While America slept...

Now, the past few months have been interesting times in Iraq, especially if you have been a terrorist. Why, it isn't safe to even run a fake checkpoint anymore! When 26 terrorists bite the dust and 38 of their friends get rounded up, you know something is up, and it is no longer the explosions of IEDs. Even worse for terrorists is the National Army getting its act together and given the green light to go after all insurgents, terrorists and kooks brandishing weapons. Then that back-stabbing AP cannot even get Jamil Hussein out to do his 'Baghdad Bob' routine and proclaim that the running gun battle in Baghdad was really just exuberation over a wedding and that any deaths were due to a mosque catching on fire causing cars to be burned up and down the street. Those westerners are such unreliable shills...

Of course the Saudis are complete incompetents, not even able to get across the border to help! What fecklessness of fate befalls insurgents who depend on the Saudis to actually figure out how to do something simple. And what is worse are those Kurds deciding to step in and end all the damned squabbling by the terrorists in Baghdad... yes insurgents have not been having a good few weeks of it in Iraq to say the least. Why they even have problems with a simple kidnapping/murder and get 2 of their own killed and 55 captured in Babil Governate. It is bad news when the population starts to rat you out on more and more things, almost like they didn't like terrorists, gun-toting mobsters or, even, Sharia Law! Those tribes in Anbar have actually had the gumption to join with the government and follow through on their commitments! And even being able to get away with killing 32 journalists hasn't stifled the criticism of the insurgents INSIDE Iraq. Can't even get a good protest against the killing of one of al Sadr's top henchmen *any* play these days.

Why there isn't even any respect for pinpoint attacks on infrastructure any more and the Government has been cocky enough to put a new National oil deal in place! Even India can't be intimidated to stay out of the south, because of the oil there, too. And those Kuwaitis are just waiting eagerly to see Chemical Ali on a rope... what can a self-respecting terrorist do when the death of a mass murderer is looked forward to? Then to have the US name an Afghan as its representative to the UN, and a muslim, too! That is just rubbing noses into things...

Just when all the terrorists got used to claiming victory everywhere, all the time, they are suddenly faced with expanding of conflicts in ways they did not expect and are having trouble figuring out. The omnipresent al Qaeda looks to have met its match in Somalia and the man who headed up the African Embassy bombing plot looks to have been removed from the active duty list. Plus that USS Eisenhower battle group seems to be, well, stopping things up in the air and the sea against al Qaeda and their friends in Africa. This entire set up has slowly been built up, and quietly, out of MSM limelight since 2002, with slow, careful, understanding of the players, their resources and affiliations.

In Pakistan a recent visit by the Afghan President highlighted the problems of actually putting a fence and minefield along the border territory used by insurgents to get from Pakistan into Afghanistan. That said some sort of mountain delay and detainment system for tracking those trying to cross illegally needs to be done and if low tech mines can't do it, then perhaps a more robust sensor web attached to it might help. Maybe the Minutemen can help on that as they are doing a far better job than Congress ever has.

All of the terrorism in Thailand has not only gotten a harsh crackdown via the military, but now school teachers are allowed to carry arms outside of class! Why, in no time they might be actually protecting themselves. Trying to provoke Malaysia into doing something rash just hasn't been going as planned along the Thai border, either. Which is something for a government suspected of having a Mongolian model killed while she was in-country.

The Philippines has been continuously hounding the Moro Islamic Liberation Front which has gotten help from the Indonesian Jemaah Islamiyah, organization. But that has not been going well or smoothly from the terrorist side for months now. Even throwing Abu Sayyaf into the mix hasn't turned things around. And getting support from Indonesia is critical to all Islamic Terrorists, and is reaping the benefits of making the Indonesian Government seem less trustworthy than it already was. Maybe that will help to destabilize things between Indonesia and Malaysia more. Having gotten all that aid into Banda Aceh has been all to the good from the terrorist perspective, and able to funnel funds into coffers has been a large help. But by aid not getting through after the recent landslides that is not seen as getting a positive spotlight on things.

At least Bangladesh seems to be less stable now... not that it was stable to begin with. Nor really all that capable, come to think of it. So perhaps not advances in terrorism after all, just standard incompetence with violence and terror just part of the latter.

It is almost like there is a war on terror going on or something!

Who would have ever thought such a thing a few short years ago....