Afghanistan, Yemen, Libya

The US troop withdrawal from Iraq created a corresponding increase in violence. The killing of Osama bin Laden has generated a similar increase with reports of a bomb blast killing 7 US troops. Earlier this week, China stated that it would not tolerate any US military action in Pakistan. At the same time, China and North Korea renewed their vow to maintain their support for one another even as leaders change in future years.

While the Untied States continues to remain silent about the future of Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), the rest of the Middle East continues to rather violently reinvent itself. Yemen is the latest for the Day of Rage. Islamic militants have seized a coastal city and Yemen appears to be the latest to have a major change of government led by rebels.

The French are helping to lead change in Libya by bombing Qaddafi's compound. British, French and other Nato forces were on Saturday night preparing a two-pronged blitz to try to finish off Col Gaddafi as already slender hopes for a peaceful resolution to the Libyan crisis faded. All the while, NATO and the US really has no idea who will take over after Qaddafi. The US and European track record for selecting and installing new leaders in the range is less than impressive.

September will mark the tenth anniversary of 9/11. For some reason, the tenth is more poignant than the ninth much as the 25th will be more poignant than the 24th. Given that, this is the year that we could see a renewed effort to execute a major terrorist attack in US soil. The Middle East is now more unified (despite the violence) than it ever has been and along with the US killing of Osama bin Laden, an attack seems more likely than ever.

According to Osam bin Laden's files, he was plotting an attack on our railroads. Anything from passenger rail to freight carrying hazardous chemicals or nuclear fuel rods could be a target.

Less we forget, several politician (including Arnie) have demonstrated a complete contempt for their responsibilities while in office. Gov Schwarzenegger's policies have led over 37,000 prisoners to be set free from prisons. Corrupt politicians are always a good motivation for protest and rebellion. We need to also be concerned about an attack from a domestic group fed up with the state of US politics.