COLLECTIVE MADNESS
“Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."
Half the stations have reported, and it's
ReplyDeleteLeave: 51.5
Remain: 48.5
I don't see how Scotland remains in the UK, in or out..
ReplyDeleteWay over my pay grade. :)
DeleteWatch results here:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bbc.com/news/politics/eu_referendum/results
(You need to refresh periodically)
Brexit is ahead of Bremain by something like half a million votes right now.
I notice all the small islands voting to Bremain.
Deuce's site is good also.
DeleteScotland at this point -
ReplyDeleteLeave 897,801
Remain 1,511,388
British Pound is on track for biggest one-day fall in History!
ReplyDeleteDow futures are Down 500.
ReplyDeleteThere seems to be something of a city/country divide going on here. The corrupt city folks wanting to remain, the noble country folk wanting their nation back.
ReplyDeleteSinn Féin calls for vote on Irish reunification if UK backs Brexit
ReplyDeleteGuardian
Awesome....
DeleteThe EU is a bloated, arrogant sack of shit....
Good riddance, may they all separate...
:)
DeleteThis might stir up The Troubles once again.
The Young, and the Educated voted overwhelmingly to Stay.
ReplyDeleteThe Old, and Non-educated voted to Go.
BBC calls it.
DeleteIt's a "go."
Deemocracy is a sumbitch, ain't it? :) :) :)
With age comes wisdom, and the 'educated' are often quirks.
DeleteLook at our universities....
I'm sure the Rick Santellis of the world will be lining up to apologize to Janet Yellen,
Deleteright?
right?
Yeah, right. :) :)
"The Young, and the Educated voted overwhelmingly to Stay.
ReplyDeleteThe Old, and Non-educated voted to Go."
Interesting, those indoctrinated in Socialism voted to stay.
Those who work for a living voted to go..
Sounds like the USA>
Go TRUMP
I'm with the wise old and the 'uneducated' as well.
DeleteGO TRUMP
Sky News is now predicting that Brexit will win.
ReplyDeleteDamn, I bought Jun 29 Calls on the VIX at $23. This should be interesting.
ReplyDeleteI take it that is bad.
DeleteThough I suppose it could be read as good.
Have no idea what VIX is and I don't gamble so don't want to know !
17.25 at present
DeleteNow I know:
DeleteVIX
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) 1985–2012.
VIX is a trademarked ticker symbol for the CBOE Volatility Index, a popular measure of the implied volatility of S&P 500 index options; the VIX is calculated by the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE). Often referred to as the fear index or the fear gauge, the VIX represents one measure of the market's expectation of stock market volatility over the next 30-day period.
The idea of a volatility index, and financial instruments based on such an index, was first developed and described by Professor Menachem Brenner and Prof. Dan Galai in 1986. Professors Brenner and Galai published their research in the academic article "New Financial Instruments for Hedging Changes in Volatility," which appeared in the July/August 1989 issue of Financial Analysts Journal.[1]
In a subsequent paper, Professors Brenner and Galai proposed a formula to compute the volatility index.[2]
Professors Brenner and Galai wrote "Our volatility index, to be named Sigma Index, would be updated frequently and used as the underlying asset for futures and options... A volatility index would play the same role as the market index play for options and futures on the index."
It is awesome. I hope. It measure volatility in the market and the currencies are now in a whirlpool.
DeleteI just placed two sell orders, half at $30 and the other half at $39. After the open I’ll buy some September puts at $23 .
RESULTS...
ReplyDeleteIT'S A BREXIT!
Markets Roiled; Gold Jumps...
SKY LIVE... BBC LIVE...
World watches...
POUND IN HISTORIC COLLAPSE...
CAMERON FUTURE IN DOUBT....DRUDGE
I think I heard this right....the old dying industrial areas voted for Brexit.
DeleteCity of Financial Slickers, London, votes to Bremain.
DeleteMaybe Trump will win Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania, Ohio and Florida and Trump's got a real chance to win.
Delete***************
Trading on London Stock Exchange may be halted today.
This vote is very good for Trump. There is a real shift in most countries against the establishment. Too bad we don’t have a democracy. The establishment never did respect or trust the majority of Americans and will never willingly give us a referendum.
DeleteIt is an anger vote against the machine.
DeleteHillary, Obama on WRONG side of history...DRUDGE
ReplyDeleteBoris Johnson may be the new Prime Minister -
DeletePics of Boris:
https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=boris+johnson&qpvt=Boris+Johnson&qpvt=Boris+Johnson&FORM=IARRSM
He's even got a kinda Trumpian hair do.
"He's unapologetic, which I think is kind of nice because it's a change from those dirty politicians," said Dara Held, 40, a stay-at-home mother who sells jewelry and purses. "He's not that.
ReplyDelete...
Sarah MajKowski, the pro-Clinton web designer, agreed Trump was honest but likened him to "the way a child is honest because they don't know any better."
On the other hand, many comments about Clinton echoed the finding in polls that many voters consider her dishonest.
Northern Ireland and Scotland, both voted to remain.
ReplyDeleteEverybody is sick and tired of being sick and tired.
ReplyDeleteSounds just like my wife:
Delete"I'm sick of all this shit"
Being you and educated is a recipe for idiocy.
ReplyDeleteAnd a train wreck.
DeleteIt also means you've been influenced by a bunch of crackpot weirdo left wing wing nut tenured dipshit professors.
DeleteYoung not you.
DeleteNow maybe the palesintians will vote out hamas and Abbas...
ReplyDeletewho knows..
RBOB is down $0.08 / gal. :)
ReplyDeleteIt's an ill wind that blows No good. :)
:) Old, and Ignorant - now, That's the Right Side of History. :)
ReplyDeleteold and wise.
Deleteseasoned and thoughtful..
:)
The Socialists died today in England.
Good
No such thing as old and uneducated. What a moronic statement.
ReplyDeleteRufus thinks the young and Indoctrinated possess superior knowledge and wisdom.
DeleteThat's a bizarre Scotland vote. They almost voted to 'Scexit' themselves not long ago.
ReplyDeleteUnless is it was a close 'Scremain'. That would be inline.
DeletePM Cameron to speak soon.
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking he will throw in the towel.
Hey, I actually got one right !
DeleteHe has said new leadership is now needed, he will help with the transition, gave a short excellent statement and said he'd be gone by October.
A vote against Soros and his puppets, i. e. HRC, etc.
ReplyDeleteI just removed my sell orders
ReplyDeleteI’ll up them to $50.
ReplyDeleteThe Donald has landed at his Scottish golf course.
ReplyDeleteNow what would be more exciting than a joint presser with Boris Johnson !
Since he's in the general area....he could invite Boris for a free round of golf....
Vix is a Vapor Rub, Bob.
ReplyDeleteIsn't that Vrix ?
DeleteHillary's IT Guy, Bryan Pagliano was given immunity, yet he took the 5th over 120 times.
ReplyDeleteI'm confused.
Immunity didn't extend to this Judicial Watch deposition, only to the FBI investigation's deposition.
DeleteI'm thinking he might just happen to have something to fear here, something to hide, but that's just a hunch, mind you....
Well, if he's young and educated, everything should be Okie Doke.
Deletehttps://theconservativetreehouse.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/obama-door-kick.gif?w=624&h=366
ReplyDeleteBarack Obama has warned that the UK would be at the “back of the queue” in any trade deal with the US if the country chose to leave the EU.
Deletehttp://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/apr/22/barack-obama-brexit-uk-back-of-queue-for-trade-talks
I gotta get some shuteye.
ReplyDeleteEnjoyable thread....
Later....
Hamas fears growing wave of defections to Israel by senior figures
ReplyDeleteDEBKAfile June 23, 2016, 4:44 PM (IDT)
The military wing of Hamas has taken a series of steps in an attempt to prevent senior organization figures from defecting to Israel in the future. At least four people in key positions defected during the past few months, most prominently Bassam Mahmoud Baraka from Khan Yunis who turned himself as well as his laptop computer over to the Israeli authorities. Under the new steps, those in "sensitive" positions are banned from approaching the zone next to the border fence. They are also monitored personally and electronically as well as subject to other unspecified means of deterrence, Arab media outlets in Gaza and London reported on Wednesday.
change is coming
.
ReplyDeleteWe have seen the hair's on fire rhetoric of the elites, Obama, Cameron, Merkel, the other leaders of the EU, and the world's 'economists'.
Did Brexit win in spite of it or because of it?
.
.
ReplyDeleteWhat is "Occupation"Thu Jun 23, 08:39:00 PM EDT
The central role played by Article 42 of the Hague Regulations
After some fluctuations,8 the definition of occupation was conclusively established in Article 42 of the Hague Regulations: ‘Territory is considered occupied when it is actually placed under the authority of the hostile army. The occupation extends only to the territory where such authority has been established and can be exercised.’
Bottom line?
Gaza is NOT occupied by Israel.
You offer us the Israeli line. Unfortunately, the world doesn’t agree. The Hague treaties go on at length about occupying powers and the rules applying to them. These are also supplemented in the Geneva conventions. Citing one section of the conventions doesn’t encompass the obligations of an occupying power.
Israel's position has not been accepted by most countries and international bodies, and the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and the Gaza Strip are referred to as occupied territories (with Israel as the occupying power) by most international legal and political bodies,[96] the rest of the Arab bloc, the UK,[97] including the EU, the United States,([6], [7]), both the General Assembly and Security Council of the United Nations,[96] the International Court of Justice, the Conference of High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention,[98]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestinian_territories#cite_note-64
There are many demands outlined in the treaties for an occupation to be considered ended. One simple one is that the ‘occupied’ party must accept that the occupation is over and that the ‘occupying’ party recognizes the government it leaves in place. Neither of these has happened. Israel doesn’t recognize the Hamas government in Gaza as legitimate. The also do not consider Gaza a free, independent state. Also, in 2005, when Israel evacuated Gaza, Abbas declared the action did not change the status of Gaza as part of the ‘occupied Palestinian territories’. The world agrees. The term ‘occupied Palestinian territories’ is a term used by the UN to define the totality of Palestine including the West Bank, East Jerusalem, AND Gaza. That has not changed.
The quote you put up above defines the disagreement.
‘Territory is considered occupied when it is actually placed under the authority of the hostile army.
Those who disagree with Israel’s interpretation do not consider the redeployment of Israeli troops from inside Gaza proper to its borders as sufficient. They still maintain that Israel is exercising ‘effective control’ over Gaza since it controls every aspect of the Gazan population’s daily life. They control its borders, its airspace, its access by sea, what goods enter or exit, who can enter or leave, etc., you name it.
Quirk twists and distorts the simplest meaning of everything so he can win an argument.
No, I merely state the reality accepted by most of the world.
.
Let's back off to about, oh, say, 90,000 ft., and take a look at the world's financial situation.
ReplyDeleteThe first thing you see is: a totally unnatural situation with interest rates. Negative Interest Rates? Bubba, that's fucked up. That's not just a "broken" situation; that's a "we done fell off the edge of the universe" situation.
Forget everything else that might be going on in the world; until we figure this one out, there's no use even looking at anything else.
Well, as it turns out, the answer to this one is really simple (but, it's Not something the monied elites of the world want to fix.) You see, this is what happens when the 1%, or probably more accurately, the 0.001% have rounded up all the money. I'm not going to sit here and write a book about this, it's very simple once you really get to thinking about it.
Now, what can be done. There's only one thing; you've got to shake a lot of it loose. Your boss, and the politicians that work for your boss, aren't going to like this idea very much. They're going to scream "Socialism, Communism, Theft," etc., but that's what has to be done.
Either raise taxes on the super-wealthy, by a lot, or . . . turn on the telly, pop a beer, and wait for the new hit show "You're Guillotined!"
.
DeleteForget everything else that might be going on in the world; until we figure this one out, there's no use even looking at anything else.
I would only comment that you refer to the world financial situation but concentrate on the situation in the US. I agree with your idea that we need to boost demand throughout the US and that tax policy changes would help; however, we are in a world of shit (no pun intended) and the US can't solve it by ourselves.
Income growth is flat around the world. Central banks are currently shooting blanks. Growth worldwide is anemic. Earnings are flat or down. As is investment. Debt is spiraling up. I can't think of any one thing that is going to turn this around.
I think I'll grab that beer and turn on the Xbox.
.
We don't, necessarily, need more debt (although, when the government can borrow for 30 years at 2.54%, a little borrowing for infrastructure might not be the worst thing imaginable.)
DeleteNo, the first step would be to push up wages - start with the minimum wage - and, then try to get Warren Buffet's tax rate up to at least equal to his secretary's.
.
ReplyDeleteOur daily post from the Idaho Mensa Asylum (IMA)...
You, Sir Quirk, had Israel annexing Gaza and occupying it with IDF troops, you double dolt.
You sir, by this statement show the simplicity of your thinking process, your inability to consider context as it determines content, and your inability to understand the meaning of the term 'effective' relative to the concepts of de jure and de facto. Here is the comment YOU put up to defend your claims.
QuirkWed May 11, 07:08:00 PM EDT
You forget the big difference, WiO, the U.S. had the balls to admit what
we were doing.
Israel didn't. They still refuse to say that they have effectively annexed
the West Bank, Gaza, parts of East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights. Until
they admit it, under international law, they are an occupying force.
Simple.
First, the context. This statement was made in response to a series of posts WiO put up stating his opinion that not only is Israel not an occupying power but that if Israel is considered an occupier then the US must be considered the same given the nature of how we gained much of our country and possessions. I was arguing that it was a facetious argument since the US never denied that it was a conquering power while Israel has never formally stated that they have annexed the occupied territories. Until they do that or turn all of the properties over to the ‘occupied’ powers, they will be considered the occupier under international law.
Your reference to Gaza flows from my two sentences…
They still refuse to say that they have effectively annexed
the West Bank, Gaza, parts of East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights. Until
they admit it, under international law, they are an occupying force.
In the first sentence, the word ‘effectively’ refers to two elements of my argument.
One is, as I stated to WiO above, the UN and most of the world still contend that despite Israel’s redeployment of troops from Gaza proper to its borders it still maintains ‘effective control’ of Gaza.
Two, within the Hague treaties mentioned by WiO an ‘occupation’ is considered to be a temporary situation. For instance, the Allied occupation of Germany after WWII lasted from 1945-1949. The American Occupation of Japan lasted from 1945-1952. Israel has occupied the Palestinian Territories from 1967 to today, almost 50 years, the longest occupation in history.
On that basis, given my reading of the definition of occupation and statements by Bibi and others in the Israeli government, it’s my opinion that Israel has ‘effectively’ annexed the Occupied Territories including Gaza (see my rationale in my post to WiO above).
However, as my last sentence points out even if the world refuses to accept the de facto annexation as de jure, it doesn’t change the fact that until Israel formally annexes these territories Israel will be considered an occupier.
Your statement that I said Israel still has troops ‘within’ Gaza proper merely illustrates your ongoing confusion.
.
.
DeleteBy the way, you never denied what you said till Smirk came up with your phony excess, arsehole.
I am still not denying it you dumbshit.
Excuse?
Ash called you an idiot. That is not an excuse.
As for not responding to you stupid comment before, while I did talk about annexation or, at least, ‘effective annexation’, I never said Israel currently had IDF troops ‘in’ Gaza proper and I had no idea what the heck you were talking about.
Plus based on your comment…
You've forgotten, O Great One, that I rarely scroll back, and never for you.
And my response
That's fine dipshit. In the future, don't bother asking me questions.
I stopped responding to any of your comments or questions for about a month. Looking back at the time and aggravation that decision saved me I’m thinking it’s probably time to reinstate that practice.
You are not worth wasting time on.
.
OH DO SHUT UP QUIRK - THIS THREAD IS ABOUT BREXIT - EVEN I AM BORED OF YOUR TALK TALK TALK - THINK HOW MUSH WORSE OTHERS MUST FEEL LISTENING TO YOU
DeleteThere are much more interesting things. Just shut up for awhile.
Please.
Bob, of all the folks here who should SHUT UP it is you. Your response here to Quirk just emphasizes how much of an idiot you are.
DeleteQuirk: You offer us the Israeli line. Unfortunately, the world doesn’t agree
ReplyDeleteNo, I merely state the reality accepted by most of the world.
The world's opinion?
LOL
There you have it Quirk, the world?
Is this the same world that condemns israel in the UN for human rights atrocities with committees headed by Saudi Arabia, Syria or Iran?
Is this the SAME world who is silent about the literally hundreds of thousands butchered in Sudan while accusing Israel of war crimes in Gaza?
Sorry Quirk, there in lies the difference between us,
The world's opinion?
Means nothing to me.
They are a corrupt, Jew hating, Israel hating, Zionist bashing collection of dingle berries (and I DO mean dingle berries)
The world's opinion..
Laughable.
So to end our discussion here is the settlement between us.
You care and site "world opinion" (in the case of Israeli issues) and their positions.
I care and take the the position that the World would be thrilled to see Israel erased.
Sorry if Israel and the Jewish people refused to accept that reality and not cooperate with the famed "world's" position..
I think Brexit won because the government, mandated by Brussels, was about to take away their electric tea kettles for the British because they used too much electricity.
ReplyDeleteThis was the final straw, just too damned much.
Like our light bulb edicts, or something.
(I am not getting this from the gals on Outnumbered, who are talking about it right now. I read an article about how pissed the Brits were over this silliness some days ago)
UN Human Rights Council Condemns Israel's Treatment of Golan Druze
ReplyDeleteThe resolution, reached after years of slaughter in Syria and advanced by Assad-supporting council members, strengthens criticism of bias against the council.
read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.710712
The United Nations Human Rights Council - which has been harshly criticized by Israel and its allies in the international community for allegations of acuate bias against the Jewish state - passed a resolution on Thursday condeming Israel for its alleged abuse and violation of the human rights of the Druze who reside in the Golan Heights.
The decision was passed in the same week as the world marked the fifth anniversary of the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War, in which hundreds of thousands of people have been killed.
The resolution was advanced by a number of the few countries that still support the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, such as Bolivia, Cuba and Venezuela, as well as Pakistan and Namibia. Thirty-one countries, headed by Russia and the Arab and Muslim members of the council, voted in favor of the resolution. Sixteen countries, among them all European members of the council, abstained.
The resolution says that the council is "Deeply concerned at the suffering of the Syrian citizens in the occupied Syrian Golan due to the systematic and continuous violation of their fundamental and human rights by Israel since the Israeli military occupation of 1967." The resolution further states as illegal the 1981 Israeli annexation of the Golan Heights, adding that Israel must cease settlement construction there.
The council's resolution calls on Israel to "desist from imposing Israeli citizenship and Israeli identity cards on the Syrian citizens" in the Golan Heights and to allow them to visit their relatives in Syria.
The resolution also calls on UN member states not to recognize the Israeli annexation of the Golan Heights.
the world's opinion?
LAUGHABLE
BTW, Israel ANNEXED the Golan Heights.
QUIRK: On that basis, given my reading of the definition of occupation and statements by Bibi and others in the Israeli government, it’s my opinion that Israel has ‘effectively’ annexed the Occupied Territories including Gaza (see my rationale in my post to WiO above).
However, as my last sentence points out even if the world refuses to accept the de facto annexation as de jure, it doesn’t change the fact that until Israel formally annexes these territories Israel will be considered an occupier.
Please never refer to the Golan as "occupied " again... :)
.
DeleteI won't, if in fact Israel has actually confirmed they annexed the Golan.
I was going by two things.
One, Bibi has been politicking with leaders around the world lately and specifically Obama to recognize and accept Israel's permanent occupation (i.e. annexation) of the Golan Heights using as his reason the current current situation in Syria.
Two, after one of Bibi's statements indicating that the Golan Heights were now part of Israel, a government spokesman came out and said Bibi's comment were misunderstood.
I assume the confusion is simple because of diplomatic issues between the parties and the fact that most don't (or politically can't) accept Israel's position.
However, I have no problem with Israel saying they have annexed the Golan Heights or even the Palestinian Territories including East Jerusalem for that matter . Most of the world might disagree with me but face facts, after 50 years if Israel hasn't given this land back by now they won't be doing it, not willingly.
Calling a spade a spade.
.
One major sticking point has been, O Uninformed, the continual 'Palestinian' insistence on 'The Right of Return'.
DeleteThey know Israel cannot ever accept this so they keep insisting as they have had no real interest in an agreement.
They are pledged to genocide the Jews.
They don't deserve a state.
Then they become Israelis
DeleteVoters in Israeli elections.
Millions of 'em
Quirk is nearly enough sometimes to drive a man to an EBexit.
ReplyDeleteI was listening to Trump in Scotland late last night. Gave a good talk, about both his golf course and Brexit.
One thing I noticed is he has quite a remarkable memory for people's names. Name after name of folks having to do with the golf course came tumbling out....and he seemed, for once, a little tired from his trip too....
How Brexit Will Change America and the World
ReplyDeleteBritain is free of global government. America can be next.
June 24, 2016
Daniel Greenfield
Yesterday the British people stood up for their freedom. Today the world is a different place.
Celebrities and politicians swarmed television studios to plead with voters to stay in the EU. Anyone who wanted to leave was a fascist. Economists warned of total collapse if Britain left the European Union. Alarmist broadcasts threatened that every family would lose thousands of pounds a year if Brexit won.
Even Obama came out to warn Brits of the economic consequences of leaving behind the EU.
Every propaganda gimmick was rolled out. Brexit was dismissed, mocked and ridiculed. It was for lunatics and madmen. Anyone who voted to leave the benevolent bosom of the European Union was an ignorant xenophobe who had no place in the modern world. And that turned out to be most of Britain.
While Londonistan, that post-British city of high financial stakes and low Muslim mobs, voted by a landslide to remain, a decisive majority of the English voted to wave goodbye to the EU. 67% of Tower Hamlets, the Islamic stronghold, voted to stay in the EU. But to no avail. The will of the people prevailed.
And the people did not want migrant rape mobs in their streets and Muslim massacres in their pubs. They were tired of Afghani migrants living in posh homes with their four wives while they worked hard and sick of seeing their daughters passed around by “Asian” cabbies from Pakistan in ways utterly indistinguishable from the ISIS slave trade while the police looked the other way so as not to appear racist. And, most of all, they were sick of the entire Eurocratic establishment that let it all happen.
British voters chose freedom. They decided to reclaim their destiny and their nation from the likes of Count Herman Von Rompuy, the former President of the European Council, selected at an “informal” meeting who has opposed direct elections for his job and insisted that, “the word of the future is union.”
When Nigel Farage of UKIP told Count Von Rompuy that “I can speak on behalf of the majority of British people in saying that we don't know you, we don't want you and the sooner you are put out to grass, the better,” he was fined for it by the Bureau of the European Parliament after refusing to apologize. But now it’s Farage and the Independence Party who have had the last laugh.
DeleteThe majority of British people didn’t want Count Von Rompuy and his million-dollar pension, or Donald Tusk, Angela Merkel, Francois Hollande and the rest of the monkeys squatting on Britain’s back.
Count Von Rompuy has lost his British provinces. And the British people have their nation back.
The word of the future isn’t “union.” It’s “freedom.” A process has begun that will not end in Britain. It will spread around the world liberating nations from multinational institutions.
During Obama’s first year in office, Count Von Rompuy grandly declared that “2009 is also the first year of global governance.” Like many such predictions, it proved to be dangerously wrong. And now it may just well be that 2016 will be the first year of the decline and fall of global governance.
An anti-establishment wind is blowing through the creaky house of global government. The peoples of the free world have seen how the choking mass of multilateral institutions failed them economically and politically. Global government is an expensive and totalitarian proposition that silences free speech and funnels rapists from Syria, Sudan and Afghanistan to the streets of European cities and American towns. It’s a boon for professional consultants, certain financial insiders and politicians who can hop around unelected offices and retire with vast unearned pensions while their constituents are told to work another decade. But global government is misery and malaise for everyone else.
The campaign to stay in the EU relied on fear and alarmism, on claims of bigotry and disdain for the working class voters who fought and won the right to decide their own destiny. But the campaign for independence asked Britons to believe in their own potential when unchained from the Eurocratic bureaucracy. And now Brexit will become a model for liberation campaigns across Europe.
And it will not end there.
DeleteBrexit showed that it is possible for a great nation to defy its leaders and its establishment thinkers to throw off its multinational chains. And while the European Union is one of the biggest prisons forged by global government, it is far from the only one. America and Britain are sleeping giants covered in the cold iron links of multinational organizations that limit their strength and their potential.
It is time to break those chains.
Americans who want to cut their ties with the United Nations have found Brexit inspiring. Leaving the UK was once also seen as a ridiculous idea at the margins that could never be taken seriously. Serious politicians refused to listen to it. Serious thinkers refused to discuss it. And then it gathered speed.
There is growing opposition even among Democrats to treaties like the TPP. Trump has challenged NAFTA. Americans across the political spectrum are suspicious of economic treaties and organizations. Support for Brexit came from Labour areas in the UK. Support for Trump’s challenge to multinational treaties and alliances could very well come from unexpected places, like Bernie Sanders backers.
Brexit has shown us the weakness of the multinational establishment. Its vast bureaucratic power rests on using the media to suppress political dissent. When the media’s special pleading fails to stop the democratic process, it is more helpless than any dictator when the outraged mob pours into his palace.
What was true of Britain, is also true of America. Our elites are just as impotent. The power they have illegally seized is defended zealously by a media palace guard that spends every minute of every day lecturing, hectoring and messaging Americans. But when no one listens to the media, then the men and women who run our lives, who feed off us like a colony of parasitic insects, are helpless.
Their power is purely persuasive. When we stop listening, then we are free.
That is the lesson of Brexit. It is the future.
The future is not a vast behemoth of global government that swallows up nations and individuals, that reduces democratic elections to a joke and eliminates freedom of speech, but the individual. The elites have gambled everything on big government, big media and big data. But all of those lost to Brexit.
They lost to Brexit in the UK. They can lose in the US too. And they will lose.
The power of the establishment is illusory. Like the naked emperor, it depends on no one challenging it. The harder it is challenged, the harder it will fall. Brexit was an impossible dream. Then it was reality.
Our impossible dreams, the policies that conservatives are told by the establishment are not even worth talking about, can be just as real as Brexit.
If we are willing to fight for them.
http://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/263293/how-brexit-will-change-america-and-world-daniel-greenfield
Strikes in Syria
ReplyDeleteAttack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 12 strikes in Syria:
-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, a strike destroyed three ISIL oil wellheads.
-- Near Manbij, eight strikes struck seven separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed six ISIL fighting positions and two ISIL vehicles.
-- Near Mara, three strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions.
Strikes in Iraq
Bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft and rocket artillery conducted 16 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:
-- Near Baghdadi, a strike destroyed an ISIL tunnel system and denied ISIL access to terrain.
-- Near Huwayjah, a strike destroyed an ISIL tunnel entrance, an ISIL weapons cache and an ISIL bulldozer.
-- Near Albu Hayat, two strikes struck an ISIL logistics facility and an ISIL bed-down location.
-- Near Beiji, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL fighting position, five ISIL vehicles, an ISIL tactical vehicle, two ISIL weapons caches and an ISIL mortar system.
-- Near Fallujah, a strike struck a large ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL boats and an ISIL staging area.
-- Near Mosul, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL vehicle and suppressed an ISIL mortar position.
-- Near Qayyarah, four strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and an ISIL vehicle bomb factory and destroyed an ISIL assembly area and an ISIL tunnel and denied ISIL access to terrain.
-- Near Ramadi, a strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed nine ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL staging area and an ISIL rocket-propelled grenade system.
-- Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike destroyed an ISIL trench.
OIR General: Coalition Pressure Causing ISIL’s ‘Caliphate’ to Unravel
DeleteBy Terri Moon Cronk DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, June 23, 2016 — The significantly increased pressure that U.S.-led coalition and local forces are putting on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’s fighters is causing the terrorist group’s “caliphate” to unravel and crumble, a senior Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve official told reporters today.
Via teleconference from Baghdad, British army Maj. Gen. Doug Chalmers, deputy commander for strategy and sustainment, updated the Pentagon reporters on the campaign to defeat ISIL.
Harnessing Coalition Power
Iraq security forces are making greater progress with increased coalition-partner capability and capacity and by “harnessing the power of the 65-nation international coalition,” Chalmers said.
Ramadi’s fall to ISIL fighters about a year ago became a “high-water mark of the ISIL expansion,” Chalmers said. But since that time, he added, “we’ve seen the tide turning on [ISIL]. Not only have their advances been stopped, the terrain they have briefly controlled has been taken back by the Iraqi security forces and by Syrian opposition.”
Chalmers said the coalition is striking ISIL on multiple fronts: its fighters on the front lines and command and control operators, ISIL leaders, its industrial base, financial systems, communication networks and its system to bring foreign fighters in to fill ranks in both Iraq and Syria.
Enemy Faces Multi-Directional Fight
Delete“We are forcing them to fight in multiple locations and in multiple directions,” Chalmers said.
As coalition support accelerates, he said, airstrikes in support of Iraqi ground advances continue to provide overwhelming combat power “at the right time and place” on the battlefield, the general said.
Increased training for Iraqi police officers will add to the existing 23,000 trained Iraqi forces, Chalmers said, adding that training also will soon expand to the Iraq border security force.
“Not only will the Iraqi security forces be able to liberate their territory,” he said. “They will be better-set to be able to hold it and secure the population within it.”
Chalmers said the Iraqi forces’ increased confidence, as they face ISIL fighters on the battlefield and defeat them, is likely the most important factor in their increased success against the terrorist organization.
“The recent advances that they've made in both the Tigris and Euphrates River Valleys at the same time … is deeply impressive,” he said. “Not just in fighting terms, but also in sustainment terms.”
Counter-ISIL Fight Also Progresses in Syria
In Syria, the fight against ISIL is showing similar trends in the face of efforts by partnered opposition forces, Chalmers said. “The multiethnic components of the Syrian Democratic Forces are united against [ISIL]. We've seen opposition forces in the northeast, near Mara, and in the southeast … remain focused on defeating [ISIL] and removing its influence from their homelands.”
The coalition advise-and-assist programs that support local ground forces are proving to increase their effectiveness in combat, he added.
With ISIL wanting to mount attacks against the military forces involved in the ongoing fight and against innocent civilian populations, the fight ahead will continue to be challenging, Chalmers said, but he added that the counter-ISIL campaign is progressing, and a defeat of ISIL in Iraq and Syria is “inevitable.”
And because of the increased pressure on ISIL in both countries, Chalmers said, operations “in Manbij, Fallujah and the Tigris River Valley are shaping the battlefield and establishing the conditions for the two big future fights: Raqqa and Mosul.”
(Follow Terri Moon Cronk on Twitter: @MoonCronkDoD)
DOD
Here are a couple of comments that I strongly agree with:
ReplyDeleteinclusiveheart ctexrep Jun 24 · 12:53:25 PM
My point is that Cameron effectively set this up as a scapegoat EU protest vote arrogantly believing that he could allow people to “feel” like they had a say, and then stay in the union — while at the same time enacting his austerity policies while scapegoating the EU. So, the real deal is that they should have had a vote, but it should have been about Cameron’s austerity policies rather than about the EU — because the problem is the Tories, not as much the EU.
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martianexpatriate inclusiveheart Jun 24 · 02:03:21 PM
Yes. But they never seem to get the vote on austerity. Everything else, but never that.
inclusiveheart martianexpatriate Jun 24 · 02:06:35 PM
Well they did just re-elect Cameron and Cameron had a clear call from the Scots about his austerity in that close vote to leave the UK that they had. He really is an arrogant fool for thinking that he could continue his austerity without consequences and he’s managed to not only put the entire UK at risk, he’s also destabilized the EU. The man and his party are a complete train wreck.
Google's top searches - Brits are frantically trying to figure out what the hell they just did - Daily Kos
The Brits may lose their only nuclear submarine base in Scotland if the Scots secede.
ReplyDeleteOut my way, many here want to secede from the USA, and, along with Montana, form our own Nation.
If British Columbia, and perhaps Alberta too, would join us want a country we would have....!
Think of it !
The Democrat Party, USA would cease to exist for us...!!!!
Think President Lincoln, General Sherman and Atlanta
ReplyDeleteYou are SO stupid.
Another benefit is we will have an IQ Test for citizenship and won't have any 'Boobies' wandering around our towns, fields, mountains, streams, and seashores.
DeleteInteresting, Britain has just gone from 5th largest economy to the 7th.
ReplyDeleteThe 10% haircut in their currency has allowed California (now, #5,) and France (#6) to pass them by.