Conservatives hate it and the ACLU hates it. And for the same reason: privacy invasions. I'm talking about very modern scanning devices in airports which allow TSA authorities to see what you may be carrying under your clothes, without you having to actually remove your clothes. Nobody seems to like these things, which is why Democrats and Republicans in Congress … Read More
Sick Of This
I could have picked any number of conservative pundits harping on the same theme. But I'll take Byron York over at the Washington Examiner. He writes: Some Obama defenders are sending around new articles from the Huffington Post and the Politico arguing that President Obama is being subjected to a double standard of criticism for his handling of the Detroit … Read More
The Odds Of Inflight Terror
Really, I think too much is being made of the Christmas Airflight Underwear Bomber (as I now call him). Yes, it was almost successful, and yes, maybe we can always beef up our homeland security here and there. But let's not get spastic. It's not like this is going to start happening every freaking day. And here's a big chart … Read More
GOP Hypocrisy Alert
The Republican exploitation of the failed terrorist airline bombing attempt continues. Perhaps none of it is worse than the exploitation by right-wing Congressman and gubernatorial aspirant Peter Hoekstra (R-MI). He sent out a fund-raising letter today (the text of which can be found here), which says in part: For almost a decade I have been a leader on National Security … Read More
And While The Right Is Quick To Condemn Obama For The Almost Terrorist Attack…
…perhaps they should read this: Two of the four leaders allegedly behind the al Qaeda plot to blow up a Northwest Airlines passenger jet over Detroit were released by the U.S. from the Guantanamo prison in November, 2007, according to American officials and Department of Defense documents. Hmmmm. Refresh my recollection someone. Who was President in November 2007? You see, … Read More
Right Wing Exploits The Northwest Airlines Terrorism Episode
The Village Voice wrote my post for me. Some excerpts: Napolitano has not been too sharp in her response to the incident, but her statements that the TSA performed well in the aftermath of the incident ("once this incident occurred, everything happened that should have"), and that there is at present "no indication" of a wider plot behind the crotch-bombing, … Read More
The Dumbest Response to The Detroit Terrorist Bombing Attempt
From the New York Daily News: Strict security rules put into place Saturday will require commercial airline passengers on international flights to stay in their seats for an hour before landing. The measure was among those imposed by the Transportation Security Administration after a suspected terrorist tried to blow up a Northwest flight as it was landing in Detroit. "Among other … Read More
Obama In Norway
It is a little awkward that Obama is receiving the Nobel Peace Prize just weeks after announcing that he is sending more troops into Afghanistan. To his credit, he didn't shy away from addressing this elephant in the room when he received the Prize in Norway today: And yet I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the considerable controversy … Read More
Leaked 9/11 Pager Messages Released
Wikileaks is a website which divulges leaked information. Recently, they released half a million pager messages that were sent on 9/11 (back when people had pagers). As the site explains: Text pagers are usualy carried by persons operating in an official capacity. Messages in the archive range from Pentagon, FBI, FEMA and New York Police Department exchanges, to computers reporting … Read More
Potential Terrorist Caught In Ohio Making Bomb
You know why you haven't heard this story? Because the would-be terrorist wasn't Muslim and didn't have a funny-sounding name. He was an extreme right-winger teabagging anti-government type: CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio – Following a pipe bomb explosion Monday night, police and federal law enforcement officials are trying to figure why a Center Avenue man turned his apartment into a bomb … Read More
Can Someone Factcheck This?
From Raw Story: In an interview with Fox News' Sean Hannity Tuesday night, the onetime Bush spokesperson attacked President Barack Obama's administration for not labeling the recent killings at Ft. Hood a terrorist attack. She then took one step further — and claimed there had been no terrorist attacks under President George W. Bush. "We did not have a terrorist … Read More
On Trying Suspected Terrorists In Civilian Trials In NYC
Andrew Sullivan gives the background: When you listen to the Fox News right speak about this, they reveal amazing levels of fear. They have been truly spooked by these men with long beards and chilling eyes. They are so scared of them they are willing to drop any and all legal principles that the West has historically used with respect … Read More
We Get Emails
I received this email from Erick Erickson, proprietor of Redstate, the pre-eminent right wing blog: Today Barack Obama is going to announce that the terrorist mastermind of September 11th, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, will be sent to New York City for a criminal trial in a civilian court. In that trial, the terrorist will get all the rights afforded an American citizen … Read More
Pop Quiz
Today, President Obama, decided not to deploy a long-range missile defense system in eastern Europe and instead, deploy a short-range missile defense system to dampen the possible threat of short-range missiles coming from Iran, because Iran is nowhere near capable of developing long-range missles The conservative blog reaction can best be described as: (1) Thoughtful consideration of the facts and intelligence and … Read More
9/11 Tributes Gone Horrible Distasteful
In my book, the tribute honor today goes to Cakewreck, the website featuring poorly designed pastry and cakes. Example 1: "If you don't eat donut holes, the terrorists win" Also, they appear only to be red and white — no blue — so I guess it's for Swiss or Canadian patriots or something. Or maybe it's symbolic of blood. Eewwww! Here's something macabre: … Read More