A few days ago, I read this article “Spies ‘infiltrate US power grid’ “, and I thought, “Wow, that’s hardly a surprise,” but I blew it off. I disregarded it-not because Michael Jackson’s funeral was on TV, or because I was preparing/partying/recovering from 3 days of straight BBQ party for the Fourth of July. No, I blew it off because we all suspected this kind of thing was always happening, always possible, and it’s like the threat of nuclear war: awful, not something one wants to think about, and we kind of already know the consequences.

Today, multiple papers are reporting a combined attack, and this time…it IS an outright attack on the United States-not a mere probe.
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While countries struggle, muddling their way through stimulus packages and bailouts, China is being touted as everything from, “the best current place to invest,” to being, “the engine that will pull the globe out of its recession.” These entreaties and prognostications are sprinkled with reminders of the power it wields over America, given the huge dollar reserves that it holds. If I may quote Tony Soprano, “forget about it.”

China has asked rather politely, that the U.S. maintain its creditworthiness. No kidding? That plea was less a wish that the U.S. not skip town on its debt (devalue the dollar dramatically), than it was a declaration of a deep desire for a return to excessive U.S. borrowing. When the U.S. borrowed, it bought. When it bought, China prospered. This is rather basic, however, what is not so evident, or obvious to many pundits and experts, it seems, is the fact that China became inebriated through the glory days of consumerism. China now suffers the consequences of its acquiescence to a surety that the intoxicating euphoria enjoyed around the globe for a generation, would never end.

China understood that to become America’s principal provider of goods, it had to manufacture less expensively than anyone else. China excelled at squeezing productivity out of its labor force. It rapidly implemented a sweeping expansion of the necessary infrastructure to manufacture products faster, better (sometimes), and cheaper (always). New plants sprouted at an unprecedented rate. China’s expansion of its machine was based on an enormous assumption – the rate of growth it was enjoying through exports would continue unabated. It is now shutting down plants faster than it opened them. The capacity that was preparing for demand twenty years out, is now shutting down, and the Chinese are not about to ramp up their own consumption to energize reopening of the plants. While China has become a major manufacturer, the majority of its manufacturing is for, and on behalf of foreigners, selling established brands. China’s authoritarian “system” has made the creation and recognition of its own brands, all but impossible. Read the rest of this entry »

The farce known as the Obama administration is now trying to bribe a tourist destination to take the 17 al-Qaeda Uighers currently being detained at Gitmo.

Just when you thought they couldn’t do anything more idiotic, they prove us wrong:

The Obama administration is nearing agreement with the remote South Pacific island nation of Palau to resettle a group of Chinese Muslims now held at the Guantanamo Bay detention center, The Associated Press has learned.

As they attempt to fulfill President Barack Obama’s order to close the Guantanamo facility by early next year, administration officials are looking to Palau to accept some or all of the 17 Uighur detainees due to fierce congressional opposition to releasing them on U.S. soil, officials said.

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Asked Tuesday about discussions with Palau on the Uighurs, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly declined to comment beyond saying the United States is “working closely with our friends and allies regarding resettlement” of detainees at Guantanamo. He said the department would not comment on talks with individual countries.

Two of the officials said the United States was prepared to give Palau up to $200 million in development, budget support and other assistance in return for accepting the Uighurs and as part of a mutual defense and cooperation treaty that is due to be renegotiated this year.

Hmmmm, almost sounds like a threat to me. Take the AQ members or we defend you no more. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m sure many of you remember this ad Obama put out in response to the 3am Clinton ad:

Well, as Mike wrote about earlier we can see how well that “good” judgment has worked out so far:

North Korea announced Monday that it successfully carried out a second underground nuclear test, less than two months after launching a rocket widely believed to be a test of its long-range missile technology.

John Bolton predicted this a few days ago:

The curtain is about to rise again on the long-running nuclear tragicomedy, “North Korea Outwits the United States.” Despite Kim Jong Il’s explicit threats of another nuclear test, U.S. Special Envoy Stephen Bosworth said last week that the Obama administration is “relatively relaxed” and that “there is not a sense of crisis.” They’re certainly smiling in Pyongyang.

And what does Obama do? Read the rest of this entry »

Resolution 1718 at the UN states:

“2. Demands that the DPRK not conduct any further nuclear test or launch of a ballistic missile;”

But they went ahead and launched a missile anyways and what does the UN do? The same crap they did with Saddam….talk talk talk talk and more talk….and then nada, zip, zilch. NOTHING!

An emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council concluded Sunday without an official reaction to North Korea ignoring repeated international warnings and launching a long-range rocket, the council president told reporters.

“Consultations will go on among members to see what is the appropriate position that the council will take,” said Claude Heller, the current Security Council president, and Mexico’s U.N. ambassador. When the council would reconvene wasn’t clear, but Heller said it would be “as soon as possible.”

“I think that there is a very strong call for dialogue, to reconvene, and I think there is consensus in saying that the Security Council regretted the government of [North Korea] disregarded the call by [the] international community to suspend the launching,” he said.

What does Obama want to do? Well, after some tough talk: Read the rest of this entry »

As Hillary cozies up to China on behalf of her boss, Obama, in order to keep the currency flowing into the US, the Chinese themselves have been emboldened in aggression. That is if you can consider Chinese vessels harassing an unarmed US surveillance ship, manned by a hefty crew of civilians, “emboldened”. Cowardly is the first description that pops into my mind… schoolyard bully stuff.

The Chinese vessels involved were one Navy intelligence collection ship, a Bureau of Maritime Fisheries Patrol Vessel, a State Oceanographic Administration patrol vessel ,and two small Chinese-flagged trawlers.

The Pentagon reports that five Chinese vessels stalked the USNS Impeccable while in international waters… approaching within 25-50 feet of the ships hull, moving into it’s path, attempting to snag the LF sonar equiment, and throwing debris into the water.

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