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."

Wednesday, May 01, 2013

Despite budget cuts and ongoing sequestration,The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, the military can afford to take action in Syria — at least in the short term. “If we were asked to do something in Syria, your question is, ‘Do I have the capability and the capacity to do it?’ and the answer is yes,” he said. But any long-term commitment in Syria would require supplemental funding from Congress. “I can certainly get what I need to do something immediately,” he explained, “but to sustain it over time would require additional funding.”


Martin Dempsey cautious on Syria
By: Stephanie Gaskell
April 30, 2013 05:28 PM EDT

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff hit a cautionary note on Syria Tuesday, questioning just how effective U.S. military intervention might be in ending the two-year civil war there.
Still, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey said the Pentagon was pressing ahead with development of military options for President Barack Obama.
“Whether the military effect would produce the kind of outcome I think that not only members of Congress but all of us would desire — which is an end to the violence, some kind of political reconciliation among the parties and a stable Syria — that’s the reason I’ve been cautious about the application of the military instrument of power,” Dempsey told reporters during a luncheon hosted by the Christian Science Monitor.
“It’s not clear to me that it would produce that outcome,” he said.
The administration acknowledged last week there’s evidence that chemical weapons have been used in Syria — but it’s still unclear when, where and by whom. At a press conference at the White House on Tuesday, Obama reiterated the use chemical weapons would be a “game changer” but did not repeat his recent admonition that it would be a “red line” for U.S. and international action.
Dempsey, noting the Pentagon’s planning said, “Nothing I’ve heard in the last week or so has changed anything about the actions we’re taking as a military. We’ve been planning. We’ve been developing options. We are looking to determine whether these options remain valid as conditions change.”
“Now that doesn’t mean what you’ve heard over the last week wouldn’t change the policy calculus both in this capital and others,” he added. “But militarily our task has been to continue to plan, to continue to engage with partners in the region and to continue to refine options so that if we’re asked to implement any of them we’ll be ready to do that.”
The options, though, were less than desirable, he readily acknowledged.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and other members of Congress have been urging the establishment of a no-fly zone over Syria. And Dempsey said it’s doable, but not ideal.
First, Syria has a sophisticated air defense system, thanks to the Russians. “Now, the United States military has the capability to defeat that system — but it would be a greater challenge, take longer and require more resources,” Dempsey said. “To have a no-fly zone you simply don’t penetrate it — you have to control it. So it means that at some level you’d have to degrade the integrated air defense system.”
A no-fly zone also requires a complex personnel-recovery plan, he said. “So we would have to position resources that in the event of a pilot going down — either by hostile activity or by mechanical failure — that we’d have the ability to extract them from that situation,” he said.

And most importantly, there’s great concern that President Bashar Assad’s regime would fight back.
“I have to assume, as the military member with responsibility for these kind of activities, that the potential adversary isn’t just going to sit back and allow us to impose our will on them, that they could in fact take exception that we were imposing a no-fly zone and act outside of their borders with long-range rockets and missiles and artillery and even asymmetrical threats,” he said.
Dempsey also questioned just how effective a no-fly zone would be. About 10 percent of the casualties taken by the Syrian opposition are from air attacks, he said. “The other 90 percent are through direct fire or artillery,’ he went on, “so the question then becomes: If you eliminate one capability of a potential adversary, will you be inclined to find yourself in a position to be asked to do more against the rest?
“None of these reasons are reasons not to take action, as I’ve said from the start, but they all should be considered before we take that first step,” he said.
Despite budget cuts and ongoing sequestration, the general said, the military can afford to take action in Syria — at least in the short term.
“If we were asked to do something in Syria, your question is, ‘Do I have the capability and the capacity to do it?’ and the answer is yes,” he said. But any long-term commitment in Syria would require supplemental funding from Congress. “I can certainly get what I need to do something immediately,” he explained, “but to sustain it over time would require additional funding.”
Spending cuts are already affecting readiness across the services — something the Pentagon can’t afford if it’s going to take on another major military mission.
“Over time, unless we get our budget house in order — and I mean both us internally but also the government writ large — I will be concerned about atrophying skills and reduced readiness,” he said.
This article first appeared on POLITICO Pro at 5:14 p.m. on April 30, 2013.

95 comments:

  1. I guess the sequestration and the Obama Administration hasn’t hollowed out our military. There is always room for another war.

    ReplyDelete
  2. We don’t have enough money to control the skies over the US because of budgetary restraints. Still, we have the funds and means to control the airspace over Syria?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. With Allah, all things are possible. Barky may be in the White House prayer room on his knees facing east and a little south right this very moment praying for guidance. Look how Allah provided for the Chechen boys. American welfare. In America there is always money. If not perhaps the Saudis will make a loan.

      Delete
  3. Still, this is a good way to introduce the mosque buster's work. What are mosques? As we know, mosques are not like churches or synagogues, they are far more than houses of worship and contemplation, many of them are centres of jihadist activity that indoctrinate to commit and support violence against infidels. In America, as many as 4 different studies have independently come to the same conclusion that 80 per cent of US mosques "were teaching jihad, Islamic supremacism, and hatred and contempt for Jews and Christians".

    Mosques are the battleground of the war between Islam and the West

    http://www.jihadwatch.org/2013/04/mosques-are-the-battleground-of-the-war-between-islam-and-the-west.html

    We should be doing this here. We should charge them with hate crimes, inciting violence, etc.


    "We don't debate unprofessional councillors, unprincipled journalists, and self-righteous community organizers; we turn the tables on them": this is how British planning lawyer Gavin Boby, also known as the "mosque buster", describes the activity of his organization, the Law And Freedom Foundation. He uses the law to stop the building of mosques in the UK by demonstrating to local councils that the building of a mosque or an Islamic centre is actually in violation of British law. And he succeeds: the count so far is 16 victories out of 17 cases.

    Good article. I hope everyone reads it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you have evidence of hate rimes, inciting violence, etc, there are laws against all of that.

      Grand juries indict.

      The system works, has for hundreds of years, use it, if you've got the goods.

      The modern KKK was busted, financially, in civil court.

      Go make your case, in court.
      I don't think you have real evidence of hate crimes, inciting violence, etc.

      Delete
    2. I realize that you and your family do not trust the police to solve crimes, the prosecutors to bring the case to court and subsequently the judicial system to punish the miscreants, but that's how civilization works.

      Delete
    3. There is a reason we removed ourselves from the UK legal system.
      Imposed our own, use it, if you can.

      Delete
    4. so when you went off training hit squads in central america and doing wet ops is that how civilization works?

      Delete
    5. Hit squads, nah, never trained one.

      We trained soldiers.
      Hopefully we imparted a piece of US culture and civilization upon them in the process.
      The training doctrine included how non-kinetic operations would positively impact their tactical position, as well as being a strategic step to ending civil strife in their country.

      Proof in the tasting, there are no civil wars in the Americas, today.
      No airstrikes targeting motorcycles are required.

      Wet ops?
      It rains a lot in Central America. You were almost always wet, at least damp.
      We had a saying, "It does not rain in the Army, it rains on the Army".
      We did utilize inflatable rubber rafts.

      Delete
    6. Public health care was paramount to the doctrine.
      Send in the medics, treat the sick.
      Medicate and inoculate.

      Water wells and bridging.
      Electrical generation and water treatment.
      Infrastructure improvement was stressed.



      Delete
    7. funny you call that "training" didnt the Congress get all pissy about how your actions were illegal? Private contractors getting arrested?

      yep, spin the past...

      I just wonder when the Human Rights Council will catch up to your contribution to helping the death squads.

      Delete
    8. 3/7 SFG did have a sniper school, in Panama.
      We did instruct foreign soldiers in the use of military demolitions and land mine removal.

      There were training segments on patrolling and, of course, movement to contact.

      Delete
    9. There was a limitation on the number of Army personnel allowed in El Salvador, for a while.
      Somewhere in the range of 70 or so.

      There was a Constitutional crisis developing, while Congress had cut funding for arming insurgents in Nicoland, the President found an "End Around". The Administration traded the Mullahs in Iran for weapons, which were then run to the insurgents.

      Makes "Fast and Furious" pale in comparison by the scope and scale of the gun running.

      Mr Reagan was not impeached. Colonel North not sent to prison.
      So, it must not have been "illegal", in the US.

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

      Delete
    11. Convict, there was never a trial, never an indictment, never a charge.

      Please provide evidence to substantiate your charges.

      If you cannot do so, you are just a libelous piece of shit.
      Providing US another example of the typical patterned reaction of Israeli lies and deceit, when they are caught in the light of truth and righteousness.

      Delete
    12. rat, you Barky and all muslims should have been aborted. Partial birth abortions for all of you!

      Delete
    13. Rat it's not my JOB to provide evidence, I just reposted your own words.

      But I am an American, a real one. A true one. Born here as an American. So for you to say "typical patterned reaction of Israeli lies and deceit, when they are caught in the light of truth and righteousness: That is an UN-American libelous slander....

      Our typical of you to slander fellow Americans.

      tsk tsk.

      Delete
    14. No hyphenated American is a "Real" American.

      You are an Israeli, by choice.
      Not by blood.

      Delete
    15. This is another slander against WiO.

      He is concerned about Israel.

      I am concerned about Israel.

      I am not Jewish. I love the Bible though, all of it.

      If Sweden were under the gun continually I would support Sweden, unless they were obviously in the wrong. Israel is obviously not in the wrong. Just the opposite.

      Many Americans went to Spain during their Civil War in the 30's. They were still Americans.

      Being an American doesn't mean you can't be concerned about other countries.

      I believe some of WiO's relatives have died fighting for our country.

      None of mine have in this century or the last century, though one came back from WWI with what is now called post traumatic stress syndrome.

      If we use this as a standard WiO is more 'American' than I, and many of us here, perhaps including our General Bunk. Rufus too has relatives who have died for our country. I don't know the biographies of anyone else well enough to say.

      Delete
    16. Not what my passport says sparky...

      Now does yours say "criminal-american"?

      Delete
    17. My Uncles all fought & served in ww2.

      I lost an Uncle in Vietnam

      I have numerous cousins and such actively serving today.

      My father fought and served in Korea.

      There is a Soldier's Flag in my office from someone who has pass who served (from my immediate family who i will not name)

      Deuce calling me a 5th columnist (and all aipac/pro-israel Americans) and Rat calling me the vile names he has, AND lest not forget Rufus call me not an american cause I didnt CAP the frickin A in america all are libel, slanderous and specious.

      All those comments stood and never were deleted.

      Delete
    18. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    19. And ...

      I agree with Teddy Roosevelt, when it comes to hyphenated Americans.
      John Wayne, too.
      The Hyphen

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fuzLTrwVbc

      Ride with who you want to.
      I'll go with the Rough Rider and the Duke.

      Delete
  4. How the Jews control the United States Congress is finally revealed.

    Speaking on April 20, 2013 to students at a religious seminary in Ahwaz, Mehdi Taeb noted: "The Jews are currently subjecting us to an unprecedented trial. As you read in the Koran, [King] Solomon ruled the world… and God ordered a group of sorcerers to come out against him. The Jews have the greatest powers of sorcery, and they make use of this tool.

    "All the measures that have been brought against us originate with the Zionists. The U.S. is a tool in their hands. So far, they have not used the full [scope of] their sorcery against us. Sorcery was the final means to which they resorted during the Ahmadinejad era, but they were defeated. This ability of the Jews was eliminated by Iran. Five years ago they tried to oust Ahmadinejad [by this means]."[1]


    Iranian official on the Jews: "The U.S. is a tool in their hands. So far, they have not used the full [scope of] their sorcery against us."

    http://www.jihadwatch.org/2013/04/iranian-official-on-the-jews-the-us-is-a-tool-in-their-hands-so-far-they-have-not-used-the-full-scop.html

    I suppose I should apologize for injecting this. It made me laugh, is all. Also shake my head in disbelief. And I had pledged to myself not to be the first to inject Israel or the Jews into a thread.

    Take it down if you wish - well, you would if you wished, you don't need any permission from me - I won't feel offended.

    :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. If possession of the gas was the No. 1 issue, the U.S. should paradoxically prop up Assad. He's been faultless at keeping his goodies out of the hands of the crazies.

    This is the very conclusion I'd come to. We should prop up Assad with the proviso that he not use the gas, or we withdraw the prop.

    Simple, cost effective.

    No boots on the ground.

    http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2013/04/30/red_lines_as_red_herrings_118170.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This would avoid the unpleasantness of a sunni slaughter of the Christians as well.

      Delete
    2. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    3. Way to late for that program, supporting Assad.

      Would have had to have been there years ago.
      Short sightedness set US against Assad's regime for decades.
      Drove 'em into the arms of the Russians and the Persians.

      Now the Assad's have been demonized, there is no walking that back.

      You didn't even know Assad was not a Muslim.

      Delete

    4. (((((((((((((((((((((You didn't even know Assad was not a Muslim.))))))))))))))))))))))))))))


      And you don't know your ass from a hole in the ground.


      The Alawites, also known as Alawis, Nusayris and Ansaris (ʿAlawīyyah (Arabic: علوية‎), Nuṣayrī (Arabic: نصيريون‎), and al-Anṣāriyyah) are a prominent mystical[8] religious group centred in Syria who follow a branch of the Twelver school of Shia Islam.[9][10][11] They were long persecuted for their beliefs by the various rulers of Syria, until Hafez al-Assad took power there in 1970.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alawites


      I will try to help you out, once again.


      Think of someone who might say "I am a Lutheran".

      Then you would say "You are not a Christian".

      Then the someone would say "I am a Christian. I follow the tenants of Christianity as understood by Luther".

      Your best reply would be to say "Then, you are a fool".

      But you would be wrong to deny that our someone is not a Christian.

      Why?

      Because our someone adheres to most Christian beliefs, differing only in detail.

      I hope this helps.

      It probably won't, but one can always hope.

      Delete
    5. Of course Mr Assad is not a Muslim.

      I can direct a reader to Daniel Pipes and Ben Disraeli, as authoritative sources to the reality that the Alawi are not Muslims.
      Who can you reference as to your version of the truth regarding the Alawi religion?

      Delete
    6. I realize that as an anon you would prefer to use the anonymous writers at wiki, for your reference, and that would normally be satisfactory.

      But, as with the misinformation concerning the Treaty of Portsmouth, wiki misinforms us about the Alawi. The fact is I can quote "Real" experts, with names and credentials, to correct the false reporting at wiki.

      Google: daniel ppies alawi
      You can find it, too.

      Delete
    7. That should be ...

      Google: daniel pipes alawi
      You can find it, too.

      Delete
  6. Just heard Joe Starbucks say that 65% of US say Syria is not a US problem.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. i just that 65% of Americans watch Dancing with the Stars

      Delete
    2. Just got back from McDonald's. Usual, Big Breakfast, extra sausage, no pancakes, coffee.

      Ronald McDonald was there. He said 65% of his customers said the chemical weapons in Syria are our problem, cause they might get into the hands of people that might use them against his customers.

      He also said it's dumb to draw red lines.

      He never does.

      As I left, he waved, and smiled. I waved, smiled back, and said "I love the Big Breakfast". He nodded his head, gave me the 'thumbs up'.

      Delete
  7. Well, anyone that thought that there was a "Clash of Civilizations" in that the US was at "War with Islam", they would be have to be supporter of the Assad regime, in the civil war.

    Either that or ...

    Their hypocrisy would be seen to be shining through.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So, of the 35% that do think the US has a role in Syria, how many of those think the US should support Assad?

      Or that the role to be played is that of an observer?

      Delete
    2. Actually, only 25% favored any type of intervention. I guess that leaves 10% with no opinion.

      Delete
  8. NASA budget needs to be cut. Private capital will get US to space on a cost effective basis.

    “We will be going to space at the end of this year,” Mr. Branson said in a telephone interview after the test flight over Mojave, Calif. Or, he added, possibly in the first quarter of next year. He and his children are to be passengers on that first flight.

    Mr. Branson founded Virgin Galactic eight and a half years ago, capitalizing on the success of the first privately financed spacecraft, SpaceShipOne, to carry people above an altitude of 62 miles, considered the edge of outer space. SpaceShipOne had only two seats, and, in its flights, carried only the pilot. Mr. Branson hired Burt Rutan, SpaceShipOne’s designer, and Mr. Rutan’s company, Scaled Composites, to build a larger version called SpaceShipTwo with seats for six passengers ...
    ...Virgin Galactic currently has 560 ticket holders
    at $250,000 a piece.

    While NASA and Congress fund the Russian space program. Wasting millions, in Russia.

    NASA: Russia charging U.S. $70M per astronaut seat

    NASA is paying $424 million more to Russia to get U.S. astronauts into space, and the agency's leader is blaming Congress for the extra expense.

    NASA announced its latest contract with the Russian Space Agency on Tuesday. The $424 million represents flights to and from the International Space Station aboard Russian Soyuz spacecraft, as well as training, for six astronauts in 2016 and the first half of 2017.

    That's $70.6 million per seat - well above the previous price tag of about $65 million.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Give Mr Branson and Mr Rutan $70 million, and I'd bet they could get all six of those US astronuts to the Space Station in 2016 and the first half of 2017.

      Delete
    2. Damned embarrassing that the Federals fund Russian socialism rather than contract with domestic US companies and facilities.

      Delete
  9. Poor quot, so confused.

    He seems to think "Legal" is some kind of fixed standard. When all we have to do, is look to his homeland to see that international standards of legality can be ignored by a sovereign nation.

    The whirled acknowledges that the Israeli settlements on the West Bank are illegal. The Israeli stand alone and disagree. They claim their actions and annexations to be legal, their courts have so ruled.

    Causing a civil war to rage in Israel.

    Rocket attacks and air strikes continue to be part of the country's fiber, as the battle between the insurgents and government forces goes from hot to simmering, as has been the norm for decades.

    Just as the NAZI found, time does not make a wrong right, no matter that their government actions were deemed "Legal" by their own government.

    The Israeli have much more to fear, from Justice, much more so than I do.

    That's a fact. You can take it to the bank, amigo.


    ReplyDelete
  10. Wio, put up or shut up. If you have proof of your charges or assertions, post them. Make a personal and libelous charge without and proof and they are coming down.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There is none, he's fabricated the charges, assertions whole clothe.

      Typical patterned response when he's intellectually challenged ...
      ... which is most all the time.

      I think he is on target, though, with regards ...
      ... "The Pass Over Plot"

      ;-)

      Delete
    2. Even anon boobie says quot is the expert on Jewishness and its history.

      Delete
    3. I am not getting back into it, and won't mention it again, but he said what he said, and that is the last I will say.

      Delete
    4. Then take down the libelous charges that Rat makes against Bob's family.

      One standard for all

      Delete
    5. DeuceWed May 01, 11:00:00 AM EDT
      Wio, put up or shut up. If you have proof of your charges or assertions, post them. Make a personal and libelous charge without and proof and they are coming down.

      Well it is COMMON knowledge that America helped terrorists in Central America, sold arms to the Iranians, AND Rat has admitted to serving under Ollie North doing "un-arrested" things.

      Is it your policy only to be libelous to American Jews for being traitors? That's ok?

      Why not practice what you preach?

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

      Delete
    7. What libel has there been concerning boobie's family?

      As to the "Pass Over Plot", well, you and I agree.

      Q was not impressed with your credentials.
      anon the boobie has vouched safe your Jewishness and expertise there-in.

      Again, Q, remained unconvinced.
      Even the "Naked Archeologist" and James Cameron references did not sway him.

      Don't know what Jew you think was baited, or how.

      Are they like bears, attracted to garbage when they get hungry?







      Delete
    8. Coyotes, too, are attracted to garbage.
      Though they can be called in, imitating the death screams of a rabbit, that does the trick.

      Varmint calling, I don't really think is baiting.

      Delete
    9. Do us a favor after they arrest you, let us know you're in prison.

      Last time you went away some here cared, not I

      Delete
  11. Global (non-U.S.) Oil Production fell by 800,000 bbl/day from Dec '12 to Dec '13.


    Global production, including the U.S., was up by 300,000 bbl/day, but U.S. production was up by 1.1 million bbl/day.

    EIA Data

    ReplyDelete
  12. DEVELOPING: Three additional suspects were taken into custody in the Boston Marathon bombing, the Boston Police Department told FoxNews.com.
    Police would not confirm when the suspects were taken into custody, and referred further questions to the FBI.
    Charges against the new suspects involve providing some sort of assistance to the two main suspects, sources told Fox News. Police did not confirm the gender of the suspects and did not say when or where they were taken into custody. More information was expected to be provided by the US Attorney's office later Wednesday.
    Prior to the latest development, authorities had named only brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev as suspects in the April 15 bombing at the finish line of the Boston Marathon.
    Three people were killed and more than 200 injured when the pair allegedly set two bombs, at least one of which was made from a pressure cooker packed with explosives and shrapnel, amid the crowd.
    Tamerlan Tsaranev died April 19, after a shootout hours after authorities showed the brothers on surveillance video and named them as suspects. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, is in a prison hospital after being wounded in the shootout with police as he and his brother made their getaway attempt. He is charged with using a weapon of mass destruction to kill, a crime that carries a potential death sentence.
    Authorities have searched the Rhode Island home of Tamerlan’s widow’s parents and have also questioned some men who may have known Dzhokhar Tsarnaev near the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth campus where he attended classes.


    Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/05/01/3-more-suspects-taken-into-custody-in-boston-bombing-police-say/#ixzz2S3dWRAQW

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Interesting. Fox just used the term 'classmates'.

      My hunch is they are not Christian nor Jewish classmates.

      My hunch was there would be something more.

      I love the term 'self radicalized'.

      Heh

      What does that mean?

      That they wrote their own Koran or something?

      I think 'self radicalized' is a term of art of the left, tying to deflect responsibility from Islam itself.

      Delete
    2. Islam is the problem and we should do something about it.

      Burn down the mosques and run the bastards out of the country.

      If my darling Sarah Palin had run, she'd have won, and the purge would be on.

      Darling Palin would have got it done!

      Delete
    3. That was not anon/bob, not me, but someone else.

      Just to be clear about it.

      Sarah might agree with me though, she might well want to stop immigration of certain groups into the country.

      Delete
  13. "In the end it didn’t pass because we're so politicized. There were some on my side who did not want to be seen helping the president do something he wanted to get done, just because the president wanted to do it,” Toomey admitted on Tuesday in an interview with Digital First Media editors in the offices of the Times Herald newspaper in Norristown, Pa.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. To vote against something that important because they "didn't want to be seen helping the President."

      Delete
    2. If you are talking about the immigration bill, that bill deserved to die.

      Whatever happened to the border fence, by the way?

      Delete
    3. Toomey co-sponsored the "Background Checks" legislation.

      Delete
    4. .

      Why this failed is beyond me other than it being another brain fart on the part of those prone to brain farts.

      Fifteen years ago the NRA was all for extensive background checks including those at gun shows. Now, with his further decline into dotage, LaPierre says all the crimes are committed by criminals who either steal guns or get them on the black market, a silly argument based on history.

      However, he/they also oppose the background checks because they fear only legal gun owners will end up on a massive government database. Perhaps this is a paranoid fear but still understandable given recent events.

      .

      Delete
  14. Border fence, 651 miles of it ae complete.
    A lot of it looks just like ...

    http://206.241.31.147/ImageCache/cgov/content/border_5fsecurity/sbi_5fnews_5freleases/sbi_5fphoto_5fgallery/hires/sbi6_2ejpg/v1/sbi6.jpg... depicted in this photo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. With my hip, that fence looks like it would actually help me get across. It looks more like a ladder than a fence. Only thing really needed is a wire cutter.

      How much per front foot?

      I bet somebody make out like a bank robber building that worthless fence.

      Delete
  15. Apr 11, 2013 - 10:40 am

    An old cattle fence, foreground, that used to mark the border, has been replaced by a border fence made to stop vehicle traffic, background, along a remote section at the U.S.-Mexico border not far from Tucson. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)


    http://ktar.com/22/1626073/Private-funds-to-help-rebuild-border-fence

    Smith started racking up money two years ago at buildtheborderfence.com. The site lists $193,000 has been collected online out of a total of about $300,000. Smith will spend the money to plug gaps in fence coverage, including areas where there is no fence at all or have only barbed wire and logs.

    "Believe it or not we can do significant mileage coverage, and I put significant mileage coverage anywhere between five and ten miles," Smith said.

    Smith said he wants to start building the fence in the Tucson sector, which accounts for the majority of illegal crossings and drug trafficking in the United States.

    "I think once we implement what we're doing it can be easily copied, and frankly I think at a fraction of the cost of what we see our federal government do," Smith said.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Contra militants based in Honduras waged a guerilla war to topple the democratically-elected government of Nicaragua.[14][15] The Contras' form of warfare was "one of consistent and bloody abuse of human rights, of murder, torture, mutilation, rape, arson, destruction and kidnapping".[16][17] The "Contras systematically engage in violent abuses...so prevalent that these may be said to be their principal means of waging war".[18] A Human Rights Watch report found that the Contras were guilty of targeting health care clinics and health care workers for assassination; kidnapping civilians; torturing and executing civilians, including children, who were captured in combat; raping women; indiscriminately attacking civilians and civilian homes; seizing civilian property; and burning civilian houses in captured towns.[19]
    Direct funding of the Contras insurgency had been made illegal through the Boland Amendment,[7] the name given to three U.S. legislative amendments between 1982 and 1984 aimed at limiting U.S. government assistance to the Contras militants. In violation of the Boland Amendment, senior officials of the Reagan administration continued to secretly arm and train the Contras and provide arms to Iran, an operation they called "the Enterprise".[20]

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

      Delete
    2. Again, that is not Bob.

      I am uncertain how to stop this, but it is getting irritating to me, and probably others as well.

      It is three or four years of it now, on and off.

      Whoever you are, it is not in the least funny.

      I wish Deuce would look up your whatever it is called so you are automatically removed.

      bob

      Delete
    3. well deuce can see who it is by their IP address....

      Now WHO do you think would do such a thing????

      Delete
    4. .

      Any of a bunch of nitwits here who use the Anonymous tag all the time for their own reasons.

      .

      Delete
    5. Anyone that wanted to.

      As to the Contras, so?

      The US has a long history of supporting folks that are morally bankrupt.
      Heck, we still support Israel.

      But beyond that data tidbit, ...

      The Sandinistas largely ignored the Atlantic Coast Indians when they put together a strategy for revolution. It is most telling that in Humberto Ortega's "50 Years of Sandinista Struggle," written in 1976, there is absolutely no reference to the Miskito Indians. What conclusion do all these writings support? There was only one way that the Atlantic Coast Indians could become authentic revolutionaries. They had to take part in the Sandinista struggle on the same terms as the Mestizos who lived in on the Pacific Coast and Central region of the country. Their struggle as Indians did not matter.

      After the Sandinistas took power, Miskitos demands came to their attention in a most forceful manner. The Sandinistas were ill-prepared to respond in the proper fashion. Their ethnocentrism prevented this from happening. More importantly, there were important gaps in Marxist theory that prevented them from understanding the special oppression of Indian people. Dogmatic Marxism tends to view Indians as a relic of precapitalist society. For the sake of "progress," they should enter the working-class as rapidly as possible. Assimilation is the only worthwhile goal. The Sandinistas gave concessions to this view and it cost them dearly. ...
      ...
      All this is rather a long-winded way of saying that the Miskitos did not fit into the Sandinista schema of a society composed of capitalists and workers. The clear implication was that Miskitos were some sort of dinosaur-like relic that modernization--either of a capitalist or socialist nature--would sweep away sooner or later, and the sooner the better.

      This must have been the message they intended to project upon their arrival to the Atlantic Coast shortly after the overthrow of Somoza. They erected billboards everywhere that stated, "The Atlantic Coast: A giant awakens!" The Miskitos took one look at this and must have said among themselves, "I didn't realize we were asleep, did you?" Had the Sandinistas come to the Atlantic Coast to civilize the savages? This must have been the way it appeared.

      The ethnocentrism of the Sandinista movement had deep roots. There were many members who had attended college and studied sociology and anthropology, but they were only studying the Mestizo worker and peasant, whose families they often belonged to. But what did they know of the Miskito, who subsisted on the basis of part-time wage labor and hunting wild boar, deer and armadillos? The Miskito spoke a different language, worshipped in Moravian not Catholic churches and, for all practical purposes, lived in a different country.

      Delete
    6. Many supporters of the Sandinista cause, including myself, had very little understanding of the origins of the Miskito struggle. It seemed to appear overnight. All we knew is that there were some idealistic but inexperienced revolutionaries in Managua who had made some mistakes in places like Bluefields. These mistakes enraged the Miskitos, whom Ronald Reagan then manipulated into becoming contras.

      ...

      The best presentation of the Miskito case comes from Charles R. Hale, an American anthropologist who was a Sandinista supporter. The more time he spent with Miskito people, the more he came to realize that the government in Managua had misunderstood their legitimate demands. His book "Resistance and Contradiction: Miskito Indians and the Nicaraguan State, 1894-1987" is essential reading.

      It is quite understandable that the Miskitos began to fight for their rights within the context of an indigenist political outlook. Marxism of the Sandinista variety either paid no attention to them at best, or viewed them with hostility.

      There were two types of outside attempts to influence the Miskito grass-roots struggle. The first came from NGO's that had US sponsorship. This included USAID and the American Institute for Free Labor Development (AIFLD). There is little doubt that these groups worked hard to foster anti-Communism among the Miskitos.

      When Cuban technicians showed up in Bluefields in 1980, the brainwashing had the desired effect. The other anti-Communist bulwark of Miskito society was the Moravian church, which encouraged docility.

      Working against these institutions, with a goal of promoting political awareness, was the Catholic church, whose lower-level priests identified with liberation theology. They conducted educational programs among the Miskitos that challenged all forms of paternalism and exhorted them to improve the material conditions of their lives. They used biblical references to draw parallels between the "Miskito nation" and the tribes of Israel. These pedagogical techniques were the same that radical priests used to inspire peasant militancy in Nicaragua, Guatemala and El Salvador. Now the same sorts of priests were preaching to the Atlantic Coast Indians.


      So what went wrong?

      Delete
    7. Flaws in the Sandinista theoretical understanding of Indian rights would naturally lead to mistakes on the practical level. And such mistakes did take place from the very beginning. They were a function of the belief that the Miskitos were a "lesser" people. In an atmosphere of distrust, it is possible for flare-ups to turn into major conflagrations. This is what happened in 1980 when a violent confrontation in a Moravian Church led to casualties on both sides. In a matter of days, the Miskitos began their guerrilla war. When the Sandinistas decided to resettle the Miskitos away from the combat, an army spokesman revealed the sort of prejudice that had heightened tensions initially:

      "The life of a Miskito family can be summarized in the following manner: they build a house out of bamboo, with a palm roof, and no walls or floor...At daybreak they get into the dugout canoe with their wife, child, and dog, and head upriver. They fish, or hunt a bird, eat, then in the afternoon they return home again."

      The strong implication was that resettlement could make better citizens out of the Miskito. Such prejudices were at the heart of the war against the North American Indian and the attempt to "civilize" them on reservations.


      The relocation and the mass murder of these people is what the US prevented.

      Call 'em what you will.

      Delete
  17. I'll fix it up and go back to being Bob in a bit.
    ......

    Don't drive around with ‘Terrorista #1′ on your license plate.

    It is a 'tell'.

    Two suspects who have been taken into custody in connection with the Boston Marathon bombings drove a car with “Terrorista #1″ printed on the front plate.

    Azamat Tazhayakov and Dias Kadyrbayev were reportedly arrested, along with one other person, for allegedly making false statements and conspiring to obstruct justice during the federal investigation into Boston Marathon bombing suspects Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, officials said Wednesday.

    Tazhayakov and Kadrbayev, who are reportedly in FBI custody, drove around in a black BMW with “Terrorista #1″ license plates and were also photographed with Dzhokhar Tsarnaev in Times Square.



    http://dailycaller.com/2013/05/01/new-boston-suspects-drove-car-with-terrorista-1-license-plates/


    Where do these people get the fancy cars? I drive an old car with 240,000 miles on it.

    And I've worked all my life.

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  18. WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Most Americans do not see the Boston Marathon bombing and its suspects as an immigration issue, according to a poll released on Wednesday ...

    ... According to the Pew Research Center survey, only 36 percent of respondents said the Boston attack should be considered an "important factor" in the debate over how to revamp U.S. immigration law, while 58 percent said it was "mostly a separate issue."

    Also, 57 percent of those polled said immigration changes would "not make much difference" when it comes to preventing similar attacks in the future, while the rest were split.

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  19. Thanks for the Miskito/Sandinista primer, Rat. You just increased my knowledge of that situation by about a factor of 10.

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    Replies
    1. Especially useful when it is realized the author was a supporter of the Sandinista.

      http://www.columbia.edu/~lnp3/mydocs/indian/miskitos.htm

      A Commie Pinko Pseudo Intellectual saying that the Miskito were fully justified to fight the Sandinista, just foolish to ally themselves with US.

      ;-)

      Delete
  20. Worst places to be a Christian -

    The U.S. currently designates Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Uzbekistan as CPCs. USCIRF wants Egypt, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Vietnam added to the list.

    Another eight countries comprise the second tier of CPCs, where religious freedom conditions could worsen: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Cuba, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Laos and Russia. However, USCIRF takes a more optimistic approach to these countries, stating that U.S. policymakers have "an opportunity to engage early and [increase] the likelihood of preventing or diminishing the violations."


    The World's Worst Places To Be A Christian (Or Another Religious Minority)

    http://blog.christianitytoday.com/ctliveblog/archives/2013/04/uscirf-worst-violators-of-international-religious-freedom.html


    Syria not on the list. Israel not on the list.

    bob

    ReplyDelete
  21. But the Tsarnaev brothers' anonymity was soon to end. On April 18, the FBI released photos of the suspected bombers and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's friends immediately thought they recognized him, the affidavit said.

    ...

    The three men allegedly visited Mr. Tsarnaev's dorm room just over an hour after the FBI released the pictures, the affidavit says. Mr. Tsarnaev had left an hour earlier, a roommate told them, according to the affidavit.

    They spent time watching a movie before noticing a backpack containing fireworks shells, according to the affidavit.

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  22. We Christians really need to find a way to combat these muzzies. If we don't run them out if the country it won't matter how many we abort they will dominate US. They have Barky on their team. Where oh where is our dear Sarah when we need her?

    Bob

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    Replies
    1. Give it up would you?

      Pick on Rat or Quirk, they are more your age, and mentality.

      Delete
  23. I bet Osama wishes Barack would have signed up for the "other" team.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Last seen, darlin' Sarah was snorting some blow off a fifty-five gallon drum.

      Delete
    2. That's gross, Rufus.

      Delete
    3. Here Rufus, chew on this. It is from your guy so it must be right -

      ENERGY
      The U.S. Has Much, Much More Gas and Oil Than We Thought

      By Amy Harder
      Updated: April 30, 2013 | 10:13 p.m.
      April 30, 2013 | 1:17 p.m.



      The United States has double the amount of oil and three times the amount of natural gas than previously thought, stored deep under the states of North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana, according to new data the Obama administration released Tuesday.

      In announcing the new data in a conference call, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell also said the administration will release within weeks draft rules to regulate hydraulic fracturing, technology that has come under scrutiny for its environmental impact but that is essential to developing all of this energy.

      “These world-class formations contain even more energy-resource potential than previously understood, which is important information as we continue to reduce our nation’s dependence on foreign sources of oil,” Jewell said in a statement.

      The formations, called Bakken and Three Forks, span much of western North Dakota, the northern tip of South Dakota and the northeastern tip of Montana. The last time the United States Geological Survey assessed this area for its oil and gas reserves was in 2008. But that assessment did not include the Three Forks formation, which explains the substantial increase in the estimates. USGS estimates that these two formations together hold 7.4 billion barrels of undiscovered—but technically recoverable—oil and 6.7 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.


      http://www.nationaljournal.com/daily/the-u-s-has-much-much-more-gas-and-oil-than-we-thought-20130430

      If Obama says it is so, it must be so.

      Delete
    4. Technically Recoverable is generally taken to mean "But, you can't afford it."

      Add in the "Undiscovered" descriptor, and . . . . . . . well, . . . . . .

      Delete
  24. Azamat Tazhayakov and Dias Kadyrbayev, both students from Kazakhstan, have been charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice by throwing away a backpack containing fireworks and a laptop computer belonging to Dzhokhar, who is accused to planting the bombs near the marathon finish line on 15 April with his elder brother Tamerlan. A third man, an American citizen named Robel Phillipos, has been charged with lying to investigators.

    ...

    According to court documents, the three have admitted to removing Dzhokhar's backpack from his room at the university on 18 April, the same day that FBI investigators released images showing Dzhokhar and Tamerlan near the marathon finish line shortly before the two explosions. They had not been identified at the time.

    The criminal complaint recounts how Dias Kadyrbayev texted Dzhokhar after thinking that one of the suspects in the FBI images looked like him. Tsarnaev is said to have responded with texts containing “lol” and “you better not text me” and “come to my room and take whatever you want.”

    ReplyDelete
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