Al Qaeda’s core organization is likely incapable of carrying out another mass-casualty attack on the scale of September 11, 2001, U.S. intelligence and counterterrorism officials said on Friday.
U.S. government experts also believe that the likelihood of an attack using chemical, biological, atomic or radiological weapons over the next year was not high, said Robert Cardillo, deputy director of U.S. National Intelligence.
Cardillo and other U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, described these assessments on a conference call with journalists billed as an opportunity for government experts to voice their assessments of al Qaeda’s potency a year after the killing ofOsama bin Laden in a U.S. commando raid.
Cardillo said the al Qaeda “core” organization that bin Laden created has suffered strategic setbacks due to the outbreak of “Arab Spring” protests and rebellions in Islamic countries, which have not spread great sympathy for al Qaeda’s hardline and violent brand of Islam.
More worrying to U.S. counterterrorism officials and their allies abroad is the possibility of home-grown extremists, or “lone wolves,” who are radicalized over the Internet or in small cells, but who also now are being given encouragement by media outlets connected to al Qaeda and its affiliates.
While they were unwilling to declare that al Qaeda was on the brink of “strategic defeat,” the U.S. officials did say they believed the central organization founded by bin Laden simply was not capable today of marshalling the kind of resources and planning that went into the deadly suicide airplane hijackings of September 11, 2001.
The officials said that the United States regards four al Qaeda spinoffs or affiliates as still posing threats of greater or lesser degree to U.S. interests.
Most deadly, the officials said, was Yemen-based al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which U.S. officials believe was behind unsuccessful but imaginative attempts to attack continental U.S. targets over the last 18 months using airplane-borne bombs stashed in a passenger’s underwear and in photocopier ink cartridges.
Al Qaeda in Iraq, which arose in the wake of the 2003 U.S. invasion to oust Saddam Hussein, remains a potentially lethal presence in that country and may be expanding its activities into neighboring Syria, though officials did not indicate they believe it poses much of a threat to U.S. interests outside that region.
U.S. officials said they regarded al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), an affiliate based in North Africa, as largely a criminal organization engaged in kidnapping Westerners for ransom. But they said they were concerned such tactics could evolve into more spectacular kidnappings intended to win publicity for militant causes.
U.S. officials said that after a period in which their struggle became a magnet for disillusioned Islamic youths in both the United States and Europe, al Qaeda’s Somali affiliate, al Shabaab, has seen a measurable falloff in Western recruiting and support.
On balance, a counterterrorism official said, it was “clear we’ve made progress towards defeating al Qaeda the organization,” though elements of both the ideology and the organization certainly remain, including “a number of active networks in the United Kingdom.”
{Reuters/Matzav.com Newscenter}
Monday, April 23, 2012 http://absolutetruth613.blogspot.com/
What About Iran?
I have had several requests asking my opinion and also what scriptures say about Iran. Even though I generally dont do opinion, there is one aspect of Iran that I am very opinionated about. Does Iran have the bomb?
The news is all lies. Dont believe what comes from any source as to the status of the Iranian nuclear program. Iran under the Shaw got into the nuclear business in the 1950’s. With the help of its friend, the US of A, it started an aggressive program. It accelerated in 1986 (for the purpose of weapons) under the previous president, Rafsanjani, and in the early 1990’s Iran purchased completed nuclear systems from the then defunct Soviet Union and from China. In the 1990’s there were an estimated 15,000 advisers from Russia in Iran helping them set up their nuclear program. They have been testing missiles, delivery systems, for decades. I used to be in the missile development business. You can only design a missile after you have the ordinance package (nuclear bomb) already determined. After all, you design a missile to carry a designated weight to a designated target with a designated arming capability. Having a missile without your bomb already designed is useless. A nuclear bomb is not so difficult to design — I know how (don’t tell anyone). Let’s go one step further. Iran has nuclear submarines. Where they purchased to deliver a bomb they don’t have yet? How did Iraq (before Israel knocked out and saved the world), Pakistan, India, Korea, etc, etc, etc get nuclear capability and Iran couldn’t? In the news recently I saw that Korea actually is performing nuclear testing for Iran and even disclosed how much Iran is paying for the effort. Iran arranged for Syria’s nuclear capability before Israel knocked it out. Now comes the best part of the story. Iran has already tried a nuclear attack on Israel, twice. In September of 2008 with an immense dirty bomb and again in 2010 with who knows what? Do you remember seeing all the details in the Jew-hating news? No way!!! The news is only interested in condemning Israel when they defend themselves. That sells more media time. Never, never would Devine intervention ever be printed in the media. In both attempted attacks, an act of Hashem curtailed the attacks. Details are too extensive to go into here but both attempts would have started WW3. We know in Israel exactly Who protects us and watches over us. Israel is the safest place in the world. All wars fought by Israel, 1948, 1956, 1967, 1973, 1982, 1991, 2006, 2012 (maybe) and internal intifada wars have all been miraculous, even impossible. The Israeli IDF would love to take credit for these victories, but I have known many who fought in these wars who will tell you what really happened. Don’t believe the news.
So, what does the future hold in store? Now I put on my other hat (actually the yarmulke never comes off except the shower and the mikvah) since there are very interesting messages from scriptures and commentary. The Talmud (Yoma 10), for example, talks of the battle in the end of days between Edom (led by the US) and Paras (Iran). The bottom line of the discussion says that Edom will attack Persia and win the war.
YALKUT SHIMONI (usually referred to as “the Yalkut” of Simeon of Frankfurt) the best known and most comprehensive midrashic anthology, covering the whole Bible. Written over many years about 1000 years ago. This Yalkut says:
Yalkut Shimoni Yishayahu Remez 499 – “Rabbi Yitzchak said: The year that the Messiah will be revealed, all the kings (leaders) of the nations will be struggling against each other. The leader of Persia (Iran) will contest with the leader of Arabia, and the leader of Arabia will go to Edom (US) to get council from them (this has already occurred). The leader of Persia will respond and destroy the entire world. All the nations of the world will be trembling and shaking and falling on their faces. They will be seized by pains like labor pains.
The Jewish people will be trembling and quaking and saying: “Where can we go? Where can we go?” And Hashem will say to them: My children, do not fear! Everything I did, I did only for you! Why are you frightened? Don’t be afraid–the days of your redemption have arrived!”
A very interesting concept to know about prophecy is that if it is a positive decree, it will happen. If it is negative, involving great death and destruction, it can be curtailed by us simply doing the voluntary will of Hashem. The two attempted attacks on Israel in 2008 and 2010 (mentioned above) were curtailed by the efforts of certain Rabbis in Israel (another long story).
Both sources above talk about Edom at war with Iran and never mention Israels involvement. I do believe that there will be a conflict but it will not be Israel attacking Iran. Of course, those clever Israelis have already attacked Iran using cybernetics. The Stuxnet computer virus supposedly developed by Israel with US involvement has already provided chaos to the Iranian nuclear program and other Iranian industrial efforts.
There is an interesting Op Ed on Arutz 7 discussing the trust that one can have in Obama. Obama goes back and forth on the issue of Iran making it look like he doesnt have a clue as to what he should do. I think Hashem has hardened the heart of Pharaoh and making him do His will. Here is the article:
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/11541#.T5U1p9mmEg8
An interesting thing about the Israeli leadership is they dont know to turn to Hashem for help. Throughout history, Israel has asked nations, who they thought were friends, to assist in domestic problems. A little known fact is that 2000 years ago when there was much conflict amongst different factions within Israel, we invited the Romans to help settle the situation. What, we invited the Romans who proceeded to kill us and exile us? I rest my case. Take the Oslo Accords as a modern day example (please take Oslo). The most one sided agreement between Israel and terrorist organizations, had to be the most foolhardy, ridiculous arrangement for Israel to get into. Yet, with the help of our dear friend America, we have lost thousands of Israelis to the Oslo war that pursued.
I saw today that:
White House closes Israeli option on Iran
By agreeing to ‘peaceful enrichment’ of uranium by ayatollahs, the White House
allows Iran a whole host of nuclear activities:
– to keep upgrading its centrifuges well beyond the capacity needed for nuclear
reactors,
– to break the commitment to buy uranium rods in Russia, exchanging them for the
depleted rods; now Iran can produce its own rods,
– to build any number of reactors despite them being economically non-viable in
an oil-rich country,
– to keep the spent rods from all the reactors, providing a stock of plutonium.
After the US signs such agreement with Iran and starts lifting the sanctions,
Israel won’t be able to attack Iran, as such actions would lack international
legitimacy. Strictly speaking, to carry out such attack in the absence of
international sanctions, we would need a simple leader like Menahem Begin or
Levi Eshkol, while all we get now are facebook-savvy bunch in the government.
Another indication that I noticed is that the US seems to be setting up another False Flag operation. A False Flag operation is where a country wishes to provoke a war with another country and does so by attacking itself and blaming the other country. This would take allot of explanation, but every major war that has occurred in the past 100 years has been a False Flag. Just a few examples. The US was totally aware that the Japanese were approaching Pearl Harbor. The US moved out some of its best ships and move in its worst. The White House never notified Pearl Harbor command and the rest is history. The US wanted to get into the war and that False Flag did it. The Gulf of Tonkin Incident or the USS Maddox Incident was a False Flag operation where the US claimed to have been fired on by the North Vietnamese. It was the False Flag that got us into the ten year conflict with Viet Nam even though the attack on the US never occurred. 911 was a False Flag Operation that is the most controversial of them all. It was even called the new Pearl Harbor. It got us into a war with Iraq and Afghanistan even though neither country had anything to do with 911. Why do all these False Flag Operations occur? War is a big money maker. The bankers and the big industrialists make a fortune selling bullets, tanks, planes, ships, etc. Viet Nam served no purpose at all but made allot of money for the already rich and greedy (and may I add evil) %*#@% (Im sorry I couldnt think of a word to call them especially after talking so much about positive speech). The staggering number of deaths caused by these wars is mind boggling; yet, the perpetrators couldnt care less about the horror — after all, they made allot of money. Why am I bringing it up now? I saw recently that the US was moving into the Gulf region, around the Straits of Hormuz (to where we have seen many scriptural references), the USS Enterprise aircraft carrier. This particular carrier is the oldest ship in the US fleet and is due to be mothballed in the near future. Is this setting up a False Flag as an excuse to attack Iran? I believe that the Pentagon had that in mind but recent disclosure of the possibility may change the plans. Something else, that should make the US leery of such a possibility. There are terrorist sleeper cells all over the world even with nuclear capability that are ready to carry out their plan to make the entire world Islamic. I believe that Iran is the go-ahead source.
It is really cute what is happening. Whatever assessment I could give as to what the truth is whatever guess I would make, I just need to wait until tomorrow and it will change. What is really happening? Why are Obama and many world leaders playing such games with Israel and the future of the world?
Hashem is running the show. We are told that when all the Jews of the world do repentance, the Messiah will be announced. One would say that that is impossible to get all the Jews to just turn to Hashem. But the plan is that when the world gets so frightening because of war, terrorist activity and even natural disasters, everyone will look up and say help. I believe that a day is coming that people will realize that Obama isnt the solution, Netanyahu isnt helping only the Master of the Universe can help, and He will. If Iran gets destroyed, it will probably come from earthquakes, measure-for-measure. I believe that Ahmadinejad is the reincarnation of Haman and that, in the same way that Haman tried to do away with the Jews and met his doom, ol Mahmoud will also discover a hell of an eternity.
In my final analysis of the situation I can give you a definite maybe about nothing (I sound like the news media where the experts agree with each other on nothing). I was thinking of changing the name of this blog, just for this one post, to The Absolute Speculation. Tomorrow back to The Absolute Truth.
Hashem works in mysterious ways and I totally trust that He will take care of His faithful followers. Those who turn to Hashem are protected and have nothing to worry about. I am not at all worried; because, one thing I know for sure is that this all will have a happy ending. I know I read the book.
Posted by The Absolute Truth at 10:09 AM 11 comments
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Sunday, April 22, 2012
Leaving Egypt
The Torah uses the expression 50 times leaving Egypt in one form or another. What is so important about us going out of Egypt that it has to be repeated so many times? Im glad you asked or this post would have been very short. As with everything else, the Torah always is conveying a deeper message. Usually the handbook of life is teaching us an important concept about our lives and this is exactly what we have here.
Egypt was a place that was strictly a physical existence. As slaves, we were completely dependent on the Egyptians for our food, shelter, clothing, etc. We had virtually no spirituality until we left and traveled into the desert, received the Torah and continued to the land of Canaan. Life is the same way we are born completely physical beings; but the Torah is telling us and guiding us as to how to make the trip through life. Our lives are a trip from the physical to the spiritual leaving Egypt and going to the Holy Land.
When we are born everything centers on meeting our physical needs. I am hungry feed me. I am tired let me sleep. I am wet there needs to be some changes made around here. Clothe me, house me, entertain me, love me, etc me. Then we start to grow and learn. We get the Torah early in life, just like Mount Sinai, we start to learn about Hashem, and we spend forty years, not in the desert, per se, but progressing through lifes challenges. All along the way going from a physical, trying to get closer to Hashem and becoming much more spiritual as we approach 120 years old (we expect to be as old as Moses when we change addresses).
Next month, I will be celebrating the 29th anniversary of my 39th birthday (just past middle age according to the last paragraph). I can tell you without reservation that my physical needs have greatly diminished over the course of my life. I eat much, much less than I used to. I sleep about 4 or 5 hours a night (being retired, YEAY!, affords me time for naps during the day but usually not more than an hour at a time maybe twice a day). I go to bed around 10PM and get up about 2 AM to work on this blog (it takes me about 3 to 4 hours to compose the daily post I hope you appreciate my sacrifice) then I go to Morning Prayer services. I remember when I wasnt happy unless I got about 10 hours a night sleep and I still wanted to nap during the day. My desire to study Torah has increased as my great desire to come closer to Hashem. I have experienced this trip from Egypt to the Holy land especially since I just happen to live in the Holy Land.
But what is the significance of 50 times in the Torah. 50 is a very significant number in Judaism. At this time of year we count the Omer – 49 days from the second night of Pesach until Shavuot, the 50th day which is the day that we received the Torah. The Israelites were at the 49th levels of Spiritual Impurity which was just above the lowest level, the 50th. So, even their trip had the significance of coming out of such a low spiritual level and making the trip towards the Spiritual Purity. Moses achieved the 49th level of bina, intellectual insights, out of a possible total of 50 such levels. The reason that Moses never reached the 50th and ultimate level of bina was that the achievement must parallel the effort expended on achieving the goal in question. Had the Israelites descended to the 50th level of impurity, the effort at gaining the final level of insight would have been possible.
I forgot to mention, when I talked about reincarnation, that our present generation which is here to greet the Messiah, is the generation that was at Mount Sinai. The Jews of today (and even the lost tribes that are returning to Israel) are all reincarnated to experience the redemption. I think I remember seeing you there.
Back to the subject. There are other 50s such as the Jubilee celebration that occurred every 50 years when we had the Temple. The Jubilee cycle will resume with the coming of the third Temple.
One can see the tremendous significance to the number 50 in leaving Egypt and going to Israel leaving the physical and going to the spiritual.
Does this mean that Hashem doesnt want us to be materialistic in life? What about the American Dream: cars, a mansion, maybe a yacht, vacations, drugs, alcohol, corruption, greed, higher suicide rate, splintered family relationships, looking over your shoulder often, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc (oh, Im sorry I think I added some extra, very realistic, commodities to the American Dream). Hashem wants us to be comfortable and have the necessities of life. But, what does a two million dollar home give me that a 500,000 dollar home doesnt? The answer is much less spirituality and more waste. There are so many people in this world that are hungry and without the necessities of life. Wouldnt the extra 1 and ½ million be better spent on helping people? If our job in life is correcting ourselves by following the will of Hashem, it seems very counter-productive to waste the opportunity to achieve a tremendous eternity in exchange for opulence during a very short time on earth. Remember the space between my fingers with which I started this blog thats how long life is, outside the fingers is the real life called eternity. The mansion and vacations are starting to look like a hell of an idea. They could provide you with a hot spot for travel after you leave Earth. Go for the Jewish Dream instead, happiness, loving family, much happier children, a better education system, dear friends who help each other, great neighbors, peace of mind, good food, nice clothes including a prayer shawl (tallit) with fringe benefits, two kitchen sinks, no boredom, great future and, the best of all, a relationship with the Owner of the universe (now you are truly a VIP). Oh, I forgot etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc and, one more, ETC.
Enjoy your journey through life. May you be both physically and spiritually comfortable and realize which one truly is the greater comfort.
Posted by The Absolute Truth
Hurray! So now we don’t have to take our shoe’s off in the airport?! We can break up the incompetant TSA? Wow, this is great news!