tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post3715180052864628569..comments2024-03-28T06:32:24.557-04:00Comments on The Elephant Bar: Ever seen a President doing this?Deuce ☂http://www.blogger.com/profile/13472858446242700869noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-73959256884158882532009-08-11T02:42:12.420-04:002009-08-11T02:42:12.420-04:00Burma's leader, Senior General Than Shwe, deni...<i>Burma's leader, Senior General Than Shwe, denied a request by the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, to meet Aung San Suu Kyi in prison early this month. The regime claimed, to widespread derision, that it did not want to be seen to be interfering with the judicial process.<br /><br />Ban Ki-moon ended his trip to Burma by urging his hosts to allow Aung San Suu Kyi to participate in the political process "without delay".<br /><br />As today's judgment confirms, it was a demand that Burma's increasingly nervous dictators were never going to honour.</i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/aug/11/aung-san-suu-kyi-trial" rel="nofollow">Suu Kyi</a>samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11856051164644278989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-43177205612983319162009-08-11T02:08:25.070-04:002009-08-11T02:08:25.070-04:00Nobody can beat the Italian for beauty of word and...<em>Nobody can beat the Italian for beauty of word and sensuale</em>.<br /><br />Life is a combination of magic and pasta.<br /><br />-Federico Fellini<br /><br />---<br /><br />From a caption on the back side of today's Trader Joe's receipt. Home of Charles Shaw Winery's two-buck-chuck. Never a bad year. From the kitchen counter we're now serving an impertinent Cabernet Sauvignon, 2007. $1.99. <br /><br />Why pay more?<br /><br />Bob smiles, wherever he is.linearthinkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05201292791445921817noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-56207223656068083012009-08-11T01:55:57.402-04:002009-08-11T01:55:57.402-04:00Meanwhile, Colombian Vice Foreign Minister Clemenc...<i>Meanwhile, Colombian Vice Foreign Minister Clemencia Forero denied the agreement means the establishment of U.S. military bases in Colombia.<br /><br />Forero said U.S. soldiers to be stationed at Colombian bases are obliged to abide by Colombia's jurisdiction and sovereignty.<br /><br />Unasur groups 12 countries including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Guyana, Surinam, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela and Ecuador.</i><br /><br /><a href="http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-08/11/content_11862160.htm" rel="nofollow">Military Agreement</a>samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11856051164644278989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-18718157793205409392009-08-10T22:32:12.711-04:002009-08-10T22:32:12.711-04:00rat's point about local Colombian bases not re...rat's point about local Colombian bases not requiring sentry's ect. is an interesting one. My gut feeling reading trish's first responses and confirmed by her later citations was that she/US/Colombians was blowing smoke re. the 'new' bases. When is a new base not a new base?Ashhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16688752302081088907noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-67958382950979405052009-08-10T22:23:31.639-04:002009-08-10T22:23:31.639-04:00: ): )trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-43891285684426650532009-08-10T22:16:30.840-04:002009-08-10T22:16:30.840-04:00Does scrolling rack up points on that big scoreboa...Does scrolling rack up points on that big scoreboard in the sky?desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-1563305291013132332009-08-10T22:11:33.947-04:002009-08-10T22:11:33.947-04:00scrolling...scrolling...;-)scrolling...scrolling...;-)allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01798524644256471907noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-68824254807454558222009-08-10T21:18:14.195-04:002009-08-10T21:18:14.195-04:00(AFP) – 3 hours ago
WASHINGTON — Taliban chief Ba...<a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i4Eq_E-YhxSAgx8uKC1d9lezD2-A" rel="nofollow">(AFP) – 3 hours ago</a><br /><br /><i>WASHINGTON — Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud was killed last week in a CIA drone attack <b>while getting a leg massage</b>, on the roof of his father-in-law's house, CNN said Monday, citing an unnamed US official.<br /><br />A US counterterrorism official told AFP, meanwhile, that "there are strong indications (Mehsud) is dead" following a drone attack.<br /><br />"No one is expecting him home for dinner tonight," the official said.<br /><br /></i>desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-36353655267677504382009-08-10T21:14:04.822-04:002009-08-10T21:14:04.822-04:00AfPak Daily Brief from ForeignPolicy.com:
No for...<a href="http://afpak.foreignpolicy.com/dailybrief" rel="nofollow">AfPak Daily Brief from ForeignPolicy.com</a>: <br /><br /><i><b>No fortunate sons</b>.<br /><br />Young men who have escaped from Taliban camps tell stories of up to 400 boys, some as young as seven, captured from their homes, trained in spycraft, and indoctrinated with Taliban ideology (Los Angeles Times). While these figures are impossible to verify independently, the camps underline the fact that while this spring's offensive in the Swat Valley has mostly ended, the effects will be felt for some time.<br /><br /><b>Fifty-nine percent of Pakistanis believe the United States is the greatest threat to Pakistan</b>, according to a survey released by Gallup and al Jazeera over the weekend (Al Jazeera). Only eleven percent thought as much for the Pakistani Taliban</i>.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-28503831706638568252009-08-10T21:07:04.325-04:002009-08-10T21:07:04.325-04:00Mark Sappenfield, Christian Science Monitor.
Nat...<i>Mark Sappenfield, Christian Science Monitor. <br /><br />National Security Adviser James Jones asserted Sunday that the Pentagon will require a year to determine whether its Afghan strategy is working. The comment, made on NBC's "Meet the Press," is an indication of how little progress Afghanistan has made under international stewardship since 2001- and the enormity of the task ahead. <b>The top US military officer, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen, called past American neglect toward Afghanistan a "culture of poverty</b>" in a recent meeting with reporters and editors at The Washington Times</i>.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-48817663986335568442009-08-10T21:02:58.957-04:002009-08-10T21:02:58.957-04:00And for the den mother, because I really do care.
...And for the den mother, because I really do care.<br /><br /><a href="http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/06/the-pain-of-being-a-redhead/?em" rel="nofollow">The Pain of Being a Redhead</a>, from the NYTimes.<br /><br /><br />It keeps you commenting, about me, allen. Are you still crusading?desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-72263722116578308262009-08-10T21:00:58.795-04:002009-08-10T21:00:58.795-04:00I really like the way Mr Evans used the word "...I really like the way Mr Evans used the word "extra" in regards to those US military personnel.<br /><br /><i><b>Another 45,000 US Troops Needed in Afghanistan, Military Adviser Says </b>- Michael Evans, The Times. <br />The United States should send up to 45,000 extra troops to Afghanistan</i>, <a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6789142.ece" rel="nofollow">a senior adviser to the American commander in Kabul has told The Times</a>. <br /><br />The adviser, <i>Anthony Cordesman, an influential American academic who is a member of a team that has been advising General Stanley McChrystal</i>.<br /><br />This Mr Cordesman, he is a known entity to many of US. Some would even consider him to be a reasonable man.<br /><br /><i>“The insurgents may have lost virtually every tactical clash [against Nato troops], but they have expanded their areas of influence from a presence in some 30 of Afghanistan’s 364 districts in 2003 to one in some 160 districts by the end of 2008, while insurgent attacks increased by 60 per cent during October 2008 to April 2009 alone. <br /><br />“Nato must change its strategy and tactics after years in which member countries, particularly the United States, failed to react to the seriousness of the emerging insurgency,</i>” <br /><br />Are the poppie proceeds goiing to be redistributed amongst those in Helamand Valley, or shipped off to Mr Karsai's cronies?desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-31048107543473561232009-08-10T20:57:17.274-04:002009-08-10T20:57:17.274-04:00I am really getting the hang of that whole scroll ...I am really getting the hang of that whole scroll thing. Wow!allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01798524644256471907noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-41975500600241605802009-08-10T20:49:25.126-04:002009-08-10T20:49:25.126-04:00This is from the NYTimes, some may not want to con...This is from the NYTimes, some may not want to continue:<br /><br /><i>WASHINGTON — Fifty Afghans believed to be drug traffickers with ties to the Taliban have been placed on a Pentagon target list to be captured or killed, reflecting a major shift in American counternarcotics strategy in Afghanistan, according to a Congressional study to be released this week. <br /><br />United States military commanders have told Congress that they are convinced that the policy is legal under the military’s rules of engagement and international law. They also said the move is an essential part of their new plan to disrupt the flow of drug money that is helping finance the Taliban insurgency.<br /><br />In interviews with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which is releasing the report, two American generals serving in Afghanistan said that major traffickers with proven links to the insurgency have been put on the “joint integrated prioritized target list.” That means they have been given the same target status as insurgent leaders, and can be captured or killed at any time</i>.<br /><br />The Dealer network is to be rolled up, but the fields, US built irrigation canals and the poppies all remain. <br />Tools of reconciliation.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-50476108235925522772009-08-10T20:23:23.923-04:002009-08-10T20:23:23.923-04:00An Iraqi military that the US built from scratch, ...An Iraqi military that the US built from scratch, to its' own design specifications.<br /><br />STANDING UP so that we could stand dowwwwwn.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-43348090941079389262009-08-10T20:12:55.771-04:002009-08-10T20:12:55.771-04:00With Congressional Authorization to train Iraqis, ...With Congressional Authorization to train Iraqis, passed in 2000 or '01, the US military has had EIGHT YEARS to stand up an independent Iraqi military.<br /><br />A military that would have been the guarantor of the Iraqi people's liberation by the United States.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-71538422747340485722009-08-10T20:05:53.379-04:002009-08-10T20:05:53.379-04:00"US efforts to rebuild the [Iraqi security fo...<i>"<b>US efforts to rebuild the [Iraqi security forces]... ... neglected the greatest challenge ... the forces' ability to maintain security upon US withdrawal ...</b></i>"<br /><br />This Iraqi fellow that wrote the initial report, Najim Abed al-Jabouri, he does not think the US military succeeded in its' primary strategic mission, in Iraq.<br /><br /><a href="http://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/2009/08/civil-war-in-iraq/" rel="nofollow">Report Sees Recipe for Civil War in Iraq - Eli Lake, Washington Times</a>.<br /><br /><i>A report to be published this month by the US government's prestigious National Defense University warns that the Iraqi army and police are becoming pawns of sectarian political parties - a trend that it calls "<b>a recipe for civil war.</b>"<br />The report by Najim Abed al-Jabouri, a former Iraqi mayor and police chief who helped run the first successful counterinsurgency campaign in Iraq after the US invasion, also concludes that US forces have failed to use their remaining leverage as trainers to insulate the Iraqi army and police from the influence of powerful Shi'ite and Sunni Muslim and Kurdish parties.<br /><br />"<b>US efforts to rebuild the [Iraqi security forces] have focused on much needed training and equipment, but have neglected the greatest challenge facing the forces' ability to maintain security upon US withdrawal: an ISF politicized by ethno-sectarian parties,</b></i>" <br /><br />It will be on public display, soon enough. <br /><br />As successful as was the rush to Baghdad was, the establishment of an Iraqi military in the Turkish model was an abject failure. Turkey being the model of Islamic stability that we are striving to attain, with a mixture of hard and soft power, throughout the Islamic Arc.<br /><br />The key to that stability, the Turkish Army's defense of the governmental model developed by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-23251323013372779062009-08-10T19:51:46.212-04:002009-08-10T19:51:46.212-04:00This is a one minute video that illustrates the na...<i>This is a one minute video that illustrates the nature of the fighting in the flatlands / villages of the '"Green Zone". This is typical of the fighting I observed day after day. We have the firepower. Body armor and gear weigh about 70 pounds per man on patrol. The Taliban gangs have the mobility and concealment. They initiate most firefights. We cannot locate their firing positions with sufficient precision to apply accurate killing fires. This is a serious operational-level issue, not a tactical hurdle. If we cannot fix and finish them, they can choose when to fight and extend the war</i>.<br /><br /><a href="http://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/2009/08/not-a-tactical-hurdle/" rel="nofollow">Bing West</a>.<br /><br />General Three Stars says the enemy has the inititive, in the midst of a Marine offense into that enemy's heartland. Which he intends to reinforce, sending thousands more troops into the opium fields.<br /><br />With instructions not to destroy those fields.<br /><br />That being "counter productive" to the "COIN Operations" in the coming 40 year mission in the pursuit of a stable Afpakistan.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-18799033777409956332009-08-10T19:32:00.162-04:002009-08-10T19:32:00.162-04:00The difference being, ash, is really who is pullin...The difference being, ash, is really who is pulling guard duty on the main gate.<br /><br />Lighter footprint, if you do not claim sovereignty over the military installation.<br /><br />It does not limit operational capacity, except to the limits of manpower. If 1,400 is the max allotment, then you wouldn't want to waste the slots on sentries and supply clerks. The airstrip and warehouse space does not care who claims it.<br /><br />The more that we can utilize the native equipment, the better, as well. <br /><br />Keeping that footprint light and the indigs fully engaged. <br />Proxy warfare. The Russians had it down, the Cubans, not so much.<br /><br />We'd do better in Afghanistan, long term, if the plan to really arm up the Afpakis was already up and running. Team Bush did not smile upon the natives being fully engaged. That seems evident enough.<br /><br />Not the case in Colombia, where Team Clinton set the course.<br /><br />Some strategies succeed, some fail, some just stumble along looking for a goal post, or even a reasonable facsimile.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-76141098647740768472009-08-10T18:35:48.914-04:002009-08-10T18:35:48.914-04:00That, too.That, too.trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-88548773499434719902009-08-10T18:34:15.440-04:002009-08-10T18:34:15.440-04:00Ash
what you get for reading the NYTAsh<br /><br />what you get for reading the NYTMOMEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18307879234693014691noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-71696099111049677522009-08-10T18:17:22.744-04:002009-08-10T18:17:22.744-04:00Here we go. Ipsnews.net:
[...]
U.S. Ambassador W...Here we go. Ipsnews.net:<br /><br />[...]<br /><br />U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield said Thursday that the U.S. would not be acquiring bases but would merely be gaining increased access to Colombian bases.<br /><br />Describing the Colombian military as the most "sophisticated" armed forces in Latin America, Brownfield said this country does not need new bases. "They have their bases. This is a question of access."<br /><br />He said the Colombian government would authorise "each and every mission - 100 percent," and that as Plan Colombia stipulates, "each mission will include a representative of the Colombian government – the police or armed forces – aboard the planes, and the missions will have specific, explicit authorisation from the Colombian government."<br /><br />Acting Defense Minister General Freddy Padilla, who is the chief of the armed forces, said the air force generals would still be in command at the bases where the U.S. troops will be stationed.<br /><br />The news that the United States would be shifting its activities from the Manta base in Ecuador to Colombia was confirmed on Apr. 14 by Brownfield during a visit by Uribe to Venezuela.<br /><br />[...]trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-30748069119538173192009-08-10T17:57:57.233-04:002009-08-10T17:57:57.233-04:00One might ask: Okay, does Chavez know this?
To...One might ask: Okay, does Chavez know this?<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />To which would be the response: Does a bear shit in the woods?trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-43252527140202504522009-08-10T17:38:33.863-04:002009-08-10T17:38:33.863-04:00"Nobody can beat the Italian for beauty of wo..."Nobody can beat the Italian for beauty of word and sensuale."<br /><br />Oh, I don't know. I think in this genre as in any other, the unique precision and flexibility of English (more synonyms than any other language, by a mile at least) and a cadence which can be endlessly varied, lends itself to some smashing storytelling.trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-33527586106038019822009-08-10T17:29:31.547-04:002009-08-10T17:29:31.547-04:00"I can't say I've read anywhere that ..."I can't say I've read anywhere that the US has denied or confirmed anything regarding the bases"<br /><br />Amb. Brownfield, bless his soul, has to trot himself out every week or so to make the point expressly.<br /><br />None of the bases are ours. They belong to the Colombians and the Colombians kindly invite us to share in their use, largely because we are working WITH them. We lost the use of an airfield in Ecuador, for instance, and have been graciously allowed the use of a replacement here. The airfield does not belong to us.trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.com