What Have We Learned About the Times Square Bombing Attempt?

Do we really know what the true goal of alleged terrorist bomber Faisal Jahzad was when he built his car bomb and placed it in New York's Times Square?

Here is a man who appears to have connections to radical terrorist groups, and who is educated and intelligent. But according to statements made in New York, he built a bomb that was "amateurish".

We cannot rule out the possibility that the main purpose of planting the device was not to create an explosion, but to learn how security forces would respond to such a threat. It is not inconceivable that, as in other parts of the world such as the middle east, the larger plan would be to attract police into the area by planting a small device and then trigger a much larger bomb.

The most important lesson we can learn from this incident is that if we really want to know what our enemies have in store for us, we must look at what they are already doing successfully in other parts of the world. Terrorists swap ideas and training amongst different groups. Whatever works in Iraq or Afghanistan, Beirut or Israel will eventually be tried in the USA and the UK.

Congressman is Concerned that Guam may Tip Over

Here's a You Tube clip of a congressional hearing in which congressman Hank Johnson (D-GA) is questioning a US Navy Admiral about the congressman's concerns that the Island of Guam may capsize due to the number of people on it. Click here to see the video

No, I'm not kidding. No, this isn't an April Fools joke. You can't make up stuff like this.

I feel sorry for the Navy warrior who is required to answer questions that a five-year old might ask.

Back in the USSR

A fundamental change occurred on Sunday with the passage of the healthcare bill. It's hard to understand why it seems to be so necessary to try to fix every aspect of healthcare in this country all at once. There is an old saying that the way to eat an elephant is to do it one bite at a time. But in the case of fixing the problems with the existing system, it seems that trying to do the whole thing in one gigantic bite is the preferred method.

Watching the voting on Sunday night, it reminded me of another time in another country when a fundamental change, years in the planning stage, that affected the citizens of an entire country was effected in the space of a few hours. The country was Germany, the year was 1938, and the event--when thousands of Jews were rounded up and sent to concentration camps, was dubbed Kristallnacht.

On Sunday, legislation masquerading as a bill to improve the health of the people of this country, was passed by the House of Representatives and in doing so, ushered in a socialist society.

Welcome to the new America, The United Socialist States of the Republic (USSR).

Wyoming Concealed Carry Law Straightened Out

Last year, a legislative glitch occurred in Wyoming when the state's chief legal eagle, Attorney General Bruce Salzburg, was conducting a review of the reciprocity conditions between Wyoming and the other 49 states. The AG discovered language in the state's reciprocity law for carrying a concealed handgun which reduces Wyoming's reciprocity with many states. The fix was to create legislation to change the existing wording.

I was notified today by one of Wyoming's legal experts that the changes to clarify the legislation have been made and the governor has signed them into law. This is good news. Kudos to Wyoming state authorities for fixing the glitch.

Health Care Summit in D.C.

I'm watching the President's Health Care Summit currently running live on Fox News from Blair House in D.C.

The country's top politicians are all assembled in a big room discussing and debating how to reinvent health care. I think our politiciens should be commended for holding a meeting that is broadcast live to the world. This is the way that politics should be conducted in a free and open society.

And now that we have them all right where Americans want them, let's give them all swords and lock the doors from the outside.

Gun Rights Restored to U.S. National Parks

On February 22, a new federal credit card bill became law. The law included a rider that restores the right to carry concealed firearms in most of the nation's national parks by people who have a permit to Carry a Concealed Weapon (CCW) for the state in which the park is located. This is good news for law-abiding citizens who have had to risk attacks by violent criminals or aggressive animals while visiting the nation's parks. The gist of the law is that if the state in which the national park is located allows for citizens to carry firearms, then that same right is extended into the park.

Not all parks are included in the list; The Statue of Liberty, for example is exempted by the law, although it would have been exempted anyway for all regular people, because although New York City allows for concealed carry with a permit, only a few wealthy or politically connected people actually have them.

Is the law important? Yes, in 2006, there were 11 murders, 35 rapes, 61 aggravated assaults in national parks. it may seem a low number compared to some cities, but if you are one of the victims, then your statistic is 100 percent.

Its Still Snowing in Washington D.C.

The people in Washington D.C. are used to snowjobs, but usually they take the form of speeches from lying politicians. But this week, the 2 - 3 feet of snow that's been dumped on the mid-Atlantic states and the nation's capital is real testimony to the climate crisis that scientists (who receive grant money for research) and famous people (who want to save the polar bears) would have us believe is caused directly by those of us who drive cars and trucks.

If that is the case, then why aren't these people jumping up and down in their winter coats in front of the TV and newspaper cameras, waving their snowshoes above their heads and yelling, "I told you so"?

And why are people asking:














(Cartoon: garyvarvel.com)

Criticism from the British press

The following is an excerpt from an editorial that appeared in the British newspaper, the Daily Express:

" ... spread welfare dependency and attempted to dismantle our national identity through multi-culturalism .... He has run up debts that will take generations to clear and created a prohibitively expensive public sector. ... based around expanding the state, downgrading personal responsibility, destroying nationhood and rewarding victimhood."

The Express is complaining about the dismal job that British Prime Minister Gordon Brown (Labour Party) has done, and how Britain couldn't be any worse off under a new Conservative government.

Why? Who did you think they were talking about?

Wounded Warriors

In the years since this shooting war began shortly after 9/11 we've lost a lot of good people in combat, and a lot of our military personnel have been terribly wounded. They need the support of the people they volunteered to defend "from all enemies, both foreign and domestic."

Homes for Our Troops is one organization that is supporting these heroes by adapting homes for severely injured veterans.

Please take a few moments to watch this video of Trace Adkins and the West Point Cadet Glee Club. Just click here. and then please take a look at the Homes for Our Troops website by clicking here.

"What a Horrible Woman"

Here's an interesting clip from CNN's Jack Cafferty reporting on the congressional delegation's trip to Copenhagen last month for the world climate change conference. It seems that aside from the actual delegates, there was a whole bunch family members and hangers-on who also got a free ride at tax payers expense, courtesy of the Speaker of the House, who, according to this CNN report, refused to answer questions about how much the trip cost US taxpayers.

To paraphrase Shakespeare, it seems that the state of Denmark isn't the only place where there is something rotten.

With the exception of Lou Dobbs' reporting, I've always considered CNN to lean a little bit towards the left in it's coverage, but perhaps those days are drawing to a close. Cafferty's monologue gets more worked up and scathing as he describes Pelosi. Just like the emperor's new clothes, even some news networks are waking up to a regime that is not what they expected. Here's the link to the video.

More Special Elections Before November

In case we thought the special elections ended with Scott Brown's outstanding win in Massachusetts, there are more to come:

In Broward County, Florida ( Ground Zero for ballot recounts in the 2000 presidential election) The surprise mid-term resignation of Congressman Robert Wexler (D) puts the 19th Congressional District up for grabs. Traditionally, 19th District has been heavily Democrat, but this year, three potential Republican candidates are vying for the red seat at the special election on April 13th. According to the Florida Sun Sentinel, "state Sen. Ted Deutch, D- Boca Raton, is the odds-on favorite to become South Florida's newest member of Congress." the Sentinel goes on to say,"Three candidates are seeking the Republican nomination: Joe Budd, a financial planner; Ed Lynch, a contractor who ran against Wexler in 2008; and Curt Price, a retired Fort Lauderdale police officer who owns a business that sells safes. None has held elected office before."

Hawaii's First Congressional District is also up for a special election after Congressman Neil Abercrombie (D) resigned in order to run for Governor. Historically, Republicans in Hawaii have had about as much chance of getting elected as Rosie O'Donnel has of being hired as a pole dancer, but this year, may be different (the election, I mean ... ). House Rep. Charles Djou is running as the Republican candidate, while the Dems are fielding more than one candidate. The blog, Jumping in Pools explains that, "There will be just one election, where all candidates from both sides will be competing for a plurality, leaving the top vote getter as the victor who takes the seat, and resulting in a united GOP in excellent condition to sneak an Aloha victory."

Read more: http://jumpinginpools.blogspot.com/2009/12/upcoming-elections-of-importance.html#ixzz0dpjZSX73

Time to stock up on beer and chips. It's going to be an interesting election season.

Hitler Reacts to Scott Brown's Senate Win

It's Friday. Time for a little fun.

Here's a very funny YouTube clip that probably mirrors the sentiments of some people in Washington and San Francisco.

Click here for the link.

Enjoy!

Never Let an Election Go to Waste

Republican candidate for Ted Kennedy's Senate seat, Scott Brown's win yesterday in Massachusetts may be a taste of things to come in the November mid-term elections when the entire U.S. House of Representatives and one-third of the U.S. Senate is up for re-election.

The electorate is fed up with Chicago-style politics in Washington D.C., and this morning I suspect that many incumbent Democrats and maybe quite a few Republicans are considering their options and wondering if they should run again in November.

I wish Scott Brown luck in his new position. I hope he works to restore fundamental conservative values to a party and a government that has tried for too long to be a big tent and encompass all people and all opinions. The correct word to describe this is not "Diversity", but "Fragmentation",

Personally, I'm almost as tired of the Republicans as I am of the Democrats. In some cases, it's hard to tell the difference. Having lived through several elections in a country that had first a three-party, and later a four-party system of government, I can only say that while our two-party system invites the frustrating procedure of voting for the lesser of two evils, a multiple-party system often splits the vote between the two most capable parties, thus allowing the worst party to actually be elected!

So, while I support the unofficial Tea Party and it's attempts to rein in the abuses of Democrats and Republicans alike, I don't see the Tea Party ever becoming a viable third party option. I would, however like to see the Tea Party replace either the Democratic or the Republican party. Neither one has earned the trust and respect of the American people for a long time.

Good News for Wyoming Concealed Carry Permit Holders

I just received this from a reliable source. Currently, 48 of the 50 states allow some version of concealed or open carry of a handgun for personal protection. Wyoming is one of those enlightened states. They just need to tweak the wording to their legislation a little bit.

The right to self-defense is surely the most basic of all rights. Nobody would blame a dog for biting the person who kicks it; nobody would blame an animal for attacking the hunter who is trying to shoot it (I'm a hunter, by the way); so why would anybody question a person's right to defend themselves with a firearm when the alternative is injury or death?

But I digress. Here's the good news from the State of Wyoming:

OFFICE OF GOVERNOR DAVE FREUDENTHAL
State Capitol
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Ph. (307) 777-7434

January 15, 2010

******FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE******

Contact: Jonathan Green, Press Secretary
Phone: 307.777.7437
E-mail: jgreen3@state.wy.us

Gov. Freudenthal Backs Legislation to Restore Concealed Carry Reciprocity

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Gov. Dave Freudenthal has announced his support for proposed legislation to restore Wyoming concealed carry reciprocity after the current statutes were found to be ambiguous. Senate File 26 is sponsored by Sen. Cale Case of Lander.

Gov. Freudenthal said, “This is important legislation that ensures that lawful permit holders in and out of Wyoming can carry firearms as originally intended. I am very pleased that Senator Case has proposed legislation which remedies this problem and will take us back to a place where we have reciprocity with a significant number of other states.”

Last year, Wyoming Attorney General Bruce Salzburg discovered language in the existing law that would have significantly reduced the number of states to which Wyoming could grant reciprocity. Reciprocity is where two states agree to accept one another’s permits. Freudenthal and Salzburg agreed to postpone implementing a decision reducing the number of states who could legally carry concealed firearms in Wyoming, in order to give lawmakers an opportunity to craft a legislative fix. Salzburg believes the proposed legislation will clarify the statute and remove the problems with determining which states should be granted reciprocity.

“The existing statute requires the Attorney General to determine whether other states' concealed carry laws have requirements that are 'similar' to Wyoming's. The problem is that other states' laws are similar to Wyoming's requirements, in some respects, and markedly dissimilar in others. Because reciprocity is an important issue, I wanted more certainty regarding the scope of my statutory review of other states’ laws,” Salzburg said.

Sen. Cale Case is the primary sponsor of the legislation, with co-sponsors Sen. Eli Bebout, Rep. Edward Buchanan, Rep. Pat Childers, Rep. David Miller and Rep. Owen Petersen. The Governor sent a letter expressing his support for the legislation to the bill’s sponsors, Thursday.

Who Really Wants to Disarm Gunowners?

Despite victories by pro-individual freedom groups in the United States to promote laws allowing carrying of concealed weapons for self defense, and lawsuits like D.C. v. Heller that reaffirmed the individual Right to Keep and Bear Arms, as declared by the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights, the forces of darkness are gathering here and overseas to ban gun ownership by "mere" citizens around the world. Here's an interesting video about the international efforts to severely limit or ban private ownership of firearms. Just click here to watch it.

Throughout the world, throughout history, kings and governments that have held superior firepower over their citizenry have become less benevolent and more dictatorial, simply because they could. The Founding Fathers recognized this fact when they wrote the United States Constitution and made sure that the right of the people of the USA to own guns would always be there (along with other safeguards) to keep a balance of power between the people and the government.

If you don't think that totalitarian government is a possibility in the 21st century, consider the British parliament's decision to hand power over to the bureaucrats in the European Union. These people have done to Britain what the Nazis failed to do. Click here for the story. But of course, the government had already almost completely disarmed the population through a series of restrictive gun laws that date back to the early 1920s.

A Look Back: The Best Quote of 2009

"We should be long past applauding politicians of any hue: they got us into this mess. The best deserve a probationary opportunity to prove themselves, the worst should be in jail."
Gerald Warner, The UK Daily Telegraph, January 20th, 2009 (Inauguration Day)

Northwest Airlines terrorist attack

The Christmas day attack on a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit by a passenger who ignited an incendiary device is an important reminder for all of us. If the passenger really is connected to Al Quaeda, as he claimed, it is another example of that organization's strategy to repeat it's attacks on a target until they are successful.

In 1993, Islamist terrorists lead by Ramzi Yousef detonated a bomb in the basement of the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York, killing six people and injuring 1,042. The attack was intended to bring down both towers, but failed. In 2001, however, the terrorists were back with a different method, crashing aircraft into the towers. As we know, this time they were successful.

On 22 December, 2001, Shoe Bomber Richard Reid attempted to ignite explosives aboard American Airlines Flight 63 from Paris to Miami. He was overpowered by passengers and crew and is now in jail.

In 2006, British authorities arrested three men accused of plotting to blow up at least seven trans-Atlantic airliners in one day over the Atlantic, by detonating liquid explosives.

This latest attempt on the Detroit-bound flight shows that Al Quaeda is still determined to bring down airliners. It also illustrates that they don't quite have the technology worked out yet, but as with the WTC bombing, they are persistent.

It also shows that increased security at airports is important as a first line of defense to stop terrorists and explosives getting onto airplanes, but as in this latest case, cannot be relied upon to prevent every single attack.

The most important lesson we can all learn from this is that once an aircraft takes off, the only people who can save themselves are the crew and the passengers. It doesn't matter how many F-16s are scrambled to escort the aircraft. Those fighter pilots cannot take out the terrorists on the aircraft, they can only shoot the plane down before it can be crashed into a target on the ground. It is vital that when a passenger starts to act in a threatening manner, such as trying to ignite a bomb, the passengers and crew act immediately and decisively to take him down with overwhelming physical force.

A Christmas Poem

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.
Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.

The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.
My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know,

Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.

Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.
A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,
"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!"
For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..

To the window that danced with a warm fire's light
Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,
I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."
"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times..

No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.
My Gramps died at ' Pearl on a day in December,"
Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers."
My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ' Nam ',
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.

I've not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile.
Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue... an American flag.
I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.

I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..
Who stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall."

"So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."
"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,
"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you've done,
For being away from your wife and your son."

Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.
For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us."

PLEASE, would you do me the kind favor of sending this to as many
people as you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our
U.S. service men and women for our being able to celebrate these
festivities. Let's try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe. Make people
stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us.

LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN
30th Naval Construction Regiment
OIC, Logistics Cell One
Al Taqqadum, Iraq

Dear Al Gore

Dear Mr. Global warming,

It was 23f at my house this morning. That is only slightly warmer than Hillary Clinton's personality. I thought you might like to see the weather forecast for Colorado and surrounding areas. I fail to see how global warming is such a problem when we are experiencing winter storms like the one that came through here about a week ago, accompanied by about six days of sub-freezing temperatures. That storm covered 895,000 square miles from the Rocky Mountains all the way to the east coast. I don't yet know how large the current storm is, but there are already forecasts that the airlines will have more trouble keeping their flights in the mid-west on schedule than those British climatologists had keeping their fabricated-data emails from public view. As I type this, my neighborhood is getting a snow-job that's almost as good as the stories about the ice cap melting and polar bears becoming extinct.

But don't take my word for it, here's the forecast from a meteorologist in Denver:
Snow will increase and spread across the state tonight. 9NEWS Meteorologist Marty Coniglio says that the southwest corner of Colorado will be hardest-hit overnight with other areas getting snow, just not quite as heavy, through the morning hours Wednesday.

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for the foothills west to the Continental Divide from 5 p.m. Tuesday until 5 a.m. Thursday. Locations within the advisory include but are not limited to Breckenridge, Estes Park, Bailey, and Idaho Springs. These areas could see 5 to 12 inches of snow accumulate by early Thursday morning.

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY also includes Denver, Fort Collins, Greeley, the entire Interstate 25 corridor and Eastern Plains locations out to Deer Trail from 8 p.m. Tuesday through 5 p.m. Thursday. These locations can expect 4 to 8 inches of snow to accumulate by early Christmas Eve day.

Winds will also be an issue the further east you travel with gusts up to 45 mph causing low visibility for travelers and blowing and drifting snow.

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY also includes the Sangre De Cristos and Wet Mountains of southern Colorado, and the Walsenburg and Trinidad areas. Mountain locations can expect 5 to 10 inches of snow by Thursday, while lower elevations will see 4 to 8 inches of accumulation.

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for most of southeast Colorado, the panhandle of Oklahoma and north Texas from late Tuesday through Thursday. Expect 4 to 8 inches of snow to accumulate in locations like Lamar, Holly and Springfield by late Thursday.

A WINTER STORM WARNING is in effect for part of southwest Colorado, including the southwest San Juans and Durango vicinity until 6 p.m. Wednesday. Mountain locations can expect 10 to 18 inches of snow to accumulate by late Wednesday, while lower elevations will see 4 to 8 inches of snow.

A WINTER STORM WARNING is in effect for extreme eastern Colorado, western Kansas, and western and southwest Nebraska from 5 p.m. Tuesday through 11 p.m. Thursday. Locations such as Akron, Limon, Burlington and Ogallala, Nebraska can expect 5 to 10 inches of snow to accumulate by Christmas Eve. If you are planning to travel, gusts above 40 mph in the warning area could create near blizzard conditions with blowing and drifting snow.

Travel will be extremely difficult throughout Wednesday as this storm moves across the state.

Along with the snow, it will get much colder along the Front Range over the next couple of days. Highs will only be in the teens and twenties through Christmas Day, with extremely cold northerly winds. Some overnight lows could drop into the single digits.

Michael Morse, Firefighter and Author

I've added a new link to John's Favorite Links, on the right side of this page. Michael Morse is a Providence, Rhode Island firefighter. I got to know Michael while I was working for the company that published his excellent book, "Rescuing Providence". Michael also helped me when I was researching some first aid information for my book on bugging out of dangerous situations.

I think I've made it pretty clear in some of my blog postings just how much I love and respect our military people; Our civilian emergency people are cut from the same cloth. When the rest of us listen to our survival instinct and run from danger, these guys ride to the sound of the guns, so to speak. Who can forget the firefighters on September 11, 2001 who were running UP the stairs at the World Trade Center, or who rushed to the Pentagon that same morning, to pull military personnel and others from that burning building? Same mindset, just hoses instead of rifles.