Any member of Congress who allows Bush to go ahead with this deal that is up for election in 2006 should be voted OUT OF OFFICE!

You've come completely unhinged, Gene. My condolences to you.

They, they, they. Ross Perot said "you people" and got tarred and feathered. How sadly transparent all this trailer-park outrage is. I can't wait for people to start condemning Republicans for fear mongering after this.

The UAE has been an active and cooperative participant in the War on Terror.

As a major shipping management entity, they're already involved in the international Secure Container Initiative, where they have also been very cooperative. They already supervise container security in ports throughout the world.

The UAE plays host to our naval forces on a regular basis. We have never had cause to complain about their security or cooperation in these matters.

Show where any of the statements I made in my Blog about UAE is untrue. You want to give them control of what is placed into the shipping containers coming into this country? You are NUTS!

Does anyone remember the Trojan Horse? How about millions of UAE horses per year coming into America.

" Show where any of the statements I made in my Blog about UAE is untrue."

That's kind of facetious considering none of the statements in your blog are really reason for concern. It's like me saying "The Sky Is Blue" and then demanding that you either prove it wrong or agree with my politics.

There is NO VALID reason to ALLOW UAE to operate American Ports

There is also no valid reason for them not to, even if they were actually "running the ports", or as some blinkered idiot said, buying the ports (because the US is "selling" them).
Everything you said about the UAE is true, though unflattering. They are an ally on the war on terror and they have every legitimate business reason to be in the shipping business. C'mon, COL MBA.

How about millions of UAE horses per year coming into America.

Man, you are paranoid. You don't think they've been coming in for years, from more places than just the UAE, who could give a rat's a$$ about the US. All they want is to do business.
But I echo (I think it was) Daiwa, who said that the increased scrutiny of port security on the whole was worth this tempest in a teapot.

The anti-Bushites have screwed themselves with this, though. They're going to have a hard row to hoe the next time they want to scream about our lack of diplomacy. It would be a shame if the Col backs himself into a corner and has to actually AGREE with the Bush administration later about dealing with nations that don't recognize Israel and all this fearmongering.

Any member of Congress who allows Bush to go ahead with this deal that is up for election in 2006 should be voted OUT OF OFFICE!

And that is the agenda machine behind this complete non-issue.

The UAE is already actively involved in the Security Container Initiative, a worldwide activity involving all the major players in shipping, port administration, and port security.

Hundreds of thousands of UAE-supervised containers pass through our ports every year already.

The UAE has consistently been a cooperative partner in the SCI, so not only have they been a part of the problem for longer than COL Gene has been aware of the problem, but they've also been a part of the solution that whole time as well.

UAE administration of these particular ports doesn't actually change the container security situation in any significant way.

(Especially on account of the UAE management company not actually being in charge of port security for these ports anyway.)

How can Bush state that the principal agency to protect our ports is the Coast Guard and then learn they have serious problem with this contract? Look at the lack of funding for the Coast Guard. The stories are coming out how over stretched they are and Bush says they are the main defense for our ports. Why then are they not increasing the manpower levels and providing the resources needed for this essential element of our homeland defense? It is the same issue as the size of the Army and the lack of border guards. It is a JOKE that Bush is effectively providing leadership to defend this country.

It is time to take control of the operation of our ports. It is time to insure the containers are safe BEFORE the containers arrive in our ports. It is time to provide the needed resources for the Coast Guard, Army and the Border guards. WHY is BUSH FAILING TOP DO HIS JOB in these areas?

You are NUTS!

Does anyone remember the Trojan Horse? How about millions of UAE horses per year coming into America.

I think those speak for themselves.

What does Nostradamus tell us about the operator-sale-morphed-into-port-security issue, Gene?

What did the U S Coast Guard Say.? What did the 9/11 Commission say about UAE?

It is time to insure the containers are safe BEFORE the containers arrive in our ports

Here's a silly question, Gene. How does having US interests operate US ports make this happen? Better question - How does having UAE interests operate these ports ensure that the containers AREN'T safe?

Last time I checked, the containers are loaded and sealed at the port of embarkation (ie, foreign soil). When they get to our ports, they're offloaded from the ship and the internal cargo broken down to smaller transhipments (if necessary). That's it. No loading involved.

The only loading involved at the ports where stuff would be going INTO the containers - is outbound cargo. You know, stuff leaving the country?