Joshua Tree Report: June 11th, 2017

This is the Joshua Tree Report for June 11th, 2017.

General Data

The temperature in Cody is 62° Fahrenheit and the weather is cloudy. The temperature in Kirkwall is 10° centigrade and the weather is partly cloudy. The temperature in Muscat is 40° centigrade and the weather is clear. A barrel of crude oil is selling at $45.83, and $1.27 currently exchanges for £1. This week's geospatial image is the Pakistani port city of Qwadar, which used to belong to the Sultanate of Muscat.

In the News

Here are a few of this week's top stories.

Gunmen attack Iran's parliament, Khomeini shrine (al Jazeera)

Iran attacks leave 12 dead at parliament and Khomeini mausoleum (BBC News)

Tehran attackers 'were IS recruits from Iran' (BBC News)

Iran accuses Saudi Arabia of Tehran attacks (al Jazeera)

Iranian officials offer disjointed response to Islamic State terrorist attacks in Tehran (Long War Journal)

Deadly explosion strikes Afghanistan's Herat (al Jazeera)

Why are Sahel countries deploying an anti-jihad force? (AFP)

The Sunni-Shia Divide (Council on Foreign Relations)

Raqqa: Syrian Kurdish-led forces launch offensive on IS 'capital' (BBC News)

Iraqi Kurds to hold independence referendum in September (BBC News)

Iraqi Kurds set date for independence referendum (al Jazeera)

Iraqi government rejects Kurdish move for independence (al Jazeera)

Why Aren't There More Terrorist Attacks Like the One in London? (RAND Corporation)

Blaming the Internet For Terrorism Misses The Point (Wired)

Germany sees rise in fake father scams with immigrants (BBC News)

Egypt Has Joined the Air War in Libya (War is Boring)

Ecowas agrees to admit Morocco to West African body (BBC News)

Japan's Mistaken South Sudan Withdrawal (RAND Corporation)

Vietnamese coast guard receives former U.S. vessel (UPI)

Lithuania warns Russian drill may mask troop buildup (AFP)

NATO: Prepared for Countering Disinformation Operations in the Baltic States? (RAND Corporation)

Canada to rely less on US defense in major policy shift (AFP)

Don't Count on Germany to Save the West (War on the Rocks)

Europe Reckons With Its Depleted Armies (Wall Street Journal)

Juncker: EU needs stronger defence arm (BBC News)

CIA names former bin Laden hunt chief to run Iran spying (AFP)

Need More Naval Missiles? Stick the Launchers in Shipping Containers (War is Boring)

James Rosen: New Evidence Obama Administration's NSA Spied On Americans (Real Clear Politics)

How a few yellow dots burned the Intercept’s NSA leaker (Ars Technica)

Leaked NSA report says Russians tried to hack state election officials (Ars Technica)

Russian Hackers Turn to Britney Spears for Help Concealing Espionage Malware (Ars Technica)

Does British Airways' explanation stack up? (BBC News)

Hackers are around, secure your surveillance cams (Khaleej Times)

'Oldest Homo sapiens' found (BBC News)

RSPB criticises slow action to tackle Orkney's stoat problem (BBC News)

Teacher sought for single-pupil school on Foula (BBC News)

Restored antique map returns home to Aberdeenshire (BBC News)

Peacock trashes liquor store in California to tune of $500 (BBC News)

Trump Boys Chasing Wounded Boar Around White House (The Onion)

Top Podcasts

These were my favorite podcasts from the last week.

Agent M: An Interview with Henry Hemming (SpyCast)

CIA Spy Girl: An Interview with Emily Brandwin (SpyCast)

Security by the Book: The Way Of The Strangers: Encounters With The Islamic State (The Hoover Institution)

'The Way of the Strangers: Encounters with the Islamic State' (Council on Foreign Relations)

A Conversation With Nikki Haley (Council on Foreign Relations)

Less than 10 Minutes Series: WebGoat Project (OWASP 24/7)

Risky Business #457 -- Shadow Brokers turn to ZCash, plus special guest John Safran (Risky Business)

Episode 2 - Forgotten Heroes, The Indian Army in the Great War (BBC)

Episode 3 - Forgotten Heroes, The Indian Army in the Great War (BBC)

Voices of the First World War: Battle of Loos (BBC)

Voices of the First World War: Cowardice (BBC)

Voices of the First World War: Gallipoli - Conditions and Evacuation (BBC)

Voices of the First World War: Gallipoli - Landings (BBC)

WW1 At Home 2 - Zeppelin Raids; Airship Patrols; Scouts on Standby (BBC)

WW1 At Home 3 - The Spy on the Forth; Lizzie the Elephant; a Gardener Goes to War (BBC)

How I Built This: Compaq Computers: Rod Canion (NPR

The Art of Manliness #307: Make Your Bed, Change the World (The Art of Manliness)

The Art of Manliness #308: Reconsidering the Trades With Mike Rowe (The Art of Manliness)

Course Report

ENG 199: I didn't have a chance to do any reading this week.
PAC 130: This one's still pretty well on hold.
BA 480/CS 406: I spent a bunch of time studying for my CISSP exam.
PI5502: This one was pretty much on hold this week.
HST 406 (OGHAP): I listened to a bunch of First World War podcasts and did some work on one of my chapter subsections.

Quote of the Week

"The gentle reader will never, never know what a consummate ass he can become until he goes abroad. I speak now, of course, in the supposition that the gentle reader has not been abroad, and therefore is not already a consummate ass. If the case be otherwise, I beg his pardon and extend to him the cordial hand of fellowship and call him brother."
- Samuel "Mark Twain" Clemens, Innocents Abroad