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FEBRUARY 3,  2011

SNIPPET OF THE DAY – AT 7:49 P.M. ET:

From ABC News:  The president this weekend will host his annual Super Bowl party at the White House to watch the Green Bay Packers take on the Pittsburgh Steelers. But among the usual guests, including members of Congress, Cabinet Members and White House staff are J-Lo and Marc Anthony, the First Lady’s Office confirmed today.

What was Nero doing while Rome burned? 

February 3, 2011       Permalink

EGYPT UPDATE – AT 7:18 P.M. ET:  Not a good tourist day in Egypt.  There was more violence, generated, we're told, by the pro-Mubarak forces.  Washington, of course, righteously condemned the violence.  There has been the sudden discovery that Mubarak is dictatorial.  Who knew?  From Fox:

CAIRO – Protesters and regime supporters fought in a second day of rock-throwing battles at a central Cairo square while new lawlessness spread around the city. New looting and arson erupted, and gangs of thugs supporting President Hosni Mubarak attacked reporters, foreigners and rights workers while the army rounded up foreign journalists.

As bruised and bandaged protesters danced in victory after forcing back Mubarak loyalists attacking Tahrir Square, the government increasingly spread an image that foreigners were fueling the turmoil and supporting the unprecedented wave of demonstrations demanding the ouster of Mubarak, this country's unquestioned ruler for nearly three decades.

"When there are demonstrations of this size, there will be foreigners who come and take advantage and they have an agenda to raise the energy of the protesters," Vice President Omar Suleiman said in an interview on state TV.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton condemned "in the strongest terms" the pro-government mobs that beat, threatened and intimidated reporters in Cairo.

Attacks on peaceful demonstrators, human rights activists, foreigners and diplomats were "unacceptable under any circumstances," she said.

COMMENT:  Another development today:  Journalists have begun to "examine" the Muslim Brotherhood, and some are starting to rationalize its participation in any new Egyptian government, despite its radical and dark past.  We're being fed the line that the Brotherhood is less extreme than Al Qaeda (gee, thanks), and has forsaken violence.  Of course, its offshoot in Gaza, Hamas, never got that e-mail.

And once again we find silence among "feminist" groups, which should be outraged that the misogynist Brotherhood (no sisterhood there) might come to power.  Once more we find that left-wing politics, not women's rights, form the agenda for many "women's" groups. 

What we're starting to see is what we see in every international crisis – the left is starting to re-organize, and to spout its old line, using new language.  Code Pink is already in Cairo, as is the traveling circus of leftist journalists.  Left-wing and Arabist professors are speaking out, embracing the "multiculturalism" (hah) of the Egyptian revolution. 

Funny, but many of these leftists weren't saying a word about Egyptian dictatorship a mere two weeks ago.  I guess they've spotted a new trend, a new topic for cocktail-party conversation on New York's west side.  Some things never change, including the religion called "the left."

February 3, 2011     Permalink

END GAME? – AT 7:02 P.M. ET:  Virginia, under its aggressive conservative government, is moving to get a final judicial verdict on the constitutionality of Obamacare:

RICHMOND - Virginia will ask that the U.S. Supreme Court immediately review the state's constitutional challenge to the federal health-care overhaul, a rare legal request to bypass appeals and ask for early intervention from the nation's highest court, Attorney General Ken T. Cuccinelli II said Thursday.

Cuccinelli (R) said that conflicting court decisions about the law's constitutionality have created sufficient uncertainty about implementation of the sweeping law to justify speeding Supreme Court review.

The Justice Department will oppose the motion, saying that the case should be fully heard by lower courts before the Supreme Court takes action.

The high court has granted such requests infrequently, and many experts said they think Cuccinelli's filing is a longshot. Supporters of the law said that the provision at the heart of the legal dispute - a requirement that individuals buy health insurance - will not go into effect until 2014.

COMMENT:  Eventually, this will go to the high court.   My own view, as a citizen, is that the court should grant Cuccinelli's motion because health care is so central to American life and the American economy.  Although the individual mandate, requiring that individuals buy health insurance, doesn't formally go into effect until 2014, it is at the heart of the law, and the heart of the uncertainty.

February 3, 2011      Permalink

INDIA WARNED US ON TERRORISM – AT 9:09 A.M. ET:  We're a bit hypocritical on this.  While we oppose WikiLeaks, we are learning from the purloined documents it's released.  This is a warning from India.  Islamic terrorists may look very different in the future.  From The Times of India:

WASHINGTON: Some five months before the 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attack, India had warned the US about increasing " white faces" in terrorist camps along Pak-Afghan border and the attempt by jihadi groups to acquire fissile material to "fabricate a crude bomb beyond a dirty bomb."

According to a US diplomatic cable dated May 30, 2008, released by WikiLeaks the then National Security Advisor M K Narayanan had said this during a meeting with the visiting American Senators Russ Feingold and Bob Casey in New Delhi.

According to the cable, Narayanan told the Senators that the US-India relationship amounts to much more than just trade links and defence deals, but rather benefits from a mutual empathy.

Asked about terrorism, Narayanan related that training camps on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border have attracted more "white faces."

"He also noted jihadi groups have attempted to acquire fissile material and have the technical competence to manufacture an explosive device beyond a mere dirty bomb," the cable said.

COMMENT:  Readers may recall that our own coverage of the Mumbai attacks benefited enormously from the on-the-scene reporting of reader Renee Nielsen, whose work was superb.

We have two warnings here – that jihadist groups are recruiting Westerners with "white" faces, making them harder to detect, and that these groups have the competence to go nuclear, if they can get the materials. 

This is one of a number of recent warnings that Al Qaeda and allied groups are advancing their technical capabilities.  I don't think we'll take this very seriously until we're woken up one morning by the ticking of a Geiger counter.

February 3, 2011       Permalink

IF IT'S ANTI-AMERICAN, IT MUST BE CODE PINK – AT 8:51 A.M. ET:  They're back.  Wherever there's a chance for a really good zinger against the United States, Code Pink shows up.  Naturally, they'll be described by the painstream media as, variously, an "anti-war" or "human rights" group.  They are, of course, neither.  They're an extreme leftist group allied with anti-American causes around the world.  Now they're in Egypt:

Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin Wednesday headed up a dozen Code Pink banner-bearing activists in Cairo's Tahrir Square -- a scene she said descended into a bloody "war zone" as "government thugs" battled pro-democracy demonstrators.

But Benjamin told us by cell phone just minutes also that while the government of Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak government has now signalled it will "go down kicking and screaming,'' pro-democracy protesters are fully determined and "ready to die here."

We caught Benjamin just after midnight Egyptian time as she retreated from the embattled square in Cairo -- in a country where Internet coverage is just returning after days of blackout. Benjamin, a longtime Bay Area progessive activist, has been in the region since Monday with Code Pink and said the lack of Internet connection has been frustrating.

But she noted it couldn't stop her and the Code Pinkers who took to the square Wednesday, parading a large banner in both Engligh and Arabic, reading: "The World Says It's Time For Mubarak to Go."

COMMENT:  Medea Benjamin must have heard that Mubarak is considered an American ally.  Therefore, she was on the next plane out.

Oh, by the way, have you noticed that no one does any reporting on this group in detail.   Like, where do they get the money for all these foreign trips they take?  Who's financing them?  What do they really believe?  If America is for it, they're against it, but no questions are asked. 

Once again we see the double standard in journalism.  If you're on the right, your whole life is examined.  If you're on the left, drive right through.

February 3, 2011       Permalink

HOTBED OF TERROISM, GROWING UNSTABLE – AT 8:33 A.M. ET:  Things are also boiling in Yemen, a central recruiting and training ground for some terrorist groups.   From Reuters:

More than 20,000 Yemenis filled the streets of Sanaa on Thursday for a "Day of Rage" rally, demanding a change in government and saying President Ali Abdullah Saleh's offer to step down in 2013 was not enough.

Further anti-government protests were expected across Yemen, which Saleh has ruled for over three decades, and supporters of the president were driving around the capital urging Yemenis over loudspeakers to join pro-government counter demonstrations.

But by early morning, anti-government protesters had already gathered the largest crowd since a wave of protests hit the Arabian Peninsula state two weeks ago, inspired by protests that toppled Tunisia's ruler and threaten Egypt's president.

"The people want regime change," protesters shouted as they gathered outside Sanaa University. "No to corruption, no to dictatorship."

COMMENT:  Again, we have to be careful.  It's easy to say "no" to corruption and dictatorship.  A lot of corrupt dictatorships grew out of exactly that slogan.  Look at the results, not the words.  Yemen is an ancient country stuck in the 10th century.  Not necessarily fertile ground for a modern democracy.

February 3, 2011        Permalink

EGYPT THIS MORNING – AT 8:04 A.M. ET:  An Egyptian leader apologizes for violence, and the Army moves in to quiet things:

Cairo, Egypt (CNN) -- Egypt's prime minister apologized Thursday for the violent attacks on protesters yesterday and said the country's president has asked him to investigate the security chaos.
"This is a fatal error, and when investigations reveal who is behind this crime and who allowed it to happen, I promise they will be held accountable and will be punished for what they did," Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq said on state-owned TV.

Meanwhile, the military -- which had largely remained still in the area of Tahrir Square during violent clashes between supporters and foes of President Hosni Mubarak -- took position between the clashing groups Thursday. Rocks flew back and forth in an empty construction area in front of a metal barricade that anti-Mubarak protesters set up overnight.

Shafiq and newly-appointed Vice President Omar Suleiman are meeting with the opposition -- including protesters in Cairo's Tahrir Square, state media said Thursday.

Some opposition groups have rejected meeting invitations.

Mounir Abdel-Nour, secretary-general of the secular liberal Wafd Party, said Thursday that his party will not participate.

Ayman Nour, leader of the Al-Ghad party, said his group won't be part of the dialogue, either.

And Essam El-Erian of the Muslim Brotherhood said his group was invited, but will not participate in the talks.

COMMENT:  That's pretty much where we stand right now.  It is very difficult to figure out exactly what's happening inside Egypt.

At the same time, the usual journalistic suspects are pouring in to Egypt – Christiane Amanpour, Nicholas Kristof of The New York Times, Anderson Cooper of CNN.  Say goodbye to credibility.  Of course this crowd clearly stands with "the people," but there seems to be no clear idea what "the people" actually stand for.

The White House issued a startling statement calling for the inclusion in any new Egyptian government of "non-secular" forces, a code term for the Muslim Brotherhood.  Dutifully, some journalists have swung into action, trying to whitewash the Brotherhood, despite its militant fascist and anti-democratic history.

All predictions are off, but we should not assume this will end with anything similar to the U.S. Constitution.

February 3, 2011     Permalink

FEBRUARY 2,  2011

SOME JUDICIAL COMMON SENSE – AT 7:32 P.M. ET:  This is an absolutely remarkable story, and proves that conservative complaints about the San Francisco-style Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, are absolutely accurate.  Why, even the U.S. Supreme Court seems to think so.  From Fox:

The Supreme Court may be sending a message to one of the country's most liberal appeals courts, unanimously overturning five consecutive cases out of the 9th Circuit in less than a week.

As the nation's biggest circuit, representing most of the western United States, it should come as no surprise that the 9th Circuit has more cases heard before the Supreme Court than any other jurisdiction -- in turn resulting in more reversals. But the latest string of rulings is unusual even for the 9th, which often is at odds with conservatives on the Supreme Court. The fact that the rulings were unanimous can be seen as a signal from on high that the circuit needs to get in line.

"That's an indication this court is way out of the mainstream," said Kent Scheidegger, legal director for the California-based Criminal Justice Legal Foundation. "They're getting impatient with them. They just keep coming back with this stuff."

The Supreme Court, in its rulings, signaled that the circuit must hew more closely to precedent and, in some cases, give more weight to state court rulings. Scheidegger said the high court used some "severe" language to get that message across.

In a Jan. 19 reversal, Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote that the 9th Circuit committed a "clear error" by overturning the murder conviction in the case of a Sacramento man. The Supreme Court accused the circuit of having "failed to accord the required deference" to the state court's decision -- in other words, the 9th Circuit horned in on the state's business when it shouldn't have.

COMMENT:  Read the story and some of the cases involved.  We can take at least limited comfort in the fact that even the liberal justices on the Supreme Court are rebelling against the Che Guevara wing of their profession.  Maybe the Republic will survive.

February 2, 2011       Permalink

THINK YOU UNDERSTAND MIDDLE EAST POLITICS? – AT 7:11 P.M. ET:  There are big doings on the West Bank, controlled by the Palestinian Authority.  The Jerusalem Post reports: 

Dozens of supporters rallied in support of the Egyptian president; Fatah-controlled media call ElBaradei a "CIA agent."

Dozens of Fatah supporters demonstrated in Ramallah on Wednesday in support of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

The demonstration is the first of its kind in the West Bank since the beginning of the uprising in Egypt.

The demonstration coincided with the attack that was launched by Mubarak's supporters against anti-government protesters in Cairo.

Sources in Ramallah said that the demonstration was initiated by the PA leadership, which has banned anti-Mubarak protests in the West Bank.

The demonstrators shouted slogans condemning Egyptian opposition figure Mohammed ElBaradei as a “CIA agent” and warned against foreign intervention in Egypt’s internal affairs.

Fatah-controlled media outlets on Wednesday launched a scathing attack on ElBaradei, dubbing him a “war criminal” and holding him responsible for the Iraq war.

COMMENT:  So let me try to get this.  The Palestinian Authority, which is refusing any further negotiations with Israel, is generating demonstrations on behalf of Hosni Mubarak, considered one of Israel's closest allies in the Arab world, and a man on his way out.

It accuses the brainless Mohammed ElBaradei of being a CIA agent, when in fact he's anti-American, and says he was responsible for the Iraq War, which he opposed.

Readers, that is the Middle East.  And we have in the White House a man who thought that by waving his magic wand, he could change the region overnight. 

This is going to be a strange year.  Don't you think?

February 2, 2011       Permalink

EGYPT UPDATE – AT 10:09 A.M. ET:  Violence is escalating in Cairo.  The situation looks very different from what it has looked like in recent days.  Pro-Mubarak forces, some possibly government or police employees in civilian clothes, are coming out in increasing numbers.

One group of pro-Mubarak demonstrators roared in on camelback.

Former ambassador to the UN John Bolton just said on Fox that he believes the military will soon intervene.  Bolton also expressed dismay that the anti-government demonstrators in the streets didn't take "yes" for an answer, didn't agree to Mubarak's plan to decline to run in the September election, allowing a peaceful and organized transition. 

Conditions are changing by the hour.   One key factor, not reported in much detail by the press, is how much residual support Mubarak has.  There are many Egyptians, especially in the lower classes, who respect Mubarak for the stability he's brought to the country.  They may well resent anti-government demonstrators from the middle classes.

The Egyptian foreign ministry has just sternly rejected American and European demands that Mubarak start the transition immediately.  The firmness of the statement indicates that the Mubarak regime feels it has the power to keep itself in power through September.  And that may indicate a belief that the army is not going to let the country descend into chaos.

Watch what the army does.

February 2, 2011      Permalink

GORE SPEAKS!! – AT 9:22 A.M. ET:  It must be tough being Al Gore these days.  Tipper has left the residence, and the global-warming crusade has run into thousands of snow plows and a lot of shivering peasants. 

But don't underestimate Gore.  He knows, he knows.  He's spoken to "scientists."  From on high he issues the following wisdom: 

"As it turns out, the scientific community has been addressing this particular question for some time now and they say that increased heavy snowfalls are completely consistent with what they have been predicting as a consequence of man-made global warming:

"In fact, scientists have been warning for at least two decades that global warming could make snowstorms more severe. Snow has two simple ingredients: cold and moisture. Warmer air collects moisture like a sponge until it hits a patch of cold air. When temperatures dip below freezing, a lot of moisture creates a lot of snow..."

Just a sec, just a sec.  Meteorologist and global-warming skeptic Anthony Watts has something to say about that:

Apparently, Mr. Gore has never noted that climate scientists once thought snowfall would disappear. But wait, there’s more.

According to Dr. David Viner, a senior research scientist at the climatic research unit (CRU) of the University of East Anglia, within a few years winter snowfall will become “a very rare and exciting event.”

“Children just aren’t going to know what snow is,” he said.

Also, apparently Mr. Gore is unable to track the global monthly temperature. If he had, he would note that there is no “global warming” this month.

Oh.  As Gilda Radner used to say, "Never mind."

And NASA-affiliated meteorologist Roy Spencer elaborates on the question of this winter's severe storm pattern:

...I would more likely chalk it up to something we used to call “WEATHER”.

Let me give you a few factoids:

1) No serious climate researcher — including the ones I disagree with — believes global warming can cause colder weather. Unless they have become delusional as a result of some sort of mental illness. One of the hallmarks of global warming theory is LESS extratropical cyclone activity — not more.

2) If some small region of the Earth is experiencing unusually persistent storminess, you can bet some other region is experiencing unusually quiet weather. You see, in the winter we get these things called ’storm tracks’….

3) Evidence for point #2 is that we now have many years of global satellite measurements of precipitation which shows that the annual amount of precipitation that falls on the Earth stays remarkably constant from year to year. The AREAS where it occurs just happen to move around a whole lot. Again, we used to call that “weather."

4) Global average temperature anomalies (departures from seasonal norms) have been falling precipitously for about 12 months now. Gee, maybe these snowstorms are from global cooling! Someone should look into that! (I know…cold and snow from global cooling sounds crazy….I’m just sayin’….)

COMMENT:  Are you getting the feeling that we've been had by "climate change" proponents?  Remember that much of the "research" in this area is generated by the UN, which has its own political agenda.  And we haven't even begun to explore the amount of money being made.

For those of you in the path of today's Midwest storm:  Enjoy the warming.

February 2, 2011       Permalink

SNIPPET OF THE DAY – AT 8:55 A.M. ET:

Let us not forget.  From The Politico:   Rep. Gabrielle Giffords had a “huge day” Tuesday with “lots of progress,” her husband said, through it’s not yet clear whether that progress means she spoke or hit another major milestone.  The Arizona Democrat’s husband, NASA astronaut Mark Kelly, wrote on Twitter late Tuesday, “Today was a huge day for GG. Lots of progress!”

Good.  She's a terrific lady, and he's a terrific guy.  The best of America.

February 2, 2011       Permalink

"THE OTHER SIDE" COMES OUT IN CAIRO – AT 8:11 A.M. ET:   Is there a "silent majority" or even "silent minority" in Egypt that actually likes Mubarak?  We don't know, and we won't speculate, but pro-Mubarak forces are on the streets today.  And the military, the strongest and most respected force in Egypt, is now asking that the street protests end.  That is important.  From The New York Times:

CAIRO —Thousands of demonstrators for and against President Hosni Mubarak faced off in Cairo’s Tahrir Square and violent clashes broke out on Wednesday, despite a call from Egypt’s powerful military urging the president’s opponents to “restore normal life.”...

...The square has been the epicenter of anti-government protests since soon after the clamor for Mr. Mubarak’s ouster began over a week ago. But on Wednesday, Mr. Mubarak’s supporters arrived in larger numbers, seeking to confront his foes who, hours before, had been chanting: “We are not going to go; we are not going to go.”

In counterpoint, demonstrators supporting Mr. Mubarak chorused on Wednesday: “He’s not going to go; he’s not going to go.”

Rocks flew between the two groups and many protesters were led away with bleeding head wounds. Plumes of smoke, apparently from tear gas, rose as the rival crowds surged back and forth.

And...

Earlier, on state television, a military spokesman had asked the government’s foes: “Can we walk safely down the street? Can we go back to work regularly? Can we go out into the streets with our children to schools and universities? Can we open our stores, factories and clubs?”

“You are the ones able to restore normal life,” he said.

“Your message was received and we know your demands,” the spokesman said. “We are with you and for you.”

And get this...

While the military has said it will not use force against peaceful protesters, the signs on Wednesday suggested that any gap between it and Mr. Mubarak was narrowing.

The Army is clearly not going to be happy about yielding power to a mob.  This story in Egypt is far from over. 

President Obama, moving quickly against an ally, has already thrown Mubarak under the bus, where he joins a host of other FFO's, former friends of Obama.  Was it a wise step?  Impossible to know, but our chief isn't renowned for great wisdom, or loyalty.

Day by day, this story gets more and more interesting.

February 2, 2011      Permalink 

WHOOPS, ANOTHER ONE DOWN – AT 8:02 A.M. ET:  Now the top man in Yemen, apparently realizing that bad stuff can happen to him, announces he's joining the proletariat:

(CNN) -- Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh will not seek re-election once his current term ends in 2013, he said Wednesday, after more than three decades in office.

And he won't install his son to replace him, he said, as unprecedented protests sweep the region.
"No extension, no inheritance," he told parliament.

Kids of dictators just aren't having a very good week.  Thrones are suddenly available.  Maybe a bicycle would be a nice gift.

Saleh had called an emergency parliamentary meeting, ahead of a "day of rage" protests scheduled for the following day.

Yemen's planned demonstrations come amid rallies that have shaken the Middle East to its core, forcing Tunisia's president from office last month and prompting Egypt's Hosni Mubarak to say Tuesday he would not run for re-election this year.

King Abdullah of Jordan, meanwhile, sacked his government and appointed a new prime minister Tuesday in the face of protests there.

The protests -- which have also caught on to various extents in Algeria and Sudan -- have proved to be "a real watershed event for the Arab world," said Blake Hounshell, managing editor of Foreign Policy magazine. "It's really unprecedented."

COMMENT:   So, we have Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan, and Yemen, where heads have been rolling, so to speak. 

But remember, it's the Arab world, a part of the globe with an endless capacity to screw things up.  This may not all end well, or even democratically.  The question is how you mold a population kept uninformed for decades, and fed conspiracy theories, into a functioning electorate. 

And we think we have problems in Chicago.

February 2, 2011     Permalink