MEANWHILE...



Senator John F. Kerry rides a snowboard down Bald Mountain during his "much-needed" vacation, and curses out the Secret Service agent sworn to protect the candidate's life:

His next trip down, a reporter and a camera crew were allowed to follow along on skis � just in time to see Mr. Kerry taken out by one of the Secret Service men, who had inadvertently moved into his path, sending him into the snow.



When asked about the mishap a moment later, he said sharply, "I don't fall down," then used an expletive to describe the agent who "knocked me over."

Photo of Sen. Kerry snowboarding (via Drudge).

FIRST ANNIVERSARY OF WAR FOR IRAQI LIBERATION



The President gave an excellent speech to mark the one-year anniversary of American action against the Iraqi dictator. This man understands what we face:

There is no dividing line -- there is a dividing line in our world, not between nations, and not between religions or cultures, but a dividing line separating two visions of justice and the value of life. On a tape claiming responsibility for the atrocities in Madrid, a man is heard to say, "We choose death, while you choose life." We don't know if this is the voice of the actual killers, but we do know it expresses the creed of the enemy. It is a mind set that rejoices in suicide, incites murder, and celebrates every death we mourn. And we who stand on the other side of the line must be equally clear and certain of our convictions. We do love live, the life given to us and to all. We believe in the values that uphold the dignity of life, tolerance, and freedom, and the right of conscience. And we know that this way of life is worth defending. There is no neutral ground -- no neutral ground -- in the fight between civilization and terror, because there is no neutral ground between good and evil, freedom and slavery, and life and death.

RealOne video of the President's speech can be found here.



Full text of the speech can be read here.

BIG NEWS OUT OF PAKISTAN



It appears that we're getting close to the #2 guy in al Qaeda:

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) - Pakistani troops believe they have surrounded al-Qaida No. 2 Ayman al-Zawahri in an operation near the Afghan border, three senior Pakistani officials told The Associated Press on Thursday.



The officials, who spoke to AP on condition of anonymity, said intelligence indicated the Egyptian-born al-Zawahri has been cornered in an operation that began Tuesday in South Waziristan involving hundreds of troops and paramilitary rangers.



"We have been receiving intelligence and information from our agents who are working in the tribal areas that al-Zawahri could be among the people hiding there," a military official said. "All of our efforts are to capture him."

(via Associated Press)

KERRY FLIP-FLOP IN SAME SENTENCE



The Bush/Cheney campaign has released its latest ad criticizing John Kerry's voting record on Iraq, including his vote against the $87 billion appropriation to support ongoing operations. You can view a RealOne version of the ad here (via CSPAN.org).



Kerry immediately responded during remarks to an audience of supporters in West Virginia (one of the places where the ad first played):

I actually did vote for the 87 billion dollars before I voted against it.

To me, this kind of response is utterly reactionary, even panicked. If this continues, I predict support for Kerry will plummet, as it did for Howard Dean and every other formerly-unknown Democrat candidate who came under the spotlight.

SPAIN HAS CAVED IN TO TERROR



About one-third of voters didn't cave, but that doesn't matter. The two-thirds who decided to put the socialists in power have effectively surrendered Spain in the war against terror. Of course, this appeasement won't ultimately make Spain safer because, as Mark Steyn has repeatedly pointed out, "we're all infidels" and worthy of death at the hands of the Islamofacists:

If Islamic terrorism were as rational as Irish or Basque terrorism, it would be easier. But Hussein Massawi, former leader of Hezbollah, summed it up very pithily: "We are not fighting so that you will offer us something. We are fighting to eliminate you." You can be pro-America (Spain, Australia) or anti-America (France, Canada), but if you broke into the head cave in the Hindu Kush and checked out the hit list you'd be on it either way.

The is the fatal misunderstanding in Europe and elsewhere.