Pakistan/911 lobbying:"Explosive if True"

* josh:

"What's the state of the Wilkes investigation? And what about Kontogiannis? He's a major NY real estate developer tied to one of the biggest congressional bribery scandals ever. Have you seen any follow-up reporting on that investigation? Anything in the Times or the Daily News? Is there even really an investigation?
I really don't quite understand who Kontogiannis is in all this or just what his role was, though his background looks fairly spooky. But Wilkes is the real player at the heart of this scandal, not Wade. There are real reasons to be suspicious that the CIA is applying pressure to limit the scope of this investigation or knock it down altogether."

* Josh's TPMM covers the Pakistan/911 lobbying story, leading: "From the Explosive if True Category:"

* demnow: "In other news, the Boston Globe is reporting the Pentagon has asked Congress for hundreds of millions of dollars to test weapons in space. The Globe calls the request the biggest step toward creating a space battlefield since President Reagan’s so-called “Star Wars” program. The budget request would fund a variety of tests on several weapons. Military specialists believe the Pentagon is operating several other space weapons programs not disclosed in its budget request. Philip Coyle, who served as the Pentagon's top weapons tester from 1994 to 2001, criticized the new emphasis on space weaponry at a time when: ''there is no threat in space to justify a new arms race in space.""

* demnow: "In further Iraq news, Knight Ridder is reporting the US government has increased airstrikes by more than half in the last five months. According to military figures, US forces have dropped at least double the number of bombs on Iraqi cities than they did during the same period one year ago. This year, U.S. warplanes have struck at least 18 different cities."

* demnow:"Meanwhile, the Iraqi Interior Ministry said it has foiled a plot that would have placed hundreds of al-Qaida operatives at guard posts throughout Baghdad’s Green Zone. The area houses the Iraqi government as well as the US embassy. Several high-ranking Defense Ministry officials have reportedly been jailed in the plot."

* miguel:

I am getting truly confused right now as to what is al qaeda. It's hard to tell whether the media now is calling anyone who opposes the US in Iraq as al Qaeda or whether they specifically are referring to fighters allegedly under the control of al Zarqawi (or whatever his name is).

I'm starting to wonder, if maybe you're right, that al Qaeda no longer exists but is just being kept around as a concept because its useful to scare soccer moms in suburban America.