Archive for February, 2011

The Cosmo-SkyMed satellites, operated by the Italian space agency, have acquired the first images of the Italian oil tanker Savina Caylyn since it was hijacked earlier this week by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean. According to the satellite radar images, acquired by Italian space agency (ASI) and e-GEOS on Wednesday afternoon and early Thursday [...]

Chinese national news agency warns of Egypt “chaos” after uprising; urges military, gov’t, citizens to maintain stability China’s state-controlled media downplayed the news of Egypt’s popular uprising that toppled its president, with some outlets carrying only brief items and one editorial warning Saturday that the country could fall into “chaos.” The editorial also said that [...]

Obama Energy Secretary Steven Chu has launched the next phase of the White House’s publicly stated agenda to bankrupt the coal industry via EPA regulations after announcing the prospect of “massive” coal plant closures even as Texas and other states suffer rolling blackouts as a result of maxed-out power plants that cannot cope with demand. [...]

In spite of radar, helicopters and infared cameras, the fight to protect the U.S. border often comes down to a simple footrace. U.S. Border Patrol Agent Eric Cantu has learned to take away the shoes of those he catches before going after more. He says the situation on the border has gotten better, citing a [...]

NASA scientists and their colleagues are now proposing corporate financing for a human mission to Mars. This raises the prospect that a spaceship named the Microsoft Explorer or the Google Search Engine could one day go down in history as the first spaceship to bring humans to the Red Planet. The proposal suggests that companies [...]

Marijuana users sometimes report that pot enhances their desire for sex. But a new review of research on marijuana and sexual health suggests that male smokers could be courting sexual dysfunction. Research on the topic is contradictory and few studies are high-quality, said study researcher Rany Shamloul, a physician with appointments at the University of [...]

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and his family have left Cairo for the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, proving he is giving up his presidential powers, a ruling party official said on Friday. Protesters seeking Mubarak’s overthrow moved overnight to the Ittihadiya presidential palace in the Cairo suburb of Heliopolis for the first time since [...]

The Department of Homeland Security on Friday criticized Arizona’s countersuit against the federal government over border enforcement as “a meritless court claim” which “does nothing to secure the border.” “Smart strategies, dedicated law enforcement personnel, and strategic partnerships with state, local and tribal governments and agencies do,” DHS spokesman Matt Chandler said in a statement. [...]

From the moment Donald Trump wheeled into CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) with his entourage, attendees were buzzing about his arrival and pushing to get in the room where he was speaking. Other attendees stopped what they were doing and crowded around conference hall video screens to watch. “These are my people!,” Trump stated as [...]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The man convicted of killing Washington intern Chandra Levy nearly a decade ago was sentenced Friday to 60 years in prison. In November, a jury convicted Ingmar Guandique of first-degree murder in Levy’s 2001 disappearance and death, despite a lack of witnesses and no DNA evidence linking him to the crime. Levy’s [...]

PHOENIX — Arizona is suing the U.S. government, claiming the feds have failed to secure the border and protect the state from “an invasion” of illegal immigrants. Gov. Jan Brewer said the intent of the lawsuit is to force the federal government to protect Arizonans. “The first and foremost issue we’re facing right now is [...]

JERUSALEM – In partnership with a government fund initiated by Barack Obama, philanthropist and billionaire activist George Soros is investing in a private equity company that just launched in the Palestinian territories. The company, Siraj Fund Management Company, says it was created “for the sole purpose of managing investment funds in Palestine.” The new company’s [...]

BERLIN | The Swiss are set to vote Sunday on a referendum that would limit the right to bear arms and upend centuries of tradition of civilians keeping military weapons at home in Europe’s most gun-friendly nation. If approved, the referendum would force military reservists to store their government-issued weapons in secure public arsenals. It [...]

WASHINGTON—The defiant tone taken by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak—and widespread confusion about the meaning of his speech—had White House officials stumbling for their next step in a crisis that was spinning out of their control. Egyptian officials said Mr. Mubarak gave the Obama administration much of what it wanted: the delegation of presidential powers to [...]

“The Speech” delivered by Barack Obama may have been intended to strengthen ties with the Muslim community, but it also served to add another chapter to Obama’s troubling history with the world’s oldest international terrorist organization – the Muslim Brotherhood. The Islamic revivalist movement Muslim Brotherhood (MB), founded in 1928 by the Egyptian schoolteacher Hassan [...]

The Obama administration took the rare step Thursday of correcting its own intelligence chief after the official claimed Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood is “largely secular.” Director of National Intelligence James Clapper discussed the Islamist group during a hearing on Capitol Hill earlier Thursday. He testified that the organization has “pursued social ends” and a “betterment of [...]

National Intelligence Director James Clapper’s bid to defuse frustration on Capitol Hill over the intelligence community’s performance during the Mideast upheaval appeared to backfire Thursday, when his description of Egypt’s extremist Muslim Brotherhood as a “largely secular” group that has “eschewed violence” sparked outrage. That characterization by the No. 1 U.S. intelligence official triggered an [...]

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said Thursday he has passed authority to Vice President Omar Suleiman, but will not step down before September elections. The move, announced in a nationally-televised address, means he will retain his title of president and ensures the regime will continue to control the reform process. The announcement was not what thousands [...]

CAIRO – President Hosni Mubarak will meet the demands of protesters, military and ruling party officials said Thursday in the strongest indication yet that Egypt’s longtime president may be about to give up power and that the armed forces were seizing control. Gen. Hassan al-Roueini, military commander for the Cairo area, told thousands of protesters [...]

This State Department cable out of Wikileaks caught my eye. 51 FBI agents and 10 DEA “liaison officers” were murdered in Mexico between 2007-09. When we talk about American law enforcement in Mexico, we generally view the Americans as not being part of the game; for the most part, this has held true since the [...]