"While we are striking major blows against Al Qaeda – the preeminent global terrorist threat, the underlying causes that drive terrorists will persist," the CIA said. "Several troublesome global trends – especially the growing demographic youth bulge in developing nations whose economic systems and political ideologies are under enormous stress – will fuel the rise of more disaffected groups willing to use violence to address their perceived grievances," it added.

The CIA report, given on Monday to the Senate Intelligence Committee in response to written questions, said that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein is in no danger of being overthrown, and that his military forces can defeat any internal opposition. Radio Free Europe reports these latest CIA statements are not likely to improve relations between the White House and the CIA. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, upset that the CIA wasn't providing concrete evidence of ties between Al Qaeda and Iraq, set up his own intelligence gathering unit last week. Rumsfeld later denied a rift with the agency. 

In the report mentioned above, the CIA said that Al Qaeda is not the only group seeking to wreak cyberterror on the US. Sunni Muslim extremists and the Japanese group Aleph, formerly known as Aum Shinrikyo, are other serious threats. The report also says that scientific data posted online aids terrorists: "Terrorist groups worldwide have ready access to information on unconventional weapons, including nuclear weapons, via the Internet." 

Good News: Last week, McDonald’s posted lower earnings for the seventh time in eight quarters. From MSNBC.

When the complete story of the lethal gassing in a Moscow theater gets fully explained, will be anyone's guess. 

To help make the case for organics, the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit research organization, will unveil an online food database today that uses research from the Agriculture Department showing the chemicals found on conventionally grown fruits & vegetables and those grown organically.

From the Washington Post: “Bush authorizes $92 million to teach combat skills to exiled Hussein foes.”

"The real trend in journalism in the last 25 to 30 years has been the dominance of gossip, sensationalism and less regard of the truth. The bottom line in our business increasingly has become the bottom line -- not the truth." Carl Bernstein quoted in today’s Baltimore Sun.

Hmm. 

News Item: "Simpson went golfing at Rancho Park Golf course. ..." 

News Item: "Simpson made his remarks while golfing in South Florida. ..." 

News Item: "Simpson was golfing at nearby Granada Hills course during. ..." 

News Item: "Mr. Simpson spent much of the day golfing in the San Fernando Valley. ..." 

News Item: "Simpson, golfing in Louisiana, said it was. ..." 

Simpson theorizes it may have been a caddy who did it.

"The United States secretly tested chemical and biological weapons on American soil during the 1960s, newly declassified Pentagon reports show. The tests included releasing deadly nerve agents in Alaska and spraying bacteria over Hawaii, according to the documents obtained Tuesday. The United States also tested nerve agents in Canada and Britain in conjunction with those two countries. The summaries of more than two dozen tests show that biological and chemical tests were much more widespread than the military has acknowledged previously. The Pentagon released records earlier this year showing that chemical and biological agents had been sprayed on ships at sea." 

But one of these days we’d like to ask him about his late 1980s report on Gen. Khun Sa, the now retired Burmese drug warlord, and former head of the Shan United Army. Specifically, we’d like to know why Tom claimed he needed to ride a donkey “for 3 days” to get into the opium warlord’s jungle compound. Another TV investigative reporter we know of on the West Coast, made the same trip about the time Jarriel did, and rode in on a truck. The video he brought back shows Khun Sa himself owned a spiffy new white Toyota. 

While we have our own theory for the discrepancy, we’re not in the mood for controversy. At least not today. But as Richard Armitage once said, "Being responsible means occasionally pissing people off. You can't avoid it. Live with it." So, one day, we just might.

"Should Saddam conclude that a U.S.-led attack could no longer be deterred, he probably would become much less constrained in adopting terrorist action," it continued. The letter concludes that Mr. Hussein could use either conventional terrorism or a weapon of mass destruction as "his last chance to exact vengeance by taking a large number of victims with him." In today’s NYT.

A second water taxi, travelling behind the royal boat, had to be lashed to the stricken vessel to tow it to safety and the royals' destination. As the 76-year-old Queen climbed ashore with her husband, who is an admiral, she said: "That was interesting." In the UK Guardian.

The basis for the support is a strict reading of the bible, which says that Jews must be able to return to the land of their ancestors before Jesus Christ can return." 

Simon says that “evangelists are opposed to any biblical land being turned over to the Palestinians and are not afraid of telling Bush, a born-again Christian, their position. After Israel sent tanks to the West Bank recently, Bush said it should ‘withdraw immediately,’ but after Falwell persuaded about 100,000 supporters to write e-mails, 'it was the last time Bush said a word.' "
Sad to say in USA Today.

In a show of solidarity with those named on the Web site, nearly 100 outraged professors nationwide — Jews and non-Jews, English professors and Middle East specialists — have responded to the site by asking to be added to the list. 

The Web site, Campus Watch, with `dossiers' on individuals and institutions and requests for further submissions, is a project of the Philadelphia-based Middle East Forum..."  Last week in the NYT.

"The 346-page report, to be released Thursday in Brussels by Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, the director general of the health organization, reviews thousands of studies to catalog homicide, suicide and armed conflict, as well as violence against women, the elderly and children. It found that violence accounts for 14 percent of all deaths among men, and 7 percent among women."
In the NYT.

By Uri Avnery, award-winning Israeli journalist and writer, three-time member of Knesset, a columnist for the Ma’ariv daily and a founding member of the Gush Shalom peace movement. In ArabNews.com.

“You knew when you married me that I needed to play blackjack once every 3 or 4 years,” I puffed. “Vegas is the real thing. Vegas is the symbolic “why” behind 9/11. Excess excess. They even have an M&M store. Let’s go.”

“But it’s our honeymoon,” she said. Sweetly. So, after four days of hiking in and along the Grand Canyon’s South rim, we went to Sedona for a massage and a buffalo burger. 

When we finally reached Flagstaff to catch the next morning’s 5 a.m. train, we learned President Bush was due in town about 6 hours after our sleeping car was scheduled to roll back east.

We were made aware of his September 27 visit after hitting a minor traffic jam caused by roughly 40 Northern Arizona University students on bikes. They were riding in the street to protest an assortment of Bush administration foreign and environmental policies. Basically, the Iraqi war and trees. The event seemed well-planned. Even had a one-car police escort covering their rear.

A call-to-march flyer handed us by a passing rider cited the Flagstaff Activist Network as sponsor. Recalling our very own first turbulent year on campus - 1969 - we were pleased. 

That night, while wandering around town, we came across the network’s “Non-Violence Training” meeting, held in a boarded-up movie theater ungoing a very slow rehab. “The space was donated by the new owner,” said one kid outside holding a clip board. “They’ve got an asbestos problem.” 

After listening for 20 minutes to a young man and woman take turns warning about possible CIA and FBI infiltrators intent on turning their peaceful demonstration into a violent clash, it was question time.

A woman up front was quick to raise her hand. “Have you made any plans for a port-a-potty yet?” she asked.

No one laughed. This was serious. So were our headaches after slapping our foreheads so hard. We left, collective lost faith in generations x, y and z, intact. 

"In a significant change from earlier in September, Americans now say that the situation in Iraq will be more important to them in determining their vote in the upcoming mid-term Congressional elections than the economy."