Tag: World Politics

Closing Thought–28Dec17

We all remember Qaddafi….the leader of Libya……hated by Reagan and Bush 1, tolerated by Clinton then embraced by Bush2 and finally killed by Obama…..since his death Libya has been a bloody mess….factions fighting factions, tribes fighting tribes, and ISIS showing its ugly head….I give you this quick historical sketch because Libya will soon be holding a presidential election and there may be a Qaddafi on the ballot…….

The son of late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, Saif al-Islam, is planning to run in the 2018 presidential elections.

Libyan tribal chief Basem al-Hashimi al-Soul confirmed the candidacy of Saif al-Islam on Sunday (17 December)

“Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of the former Libyan president, enjoys the support of major tribes in Libya so he can run for the upcoming presidential elections due in 2018,” Soul told Egypt Today.

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/could-muammar-gaddafis-son-saif-al-islam-be-next-libyan-president-1651965

Just a little something to fill the dead air….

Tomorrow is another day and I will be here with more stuff…..chuq

Democracy and Democracies in Crisis

I have been negligent in my studies and research on the condition of the world and its policies….I will try to be more vigilant in the future…..but in my defense….American politics is fascinating at this time….but I am sure that it will pass.

With the rise of right wing ideology across the world….could the idea of democracy be in trouble?

If democracy is in trouble then what is driving the opposition to such a noble end?

Democracy today is facing greater challenges than at any time since the fall of communism a quarter of a century ago; greater than at any time, in fact, since the dark days of the 1970s when Daniel Patrick Moynihan, writing on the occasion of the U.S. bicentennial in 1976, said that “democracy is where the world was, not where the world is going.”

In retrospect, we know something that Moynihan couldn’t have known at the time—that the fall of the military government in Portugal in 1974 and Franco’s death in Spain the following year had initiated what Samuel Huntington was later to call “the third wave of democratization,” which was the most far-reaching process of democratic transition in the history of the world.

Source: Democracy and Democracies in Crisis | World Affairs Journal

Is This The World Of Tomorrow?

If you are an avid news junkie and depending on the source of your news…..you see a change happening in the world…..to some it is an inevitable change and to others it is the “end of days”….the beginning of “Mad Max”…..again where you get your information will make a difference…..

Me? I see a change coming that some may not appreciate but me I think it is a good idea…..a change in political thinking…..

AQ began this thinking and it has progressed to ISIS and now Greece may be leading the charge again….after about 2000 years……..

A Greek state TV exit poll is projecting that anti-bailout party Syriza has won today’s parliamentary elections—in a historic first for a radical left wing party in Greece. But it’s unclear whether Syriza has won a decisive enough victory over Prime Minister Antonis Samaras’ incumbent conservatives to govern alone. For that, they need a minimum 151 of parliament’s 300 seats. The centrist Potami (River) party is battling for third place with the Nazi-inspired, extreme right-wing Golden Dawn, whose leadership is in prison pending trial for running a criminal organization. Syriza leader Alexis Tsipras has promised to renegotiate the country’s $270 billion international bailout deal. He has pledged to reverse many of the reforms that creditors demanded in exchange for keeping Greece financially afloat since 2010.

Depending on how he forms a coalition to rule…..this could be the first state to exit the EU……and the beginning of a push back to job killing and economic killing austerity.

Could this be a new form of political thinking?  Will it spread?  What will be the outcome?  All opinions welcome.

Sweden: Catch Us If You Can

You guys know that I prowl the internet for news……mostly dealing with the Middle East but from time to time there is a report that catches my attention…..for I can see more to the story than the report would indicate………….

For a week now I have been watching a saga play out….a saga of cat and mouse……there seems to be a submarine, possibly a mini-sub, that has been playing a game with the navy of Sweden…..Russia sez “not ours”……The Dutch had been blamed by Russia…..and all the while the Swedish government has been steadfast that they want to find and identify this sub operating in their waters…..operating covertly…….

Then this morning news came out……..

Swedish authorities say they have called off their weeklong search for a suspected submarine in the Stockholm archipelago. Military authorities have ordered naval and amphibious forces to end their hunt for the submarine, though some ground forces will remain involved. Last Friday, Sweden’s military launched its biggest anti-submarine operation since the twilight of the Soviet Union after receiving credible reports of foreign underwater activity. Military officials haven’t blamed any country for the suspected intrusion, though most Swedish defense analysts say Russia would be a likely culprit. Earlier this week, the military said it was willing to use armed force to bring the sub to the surface, but admitted finding it would be very difficult.

Okay….wassup?

Just two days ago it was imperative that this sub be located and identified……and now…..Sweden has thrown up the hands and called it “operation finished”……..

Why?

I read it is costing about $1.5 million a day for the operation…..was that too expensive?………or maybe the culprit has been identified and may cause some international embarrassment……..just why did the importance wane in two days?

This is a good mystery……I will be watching.

Any ideas?

Is A World War Possible (Again)?

Inkwell Institute

Putin is a dick!  China cheats!  Arabs hate us!  Chavez wants a war!  Iran wants to nuke New York!  You have heard it all, right?  All this posturing among the politicos…..especially among conservs who seem to want a war with Iran or maybe it is ALL Arabs…….war hawks are beating their chests like sex crazed baboons over the protests in the Middle East….but with all this colorful speech….what is the chance of another world war?

Here is a summary of where the world stands:

The economic crash and the Arab Spring have pushed the world hard…..all the frustrations are coming to the surface and with outrageous politics it could push the whole global into another war.  I do not think the world wants this….but it seems they are doing little to avoid it.

Pakistan Is Lurking Around The Corner

One of my annual predictions for the last couple of years is that Pakistan will have some internal problems that could change everything in the AfPak region…..and this year is No different and now there is a bit more info on the country….

Reuter’s as usual has a terrific breakdown……

What to watch:

— Whether the government can bring the MQM back on board. To achieve this, President Asif Ali Zardari may have to take decisive steps such as the dismissal of his close aide and Sindh province’s home minister, Zulfiqar Mirza, a vocal critic of the MQM, which dominates politics in Pakistan’s financial capital and biggest city Karachi. A deal may be possible given divisions between the MQM and the main opposition party, led by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

— Whether the prime minister quits. Differences between Zardari and Gilani have raised speculation that the prime minister is becoming vulnerable. Some analysts say Gilani may opt to resign instead of facing a confidence vote, which may encourage some of the disgruntled former allies to rejoin the government.

— Whether opposition opts for a no-confidence vote. With the MQM sitting the opposition, the government clearly loses its majority in the National Assembly. The opposition could now press ahead with a no-confidence vote against the prime minister in parliament. Much will depend on Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N). Sharif is one of Pakistan’s most popular politicians, but he does not enjoy good ties with most political parties and the chances of the opposition forming a new ruling alliance are slim. The ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) may try to lure some of the other, smaller opposition parties into its fold to regain a majority, but that looks unlikely. Therefore, a call for early elections is likely.

— Pakistan’s latest political storm could further weigh on investment in a country that relies on an $11 billion IMF loan agreed in 2008 to help its fragile economy. It will also make it even harder to reach agreement on a new reformed general sales tax (RGST), a key condition for future IMF loan disbursements.

Last year the floods were a good chance for the Army to step in and rattle the government…..they missed the chance…..but will they miss yet another chance to regain power?  Keep in mind the nukes….always a great thing to have to get your way, right?

New Years Predictions For 2011

A new year……back to work…..

I started this, the attempt to predict, a couple of years ago…so far I have been kinda accurate but then some of them were gimmes…..First I will grade how I did for 2010 and then move on to this years predictions….

1–Pakistan will have a crisis and a new government…..close but no cigar

2–Afghan surge will go well at first…so far so good….+

3–Unemployment does not get below 8.5%–sorry this was a gimme….+

4–Immigration and Energy will be the next big congressional confrontations–this one is a toss up…immigration became hot and energy was put on a the back burner…close but no cigar!

5–Top Obama cabinet member will resign–head of the NIB, Romer and Orzag and Summers of the economic team and little dictator Rahm is gone….+

6–Economy will have another scandal–this one is good!  The scandal of insurance companies screwing widows of dead military people…..+

7–Inflation will rise by 3rd quarter….The Fed peed all over this one…..-

8–Israel/Palestine will flair up again–another close one….the attack on the flotilla and the Gaza thingy is still hot…but it will be a close but no cigar!

9–Iran will be the focus of most of the US foreign policy….this was another “gimme”…it seems that Iran will always be a major priority in foreign policy…..+

10-a real third party shows ballot strength—way off dumbass!….-

11-Yemen will become much more volatile–many AQ guys in Yemen and the focus of drone strikes ….many plots come out of Yemen especially bomb plots….. so I give it a….+

Yes, I know these are open for interpretation….my blog…my interpretation…..the score is 6 plus…..3 close and 2 minus…not a bad prediction……

Another year begins and another year of aggravation and lots of coffee…..so here are my predictions for 2011…..

1–unemployment does NOT dip below 9%

2–inflation will be up to 2%

3–Washington remains the same partisan bound group as it has been last year

4–Germany will have a bit of a set back in the economy

5–Economic growth will be 3%

6–Tax cuts will NOT create jobs

7–More major economic problems in Europe (EU)

8–Afghan situation becomes more clouded than before

9–Pakistan will become unstable….

10-Energy and Education will be hot issue for Congress

Nostradamus!  Cayce!  Eat your hearts out!  My crystal balls are bigger than theirs……

Now Here Is An Idea!

Inkwell Institute

European Desk

Every now and then I read something from across the pond and think that it would be a good way to conduct politics in this country….maybe not exactly the same but some of the ideas are worth considering……

The main party leaders have hit the campaign trail following Gordon Brown’s announcement that he has asked the Queen to dissolve Parliament, triggering a general election on May 6.

Parliament will not be formally dissolved until Monday, with MPs spending the next three days rushing legislation through the Commons during what is known as the “wash up”.

Two polls today gave the Tories a 10-point lead, enough to form a narrow majority, while a third suggested that Labour would emerge as the largest party in a hung Parliament.

Now there is an idea I can back with all my support (as little as that may be)…….dissolve Congress and send them all home to try again…..about a month or so of campaigning….that could eliminate all the crap we get for a year or more before an election…..to be honest I have not paid a great deal of attention to the politics in Europe….that is my failing…but I am trying to rectify my lack of knowledge….

I remember back in the days of the “evil empire”, the USSR, whenever there were elections for the Duma, Russian style Congress, and 85% of the members were re-elected…the news would be about what a sham the election were in the Communists country…..but yet in the “democracy” in the US the percentage of those re-elected is somewhere close to 90….does that mean that it is also a sham?

The point I am trying desperately trying to make is that it is a good idea to dissolve Congress if they are getting NOTHING done but petty bickering…….and a month of campaigning would be money well spent and eliminate some, not all, of the campaign bullsh*t.

While I am not sure if the whole Parliament has to campaign or not (hopefully Quin of Quintessential Havoc will weigh in)….but all in all sounds like a Helluva idea….this could make the ass wads in Washington more responsible for their actions or in the case of today….inaction….

Plan For Haiti’s Relief

More than two weeks after the devastating earthquake in Haiti, the supplies are still not getting through to the people on a regular basis and seems to be a major hold up for some reason….there seems to be some petty envy among the participants of the distribution of supplies…that alone is thoroughly absurd….people are suffering put your goddamn envies to bed and help these people….

I have heard that part of the problem is that the roads are impassable in places…WAIT!…..have any of these morons ever heard of a helicopter?  Divide the country up into sectors and let each country that wants to be the hero take a sector…..set up easily controlled distribution sites and then go to fuc*ing work…this is not rocket science….or maybe it is……

Are you telling me that the brilliant minds that start wars cannot figure out how to distribute emergency supplies?  Set up a field hospital on the grounds of the destroyed presidential palace…it is fenced and could be easily protected from anyone that feels froggy and wants to attack…..or use it as a main supply point for the same reason….

Let the UN go in and section off the country and assign each section to a country that has a presence there….

I see the US has learned nothing from Katrina…there were plenty of supplies but they were outta reach of the people for days and even a week or more….sound familiar?  You would think that we have learned from our mistakes…apparently we have learned NOTHING in the science of getting emergency supplies to people in need….ALL the people….

I would like to apologize to the people of Haiti for the arrogance, ignorance and stupidity of the world….especially the industrialized world…..

Could Peace Break Out?

For more than 60 years the Middle East has been a powder keg just waiting for the right fuse to ignite it…..both sides of the Israel/Palestine issue have done very little actually help the prospect of peace and yet there is always the hope that these conflicting players will come to their sense and find a way to ‘give peace a chance’……

The Jerusalem Post is reporting:

Hamas has accepted Israel’s right to exist and would be prepared to nullify its charter, which calls for the destruction of Israel, Aziz Dwaik, Hamas’s most senior representative in the West Bank, said on Wednesday.

During the meeting in Hebron, Dwaik stressed that other Hamas leaders, including Damascus-based leader Khaled Mashaal and Gaza Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, have voiced support for the idea of establishing an independent Palestinian state within the pre-1967 boundaries.

Asked whether he might be condemned as naïve for believing Hamas, Abrahams said, “People might say that I’m naïve, so let them. But I’m prepared to give them [Hamas] a chance because I’ve got faith and confidence in Dwaik and Haniyeh. We can’t allow 1.5 million to be festering in the Gaza Strip while the majority of them are good and well-educated.”

Abrahams said that his decision to engage Hamas was aimed at “preventing bloodshed on both sides.” He said he was encouraged by the massive support he found among the Jewish community in Britain for the idea of talking to Hamas.

I for one would like to believe that peace is possible….but I have seen many a good idea go down in flames…shot to pieces by one side or the other…..unfortunately the conflict has become an institution for both sides…a way of life that will be hard to break…

For now, it looks promising but I have been sadly disappointed too many times to think it is a settlement that all can live with in the future…..