Whatever happened aboard this vessel was rather strange to say the least.

“I can’t say anything about the roots of this story and I don’t plan to dig further… I need to think about my own skin too. Understand that as you will.” –Mikhail Voitenko, editor of the Russian maritime Bulletin Sovfrakht., speaking about the “hijacking” of the Arctic Sea

By Douglas J. Hagmann, Director, & Sean Osborne, Military Affairs Specialist

24 August 2009: While it might seem like an unusual morphing of the movies Inside Man and The Hunt for Red October, the account of the cargo ship Arctic Sea is far stranger than either fictional account. Based on information developed through our extensive investigation, we can authoritatively state, without hyperbole, that the mysteries surrounding the MV Arctic Sea are as deep as the Atlantic waters where it navigated and its “alleged” secret cargo as potentially dangerous to an unsuspecting, distracted populace as the coastal rip tides produced by a late summer hurricane.

Imagine a 4,000 ton, 100 meter commercial cargo ship, manned by a crew of 15, equipped with an automatic identification system (AIS), a satellite navigation beacon, and state of the art communication equipment, including satellite phones and the cellular telephones of the crew, laden with $1.2 - $1.8 million of cut lumber and manned by a crew of 15, suddenly and inexplicably “disappearing completely off the grid” for two weeks - allegedly at the hands of eight-(8) hijackers or “pirates.” Now, imagine the pirate attack of this low value target taking place in a busy transit area that has not seen an act of piracy since the 17th century.

That’s what reportedly transpired with the Arctic Sea, a Russian managed commercial cargo ship sailing under a Maltese flag and owned by the Finnish company Arctic Sea Ltd. The Russian management is from a sister company based in the Russian city of Arkhangelsk that reportedly provides “technical support” to the company and its sole vessel.  Arkhangelsk is also the home of the 15 man crew of the Arctic Sea.

Now imagine a search for the missing vessel launched by numerous assets from the Russian Black Sea fleet in conjunction with NATO, the use of satellites and other forms of surveillance, and a “rescue mission” that ultimately secured the ship, rescued its crew and captured the alleged hijackers or pirates. Except this was no ordinary rescue of the crew and arrest of the hijackers. Some of the crew and all of the hijackers, including one who was later identified as a fisherman who supposedly died three years ago, were transported together by the Russians to a high security Moscow prison where they are being held incommunicado.

Next, imagine an investigation of the incident that has involved law enforcement from 20 countries, 3 intelligence agencies, and British nuclear response team - so far, all of which has been conducted under an unprecedented level of secrecy. Added to that shroud of secrecy are various bits of disinformation - news articles - that have been intentionally seeded to a non-inquiring media through Russian and other diplomatic sources.

Read it here

Posted at 4:37 pm on August 21, 2009 by Ed Morrissey

When our founders created the federal government, I’m pretty sure they didn’t anticipate having its power reach into their carriage houses.  Thanks to a particularly asinine piece of legislation called the Consumer Protection Safety Improvement Act, though, we now have federal inspectors threatening to start investigating yard sales and church bazaars.  They say they’re just going to focus on thrift stores and Craigslist … for now:

If you’re planning a garage sale or organizing a church bazaar, you’d best beware: You could be breaking a new federal law. As part of a campaign called Resale Roundup, the federal government is cracking down on the secondhand sales of dangerous and defective products.

The initiative, which targets toys and other products for children, enforces a new provision that makes it a crime to resell anything that’s been recalled by its manufacturer. …

The crackdown affects sellers ranging from major thrift-store operators such as Goodwill and the Salvation Army to everyday Americans cleaning out their attics for yard sales, church bazaars or — increasingly — digital hawking on eBay, Craigslist and other Web sites.

Secondhand sellers now must keep abreast of recalls for thousands of products, some of them stretching back more than a decade, to stay within the bounds of the law.

And I’m sure that Thomas Jefferson and James Madison would be especially proud of this report from McClatchy:

Staffers for the federal agency are fanning out across the country to conduct training seminars on the regulations at dozens of thrift shops.

Yes, because when America was founded by men like John and Samuel Adams, George Washington, Jefferson, and Madison, it was to ensure that we could send federal inspectors “fanning out across the country” to stop people from reselling their old junk.

What did we ever do before the CPSIA protected the US through its throngs of federal nannies?  How did we ever survive garage sales in the past 233 years?  Oh, yes: we used our common sense as consumers.  Gee, those were the good old days, weren’t they, when our government treated us as though we had a lick of intelligence and maturity?

I’m not the only one waxing nostalgic, either:

“Many toys have small pieces that could be dangerous,” she said. “My son played with army men, Lego blocks, all kinds of things with little parts. A toddler can put anything in his mouth. Parents need to have common sense. Ultimately, the parent needs to really evaluate and be watchful of what the child is playing with. We as consumers have to be careful. It really comes back to us.”

Nonsense, Nancy!  We’re not qualified to make our own decisions and exercise our own discretion any more.  We need CPSIA federal inspectors to get between us and those dangerous thrift stores, Craigslist entries, and church bazaars.

It’s the era of Hope and Change!  We’re all idiots!  And that’s why the government is here to help.

Gerald Celente: The “Second American Revolution” Has Begun!!!!

Personally I think the train wreck has already happened and sooner or later the conductor in the caboose will catch up with the engineers. Revelation might be a more accurate term than revolution if you really want to mince words.

H/T to Flopping Aces and Texas Fred for this one. A little humor is a good thing. Right?

Anyhow, here is what some of our folks in the medical field think of ObamaCare.

Medical Stimulus Package:

Apparently the American Medical Association has weighed in on the new economic stimulus package….

The Allergists voted to scratch it, but the Dermatologists advised not to make any rash moves.

The Gastroenterologists had sort of a gut feeling about it, but the Neurologists thought the Administration had a lot of nerve.

The Obstetricians felt they were all laboring under a misconception.

The Ophthalmologists considered the idea shortsighted.

Pathologists yelled, “Over my dead body!” while the Pediatricians said, ‘Oh, Grow up!’

The Psychiatrists thought the whole idea was madness, while the Radiologists could see right through it.

Surgeons decided to wash their hands of the whole thing.

The Internists thought it was a bitter pill to swallow, and the Plastic Surgeons said, “This puts a whole new face on the matter.”

The Podiatrists thought it was a step forward, but the Urologists were pissed off at the whole idea.

The Anesthesiologists thought the whole idea was a gas, and the Cardiologists didn’t have the heart to say no.

In the end, the Proctologists won out, leaving the entire decision up to the assholes in Washington.

Glenn Beck: Cash For Clunkers is a government scam to gain access to your computer

Mandating the destruction of perfectly good parts is a really stupid move and does nothing for our current economical situation. Somebody needs to get their head out of their ass at some point or we’re all going  to pay for this one……………

Your government in action…..