Top Items:
New York Times:
U.S. Widens Terror War to Yemen, a Qaeda Bastion — WASHINGTON — In the midst of two unfinished major wars, the United States has quietly opened a third, largely covert front against Al Qaeda in Yemen. — A year ago, the Central Intelligence Agency sent several of its top field operatives …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Philly.com, Washington Post, The Strata-Sphere, Gawker, Taegan Goddard's …, Riehl World View, Truthdig, Guardian, The Page and msnbc.com
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Wall Street Journal:
The Terror This Time — Janet Napolitano says the system worked. No, we were brave and lucky. — Printer — Friendly — A U.S. government that has barred the phrase “war on terror” has nonetheless acknowledged that a failed Christmas day bomb attack on an airliner was a terrorist attempt.
Kenneth Chang / New York Times:
Explosive on Flight 253 Is Among Most Powerful — Sewn into the underwear of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was a powerful plastic explosive, the authorities say. — Had Mr. Abdulmutallab, sitting in seat 19A of Northwest Airlines Flight 253 on Friday from Amsterdam to Detroit …
Sean Rayment / Telegraph:
Analysis: Detroit terror attack is a major intelligence and security failure
Analysis: Detroit terror attack is a major intelligence and security failure
Martin Fletcher / Times of London:
At least eight dead in Tehran street battles — At least eight anti-government protesters, including a nephew of Mir Hossein Mousavi, Iran's opposition leader, were shot dead yesterday as the smouldering confrontation between the regime and the so-called Green Movement finally erupted.
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FRONTLINE:
The start of an Iranian intifada — [ analysis ] — An Iranian-style intifada seems to be in the making. — At the beginning of the current period of opposition, which started soon after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's controversial reelection, quiet periods of seeming normalcy occurred between what were less frequent demonstrations.
Discussion:
The Washington Note, Taylor Marsh, The Washington Independent, Reuters and The Field on the Narcosphere
The Daily NiteOwl:
Ashura Says: Iranians Aren't Punching Bags — The Ashura (December 27) protests across Iran are over. Tens of thousands marched across the country as in the past to show their discontent with dictatorship and human rights violations. They yet again proved that the Iranian struggle is far from over.
Discussion:
Foreign Policy, Enduring America, The Daily Dish, The Newest Deal, Babalú Blog and Fausta's Blog
Nile Gardiner / blogs.telegraph.co.uk:
Iranian protesters are dying for freedom - where is Barack Obama?
Iranian protesters are dying for freedom - where is Barack Obama?
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Gateway Pundit
Washington Post:
Uninvestigated terrorism warning about Detroit suspect called not unusual — When Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab's father in Nigeria reported concern over his son's “radicalization” to the U.S. Embassy there last month, intelligence officials in the United States deemed the information insufficient to pursue.
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Washington Wire:
Napolitano Reverses Course, Says Air Security Did NOT Work — A day after saying “the system worked” — and being pressed by CNN's Candy Crowley about how exactly that was the case — Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano changed tack Monday and said that the U.S. air-travel security net …
Paul Krugman / New York Times:
The Big Zero — Maybe we knew, at some unconscious, instinctive level, that it would be an era best forgotten. Whatever the reason, we got through the first decade of the new millennium without ever agreeing on what to call it. The aughts? The naughties? Whatever.
Lee Fang / Think Progress:
Mary Matalin claims President Bush ‘inherited’ the September 11th terror attacks. — On CNN today, GOP strategist and former Dick Cheney adviser Mary Matalin argued that President Obama is speaking too much about the severe debt, deficits, and economic recession he inherited from the previous administration.
Discussion:
BlogHer
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WJKT-TV:
Memphis Man Arrested: Accused of Making Bomb Threats & Threatening to Start “Holy War” — MEMPHIS, TN - Tonight, Mohamed Ibrahim is out after posting $100 bond. Earlier in the day, he was arrested after police say he walked into several Memphis businesses and threatened to blow them up.
Discussion:
Examiner, Scared Monkeys, Atlas Shrugs, Jihad Watch, Gateway Pundit, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and Political Byline
Mark Silva / The Swamp:
Winners and Losers: Political toll of 2009 — Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton and Sonia Sotomayor: — “Winners.” — So say a majority of Americans asked to assess the political — winners of 2009 - with the first lady leading the list. — Nearly three-quarters of those surveyed …
Discussion:
The Politico
Steve Campbell / Washington Post:
Cowboy hats, secret files and more headed to Bush library — LEWISVILLE, TEX. — Eight years of “still-evolving” American history is meticulously catalogued, wrapped, stored and guarded in the climate-controlled warehouse. — Included here are 68 million pages of documents, a surfboard …
Discussion:
The Page
CNN:
New Detroit scare declared ‘non-serious’ — (CNN) — The security alert aboard a Northwest Airlines jet Sunday was the result of a “non-serious” incident, and the man questioned in connection with the scare does not appear to be a threat, a law enforcement source said Sunday.
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