When was the last time we heard 'word' about Osama bin Laden? Elusive, right? "W"rong.

A video grab from an undated footage from the Internet shows Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden making statements from an unknown location. [Agencies]

Tell me this is a surprise. I want to hear from the Republicans that this is a surprise. Come on, say it. Say that no one in their right mind would ever conceive of the al Qaeda boss being in Pakistan, harbored by Musharraf. Go ahead. Say it.


CIA chief says bin Laden in Pakistan (click title to entry - thank you)

Thu Jun 11, 2009 1:56pm EDT
* Sources in Pakistan providing info on al Qaeda targets
* Says al Qaeda still most serious security threat to U.S.
(Updates with more quotes, details)
WASHINGTON, June 11 (Reuters) - CIA Director Leon Panetta said on Thursday the U.S. intelligence agency believes al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden is hiding in Pakistan and hopes joint operations with Pakistani forces will find him.
Asked whether he was sure that bin Laden was in Pakistan, Panetta told reporters: "The last information we had, that's still the case."
Bin Laden, who has eluded a U.S. manhunt since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, has issued audio and videotapes over the years demonstrating that he is still alive.
Finding bin Laden is "one of our major priorities," Panetta said. "One of our hopes is that the Pakistanis move in militarily, combined with our operations, we may be able to have a better chance" to find the al Qaeda leader, he said.
Panetta said al Qaeda "remains the most serious security threat" to the United States and its leaders, particularly in Pakistan, continue to plot against America.
There are "a number of people" on the ground in Pakistan providing intelligence on al Qaeda targets to the United States, he said....


The people of Pakistan back their government. They feel safer today than ever before. They WANT to be out from under the Taliban. I wonder why, huh? I wonder.

Pakistan public opinion turning against Taliban (click here)
By PAUL ALEXANDER
The Associated Press
Thursday, June 11, 2009; 7:24 PM
ISLAMABAD -- The footage was chilling - a woman crying out in pain, held face-down on the ground, as a man with a long beard flogged her in front of a crowd.
It could be the video that changed Pakistan.
That two-minute clip, purportedly shot in the Swat Valley where the Taliban held sway until a recent military offensive, has come to represent the militants and their extreme form of Islam. The footage is increasingly seen here as a turning point - perhaps even more persuasive than all the bombings, beheadings and other violence, most recently Tuesday's suicide attack on a luxury hotel....

The Taliban are human rights offenders. Civilians are never supposed to be a 'target' in any conflict. The brave Pakistani refugees needs our loyalty and endorsement. They must continue to feel safer and better cared for as they have provided 'in roads' to a government and ally to reclaim their country. Kindly, write your Congress persons and demand the Pakistani people continue to be supported in their refugee status. Thank you.

Bombing Challenges Aid to Pakistan Refugees (click here)
By SABRINA TAVERNISE and SALMAN MASOOD
Published: June 10, 2009
PESHAWAR, Pakistan — One casualty of the bombing that killed as many as 18 people at a luxury hotel here Tuesday night may be the effort to aid Pakistan’s surging population of refugees, who have been displaced by the military campaign against the Taliban.
Around 30 United Nations staff members were at the Pearl Continental Hotel on Tuesday when the bomber hit it, a United Nations spokesman said, and two were among the dead. More than 50 people were wounded in the attack....

Obama declares time to fix health care is now (click title to entry - thank you)

Remember when Bush's White House had bad economic news, like job losses or low job growth, it was always touted as 'less bad,' therefore it is good news? Remember the 'nerve' of it all? Like we couldn't understand that 'less bad' really meant '....poor economic performance?' Nothing like insulting the intelligence of the American people, right?

Well, it would seem the 'integrity' of the American people is intact with the Obama Administration. Joe Biden says it the way it needs to be said.

...The Labor Department (click here) reported that while employers cut 345,000 jobs in May -- the lowest monthly total since September -- the national unemployment rate still rose to 9.4 percent, the highest in more than a quarter century.
Biden called the numbers "tough" but said there are also "some signs of hope today," according to the press pool report before his meeting with his chief economist, Jared Bernstein, and Christina Romer, chairwoman of the White House Council of Economic Advisors.
Still, he told reporters, "It doesn't satisfy me, it doesn't satisfy the president. Less bad is not how we're going to measure success. We will not be satisfied until we are adding jobs on a monthly basis."
He did not offer more specifics about the Monday announcement.
Biden, who was put in charge of overseeing the recovery package by Obama, said that 3,600 projects are underway from the stimulus package, and that today's jobs report shows "some signs" of this.
"We still have a very long way to go," Biden said, adding "We're working to build that foundation every day we're here." (His full remarks are below.)...

Biden touts stimulus as tour begins at Pa. bridge (click here)
By PETER JACKSONASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

CARLISLE, Pa. -- Vice President Joe Biden said Thursday the $787 billion economic stimulus program is creating jobs with infrastructure projects like the replacement of a dilapidated bridge in central Pennsylvania, the first stop of a cross-country "Road to Recovery" tour.
Biden led a delegation from the Obama administration to the groundbreaking for the bridge in Carlisle....

...Rendell said the roughly 80-year-old bridge, rated structurally deficient and functionally obsolete by the state, was in "terrible condition" when Biden visited the site in February, before Congress approved the stimulus package.
"We actually looked through holes in the bridge and (saw) the creek below," the governor said.

Cindy hasn't won her federal seat yet. Her message stays alive. "Never forget Casey." Go get 'em, Cindy.

Peace activist Cindy Sheehan holds a sign as she leads a march over the Dallas Tollway heading to former President George Bush's house in Dallas, Monday, June 8, 2009. Sheehan lead a march to the former presidents home in the Preston Hollow section of Dallas. (AP Photo/LM Otero) (Lm Otero - AP)

Three years after Crawford protests, Cindy Sheehan returns to speak in Waco (click here)

By Tim Woods Tribune-Herald staff writer
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Peace activist Cindy Sheehan’s return to Central Texas drew about 55 people Tuesday night to hear her speak at Poppa Rollo’s Pizza.
The event was a stop on Sheehan’s book tour to promote Myth America, the latest of her four books.
Sheehan, whose son, Casey, was killed in Iraq in 2004, garnered the attention of the nation in 2005 when she and other anti-war protesters gathered in Crawford outside the ranch of former President George W. Bush. The protesters demanded the president’s justification for the Iraq war and asked for the immediate withdrawal of all troops.
Tuesday night, Sheehan railed not only against Bush and his policies but also against President Barack Obama and other politicians who Sheehan says are perpetuating Bush’s war policies.
“It’s about challenging the policies and not the person,” Sheehan said after her talk, referring to her willingness to now protest Obama’s actions. “I’ve been in several protests of Obama, and there’s no coverage, but then I go protest George Bush in Dallas, and there’s an overwhelming amount of media coverage.”
The protester, who was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize following her Crawford vigil, repeatedly referred to the two classes she sees in America, the “robbers” and the “robbed.”
A poignant moment at the event came during the question-and-answer session after Sheehan’s talk. A man asked Sheehan if she would be who she is and do what she does “if it weren’t for April 4,” the date her son was killed in Sadr City, Iraq.
After Sheehan said she could not answer that hypothetical question, the man, Timothy Priddy, told her that his platoon was there the day Casey was killed.
Following the event, Priddy said he agrees with some of Sheehan’s beliefs but wonders if she is tarnishing her son’s legacy.
“I agree, but at the same time I think she degrades what he stood for,” Priddy said. “I understand where she’s coming from, but my point is, if it wouldn’t have happened, would she be here today, or would she be living the life that she’s arguing against?”
twoods@wacotrib.com
757-5721

Mike is looking for a name for his new movie. He is looking outside Goldman Sachs. Give Mike a hand before he is lost in NYC forever.

"I want them to walk out at the end saying 'Wow, that was something!' And in this case, maybe they also walk out asking the ushers, 'Um, excuse me. Where are the pitch forks and torches?'"– Michael Moore (click here, thank you)

NAME "MIKE'S MOVIE" (click here)

Here is my entry, Mike. "Bush's Pity Party for Paulson"

Palin looking for public sympathy. Letterman saids 'Fine by me.'

Letterman strikes back against O'Brien-led "Tonight Show" (click title to entry - thank you)
NAB SmartBrief 06/11/2009
CBS' "Late Show with David Letterman" on Tuesday scored its first ratings win over its new rival, "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien," which has seen its ratings drop each night since its June 1 debut. But NBC said it expects O'Brien to easily beat Letterman among younger-adult viewers -- a key demographic for late-night programming. New York Times, The (06/10) Variety (06/10)