norris hot springs eternal

Militants in Iraq have used store bought software to hack the video feeds of Predator drones. Department of Defense and C.I.A. officials believe the intercepted information was used to evade the unmanned aircrafted but did not report instances of militants gaining flight control.

The US has identified the Iranian Revolutionary Guard as colluding with Shi'a militants in Iraq to intercept drone video feeds. The article linked above provides no evidence for this claim.

The USAF is slated to purchase hundreds more Reaper drones, a newer model, whose video feeds could be intercepted in much the same way as with the Predators. A Reaper costs between $10 million and $12 million each and is faster and better armed than the Predator. General Atomics expects the Air Force to buy as many as 375 Reapers. Sight (super tight).
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Here is an excellent op-ed by James Mackintosh concerning the precidential implications of Tzipi Livni's British arrest warrant and the subsequent political backlash from British, Israeli and US politicians.

Mackintosh's final paragraph-- "We face a choice. We can apply international law as we apply domestic law, taking the politicians out of it (mostly) and being left with situations such as the Livni prosecution. Or we can accept international law for the jurisprudential farce it has been since it was invented and stop pretending it has any special moral force. We can’t claim it has moral force and then decline to prosecute people just because they are our friends."

Waxing. . . Last Spring I accompanied Lucas to a lecture at the Elliot School by Lawrence Freedman, the distinguished historian and author of "A Choice of Enemies: America Confronts the Middle East". He spoke at length about Iraq, Iran and Israel and how our history in the region will/should impact our foreign policy in the future. He then opened up for questions.

The microphone wound its way through the auditorium through the tastefully clasped hands of "Dr. S0-and-so, Senior Advisor to What's-his-name" and "Professor Bluehair from Didn't-get-in-here, You". After the release of much wind and a noticeable increase in the room's temperature the microphone found its way into the clammy hands of yours truly.

I introduced myself as "name-you-know, drummer for Surprise! Arizona" (now Natives) to low chuckling and the turning of faces. I began my question with a reference to this article, which detailed a statement by the Arab League denouncing the International Criminal Court's warrant for the arrest of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. According to the article, The Arab League opposed the warrant because "Many Arabs also see it as an example of Western double standards, arguing that Israelis should be prosecuted for crimes against Palestinians and Americans for abuses in Iraq."

I asked- if our unquestioning support for Israeli leadership undermines other regional interests, including the prosecution of a perpetrator of genocide, is it then time to reconsider the nature of our relationship with Israel, Pakistan, Egypt, etc?

His verbatum response was (and I think Lucas would confirm): "Hmm, that's a good question. . . I . . well, how do I say this. . . sometimes. . . your friends are guilty." I think Mr. McIntosh would agree and add, sometimes we're guilty too.