US consulate workers killed in Mexico drug wars

  Sensitive US missile defence data found on computer disk bought on eBay Sensitive data detailing launch procedures for a US military missile air defence system have been found on a second-hand computer hard drive bought on eBay.   Last Updated: 10:52AM BST 07 May 2009                                                           Two scud missiles in Iraq Photo: EPA More than 300 hard disks were studied and researchers uncovered other sensitive information including bank account details, medical records, confidential business plans, financial company data, personal id numbers, and job descriptions. The drives were bought from the UK, America, Germany, France and Australia through computer auctions, computer fairs and on the online auction site eBay.   The exercise was carried out by BT's Security Research Centre in collaboration with the University of Glamorgan in Wales, Edith Cowan University in Australia and Longwood University in the US. A spokesman for BT said they found 34 per cent of the hard disks scrutinised contained "information of either personal data that could be identified to an individual or commercial data identifying a company or organisation." The researchers concluded that a "surprisingly large range and quantity of information that could have a potentially commercially damaging impact or pose a threat to the identity and privacy of the individuals involved was recovered as a result of the survey." Perhaps most surprising was the discovery of a disk bought on eBay that revealed details of test launch procedures for the THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defence) ground to air missile defence system, used to shoot down Scud missiles in Iraq. The disk also contained security policies, blueprints of facilities and personal information on employees including social security numbers, belonging to technology company Lockheed Martin - who designed and built the system. Two disks appear to have been formerly used by…

  -- An apartment complex manager says Hasan had a religious bumper sticker torn off his car. The manager, John Thompson, says a fellow soldier allegedly keyed Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan's car and ripped up the bumper sticker. Thompson says the soldier had been to Iraq and was upset to learn Hasan was Muslim. Thompson says the bumper sticker read: "Allah is Love." In Arabic, Allah means God.

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 McCain strategist: Palin thought candidacy was mapped by God
Associated Press
Monday, January 11, 2010 Sarah Palin believed that Sen. John McCain chose her to be his running mate in the 2008 presidential race because of "God's plan," according to a top political strategist in the Arizona Republican's campaign. In an interview with the CBS news magazine "60 Minutes," Steve Schmidt described Palin as "very calm -- nonplussed" after McCain met with her at his Arizona ranch just before putting her on the Republican ticket. McCain had planned to name Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.) as his choice until word leaked, sparking what Schmidt called political blowback over selecting the 2000 Democratic vice presidential nominee. Schmidt, McCain's chief campaign adviser, said he asked Palin about her serenity in the face of becoming "one of the most famous people in the world." He quoted her as saying, "It's God's plan." Palin has not ruled out a run for the presidency. Schmidt was interviewed by "60 Minutes" for a segment about a new book about the 2008 presidential race, "Game Change," by John Heilemann of New York magazine and Mark Halperin of Time. Schmidt credited Palin with being a quick study and for giving a great speech at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn., but he said it soon became clear that she often was not accurate in her remarks. "There were numerous instances that she said things that were -- that were not accurate that, ultimately, the campaign had to deal with. And that opened the door to criticism that she was being untruthful and inaccurate. And I think that that is something that continues to this day," he said. Palin's spokeswoman, Meg Stapleton, has disputed the version of events presented in the book. "The governor's…

 Gaza flotilla: Israel's leaders are lost at sea The botched assault flotilla, following on from the calamitous assassination of a Hamas operative in Dubai, makes no sense except to a deranged mind permanently jammed on the "kill” setting, writes Julian Kossoff.   Read Opinion