@wretchard:
I do hope you have gotten better information on the topic than has been presented here in the comments (or that it exists).

“Khalid al Mansour” seems like it must be a fairly common Arabic-related name.

The amazing absence of Obie-mam’s associates from a huge part of his life is itself a matter of grave concern, as noted above.

All in all, however, I’m much more concerned about Russia’s escalation toward a larger hot war vs a complete collapse by “the West”. Thanks to 2×4, buddy, and LifeoftheMind for breaking in! Now watch, wretchard will have just posted something on that subject…