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News Briefing 03-DECEMBER-2007
2007-12-03 12:00:00
Here in my part of northern Wisconsin we received 10-inches (25cm) of snow between Saturday afternoon and this morning (Monday). The forests and woodlands are beautiful. Some sunshine would be nice -- but I think the forecast this week is mostly cloudy with light snow.- - - Media victory for Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir - - -AFP is reporting a pending presidential pardon for Gillian Gibbons, the British school teacher in Sudan sentenced to 15-days in jail for allowing her students to name a teddy bear Mohammad, after two British muslims appealed to President al-Beshir for leniency. [Link.]- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -UNITED STATES:  National Debt Grows $1-Million a MinuteExaminer, USA 03-DEC-2007  (AP)[Excerpts:] - WASHINGTON - Like a ticking time bomb, the national debt is an explosion waiting to happen. It's expanding by about $1.4-billion a day - or nearly $1-million a minute. What's that mean to you? It means almost $30,000 in debt for each man, woman, child...
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News Briefing 01-DECEMBER-2007
2007-12-01 15:09:00
This blog is typically updated Monday through Friday.I will also occasionally post on Saturdays (by 9 a.m. Central Time, 15h00 UTC).- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -U.S. withdraws UN Annapolis resolution after Israel objectsHaaretz Daily, Israel 01-DEC-2007  (Shlomo Shamir)[Excerpts:] - In a sudden about face, the United States on Friday withdrew a United Nations resolution endorsing this week's agreement by Israeli and Palestinian leaders to try to reach a Mideast peace settlement by the end of 2008 after Israeli objected to it.Annapolis Should Lead to a Hamas RethinkingArab News , Jeddah 01-DEC-2007  (Walid M. Awad)[Excerpts:] - While not sure of its significance, it was noticed that the limousine carrying President Mahmoud Abbas pulling into the front gate of the White House did not have the Palestinian or the American flag hoisted at its front sides. The limousine carrying Israel's prime minister to the White House later on the same day carried the Israeli and America...
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News Briefing 30-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-30 12:10:00
I want to make a personal comment on the following story:Anger and dismay as Sudan court jails teacher for 15 days for insulting IslamGuardian, 30-NOV-2007[Excerpt:] - ?The British primary school teacher accused of insulting Islam by allowing her seven-year-old pupils to name a teddy bear Muhammad was last night sentenced to 15 days in prison by a judge in Sudan. Gillian Gibbons, 54, of Liverpool, was found guilty of "insulting religion" after an eight-hour hearing in Khartoum north court. The maximum penalty she had faced was 40 lashes and six months in prison.?[End excerpt.]I've been following this story since it was first reported. Two things are apparent to me:First -- the Sudanese judge passed a "symbolic" sentence (very lenient when one considers what the law allows) and, provided Miss Gibbons is kept safe and treated well while in custody, actually makes Sudan's justice system appear balanced.Second -- this is just one more example of Westerners not receiving proper cultura...
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News Briefing 29-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-29 12:30:00
I can't believe it's the end of November and we have yet to receive significant snowfall. Between 1 and 2 inches fell yesterday here in northeastern Wisconsin -- and it looks like it will remain on the ground since the temperatures have dropped.Fall is definitely my favorite season of the year (mostly due to the "Fall colors" when the tree leaves change to yellow, orange and red) but once the leaves fall to the ground the woods is rather bare and boring.Snow livens things up a bit.- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -Global hackers threaten net security in cyber warfare aimed at top targetsGuardian, UK 29-NOV-2007[Excerpts:] - A "cyber cold war" is developing as international web espionage and cyber-attacks become the biggest threats to internet security, according to a report. The computer security firm McAfee said governments and government-allied groups were engaging in increasingly sophisticated cyber spying, with many attacks originating from China. Some 120 countries could be de...
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News Briefing 28-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-28 12:09:00
While checking some of the newswires and RSS feeds last night I came across the following article:Hacker defaces temples to OS XThe Register, UK 27-NOV-2007[Excerpts:] - "A self-described Apple user, presumably fed up with the smug superiority of 'Mac,' the hipster mascot featured in the ubiquitous 'Get a Mac' commercials, is targeting OS X enthusiast sites with defacements that accuse them of excessive fanboyism. Problem is, the stunts appear as forced and manufactured as the Apple campaign itself. Over the past week, a person going by the name Malcor claims to have tagged at least four Mac blogs with graphics that cast the Cupertino company in a less-than-favorable light. They include images of rotten and bruised Apples being defiled by maggots and other pests and petition Mac users to exercise a bit of restraint."[End excerpt.]I'm a Mac user myself -- in fact I just got my iMac back from the repair shop after the internal power supply overheated and fried the logic board.Er,...
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News Briefing 27-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-27 12:11:00
The holidays must be near.Seattle-based Jones Soda Co. is churning out its famous limited edition Christmas soft drinks: Egg nog and Ham flavored sodas now complement its earlier releases of "Turkey & Gravy", "Smoked Salmon paté" and "Broccoli Casserole".(How gross is that?)Click here for photos and reviews of previously released Jones 'specialites'.- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -Taiwan firm sold DPRK precision equipmentDaily Yomiuri, Japan 27-NOV-2007  (Toshinao Ishii)[Excerpts:] - TAIPEI - Taiwanese investigators have sent papers to prosecutors on a company suspected of violating the trade law by illegally exporting precision equipment capable of producing nuclear weapons-related materials to North Korea, sources said Tuesday. With Japan tightening its controls on exports to North Korea following the revelation of Pyongyang's nuclear and missile development programs, North Korea is believed to have turned to Taiwan, which is not a member of the United Nations, ...
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News Briefing 26-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-26 11:49:00
My family and I spent the better part of Thanksgiving weekend in Sault Ste Marie, Ontario, which received some pleasant snowfall on Saturday (those big soft flakes that leisurely fall to the ground). We were also there for "Black Friday" -- which kicks off the Christmas shopping season here in the U.S. -- but isn't really much in Canada. (A lot of Canadians were shopping on the U.S. side -- taking advantage of our Black Friday sales and the strong loonie.)Gasoline in SSM was roughly US$4.29 per gallon, based on the posted price of C$1.119 per liter, at the prevailing exchange rate, with 3.8 liters = 1 U.S. gallon.I'll post more later this week if space allows.- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -ANNAPOLIS:  No such thing as a free summitHaaretz Daily, Israel 26-NOV-2007  (Akiva Eldar)[Excerpts:] - It is true that, to date, U.S. President George W. Bush has not exhibited a great deal of wisdom in his dealings with the Middle East. But it is hard to believe that the leader of ...
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News Briefing 23-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-23 11:47:00
- - - Annapolis musings - - -It will be interesting to see what, if anything, will be accomplished at the upcoming Annapolis peace talks scheduled for November 27.Today's Times of London features a backgrounder on the conference titled:Why the Annapolis peace talks - and a fear of failure - raise hopes for Middle East.According to Jakarta's Antara News Agency, those invited to attend the conference are "the United States, Israel, Palestinian Authority, Algeria, Arab League secretary general, Bahrain, Brazil, Canada, China, Egypt, EU Commission, EU High Representative, Portugal as EU president, France, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mauritania, Morocco, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Poland, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sudan, Sweden, Syria, Quartet Special Envoy Tony Blair, Tunisia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the UN secretary general, and Yemen. The IMF and the World Bank...
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News Briefing 22-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-22 11:22:00
I wish my American readers a pleasant Thanksgiving Day, a public holiday in the United States.- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -Iranian spy cells active in Kuwait, says analystKuwait Times, 22-NOV-2007[Excerpts:] - KUWAIT: Political analyst Dr Sami Al-Faraj predicted that the U.S. would most probably launch a preemptive strike on Iran's nuclear installations within the first three months of 2008. The decision for the strike's timing he said, was such, that the U.S. needed enough time to garner in public opinion and support for the necessity of the strikes, which they are certain, would get full support by the beginning of next year. He indicated that soon after conducting a public poll, they would announce early next year whether factors were favorable in conducting the strikes... He indicated that GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council] states could form an allied force among member states to defend their borders but would not be in a position to confront Iran if Iran embarked on a land at...
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News Briefing 21-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-21 12:13:00
[The following joke is from the newswire of the Sofia News Agency, Bulgaria.]- - - Two wishes - - -- A married couple, both 60 years old, were celebrating their 35th anniversary.- During their party, a fairy appeared to congratulate them and grant them each one wish.- The wife wanted to travel around the world.- The fairy waved her wand and poof -- the wife had a ticket in her hand for a world cruise.- Next, the fairy asked the husband what he wanted.- He said, "I wish I had a wife 30 years younger than me."- So the fairy picked up her wand and poof -- the husband was 90.- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -ANNAPOLIS SUMMIT:  Barak -suspected saboteurHaaretz Daily, Israel 21-NOV-2007  (editorial)[Excerpts:] - [Israeli] Defense Minister Ehud Barak has said on a number of occasions that he is "praying for the success of the Annapolis summit." ... All the while, his office is making pessimistic noises on the chances of success the summit, which Barak will attend, has of succeedin...
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News Briefing 20-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-20 10:48:00
I have to leave early this morning and drive down to Green Bay (Wis.) but it's strictly a 'day thing' so I'll be back late this afternoon. (This is one of the most boring drives imaginable -- I'm convinced I pass through a time-warp that makes the trip seem twice as long as it is.)A quick note on my blogging schedule:This blog is updated by 6 a.m. Central Time (12h00 UTC) Monday through Friday, with occasional posts on Saturdays by 9 a.m.There will be a blog on Thanksgiving Day (Nov 22), a public holiday in the United States, but no blog on Saturday (Nov 24) as I will be in Canada Fri/Sat.- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -Ankara moves to obtain military satellite system in struggle against PKKHürriyet, Istanbul 20-NOV-2007[Excerpts:] - Despite recent U.S. offers to intensify shared intelligence on the whereabouts and activities of the PKK terror group in northern Iraq, Ankara is moving ahead with plans to set up its own stronger systems in the fight against the PKK. At the ...
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News Briefing 19-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-19 12:37:00
In the right column of this blog (scroll down a bit) is a permalink for the recently released "2007 Press Freedom Index" from Reporters Without Borders.Um, I see that the United States has moved up the scale since last year, when it ranked No.56 (right between the Kingdom of Tonga and Uruguay), to its present position at No.48 (between Nicaragua and Togo).For some of my international readers: Canada ranks 18 and the UK 24.Check the list for other countries.- - -Here is the link for the "official" OPEC declaration (direct PDF download from OPEC). My iBook, which is somewhat obsolete and equipped with Adobe Acrobat 5.0, had trouble opening this as a PDF file -- but it opened fine using "Preview".Declaration of Third OPEC SummitOrganization of Petroluem Exporting Countries,  * * PDF * *[Blog note:   PDF file size - 436 kb, 4-pages.]- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -Georgian police used sonic blasters against demonstrators - TVSystem reportedly produced by U.S. companyRIA Novo...
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News Briefing 17-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-17 14:48:00
This blog is typically updated Monday through Friday.I will also occasionally post on Saturdays (by 9 a.m. Central Time).- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -A looming financial crisis that threatens the global economyDaily Star, Beirut 17-NOV-2007  (David Ignatius)[Excerpts:]- See if you can identify the following country: Its currency is falling sharply in global markets; its speculative real-estate bubble has burst; its financial sector is weakened by bad loans and lack of transparency. This economy is teetering on the edge of recession and, thanks to borrowing so heavily abroad, its economic future is at the mercy of international creditors. I'm talking about Thailand, of course, as it stood 10 years ago - on the edge of the devastating Asian financial crisis. But if that description bears more than a little resemblance to the United States today, then I have made my point: We have reached a junction in international financial markets - and whether this produces a smooth trans...
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(Full Text) Mohamed ElBaradei's IAEA Iran Report
2007-11-16 16:42:00
Mohamed ElBaradei's Iran Report International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)Source: Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), Tehran, 16-NOV-2007Click here for text.- - -E-mail commentsTop Stories (live newsfeeds):   AJ  BBC  LAT  XINHUA
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News Briefing 16-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-16 12:38:00
Varied interpretations of the IAEA's report on Iran's nuclear program are being disseminated by the world media. The BBC, for example, in an article titled, U.S. urges more sanctions on Iran, states:"The latest IAEA report praised Iran for making progress in responding to questions about past activities. 'Iran has provided sufficient access to individuals and has responded in a timely manner to questions and provided clarifications and amplifications on issues raised in the context of the work plan,' the report said. However, it said Iran's co-operation had been "reactive" rather than "pro-active" and that the IAEA was continuing to check whether Iran's declarations were complete.?[End excerpt.]Meanwhile, China's Xinhua news agency mentions in an article today titled:Iran says IAEA report proves peaceful nature of its nuke program:"The press conference [for the report's release] was scheduled to be held on Thursday morning. However, it was postponed until the evening due to ...
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News Briefing 15-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-15 12:35:00
Although I live in Wisconsin I'm only a few minutes drive from the upper half of Michigan, known as the "U.P." (Upper Peninsula). That said, today is the unofficial Yooper (U.P.) holiday known as "Hunting Day" -- the first day of firearm deer season.How real is this holiday?Let's just say that ALL schools in the U.P. are closed today.As for folks who live in the lower half of Michigan -- Sorry, no holiday for you.- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -U.S. Pushing Russia, Iran Towards Gas CartelKommersant, Moscow 15-NOV-2007[Excerpts:] - The short-sighted policy that the United States pursues in respect of Iran helps Russia set up a global gas monopoly of no precedent. The giant will be stronger than OPEC, warned Retired Colonel Laurence Wilkerson, who had been once the chief of staff of U.S. former Secretary of State Colin Powell. According to the report that Wilkerson presented to Congress Wednesday, the potential bond of Moscow and Tehran could create a natural gas monopoly that will...
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News Briefing 14-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-14 11:12:00
There was an article on the front page of yesterday's Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel titled, "Most flu shots contain mercury, but few know it". I would normally link directly to the article but the online version of this newspaper requires 'registration' so I never bother. However, you can try this link and search by title if you are interested.)Anyway, the article reads (in part):"About 80% of all flu shots distributed in the United States contain a mercury-based preservative called thimerosal. Thimerosal consists of 49.6% ethyl mercury, an anti-bacterial, anti-fungal that allows manufacturers to sell the vaccine in large, multi-dose containers without fear of contamination. A typical flu shot contains 25-micrograms -- or 50,000 parts per billion -- of mercury. The EPA classifies a liquid with 200 parts per billion of mercury as hazardous waste. The limit for drinking water is 2 parts per billion."[End excerpt.]I've never had a flu shot -- and I've never had the flu -- but...
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News Briefing 13-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-13 12:21:00
I want to thank The Tomo Report for linking to Pine River World News . (My readers will find a reciprocal link to The Tomo Report in the right column under "blogroll".)- - -[The following joke is from the newswire of the Sofia News Agency, Bulgaria.]- - - The Elevator - - -- An Amish boy and his father were visiting a nearby mall. They were amazed by almost everything they saw, but especially by two shiny silver walls that moved apart and back together again by themselves.- The lad asked, "What is this, father?"- The father, having never seen an elevator, responded, "I have no idea what it is."- While the boy and his father were watching wide-eyed, an old lady in a wheelchair rolled up to the moving walls and pressed a button. The walls opened and the lady rolled between them into a small room. The walls closed and the boy and his father watched as small circles lit up above the walls.- The walls opened up again and a beautiful twenty-four-year-old woman stepped out.- The father look...
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News Briefing 12-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-12 12:38:00
Post offices are closed today in the United States in commemorance of the Veteran's Day holiday.- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -Exclusive Report:  "A Taliban Resurgence: The Destabilization of Kabul?"NEFA Foundation, USA 12-NOV-2007  * * PDF download * *[Blog note:   PDF file size - 416 kb, 14-pages.][Published summary:] - An exclusive new report is available for download from the NEFA Foundation website by NEFA Senior Investigator Claudio Franco, titled "A Taliban Resurgence: The Destabilization of Kabul?" In his report, Mr. Franco examines the resurgent Taliban organization in Afghanistan, its new generation of leaders, and what its future intentions are -- and, moreover, whether rumours of a possible split within the movement are actually credible, or just wishful thinking.Americans have proven susceptible to manipulations of the truthDaily Star, Beirut 12-NOV-2007  (George Soros)[Excerpts:] - In his novel "1984," George Orwell chillingly described a totalit...
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News Briefing 10-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-10 15:21:00
This blog is typically updated Monday through Friday.I will also occasionally post on Saturdays (by 9 a.m. Central Time)- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -A post-Bush America is not about to fall at Europe's feetThe Guardian, UK 10-NOV-2007  (Martin Kettle)[Excerpts:] - The prospect of a more pliable U.S. is largely an illusion. EU states must make some very serious, existential choices...In Turkish mountains, an oasis of inter-ethnic harmonyTurkish Daily News , Istanbul 10-NOV-2007  (AFP)[Excerpts:] - Clinging to a craggy mountaintop in southeast Turkey, Mardin is at the geographic heart of a region in the throes of violent conflict between the Turkish army and separatist Kurdish rebels. But in many ways, residents say, Mardin is a world apart when it comes to inter-ethnic relations... Turks, Kurds, Muslim Arabs and Assyrian Christians live side by side in Mardin, which has been a crossroads of civilizations for more than 1,000 years. The city is no classic melting pot: anc...
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News Briefing 09-NOVEMBER-2007
2007-11-09 12:13:00
I awoke yesterday morning to see an inch of snow outside. Driving along US-141 I noted slight accumulations as far south as Amberg (Wis.) but all had melted by early afternoon. I'm more than a bit surprised that we haven't had a significant snowfall yet this year.- - - Intelligence Briefing - - -Fundamentalist Islam Finds Fertile Ground in BosniaSpiegel Online, Germany 09-NOV-2007  (Renate Flottau)[Excerpts:] - The Dayton Peace Accords called for the removal of foreign combatants from Bosnia after the Balkans war. But hundreds of mujahedeen fighters stayed, and today they are successfully spreading their fundamentalist Islamist views.Editorial: Pakistan's CrisisArab News , Jeddah 09-NOV-2007[Excerpts:] - If Musharraf is forced out in this power struggle and the army returns to the barracks, there will be a power vacuum -- a vacuum that Al-Qaeda and its fellow militants will fill with suicide bombs and the blood of ordinary Pakistanis. That is what is at stake. In any event, B...
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