Sun Rise Beyond Francis Peak

2005 was a great year for the Calder family and we look forward to the dawning of 2006

A Law Unto Themselves

Several people who disagree with the Government’s eavesdropping on suspected terrorist suspects have taken the case to the New York Times. So far the NYT hasn’t made a case that any laws have been broken. What right did the disclosers have to compromise vital national operations? Did they even consult with their agencies lawyers to get a reading? The Clinton era associate attorney general backs President Bush’s NSA actions. Seems to me the best case these disgruntled folks can come up with is they have an opinion this sort of stuff should be against the law (an opinion that a good portion of Americans disagree with).

There really isn’t a gray area when it comes to the President’s ability to monitor enemy communications in wartime, but even if there was, in a democracy, the benefit of the doubt should go to the elected official, not anonymous cranks.

Some Thoughts on National Security Leaks

I must have been quite a rube when I joined the Air Force. I worked in weapon system development and my first job required the use of two file-cabinet sized safes for the classified material. I was so afraid of accidentally leaving a safe unsecured that I probably checked the doors three or four times after I had secured them. The thought of an accidental compromise was always in the back of my mind. If you wanted to push an obsessive/compulsive person over the edge just give him a safe stuffed with the government’s secrets.

Now I learn the government has taken pity on us overly cautious people. I’ve since found that one can mistakenly stuff classified documents in ones clothes and only lose your security clearance for three years. Or we can disclose national secrets direct to the New York Times without any apparent threat of prosecution (or that would have been leaked too).

Merry Christmas

This was an enjoyable Christmas for my family. Having Christmas on Sunday was a major factor - I look forward to another Sunday Christmas. Our family attended Sunday services and it set the mood for the rest of the day.

I am thankful for our Heavenly Father's love in sending His Son.

Nuclear Weapon Watch

It would only be a scandal if the administration wasn’t using radiation detectors (via Powerline)

Domestic Spying?

So… the National Security Administration (NSA) discovers an Al Qaeda phone conversation in the Middle East and determines to monitor future transmissions from these numbers. But then a call from one of these numbers happens to be made to a location within the US and NSA continues to monitor the call. If this turns out to be the basis for the “domestic spying” charges the New York Times is leveling, consider me unconvinced.

Democracy Expands in the Middle East

Ask someone who was around during VE or VJ day. They’ll remember what happened on those days. My Dad was only seven and he remembers. The Iraqi elections are as significant to our generation as the close of World War II was to the past generation, yet our nation seems ignorant of that fact. Fifteen million people, or 70 percent of the electorate, voted in a new Middle East democracy! While that fact has been reported (or even downplayed) the significance has yet to enter the national consciousness. One day it will; are you going to remember, then, the events of this week?

An Alternative to Using a Moral Compass

An Iraqi voter provides directions to those who have lost their moral compass.

Cory Maye

I suppose a factor in the main stream media’s (MSM) lack of attention for the Cory Maye case is they are also opposed to people who carry guns for protection. Perhaps they reason if Cory Maye did not own a gun, he never would have been able to shoot the unannounced intruder in his house who turned out to be a cop at the wrong address. Via Instapundit the CBSNews.com blog has picked this up; perhaps this will yet make it to the MSM.

Miscarriage of Justice

No it’s not the imminent execution of Tookie Williams (four time murderer, gang founder, and children’s book author), rather another death row inmate is the one who should get a Governor’s reprieve – see Glenn Reynolds.