CIA officials, marines targeted in Islamabad blast

Scary

Islamabad , Sept 20 (ANI): Several senior officers of Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) who are reported to be currently visiting Islamabad were the target of the blast at the Marriott Hotel which took place here tonight.

Well placed sources said that Marriott Hotel is usual hotel choice of the US officials and it seems that militants tipped off that certain high level US intelligence officers were currently staying at the hotel.

While no confirmation was available but Pakistan sources said it was clear that the explosion was aimed at specific targets based on a tip off.

This from another source

ISLAMABAD: US Marines staying at the Marriott Hotel may have been the target of Saturday's suicide attack that killed more than 60 people, security officials said.


They said that about 30 Marines were staying at the hotel and were scheduled to leave for Afghanistan early Sunday morning.

The Islamabad administration said that 40 people were killed and about 100 injured in the blast but eyewitnesses and hospital sources say that more than 60 people were killed.

One official said that the American security personnel were in Pakistan for the just-concluded visit by the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Michael Mullen.

But another source said that they had come to Islamabad Friday and were scheduled to leave for Afghanistan on Sunday morning.

"We believe that they can have been the target of the suicide attack," a senior security official told IANS. Otherwise, "we don't find any other reason for such an attack", he added.

The sources said that soon after the blast, US embassy officials reached the spot and were seen looking for the Marines who, according to the sources, were staying on the fourth floor of the hotel which was among the worst affected as the entire hotel turned into a blazing inferno with orange flames and thick smoke billowing out of its windows.

We have to talk about Andrew Sullivan

From a bizzaro episode of Real Time

CANADIAN GUY: No, we have we have to talk about Sullivan. I mean, Bill, let me just say, I, I don't even want to go this far in talking about him. He is a farce. This, this, this blog of his. This, blog having any association with The Atlantic. That's, that's unreal. He could be could be editor in January, it is a joke. It is absurd. It is something that should be dismissed out of hand as the most irresponsible act any publisher has ever made. Bill, Bill, let me just tell you one thing...

MAHER: But let me interrupt your shit fit with a little...

CANADIAN GUY: No, it's not a shit fit, this is an outrage...

MAHER: I agree with you. I understand...

CANADIAN GUY: ...and after two years, no comments on his blog?

MAHER: But here's the, here's the deal...

CANADIAN GUY: What is this, Putin's Russia?

MAHER: I know, we're all, we're all, we're all upset about it.

CANADIAN GUY: We need to be more upset. We, we, we need to be much more upset.

(Canadian Guy then thows himself on the floor like Howard Beale)

If you didn't laugh, read this.

McCain campaign accuses time reporter of "hysterical liberal bias"

A day after a senior McCain campaign official calls the media "pro-Obama," we get this attack on Time's Karen Tumulty.

Time magazine’s Karen Tumulty accuses this campaign of racism for launching this ad targeting Senator Obama’s ties to Fannie Mae Chairman Franklin Raines. Why? Tumulty writes:

Obama's Fannie Mae connections are completely fair game. But this ad doesn't even mention a far more significant tie--that of Jim Johnson, the former Fannie Mae chairman who had to resign as head of Obama's vice presidential search team after it was revealed he got a sweetheart deal on a mortgage from Countrywide Financial. Instead, it relies on a fleeting and tenuous reference in a Washington Post Style section story to suggest that Obama's principal economic adviser is former Fannie Mae Chairman Frank Raines. Why? One reason might be that Johnson is white; Raines is black.

The only problem with Ms. Tumulty’s story is that we also released an today targeting Senator Obama’s extensive ties to Jim Johnson. The ad is called…Jim Johnson. And Ms. Tumulty might have been aware of its existence if she’d bothered to call this campaign to find out the facts (reporting) before indicting us for racism in a half-baked, late night rant. Tumulty also takes Obama’s response, signed by Mr. Raines, at face value. The Obama campaign says Raines didn’t advise the campaign, and Tumulty apparently wasn’t interested in getting to the bottom of that either. So we contacted Ms. Tumulty and told her of the multiple sources that tie Raines to Obama, including three separate instances in the Washington Post, none of which was ever challenged by Raines or the Obama campaign until yesterday.

Tumulty did not correct her post, she simply responded “I grew up in Texas. I know what this stuff looks like.” Well, now we all know what hysterical liberal bias looks like as well.

UPDATE

Send the same memo to Rachel Maddow

Andrew Sullivan: We need to be more upset about Palin UPDATE: now with video

NewsBusters calls Friday's Real Time with Bill Maher "potentially the finest example of Palin Derangement Syndrome seen on television."

Here's a transcript ... which shows Sullivan could hardly contain himself and can hardly get out his sentences.

ANDREW SULLIVAN, THE ATLANTIC: No, we have we have to talk about Palin. I mean, Bill, let me just say, I, I don't even want to go this far in talking about her. She is a farce. This, this, this nomination. This, the nomination of this person to be potentially President of the United States next January. That's, that's the possibility. She could be president next January, is a joke. It is absurd. It is something that should be dismissed out of hand as the most irresponsible act any candidate has ever made. Bill, Bill, let me just tell you one thing...

MAHER: But let me interrupt your shit fit with a little...

SULLIVAN: No, it's not a shit fit, this is an outrage...

MAHER: I agree with you. I understand...

SULLIVAN: ...and after three weeks, no press conference?

MAHER: But here's the, here's the deal...

SULLIVAN: What is this, (unintelligible), Russia?

MAHER: I know, we're all, we're all, we're all upset about it.

SULLIVAN: We need to be more upset. We, we, we need to be much more upset.

Then they came for O'Reilly

So this is what politics in the U.S. has become

Just days after publishing U.S. vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's personal email messages, the Wikileaks Web site has published data about members who signed up for a section of Fox Television host Bill O'Reilly's Web site.

Hackers were able to obtain a list of Billoreilly.com premium members, including email addresses, site passwords and the city and state where they live. Some of the information was published Friday on Wikileaks.com, which has been under fire from conservative commentators, including O'Reilly, for publishing Palin's messages.

"Wikileaks has been informed the hack was a response to the pundit's recent scurrilous attacks over the Sarah Palin's email story -- including on Wikileaks and other members of the press," Wikileaks said on its site. "Hacktivists, thumbing their noses at the pundit, took control of O'Reilly's main site, Billoreilly.com."

Premium members pay US$49.95 per year to access special content on the Web site, including discussion boards. Operators of Billoreilly.com could not be reached for comment Friday afternoon, and IDG News Service could not immediately confirm whether the list was legitimate.

Wired has more, including a lot of background on comments O'Reilly has made this week that may have angered the Wikileaks community.

Does NewsBusters know Rubico10's IP?

A pretty good case is being made by The College Politico.

After all of this I really think there are several things we can learn about these screenshots. They are, in fact, from Rubico. They show he is on a NewsBusters post while hacking into Palin’s email. They show that he is NOT using a proxy to view the NewsBuster post. They give us a specific time frame that he was on the NewsBusters post. Those things are important because they mean that NewsBusters, most likely, can figure out if David Kernell (or rather someone from the University of Tennessee, who I would assume is David Kernell) was on that specific post durring that specific time frame. Is it evidence that you could use in court? Certainly not, but is it enough to get one step closer to convincing me and put a clearer focus on Kernell? Absolutely.

Rumoured Palin hacker lawyers up

As he should ....

The latest from the Nashville blogger who says she's friends' with David Kernell's father, Rep. Mike Kernell.

UPDATE; Sept 19, 5:01 PM. Just got off the phone with Mike Kernell, who is in Knoxville with his son, David, and they were headed out for dinner with David's lawyer. Law enforcement still has not contacted father or son. Beyond that, I'm done with updates, as I've been called names on other blogs for being one of the few people accurately reporting this story, and for that, I've been called a whore, an attention whore, a bitch, a liar, and other words I won't use.
I gave you the truth, and you had to be evil and cruel, like so many bloggers and especially anonymous bloggers are, and that's not okay. So wait and you'll eventually find out what really happened, but not from me.

But I want to be clear Mike Kernell is an honorable man who does not and will not lie, and whatever his son did or didn't do has nothing to do with Mike, and I stand behind Rep. Mike Kernell 100 percent. He is my friend, and his integrity is beyond reproach and I'm not taking anymore crap over reporting the truth and being accused of doing nothing more than spinning for a friend by people who don't know the first thing about reporting.

My friend, Mike, and his son, are two different issues. I will defend Mike to the death. I have no idea what his son did or didn't do, and neither do you.

This contradicts the wild rumour in Protein Wisdom's pub that Kernell had already been taken into custody.

PDS: TV anchor who resembles Palin gets angry voice messages

National Review now pumping out liberal memes about Palin

This could have been written by a Kos kid, but it's in National Review

Confession: I love Barack Obama and I love Sarah Palin — both for different reasons. They both also scare me to death.

I love Obama for his style, grace, intellect, and his way with words. I want the healing power that an Obama presidency could deliver to this country.

. . .

I worry that Sarah Palin won’t set foot in that maze.

I worry that she won’t intellectualize enough. I worry about her certitude and her slight offness. Whatever her charms, anyone in public office who thinks out loud about banning books might be missing some aces in her deck.

I worry about a worldview that might have been shaped in part by a minister who believes that Alaska someday will be home to Christian renegades arriving for the Rapture.

McCain campaign manager slams "pro-Obama media"

This was taken from a press gaggle on the campaign trail

Steve Schmidt (McCain campaign): I think what Brian, what Brian’s intent, I know what Brian’s intent to say was this: Is we won’t be intimidated by the Obama campaign or by a lot of the pro Obama media that disregards fact because they’re political inconvenient for Obama. Every ad that we put out, and I’m happy to set up a reading room and a table on any of these ads to go through his record. It’s factually accurate. For example, Barack Obama voted in the Senate for a tax increase budget resolution for people making 42,000 a year. That happened. In the space-time continuum that we all understand, all right, he made that vote. It happened. It’s real. On issue after issue we have represented his record in an accurate and a fair and in a fair way. Certainly, there is no symmetry between what the obama campaign is saying about john mccain particularly with this immigration ad, and you know many others with what we have said. We are talking about Senator Obama’s record. The ads are factual. And we will continue to talk about his record. And the fact that there is a lot of people in the media who when we criticize Obama rush forward with no hesitation at all to defend and protect him says something about the state of journalism in America, much more than it does about our campaign.

Memphis TV Station confirms FBI Palin hacking probe focusing on Memphis

Tennessee Rep. Mike Kernell has denied reports his son is being investigated in the federal probe into who hacked Sarah Palin's Yahoo account, but now a Memphis TV station has confirmed the investigationn is focusing on Memphis.

But Democratic State Representative Mike Kernell tells News Channel 3 his 20-year-old son has not been questioned by the FBI. He says he's absolutely amazed at how quickly this story has spread on the internet.

Right now there's a lot of speculation out there.

But News Channel 3 has confirmed the Anchorage division of the FBI has contacted the Memphis division and an investigation is underway.

UPDATE: Memphis FBI spokesperson confirms local force investigating Palin case.

BREAKING: OBAMA'S GMAIL ACCOUNT HACKED!!!!!!!

More here

Wired now reporting on rumoured Dem connection to hacker: UPDATED father denies being contacted by investigators

More on the Palin hacker from Wired:

The story was briefly posted Wednesday to the 4chan forum where the hack first surfaced. Bloggers have connected the handle of the poster, "Rubico," to an e-mail address, and tentatively identified the owner as a college student in Tennessee.

Threat Level was unable to reach the student by phone because his number is unlisted. A person who identified himself as the student's father, when reached at home, said he could not talk about the matter and would have no comment. The father is a Democratic state representative in Tennessee. Threat Level is not identifying them by name because authorities have not identified any suspects in the case, and the link to the student so far is tenuous.

Don't want to read too much into that comment, but why would he say he couldn't talk about the matter -- if those were his exact words or just poor paraphrasing by Wired?

Wired is correct in not naming names here because the link is tenuous and it's likely the rubico10 email is fake. But there are other coincidences between the student in Tennessee and this controvesy, including how his last name fits nicely with the new password the hacker selected for Palin's account.

If this student is the hacker, conservatives would be wise not to quickly blame the father for the son's behaviour, just as it should have been in the Bristol Palin controversy -- although hacking is a crime and pregnancy isn't.

At the Weekly Standard, Mary Katharine Hamm predicts the media will be easy on the father if this is true.

I'm sure if it does end up being a Democrat's son who's the culprit, the media will regain its respect for the privacy of politicians' children but quick. Perhaps should Bristol Palin should engage in something more illegal and high profile next time to stave off the press.

UPDATE: Tennessean: State rep’s son contacted in Palin e-mail probe

NASHVILLE – The son of state Rep. Mike Kernell has been contacted by authorities in connection with a probe into the hacking of personal e-mail of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, Kernell told The Tennessean.

Kernell, a Memphis Democrat, said his 20-year-old son David had been contacted by authorities investigating the hacking of Palin’s personal e-mail account, the newspaper reported on its Web site this afternoon.

Again .... Kernell has only been contacted by authorities and is not a suspect.

UPDATE: The Tennessee paper rejigged it's story and only say that Kernell said he is aware his son is the subject of Internet rumours.

UPDATE: A blogger claiming to have a relationship with Rep. Kernell says they spoke with him tonight and that neither he nor his son have been contacted by the FBI.

I just got off the phone with Mike Kernell at 6:21 pm CST, and as of that time, neither he nor his son has been contacted by the FBI, Secret Service or any other branch of law enforcement or the government.

So far, everything going on about David Kernell hacking Palin's computer is RUMOR. Again, NO ONE HAS INVESTIGATED HIM.

If that changes, I will let you know, but as of this moment, there has been no investigation into David Kernell hacking Palin's computer.

On a personal note, I need to say something about Mike Kernell. Rep. Kernell has more integrity than almost anyone I know. He doesn't lie, cheat or steal, and helps people whenever he can.

When I was sick, he'd leave soup by my door after a long day of work. When I needed a friend, Mike was there for me as he is not only for his friends, but for strangers.

If David does turn out to be involved in hacking, Mike Kernell had nothing to do with it. Anyone who knows Kernell, knows he doesn't even email because he hates computers and is computer illiterate. That's the irony. Everyone who knows Mike is chuckling because he hates computers.

There are very few people I would vouch for, but Mike Kernell is one of them, and if it turns out his son did something wrong, Mike had nothing to do with it.

And I reiterate, as of this moment, NO ONE has contacted Mike or his son from law enforcement and as of now it is an Internet rumor.

Explosive CEO calling Obama, Dems "Family" of Fannie Mae

Who is Rubico10?

Michelle Malkin received an email from someone following the Palin email hacking based on comments in a hacker forum.

This afternoon, in a thread that was later deleted, an individual claiming to be the original poster gave his account of what happened. I’ve attached screencaps. Here’s the text. The original poster used the name “rubico.” The linked email address for the poster was rubico10@yahoo.com.

A Google search of "rubico10" comes up with this rubico10 -- who is from Memphis, Tennessee?


Just a theory? But how many people use the name rubico10?

UPDATE: I had more info but deleted it after reading this comment at Volokh Conspiracy.

>Finding the guy is a piece of cake

Methinks that's not his real email address. Only noobs give their real email address on 4chan. Doing is an invitation to get spammed with furry porn.

Associated Press won't cooperate with Secret Service investigation of Palin emails

Found this tidbit in the AP's story on the Palin emails

The Secret Service contacted The Associated Press on Wednesday and asked for copies of the leaked e-mails, which circulated widely on the Internet. The AP did not comply.

And whose side is the AP on in this case of illegal invasion of privacy?

The disclosure Wednesday raises new questions about the propriety of the Palin administration's use of nongovernment e-mail accounts to conduct state business. The practice was revealed months ago — prior to Palin's selection as a vice presidential candidate — after political critics obtained internal e-mails documenting the practice by some aides.

Translation: SHE HAD IT COMING!!!

UPDATE: Malkin has the inside story about the hacker(s).

Palin's email hacked?

From Wired

UPDATE: The American Thinker has more on what this means.

And people wonder why we don’t see high-quality, or even “normal” people, run for public office. First you have to submit financial information beyond even what the IRS wants. Then the real fun starts. The opposition sends in an army of lawyers looking into everything you’ve ever said or written. They’ll talk to your enemies, ex-spouses if you have any, former business partners, their ex-spouses and disgruntled former subordinates. Journalists will make stuff up. Hollywood and TV entertainers will imitate you unflatteringly, mock you and call you everything evil. They’ll dig into your children’s lives and post their pictures everywhere. Strangers will forward invented emails and internet hoaxes. Your photos will be photo-shopped and posted on the internet. Hope to goodness that you have no real photos or cell-phone captures that might be embarrassing.


And now they hack into your private emails and post them online.


This is the most despicable and truly anti-democratic move I’ve seen in my lifetime in America.

"Carly will now disappear,"

It's about time

Hockey Moms For Truth

Running Against Sarah

Excellent piece on those who have faced down Sarah Baracuda.

Liberal campaign grounded ... literally

Ha ha!

MONTREAL — The Liberal party’s campaign convoy was grounded Tuesday night when its aging plane was forced to land in Montreal.

Liberal Leader Stephane Dion’s 29-year-old Boeing 737 leased from Air Inuit was en route from Sherbrooke, Que., to London, Ont., when it made an unexpected stop shortly after 8 p.m. at Pierre Elliott Trudeau Airport.

The pilot told passengers over the loudspeaker that something was wrong with the plane and he needed to land for repairs.

Liberal campaign spokesman Mark Dunn says one of the aircraft’s two generators was losing power, so the pilot decided to land as a precaution.

Dunn says passengers, including Dion, Bob Rae, Liberal staffers and journalists, will likely stay in Montreal overnight.

Janeane Garofalo: Great to Jail All Republicans

From Newsbusters

GAROFALO: First of all there is no evidence to support that the current incarnation of the Republican party, hyphen conservative movement, has any tethering to decency, kindness, tolerance, open-mindedness. What do they stand for? Torture as a policy. They stand for homophobia. They stand for no reproductive justice. They stand for denying global warming.

FUND: So what should we do? Jail them?

GAROFALO: That would be great!

"She performed very well under her interrogation"

The key quote is at the end.

Sarah Palin Baby Name Generator

Good for a laugh.

This is dumb

This guy is supposed to be helping John McCain

Pressed to provide an example of what McCain had accomplished on that committee, Holtz-Eakin said the senator did not have jurisdiction over financial markets, then he held up his Blackberry, telling reporters: "He did this."

"Telecommunications of the United States, the premiere innovation in the past 15 years, comes right through the Commerce Committee. So you're looking at the miracle that John McCain helped create," Holtz-Eakin said. "And that's what he did. He both regulated and deregulated the industry."

Cindy McCain says ‘View’ hosts ‘picked our bones clean’

From MSNBC

And the lashings from the McCain camp didn’t just stop with Tina Fey — Cindy McCain also called out the ladies of “The View” after their appearance on the daytime talk show last week.

“In spite of what you see in the newspapers, and on shows like ‘The View’ — I don’t know if any of you saw ‘The View’ yesterday, they picked our bones clean — in spite of what you see, that’s not what the American people are saying and what they are believing,” Cindy McCain said at the 119th annual Oakland County Republican Party’s Lincoln Day Dinner, Saturday night in Michigan, according to ABC News’ Arnab Datta.

Barack Obama Embellishes His Resume

No biggie, but still pretty funny. Be sure to read the comments

About that crazy anti-McCain photog The Atlantic hired

Michelle Malkin has more ... way more .... talk about not being vetted.

"The press and the Democratic ticket are paying the price for decades of biased mainstream press coverage"

Michael Barone on how Palin has messed up Obama and the media real good.

Tom Brokaw Hits Rock Bottom

Promotes the "Jesus was a community organizer" meme.

"Every so often, journalists become deranged at the sight of certain candidates"

A writer at The Atlantic reacts to the freelance photographer who doctored a photo of John McCain and bragged about it

"He would have had better go of it had he picked Hillary for his running mate"

Every time Obama trots out Hillary, it just reminds her supporters what could have been. And she's not taking off the gloves to go after Palin.

Elyria, OHIO--Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY), swept into friendly territory today to ampaign for her former rival, generating large, passionate crowds--but barely mentioning the woman whose popularly has many here fretting.

Since the Republican convention, Clinton has pointedly avoided directly criticizing vice-presidential nominee Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) as she campaigns for Barack Obama, a strategy her staff says is endorsed by Obama's campaign.