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Politics : View from the Center and Left -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: KonKilo who wrote (68864)	5/27/2008 9:06:15 PM
From: Bearcatbob	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 542088

"Please describe why Radical Islam is an existential threat to us?" I will allow the readers of your post to judge its merits - or lack there of. I find it unworthy of further discourse.

To: KonKilo who wrote (68864)	5/27/2008 9:15:49 PM
From: epicure	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 542088

Obviously some who espouse radical Islam might want to be an existential threat to the US, but it's clear they do not have the means to be that. I think some people confuse wishes with ability, simply because the Islamic extremists are a non-existential threat with emotional appeal (the scary "other").

To: KonKilo who wrote (68864)	5/27/2008 11:18:31 PM
From: Bridge Player	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 542088

Please describe why Radical Islam is an existential threat to us? Does this help? ================================================================ Al Qaeda Tape to Call for Use of WMDs Authorities: New Tape to Urge Use of Weapons of Mass Destruction on Civilians By PIERRE THOMAS and THERESA COOK May 27, 2008 Intelligence and law enforcement sources tell ABC News they are expecting al Qaeda operatives will post a new video on the Internet in the next 24 hours, calling for what one source said is "jihadists to use biological, chemical and nuclear weapons to attack the West." al qaeda Officials say they expect a new tape from al Qaeda to call for the use of weapons of mass destruction against civilians. The group has released messages with increasing frequency this year. "There have been several reports that al Qaeda will release a new message calling for the use of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) against civilians," FBI spokesman Richard Kolko told ABC News in an e-mail. "Although there have been similar messages in the past, the FBI and [Department of Homeland Security] have no intelligence of any specific plot or indication of a threat to the U.S.," the e-mail said. "The FBI and U.S. intelligence community will review the message for any intelligence value." While there is no evidence of any direct threat, the FBI sent a bulletin to 18,000 law enforcement agencies across the country, out of an abundance of caution. The expected posting of a new tape comes on the heels of a spate of messages from Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda's second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahiri. Earlier this month, al Qaeda released an audio message from bin Laden, excoriating the media and countries that are supportive of Israel. The release was timed to coincide with the nation's 60th anniversary and President Bush's trip to the region. So far this year, four bin Laden tapes have surfaced. In April, the terror group released audio recordings in which al-Zawahiri answered questions submitted to an online forum several months earlier. The increasing volume of tapes seems to signal to the law enforcement and intelligence communities that top al Qaeda leadership is comfortable monitoring current events and communicating messages frequently. Officials have tracked the trend, but FBI director Robert Mueller downplayed the surge of messages during an appearance earlier this month, noting that "there is a difference between al Qaeda's ability to communicate internally and al Qaeda's ability to post a message on the Internet. As we all know, the Internet is so broad. The access is absolutely open that just about anybody can post material on the Internet."