still vulnerable to attack | deficit=dirty bomb

Intelligence gap...

Group Finds Intelligence Gap Persists

MARCH 10, 2009

By SIOBHAN GORMAN | WSJ

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. government still can't link critical pieces of information that could warn of an impending terrorist plot, despite more than seven years of effort since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, a new report from a bipartisan national-security group warns.

Getting security officials to connect information about threats is the "single most important step" the Obama administration should take to improve national security, the Markle Foundation Task Force on National Security in the Information Age said in a report to be released Tuesday.

"Today, we are still vulnerable to attack because -- as on 9/11 -- we are still not able to connect the dots," the group said, according to a copy of the report reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. "At the same time, civil liberties are at risk because we don't have the government-wide policies in place to protect them as intelligence collection has expanded."

In an interview, outgoing Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell said the group's advice is similar to what he told his successor, Dennis Blair. "It was my recommendation that he make [intelligence sharing] one of his top priorities," said Mr. McConnell, who praised the task force's efforts to focus attention on the issue.

The deficit, a dirty bomb for future generations...

Our deficit and debt dirty bomb

By DAVID M. WALKER | 3/10/09 4:32 AM EDT | Politico

As more baby boomers retire, the nation’s unfunded commitments in Medicare and Social Security benefits — which now make up approximately $43 trillion of our $56.4 trillion federal financial burden — continue to grow at a rate of up to $3 trillion per year. As deficits and wage gaps widen and inefficiencies mount, our tax code becomes increasingly imbalanced and unsustainable. As our country grows more dependent on foreign lenders, we give them more leverage over our foreign policy and give up more control of our own destiny. 

Our economy and our families are also at risk of incurring much higher interest rates, inflation levels and tax burdens once the economy begins to turn around. 

Voters rank the need to address our budget challenges as a top priority for the Obama administration, second only to the pre-eminent need to get the economy back on track and get Americans back to work and far higher in importance than passing health care reform. When it comes to choosing from the menu of most commonly discussed policy solutions, the picture gets blurry. Not surprisingly, voters are more likely to favor proposals that won’t affect them personally or for which the trade-offs are not as clear.