"Worldwide Threat Assessment"

Last month, the Senate Intelligence Committee held hearings on “Current and Projected National Security Threats to the United States.” All the top dogs were there, including the directors of the CIA, FBI, and National Intelligence.

The assessment?

Move over terrorists— you've been supplanted by something bigger and even more terrifying—cyber-attacks.

That’s right; al-Qaida is old school. Times have changed and the biggest threat now facing the U.S. is technology. Technology that is evolving so fast, even the top security experts are unable to keep up.

James Clapper, the Director of National Intelligence, told the committee, “In some cases, the world is applying digital technologies faster than our ability to understand the security implications and mitigate potential threats.”

Clapper played down the likelihood of catastrophic attacks on the United States in the near term—but should we believe him? He just admitted they don’t have the ability to understand the risks, let alone stop them.

Other potential threats?

• ·         North Korea
• ·         Syria
• ·         Iran

While North Korea has always been belligerent, lately they've really been ratcheting up the rhetoric. Saying things like nukes “are our country’s life” and declaring on Saturday that it was entering a “state of war” with South Korea. The general consensus? There doesn't seem to be one. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said Wednesday that North Korea's provocations are " a real and clear danger and threat" to U.S. interests and Washington is taking them seriously. Others believe it's just another game of saber rattling in exchange for aid. Even though this latest string of nasty outbursts is predictable, Kim Jong Un is not.

What about Syria?

The U.S. spy agencies assessed the Syrian situation as ‘eroding’. It seems the government of President Bashar al-Assad is hanging on by a thread. Assad’s forces have stopped insurgents from seizing cities such as Aleppo, Damascus, and Homs, but the agencies say insurgents have been gaining strength in rural areas.

Imagine how well they’d do if they had a little help?

And last, but not least, there’s Iran.

In spite of what you might have heard, and what Ahmadinejad has said, the intelligence community does not believe Iran’s leadership has decided to build a nuclear weapon.

Oh…well. As long as they haven’t actually decided…

And there you have it. Cyber-attacks lead the pack followed by North Korea, Syria, and Iran. Our top dogs know what the problems are. All they need now are some solutions.

A wise man once: "There is a mysterious cycle in human events. To some generations much is given. Of other generations much is expected." -- Franklin D. Roosevelt

"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know...I am the way, the truth, the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."  John 14

News

• Drudge Report: North Korea dramatically escalated its warlike rhetoric on Thursday, warning of plans for nuclear strikes on U.S. targets
• BBC: U.S. to move missile defenses to Guam as North Korea steps up its warlike rhetoric
• Washington Free Beacon: Military build-up in China near allied, North Korean border appears linked to Korean peninsula crisis
• Breitbart.com: Russia on Wednesday said it was worried by the "explosive" North Korea situation, saying even a simple human error could cause crisis to spiral out of control.

"Is Iran Imploding?" (Does U.S. have a hand in it?)

Hundreds of Iranian police in anti-riot gear clashed with protesters in Tehran's currency exchange district Wednesday.

Why? Their currency is collapsing.

The rial has hit record lows against the U.S. dollar, falling 40% in just one week. Panicked Iranians are scrambling to exchange their rials for dollars in hopes of salvaging at least some of their buying power.

Is this a sign that U.S. sanctions are beginning to work?

Back in January, the Washington Post reported a senior U.S. intelligence official told them that the "goal of Iran sanctions is regime collapse." The anonymous official also said the administration hopes that sanctions "create enough hate and discontent at the street level that Iranians will turn against their government." The White House denies the allegation, but wouldn't an internal overthrow of the mullahs and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad be a good thing?

All over the Middle East governments have been toppled as the Arab Spring swept through the region. Some, like Libya, have been aided by U.S. intervention. Why not Iran? We're not necessarily suggesting military intervention.

With a population of 78 million, if the Iranians themselves call en masse for regime change, the U.S. could help by:

• funding arms to opposition groups
• destabilizing the currency
• using media propaganda (websites, satellite TV, radio)

Ahmadinejad and the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are not exactly the reasonable types. It's not likely they can be negotiated with or pressured into curbing their nuclear activities. Something needs to be done and regime change from the inside sounds a whole lot better than war.

"Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God." Matthew 5:9

A wise man once said: "In the end we will not remember the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." --Martin Luther King

News:

• CNBC: Fed announced it is ready to bail out EU if things spiral out of control.
• U.S. Tax Policy Center: Average American tax increase in 2013: $3,446 per household if fiscal cliff is not averted.
• CNN: Romney wins big in first presidential debate; stocks rise on the hope.
• Fox News Channel: Extreme drought conditions worsen in many Midwest farming states; meanwhile Northern states get early snow.
• FNC: White House instructs businesses to violate the law and refrain from sending out layoff notices until after the election, pledging to pick up possible legal fees at taxpayer expense.