MFS -The Other News - What the main papers don't say.

  Morning Posting.

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world seismic activity situation Mexico 5.3 ; Papua New Guinea 5.1!More info here.

• Obama Blames the Banks - Hypocrisy Run Wild.(SI).By Richard Butrick.Speaking from the White House on Feb. 9th, Obama, assuming the air of a headmaster of boarding school, wagged his finger and proceeded to upbraid the "abusive" banks for their "irresponsible" and "reckless" policy of duping hapless blacks and other minorities into buying homes they couldn't afford.In summary, the theories single out (1) over reliance on regulation, (2) lack of regulation of the shadow banking system, (3) repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act, (4) the inherent nature of socio-economic forces, (5) faulty credit evaluation. In none of the theories are the bankers singled out as the evil malefactors who duped innocents into taking on mortgages they could ill afford.But Obama, after exhaustive analysis, knows where to point the finger. Not only that, even though none of the analyses above raised the specter that the financial meltdown was the work of if evil malefactors, Obama not only knows it was banks fault he knows the evil bankers did it. The evil bankers deliberately duped hapless blacks and other minorities into taking on mortgages they could ill afford and now they must pay for their misdeeds.Read the full story here.

• State Web Site Tracks Mexican Cartel Violence Along Border.(JW).Officials in Texas are under attack from a mainstream newspaper critical of a state web site created to track Mexican drug-cartel violence that’s transformed the southern border into a war zone.The Texas Department of Agriculture started the web site to keep farmers and residents informed about the growing danger created by Mexican drug cartels illegally crossing into the state. It’s occurring at an “increasingly alarming rate,” according to Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples and Washington is ignoring the crisis.The cartels are invading Texas farms and ranches, threatening citizens’ lives and jeopardizing the nation’s food supply, Staples says, adding that the web site, created less than a year ago, documents true stories of the constant danger along the border. The agriculture secretary also takes the opportunity to “implore the federal government to enforce our laws and secure our nation’s borders.”A few months ago his agency released a report, ordered by the state legislature, assessing the impact of illegal activity along the Texas-Mexico border on rural landowners and the agriculture industry. The details are downright appalling and reveal that shootings, beheadings, kidnappings and murders are common in the area. In fact, drug-cartel violence is so severe that Texas counties along the Mexican border are under attack around the clock.It’s difficult to dispute the findings since the probe was conducted by two reputable military veterans of varying political affiliations. One of them is a retired four-star Army General (Barry McCaffrey) who served as Bill Clinton’s Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy. The other, retired Army Major-General Robert Scales, is the former commander of the U.S. Army War College.Yet the mainstream media is critical of the way Texas is handling the situation, implying in story after story that the crisis along the southern border is a fabrication of a racist, right-wing movement. Read the full story here.

• Soviet-Style Cybersecurity Regulation.(Cato).By Jim Harper.Reading over the cybersecurity legislative package recently introduced in the Senate is like reading a Soviet planning document. One of its fundamental flaws, if passed, would be its centralizing and deadening effect on society’s responses to the many and varied problems that are poorly captured by the word “cybersecurity.”But I’m most struck by how, at every turn, this bill strains to release cybersecurity regulators—and their regulated entities—from the bonds of law. The Department of Homeland Security could commandeer private infrastructure into its regulatory regime simply by naming it “covered critical infrastructure.” DHS and a panel of courtesan institutes and councils would develop the regulatory regime outside of ordinary administrative processes. And—worst, perhaps—regulated entities would be insulated from ordinary legal liability if they were in compliance with government dictates. Regulatory compliance could start to usurp protection of the public as a corporate priority.The bill retains privacy-threatening information-sharing language that I critiqued in no uncertain terms last week (Title VII), though the language has changed. (I have yet to analyze what effect those changes have.)The news for Kremlin Beltway-watchers, of course, is that the Department of Homeland Security has won the upper-hand in the turf battle. (That’s the upshot of Title III of the bill.) It’s been a clever gambit of Washington’s to make the debate which agency should handle cybersecurity, rather than asking what the government’s role is and what it can actually contribute. Is it a small consolation that it’s a civilian security agency that gets to oversee Internet security for us, and not the military? None-of-the-above would have been the best choice of all.Ah, but the government has access to secret information that nobody else does, doesn’t it? Don’t be so sure. Secrecy is a claim to authority that I reject. Many swoon to secrecy, assuming the government has 1) special information that is 2) actually helpful. I interpret secrecy as a failure to put facts into evidence. My assumption is the one consistent with accountable government and constitutional liberty. But we’re doing Soviet-style cybersecurity here, so let’s proceed.Read the full story here.

• Canadian teens being exposed to Islamic extremism in high schools: CSIS.(NP).TORONTO — A newly released intelligence report warns that teenagers are being exposed to Islamist extremism in Canadian high schools.In an Intelligence Assessment, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service says that in two recent cases, suspects charged under the Anti-Terrorism Act “appear to have been radicalized in part while attending Canadian secondary school institutions.” While high school years are a time of “exploration and idealism,” the report says “exposure to violent ideologies at this potentially vulnerable stage can set in motion a series of developments that can lead to actual acts of violence.”The report focuses on “Islamist extremism,” a conspiracy-driven narrative that claims the West is trying to destroy Islam and that Muslims are required to respond with violence. The appeal of this ideology among youths is a key concern to Canadian counterterrorism officials, particularly since the 2006 arrests of the Toronto 18, whose members plotted truck bombings in Toronto and an assault on the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa. Since then, a handful of youths have left — or tried to leave — Canada for Pakistan and Somalia to join terrorist groups.The report says while Muslim high school students have a right to hold prayer services, CSIS is concerned “that individuals with extreme violent views could gain access to, or lead, these groups and thus help to radicalize others.”The report, “The 4th ‘R’: Radicalization and Islamist Extremism in Canadian Secondary Schools,” was released under the Access to Information Act.Read the full story here.

• Canada - The million-dollar 'Radical mosque'.(NP).On a recent Friday at the Salaheddin mosque, Imam Aly Hindy spoke to his followers about how homosexuality was "invented," calling it "nonsense" and "garbage" to believe anyone could be born that way.He went on to talk about "illegal sexual acts" but added a qualifier: "Illegal means illegal in Islam, not illegal in the Canadian law, because everything is legal in the Canadian law, except children. Other than that, they allow everything."The Toronto imam has long been known for his controversial comments. He called the 9/11 attacks a joint CIA operation, refused to join other imams in signing a statement condemning the 2005 London bombings and referred to the Toronto 18 terrorists as good people.But while he remains as provocative as ever, the institution that serves as his platform has undergone a notable shift: According to federal charity records, the Salaheddin Islamic Centre is being increasingly financed by foreign patrons.But Imam Hindy said US$400,000 came from the Islamic Development Bank, which is based in Saudi Arabia and whose president is a Saudi. He said the other foreign donors were charities in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates."This is what Christian missionaries do from the West. In other parts of the world, this is their idea of doing missionary work. They give money to people they consider to be good Muslims and spreading the word," said Christian Leuprecht, an associate professor at the Royal Military College and Queen's University.Tahir Gora, secretary general of the Muslim Canadian Congress, said he was not impressed when he attended Imam Hindy's recent sermon. He said the imam had made "humiliating remarks" about homosexuals, and had tried to make the case that it didn't matter if Canada accepted homosexuals because Islam did not."He should respect Canadian values," said Mr. Gora, a writer who fled Pakistan after his critiques of religious intolerance brought death threats. "If he's getting so much funding from different corners, he should try and assimilate Muslims in the society rather than trying to alienate them from the society."He said following Imam Hindy's prayer, youths stood outside the mosque entrance handing out pamphlets that claimed that "hatred of Islam" was behind recent media coverage of the so-called honor killings murder trial in Kingston."The case was exploited by the agenda driven media to vilify Islam and Muslims," it read. It went on to claim the "role of the media is to put pressure on Muslims living in the West to abandon Islamic values and adopt secular-liberal values instead."Listed as director and president, the Egyptian-born Imam Hindy calls himself a fundamentalist, not an extremist. An RCMP report refers to him as a "focal point for Toronto-area Islamic radicals," and a New York Police Department report calls Salaheddin "a known radical mosque."Imam Hindy does not preach violence and says he steers youths away from radicalism. But some of the centre's former worshippers have been linked to terrorism. A former founder, Hassan Farhat, left Canada to join an al-Qaeda-linked group in Iraq, where he allegedly commanded a squad of suicide bombers. Ahmed Khadr, a senior Canadian al-Qaeda figure, visited the mosque when he was in Toronto and his family worshipped there.The former principal of the mosque school, Mahmoud Jabballah is undergoing deportation proceedings after the government alleged he was a member of the Egyptian terrorist group Al Jihad. The ringleaders of the Toronto 18 terrorist group, which plotted attacks in Southern Ontario, were also worshippers, as was a man arrested last year at the Toronto airport as he was allegedly on his way to join the Somali terrorist group Al Shabab.Hmmmm......."This is what Christian missionaries do from the West." yes funded by the Vatican.Who's funding them?Read the full story here.

• MB Spokesman Describes Caliphate "Dream".(TIP).Having swept into majorities in Egypt's parliament, a Muslim Brotherhood spokesman is making it clear the group has ambitions far beyond Cairo."Concerning the Islamic caliphate, this is our dream, and we hope to achieve it, even after centuries," Brotherhood spokesman Mahmoud Ghuzlan told Egypt's Ahram news outlet in an interview Sunday. "It is the right of the Brotherhood that this is one of the pillars of its strategy. We are not concerned about the renaissance of the group only. Rather our first goal is the renaissance of Egypt, then the Arab world and then the Islamic world. This will come gradually."Ghuzlan's statement echoes comments Brotherhood Supreme Guide Mohammed Badie made during a speech in late December. In it, Badie explained Brotherhood founder Hassan al-Banna's original agenda remains intact. "It begins with the reform of the individual and then to start building the family and society, then the government; then the rightly guided caliphate, then instructing the world; instructing guidance, wisdom, truth and justice."Neither Badie's comments nor Ghuzlan's interview have been picked up by American news media.They should be, because if Ghuzlan speaks for his organization, then the incoming Egyptian government opposes American policy when it comes to peace efforts in the region and in trying to block Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. While the Brotherhood has issues with Iran, he said, it supports the Islamic Republic when they are in agreement, "such as its standing up against America and the West who are trying to abort its nuclear program."Ghuzlan also affirmed the Brotherhood's relationship to Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist movement which controls Gaza. "Hamas is a branch of the Muslim Brotherhood in Palestine and the last bastion to protect it considering that the group is scattered in about seventy countries. It is part of the Da'wa of the Brotherhood. Between the two is an intellectual and emotional link. Our position on them is like our position on any brothers in the world, particularly Arab countries. We do not interfere in its affairs, and give advice if requested; the Brotherhood in every country respecting and living in accordance with the constitution of this state and its laws."In December, Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh similarly acknowledged the connection. Hamas, he said, is the Brotherhood's "jihadist arm."Hmmmm.......These are the 'people' Obama is donating $1,57 Billion and is planning to sell 125 M1A1 Abrams battle tanks.Read the full story here.

• Gaza terrorists attack IDF.(YNet).Palestinian terrorists fired RPG rockets at an IDF force patrolling the Gaza Strip border Friday evening and detonated an explosive device near the troops.No injuries were reported in the incident but the border fence in the area was damaged.IDF troops at the site directed tank fire at the terrorists. Earlier Friday, two rockets fired from Gaza exploded in the Eshkol regional council and south of Ashkelon, causing no injuries or damage.Following the escalating violence in the Gaza region, the IDF Spokesman's Office issued the following statement: "The IDF considers these to be grave acts of terror, which aim to harm residents and communities in the State of Israel." "The Hamas terror organization, which carries out acts of terror against the State of Israel, is jeopardizing Gaza Strip residents and will bear the responsibility for any future operation executed by the IDF in order to lift the threat of terror and restore the relative calm in the area," the army said.Meanwhile, Palestinian sources reported that the IDF directed tank fire at an open area east of the al-Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. No injuries were reported in the incident, the sources said. Earlier Friday, the Color-Red rocket alert was activated in several southern Israel communities after terrorists fired Qassam rockets from Gaza.Four other rockets were fired at Israel earlier this week, prompting Air Force gunships to strike open areas in Gaza. Later, the army struck two more targets in the northern and central Gaza Strip.Read the full story here.

• Italian police find fake bonds worth a third of US national debt.(Tel).HT: AstuteBlogger.Police have seized fake US Treasury bonds worth $6 trillion (£3.79trillion) from a Swiss company where they were held in three large trunks. Italian police said they had issued arrest warrants for eight people accused of international fraud and other financial crimes.The operation, co-ordinated by prosecutors from the southern Italian city of Potenza, was carried out by Italian and Swiss authorities after a year-long investigation.The fake securities, more than a third of U.S. national debt, were seized in January from a Swiss trust company where they were held in three large trunks.The eight alleged fraudsters are accused of counterfeiting bonds, credit card forgery, and usury in the Italian regions of Lombardy, Piedmont, Lazio and Basilicata.The Swiss Federal Prosecutor's office said Zurich state prosecutors had worked on the investigation at the request of the Italian prosecutor. The Swiss handed over their findings in July of last year.Read and see the full story here.

• 'Egypt to deliver fuel to Gaza after energy crisis'.(JPost).Egypt's parliamentary industry and energy committee announced Saturday that Cairo has agreed to provide fuel for the Gaza Strip's lone power plant, after fuel shortages and a dispute with smugglers forced the plant's shutdown and caused rolling blackouts.According to Palestinian Ma'an news agency, the quantities of fuel include 500 thousand liters of fuel for the power plant, and an additional 100 liters of fuel for vehicles.Fuel shortages in Egypt had prompted smugglers to demand prices higher than Gazans were ready to pay, according to Ma'an. AFP reported that Egyptian authorities had upped their crackdown on the smuggling of fuel to the Strip, which relies on its own power plant for up to a third of energy in the coastal enclave. That power plant experiences regular blackouts as fuel deliveries to Gaza are reliant on smugglers and are restricted by an Israeli land and sea blockade.Last week, energy authorities in Gaza announced that they could only provide families with up to six hours of power at a time, according to Al Jazeera. "Only half of the amount of fuel that entered in the previous weeks has been coming into Gaza for the past two weeks," the UN agency for humanitarian affairs, OCHA, said last Tuesday according to AFP. The UN organization said that Israel's blockade on Gaza, which began in 2006 following the Hamas takeover of the Strip, forced smugglers and Gazans to develop a tunnel system through which to transfer fuel."Palestinians gradually developed tunnel infrastructure allowing the transfer of large quantities of fuel into Gaza, at a cheaper price, which resulted in an almost complete halt in the purchase from Israel," the OCHA said according to AFP.Gaza is seeking to join an interstate energy grid that includes seven other Arab countries, but has said that the deal rests upon approval from the PLO.Read the full story here.