The New York Times reports infromation gathered from a captured 25-year-old Pakistani Al Qaeda computer engineer lead to the raised terror alert issued yesterday:

But the official said “documentary evidence” found after the capture had demonstrated in extraordinary detail that Qaeda members had for years conducted sophisticated and extensive reconnaissance of the financial institutions cited in the warnings on Sunday.
One senior American intelligence official said the information was more detailed and precise than any he had seen during his 24-year career in intelligence work. A second senior American official said it had provided a new window into the methods, content and distribution of Qaeda communications.
“This, for us, is a potential treasure trove,” said a third senior American official, an intelligence expert, at a briefing for reporters on Sunday afternoon.

It’s hard to know how much to make of some of these anonymously-sourced stories, particularly on the intelligence front. This significance of this may be exaggerated. But I have to wonder: Has the capture of this single individual gone further to foil a potential Al Qaeda attack than the thousand troops and hundreds of billions consumed in Iraq? Interesting thought exercise. And it goes to illustrate that tanks and missiles are no substitute for good intelligence work in the “war on terror.”
UPDATE: It’s also worth noting that this was at least the second significant Pakistani capture which conformed with the Bush administration-imposed Democratic National Convention deadline.
Funny how the timing of everthing has worked out.

I’ve heard of ticketed events, but isn’t this getting a little ridiculous?

Some would-be spectators hoping to attend Vice President Dick Cheney’s rally in Rio Rancho this weekend walked out of a Republican campaign office miffed and ticketless Thursday after getting this news: Unless you sign an endorsement for President George W. Bush, you’re not getting any passes.
The Albuquerque Bush-Cheney Victory office in charge of doling out the tickets to Saturday’s event was requiring the endorsement forms from people it could not verify as supporters.
State Rep. Dan Foley, R-Roswell, speaking on behalf of the Republican Party, said Thursday that a “known Democrat operative group” was intending to try to crash Saturday’s campaign rally at Rio Rancho Mid-High School. He added that some people were providing false names and addresses and added that tickets for the limited-seating event should go to loyal Bush backers.
. . .
“I’m outraged at this. I’m being closed off by my own government. It’s crazy,” said East Mountains resident Pamela Random, who added that she is an unaffiliated voter.

Event is at a public facility, no less.

I agree with President Bush:

When it comes to improving our economy and creating new jobs, results matter.

And those results?
Average monthly employment growth during the Bush administration: -0.04%.
Worst record since President Hoover.

Meanwhile, amid the teeming poppy fields:

Afghanistan will fall apart unless Nato countries urgently fulfil promises to send troops, the Commons foreign affairs select committee warned yesterday.
With violence rising ahead of an election scheduled for October, the MPs concluded: “There is a real danger that if these resources are not provided soon Afghanistan – a fragile state in one of the most sensitive and volatile regions of the world – could implode, with terrible consequences.”
. . .
The MPs criticised the Nato countries, other than the US and Britain, who pledged support at their summit in Istanbul in June but did not match that with the provision of desperately needed troops for the International Security Assistance Force (Isaf).
. . .
They added: “We recommend that the government impresses upon its Nato allies the need to deliver on their promises to help Afghanistan before it is too late, both for the credibility of the alliance and, more importantly, for the people of Afghanistan.”

I guess this shortfall can be excused. After all, we have to take care of things in Iraq, right?
Oops. Same deal there:

“We conclude that the insufficient number of troops in Iraq has contributed to the deterioration in security. We further conclude that the failure of countries other than the US and the UK to send significant numbers of troops has had serious and regrettable consequences.”

So when John Kerry talks about the urgent need to strengthen alliances and bring in other nations, it’s not just idle chatter.

Even the GOP is (secretly) conceding that Florida’s voting system can’t be trusted:

While Gov. Jeb Bush reassures Floridians that touch screen voting machines are reliable, the Republican Party is sending the opposite message to some voters.
The GOP urged some Miami voters to use absentee ballots because touch screens lack a paper trail and cannot “verify your vote.”
That’s the same argument Democrats have made but which Bush, his elections director and Republican legislators have repeatedly rejected.
“The liberal Democrats have already begun their attacks and the new electronic voting machines do not have a paper ballot to verify your vote in case of a recount,” says a glossy mailer, paid for by the Republican Party of Florida and prominently featuring two pictures of President Bush. “Make sure your vote counts. Order your absentee ballot today.”

Guess the message here is don’t trust and verify.