Traveling to Europe warned against in terror alert

Peter Stone

A Terror alert has been issued by three governments not to travel to Europe, but European officials think they are crying wolf. Image From Wikimedia Commons.

 

On Sunday, Oct. 3, the United States government issued a terror alert and travel advisory. American citizens that are set to travel abroad are being urged to be cautious of potential threats while traveling in Europe. Similar advisories have been issued by Japan and the United Kingdom. The events behind the terror alert warnings took place in Germany. The German government does not believe any real threat exists.

Japan terror alert issued after American alert

The Japanese government has issued a terror alert to citizens going abroad. The notice is a caution to any Japanese nationals traveling to Europe. People going abroad on holiday or for business purposes have been warned to be cautious in public places. The warning stresses being careful while using public transport and while sightseeing in popular tourist locations, according to the Christian Science Monitor. The Japan terror alert was issued a day after the U.S. State Department issued a similar caution. A U.K. terror alert was also issued after the announcement from Washington.  The C.I.A. hasn’t released a statement yet.

Threat traced to Germany

The uncovering of an Al Qaeda plot for terrorist strikes in European cities began with the arrest of a German citizen, according to CNN. Ahmed Sidiqi, Algerian by descent, left Hamburg for Pakistan in 2009 with 10 others, where they were recruited by a jihadist group. They went into Afghanistan to fight coalition forces, where Sidiqi was captured. Sidiqi had converted to Sunni from Shia, and began attending the Taiba mosque in Hamburg. The group was recruited from there. The Taiba mosque is known for being the mosque attended by Mohammed Atta, who was the leader among the men involved in the 9/11 attacks.

Threat level

Three governments take the terror alert level seriously. So far, the German intelligence services remain skeptical. The German government has assured that it is completely safe to go to either Hamburg or Stuttgart if one pleases.

Sources

CNN

German Terrorists Learn Firsthand How A Drone Strike Works

“Hey, Hans Al-Awiki, vut is dat?” Boom

Pakistani intelligence officials say five German militants are believed to have been killed in an American missile strike close to the Afghan border.
The officials say the missiles hit a house in the town of Mir Ali in North Waziristan region late Monday.

Still with the “militants” bullshit?

Two say the victims were believed to be German citizens in the region for terrorist training.
A Reuters report said eight militants of German nationality were killed by missiles from a pilotless aircraft.

They. Are. Terrorists. Period. Dot. And now they get to learn if there really are 72 virgins waiting for them.

Why Revive Doomed Palestinian-Israeli Peace Talks?

Dr. Avigdor Haselkorn

Why would the President of the United States, Barack Obama, invest his time and prestige in reviving the Palestinian-Israeli peace talks although he must know the chances of success are slim to none? Some may argue the President has a proven record of succeeding where others failed—for instance the enactment of the health care reform bill. Also, the President policies and personal attributes have been responsible for making him one of the friendliest U.S. leaders in Arab eyes in quite some time. However, a more sinister answer is that the talks have less to do with Arab- Israeli issues than with U.S.-Israeli relations. Specifically, with the Obama Administration’s desperate efforts to block an Israeli preemption of Iran’s nuclear program. Indeed, with removing, or at least neutralizing, the one Israeli leader most likely to order such an attack—Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

It is safe to assume that U.S. intelligence has concluded that among Israel’s leaders, in power or in serious contention, Mr. Netanyahu is the one most prone to launching a preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities. Presumably, this assessment is based on the oft-reported notion that the Israeli leader believes his foremost mission is to guard the Jewish people from another Holocaust. No doubt the U.S. intelligence also took note of Mr. Netanyahu’s openly expressed doubts about the feasibility of putting in place a containment regime once Iran acquires nuclear weapons. In a recent interview Netanyahu said such a response would be “a mistake.” He added: “I don’t think you can rely on Iran, I don't think you can rely on other radicals like the Taliban and al-Qaida… There is an irrationality here. And there's madness. And we should not allow irrational regimes like Iran to have nuclear weapons. It’s the ultimate terrorist threat today…”

Little wonder that soon after he took office Mr. Obama adopted a confrontational posture toward the government in Jerusalem which was widely seen as aimed at toppling Mr. Netanyahu from power. The new Israeli Government was at first shocked by Washington’s insistence on a total settlement freeze — something that has never happened in 16 years of peace negotiations. During Mr. Netanyahu’s March 2010 visit to the White House the Obama Administration went out of its way to humiliate the Israeli Prime Minister—there was no press conference, and not even a photo opportunity.

Yet, the American approach backfired. Mr. Netanyahu’s political standing at home was largely unaffected . In the U.S. fears were soon expressed that the new Obama course was undermining any leverage Washington may have had over the Likud government in Jerusalem. Worse yet, that the estrangement between the two leaders would if anything push Mr. Netanyahu to move up the date of the preemptive attack on Iran.

As a result the Obama Administration changed course. It eased its pressure on Jerusalem and took pains to herald its “unbreakable” ties to Israel. Yet its goal of containing and eventually ridding itself of Mr. Netanyahu did not change. By convening the Israeli-Palestinian talks Washington in effect is seeking to tie down Israel’s hands vis-à-vis Iran. It calculates that is unlikely that Israel will launch an attack which could inflame the Middle East while it is engaged in a diplomatic effort to make peace with the Arabs.

Moreover if the talks made headway Mr. Obama may reasonably anticipate that some of the Likud ministers will revolt to protest the “painful concessions” likely to be asked of Israel. The party may even split. As well, Mr. Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition partners may bolt out. Even if Mr. Netanyahu survives in office by bringing in the center-left Kadima party to make up for the various defections, his powers in the new government are likely to be seriously constrained.

If the talks fail, it is prudent to assume the Obama Administration hopes for a similar political payoff. For instance, even if Washington did not reach an unwritten understanding with him, it probably expects Israel’s Defense Minister Ehud Barak to pull his Labor party out of the coalition. After all, Mr. Barak has defended Labor’s participation in the Likud government as necessary to push Israel toward peace with the Palestinians. Last September, following one of his many trips to Washington, Barak also said he did not consider Iran's nuclear program an "existential issue" because "Israel is strong."

Still, the one element that could torpedo the American scheme is the reaction of Hamas. A wave of terrorist attacks, especially suicide bombings, across Israel will likely derail the current negotiations, and force Mr. Obama to get behind the leader he is trying to oust. Yet, Mr. Obama may hope Iran, Hamas’s close ally, will tell its protégé to cool it. The Mullahs in Tehran must realize, Mr. Obama figures, that his ploy would remove the only serious threat to their nuclear weapons aspirations.

FamilySecurityMatters.org Contributor Avigdor Haselkorn is the author of The Continuing Storm: Iraq, Poisonous Weapons and Deterrence (Yale University Press), and has also contributed to American Thinker and Haaretz newspaper.

By Doc Talks

Taliban claims attack on NATO supply trucks in Pakistan

A Pakistani Taliban spokesman claimed responsibility Monday for a pre-dawn attack on tankers carrying fuel to Afghanistan for U.S. and other NATO forces. The spokesman said the group would continue to strike the convoys until they stop supplying forces in Afghanistan.

The gunmen sent some 20 trucks up in flames, killing four people and injuring seven, authorities said.
Hours later, gunmen attacked and burned two other trucks carrying NATO supplies in southwest Pakistan, killing one driver. The Taliban made no immediate claim of responsibility for this second attack.
Pakistani officials shuttered its main border crossing last Thursday in reaction to a series of alleged NATO incursions, including a helicopter attack that killed three Pakistani soldiers. Since then, there have been four such attacks.

Traffic has since been backing up at various points along the route from the southern port city of Karachi to the crossing at Torkham, leaving trucks vulnerable in the volatile Khyber Pass. Convoys crossing from Pakistan bring fuel, military vehicles, spare parts, clothing, and other non-lethal supplies for foreign troops.
On Sunday, Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States, Husain Haqqani, said the border crossing would be soon reopened.

Shakir Khan Afridi, president of the Khyber Transport Association, a major umbrella organization representing some 7,000 truckers, said he is not dispatching any more trucks from Karachi for now.
Coalition officials say that, although the attacks may give militants a propaganda victory, hundreds of trucks still cross into Afghanistan each day to supply troops.

Some attacks are believed to be the work of criminals, who can sell much of the vehicles, clothes, and other goods they carry. Officials have alleged truck owners may be behind some of the incidents, perhaps to claim insurance fraudulently.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

John Blake and Gary Wichard may be in a world of trouble...

John Blake/Courtesy: insidecarolina.com-jim hawkins

"2010, The Year of the Rogue Agent" is just getting worse by the day. We've reported on, several times--now former North Carolina assistant coach John Blake, who, at least early on, has had some questionable dealings with friend-agent Gary Wichard.

Now comes word that things are getting worse. Reports are starting to float out there that Alabama defensive end Marcell Dareus, who was suspended 2 games for being at the "Player Party" in South Beach over the summer, told the NCAA that Blake called him....to recommend he sign with Wichard.

Read the most recent Yahoo Sports investigation RIGHT HERE

The latest here, is pretty damning if true. Yahoo already had reported that Wichard and Blake had their hands on now suspended North Carolina defensive lineman Marvin Austin. Now this. Blake says that he had stayed in touch with Dareus since recruiting him. The obvious question would be...why?

Major props to Charles Robinson and Dan Wetzel of Yahoo Sports for digging through this mess and bringing it to light. It needs to be.

gary wichard/courtesy:starnewsonline.com

At some point, the NCAA and the NFL need to step in. If not Congress. The amount of people trying to leech off of the kids is out of control. Everyone they come in contact with now they have to check and see if it is a front person for an agent.

Yes, the motivation behind this is money. Isn't everything? Agents get a percentage of a players contract when they "officially" turn pro. Most have no problem giving someone a cut for delivering a player to them. There lies the problem. More and more people are getting into that delivery system. Someone, anyone needs to come up with a solution.

Just saying "If an agent is caught, they'll be suspended or lose there license" doesn't quite seem to be enough. Maybe legal action against the agent would help. Maybe agents shouldn't be allowed on college campuses. The last option doesn't solve the problem for the simple fact that schools can't be with the kids 24/7.

There has to be a punishment for this. Something that will make more of these guys (agents and runners) think about what they are doing. Jail might not be a bad start. Really, it isn't much different from being a pimp if you think about it. Please do.
UPDATE:
It seems North Carolina head coach Butch Davis has un-friended John Blake on his Facebook and taken his phone number off his speed dial. Earlier Monday Davis commented on the latest allegations on former Tar Heel assistant coach John Blake's allegedly cozy relationship with Gary Wichard.
"Let me tell you, here's how I feel: I am very sorry that all of this stuff has tainted the football program," Butch Davis said during his weekly press conference. "And as the head football coach, I take a tremendous amount of responsibility for all of the football-related issues. I'm the head guy.
"I'm sorry that it has affected the football program. But I'm going to tell you what I'm more sorry about, I'm sorry that I trusted John Blake."
This is the first time in quite a while the top Tar Heel has responded publically about John Blake. I believe pissed off is an understatement.

Bank Of America Freezes All Foreclosures In 23 States

(Maulleigh)

Bank of America announced Friday that it was halting foreclosures in each and every case that hadn't gone to judgement. They became the third major bank to put the brakes on foreclosures after revelations that document processing firms were allegedly forging papers and signatures on a massive scale.

However, BoA went further than JP Morgan Chase and GMAC/Ally Bank by stopping cases across the board, and not just the ones they felt hinky about.

Note that this only affects cases in the 23 states that require a judge to sign off. Those states are Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont, Wisconsin.

Sheriff: Murder Weapon Was Closet Rod

by MissionViejoDispatch.com on October 3, 2010

William McDougall

   An 81-year-old Mission Viejo man, William Leo McDougall, was arrested for allegedly using a closet rod to murder his 94-year-old roommate late Friday night.

   The Sheriff reported Manh Ban Nguyen died after repeated strikes to his head. The reason for the alleged attack is being investigated.

   The two men were nursing patients of the Palm Terrace Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Laguna Hills.

Ground Zero Imam Starts Getting Death Threats

October 3rd, 2010 Posted By Pat Dollard.

Related - First Look: Ground Zero Mosque Looks Like Shattered World Trade Center

NEW YORK (AP) — The wife of an imam planning an Islamic community center and mosque near the World Trade Center site said Sunday that she and her husband have received death threats.

“For the record, my life is under threat,” Daisy Khan said during a town hall debate on Islam broadcast on ABC’s “This Week” news program.

Khan, who’s married to Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, said her husband’s life also is under threat but, “We do not walk around with bodyguards because we love this country.”

Chief police spokesman Paul Browne confirmed that Khan had told authorities about the telephone threats she’d received.

“There were telephone threats made,” Browne said, adding the police department was investigating.

Bishop Eddie Long: “My Faith Is Being Strengthened”

Bishop Eddie Long took the pulpit at New Birth yesterday for Sunday service and indirectly addressed the legal situation he’s been engulfed in.  Peep game


*During services Sunday, Bishop Eddie Long did not directly mention the sexual allegations leveled at him by four young men to thousands of cheering supporters at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church. But his remarks seemed directly addressed to his accusers.

“In times of challenge, there are several things that come out. Your faith will be strengthened or weakened,” he said, to growing applause. “My faith is being strengthened.”

Long told supporters that he is “not going to be pulled into a street fight” and that he doesn’t hate anyone. But he directed his listeners to turn to a passage in the Book of Job that read: “Those who hate you will be clothed with shame, and the tent of the wicked will be no more.”

As his devoted flock cheered, Long joked that he accidentally led them to the wrong page. “That was the Holy Ghost,” he said, flashing a smile as the sanctuary echoed with laughter.

Long’s more than hour-long sermon was greeted with thunderous applause and adoration. Several thousand parishioners flocked to the suburban Atlanta complex for the 8 a.m. service, and cars snaked in traffic for miles after it was over, reports the AP.

Last month four men filed a civil lawsuit claiming Long abused his spiritual authority to lure them into a sexual relationship.

Long has not addressed the accusations directly, but promised Sunday that he would not let his legal troubles prevent him or his church from doing its work.

“I ain’t going to stop living,” he said amid more applause.
Source

Obama's Approval Numbers From Gallup And What They Mean For Midterms

(Click image to enlarge)


Barack Obama is not on any ballot this November but historically a President that registers less than 50 percent approval going into midterms elections, bodes badly for the party in power.

Gallup's findings here and Andrew Malcolm from Top of the Ticket makes the list easy to understand.

The good news for President Obama is his popular support among blacks is holding steady at 91%.

[...]

Democrats (79%) and liberals (75%) still like Obama a lot.

But after that, his approval percentage goes to the deep south. Support among even young people is down: 57%. Hispanics: 55%. Moderates: 54%. Unmarrieds: 53%. Easterners: 52%. Women: 47%. Midwesterners and Westerners: 45%.

Men: 43%. Southerners: 41%. Independents: 40%. Marrieds: 39%. Seniors: 38%. Whites: 36%. Conservatives: 23%.

Historically, according to Gallup, the average seat loss for the party in power when a president holds less than 50 percent approval ratings, is 36 seats.

Republicans need 39 seats in the House of Representatives to turn control over from Democrats to the GOP.

Factor in the two most unpopular political leaders are Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, respectively, and the midterms are a very scary prospect for Democrats up for election and reelection.

.

Donald Trump Swears He's Not Doing Presidential Polling

Residents of New Hampshire, site of the first 2012 presidential primary, have apparently been getting calls from pollsters asking about a possible Donald Trump candidacy. Yikes! Trump, however, denies any association with the poll. He's interested in the results, though.
We're sure that if you pull away two or three layers here, this is just marketing for The Apprentice. Maybe just one layer. It's definitely marketing for The Apprentice.

Business mogul Donald Trump is making clear he had nothing to do with a mysterious poll in New Hampshire that, accordant to TIME Magazine, asked Granite State voters about a potential Trump presidential bid.

"I never heard of this poll but I'm anxious to find out what it says. I do not know about a poll taken in New Hampshire," Trump said Monday on CNN's "American Morning."

Very hypothetical question for discussion: Would you rather have Donald Trump or Sarah Palin as president?

Video: Rahm Emanuel Blown Off By Communters As He Begins Campaign For Chicago Don At Train Stop

So Rahmbo bails on Obama - presumably telling The One that he wants to start his own family beginning with a run for Chicago Don. It didn't go so well as on his first day commuters were blowing him off at this Chicago train stop:


From MyFox via drudge: Emanuel To Get Reacquainted With Chicago

Former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said he plans to hit Chicago's grocery stores, train stops, "bowling alleys and hot dog stands" as he prepares to run for mayor of the nation's third-largest city.

Wanting to do for Chicago what he did for the US

Emanuel announced Sunday in a video posted on his website, ChicagoforRahm.com, that he's preparing to run. He had been careful not to launch his candidacy from Washington and headed to Chicago immediately after his resignation was announced by President Barack Obama on Friday.

In the video, Emanuel said he's embarking on a "Tell It Like It Is" listening tour of Chicago.

I think Chicago residents ought to stop by and talk with Emanuel, and give him a dead fish in a wrapper for his troubled. Emanuel might want to remove one word from his vocabulary though:

"As I prepare to run for mayor, I'm going to spend the next few weeks visiting our neighborhoods -- at grocery stores, L stops, bowling alleys and hot dog stands," Emanuel said. "I want to hear from you -- in blunt Chicago terms -- what you think about our city, and how the next mayor and you can make it better."

I'm not sure that the electorate wants Emanuel to 'spend' as he has helped do too much of that in DC already.

FBI-Homeland Bulletin Says No Specific Terrorst Threat Against U.S. as There is in Europe

By Allan Lengel

WASHINGTON — The feds are saying there’s no indication of any specific terrorist threat to the U.S. or its citizens as there is in Europe, the Associated Press reported.

The FBI and Homeland Security Department in an intelligence bullet said there is nothing out there to indicate there’s a planned attack against the U.S., AP reported.

“We are aware of, and closely monitoring, recent reporting indicating a terrorist threat to Europe,” the bulletin said, according to AP. “At this time, there is no indication that the reported threat is directed specifically toward the United States, its citizens, or infrastructure; however, we assess that al-Qaida and its affiliates continue to plot against the Homeland and US allies.”

U.S. travelers to Europe have been warned to be careful and vigilant.

Photos: The Restoring America Rally 10/2/2010

"Restoring America One State at a Time" rally held at Six Flags Great Adventure

Glen Beck and Daryl Mikell Brooks

Lioyd Marcos and Daryl Mikell Brooks

Glen Beck Speaking

Former New Jersey Supreme Court Judge Andrew Napolitano

Brooks and NY  Finest 911 Hero

Lioyd Marcos and Joe siano

Anna Little and Daryl Mikell Brooks

Glen Beck

Brooks on stage with Gary Web

Joe Siano and Daryl Mikell Brooks

Brooks arriving at the Rally

Vanessa Jean Louis