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Howard Fineman spoke with all the confidence of a pundit with an attitude. I never interviewed the guy in 1987 or at any time in 1993, and I have never seen him, in public or private, look less convincing, yet more sure of himself, more cocky. With his smarmy pronouncements and overbearing certitude, he looked, well, foolish. Not surprising since what he was doing in Newsweek was spinning his take on what he wanted to hear.

Hot Air has the video. Judge for yourself. Fineman may be a wordsmith, but he really isn't a good judge of facial expression. Did Bush look serious? Yup. Scared? Not even close. The office of the President of the United States wreaks havoc on the office holder and they age - a lot - during their tenure. Bush, like a lot of people before him, is showing that stress of holding that office.

Live From Baghdad

It's not Saturday Night. But it is Hot Air.

In our short time here we have talked with privates, NCOs and officers across a spectrum of duties and assignments on several bases performing a range of missions, and while that certainly doesn’t make us newly minted experts on the situation here it has given us a broader perspective on the war here and how it is truly progressing. Several themes have emerged that, while they may not represent the absolute story on given issues, certainly point to a general consensus on the status of the war among those who are here on the front lines fighting it. Our troops are motivated and dedicated like no other group of people I have ever seen. More than any politician, journalist or blogger, our troops understand the history and cultural forces swirling in Iraq that make it such an incredibly challenging environment. They are bringing that knowledge to the struggle every day, and while their efforts may not always result in perfect outcomes, no one should doubt their devotion to winning the war here in all of its dimensions.

That was never a doubt in my mind. It is the will of some of the people back home that is the real problem.

Surge

Having now read the speech, which I was not able to watch for a very good reason, I really think it did a good job of describing the situation and, more importantly, the consequences of failure. There were some bits I thought quite strong, others less so. Overall probably a B+. Things I thought were well put:

The situation in Iraq is unacceptable to the American people — and it is unacceptable to me. Our troops in Iraq have fought bravely. They have done everything we have asked them to do. Where mistakes have been made, the responsibility rests with me. ….

Our past efforts to secure Baghdad failed for two principal reasons: There were not enough Iraqi and American troops to secure neighborhoods that had been cleared of terrorists and insurgents. And there were too many restrictions on the troops we did have. Our military commanders reviewed the new Iraqi plan to ensure that it addressed these mistakes. They report that it does. They also report that this plan can work. …..

I've made it clear to the Prime Minister and Iraq's other leaders that America's commitment is not open-ended. If the Iraqi government does not follow through on its promises, it will lose the support of the American people — and it will lose the support of the Iraqi people. Now is the time to act. The Prime Minister understands this. Here is what he told his people just last week: "The Baghdad security plan will not provide a safe haven for any outlaws, regardless of [their] sectarian or political affiliation." ……

As we make these changes, we will continue to pursue al Qaeda and foreign fighters. Al Qaeda is still active in Iraq. Its home base is Anbar Province. Al Qaeda has helped make Anbar the most violent area of Iraq outside the capital. A captured al Qaeda document describes the terrorists' plan to infiltrate and seize control of the province. This would bring al Qaeda closer to its goals of taking down Iraq's democracy, building a radical Islamic empire, and launching new attacks on the United States at home and abroad. ……

We're also taking other steps to bolster the security of Iraq and protect American interests in the Middle East. I recently ordered the deployment of an additional carrier strike group to the region. We will expand intelligence-sharing and deploy Patriot air defense systems to reassure our friends and allies. We will work with the governments of Turkey and Iraq to help them resolve problems along their border. And we will work with others to prevent Iran from gaining nuclear weapons and dominating the region. …..

Victory will not look like the ones our fathers and grandfathers achieved. There will be no surrender ceremony on the deck of a battleship. But victory in Iraq will bring something new in the Arab world — a functioning democracy that polices its territory, upholds the rule of law, respects fundamental human liberties, and answers to its people. A democratic Iraq will not be perfect. But it will be a country that fights terrorists instead of harboring them — and it will help bring a future of peace and security for our children and our grandchildren.

The President has acted in his capacity as Commander in Chief, one of his primary constitutional responsibilities. Frankly, he also short-circuited a vote by the opposition against the plan, here. They can vote against this and look like defeatists, even in a "symbolic" vote, or they can support the goal of American victory in this war we are all in. They cannot have it both ways with a vote this time. The last line is the most important, I think.

….it will help bring a future of peace and security for our children and our grandchildren.

That is a very tough thing to vote against and the Democrats have got to consider that. Other than Teddy Kennedy, of course. He's got a history of leaving people to die. And getting away with it.

UPDATE: Nope, apparently not at all hard for more than Ted. Bad move politically, I think.

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Do You Feel Like You’re being watched?

Have you got that creepy feeling that you are being watched all the time? Are you feeling that tingle down your spine like when you bite down on a Popsicle stick? Are you afraid that maybe you're going paranoid? Well, you may not be. That feeling may be all too real.

The change in your pocket could be keeping an eye on you.

WASHINGTON - Can the coins jingling in your pocket trace your movements? The Defense Department is warning its American contractor employees about a new espionage threat seemingly straight from Hollywood: It discovered Canadian coins with tiny radio frequency transmitters hidden inside.

In a U.S. government report, it said the mysterious coins were found planted on U.S. contractors with classified security clearances on at least three separate occasions between October 2005 and January 2006 as the contractors traveled through Canada.

The U.S. report doesn't suggest who might be tracking American defense contractors or why. It also doesn't describe how the Pentagon discovered the ruse, how the transmitters might function or even which Canadian currency contained them.

Further details were secret, according to the U.S. Defense Security Service, which issued the warning to the Pentagon's classified contractors. The government insists the incidents happened, and the risk was genuine.

"What's in the report is true," said Martha Deutscher, a spokeswoman for the security service. "This is indeed a sanitized version, which leaves a lot of questions."

Top suspects, according to intelligence and technology experts: China, Russia or even France — all said to actively run espionage operations inside Canada with enough sophistication to produce such technology.

We here at Blue Crab Boulevard recommend you do what we do. Beat all of the change you receive with a hammer. Oh sure, it's a felony to deface US currency, but isn't it better to be guilty of a crime than to have someone watching your every move. Ok, if that's too extreme, then just look for a coin that looks something like this:

We avoid these whenever we find them. About five times a week. Cue Popsicle sticks.

UPDATE: A brandy new animated version is now posted right here. We really do need to look into getting a life.

Break Every Rule

Sorry, I have not one single bit of sympathy for this guy at all. Former Democratic candidate for the House of Representatives from Ohio, Paul Hackett, chased down the car that had hit a fence on Hackett's property. He then ordered the men out of their car and to lie down on the ground.

He just happened to have a loaded AR-15 with him at the time.

The incident happened around 4:30 a.m. Nov. 19. Police were called to Hackett's Indian Hill house after Fee failed to make a curve and ran into a fence at the home on Given Road, according to the police report.

When White arrived at the house, Hackett's wife, Suzi, told him that her husband had called her to say he had stopped the men on Keller Road.

White called for backup. He arrived at a driveway in the 8700 block of Keller Road to find the three men lying face down near their small, black car and Hackett's pickup truck. With a flashlight, White saw a strap on Hackett's right shoulder and "what appeared to be an assault rifle hanging along his right side," White's report said.

White told Hackett to put away the rifle and "not take things into his own hands."

Fee was the only person charged. He is scheduled to plead to the charges Jan. 24, according to court records.

During the investigation, Hackett told police Nov. 30 that he was carrying an AR-15. He said one round was in the chamber and that he usually has 28 rounds in the magazine. He also told police that he did not point the weapon at the three men, the safety was on and he never put his finger on the trigger.

Hackett said he had followed a trail of fluid left by the car, and the vehicle stopped in a driveway. Hackett told police that he hopped out of his truck and that he was armed.

"He told the boys to 'Get the —- out of the car and get on the ground.' … He said he did not touch the vehicle with the rifle and maintained his distance. 'I knew they saw I was armed,' he said. He said he had done this about 200 times in Iraq, but this time there was not a translation problem," the Indian Hill police report said.

Moore said Hackett was woken up by "criminal activity" and "took affirmative action to protect his wife and family from an unknown disturbance at his house." He then "attempted to bring the perpetrators to justice who had fled from the scene," according to Moore.

Hackett is upset that word has leaked out that a grand jury is looking at his actions. Let me put this quite clearly. Hackett deserves to be prosecuted for his actions. Period. Longtime readers know that I am legally licensed to carry a concealed weapon. If I did exactly what Hackett did in my state - which, I think - has more liberal firearms laws than Ohio, I would no longer have that permit and would be facing criminal charges. The law is very, very clear on this. If I provoke a confrontation (which chasing someone down and ordering them out of a car would be a classic example of) I am absolutely, and criminally, at fault under state law. Ohio allows the use of a firearm to counter deadly force. Hitting one's fence does not meet that standard.

Following them and getting a license number, fine. Menacing them with a loaded rifle, not in the least acceptable. (I have no idea if Ohio has a "menacing" law, but under that kind of statute, even showing a gun to imply a threat, loaded or not, is criminal.)

New Strategy

The White House has posted a fact sheet of the main points of the President's new way forward in Iraq. Will it work? We can't afford to lose, so it has to.

The President's New Iraq Strategy Is Rooted In Six Fundamental Elements:

1. Let the Iraqis lead;
2. Help Iraqis protect the population;
3. Isolate extremists;
4. Create space for political progress;
5. Diversify political and economic efforts; and
6. Situate the strategy in a regional approach.

• Iraq Could Not Be Graver – The War On Terror Cannot Be Won If We Fail In Iraq.  Our enemies throughout the Middle East are trying to defeat us in Iraq.  If we step back now, the problems in Iraq will become more lethal, and make our troops fight an uglier battle than we are seeing today.

Which exactly mirrors something that was said just yesterday in Lebanon. There is quite a lot more than just the quick summary. There are requirements for both the Iraqi government and for coalition forces.

UPDATE: Full text of the speech.

“America Cannot Afford To Fail.”

The words of a senior administration official talking about the contents of President Bush's speech tonight. One of the things I think the administration has done very badly is to communicate the need to succeed in Iraq.

According to a senior administration official speaking on background ahead of the president's speech, Bush will say that the hopes of 2005 were dashed in 2006 by sectarian violence that overwhelmed the Iraqi political process. He will call the situation in Iraq unacceptable to the American people and to him and admit the current strategy is not working.

Two things are clear, said the official — no silver bullet will fix the problems in Iraq and America cannot afford to fail.

The official said 80 percent of the sectarian violence is occurring within a 30-mile radius of Baghdad so getting the capital city under control is job one. This will be achieved through better, more complete operations, adequate resourcing that includes an Iraqi component and changing the rules of engagement to allow Iraqi and U.S. forces to "deal with" militias or whoever stands in the way of progress.

The troop surge will begin with the movement of paratroopers from the 2nd Brigade of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division now stationed in Kuwait from Fort Bragg, N.C. Much of the expected increase would come from speeding up the timetable for some forces already scheduled to deploy, and keeping others there who were about to leave.

Bush will send 17,500 additional troops to Baghdad, with the first brigade, generally 3,500-4,000 forces, to arrive on Jan. 15, the next brigade on Feb. 15 and the rest every 30 days. Another 4,000 Marines will be sent to al Anbar province in two waves to help Iraqis go after Al Qaeda and establish local control in Sunni areas. The Iraqis will have a total of nine brigades of security forces.

Routine operating procedure for the left wing commenters who flap in here to berate me is to call Iraq, "My war". To accuse me of blindly following Bush in this. They are, of course and as usual, completely wrong. This is our war, All of America's war. Once you are in a war you have to win it or lose it. It is no longer time to argue about the reasons for going to war. It is no longer time to scream and point fingers and accuse everyone you disagree with of having evil intent. It is time to win the war. Or lose it. I do not want America to lose this.

Right now the fanatics in Iraq - backed primarily by Iran - are winning the information war with the active assistance of American and Western media. They are partners in a mutually beneficial spiral of death. The left is following their own agenda here and want America to lose this war. They can dress it up anyway they want and try to call it something else, but they want the US to lose. And withdraw. And they simply do not care how many die as a result of that retreat.

I have a very personal stake in this unlike the vast majority of the people coming here to berate me. And it is not even primarily that my oldest boy is serving his second tour in Iraq as important as that is, believe it or not. It is because I have an eleven year old son and a fourteen year old daughter.

And I do not want them having to go fight the next war that will happen - with absolute certainty - if we lose this one.

Move It, Liz, That’s My Palace

Were you wrongly deprived of your family business? Did ruthless foreign competition eliminate your position? If you think so, English Heritage wants to hear from you. They're looking for the heirs of Edgar Aetheling.

Advertisements appearing this week in British, U.S., Australian, German and Norwegian newspapers will ask "Can you trace your family tree back to 1066? Might your ancestors have claimed the English throne?"

Edgar Aetheling was named heir apparent by his great-uncle King Edward the Confessor but was not crowned when the King died in 1066 because he was too young. Harold II was crowned instead.

William the Conqueror crossed over from Normandy, defeating Harold at the Battle of Hastings. The teenage Aetheling later submitted to William.

English Heritage, which seeks to protect the country's historical environment, asks in its advertisements: "Are you of Edgar the Aetheling's lineage and believe you have a legitimate claim?"

Lawyers from Dewey, Cheatem and Howe will call shortly after you submit your claim. You can bet someone will try it. (Great site about Hastings here. English Heritage website here. Dr. Gaius' Discount Genealogical Claims Service, opening as soon as the ink dries!)

She’s Leaving Home

Wednesday morning at five o'clock as
the day begins
Silently closing her bedroom door
Leaving the note that she hoped would
say more
She goes downstairs to the kitchen
clutching her handkerchief
Quietly turning the backdoor key
Stepping outside she is free.
(Lennon/McCartney, She's Leaving Home)

Maria Milz had just plain had enough of her new residence, so she moved out. It was boring there, the staff was rude and it was full of awful gray-haired old people. She can't abide old people. Perfectly understandable at her age.

Maria Milz is 100 years old.

"It was full of old people with grey hair," Maria Milz, 100, from Blankenheim in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia told the Koelner Express newspaper.

"On top of it all, I am a night owl. So in the mornings the carers would tell me that I still had sleep in my eyes. Who do they think they are?" she demanded.

"I packed my bags and moved back home."

I LIKE her!  

Crazed Connecticut ‘Coon Cuts Loose

The Raccoon overlords of the Animal Uprising™ have unleashed their disease-infested minions on the unsuspecting citizens of Connecticut. The murderous, rabid beasts are attacking innocent people trying to enjoy a quiet evening out on the porch. Fortunately, the residents of Connecticut are well trained in the art of lawn chair-to-raccoon combat.

As (Beverly) Lanouette enjoyed the evening at her Candlewood Drive home, a 40-pound raccoon crept up the porch's back steps and crawled underneath her chair.
She didn't notice the critter until it attacked, latching its jaws onto her right shin. Its teeth ripped through her corduroy pants.
Startled, she pulled her leg to see what was biting her.
"There was a raccoon stuck to my leg, and he was pretty big," she said today. "He was growling."
Lanouette, 48, grabbed a patio chair and used it to knock the raccoon away. It remained on the deck, staring down the women.
"I knew I had to get it off the porch," Lanouette said.
She clobbered it again with the chair, knocking it off the deck.
Then Lanouette and her 21-year-old daughter, Denise, fled inside. The raccoon pursued them. It began scratching at the back door.
They called the police, but didn't want the animal to escape before help arrived.

The brave patio furniture commandos of Connecticut chased the evil beast down and felled it with a shovel. Unfortunately, Lanouette has to undergo a full series of rabies shots, but is stoic about it. A fitting response for a fearless lawn chair warrior.

UPDATE: From the comments section, Quilly Mammoth points us to this terrifying story. It seems that Serbian suicide swine are on the loose! And they are highly flammable.

BELGRADE, Serbia - A farmer's home in northern Serbia was destroyed in a blaze caused by three pigs that broke out of their pen, walked into the living room and knocked over the TV, police said Wednesday.

The television tube burst, starting a fire that spread through the house late Monday in Temerin, 50 miles, northwest of Belgrade, local police said.

The authorities are covering up the facts, of course. The pigs were trying to off the farmer.

More About Australia’s Surrender

We were the first to bring the sad news that Australia had surrendered to the Animal Uprising™. Part of the surrender terms included putting people on display at the Adelaide Zoo. Another portion of the agreement apparently involves Australia setting up a penguin dating service.

The Fiordland Crested Penguin, also known as Groucho Marx penguins because of their distinctive bushy eyebrows, is one of the world's most endangered penguin species and is usually found in the frigid sub-Antarctic waters off southern New Zealand.

The male penguin was found at Norah Head, a sleepy beachside hamlet about 80 km (50 miles) north of Sydney, last November, exhausted and suffering respiratory problems after his trans-Tasman trek.

The penguin nick-named "Munroe" was taken to Sydney's Taronga Zoo, where he is now the only male of his species in captivity in the world.

Restored to ruddy good health after medical checks and a steady diet of pilchards, Munroe will soon be introduced to the zoo's other fiordland penguins "Chalky" and Milford", the only two females in captivity, and get down to the job at hand.

We are, of course, suitably appalled. Apparently Munroe has been making love calls to Chalky and Milford. The article describes the sound as a "cross between a grunting pig and a goose with a cold." We'd like to go on record as stating that it sounds precisely like a recalcitrant chainsaw that just will not start. But we digress. This is a complete surrender to the dark forces of the Animal Uprising™. Groucho would be very angry.

Gotcha

CNN Reports that a Somali official has confirmed that a wanted senior al Qaeda official was killed by the US AC-130 airstrike on Sunday. Fazul Abdullah Mohammed was wanted in connection with the 1998 bombings of two US embassies. The Somali government has also asked for American troops support on the ground.

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — A senior al Qaeda suspect wanted for bombing U.S. embassies in East Africa has been killed, a Somali official said Wednesday as witnesses said U.S forces launched a third day of airstrikes.

Also Wednesday, Somalia's Deputy Prime Minister said American troops were needed on the ground to root extremists from his troubled country, and he expected the troops soon.

The death of al Qaeda suspect Fazul Abdullah Mohammed was detailed in an American intelligence report passed on to the Somali authorities. Mohammed, one of the FBI's most wanted terrorists who has evaded capture for eight years, was allegedly harbored by a Somali Islamic movement that had challenged this country's Ethiopian-backed government for power.

"I have received a report from the American side chronicling the targets and list of damage," Abdirizak Hassan, the Somali president's chief of staff, said. "One of the items they were claiming was that Fazul Abdullah Mohammed is dead."

One wonders if he was the bride or the groom.

UPDATE: It appears that the strike did NOT get Fazul. Dang.

Romney Has Backbone

Mitt Romney has come out with a very succinct statement of support for winning in Iraq. Score one for the former governor of Massachusetts.

Boston, MA – Governor Mitt Romney, in direct consideration of the proposed increase in troop deployments in Iraq, issued the following statement today putting an emphasis on the need for clear and measurable strategic objectives.

"I agree with the President: Our strategy in Iraq must change. Our military mission, for the first time, must include securing the civilian population from violence and terror. It is impossible to defeat the insurgency without first providing security for the Iraqi people. Civilian security is the precondition for any political and economic reconstruction.

"In consultation with Generals, military experts and troops who have served on the ground in Iraq, I believe securing Iraqi civilians requires additional troops. I support adding five brigades in Baghdad and two regiments in Al-Anbar province. Success will require rapid deployment.

"This effort should be combined with clear objectives and milestones for U.S. and Iraqi leaders.

"The road ahead will be difficult but success is still possible in Iraq. I believe it is in America's national security interest to achieve it."

Yes it is in America's interest. The Democratic party leadership actually understands that, despite the histrionic posturing of the big wind of Nantucket, Ted Kennedy.

Big Lies, Big Losses

Michael Goodwin writes in today's New York Daily News about what is and is not a mandate:

Even a blatant lie, if repeated often and loudly, can be mistaken for the truth. So it is with the claim that the results of November's election amounted to a public demand to bring our troops home from Iraq.

No matter how loud that claim is made, it is not even close to true. The election results were a vote against our bloody failure in Iraq. They were a demand for success.

Withdrawal, for those keeping honest score, was not the policy of the Democratic Party. Very few of its candidates advocated withdrawal. Even Sen. Chuck Schumer, who orchestrated the Dem Senate takeover, told me in November, "I'd say 65% of the vote was a rejection of Bush's stay-the-course plan and 35% were voting to take a chance on Democrats."

Or, as columnist Charles Krauthammer noted, Democrats didn't get a mandate on Iraq because they didn't run on anything except being anti-Bush. To get a mandate, you have to run "for" something.

Those are the facts, and they are the backdrop to President Bush's crucial speech tonight on Iraq…..

It really needs to be read in full. Goodwin is actually not at all optimistic about Iraq, but he believes that the chance to get it right must be taken. He is also honest about the chances for success. If you believe the exit polls from the election, most people voted against corruption or over economic issues. Despite the left's assertions, the Democrats were not given a mandate to lose a war. Their leadership understands that even if the likes of Ted Kennedy do not. But then Ted knows more than a little about abandoning people to die.

It really needs to be read in full. Goodwin is actually not at all optimistic about Iraq, but he believes that the chance to get it right must be taken. He is also honest about the chances for success. If you believe the exit polls from the election, most people voted against corruption or over economic issues. Despite the left's assertions, the Democrats were not given a mandate to lose a war. Their leadership understands that even if the likes of Ted Kennedy do not. But then Ted knows more than a little about abandoning people to die.

(T)Hugo Chavez And The Great Leap Backward

The Washington Post takes note of the announcement by (T)Hugo Chavez that he would nationalize the telecommunications and electricity sectors of the economy. It is a grim assessment of what is to come for the people of Venezuela. 

The flurry of activity has provoked understandable qualms among Latin America's democratic leaders, some of whom have bent over backward until now to give Mr. Chávez the benefit of the doubt. Jose Miguel Insulza, the Chilean who was elected secretary general of the Organization of American States with Venezuelan support, issued a statement last week saying Mr. Chávez's promise to revoke the license of RCTV "gives the appearance of a form of censorship against free expression" and "has no precedent in the recent decades of [Latin] democracy." The unfailingly vulgar president responded by publicly calling the OAS leader " pendejo," a Spanish word that could be translated as "idiot" but is not nearly so polite.

Some will see in Mr. Chávez's actions a threat to U.S. interests. Certainly, those who caution that it is unwise to count on Venezuela to continue supplying up to 15 percent of U.S. oil imports have a point. If assets of U.S. companies are seized without fair compensation, Venezuela should be subject to penalties. But the main threat posed by Mr. Chávez is to Venezuela's 26 million people. If he follows through on his threats, they can look forward to steadily diminishing freedom and — if the history of socialism is any guide — national impoverishment.

The New York Times notes the immediate - and very real - consequences of (T)Hugo's excellent adventure:

Investors reacted with alarm here and in markets in the United States and throughout Latin America on Tuesday as they measured the impact of the plan by Mr. Chávez to nationalize crucial areas of the economy. Memories of past nationalizations during another turbulent era, in places like Cuba and Chile, helped drive down the Caracas stock exchange’s main index by almost 19 percent.

Markets across Latin America declined Tuesday, but the drop was modest in most other countries, with the Bovespa index in Brazil and the Bolsa index of Mexico each falling 1.9 percent. The measured reaction appears to reflect the belief of investors that Mr. Chávez, in spite of his words, has limited influence on the economic policies of other governments in the region.

The good news is that if the price of oil continues to decline, (T)Hugo will be in in a very bad economic position very rapidly. The fact that other Latin American nations are ignoring him to a great extent shows that he is nowhere near the legend he is in his own mind.