Sunday, September 07, 2014

Israel’s policy towards Gaza since the unilateral disengagement in 2005 has consisted of the systematic violations of international humanitarian law, duplicitous diplomacy and large doses of brute military force...


...With chilling cynicism, Israeli generals speak of their periodic incursions into Gaza as “mowing the lawn”. This policy has manifestly failed to procure the security that Israel’s citizens deserve. The writing is on the wall. A new and more constructive policy is desperately needed. Israeli politicians, however, are unlikely to be able to make any of the proposed moves without strong external pressure. This is where the international community comes in. It must begin to hold Israel to account in a way that it has so far shamefully failed to.

For Israel, the beginning of wisdom is to admit its mistakes

Israel should embrace Palestinian unity for its own security. A further land grab will only inflame tensions

The Guardian, Sunday 7 September 2014 10.15 EDT

Israel has a habit of justifying its actions in the occupied Palestinian territories, however illegal and indecent, in the name of security. But denying any security to the other side only perpetuates the conflict.
Five days after reaching a ceasefire with Hamas to end the latest round of fighting in Gaza, the Israeli cabinet decided to appropriate 988 acres of land on the West Bank, near the place where three Israeli teenagers were recently abducted and murdered, to make way for another illegal Jewish city. This is the biggest land grab in three decades. As the justice minister, Tzipi Livni, pointed out: “It was a decision that weakens Israel and damages its security.” What it proves, if further proof is needed, is that Israel’s leaders are determined to prevent a two-state solution to the conflict.
Operation Protective Edge, which came to an end after 50 days of fighting, was the third and deadliest war in six years between Israel and Hamas, the Islamic resistance movement that rules Gaza. Israel lost 66 soldiers and six civilians. On the Palestinian side, the war left 2,104 dead, mostly civilians, and 12,656 injured; 17,000 houses were destroyed or damaged; 520,000 people, out of a population of 1.8 million, were displaced. The damage to buildings and to the civilian infrastructure, estimated at $6bn, will take many years to repair.
What did Israel gain by unleashing the deadly firepower of the IDF against the caged population of this tiny coastal enclave? Virtually nothing. Israel had in fact provoked this crisis by its violent crackdown against Hamas activists on the West Bank following the murder of the three teenagers. Hamas rocket attacks – the ostensible reason for the war – were a response to Israel’s aggressive security measures. The prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, defined the operation’s objective as “calm in return for calm”. But calm prevailed before Israel initiated the cycle of violence. Hamas was left with a quarter of its pre-war rocket arsenal and many of its tunnels, dubbed “terror tunnels” by Israeli spokesmen, were destroyed. But arsenals can be replenished and tunnels can be rebuilt.
Both sides claimed victory but Netanyahu’s sounded rather hollow. Announcing the ceasefire at a news conference, he claimed a major military as well as a diplomatic achievement for the state of Israel. Hardly anyone shared this assessment. The public, the media, the opposition, hawkish members of his Likud party, and some of his coalition partners, accused him of accepting a ceasefire that failed to meet any of Israel’s objectives. One newspaper gave the score as Hamas: 1; Israel: 0. Netanyahu’s popularity plummeted from 85% at the beginning of the operation to 38%.
Hamas had more solid reasons for rejoicing, despite the horrific suffering endured by the people of Gaza. By any objective criterion, the outcome of the conflict was a draw. But for a small and poorly armed militia to stand its ground against one of the mightiest armies in the world is a remarkable achievement. Not only did its fighters stand firm, they also succeeded in imposing on the enemy what it dreaded most – a war of attrition. Despite the intense military pressure, Hamas’s spirit did not break and its popularity skyrocketed. Above all, Hamas succeeded in sending a clear message that Israel would have no peace and no security as long as it continued to occupy Palestinian territory.
So what should Israel do? The beginning of wisdom is to admit mistakes and stop adding fuel to the fire. First of all, Israel should end its relentless campaign to demonise the people of Gaza. Demonisation is the enemy of dialogue and a major cause of diplomatic deadlock. The assertion of Major General Giora Eiland that there is no such thing as “innocent civilians” in Gaza is simply absurd. Gazans are normal people and, like normal people anywhere in the world, they long to live in freedom and dignity on their land.
Second, it is time to remove from Hamas the terrorist tag. This is a powerful weapon in the propaganda war but useless in the quest for peace. Hamas is indeed guilty of terrorism but it is also a legitimate political actor, having won a fair and free election in 2006. Netanyahu claims that Hamas is indistinguishable from the murderous fanatics who make up Isis. Hamas, however, is not a messianic jihadist movement but a local organisation with a pragmatic political leadership and limited aims.
Third, Israel should transfer its confrontation with Hamas from the battlefield to the conference table. On 2 June Hamas and Fatah reached an accord and formed a national unity government which consists of technocrats without a single Hamas-affiliated member. This government accepts the Quartet’s three conditions to qualify as a negotiating partner: it recognises Israel, it respects all previous Palestinian agreements with Israel and it renounces violence. One of Netanyahu’s undeclared war aims was to disrupt this unity government so Israel could continue to divide and rule, but the government survived the baptism of fire.
Hamas vehemently denies the legitimacy of Israel but its leaders have stated repeatedly that if Fatah negotiates with Israel a two-state peace deal based on the 1967 borders, and if this outcome is approved in a national referendum, it would respect it as the choice of the Palestinian people. Israel should therefore stop thinking of Palestinian unity as a threat and embrace it instead as a potential building block of its own security.
These existential issues may or may not be addressed at a later stage. For the time being in Cairo the two delegations are negotiating, through Egyptian mediators. Israel’s main demand is the demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip. This is unrealistic because Gaza is the last outpost of resistance to the 47-year-old occupation and Hamas is not about to lay down its arms. Hamas is calling for the lifting of the illegal seven-year Israeli blockade of Gaza and the reopening of the borders. Other Hamas demands include the rebuilding of Gaza international airport, which Israel destroyed in 2001, the release of prisoners and the reopening of the “safe passage” to the West Bank. These are not new but grounded in earlier agreements that Israel violated.

Israel’s policy towards Gaza since the unilateral disengagement in 2005 has consisted of the systematic violations of international humanitarian law, duplicitous diplomacy and large doses of brute military force. With chilling cynicism, Israeli generals speak of their periodic incursions into Gaza as “mowing the lawn”. This policy has manifestly failed to procure the security that Israel’s citizens deserve. The writing is on the wall. A new and more constructive policy is desperately needed. Israeli politicians, however, are unlikely to be able to make any of the proposed moves without strong external pressure. This is where the international community comes in. It must begin to hold Israel to account in a way that it has so far shamefully failed to.

135 comments:

  1. Abdelmajed Sunokrot says that his 16-year old son Mohammed was shot in the head with a rubber bullet fired by Israeli soldiers and died Sunday in an Israeli hospital. He says his son had been merely passing the demonstration in east Jerusalem when he was injured.

    Israel police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld disputed the account, saying that Sunokrot was hit in the leg with a paint-ball type projectile while throwing stones. He said the teen was arrested and taken a hospital to treat his injury.

    A spokeswoman at Hadassah Medical Center declined to give a cause of death.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anyone with a brain and a remaining sinew of honesty and integrity saw through Netanyahu’s setup to start the war with Gaza. This article accurately presents the dilemma facing the remaining non paranoid and hysterical citizens of Israel, a state that has evolved into a modern Troy.

    Make no mistake about it, mid to long term Israel lost big time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Make no mistake.

      Hamas spent years setting up the war and lost.

      Make no mistake Hamas is ISIS and ISIS is Hamas.

      Hamas has lined up and executed scores of it's own citizens in a frenzied paranoid fit of rage.

      The anti-Israel cheerleaders are grasping a smoke.

      4,500 rockets by Hamas, shot at civilians and the Palestinians killed 3 people. Never in the history of the world have so many (the arabs) tried to kill so many and came up so short...

      a billion dollars, years and resources spent building tunnels, hundreds of Palestinian kids executed by hamas after their usefulness as diggers expired, murdered by their own, 900,000 tons of concrete diverted for terror, a total waste.

      Go visit Gaza, celebrate the Hamas victory...

      Delete
    2. What is "Occupation"Mon Jul 21, 09:33:00 PM EDT
      If there is one Hamas member still alive and spitting? Israel lost…

      Delete
    3. Gaza is the place for you, Jackrat.

      The climate is similar, the people there hold similar views to your own..........

      You might even make a friend.

      You might even be able to join their armed forces and shoot a rocket into Israel yourself one day.

      Delete
    4. Jack HawkinsMon Sep 08, 01:10:00 AM EDT
      What is "Occupation"Mon Jul 21, 09:33:00 PM EDT
      If there is one Hamas member still alive and spitting? Israel lost…


      Jack Hawking has told us. Over and over again.

      I, Jack Hawkings, have committed the worst crimes against humanity, including rape and murder, and I am PROUD

      Delete
    5. What is "Occupation"Mon Jul 21, 09:33:00 PM EDT
      If there is one Hamas member still alive and spitting? Israel lost…


      “A truth that's told with bad intent
      Beats all the lies you can invent.”

      ― William Blake

      Delete
  3. The embassy said in a statement that Israel "maintains good relations with New Zealand" and would strive to continue to.

    ...

    New Zealand has had tense relations with Israel over the last decade, taking sanctions in 2004 after two men suspected to be Mossad spies were convicted of attempting to obtain New Zealand passports.

    Several Israeli citizens fled New Zealand after the Christchurch earthquake, in what some security experts claimed could have been an attempted identity-theft mission.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Another thread, another screed how Israel bad...

    yawn.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies

    1. Yawning is a mostly involuntary process and is usually triggered by sleepiness or fatigue.
      It is a very natural response to being tired.


      http://www.healthline.com/symptom/excessive-yawning

      Delete
  5. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies

    1. “All our silences in the face of racist assault are acts of complicity.”

      Delete
    2. You are correct, Mr Hook.

      I am glad you join me in condemning the practice.

      Delete
    3. Yes Bob, I join you in condemning the racists of Israel.

      Delete
  6. Here's a good reason to watch Fox News -

    September 7, 2014

    Obama administration pressured Fox News to back off Benghazi reporting

    By Carol Brown

    This past Friday, Greta Van Susteren reported on numerous ways the Obama administration has made it difficult for reporters to investigate Benghazi. Van Susteren said that it’s been “like pulling teeth” trying to get answers and that “the Obama administration’s behavior post-Benghazi has been weird; like they’re hiding something.”
    She went on to say that as Fox News continued to investigate and press for answers, the administration’s behavior got “even weirder." She noted two major press conferences – one with the State Department and one with the CIA – when Fox News was not invited.



    In addition, Van Susteren reported that she was contacted by someone from the administration who told her to dissuade Fox News reporter Jennifer Griffin from continuing to investigate after Griffin reported on the stand down order in Benghazi. Van Susteren said she “thought the call from the Obama administration was dirty.”

    Van Susteren further reported that “as recently as April, after the administration said it turned over all the information, an email surfaces that had been withheld in the face of repeated requests.”

    Needless to say, Van Susteren is highly suspicious about what is going on and what the administration is trying to hide.

    It is glaringly obvious that this administration is extraordinarily secretive and manipulative when it comes to the press. The incident Van Susteren reported on is not the first time the administration has treated the media in a highly inappropriate way, nor is Fox News (though Fox is surely their favorite target) the only media outlet to be on the receiving end of deplorable treatment. I am, however, puzzled as to why Van Susteren is sharing this now, so many months after the fact. I say, expose the left at every turn. Do so in a timely fashion. And hammer away without relent.

    Hat tip: Gateway Pundit


    This past Friday, Greta Van Susteren reported on numerous ways the Obama administration has made it difficult for reporters to investigate Benghazi. Van Susteren said that it’s been “like pulling teeth” trying to get answers and that “the Obama administration’s behavior post-Benghazi has been weird; like they’re hiding something.”

    She went on to say that as Fox News continued to investigate and press for answers, the administration’s behavior got “even weirder." She noted two major press conferences – one with the State Department and one with the CIA – when Fox News was not invited.

    In addition, Van Susteren reported that she was contacted by someone from the administration who told her to dissuade Fox News reporter Jennifer Griffin from continuing to investigate after Griffin reported on the stand down order in Benghazi. Van Susteren said she “thought the call from the Obama administration was dirty.”

    Van Susteren further reported that “as recently as April, after the administration said it turned over all the information, an email surfaces that had been withheld in the face of repeated requests.”

    Needless to say, Van Susteren is highly suspicious about what is going on and what the administration is trying to hide.

    It is glaringly obvious that this administration is extraordinarily secretive and manipulative when it comes to the press. The incident Van Susteren reported on is not the first time the administration has treated the media in a highly inappropriate way, nor is Fox News (though Fox is surely their favorite target) the only media outlet to be on the receiving end of deplorable treatment. I am, however, puzzled as to why Van Susteren is sharing this now, so many months after the fact. I say, expose the left at every turn. Do so in a timely fashion. And hammer away without relent.

    Hat tip: Gateway Pundit


    Read more: http://americanthinker.com/blog/2014/09/obama_administration_pressured_fox_news_to_back_off_benghazi_reporting.html#ixzz3ChKCzuG9

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't know why it is doing that - double pasting as it does.

      Delete
    2. Ignorance is bliss, Idaho Bob is da happy ho

      Delete
    3. What an intelligent statement, Jackrat.

      Delete
    4. You be da ho, Bob. Just like you say.

      You be a happy ho, too.

      Delete
  7. Racial relations under Obama - worse than before -

    “Hold On, They Got a White Dude” in Memphis

    September 8, 2014 by Colin Flaherty

    Colin Flaherty is an award-winning reporter and author of White Girl Bleed a Lot: The return of racial violence and how the media ignore it.


    “Hold on, they got a white dude.” And it sure seemed like fun, if the laughing and shrieking on this latest video of black mob violence is any indication.

    This racial mayhem happened Saturday night in Memphis at a Kroger’s department store. WMCA Channel 5 out of Jackson, Mississippi picks up the story, all of it except the central organizing feature of the violence: All of the hundreds of people involved in the mayhem and violence are black. Except the victims. They are white:



    “Three people were jumped by a large group of teenagers who were chanting “fam mob.” The group, who came from CiCi’s Pizza, reportedly attacked a 25-year-old customer as he left his car to enter Kroger. Two employees, ages 17 and 18, were attacked while trying to stop the fight. Both were “struck several times in the head and face, while being knocked to the ground.” The victims say large pumpkins were thrown at their heads. They both eventually were knocked unconscious.”

    However serious it seemed to the victims, the predators and their videographer were having a good time. Laughing and running.



    Former prison psychologist Marlin Newburn has been on the front lines of racial violence for more than 30 years. Newburn said the laughing is part of the large scale violence, something he has seen many times before:

    “These predators were merely living out their preferred lifestyle, a primary part of the black culture, as opposed to a subculture,” said Newburn. “This lifestyle of one of sadistic and primitive impulse where they believe themselves to be 10 feet tall, bullet proof, very smart, good looking, gifted, and tougher than anyone. If you’re thinking that’s the narcissism common among pre-adolescent children, ages 6 through 12 inclusive, you’d be correct.”

    “This population lives without any sense of personal responsibility or boundaries with others. When assaulting or killing someone, the absence of a conscience is considered among their peers as an indicator of strength and power. Expressing joy in the process only heightens their street cred. Most all are functionally illiterate, but one lesson most all of them have learned from their elders, beginning in their earliest years, is to hate white people..................

    http://www.frontpagemag.com/2014/colin-flaherty/hold-on-they-got-a-white-dude-in-memphis/

    ReplyDelete
  8. And Livni? She’s saying a solution is to not only move Israel’s money away from social welfare to the defense fund, but there should be a diplomatic process, i.e., negotiations with moderate elements of the Palestinian Authority! Yes, let’s initiate correctly against terror; negotiate with terrorist moderates!

    Their charter states: “There is no solution for the Palestinian question except through jihad. “ Therefore, initiatives, proposals and international conferences are a waste of time and vain endeavors.

    So where, exactly, is Livni’s allegiance; with Israel or with the Obama Administration?


    Tzipi Allegiance

    ReplyDelete
  9. 4,500 rockets is a lot of rockets.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No, it is not, Bob.
      Not to be fired in a war, not of a type used by Hamas.

      Your ignorance is showing, again.
      Throw weights are what count, Bob. The amount of explosive, not the numbers of bottle rockets fired.

      The type rockets that Hamas uses are designed to be fired in volley.

      Watch the video, learn something. 48 rockets are fired at a time in a barrage, if hundreds are not fired at the same time, it is a worthless weapon.

      Delete
    2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEBXkbX0z3o

      Delete
    3. 4,500 rockets is a lot of rockets.

      And they had plenty left over.

      Get on over to Gaza, Jackrat, show 'em how to really volley those rockets.

      You know you want to.

      If you are prohibited from flying, take a steamship.

      Delete
    4. Your nom de guerre could be Jihad Jack.

      Delete
    5. There is no reason to visit Israel, you da ho Bob.

      I have no desire to partake in Sexual Tourism.
      No desire to meet the "Butt Sluts" of the IDF.

      Tel Aviv devotes about $100,000 — more than a third of its international marketing budget — to drawing gay tourists. Though no exact figures exist, officials estimate that tens of thousands of gay tourists from abroad arrive annually.
      "We are trying to create a model for openness, pluralism, tolerance,"
      Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai told The Associated Press.

      "Live and let live — this is the city of Tel Aviv."


      The city's first openly gay-owned hotel was opened recently and numerous city-backed travel sites direct gay visitors to the hottest clubs, bars and resorts in town.

      "We've long recognized the economic potential of the gay community.
      The gay tourist is a quality tourist, who spends money and sets trends,"


      said Pini Shani, a Tourism Ministry official who has been involved in the campaign.

      "There's also no doubt that a tourist who's had a positive experience here is of PR value.
      If he leaves satisfied, he becomes an Israeli ambassador of good will."


      http://cnsnews.com/news/article/tel-aviv-emerges-top-gay-tourist-destination

      I will leave vacationing in Israel to da ho Bob.


      Delete
    6. Gaza, Jihad Jack, Gaza.

      Gaza is the place for you.

      If you are precluded from buying an airline ticket, take a steamship.

      Delete
    7. Maybe you can write a poem.......

      "Sailing to Gaza"

      That is no place for peaceful old men......

      Delete
    8. But rather for bloodthirsty slaves to Allah
      And burkaed women
      Tunnel children
      All strive in unison
      To kill.....

      etc

      Delete
    9. Gaza IS Israel, yo ho Bob.

      Gaza is controlled by the Israeli military.
      It's people, all Israelis. de facto, since 1967.

      Delete
  10. Stephen Hawking: God particle could wipe out the universe... ....drudge


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I actually tend to doubt that, and have made up my mind not to lose any sleep over it.

      Our earth is something like 4.5 billion years 'old' and the universe is a big place and has been around three time as long as it.

      Surely by now some other hairless apes in some other locale would have already made this mistake......but, yet, here we are.

      Delete
  11. Arkansas shift. Pryor now trails Tom Cotton


    posted at 6:31 pm on September 7, 2014 by Jazz Shaw

    To finish up the weekend on a bit of a positive note, polling groups around the nation are starting to shift their models from registered voters to likely voters as the days until November shrink. One in particular will be of interest and it’s in the highly contested state of Arkansas. We always thought Mark Pryor was in trouble, but he has been holding on in the polls surprisingly well. This week, the NBC/Marist poll, which previously showed Pryor in a fairly solid position, has taken a big turn and Tom Cotton (who did an interview for Hot Air back in April) has moved into the lead.


    Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Arkansas) has slipped behind his challenger, Rep. Tom Cotton (R), 40% to 45% among likely voters, the survey said. That’s a huge shift from the firm’s May poll that found Pryor ahead by 11 points among all registered voters.

    Democrats face uphill terrain in their quest to keep the Senate as many of the key races are in Republican-leaning states where President Barack Obama is deeply unpopular.

    That wasn’t the only turn of the political worm this weekend. In Kentucky, Alison Grimes has seen a similar negative shift in the winds of fate.

    In the Senate’s marquee race, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) now leads his Democratic challenger, Alison Grimes, 47% to 39% among likely voters, the poll found. That’s a change from May, when the two candidates “were essentially deadlocked.”

    Yes, both of these races are still close. And the distance from September 7th until November might as well be the span from Earth to Mars in political terms. But momentum isn’t to be totally discounted and, at least for this week, the winds are blowing favorably.

    from Hot Air

    ReplyDelete
  12. Steve Koppman has published an anti-Zionist piece that says Jews should be supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanction movement because it epitomizes the best Jewish values in opposition to the militant Jewish state that oppresses Palestinians.

    Peter Beinart wrote a column calling on American Jews who believe in the two-state solution to take direct action now and like the Mississippi Freedom Summer go out to the West Bank to oppose the settlement program. He wants those liberal Zionists to march alongside the Palestinian activists and the international BDS people.

    The Bill Gates Foundation is divesting $184 million from supporting the Israeli prison system.


    Focus on Peace

    ReplyDelete
  13. US warplanes have carried out five strikes on Islamist insurgents menacing Iraq’s Haditha dam, witnesses and officials said, widening what President Barack Obama called a campaign to curb and ultimately defeat the militants.

    Obama has branded Islamic State (Isis) forces an acute threat to the west as well as the Middle East and said that key Nato allies stood ready to back Washington in action against the group, which has seized expanses of northern Iraq and eastern Syria and declared a border-blurring religious caliphate.

    The leader of a pro-Iraqi government paramilitary force in western Iraq said the air strikes wiped out an Isis patrol trying to attack the dam – Iraq’s second biggest hydroelectric facility that also provides millions with water.

    “They (the air strikes) were very accurate. There was no collateral damage ... If Islamic State had gained control of the dam, many areas of Iraq would have been seriously threatened, even (the capital) Baghdad,” Sheik Ahmed Abu Risha told Reuters.

    The aerial assault drove Isis fighters away from the dam, according to a police intelligence officer in the vast western province of Anbar, a hotbed of Islamist insurgency.

    The US military said in a statement that the strikes destroyed four Isis Humvees, four armed vehicles, two of which were carrying antiaircraft artillery, a fighting position, one command post and a defensive fighting position. All aircraft left the strike areas safely, the Pentagon said.

    The strikes were Washington’s first reported offensive into Anbar since it started attacks on Islamic State forces in the north of Iraq in August.


    http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/08/us-air-strikes-push-isis-back-iraqi-dam

    The US providing Close Air Support, to local troops.
    The ISIS forces are unable to advance, unable to hold.

    ReplyDelete
  14. From $68 per share on 12Sep13, down to $32 per share, today.

    Sodastream

    13 August 2014

    George Soros sold all his holdings in the Israeli company SodaStream

    Billionaire investor George Soros’ family office, Soros Fund Management, has jumped on the divest Israel band wagon.
    He has sold all his holdings in the Israel based company SodaStream, which consisted of 550,000 shares.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Soros who dumped his stock to harm Israel actually has helped it.

      Soda Stream is moving to the Negev. This means 950 high paid jobs for Palestinians will not be eliminated in the West Bank and provide those jobs to Jews!

      I for one think it's a great move to eliminate all jobs that are originated in Israel and or settlements and given to west bank arabs.

      950 of the highest paid jobs for the west bankers are gone...

      bye bye.

      and Soda Stream is a great value as an investment...

      The move will reward the BDS'ers with a pseudo victory, Soda Stream will now not be able to be called an "occupation company" AND will no longer subsidize west bank arabs with health care, wages and working conditions that are on par with western nations...

      :)

      Delete
  15. Little Tony was 9 years old and was staying with his gran for a few days.
    He'd been playing outside with the other kids for a while when he came into the house and asked her,



    'Gran, what's that called when two people sleep in the same room and one is on top of the other?'

    She was a little taken aback, but she decided to tell him the truth. 'It's called sexual intercourse , darling.'

    Little Tony said, 'Oh, OK,' and went back outside to play with the other kids.



    A few minutes later he came back in and said angrily,
    'Gran, it isn't called sexual intercourse . It's called Bunk Beds.
    And Jimmy 's mum wants to talk to you.'

    ReplyDelete

  16. Iraq 'clears' IS from key dam area after US strikes

    Iraqi government forces say they have cleared Islamic State (IS) militants from a wide area around the strategic Haditha dam, helped by US air strikes.

    The jihadists have repeatedly tried to capture the dam on the River Euphrates in the western province of Anbar from government troops and allied tribesmen.

    The action marked a widening of US military action which has previously been restricted to northern Iraq.


    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-29105505

    ReplyDelete
  17. Focus on India -

    September 8, 2014

    New Horizons in India -- Australia Relations

    By Sudhanshu Tripathi

    The just concluded visit of Australia’s Prime Minister Tony Abbot to India has reinvigorated mutual relations already thriving since the visit of former Australian PM Julia Gillard to this country some two years ago. As both the countries share the democratic heritage, the same parliamentary ideals, and also the same language and common perceptions concerning most of the contentious conflicts of the world, their cooperation can ensure peace, prosperity, and security of not only for themselves but for South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Indo-Pacific region. India and Australia can jointly expand existing cooperation to include security and defence, wherein both Australia and India have shared interests in continued American engagement into this region.

    As PM Abbot referred to himself and PM Modi as Prime Ministers for infrastructures, he promised to invest tens of billions in India in order to expand Australia’s business horizons in diverse fields like construction companies, city and system designs, green technology, and also finance. “With the third largest funds under management in the world, Australia can become a financing power-house for India,” he said, pointing out the possibility of investment in other areas like health, biotechnology, information technology, and other sectors.



    Obviously, the PM Abbot’s visit to India reaffirms Australia’s deep penchant for keeping and maintaining very cordial and prosperous relations with India in the first rank of Australia’s relations with other countries. India is already Australia’s fifth largest export market, which Australia wants to further improve in the interest of bilateral trade relations.

    Another important aspect of PM Abbot’s visit to India is for New Delhi to counter rising Chinese imperialist-militarist assertions in the entire East, including the India-Pacific region up to the Indian Ocean. During the recent past, China has resorted to aggressive expansion in all directions, causing territorial disputes with all the littoral countries of Southeast Asia along with India and Russia. Further, China established its ADIZ (Air Defense Identification Zone) last year, declaring its claim over overlapping areas of Japanese and South Korean islands. China intends to assume a role not only of the regional hegemon but that of a global one. The USA has already concluded a military treaty with Australia in the not so distant past to counter the rising expansionism of China, which is in the common interest for the countries in the Asia-Pacific region...........

    http://americanthinker.com/blog/2014/09/new_horizons_in_india__australia_relations.html

    India also has good relations with Israel.

    India, Australia, Israel.......three good countries........

    It is heartening to see them all strengthening ties.

    Cheers !

    ReplyDelete
  18. September 8, 2014

    Hamas using ceasefire to repair terror tunnels, manufacture more rockets

    By Thomas Lifson

    The blood lust of Hamas, like rust, never sleeps. According to Haaretz, the left wing Israeli newspaper, an unnamed Israeli Defense official indicates:

    Israel has received intelligence indicating that Hamas has begun reconstructing the attack tunnels that were destroyed during Operation Protective Edge, a senior Israeli official said on Sunday.

    Two weeks have passed since the cease-fire went into effect, the official said, and Hamas has already begun preparing for the next confrontation with Israel and is focused on replenishing its arsenals.

    The senior official said that Hamas militants have returned to arms smuggling through several tunnels that remain intact under the Philadelphi Route in Rafah. He said that the smuggling continues despite the Egyptian security forces' more concentrated and effective efforts to stamp out the tunnels.

    The official added that production of the M75 rockets – capable of reaching the Gush Dan region in central Israel – has resumed in factories inside the Gaza Strip. He said that even after Operation Protective Edge, 40 percent of Hamas' capability to produce rockets locally remain intact.



    But other “senior officials” deny this report. Hmm, do we think that Hamas has turned over a new leaf and now wants to join hands with Israel to bring about a better life for Gaza residents? I don’t see any signs at all of that.

    Or, could it be that having agreed to a ceasefire without victory, officials who go on the record are unwilling to admit that it only offers an opportunity for Hamas to resume its deadly mission?


    http://americanthinker.com/blog/2014/09/hamas_using_ceasefire_to_repair_terror_tunnels_manufacture_more_rockets.html



    Isn't there some UN Resolution that calls for the disarmament of Gaza?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. .

      Why don't you google it?

      While you are at look up all the resolutions involving Israel and the occupied territories.

      .

      Delete
    2. The lands that are in dispute are called in the important original SC resolution "disputed".

      Delete
    3. The term "occupied" is crap.

      otherwise?

      what isn't "occupied"?

      Be honest....


      Delete
    4. I KNEW some shit would say "why don't you google it".

      I have a ready answer - I was tired and I'm lazy and I was hoping you'd do it for me.

      ha ha

      Delete
  19. ..., the recent economic history of Spain would have looked a lot like that of Florida. Both economies experienced a huge housing boom between 2000 and 2007. Both saw that boom turn into a spectacular bust. Both suffered a sharp downturn...

    Then, however, the paths diverged. In Florida’s case, most of the fiscal burden of the slump fell not on the local government but on Washington... In effect, Florida received large-scale aid in its time of distress.

    Spain, by contrast, bore all the costs of the housing bust on its own. The result ... was a horrific depression... And it wasn’t just Spain, it was all of southern Europe and more. ...

    In short, everything that has happened in Europe since 2009 or so has demonstrated that sharing a currency without sharing a government is very dangerous..
    .

    I find it mind-boggling that Scotland would consider going down this path after all that has happened in the last few years. If Scottish voters really believe that it’s safe to become a country without a currency, they have been badly . . . . . . .

    Economists View

    ReplyDelete
  20. Troops and militia also retook Barwana, east of Haditha, from IS fighters, who abandoned their weapons and vehicles while retreating, AFP reported. However, the governor of Anbar, Ahmed al-Dulaimi, was wounded by an explosion shortly after Barwana was retaken.

    From Rat's link, above.

    ReplyDelete
  21. If I was an HI (headcutter in Iraq) I would be filling up canteens, and trying to chart a route across the desert.

    It's definitely time to "get out of Dawa."

    ReplyDelete
  22. Hamas declares Sept 25 the start of new rocket war on Israel...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies

    1. What is "Occupation"Mon Jul 21, 09:33:00 PM EDT
      If there is one Hamas member still alive and spitting? Israel lost…

      Delete
    2. As long as the Zionists maintain the economic blockade. Keep the seaport and airports closed.
      Well the Zionists are keeping up the fight.

      Have not "Ceased Their Fire,"

      Why would anyone-expect the Palestinians to stop, if the Israeli will not?

      Delete
    3. Jack HawkinsMon Sep 08, 10:36:00 AM EDT

      What is "Occupation"Mon Jul 21, 09:33:00 PM EDT
      If there is one Hamas member still alive and spitting? Israel lost…


      Your argument is so weak you have to lie to make a point?

      Delete
  23. John Simpson: Iran is the most charming country on Earth For John Simpson, Iran’s incredible monuments, dazzling landscapes and hospitable people make it a holiday destination beyond compare

    BY JOHN SIMPSON SEPTEMBER 08, 2014 11:33 TELEGRAPH

    In Tehran, you will encounter a genuine delight to see you: a distinctly old-fashioned affection for westerners, who have vanished from everyday life

    All right, so I’m a travel extremist when it comes to holidays. Don’t come to me with your tales of fortnights in Dubai or the Maldives: it’s Afghanistan and Papua New Guinea that I’m interested in. The first thing I think of, when I hear of trouble in Egypt, is the Valley of the Kings emptying out and being able at long last to get a decent look at Tutankhamen’s belongings.

    This being the case, though, please don’t simply disregard the country I want to suggest to you for a strenuous but immensely rewarding holiday: Iran. OK, now you’re thinking of seething crowds of angry men and black-wrapped women screaming “Death to” whoever it is this week. Stonings. Glowering ayatollahs.

    These things exist, just as the danger of being hijacked in South Africa exists, or being randomly shot in America. But they aren’t the norm. They’re just what people like me put in our news reports.

    So let’s start again, with a clean sheet. Think of a country, largely cut off from the outside world, with a lovely dry climate, sophisticated and charming people, superb archaeological monuments, mountains, deserts, the Caspian Sea. If recent history had been different, it would be the India of the travel business, only without the beggars and the chaos. Iran is, quite simply, the most charming country I know.

    Until recently, it has been a complete secret. But in the past year or so it has opened up a little. I’ve started reading patronising little mentions of it in travel editors’ diaries. A few discerning people are coming back quite starry-eyed from their visits there. Of course, there’s a definite delight in shocking the neighbours, who have only been to Bali. But after the general intake of breath at the drinks party, yours will be a genuinely fascinating story.

    What always strikes me in Iran is the normality of it. If you wandered down the street in Tehran – say Dr Fatemi Avenue, where the old and much-loved hotel, the Laleh, stands – you would find it suspended between West and East, between the modern and something altogether older and more attractive: the Persian past.

    This is not Saudi Arabia: women drive cars, run businesses and often forget to cover their hair as they’re supposed to do. The systems of control exist, but they’re usually discreet. A westerner wouldn’t come into contact with the nastier side of Iranian coercion, as long as he or she behaved and dressed sensibly.

    What you would encounter is a genuine delight to see you: a distinctly old-fashioned affection for westerners, who have vanished from everyday life in Iran. Eating in a Tehran restaurant can sometimes be a trial: so many people want to greet you and indeed pay for your meal.

    {...}

    ReplyDelete
  24. {..}

    I first became aware of this affection in the Eighties, when I ventured out to cover an anti-British demonstration in the city. I was a lot younger then, and accompanied by a charming, fatherly cameraman. The crowd pushed and shoved, and shouted “Marg bar Tacher” – “death to Thatcher”. I asked the cameraman to stand on a low wall and film me as I walked through the angry demonstrators. “I really don’t think you should do this, John,” he said, with a troubled look at the mob. But I’d seen it done before, by an American correspondent. I weaved my way through the crowd, smiling and explaining that I was a Brit, and they opened up a pathway for me, shaking hands and bowing.

    I finally reached the ringmaster, a professional demonstrator who was beating his chest, the spittle shooting from his mouth in his anti-British fervour. “Welcome, welcome to Iran, sir,” he said, and actually kissed my hand. It went down well on the news that night, I promise you.

    All right, you’re saying, that was decades ago. But, you see, Iran has been cut off from the West for so long since then that the longing for contact with westerners has actually grown. If you spend an evening wandering round Isfahan, the incomparable city of Shah Abbas on the Zayandeh River, with the distant foothills of the Zagros purple in the fading light, your main problem will be saying no to the kindly people picnicking in the parks and gardens who beg you to join them.

    “Esfahan nesf-e jahan” the Persians say. “Isfahan is half of the world.” And when you’re there, perhaps drinking a little glass of tea in the courtyard of the Abbasi Hotel, I think you might agree it’s the finer half. You’re probably thinking I’ve been paid by the Iran Tourism Board (if such a thing exists) for saying this. Persians, with their habitual joy in conspiracy theories, certainly would. But I’ve been banned from Iran for five years now, and don’t know if I’ll ever be allowed back. Believe me, the loss is mine.

    Iran is recommended by the Telegraph Travel team as one of the 20 top destinations to visit in 2014. For more on what's on offer, read our guide to holidaying in Iran.

    This article appears in the autumn issue of Ultratravel, the Telegraph's luxury-travel magazine, out on Saturday, September 13.

    ReplyDelete
  25. The majority of people in Iraqi Kurdistan think female genital mutilation (FGM) should be eradicated and blame traditional beliefs for its continued practice.

    In the first survey to investigate attitudes towards FGM in Iraqi Kurdistan, conducted by a coalition of UN agencies and the Kurdish regional government, 68% of people, including religious leaders, said the practice should be eliminated, and almost the same number said it should be banned as a tradition.

    More than 125 million women and girls globally are estimated to be living with the consequences of FGM, according to the World Health Organisation, and 30 million more girls are at risk of being cut. The practice, which involves the partial or total removal of female genitalia, is still carried out in 29 countries in the Middle East and Africa. In 2012, the UN passed a resolution banning FGM.

    But a report published last year by the UN children’s agency Unicef found that FGM was still widespread in the northern regions of Iraq, despite the practice being banned in Kurdistan in 2011.

    The Kurdistan knowledge, attitudes and practices survey, published on Monday, was designed to find the root causes of FGM. It found that while the practice is still a concern, fewer girls are now being cut. Those who are tend to be from illiterate families.

    The survey of 827 households in Irbil and Sulaimaniya governorates in northern Iraq revealed that mothers decided whether their daughters underwent FGM or not, and religious leaders are still perceived to be the major supporters of the practice in their communities. Some 46% of those surveyed think FGM is related to religious beliefs.

    More than 80% of respondents knew that mutilation can reduce sexual desire and sexual satisfaction, and about half (51%) knew it can cause psychological problems, but 57% did not know FGM can cause difficulties in childbirth and 35% were unaware it can cause other health problems. Some 36% of men said they did not know FGM harmed women.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ummm, dude - loser Idaho Bob, that article was referring to you new favorite place - Kurdistan.

      Delete
    2. .

      As Obumble stated when Rufus recently corrected one of his articles,

      Mere details.

      .

      Delete
    3. The guys is a space cadet! I try not to read his droppings but sometimes I get bored and scan a few. For example, down below, he whinges on about Obama giving 40 million of taxpayers money to Hamas. Really? I don't think so but ole b00b wants to believe such a thing so, in his world, it must be true.

      Delete
    4. .

      As you know, it's called 'confirmation bias'.

      Simple minds are prone to it.

      .

      Delete
  26. God and his obsession with human baby genitalia. Imagine if a CEO of a major corporation had a policy on the genitalia of babies born to employees. What puerile disgusting nonsense.

    ReplyDelete
  27. The Trillion Dollar Zombie

    I’ve often remarked on the remarkable tenacity of the inflationista doctrine (Santellinomics? CNBCnomics?) among investors, given the fact that believing the people who have been warning about soaring inflation and interest rates would have lost you a lot of money. How much money? Cordell Eddings at BrookingsBloomberg puts a number to it: $1 trillion in gains on U.S. government bonds since QE began. Actually, this is arguably a low estimate; if you really believed in this stuff, you wouldn’t just have failed to hold US debt, you would have bet against it — as, for example, John Paulson (as described in the article) and Eric Cantor did.

    And let’s be clear: those of us who understood the nature of liquidity traps predicted low rates of both interest and inflation from the beginning — in the face of loud declarations that this was absurd, that big deficits and rapid expansion of the monetary base would of course be inflationary. This has to be one of the . . . . .

    Still Walking

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. .

      Krugman is a whack-job.

      I (and millions others) weren't concerned about the rising interest rates, we were concerned that they weren't rising. In other columns, Krugman actually argues that the Fed's policies (i.e. free money) actually retard trends like the growing wealth disparity. He argues that they actually hurt the people with money and by implication help the people without money. He's nutz.

      .

      Delete
    2. "we were concerned that they weren't rising."


      Would rising interest rates, and a stagnant (or falling) stock market benefit you, Quirk?

      Delete
  28. I'm circumcised and proud of it.

    I'm willing to bet Quirk is circumcised.

    Deuce too.

    And Rufus (probably).

    I get a chuckle when I think of rato being circumcised.

    :)

    Raise your hand, male contributors, if you are not circumcised.

    I bet we all are.

    It's an odd topic to get hung up on is all I got to say.

    ReplyDelete

  29. Hamas: Give Us West Bank So We Can Destroy Israel


    by Khaled Abu Toameh
    September 7, 2014 at 5:00 am

    What Hamas and Iran are saying is that if and when Israel pulls back to the pre-1967 lines, they, together with other Palestinians, would bring weapons into the West Bank to achieve their goal of eliminating the "Zionist entity."

    Abbas's initiative also ignores that Hamas could easily seize control of the West Bank through force or through the promised free and democratic elections, which recent polls show Hamas is assured of winning. Abbas is demanding something that would bring about his own demise.

    If the West Bank had one quarter of the weapons that the Gaza Strip has, Israel would be eliminated in one day. This is what Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahar told worshippers during a sermon he delivered on September 5.

    Zahar, who, during Israel's Operation Protective Edge, spent his time in hiding, was speaking during Friday prayers at Martyr Abdullah Azzam Mosque in Gaza City.

    Abdullah Azzam, by the way, was a Palestinian "scholar," teacher and mentor of Osama bin Laden, the slain leader of Al-Qaeda. Azzam was killed in Pakistan in 1989.

    Back to Zahar, who delivered his first sermon since the Egypt-brokered cease-fire between Hamas and Israel was announced in late August: he chose to remind Palestinians and the rest of the world of his movement's dream to destroy Israel.

    "If only the West Bank had one quarter of what Gaza has of resistance tools, the Israeli entity would end in one day," Zahar declared, reiterating the claim that Hamas had scored a "big victory" in the war.

    The Hamas leader went on to criticize those who still have doubts as to whether Israel could be destroyed...............

    http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/4676/hamas-west-bank

    Their goal is genocide.

    They spoon feed western fools with their propaganda about how they are so oppressed.

    ReplyDelete

  30. Overall the least expensive metal plans from United Healthcare, Aetna, Cigna, and Assurant were significantly more expensive than the least expensive metal plans available on state exchanges. Across the bronze, silver, and gold metal tiers, the least expensive plans offered by the four off-exchange carriers were over 40% more expensive on average than the least expensive plans on the exchanges. This suggests that if these carriers entered new exchanges in 2015, then they would not usually be competitive with the cheapest on-exchange plans unless they substantially lowered their current premiums. It is important to note that these premium costs do not factor premium subsidies, which are only available for on-exchange metal plans.

    That's right: This is before subtracting the tax credits, which 85% of 2014 exchange enrollees received . . . . . .

    Yikes!

    ReplyDelete
  31. Damn !

    Braley has inched up over Ernst in Iowa's Senate race by 1 point.

    This is a shocker to me. I thought it was headed in the other direction.

    ReplyDelete
  32. The headline certainly seems like a Bad Thing, as does the opening paragraph...


    Shift in Oregon Health Plan cuts funds to Eugene shelter program

    EUGENE — One of the last resorts for mentally ill people in Eugene suffering a crisis will be closed this month after a change in state health care policy took one-third of a shelter's money.

    Bummer. See? Obamacare is hurting people...wait, what's that??


    Lane County public health spokesman Jason Davis says the expansion of the Oregon Health Plan means there are fewer indigent, uninsured mentally ill people who need short-term crisis housing.

    With fewer clients forecast to be in indigent programs, the state is reducing contracts with agencies.


    Oh. Never mind.

    Reminds me of the "joke" that if Barack Obama cured cancer, Republicans would attack him for hurting oncologists.

    ACA Signups

    ReplyDelete
  33. Hamas Paid $41,675 for Murder of 3 Israeli Teens

    September 8, 2014 by Daniel Greenfield 3 Comments

    Daniel Greenfield, a Shillman Journalism Fellow at the Freedom Center, is a New York writer focusing on radical Islam. He is completing a book on the international challenges America faces in the 21st century.

    An Israeli woman holds a sign with images of three missing Israeli teenagers, at a rally in Rabin Square in the coastal city of Tel Aviv

    The evidence is coming out, but the Hamasbara truthers, Sheera Frenkel and Katie Zavadski are still sticking to their lies that Hamas was not involved in the murders.




    On June 12, Hamas terrorists from Hebron kidnapped Gil-Ad Sha’er, 16, Naftali Frenkel 16, and Eyal Yifrah, 19, while the three were hitchhiking at Gush Etzion Junction, and shot them dead shortly thereafter when they realized that one of the teens had called the police.

    According to the indictment Qawasme, a senior Hamas operative, received funding for the operation from his brother Mahmoud, a Hamas terrorist who was released to Gaza in the Gilad Schalit deal. Hussam Qawasme obtained total of at least 150,000 shekels to use for the attack, at least some of which is believed to have been transmitted by his mother and another woman who was not named.

    The investigation revealed that the money was used to purchase the vehicles used in the kidnapping, as well as two M-16 assault rifles and two handguns, the latter of which were used to kill the teens. The vehicle used in the kidnapping itself was burned near the town of Dura, while the getaway vehicle was abandoned in Hebron.

    That’s around $41,675 in the current exchange rate.

    These three teens died because of the disastrous Shalit deal. The question is how many will die because of the disastrous ceasefire.

    http://www.frontpagemag.com/2014/dgreenfield/hamas-paid-41675-for-murder-of-3-israeli-teens/

    ................................

    One of the commenters notes that Obama recently gave 40 million of our taxpayers dollars to Hamas, which the United States, Canada, and the European Union have all designated as a Terrorist Organization.

    If this is true, then we have all contributed against our will to these murders.


    ReplyDelete
  34. .

    And now on an entirely different subject.

    Scotland.

    In about a week Scotland will hold a referendum on whether it will leave the UK. There hasn't been a lot of hoopla around the vote because up until now everyone assumed the vote would be 'no'. However, recent polls now indicate that the vote is a toss up.
    And it has people a little shaken up. The UK is already talking about carrots to sway the votes, more autonomy, tax relief, etc.; however, it is hard to judge how effective these measures will be given the short window remaining and the fact that the voting can be done by mail and many of the votes are already in.

    Scotland represents about 25% of the UK GDP. It supplies 60% of the UK's oil. If the vote in the referendum is 'yes' there will be a shit storm of issues that will need to be resolved.

    The pound is down 1.3% today alone. Most markets have sell signals on it leading up to the referendum vote. This has been a contributing factor in boosting the US dollar.

    If Scotland elects to secede from the UK we won't see the military fireworks of a Ukraine civil war, but the political and economic implications could be as dire.

    .

    ReplyDelete
  35. .

    .

    Jack HawkinsMon Sep 08, 10:36:00 AM EDT

    What is "Occupation"Mon Jul 21, 09:33:00 PM EDT
    If there is one Hamas member still alive and spitting? Israel lost…


    Once again, the rat lies and attempts to mislead. The problem for him of course is that his audience knows him.

    .

    ReplyDelete
  36. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, I saw that headline "Destroying ISIS May Take Years, U.S. Officials Say" and I thought of dear Rufus and Rat's confident 10,000 dead men walking meme...

      Delete
    2. Just "stay tuned."

      This operation "in Iraq" is the easiest military operation in U.S. history.

      As for "IS in Syria," I've made NO predictions, there, whatsoever.

      Delete
    3. The border between Syria and Iraq appears to be pretty imaginary. I'm not sure why you think it is a significant line but I doubt IS does.

      Delete
    4. You are, sometimes, breathtakingly stupid.

      Those pickumup trucks need roads, dumbshit.

      When we decide to retake those border crossings you will see that there are TWO countries.

      Delete
    5. Actually, dumb shit, those 4x4 pickups don't need roads at all.

      They do quite well in the open desert.

      Don't let him get away with calling you a dumb shit, Ash.

      Delete
    6. The military analysis of Ash is correct.

      desert rat and swamp rat are wrong.

      Delete
    7. .

      From the WaPo

      The renewed U.S. attacks represent a sharp escalation of a U.S. military campaign that began Aug. 8, when President Obama ordered the Pentagon to intervene in Iraq to stem the rapid advance of the Islamic State, a Sunni extremist group that has swept across the north and west of the country.

      Obama, in an interview Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” said it was time for stepped-up efforts against the Islamic State, which would require additional resources in the region.

      “There’s going to be a military element to it,” he said. “And what I want people to understand, though, is that over the course of months, we are going to be able to not just blunt the momentum of ISIL. We are going to systematically degrade their capabilities. We’re going to shrink the territory that they control. And, ultimately, we’re going to defeat them.” ISIL stands for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, one of the Islamic State’s previous names.

      While the Islamic State’s gains in and around the northern Iraqi city of Mosul have garnered more attention in recent months, the al-Qaeda splinter group with a reputation for brutality has also been consolidating its gains in Sunni-dominated Anbar province since seizing control of its two major cities in January.


      .

      Delete
    8. oh lord, bob's on my side. You must be right Rufus - that border is clearly demarcated and separates the two countries and peoples like oil and water.

      Delete
    9. Well, I'll tell ya what ya do; you get yourself a good ol' Toyota 4X4, load it up with 5 or 6 good buds, and try to drive across Nevada "Offroad." ALONG WITH ANOTHER COUPLE OF HUNDRED OUTFITS JUST LIKE IT.

      Oh, and it the U.S. Air Force (this includes their Global Hawks, Predators, etc) sees you, YOU DIE!!

      Sound like a pretty good game?

      Oh, and don't forget the Fuel, Water, Food, Ammo, and Spare Parts.

      Delete
    10. I don't think there is any doubt the US military, like it did to Saddam's army, can prevail. Even with the complete victory last time we didn't win.

      Delete
    11. Not the same thing, at all. We're not trying to "hold ground" We're just going to kill a few bandits from the air.

      Delete
    12. We kill bandits and they get replaced by what? More bandits.

      Delete
    13. Nah. Think Geronimo. Think Pancho Villa.

      These ain't ordinary bandits.

      Delete
  37. EB Word of the Day: Puerile

    puerile



    [ ˈpyo͝o(ə)rəl, ˈpyo͝orˌīl ]


    adjective

    1.childishly silly and trivial:

    "you're making puerile excuses"

    synonyms: childish · immature · infantile · juvenile · babyish · silly · inane ·

    Powered by OxfordDictionaries · © Oxford University Press

    I have used it here myself.

    Nice word, puerile.

    ReplyDelete
  38. I'll use it in a sentence.

    >>All this blabbing about the traumas of infant circumcision is puerile.<<


    Try having the underside of your penis slit to imitate a woman as the abos in Australia used to do.

    That might really hurt !!

    Since you are fully grown at the time of this occurrence.

    The meaning is: you have surpassed the duality of sexual differentiation in your spiritual development.

    You are now not a man, or a woman, but both.....and more.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. .

      The last couple of sentences sound rather puerile. I can only assume they were editorial in nature given the source of the post.

      .

      Delete
    2. Dear child, that is the meaning of the rite.

      These good black fellows were not Roman Catholics, you know.

      They did not need a priest nor a divine sacrifice to open 'the way' for themselves.

      Delete
    3. You got one of them circlecumsized dicks, Quirk?

      Delete
    4. .

      Nonsense, ritual is merely set up to build loyalty in the clan and to increase the power of those holding the knife. It is an atavistic control mechanism. Its all about segregation and power.

      .

      Delete
    5. Puerile nonsense.

      " Its all about segregation and power."

      Where in Heaven or on Earth or the Nether regions do you come up with such horse shit?

      They were hunter/gatherers, bozo.

      There was no hierarchy whatsoever.

      Each person possessed the entire cultural tradition and skill set.

      And they all did, each and every one, what they had to do........hunt the swift kangaroo like men should do.

      .

      Delete
    6. .

      Not segregation within the group you moron segregation of the group, the tribal imperative. That is why calling the Jews, at least the conservative half and the Zionists, a tribe is an apt description, they self-segregate.

      .

      Delete
  39. This Gaza Civilian Murdered by Israel had his Own RPG

    September 8, 2014 by Daniel Greenfield 2 Comments

    Daniel Greenfield, a Shillman Journalism Fellow at the Freedom Center, is a New York writer focusing on radical Islam. He is completing a book on the international challenges America faces in the 21st century.

    I’m not sure what’s causing me to doubt that Aadel Mohammed Abu Hwaishel was a civilian.It might be the Hamas clothes, the gun or the RPG. At least he’s keeping the RPG thoughtfully pointed at the window.



    But we shouldn’t jump to conclusions. Maybe Mo was just a civilian who liked to play dress up and wave an RPG around his living room.


    PCHR says that ‘Aadel Mohammed Abu Hwaishel, 38, killed on July 22, was a civilian.

    Here are photos of this beloved “civilian” who happened to be a commander in the Qassam Brigades – a fact that was known the same day as the reports, but that PCHR decided to hide.

    Elder of Ziyon has also found a photo of Mo threatening to shoot a rock. If only that rock had been an Israeli jet he might still be alive today.
    ..........

    See photos of fully armed Gaza civilian posing with his grenade launcher here -

    http://www.frontpagemag.com/2014/dgreenfield/this-gaza-civilian-murdered-by-israel-had-his-own-rpg/



    ReplyDelete
  40. IS couldn't take Samarrah, or even Haditha. Not even All of Tikrit.

    Now, they've been kicked off the Mosul Dam, and all surrounding towns, and villages. Away from Sindal Mountain. They're being shooed away from the Haditha Dam, and every day they lose another thirty, forty, fifty, one hundred, or more men.

    Yeah, they're just tearing up the ol'[ pea patch, they are.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Media is desperate for a "war," (a Big, Big, Big, Big, Huge, Monstrous, Mother of All Wars) and you dumb fucks are falling for it, "One More Time.

      This is not, and will never be, a "War."

      This will be a slow, boring killing of a band of not particularly bright bandits.

      Delete
    2. Just like this goofy line from the Wa Post:

      "The renewed U.S. attacks represent a sharp escalation of a U.S. military campaign that began Aug. 8, when President Obama ordered the Pentagon to intervene in Iraq to . . . . ."

      There is no "Sharp Escalation." You're looking at the same number of missions both days.


      They want Draaaama. They will try like hell to give you Draaaaama.

      The "analysts," and pundits on tv will try to give you a "Biiiig Stooory." The New "WAAaaar."

      But, it's bullshit.

      It's "fly-swatting."

      It's a Joke.

      Delete
    3. .

      Gee, no doubt you are right Rufus. When actions in this little tussle are terminated no doubt it will replace Reagan's 'lovely little war' in Grenada as the 'the easiest military operation in U.S. history'.

      On October 25, U.S. Marines invaded Grenada, where they encountered unexpectedly heavy antiaircraft fire and ground resistance by the Cuban soldiers and laborers building the controversial airstrip. In two days they subdued the air and ground forces.

      Reagan's credibility was bolstered by what the 5,000-strong American invading force found on the island: a cache of weapons that could arm 10,000 men -- automatic rifles, machine guns, rocket launchers, antiaircraft guns, howitzers, cannon, armored vehicles and coastal patrol boats. In all, out of 800 Cubans, 59 were killed, 25 were wounded, and the rest were returned to Havana upon surrender. Forty-five Grenadians died, and 337 were wounded. America also suffered casualties: 19 dead and 119 wounded. The medical students came home unharmed.


      http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/reagan-grenada/

      --------------------------------------------


      For Reagan, Grenada was an unmitigated success: a defeat of Communism and Castro, and a warning to the Marxist Sandinistas in Nicaragua. Fortunately for Reagan, by the time of the 1984 election, the Grenada success replaced the bitter memory of the massacre at Lebanon.

      .

      Delete
    4. 1,000 times easier than Grenada; in Granada it was American troops. In this instance, it's Iraqi/Kurdish/Iranian troops.

      Delete
  41. .

    The "analysts," and pundits on tv will try to give you a "Biiiig Stooory." The New "WAAaaar."

    That is "sooooooo" pre-2011.

    Everyone knows this is merely a non-time limited, spacial indeterminate, kinetic engagement.

    .

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Or, as I am prone to put it, "Aerial Target Practice."

      Delete
    2. So, why is Obama going along with this language?

      Easy. People love seeing their army killing foreigners, and

      there's an election coming up.

      stop.

      Delete
    3. Oh, and about that trek in the 4X4 Toyota out across the Nevada Desert.

      If you can make it 50 miles in that pickup, loaded down with men, ammo, weapons, food, water, fuel, spare parts, etc,. without blowing a transmission, bending a tie rod, breaking an axle, dropping a drive shaft, knocking a hole in the radiator, or having more flats than you have spares,

      I'll promise to die of a heart attack on the spot.

      Delete
    4. You may wish to revise and resubmit. I owned a Toyota Landcruiser for ten year in Costa Rica before Costa Rica went fancy. I took it everywhere and anywhere. I notice the ISIS trucks of choice are Toyotas, all variants of the Landcruiser.

      I hate to see you end that way.

      Delete
    5. So be it, but all the same , double up on the daily aspirin.

      Delete
    6. It's obvious Rufus has never had a decent pickup.

      Delete
    7. pickup truck, I should be clear

      Delete
    8. It's obvious you've never tried to drive a loaded pickup across the desert.

      And, I've had some fine 4 wheel drive pickups.

      Delete
    9. Ah, but I have.

      In Northern Nevada.

      No problem at all.

      If it's total sand dunes like one thinks of in Egypt you might need to get some wider tires.

      Delete
  42. Interesting from the BBC:

    Iran says it has arrested Afghan and Pakistani citizens who were trying to join Islamic State (IS) jihadists fighting in Syria and Iraq.

    Iranian Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani said the foreigners planned to cross Iran - but did not specify how many had been arrested, or where.

    Shia Iran is opposed to the Sunni extremists of IS, who have undermined its allies in Iraq and Syria.

    Iran is said to be prepared to work alongside the US against IS in Iraq.

    Sources in Tehran told BBC Persian last week that Iran's Supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had authorised his top commander to co-ordinate the fight against IS with US, Kurdish and Iraqi forces.

    However, Iran's foreign ministry denied that it would co-operate with the US against IS.

    Iran has traditionally opposed US involvement in Iraq, an Iranian ally.

    Recently however, both the US and Iran have offered military assistance to combat IS in Iraq, while refusing to place their troops on the ground.

    US Secretary of State John Kerry is due in Jordan and Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to try to build regional support to counter the threat posed by Islamic State, a US state department spokeswoman said.

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  43. Now harken back to what was being reported not that many months ago:

    ibtimes.com

    A new report from GlobalPost indicates that Israeli forces have been operating in “a non-combat capacity” beyond the demarcation line in the Golan Heights. The Israelis seem to be in the area to identify and provide medical care to wounded Syrian rebels.

    The region immediately east of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights is held by Syrian rebel forces. An anonymous Israeli source told GlobalPost the Syrians are taken into Israel to receive medical care and then transported back across the border.

    “It’s a terrible situation there. Injured people are dying in the field because of a lack of medical treatment. Sometimes they just bleed,” retired IDF Col. Eshkol Shokron told GlobalPost. “If possible, caring for them on the border without bringing them into Israel is better. I think the army is doing things in the field.”

    Another IDF spokesman did not deny that forces might be operating across the Israel-Syrian truce line that has held since the 1973 war, but would not comment on whether they were operating in a military capacity, such as by flying drones.

    “The IDF places a great deal of importance on the provision of humanitarian care when necessary. As such, we have provided initial medical assistance to a number of Syrians over the past few months,” the spokesman told GlobalPost in an email.

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  44. General Soleimani, and his quds buds, were involved in the Mosul Dam cleaning.

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  45. The Arab League has signed on.

    The end game might be the removal of Assad from Syria.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Or, maybe Obama just doesn't want us to be in it alone. The mean ol' Americans bombing the poor Muslims, again.

      Delete
    2. Rufus, that is where I think you are going astray. It is not simply America bombing poor old Muslims. It is much more granular than that. It is a seething cauldron of ethnic hatreds and alliances with every Tom Dick and Harry willing to enlist America to bolster their agenda. To think that a Sunni Islamic State, a caliphate, is just the wet dream of 10 thousands bandits is simply the naive fantasy of an aging middle American arm chair general. unfortunately I think there is much more to it than that. Hopefully you are right and I am wrong but if the past is prelude to the future you are wrong yet again.

      Delete
    3. You're the guy that would have left 40,000 to die on that mountain, rather than drop a handful of bombs.

      And, you're Canadian.

      You really don't count.

      Delete
  46. The bulk of the strategy is expected to be hammered out later this month at the annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, where a new Security Council resolution could give Obama and his allies the legal cover and broad international backing to launch more strikes.

    ...

    The president does plan to meet with congressional leaders on Tuesday. On Monday, Senate Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin urged Congress to support the new government in Baghdad and persuade other Mideast countries to join the fight against the Islamic State.

    "I hope the seriousness of the ... threat will encourage members of both parties to unify in this important cause," Levin said.

    ReplyDelete
  47. .

    1,000 times easier than Grenada; in Granada it was American troops. In this instance, it's Iraqi/Kurdish/Iranian troops.

    God willing you are correct.

    Still...

    Reagan used 5,000 troops and the operation took two days. We currently have 1000 troops in theater (at least) in Iraq and this little tussle is projected to last a few years, if it goes as planned. And there are what I would consider knowable unknowables. For instance, can Obama resist the push from the neocons, the MIC, and other lobbying groups that will be looking to expand American participation as well as the scope of the war?

    We shall see.

    .

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  48. An Iraqi airstrike on Thursday (September 4th) killed Abu Hajar al-Souri, a top aide to "Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant" (ISIL) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Iraqi Ministry of Defence said.


    "The Iraqi army air hawks were able to make a direct hit on one of ISIL's main strongholds in Tal al-Rumman, west of Mosul, killing Abu Hajar al-Souri, the right arm of ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and those with him," the ministry said in a statement released by Al-Iraqiya state television.

    The airstrike killed "seven prominent leaders in the group, most of them Arab and foreign fighters", ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mohammed al-Askari told Mawtani.


    "Abu Hajar is considered a key leader in the group and the second-in-command for planning and executing terrorist operations," the spokesman said. "He used to move between Iraq and Syria on an on-going basis to follow up on the group's members."

    The army plans to release additional details about the operation after carrying out the necessary investigations, he added.

    Citizens' co-operation key

    Deputy Air Force Commander Lt. Gen. Hamed Attia said the air raid "took place after days of surveillance, information-gathering and communications intercepted by locals about the presence of al-Souri in the region".

    Attia said the attack was the fruit of security co-operation with citizens.

    Iraqi MP Hassan al-Sunaid described the air raid as a positive step.

    "The death of Abu Hajar al-Souri will be welcome news for the thousands of families of terrorism victims, and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis displaced because of ISIL," he said.

    Co-operation between civilians and the security forces is continuously increasing, al-Sunaid said.

    Iraqis in Mosul and its suburbs also are welcoming the news, said Ibrahim al-Hassan, deputy chairman of the Ninawa tribal council.

    "This criminal did not stop at what he did in his own country and came to our country to continue his crimes," al-Hassan said.

    "He received what he deserves and others should expect a similar fate," he added.

    Swat

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  49. Iraq's defence ministry also said a top aide to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi had been killed in a strike on Mosul, but neither death has been confirmed.

    Separately, IS fighters were reported to have kidnapped 40 men from a town in northern Iraq on Thursday.

    The group has taken over swathes of Iraq and Syria in recent months.

    Iraqiya TV quoted defence officials as saying Abu Alaa al-Iraqi, head of the IS military council in the city of Tal Afar, had died in an air strike.

    Swat, Swat

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    Replies
    1. Israel has been doing and saying the same thing about PLO and Hamas folk (and Hezbollah) for years and years and years yet still the bandits seem to be out there.

      Delete
  50. I found a fantastic video on the current actions by the Kurds in fighting the ISIS. Now here are some Middle Easterners that any right minded humanist can admire. I have been suspicious of the ass-stabbing Turks for some time. Watch on the next post and you will see real heroic actions by ordinary people who love freedom and deserve our support.

    ReplyDelete