The recent sentencing of Ahmed Mohamed to 15 years in prison for providing material support for terrorism highlights the current reliance on luck and coincidence in combating terrorism within US borders. Although no trial was conducted because Mohamed pleaded guilty, the sentencing memorandum gives important information about his activities prior to the discovery- during a traffic stop for speeding -of explosives in the car's trunk.

• Mohamed tried, on three separate occasions, to purchase a gun and was prevented from doing so because of the diligence of WalMart employees. (He was present in the U.S. on a non-resident student visa.)

• He purchased materials to assemble pipe bombs, including chemicals, using information gathered from the Internet.

• He visited and posted on Jihadi websites and put up a video on Youtube on how to make a remote detonation device so that “the brethren” can “use explosive tools from a distance and preserve his life... for the real battles.” The video was viewed in its entirety 800 times before it was removed.

• Mohamed's laptop contained directions for explosive making, Jihadist literature (images and posters of 'heroes' like Osama bin Laden), and information about building short-range rockets.

• His landlady reported that Mohamed had often made anti-American statements, referring to 'stupid Americans' and expressing his disdain for the US and US law.

While the FBI is to be applauded for its detailed investigation in this case, none of the information above came to light until after the traffic stop and discovery of explosives. Without this lucky happenstance, Ahmed Mohamed would have acted on his terrorist intentions and the story would have had a very different ending.

As oil prices skyrocketed last year, the prophets of doom cited peak oil and a lack of energy alternatives, predicting the fall of modern civilization. Traditionalists answered their fears with the hope that new technology and discoveries would bail America out of the crisis. Historically, free market forces and innovation have solved such major problems by meeting them as opportunities. Well, it's happening again.

Since the rise of foreign oil to unbelievable prices, several interesting things have happened in the energy sector, especially in natural gas. New discoveries and the technology to utilize them gives renewed optimism to those of us concerned about America's energy future. We relied on free market forces and innovation when oil approached $150 a barrel, and we haven't been disappointed.

• Technological improvements in shipping (Q-max Tanker Ships) developed by ExxonMobil now allow an 80 percent increase in the capacity of ships to transport liquefied natural gas (LNG) with a 40 percent decrease in shipping costs.

• The discovery of 142 billion cubic meters of recoverable natural gas in southern Texas this December has helped, thanks to a joint venture between Aref and Halliburton.)

• Newer horizontal drilling methods and hydro-fracturing techniques allow economical extraction of natural from shale formations in Pennsylvania, Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas.

As mentioned in a previous Tax Fact of the Day, the National Taxpayers Union just released New Year, New Fears: Ten Tax-Hike Threats in the 111th Congress.  One item on their radar is an increase in the Federal Excise Tax on Gasoline--and the threat is already on the horizon.

When the president-elect announced his proposal to create jobs through revamping the country's infrastructure, conservatives knew the brunt of the burden would be placed squarely on taxpayers. The mainstream media recognized it, too; on January 3, Reuters reported that this burden will probably come in the form of increased gas taxes:

U.S. drivers need to pay more gas taxes and new user fees to fix crumbling roads and bridges and ease congested highways, a transportation commission is set to recommend to Congress later this month.

U.S. gasoline taxes should be raised 10 cents a gallon to help fund improvements, at least until new systems are created to charge drivers for how much they use roads, according to a draft copy of recommendations from the National Surface Transportation Infrastructure Financing Commission.

… The commission will recommend that Congress implement the gas tax hike, a 15-cent increase in the federal diesel tax, as well as tax increases for other fuels as short-term measures to raise nearly $20 billion more each year than is currently collected, the draft report said.

Meanwhile, Adrian Moore--a member of the commission and vice president at the Reason Foundation--spoke out against increasing the gas tax:

With a new Congress comes a new agenda.  The National Association of Manufacturers blog Shopfloor.org notes that two pro-labor bills are expected to be brought to the House floor for the first week of the new Congressional session: the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and the Paycheck Fairness Act. In fact, they are the only two substantive bills scheduled to be considered this week.

From Shopfloor.org:

Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act: In its previous form, the Ledbetter legislation would eliminate statutes of limitations in employment discrimination lawsuits, inviting a flood of expensive lawsuits against employers (and discouraging prompt reporting of violations, as well). It was H.R. 2381 in the 110th Congress and passed the House, 225-199, in July 2007.

New year.  New President.  New Congress.  New taxes.  New fears.

Want to find out what to expect for your wallet in 2009?  Just in time for the new Congress convening this week, the National Taxpayers Union (NTU) has released an issue brief, "New Year, New Fears: Ten Tax-Hike Threats in the 111th Congress."

The top ten tax threats, as identified by NTU, are as follows:

1. Repeal/Expiration of the 2001 and 2003 Tax Cuts;
2. Payroll Tax Increases;
3. Smaller Alternative Minimum Tax Patches;
4. Imposition of "Windfall Profits" Energy Taxes;
5. Modification of Health Care Tax Treatment;
6. Increase in the Federal Excise Tax on Cigarettes;
7. Increase in the Federal Excise Tax on Gasoline;

At home and abroad, markets could make dramatic shifts over the next few days. Taxpayers nationwide are worried about the future of the economy. If you too are a concerned taxpayer, here's a list of some of the most comprehensive resources you should review:

•  National Taxpayers Union has put together resources that address both national and statewide campaigns and measures.

• Which April 15 would you rather have? Head over to Americans for Tax Reform to download a PDF chart that lays out all the facts.

Did you know that, according to The Heritage Foundation, "Leftist icon Juan Peron called the nationalization of private pensions “theft” in a 1973 public address?" 

Shopfloor.org, a blog of the National Association of Manufacturers, asks, "How would forced unionization of millions of more employees create economic growth?" It won't be pretty--and Shikha Dalmia, senior analyst at the Reason Foundation, agrees. In a recent Forbes column, she writes:

Indeed, even as the economy added more than 9.5 million jobs between 1999 and 2006, unions lost more than 1 million members.

One big reason is that workers simply don’t believe that handing over 1% to 2% of their wages in mandatory union dues is worth the services that Big Labor offers. Their skepticism is not unjustified. A 2002 study by the Bureau of National Affairs found that, after adjusting for cost-of-living, private sector workers in the 10 least unionized states earned $1,600 more annually than workers in the 10 most heavily unionized states. What’s more, between 1992 and 2002, the less unionized states generated twice as many nonfarm jobs–with better benefits–than more unionized states.

If you're wondering what the looming tax policies could mean for your wallet, check out what The Heritage Foundation has to say. Here's a snippet:

The tax increases, however, overwhelm the expanded credits and deductions. The upshot is much slower output and employment growth than in an economic world where the Bush tax reductions are the permanent law. For example, over the 10-year forecast period, 2009-2018:

• Inflation-adjusted Gross Domestic Product falls by an annual average of $90 billion below what it would be without the combined effects of Senator Obama’s tax increases and tax credits;
• Total employment falls by an annual average of 589,000;
• The after-tax, inflation-adjusted disposable income for a four-person family declines by $1,565;
• Inflation-adjusted personal consumption spending drops by an average of $66 billion per year, and personal savings drops by an annual average of $54 billion;
• Business borrowing costs rise, even though we allowed the Federal Reserve to react to this worsening economic situation by cutting the Fed’s federal funds rate.

 

 

Fox News just interviewed Cleta Mitchell, attorney and election law expert, regarding the Department of Justice's decision to abandon the practice of having criminal attorneys monitor the polls and the fact that the lawyers supervising voting rights are Obama donors. This information was laid out in yesterday's Wall Street Journal editorial and reported here at the American Issues Project blog.

 

Click the "play button" after the jump to watch the video below.