughest Opponent: Himself - DENVER - In selecting Sen. Joseph Biden as his running mate, Barack Obama gains some needed foreign policy expertise, but loses some credibility. If Washington is as bad as these two say it is, was Biden a contributor or an enabler during his six Senate terms? If 36 years in the Senate doesn't make you an "insider" and part of the problem, what does? Presidential candidates love to run against Washington and pretend they are outsiders, even when they have been insiders. The same applies to John McCain, who has been an insider for 26 years, 24 of them in the Senate. But while McCain has been critical of some Bush administration policies - notably the initial way the Iraq War was fought with too few troops - Biden has a litany of criticism of Obama, which the McCain campaign will use to undermine whatever enhancements Biden brings to the Democratic ticket. (READ MORE)

Dennis Prager: On Shooting Taggers: Why Conservatives and Liberals Differ - Earlier this month Andrew Sullivan, a well-known writer, once in the center, now on the left, nominated me for what is apparently his lowest badge of distinction for defending citizens who shoot to wound graffiti vandals, or "taggers," while committing their vandalism. Under the heading, "Malkin Award Nominee," Sullivan provides a quote from my radio show: "'So you will now say -- I hear the voice of an ACLU member -- 'Dennis, do you think that this guy should have shot these people spray painting graffiti on his shop?' To which my answer is yes. I do. Not to kill. Not to kill. But if he shot them in the legs or in the arms I would have considered the man one of the great advancers of civilization in my time. And that is what divides left from right. Because anybody on the left hearing this would think that this is barbaric whereas I consider not stopping these people in any way that is necessary to be barbaric.' (READ MORE)

Dick Morris & Eileen McGann: Obama Needed a Woman but Wimped Out - It doesn't take a political genius to realize that Barack Obama needed to nominate a woman for vice president. Obama's key problem is that there is no gender gap. In the most recent Zogby poll, he runs only 2 points better among women than among men. A Democrat should be running 10 to 15 points better among women. If Obama is to have a hope of winning, he needs to improve his performance among female voters. The Fox News poll indicates that only about half of those who backed Hillary Clinton in the primaries are voting for Obama and that fully one in five is now planning to back McCain. Attractive to women voters because of his maverick positions on issues and his willingness to defy the Republican orthodoxy, McCain is garnering votes from women who should be part of Obama's core constituency. So why didn't Obama name a woman? (READ MORE)

Chuck Norris: 100 More Bottles of Beer on the Wall and Campus - Last week, about 100 college presidents (including some from the most prestigious universities) recommended that the U.S. lower the drinking age to 18. Their reasoning? They say dropping the legal age would lessen the appeal and underground culture of college drinking. They believe it also would reduce binge drinking and prompt 18- to 20-year-olds to be more moderate in their alcohol consumption. Are they joking?! Do they also suppose that fraternity parties will turn into tea-sipping study sessions? Leading the pack with this so-called Amethyst Initiative is John McCardell, who challenged Vermont in 2005 by saying in The New York Times, "The 21-year-old drinking age is bad social policy and terrible law." McCardell recently added, "All the data show that by the time (students) go to college, they have already experienced alcohol, so how can anyone say the law is working?" (READ MORE)

Debra J. Saunders: Obama, Clinton, Biden and McCain - DENVER -- The goodie bag given to attendees of the Democratic National Convention includes maps, magnets and Dale Carnegie's Golden Book. The first principle for Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People" is: "Don't criticize, condemn or complain." No. 2: "Give honest, sincere appreciation." Clearly Carnegie didn't write an opinion page column, but in that I think my original take on Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's choice of running mate was a tad harsh, I would like to address what was positive about his choice of Joe Biden. My first take? I felt the same as when I watched the end of the last episode of "The Sopranos." Let down. The go-to-black ending may have been nuanced, but as far as I was concerned, the producers punted. They chose a non-ending because they couldn't decide on a strong ending. (READ MORE)

Paul Weyrich: Kobe Bryant, a Voice of Patriotism and Appreciation - Is patriotism a thing of the past or is it still kosher to take pride in America? That question was put to basketball great Kobe Bryant at the Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. Sportscaster Cris Collinsworth asked Bryant why he would give up his summer to play with the American Olympic team when he could be earning big bucks at home. Bryant said that when he got the Olympics uniform he spread it out on his bed and gazed at it for a long time. Bryant said, "Our country, we believe, is the greatest county in the world and it's given us so many great opportunities and it's just this sense of pride that you have, that you say, you know what, our country is the best." Collinsworth was not expecting that sort of comment. Taken aback, he asked Bryant if such pride isn't a relic of a bygone era. "Is it still cool to talk about fighting for the red, white and blue?" Bryant didn't care for the question. (READ MORE)

Matt Barber: Obamacide - How does one properly describe another who would – for purely selfish political reasons and with deliberation – intentionally refuse a thirsty child water or a hungry child food? More specifically, what does one call a lawmaker who would condemn to death the child survivor of a botched abortion by permitting doctors to refuse that child, once born alive, potentially life-saving medical treatment and nutrition? A number of things come to mind. Mr. President isn’t one of them. Based on National Journal’s vote ratings – an objectively tallied assessment of congressional voting records – Barack Obama has properly earned the dubious distinction as the single most liberal Senator in Congress during his brief, albeit overstayed, tenure. But a cursory review of his words, deeds and associations reveals that this ivory-towered Harvard boy is no run-of-the-mill lefty. He’s an extremist among extremists. (READ MORE)

Lawhawk: Russia Indeed Started Georgian Conflict - Don't take my word for it. Definitely don't take Pravda's word for it - or the New York Times or the Associated Press, which willingly and openly pushed the Russian government line that it was the Georgians who started this conflict. Russia engaged in a premeditated and preplanned invasion of Georgia, using the South Ossetians as a wedge to invade. The Russians already had the troops in place, as they were holding exercises in the nearby Russian territories, and simply used those forces for this invasion. Michael Totten, who is interviewing folks on the ground in Georgia, reports: “Virtually everyone is wrong. Georgia didn’t start it on August 7, nor on any other date. The South Ossetian militia started it on August 6 when its fighters fired on Georgian peacekeepers and Georgian villages with weapons banned by the agreement hammered out between the two sides in 1994.” (READ MORE)

The Belmont Club: Let Your Unconscious Be Your Guide - Major Garrett at Fox News reports from Denver backrooms. “Top Clinton strategists, gathered by Hillary Clinton’s former campaign manager Maggie Williams, met privately late Monday in Denver to plot convention strategy. The main topic: what to do about Wednesday’s roll call vote.” And the answer will not surprise you. “During the question-and-answer session, a person who attended the meeting informs The Bourbon Room, Williams said delegates still loyal to Clinton, even after her appeals to support Obama, should ‘vote their conscience.’ A Clinton ally who was not at the meeting but who spoke to Williams directly said the context was the delegates should vote their conscience if they felt they had no other choice. Meaning, if Clinton’s appeals weren’t enough, they must follow their deeply held beliefs. Williams explained after the meeting that it would have been insulting to tell delegates anything else. Williams said her ‘vote your conscience’ line should not be interpreted as an act of sabotage against Obama, but merely a recognition that some Clinton supporters will do what they feel they must.” (READ MORE)

Dafydd: Does a "Pakistani Awakening" Forthcome? - The Taliban in Pakistan has begun to behave as bloody-mindedly as did al-Qaeda in Iraq, when it seized control over the Sunni areas of Iraq under Musab Zarqawi in 2004, when he publicly declared his allegiance to the main al-Qaeda. The more AQI practiced indiscriminate human sacrifice upon the Iraqi Sunnis, the more desperate the victims became; in the end, they turned on AQI with the ferocity of the damned. We now call this moment the "Sunni Awakening," and it played a crucial role in our victorious counterinsurgency strategy against the insurgent forces in that country -- as Gen. Petraeus and his top COIN advisor, David Kilcullen, along with COIN architects Fred Kagen and Gen. Jack Keane, always knew it would. Simply put, they realized that if you give fanatic death-worshippers like al-Qaeda power, life under its rule will inevitably turn intolerable, even impossible. (READ MORE)

The Captain's Jounral: Maliki Undercuts Awakening Movement - The U.S. forces have performed heroically, and many lives have been lost or irrevocably changed with wounds that will never heal. The U.S. has expended a significant part of the country’s treasure to free Iraq and start it on a course of freedom and democracy. Certain lines of effort in the campaign have been clear and important throughout the history of the campaign for Iraq, one of which is the awakening movement (leading to the concerned citizens). TCJ has made it clear from our initial coverage of the concerned citizens (later called the “Sons of Iraq”) that given the indigenous nature of much of the Sunni insurgency, settling disputes with the Sunnis was necessary (which was possible because they weren’t fighting for religious reasons like al Qaeda or the Taliban). Befriending those who were once shooting at you is a hard thing to do, but both the Sunnis and U.S. troops managed to do it because it was the right and smart thing to do. (READ MORE)

Don Surber: The ad Obama doesn’t want you to see - His lawyers will attack any cable outlet or TV station that dares to run the ad that points out that the political career of Democratic Sen. Barack Obama was launched at the home of unrepentant terrorist Bill Ayers. Oops. Did I make a mistake and tell the truth? My bad. The ad that Obama does not want you to see. Please, do not click it. It comes from one of the people who funded the Swift Boat ads and a former campaign staffer for Republican Sen. John McCain. ABC News’ Tahman Bradley reported: “The Obama campaign is using a new television ad to take on the issue of Obama’s association with a 1970s radical who bombed the Capitol and Pentagon.” And this: “Obama has denounced Ayers’ actions with the radical group, but has also referred to Ayers as ‘mainstream’ and ‘respectable,’ a point that conservatives continue to pound the soon-to-be Democratic nominee about.” OK, so Obama is standing by Ayers. But Illinois Senate President Emil Jones, his political mentor? Jones apparently called a black woman supporter of Democratic Sen. Hillary Clinton Uncle Tom late Saturday night. Obama immediately threw Jones under the bus. (READ MORE)

Gay Patriot West: Will the Clintons Sink Obama? - ...or maybe it’s the way Obama treated the Clintons which prevents him from rising. As the Democrats gather in Denver, their presumptive nominee has missed the chance to turn the quadrennial partisan shindig into an event focused on his election. Instead he has let it become a forum showcasing his party’s divisions, largely because he failed to find an an appropriate means to handle his most tenacious rival from the primary contest and her husband, the only Democrat reelected president since World War II. When a party controls the White House and the incumbent is not up for reelection, it cedes the first night of the convention (which would be tonight for the Democrats) to that incumbent. The Democrats should have done the same thing with their party’s most recent Chief Executive. And since his wife did so well in the primary contest, they could make the night about them, call it a “Tribute to the Clintons.” (READ MORE)

Jihad Watch: "Man," probably a Methodist, arrested by terror police in UK - Actually, it's unlikely that he was a Methodist, since this story starts talking about jihadi websites. But rest assured, I will not rest in my determination to find a living, breathing illustration of what everyone knows to be true: that the Bible is just as violent, and just as likely to inspire violent acts, as the Qur'an. And that there is no essential difference between Western, Judeo-Christian culture and Islamic culture. After all, everyone knows these things are true, just as everyone knows that the threat of terrorism is over and the Islam and the Qur'an have nothing whatsoever to do with the upcoming election. Everyone knows these things. We'll find some proof eventually. Anyway, this arrest could ultimately mean one less hole in Blackburn, Lancashire. "Terror police arrest in Blackburn," from the BBC, August 26 (thanks to Charles Martel): (READ MORE)

Ed Morrissey: Vets for Freedom ad: Acknowledge our victory! - Vets for Freedom has a new ad released that demands acknowledgment from Democratic Party officials that the surge succeeded in stabilizing Iraq. VFF makes the lack of recognition personal in this spot, with Iraq War veterans making the point that they comprised the surge, and that they deserve the recognition that comes with victory: “Vets for Freedom Chairman Pete Hegseth, a decorated former Army infantry platoon leader in Baghdad, said in a statement: ‘Vets for Freedom will not stand by and let the incredible progress of our troops go unnoticed by the American public and lawmakers from either side of the aisle.’ Hegseth is at the convention to tell lawmakers, delegates and the press about his observation during a recent return to Iraq.” (READ MORE)

Jules Crittenden: DNC Noise - I thought Dems were anti-old guy. Here’s one they love for the barnburners, even if they didn’t want him for president. Michelle Obama, only lately made proud, now loves this country. Apparently she stayed on script. Star sightings by the Herald’s Inside Track are a little sparse. C’mon, Hollywood, can I get an Alex Baldwin and a Sean Penn. Forget them, where Scarlet Jo … Cruel, cutting remarks by Howie: “Last night’s convention theme was America, and Americans. Ted Kennedy is a great American. Michelle Obama loves America. And John McCain has eight houses - in America. Good God, what a night for the Red Sox to take off, especially with Monday night football still two weeks away. The local guy who’s having the toughest week has to be Sen. John Forbes ‘Liveshot’ Kerry. America’s Gigolo will never admit it, of course, but he and his friends, all of whom could fit in a phone booth, still seriously believe he won the 2004 election.” (READ MORE)

Michelle Malkin: Fighting back against Obama’s thugs - I cannot stress how outrageous the Obama campaign’s attempt to silence the creators of the Ayers ad is. Mr. Hope and Change is applying Chicago-style mafia tactics to intimidate those who want to alert the nation to Obama’s troubling ties to, and longtime relationship with, the unrepentant Weather Underground terrorist. Obama’s lawyers and minions are playing hardball with TV stations that have dared to air the ad. They have the gall to champion campaign finance integrity — even as Obama has just admitted hiding payments to his Chicago cronies at ACORN. The Obama campaign can’t cite anything false or defamatory about the ad because it is accurate and truthful. This intimidation campaign is of a piece with the left-wing MoveOn effort to bully GOP donors. Remember? I’ve just obtained the response of the group running the ads that Obama doesn’t want you to see: (READ MORE)

neo-neocon: Judgment and war: Obama and the Democratic party - It’s ironic that the surge’s success has made the issue of the Iraq War less central rather than more in this campaign. “Ironic,” because the passage of time has made it clearer that, no matter what one thinks of the wisdom of the war’s genesis, those who counseled that the surge was a failure even before it began (and that includes both nominee Obama and most of the Democratic Party leadership) were wrong. If we had followed their leadership, Iraq would have been an even worse failure—and tragedy—than Vietnam was decades ago. Fortunately, they did not prevail this time. But how is it that this party and these leaders can ask us to trust their judgment and elect them to make decisions about military matters in the future? One possibility is that they are saying that their poor judgment on the surge is canceled out by Bush and the Republicans’ poor judgment on the start of the war. But that conveniently ignores the fact that most of the Democrats voted for the war at the outset. (READ MORE)

McQ: Night 1 of the Democratic Convention - I caught parts of the Democratic convention last night, but unfortunately missed the main event (Michelle Obama’s speech). My wife watched it and gave her a good grade. She said she came across very effectively if the purpose of her speech was to introduce Barack Obama to the increased audience of voters now paying attention to the race. Rich Lowry also found Michelle Obama’s speech effective. Jim Geraghty says it did what it was supposed to do - little or no harm. I did catch Nancy Pelosi’s opening speech. I was very glad for her when it was over - she still makes Denny Hastart look good. And Jim Leach? Well he’s not Zell Miller. And he made Pelosi look good. Jay Nordlinger provided about the only positive point that can be made about his speech: “His speech at the Democratic convention, and his support of the Democratic nominee, will make his new life at Harvard much, much easier. Much.” (READ MORE)

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The Thunder Run Site of the Day is Major Chuck Ziegenfuss' - From My Position... On The Way!

News and Personal dispatches from the front and the home front.

In their own words:
Rocinante's Burdens: Day 67 - There are no new messages on the server. No mail in two weeks. No email in a week. Darn few comments on the blog. I'm just say'in. (READ MORE)

A Major's Perspective: Analysis of the Day's Events 25 August 2008 - There was a lot of the same today, but also some very interesting developments. Pakistan is continuing to destabilize. The coalition that they had put in place continues to lose strength and splinter at the seams. There has also been a combination of appeasement and offensive against the Taliban elements within Pakistan. I'm not quite sure if this is a concerted effort by the government or if this is tied more to individual commanders taking initiative or trying to destroy competitors. Either way Pakistan has become a major wait and see area. Right now, Ill be very honest, I'm not sure which way they are going to go. Russia's lawmakers also decided they wanted the President to bring South Ossetia and Abkhazia into the Russian Federation. The last time I checked this was not Russia's choice. (READ MORE)

Bill Roggio: Al Qaeda-linked Shabab in control of southern Somalia - Just one and a half years after Ethiopian forces ejected the Islamic Courts Union from power in the failed state of Somalia, the country is poised for a takeover by a radical al Qaeda regional group. Shabab, an al Qaeda-linked terror group, has taken control of most of southern Somalia and portions of the central region, according to press reports from the troubled nation. Late last week, Shabab fighters overran the strategic southern port city of Kismayo, Somalia's second largest city. The capture of Kismayo capped a yearlong campaign by Shabab to retake territory lost to the Ethiopians in late 2006 and early 2007. Shabab, the radical Islamist youth movement formed from the leadership and fighters of the ousted Islamic Courts, has teamed up with the powerful Hawiye clan to attack Ethiopian and Somali security forces. These attacks soon spread north, south, and west of Mogadishu. (READ MORE)

Matel-in-Iraq: 60 Minutes - I understand the 60 Minutes episode I saw today about Hadithah originally aired in March 2007 and I suppose it reflected the situation at the time. But it is amazing how much things have changed and some mention of that in the follow up segment might have been nice. The 60 Minutes segment shows the bad old days in Hadithah. They said that most people in Hadithah are hostile to coalition forces. Back then maybe; today things are different. I walk through Hadithah a lot. If people are hostile, they don’t show it. People smile and wave at us. I frequently stop to talk to shopkeepers and pedestrians. Not only have I encountered no hostility, but many people thank us for the security we have brought to the place. I have featured pictures of my walks through Hadithah on many occasions. Sometimes dumpy; no longer scary. (READ MORE)

Big Tobacco: Eat ‘em and Smile - I wrote this while smoking a CAO Brazilia. I page through the convoy manifest. Private Applesauce's squad leader placed her as the gunner in Vic Six: the last truck in the convoy. "Ok, listen, guys,” I say to Specialist Fishbowl and Private Applesauce’s team leader. ”I was looking at the manifest and I don't think Applesauce is ready for the gun. We can swap out Applesauce and Invisible Boy, but then it will be her first time driving. So are you sure, are you damn sure, that you want her on the gun?" "I believe she can do the job," Specialist Fishbowl says. "I do too," Applesauce's team leader says. I’m reluctant to concede to this. The last truck in the convoy has the important job of warning off oncoming vehicles and acting as the liaison truck with other convoys at the halt. A reliable, experienced person has to be on that gun. But my platoon is fresh out of experienced people and we have to settle for just reliable, or even unreliable and only marginally motivated. (READ MORE)

Zen Traveler: The Ugly Duckling - The Iraqi military has come a long way. It's soliders have picked up a lot of American-isms though. I was watching some British news coverage this morning showing a 16-year old female suicide bomber that for one reason or another did not detonate herself. The footage was riveting and depicted two lightly armored Iraqi police officers striping the vest and clothes off the girl as she was still standing in the street. What caught my eye was the other 4-5 Iraqi police standing within 2-3 meters of the girl apparently watching and trying to act useful. What's to say that, as in many cases, she is not remotely detonated, killing the lot of them? The Iraq police force is supposed to have undergone extensive training by the Coalition but instances like this make me wonder just how effective that training has been. I see Iraqi Police on a daily basis and I've yet to be impressed by anything that they've done. (READ MORE)

Zen Traveler: Driving Through Baghdad - We did a "windshield tour" of Baghdad this morning, visiting areas that we haven't been to lately and confirming routes and accessibility. The traffic was outrageous which is par for the course in the city. The white lines on the road are meaningless, and it's just an absolute food-fight on four wheels, everyone is trying to get ahead of the next guy. There are plenty of people on the streets and all of the stores are open for business. The one thing that I noticed was that the Iraqi Police did not have as large a presence on the streets as it has in the past, when you would see dozens of blue and white SUVs bullying their way through traffic, automatic weapons hanging menacingly out open windows. Today I saw only pieces of that. The same is true for the American Army, it's presence was almost non-existant when compared to that of the Iraqi Army. I take all of that as a good sign. (READ MORE)

Afghanistan Unfiltered: Sacrifices at home appreciated - The past couple of days have been pretty hard mentally. My mind is finally starting to grasp the severity of my situation. I am realizing exactly how long a year can seem when you are gone from your home. I have spent a lot of time filtering through the memories that my wife and I have shared together. It seems like she has been the one monopolizing my thoughts. We met when we were in high school. She was a junior, and I was a senior when we started dating, but we had known each other for a while before that. If I had not been so awed by her, we probably would have started dating much earlier. It took me quite awhile to build up enough courage to ask out a girl so far out of my league. I fell in love with her, though, the day I met her. (READ MORE)

Another Adventure: Birds Eye View - Here are a few pictures from the Med Evac. I took them in June. I had forgotten I had them. I don't know the names of any of the villages we flew over. Isn't it amazing how green it is? This is their dry season. We are the lead helicopter. The crumpled up baggy on the right of the picture is what we wrap patients in for transport. It's called a burrito wrap. Nothing like Taco Bell... I wish I could tell you more about the villages. I never leave the wire. this is as close as I'll ever get. (READ MORE)


Back and still writing:
Greyhawk: A History of Violence - Last year: “...John Kerry was wrong when claiming (in an effort to undermine homefront morale in another war) that no one wants to be the last man to die for a mistake. In fact, al Qaeda will always have someone eager to prove him wrong.” But what if I was wrong - and they do run out of willing men? This is what we've been fighting in Iraq...not teenage girls with explosives strapped to them - but the people who would strap explosives to teenage girls. According to Reuters: “Under interrogation in a police station later, she said an older woman had strapped the vest to her and told her to go near the entrance of a local school and await instructions from someone who would meet her there, police said.” (READ MORE)



News from the Front:
Iraq:
Deal or no deal? - The ongoing saga of U.S. and Iraqi attempts to hammer out a deal on the future of American forces in Iraq has taken a new twist with Prime Minister Nouri Maliki's declaration Monday that he won't accept any plan that does not include a withdrawal date for U.S. soldiers. Maliki made his comments to a gathering of tribal leaders, and while some of it may have been grandstanding aimed at bolstering support, it was the first time the prime minister had publicly demanded a withdrawal deadline. As for the deadline, Maliki said U.S. and Iraqi negotiators had agreed on the end of 2011. (READ MORE)

Two Kata’ib Hezbollah suspects captured in Rusafa (Baghdad) - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces captured two suspected Kata’ib Hezbollah associates during operations Tuesday morning in Baghdad. Acting on intelligence tips, Coalition forces targeted a propaganda facilitator for Kata’ib Hezbollah. It is believed his involvement in the Kata’ib Hezbollah media operations involved editing and posting of attack videos against Coalition and Iraqi forces. (READ MORE)

Al-Qaeda bombing cells, foreign terrorist network disrupted (Mosul, Sharqat) - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces captured several wanted men during operations that rounded up eight suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorists in central and northern Iraq Monday and Tuesday. Coalition forces detained a wanted man during a raid Monday west of Sharqat, about 90 km south of Mosul. The man is believed to help foreign terrorists move into and around Iraq to conduct attacks for AQI. A Tuesday operation farther south in Bayji targeting the same network netted two suspects. (READ MORE)

Raiders detain 3 suspected criminals (Baghdad) - FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers detained three suspected criminals Aug. 25 in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. At approximately 1:45 a.m. in the Jihad neighborhood, Soldiers from Company E, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, arrested the three suspects during a point-specific target operation. (READ MORE)

Iraqi, 41st FB doctors improve health care in al-Kut - FORWARD OPERATING BASE DELTA, Iraq – Iraqi and U.S. Army doctors treated more than 230 patients at the Theeba Clinic in al-Kut during a combined medical engagement organized by the 41st Fires Brigade. Aug. 21. “It’s all about teamwork, working hand-in-hand, a partnership to learn each other’s medical culture and to better facilitate and train the Iraqis,” said 2nd Lt. Sebastien Goillandeau, 589th Brigade Support Battalion Medical Operations, planner with the Special Projects Office. (READ MORE)

Officials Reopen Refurbished Jadriya Lake Park in Karadah - FORWARD OPERATING BASE RUSTAMIYAH — An estimated 2,250 Iraqi citizens witnessed a step toward a return to normalcy as local officials reopened Jadriya Lake Park in the Karadah District of eastern Baghdad, Aug. 22. Government officials, security force leaders, contractors, and Soldiers who all worked together to restore the lake and surrounding grounds joined the people in celebrating the successful lake reopening. (READ MORE)

Medical Clinic Nears Completion in Araifiya - COMBAT OUTPOST CASHE SOUTH — Khalaf Assad, a local Iraqi contractor, spent more than one month building a new primary care medical clinic in the small area of Araifiya. The work began on little more than a piece of property, but Assad's vision drove him to continue. This clinic, with its prime location within the local village, will provide an immense boost to the health care system of the area. (READ MORE)

Reintegration Facility Contributes to Iraq’s Security, Economy - BAGHDAD — “The Theater Internment Facility Reconciliation Center in Taji has been constructed to integrate detention with reintegration programs,” said Lt. Col. Ronald Pieri, Task Force 134 Engineer. “The overall goal of the TIFRC is to reintegrate detainees with basic education and trade skills such that they can contribute to a peaceful and secure Iraq.” TF-134 is the organization in charge of detainee operations in Iraq. (READ MORE)


Afghanistan:
Afghan government obliges NATO to get clearance for air strikes Kabul, August 26, IRNA - The Afghan government on Monday obliged foreign troops including NATO and the United States not to bomb suspected areas without getting clearance from respective officials to avoid civilian casualties. The government ministers demanded a status of forces agreement, which would stipulate that the authority and responsibilities of international forces be negotiated, and they said that aerial bombing, illegal detentions and house raids by international forces must be stopped. (READ MORE)

Afghanistan demands review of foreign troops - KABUL: President Hamid Karzai's government has demanded a review of US and NATO troops in the country and their use of airstrikes in civilian areas, following allegations that many civilians died in raids and airstrikes by foreign forces in recent weeks. In a harshly worded statement, the government ordered its ministries of foreign affairs and defense to review the presence of foreign troops... (READ MORE)

Afghans clash with abductors of Japanese aid worker - Learn to Trade with a FREE Guide.JALALABAD, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Afghan police clashed with the kidnappers of a male Japanese aid worker in eastern Nangarhar province on Tuesday, freeing the man's local driver, a police spokesman said. The Japanese aid worker was seized earlier on Tuesday while he worked on a construction project in the Daraye Noor area of Nangarhar, provincial police spokesman Ghafour Khan said. (READ MORE)

Dozens Dead In Afghan Violence - U.S.-led coalition troops battled a group of militants in eastern Afghanistan, killing over 30 insurgents, while three NATO soldiers were killed in a roadside blast, officials said Thursday. The coalition troops used small arms and airstrikes while attacking the militants in the eastern Laghman province on Wednesday, the coalition said in a statement. (READ MORE)

Taliban declare truce in SWA - WANA: Local Taliban led by pro-government militant commander Maulvi Nazir on Monday announced a unilateral ceasefire after fierce clashes with security forces in South Waziristan Agency (SWA). Militant sources said a Jirga of Ahmadzai Wazir tribal elders held an emergency meeting with Political Agent Syed Shahab Ali Shah and informed him of the frequent violation of Pakistan's airspace by the US spy planes and carrying out air strikes in the Agency, killing innocent tribesmen in the name of al-Qaeda. (READ MORE)

Taliban Outlawed in Pakistan - A fresh escalation in an already serious security situation in Pakistan has prompted the government to ban the Taliban. The step goes beyond those taken by former President Pervez Musharraf during his almost nine years in power. On Tuesday, gunmen opened fire on an American consular vehicle in Peshawar, capital of the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP), although police said no one was hurt. (READ MORE)

A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.


In the News: (Registration may be required to read some stories)
Clinton voters buck Obama's bid - CHICAGO Sen. Barack Obama's bid for party unity at the Democratic National Convention, which opens Monday, is being challenged by angry supporters of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton who refuse to let heal wounds from a brutal primary fight that their candidate lost. (READ MORE)

Archbishop: No Communion for Biden - The Catholic archbishop of Denver says that presumptive Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. should not take Communion because of his pro-choice stance. (READ MORE)

Anti-lobbyist rhetoric lost among festivities - DENVER Under Sen. Barack Obama's self-imposed ban on accepting money from federal lobbyists, Michael Dino isn't allowed to give a dime to the Democrat's presidential campaign. Neither could Steve Farber. (READ MORE)

Party Unity Tops Agenda for Democrats - DENVER, Aug. 25 -- Democrats prepared to open their national convention Monday with an ambitious agenda of selling the presidential candidacy of Sen. Barack Obama to a national audience, presenting a forceful case against Republican rival John McCain and unifying a party still recovering from a bruising primary. (READ MORE)

Placating the Clintons - DENVER -- As the Democratic National Convention opens officially today, talk has turned -- as it inevitably does these days -- to the Clintons and how their relationship with soon-to-be-nominee Barack Obama will impact the overall message coming out of Denver this week. (READ MORE)

Pakistan's Ruling Coalition Collapses Amid Dissent - ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Aug. 25 -- Pakistan plunged deeper into political chaos Monday as a top party in the country's coalition government vowed to quit the coalition and support an opposition candidate for the presidency. (READ MORE)

Russian lawmakers recognize Georgia separatists - MOSCOW -- Russia's parliament voted unanimously Monday to urge the president to recognize the independence of Georgia's two breakaway regions, stoking further tensions between Moscow and the small Caucasus nation's Western allies. (READ MORE)

Obama's Cheney - After 36 years in the Senate, Joe Biden has been called many things, but an agent of change isn't one of them. Barack Obama was 12 years old when Mr. Biden won his first Senate campaign in 1972, though in this campaign that's a virtue. The advantage the 65-year-old Delaware Senator brings to this Democratic ticket is experience, especially on foreign affairs. (READ MORE)

The Denver Democrats - The Democrats arrive in Denver this week flush with confidence. And why not? Yes, their rookie Presidential candidate suddenly finds himself in a tight race with John McCain. The party itself, though, has reason to think its moment to govern has arrived again after a generation of divided government or Republican rule. (READ MORE)



On the Web:
The Belmont Club: Hope - A lot of people waited for the 3am text message which Barack Obama promised would inform the ordinary person who his pick for Veep was going to be before the MSM. Then they saw the announcement that Joe Biden would be his running mate on the news. The inbox of their text messages still had nothing. SFGate tells the story: “But hours before the text was sent, the campaign’s famously tight communications ship sprung a leak. So the first to know that Sen. Joseph Biden would be in Springfield on Saturday were not those who had signed up for a text message, but those who were watching cable television news programs at around 10:45 p.m.” The article goes on to say that “tech problems” may have prevented Obama’s publicists from keeping their word. That raises the question: had anybody ever heard about development, test and production? (READ MORE)

The Foxhole: The Last Gasp of The New Republic’s “Man in Iraq” - The New Republic’s fabulist, Scott Thomas Beauchamp, is back like a bad case of acid reflux thanks to Spencer Ackerman, a ‘reporter’ on a tabloid website called Radar Online. It’s a self-described magazine chock full of ‘Pop, Politics, Scandal, and Style’. How catchy. Ackerman, who was fired by The New Republic, listens with fawning, rapt attention, as Beauchamp and his ex-TNR employee wife Elspeth Reeve whine, wail, bitch, and rehash all the ridiculous bullshit they produced while writing ‘dispatches’ for TNR’s “Shock Troops” articles. As an added bonus, the toadying Ackerman lends his 2 cents: “‘Among neoconservative war apologists and self-anointed superpatriots, discrediting the story became a crusade: Beauchamp must be proven a liar, and TNR must be humiliated’” (READ MORE)

GayPatriotWest: The “Revelatory Blunder” of the Biden pick - The first thought I had when I learned yesterday that presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama had tapped Delaware’s Joe Biden running mate was what a poor job the Obama campaign had done of keeping this secret. They had given the McCain campaign and conservative bloggers a chance to prepare responses. The opposition was not “caught unawares.” This failure to prevent this from leaking helps define this pick as a revelatory blunder of the Obama campaign. It shows that they may be too close to the media for their own good. The staffer who leaked this probably assumed the reporter, sympathetic to the Obama campaign, would keep this under wraps. Or maybe the campaign wanted this information made public. In any case, it dulled the impact of Saturday’s announcement. It’s not just the failure of the campaign to keep this secret which reveals much about Obama’s White House bid. It’s the very pick itself. (READ MORE)

Lawhawk: Another Exercise in Confidence Building Futility - The Israeli government has gone through yet another pointless exercise in confidence building for Fatah. They've released still more Palestinian terrorists from Israeli jails in exchange for what? Nothing. Well, nothing except Fatah demands that they wont stop until Israeli jails are completely emptied of Palestinian prisoners. That includes convicted terrorists like Marwan Barghouti. And it's done nothing to stop the kassam rockets either. It's supposed to help bolster Fatah in their internecine struggle with Hamas, but all it does is provide more fodder for the terrorists to hold out hope that they can beat Israel for control over all territory West of the Jordan River. Hamas can be counted on to claim that Fatah is collaborating with Israel, and they'd be right. (READ MORE)

Scott Johnson: What's the matter with the Democrats? - The radicalization of the Democratic Party occurred under the rules adopted by the McGovern-Fraser Commission in the aftermath of the Democrats' disastrous 1968 convention in Chicago and culminated in the nomination of George McGovern as the Democratic presidential nominee in 1972. In Party of Defeat, the invaluable new book by David Horowitz and Ben Johnson, the authors date the dissolution of bipartisan unity over support for the war effort in Vietnam to the presidential campaign of 1972, by which time both parties had concluded that military victory was no longer politically possible. I slightly disagree with Horowitz and Johnson only on the dating of the transformation of the Democratic Party into the party of defeat. The inauguration of Richard Nixon in January 1969 unleashed the forces of defeat within the heart of of the Democratic Party. (READ MORE)

McQ: Enjoy the conventions, but remember what they are - People on a whole, are just beginning to pay more attention to the November election. This week - with the Democratic convention - signals the "official" start of the election drama (even though it’s really been underway for almost 2 years). Voters will take a look at both candidates and depending on their perceptions, juxtaposed with what they perceive as their priorities, pull the lever for one of them. I have to wonder what those not yet caught up in the hype of the election or the super-hype associated with Obama are going to see when they view the Dem convention. I wonder if they’ll be blinded by the glitter (and glittering generalities) or will be able to see through all of that? (READ MORE)

Cassandra: Top Ten Things I Don't Give A Rat's Ass About This Election Season - The Blog Princess woke in the middle of the night with a deep sense of fear and loathing. The election is beginning to wear a bit thin. The candidates have now officially been campaigning since the early Mesozoic Era. There are fossils older than some of the scandals still popping up like Whack-a-Mole between the National Enquirer, Drudge, the MSM, Bill Keller, and the BlatheroSphere. In my more rational moments I suspect there must be one or two decent human beings left somewhere in the universe. I keep hoping someone will do the right thing and refuse to drop another savory Hamsher Pellet into the open jaws of the Beast. I keep being proven wrong. I am tired of being whipsawed between the MSM, the blogosphere, and the latest scandal du jour. But most of all, what I'm sick to death of is Us. Because "we" - the seemingly insatiable hunger of both sides in this political slugfest - is what these people keep pandering to. (READ MORE)

Westhawk: America’s last dilemma in Iraq - Top U.S. decision-makers, both in the current and in the next administration, face a strategic and moral dilemma. Should the U.S. respect the sovereignty of Iraq’s government, the increasingly powerful central government the establishment of which has been the principal goal of America’s campaign? Or should the U.S. government fulfill the promises it made to Sunni-Arab leaders in Iraq, promises that convinced the Sunnis to stop resisting and thus led to an apparent American victory in Iraq? An increasingly confident Prime Minister Maliki wants the U.S. to choose between him and the Sons of Iraq militias the U.S. military organized in Sunni areas to reduce the violence in the country. While the U.S. ponders what to do, Prime Minister Maliki is sending his security forces into Sunni-Arab areas to arrest Sons of Iraq leaders, or to chase these men into exile. (READ MORE)

Jay Tea: The Three "B's" Of Joe Biden - Over the weekend, I found myself slightly miffed at my colleague Lorie Byrd. On Saturday, she wrote a piece about a certain video featuring Joe Biden about 20 years ago. I had planned on writing about it Sunday morning, and felt a certain sense of proprietary interest -- after all, it had been shot in Claremont, New Hampshire, and I feel like I should have "first dibs" on any New Hampshire stories. Anyway, Lorie did her usual superb job, and my idea set aside. But not for long. There is a wealth of information to be gleaned from that short video clip about the man who wishes to be one heartbeat from the presidency, and I think that I can mine even more from it than Lorie did. (READ MORE)

Meryl Yourish: Palestinian [in]gratitude - The Palestinian welfare culture is so incredibly ingrained, that no good deed goes uncriticized. The big lefty boat extravaganza—the ones that Israel allowed to land in Gaza after all, rather than cause front page pictures of the Israeli navy forcing the “peace protesters” away from Gaza’s shores—landed in Gaza to, well, not cheers. Jeers. “A Gaza activist told Ynet Saturday that local residents were disappointed by the small quantities of food brought in by two boats carrying international leftist activists. ‘Many people thought these boats will make a significant contribution to break the siege, not only politically but also in terms of brining in goods, equipment, food, and medicine,’ he said. ‘However, once it turned out these boats contain too little food and mostly activists…some people left the beach disappointed.’” (READ MORE)

DJ Drummond: Veep Value - So, Senator Barack Obama has tapped Senator Joe Biden to be his running mate this fall. Senator John McCain may or may not know whom he wants, but in any case he has not announced a pick. At this point there's not really much substance to the decision anyway, though I think the choices are interesting in what they say about the campaigns. That is, for all the hype, there's not really much chance the VP choice does much to improve a candidate's chances - in my entire life I cannot remember anyone saying something like 'I was going to vote for 'X', but when 'Y' picked so-and-so for his veep he won me over'. Sure, maybe there are some few, some very few voters somewhere that could be swayed by the running pick to vote for someone, but I have to think such a number is too small to really matter. (READ MORE)

C.H.U.D. Busters: Sadr Sympathizers Migrate from Basra to Denver - Trouble a-brewin in Denver was predicted weeks ago, and it appears to have manifested even before the actual DNC has started. Besides speeches from fake Native-American Ward Churchill on how North America is under military occupation and clowns in bandanas heckling Fox News, a sign was spotted calling for solidarity with murderous thug Muqtada al-Sadr. Sadr's Mahdi Army is responsible for massacring Sunnis in Baghdad, engaging in massive corruption and intimidation throughout southern Iraq, and killing our troops with advanced weaponry provided by Iran. He is a bit of an unsavory character, so it is confusing why protesting CHUDs would want to align themselves with the cleric, unless they wanted to trade their fashionable "Defend Denver" t-shirts for the not-so-cool abaya. (READ MORE)

John Hawkins: The Faustian Bargain At The Heart Of Obama's Campaign - People who are honest will admit that race is a double edged sword for Barack Obama. Yes, there are certainly racist Democrats and independents out there who will not vote for Barack Obama because he's black. On the other hand, if Barack Obama weren't black, he could have never gotten this far. A white man with his experience and abilities wouldn't have even been considered qualified to run for the presidency, much less actually become the party's nominee. Moreover, Obama may have been talking about "change" and "hope," but in reality, race has always been at the center of his campaign -- although admittedly, in a different way than it would be in the case of a Sharpton or Jackson. At the heart of Obama's appeal is a Faustian bargain that has been subtly offered by his candidacy: "put Obama into the White House even though he's not qualified to be President and we can have a post-racial era. (READ MORE)

The Virtuous Republic: Doonesbury: Worst Comic Ever - Today’s Doonesbury exemplifies the simplified, emotional, illogical, childlike belief system and thought process of the left.Unending war? Where does one start? Does the left think anything good would happen if we ran from Iraq? Even if one called Iraq a mistake, a grown up, logical, responsible person would understand the concept of responsibility and the U.S. has to see this through. Sort of like fathering a child and being there…. Okay, now I get it…. Afghanistan? Maybe the left can’t remember that the Taliban backed, supplied, and supported al-Qaeda. Afghanistan is a legitmate war. Sometimes love of country requires long term sacrifices. Of course, that is something the left doesn’t comprehend at all. Guantanamo? President Bill Clinton fought the war against Islamic terror as if it were crime wave. The result? The Cole, the African embassy bombings, the Khobar Towers attack, and finally 9/11. This is a war. (READ MORE)

Hamilton, Madison, and Jay: No unity here now move along - It's clear that the rift between Hillary and Obama is far from being repaired, and both sides are complaining in Denver. Bill Clinton isn't happy with the speech he has to give on Wednesday, and Hillary's supporters are vowing to make a floor fight. The Politico is on the scene, and they're reporting that there is no unity in Denver: “As Democrats arrived here Sunday for a convention intended to promote party unity, mistrust and resentments continued to boil among top associates of presumptive nominee Barack Obama and his defeated rival, Hillary Rodham Clinton. One flashpoint is the assigned speech topic for former president Bill Clinton, who is scheduled to speak Wednesday night, when the convention theme is ‘Securing America’s Future.’ The night’s speakers will argue that Obama would be a more effective commander in chief than his Republican rival, Sen. John McCain (Ariz.). (READ MORE)

Donald Douglas: Hillary's Convention Narrative - Long-time readers will recall that I blogged the presidential primaries like a man on fire. I recall, earlier this year, as the Democratic race wore on, many commentators suggested that the party schism between the supporters of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama was potentially fatal to Democratic Party hopes in the fall. I discounted such talk. Anger at nearly eight years of GOP rule would provide a central focal point binding the disparate left-wing factions together by the time of the national party conventions and beyond. That scenario might have held, but with Barack Obama becoming the Democratic nominee, the passions of the "Hillraisers" haven't settled down; and the selection of Joe Biden as running-mate may have been the ultimate slap in the face... (READ MORE)


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News and Personal dispatches from the front and the home front.

In their own words:
Armed & Curious: Black and white in a grey land - I am often amazed at how we like to see the world in black and white here in the United States. There is good and evil, sweet and sour, right and wrong. We tend to too easily categorize people and we do it in short sighted ways. You see much of the world is grey and Iraq is a place of many shades of grey. Often the bad guys are really bad and the good guys aren’t perfectly good. We have figure out those distinctions to do business the right way but often those distinctions are much blurrier than our American minds can see. I started seeing this distinction early in my first tour. After 35 years or so of various forms of dictatorial rule Iraq has become a place where simple answers don’t exist. I learned this while trying to field contracts to build small schools in the little farming villages surrounding our air base in southern Ninewa province in 2003. (READ MORE)

Collabman's Thoughts: Rejection... - Afternoon - The info hounds were busy overnight providing a couple of interesting articles making headlines and related to the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment operating in the Diyala province. Oh, for those wondering we haven't had a call from Chris for about nine days. However, we understand the pace of operations are keeping him busy and we are thankful for any time we get with him on the phone. He will check in when he can...please continue to pray for him and his teammates. The first article is from current operations and once again shows the threat of the Black Widow in Diyala... (READ MORE)

Fearless 1st Marines’ blog: Bridge re-opens over Thar Thar Canal - FALLUJAH, Iraq – Iraqi Army soldiers operating in an area shared by Regimental Combat Team 1, escorted local sheiks and tribal leaders across a newly constructed bridge in the Bagharra region of Iraq, Aug. 19. The passage marked the re-opening of the Salem Bridge, an important link in connecting local citizens with cities on the other side of the Thar Thar Canal. Insurgents had demolished the original bridge with improvised explosive devices more than a year ago, forcing locals to travel nearly five hours to cross the canal. “Before this bridge opened, the people were suffering,” said 2nd Lt. Nasser Kazzoy, scout platoon commander with the Iraqi Army. “Now that the bridge is open, people can cross the bridge and get to the other side in five minutes.” (READ MORE)

IraqPundit: Obama's Questionable VP Pick - So much for all the talk about the beacons of light and returning respect to the United States. Barack Obama's choice for vice president can only drag the country into ugly territory. His pick simply confirms his total disregard for the Iraqi people. All along, Biden has made it clear that he sees Iraqis as nothing more than savages bent on killing one another. His solution is to divide the country to stop the beasts from murdering the other beasts. He can argue all he wants that President Bush and John McCain are not nearly as smart as Biden is, but at least they will not abandon the Iraqis. It's not just Iraqis who wonder about Obama's pick. One interesting analysis comes from the AP's Ron Fournier who says that by picking the experienced Biden, Barack Obama is showing a "lack of confidence." So Obama acknowledges that he is not ready to be president, and he picks a guy who can make up for the gaps. (READ MORE)

IN-iraq: Oil windfall, so why can't Iraq shoulder its own reconstruction burden? - Sunni tribesmen are being paid to not blow up critical northern pipelines. The Basrah oil fields in the south aren't being siphoned nearly as often. So now that Iraq is flush in oil profits, why can't it cover the full costs of its own reconstruction? An opinion piece in the LA Times, by Linda J. Bilmes and Joseph E. Stiglitz, said: “Iraq sits atop the world's third-biggest known oil reserves, and the Iraqi government keeps a mounting pile of petrodollars firmly tucked away in American banks. A new report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office shows that Iraqi oil revenues will reach up to $85 billion this year, resulting in a budget surplus of as much as $50 billion. But despite all the money that is pouring in, Iraq is not taking responsibility for its own reconstruction.” (READ MORE)

Mohammed: America Should Pick Georgia Over Russia - The war between Russia and Georgia -- and particularly what Russia aspires to gain from this showdown -- may have future consequences for the situation in the Middle East. It may also have the potential to alter the existing world order and restore a condition somewhat similar to what we had in the Cold War era. A recent statement by Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov caught my attention: "We understand that this current Georgian leadership is a special project of the United States, but one day the United States will have to choose between defending its prestige over a virtual project or real partnership which requires joint action." (READ MORE)

Bill Roggio: Three senior al Qaeda in Iraq leaders captured in Baghdad - Coalition and Iraq forces captured three senior al Qaeda in Iraq leaders behind some of the deadliest violence over the past several years. Two of the men were detained during the past two weeks in raids by Task Force 88, the hunter-killer special operations teams assigned to dismantle al Qaeda's networks in Iraq. The special operations teams captured Salim 'Abdallah Ashur al Shujayri during an operation on Aug. 11. Six days later, Ali Rash Nasir Jiyad al Shammari was captured. The locations of the raids were not disclosed by Multinational Forces-Iraq. Today, Iraqi forces announced the capture of Mahdi Mosleh al Djeheishi. Shujayri and Shammari are senior al Qaeda in Iraq leaders and have been "assessed to be longtime members" of the group. Both men are Iraqi citizens, a senior US military intelligence official who wishes to remain anonymous told The Long War Journal. (READ MORE)

Jake’s Life: August Update on Jake - I was able to talk to Jake again (8/21). He had just returned from a lengthy mission. He was in good spirits especially since when he got back to base they had received mail in a supply convoy and there were several packages from friends and family. He again asked me to pass on his gratitude and apologize for not being able to do it personally. The region is a hornets nest of taliban activity and they are being engaged regularly. As has been already mentioned in the media, the 2/7 Marines have been extended 30 days and seemed ok with that. Please include in your prayers Jake's comrades Cpl. Anthony G. Mihalo, 23, of Naperville, Ill. and Lance Cpl. Juan Lopez-Castaneda, 19, of Mesa, Ariz. who were KIA last week. We spent a lot of time talking about the Olympics and world news. He is totally removed from any kind of outside news sources. His sister told him about Brett Favre and he was stunned. (READ MORE)

Matel-in-Iraq: Foreigners Loving America ... or Not - We were canc'd for our trip to Al Qaim by bad weather, so I am stuck at Al Asad w/o any new Iraqi stories to tell. But I still can produce blog entries. After Iraq I will go back to my job in public diplomacy. I have been thinking about that in my spare time and when I think I write. These are just my thoughts about some of the big trends. We will soon be in a new administration and some people expect a big change in our image overseas. I don’t. Not in the long term. We will get a bounce in January as everybody welcomes the new president, but it will be ephemeral. I worked for Reagan, Bush, Clinton and Bush. The only thing I have noticed about opinions of our presidents is that people always seem to like the last president better than the current one. I have seen more continuity than change in both our policies and our image. Many of the trends are long term. (READ MORE)

Navy Gal off to Iraq: WTF??? - I've never been one to dime anyone out in my blog, but perhaps it's time I start. Nah, just kidding!!! There is some crazy crap going on at my work and people that I work with. We have this crazy thing called Fraternization (I'm sure you all remember my posts from my training days how this was DRILLED into our heads not to do it) and it's rearing it's ugly head up here in not a nice way. I really could care less who you are screwing on this deployment, but when it starts to involve the work place and preferential treatment of others, then I have an issue. That is exactly what is going on up here. NOT by me....I just had to throw that out there. And, me being the nice person I am, will not even go into anymore detail so as to not bring these people into the light anymore than they already are. They will show their asses soon enough. (READ MORE)

One Marine's View: I'M HOME - After a long trip I’m home. Beginning on the 8th, we departed our company out post and headed south. Traveling from northern Iraq, to Baghdad, to Kuwait, then to Ireland, then to Maine in the US then to California and finally back across to the east coast. It was a long trip but it doesn’t really matter when you are headed home though. My frequent flyer miles should be off the charts!! Its awesome to be home and the things that I see the most is green trees, the smell of green fresh cut grass,clouds (since we never saw any) and the several other things I immediately see we have as Americans that we so easily take for granted. That will be another post. This weekend, look for the guy with no hair enjoying a nice non- boiled steak, cold beer and several cigars, that’s me. (READ MORE)

Playing in the Sandbox: Ironic - Whenever we do foot patrols around towns and I attract my usual entourage of Iraqi kids, the most common question they ask is whether or not I'm married and if I have a baby. Their method of inquiry transcends any possible language barrier - they point at my ring finger (or theirs) and say, "Madame? You, madame? Baby?" and then smile upwards at me with an irrational sense of hope and wonder in their eyes. At first I thought maybe they had picked up a few other English words besides "Give me" and "MisTAR!" and were able to get a reaction out of many soldiers who in fact do have wives and children and are likely more than happy to show off pictures of their families back home. But this happens everywhere I go. Everywhere. And when people ask you the same question about yourself over and over and are so saddened and disappointed by your answer ("No." - "No baby??" - "No, no goddamn baby."), you begin to wonder if it's really you and not them that has the problem. (READ MORE)

Soldier's Mom: No News is Good News - No news lately - which to me is good news as I am sure it is to everyone else. Things are quiet as they are nearing the end of their deployment - it appears that they have made great strides in Diyala Province - something to be so proud of. It has been a long, long year for all of us at home, waiting, worrying and a lot of praying. I can't even begin to fathom how hard it has been on our soldiers and others to be so far from home and their loved ones. I do believe I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel though the prayers and the worrying will not stop until they all come home safely. (READ MORE)

Somethign on the Staff: ...what? - Every so often I have these “…what?” moments with the Iraqi Army. Case in point, I went to find an Iraqi officer who was supposed to meet me for dinner. I sat down in his office and used my rudimentary Arabic on one of his brother officers. Then an Iraqi lieutenant colonel walks in and they talk amongst themselves. The first officer proceeds to whip out a tazer, and turn it on for his boss. It sparked and made a series of unfriendly cracking noises. I’ve never had a normal conversation that ended with someone whipping out a tazer. So there’s my first “…what?” moment of the day. I don’t speak that much Arabic, but I’m pretty sure the LTC said “Dude, that totally reeks of awesomeness, let me try.” The LTC grabs the tazer, turns it on and jokingly jabs the active tazer at his buddy. Ha ha! What fun. (READ MORE)

Up Country Iraq: Muntheria - Hello everyone, I trust that everyone has been getting their fair share of the Olympics, and more importantly, pre-season football. I haven't had the opportunity to see much of either. I didn't even get to watch the 9 year-old Chinese girl lip-synching during the opening ceremonies, so I guess I am missing out on some good stuff. I did read an Op-ed where the writer blames that incident on the US because of the emphasis on beauty in the States. The "Hate America First" crowd doesn't let up. As part of my ongoing collection effort, I spent some time out east on the Iraq-Iran border gathering information on Port of Entry Transition Teams (POETT). Closely related, but not quite the same, is the Border Transition Team (BTT). The BTT works with the Iraqi version of our Border Patrol, and the POETT works with the customs, passport, and immigration people at the (legal) border crossings (as my wife asked, "Do they really have people immigrating to Iraq?). (READ MORE)



Back and still writing:
Army of Dude: The Last Patrol - It had to end, someday. We had been at Combat Outpost Battle II for a few weeks, trying to leave it in the best shape possible for our beautiful, wonderful relief unit, our sister brigade from the other side of Ft. Lewis. Operation Arrowhead Ripper was the cherry on top of a grueling five month adventure in Baqubah, a place we didn't know of in 2006 but one we'd get to know all-too well toward the end of 2007. After that big offensive, there was one last hurrah: the clearing and holding of the neighborhood of Old Baqubah. It proved to be the most dangerous of neighborhoods, one left relatively untouched during the massive clearing operation in June and July. (READ MORE)



News from the Front:
Iraq:
Sadr weighs in on U.S.-Iraq deal - Shiite cleric Muqtada Sadr has remained out of Iraq's political fray since spring, but the debate over a deal that would determine the future of American troops in Iraq has revived his fiery rhetoric and that of some of his more militant followers. A pro-Sadr song making the rounds in Baghdad and sold at local markets includes the lyrics: "We'll be back after this break ... the revolt will return and the lions will go again. It's an advertising break, then we'll strike back again." (READ MORE)

Al-Qaeda in Iraq takes more hits (Baghdad) - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces detained nine suspected terrorists, including five wanted men, during operations around the country targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq on Sunday and Monday. Using information from an operation Jul. 9, Coalition forces on Monday captured a man assessed to be a senior terrorist liaison in Abu Ghraib, about 20 km west of Baghdad. The man is suspected of facilitating the movement of senior terrorist leaders in Baghdad and was detained with one additional suspect. (READ MORE)

Officials reopen refurbished Jadriya Lake Park in Karadah - FORWARD OPERATING BASE RUSTAMIYAH, Iraq – An estimated 2,250 Iraqi citizens witnessed a step toward normalcy as local officials reopened Jadriya Lake Park in the Karadah district of eastern Baghdad Aug. 22. Joining those citizens at the reopening were the government officials, security force leaders, contractors and Soldiers who worked together to restore the lake and surrounding grounds. (READ MORE)

IA, MND-B Soldiers continue to take weapons off streets - BAGHDAD – Iraqi Army soldiers and Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers confiscated and seized munitions throughout Baghdad Aug. 24. Soldiers of the 4th Battalion, 22nd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division confiscated 11 AK-47s, and a Berno Rifle at 6 a.m. in the Kadamiyah district of northwest Baghdad. (READ MORE)

SF conduct riot control training - Kirkuk, Iraq – As Iraq continues to emerge as a free and democratic country, its security forces must be prepared to maintain stability and keep the land in order. Under the guidance of the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 10th Mountain Division’s Emergency Services Unit of northeastern Iraq’s Kirkuk Province recently conducted training on how to effectively control and eventually dissolve citizen riots and protests, Aug. 20. (READ MORE)

MND-B Soldiers, SoI seize weapons cache, munitions - BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers, working with Iraqi Security Forces, discovered unexploded ordnance and a weapons cache Aug. 23 in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. At approximately 9:30 a.m., Soldiers from Company E, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, called a Coalition forces explosives ordnance disposal team to remove an 82 mm mortar round found in the Hayy Jihad community of Rashid. The EOD team disposed of the round. (READ MORE)

Female suicide bomber detained in Baqubah - BAQUBAH, Iraq – An unwilling female suicide bomber was detained in Baqubah Aug. 24 by Iraqi Police. The unwilling suicide bomber surrendered to the IPs rather than detonating herself and potentially killing or wounding bystanders. After identifying the suicide vest on the 13-year-old female, IPs requested Iraqi and Coalition force Explosive Ordnance Disposal units to remove the vest. (READ MORE)

Coalition forces capture two key al-Qaeda leaders in Baghdad - BAGHDAD – Coalition forces captured two suspected senior al-Qaeda in Iraq leaders in Baghdad during recent operations, dealing AQI a hefty blow by removing experienced terrorists from the top of the extremist network. Salim ‘Abdallah Ashur al-Shujayri, also known as Abu Uthman, was captured during an operation Aug. 11. He is reportedly the AQI emir of the Rusafa district of Baghdad. Ali Rash Nasir Jiyad al-Shammari, also known as Abu Tiba, was captured Aug. 17. Both men are assessed to be longtime members of AQI. (READ MORE)

Multiple IED attacks kill 2 Iraqi citizens in Baghdad - BAGHDAD – Two Iraqi citizens were killed and 13 were wounded, to include seven Ministry of Interior personnel, when two improvised explosive devices were detonated in the Rusafa district of eastern Baghdad at approximately 10 a.m. Aug. 24. The first IED struck a MoI patrol stopped at a curbside. The second explosion hit as a MoI Quick Reaction Force responded to the incident. Both MoI trucks were damaged in the blasts. (READ MORE)

Suicide bomber kills 5 in Kirkuk city - KIRKUK, Iraq – A suicide vest attack killed four local citizens and one Sons of Iraq member on Aug. 23 in Kirkuk city. Seven civilians were also injured in the attack, which exploded in the vicinity of a car dealership. Iraqi emergency teams and coalition forces medical personnel responded to the incident. The event is currently under investigation. (READ MORE)

101st Soldiers unearth weapons caches in Salah ad Din - SALAH AD DIN PROVINCE, Iraq – Soldiers of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (AA), along with Iraqi Security Forces, discovered a series of major weapons caches in Salah ad Din province over the past several days. Acting on tips from local citizens, soldiers found a bevy of serviceable weapons Northeast of Balad and Southwest of Samarra, which ranged from sniper’s rifles to highexplosive ordnance. (READ MORE)

Two suspected Kata’ib Hezbollah associates nabbed in New Baghdad - BAGHDAD – In their continued degradation of the Kata’ib Hezbollah criminal network, Coalition forces picked up two suspected associates during operations Friday morning in New Baghdad. Acting on intelligence tips, Coalition forces raided the home of a suspected Katai’b Hezbollah propaganda expert, believed to have uploaded more than 30 attack videos to the criminal ring’s now-defunct web site. (READ MORE)


Afghanistan:
10 Taliban killed in Afghan clashes, officers sacked after civilians die - KABUL, Afghanistan - U.S.-led coalition troops clashed with a group of Taliban fighters in northern Afghanistan, killing six militants, while four militants were killed in a battle in the south, officials said. (READ MORE)

Govt rejects Taliban truce offer in Bajaur - KHAR/PESHAWAR: The government on Sunday rejected the offer of the Bajaur chapter of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan to unilaterally cease fire in the agency where fierce fighting between the security forces and militants has been raging for over two weeks, claiming scores of lives. (READ MORE)

France to take long look at Afghan mission - PARIS: The death of 10 French soldiers in an ambush by insurgents in Afghanistan has stoked a cry at home for France to rethink its commitment to the seven-year mission led by the United States. Most French voters want out, and the opposition is ratcheting up the pressure on President Nicolas Sarkozy’s government – though analysts say France and other allies will dig in for the fight even as they insist upon a new look at Nato’s strategy against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. (READ MORE)

Pak Army kills 50 Taliban militants in Swat - Peshawar, Aug 24 : Seventy-eight people were killed and several others injured as fierce clashes continued in different parts of the Swat Valley today. The security forces launched their offensive late night on the alleged headquarters of Taliban militants. They used artillery and gunship helicopters to hit positions of the militants. (READ MORE)

Multiple militants killed in Kapisa province - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 24, 2008) – Multiple militants were killed by Coalition forces during an operation to disrupt militant activities in Kapisa province, Saturday. The force searched a remote area in Tag Ab District targeting a senior Taliban commander smuggling weapons and foreign fighters into Afghanistan, as well as organizing rocket, IED and suicide attacks against Coalition and ISAF forces. (READ MORE)

Native Panjshir family donates land for girls school - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 21, 2008) – A small group of people were on hand for a ground-breaking ceremony for the $130,000 Haish Saidqi eight-room schoolhouse, Aug. 20, on a hillside overlooking the picturesque stepped farmlands of Rokha District, Panjshir province, Afghanistan. (READ MORE)

Creating a $table Afghan future to bank on - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 19, 2008) — U.S. forces here will now utilize commercial Afghan banking services, which will bolster Afghanistan’s economy by putting approximately $100 million worth of monthly-business transactions into private banks’ hands. (READ MORE)

Taliban commander killed in clash with ANSF and Coalition forces - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 22, 2008) – Afghan National Army Commandos and Coalition forces on patrol were ambushed by insurgents in the Shindand District of Herat province today. The combined patrol was en route to a Taliban commander’s compound in an effort to detain him and other known insurgents in the area. Insurgents engaged the soldiers from multiple points within the compound using small-arms and RPG fire. The combined force responded with integrated small-arms fire and an airstrike. (READ MORE)

Militants operations disrupted in eastern Afghanistan - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 21, 2008) – Multiple militants were killed and one was detained by Coalition forces during an operation to disrupt militant activities in Kapisa province, Thursday. The force searched a compound in Tag Ab District targeting a Taliban commander smuggling weapons and foreign fighters into Afghanistan, as well as organizing suicide attacks against Coalition and ISAF forces. (READ MORE)

Bagram school receives fresh renovations for new semester - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 20, 2008) – For the children of Bagram Village Girl’s High School, August 19 was the start of a new semester. Students filtered through the gate the same as any other school day, but were surprised to see their school had changed since the end of the last semester. (READ MORE)

Small Rewards Program reduces munitions - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 18, 2008) — Colorful flyers are passed out to the Afghanistan population to give them tips such as staying hydrated, warnings to avoid touching landmines and what to do if one might happen to come across munitions that could be used against Coalition forces. Approximately 24,000 of these flyers, which have a combination of pictures and images, tell about the Small Rewards Program. The idea behind the Small Rewards Program is that if anyone finds munitions, they can turn them into the Coalition in exchange for money. (READ MORE)

Force protection increased at district center - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 18, 2008) —The Quargehay District Center has come under two attacks since April, and recently a Criminal Investigative Division police officer was killed while searching the culverts surrounding the center for improvised explosive devices. However, work is being done to strengthen the area around the district center from these attacks, such as Hesco Barriers and the construction of a guard tower. (READ MORE)

Refugees find safe haven in Konar province - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 17, 2008) — According to United Nations statistics, at its highest point since the Soviet invasion in 1979, the number of Afghan refugees that crossed the border into Pakistan surpassed three million. The 1.2 million displaced Afghans living in Pakistan make up the largest refugee group in the world today, stated the UN report. (READ MORE)

ANSF assumes control of Bak District Center - BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (August 17, 2008) — The Afghanistan National Security Forces assumed control of the Bak District Center during a transfer-of-authority ceremony Saturday. After five months of mentoring from a Task Force Currahee Military Police platoon, the Afghanistan National Army soldiers have shown they are ready to assume full responsibility of the area, said Capt. Jim Raines, company commander of Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 4th Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment. (READ MORE)

10 killed in attack on lawmaker's home, Pak Govt bans Taliban - ISLAMABAD: Ten people were killed when militants attacked the home of a provincial legislator's brother in Pakistan's restive northwestern Swat valley even as the government banned the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan. (READ MORE)

H/T: CJ

J. D. Pendry pens a must read. If you've ever wondered about the true intentions of the war protestors then read on. We know that the anti-war movement speaks in glowing terms about the ideal of peace and would have you believe that they are against all war because it is horrible and uncivilized, but they are truly only interested in weakening America. How do we know this?

Pendry points out what has been so painfully obvious from the start:

The Russians invaded the sovereign nation of Georgia, a free country with a democratically elected government. Where in the hell are Cindy Sheehan, Code Pink, Congress and 99 percent of Hollywood? Code Pink is probably still standing on the streets in front of Walter Reed Army Medical Center harassing wounded American Warriors and their families. The remainder is probably too busy admiring the great show put on by the communist Chinese.

The Russians only shot up a few journalists during Vlad’s great adventure. This female Georgian reporter, these Turkish reporters, and this Jewish one. This fine example of a professional military was also filmed robbing a bank and stealing United States military equipment from the port.

I am curious. Senator Dick Durbin, is this conduct reminiscent of the “Nazis, Soviets in their gulags, or some mad regime — Pol Pot or others — that had no concern for human beings?” Congressman Jack Murtha, is there anything here that angers you? Do you reckon “they killed innocent civilians in cold blood?” They certainly tried it appears. Senator John Kerry, it looks to me like Vlad Putin’s fine communist soldiers “randomly shot at civilians, [and] razed villages in fashion reminiscent of Genghis Khan….” What do you think? Do you reckon they are “terrorizing kids and children, you know, women?” Speaker Nancy Pelosi, is this Putin’s war? Are you going to demand that “He has to answer for his war?” Declare that “He has dug a hole so deep he can’t even see the light on this?” Will you say, “It’s a tragedy? It’s a stark blunder?” Or are these displays of courage and characterizations that you reserve for America, American Soldiers, and your own President? (READ MORE)

Keep it up J. D. we need more people to hear the truth.

A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.


In the News: (Registration may be required to read some stories)
U.S., Iraqi Negotiators Agree on 2011 Withdrawal - BAGHDAD, Aug. 21 -- U.S. and Iraqi negotiators have agreed to the withdrawal of all U.S. combat forces from the country by the end of 2011, and Iraqi officials said they are "very close" to resolving the remaining issues blocking a final accord that governs the future American military presence... (READ MORE)

Houses Add Up to A Snag for McCain - Sen. John McCain's inability to recall the number of homes he owns during an interview yesterday jeopardized his campaign's carefully constructed strategy to frame Democratic rival Barack Obama as an out-of-touch elitist and inspired a round of attacks that once again ratcheted up the negative tone... (READ MORE)

Russian Forces Show Signs of Retreat in Parts Of Georgia - TBILISI, Georgia, Aug. 21 -- A day before the deadline for their promised retreat from Georgian territory, Russian troops showed signs of withdrawal in some places Thursday but announced plans to strengthen their presence in others. (READ MORE)

From Israel, a Call for Patience - JERUSALEM, Aug. 21 -- Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni warned Thursday against outside efforts to pressure Israel and the Palestinians to come up with a peace agreement this year, saying violence could erupt if they fail to meet international expectations. (READ MORE)

China Says 6 Americans Detained Over Protest Could Be Held 10 Days - BEIJING, Aug. 21 -- Six Americans detained by police this week could be held for 10 days, according to Chinese authorities, who appear to be intensifying their efforts to shut down any public demonstrations during the final days of the Olympic Games. (READ MORE)

Obama Says He Has Chosen His No. 2 - CHESAPEAKE, Va., Aug. 21 -- Sen. Barack Obama announced on Thursday that he has decided on a running mate -- but declined to provide a name, fanning already intense speculation about the choice. (READ MORE)

Obama Camp Has Many Ties to Wife's Employer - A few years ago, executives at the prestigious University of Chicago Medical Center were concerned that an increasing number of patients were arriving at their emergency room with what the executives considered to be non-urgent complaints. The visits were costly to the hospital, and many of the patients, coming from the surrounding South Side neighborhood, were poor and uninsured. (READ MORE)

Wealth barbs take hold as Obama slips - CHESTER, Va. The two rich men who want to be president traded new attacks Thursday accusing each other of being out of touch with the Americans, as Sen. Barack Obama got more aggressive amid his slipping poll numbers. (READ MORE)

Hospital released vet who refused study - An Army veteran seeking treatment for his sudden loss of motor skills was turned away from a veterans hospital in the Bronx, N.Y., in May 2007 after he refused to participate in a human subject experiment on Alzheimer's disease. (READ MORE)


On the Web:
Charles Krauthammer: NATO Meows - Read the first five paragraphs of the NATO statement on the Russian invasion of Georgia and you will find not a hint of who invaded whom. The statement is almost comically evenhanded. "We deplore all loss of life," it declared, as if deploring a bus accident. And, it "expressed its grave concern over the situation in Georgia." Situation, mind you. It's not until paragraph six that NATO, a 26-nation alliance with 900 million people and nearly half of world GDP, unsheathes its mighty sword, boldly declaring "Russian military action" -- not aggression, not invasion, not even incursion, but "action" -- to be "inconsistent with its peacekeeping role." Having launched a fearsome tautology Moscow's way, what further action does the Greatest Alliance of All Time take? Cancels the next NATO-Russia Council meeting. (READ MORE)

E. J. Dionne Jr.: Obama vs. August - Don't worry, Democrats, the worst of August is over. Like baseball players, political people are superstitious. In the Democratic imagination, August is the month when Republican presidential candidates destroy their opponents with clever, underhanded attacks that meet with ineffectual responses. Democrats are petrified that if John Kerry was Swift-boated in August 2004, Barack Obama was Paris-Hiltoned this summer, and there will be no coming back. Never mind that this analysis is based on the experience of exactly one election. Superstitions are not necessarily rational. This time, Democrats decided that, as a political matter, they would end August early by holding their convention and unveiling a running mate during the month of the jinx. But you don't have to be superstitious to notice that the polls have edged in John McCain's direction since June, or that Obama seemed to lose the initiative from the moment he returned from his foreign journey last month: (READ MORE)

Richard Holbrooke: What the West Can Do - TBILISI, Georgia -- Given the tremendous damage Russia inflicted on Georgia, it is easy to conclude that Moscow has achieved its objectives. But so far Moscow has failed in its real goal -- getting rid of Mikheil Saakashvili, Georgia's pro-democracy, pro-American president. To be sure, Russia has tightened its control of the separatist enclaves of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. It shattered the Georgian military, grievously damaged Georgia's economy and stirred up discord within the Western alliance. For three years, it has tried every conceivable tactic to bring him down -- fomenting a domestic uprising, imposing an economic blockade, beefing up its forces in the enclaves and finally a war. Yet Saakashvili is still in power. Here in Tbilisi, tension is understandably high. Russian tanks are less than 25 miles away, and the wheat fields along the main road to Gori were ablaze, set on fire by Russian troops... (READ MORE)

Charles Krauthammer: The Understated Georgian Crisis - WASHINGTON -- Read the first five paragraphs of the NATO statement on the Russian invasion of Georgia and you will find not a hint of who invaded whom. The statement is almost comically evenhanded. "We deplore all loss of life," it declared, as if deploring a bus accident. And, it "expressed its grave concern over the situation in Georgia." Situation, mind you. It's not until paragraph six that NATO, a 26-nation alliance with 900 million people and nearly half of world GDP, unsheathes its mighty sword, boldly declaring "Russian military action" -- not aggression, not invasion, not even incursion, but "action" -- to be "inconsistent with its peacekeeping role." Having launched a fearsome tautology Moscow's way, what further action does the Greatest Alliance Of All Time take? Cancels the next NATO-Russia Council meeting. (READ MORE)

Lorie Byrd: The Case Against Obama - In His Own Words - It would be hard to make a better case against a Barack Obama presidency than the one Obama has made in his own words. The most memorable thing about Obama’s speeches is not generally what he says, but rather how large and enthusiastic the audiences are. If voters pay attention only to the symbolism and get caught up in the excitement of the Obamessiah and his throngs of fainting disciples, he stands a good chance of winning in November. If voters pay attention instead to the things Obama is saying, the case against an Obama presidency will be clear. Obama’s youthful appearance is often cited as one of his biggest assets, but when he opens his mouth he doesn’t always come off as presidential or even particularly intelligent. The political figure who perhaps has received the most ridicule in the past twenty years is Dan Quayle (due largely to a misspelled word on a flashcard he read during an appearance at a school). (READ MORE)

Michelle Malkin: Abu Ghraib-i-fying America's Schools - The citizens of the world who hate America are going to love the latest agitprop released this week by Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union. In a document titled "A Violent Education: Corporal Punishment of Children in U.S. Public Schools," the left-wing groups seek to paint a horrifying portrait of the nation's classrooms as Abu Ghraib-like torture chambers. The report compiles sob stories of students humiliated after being disciplined by school officials for unruliness, and claims that minority students are "disproportionately targeted" for punishment. Citing international law and threatening lawsuits, Human Rights Watch and the ACLU are demanding that the White House and Congress ban physical discipline in all public schools. The report says that "more than 200,000 U.S. public school students were punished by beatings during the 2006-2007 school year,"... (READ MORE)

David Limbaugh: The 'Swiftboating' Charge and Infanticide: A Guilty Diversion - You can always tell when you've scored points against a liberal candidate. He and his minions, following the combined examples of Bill Clinton and John Kerry, immediately assume counterattack mode -- rather than addressing the allegations -- and accuse the accusers of "Swiftboating," by which they mean smearing with false charges. John Kerry's handlers adopted the technique when Kerry's fellow Swift boat veterans unveiled his true military record after Kerry brazenly made his record an essential campaign issue. They attempted to turn the table on the truthful Swiftees by painting them as liars. The episode proved that the mainstream media will go to any lengths to save a floundering Democratic presidential campaign, including conspiring to manufacture a new word for our political lexicon designed to discredit and silence the accusers. (READ MORE)

Kathleen Parker: Obama's Born-Alive Problem - Abortion is back with, dare we say it, biblical vengeance. Republicans recently have been focused on Barack Obama's opposition several years ago to "born alive" legislation in Illinois that mirrored similar federal legislation aimed at granting personhood to a fetus/baby that was alive after removal from its mother's body, either by abortion or premature birth. In the past few weeks, Obama has been accused of everything from favoring infanticide to lying about his vote, to inventing a cover-up, to being a baby-killing extremist. Politics is no place for the squeamish. What is more likely true is that Obama is studiously cautious, too smart by half, and ambivalent to a fault. Suddenly, the man whose campaign seemed helium-propelled is being pulled back down to Earth by the force of his own vagueness. Abortion, of all things, has become his kryptonite. (READ MORE)

John Hawkins: 25 Reasons You Might Be A Liberal (Part 2) - With yet more apologies to Jeff Foxworthy, you just might be a liberal if... * You blame the oil companies for high gas prices, but believe in doing everything humanly possible to keep them from drilling for more oil. * You'd have no problem with a Democratic President talking with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad or Kim Jung-Il without conditions, but would be very upset if he started seriously negotiating with Republicans over national security or energy issues. * You don't see a conflict between "supporting the troops" and trying to insure that they lose the war that they're fighting. * You think the solution to an underperforming economy is higher taxes, more regulations, and publicly attacking businesses, but don't understand how that relates to the phrase, "The beatings will continue until morale improves." (READ MORE)

Brent Bozell III: Bracing for The Goo - When Sen. John Kerry arrived in Boston for the last Democratic convention, the TV news stars thought they'd died and gone to political heaven. Dan Rather said Kerry's speech drove the crowd in Boston into "a 3,000-gallon attack about every three minutes," and Newsweek's Jon Meacham was comparing Kerry to Abraham Lincoln on MSNBC. If media liberals can get that excited over Kerry, viewers may have to worry about the anchors lapsing into diabetic comas over Barack Obama's ascension convention in Denver. It's easy to forget just how "tick tight," as Rather once put it, the primary race was between Obama and Hillary Clinton. It ended up with a vote gap of just one tenth of a percentage point. The real difference-maker in the 2008 race was the Obama favoritism of the national media, led by the television networks. It was his margin of victory. (READ MORE)

Patrick J. Buchanan: And None Dare Call It Treason - Who is Randy Scheunemann? He is the principal foreign policy adviser to John McCain and potential successor to Henry Kissinger and Zbigniew Brzezinski as national security adviser to the president of the United States. But Randy Scheunemann has another identity, another role. He is a dual loyalist, a foreign agent whose assignment is to get America committed to spilling the blood of her sons for client regimes who have made this moral mercenary a rich man. From January 2007 to March 2008, the McCain campaign paid Scheunemann $70,000 -- pocket change compared to the $290,000 his Orion Strategies banked in those same 15 months from the Georgian regime of Mikheil Saakashvili. What were Mikheil's marching orders to Tbilisi's man in Washington? Get Georgia a NATO war guarantee. Get America committed to fight Russia, if necessary, on behalf of Georgia. (READ MORE)

Hugh Hewitt: The Obama Platform Dive: Senator Empty Suit DQs - As Obama's very big adventure gets underway in Denver, he has a problem. Lots of problems, actually. First, Obama appears to be prompter-dependant. The story that he cannot string together coherent arguments away from a prompter surfaced on Thrusday and Rush gave it huge legs. Now even the MSM will be watching to see if The One is using a virtual cheat sheet on the road. Then there's the lingering triple play of scandals: Obama's vote and speech against the Born Alive Infant Protection Act that stuns and repulses even moderate pro-choicers; his ties to Bill Ayers and the ongoing cover-up of the documents surrounding that relationship by the University of Illinois; and of course now that houses are at the top of the news cycle, the Obamas' sweetheart house deal with crooked financier and Obama mentor Tony Rezko. That's ten weeks worth of scandal floated in one day. (READ MORE)

Oliver North: Report From a Forgotten War - HERAT PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN -- Our Fox News' "War Stories" team has moved to a former Soviet military base in western Afghanistan, about 50 miles from the Iranian border. We're now with the 207th Afghan Commando Battalion and their U.S. Special Operations Command, Army and Marine counterparts. This remarkable unit celebrated the 89th anniversary of Afghanistan's independence from Great Britain this week with a capture-kill mission on a Taliban stronghold. In Khost, 400 miles east of here, near the border with Pakistan, Taliban terrorists observed the anniversary by killing 11 of their countrymen in a suicide car bomb attack against a U.S. base and followed up with a human wave of suicide bombers unsuccessfully storming Camp Salerno. In Kabul, President Hamid Karzai and U.S. officials commemorated the end of British rule with a quiet memorial ceremony for those killed in the current fight for a free Afghanistan, which has gone on for seven years. (READ MORE)

Cliff May: War and Peace: Petroleum Gives Putin the Power to Wage the Former and Set Terms for the Latter - Perhaps money can’t buy love, but it can certainly purchase power. So as oil prices have been rising, the major oil-producing nations have been gaining clout. Petroleum is no ordinary source of wealth. It is - or has become - a strategic resource: People in the West can no longer do without it. A sudden restriction in the supply would produce wrenching changes in our way of life. Lacking fuel, our military would cease to function. In the midst of a global conflict against militant Islamist regimes and movements, that’s a problem. Russia holds the world’s largest natural-gas reserves and the eighth-largest oil reserves — energy on which Western Europe has come to depend. Russian strongman Vladimir Putin appears to have thought long and hard about how to exploit these facts. (READ MORE)

Lawhawk: Democrats Really Wanted To Go There? - So, today's latest and greatest kerfuffle revolved around a question posed of Sen. John McCain over how many homes he owned. He couldn't give a definitive answer and said that his staffers would have to get back to them. Democrats quickly pounced on this. Why? Well, they thought they had a gotcha moment, but I think they didn't entirely game this out, but we'll get to that in a moment. They quickly attacked McCain, as seen in this video with Gov. Tim Kaine doing the attacking. It's got all the usual leftist tripe, including class warfare and belittling McCain because he's managed to accumulate wealth and supposedly is out of touch with the common folk. Sounds great, but it's less filling. In fact, it's empty calories because there's nothing there. (READ MORE)

Donald Douglas: Obama's Class Warfare - I'm sure many engaged in today's huge controversy over John McCain's houses believe they've found a winning ticket in portraying the Arizona Senator as "elitist" and "out of touch" with average Americans facing economic dislocation. Barack Obama led the charge himself at a campaign rally today in Chester, Virginia, where he claimed: “I guess if you think that being rich means you gotta make five million dollars, and if you don’t know how many houses you have, then it’s not surprising that you might think the economy is fundamentally strong.” There's no other way to look at Obama's outburst (and the left's piling on) than anything besides rank class warfare. Maybe this tack will play well in stoking latent working class resentments at inflation, housing instability, and rising unemployment. Maybe this meme will stick if the American electorate is undergoing a fundamental shift in ideological orienation toward the abandonment of free market competition and opportunity-based upward mobility. (READ MORE)

Dafydd: John McCain: Safe As Houses - minor update - So John S. McCain is "rich" and "out of touch" because he didn't know offhand how many residences he and his wife own. Right? Well, perceptions sometimes overrule reality; but for this post, let's talk about the reality. Cindy McCain inherited a vast fortune, today worth possibly as much as $100 million, from her beer-distributing father, James Hensley; Hensley & Co. is one of the largest distributers for Anheuser-Busch. When you have what Friend Lee's uncle calls "a lotta hell money," you would be a fool to manage it yourself. You have a veritable army of accountants, probably at several different firms, each specializing in a different aspect of money management. Anybody who has ever had a 401K or IRA account and chosen to let professionals manage it -- which includes a great many middle-income Americans who are not by any stretch of the imagination "rich" -- understands McCain's dilemma... do all those people really know, offhand, exactly what stocks, bonds, commodities, or real properties in which their accounts are invested? (READ MORE)

Big Dog: Did McCain deke Obama? - Barack Obama handed John McCain a gift when he attacked McCain by trying to associate him with disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff. McCain shot back quickly and the smack had to leave a mark. That was quite accidental and a tactical mistake on Obama’s part because it left Obama open to guilt by association and he has a lot of bad associates. Did John McCain deke Obama with regard to how many houses he has? McCain was asked, in an interview, how many houses he and his wife owned. He said he was not sure and would have his staff get back to the reporter. Was this intentional so that Obama would attack him on a housing issue? If Obama were to bring up the issue of houses then McCain would be free to attack Obama on his shady house purchase in which a now convicted associate bought some property that Barry could not afford in exchange for political favors. This got no traction in the primaries especially since there was a picture of the same associate (Tony Rezko) with Hillary and Bill. (READ MORE)

Grim @ Blackfive: You've Got To Be Kidding Me: Or, Yeah, Let's Courtmartial Petraeus - What is the purpose of the US military -- to win the wars its nation sends it to fight, or to make sure they don't say anything that anyone might possibly construe as an insult? “[E]ven if Petraeus offered his comments personally, that's a distinction without a difference. ‘Privately he's denigrating 21 percent of troo