Dawn Patrol

IRAQ

Attacking our Family [Michael Yon - in Iraq]
The American soldiers here in Iraq who have seen the news about the attack on London, are angry. When the United Kingdom is attacked, our family is attacked. We are seeing news here in Iraq that civilians and children were killed in London. This is very distressing, as when we see the savages killing children here in Iraq.

Tonto Speaks on Freedom [Howdys Blog - in Iraq]
Once in a while you hear you read something somebody says that rings true, the best you can do is pass it along as a must-read. This is an article written by a buddy of mine and fellow Cobra pilot callsign of "Tonto." Cliffy to some, but Tonto is better. Drop him a line. We joke that we may be related since his in-Laws and my parents went to Sharon High School in Sharon, PA. How does that make us related? It doesn't. We don't get to watch a lot of TV, we make our own SITCOMs.

SONG OF BASRA [In the Red Zone - in Iraq]
...A stocky, dark-skinned, middle-aged Iraqi with soft, sympathetic eyes, Samir is the editor-in-chief of one of Basra's largest newspapers. A secular man, he is nevertheless respectful of, but not beholden to, the religious parties that currently run his native city. "I am a real Iraqi," he is fond of saying. "Not Sunni, not Shia, not Christian, not Arab or Kurd--Iraqi." He's also as native a son of Basra as you can find--not only has his family resided in the city since the days of the Mongols, but twelve generations of his fathers have dwelt in the very house he lives in today.

AN EMAIL FROM IRAQ: [Andrew Sullivan]
This is as good a time as any to print an encouraging email from a military medic in the field. Some excerpts:
...This past Saturday, an event took place that could be remembered as another milestone in the history of the new Iraq. In Quyarrah, over a thousand citizens and police held the first "march against terrorism". It was led by sheiks, mukhtars, and imams.
My emailer tells me this guy is not a dreamer; that his previous emails have been pretty gloomy. He sees progress. If he does, so should we. The war in London will be won in part in Iraq. Resolve in one place is indistinguishable from resolve in the other.

U.S. Marines in Shadyville [Iraq War News]
A Marine with Company A, 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment provides security, June 29, 2005, at a street corner in a village outside Saqlawiyah, Iraq, codenamed ?Shadyville.? Company A personnel assisted the Iraqi Security Forces during ?Operation Shadyville,? a mission that netted several suspected insurgent supporters, two improvised explosive devices, and 50 AK-47 assault rifles. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Mike Escobar

Securing Terror Target No. 1 [Austin Bay - in Iraq] - (via washington Times)
NORTHERN PERSIAN GULF, Al Basrah Oil Terminal -- Desert and ocean, sand and salt, collide in the brown-white haze above the Persian Gulf's blue water.
It's noon, 109 degrees, and I'm standing next to a U.S. Navy petty officer who mans a machine gun on the Al Basrah Oil Terminal's (ABOT) shadeless upper deck, 16 miles off the Iraqi mainland. ABOT's the tight spot where oil and water meet, if not quite mix.

THE MSM REPORTS ON IRAQ

Iraq War's Escalating Toll (Detroit Free Press)...Joseph L. Galloway
...Anyone who writes critically of the conduct of the war in Iraq is asked, over and over, why we focus on the bad news and never write the good news about that country, its people and our soldiers who are caught in the middle of a very bloody birth of some version of representative government. That would be because there is a dearth of good news in Iraq.

LONDON

Solidarity [Smash]
A FOREIGN FLAG has never been raised at the U.S. State Department.
Until today.

I'm alive... [Procrastination Central]
I was not hurt in any of the blasts. However, ND (Notre Dame) students are staying about a block from Russell Square, where the double-decker bus exploded. I don't know if everyone is ok. I'll keep everyone posted. And please, pray that everyone is ok.

**Update** - All ND students have now been accounted for.

Surviving a Terrorist Attack [Pfff...My esponse to anything negative]
Fate is a strange thing. On this particular day a series of events transpired such that I ended up on a Tube train that was destroyed by terrorists. Fortunately it was only the carriage in front of me, but tragically it resulted in a serious amount of injuries. This is my story.
I boarded the train at King's Cross after a series of line closures forced me onto a Circle Line train; little did I know at the time that this was probably the worst thing I could have done.

London Blasts Claimed by Al Qaeda [Back to Iraq - in Iraq]
Today's blasts in London have been claimed by Al Qaeda's European chapter, Qaeda't al-Jihad in Europe. A statement has been posted on a site often used by Qaeda agents, www.qal3ati.com. The statement follows (translated by one of my staff here in Baghdad): ...

From GITMO to the UK with Love [Fourth Rail - Justin B ]
Combing the archives of some old BBC news, came across this story from March 2004.
Lawyers and families of the freed Guantanamo Bay detainees say they are "absolutely delighted" at the men's release from British custody.

Britain - Attack: Muslim Leaders React [USS Neverdock]
The BBC reports on the reactions of some Muslim leaders.
Sir Iqbal Sacranie of the Muslim Council of Britain said he utterly condemned the attacks.
...One thing for sure, according to Sacranie, they weren't Muslim terrorists who did this. Speaking of Britain's proposed religious hate bill, Sacranie had this to say:

Dog Day: 7-7 [Florida Cracker]
Editors Note: Must see pics of our Homeland Security in the Works

Londonistan Attacks London: Product of Accepting Non-Assimilation [The Word Unheard]
Let us be clear: This is not about al Qaeda. This is about an ideology.
To some extent, al Qaeda surely was involved in London's transit bombings. It will likely surface that this attack was not carried out by an al Qaida team, but rather by like-minded less-professional animals who immigrated without assimilation to London. The bus bombing was likely a mistake, as the tubes had been shut down before the bus detonation. A proud non-assimilated London Jihadi collected his virgins because he could not reach his primary target. At any rate, the persuit begins with a possible lead already.

London... [Ma Duece Gunner - in Iraq]
London has fallen vicitm to terror today...
...Britian has stood shoulder to shoulder with the US in our collective struggle against terror. They have now been bloodied on their homeland, and unlike Spain, I can see that this will only strengthen their resolve to fight homicidal extremist terrorists.

THE 7/7 ATTACKS: REACTIONS FROM THE AMERICAN LEFT [Michele Malkin]
From the Democratic Underground:
- Its (sic) a war. My country's army is killing civilians; am I a "fair target?"
- the root causes of terrorism are what needs to be addressed in order to get a handle on changing these circumstances. There are myriads (literally) of terrorists who have reasons for what they are doing and planning on doing? This is not insanity. Nor is it helpful to attach the term "evil" to these events.

Newsflash: Kos Says Bush Was Wrong [Am I a Pundit Now?]
Well I was looking for reactions to the London bombing today around the blogs, and I thought to myself 'I wonder how long before someone says fighting the terrorists in Iraq rather than at home is a false rationale.'
How long did it take? About a nanosecond.
The ever-snotty Kos: "Well, that didn't work out quite as planned, did it?"

Looking at the Bright Side of the London Attacks [Froggy Ruminations]
First of all I would like to offer my personal condolences and sympathy to the victims, their families, and to the brave and stalwart people of the United Kingdom who have stood by the United States through thick and thin. I would also like to congratulate, belatedly, the British people for having reelected a man of character and resolve as their Prime Minister.

Terror Attack In London [BlackFive]
Al Qaeda struck our staunchest and bravest ally today, Great Britain. Of course, my first thought was if I had any family there today (brother is in London frequently and we have family in Chesire).
The second thought was a prayer for all of the people hurt by this horrific and cowardly act.

The Madrid Strategy [Jawa Report]
As I write this there's some confusion about whether there were four, or up to seven separate attacks on the London mass transit system. Early reports were confused by the fact that some explosions took place between metro stops and generated reports of attacks at the stops on either end. But it's not clear whether the current high estimate of seven was influenced by this misjudgment. Some sources are still saying only four attacks.

Tony Blair's George W. Bush Moment. (pics) [WILLisms]
I hate to trivialize the dastardly deed committed today in London by those terrorist cowards, but I can't help but wonder what Tony Blair was thinking when making his statement to the press:...

Can we please start profiling now? [Uncle Jimbo - Madison Post]
Racial profiling is such a common sense tool for use against terrorism that it is sad it is tarred by it's use by racist police. There are certainly legitimate law enforcement applications that also go unused because of abuses in the past. But the current threat is a very specific one, and we can absolutely identify the race, gender, religion, and likely birthplace of virtually all the terrorists. Given this information, I need to be schooled as to why we don't watch young, Arab, Muslim men (YAMM) from about 10 Middle Eastern countries.

THE MSM REPORTS ON LONDON

AN ATTACK ON ARAB LONDON. (The American Prospect Online)
News reports are in about the location of the Tube bombs, and the stations picked for the horrific rush-hour assaults are especially chilling. These attacks were not just attacks on our closest ally, but on the very idea of Arab and Muslim integration into the West. Among the targets in the worst attack on London since World War II was the Edgware Road station, located in the heart of wealthy, assimilated Arab London. Middle Easterners of a variety of religions and South Asian Muslims are a substantial minority of the population in London, and the Edgware Road area is the pre-eminent Arab neighborhood in the city, with a fantastic variety of Lebanese coffee shops, Saudi grocery stores, and Persian restaurants. Some even call it "Little Lebanon," though the residents and shop clients come from all over the Middle East and North Africa, and the area especially attracts a young, hip crowd that compares it to Amman or Dubai. Edgware Road is Arab London's main street.

A Grim Reminder To Complacent Americans (Philadelphia Inquirer)...Deroy Murdock
...Those who carp night and day that Guantᮡmo is not a Club Med finally may abandon their endless whining. The enemy combatants detained there are being interrogated specifically so officials can prevent the homicidal outrage that now tries Londoners.

Let's Stop Lying To Ourselves: We Are Not Safer! (Miami Herald)...Leonard Pitts Jr.
...At this writing, roughly 38 people are said to be dead in the London attack and 700 injured. Meantime, the U.S. casualty count in Iraq -- dead and injured -- stands at 15,088 and rising. It occurs to me that false comfort has come at a very high price.

Our Ally, Our Problem (New York Times)...Peter Bergen
...As declining populations in Europe are replaced in part by rising Muslim emigration from the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia, economic resentment and sectarian strife seem likely to grow. Tinkering with visa regulations might help, but it is unlikely to change the reality that Islamic militant groups in Britain, as in several other major European countries, represent a growing threat to the United States that will continue for many years to come.

The struggle against terrorism cannot be won by military means (The Guardian ....Robin Cook)
The G8 must seize the opportunity to address the wider issues at the root of such atrocities
I have rarely seen the Commons so full and so silent as when it met yesterday to hear of the London bombings. A forum that often is raucous and rowdy was solemn and grave. A chamber that normally is a bear pit of partisan emotions was united in shock and sorrow. Even Ian Paisley made a humane plea to the press not to repeat the offence that occurred in Northern Ireland when journalists demanded comment from relatives before they were informed that their loved ones were dead.

Statement on the London bombings (George Galloway on behalf of Respect - Socialist Worker Online)
...We urge the government to remove people in this country from harms way, as the Spanish government acted to remove its people from harm, by ending the occupation of Iraq and by turning its full attention to the development of a real solution to the wider conflicts in the Middle East.
Only then will the innocents here and abroad be able to enjoy a life free of the threat of needless violence.

OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

Japan Maintains a Steady Helm [StarBoard!!!]
For some reason, the MSM enjoys belittling the efforts of coalition members. Personally, I don't care how many troops a nation commits -- just that the world presents a united front to these murderous bastards.
Remember, today?s tragic event was not an attack against G8 attendees -- it was a murderous attack against good, hard working Brits. It was an attack against a peaceful Thursday morning.
<...>
Finally, someone gets it.
In Tokyo, Japanese Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura reiterated that the blasts would have no bearing on the troop dispatch.

You Don't Have to Believe Me...: Uzbeks May Demand Withdrawal of US Air Bases [Bobby's World - in Afghanistan]
Two weeks ago, a lot of people sent email taking me to task for my support of what I call the Bush Administration's "Democratic Crusade." Among my most controversial statements, apparently, was my claim that,

THE MEDIA

Guardian Blames America, Calls For Tolerance, Understanding [Alenda Lux]
This is part two of a round-up of today's Guardian editorial page, which, in several columns, calls for understanding, tolerance, the promotion of unrelated political issues, laying blame on America and, in one case, unconditional surrender to the terrorists.

See parts one and three of this series....

More Prisoner Abuse Reports Coming [The Quonset Hut]
Get Ready. A new report is going to be adding fuel to the fire of liberals against the military. This new information makes what has been reported thus far seem (almost) tame. Starting at the beginning, last month the Air Force New Service reported ?principles and procedures for U.S military medical personnel when working with detainees under control of U.S. armed forces?.

Today Reuters is reporting:...

BLOGGING

Bloggers call for protests and solidarity (Times Online)
Bloggers have called for a mass protest against today's bombings and have insisted that Londoners will not be intimidated by the string of attacks on their city.