Monday, August 08, 2011

Evidently, al Qaeda, the Taliban and Pakistan thought they would teach the USA a lesson in regard to bin Laden. Really?

There is a second helicopter that experienced a 'hard landing' as well.  The USA military isn't being smart about the number of soldiers in a helicopter at any given time.  In emergency there may be no other choice, but, if this is common practice in Afghanistan, it isn't a good one.

Unless, an in depth investigation by the USA proves otherwise, this was a retaliatory strike against the USA over the death of bin Laden.  This is bin Laden's replacement.  What's his name?  Aimen or whatever.  Zwaheri.  Whatever.

This was an inside job.  My guess is that someone with knowledge as to whom was in that helicopter passed on that information to make an impression on the USA about their aggressive nature in the world.  I mean it was an incredible operation.  Every leader, regardless of terrorist network, is checking and rechecking their security.  That's a given. 

So.  To believe that Pakistan ISI wasn't involved in this HAS TO BE PROVEN to be a bad assessment.  Unless the actual person responsible for this can be clearly identified, then the operations there are in danger and it has to include a sovereign entity from somewhere.  Someone who doesn't consider the FBI Most Wanted List a worry.

I look forward to a complete report from the USA military. 

It is a mistake to simply disregard the downgrade by S&P.

The market relevance of S&P’s stripping of the U.S.’s AAA rating is plain in the rise in price and fall in yields on U.S. Treasury securities. That is, nil.
The benchmark 10-year note yield is back below 2.5%, down 10 basis points from Friday at 2.46%, as investors continue to seek U.S. government securities as the safest haven in a turbulent world, notwithstanding S&P’s protestations. At the same time, the two-year note yield is at “two bits” again, or 0.25%, down four basis points. And the long end, which did sell off initially Sunday evening, has come roaring back with the 30-year bond yield off seven basis points, at 3.77%. (Newbies note: prices and yields of bonds move inversely.)
The market is behind the move in U.S. Treasuries, unlike those of the sovereign debt of Italy and Spain. Those truly impaired credits have been bolstered by the decision of the European Central Bank to buy those bonds, which are rated not far below those of the U.S. Italian 10-year yields plunged more than 60 basis points, to below 5.5%, while the Italian equivalent yield is down about three-quarters of a percentage point (74 basis points), to 5.30%. Italy and Spain are not assured of being able to refinance or repay their debts, which are issued in euros, a currency not under their direct control. By contrast, the U.S. can pay its bonds in the world’s reserve currency which it uniquely can print....