memeorandum: Africa Needs Aid, Not Flawed Theories (Bill Gates/Wall Street Journal)

7:15 PM ET, November 27, 2010

Top Items:

Bryan Denson / Oregonian:

FBI thwarts terrorist bombing attempt at Portland holiday tree lighting, authorities say — The FBI thwarted an attempted terrorist bombing in Portland's Pioneer Courthouse Square before the city's annual tree-lighting Friday night, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Oregon.

William McCall / Associated Press:

Feds: Somali-born teen plotted car-bombing in Ore. — PORTLAND, Ore. - Federal agents in a sting operation arrested a Somali-born teenager just as he tried blowing up a van he believed was loaded with explosives at a crowded Christmas tree lighting ceremony in Portland, authorities said.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Jihad Watch, HillBuzz.org, neo-neocon, Wizbang, Althouse and HotAirPundit

CNN:

Somali-American accused of plotting to bomb Oregon tree-lighting event — (CNN) — A 19-year-old has been arrested in connection with a plot to detonate a vehicle bomb at an annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony in Portland, Oregon, on Friday evening, the Justice Department announced.

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog, The Talking Dog, The Jawa Report, The Confluence, The Powers That Be and Little Green Footballs

Teddy Partridge / Teddy Partridge's myFDL diary:
FBI Thwarts “Bomb Plot” at Xmas Tree Ceremony in Portland, Oregon

Discussion: Doug Ross, Patterico's Pontifications, Creeping Sharia and Pajamas Media

Liz Robbins / New York Times:
F.B.I. Says Oregon Suspect Planned Attack of ‘Grand Scale’

Discussion: Mediaite and AmSpecBlog

portland.fbi.gov:
Oregon Resident Arrested in Plot to Bomb Christmas Tree Lighting …

Discussion: Gawker, The Daily Beast and TalkLeft

Noel Sheppard / NewsBusters.org blogs:

Charles Krauthammer Rips Liberal Media for Being Obsessed with Sarah Palin — Charles Krauthammer on Friday tore into the liberal media for being obsessed with former Alaska governor Sarah Palin. — After Krauthammer scolded the “editorial judgment” of the producers of PBS's “Inside Washington” …

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog, Mediaite, Hot Air and The Right Scoop

Ben Armbruster / ThinkProgress:

Scowcroft on START: ‘Partisan’ GOP Doesn't Want To Give Obama ‘A Foreign Policy Victory’ — Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN) has been the leading Senate Republican urging the upper chamber of Congress to ratify the New START arms control treaty with Russia. However, the Republican obstructionism …

Discussion: The Politico, Washington Monthly and The Hill

Jennifer Steinhauer / New York Times:

Charting His Own Course Against Prevailing Winds — WASHINGTON — Mavericks are not in vogue these days on Capitol Hill, a place where hyper-partisanship and obduracy seem to be their own rewards. — But Senator Richard G. Lugar, an Indiana Republican who played that role long before it had a brand name …

Discussion: Raw Story and Hullabaloo

Alex Seitz-Wald / ThinkProgress:

Former Republican Sen. Warns GOP May ‘Have Gone So Far Overboard That We Are Beyond Redemption’ — In an age when far-right tea party activists have taken over the Republican Party and demanded lockstep allegiance, Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN) has been one of the few GOP lawmakers to step out of line.

ZIP / Weasel Zippers:

NPR: Obama's Fat Lip Gives Him “Street Cred,” Scar Will Help Him Stare Down Ahmadinejad and Kim Jong Il... Oh yeah, instead of staring down a sissy, now they'll be staring down a sissy with a scar... That Fat Lip Might Give Obama Some Street Cred- NPR

Scott Simon / NPR:

Simon Says — That Fat Lip Might Give Obama Some Street Cred … Gauze in hand, President Barack Obama walks to his car after the game of basketball Friday at Fort McNair in Washington, D.C. — Just three weeks after getting a shellacking in the midterm elections, President Obama got a fat lip.

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Ed Barnes / Fox News:

Mystery Surrounds Cyber Missile That Crippled Iran's Nuclear Weapons Ambitions — An aerial view of Iran's nuclear facility in Natanz. — In the 20th century, this would have been a job for James Bond. — The mission: Infiltrate the highly advanced, securely guarded enemy headquarters …

Discussion: Hot Air and FrumForum

Bill Gates / Wall Street Journal:

Africa Needs Aid, Not Flawed Theories — The science writer Matt Ridley made his reputation with books like “The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature” and “Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters.” His latest book, “The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves” is much broader, as its title suggests.

Discussion: The Volokh Conspiracy and Cafe Hayek

John F. Burns / New York Times:

Demonstrators in Ireland Protest Austerity Plan — DUBLIN — After a week that brought Ireland a pledge of an $114 billion international rescue package and the toughest austerity program of any country in Europe, thousands of demonstrators took to Dublin's streets on Saturday to protest wide cuts …

Discussion: Guardian

Eliot Kleinberg / Palm Beach Post:

Man arrested for packing gun at Boynton Beach Walmart — A customer expecting to see great deals waved down authorities after she saw something else: a man packing a gun while waiting in line at a Black Friday sale. — Police arrested Christopher D. Scott, 49, just after midnight Friday …

Discussion: Don Surber and Mediaite

Associated Press:

Willie Nelson Freed After Drug Arrest — SIERRA BLANCA, Texas (AP) — A U.S. Border Patrol spokesman says country singer Willie Nelson was charged with marijuana possession after 6 ounces was found aboard his tour bus in Texas. — Patrol spokesman Bill Brooks says the bus pulled into the Sierra Blanca …

Discussion: Gothamist, The Confluence, Althouse, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Gawker and Booman Tribune

Washington Post:

Mr. Mubarak vs. Mr. Obama — EGYPT'S PARLIAMENTARY election is on Sunday, but already the principal result is known: a step away from political liberalization and genuine democracy. In the weeks before the vote, more than 1,000 political activists have been rounded up by security forces, and many have been abused.

Discussion: Wonk Room