Necessary News

All you need to know to sound brilliant

Al-Qaeda: Harder To Crack Than The Kremlin

• Flashback: A decade ago, al-Qaeda issued a global declaration of war against the U.S. [Washington Post]
• In the ten years that have followed, the U.S. has had a difficult time cracking the terrorist group’s impenetrable shell, despite claims that the Bush administration has made.
• The Washington Post reports: “U.S. spy agencies have had little luck recruiting well-placed informants and are finding the upper reaches of the network tougher to penetrate than the Kremlin during the Cold War, according to U.S. and European intelligence officials.”
• Since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, officials said, al-Qaeda has tightened its internal security at the top, placing an even greater emphasis on personal and tribal loyalties to determine who can gain access to its leaders.
• Some spy experts say that it might be too late for Western intelligence agencies, having missed earlier chances, to redouble efforts to infiltrate the network.
• While some attempts have been successful (an informant’s tip led directly to the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, leader of the group al-Qaeda in Iraq, in 2006), the group’s core organization in Pakistan and Afghanistan has so far proved impervious to damaging leaks.
• So what’s the problem? Part of it is that the CIA and FBI had very few Arabic-speaking officers who could handle or recruit informants. Instead of making it a priority to develop human sources, the agencies assumed they could rely on spy satellites and other high-tech tools.
• And then there’s the risk: the political consequences of having a spy unmasked by al-Qaeda would be enormous, officials say.
• Undercover operatives might also find themselves ordered by al-Qaeda to organize a suicide attack or kill someone. Attempting to wiggle out of such an assignment would only raise suspicions.

Spy games that we can’t win.

Inside The Pentagon’s Fissure On Iraq

• Think the Pentagon is united behind a stay the course strategy in Iraq? Think again. [LA Times]
• The LA Times reports that “inside the Pentagon, turmoil over the war has increased.”
• Here are the two factions at the Department of Defense, so you can feel like an insider:
• Petraeus and the ground commanders in Iraq: General Petraeus has “pushed to keep a large troop presence in Iraq, worried that withdrawing too quickly will allow violence to flare.” He wants “about 140,000 troops, including 15 combat brigades, remain in Iraq through the end of the Bush administration.”
• The Joint Chiefs of Staff and departing CENTCOM Commander Admiral Fallon: These older service chiefs “fear that long tours and high troop levels will drive away mid-level service members, leaving the Army and Marine Corps hollowed out and weakened.”
• Why they differ: President Bush tasked Petraeus with one thing: win the war in Iraq at any cost. But the Joint Chiefs are concerned with America’s entire strategic situation, and are more sensitive to the fact that Iraq is not the be-all-end-all of American security (cough...Afghanistan...cough).
• In other words, “the Joint Chiefs have the primary responsibility of ensuring the long-term strength of the military and preparing for contingencies.”
• The Joint Chiefs are concerned about the effectiveness of just pouring more troops into Iraq.
• Said one officer: “How does 30,000 more people make the [Iraqi] Maliki government more competent and promote reconciliation between the factions?. . We can have success on the ground, but it doesn’t translate to success with the government.”
• Our take: The surge hasn’t worked. We need to rethink our strategy in Iraq in terms of America’s broader interests. That means a strategic reset. Find out how to do it here: [American Progress] [American Progress]

If only it were someone’s job to look at the big picture. Oh, yeah: the President.

Recession Indicator #321: More People Without Jobs

• Think we’re in a recession? Not sure? (Check out our cheat sheet.) Here’s one more reason to worry. [NY Times]
• Last week, the number of people filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly spiked to the highest level in two months.
• The increase: 378,000 people applied for unemployment, 22,000 more than the previous week.
• Call it an economic hurricane: The four week average for unemployment is “the highest level since a flood of claims caused by the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes.”
• Other disturbing numbers:
• Payroll jobs fell 22,000 in January and 63,000 in February, the first monthly declines “since mid-2003.”
• 2.865 million people are receiving unemployment benefits, the highest number since August 2004.
• It would sure be great if the government took action with some thought to our street, not just wall street. [American Progress]

Can we say the “R” word yet?

Good News, Bad News

When you help others, you can’t help helping yourself.

Next time you’ve got some extra cash, try spending it on someone else. According to a new set of studies, people who spend money on others, either by donating to a charity or buying gifts, are markedly happier than those who do not. Let’s check out the pros and cons. [ABC]

GOOD NEWS

You’re spending money on others!

BAD NEWS

You’re spending money on others.

Quote Of The Day

“I expected that if I lost one of my sons (in the war), it would be due to an IED or firefight...I never expected to hear he would be electrocuted, that something so senseless happened to him.”

—Cheryl Harris, mother of Staff Sgt. Ryan Maseth who was killed “after being electrocuted while showering at his barracks in Baghdad.” Harris and Maseth’s father have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against notorious contractor KBR Inc. who was “responsible for maintaining Maseth’s barracks.” [Raw Story]

Speed Round

PLEASE PACK YOUR KNIVES AND GO

“A three-judge panel on the DC Court of Appeals stripped Libby of his ability to practice law after he was found guilty last year of obstructing the investigation in the CIA leak investigation.” [WTOP]

ELECTROCUTING OUR TROOPS

The Houston Chronicle reports that “[a]t least a dozen soldiers and Marines have been electrocuted in Iraq over the five years of the war” and that “investigators now are trying to learn what role improper grounding of electrical wires played in those deaths.” At the center of the probe is private contractor KBR, a company that not only dodged $500 million in Medicare and Social Security taxes but also provided “unmonitored and potentially unsafe” water to U.S. troops in Iraq. [Think Progress]

WHEN IT RAINS IT POURS

The rain is still falling and the floods are still coming in the Midwest, where heavy storms are behind at least a dozen deaths. [USA Today]

FLORIDA

“A central Florida sheriff’s office says a huge Internet undercover operation turned up more than 100,000 child pornography images and resulted in charges against 21 men.” [AP]

1 IN 5

One in five people lacks regular access to water, the United Nations has warned ahead of World Water Day on Saturday. [AFP]

BREAK OPEN THE PIGGY BANK

“The Conference Board, a business-backed research group, said Thursday that its index of leading economic indicators fell in February for the fifth consecutive month.” [AP]

GOLD AND OIL

Commodities like oil and gold sank in price as stock prices rose slightly...Is the worst over? Our guess: nope. [NY Times]

CHINA AND TAIWAN

China’s crackdown in Tibet is affecting Taiwanese politics, with the candidate in favor of warmer relations with the mainland sinking in the polls. [NY Times]

BAD INSPECTOR

New York building inspector, Edward J. Marquette, has been “arrested and charged with lying to New York City authorities about inspecting the crane that collapsed on Saturday afternoon.” [NY Times]

JIHAD

In a new tape, Osama bin Laden lashed out “at Palestinian peace negotiations with Israel and called for a holy war to liberate the Palestinian lands.” [AP]

OLYMPIC STUBBORNNESS

China says they’re taking the Olympic torch to Mt. Everest no matter how many Tibetans try to stop them...color us concerned. [NY Times]

PASSPORT TO HOPE-VILLE

Two State Department employees are fired and another disciplined for snooping into Senator Barack Obama’s passport file. Says Obama spokesman, Bill Burton, “This is an outrageous breach of security and privacy, even from an administration that has shown little regard for either over the last eight years. Our government’s duty is to protect the private information of the American people, not use it for political purposes.” [AP]

BANGING THE WAR DRUMS

Bush continues to insist, this time in an address to the Iranian people, that the Iranian government is bent on acquiring nukes, even though ” a National Intelligence Estimate concluded in December that Iran had stopped its weapons program in 2003.” [NY Times]

UNITED NATIONS

The United Nations budget grows 25%, an additional $1.1 billion over the next two years. $1.1 billion...hmm...that’s about 3-4 days in Iraq. [Washington Post]

OPIUM

Poppy production is exploding in Afghanistan, despite a lengthy and expensive campaign by American forces and NATO to eradicate it. [Washington Post]