The Talk Show American

THE TALK SHOW AMERICAN: 07/29/2007 - 08/05/2007

Friday, August 03, 2007

Support For Bin Laden and Suicide Bombings Waning Among Muslims

The 2007 Pew Global Attitudes survey, released July 24, reports a substantial decrease in Muslim support of suicide bombings and Osama bin Laden.

"The marked decline in the acceptance of suicide bombing is one of several findings that suggest a possible broader rejection of extremist tactics among many in the Muslim world,"
said the report, according to a July 24 Reuters article.

The numbers are remarkable. Support for bombings and terror tactics has dropped in seven of eight countries where data were available, according to AP.

In Lebanon, Muslims who believe suicide bombings are justified some or all of the time plummeted from 79 percent in 2002 to 34 percent.


In Pakistan, the percentage dropped from 41 percent in 2004 to 9 percent.


Among Jordanian Muslims, 56 percent had confidence in Osama bin Laden as a world leader in 2003; the number has dropped to 20 percent.

Incredibly, none of the major television networks mentioned this survey during the July 24 evening newscasts.

So why isn't Big Media covering this story?

Thursday, August 02, 2007

Talk Show America Listed in Top 100 Conservative Websites for 2007 !

Top 100 Conservative Political Websites of 2007




The most popular 100 conservative political websites and blogs for 2007 are listed here. Read who made the list and who surprisingly didn't.

Now for the interesting findings. There were some big disappointments. The Republican National Committee barely made the list at 405,641. Scrappleface, which most of us remember as one of the early popular political satire sites, also barely made the list at 433,108.

The following sites didn't even make the list:


Hugh Hewitt - 5,633,009


Federalist Society - 1,245,004

Christian Coalition - 1,002,811

American Conservative Union - 950,055

Independent Women's Forum - 930,362

Ifeminists.com - 828,382


And here is the list.

Drudge Report - 951
Fox News - 599
Wall Street Journal - 1,043
New York Post - 1,778
WorldNetDaily - 4,605
NewsMax - 5,334
Boston Herald - 6,684
Free Republic - 7,114
Town Hall - 7,915
U.S. News and World Report - 8,694
National Review Online - 10,502
Politico - 11,359
Lew Rockwell - 13,174
Washington Times - 13,621
Rush Limbaugh - 14,117
Real Clear Politics - 17,027
The Post Chronicle - 19,203
Reason Online - 19,942
Little Green Footballs - 21,079
Michelle Malkin - 23,570
Instapundit - 25,661
Ludwig von Mises Institute - 28,169
Human Events - 28,937
Weekly Standard - 43,327
Powerlineblog - 41,288
Heritage Foundation - 48,044
FrontPageMag - 48,461
Red State - 49,599
Free Market News - 54,314
Jewish World Review - 55,733
Lucianne - 56,585
Ann Coulter - 57,910
Cato Institute - 58,391
Volokh Conspiracy - 61,682
Vdare - 76,539
American Thinker - 81,917
Michael Savage - 82,673
Bill O'Reilly - 83,723
Sean Hannity - 87,305
RightWingNews - 106,285
American Enterprise Institute - 108,262
American Spectator - 118,709
Mens News Daily - 126,426
Laura Ingraham - 145,994
Ilana Mercer - 162,520
Adam Smith Institute (U.K.) - 162,584
Radley Balko - The Agitator - 165,128
Snapped Shot - 166,275
American Conservative - 181,314
GOPUSA - 186,477
Acton Institute - 187,367
Renew America - 190,345
Christopher Hitchens - 194,067
Hoover Institution - 200,268
Political Crossfire - 200,941
Commentary Magazine - 211,054
Liberty Forum - 211,445
An Englishman's Castle (U.K.) - 228,967
World and I (Washington Times) - 236,083
Accuracy in Media - 232,120
American Daily - 251,092
Media Research Center - 253,620
Etherzone - 257,691
Heartland Institute - 257,924
Cafe Hayek - 265,888
John Birch Society - 273,956
Concerned Women for America - 277,015
Independent Institute - 281,097
National Center for Policy Analysis - 290,051
La Shawn Barber's Corner - 300,533
View from the Right - 301,593
Becker-Posner Blog - 305,780
Fraser Institute (Canadian) - 307,688
World Magazine - 307,978
Tom G. Palmer - 310,087
Talk Show America - 318,999
Tom Rants - 346,982
MichNews - 361,642
RealityCheck - 325,321
Family Research Council - 332,263
National Center for Public Policy Research - 334,388
Insight Magazine - 334,429
American Center for Law & Justice - 341,008
Club for Growth - 341,118
Tammy Bruce - 353,769
Sierra Times - 359,115
John Locke Foundation - 359,971
Enter Stage Right - 361,598
Judicial Watch - 367,970
Eagle Forum - 381,771
Sweetness and Light - 390,593
Discovery Institute - 398,031
Conservative Underground - 406,018
Hudson Institute - 419,364
Reason Foundation - 426,451
Young America's Foundation - 450,076
Republican National Committee - 405,641
Scrappleface - 433,108
Claremont Institute - 456,349
Intellectual Conservative - 458,064


Hat Tip To: Free Republic

Talk Show America 8/2/2007

Petraeus Working to Keep Iraq Assessment Apolitical

The top U.S. commander in Iraq today acknowledged high expectations for a September assessment of the situation in Iraq and said he would work to keep politics out of the process.

Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander of Multinational Force Iraq, spoke to Diane Sawyer on ABC's "Good Morning America" program from his headquarters in Baghdad. He said that every time he gets a question about the assessment, "I feel another rock going into the rucksack, which is reasonably heavy at this point."

Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan C. Crocker will offer a comprehensive assessment of the status of Iraq during testimony before Congress in September. The general said it will be the ground truth. "We will be trying, frankly, to stay apolitical in this whole endeavor," he said.

By then, Petraeus and other military commanders may have offered recommendations through the chain of command to the president. "We will also offer our views of various implications of ways ahead that may be under discussion," he said.

Sustainable security in Iraq is the goal of the military effort in Iraq, Petraeus said. He said it will take until summer 2009 to establish the conditions for that concept to flourish.

This does not mean the number of U.S. troops will remain the same, he said. Petraeus is on record as saying that he will not ask for extensions for troops beyond current 15-month deployments. He and other senior leaders will work together to decide when they can reduce the number of American troops in Iraq "without surrendering the gains we have made," he said.

He said he and Army Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, commander of Multinational Corps Iraq, will work together to "determine at what point we can send forces home without replacements and also begin to transition tasks over time so we are doing more partnering and less leading."

Petraeus also said there will be a gradual drawdown of British forces in Iraq, contrary to reports that British forces will leave early. British forces are in command of Multinational Division Southeast and already have handed to provincial Iraqi control the provinces of Muthanna, Dhi Qar and Najaf. British forces are turning over more and more territory in Basra, the largest province in southeastern Iraq, to Iraqi control. "The plan over time is to draw down," Petraeus said.

In addition, the general addressed reported tension between him and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. He said stories about friction between Maliki and him are the product of "some political factions here who would like to throw sand in the gears of the relationship."

Petraeus said he meets with the prime minister several times a week, and he speaks with Maliki several times a day. "We have a relationship that includes good, frank and open discussions, and we don't always agree on everything," Petraeus said. "But we have the strength of a relationship that allows us to discuss those issues and to come to resolution on them. At times, politics trumps the military, and we accept that."

Talk Show America 8/2/2007

Surge Putting Pressure on Terrorists

Operations in Iraq are putting pressure on insurgents, keeping them off balance and eliminating their safe havens, a senior spokesman there said today.

"We have established a degree of tactical momentum ... and will continue to build on that momentum," Navy Rear Adm. Mark I. Fox, deputy spokesman for Multinational Force Iraq, said during an in-country media roundtable this morning.

"We continue to pressure former sanctuaries in the Baghdad belts -- around Ramadi and in and around Baqubah -- denying (al Qaeda in Iraq) freedom of movement and disrupting extremist secret cells while increasing the confidence of the local citizens in the coalition and Iraqi security force."

Already this year, coalition forces have seized or destroyed more weapons caches than in all of 2006, Fox said. Just last week, coalition and Iraqi security forces seized more than 120 caches, he added.

Tips are coming in from Iraqi citizens in record numbers. In June, 23,000 tips were called in to coalition and Iraqi forces -- four times the number at this point in 2006.

"The pace and number of weapons caches seized reflects the pressure being applied by the surge of operations. Nevertheless the enemy retains the capability to launch spectacular attacks, as we have seen them do with tragic results for innocent Iraqi citizens," Fox said.

Iraqi security forces conducted a raid last week in Nasiriyah, seizing a cache with 42 improvised explosive devices, about 400 rockets, 70 mortar rounds, and 11 heavy machine guns.

Fox said another trend in the region pointing to the effectiveness of the surge is that tribes and leaders previously pitted against coalition forces are now joining the fight against insurgents. He cited a handful of recent events that indicate the "people of Iraq are rejecting the hatred, violence, sectarianism and Taliban-like state offered by (al Qaeda)."

-- One hundred sheikhs and 400 religious and political leaders met in Ramadi on July 7 for a conference called "Promise of the People";

-- Fifty tribal leaders met at the governor's house in Baqubah earlier this month to discuss security and services and pledged to work together in the Muqdadiyah Tribal Conference;

-- July 16 in Taji, Sunni and Shiia sheiks pledged unity to one another to stop sectarian attacks; and

-- Sixteen local sheiks and tribal leaders in Khalis on July 23 pledged on behalf of some 75 sheiks to work to end the violence.

Air power also is surging in support of ground forces, delivering fire power and other support in record numbers since the since the surge began, said Air Force Maj. Gen. David M. Edgington, who joined Fox at the roundtable. Edgington is director of the Air Component Coordination Element for Multinational Force Iraq. He is responsible for synchronizing all air assets into combat operations.

"Our purpose is to integrate our forces with the ground forces to synchronize the effects that we are able to bring to the battle in support of the coalition force," he said.

Edgington said air support is flying 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

In Iraq and Afghanistan combined, Air Mobility Command refuelers are flying 50 sorties a day, delivering some 3 million pounds of fuel. Airlift aircraft are flying 200 sorties daily, carrying about 2,000 passengers. These missions include taking troops to different posts and in and out of theater, medical evacuation flights, and transporting detainees.

Air Force cargo flights each day allow 160 trucks to stay off the roads and avoid the hazards of ground travel, Edgington said. "Taking 160 trucks off the roads a day is a huge effort on the part of the airlifters," Edgington said.

While he said he couldn't discuss operational details of combat air power in theater, the Air Force general showed eight video clips of recent combat action against insurgent troops. In the clips, airpower assets are seen destroying insurgent weapons caches, bomb factories and snipers on rooftops.

Edgington reported that Iraqi airpower abilities are growing at a "healthy rate."

Iraqi forces have C-130s flying in support of Iraqi and coalition missions. They also have surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft and are conducting pilot training. They do not, however, have any air combat power yet, the general said.

Talk Show America 8/2/2007

Monday, July 30, 2007

Troops Nab 48 Terrorists, Kill One, in Iraq

Combined Iraqi and U.S. forces captured 48 suspected terrorists, killed one insurgent and seized weapons and bombs in Iraq over the past three days, military officials said.

During an operation today in Tarmiyah, troops detained 10 suspected terrorists. The detainees have alleged ties to an al Qaeda in Iraq leader known for coordinating car-bomb attacks in Baghdad.

Coalition forces netted six suspected terrorists in coordinated raids in Samarra today. During one operation, troops detained five individuals who allegedly are associated with al Qaeda leaders in central Iraq responsible for helping foreign terrorists move into the country. In a separate operation there, coalition forces detained one suspected terrorist who officials said is a close associate of al Qaeda leaders in Baghdad.

During raids targeting key al Qaeda in Iraq leaders in Mosul this morning, coalition forces nabbed three suspected terrorists. One is believed to be the al Qaeda in Iraq administrative emir for Mosul, military officials said.

Elsewhere, troops apprehended one suspected terrorist today during a raid targeting the al Qaeda in Iraq network in Baghdad.

"With every operation coalition forces conduct, we are further degrading and destroying the al Qaeda in Iraq network," said Army Maj. Marc Young, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman. "Al Qaeda and its foreign leadership seek only to bring violence and fear to the Iraqi people in its attempt to prevent a secure and democratic Iraq."

In Baghdad on July 23:

-- Iraqi security forces and U.S. Special Forces advisors detained 13 suspected al Qaeda members during two operations near Baghdad. Eight suspects are linked to an al Qaeda cell involved in sniper operations and death squad activities near Hayy Aamel. The five others reportedly are involved in al Qaeda sniper and death squad activities near Tib, military officials said.

-- A series of five explosions killed 11 Iraqi civilians and wounded 20 others in central and eastern Baghdad. Those wounded in the attacks are receiving medical treatment.

-- Apache crews from Multinational Division Baghdad teamed with ground forces to disrupt an insurgent attack north of Baghdad. A ground patrol later seized four insurgents involved in the fighting and confiscated nine handguns, ammunition and explosive-making materials.

-- Troops captured three suspected insurgents and recovered a weapons cache in eastern Baghdad's Adhamiyah district. The stockpile contained eight mortar rounds, five rocket-propelled grenade launchers and three rockets, seven grenades, and 1,800 rounds of small-arms ammunition. An explosive ordnance disposal team removed the cache.

-- Multinational Division Baghdad troops seized a large cache containing mortar tubes, munitions and significant amounts of homemade explosives in the southern portion of the Iraqi capital. An explosive ordnance disposal team destroyed the cache in place after troops cordoned off the area.

-- Two children died, and a woman and her daughter were injured after mortar rounds, believed to be fired by al Qaeda operatives, landed in the village of Awad. Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers responded, and the wounded girl and her mother were immediately evacuated via helicopter to a coalition combat support hospital after receiving immediate care at the patrol base.

Elsewhere in Iraq on July 23:

-- Iraqi Security Forces killed an al Qaeda cell's senior leader and detained seven suspected insurgents in a series of early-morning raids at a terrorist training camp northeast of Karmah.

-- Combined Iraqi and U.S. troops operating near Hillah detained a key member of Jaysh al-Mahdi, a rogue militia group. The suspect allegedly is responsible for emplacing improvised explosive devices and explosively formed penetrators that killed several coalition force members when the explosives detonated along Iraqi and coalition force supply routes.

Airports Warned of 'Dry Run' Attacks

Airport security officers around the nation have been alerted by federal officials to look out for terrorists practicing to carry explosive components onto aircraft, based on four curious seizures at airports since last September.

The unclassified alert was distributed on July 20 by the Transportation Security Administration to federal air marshals, its own transportation security officers and other law enforcement agencies.

The seizures at airports in San Diego, Milwaukee, Houston and Baltimore included
"wires, switches, pipes or tubes, cell phone components and dense clay-like substances," including block cheese, the bulletin said. "The unusual nature and increase in number of these improvised items raise concern."

Security officers were urged to keep an eye out for
"ordinary items that look like improvised explosive device components."


A federal official familiar with the document confirmed the authenticity of the NBC posting but declined to be identified by name because it has not been officially released.

"There is no credible, specific threat here," TSA spokeswoman Ellen Howe said Tuesday. "Don't panic. We do these things all the time."

Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke described the notice as the latest copy of a routine informational bulletin for TSA workers, airport employees and law enforcement officials.

A statement posted late Tuesday by the TSA on its Web site confirmed that
"a routine TSA intelligence bulletin relating to suspicious incidents at U.S. airports" had leaked to news organizations. The statement added, "During the past six months TSA has produced more than 90 unclassified bulletins of this nature on a wide variety of security-related subjects."

The bulletin said the a joint FBI-Homeland Security Department assessment found that terrorists have conducted probes, dry runs and dress rehearsals in advance of previous attacks.

It cited various types of rehearsals conducted by terrorists before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon; the July 7, 2005, London subway bombings; the Aug. 2, 2006, London-based plot to blow up trans-Atlantic flights using liquid explosives and the 1994 Bojinka plot in the Philippines to blow up multiple airliners over the Pacific Ocean.


The bulletin said the passengers carrying the suspicious items seized since September included men and women and that initial investigation had not linked them with criminal or terrorist organizations. But it added that most of their explanations for carrying the items were suspicious and some were still under investigation.

The four seizures were described this way:

San Diego, July 7. A U.S. person either a citizen or a foreigner legally here checked baggage containing two ice packs covered in duct tape. The ice packs had clay inside them rather than the normal blue gel.

Milwaukee, June 4. A U.S. person's carryon baggage contained wire coil wrapped around a possible initiator, an electrical switch, batteries, three tubes and two blocks of cheese. The bulletin said block cheese has a consistency similar to some explosives.

Houston, Nov. 8, 2006. A U.S. person's checked baggage contained a plastic bag with a 9-volt battery, wires, a block of brown clay-like minerals and pipes.

Baltimore, Sept. 16, 2006. A couple's checked baggage contained a plastic bag with a block of processed cheese taped to another plastic bag holding a cellular phone charger.


Talk Show America 8/2/2007