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Are we being willfully disinformed by the American media as to both the cause and the possible solution to the oil rig disaster in the Gulf? If it's true that it was an attack by North Korea like this article claims, I think it proves the point a lot of people have been making about Obama being an international embarrassment and a diplomatic pansy. The idea that a nuke is necessary to cauterize the oil flow... well that's even more fascinating, because I already knew Obama's a diplomatic lightweight who attracts international bullies like an asthmatic clubfoot on a playground....

For the past few days bloggers have been speculating on whether or not North Korea engaged in sabotage to torpedo the Gulf oil rig, resulting in a massive explosion that sent the rig sinking into the Gulf and spilling thousands of barrels of oil that are now headed to the Gulf Coast. This blog is an example of the story being reported, which is based upon a Kremlin report in the 'EU Times' which accuses North Korea of blowing up the rig in an attempt to sink a South Korean vessel in the Gulf. At least one major mainstream media...

What gives here? Conservative talk show host, Mark Levin, makes an excellent observation as well as ask an excellent question. First the Obaminator: "...and the Department of the Interior has announced that they will be sending Swat teamns to the Gulf to inspect all platforms and rigs." Mark Levin: "Swat teams from the Department of the Interior? When I was Deputy Secretary of the Interior Department (during the Reagan administration), I don't remember any Swat teams. Now you heard hims say that the Department of the Interior was going to send Swat teams, I didn't know that they had Swat...

A grim report circulating in the Kremlin today written by Russia’s Northern Fleet is reporting that the United States has ordered a complete media blackout over North Korea’s torpedoing of the giant Deepwater Horizon oil platform owned by the World’s largest offshore drilling contractor Transocean that was built and financed by South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd., that has caused great loss of life, untold billions in economic damage to the South Korean economy, and an environmental catastrophe to the United States.

have heard many, many rumors swirling around the BP oil rig explosion. Frankly, I don’t know what to think at this point. What I will say is that I don’t think it was an accident. I have heard that 15 fail safes failed. The first thought that came to mind is that our beloved government or eco-terrorists are behind it. But there are darker theories out there that you should know about. They may be untrue, but ask yourself: what if? In the age of Obama-in-Wonderland, nothing is improbable anymore. Snip By the way, North Korea is not our only...

SEOUL — North Korea Saturday threatened to attack loudspeakers set up to broadcast South Korean propaganda and said it could turn Seoul "into a sea of flame" as tensions flared over the sinking of a warship. The North's General Staff of the Korean People's Army made the threat in response to Seoul setting up the speakers at 11 locations along the tense border....

[snip] The analysts said that the death of the official, Ri Je-gang, coming soon after the death of another top official and the dismissal of yet another one, might instead help the son, Kim Jong-un, replace elderly leaders loyal to his father with those of his choosing. The North’s state-controlled media announced that Mr. Ri, a first deputy director of the Workers Party’s influential Organization and Guidance Department, died in a car accident soon after midnight on Wednesday. He was 80. [snip]

U.S. defense officials say they may deploy the massive aircraft carrier USS George Washington off the Korean Peninsula in the Yellow Sea, where North Korea allegedly sank a South Korean warship. The deployment would be a show of force by the U.S., which has vowed to protect South Korea and is seeking to blunt aggression from North Korea. An international investigation last month blamed North Korea for torpedoing the Cheonan warship in March, killing 46 sailors. U.S. officials, who spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly, said Wednesday that a final decision on deployment of...

North Korea threatened on Monday to fire at South Korean equipment if it is set up at their heavily armed border to broadcast

South Korea on Saturday raised the front half of a warship that exploded and sank a month ago near a contested sea border with North Korea, finding clues that support growing suspicions Pyongyang attacked the vessel. The 1,200-tonne corvette Cheonan sank in what military officials said was a torpedo attack. Forty-six South Korean sailors were killed in what could be one of the deadliest strikes by Pyongyang on its rival since the end of the Korean War. The North denies involvement. South Korea's president on Friday gave the clearest signal yet Seoul had no plan to launch a revenge attack,...

Two North Korean diplomats are in Santa Fe and will meet with Gov. Bill Richardson on Wednesday. A spokesman for Richardson said a delegation from the North Korean mission to the United Nations will meet at the governor's mansion for a daylong meeting but the topic was not disclosed. The North Koreans had requested the visit, but the governor's office said Richardson will not be negotiating nor will he be representing the Obama administration. The delegation, which includes Minister Myong Gil Kim and Councilor Jong Ho Paek, also are scheduled to receive briefings on renewable energy initiatives in New Mexico...

Kim Jong-il has formally named his third son, Kim Jong-un, as his successor as he prepares to stand down as North Korea's leader. Kim Jong-il, 67, who is known as North Korea's "Dear Leader", suffered a stroke at the end of last year and has been incapacitated ever since. South Korea's National Intelligence Service has now confirmed that the Korean People's Army, the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly and the ministerial cabinet have been asked to pledge their allegiance to Kim Jong-un, 25, the youngest member of the world's only Communist ruling dynasty. "I was notified by the South...

The Obama administration has tough words for North Korea, but it's looking to China and Russia to do the heavy lifting to punish Pyongyang for its latest nuclear explosion. Whether China is willing to pull away from its traditional ally is an open question given fears of raging instability that might erupt on their common border. North Korea may have overplayed its attention-getting hand with its test of a nuclear weapon one day and the launch of offensive missiles the next. Or it may be moving its nuclear brinksmanship to a higher and more opaque level. In either case, the...

Live thread, remarks coming soon. Didn't catch the time

(CNN) — A 4.7-magnitude earthquake hit northern North Korea on Monday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. The quake occurred at 9:54 a.m. (8:54 p.m. ET Sunday) about 75 km (45 miles) northwest Kimchaek and 375 km (230 miles) northeast of the capital of Pyongyang, the agency said. The depth of the temblor was 10 km (6.2 miles).

The United States said Monday that it was trying to determine the authenticity of North Korea's claim that it conducted a second nuclear test just hours earlier, according to Yonhap News. "We are aware of the reports of a nuclear test by North Korea," a State Department official said, requesting anonymity. "We are consulting with our allies. Once we have established the facts, we will have more to say. At this point, I do not have a timeline as to when there will be more to say." North Korea said it conducted an underground nuclear test Monday morning (Seoul time)...

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Paris, France. It is very cool to be a French intel guy. A spectacular meal at a Parisian bistro with $90 entrées and a $200 bottle of Bordeaux? No problem. I'd known this fellow since he got me out of a jam in Sudan years ago. His James Bond days are over, but still, riding a desk for the DGSE -- Direction générale de la sécurité extérieure (General Directorate for External Security), France's military intel agency - in Paris has its decided benefits. One of them is not being infected with Obamamania. "My agency considers him a joke," he confides....

Pictures of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il issued by the communist state may be several months old and possibly taken before his reported illness, South Korean media said on Monday, raising more questions about his health. North Korea's state TV broadcast pictures of Kim on Saturday inspecting a women's military unit, as the reclusive country stepped up a campaign to show its "Dear Leader" was healthy after U.S. and South Korean intelligence officials said he may have suffered a stroke in August. The photographs of Kim, wearing sunglasses and looking generally healthy as he talked outdoors with women soldiers, were...