Category: News

Behavioral Assessment Profiling. On Dec. 14, 1999, Ahmed Ressam tried to enter the United States from Canada at Port Angeles, Wash. He had a suitcase bomb in the trunk of his car. A US customs agent, Diana Dean, questioned him at the border. He was fidgeting, sweaty, and jittery. He avoided eye contact. In Dean's… Continue reading Behavioral Assessment Profiling

Wired News: A Kinder, Gentler Copyright Bill? The Senate passed a scaled-back version of a controversial copyright bill Saturday, keeping a provision that imposes severe penalties on people caught with camcorders in movie theaters but scrapping other provisions that copyright-reform activists had criticized. [Tomalak's Realm]

More thoughts on government.. I leave comments enabled so that people can tell me when I'm wrong. Because sometimes I am. I absolutely get off on a serious rant sometimes and forget to think about what I'm saying. and I appreciate it when people hold me accountable for what I say. But you know who… Continue reading More thoughts on government.

Some things, like…. Some things, like the DeLay Rule, are outrageous but not that surprising. But what I'm about to describe is outrageous and almost literally unbelievable. As you've probably heard, the congress is pushing through a big omnibus spending bill this weekend. And at the last minute, Republican leaders tried to slip in a… Continue reading Some things, like…

Hope v. Fear. The perspicacious Lexington has some thoughts on why George Bush and the GOP won: Democrats need to realize that the Republicans didn't just beat them on fear. They clobbered them on hope. For the moment, the American right is better at talking about the future than the left. It is better at… Continue reading Hope v. Fear

House Leadership Blocks Vote on Intelligence Bill. A core of highly conservative Republicans aligned with the Pentagon moved to block a vote on a bill that would have enacted the recommendations of the 9/11 panel. By PHILIP SHENON and CARL HULSE. [NYT > Home Page]

Mind-boggling Iraq war tab. Read about those Pentagon estimates that suggest the war in Iraq is costing $4 billion a month? Well, add another 50 percent to arrive at the real price tag. That, according to UPI, which reports the permanent war in Iraq is costing the U.S. just under $6 billion every month, or… Continue reading Mind-boggling Iraq war tab

Riding on the back of blue states. This table explains a lot. Blue states contribute the lion's share of federal dollars. They are the overtaxed group. Red states, by and large, are siphons. [John Robb's Weblog]

Darn. The recovery is about to get doused with some cold water (substantial rate hikes). WSJ. The PPI (producer price inflation) is now running solidly over 4%. [John Robb's Weblog]

WP. “We are without allies amongst the Iraqi populace, including those who have benefited from the ouster of Saddam,” said this Special Forces veteran, who speaks Arabic. “Across Baghdad, Latifiyah, Mahmudiyah, Salman Pak, Baqubah, Balad, Taji, Baiji, Ramadi and just about everywhere else you can name, the people absolutely hate us. . . . The… Continue reading WP