FDA Sets Melamine Levels For Baby Formula

Days after claiming that they were unable to do so, the FDA has announced that they've set levels for melamine.

Food and Drug Administration officials on Friday set a threshold of 1 part per million of melamine in formula, provided a related chemical is not present. They insisted the formulas are safe.

The development comes days after The Associated Press reported that FDA tests found traces of melamine in the infant formula of one major U.S. manufacturer and cyanuric acid, a chemical relative, in the formula of a second major maker. The contaminated samples, which both measured at levels below the new standard, were analyzed several weeks ago.

The FDA had said in early October it was unable to set a safety contamination level for melamine in infant formula.

Dr. Stephen Sundlof, the FDA's director of food safety, said Friday the agency was confident in the 1 part per million level for either of the chemicals alone, even though there have been no new scientific studies since October that would give regulators more safety data. He had no ready explanation for why the level was not set earlier.

The standard is the same as the one public health officials have set in Canada and China, but is 20 times higher than the most stringent level in Taiwan.

It's a chemical that mimics protein and can be toxic and fatal to children in sufficient dosages; it's the chemical responsible for injuring thousands of Chinese children after Chinese manufacturers spiked baby formula and milk products with melamine to increase the protein counts for tests.

What's curious about the level set by the FDA is how it was seemingly set in such an arbitrary manner. It's as though the FDA chose to show action merely by positing a level, and that they'll eventually get around to figuring out what is a reasonable level after additional tests. I'd be interested in knowing how Taiwan set its level, which also could be an arbitrary response to how China flooded the market with melamine-tainted products.

The FDA mandated-level is well below the level of melamine found in the tainted Chinese products.

It doesn't inspire confidence either that the FDA admitted errors in its testing:

After saying it made an error in its data, the FDA on Wednesday produced these results: Nestle's Good Start Supreme Infant Formula with Iron had two positive tests for melamine on one sample; Mead Johnson's Infant Formula Powder, Enfamil LIPIL with Iron had three positive tests on one sample for cyanuric acid.

Separately, a third major formula maker, Abbott Laboratories, told the AP that in-house tests had detected trace levels of melamine in its infant formula.

Also, what exactly is considered a trace level? That's left unstated by the reports.

Mixed Signals On Black Friday Retailing

Bergen County New Jersey is home to four major malls and literally thousands of shopping options along the Route 4/Route 17 corridors. I got the impression that the stores were not seeing the kind of foot traffic I expected around midday, and that might have been due to the fact that the crowds really came out for the doorbuster sales. This report in The Record reports that the crowds really came out earlier in the day, but that's not what caught my attention.

For all the talk about recession and the economy being in shambles, how exactly are we supposed to reconcile that with a projection of sales increasing 2.2% over last year?

The National Retail Federation, however, has estimated that 128 million people would shop on Black Friday, down from 135 million last year, and will release a new estimate on Sunday afternoon.

The federation predicts that sales will increase by 2.2 percent this holiday season, the lowest increase since 2002 and half the average holiday increase of 4.4 percent. That would make this a very lean year for retailers, who have come to rely on increased sales each Christmas. Many retail analysts believe the NRF estimate is overly optimistic, and that holiday sales could decrease this year for the first time since the NRF has been tracking sales. Some experts predict a wave of retail bankruptcy filings after the holidays.

Black Friday usually isn’t the busiest day in terms of sales volume – the Saturday before Christmas is. But it’s considered an important indicator of the mood of the American consumer, the main driver of the economy.

Throughout the day Friday, shopper after shopper said they were cutting back on gifts for family members, “except for the kids.” That’s good news for executives at Wayne-based Toys “R” Us, who are banking on consumers to spend any available cash on toys and video games for children. Ron Boire, president of U.S. stores for Toys “R” Us said at mid-day that the early returns looked positive, although he couldn’t reveal specific figures. “I feel like we’re off to a good start,” Boire said. “We continue to feel pretty bullish about the toy business and Toys “R” Us in particular, and we’re getting a pretty good read on it today,” he said.

So, a 2.2% increase in sales revenue is bad news. Interesting. While the figure is the lowest increase year over year in quite some time, considering how all the pundits and experts are talking of recession, depression, and a credit meltdown, that's an incredible target figure put out by the Federation. It underlines the resilience of the markets and the pent up demand for items that people have put off. It also suggests that consumers are going to be very price sensitive and will likely flock to discount retailers over higher end retailers. That's bad news for department store chains like Macy's and Lord and Taylor's, but good news for Kohl's, Target, and WalMart.

Shopping online is the X factor in all this, and it could explain why foot traffic in stores was lower this year compared to last year. Monday is expected to be a big day for online shopping, but I think the Black Monday sales online are going to be diluted this year because many retailers were already offering those top sales to consumers as early as the Wednesday before Thanksgiving to jumpstart the holiday shopping season.

UPDATE:
I use the following sites for sales and deals:

Hot Deals Club offers year round tips and leads, but has Black Friday ads and hot deals.

Bfads.net and BlackFriday.info are both quite good at highlighting deals, comparing sales, and tracking the best sales.

After Four Days, Mumbai Terrorist Siege Ends

The city of Mumbai can finally breathe a sigh of relief as Indian authorities say that they've finally ended the terrorist siege inside the city.

Government officials said Saturday afternoon that the death toll had risen to 162 and was likely to rise again. They also said 283 people had been wounded.

Most of the dead were apparently Indian citizens, but at least 18 foreigners were killed and 22 had been injured, said Vilasrao Deshmukh, the chief minister of Maharashtra State. At least five Americans were believed to have died in the attacks.

Just 10 militants, the city’s police commissioner suggested Saturday, had caused all the mayhem.

“With confidence I can say that 10 terrorists came in,” said the commissioner, Hasan Gafoor. “We killed nine of them and one was captured alive.”

His comments were confirmed by Mr. Deshmukh, although it remained unclear whether they might have been referring to 10 attackers coming in by sea to join accomplices who, according to unconfirmed local news reports, might have embedded themselves in Mumbai days before the attacks. Investigations were ongoing Saturday night.

A senior Mumbai police inspector, Nagappa R. Mali, identified the captured suspect as a 21-year-old Pakistani man, Ajmal Amir Kasab. Mr. Mali said the man had a fourth-grade education and worked as a laborer.

Four other suspected terrorists were at the morgue at the JJ Hospital in Mumbai. Officials there put their ages between 20 and 25. All four were males.

According to the Times of India, the death toll has risen to 195, and it's expect to rise further still. Now that the fighting has ended, the grieving can begin for those affected by the attacks, including the members of India's law enforcement and security forces that died in the line of duty attempting to stop the terrorist attacks.

The terrorists acted with great precision and there are more details about the group of ten terrorists that entered the city from the sea.

Ten men, all apparently in their early 20s, jumped out. They stripped off orange windbreakers to reveal T-shirts and blue jeans. Then they began hoisting large, heavy backpacks out of the boat and onto their shoulders, each taking care to claim the pack assigned to him.

Mr. Dhanur flipped his boat light toward the men, and Kashinath Patil, a 72-year-old harbor official on duty nearby, asked the men what they were doing.

“I said: ‘Where are you going? What’s in your bags?’ “ Mr. Patil recalled. “They said: ‘We don’t want any attention. Don’t bother us.’ “

Thus began a crucial phase of one of the deadliest terrorist assaults in Indian history, one that seemed from the start to be coordinated meticulously to cause maximum fear and chaos.

Indian officials had said little publicly about the attackers until Saturday, when the Mumbai police commissioner, Hasan Gafoor, said a total of 10 militants had been responsible for the mayhem. But it remained unclear whether he was referring to 10 attackers arriving by sea to join other accomplices. Unconfirmed local news reports suggested some militants had embedded themselves in Mumbai days before the attacks. Investigations were ongoing Saturday night. In any event, the synchronized assaults suggested a high level of training and preparation.

There are also reports that the terrorists hoped to blow up the Taj hotel.

The terrorists had enough explosives to blow up the Taj hotel.

Sources have told the TV channel that they wanted to reduce the life-size building of Taj hotel to rubble. They also believed to have told about their plan to replicate a ‘JW Marriot’, happened at Islamabad, to the Mumbai hotel.

In a sense to destroy the symbol of financial strength of the country and send shock-waves all across the globe, the terrorists wanted to do a 9/11 in India.

The above revelation came from the 21 year old Azam Amir Kasav, who hails from tehsil Gipalpura in Pakistan's Faridkot.

On Wednesday-Thursday night Azam and his colleague opened fire at CST before creating havoc at Metro and then moving on to Girgaum Chowpatty in a stolen Skoda, and where they were intercepted by a team from the Gamdevi police station. Azam shot dead assistant police inspector Tukaram Umbale.

But in that encounter Azam's colleague was killed and he himself was injured in the hand. He pretended to be dead giving rise to the news that two terrorists had been killed. However as the 'bodies' were being taken to Nair Hospital, the accompanying cops figured that one of the men was breathing.

It may take more than a year to repair the damage to the Taj hotel, and the cost will be considerable.

Meanwhile, India is going to have to undergo serious review of its security plans in light of the fact that so many terrorists infiltrated from the sea; it's a gaping hole in India's security that had not been addressed previously.

Many of the questions that dogged investigators from the outset remain, including who was behind the attacks, and what role if any was played by Pakistan. The latter question is one that is seriously concerning US officials, and it should worry everyone considering that India and Pakistan have fought three vicious wars and both now have nuclear arsenals, to say nothing of the fact that both India and Pakistan have regularly engaged in gun battles across the Line of Control for much less.

Mickey Kaus wonders whether the attacks were meant to be a Madrid-bombing styled attack designed to affect the outcome of India's elections. However, increased security in November may have delayed or thwarted the attack from happening at that time.

Terrorist groups with links to Pakistan are at the focus of who carried out the attacks, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Pakistan was behind them. Still, one has to wonder whether rogue agents within the Pakistani ISI could have been involved, and Pakistan has previously been implicated in the attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan.

UPDATE:
Why the attacks occurred is actually a more pressing question than who carried them out since the political ramifications will differ greatly as should the response by India.

It's clear that an Islamist terrorist group was behind the attacks, and the question remains which one. The attacks weren't simply meant to be a random act of violence, but one that shocks and threatens all of India. I think that the attacks were meant to threaten the growing peace overtures between India and Pakistan. The jihadi groups want to prevent India and Pakistan from engaging in rapprochement and closer ties. That would seriously harm the ability of the jihad to move forward if the Pakistanis become friends with the nation that they've fought multiple wars and skirmishes with over the past 50+ years.

When you look at the attacks from that angle, it makes perfect sense. Give the impression that Pakistan was behind the attacks, and India has to make the determination that it was an act of war that must require a response - out of domestic pressure to respond and seek justice for those killed, and to prevent future attacks. Get India to strike at Pakistan, and the jihadis get to spread via the violence and discord sown in their wake.

Mickey Kaus alternatively suggests the possibility that the attacks may have been meant to affect the outcome of India's November elections but were delayed as a result of tighter security. In other words, they were hoping for a Madrid bombing outcome - get the current government thrown out in favor of one that is more likely to appease in the face of increasing terrorism.

Throw in the specter that the ISI could have played a role (thus far only speculation), and you can see just how dangerous this situation is for all of South Asia.

Meanwhile, MSNBC reports that one of the captured terrorists allegedly said that his fellow terrorists intended to blow up the Taj Hotel, killing thousands of people, but that his fellow terrorists underestimated the strength of the stone walls. The report also indicates that the terrorists continue to plumb the depths of depravity by boobytrapping bodies with grenades while the Black Cats - India's elite military group had to go room to room to clear them of terrorists.

Pressure is already mounting on the Indian government to take action against Pakistan, which as I've already noted will lead to dire consequences for all of South Asia and the world beyond.

UPDATE:
Jammie notes that Bollywood's reaction to the terrorist attack in Mumbai is far different than the reaction of the Hollywood types here in the US, although we'll see how long that lasts.

UPDATE:
Here's still more eyewitness accounts of the siege at the Taj hotel. The Black Cats, the nickname of India's counter-terrorist strike force NSG, was instrumental in ending the siege. Here's a brief background on the group. Residents of Mumbai were busy issuing their thanks to the NSG members who helped bring the siege to an end.

UPDATE:
Barcepundit has a great roundup, and notes that there was apparently a failed attack against the Mumbai airport. Indeed, the attack failed when the taxi made a wrong turn and the bomb within detonated short of the airport itself.

Macy's Rickrolls Crowds At Thanksgiving Day Parade

You don't say. Rick Astley, who has made the rounds online, has apparently come to the attention of Macy's as part of their Thanksgiving Day parade in New York City.

A Black Black Friday

There is absolutely no excuse for this, and yet one man lost his life and a pregnant woman had a miscarriage when a WalMart in Valley Stream, New York opened its doors for a doorbusters sale this morning.

A Wal-Mart worker was killed Friday after an ``out of control'' throng of shoppers eager for post-Thanksgiving bargains broke down the doors at a suburban store and knocked him to the ground, police said.

At least four other people, including a woman eight months pregnant, were taken to hospitals for observation or minor injuries, and the store in Valley Stream on Long Island was closed for several hours.

It reopened shortly after 1 p.m. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. in Bentonville, Ark., called the incident a ``tragic situation'' and said the employee came from a temporary agency and was doing maintenance work at the store.

``The safety and security of our customers and associates is our top priority,'' said Wal-Mart representative Dan Fogleman.

``Our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families at this difficult time. At this point, facts are still being assembled and we are working closely with the Nassau County Police as they investigate what occurred.''

The man, a sales clerk, was trampled to death by hundreds of shoppers looking to save a few bucks on their holiday shopping. The woman was also injured in the mass of people surging into the store.

That's absolute insanity, and it really should raise questions about how and why people are going holiday shopping in the first place. Look, I love a sale as much as the next person, but I'm certainly not going to risk my life for it, and neither should anyone else. It certainly is a reason to do your shopping online.

In fact, both Mrs. Lawhawk and I have done most of our holiday shopping online and both of us have nearly finished our lists, but I always check out the stores in person to see if there's anything else I missed and to get ideas. This year, I checked out Century21 and Filene's Basement at Bergen Town Center, Target in Hackensack, and the Paramus Park mall. Century21 and Filene's Basement weren't exactly packed with crowds, and you could actually walk through the aisles fairly comfortably. People were buying items, but I was there after the initial doorbusters sale ended around noon.

Paramus Park was also busy, but not inordinately so. I was able to get in and out of the malls and their parking lots fairly easily. Sales were good, but nothing really blew my socks off as a must buy item.

Target, on the other hand was quite busy but even there I was able to make my way through the Hackensack store. Many of the low priced DVDs were already sold out and the shelves were not restocked as of early afternoon, which could be a sign that the store was not holding as much inventory as in past years, when DVDs for under $5 could be found readily even into the late afternoon.

In other words, I think that there's serious belt-tightening ongoing, and that means that retailers are going to be in for a very rough season.

UPDATE:
While I didn't shop there, there were lines outside Sixth Avenue Electronics all day long, and the line started forming at their store on Route 4 at Midnight. I guess someone thought that they really had good deals.

Of course, that was not the only store where people lined up.

Day Three of the Mumbai Terror Attacks

As hard as it is to grasp the scope and seriousness of the situation, keep in mind that the terrorists are still operating inside Mumbai and the Indian authorities are still trying to secure the city and last remaining locations where the terrorists are holed up.

At least seven of the terrorists were British and there are concerns that the attacks may have links back to Great Britain and additional terror cells within the United Kingdom:

British-born Pakistanis were among the Mumbai terrorists, Indian government sources claimed today, as the death toll rose to at least 155.

As many as seven of the terrorists may have British connections and some could be from Leeds and Bradford where London's July 7 bombers lived, one source said.

Two Britons were among eight gunmen being held, according to Mumbai's chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh. At least nine others are reportedly dead.

The eight arrested were captured by commandos after they stormed two hotels and a Jewish centre to free hostages today. Despite the Indian authorities' assurances that the situation was under control, the siege continued at the Taj Mahal hotel and explosions could still be heard in central Mumbai.

One security official said: 'There is growing concern about British involvement in the attacks.'

But Gordon Brown has urged caution. He emerged from a conversation with India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to say there was no suggestion of a British link.

More than 150 people have been killed, including two Americans and five Jewish hostages at the Chabad house. That includes the head of the Chabad house and his wife, both of whom were originally from Brooklyn:

Rabbi Gavriel Noach Holtzberg and his wife, Rivkah, who ran the movement's local headquarters in Mumbai, India, were killed during a hostage standoff at the center, said Rabbi Zalman Shmotkin, a spokesman for the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.

The center was one of 10 sites attacked beginning Wednesday.

The couple's toddler son, Moshe Holtzberg, was rescued Thursday by an employee and is now with his grandparents.

``Gabi and Rivky Holtzberg made the ultimate sacrifice,'' said Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky, vice chairman of the educational arm of Chabad-Lubavitch.

``As emissaries to Mumbai, Gabi and Rivky gave up the comforts of the West in order to spread Jewish pride in a corner of the world that was a frequent stop for throngs of Israeli tourists. Their selfless love will live on with all the people they touched. We will continue the work they started.''

Sadly, the Taj Hotel still isn't under complete control, and the authorities have yet to fully sweep the building and account for all those inside. Two or three terrorists remain holed up inside the hotel even now. Indeed, it is possible that some of those killed or injured in the past two days may have been the result of the rescuers unable to differentiate between the terrorists and the victims.

Indeed, the terrorists appeared to be well versed in the layout and operations of the hotels. That's in addition to being heavily armed and loaded for bear.

I can only hope that the Indian authorities take a real hard look at the training and tactics for their local police and their special weapons and tactics services to deal with this kind of situation. That includes the national security forces who were called in to reinforce and take back the hotels and secure other locations.

In New York City, the ESU is called in to provide tactical support for situations that the police can't handle on a normal basis, and they have heavy weapons, additional body armor and training to deal with these kinds of situations. Even the regular police force is equipped with bullet proof vests, which a review of photos and videos from the first hours of the attacks was not in evidence among many of the emergency responders, who were often wearing little more than their standard uniforms and rifles.

Meanwhile, US, British and Israeli intel agencies are ramping up assistance to India to help pinpoint who was behind the attacks and what role, if any, was played by Pakistan, although the leading suspect is the Islamic terror group HuJI, which operates out of Pakistan. The concern is that there might be rogue elements inside Pakistan's own government or the ISI that might attempt to sabotage any rapprochement between Pakistan and India.

Unprecedented intelligence cooperation involving investigating agencies and spy outfits of India, United States, United Kingdom and
Israel has got underway to crack the method and motive behind the Mumbai terrorist massacre, now widely blamed on Islamist radicals who appeared to have all four countries on their hit list when they arrived on the shores of India.

Investigators, forensic analysts, counter-terrorism experts and spymasters from agencies the four countries are converging in New Delhi and Mumbai to put their heads, resources, and skills together to understand the evolving nature of the beast. The spy chief of the Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence(ISI) is also being summoned to India to help with the investigations because of the widely-held view that the terrorists' footprints go back to Pakistan.

The Bush administration has taken the lead to forge cooperation, partly out of concern that charges by India that the terror plot has Pakistani fingerprints could setback fast-improving government-to-government and people-to-people ties between the two countries, officials said.

But there is an implicit recognition both in New Delhi and Washington, and also other world capitals, that Pakistan's hard-line Army and its spy agency are spoilers of the honeymoon between the civilian governments and the people of India and Pakistan. Hence the summons to the country's chief spook, Ahmad Shuja Pasha, an acolyte of the new Army Chief Pervez Kiyani, himself a former ISI chief.

Meanwhile, while some Muslim groups have moved to condemn the heinous and vile terrorist acts, other dispicable Islamists are actually justifying the attacks supporting the attacks or somehow blaming Israel or the US for the attacks.

Given that there are now links to individuals with a British background, it is possible that the focus on who was behind the attacks will shift away from HuJI and on to al Qaeda, which has been desperately trying to carry out a mass casualty attack to remain relevant in the global jihad against the West.

This attack is different in many ways from prior attacks against the Indian people. The kind of sophistication and coordination takes time and training to accomplish, and at least 25 terrorists may have been involved in the attacks on 10 targets around the city. There are also questions about how the terrorists entered the city, including looking at reports that they entered by boat.

Two ships that have been boarded are strongly suspected of being involved in the attacks: the Kuber, an Indian fishing boat, and the MV Alpha, a Vietnamese cargo ship. Both ships appear to have been directly involved. The Kuber was hijacked on Nov. 13, and its captain was found murdered. Four crewmen are reported to still be missing.

Indian security officials found what they believe is evidence linking the boat to the attack, as well as linking the attackers to Pakistan. "A GPS map of south Mumbai was found along with a satellite phone on the ship, Coast Guard officials confirmed," The Times of India reported. "There were reports that this phone was used to make calls to Karachi immediately before the shootings began in Mumbai."

Indian police also detained three terrorists from the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, a terror group closely allied with al Qaeda. The three men are said to be Pakistani nationals, and claimed to have been part of a 12-man team that launched from the MV Alpha. They said the MV Alpha departed from Karachi.

Another Indian official said that it is "suspected that the Pakistan Marine Agency helped the terrorists hijack the trawler (the Kuber)," although this has not been confirmed. Another unconfirmed report indicated the Kuber originated from Karachi, Pakistan.

UPDATE:
According to reports, one of the terrorists checked into the Taj hotel and began stockpiling weapons and explosives in his room four days before the attacks commenced.

The Intelligence Bureau, India's domestic spy agency, said it had detained a Muslim militant, Abu Islami, found to have checked into the five-star Oberoi/Trident hotel four days before the rest of the attackers landed in Mumbai by boat.

"He used the room to store explosives" including 40 hand grenades "and weapons for a prolonged operation", a top Intelligence Bureau official told AFP on condition he not be named.

"We are asking him who supplied the weapons, the explosives, the Chinese-made grenades. He came in much before the main body of the terrorists landed by boat" on Wednesday evening, he said.

At least 150 people have died so far and more than 350 others have been injured in the attacks in Mumbai.

The Intelligence Bureau also said credit cards and one identity card from the Indian Ocean nation of Mauritius were recovered from the militant's room.

That is highly suggestive that the terrorists were busy casing their targets in advance of the attacks and were waiting for the right time to strike with all their fury.

A Real Estate Conundrum

Mortgage interest rates have been dropping as a result of the ongoing credit mess, and the latest government intervention. That's provided a possibility of refinancing for many people stuck in high interest rate mortgages.

Therein lies a problem.

I have a fixed rate mortgage and inquired about refinancing yesterday, but ran into a problem that many other people will find.

With the actual value of the real estate owned lower than it was when it was purchased, it sets up a situation wherein people might not be able to refinance without taking on PMI because they do not have 20% down, based on the current value.

This will especially hit those who bought homes within the past three years, even if the homes were bought with 20% down. Since most of the mortgage payments goes to paying interest, principle doesn't get reduced much in the first years of repayment. So, if you refinance the mortgage, even using the same criteria as when originally made (30 years, fixed rate, no points), you're going to have to pony up additional money to assure that you do not have to pay PMI.

Here's a hypothetical to show the problem. A home originally bought for $450,000 at 6.75% and 20% down one year ago would mean that $90,000 was used as a down payment and the mortgage was for $360,000. Monthly payments would be in the range of $2,300 (principal plus interest)

Today, if you tried to refinance for 5.75%, you would likely find that the value of the home isn't $450,000, but 10% lower (here in Central Bergen County) - $405,000. The new mortgage would be for roughly $358,000 (taking into account the year's worth of principal repaid). That $358,000 is more than 80% of the value of the property, which means that you would fall into a trap where you would need to increase the amount for down payment to get above 20% or incur PMI. Many people simply don't have the money available to make that happen or don't want to risk putting more money into the property to get a modest benefit from the rate changes.

That makes it very difficult for many people to consider refinancing at the present time precisely because the real estate values have declined.

It's a situation that is even worse in many parts of the country that have seen real estate values decline by even steeper percentages.

Of course, the federal government is looking to help people who are in distressed mortgages by enabling them to rewrite the terms of their mortgages, but if you played by the rules and are current with your payments, you're going to find that you can't benefit from the lower interest rates at the present time.

Terror and Mayhem Continue in Mumbai; 100+ Dead As Explosions Continue Being Reported

Mumbai and the rest of India is still coming to grips with the massive and sprawling terrorist attacks that hit the largest city in the world, which is still ongoing. More than a hundred people were killed in a combination of bombings and gunfights with terrorists who not only infiltrated into the city, but who struck at some of the most famous addresses and highly visible locations.

A new detail released since my last posting notes that one of the targets was a Chabad house:

Teams of gunmen stormed luxury hotels, a popular restaurant, a crowded train station and a Jewish group's headquarters in India's financial capital, killing at least 101 people, taking Westerners hostage and leaving parts of the city under siege Thursday. A group of suspected Muslim militants claimed responsibility.

Police and gunmen were exchanging occasional gunfire at two luxury hotels and dozens of people were believed held hostage or trapped inside the besieged buildings. Pradeep Indulkar, a senior official at the Maharashtra state Home Ministry said 101 people were killed and 287 injured.

Officials said eight militants had also been killed in the coordinated attacks on at least 10 sites that began around 9:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Gunmen also seized the Mumbai headquarters of the ultra-orthodox Jewish outreach group Chabad Lubavitch, the New York-based group said. Indian commandos surrounded the building Thursday morning and media reports said gunfire was heard from the building.

The Chabad HQ in New York City released a statement and expressed not only their concern for Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, and no one from the Chabad center has been heard from since the attacks. The Lubavitch have been working with Indian authorities to try and determine what has happened not only since the terrorists stormed the building, but what has happened when Indian commandos went in to secure it.

Carl in Jerusalem has more on the situation at Chabad House.

More than 200 people are still trapped at the Oberoi Trident hotel, while six people there were killed. All the hostages at the Taj Hotel have been rescued, but it appears that fighting continues there as there are fresh explosions and gunfire.

A first hand report from the city shows that people are trying to go about their business but the mayhem on the streets can seemingly erupt anywhere. The kindness and generosity of strangers has helped many weather the attacks after being stranded far from home and the dangerousness of attempting to cross the city as the terrorists attacked.

A group of Australians were trapped in a Mumbai hotel, including actress Brooke Satchwell, who hid in a cupboard in the lobby to avoid being shot. The report notes that they were not going to release the location, lest the terrorists get wind of it.

The Indian army has moved in and will be carrying out operations in the Taj Hotel to flush out the last remaining terrorists there and to secure the facility:

"NSG is here. They are carrying out a very deliberative operation. They are trained for it and are the best in the country. I have faith in them," Major General R K Hooda, GOC, Maharashtra area told reporters here. ( Watch )

While the army will carry out the flushing-out operations in Taj hotel, the specialised commandos of the National Security guards and the Naval MARCOS will undertake operations at the Trident hotel, where it is believed that the terrorists are holding hostages.

Hooda, the seniormost Army General in Maharashtra, said operation clean-up at the Taj will start from the top floor and the personnel will carry out a room-to-room combing operation.

"There are 365 rooms to be searched. All rooms are closed. Every room has to be opened and searched thoroughly through their own drills, Hooda said.

Army is doing intervention drills by checking each rooms of the hotel. "In case the rooms are locked, we ask occupants to open it. And if they do not, army will carry out intervention drill with due care. They (personnel) are trained for this," he said.

Three of Mumbai's top police officers, chief of ATS Hemant Karkare, encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar and additional commissioner Ashok Kamte, died in the line of duty as they were responding to free hostages and deal with the terrorists.

Canadians, Americans, British, Italians, Swedes, Yemenis, New Zealanders, Spaniards, Turks, a Singaporean and Israelis are included among the hostages taken by the terrorists at various points over the past several hours or are among those freed by Indian authorities. Reports indicate that a British citizen was among those killed, and several more were wounded.

Aussie Dave is liveblogging the situation.

Speculation continues over who was behind the highly coordinated and sprawling attacks:

Some media reports attributed the attack to Lashkar-e-Taiba. There were also unconfirmed reports that some of the terrorists came in by sea. A boat laden with explosives was recovered later at night off the Gateway of India.

Well after midnight, sources said two of the terrorists were shot and wounded at Girgaum in south Mumbai. The two were driving in a commandeered silver-coloured Skoda car. Earlier, these men had sprayed bullets from a police Bolero, outside the Metro Adlabs multiplex.

The attacks occurred at the busiest places. Besides hotels and hospitals, terrorists struck at railway stations, Crawford Market, Wadi Bunder and on the Western Express Highway near the airport. Several of these places are within a one-km radius of the commissioner of police's office.

The New York Times reports that there is disagreement over whether the group claiming responsibility is somehow related to al Qaeda.

An e-mail message to Indian media outlets that claimed responsibility for the bloody attacks in Mumbai on Wednesday night said the militants were from the Deccan Mujahedeen. Almost universally, experts and intelligence officials said that name was unknown.

Deccan is a neighborhood of the Indian city of Hyderabad. The word also describes the middle and south of India, which is dominated by the Deccan Plateau. Mujahedeen is the commonly used Arabic word for holy fighters. But the combination of the two, said Sajjan Gohel, a security analyst in London, is a “front name. This group is nonexistent.”

Some global terrorism experts with experience in South Asia said that, based on the tactics used in the attacks, the group was probably not linked to Al Qaeda — although that assertion was challenged by other experts.

“It’s even unclear whether it’s a real group or not,” said Bruce Hoffman, a professor at the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and the author of the book “Inside Terrorism.”

“It could be a cover name for another group, or a name adopted just for this particular incident,” he said.

That theory was echoed by an Indian security official who spoke in return for anonymity because he was not authorized to be identified and who said the name suggested a link to a group called Indian Mujahedeen implicated in a string of bombing attacks in India killing around 200 people this year alone.

Jihadi groups have been striking at India for years now, and many have used tactics similar to those of al Qaeda - mass casualty attacks against multiple targets simultaneously. The targets of the attacks and the multiple reports of how the terrorists sought to single out Westerners is suggestive as well of sending messages to the Western nations.

My concern is that the size and scope of these attacks was designed to increase tensions between India and Pakistan, two nuclear powers. Pakistan's ISI had been implicated in a terror attack against the Indian embassy in Kabul. The ISI is rife with Islamists who have no love lost for India and are more than willing to engage in rogue operations to further their goals.

Right now, al Qaeda or one of its affiliates is my top candidate for being behind the attacks, followed by a group with connections to the ISI. Should the latter be the case, South Asia faces serious repercussions and the region could become engulfed in a major conflict.

Also, what these so-called experts don't want to take into account is the possibility that the terrorists might change their tactics to confuse and confound the security forces arrayed against them.

UPDATE:
Via Thanos at LGF, it appears that the situation at Chabad House has not ended well. At least eight Israelis were being held in the building, and commando operations were underway. Other reports indicate 10-15 Israelis were being held hostage.

The photo is courtesy of Ynetnews, and gives people some idea of the logistics involved in carrying out the operation to secure the building as well as how the terrorists may have chosen the target.

As I was suggesting yesterday, it appears that the attacks may have been designed to thwart talks and closer relations between India and Pakistan.

“This looks like LeT and the groups it spawned," the official said, referring to the Pakistani-based Lashkar-e-Taiba and its affiliated groups such as Harkat ul Jihad al Islami (HuJI), the Indian Mujahideen, and the Students' Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). The official cautioned that it is too soon to know who exactly was behind the strikes, but the attacks have similar characteristics of past attacks by these groups.

Indian intelligence claims HuJI-B created a front group called the Indian Mujahideen to confuse investigators and cover the tracks of the Students' Islamic Movement of India, or SIMI, a radical Islamist movement. The group receives support from Pakistan's Inter-Service Intelligence and is an al Qaeda affiliate. SIMI provides logistical support for attacks in India.

These terror groups have been implicated in numerous mass-casualty attacks in New Delhi, Mumbai, Samjhauta, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Jaipur, Assam, and Uttar Pradesh over the past several years. Thousands of Indians were killed or wounded in the attacks.

UPDATE:
Based on ongoing developments at the Chabad House, it appears that the terrorists are affiliated with HuJI. That's based on the fact that the terrorists are speaking in Punjabi and may have originated in Karachi (Pakistan). That further reinforces the notion that the attacks were meant to thwart closer Indian-Pakistani relations.

UPDATE:
Barcepundit has still more on the developing situation in Mumbai. Memeorandum has a wide ranging roundup of blog reaction.

UPDATE:
Hot Air starts running through the list of terrorist groups that could have carried out these heinous attacks, and also how the pressure on the Indian government to respond could shape their view on who carried out the attacks.

UPDATE:
India is being urged not to blame Pakistan for the attacks. Others are calling for restraint. The Israeli embassy has said between 10-20 Israeli nationals were taken hostage as part of the attacks, and some reports are indicating between three and seven were murdered by the terrorists. Over 125 people were murdered by the terrorists, and I have to believe that the death toll will continue to rise as the authorities come to grips with the scope of the attacks.

According to hospital sources quoted by the Press Trust of India, nine foreign nationals were among the dead -- including a Japanese businessman, an Australian, a Briton, a German and an Italian.

Americans, French, Israelis and Canadians were said to be among those held or trapped .

There was a separate hostage situation at an office-residential complex, housing a Jewish centre where a rabbi and his family were being held by gunmen.

Guests who escaped the hotels recounted how the gunmen had specifically tried to round up US and British citizens.

UPDATE:
There are several photos now coming out showing the terrorists, and my first impression is that some of them appear to be quite young - teenagers at best. This photo shows that one of the terrorists was carrying some kind of automatic rifle, but also a backpack. Many reports indicate that the terrorists were heavily armed and carried lots of ammo, grenades, and explosives.

Also, it's quite possible that the terrorists could have killed far more people had they managed to blow up a gas station near where one of the bomb attacks took place in Coilaba.

Terror in Mumbai: 10+ Murdered In Multiple Coordinated Attacks: UPDATE: 80+ Dead, 250+ Wounded: UPDATE: 900+ Injured

Terrorists engaged in gunfights and detonated explosive devices and have killed more than 10 people in multiple locations. The focus of the attacks appears to be several upscale hotels and other popular tourist destinations in the Indian city of Mumbai.

The gunmen targeted luxury hotels, a popular tourist attraction and a crowded train station in the attacks in India's financial capital, police and witnesses said.

Local television reports said at least 15 people were reported to have been killed and more than 20 injured.

Two five-star hotels — Hotel Oberoi and Hotel Taj — wee under siege and gunmen were believed to have taken hostages.

A.N Roy, police commissioner of Maharashtra state, of which Mumbai is the capital, said police were battling the gunmen.

"The terrorists have used automatic weapons and in some places grenades have been lobbed," said Roy.

Gunmen opened fire on two of the city's best-known Luxury hotels, the Taj Mahal and the Oberoi. They also attacked the crowded Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus station in southern Mumbai and Leopold's restaurant, a Mumbai landmark.

The Indian railway has shut down in response to the attacks. At least 25 have been injured in the attacks, but I expect that number to rise.

The nature of the attacks is highly suggestive of an al Qaeda or affiliated operation given the coordinated attacks and attempts to inflict mass casualties. What is interesting is that the terrorists didn't use bombs, but rather grenades and gunfire to carry out their attacks.

UPDATE:
CBS Marketwatch is reporting at least 25 dead.

A list of prior major terror attacks in India can be found here.

UPDATE:
Via Yochanan at LGF, the Times of India reports the death toll is now at least 80, with more than 250 injured.

UPDATE:
This may be significant. Charles at LGF notes that some reports are indicating that the terrorists were looking for Americans and British citizens at the hotels. That is in addition to this report:

Sajjad Karim, a Conservative MEP for the North West of England who is in Mumbai, saw a gunman opening fire in the lobby of Taj Mahal Palace Hotel.

Speaking by mobile phone from a barricaded basement room, the MEP said he and others had fled from machine-gun fire and had no idea why the hotel was targeted.
MEP Sajjad Karim fled after seeing a gunman open fire

MEP Sajjad Karim fled after seeing a gunman open fire

He said: 'I was in the lobby of the hotel when gunmen came in and people started running. There were about 25 or 30 of us.

'Some of us split one way and some another. A gunman just stood there spraying bullets around, right next to me. I managed to turn away and I ran into the hotel kitchen and then we were shunted into a restaurant in the basement.

'We are now in the dark in this room and we've barricaded all the doors. It's really bad.'

Mr Karim is part of a delegation of Euro-MPs visiting Mumbai ahead of the forthcoming EU-India summit.

UPDATE:
Raw video is starting to make its way online and the numbers are grim. At least 900 injured and reports of massive explosions at the Taj Hotel, site of one of the terror attacks. Also, chatter seems to be pointing to an al Qaeda attack.

The Times of India is also reporting that the terrorists killed a number of top Indian law enforcement officials which begs the question of how they were able to get so many people; clues suggest that the terrorists used kids or teenagers to slip in unnoticed.

Bill Roggio notes that the terror group that's claimed responsibility is likely to be no more than a front group for the real culprits.



UPDATE:
Gateway Pundit is also covering the situation and has more details about the attacks and their targets, including hospitals.

UPDATE:
Ace of Spades is also covering the situation and notes that the terrorists targeted a police station, which explains why so many top law enforcement officers were killed or injured.

UPDATE:
Live streaming from IBNLive.com, which is a CNN affiliate in India.

UPDATE:
Based on the scale and scope of the attack, combined with the targets, the Indians may begin treating this as not just a terrorist attack, but to consider that it would not be possible without ISI involvment, which bring more serious repercussions.

The terrorists may have had that in mind with this attack - engage in such a massive strike so as to imply that the Pakistanis were involved to sabotage already fragile relations between the two countries to cause an all out war (yet again), and the first between two nuclear powers to boot.

UPDATE:
Four of the terrorists have been killed and nine have been captured. However, it was not without cost to the Indian authorities:

Commandos stormed the Taj early on Thursday, apparently leading to the release of guests inside, with television footage showing people being shepherded out of the building.

Shortly afterwards, the upper floors of the landmark hotel became engulfed in flames and huge plumes of smoke billowed out from its distinctive red dome. It was not immediately clear what caused the blaze or whether the gunmen were still inside.

One of those killed during the operation was Mumbai's Anti-Terrorism Squad chief Hemant Karkare.

Police said two gunmen were shot dead.

Can Anyone Actually Confirm Iran's Latest Rocket Launch?

Reuters is reporting that Iran announced the successful test launch of a new rocket. It's said to be a necessary step in moving towards launching an Iranian satellite into orbit.

Iran has successfully launched a rocket called "Kavosh 2," Iran's state media reported on Wednesday, displaying the Islamic state's advances in ballistics at a time when the West is worried about its nuclear ambitions.

The launch follows an announcement earlier this month that Iran had test-fired a new generation of surface-to-surface missile, saying the Islamic Republic was ready to defend itself against any attacker.

Tensions between Iran and Israel have been running high in recent months amid speculation of possible U.S. or Israeli strikes against Tehran's nuclear facilities, which the West suspects form part of a covert weapons program.

Tehran insists its nuclear work is aimed at generating electricity to meet Iran's booming demand.

State television did not give any further details about "Kavosh 2," which means "Explorer 2," saying details about the home-made rocket will be announced later. "The rocket was launched to register and send correct environmental data and (to test) separation of the engine from the body," state radio said.

The long-range ballistic technology used to put satellites into space can also be used for launching weapons.

The ability to put satellites into orbit would mean that Iran has crossed a dangerous threshold of technological capability.

Still, this report makes little sense since the Iranians claim their latest rocket is "home-made". That's not to say that home-made rockets can't be quite potent, but something doesn't quite pass the smell test.

UPDATE:
The only way "home-made" makes sense is that it refers to domestically built Iranian rockets, rather than one built or modeled upon a foreign design (most typically the North Korean missiles).

DHS Warns of Terror Plot Against NYC Subways

Happy holidays!

An internal memo obtained by The Associated Press says the FBI has received a "plausible but unsubstantiated" report that al-Qaida terrorists in late September may have discussed attacking the subway system.

Department of Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke said the warning was issued as a routine matter, but added that there may be an increased police presence in New York and other large metropolitan areas.

The report indicates that al-Qaida terrorists "in late September may have discussed targeting transit systems in and around New York City. These discussions reportedly involved the use of suicide bombers or explosives placed on subway/passenger rail systems," according to the document.

"We have no specific details to confirm that this plot has developed beyond aspirational planning, but we are issuing this warning out of concern that such an attack could possibly be conducted during the forthcoming holiday season," states the warning, which is dated Tuesday.

This is an ongoing theme with al Qaeda - and the Islamic terrorists in general. They have the hots for blowing up NYC targets, specifically subways and landmarks.

Then again, al Qaeda and the Islamists have made Port Authority infrastructure their personal favorites, having struck at the World Trade Center twice (1993 and 2001), and threatened the PATH system in 2006 (first reported as a plot against the Holland Tunnel (another Port Authority operated facility). There's also the JFK bomb plot, which would have struck against the fuel tank farm and natural gas lines that run in and around the airport.

UPDATE:
ABC News points out that the threat appears to target the Long Island Rail Road, which is operated by the MTA and is based on a reliable source. They report that authorities have flooded Penn Station with more law enforcement officers.

Keep in mind that Penn Station is also terminus for NJ Transit and Amtrak. LIRR operates out of Penn Station, Jamaica in Queens, and Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn.

The Charles Rangel Roundup

The press is finally sinking its teeth into the growing mess that is Rep. Charles Rangel. The Harlem Democrat, whose chairmanship of the House Ways and Means Committee was never in doubt despite his growing tax problems, continues to face a growing list of questionable activities.

It would have been nice if much of this was done before the election - and many of these problems go back more than a decade. Yet, only now has it come out that Rangel managed to obtain four rent stabilized apartments using one as an office in violation of state law, failed to report income from sale of property, failed to report income on rental properties in New York and Punta Cana, and failed to report imputed income from using a parking spot in a House parking lot as long term storage in violation of Congressional rules.

In other words, I'd go a bit further than the US News and World Reports when it says that Rangel looks like a tax cheat. He is a tax cheat. He shows a pattern of tax abuse and evasion that has gone on for years on end.

Trying to figure out Rangel's tax and legal mess is an expensive task. Rangel first went to Bill Clinton's fixer, Lanny Davis. That was a six-figure sum ($121,000, and the final bill isn't in). He is using his campaign funds to pay Davis, and at least one watchdog group claims that there's nothing wrong with this:

Davis' firm received the substantial payout from Rangel's reelection campaign, federal records show. Those fees were for work by the Orrick legal team in July and August, sources close to Rangel and Davis said.

That's when the powerful House Ways and Means Committee chairman began answering charges that he had four rent-stabilized apartments in New York City and raised funds for a City College program on his House stationary - which sparked a GOP censure vote.

Rangel was caught off guard by Davis' first bill and "he had to transition," said a source who knows the lawmaker.

But the Manhattan Democrat hasn't received Davis' final bill for work in the fall, when was helping Rangel arrange an additional probe into his unreported income on a Dominican Republic rental villa, sources said.

The dean of the New York congressional delegation did not announce the switch.

Massie Ritsch, spokesman for the watchdog Center for Responsive Politics, said it's legal for Rangel to pay ethics lawyers from his campaign war chest.

Kiernan has represented other clients under an ethics cloud, such as President-Elect Barack Obama's campaign manager David Plouffe, one of several campaign aides to ex-Sen. Robert Torricelli (D-N.J.) probed in 2001.

He's hired a new attorney to handle his ethics investigation, and they're going to be kept busy at the rate that Rangel issues keep being uncovered.

Of course, another watchdog group has slammed Congress and the Democrats for continuing to enable Rangel and allowing him to keep his chairmanship despite clear evidence of wrongdoing. Rep. Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic leadership has shown anything but when dealing with this mess, by ignoring the clear wrongdoing and deference where none is deserved.

Rangel is in charge of the committee that writes tax law for the nation. Yet, he's managed to avoid paying his taxes on repeated occasions.

For his part, Rangel is rebuking the New York Times report from yesterday.

Rangel, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, denied the allegations spelled out in the article, saying in a statement, "At no time -- never -- did I entertain, promote or secure a tax break or any special favor for anyone as an inducement or reward for a contribution to the City College of New York."

I'd rather see Rangel pay up his tax bill, but that simply isn't possible since no one can quite figure out just how much he owes because not even a forensic accountant can quite get to the bottom of the matter.

As for the City College mess, it's the appearance of impropriety that raises eyebrows and that got the New York Times' attention. Still, that too was an issue arising from 2002 through 2007, which raises questions as to why no one bothered to look closely at what Rangel was doing all those years.

At least some folks are starting to call for his ouster from the Democratic leadership.

As yet another potential tax-related ethical lapse involving Congressman Charles Rangel (D-NY) surfaces, a member of the Project 21 black leadership network is calling for the veteran lawmaker to be removed as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee – at least until these serious allegations are fully investigated.

Bishop Council Nedd II, a member of Project 21's national advisory council, said: "It's galling that the head of the committee in charge of levying taxes has either a profound ignorance of tax law or a disinterest in adhering to the laws he wants others to follow."

Are You Paying Attention New Jersey?

I've been writing about New Jersey's financial troubles for quite some time now, and I was warning that Gov. Jon Corzine's plan to defer payments into the pension plan was a disaster waiting to happen.

A ticking nuclear explosion is more like it (HT: Instapundit).

he state of New Jersey is insolvent. Bankrupt might be a better word. New Jersey is $60 billion in the hole on pension funding and the Governor is planning on skipping payments in a “pension payment holiday” until 2012 so as to not increase property taxes. To top it off, the ongoing plan assumptions are 8.25%. Sorry NJ, that simply is not going to happen.

The state can't afford Corzine's plan, which basically says that it's okay for municipalities to defer payments to already insolvent pension plans because it would reduce the pressure to raise property taxes still higher. New Jersey is seriously in the hole for overly generous pension plans that are severely underfunded. Corzine would actually make the situation even worse, and require still more tax hikes to cover pension obligations that are going to come due in future years.

New Jersey’s pension fund has lost more than $23 billion this year, dropping to its lowest level since 2003 as a collapsing financial market battered its investments, a new state report shows.

The latest losses — nearly $9 billion in October, and another $3 billion so far this month — mean the fund is now worth $57.8 billion, or less than half the $118 billion in benefits it is due to pay out over time. . . .

While Clark delivered his report to the State Investment Council in Trenton, Gov. Jon Corzine was in Atlantic City promising a convention of local government officials that he would let them postpone about a half-billion in payments they are scheduled to make to the pension funds in April.

Specifically, Corzine proposed letting local governments skip paying $541 million of the $1.1 billion due. They would gradually work their way back to full payments by 2012 under his plan.

Cutting the payments in half may avoid a big surge in property taxes, but it also will add to the shortfall in the pension accounts dedicated to local government workers, police and firefighters.

I can't quite understand why anyone still thinks Corzine is a fiscal wiz since he's pretty much abdicated his fiscal responsibilities to state taxpayers by pushing this half baked plan.

The state needs to seriously cut its spending, while bolstering its existing obligations. It must take an axe to future benefits obligations, which means telling state workers that they should not expect to see the kind of benefits that previous state workers received. The state can no longer afford gold plated benefits, specifically pensions that require huge outlays. When the stock markets were going gangbusters, the state cut back on its pension payments, figuring that the stock price increases were sufficient to cover obligations. That was a mistake. Now, they're looking to cut back payments when the stock prices are dropping drastically, accelerating the deficit on pension plan obligations.

The madness must stop, and that starts with telling Jon Corzine and the legislature to stick it. They lied about property tax relief when it came to imposing personal income tax obligations years back. They lied about property tax relief when it came to increasing the sales tax. They keep lying, and yet New Jersey taxpayers keep falling for the same story time and time again.

The federal government is not going to be in a position to bail out the states, as much as everyone thinks that they will bail out anyone who is holding out their hands. New Jersey made hugely dumb choices on spending and showed tremendous fiscal irresponsibility. And we'll be paying for those mistakes for a generation to come.

FDA Finds Traces of Melamine in US Infant Formula

The FDA says that these are just trace amounts and that they do not rise to the level of a need for recall. Yet, there's something here that has me wondering about how the melamime entered the manufacturing process and why it was considered acceptable.

The Food and Drug Administration said last month it was unable to identify any melamine exposure level as safe for infants, but a top official said it would be a "dangerous overreaction" for parents to stop feeding infant formula to babies who depend on it.

"The levels that we are detecting are extremely low," said Dr. Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. "They should not be changing the diet. If they've been feeding a particular product, they should continue to feed that product. That's in the best interest of the baby."

Melamine is the chemical found in Chinese infant formula — in far larger concentrations — that has been blamed for killing at least three babies and making at least 50,000 others ill.

Previously undisclosed tests, obtained by The Associated Press under the Freedom of Information Act, show that the FDA has detected melamine in a sample of one popular formula and the presence of cyanuric acid, a chemical relative of melamine, in the formula of a second manufacturer.

Separately, a third major formula maker told AP that in-house tests had detected trace levels of melamine in its infant formula.

The three firms — Abbott Laboratories, Nestle and Mead Johnson — manufacture more than 90 percent of all infant formula produced in the United States.

The FDA and other experts said the melamine contamination in U.S.-made formula had occurred during the manufacturing process, rather than intentionally.

The FDA and the manufacturers have a potential mess on their hands, and they need to deal with this judiciously, swiftly, and openly. In sufficient quantities, melamine can kill - toxicity is always in the dosage, and the FDA believes that the trace amounts found in the US infant formula don't pose a hazard.

This is the same chemical that injured thousands of Chinese infants and killed several Chinese children when melamine was purposefully added to baby formula to bolster the protein content. The chemical was also found in milk products and even chocolates that were sold outside China. The Chinese government for its part engaged in a coverup to avoid coverage of the story during the Beijing Olympics.

I think the FDA will need to revisit that position and clarify exactly whether any melamime is acceptable or set limits.

IAEA Still Giving Syria Benefit of Doubt Over Nuclear Facility

Despite photographic evidence suggesting that Syria was building a clandestine nuclear facility, the IAEA still clings to the notion that Syria was innocent until proven guilty of violating nuclear proliferation guidelines. We shouldn't prejudge the Syrians and their intentions. Right.

Let's get this straight. The IAEA waited 9 months before deciding to actually check and see what the Syrians were doing at Al Kibar, the site of the Sept. 6 airstrike, and they found that it had been scrubbed. The Syrians wasted no time trying to scrub the site of any traces of what had been built and burying what couldn't be removed.

Even at that late date, the IAEA inspectors still managed to detect uranium in the area, but claimed that there was no way to tell if it was part of the weapons systems used to destroy it or part of a Syrian nuclear facility. The Syrians didn't exactly cooperate either, limiting access to the site and related areas and facilities. The Syrians also spun the presence of the uranium detected as leftovers from Israeli weapons, although the weapons used by the Israelis would be depleted uranium, a material chosen because of its density and ability to penetrate deeply into reinforced structures. Uranium used in nuclear reactors, let alone that which is used in nuclear weapons is an enriched form of uranium, so the differences can be easily measured.

Let's also ignore that the Syrians wasted no time trying to scrub the site clear of any and all rubble associated with the attack. They also didn't exactly raise a stink about what would ordinarily be an act of war because they would be giving attention to the fact that the Israelis indeed hit a major Syrian facility. You don't try to scrub the site clean of all rubble unless it held strategic significance - or was highly radioactive and the need to bury it was paramount lest anyone pick up the fact that the Syrians were busy dabbling in nuclear tech.

This situation stinks to hell and back, and while the IAEA continues to cover for Syria (just as it does for Iran and even the Iraqis and North Koreans before them), Israel had no such luxury.

Indian Navy Account of Pirate Encounter Questioned

CNN is reporting that the Indian Navy didn't hit a pirate mothership as they claimed, but rather a Thai trawler. It would appear that the trawler was under attack by the pirates when communications were lost.

One crewman was found alive after six days adrift in the Gulf of Aden, and one is confirmed dead, said Wicharn Sirichaiekawat, owner of the Ekawat Nava 5.

Last week, India's navy reported that the frigate INS Tabar had battled a pirate "mother vessel" in the gulf November 18, leaving the ship ablaze and likely sunk. Wicharn said that vessel was his ship, which was in the process of being seized by pirates when it came under fire.

Indian authorities insisted that their ship had acted against a pirate vessel which had threatened to attack the Tabar.

"We fired in self-defense and in response to firing upon our vessel. It was a pirate vessel in the international waters and its stance was aggressive," Commodore Nirad Sinha, a navy spokesman, told CNN. He said the ship the Tabar fired upon was laden with ammunition. Video Watch more about the piracy threat in the region »

Wicharn told reporters that the Ekawat Nava 5 was headed from Oman to Yemen to deliver fishing equipment when it was set upon by pirates off the Horn of Africa. The pirates were seizing control of the ship when the Tabar moved in, he said.

Wicharn said he learned the fate of his vessel from a Cambodian crew member who survived the gunfire and drifted in the ocean for six days before he was plucked to safety by a passing ship. The sailor was recovering in a hospital in Yemen, he said.
Wicharn said his ship made a distress call on November 18 as it was chased by pirates in two speedboats, but the connection was lost midway. The owners, Sirichai Fisheries, had not heard from the crew since then.

Later that evening, the Indian navy said it encountered a suspected pirate "mother vessel," with two speedboats in tow, about 285 nautical miles (525 km) southwest of the Omani port of Salalah. "Mother vessels" are often used as mobile bases to ferry pirates and smaller attack boats into deep water.

When the Tabar's crew hailed the ship and demanded it stop for inspection, the pirates threatened to destroy the Indian ship, the ministry reported.

"Pirates were seen roaming on the upper deck of this vessel with guns and rocket-propelled grenade launchers. The vessel continued its threatening calls and subsequently fired upon INS Tabar," the ministry said. The Indian frigate returned fire, setting the pirate ship ablaze and setting off explosions on board, the statement said.

Given that the pirates were under control of the vessel at the time, opened fire on the INS Tabar, and failed to heed warnings by the Indian Navy crew, the Indian Navy operated within its rights under international law to deal with the pirate threat aboard the ship.

It's an unfortunate situation for the Thai boat's owner and the crew, but the fault and blame for the entire situation rests not on the Indian Navy, but the pirates who continue to attack targets in and around Somalia.

UPDATE:
MSNBC decides that the pirate lifestyle must be explored, and have a photo montage highlighted above the fold. Nice. Of course, the New York Times already did that story a few weeks back. So did the Associated Press earlier this week. Meanwhile, Don Surber wonders what exactly a Thai trawler was doing off the coast of Somalia and thinks that the version told by the ship's owner doesn't quite pass the smell test.

The thing is, as I note above, once the pirates boarded and then refused to allow the Tabar's crew to board, it became a hostile vessel and the Tabar was within its rights to take it out.

What do we need to know about the background of these pirates? They need people to pay the ransoms to free the ships. No ransoms paid, no underground economy springing up to satisfy the demand. Take out the pirates on the high seas, and the pirates wont have any safe havens. These thugs are in violation of the laws of the sea and international law and every navy is within their rights to go after these pirates.

Iran Continues Annihilation Rhetoric Against Israel

This falls into the you don't say category because the Iranians have been at it for years on end. A study finds that the Iranians continue to operate a misinformation campaign against Israel.

Meanwhile, more ominously, the Iranians are calling on the Lebanese people to unite in conflict against Israel.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran believes that the power of all Lebanese groups should be at the service of the country's national unity to counter the danger of the Zionist regime," Khamenei told visiting Lebanese President Michel Suleiman.

Khamenei, lauding Suleiman's support of Islamic militancy and his efforts to establish unity in Lebanon, promised that Iran would always side with Beirut, stressing that Lebanon enjoys high significance despite its small geographical limits. One such instance of "exemplary" coexistence of different religious groups in Lebanon, he said, was the "historical victory" over the Israel.

"Over the past 60 years, none of the Muslim and Arab states have been able to face the Zionist regime, but people in Lebanon managed to break this myth and drive the Israeli army out of their soil," he said.

Khamenei added that Lebanon has turned into a role model for other Muslim nations due to its "resistance" to Israeli "aggressions," saying, "During the 33-day war period, many Muslims in the Islamic and Arab states chanted slogans in support of Lebanese Hizbullah, especially...Nasrallah."

With Iran's proxy army Hizbullah already subverting and coopting the government and operating in flagrant violation of UN SCR 1701 as a militia in Southern Lebanon, the Iranians know it is a matter of time before Hizbullah has completely poisoned the political landscape and driven out the reasonable and moderate Lebanese in favor of once again launching a devastating war against Israel.

Bearing special blame for this disastrous situation is none other than Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, his defense minister Amir Peretz, IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz, and foreign minister, Tzipi Livni who thought that letting the UN police Southern Lebanon would ensure Israel's long term security. Instead of fighting Hizbullah and defeating them soundly, they dithered and delayed dealing a crushing blow on Hizbullah and its rat lines into Syria by avoiding attacking the Bek'aa Valley terror infrastructure and the Hizbullah leadership.

All it did was let Hizbullah off the hook and have allowed them to regroup and rearm to the point that they're far more powerful and well-off than they were at the end of the Hizbullah War in 2006. Hizbullah has the Lebanese government in their clutches and have built up Southern Lebanon into an armed fortress from which they can carry out their long term war plans against Israel at the time and place of their choosing.

Meanwhile, it should come as no surprise either that Hizbullah is expanding its global reach into Latin America. You can thank Iran for that as well, and that bodes badly for US and Israeli interests worldwide as the Islamists are not content with simply expanding their presence, but to subjugate the nonbelievers amongst them.

Hamdan To Be Transferred To Yemen

This should be interesting. Salim Ahmed Hamdan, Osama bin Laden's one time driver, and catalyst for multiple lawsuits that found their way to the US Supreme Court and helped shape the legal landscape for dealing with detainees at Guantanamo Bay, is getting sent to Yemen to serve out the remainder of his sentence.

Once considered a dangerous terrorist by the Bush administration, Mr. Hamdan was convicted only on lesser charges in August and given what amounted to a four-month sentence by a military jury. At that time, a military judge gave Mr. Hamdan credit for at least the 61 months he was held after being charged, reducing his sentence to a matter of months. The verdict was a sharp setback for Pentagon officials, who had contended they could detain him indefinitely.

“The Yemeni government is very pleased by the announcement to transfer the Yemeni detainee Saleh Ahmed bin Hamdan,” said Mohammed al Basha, a spokesman for the Yemeni Embassy in Washington. “We hope that this will be a positive first step to the transfer of the remaining detainees.”

The decision avoids what could have been a difficult issue for President-elect Barack Obama, who has said he wants to close the United States military prison in Cuba.

Mr. Hamdan’s lawyers were preparing to fight the Pentagon’s assertion that he could be detained indefinitely, and Mr. Hamdan’s case could have been brought before the Supreme Court — for a second time.

Instead, Mr. Hamdan, who is about 40, will be held in a prison in Sana, the Yemeni capital, until Dec. 27 and then released to his wife and children under supervision, Mr. al Basha said.

I fully expect him to be lost by the Yemeni authorities, who have had serious problems holding on to al Qaeda thugs, and we'll be hearing more about Hamdan in the years to come. Hopefully, it wont be because he's carried out a mass casualty attack somewhere, but because he was taken out in airstrikes before such an attack occurs.

I guess we'll get a real-world test as to whether he was really just a hack driver who was in the wrong place at the wrong time, or pulled the wool over the left's eyes and was really more involved in al Qaeda operations than he or his supporters ever let on.

Venezuela Votes With Mixed Results

[T]hugo Chavez didn't get the sweeping endorsement he hoped would carry his socialist policies into action with a compliant parliament waiting to rubber stamp them into effect. The opposition won nearly half the popular vote, but only 5 of 22 provinces.

In power for almost a decade, the popular anti-U.S. president won 17 of 22 states, but the opposition held onto the two states it won at the last regional elections four years ago, picked up three more and won the powerful mayoralty of the capital Caracas.

Opposition candidates were helped by widespread voter complaints the government has done too little to control some of the world's worst murder rates and Latin America's highest inflation rate.

The overall mixed results triggered a public relations battle as each side fought to seize the momentum by persuading Venezuelans it was the victor in an election where a high 65 percent of voters cast ballots.

The outcome of the post-election tussle could determine whether Chavez has the backing to realize his reelection goal or follow through on threats to spread his nationalizations program by seizing assets from landowners or food companies.

Needless to say, this is a good thing for the Venezuelans, who must be realizing by now that Chavez's economic policies are ruining their economy and he can't simply blame the US for all that ails his country.

Venezuela's economic woes are self inflicted - from the nationalization of industries to price controls that have sent inflation spiraling out of control and caused shortages of food and other goods.

Chavez can't afford to put his grandiose plans to rework the economy in his warped image because the price of oil has collapsed but he continues to gear his socialist rhetoric to those who are among the most poor and downtrodden, and yet they're seeing the least benefit from Chavez's policies because he simply doesn't understand basic economics.

UPDATE:
Ed Morissey has a similarly upbeat assessment of the vote as being a bigger defeat for Chavez than I note. Chavez will continue to scheme at pushing through his agenda by any means necessary, and this vote will likely cause him to redouble his efforts, which include intimidating the opposition.

Stay Off The Tracks!

It goes without saying that this is a tragedy, but it's a wholly avoidable one. A young woman was struck and killed by a New Jersey Transit train as it was leaving the Radburn, New Jersey station heading towards Hoboken. The woman was killed while attempting to cross the tracks where no such crossing was permitted.

The inbound Bergen Line train had just pulled out of the Radburn station on its way to Hoboken when it struck the woman around 6:45 p.m., said Dan Stessel, an NJ Transit spokesman.

The woman was pronounced dead at the scene, Stessel said. Her name was not released, pending the notification of relatives.

It was not immediately clear why she was on the tracks. The engineer pulled the train’s emergency brake and sounded the horn, but could not stop in time to avoid striking her, Stessel said. The incident did not occur at a rail crossing, he said.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the young woman, but they also go out to the train crew who couldn't do anything to stop the train in time.

It goes without saying that you shouldn't cross train lines at anywhere other than an official train crossing. You're putting your life at risk every time.

The Rebuilding of Ground Zero, Part 54

Curbed has a photo spread of construction progress at the Freedom Tower. It shows the immense amount of steelwork involved in preparing the tower's core and substructures.

That follows the New York Times' coverage of construction of the East-West connector that is part of the WTC transit hub.

This story traces the background of the company that is providing trees to the WTC memorial.

Construction continues all over Lower Manhattan, but one stretch of road is being reopened for the first time in years - Dey Street will be reopening to vehicular traffic. The street was closed while the MTA built the Dey Street connector between the Ground Zero transit lines and those of the Fulton Street Transit Hub. Work was completed and sidewalks and street were completed within the past week.

Meanwhile, the Fassel Foundation has pledged $250,000 to assist first responders. The foundation was established by Jim Fassel, former coach of the New York Giants:

Jim Fassel watched from the roof of Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey as the Twin Towers in lower Manhattan collapsed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Fassel, who was head coach of the Giants in 2001, and the team visited the site a week later to support the first responders.

“When I walked through the rubble of Ground Zero,” Fassel said. “I pledged that I’d never forget the events of the day and I’d do what I could to help the people affected by it.”

This week, Fassel — now an NFL analyst for Westwood One Radio and ESPN — continued to follow up on his pledge. His Jim Fassel Foundation, which was established in 2002 and has raised more than $1.1 million, contributed $250,000 to five organizations representing first responders, health providers and 9/11-related charities. The donation, the Fassel Foundation’s largest one-time contribution to date, was made at the World Trade Center Tribute Center in lower Manhattan.

UPDATE:
More photos of the East-West connector featured in the NYT story above, courtesy of Curbed.

Holy Land Foundation Charity Convicted On Terror Financing Charges

Leaders of the Holy Land Foundation "charity" claimed that this was a persecution rather than a prosecution and that they would be exonerated on retrial. It looks like they were wrong. In the retrial, there were108 charges against the Holy Land Foundation and five of its former leaders. Guess what; they were found guilty on all counts:

The verdict was announced Monday afternoon, on the eighth day of deliberations in the retrial of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development. It was once the nation's largest Muslim charity.

Holy Land is accused of giving more than $12 million to support the Palestinian militant group Hamas. The group was designated by the government as a terrorist organization in 1995.

This is what happens when prosecutors simplify their case in chief to enable jurors to reach decisions. The original case got bogged down due to hundreds of charges levied against the principals involved and resulted in a hung jury.

The main lesson to be learned from this prosecution is that prosecutors must keep the cases simple to avoid bogging jurors down in information overload due to the complex nature of the cases - financing terrorism with shady transactions.

Cost Cutting

It appears that Tiger Woods was just too costly for General Motors. The troubled automaker has canceled its multimillion dollar deal with the golf star with one year left to run on the contract.

The five-year deal, believed to be worth at least $7 million a year, was to end in 2009. Woods’ agent at IMG, Mark Steinberg, said the decision to end the endorsement one year early was “absolutely mutual.”

“It was a combination of things,” Steinberg said. “Tiger was looking to gain some more time, and certainly it was an opportunity for GM to reduce its spending with everything going on.”

GM’s vice president for North American sales, Mark LaNeve, says the separation is the result of discussions earlier in the year and is not related to the company’s campaign for $25 billion in loans from the federal government.

It might not be related to the automaker's quest to get a federal bailout, but it certainly does improve it's public relations situation slightly after the private jet fiasco last week.

Meanwhile, Citigroup, which has just gotten yet another multibillion dollar bailout from the federal government, continues to hold to its naming rights for the New York Mets new stadium that is set to open in 2009. The naming rights are worth hundreds of millions over the life of the contract; $20 million per year for 20 years.

Seems to me that the name should go. The bank can't afford it. More to the point, Citigroup can't justify the expenditure.

UPDATE:
Hot Air takes a closer look at the naming rights of stadiums and arenas around the country and notes that the bailouts are turning out to be nothing more than a public subsidy levied on top of still other public subsidies.