Impeachment

Impeachment

This comment shows why America needs to impeach its President and Vice-President. Aside from the issue of poor war planning, and huge waste of strategic advantage that the Iraq war has been - the wire tapping issue - the hiding behind legislation brought specifically to hide the actions of the Bush Presidency from International law courts - war crimes committed with weapons of inhumane dimensions and extraordinary tactics - are enough to try, without getting into conspiracy theories however plausible.

To Withdraw or not?

To Withdraw or not?

Reading the full Bush commentary rather than just sound bites - makes one appreciate how good his speech writers are to be able to frame American war involvement only against the "end game" risk factors.

It is revealing that the Bush logic is based on a novel. America walked into Iraq and created havoc. Why? The Democrats can not answer for that, but they do expect to be able to take over the end game. How?

The Republicans will blame them for folding early. But the Bush policy to wipe out the insurgency requires killing every insurgent or removing their motivation.

Withdrawal is not the best solution. The current strategy is even worse. Polling public opinion does not inform, but restricts.

Out of Reach

Out of Reach

The rhetoric inside America is that of bring back our boys and girls. This film shows what they are doing, how effective they are occupying a foreign land that seems embarressed by the stupidity of their invaders, when asked if he was scared, the quietly seated local shakes his head.

The trouble with fighting an unjust war is there can be no logic behind the actions of on the ground operators.  How can their actions be seen as anything but brutal and out of sync with reality by the cowed populations over which the terms of life are dictated and their lives bruised by the use of force without real intent.  

When asked about what they are doing, the American soldier says "I am just doing my job." 

If American forces are going to be in Iraq, they at least need to know their purpose. They need to earn respect rather than the disgust and fear that seems to welcome them.

Al Qaeda tactics expand in Gaza

Al Qaeda tactics expand in Gaza

Al Qaeda tactics expand in Gaza | csmonitor.com

WW III ALERT

Disturbing Trends has defined Al Qaeda as a "cult". It leaches adherents from the fringes of a very large pool of disaffected young people who see the West as the puppet masters that keeps them poor. The West is still reeling from its colonial guilt, those reigns and the passing of control of oil wealth to these countries have resulted in a capitalism so strong and confined that over 95% of Saudi Arabia do not share in the oil wealth but live in poverty.

The only way to unlight this fuse is to develop alternative means of propulsion and now. That would reduce the incomes of the ruling class and force them to invest the currently unvalued communities and only by investing their wealth in others should they maintain relevance.

Of course democracy is the answer, but war destroys democracy, if you are fighting civilians drawn from the encroaching fringes of madness fueled by the very conflict America and Mr Bush are seeking to douse.

The "madness fueled from the encroaching fringes" is a cult - it is a way of thinking and drawing your rash young zealots into a war they do not belong in. They deserve gainful employment in their own country due to the investment by their leaders. Look at Dubai and compare its prosperity with the Saudi street.

Cult is one of those words that makes people distance themselves, unless they are rebelling against the mold in which it becomes a focus of identity.

That Al Qaeda becomes the locus of Arab identity is the real danger. That is grows as a movement is a reason to alert your leaders that WW III is a risk now faced if war continues to manufacture terrorists.

Maybe its in the oil

Maybe its in the oil

The Sunni are threatening to imminently pull out of the Malaki Government if the Shiite death squads are not being actively disarmed by this time next week. This could make the government just a little too fragile to survive a no-confidence vote, if any other party was strong enough to risk taking power. The number of political assassinations make the prospect of being in government at this time less than delightful. The job probably pays well but the likelihood of surviving each week in office is increasingly grim. And the Sunni who are helping battle people being called "Al Qaeda" but who are actually Salafi Jihadis - and not strictly the same thing - want to carry on when that is over and get the Shiites in the South.

"If this is not civil war..." statements do not clarify what it is. It is a concerted effort by a number of parties to be in control of Iraq's vast oil wealth. It is also a question of loyalty and brotherhood. Can Iraq take possession of its jewel collectively without slaughtering each other?

Perhaps we should be saying "Look, this IS A CIVIL war with specific objectives. Now what we are going to be able to achieve by occupation is... and that means...."

Then perhaps the American troops would be able to improve matters by fulfilling a valuable role rather than just battling "terrorists" with no clear objective except to cause trouble for the Americans.