September 6th, 2006
- Due to last month’s terror alert, British Airways is claiming a £40m ($75.9m) loss. Between August 10th and 17th, it cancelled 1,280 flights and incurred costs of hotels, catering and recovering baggage for stranded passengers. [“ BA says terror alert cost it £40m” (BBC News)]
- “A coalition of 300 Iraqi tribal leaders on Saturday demanded the release of Saddam Hussein so he could reclaim the presidency and also called for armed resistance against U.S.-led forces.” Yikes! [“A Demand for Hussein’s Release” (WashingtonPost.com)]
- On the fifth anniversary of the September 11th attacks, CNN will replay their coverage of the day’s events on the Internet. Viewers will be able to watch how events unfolded starting at 8:30am, just minutes before the first reports of the first airplane hitting the World Trade Center started, all the way until midnight in real time. For the day, the usually for-fee service will be free. [”CNN.com to replay 9/11 attacks coverage” (Yahoo!News)]
Tags: British Airways, airport security, terror alert, Saddam Hussein, Iraq, 9/11, CNN, WTC
August 3rd, 2004
Well, on Sunday the Bush administration suddenly went all panicky again and raised the terror alert to Orange in NYC, New Jersey, and DC, particularly the financial districts. They say they have received specific information regarding planned attacks on a number of buildings; their big boast is they know the where this time if not the when.
The timing is somewhat convenient as it comes days after the DNC and a small boost in the polls for Democratic candidates Kerry and Edwards. What I find most interesting is that the president sent his wife and at least one of his daughters to have lunch in the Citicorp building which is one of the supposed named targets. As nearby businesses handed out gas-masks and flashlights to their employees, part of the First Family was having lunch at the new proposed “ground zero”. The administration claims that the First Family was making the public appearance to show to Bin Laden and Al-Queda that they aren’t afraid.
All of this pomp and circumstance seems to me to be too much show. I sincerely doubt that Bush would send his wife and daughter into danger. In most war-time scenarios, the First Family would be rushed somewhere safe, somewhere underground or away from the public eye. I can’t imagine that an intelligent President who loves his family would risk his own family nor that anyone would advise him to do so as if something were to actually happen to them, the President’s rationale would be jeopardized by his grief and emotions, wouldn’t it?
Later in the day, even the right-wing-biased media was reporting that much of this new data sending alarms throughout our “intelligence community” and national security agencies is actually 3-4 years old. Why the sudden flare up of concern?
Tags: George W. Bush, terrorism, politics, terror alert, Conspiracy Theories
