Day: January 25, 2016

Clinton: Some Things Never Change

Can anyone remember the primaries of 2008?

Never mind….I would not want anyone hurting themselves…..my point is back in those days Clinton was going negative against her Dem opponent, Obama, and she was losing ground quickly….and then she had that tender moment in New Hampshire and her  “nice” side appeared and it worked….her support skyrocketed….but in the end she lost but her negativity was there just beneath the surface of her campaign…..

I bring ancient history into this because it looks like Clinton is trying a failed tactic from her last campaign….negativity……I was wondering when Clinton or her surrogates would use the “S” word against Bernie….well I did not have to wait long….now did I?…….

Attacks on Bernie Sanders by rival Democrats are likely to turn increasingly to his record on the economy and foreign affairs, according to a new dossier seen by the Guardian that accuses him of sympathising with communists and “not believing in capitalism”.

A ferocious war of words between Hillary Clinton and Sanders has erupted in recent days as polls showing the Vermont senator taking the lead among Democratic voters in both New Hampshire and Iowa have sent shockwaves through the party establishment and prompted growing personal attacks.

On Thursday, Sanders aides accused David Brock, a political operative who runs a Super Pac set up to defend Clinton, of “mudslinging” after he claimed Sanders was acting as if “black lives don’t matter” in a new campaign ad.

I would expect this from the mental midgets that support Trump or Cruz…..but not from a Dem…..there will be plenty of time to sling the mud….how about just stick to issues and the differences in vision…..just a thought……

I was a bad idea in 2008 and it is an even worse idea in 2016…..but do not take my word for it……

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) may be poised to win both the Iowa caucus and the New Hampshire primary, and as Sanders soars, rival Hillary Clinton is making the worst possible move of launching an all-out attack against him, which is the same mistake she made when she attacked Barack Obama in 2008.

Source: As Sanders soars, Clinton goes negative — a bad move | TheHill

Did Hillary learn her lesson from the 2008 debacle?  Looks like the answer to that is NO……she wants to win no matter what she has to do to achieve that end…..is that what we are looking for in a leader?

Don’t know about you……but I am not impressed.

 

ALERT! For My Friends In Europe….ISIS Is Coming!

….we are only seeing what we have ourselves made……………..To quote Lennon…”Still fucking peasnats as far as I can see…..””They

I do not want to be an alarmist but I read something in the Daily Star, a newspaper in Lebanon,  that I have not read anywhere else as of yet……I thought I would pass it on in case the media does its normal thing and avoid a story until they can no longer ignore it……

AMSTERDAM: ISIS has honed the ability to launch global attacks and is set to focus more on Europe following the Paris massacre, the chief of the EU police agency Europol said Monday.

Rob Wainwright told a news conference that “the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) had developed a new combat style capability to carry out a campaign of large-scale terrorist attacks on a global stage – with a particular focus in Europe.”

“So-called Islamic State has a willingness and a capability to carry out further attacks in Europe, and of course all national authorities are working to prevent that from happening,” he added.

Source: ISIS planning for ‘large-scale’ attacks on Europe: Europol | News , World | THE DAILY STAR

Just my small attempt to keep my friends in Europe up-to-date……if anyone else has seen this report please send me the link….I want to hear all sides of this report…..but if it is like the US then it is a ruse….feeding the fear….if you will.

Professor’s Class: Week 3 Class 3

Friday’s class……

Told students that we would be starting with the Nixon/Ford years and that is when the US became embroiled in the Middle East with no exit to be found…..

Nixon/Ford years……

Humiliated by the Six Day War, Egypt, Syria and Jordan tried to regain lost territory when they attacked Israel during the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur in 1973. Egypt regained some ground but its Third Army was then surrounded by an Israeli army led by Ariel Sharon (who would later become prime minister).

The Soviets proposed a cease-fire, failing which they threatened to act “unilaterally.” For the second time in six years, the United States faced its second major and potentially nuclear confrontation with the Soviet Union over the Middle East.

After what journalist Elizabeth Drew described as “Strangelove Day,” when the Nixon administration put American forces on the highest alert, the administration persuaded Israel to accept a cease-fire.

Americans felt the effects of that war through the 1973 Arab oil embargo, rocketing oil prices upward and contributing to a recession a year later.

In 1974 and 1975 Secretary of State Henry Kissinger negotiated so-called disengagement agreements, first between Israel and Syria, then between Israel and Egypt, formally ending the hostilities begun in 1973 and returning some land Israel had seized from the two countries. Those were not peace agreements, however, and they left the Palestinian situation untouched. Meanwhile, a military strongman called Saddam Hussein was rising through the ranks in Iraq.

To be honest the Middle East was only important at this point for Israel’s sake……Nixon had a war in Vietnam, the USSR and emerging China to hold his interests……

Handouts…….

Source: Nixon’s Principles and a Multipolar Middle East | The National Interest Blog

Source: Nixon Administration Ignores Saudi Warnings, Bringing On Oil Boycott

Discussion……..

Who was the only prez never elected to hold the office?

Ford took over the presidency in 1974 after the resignation of Nixon and the effects of the oil embargo was still being felt by Americans even though the embargo had been lifted in 1974 before Ford took the reins…..which led to more interests in the region because of it…….

Source: Educate Yourself – The Arab Oil Embargo of 1973-74

The rivalry between the US and the USSR begins to heat up to the point of a possible confrontation……

Source: Foreign Military Studies Office Publications – THE UNITED STATES AND THE SOVIET UNION IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Discussion of covered material……

This situation was the beginning of a massive US involvement in the events of the region that continues to this day…..

……and now I go teach those young minds……thanx for reading…..back later……

New Words From the DoD……

First of all…..for God’s sake STOP whining!  It is winter and it snowed…GET OVER IT!  In a couple of days it will be a memory for the record books.  Make babies….veg out with Netflix….bake cookies….the goddamn world will not end!

Whew!  I feel better now…..onward…..

DoD does one thing competently…talk out of both sides of their mouths at one time……but I expect that from “old school” dumbasses…….

The fight against ISIS has one thing that is constant…..an ever changing strategy….to me it says “throw crap at the wall and see what sticks” plan……at least I could argue they have a plan…..

Sec of Defense Ash Carter has written an op-ed for Politico……

The storied 101st Airborne Division will soon deploy 1,800 troops to Iraq to aid in the fight against ISIL. They will head there with the support of the American people and armed with a clear campaign plan to help our allies deliver the barbaric organization a lasting defeat, which I personally shared with them last week at Fort Campbell. I also traveled to U.S. Central Command in Tampa, Florida, where I discussed the plan’s implementation with our top commanders. And this week I visited Paris, a city of determination and resolve, to discuss the plan with our allies.

A new day….a new plan…..but is it a truly “new” plan?

The Pentagon has revised its war plans against the Islamic State for 2016, based on a cold assessment of the state of combat, and lessons learned from the relat

Source: Washington Recalibrates anti-ISIL War: Plans Going Forward | Middle East Briefing

Recently Carter made a statement that I thought I would never hear coming from the mouth of a political pawn…….
Speaking today from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter departed from the usual script of praising the 65 nation anti-ISIS coalition to condemn many of the nations for “not doing enough” and several for doing “nothing at all.”

Though Carter avoided naming names, he later appeared on Bloomberg TV and faulted Sunni Arab nations in the coalition, saying they need to “carry their weight,” and saying nations will no longer be allowed to be “free riders.”

Recent reports have suggested that the US has been courting a number of nations to send more troops, including ground combat forces, into Iraq and Syria, and have been rebuffed publicly by some of those nations. The lack of acceptance for the planned escalations appears to be increasing Pentagon frustrations at the coalition.

Freeloaders?  I thought that was a term delegated of GOP candidates?

Once again the DoD is, to quote a GOP mouthpiece, “putting lipstick on a pig”…..none of this is a “new” thinking…..just an adjustment to the failed policies in this battle……

What will the “plan” be next month?

And then there is the statement from VP Biden on the situation in Syria….

Speaking at a news conference today in Turkey, Vice President Joe Biden sought to downplay the remote chances of any sort of political settlement coming out of this week’s planned Geneva peace talks, saying the US and Turkey are fully prepared to bypass the process and impose a “military solution” on Syria.

“We do know it would be better if we can reach a political solution,” Biden told the conference, insisting that absent that the US military was still fully capable of “solving” the situation.

I am sure the spin doctors will work overtime trying to explain what Biden meant…….NO need I think it is pretty obvious…..I’d say the course set……and yet the media has said NOTHING about the comment……go figure.

I’m not optimistic…..

How about you?

Gunfight At The “Magnolia” Corral

I have made no bones about the mentality of the state in which I reside…..for a thinking person it is a cultural wasteland….Mississippi, the Magnolia state….some of the dumbest things have occurred…..like a scrap metal guy sneaks onto a military firing range a takes metal he found…well he was cutting up is ill gotten gains when he exploded an artillery shell killing him instantly……

Recently I read in my local newspaper about a gun fight at a gun store……

‘Pearl River County deputies responding to the shooting on Mississippi 43 about 3:15 p.m. found the store owner and his son dead in the store, Chief Deputy Shane Tucker said’.

‘The owner’s wife was working at the store when two customers, a man and his son, entered to pick up a firearm that had been repaired’.

“There was some contention about a $25 fee,” Tucker said’

‘In an attempt to clear up the dispute, the woman called her husband, who later arrived with his son. An argument ensued between the owners and the customers’.

“During this argument, we believe there might have been some pushing and shoving,” Tucker said. “One of the customers and one of the owners produced firearms. We don’t know who shot first.”

‘All four men were shot. The two customers were airlifted to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, Tucker said’.

From : http://www.sunherald.com/news/local/crime/article56305535.html

You just “Can’t Fix Stupid”!

Why is the global economy suffering so much turbulence?

2016 is an election year so candidates will be making hay with the economic woes of the planet…..China is sliding….US is crumbling……Wall Street is a bouncing ball……..wages suck…..inflation is under control (tell that to someone on a fixed income)……gas prices in a race to the bottom……as soon as the luster moves on from the Muslim theme or the immigrant subject or the refugees…..the economy will make a return to the campaign ads and rhetoric…….

But with the markets playing the rhumba on the bowels of traders…..the question is….does anyone know what the Hell is going on?

A tumbling oil price and see-saw financial markets are clear symptoms of economic instability. But what’s the cause?

Well there is a newspaper trying to help in the understanding of economics of the day……

Source: Why is the global economy suffering so much turbulence? | Business | The Guardian

Can you see it now?

Nation is paying a heavy price for knee-jerk military spending

My readers do not need to employ a mystic to tell them that I am a devout opponent of the Military-Industrial Complex (M-IC)……wars will always be fought but I despise the idea of this action being a money making proposition……

I am also an opponent of knee-jerk reactions to world affairs and that is what we have had in our foreign policy for damn near 50 years…..and this election is built on knee-jerk reactions to situation and issues……

I write a lot of op-eds deriding war……and when I find someone that has a cogent opposition I like to pass it on to my readers….and I found a pretty good article recently……..actually it is an op-ed…..

The US is reacting to a situation…..there is little to no professionalism in any of the decisions……

Source: My Turn: Nation is paying a heavy price for knee-jerk military spending | Concord Monitor

Any opinions?