StormWarning’s Counterterrorism

In the waning moments of the Presidential Election campaign, there is little left but the counting. I don’t know how it will turn out. I’ve voted already (just once). My mind races with things to say about the decision making power of the American electorate. In my rather short life to date (based on the longevity of men in my family, I’ve got a few laps of the track left), the “influencers” and “influences” on these decisions have certainly changed.

There is no wonder why we end up with the poor choices we have. Perhaps we deserve better, perhaps, we get what we deserve.

Alas, I believe that this is the best place for me to “get off the bus.”

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With all of the empty headed rhetoric I’ve read in the months leading up to this very horrific election for President, a most recent “prediction” that an Obama election would result in the destruction of multiple U.S. cities with the deaths of millions of citizens is about the most outrageous of what passes as truth/fiction on the Internet. Opinions abound. There is no doubt in my mind that the candidate in question is perhaps the worst choice we’ve ever been presented, and will no doubt, if elected, prove many of the negatives about him to be true. So I once asked a friend of mine who actually served his country with distinction and does the kind of work claimed by this “predictor of doom and nuclear holocaust” about this writer of fiction. My friend, a true and honest hero read some of the “predictor’s” web site and other writings, and came back to me with this:

“Other than looking like he just bought 1500 dollars worth of surplus kit from brigade Quartermasters, and looking like Twinky Central. There is absolutely no background on why he is the considered expert on anything other than a cool web page…(opinion about the “Twinky’s” personal tragedy deleted).

He should have background music from the twilight zone.”

There is no truth in this World on the Internet, only words. Yes, there are many who would claim some level of “expertise” without ever leaving the computer. And yes, there are the many who would believe, simply because the words scream from the computer screen. And yet, they are “Twinkies and Wannabees” and nothing more.

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Many in the blogosphere crowd will be surprised by the answer to this question. But even the question and answer is raising the eyebrows of some people like Evan Kohlmann who know alot more about the al Qaeda mentality thant (I hate freakin’ typos!) almost everyone out there (including myself, of course).

In a commentary posted Monday on the extremist Web site al-Hesbah, which is closely linked to the terrorist group. It said the Arizona Republican would continue the “failing march of his predecessor,” President Bush.

The post apparently draws the conclusion that al Qaeda has successfully lured the U.S. into a trap that had “exhausted its resources and bankrupted its economy,” and goes on to suggest that a terrorist strike might swing the election to McCain and guarantee an expansion of U.S. military commitments in the Islamic world.

In Kohlmann’s post on Counterterrorism Blog, he points out that Randy Scheunemann and Jim Woolsey, McCain advisors quickly spoke to minimize the entry on al-Hesbah as a “blog entry.” Clearly, al-Hesbah is not just another blog site, nor is the propaganda in this particular post meaningless blog-blather.  Six months ago, on April 3, 2006, Al-Qaida’s Organization in Saudi Arabia issued an official communique regarding their relationship with Al-Hesbah: “We can only say good things about our brothers from the Al-Hesbah network…The brothers from Al-Hesbah have provided a superb service to the jihad and the mujahideen and everyone credits them for this.”

Of greatest importance to me and clearly supporting my views all along is Kohlmann’s conclusion that should be read and understood by each and every one of the blog-bursting citizen journalists who have exercised their freedom of speech to express their views to their minions who agree with them, even if the information posted there on their blogs has no real factual value (I’m not going to blockquote this section because it would de-emphasize the type face and I want it to be read):

“There is, of course, a degree of well-deserved irony in John McCain having to defend himself against charges of being a “terrorist enabler”. The McCain campaign has been unforgivably slow to condemn the vocal minority of their supporters at recent campaign rallies who have shouted out “Terrorist!” and “Kill him!” in response to hearing the name of Senator Barack Obama. The fact is, Al-Qaida’s real interest in the current American election cycle has nothing to do with choosing one candidate over the other — clearly, Al-Qaida doesn’t like either candidate. Rather, what Al-Qaida is hoping to witness this political season are internal recriminations, name-calling, racism, xenophobia, disunity, and America tearing at its own social fabric. The motivation is obviously not in crowning the victor, but in prolonging the game. Those foolish individuals who have shown up at political rallies carrying tasteless signs and threatening violence against their own fellow Americans are Al-Qaida’s real allies in this race. They are the ones who are responsible for providing a limitless bounty of propaganda fodder for our global adversaries — and there should be no tolerance in either campaign for such despicable behavior.”

Each every one of the amateurs should read that paragraph carefully, fully and then re-read it. In the search for what you believe is the truth, you have given al Qaeda and its followers, exactly what they wanted.

Is there an attack on the horizon? I don’t know and if I had that information, I wouldn’t be blogging. But contrary to the knee jerk reaction of Randy Scheunemann and Jim Woolsey from the McCain campaign, in my opinion, the meaningless “musings and bravado” has come from many of the conservative blogs that couldn’t focus on issues, and instead spent their time on name calling.

[This may be the best place for me to "get off the bus."]

Al Hesbah, Randy Scheunemann and Jim Woolsey

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It is difficult to avoid the derogatory terms. But there is a massive human trafficking industry that has been created by another Cuban exodus. We have a serious problem here and neither of the candidates is addressing it. Illegal immigration is continuing. Our borders are not safe. And now the “Dusty Feet” are are our newest illegal arrivals.

U.S. Coast Guard patrols have sharply reduced the flow of Cubans across the narrow Florida Straits, enforcing a policy of returning people intercepted at sea to Cuba’s communist government.

It’s called “wet-foot, dry-foot” - wet for those caught at sea, dry for those who reach land in Florida and thus qualify for U.S. entry. A third expression has entered the jargon - “dusty-foot,” referring to Cubans who arrive in Texas, where Cubans need only present identity documents and undergo medical and background checks before being welcomed to America.

The price of passage is $5,000 to $10,000 per person and much shorter than in the days when Cubans would spend days at sea headed for Florida or Mexico on rickety boats and rafts. They were known as “balseros,” from the word “balsa” to indicate the flimsiness of their boats.

But the Mexican route is also becoming increasingly prone to violence.

Cut the crap people! Illegals, more illegals and many of them “other than Mexicans” are entering the United States through Texas. I once took a position that Congressman Steve King’s solution, an electrified fence was wrong. Now, I wonder if I was wrong. There are many other ways to guard our border, other ways to track the people entering the country illegally.

I suppose that I now even agree with Texas Fred. Shoot’em before they take over this place.

Dusty Feet, illegal immigration

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We could very well lose this election and see Obama as President. It will be the fault of everyone who failed to focus on the issues: National security, War on Terror and the economy. We could well lose this election because McCain has allowed himself to be backed into the corner and taken the mantle of “Bush-v3.” We could lose this election because McCain never came out and soldified the importance of regulating the credit markets. We could well lose this election because we haven’t emphasized the role that people in Congress who claimed that they saw nothing wrong or insecure with the sub-prime mortgages (including Frank and Shays and others including Maxine Waters) didn’t just lose 20% of their home values because people who were being given a chance to own a home, even when they didn’t have the credit scores to justify their mortgages. We could well lose this election because the move from a “chicken in every pot” to “everyone is entitled to own a home” is pure and simple bullshit! Owning a home is not a right! Owning a home is something that you earn and work hard to afford.

We are running the risk of losing this election and seeing Obama in the White House because the Republican Party lost focus, and didn’t understand that this election is truly the first election to be decided on the Internet. The blogdom that focused on the ridiculous instead of the issues (largely because the blogopsphere is incapable of critical thinking and issues discussions), will have handed this election to Obama (Barry, or Barack, which ever you please).

But we will all most certainly pay the price of having an inexperienced person in the White House in a time when the World is clearly still at war, and with Obama, who truly will strip the military.

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This is borrowed from Debbie Schlussel’s website (why I haven’t been reading this lady’s writing more in the past, I cannot know, but will correct in the future). This piece, a bit off color in some places (its Howard Stern on satellite radio afterall) shows you just how illiterate and ill-informed the electorate is, and why this Nation is at the brink of great troubles, especially re: foreign policy, but also in general (IMO).

Some language is a bit harsh to the ears of some more sensitive readers, and for that, you have my apologies in advance.

If this radio interview represents how even a small segment of the population will make its decision in the next election, we are all doomed. If this radio interview represents how even a small segment of the population will make its decision in the next election, we should seriously consider IQ testing as a pre-qualification for voting. If the people interviewed in this audio are in any way involved in the selection of the next President, G-d Help Us All.

It is also very important (recognizing that this is solely my opinion) that if people had focused more attention on Obama’s lack of experience, what I consider to be his horrible judgment in foreign policy and diplomacy, and a general insensitivity to World issues (including his ridiculous comment in yesterday’s debate in which he made a statement about “invading a country that had nothing to do with Sept. 11th”), instead of worrying about Rev. Wright, and spending “time and time and time” trying to prove that Obama was a Muslim or Michelle Obama said “whitey” or any one of the other byte vacuums…and if John McCain hadn’t allowed himself to get painted into the corner to be blamed for the financial mess that is President Bush’s alone (and his Adminstration), we might not be facing the next four years with a Democrat in the White House, and an ill-prepared semi-Senator as President.

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Despite the relative calm and void of terrorist attacks on US soil, we are nonetheless a Nation at war. We all must remain vigilent and report anything, as a DHS agent said in a recent presentation that I attended, that “Doesn’t Look Right.” I some circles, a rumor of an attack on October 7 2008 had been spread. The concern is that the source of the initial analysis that was flawed, not that bloggers became the conduit of mis-information.

To think that a self-proclaimed homeland security expert (see this older post from Debbie Schlussel titled, UH-OH! Northeast “Intelligence” Network Steps In It: Fake “Terrorism Expert” Douglas Hagmann Admits Plagiarism, Fabricated Info), a “font of information” with a lack of credibility, and yet a large following (notably among only those who refuse to accept the fact that the National Intelligence Network - or NIN - and its self-proclaimed “experts” are not experts at all) actually knows more than any of our law enforcement agencies (DHS, FBI, NSA etc.) or know more than excessively credible counterterrorism websites and sources of information (one among the many being the Counterterrorism Blog), is what makes the “chicken little/sky is falling” hurricane of words, and bits and bytes, more distrubing. Ask the intelligent question, rather than relying on an unreliable source like NIN. Would none of these credible sources have written something to alert the citizenry if this supposed threat had any merit?

Of course, the argument will always be, “better right than sorry,” or “don’t worry about or be embarrassed for being wrong.” That’s all true. The problem is the source of the information, not the intention of the bloggers who spread the illicit rumor.

In my opinion, spreading an unsubstantiated rumor from a less than credible source, is exactly what the terrorists want. The more often the populace is in any way alerted to an impending terrorist attack, the more desensitized the populace will become, and the less likely they are as a broad population to be ready to respond and react when the real terrorist alert comes. Since I am passed the point of caring, the simple point is that bloggers who choose to spread information from less than credible sources, then “bicycle the blog articles around to other bloggers” do this country a huge disservice. I’m not calling these citizen journalists anything like “unpatriotic.” Quite the opposite, they are doing what they feel is the right and patriotic thing to do (albeit perhaps they are quite naive). But in spreading misinformation and bad intelligence from a less than “intelligent” source, they are not serving the public good. Thousands of people, maybe hundreds of thousands people, walked around the last few weeks thinking that we were going to be attacked yesterday, and yet, we were not attacked.

In my entire circle of friends and associates, many of whom are in the business of counterterrorism and law enforcement and national security, none ever even mentioned the rumored attacks of October 7th, 2008. That is not to say that another attack on US soil is not coming. Someday, regettably, I believe that we will be attacked, and perhaps that attack will happen sooner than later. Perhaps, even, that attack will come from within, from a US based terrorist group, maybe not even one connected to the jihad.

One thing is certain to me (and I care not about any flack I might take for writing this entry or for what I am about to say).

Even a broken clock is right twice a day.

October 7, terrorism

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New in the news…Christians to host dinner for Ahmadinejad on September 25th in New York. Interesting to me after all of the “chatter” about Christians for Israel. I guess it proves that you can’t generalize about anyone or anything or any group.

Lago Vista priest protests religious dinner honoring Ahmadinejad

Religious leaders, possibly including the Episcopal Church, are reportedly planning to host a Ramadan fast-breaking dinner that honors Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Thursday in New York City. A group planning to protest the event features the invitation on its Web site. Among the hosts is the World Council of Churches, to which the Episcopal Church belongs.

UCC Renewal Leader Calls for World Council of Churches to Cancel Dinner for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Today, United Church of Christ renewal leader David Runnion-Bareford, Exec. Dir. of the confessing movement in the UCC and President of the Association for Church Renewal, called for the World Council of Churches and The Episcopal Church to cancel their plans to host Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at a celebrative dinner in New York City on Thursday.

Christian Groups to Host Ahmadinejad and UN Head for NY Dinner

The president of the United Nations General Assembly, Miguel D’Escoto Brockmann, will be attending a dinner in New York at which Iran’s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is a featured guest, according to The Forward, a Jewish-American weekly newspaper published in New York City. Brockmann, a Catholic priest from Nicaragua who publicly criticizes the United States’s anti-terror war in Iraq and Afghanistan, will attend the dinner on September 25th, an event which was organized by five American Christian organizations and will be co-hosted by the Iranian mission to the U.N.

Christian Groups have hosted Ahmadinejad in America. Have we lost our minds?

Wow! Light the candles and set off the fireworks. Pour the drinks and start the band playing. We have celebrating to do. Ahmadinejad is in the U.S. again to talk to the very important U.N. and enlighten New York and its dignitaries. Naturally as respect and the generous American Spirit would do, several of our Religious organizations and leaders are formally welcoming him, The American Friends Service Committee, Mennonite Central Committee, Quaker United Nations Office, Religions for Peace and the World Council of Churches. Did I say just welcoming him……no, they are actually HOSTING the event held in New York on Sept. 25th. Isn’t that Precious?

Well, isn’t that an amazing thing?

Ahmadinejad, Christians

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All together now. “The Taliban is dead and defeated.” “Afghanistan has never been better.” At least sixty people died in the massive truck bombing at the Marriott in Islamabad. There are some who think that President Zardari was the target. It is being called “Pakistan’s 9/11.”

New reports now suggest that the Danish Intelligence (maybe not CIA) was the target. Some of the “smart money” is that the real targets were CIA officers staying at the hotel. It actually matters little to the now nearly 100 people killed. Was it the CIA or the Danish Intelligence forces? We may not know for a while, if ever. One thing is certain. It is imperative to know that al Qaeda is not dead or defunct, and just because they have not struck in the United States in seven years does not mean that they will not at some point, and that they will continue to strike elsewhere with near impunity.

Pakistan is about to fall apart. Afghanistan is on the way. And the Taliban is alive and well. And oh! The line between the Taliban and al Qaeda is about as thin as a “cat’s hair.”

CIA, Islamabad bombing, Taliban, Zardari

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Obama…Palin, ad nauseum. I have written about it for months. Maybe now, as Pakistan devolves and Afghanistan unravels, perhaps, people will see.

Pakistan has warned the US that if our troops cross the border in pursuit of al Qaeda/Taliban, it will open fire.

Pakistan’s military has ordered its forces to open fire if U.S. troops launch another air or ground raid across the Afghan border, an army spokesman said Tuesday.

The orders, which come in response to a highly unusual Sept. 3 ground attack by U.S. commandos, are certain to heighten tensions between Washington and a key ally against terrorism. Although the ground attack was rare, there have been repeated reports of U.S. drone aircraft striking militant targets, most recently on Sept. 12.

Try to forget who is running for VP right now. Focus on the top spot. Oh sure. John is old(er). But who is wiser?

Head of the JCoS, Admiral Mullen has assured Pakistan that the US will respect Pakistan’s sovereignty.

Are you watching? Or are “you” so caught up in a debate comparing the qualifications of a candidate for Vice President to those of a candidate for President, that you are distracted and not seeing World events, perhaps more important, unfold?

Admiral Mullen

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Wake Up! There is no doubt in my feable mind that when I wrote Losing Afghanistan (Reduxed Again) nearly 10 months ago that I either guessed really well, or I was simply, right! I vote for “right.” This position is supported by Doug Farah’s post, “Trying to Get it Right in Afghanistan, and Ignoring the Elephant in the Room”

Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, has sounded the alarm on Afghanistan, correctly pointing out that the danger of losing there is real and the hour is late.

It is fitting, on this day, to remember that our collective inability to get Afghanistan right once before helped give our enemies the opportunity to plan and execute the 9/11 attacks that are being remembered today.

What is striking about the published reports of Mullen and Defense Secretary Gates is the absence of any discussion of one of the driving forces of the Taliban’s mounting success: its access to tens of millions of dollars in opium and poppy money. The UN conservatively estimates the Taliban makes between $50 million and $70 million a year from the drug trade.

Oh, sure, some of my supposed counterterrorism blogger cohorts might offer a different view. Of course, it has been argued more than once before that Afghanistan was on the road to recovery and democracy. My opinion has consistently been contrary to that. I’ve been accused of being unpatriotic, I’ve been accused of not supporting our troops who were acclaimed as having been victorious against the “defeated” Taliban, and for my point of view, I have been called a “librul.”

Still, Afghanistan remains on the brink. Hamid Karzai has an attitude that may only be solved by his assassination. To stop this very real resurgence of the Taliban, their supply of money needs to be chopped off.

If the US and NATO is serious about improving the situation on the ground in Afghanistan, the Taliban’s money stream must be cut off. That stream is heavily dependent on opium. Ignoring that reality is not a policy.

History repeats. Sometimes we have the ability to stop it. Other times, we ignore the obvious. If you’re at all interested in reading further, you can review some of the historical Storm posts on the subject of Losing Afghanistan. Its time to open your eyes…unless you want to be “surprised” in a few months by events as they evolve.

Losing Afghanistan, poppy trade, Taliban

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I am an American - “Ich bin New Yorker.”

Each day, every day, I remember the moments of September 11th.  Even though I am no longer living there,  to paraphrase JFK, "Ich bin New Yorker."  Perhaps on September 11, 2001 at 8:48am, we were all at once New Yorkers, or all a unified group of Americans.

Our resolve as a country, however, has waned.  It is not that we as a citizenry forget…it is that the message has been blended with the War in Iraq.  We are at war and it is a War on Global Islamic Fundamentalist Jihadism.  Its not politically correct perhaps, but it is what it is.

Today, we will each in our ways remember that morning.  I will, as I do each year now, remember, and I will relate my stories of what I saw and how I felt.  And I will, whether in public or simply to myself, sing "America the Beautiful" or "God Bless America" (I sound nothing like Kate Smith)…and I will shed tears for those who perished, and shed even more tears for the permanent and perpetual changes to our lives that began at that moment.

Some of what I have written in retrospect about this day, September 11th.

Written September 12, 2001:
Amazing how far and how much my "non-combative" spirit of the 60’s and 70’s has turned more conservative. No doubt, for me, and others like me, yesterday was unlike any day we have ever experienced. As a post-war baby-boomer, there are nothing but newsreels to show us Pearl Harbor. Yesterday interrupted me from leaving for work, stopped me in my tracks, made me quiet, caused tears, and created anger. And then, fear of what might have happened to people that I knew. Right now, I suppose that I am lucky, if that is the word, that no one in my immediate family, or that of my ex-wife, or even friends of my daughter were not directly involved. But this afternoon, I spoke to a friend of mine in WDC who was resigned to having lost dozens of long-time friends and associates who were in the section of the Pentagon that was obliterated. And he reminded me that this particular section was the one in which he and I had met for a series of meetings two years ago. And the realization, however distant two years makes it, that I had walked the halls of that building where now, there is nothing but rubble. And then there is a "near-miss" story told to me by a friend whose youngest daughter passed away in March from complications from a digestive disorder. His oldest daughter works for a fashion designer in Manhattan and was supposed to go to Los Angeles yesterday morning on the flight that crashed after leaving Newark Airport. Because her dad, my friend was coming east to be with his father-in-law who is sick, she decided to stay. She assigned her assistant to go in her place. As luck would have it, the assistant didn’t want to leave that early, so she rescheduled to a later flight.

She was at the airport when word came of the crashes.

In principal, believe in peace. But there is no principal in my opinion in this situation.

Retribution and retaliation. Strong and final. I make no apologies for my feelings.

Written September 13, 2001:
I am an American, who has cried and trembled at the sights on TV.

I am an American, with compassion, yet anger.

I am an American, who once fought against fighting.

Yet tonight, I am an American, who wants nothing less than retaliation and full retribution.

I am an American, despite what others once thought when it was clear that I disagreed with some of the more American fundamentalist views. 

Somehow, some believe that this is the time for reconciliation with friends of old. This is a free country, with freedom of speech and freedom of movement, but some of us do not have that choice, since we were selectively excluded from that exclusive "club of patriots" and have no desire to change what is, or return to
what was (of course, in truth, I speak only for myself). This is a time of great stress and emotion. I have cried spontaneously since Tuesday morning, and my anger has grown about what has happened. It doesn’t change what was or happened.

I am who I am, and what I am. I make no apologies for that.

Written June 24, 2005
"Everything Changed on September 11, 2001"

The morning of September 11, 2001, we all became one, we all came together, the Members of the House of Representatives and the Senate stood on the steps of the Capitol Building and sang God Bless America. That morning, every one of us felt the emotions and feelings of being attacked. Every one of us, not just Democrats and Republicans, not just “Liberals” and “Conservatives,” but all of us as Americans.

During those days and nights that followed, we all knew the meaning of this is my country, land that I love!  Every one of us, not just Democrats and
Republicans, not just “Liberals” and “Conservatives,” but all of us as Americans.

So lets all do me a favor! Okay??? (Tongue planted in cheek, and no obligation, for sure!)

Don’t tell me how to think, just because you happen to disagree with me. Just what makes you think that you are right, and I am wrong? We are all Americans, or have you forgotten that?

Don’t tell me that I am any less patriotic than you are, just because you believe one thing and I believe another. Do you understand that “love of country” permits the questioning of authority and the decisions made by the Government? Ever hear the phrase, “my country right or wrong?” If I choose, I can disagree with the position of our Government, and it does not mean that I am any less patriotic than those who agree with our Government. We simply disagree. But we are all Americans, or have you forgotten that?

If you served in the military, you have my admiration and respect. But don’t flaunt that service in my face and imply that somehow you are a “better American” than I or that your service to our country was somehow qualitatively better than mine. Because if you don’t know what I am doing, and you don’t understand the qualitative benefits that I am striving to offer our country, than you just shouldn’t do it. We are all Americans, you and I, or have you forgotten that?

Don’t tell me how (or if) I should pray to the Higher Being, because each and everyone of us has the right to freedom of religion granted to us by our Founding Fathers. If I believe that the Higher Being is actually beneath the soil and not in the Heavens above, who are you to question my belief or to belittle what I believe. It is my right as an American to believe whatever it is that I believe. And yet, we are all Americans, or have you forgotten that?

Don’t do it! Don’t tell me how I should feel, or try to make me feel any less of an American because you have a different point of view, and you somehow feel compelled to try to either convert me to your position, or belittle me for holding my opinions. Don’t do it! It makes you less of an American than I. Don’t do it! If you feel so strongly about your views, then fine, I am happy for you. But that doesn’t give you the right to belittle, denigrate or otherwise ridicule a position that disagrees with yours.

As an American, you have the Freedom of Speech and you have the Freedom of Religion, but neither gives you the freedom to minimize, denigrate belittle or otherwise disrespect whatever it is that I believe, think or feel. You don’t have the right to tell me how to pray to the Higher Being. You don’t have the right to belittle me, just because you disagree with me.

Many here served in the military. Still, others, including me, serve our country in different ways. There is no telling how many lives my efforts will save if we are successful in our current campaign. And it will be done in anonymity. And yet, I am an American, just like you.

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For a guy who I continue to believe lives only because the War(drug)lords allow him to live, Hamid Karzai has a big set of balls. He is now blaming the British for the re-emergence of the Taliban in Afghanistan. Some people may think they were, but the truth is that they were never gone.

Karzai claims Brown has threatened to withdraw British troops from Helmand province, where 31 of them have died this year, if the president reinstates two provincial governors sacked for alleged dealings in the heroin trade.

I simply cannot accept this “brain fart” from Hamid. The Taliban is still alive because (hold onto your hats my friends), because WE allowed them to live.

All of this “happy talk” about Afghanistan emerging as a free democracy is and was crap! If you actually doubt the consistency of my beliefs and position of this, please read this search of Storm Blog on the key words of losing Afghanistan.” Then since you insist, just check out any discussion of the Durand Line or the ways in which the Pakistanis have negotiated with the Taliban in the Northwest Tribal Regions. IMO, Karzai is a damn lucky man to still be alive!

Karzai, Taliban

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A reminder to reinforce the belief that in Afghanistan we fight the continuing war against terrorism, we recognize the death of Navy SEAL Petty Officer 1st Class Joshua Thomas Harris of Lexington, N.C., who was killed in battle last week during an Afghanistan combat operation, the Defense Department announced.

“Petty Officer Harris was an exemplary SEAL. He served his country valorously during multiple combat tours to Afghanistan and Iraq,” said Capt. Scott Moore, commanding officer of NSWDG, in a press release. “He was a brave warrior, SEAL role model, mature and reliable teammate and an absolute great American. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Petty Officer Harris’ family. His loss is deeply felt by the entire Naval Special Warfare community.”

Internet warriors take heed. Among PO Harris’ awards were Bronze Star Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal with Combat “V” (Valor) Distinguishing Device, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with Combat “V” (Valor) Distinguishing Device, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, Combat Action Ribbon (Operation Iraqi Freedom), Combat Action Ribbon (Operation Enduring Freedom), Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Iraq Campaign Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Sea Service Deployment Ribbons and Good Conduct Medals.

Some do, some die, some write and rattle sabers.

Joshua Thomas Harris, Naval Special Warfare

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Once again, there is a spreading (and almost hopeful) rumor that an attack on Iran is impending. The source? Primarily the Dutch newspaper, De Telegraaf. More “stuff” is here. Who knew that the Dutch had spies.

Let’s deal with a few “pointers.”

1) As noted “elsewhere” by one of our readers, AC McCloud, “It would be stupid for Bush to authorize an attack before the election with the Dems tying McCain to his belt loop at every chance.” Note however that the NRO article (below) does argue that an attack while under the new President (regardless of who it is) would be unlikely and that, therefore, an attack with GWB still in office to “clean-up” business could occur (I still don’t think so - but I could be wrong).

2) Despite the “cheering and rooting section” who somehow believe that an attack against Iran would be a good thing (I also read that a pre-emptive strike against Iran would leave Iran powerless to retaliate), it should be remembered that extreme heat will turn desert sand into glass (actually this hapens at approximately 3,600°F which is 1,982°C).

3) I submit that the linkage of the newly emboldened Russian bear with Iran makes a pre-emptive strike against Iran a “poor choice.”

4) About 3 weeks ago, Haaretz (הארץ) published an article detailing how the US had rejected an Israeli plan to attack Iran and denied Israel war materiale for the attack.

5) The regional and Global implications of such an attack are, in my opinion, beyond comprehension.

A little less than a year and a half ago, this was discussed here, Sneak Attack Against Iran This Friday! and yet, it is still “predicted.”

What’s the truth? I suspect that James Robbins of National Review (Another Rumor of War) is pretty close to objective when he writes:

Is an attack along the lines of that reported by De Telegraaf feasible? Critics say our forces are stretched thin, but not the air and naval strike assets that would be used in this type of limited operation. The targets would be hard to hit, but not impossible to take out. The Iranian nuclear program would be delayed, not destroyed — but isn’t delay better than just letting them go ahead? Iran might seek to escalate the crisis in a number of ways — an Iranian general recently said World War Three would break out while being a bit unclear on who would be on what side — but there is no scenario in which the U.S. would not be able to maintain escalation dominance. Iran can do many things to hurt the United States, its allies, and its interests — in fact is already active in Iraq and elsewhere. But Iran will have to calculate whether a demonstration of their unconventional power will be worth the risk of a full scale demonstration of U.S. conventional force. In this vein, witness Syria’s response to Israel’s raid on their nuclear facility last September. We’re still waiting for it.

I have no idea whether any of these reports of imminent action are true. But as the various clocks keep ticking, the strategic logic of active counter-proliferation against Iran becomes more compelling. The U.S. may act, Israel may act, or not. We will know soon enough, one way or the other.

What do I really think? Armageddon is still a way off, regardless of what some of the cyber-sabre rattlers think.

Armageddon, attack Iran, De Telegraaf, Haaretz

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