TYB!
Barack Obama’s First Drone Strike
February 4, 2025
For the past quarter century, ever since 2001, presidents of the United States inaugurate their terms not with bottles of champagne but with drone and missile strikes.
Donald Trump followed the rhythm. Not long after he ascended to the chair in the Oval Office, he sent off missiles against ISIS fighters “hiding in caves” – as he put it on social media – in the Golis mountains in northeast Somalia.
No civilians were killed, said Trump. They always say that.
Trump’s first missile strike of this presidency reminded me of Barack Obama’s first missile strike, only three days after the Nobel Peace Prize winner was sworn in as the president of the United States in 2009.
In the morning of January 23, CIA director Michael Hayden told Obama that they were ready to strike high-level al-Qaeda and Taliban commanders in northern Pakistan.
Obama did not object. At 830pm, local time, a drone flew over Karez Kot in Ziraki village, Waziristan. The people on the ground heard it.
They called the drones bhungana, that which sounds like a buzzing bee. Three Hellfire missiles were fired remotely, and they smashed into some homes. Fifteen people died in that attack.
One of the missiles went through the wall of a home and exploded in the drawing room of the house.
Inside that room sat a group of family members who were celebrating before one of the young men – Aizazur Rehman Qureshi (age 21) – was to leave for the United Arab Emirates.
The drone strike killed him. It also killed two men, Mohammed Khalil and Mansoor Rehman, leaving their fourteen children without a father.
Their nephew, Faheem Qureshi (age 7), felt his face on fire, and ran out of the room (he lost an eye). Not one of the men and boys in the room had a connection to either al-Qaeda or to the Taliban.
They were hard working people, one of the men had been a worker in the UAE and on his return, his nephew was preparing to go and help the family by working in the Gulf.
Now, a hasty decision by the CIA left the family distraught. The US government never apologised for the attack and did not compensate the family.
In 2012, Newsweek’s Daniel Klaidman published Kill or Capture: The War on Terror and the Soul of the Obama Presidency.
If I were Obama, I would like this book. It is sympathetic to him. After that drone strike, Klaidman points out, “Obama was understandably disturbed.”
The next day, a person who was there in the Situation Room told Klaidman, Obama walked in but “you could tell from his body language that he was not a happy man.”
Apparently, this was the spur for Obama to learn about the CIA’s “signature strikes” (when the US government felt it could kill anyone who looked like a terrorist) and “crowd killing” (when it was acceptable to kill civilians in a crowd if a “high value target” was also there).
Obama said that he did not like this that he was unhappy that there might be women and children in the crowd. But, as Klaidman writes, “Obama relented – for the time being.”
In fact, the “time being” seems to have extended through the two terms of his presidency. What differentiated Obama from Bush before him and Trump afterwards was merely his hesitancy. His actions were the same.
In 2010, Obama’s team developed the Disposition Matrix or the “kill list” and the procedures to activate the use of strikes to kill or capture “high value targets.”
The chain of decision making for this kill list did not include any sense that the men on the list could have been accidentally placed there or that they would get a chance to defend themselves from the CIA’s accusations in a court of law.
In other words, there was no judicial review.
In 2011, this should have raised eyebrows when these procedures led to the assassination of several US citizens in Yemen (first Anwar al-Awlaki, born in New Mexico, and then – in a separate drone strike – his sixteen-year-old son Abdulrahman al-Awlaki); in 2017, the US government killed al-Awlaki’s eight-year-old daughter, Nawar al-Awlaki.
All three were US citizens, who should have been afforded some US constitutional protections even if the US disregards international law. None was available to them.
In 2012, the film Ghaddar (Traitor) has a popular song sung by Rahim Shah called Shaba Tabhi Oka (Come on Destroy Everything).
The film is in Pashto, the language of northern Pakistan and large parts of Afghanistan. It is also the language of those who died in Obama’s 2009 drone strike.
In the song sequence, two lovers, played by the popular actors Arbaaz Khan and Sobia Khan, dance and sing with the culture of drones and bombs now associated with love.
“Look at me, bomb my heart,” says Sobia Khan, while the refrain runs, “come on, destroy everything.”
https://www.counterpunch.org/2025/02/04/barack-obamas-first-drone-strike/
US zaps drone using powerful laser weapon with 5-mile range in secret tests
Updated: 19:38, 3 Feb 2025
A FUTURISTIC drone-destroying laser has been seen firing from a US Navy warship in an incredible declassified image.
The remarkable picture shows the USS Preble (DDG-88) deploying its formidable HELIOS laser system out at sea as Washington continues to prepare in the face of incoming enemy threats.
An unmanned aerial vehicle target was struck by the laser as seen in the image, according to the US Center for Countermeasures (CCM).
HELIOS, which stands for High Energy Laser with Integrated Optical-dazzler and Surveillance, has been developed by Lockheed Martin to aid the US Navy.
They are aiming to bring powerful energy weapons aboard its fleet of vessels to enhance defensive capabilities.
It is capable of operating at powers succeeding 60 killowatts but it is hoped to one day be able to blast at 120 kilowatts depending on operational needs.
The integrated optical dazzler element can also cause temporary blindness for the enemy.
Another key feature is its surveillance feature which helps to disable surveillance sensors of incoming vessels.
When the laser is officially in use the Navy aims to use it blast threats from drones, fast attack craft and even short-range missiles if necessary.
The first sea trials of the HELIOS laser on board a Arleigh Burke-class destroyer came back in 2021 at Wallops Island, Virginia.
The new image was first showcased in the CCM's annual report last month.
According to the report: “CCM supported the Navy’s demonstration on USS Preble (DDG 88) to verify and validate the functionality, performance, and capability of the HEL with Integrated Optical Dazzler and Surveillance system against an unmanned aerial vehicle target.
"CCM collected imagery of the engagements to support the evaluation of system performance.”
It is unclear when or where the test took place.
The USS Preble is the first ever US Navy vessel to be equipped with HELIOS.
One of HELIOS' biggest technological benefits is its ability to fire for as long as it has a power source.
This allows it to be virtually unlimited in its usage and helps to reduce the typical stoppages and constraints currently affecting warships.
It is also the first advanced laser weapon integrated with the Aegis combat system.
This allows it to track, engage, and neutralise threats with a greater efficiency.
Western allies are continuing to rapidly improve their defence weaponry as the looming threat of war continues to grow across the globe.
The US has already been testing their laser systems for over three years now with the UK also starting to develop their own milestone weapon.
The British Army fired their own version of the HELIOS from an armoured vehicle back in December.
It was fired from Wolfhound armoire troop carrier at drones in a test range in Radnor in Wales.
The unnamed weapon is a miniature version of the UK’s world-beating Dragon Fire weapon that has blasted drones from ships.
They work by tracking fast moving objects and blasting a super hot beam of infra-red light.
Lasers could shield British troops from devastating drone strikes seen daily in Ukraine.
Warrant Officer Matthew Anderson, who running the trials, said the laser had a 100 per cent strike rate.
He added: “We’ve been testing a variety of distances, speeds and altitudes, one thing has remained – how quick a drone can be taken out.
“It’s definitely a capability that could be added to the arsenal of weapons that we use on the battlefield.”
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/33175795/navy-helios-laser-drone-warship/
https://interestingengineering.com/military/helios-us-tests-laser-weapons
Bill O’Reilly: Trump will use drones if cartels don’t withdraw
02/04/25 7:16 AM ET
Former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly predicts that if Mexican drug cartels refuse to surrender or halt their operations, President Trump’s next step will be to send weaponized drones to attack them.
“I fully expect that to happen,” O’Reilly said during a Monday appearance on NewsNation’s “On Balance.”
“If they don’t recede, you’re gonna see dead bodies all over the place and that’s coming soon,” he added.
Trump announced Monday morning an immediate pause on proposed tariffs on the country after reaching a deal with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.
In a post to Truth Social, Trump revealed he had spoken to Sheinbaum and negotiated assistance to strengthen the United States’ border sovereignty and deter drug trafficking into the country.
“It was a very friendly conversation wherein she agreed to immediately supply 10,000 Mexican Soldiers on the Border separating Mexico and the United States,” the president wrote.
Sheinbaum said that efforts would begin immediately regarding security and trade between both nations.
The move comes after concessions made by Colombia following Trump’s threat of tariffs on the South American country for initially refusing to allow deported migrants to return via U.S. military aircraft.
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5124654-bill-oreilly-donald-trump-mexico-cartels/
Earth Detecting Earth
Feb 3, 2025
Could a twin Earth detect Earth?
February 3, 2025, Mountain View, CA – A research team led by Dr. Sofia Sheikh of the SETI Institute, in collaboration with the Characterizing Atmospheric Technosignatures project and the Penn State Extraterrestrial Intelligence Center, set out to answer a simple question:
If an extraterrestrial civilization existed with technology similar to ours, would they be able to detect Earth and evidence of humanity? If so, what signals would they detect, and from how far away?
Researchers used a theoretical, modeling-based method, and this study is the first to analyze multiple types of technosignatures together rather than separately.
The findings revealed that radio signals, such as planetary radar emissions from the former Arecibo Observatory, are Earth’s most detectable technosignatures, potentially visible from up to 12,000 light-years away.
Atmospheric technosignatures—such as nitrogen dioxide emissions—have become more detectable than they were a decade ago, thanks to advances in instruments like the James Webb Space Telescope and the upcoming Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO).
With HWO we could detect these emissions from as far as 5.7 light-years away, just beyond our closest stellar neighbor, Proxima Centauri.
Finally, as you get closer and closer to Earth, you would detect more and more human-made signatures simultaneously, including city lights, lasers, heat islands, and satellites, offering a comprehensive view of our technological presence.
"Our goal with this project was to bring SETI back 'down to Earth' for a moment and think about where we really are today with Earth's technosignatures and detection capabilities,” said Macy Huston, co-author and postdoc at the University of California, Berkeley, Department of Astronomy.
“In SETI, we should never assume other life and technology would be just like ours, but quantifying what 'ours' means can help put SETI searches into perspective."
“One of the most satisfying aspects of this work was getting to use SETI as a cosmic mirror: what does Earth look like to the rest of the galaxy? And how would our current impacts on our planet be perceived,” said Sheikh.
“While of course we cannot know the answer, this work allowed us to extrapolate and imagine what we might assume if we ever discover a planet, with, say, high concentrations of pollutants in its atmosphere."
SETI scientists search for advanced alien civilizations by looking for signs of technology – signals or patterns that cannot be explained by natural phenomena that may indicate intelligent life.
These signals are called technosignatures and come in various forms. Radio telescopes are the most commonly used tool for SETI searches. Researchers also use optical telescopes to scan for laser pulses that could indicate communication or propulsion patterns.
Another approach involves studying the atmospheres of exoplanets in habitable zones around stars to look for chemical signatures that might suggest life or industrial activity.
SETI scientists also consider technologies far beyond those currently invented on Earth, such as Dyson spheres, but these far-future technologies were not considered in this study.
This study demonstrates how Earth’s technosignatures can provide a multiwavelength framework for understanding the detectability of technology on other planets and shaping our search for intelligent life beyond Earth.
Future telescopes and receivers could enhance our detection sensitivity or enable us to identify new types of technosignatures, such as other atmospheric signatures of pollution.
Repeating this type of study over the years as astronomical technology advances and the human impact on the planet evolves could provide fresh insights and refine our approach to discovering extraterrestrial life.
https://www.seti.org/press-release/earth-detecting-earth
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-3881/ada3c7
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pdg2x3NP2ds
UFO-type EV tipped to be next Uber
February 3, 2025
The Manta M4 single passenger flying EV takes off from land and sea but can only land in water, travelling at about 104.6km/h and weighs as much as a small jet ski.
Revealed at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, founder David Simchon told DailyMail.com how his vehicle could be the next pleasure craft of the skies.
While only a model was shown at CES, SimTech Labs says the full product will be unveiled at a boat show in Florida this month (the Miami International Boat Show is February 12-16) when it hits the market.
Using three propellors, it can fly for 30 minutes on an electric battery or for three hours using one of its hydrogen fuel cells, the report says.
Steered using a joystick, riders can get up to 152 metres high and are protected by a glass hood.
Simchon reckons users won’t need a licence due to the craft’s lightweight design (about 136kg).
However, owners without a pilot’s licence will have to follow the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations and airspace restrictions, says the report.
The Manta M4 has a thermal onboard system to detect and warn of birds and other dangers in the air and a system giving ultrasonic sounds to scare away sharks that may be in the water..
The base features a 360-degree camera, allowing riders to capture views of the world below or check the water beneath for any signs of rocks or sharks.
It also has eight ultrasonic sensors, 16 sonar disruptions sensors and four thermal cameras to capture scenes of its surroundings and avoid oncoming obstacles.
Three parachutes can be deployed to ensure a safe landing in an emergency. SimTech labs launched an aircraft called the Icarus Hoverbike last year.
Aircraft and flying taxis – some autonomous – are expected to be routinely whizzing around US skies within the next few years according to the FAA, the report adds.
The UK Government says it expects them to be ‘routinely’ in operation by 2028. Developer SimTech Labs prices the craft at US$300,000 for one, with 10 initially due on sale.
Another UFO-like aircraft at CES (January 6-9) was Invo Station’s battery electric and autonomous personal flying vehicle ‘VO Invo Moon’, taking up to three passengers.
Toyota debuted its Joby Aviation electric air taxi at CES, expected to be on sale later this year. Toyota has invested about US$894 million in Joby Aviation.
https://evsandbeyond.co.nz/ufo-type-ev-tipped-to-be-next-uber/
https://www.simtechlabs.co/copy-of-home
FBI group investigating UFOs: Former Navy pilot
Updated: Feb 4, 2025 / 12:32 PM CST
(NewsNation) — New details are coming to light about an alleged secret FBI working group that is said to investigate unidentified aerial phenomena, also known as UFOs.
The group has never been publicly disclosed before, but Politico reports the group’s members fear they could be purged in cost-cutting efforts by President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency.
Led by Elon Musk, DOGE has been seeking to make deep cuts to the federal budget.
Former Navy pilot Ryan Graves says the group is made up of more than a dozen staff who spend much of their time tracking down UAPs.
Graves was the first active-duty pilot to come forward about regular sightings of UAPs and provided testimony during a congressional hearing on the subject last year.
Graves is also the co-founder of Americans for Safe Aerospace. He joined NewsNation to discuss the secret group.
“These agents have taken upon this responsibility as part of a bottom-up approach in order to understand what potential illegalities might be occurring with objects that are operating within our airspace that we’re not properly tracking or mitigating,” Graves said.
Graves told NewsNation that his understanding is the group began their work in 2020 and that his organization has been working with them on reports that have national security implications.
“We’ve referred the pilot to interview with these groups such that the agents can follow up on the reports, gather additional reports, talk to additional witnesses and look for gaps in our national security,” he said.
Graves said he doesn’t know what the group has uncovered so far, but he believes the investigations have been productive and gained ground.
The agents fear they could get swept up in a larger purge within the FBI as Trump has sought to remove agents involved in investigating the riots on Jan. 6. Graves hopes that the next FBI director could formalize the effort and expand it.
“My message would be to the administration to recognize the fantastic work that these agents are doing for our national security,” Graves said.
https://www.newsnationnow.com/space/ufo/fbi-investigating-ufos/
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/02/03/fbi-ufo-jan-6-011316
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXlRhYHVB_4
Pilot Films Black Triangular UFO
February 03, 2025
An airline pilot in Colombia captured remarkably clear footage of a black triangular UFO that appeared to be zipping through the sky.
The intriguing sighting reportedly occurred on January 6th as the witness was ascending to cruising altitude over the state of Antioquia.
To the pilot's surprise, as they reached approximately 14,000 feet, the mysterious object came into view ahead of his aircraft.
Since the sighting occurred during daylight hours, the witness managed to capture a fantastic glimpse of the triangular-shaped anomaly.
Beyond the extraterrestrial hypothesis, various theories have been put forward regarding the nature of the curious-looking object.
Some have suggested that the anomaly could have been the apocryphal TR-3B spy plane or a similarly secretive craft.
Meanwhile, others have posited that the peculiar triangular object may have been an errant balloon or possibly an advanced drone.
To that end, while the object seemed to be zipping across the sky, many have noted that it could have actually been stationary in relation to the moving aircraft.
What do you think the pilot filmed while cruising over Colombia? Weigh in with your best guess at the C2C Facebook page.
https://www.coasttocoastam.com/article/watch-pilot-films-black-triangular-ufo/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dtt-8497QP0
Doritos Crash the Super Bowl Ad Wins Space Battle for Creators
February 3, 2025
Doritos Crash the Super Bowl ended a 10-year hiatus and months of voting and judging with an intergalactic snack battle that viewers felt was worth the fight.
Doritos announced the return of Crash the Super Bowl in September, whittled thousands of contenders to just 25 by January, and introduced its three finalists by the middle of the month.
In the end, voters picked director Dylan Bradshaw and content creator Nate Norvell’s “Abduction,” which features an unsuspecting snacker trying to wrest his Doritos from an alien tractor beam.
The spot, Doritos’ 25th Super Bowl ad, earned its creators $1 million in prize money and an all-expenses-paid trip to New Orleans for the game.
The ad will air during the first quarter and bring Crash the Super Bowl back to the game at a time when brands, including Poppi, have made creators the focus of their Big Game campaigns, helping the contest find its place during a creator-driven marketing era.
“This year’s Crash the Super Bowl contest winner, ‘Abduction,’ is the ultimate embodiment of Doritos’ For the Bold ethos,” said Tina Mahal, svp of marketing at PepsiCo Foods North America.
“We can’t wait to showcase their vision on the biggest stage in advertising, as we know the spot will inspire our fans to continue stepping outside of what is expected.”
For Bradshaw and Norell, this alien vs. bachelor battle has been a career in the making.
Bradshaw moved from Columbus, Ohio, to Los Angeles in 2020 and has been working on a feature film while creating spots for CeraVe,
Credit Karma, and others. Born in the Dominican Republic, Norell earned a cinema and media arts degree from Biola University, where he’s turned his filmmaking skills into 6.2 million TikTok followers.
Now, their work goes in front of a focus group of more than 100 million viewers and gives them a chance to “make our younger selves proud.”
“After countless sleepless nights and relentless effort, we’re incredibly proud of the story we created to entertain both America and our loved ones,” they told ADWEEK in a statement.
For Bradshaw and Norell, this alien vs. bachelor battle has been a career in the making.
Bradshaw moved from Columbus, Ohio, to Los Angeles in 2020 and has been working on a feature film while creating spots for CeraVe, Credit Karma, and others.
Born in the Dominican Republic, Norell earned a cinema and media arts degree from Biola University, where he’s turned his filmmaking skills into 6.2 million TikTok followers.
Now, their work goes in front of a focus group of more than 100 million viewers and gives them a chance to “make our younger selves proud.”
“After countless sleepless nights and relentless effort, we’re incredibly proud of the story we created to entertain both America and our loved ones,” they told ADWEEK in a statement.
While the Doritos contest was a huge undertaking for parent companies PepsiCo and Frito-Lay, it’s just one chip in their marketing Super Bowl.
The companies are using the event as a launch point for its Doritos Golden Sriracha flavor and have a completely separate Lay’s Super Bowl ad campaign dedicated to the Canadian all-dressed chip’s U.S. invasion.
On top of that, Tostitos is giving one fan an all-expenses paid trip to New Orleans to press the official NFL confetti button and partnered with college and NFL veteran Reggie Bush for a fan challenge to stop the countdown clock at exactly 5.90 seconds, marking 59 years of the Super Bowl.
On the ground, fans in New Orleans can stop by the Tostitos Cantina to try St. Roch’s chefs’ and restaurateurs’ dishes made in collaboration with the Tostitos brand.
https://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/doritos-crash-the-super-bowl-ad-winners-creators/
https://www.doritoscrash.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIgJO3Uk19w