In Your Backyard in 10 Years Time: Spy Hummingbird and Sparrow

We will have to swat them when we ever see them....

(It is cute, though, isn't it?)

Thanks anyway, DARPA, for the excellent use of our tax money ($3.2 billion per year), setting us against birds if we dare value our privacy...

From Physorg.com (2/18/2011):

(PhysOrg.com) -- A prototype robot spy "ornithopter," the Nano-Hummingbird, has successfully completed flight trials in California. Developed by the company AeroVironment Inc., the miniature spybot looks like a hummingbird complete with flapping wings, and is only slightly larger and heavier than most hummingbirds, but smaller than the largest species.

The Hummingbird's bird-shaped body is removable but it gives the bot an uncanny resemblance to a real hummingbird. The vehicle can hover and maneuver just like the bird.

The ornithopter can fly into buildings under the control of an operator flying the spybot with the help of a feed from its tiny video camera. The prototype is capable of flying at speeds of up to 18 km/h (11 mph) and weighs 19 grams, which is about the same as an AA battery.

Manager of the project, Matt Keennon, said it had been a challenge to design and build the spybot because it “pushes the limitations of aerodynamics.” The specifications given to the firm by the Pentagon included being able to hover in an 8 km/h wind gust and being able to fly in and out of buildings via a normal door.

The spybot was developed for the US military's research arm, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The hummingbird appearance is intended to disguise the bot, although it would look decidedly out of place and would attract attention in most places in the world since hummingbirds are not found outside of the Americas.

.....The current model is a prototype and more development is required before any decisions are made on its deployment. Keennon said he expected the flight time to improve as the spybot develops, and said he envisaged it could be used for reconnaissance purposes in around a decade. He also said the final version is unlikely to look like a hummingbird, which is rare even in parts of the US, and he thinks a sparrow would be a better choice.

Physorg.com has the video of the maiden flight of this spy-hummingbird.

What's next? "Nano-ants"? I'm sure they are already doing that... How about spy-viruses? Oh I forgot, they've already done that - remember Stuxnet?

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Urgent! : Call Your Representative to Stop Patriot Act Extension! (Updated with Roll Call)

(UPDATE) As expected, they passed it. Keep calling your Congressmen who voted yes.

Roll call for today's vote:

Yeas: Republican 210, Democratic 65, total 275

Nays: Republican 27, Democratic 117, Total 144

Not voting: Republican 3, Democratic 11

And this was the February 8 roll call:

Yeas: Republican 210, Democratic 67, total 277

Nays: Republican 26, Democratic 122, Total 148

Not voting: Republican 5, Democratic 4

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The House Republicans are at it again TODAY to extend the provisions in the Patriot Act. The vote is set in the evening.

The previous vote on the extension was defeated because it required 2/3 majority. This time, all they need is a simple majority, and they expect it to pass easily.

Contact your Representative and tell him/her to vote NO.

Particularly those Democratic Congressmen, 67 of them, who voted YES the last time around.

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Patriot Act Extensions Rejected by House

because GOP had sought to expedite the bill by requiring two-thirds majority.... They didn't get the votes.

(The Egyptian effect, perhaps?)

From Huffington Post:

WASHINGTON — The House on Tuesday failed to extend the life of three surveillance tools that are key to the nation's post-Sept. 11 anti-terror law, a slipup for the new Republican leadership that miscalculated the level of opposition.

The House voted 277-148 to keep the three provisions of the USA Patriot Act on the books until Dec. 8. But Republicans brought up the bill under a special expedited procedure requiring a two-thirds majority, and the vote was seven short of reaching that level.

The Republicans, who took over the House last month, lost 26 of their own members, adding to the 122 Democrats who voted against it. Supporters say the three measures are vital to preventing another terrorist attack, but critics say they infringe on civil liberties. They appealed to the antipathy that newer and more conservative Republicans hold for big government invasions of individual privacy.

Checking the roll call, here's the deal:

Yeas: Republican 210, Democratic 67, total 277

Nays: Republican 26, Democratic 122, Total 148

Not voting: Republican 5, Democratic 4

So, in order to totally defeat the extension that can be passed by simple majority (amendments will be allowed), we need to convert those 67 Democrats who voted Yea, without losing any of the Republicans and Dems who voted Nay. Then, the Nays could be 215 versus 210 Yeas. In addition, we need at least 3 of the Republicans and Dems who did not vote today to vote Nay (or not vote at all, again).

Come on, Democrats, don't you hate the GOP dominated House? Here's your chance to stick it to those conventional, war-loving Republicans! Here's your chance to tell your constituents that you are the defender of individual rights and freedom from the tyranny of the state (like true liberals).

Keep calling your Congressmen, GOP or Democratic. Tell them to vote NO.

(h/t heartless)

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Urgent! Look What They Try to Sneak In: Vote to Renew Patriot Act Provisions on Tuesday February 8, 2011

US Congress and the Obumbum administration probably correctly believe we the sheeple simply don't have time to pay any attention to anything other than the 2011 Super Bowl, snow, the Egyptian Revolution, American Idol, and rising gasoline and food prices.

They are going to vote on renewal of the key provisions of the Patriot Act TOMORROW, Tuesday February 8, 2011, the Act which has most recently given us the pornographic pat-downs and scans at the airports.

If Congress does not extend these provisions, they are set to expire on February 28, 2011. The new Congress with Republican majority is expected to easily pass the bill to renew the provisions.

CONTACT YOUR CONGRESSMEN ASAP!!!

It's time we stood up like Egyptians.

From Washington's Blog:

The ACLU reports:

Three sections of the Patriot Act — the so-called 'library provision' that allows a secret court to issue orders for anything deemed relevant to an investigation; the roving wiretap provision that allows the government to get a wiretap order that doesn't specify the person or place to be tapped; and the 'lone wolf' provision, which permits intelligence wiretapping of people not connected to a terrorist group — are scheduled to expire on February 28. It's February 7.

***

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) recently suggested that Congress doesn't have enough time to consider reforms this year. That was the excuse for last year's Patriot Act reauthorization. Members of Congress had suggested that they would use 2010 to really examine the effects of the USA Patriot Act and return to it in early 2011 ready to make much-needed changes.

And where are we now? Well, Congress is betting that while they weren't thinking about the Patriot Act in the past year, you weren't either. Late in the day on Friday, we learned that the House will vote tomorrow, Tuesday, Feb. 8, on a bill to extend the expiring Patriot Act provisions until December 8, 2011. They want to sneak this reauthorization through, and they're hoping that you don't notice.

Well, once again, we're asking you to tell Congress that you are watching, that you don't buy their fear-mongering or their scare tactics, and that you want real Patriot Act reform. We've put a new action alert up urging Congress not to rubber stamp the Patriot Act once again, and we urge you to take action. For almost 10 years, the Patriot Act has given the government too much leeway to pry into our private lives.

As the Electronic Frontier Foundation and others have documented (see this, this and this), the Patriot Act would not have prevented 9/11, and has led to numerous crimes by the FBI and other agencies.

Call Congress NOW and tell them to vote down renewing the Patriot Act. Word from D.C. is that the Patriot Act will be renewed unless there is strong public outcry today.

Remember, the Patriot Act was apparently written before 9/11, and the government's spying on Americans began before 9/11 (confirmed here and here. And see this) . These assault on the Constitution did not keep us safe.

Indeed - as I've previously noted - the "national security" apparatus has been hijacked to serve the needs of big business, and is not really protecting us.

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WikiLeaks: Al-Qaeda Ready To Detonate Nuke

Oh what an excellent timing, Mr. Assange.

(And whatever happened to your promise on Bank of America?)

For some reason unknown to me, the leaks these days go to Telegraph, not Guardian.

Here's from Vancouver Sun, citing Telegraph (I couldn't locate it on Telegraph's site):

Al-Qaida is on the verge of producing radioactive weapons after sourcing nuclear material and recruiting rogue scientists to build "dirty" bombs, according to leaked diplomatic documents.

A leading atomic regulator has privately warned that the world stands on the brink of a "nuclear 9/11".

Security briefings suggest that jihadi groups are also close to producing "workable and efficient" biological and chemical weapons that could kill thousands if unleashed in attacks on the West.

Thousands of classified American cables obtained by the WikiLeaks website and passed to The Daily Telegraph detail the international struggle to stop the spread of weapons-grade nuclear, chemical and biological material around the globe.

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Janet Napolitano Bans Parcels from Japan in Response to the Ink Cartridge Bomb from Yemen

This is beyond absurd.

The ink cartridge bomb was allegedly shipped from Yemen. And what does Janet Napolitano do, in addition to having the TSA sexually harass and molest air travelers in the US?

She bans non-commercial parcels from Japan sent via Japan Post.

Mr. Ken Adachi at Educate-Yourself says Janet Napolitano has quietly set up a new regulation on November 17 that:

blocks the shipping of any NON COMMERCIAL parcel into the United States that weighs more than 0.9 pounds (under 16 ounces) without first supplying the Social Security number (or taxpayer ID number) of the RECEPIENT of the package (and it's likely that the new DHS shipping restriction will soon also apply to detailed ID requirements on the part of the person sending the package as well).

The non-bomb in the ink cartridge was from Yemen, and Napolitano goes and stops parcels sent from friends and relatives in Japan to their fiends and relatives in the US. How is that going to stop "terrorism"?

I checked the Japan Post website, but the announcement says nothing about supplying the Social Security number of the recipient. Instead, it says any item mailed by air that weighs more than 16 ounces will be suspended for shipment until further notice:

November 12, 2010

Japan Post Service Company (Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo-to, Representative Director: Shinichi Nabekura) has announced that, due to the elimination of air flights for the delivery of postal items over 453 grams (16 ounces) in weight following the recent anti-terrorism airport security enforcement on the part of the USA, these postal items will be suspended for shipment for the time being starting from November 17, 2010.

We will make a relevant announcement once the situation changes.

There goes my end-of-the-year package I've been waiting for from my relatives in Japan.

This new harassment from the DHS applies to air parcels from other countries, not just Japan. What's really irritating about it is that it targets ordinary people by restricting the application of the rule to non-commercial shipment.

Well, what else could we expect from the corporatist administration like this one?

There are alternatives, albeit more expensive than Japan Post. So far, Fedex and UPS are not stopping the shipment from Japan, and Fedex doesn't require the Social Security number of the recipient as long as the package is a gift and that the declared value of the content is less than $100.

Kuroneko Yamato, DHL Japan require the Social Security number of the recipient, but they are not stopping the shipment.

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Protest Against TSA's Grouping and Molestation Procedure

Finally the "small people" are fighting back.

TSA (which by the way stand for Transportation Security Administration) has started a very aggressive pat-down procedure at the nation's airports after an inkjet printer supposedly rigged as a bomb was found in a cargo plane. Remember that news? Did you notice how quickly it disappeared, with no follow-up?

For "Your safety is our priority" TSA under 'Big Sis' Janet Napolitano, a problem on a cargo flight is just another pretext to harass airline passengers further. In the warped mind of TSA and Ms. Napolitano, a cargo plane problem will go away by the aggressive pat-downs on passengers who refuse to go through the naked body scan; with the pat down so aggressive and uncomfortable, borderline sexual abuse, the passenger will opt for being irradiated with dangerous dose of x-ray and having his/her nude pic looked at by perverts at TSA.

MSMs like New York Times always manage to find some brainless airline passengers who almost always praise a new procedure at the airport. "It may be a bit inconvenient, but it's for our own safety!" is the basic line these idiotic passengers always say.

Not so, as Alex Jone's Prison Planet has been reporting:

The populist Drudge Report website has stirred a national debate on TSA abuse of passengers through dangerous naked body scanners and invasive groping measures, culminating in an onslaught of resistance from numerous prominent travel and pilots associations, and leading to the organization of a national opt out day on November 24.

While the corporate media characterizes opposition to airport oppression as a disgruntled minority, Drudge has led the charge in exemplifying that the backlash is in reality part of a rapidly accelerating national outrage that now includes no less than five major travel bodies as well as a flight attendants union.

In addition, individual cases of oppression at the hands of TSA thugs are now pouring in, with Drudge ensuring they receive the attention they deserve by making airport outrage a top story on his website for days on end.

...What was a stirring undercurrent is now out in the open, with anger bubbling to the surface and prompting a massive national debate.

The rebellion is surging, not only because of the noted health dangers of body scanners, but because the TSA has proven time and time again that its justification in treating the American people with less respect than farmyard animals is completely fraudulent

...The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg was told by a TSA agent directly that pat downs were made increasingly invasive not for any genuine security reason, but to make the experience so uncomfortable for the traveler that they would prefer to use the body scanner, despite the fact that scientists at Columbia University and the Inter-Agency Committee on Radiation Safety, along with other scientific bodies, have all warned that the devices increase the risk of developing cancer.

Remember the reason why naked body scanning was introduced and in the process made Michael Chertoff a richer man? Yes, that panty-bomber. Remember how on earth he got on the plane without a passport, to begin with? BECAUSE the CIA wanted him to board the plane. No MSM reported the fact, even though it was revealed in a Congressional hearing in January.

November 24 is a "national opt out day". Reclaim your dignity.

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First US Missile Attack in Gaza Against 'Al-Qaeda'

This is not reported anywhere else, but DEBKAfile says in the November 4, 2010 article:

A missile fired from an American warship in the Mediterranean hit the car in which Muhammad Jamal A-Namnam, 27, was driving in the heart of Gaza City Wednesday, Nov. 3 and killed him, debkafile's exclusive counter-terror sources report. Namnam was an operational commander of the Army of Islam, Al-Qaeda's Palestinian cell in the Gaza Strip. He was on a mission on behalf of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula – AQAP to plan, organize and execute the next wave of terrorist attacks on US targets after last week's air package bomb plot.

According to our sources, the Palestinian cell members were planning to infiltrate northern Sinai from the Gaza strip over the coming weekend and strike American personnel serving with the Multinational Force and Observers Organization – MFO, which is under American command and is stationed at North Camp, El Gorah, 37 kilometers southeast of El-Arish.

In a coordinated operation, Al Qaeda fighters hiding up in the mountains of central Sinai were to have attacked US Marines and Air Force troops stationed at the South Camp in Naama Bay, Sharm el Sheikh.

The twin attacks were scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 7, or the following day.

Our sources say that, just as US-Saudi intelligence cooperation led to the interception of package bombs from Yemen last week, so too US intelligence-sharing with Egypt and Israel foiled a major Al-Qaeda terrorist attack on American personnel in Sinai. Egyptian intelligence picked up on Namnam's scouting forays of US forces and discovered him caching weapons and explosives ready for the Al Qaeda strike force's arrival from Gaza.

Well, did you know that US Marines and Air Force troops are in Sinai, 16 kilometers from the Israeli border?

Crude oil, gold, silver are up, even though the US dollar has rebounded today.

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New 'Czar' Coming Out of Ink Cartridge "Bomb"?

This last-minute "terror" to scare the gullible mass on the eve of the US mid-term election should warrant a new czar quickly appointed by the US President so that America is "secure", shouldn't it?

Let's see...

Obama already has the counterterrorism czar in John Brennan. But that hasn't stopped Obama from securing the US by having the Af-Pak czar, the Middle East czar, the Iran czar, etc.

The names I would suggest for the new czar are:

Yemen czar (that's boring...)
Cargo Shipping Security czar (that's more like it, I think.)
Used Ink Cartridge czar (my choice)

On the other hand, we already have the CIA (the link goes to Washington Post article from August 2010) who's been active already in Yemen...

False-Flag czar, anyone?

And remember, Yemeni officials say there's no UPS or FedEx flight into and out of Yemen.

Also remember that Washington Post has a content partnership with 36,760-member-strong GovLoop, a social networking site for the federal government workers that promotes a wonderful idea that "Government Doesn't Suck" because it is staffed with "cool cats" who watch Jon Stewart's show.

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Cargo Plane "Bomb Scare" Results In Extensive Pat-Downs for Airline Passengers

The "bomb" that looks like an old, broken printer with decaying cartridge on a cargo plane will cause extensive, intrusive pat-downs for airline passengers.

Huh?

For those of you looking for a logic or connection between the two events: there's none.

In the warped and pornographic mind of TSA and Janet Napolitano, a problem on a cargo plane will be solved by patting down and harassing customers of a passenger plane.

For more on this new and improved security measure and equally inexplicable (to me) reactions from the passengers (as quoted in the article), go here.

Remember the Christmas panty bomber from last year? He was instrumental in having whole-body scanners introduced in airports around the world and making Michael Chertoff a richer man.

I wonder which "foreign intelligence service" tipped Brits this time. What's your guess?

Packages were addressed to synagogues in Chicago, which Obama called "Jewish places of worship". (What is this, a Jeopardy answer or something?)

Yemeni government officials adamantly insist that the packages didn't come from Yemen, that there was no US cargo plane that departed Yemen within the last 48 hours.

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Ink Cartridge from Yemen - Was This Supposed to Be the 'October Surprise'?

If it was, it is kind of fitting in an environment where nothing seems to work - whether it is a federal 'stimulus', Democratic last-minute push to retain control, Bank of Japan's effort to suppress yen...

From CNN:

A package in London, England, that has sparked alarm about cargo arriving into the United States had white powder all over it as well as wires and a circuit card attached, a law-enforcement source said. The package came from Sana, Yemen and was bound for Chicago, Illinois, the source said. Investigators are examining two similar packages - one on a plane in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, and another in East Midlands, in the United Kingdom.

In the last 24 hours, security officials received a tip from an unnamed ally that packages coming from Yemen were destined for synagogues in Chicago, Illinois, according to information given to CNN contributor Fran Townsend.

A "number" of suspicious packages have been found in England, a British security source said. All were sent from the same person in Yemen through UPS and had American destinations.

Yemen Embassy spokesman Mohammed Albasha in Washington said no UPS or FedEx flights take off or land in Yemen.

And... (drumroll please)...It's Al-Qaeda!

U.S. officials believe that al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula was behind the plot that caused a security scare at English and American airports on Friday.

So they found out about these suspicious packages because an "unnamed ally" tipped them. The package that triggered alarm had white powder all over it and a circuit board and wires attached to it. Hmmmm. I find it hard to believe that UPS or FedEx would accept such a package to begin with... And there is no UPS flight in and out of Yemen. And it is the work of Al-Qaeda.

RRRIIIGGGHHHTTT..... Of course.

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What's With This "Terror" Threat in Europe?

The US State Department and the UK Foreign Office warn of "terrorist" attacks similar to the 2008 Mumbay attack in France and Germany, with the Foreign Office saying "an attack is highly likely".

News of this "terror" threat came out of nowhere about two weeks ago.

According to ABC News exclusive, targets have already been selected with the help of Al-Qaeda in Pakistan.

Doesn't it make you wonder... "Really?"

WHO really selected the targets, anyway?

Al-Qaeda in Pakistan? Oh how convenient... So that's why the US have been bombing Pakistan, a US ally, ever since Obama became the president of the US?

If the authorities know that much, why don't they arrest them, instead of issuing warning to the public that there may be terrorist attacks in France or Germany or both, and the attacks are highly likely?

Or do they want the attacks to happen?

"Wag the dog" big time for....?

November election in the US?

Proposed severe budget cut in the UK?

Scaring the uppity citizens in Europe and the US who have started to defy the governments?

Is this basically the same operation that FBI has been doing (FBI informants encouraging so-called "terrorists" to take action, like this one), only on an international scale?

Ooops... CIA may have done something like that already, in Mumbay...

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Terrorist Attacks May Be Imminent, Warn Officials

Just in time. October surprise, anyone?

Here's from Washington Post on September 22:

"Al-Qaeda and its allies are likely to attempt small-scale, less sophisticated terrorist attacks in the United States, senior Obama administration officials said Wednesday, noting that it's extremely difficult to detect such threats in advance.

""Unlike large-scale, coordinated, catastrophic attacks, executing smaller-scale attacks requires less planning and fewer pre-operational steps," said Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, testifying before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. "Accordingly, there are fewer opportunities to detect such an attack before it occurs." [Emphasis is mine. The article continues.]

Ummm, excuse me Ms. Napolitano but the US government claimed it couldn't detect a large-scale, coordinated, catastrophic attack which was 9/11. "Who could have known?" said Condoleezza Rice.

But wait, it may not be Al-Qaeda but domestic terrorists!

ABC News scares us by saying terror threats highest since 9/11, and the terrorists will likely be Americans or Westerners:

"The nation's top counterterrorism officials were blunt. The threat from within---of Americans willing to commit terrorist acts--- is growing. FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III told a congressional hearing today that a spike in recent terrorism cases is direct evidence of the evolving threat.

""Groups affiliated with al Qaeda are now actively targeting the United States and looking to use Americans or Westerners who are able to remain undetected by heightened security measures," Mueller said. "It appears domestic extremism and radicalization appears to have become more pronounced based on the number of disruptions and incidents."" [Emphasis is mine. The article continues.]

Oh, you mean, like those guys that the FBI practically manufactured so that they could arrest them for doing what they coerced them to do? (The latest example: Wrigley Field "bomber")

Or do you mean those "racist" health care "reform" protesters of last summer, or crazy people demanding the audit of the Federal Reserve, or people who donated $2 million to the GOP candidate in Delaware in two days? Or anyone who oppose the president's policies?

(Oh wait, are these warnings being coordinated with the release of Bob Woodward's book?)

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Have Your Mind Scanned Before You Fly

Assaults are coming fast and furious again, after the Massachusetts special election which pissed off (I know I should say "energized") the president. More government, more control over more aspects of your life is the answer, the only answer, in these troubled times, according to him. Trust your government, he says.

And so it should be no surprise that we may be told to submit to the mind-reading scanners when we fly next time.

This from LRC Blog at Lewrockwell.com:

‘Can You Read My Mind’—in Hebrew? (David Kramer, 1/30/2010 LRC Blog)

ISRAELI MIND-SCANNER MAY TAKE OVER US AIRPORTS

As part of stringent measures to beef up airport security, US authorities may use an Israeli-made mind-reading scanner that allegedly predicts whether a passenger is a
potential threat or not. The Transportation and Safety Administration (TSA) and the Homeland Security are considering the installment of a controversial mind-reading system, that was recently developed by the Israeli-based WeCU Technologies, in all American airports, AP reported on Thursday.

The device, which functions by blending high computer technology and behavioral psychology, is essentially designed to “get inside the evildoers head” without the subject’s knowledge and prevent him or her from placing the lives of fellow travelers in jeopardy.

"This news shouldn’t come as a big surprise considering that Israeli minds have already taken over the U.S. Congress. "

Here's the AP article mentioned in the above blog post.

WeCU (pronounced "we see you") Technologies Ltd. has this to say about their product:

"The WeCU system ...... is able to identify persons who have any kind of involvement in a defined threat. The system identifies this involvement without requiring any type of a-priory information as to the checked subject, and while there are no other alerting signals, such as suspicious behaviour, belongings or profile. The system performs a fast and covert test procedure, which does not interfere with the routine activities and the flow at the protected site.

"The system is based on a unique probing method which uses knowledge from the behavioural sciences in combination with advanced biometric sensors. The system is effective for the detection of individuals who are manipulative, calm, do not have guilty knowledge, and are not being deceptive at the time of the detection. At the same time, it eliminates false results out of detecting individuals who are stressed or behaving suspiciously resulting personal, unrelated reasons. "

Oh that's assuring, isn't it?

U.K. will bar people from flying if they refuse to submit to full body scan.

Are we going to just shrug and follow the line to the body and mind scan?

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Wag the Dog, for the Nth Time?

Yemen...., where did I read about the country just recently? In an obscure piece of news that got little publicity at that time (about 10 days ago, I believe), but it struck me as odd. Yemen? The news was that the U.S. military was bombing Yemen by the direct order from the U.S. president, killing civilians (but claiming the bombing killed a dozen Al-Quada leader, as usual).

This is what was reported in the semi-official White House PR organ, aka ABC News:

Obama Ordered U.S. Military Strike on Yemen Terrorists (undated, my best guess is 12/18/09, The Blotter from Brian Ross, ABC News)

"On orders from President Barack Obama, the U.S. military launched cruise missiles early Thursday against two suspected al-Qaeda sites in Yemen, administration officials told ABC News in a report broadcast on ABC World News with Charles Gibson.

"One of the targeted sites was a suspected al Qaeda training camp north of the capitol, Sanaa, and the second target was a location where officials said "an imminent attack against a U.S. asset was being planned."

"The Yemen attacks by the U.S. military represent a major escalation of the Obama administration's campaign against al Qaeda."

Reporter Brian Ross, in a video clip on the linked article, emphasizes the order came directly from Oval Office.

(Perhaps President Obama is getting ready for the next year's Nobel Peace Prize by further expanding the war on terror.)

Then, right on cue, the Christmas Day bomber, a son of a wealthy Nigerian banker, materializes, and says there are more like him coming from Yemen.

Curiously, two attorneys (husband and wife) who were on board the plane the Nigerian was trying to blow up claim they witnessed the bomber being assisted by a sharp-dressed man at the boarding gate in Amsterdam so that he could board the plane without a passport.

Something doesn't quite add up.

I'm not yet sure who benefits from all this or what agenda is being promoted while they wag this dog, but it is very clear who the immediate losers are: air travelers worldwide who are now being subjected to ridiculously lengthy and probably unnecessary pre-boarding screenings to prevent them from lighting up a firecracker or two in their pants.

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