The WaPo notes this about two of the four Americans killed at the American consulate in Benghazi:
On Thursday night, Clinton issued a statement [link] identifying the two others as Glen A. Doherty and Tyrone S. Woods, both former Navy SEALs who had served in Afghanistan and Iraq and were working as security personnel for the State Department. Clinton said both had “died protecting their colleagues.”
That is not a surprise, since it was well-publicized that in order to bring down the official troop headcount in Iraq the State Department would be protected by private contractors. Presumably similar logic has been applied elsewhere.
But my question, which arises after chaneling my inner Kos - since these two had abandoned the uniform to become mercenaries for hire, is the Kos attitude still "screw 'em", as in the old days of "Bush's war"? I have not had the will to check, and I believe he later distanced himself from himself, but volunteers are welcome.
THEN AGAIN: I have a lot of sympathy for the "Who gives a rat's ass what Kos thinks" position as well.
GOOD POINT: Commenter Sandy Daze notes that "mercenary" is quite a pejorative way to describe Americans who died protecting Americans. I have added "which arises after channelling my inner Kos" to clarify where the mercenary meme came from.
You mean people are supposed to be held accountable for what they said? How novel!
You forget Ezra Klein's Law: History begins at dawn.
Posted by: sbw | September 14, 2012 at 09:32 AM
Her is another filmmaker going after a prophet:
http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/09/a_possible_explanation_for_obamas_connecticut_social_security_number.html
I hope Holder gets this guy!
Posted by: Threadkiller | September 14, 2012 at 09:38 AM
TK-
Are you implying Holder's a credentialed film critic now?
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 09:58 AM
Minus 14 at Raz today.
Trails Romney by 3.
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 09:59 AM
TK, my father, who aside from his military service has only lived in NY, MA, and MI, has an 042 SS number. He probably got his number in the 1940s, though possibly in the 1930s. Should I investigate?
Posted by: jimmyk | September 14, 2012 at 10:06 AM
This is a good line (from FB)-
"Barack Obama is not a real president, though he does play one on TV."
Posted by: Janet - Why does Johnny Depp hate the poor? pourquoi? | September 14, 2012 at 10:13 AM
TK, are you implying that Obama actually had a ...gasp! ..... job???!!!
Posted by: fdcol63 | September 14, 2012 at 10:14 AM
There's obviously nothing to worry about because CBS last night was running commercials about the JEF being on Letterperv's show next week. Maybe he and Mooch can do a Top 10 things that keep him from attending the daily intelligence briefings; or Things that were going through Ambassador Stevens mind as he was raped and murdered? Or maybe he'll be there for a Stupid Human Trick segment.
Posted by: Captain Hate | September 14, 2012 at 10:14 AM
CH, maybe he can joke about it the way he joked about all those shovel ready jobs that weren't shovel ready, after he disappeared a trillion of our dollars to supposedly fund them.
Posted by: James D. | September 14, 2012 at 10:17 AM
Yes, jimmy, you should.
" Social Security numbers were grouped by the first three digits of the number (called the area number) and assigned geographically starting in the northeast and moving across the country to the northwest. But if you look closely at the distribution pattern you will see an apparent anomaly. The lowest area numbers are assigned to New Hampshire, rather than to Maine, even though Maine in the most northeasterly of the states."
http://www.ssa.gov/history/ssn/firstcard.html
I think any research you provide would bring context to the controversy.
Posted by: Threadkiller | September 14, 2012 at 10:19 AM
I am thinking without the Ambassador, this does resemble the Fallujah bridge incident, which occasioned would be Mara Kos's remarks
Posted by: narciso | September 14, 2012 at 10:20 AM
Leno had Moochelle on last night.There are desperate to pretend all is well and we WILL be re-elected. The pathetic pandering is sickening.
On C-Span this morning 3 callers condemned Obama. The guy from Kentucky said Bammy looked shocked in the Rose Garden and felt Obama didn't know what to do and should not have been surprised by this happening.
Posted by: maryrose | September 14, 2012 at 10:20 AM
So .... how many millions of stimulus $$$ are being kicked back to Obama in off-shore accounts for his personal use, and not just his re-election campaign?
Posted by: fdcol63 | September 14, 2012 at 10:20 AM
should be They are
Posted by: maryrose | September 14, 2012 at 10:21 AM
USA Today:
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 10:38 AM
Dave Burge has had just the right amount of coffee this morning.
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 10:40 AM
They were in their 40's which wouldn't be a viable age to still be full time operators IMO. So, why not retire and get a better paying gig but still with a rush? They did what their training conditioned them to do - protect and project.
May God Rest Their Souls.
Where do we find such men?
Posted by: Jim Eagle | September 14, 2012 at 10:40 AM
The walls have been scaled in Tunis at the US Embassy. "Protestors" are inside.-twitter
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 10:42 AM
Kos? Never heard of him.
Posted by: I R A Darth Aggie | September 14, 2012 at 10:42 AM
JiB, I don't think either of those guys actually retired--they didn't put in their twenty.
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 11:02 AM
We shouldn't buy the administration's argument that these are just acts of a violent few extremists in these ME countries.
It's the responsibility of the gov'ts in these countries to provide the first layer of defense for all of our embassies and consulates.
They had adequate warning of potential problems, yet are either doing nothing or not enough to stop the attacks.
Even if we'd sent whole battalions of Marines for each embassy to bolster their defenses, I don't think this would have been effective.
Sure, we could probably have killed many of the attackers. But this would probably have just made a bad situation worse, by angering even more of those populations and turning them against us (if that's even possible after all the years of anti-American hate they've been spoonfed.) This might have invited even larger attacks against the Marine reinforcements, leading to worse casualties and embarrassment as the US was forced to withdraw, reminiscent of Somalia and Saigon.
At some point, we must accept that this is a larger problem, and that the clash of civilizations between America and the West vs Islam is being waged, despite however else we might wish it were so.
We should engage this enemy and defeat it - in whatever manner we must - while we still have the military and economic advantage.
Posted by: fdcol63 | September 14, 2012 at 11:12 AM
I must take very strong exception and umbrage at the use of the term "mercenary" when applied to American civilian contractors hired by the USG to protect people, places or things which are important to the USG.
It is all too convenient and overly simplistic to throw that pejorative term about. But "mercenary" has a specific meaning which is too frequently bandied about, more often than not to score cheap political points against one's ideological opponent.
From Wiki:
A mercenary is a person who takes part in an armed conflict, who is not a national or a party to the conflict, and is "motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by the desire for private gain and, in fact, is promised, by or on behalf of a party to the conflict, material compensation substantially in excess of that promised or paid to combatants of similar ranks and functions in the armed forces of that Party".
In a more concise definition, Webster's says:
one that serves merely for wages; especially : a soldier hired into foreign service
The two former-service SEALs:
Were hired protection, sure. While I have not seen the company they were employed by, it might have been Academi (nee Xe, nee BW), TC, DC or one of several providers.
What was their responsibility? Protecting the principle, Ambassador Christopher Stevens and through the security umbrella, Sean Smith. They died doing their duty.
That is, they were Americans hired to protect Americans. Typical compensation is USD $300-$500 per day, only for the days worked, and only for short-term (i.e. 90 day roll-over) contracts.
Imagine, a contractor standing in the breech, doing one's duty, to protect what they were assigned to protect.
More cannot be asked of these men. They gave their all to do the job they were sent to do. Calling them mercenaries is just WRONG.
These men are sheepdogs in the very best sense.
May they Rest In Peace.
May those that criticise them be half as worthy of their sacrifice.
Posted by: Sandy Daze | September 14, 2012 at 11:13 AM
DoT,
I understand Doherty had eight years service, but that Woods completed 20.
Posted by: Sandy Daze | September 14, 2012 at 11:18 AM
Thanks SD--didn't know that about Woods.
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 11:24 AM
DoT,
Kansas is flyover country. The state has only 6 electoral votes. Obama probably figures that he can steal enough votes elsewhere to make up for the possible loss.
Posted by: Jay Stevens | September 14, 2012 at 11:26 AM
The WaPo has a photo gallery of the 8 American ambassadors killed in the line of duty since 1950. Got that? This is no big whoop so nothing the JEF should interrupt his fundraiser in Vegas or appearance on Letterman for.
Posted by: Captain Hate | September 14, 2012 at 11:31 AM
No way he was going to take Kansas anyway.
Der Spiegel online:
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 11:32 AM
How can Obammy justify going on Letterman and Yukking it up whilst we are in the midst of this crisis?
Romney should make a statement questioning Obama's lack of judgment on this matter.
The numbers must be in dire straits for Obummer to risk the disgust of the American people over his cavalier attitude wrt the deaths of our countrymen.
Posted by: maryrose | September 14, 2012 at 11:38 AM
Die Welt:
US President Barack Obama's Middle East policy is in ruins. Like no president before him, he tried to win over the Arab world. After some initial hesitation, he came out clearly on the side of the democratic revolutions. … In this context, he must accept the fact that he has snubbed old close allies such as Israel, Saudi Arabia and the Egyptian military. And now parts of the freed societies are turning against the country which helped bring them into being. Anti-Americanism in the Arab world has even increased to levels greater than in the Bush era. It's a bitter outcome for Obama."
Obama was naive to believe that one only needed to adopt a new tone and show more respect in order to dispel deep-seated reservations about the free world. In practice, the policies of the Obama administration in the region were not as naive as they may have seemed at times, and the Americans have always been much more involved in the Middle East than the passive Europeans. But Washington has provided the image of a distracted superpower in the process of decline to the societies there. This image of weakness is being exploited by Salafists and al-Qaida, who are active in North Africa from Somalia to Mali.
One thing is clear: If jihadists believe they can attack American installations and kill an ambassador on the anniversary of Sept. 11, then America's deterrent power has declined considerably. For a superpower, it is not enough just to want to be loved. You have to scare the bad guys to keep them in check.
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 11:40 AM
Anybody hear from Porch or Sue? I don't like that Austin scare one bit.
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 11:43 AM
I had a die welt once in college. Friend chucked a 30-sider at me so hard I thought my arm was broken, but it just left a nasty bruise.
Posted by: Rob Crawford | September 14, 2012 at 11:44 AM
DoT-
As Conn Carroll just wrote, "I think it's too early to say Obama's Middle East Policy is in ruins. "In Flames" fits, however."
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 11:46 AM
AL Queda sees Obama as a weak sister. They will take advantage of him and us as long as he remains in office. Like I repeatedly said in 2008. Obama is soft on terrorism as is Hillary and it shows.
Posted by: maryrose | September 14, 2012 at 11:46 AM
Deeply ingrained cultural attitudes do not change simply because one political regime replaces another.
This guy is strengthening the skepticism I feel toward Germans and the political changes brought by World War II.
Posted by: bgates | September 14, 2012 at 11:48 AM
Ba-doom CRASH!
Posted by: Jim Ryan | September 14, 2012 at 11:49 AM
And, while nobody's looking, WH blows off doc request by House Ways & Means Committee over Delphi Pension Theft. To be fair, Treasury and PBGC complied.
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 11:50 AM
What Austin scare?
Posted by: Jane - Get off the couch your country needs you! | September 14, 2012 at 11:51 AM
Bomb Threat called into UT/Austin by "a member of al Qaeda (self described on threat call)".
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 11:53 AM
Now one at N. Dakota State. All buildings evacuated.
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 11:54 AM
What ever happened to the NuTread Alert system?
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 12:01 PM
I have reached the point of hoping we have a skeleton crew of experienced Bush administration officials ready to take the helm temporarily, as the pre-election Obama administration melt-down comes into full fruition.
The UT Austin bomb threat caller is said to have had a 'middle eastern' accent.
Posted by: OldTimer | September 14, 2012 at 12:04 PM
amen, OldTimer.
Posted by: Janet - Why does Johnny Depp hate the poor? pourquoi? | September 14, 2012 at 12:09 PM
"The deeply held American belief that all you have to do is liberate people from serfdom and dictatorship, and then democracy and a market economy will develop more or less on their own, burned to ash in the trial by fire of Iraq."
DoT:
It seems almost bizarre to use Iraq in this context, because we didn't just eliminate the Saddam regime and leave. The U.S. was instrumental in establishing the institutions of governance and keeping them under our protection long enough to give them a fighting chance. Our ex post facto military presence filled precisely the kind of power vacuum which organized insurgencies are now exploiting in Libya. Sandy Daze can speak to the future in Iraq more authoritatively than I, but I think Obama's abrupt withdrawal was a huge strategic mistake. We have the largest U.S. Embassy in the world there, and now live in isolation behind the barricades in Baghdad.
It is the apparent view of the current Administration, not "a deeply held American belief," that all you need to do is just push some buttons on the remote and offer up some empathetic rhetoric, that sending an avid student of Islam and former Peace Corps volunteer into a war zone is smart diplomacy.
Posted by: JM Hanes | September 14, 2012 at 12:36 PM
I have to agree that Obama's "smart diplomacy" is a flaming ruin. I believe that Romney will be prepared and ready to roll. And I also doubt he will be running around the country with a self madeup seal touting the "Office of the President Elect". He will be hard at work on his transition details. It is my understanding he has already appointed someone who is currently working on these details while Romney is campaigning. He already sounds stronger than Obama who seems to not understand what is happening and who is not prepared to deal with events, instead he is partying while the Middle East burns. I always said he was Carter squared, I am scared for my country to be proven correct. This whole confraglation reminds me forcefully of 1979, Carter and our embassy hostages. We even have the energy crisis although this time instead of gas lines we have spiking prices caused by an incompetent administration.... Sigh
Posted by: TexasMom2012 | September 14, 2012 at 12:37 PM
This discussion is sober and somewhat depressing to have come to the point where JEF has proven that JOMers were right all along about his anti-american world view and incompetence. Frankly, I miss the comedy gold we got from DD. I guess DD is under orders to lay low until he gets his jive spin script from AxelPlouffe.
Posted by: NK | September 14, 2012 at 12:42 PM
Oh another comparison. Carter told us to wear a sweater and complained about a malaise among the American people. Obama told us to inflate our tires and that rich Americans are the problem and they should be punished. Both SCOAMFs but Obama is worse. Carter had problems with Iran while Obama has managed to enflame the entire Middle East and parts of Africa as well. I never believed Carter would be topped in the incompetent boob president category but he must be celebrating, "I am number 2!"
Posted by: TexasMom2012 | September 14, 2012 at 12:43 PM
I agree, JMH, that the writer's reference to Iraq is not entirely apposite. But he may be thinking of Paul Wolfowitz's unfortunate prediction that "we will be hailed as liberators," Remember, too, that despite Obama's insufferable boasting about ebding the war in Iraq, what he actually did was withdraw US forces in accordance with a timetable negotiated by Bush.
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 12:45 PM
Our ex post facto military presence filled precisely the kind of power vacuum which organized insurgencies are now exploiting in Libya.. . . but I think Obama's abrupt withdrawal was a huge strategic mistake. We have the largest U.S. Embassy in the world there, and now live in isolation behind the barricades in Baghdad.
Just so. Cultural change requires a generational commitment. We still have GIs stationed in Germany, Italy, Japan, the RoK. . .
JMH - have I said how happy I am for your return to JoM ?
Posted by: Sandy Daze | September 14, 2012 at 12:46 PM
I always thought JEF would be worse than Carter. Voila! But Carter still holds the title as the worst FORMER POTUS in history. He's got that distinction going for him.
Posted by: NK | September 14, 2012 at 12:47 PM
We have the largest U.S. Embassy in the world there, and now live in isolation behind the barricades in Baghdad.
And, more importantly, no bases from which to protect our interests (e.g., threaten strikes against Iran's nuke facilities).
On the term "mercenary," I'd note that it's both a term of art and a pejorative. From Protocol I, first it identifies mercenaries as unlawful combatants :
It then goes on to define them, and former SEALS protecting ambassadors obviously don't qualify (not taking part in "hostilities"; and not a third party national).Using it as Kos does basically says: they are criminals, and deserve whatever happens to them. Extremely bad form, IMNSHO.
Posted by: Cecil Turner | September 14, 2012 at 12:51 PM
"The deeply held American belief that all you have to do is liberate people from serfdom and dictatorship, and then democracy and a market economy will develop more or less on their own
Hell, democracy was not what we were after. It's not what we have in the US. We have a republic -- if you can keep it.
In Iraq we punched down some bullies that the U.N. tolerated for all too long and began to give Iraqis some peaceful breathing room until Obama and the Dems pulled the plug.
Deeply held, my ass. What was it we did for the overly-simplistic Germans anyway?
Posted by: sbw | September 14, 2012 at 12:52 PM
CecilT/SBW-- all correct, Bush negotiated withdrawal of combat units, but ALSO a Status of Forces Agreement. That SOFA was very important to the government of Iraq to give them international legitimacy and frankly prestige to be treated by the USA like Germany, Japan, Korea etc. Obviously it served US interests to give a military presence to offset the Mullahs. What did JEF do? he flushed that SOFA down the toilet. Hence he destroyed our ability to materially influence Iraq.
Posted by: NK | September 14, 2012 at 12:57 PM
And came to speak when I was in law school and told a story he was proud of which told me he really was a pompous idiot. Who still did not understand what a dangerous world it is and how he made it worse. Told the Carter story to friends of my parents who knew him and had been to dinners at the WH. They said he thinks he is doing-good and in his mind that excuses all.
bo doesn't even have that. We are the stereotype he learned from his mom and Said. The dangerous world regards him as feckless and even if he loses we have 4 months with him at the helm. Which means ValJar. Two months pf post election spite over being sent home and every bad person in the world will know it. No one will be at home.
Posted by: rse | September 14, 2012 at 12:57 PM
Assume for the moment that there is 100% agreement in the electorate that Obama's Middle East policy is an abject failure.
Does that mean he loses the election?
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 01:02 PM
49-44 at Gallup.
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 01:05 PM
@Reuters: U.S. investigating probation violations by man linked to anti-Islam film
Posted by: Captain Hate | September 14, 2012 at 01:11 PM
Does that mean he loses the election?
Yes for all the other reasons too.
Posted by: Captain Hate | September 14, 2012 at 01:11 PM
Who is 49?
Posted by: Jane - Get off the couch your country needs you! | September 14, 2012 at 01:12 PM
The all clear was sounded at UT Austin and normal schedules to be resumed later today.
A good friend and co-worker now living in Austin is going to the UT v. Fresno soccer game tonight and sent me an email and hopes Al Qaeda is/are soccer fans.
Posted by: centralcal | September 14, 2012 at 01:15 PM
I know this guy very well--we've had long discussions regarding the use of non-uniformed protection in the modern campaigns. Although this article is from five years ago, it underscores the efforts operators undertake to ensure their participation in the operating battlespace is stable & responsible.
Mercenary firms fear bloodbath in Iraq
The other difference between "mercenaries" and men like the two former-service SEALs, Glen Doherty and Tyrone S. Woods, who gave their life protecting Christopher Stevens and Sean Smith, is that they provide strictly defensive support to their company's client, under a contract.
OTOH, mercenaries are hired for offensive operations.
Posted by: Sandy Daze | September 14, 2012 at 01:18 PM
The WH has flagged the YouTube video and asked that it be taken down.
"Look, squirrel!" Strategery Playbook opened to Slurpee-stuck page 1.
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 01:23 PM
Apparently the YouTards have complied. Troof to pauer!!!! Artistic FREEDOM.
Posted by: Captain Hate | September 14, 2012 at 01:25 PM
CH-- I'm sure YouTube would have complied just as quickly at GWB's request. ha..ha...ha..HA..HAHAHA...HAAA!!
Posted by: NK | September 14, 2012 at 01:28 PM
Jewish New Year starts sunday Sundown, Ryder Cup in Medinah next thursday.
Posted by: NK | September 14, 2012 at 01:30 PM
Does that mean he loses the election?
Well, yes. But not for that reason. It's the economy. Period.
The amazing thing there is the number of people who still expect rainbow dust to settle over new green shoots fertilized by unicorn poop. But I gotta believe there are more realists who'll actually vote.
If I were to hazard a prediction, it'd be that the most significant political impact from the Mideast is rising gas prices . . . and that'll just add to the margin Obama loses by.
Posted by: Cecil Turner | September 14, 2012 at 01:30 PM
Speaking of YouTube (and by extension, Google), did you guys notice that on 9/11, all Google did was put a small black ribbon on their page?
Yet they always put more substantial junk on their page for other occasions?
Posted by: fdcol63 | September 14, 2012 at 01:31 PM
The WH has flagged the YouTube video
Evidence, please, that the WH flagged the video.
Posted by: sbw | September 14, 2012 at 01:33 PM
--did you guys notice that on 9/11, all Google did was put a small black ribbon on their page?--
Yeah, I like to compare Bing and google on such occasions and as usual google was a joke but at least they had something which is better than they usually manage.
Posted by: Ignatz | September 14, 2012 at 01:41 PM
Sorry for this long C&P but I can't find the original URL. You can skip the whole thing and just go to the last 3 paragraphs for the take-away.
This is making the rounds of many military email aggregators:
U.S. Compound In Libya Was 'Too Far Outside The Wire'
It's time to drop the rhetoric, defend our interests
By Col. Ken Allard
Who is to blame when embassies are overrun and a U.S. ambassador is killed? Most of all, what do we do about it?
When I was dean of the National War College, my students included future generals and admirals as well as rising State Department professionals. Those exceedingly talented diplomats-in-training were really just slightly younger versions of Ambassador Christopher Stephens, tragically killed Tuesday in Libya. To the amazement of officers who had recently commanded aircraft carriers or led armored formations in desert combat, the Foreign Service contingent had "war stories" of their own. One of them - a charming, 30-something lady who looked like a missionary on sabbatical - astounded us by recounting how she had confronted a mob apparently intent on sacking the remote U.S. consulate she was running. Without radio, telephones, faxes or the usual adult supervision, she had been forced to act on her own, somehow pacifying the mob. One of her uniformed colleagues drew laughter when he asked, "So calling in air or artillery support probably wasn't an option?" It was not, but the whole point of having future generals, admirals and ambassadors studying together was to enable them to understand the trade-offs between diplomacy and military force. When was diplomacy the better choice, what were the limits of force, how might they reinforce each other and when do those policy instruments conflict?
Those are hard questions, both for classroom debaters and White House decision-makers. Yet in Washington, wishful thinking and political correctness sometimes trump tough lessons suggested by hard strategic choices and realpolitik. One example is the Arab Spring, where our hopes in places like Egypt, Libya and Syria customarily elevate the rhetoric but often outrun all common sense. In Libya, for example, we led from behind while leaving most of the heavy lifting to NATO. Against a third-rate opponent, we coerced our allies by asserting our "Responsibility to Protect" the Libyan rebellion against mass slaughter by the Gadhafi regime. That part of the alleged Obama Doctrine - abbreviated "R2P" - is sometimes asserted as justification for American intervention into Syria, where the Assad regime and his Iranian allies resolutely lead from the front.
Therein lies the problem. In either the new or the old Middle East, force and fanaticism have always trumped hope, high-mindedness and fuzzy rhetoric by outsiders. While we delude ourselves into thinking that the forces of modernism, cultural relativism and technology-induced goodness are all but irreversible, there are hard-eyed and hard-pressed power players who haven't yet received our memo. It is therefore highly unlikely that the killing of an American ambassador on the anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001, was a coincidence. It's far more probable that al Qaeda wanted to send us a message, and that they intentionally exploited a lightly defended soft spot in order to make a statement. As Sept. 11 should have reminded us, they have a history of doing just that.
It is equally useless to repeat the familiar platitude that embassy security is a host-country responsibility or even to wonder - as Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton tearfully asked - "How could this happen?" How could it not, Madam Secretary? Especially in the Middle East, strategic leaders with more than a clue about what can go wrong must first appreciate that the forces now in play throughout the region are powerful and pervasive. Consequently, we need to defend U.S. strategic interests, not try to take refuge in vague, politically correct doctrines. The beginning of wisdom is to assume that our adversaries are still serious, smart and resourceful. We should be as well.
As the Brits put it, these are still early days so caution is called for with even preliminary assessments. But my War College students might have suggested that the anniversary of Sept. 11 was probably an appropriate occasion to have that Marine FAST team present long before it was needed. They would have been too polite to suggest that maybe Washington officialdom was distracted and left a diplomatic outpost "too far outside the wire." Some would certainly have been sufficiently outraged by the killing of Ambassador Stevens to suggest alerting SEAL Team Six that their services might again be required.
There is also the reigning heresy that national security is either unimportant or will naturally favor the cause of Barack Obama. The reality: Like oxygen, you don't miss national security until it disappears, sometimes quite suddenly. That new reality may have already begun.
Posted by: Jim Eagle | September 14, 2012 at 01:41 PM
Here you go, sbw
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-filmmaker-20120914,0,6397127.story
Posted by: Captain Hate | September 14, 2012 at 01:42 PM
sbw,
http://www.politico.com/politico44/2012/09/white-house-asked-youtube-to-review-antimuslim-film-135586.html
Posted by: fdcol63 | September 14, 2012 at 01:43 PM
Btw, I may have jumped the gun on YouTube taking down the vid
Posted by: Captain Hate | September 14, 2012 at 01:44 PM
fd-tiny black ribbon. Miniscule black ribbon. I thought it came across as a perfunctory gesture. Especially given everything else they commemorate.
Posted by: rse | September 14, 2012 at 01:44 PM
.
Bob Owens on the Bloody Benghazi Handprints.
Posted by: daddy | September 14, 2012 at 01:48 PM
sbw-
LA Times reported it as so. Is that "Evidence"?
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 01:49 PM
The video is still up.
FWIW, I tried watching; it starts out horrible, but I kept at it for as long as I could hoping it would improve.
There's 45 seconds I'll never get back.
Posted by: bgates | September 14, 2012 at 01:51 PM
bgates-
I thank you for your diligent research, so I don't have to.
Posted by: Melinda Romanoff | September 14, 2012 at 01:54 PM
Obama is 49, Romney 44. Believe these are RVs.
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 02:00 PM
Posted by: Dave (in MA) | September 14, 2012 at 02:00 PM
Also, the list of US ambassadors killed since 1950 is the same list as the list of US ambassadors killed since ratification.
Posted by: Dave (in MA) | September 14, 2012 at 02:03 PM
And just to give the Administration credit where credit is due, so far there are no reported anti-US protests in Oman, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Kyrgyzstan.
Posted by: daddy | September 14, 2012 at 02:06 PM
Well Gordon Mein was killed by Guatemalaa guerillas, Cleo Noel by Black September, the Lebanese one by the PFLP, the former leader of which, had been a CIA contact
Posted by: narciso | September 14, 2012 at 02:08 PM
DoT:
"what [Obama] actually did was withdraw US forces in accordance with a timetable negotiated by Bush."
I would definitely defer to Sandy Daze on this one, but I believe that is not really accurate. It's my distinct impression that:
It was understood by all concerned that the SOFA would be renegotiated, as to both timetables and deployments, and it was widely expected that the new agreement would allow for a staged withdrawal. At the time those negotiations were undertaken by the new Administration, every diplomatic back channel had the Iraqi government practically begging Obama not to withdraw U.S. troops en masse. Obama refused to deal directly with Maliki, who was clearly caught between rock and hard place, both politically and diplomatically. Rather than basically working to reach an agreement behind closed doors, which Maliki could have signed, Team Obama demanded that his government explicitly petition the U.S. to leave a larger contingent of troops and put it to a public vote in Parliament. There was no way that was going to happen, and I have absolutely no doubt that Obama got precisely the result he was looking for -- at a tremendous cost to a potentially pivotal alliance. I'd also note that it was the Democrats who demanded that the U.S. prove it's good intentions by proclaiming to the world that we would not leave a single permanent military base on Iraqi soil.
Sandy:
Thanks! I've been glad to see you weighing in on such a regular basis, myself!
Posted by: JM Hanes | September 14, 2012 at 02:10 PM
--There's 45 seconds I'll never get back.
Posted by: bgates | September 14, 2012 at 01:51 PM--
You'll get them back and far more should you now go slit the throat of an infidel or two.
Posted by: Ignatz | September 14, 2012 at 02:11 PM
Well that's reassuring daddy, much like Zapp Brannigan, when he blew up DOOP headquarters
Posted by: narciso | September 14, 2012 at 02:13 PM
I'm really sorry to see Morocco on that map, daddy.
Posted by: JM Hanes | September 14, 2012 at 02:20 PM
And I'm relieved to discover that the incident there only amounts to this:
"Algeria and Morocco have sharply criticised the anti-Islam film, while also offering their condolences over the death of the US ambassador to Libya."
I suppose you could even say that they have aligned themselves with the U.S. position, more's the pity.
Posted by: JM Hanes | September 14, 2012 at 02:29 PM
"JMH - have I said how happy I am for your return to JoM ?"
Me too Sandy Daze.
And I really appreciated your long response yesterday to JMH's comments. Very well stated. Thanks.
Posted by: daddy | September 14, 2012 at 02:30 PM
I was struck , by a Carter convention clip in 1980, where he said exactly the same thing that Obama said, about Reagan
Posted by: narciso | September 14, 2012 at 02:31 PM
That's cobsistent with my recollection, JMH. Bush's error was in not getting it nailed down, and leaving it wide open to sabotage by Obama.
But although the Iraqis would no doubt be better off if we still had a presence there, I'm not sure we would. And I don't believe the American people would tolerate a generational presence there if guys were still getting killed. Quite different from Japan, Germany and South Korea.
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 02:32 PM
Great to see all the pushback against the Media/WhiteHouse/Jay Carney meme: "It was all the Video's fault."
We have to break thru that meme on the drive-by MSM News breaks.
Keep pounding away folks. If we can successfully bust thru' their narrative we can sway Low attention voters.
Posted by: daddy | September 14, 2012 at 02:37 PM
Clinton seems really shaken at the ceremony. She is probably the only one there that knows how bad a f**k up this is, not that she is capable of fixing it. She is reading from notes.
Odufus looks like he is going to wing it.
Posted by: Threadkiller | September 14, 2012 at 02:40 PM
Something must be done about the "drive-by MSM".
They are subversive enemies of traditional Americans and our values, and they're not going away on their own. The damage they're doing .. and will continue to do if unchecked ... to America is incalculable.
Just hoping they will go away or be silenced through attrition and purely market-driven forces is highly doubtful.
They are a Fifth Column threat to America and must be eliminated.
Posted by: fdcol63 | September 14, 2012 at 02:47 PM
*consistent*
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 02:51 PM
"much like Zapp Brannigan, when he blew up DOOP headquarters"
Narciso,
Obama's, "they're not an Ally and not an enemy" reminded me of this classic
Posted by: daddy | September 14, 2012 at 02:51 PM
BTW again mostly for Henny and Penny, Zero down to 45% support today in RAS. Convention bump gone, and the union strike drags on and will no doubt get uglier and the whole Middle East is in enflames mostly centered around our Embassies, and Food and Fuel continue their price rises unabated.
How many OWS folks do you think have money in the evil stock market? Total incongruity if you think about it.
Posted by: GMax | September 14, 2012 at 02:56 PM
Breitbart:
"Ambassador Chris Stevens did not have a Marine detail in Benghazi, Libya. But White House Senior Advisor and Obama confidante Valerie Jarrett has a full Secret Service detail on vacation in Martha’s Vineyard, according to Democratic pollster Pat Caddell. That’s the pathetic foreign policy of the Obama administration, says Caddell today in an exclusive interview with Breitbart News. 'Jarrett seems to have a 24 hour, around the clock detail, with five or six agents full time,' Caddell explains."
Posted by: Danube of Thought | September 14, 2012 at 02:59 PM
Little Barry traveled internationally (unless you don't believe that he lived in Indonesia?) so he had a passport. I can tell you from experience, in the 60's and 70's a minor didn't need a birth certificate to get a passport. You didn't need a birth certificate to get a drivers license. And you didn't need a birth certificate to get a SSN.
What I have wondered is just how many SSN's Obama has had? In the late 80's (when they started requiring employers to check eligibility of new hires) they tightened way up on the whole SSN issuing process. Before that, it was not all that uncommon for people to have more than one, through errors or fraud.
TK, I've said this before -- I don't believe that a lack of a birth certificate would have in any way been a barrier to getting an SSN in 1977. I got my first passport in 1978, at the post office in Evanston, IL, and my parents didn't have a copy of my BC. My mother signed the little affidavit and I had a passport! Which was all I needed to get a drivers license in 1979. And that passport and drivers license have been all I have ever needed to get passport renewals and drivers license renewals. I still have my original Social Security card -- the one that clearly says "NOT for identification" on it -- that I got in 1970, and that and my marriage certificate were all that I needed to get a new social security card in my married name. Without the card, I would have needed my drivers license or passport. With the marriage certificate, I was able to get my passport amended, so I have a passport with my picture and both names, which has been enough to establish identity.Posted by: cathyf | September 14, 2012 at 03:04 PM
I'm late to the comments, but it seems to me that this would not have happened had not Obama and the democrats declared that there was no longer a War on Terror. We dropped any notion of being on a war footing, especially after Obama stormed the compound in Pak-ees-tan and single-handedly killed bin Laden.
We are at War, and yet our government acts as if our embassies are not targets. For crying out loud, Benghazi is not Pacoima. How many people have to die before our government and our country realize just what we are facing for the foreseeable future?
Posted by: Barbara | September 14, 2012 at 03:08 PM
"'Jarrett seems to have a 24 hour, around the clock detail, with five or six agents full time,' "
Well DoT,
it's probably to ensure Jarrett doesn't overeat, because as Michelle Obama told us yesterday Obesity is America's Greatest national Security Threat.
Posted by: daddy | September 14, 2012 at 03:08 PM