Quote of the Day - Deputy Director of The C.I.A Michael Morrell Edition

“If we had a human source who had told us directly that bin Laden was living in that compound, I still wouldn’t be above 60 percent. And I’m telling you, the case for W.M.D. wasn’t just stronger—it was much stronger.”

The Deputy Director of the C.I.A. on the raid that killed Usama bin Laden

Can we finally stop with the "Bush lied us into war" meme now?  

Thank You President Bush

People gathered outside of the house of President Bush last night after the news of bin Laden's death to say "Thank You". 

President Bush put the apparatus in place that allowed it to happen. 

I dare the left to say otherwise.

Usama bin Laden is Dead - DC Celebrates Outside The White House

I heard the news that people were gathering outside of The White House to celebrate the news that the day our country has been waiting almost 10 long years for, Usama bin Laden is dead.  I decided to head down and check it out. 

It was sheer craziness.  After midnight on Sunday it took me more than half hour to find a parking space, not a normal thing at this time of the morning. 

The vast majority of people were college students, but a few of us older people showed up. 





I was pleasantly surprised to see this:

It was a young woman who brought this down and I had made a comment to her that I was very surprised to someone supporting Bush down here.  She told me that she is an Obama supporter, but understands that both men are responsible for getting bin Laden. 

I did meet some fellow conservatives while I was down there:

It was pandemonium, people all over the place; including the trees:

I ran into some Paul fans:

Of course the Code Pink side of the loony left was also there.  Several people were walking thru the crowd yelling at people that they were celebrating someone's death.  While normally I agree that cheering someone's death is ghoulish, I am willing to make an exception this time.  Good Riddens.  Personally I would have much rather that he surrendered and had to spend the rest of his days being guarded by some female guards and forced to watch home movies of the people he killed on a round clock feed, but that was not meant to be.  The reports say that he was given the opportunity to surrender and refused.  Ironically he died on the anniversary of the death of Hitler.  I guess May Day is a day to rid the world of the scum. 

I was also very happy to see the patriotic side of the younger crowd be so present.  It did my heart good to hear them singing the national anthem and waving the American flags.  It isn't always a side that we see of the young crowd in this country.  It is nice to know that actually does exist. 

God Bless our Navy Seals, the reports are saying they are the ones who carried out the mission. 

For those on the right, and you know who you are, turning this into something political; shame on you.  We should be all Americans for a few hours.  This is a happy day. 

No Easy Answers

Riots have been flaring in Egypt for days now.  The reports are that 100 have been killed.  We all know that number could be much higher, but that is the official number coming from the Egyptian government.  The initial reports were that the protesters were average citizens looking for more reforms from the oppressive government. 

Mubarak has been in power for about 3 decades.  There is no doubt that he rules with an iron fist.  Not unlike most governments in that part of the world.  Dissent isn't acceptable and is punishable by jail.  It is well-known that jail in that part of the world usually leads to torture.  Human rights are not a big concern, to put it mildly. 

Poverty runs rampant.  The unemployment rate makes ours look like child's play.  Most in this country don't have a clear understanding of how many live in other parts of the world.  Some of this started over the price of bread.  People have little money to spend on food, and even a small increase can mean the difference when it comes to feeding yourself and your family. 

So far the protesters have not been burning the American or Israeli flags, which is normal thing during these uprisings.  This is a sign that the protesters are just freedom fighters looking for more freedoms, more jobs, and a better life for their families.  The problem is that The Muslim Brotherhood is standing by and waiting.  The Egyptian people may very well get a different government, but it more than likely will not be what some of the people are hoping for.  The Muslim Brotherhood is a organization that believes in returning all Muslim countries to true Sharia law.  They also are looking to get back lands that they view as being taken away from Muslims, such as Spain. 

The Egyptians banned The Muslim Brotherhood many years ago, but it is still very active.  They do run for seats in the government as independents and are relatively successful.  The organization has branches all over the Middle East, such as Iran, Kuwait, Syria, and The Palestinian Terrorities among many others throughout the Muslim world.  Officially, they are against the use of violence and went as far as to condemn the 9/11 attacks.  Although, al Qaeda leaders have been strongly influenced by the brotherhood.  The book Milestones is used by jihadists across the world as guide.  It was a major influence of Usama bin Laden.  bin Laden has turned his back on the movement due to its stance of non-violent resistance, at least publicly anyway.  Although, his #2, Ayman al Zawarhi is a product of the more violent offshoot, Egyptian Islamic Jihad,  to the brotherhood while growing up in Egypt. 

We may very well be seeing the redux of Iran when the Ayatollah came into power.  The initial riots and movement were primarily young people looking to get more freedoms under the oppressive and corrupt Shah.  The Shah was considered an ally of the western world and more precisely of the U.S. government.  Not a good thing in the eyes of Islamic radicals.  The fall of Iran happened in three stages; the first being well-meaning citizens looking to improve their everyday lives.  The second was the fall of the Shah and a weak and disorganized democratically based government formed, and then fell to the more radical Islamics that are in power to this day.  The radicals climbed into bed with many different groups, as none of the groups on their own were powerful enough to rid the country of the Shah.  Once the Shah left they were able to consolidate power by using any brutal means at their disposal. 

To gain some context on how these groups gain power we must understand a very simple fact.  The Muslim Brotherhood and other groups just like them become the social services to the poor.  The governments tend to be so corrupt that the needs of the people are for the most part ignored.  If you are looking to feed your young children you will likely support the people who are helping you achieve that.  You generally don't look at the motives, you just take the helping hand that has been offered to you. 

The vacuum then gets filled by the groups whose intent is only to be the next oppressor.  From the photos that are being shown there are currently women joining in on the demonstrations.  If they are looking for additional freedoms and a better life, it is highly unlikely they will find it if the Muslim Brotherhood does indeed take over.  The chances are they will be denied an education, no chance of voting in elections, but then again those elections will more than likely be rigged anyway. 

The U.S. has no easy choice here.  If they back Mubarak they will be seen as standing by an oppressor.  If they back the protesters they may very well be handing one of the largest Muslim countries over to a radical group that views us as the Big Satan and Israel as the Little Satan.  Egypt currently has a peace accord with the Israelis which has worked for a very long time now.  The chances of the that staying in place if radicals take over is about nil.  The Coptic Christians, who are about 10% of the current population, will also be in even more danger then they are currently experiencing.  This is a native population that has survived the Muslim take over the country back in the 7th century. 

What President Obama does over the next days and months are going to have long lasting effects.  The Suez Canal is an important waterway that our economy depends on.  About one third of the world's oil supply goes through it every year.  If we have a government that views us as the Big Satan controlling it, heaven only knows the damage that can be caused to our economy through higher prices and controlled shortages. 

The problem with the Middle East is that sometimes the oppressor is the best option, even though the citizens of that country don't see it that way.  There are no easy or simple solutions to the problems that exist in the Middle East. 

A Pre 9/11 Mentality is Unacceptable - Terror is Still in the Skies

Yesterday we were given a reminder of why we cannot live in a pre 9/11 world. The dangers of terrorism exist in the world and we have to remain vigilant. A 23 year old Nigerian man got on plane to travel to the United States with the intent of blowing up the plane on American soil. His travels started in Lagos, Nigeria onto Amsterdam, then to Detroit. While it is not clear what materials he used in his attempt to blow up the plane, the reality remains that we are still in danger.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab apparently has ties in the United Kingdom and Yemen. The UK has very serious issues when it comes to Islamic extremism. London has been nicknamed Londonistan. This nickname has been deserved. The U.K. has more lax immigration than the U.S. does. Many immigrants come to the U.K. to take advantage of their version of our welfare system. There are several Imams that preach fiery anti-western speeches in the many mosques around London while collecting a monthly check from the very country that they are hell bent on destroying. If asked about the hypocrisy of this, they will just say that they qualify for it. London also has many dissidents from Middle Eastern countries that traveled to western nations due to arrests warrants in their home countries such as Saudi Arabia. They put in claims of fear of torture and death threats and will be allowed to stay. There is a radio program that is broadcasted out of London done by a man who is a proud and vocal follower of Usama bin Laden. He cheered the destruction of the twin towers on 9/11.


Sadly, there is a movement within portions of the British government that is using the same form of appeasement that they did during the 1930’s with Hitler. Incorporating Sharia law into British common law is one of the ways that this being done. While it may seem harmless on the surface to incorporate Sharia into child custody and divorce cases for the growing Muslim population within the country, it is not. When you immigrate to another country you need to become part of the culture of the country that you are now living in. I am not saying that you let go of your culture, but you need to become part of the country that you are living in. I am a product of this. While I was raised to be an American, I was also taught the Scandinavian traditions and culture. I carry those with me to this day. If you want to live under Sharia law, then stay in a country that follows it. There are plenty of them around the world.


Yemen is another country that has very real problems. It is an extremely poor country that has a very unstable government. It is not a country that westerners should travel to, as you may be kidnapped and held for ransom. It is a common occurrence. Yemen has beautiful antiquities that are draw for people that want to see these things for themselves. Yemen is the ancestral home of the bin Laden family, and one of his wives is a native. While the Yemenise government has made attempts at curbing international terrorism, it has not gone very well. The judicial system has not been great at jailing these people, and when they do there are breakouts from the prisons where sometimes up to 100 people will be freed at a time. Since these occur on pretty regular basis, it would make sense that some of the jail officials are in on it, or at the very least being paid off. It would not be hard for Yemen to become the next Afghanistan that harbors bin Laden, training camps, and the like.


At this point it is unclear how strong his ties to terrorism are. We have not been told if he attended any training camps or if he is a lone wolf that looked for people to help him with the explosives. Those questions may never be answered to the American public for security reasons. What is clear is that we cannot forget what happened on 9/11, al Qaeda has not. The desire to bring about economic collapse of the western world is still a main goal of bin Laden and his followers