Suicide Bomber Kills 35 in Moscow

Today, a suicide bomber set off a home made device at one of the busiest airports near Moscow, Russia. The bomb killed 35 people and wounded about 100 people. Although there is not a defenitive identification yet, the president of Russia immediately labeled the attack as terrorist activity and ordered additional security at all transportation facilities.

This event followed a 2004 attack that killed 89 people. The 2004 event was linked to Chechen suicide bombers. Attacks are unfortunately fairly common in Russia because of the many Islamic groups that are fighting to break away from Russia.

Why is this important to us??

This is very important to the United States because Russia is one of our biggest allies in Afaghanistan. Russia is a very important importer of goods, especially in Iraq. Russia is also a very large oil producer and if Russia's instability grows, oil prices may rise significantly which would negatively effect our economy. This is also important to us because of Russia's nuclear power. The United States is an enemy of many Islamic nations and if parts if Islamic power grows in Russia, the US may start worrying about their power. (We really don't want to go to war with Russia)

So what should we do now?

The question is, is the US going to sit by and watch Russia get attacked all the time? Or are we going to help them out with their security problems? Although we are 14 trillion dollars in debt, our debt could get much worse if the problems in Russia grew.

Mysterious Spiral of Light over Norway

So. Failed Russian missile test, or successful new fireworks design?

Arctic Adventures? (And no, it isn't a Sarah Palin helicopter moose-hunting party)

I never thought that the Arctic, the vastly uninhabited chunk of mostly ice north of Alaska, could provide a source of conflict in the 21st century. But, then came along global warming and aggressive neighbors. As the ice is receding at a quicker than normal rate, open Arctic waters provide bordering nations with trade, tourist, and natural resources new possibilities (as well as strategic defense) that were not open before. Case in point, there is actually a Northwest Passage right now.

Now what problem could possibly occur when you have the bordering nations being the US, Canada, Denmark (they own Greenland), and Norway, all US allies? None, except that I am forgetting one, America's newest best friend- the Russian Federation! Russia, under former President and current Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, has been assertive in nationalistic pursuits now that they are flush with oil and gas revenues. Aside from invading Georgia, Russia recently planted a flag in the Arctic and claimed a large chunk of it for itself. Why do they want a chunk of ice? Because there is potentially more oil and natural gas underneath that was previously inaccessible.

Sadly, the US has been slow to counter this threat to our own strategic interests (remember that Russia borders us up there) by not expanding our Arctic fleet nor ratifying the Law of the Sea, which would allow the US to stake claims in the Arctic, the US is losing the opening salvos of a scramble for the Arctic. And while I don't think having Canada, Denmark, or Norway control the Arctic would be a bad thing, I do not want to see Russia suddenly get an Arctic empire. And if the US and its allies don't act soon, this could happen.