Squadron of 24 F-16 Fighters Lands at U.S. Base in Incirlik
January 13th, 2007I’m sure you can do the math on this one by now.
Via: Hurriyet:
A certain silence which had reigned over the US Incirlik Air Force base in the Turkish city of Adana for the past 3 years came to a close today.
After an absence of 3 years, a squadron of 24 US F-16 fighter jets landed at Incirlik yesterday, reinforced also by an early warning system AWACS airplane, as well as tanker airplanes meant for mid-air fuel replenishing. The F-16s which landed at Incirlik yesterday began flight training runs in Adana this morning, although authorities did not comment on whether the jets will be staying at Adana for a long duration or only temporarily.
iPhone as Infrastructure Bomb?
January 12th, 2007Steve Jobs dropped a serious clanger in a recent interview. The iPhone is locked down because, “Cingular doesn’t want to see their West Coast network go down because some application messed up.”
iPhone as infrastructure bomb? HAHAHA
Luckily, it’s a simple matter to step outside the Steve Jobs Reality Distortion Field: First, Cingular’s West Coast network would face a much greater threat from a few determined people who knew what they were doing with shovels and axes.
Second, Cingular definitely doesn’t want wise guys and girls running voice over IP applications when WiFi networks are available. If you’re flapping your gums over a VoIP link during peak hours, you’re not using up your anytime, Rollover minutes. Cingular wouldn’t like that. Cingular REALLY wouldn’t like that. All those people, just piling up their Rollover minutes as they chew the fat over some free VoIP thing… Saving those minutes for when no WiFi link was available… Oh no, no, no.
Anyone want to guess how long it will take the gear heads to root that thing, have it Whistling Dixie over VoIP, and flipping Steve Jobs and Cingular the bird? Of course, they could just use Cisco’s iPhone (Cisco actually owns—or doesn’t own—the iPhone trademark and is suing Apple) for their VoIP antics, but that wouldn’t piss Steve off enough.
Via: MSNBC:
“You don’t want your phone to be an open platform,†meaning that anyone can write applications for it and potentially gum up the provider’s network, says Jobs. “You need it to work when you need it to work. Cingular doesn’t want to see their West Coast network go down because some application messed up.â€
More: Slashdot
Blast Rips Through U.S. Embassy Compound in Athens
January 12th, 2007Via: Reuters Canada:
ATHENS (Reuters) – An explosion ripped through the U.S. embassy compound in central Athens on Friday, a police source said.
It was not clear what caused the blast and there was no immediate word on whether there were any casualties.
Police cordoned off all roads around the embassy.
Police officials at the scene said that whatever caused the explosion damaged the official embassy sign outside the mission, but there was little other indication of the extent of damage inside.
U.S. Troops Stage Second Secret Raid at Iraq Airport
January 12th, 2007And nearly wind up in a gunbattle with allied Kurdish peshmerga troops?!
Via: ABC News:
In the first raid, the U.S. troops stormed a building that houses the Iranian liaison office in the northern city of Irbil at 3 a.m. local time, where they detained at least five Iranians and also confiscated computers and documents.
A nearby resident told the Associated Press that the troops used stun bombs in the raid and had helicopters flying overhead as they went through the two-story yellow house.
In the second raid, staged later in the day, U.S. troops attempted to abduct more people from inside the perimeter of Irbil airport, but were surrounded by Kurdish peshmerga troops.
“This group has come from nowhere,” Iraq’s Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told ABC News. “They were unwilling to reveal their identity and entered the airport, which is a very sensitive area, and there was a response by the local forces.”
Both sides were heavily armed, and shooting very nearly broke out. “There weren’t any casualties, but it was a split second really for a disaster to happen. This has created a great deal of anxiety,” said Zebari.
‘Delicate Situation’
It is unclear where the U.S. troops came from — even local U.S. officials contacted by the Kurdish authorities had no knowledge of the armed men.
The American military later issued a statement saying it had detained six people in a raid in Irbil, but did not specify their nationality or give any other information about the raids.
The raids came within hours of President Bush’s speech about future U.S. policy in Iraq, which included a pledge to “interrupt the flow of support from Iran” for anti-U.S. forces in Iraq.
PENTAGON ABANDONS ACTIVE-DUTY TIME LIMIT
January 12th, 2007It’s coming fast and thick now… If you’re not familiar with the term total war, that might make for some interesting reading.
Via: Guardian:
The Pentagon has abandoned its limit on the time a citizen-soldier can be required to serve on active duty, officials said Thursday, a major change that reflects an Army stretched thin by longer-than-expected combat in Iraq.
The day after President Bush announced his plan for a deeper U.S. military commitment in Iraq, Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters the change in reserve policy would have been made anyway because active-duty troops already were getting too little time between their combat tours.
The Pentagon also announced it is proposing to Congress that the size of the Army be increased by 65,000, to 547,000 and that the Marine Corps, the smallest of the services, grow by 27,000, to 202,000, over the next five years. No cost estimate was provided, but officials said it would be at least several billion dollars.
Until now, the Pentagon’s policy on the Guard or Reserve was that members’ cumulative time on active duty for the Iraq or Afghan wars could not exceed 24 months. That cumulative limit is now lifted; the remaining limit is on the length of any single mobilization, which may not exceed 24 consecutive months, Pace said.
In other words, a citizen-soldier could be mobilized for a 24-month stretch in Iraq or Afghanistan, then demobilized and allowed to return to civilian life, only to be mobilized a second time for as much as an additional 24 months.
Rest in Peace: Robert Anton Wilson
January 12th, 2007Via: Robert Anton Wilson Blog:
Various medical authorities swarm in and out of here predicting I have between two days and two months to live. I think they are guessing. I remain cheerful and unimpressed. I look forward without dogmatic optimism but without dread. I love you all and I deeply implore you to keep the lasagna flying.
Please pardon my levity, I don’t see how to take death seriously. It seems absurd.
RAW
Russian Admiral Predicts Impending U.S. Strike Against Iran
January 12th, 2007Via: Kuwait News Agency:
MOSCOW, Jan 9 (KUNA) — Former Russian Black Sea Fleet Commander Admiral Edward Baltin said Tuesday that the presence of so many nuclear submarines in the Arab Gulf waters pointed to likely plans for a US attack against Iran.
Baltine, who was quoted by Interfax news agency, said the presence of US submarines in Gulf waters meant that Washington was contemplating a strike against Iran.
“The presence of the submarines indicates that Washington has not abandoned plans to launch a sudden attack against Iran,” the admiral said.
Oil: For the Gamblers Out There
January 12th, 2007WARNING: This is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any financial instrument.
Back in July 2006, I wrote: “Oil? It could just as easily go to $45 before it goes to $200. I wouldn’t go near oil, long or short. It’s far too volatile.”
Oil was trading around record highs back then. Oh, what a difference a few months makes…
Oil is now trading around $52.
With oil prices gapping down, and analysts predicting more of the same…
Consider out of the money call options on March NYMEX Light Sweet Crude Oil.
I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a more attractive collapsitalism opportunity. The weirdest moves in the markets tend to come when most people don’t expect them. (Of course, only insiders, crackpots and lunatics try to catch these moves.) So, as the financial press is focusing on mild weather and large inventories, blah, blah, blah, the U.S. just attacked Iran, a country that is probably in a position to shut down the transportation of oil from the Persian Gulf for an unknown period of time.
I haven’t even bothered to see how far out of the money these calls are going, but I’d get the cheapest ones available. This would be an all or nothing gamble. Maximum risk / Maximum reward. Consider your money gone, on a trade like this.
Of course, if you make money on this, you’ll make a pile. Spend it fast because the system as we know it might not be around for much longer after you take your winnings off the table!
Happy trading!
Cryptogon Reader Contributes $20
January 11th, 2007Thanks to Treason Holdings for the generous donation!
Gates: U.S. Military to Grow by 92,000 Troops
January 11th, 2007Do you get it yet?
Via: MSNBC:
At a briefing to add details about President Bush’s new Iraq strategy, Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Thursday said he would recommend increasing the Army and Marine Corps by 92,000 troops over the next five years.
On Iraq, Gates said that “failure in Iraq is not an option.”
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was also at the briefing, saying it was imperative for the Iraqi government to “re-establish civil order,” particularly in Baghdad.
Gates proposed adding 67,000 Army soldiers and 25,000 Marines, citing an annual increase of 7,000 for the Army and 5,000 for the Marines until the Marines reach 202,000 and the Army is at 547,000 troops.
The Army already has been authorized to boost the number of active-duty soldiers temporarily from 482,000 to a maximum of 512,000, although it has yet to reach that limit.
