In the News: Feb-05

US intel: al-Qaida may move outside Iraq - 5 Feb 2008 at 10:46am - WASHINGTON -- The director of national intelligence said Tuesday he is concerned that al-Qaida in Iraq is shifting its focus to attacking outside the country.

Since al Qaida originated outside Iraq and only entered after Saddam was overthrown by the U.S. and its coalition of the bribed/coerced, should it come as some sort of surprise that it now "moving" outside Iraq? McConnell seems to be trying to advance the idea that the existence of al Qaida has been up until now a purely Iraqi phenomenon.

Veto threat for proposed spy laws - 5 Feb 2008 at 12:50pm - WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration vowed Tuesday to veto terrorist surveillance legislation being pushed by Senate Democrats that would not give retroactive legal protections to telecommunication providers who had allowed the government to spy on people in the United States.

Gates declines to estimate war costs - 5 Feb 2008 at 11:58am - WASHINGTON -- Defense Secretary Robert Gates says a realistic estimate of next year's war costs is almost impossible to discern, in part because he doesn't know how many troops will be in Iraq this fall.

Iraq breaks with past as new flag is raised - 5 Feb 2008 at 10:32am - BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's temporary new national flag was raised over the country's parliament for the first time on Tuesday, trumpeted by the government as a break with the past and a step towards reconciliation.

Al-Qaeda improving ability to attack US: US intelligence - 5 Feb 2008 at 10:21am - WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US intelligence community warned Tuesday of the threat of terrorist attack against the United States as Al-Qaeda improves its ability to identify, train and position operatives for such operations.

Damages reduced in funeral protest case - 5 Feb 2008 at 9:38am - BALTIMORE -- A federal judge has reduced by more than half the amount of damages that a fundamentalist Kansas church must pay to the father of a Marine who was killed in Iraq.

New witness account shows Khadr charges should be dropped: lawyers - 5 Feb 2008 at 6:57am - Lawyers for Omar Khadr called on U.S. authorities Monday to dismiss a murder charge against the Canadian, saying a newly released eyewitness account casts doubt on the Pentagon's version of events.

Britain's Prince Andrew attacks Bush on Iraq - 5 Feb 2008 at 7:52am - LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Prince Andrew launched a sharp attack on Tuesday on President George W. Bush for failing to listen to Britain during the conflict in Iraq.

Thought for the day:
All power corrupts, but we need the electricity. -unknown