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Buying into 'the petroleum for the next century' ROB CARRICK Friday, June 13, 2008 Looking to jump into an investment in a scarce resource with lots of upside potential? There's a clear case to be made for water. Oil and gas, metals and fertilizers and food are still going strong, while investors have only recently started to talk about water. And yet, water has much the same imbalance between supply and demand as traditional resources. The investment dealer Goldman Sachs recently described water as the “the petroleum for the next century.” Mutual funds and exchange-traded funds focusing on water have...

After Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton holed up in Sen. Dianne Feinstein's living room last week for a private tete-a-tete, speculation mushroomed as to what Obama might be offering his former rival. Pundits cited all the possibilities: the vice presidency, a spot in the Cabinet, Senate majority leader and -- yes -- appointment to the Supreme Court. Is it possible that Obama might adopt Dwight Eisenhower's 1952 strategy for dealing with a contentious political rival? California Gov. Earl Warren had run for president three times and saw himself in line for the Republican presidential nomination in '52, but the...

Granny was the first to go. Then Uncle Jeremiah, and now the whole darn Church. Considering her, shall we say, somewhat wacky statements, is the beautiful Michelle Obama the next to be thrown under the bus in the Messiah's unflagging quest for the White House? If so, how would he do it?

Next 9/11 to come from Fata: US general By Anwar Iqbal WASHINGTON, May 22: A top American general on Thursday endorsed a US intelligence assessment that the next 9/11-type attack on the US soil would come from Al Qaeda bases in Pakistan’s tribal region but urged the United States to increase its security assistance to the country to help it deal with the threat. Gen David Petraeus, a top US military commander nominated to lead the Central Command, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that Pakistan would be the first country he would visit, if confirmed, to assess its desire...

After 16 years, the Clinton era may be coming to an end, presenting Democrats with a historic but potentially wrenching transition and a challenge to Senator Barack Obama as he seeks to reconcile a deeply divided party. Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton have been at the heart of the Democratic Party since Mr. Clinton steered it back to the White House in 1992, with a campaign that combined a moderate appeal with the hard-edged political tactics that had once been the province of Republicans. Mrs. Clinton seemed poised last year to lead Democrats into the general election campaign if not...

The drawn out Democratic presidential race is producing "negative dividends in terms of strife within the party," said a key Senate supporter of Sen. Hillary Clinton's White House bid. A day after the Indiana and North Carolina primaries bolstered Sen. Barack Obama's candidacy, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California and a superdelegate, said she wants to talk to Clinton to "see what her view is on the rest of the race. What the strategy is." Feinstein, who described herself as "very loyal" to Clinton, said "the question comes whether she can get the delegates that she needs and I'd like to know...

Source: U.S. Strike on Iran Nearing April 14, 2008 By: Jim Meyers Contrary to some claims that the Bush administration will allow diplomacy to handle Iran’s nuclear weapons program, a leading member of America’s Jewish community tells Newsmax that a military strike is not only on the table – but likely. “Israel is preparing for heavy casualties,” the source said, suggesting that although Israel will not take part in the strike, it is expecting to be the target of Iranian retribution. “Look at Dick Cheney’s recent trip through the Middle East as preparation for the U.S. attack,” the source said....

The neocons may yet get their war on Iran. Ever since President Nouri al-Maliki ordered the attacks in Basra on the Mahdi Army, Gen. David Petraeus has been laying the predicate for U.S. air strikes on Iran and a wider war in the Middle East. Iran, Petraeus told the Senate Armed Services Committee, has "fueled the recent violence in a particularly damaging way through its lethal support of the special groups." These "special groups" are "funded, trained, armed and directed by Iran's Quds Force with help from Lebanese Hezbollah. It was these groups that launched Iranian rockets and mortar rounds...

The hours of congressional testimony, the speeches and the press conferences this week were all, nominally, about Iraq. But another, equally explosive question - what to do about Iran - loomed over the presentations by Army Gen. David Petraeus, the American military commander in Iraq, over U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker and over U.S. strategy for the Middle East. Petraeus and Crocker, arguing that there has been progress in stabilizing Iraq since President Bush ordered a troop build-up there last year, fingered Iran's support for Shiite militias in Iraq, which they called "special groups," as the No. 1 threat...

British fear US commander is beating the drum for Iran strikes By Damien McElroy, Foreign Affairs Correspondent Last Updated: 1:53am BST 05/04/2008 British officials gave warning yesterday that America's commander in Iraq will declare that Iran is waging war against the US-backed Baghdad government. A strong statement from General David Petraeus about Iran's intervention in Iraq could set the stage for a US attack on Iranian military facilities, according to a Whitehall assessment. In closely watched testimony in Washington next week, Gen Petraeus will state that the Iranian threat has risen as Tehran has supplied and directed attacks by militia...

The Next Woodrow Wilson? by Martin Sieff Sen. Barack Obama’s Philadelphia Address was clearly crafted to stand alongside the historic documents and speeches of Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King. But in its amazing, quasi-messianic confidence in rousing and inspirational effects that an Obama presidency would have on the entire world, it instead arouses memories of a liberal Democratic president whom conservatives remember all too well -- Woodrow Wilson. The point was not lost on at least one venerable mainstream political pundit. Jim Hoagland wrote in the Washington Post, “… it is naive, or extremely self-serving, of Obama...

Next Clinton in the White House may be Chelsea By Tony Allen-Mills March 03, 2008 04:30am Article from: The Australian CHELSEA Clinton, once a gawky teenager, pictured between her parents and holding their hands as if to keep them together while having them a safe distance apart, has emerged as the family hope for dynastic succession – as Hillary's campaign falters. The 28-year-old has blossomed on Hillary's campaign, drawing admiring reviews from bloggers and senior Democrats ... and, of course, her parents. At campaign meetings on university campuses across the country, student audiences have been gasping at the confident, articulate,...

As expected, the Cuban national assembly rubber-stamped Raul Castro as his brother Fidel's replacement as dictator of the island nation. However, instead of keeping Carlos Lage in the ceremonial post of vice-president, or perhaps grooming a successor to the septuagenarian Raul, they picked a man older than Raul as his backup: Cuba's parliament named Raul Castro president on Sunday, ending nearly 50 years of rule by his brother Fidel but leaving the island's communist system unshaken. In a surprise move, officials bypassed younger candidates to name a 77-year-old revolutionary leader, Jose Ramon Machado, to Cuba's No. 2 spot — apparently...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 12, 2008 – As U.S. forces continue to pursue al Qaeda terrorists across Iraq, American and Iraqi diplomats are preparing to negotiate future relations between the two nations, senior U.S. military and diplomatic officials said today. Flanked by Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander of Multinational Force Iraq; U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan C. Crocker; and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, President Bush delivers a statement Jan. 12, 2008, during a visit to Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, before traveling to Bahrain. White House photo by Eric Draper   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. U.S. Ambassador to Iraq...

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WASHINGTON, Sept. 14, 2007 – “Getting the next part right” in Iraq is critical to America, and forthcoming steps there must capitalize on opportunities created by the troop surge, project U.S. might and show long-term commitment, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, left, and Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, conduct a press briefing at the Pentagon, Sept. 14, 2007. Defense Dept. photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jerry Morrison  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. During a briefing at the Pentagon with Marine Gen. Peter...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 13, 2007 – In addition to a drawdown of surge forces in Iraq, President Bush said tonight that he also had accepted Army Gen. David H. Petraeus’ recommendation to begin transitioning to the next phase of the U.S. strategy in Iraq in December. “As terrorists are defeated, civil society takes root, and the Iraqis assume more control over their own security, our mission in Iraq will evolve,” the president said during a televised address from the Oval Office. “Over time, our troops will shift from leading operations, to partnering with Iraqi forces, and eventually to overwatching those...

Those who have been patiently waiting for a formal campaign announcement from Sen. Fred Thompson were rewarded last night when Thompson used Jay Leno's Tonight Show to make his run for the White House official. It’s official, he’s in. Now what? Thompson chose to skip another Republican debate and some in New Hampshire were feeling a bit snubbed. The Fox News moderators opened the debate by asking the other candidates to take their free pot-shots at Thompson for that decision, but the candidates were somewhat hesitant to oblige, opting instead to offer a humorous little quip or two, to be...

Overseas newspapers and websites are abuzz with speculation and rumours as to when the US will launch an attack on Iran to destroy its military and nuclear facilities. One website reports that a crew member on a US carrier has reported that targets had been prioritised and tasked to specific aircraft, bases and missile cruisers. The website quotes the crew member as saying: "Yes. We're gong to hit Iran, big-time. Whatever political discussions are going in is window dressing and perhaps even a red herring. I see what's going on below deck here in the hangars and weapons bays. And...

After a brief interruption of his New Hampshire vacation to meet President Bush in the family compound at Kenebunkport, Maine, French President Nicolas Sarkozy came away convinced his U.S. counterpart is serious about bombing Iran's secret nuclear facilities. That's the reading as it filtered back to Europe's foreign ministries: Addressing the annual meeting of France's ambassadors to 188 countries, Mr. Sarkozy said either Iran lives up to its international obligations and relinquishes its nuclear ambitions — or it will be bombed into compliance. Mr. Sarkozy also made it clear he did not agree with the Iranian-bomb-or-bombing-of-Iran position, which reflects the...

Remember President Carter’s 1979 Malaise Speech? Americans were losing faith in the country’s future, he said. They were closing the door on America's past. President Carter wanted to turn things around. He warned that rising materialism would not “fill the emptiness of lives which have no confidence or purpose.” He said it was a crisis of American spirit. In response to this crisis, Carter wanted the authority to ration gasoline, form an “energy mobilization board,” create a bureaucracy to guarantee that we would “never use more foreign oil than we did in 1977,” set oil import quotas and develop solar...

On the grimy walls of the Ivanovo Machine Tools Factory, a declining Soviet behemoth once venerated as a model of Socialist efficiency, hangs a solitary display of safety guidelines. In a series of fading illustrations, it instructs workers how to behave in the event of a Nato nuclear attack: don your gas masks, head for the nearest shelter and dispatch messengers on horseback to warn outlying villages. Sergei Ivanov, the visiting joint first deputy prime minister of Russia, might not have seen the posters as he strode on to the factory floor, in Ivanovo, a gloomy city 220 miles north...

If al-Qaida does launch an attack inside the U.S., as the U.S. government suggests, "it will be much bigger than 9/11." This prediction of a nightmarish terror attack comes from Michael Scheuer, the retired CIA veteran who headed the agency's secret unit dedicated to capturing Osama bin Laden. In an exclusive NewsMax interview, the 22-year CIA veteran and bestselling author of "Imperial Hubris: Why the West is Losing the War on Terror," argues that while our government in Washington has talked a "good talk" about security, America remains seriously vulnerable. Despite the clear and present danger, Scheuer cites the federal...

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is down and nearly out in his quest for the GOP presidential nomination. Several factors contributed to the one-time Republican frontrunner's demise. *McCain was never a favorite of social conservatives, a key voting block within the party. In McCain's 2000 campaign much of his "straight talk" appeal lay in the fact that he took on that faction, endearing him to independents and for awhile the news media. McCain realized he'd need social conservatives if he wanted the '08 nomination and he strongly courted them this time around. The plan backfired. He appeared to be flip-flopping, still...

Nearly a decade ago, Eileen McNally caught an NPR interview with an obscure writer named J.K. Rowling. The book being discussed, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, sounded like fun, so McNally picked it up for her 9-year-old niece. "I bought it for her to read on the plane home to Buffalo," says McNally, now director of the Florida Center for the Book at the Broward County Library. "But Shannon read the entire thing standing in line at Disney World. I was flabbergasted. That's when I knew this was something special." Special, indeed. The six Harry Potter books published since...

How will al-Qa'eda strike next? By Crispin Black Last Updated: 12:01am BST 04/07/2007 The recent failed bomb plot may, in technical terms, prove to have been carried out by a "sleeper cell" composed of individuals in "deep cover", the ultimate security nightmare. A sleeper cell is one where its members, while remaining in contact with each other, are biding their time, or waiting for instructions, before they carry out their attacks. And they are in "deep cover" because each may have a profession or fictitious image that they maintain permanently until they move to attack. To work as real doctors,...

The proposed EU constitution met with defeat in 2005. As predicted (see link in article to left) supporters found a way around the democratic process. They have reintroduced a barely modified version as a treaty to avoid public referenda.In view of this development, I think readers should be aware of the research and analysis of Vladimir Bukovksy, the 64-year old former Soviet dissident who fears (as I do) that the European Union is on its way to becoming another Soviet Union. In a speech delivered in Brussels (February, 2006), Mr Bukovsky called the EU a “monster” that must be...

Symposium: Al Qaeda: What Next? By Jamie GlazovFrontPageMagazine.com | June 15, 2007American intelligence has discerned that al Qaeda is rebuilding in Pakistan’s tribal areas and that a new generation of leaders has emerged under Osama bin Laden. This ominous development raises several pertinent questions. Among them: what do we really know about al Qaeda? We had very little knowledge of the terrorist organization before 9/11; how much has our understanding of al Qaeda really changed since 9-11? What have we learned since? And how has what we learned changed our understanding of and dealing with the enemy? To discuss these...

WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney believes the US should not be pursuing a diplomatic path with Iran, and a senior aide to the vice president has been meeting with national security think tanks and consultants in Washington to "help establish the policy and political pathway to bombing Iran," Steve Clemons reported Thursday. Cheney is the person in the Bush administration who most desires a "hot conflict" with Iran and believes the administrations pursuit of diplomacy, led by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, is a mistake, Clemons reports. The Cheney aide, who has met with policy hands of the American...

The Sociopath Next Door by Martha Stout Broadway, 2005 Review by James Pratt on Dec 26th 2006 Volume: 10, Number: 52 If the statistics are correct, one person in twenty-five can be classified as a sociopath. That means that almost all of us have met at least one such person (assuming you are not one yourself). It is on the basis of this chilling fact that Martha Stout has written The Sociopath Next Door. If all of us know at least one such person, then many of us may need the advice she offers on how to handle the sociopath...

A British Army officer serving with the NATO Training Mission Iraq has been helping the Iraqi Army to train the next generation of Army officers. Colonel Jon Mulroy, who leads the NATO Training Team at the Iraqi Military Academy Al Rustamiyah (IMAR) near Baghdad, has been overseeing the training of officers who served with the former Iraqi Army. Mulroy has been helping them to reintegrate into military life as part of the new Iraqi Army. Mulroy recently had the privilege of witnessing more than 80 new officers graduate from the 3-week intensive Returning Officers' Course. Returning Officers undergo training in...

An Iraqi boy looks up to Sgt. Michael D. Grant in his house Husayba, Iraq, during Operation Rubicon. Department of Defense photo. HUSAYBA -- Marines in this western border town say that if there is no other reason why they are in Iraq it is that they are here for the kids. Stopping through during Operation Rubicon, Marines assigned to the 2nd Marine Regiment met with neighborhood kids in this small city near the border with Syria to show them there is a bright future for Iraq. With the water treatment facility in the town damaged by insurgents, the Marines...

WASHINGTON -- Fear of another terrorist attack remains real for many Americans. For people who lived in the two cities struck by the terrorists on Sept. 11, 2001 -- New York and Washington -- the fears are intensely personal and vivid. They're nervous about public transportation, take note of suspicious people and think back often to the horrors of Sept. 11, an AP-Ipsos poll found. Well over half of New Yorkers and Washingtonians are worried their communities will be attacked again. Nationwide, a third worry they will be attacked. Five years after the attacks, the terrorist threat is still evolving....

Fear of another terrorist attack remains real for many Americans. For people who lived in the two cities struck by the terrorists on Sept. 11, 2001 - New York and Washington - the fears are intensely personal and vivid. They're nervous about public transportation, take note of suspicious people and think back often to the horrors of Sept. 11, an AP-Ipsos poll found. Well over half of New Yorkers and Washingtonians are worried their communities will be attacked again. Nationwide, a third worry they will be attacked. Five years after the attacks, the terrorist threat is still evolving. Britain's foiling...

(EDITORIAL from the Korea Herald on Aug. 23) Japan's next premier About a month from now, Japan will have a new prime minister. Shinzo Abe, the present chief cabinet secretary, is expected to be elected president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party with the majority support of party lawmakers and cadre members on Sept. 19 and 20, and will be confirmed as prime minister in a perfunctory lower house vote. Seoul-Tokyo relations have been deadlocked for nearly the entire period of the Koizumi administration. This is due mainly to the premier's hard-line stance on the problems of the past, represented...

SUBDUING SYRIA is the key to managing the Lebanese crisis, to rolling back Hizbullah, and to weakening Iran and its radical Islamist influence in the Middle East. In order to attain victory in the next military engagement, Israel should target Damascus.

What will become of Cuba once Fidel Castro dies ? I suspect Cuba will be absorbed into the new,steadily growing "Bolivarian Republic" of Hugo Chavez,and that nobody but Hugo is going to like the idea.

JERUSALEM - The war in Lebanon has badly bruised the Israeli government and boosted Hezbollah's standing in the Arab world. Israel says it has made some gains — the Lebanese army, backed by international troops, is to take control of south Lebanon. But as the guns fall silent and the dust settles, an ominous question lingers over the Jewish state: Is the next Iranian-inspired war, perhaps with even more sophisticated weaponry, just around the corner? A cease-fire that took effect Monday seeks to end the 33-day conflict in which the mightiest army in the Middle East was fought to a...

TIA Daily • August 10, 2006 Five Minutes to Midnight The War Is Coming, No Matter How Hard We Try to Evade It by Robert Tracinski I have noticed a recent trend in war commentary, starting a few weeks after the beginning of the current conflict in Lebanon. The trend began with a series of analogies between recent events and the events of the 1930s, leading up to World War II. In the August 2 Washington Times, for example, Kenneth Timmerman referred to the Lebanon War as "Islamofascism's 1936." Just as the Spanish Civil War that began in that year...

8/7/2006 - RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFPN) -- They gave something that they can never get back, and a group here does its best to ensure these heroes smoothly move on to the next phase of their lives. Palace HART -- Helping Airmen Recover Together -- is a program that assists Airmen injured in operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Many of them have amputations and other handicaps. The program assists them in staying on active duty, if possible, but it also helps injured veterans transition to life in the civilian world. The program started in 2004. "Place HART...

RAWALPINDI: The former chief of ISI, Maj. Gen (R) Hameed Gul has "predicted" that America would definitely attack Iran and Syria simultaneously in October. He was talking after attending the Hamdard Majlis Shoora, Tuesday evening. He also condemned the lackluster and weak reaction of Pakistan and Islamic bloc about Israel’s attack of Lebanon. Analyzing the current war scenario he observed that war has both political and strategic factors and despite "using" Israel, America has lost the war in Lebanon, where masses have united against the recent Israeli onslaught, and would have been more formidable if the generals of Saddam had...

The U.N. Security Council on Monday delivered another threat, after its fashion, to Iran. Stop enriching uranium by Aug. 31, it declared, or we'll talk at you some more. In what has become an old story, Russia and China balked at automatically imposing economic and political sanctions if Iran failed to comply. ...The U.N.'s uselessness is also on display in Lebanon, where Hezbollah has flouted a Security Council resolution to disarm it and has been using U.N. observers as cover, with tragic results. ... Hezbollah will back down only before well-armed forces that are ready to fight, not just observe....

US nuclear weapons scientists are designing a warhead that is meant to be 'reliable' without ever having been tested. Geoff Brumfiel asks whether it could renew the United States' ageing stockpile. NNSA/NEVADA SITE OFFICE Wasteland: America's nuclearweapons test ranges have lain silent since the country declared a testing moratorium in 1992. It's a hot spring day in the Nevada desert, and retired technician Ernie Williams is showing tourists how nuclear bombs used to be tested. Williams is short and gruff and a veteran of the US weapons complex. Since 1951, he has participated in around 80 nuclear detonations or 'shots'....

Next steps in the trial of Saddam Hussein and seven former members of his regime: ___ DEFENSE: Starting July 10, one lawyer for each defendant makes a closing argument. Each defendant can then make a final statement. This could take until about July 20, U.S. officials say. ___ DELIBERATIONS: Five-judge panel recesses proceedings while it considers the case. Verdicts and any sentences will be determined by majority vote. U.S. officials say judges are likely to take until late September. ___ MAXIMUM PENALTY: Conviction could bring death sentence, carried out by hanging. Whatever sentence is imposed, defendants have right to appeal,...

Updated: 14:59, Monday June 12, 2006 Al Qaeda has named a successor to Iraqi terror leader Abu Musab al Zarqawi, who was killed in an American air strike last week.A militant called Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajer has been named on a website used by the Islamist terrorists.More follows...

...possible successors to the [Zarqawi]. One of them, Iraq-based Egyptian terrorist Abu Ayyub al-Masri, was also named by Major-General William Caldwell... The other two are an Iraqi named Abu Aseel and a Syrian named Abu al-Ghadia. Masri (reportedly... born in 1966) is believed to have entered Iraq to join Zarqawi in 2002 and founded a cell for al-Qaeda in Baghdad. ...Masri received his training at military camps in Afghanistan during the Taliban rule and met bin Laden at the Farouk Camp, where Masri was working as an instructor... is also reportedly close to Egyptian Dr Ayman al-Zawahiri... Abu Aseel and...

'Next wave of Iraq suicide bombers' thwarted By Nigel Bunyan (Filed: 25/05/2006) Anti-terrorist police who arrested eight Libyans in a series of dawn raids yesterday believe they may have thwarted the next wave of suicide bomb attacks on British and US forces in Iraq. The suspects, picked up at the end of a year-long investigation centred on Manchester, are being held on suspicion of either encouraging al-Qa'eda or helping to fund some of its atrocities. Police remove items from a house in Manchester But intelligence sources say that some of them may have been planning to fly out to Iraq...

Blair: I'll quit next year - trust me By George Jones, Political Editor and Brendan Carlin (Filed: 09/05/2006) Tony Blair abandoned his election promise to serve a full third term last night, indicating that he could stand down next summer. Although he refused to set a timetable for his departure, saying that it would paralyse government, he anointed Gordon Brown as his successor and promised to give him sufficient time to establish himself before the next election. Tony Blair was in no mood for compromise yesterday As the Labour Party stood on the brink of civil war over the timing...

WASHINGTON, May 8, 2006 – President Bush today announced Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden as his choice to replace Porter Goss as next director of the Central Intelligence Agency. "Mike knows our intelligence community from the ground up," Bush said from the Oval Office today. "He's been both a provider and consumer of intelligence." Hayden currently serves as the deputy to Director of National Intelligence John D. Negroponte. Before that, he directed the National Security Agency. Bush said throughout his military career, Hayden has demonstrated an ability to adapt U.S. intelligence services to the new challenges of the war on...

WASHINGTON - The nomination of Gen. Michael V. Hayden to take over the CIA would trigger a fresh battle over the secret warrantless surveillance program he oversaw on behalf of President Bush, a debate that could help shape the contours of the fall midterm congressional elections, officials in both parties said yesterday. Barring a change of heart, aides expect Bush to name Hayden tomorrow as his choice to succeed CIA director Porter J. Goss, who resigned under pressure Friday. Hayden, a former director of the National Security Agency and now deputy director of national intelligence, has become the most forceful...