Tag: Analysis

Closing Thought–20Sep17

For 40 years I have been bad mouthing so-called think tanks….these institutions are there tom help formulate policy….there a conserv ones as well as liberal ones and even some that claim to be independent.

MY dislike for them comes from when I was working for one after college…..we were given the conclusion they want and we were to analyze and come up with policy the fit the conclusion.

I think they are worthless waste of time…..any way I recently read a good piece that asked if “think tanks were doomed?”

In 2015, Anne-Marie Slaughter, the president and CEO of the New America Foundation co-authored an ambitious manifesto about the future of the D.C. think tank that emphasized the need for civic action. “The Progressive Era model of think tanks as extensions of technocratic governance is no longer sufficient to make meaningful, large-scale progress in resolving public problems,” Slaughter argued. Instead, she suggested, “pre-partisan” efforts at civic enterprise were necessary for ideas to get traction “in the hyper-partisan, pay-for-play environment of Washington policy development.” She acknowledged that her undertaking was “an ambitious project—nothing short of rethinking the relationship between the people who make public policy and the people for whom they make it,” but New America was poised for the challenge.

Source: Are Think Tanks Doomed? – POLITICO Magazine

Too much cash involved for them to disappear…but they could be better run.

Syria:  A Multi-Level Analysis

This latest attack by the US on Syrian soil has many components…..I try to give my reader as many aspects of the raid as I can possibly find…..

Below is an analysis from WND (not a usual source for me…they tend to rely too heavily on conspiracy bullshit to be accurate)….I include this because it is another look at the raid and I feel that all sides need to be presented and in doing so the reader will find the info he/she needs to make a valid observation.

It is a lengthy report….but well worth the time to read it….some interesting points were made….some not so interesting……

“Information Clearing House” –  “The Saker” – The latest US cruise missile attack on the Syrian airbase is an extremely important event in so many ways that it is important to examine it in some detail.  I will try to do this today with the hope to be able to shed some light on a rather bizarre attack which will nevertheless have profound consequences.  But first, let’s begin by looking at what actually happened.

Source: A Multi-level Analysis of the US attack on Syria

Please let me state again….this is FYI and does not mean in any way that I endorse the findings…..I believe there is NO such thing as “Too Much Information”…..

Terrorism: A Defining Moment

Not a subject that many want to read about these days…..but what the Hell…………

I have been blogging for 10 years….nope does not make me some sort of expert…..just that is a long time to suffer from the regurgitation of the uninformed……if I see crap I have to say something……

Terrorism…speaking of crap.  I have decided to white a white paper on terrorism….there is enough misinformation…..I will be writing a series on the subject……

I have been writing about terrorism since the mid-70’s when there was a rash of plane hijackings and now with the threat of terrorism an ever present threat it has gotten no easier.

When you try to help people understand most times you will run into a brick wall…..first when one tries to analyze the situation in a rational thought provoking way you will inevitably be resisted by those that feel that you are giving  some sort of aid and comfort to the enemy….and sometimes you are accused of having sympathy for those that commit these acts of barbarity.  These days terms like “politically correct” or “apologist” are the most common.

The problem is to most this is not a serious problem that needs to be understood….but rather a chance to pile lots of info that has been arrived at from some bias or another….

Even with all the resistance people like me still continue to inform and analyze…..most of us write off the resistance to ignorance.

Since the attacks of 9/11 the country has been obsessed with the defeat of terrorism…..there is one problem with that cute slogan…..terrorism is a tactic not an entity….we cannot defeat a tactic…..all we can do is learn about the tactic and use knowledge to lessen the effectiveness……

The definition of terrorism is all over the map….there is NO one acceptable definition…..what works for the military is not so straight forward when the PD gets a hold of it…..and then there are the public voices…these people have NO idea of what the definition is….they work off emotional rhetoric not facts.

Let’s begin with the definition of terrorism…..it is not as simple as that….examples below…….

State Department definition, Title 22 of the U.S. Code, Chapter 38, Section 2656f(d)(2): “Premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against non-combatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents.”

FBI definition: “the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.”

Defense Department definition: “The unlawful use of violence or threat of violence to instill fear and coerce governments or societies. Terrorism is often motivated by religious, political, or other ideological beliefs and committed in the pursuit of goals that are usually political.” (JP 3-07.2)

My definition is “Propaganda By Deed”…..simple huh?

Those are the definitions that different agencies work off in this country…..but what about internationally?

United Nations Definition:

“…any act intended to cause death or serious bodily injury to a civilian, or to any other person not taking an active part in the hostilities in a situation of armed conflict, when the purpose of such act, by its nature or context, is to intimidate a population, or to compel a government or an international organization to do or to abstain from doing any act.”

As you can see just defining terrorism is a problem and yet someone wants to defeat a tactic……

But for such a widely used word, there’s actually no single definition of what “terrorism” means. There are many, and often, they’re incompatible.

Not only is the public confused about what to call “terrorism” — the U.S. government is as conflicted as anyone.

Then there is the color code for the chance of terrorism….

But for those that are not afraid of learning then maybe this article will be interesting than my rattling…..

Ramadan has ended peacefully with no ‘terrorist’ attacks in SA but is it safe to go out? Reports of ‘terror attacks during Ramadan’ in South Africa initiated by the US State Department sent waves of confusion and concern throughout the country.

The warning stated that ‘the government has received information that terrorist groups are planning to carry out near-term attacks against places where US citizens congregate in South Africa, such as upscale shopping areas and malls in Johannesburg and Cape Town’.

Source: Media Review Network » Riaz Gardee: Defining Terrorism

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