Team Obama Claims the Middle East as a Singular Success. Will the Media Go Along? – National Review  “What if we’ve already had an October surprise in this campaign, in September, and the mainstream media are failing to follow up? An issue becomes a real issue only if enough people give it the attention it’s due.”

“Many people in the diplomatic and intelligence communities say that the Obama administration, behind the scenes, is in complete disarray in the aftermath of al-Qaeda’s attack on the U.S. consulate in Libya that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.”

A Terrifying Threat Obama and Romney Aren’t Talking About – Bloomberg  “U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta made some alarming predictions during a speech on Oct. 11. Cyber attacks are looming, he said. They ‘could be as destructive as the terrorist attack of 9/11′ and might amount to a ‘cyber Pearl Harbor.’ Our digital infrastructure is vulnerable. Yet the Department of Defense can’t do everything on its own. Companies that don’t protect themselves are putting both their bottom lines and national security at risk. Yes, cybersecurity standards are an imperfect response to a strange and dangerous new realm of warfare. At the moment, though, they’re the only thing standing between us and the abyss.”

Retail Sales Surged in September on iPhone Sales – Iacono Research  “The Commerce Department reported(.pdf) that retail sales in the U.S. surged for the second straight month, rising 1.1 percent in September after an upwardly revised gain of 1.2 percent in August. Two months ago the main driver was a surge in pump prices that translated into sharply higher gasoline station sales while, last month, booming business at electronics and appliance stores in general (and Apple stores in particular) played a key role, no doubt due to the launch of the iPhone 5.”

Euro Zone Mulls New Ways to Cut Greek Debt Mountain – Reuters  “Euro zone officials are considering new ways to reduce Greece’s huge debts because delays to reforms by Athens and continued recession have put the target of a debt to GDP ratio of 120 percent in 2020 out of reach, euro zone officials said.”

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