[ARABNEWS] If you regularly watch television or read newspapers for news of the Middle East, you would most probably never see or read much about Yemen. The small country at the southwestern corner of the Arabian Peninsula, with no huge mineral resources, just does not appear much on the radar screens of the western media, despite the country being the home of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), possibly one of the biggest threats to the United States.
It is therefore unfortunate that the alarming takeover of the Yemeni capital Sanaa by Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to Americatm, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... rebels over the past weekend barely made a blip in the western media. All western attention is currently focused on the bombing campaign by the US and its allies of the Islamic State
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Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2014 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] IT is fair to say that the mix of ideology, religion and selective history taught in our public schools often leaves students unable to cope with the realities of the modern world. Some critics have even said that the curriculum is the main reason for the Pak population's steady drift towards intolerance.
Yet whenever efforts are made to reform the curriculum, powerful forces that insist on keeping intact the narrative in textbooks -- one that was largely constructed in the Zia era -- become active in order to mould the minds of the next generation. As reported in this paper on Saturday, the PTI-led government of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... has buckled under pressure exerted by Jamaat-e-Islami ...The Islamic Society, founded in 1941 in Lahore by Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, aka The Great Apostosizer. The Jamaat opposed the independence of Bangladesh but has operated an independent branch there since 1975. It maintains close ties with international Mohammedan groups such as the Moslem Brotherhood. the Taliban, and al-Qaeda. The Jamaat's objectives are the establishment of a pure Islamic state, governed by Sharia law. It is distinguished by its xenophobia, and its opposition to Westernization, capitalism, socialism, secularism, and liberalist social mores... , its provincial coalition partner, and has decided to remove 'objectionable material' from primary school textbooks. We would assume any matter that promotes hatred and intolerance would fall under the category of 'objectionable material', but the Jamaat, it seems, has other ideas.
Reportedly, the party has issues with the presence of pictures of Christmas cakes and little girls without dupattas in schoolbooks, as well as the mention of 'good morning', instead of 'As salaam-o-alaikum'. Moulding the curriculum so it is culturally appropriate is understandable, but these objections seem ridiculous. If anything, we need greater mention of other faiths and cultures in our textbooks so that our children are taught to appreciate diversity.
Perhaps the JI and PTI should make an effort to educate youngsters about the values of harmony, tolerance and brotherhood so that their impressionable minds are exposed to an alternative narrative to counter the hate and poison that surrounds them. Also, there is much that needs to be fixed in KP's education system before the administration starts worrying about Christmas cakes in textbooks. While some improvements have been made under the PTI's watch where the management of the education system is concerned, matters largely remain the same. Additionally, much of the infrastructure, including girls' schools, damaged by Lions of Islam needs urgent attention. Instead of non-issues, it is these areas that the provincial government should be concentrating on.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2014 00:00 ||
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It was impossible to tolerate the advance of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant any longer Once you're in a fist fight the "battle of ideas" is over and the outcome depends on who's got the better left hook.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/29/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
Once one side has accepted finlandization the 'Battle of Ideas' is over because the other side won.
There is Western military action, but the West is fighting some islamofascists at the behest of other islamofascists.
Islamofascism is not engaged at all, neither intellectually or physically. Doing so would hurt the enemies' peace partners' feelings and that's verboten.
#2
First, you have to deal with the guys who have the bad ideas.
Posted by: Richard Aubrey ||
09/29/2014 8:14 Comments ||
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#3
To paraphrase a one-liner I heard:
"When someone with a baseball bat walks into the restaurant you are eating at, and starts hitting people, they have already defined the context of your relationship."
Dude and I were talking last night during the game. I brought up the idea that had the Gauls had air power...loosely define as superior artillary...they would have bombed Roman roads and aquaducts, they would have slowed or even prevented Caesar from his conquest, but would not have dissolved Rome. Then touched on Hannibal's victory at Cannae, a total disaster for Rome but did not defeat Rome as they were unwilling to even consider a political solution.
#4
#1 There is Western military action, but the West is fighting some islamofascists at the behest of other islamofascists.
#2 First, you have to deal with the guys who have the bad ideas.
#3 "When someone with a baseball bat walks into the restaurant you are eating at, and starts hitting people, they have already defined the context of your relationship."
These quotes strike me as salient and relevant quotes in the battle of ideas.
#5
First, you have to deal with the guys who have the bad ideas.
But second you have to ensure their children don't have similar ideas. The goal of the Nurnberg trials wasn't merley to punish croiminals (if you thionk about it most sentences were laughably low respective to the crimes. What we aimed at, was at destroying both the very idea of nazism. With the same goal we forced Germans to visit concentration camps. We will have no peace until Islam becomes as dead a religion as the cult of Zeus.
#7
Then touched on Hannibal's victory at Cannae, a total disaster for Rome but did not defeat Rome as they were unwilling to even consider a political solution.
Except, today there are no Carthaginians. Something about a final solution to the conflict.* What we know about Carthage and Hannibal is what the victors wrote.
*Romans would get to experience the effect later themselves. Real history tells us about conflicts of civilizations (not to be found in the fluff stuff put forth as studies history in the education establishment dogma).
#8
In fact it would have been better for Cathago Hannibal had lost thi war as the immense losses at Cannae filled Romae with an implacable resloution and a desire of revenge who could not be fiulfilled with any treaty as hasrh it could be. Only the destruction of Carthago could fullfill this desire
Same thing about Pearl Harbor. For Japan, at least for the kind of Japan Yamamaoto and Nagumo were fighting for, it woud have been better that the entire air fleet lauched on December 7, had become lost, run out of fuel and crashed at sea.
#9
"Romans would get to experience the effect later themselves." There seem to be many descendants of those Romans around, and their imperial culture is still affecting us. Can't say that for the Carthaginians. Modern China is a direct descendant of old Chinese empires, having been knocked down repeatedly, and arisen repeatedly. My first course in Chinese included a US-born Hmong girl (parents came here in the 1970's) and an Indonesian student (overseas Chinese).
#10
Yep. War of ideas. More precisely: Muzzies have to grasp the idea that---unless they change their behavior---the rest of the world will, eventually, go medieval on them.
[Ynet] Despite historical distortions in Paleostinian leader's aggressive UN address, Israel has no one better to negotiate with.
In other words, horribly unacceptable though he is, the other options are even worse. Which raises the question, why bother negotiating at all? But then one realizes that President B.O. and the Europeans would be happy to try to impose their ideas if there isn't at least a pretense of negotiation. *sigh*
Assuming that the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial... is not a partner for peace who may lead to a diplomatic agreement between Israel and the Paleostinians, there is a simple question we must ask ourselves: Who is? Are Khaled Mashal or Ismail Haniyeh ...became Prime Minister after the legislative elections of 2006 which Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, won. President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Haniyeh from office on 14 June 2007 at the height of the Fatah-Hamas festivities, but Haniyeh did not acknowledge the decree and continues as the PM of Gazoo while Abbas maintains a separate PM in the West Bank... , or anyone else Israel may try to crown, more suitable to hold negotiations with us? Probably not.
Even if some of the comments made Friday by the Paleostinian Authority chairman at the United Nations ...boodling on the grand scale... General Assembly do distort history and are definitely outrageous, we are still left with the painful reality in which both nations are seeking high and low for a formula which will guarantee security for the Israelis and self-determination for the Paleostinians.
The addresses delivered every year on the UN podium are mainly symbolic and in most cases lack any political significance. They are filled with clichés which are mostly aimed at captivating the speakers' audience at home.
The same is true for us: Can anyone remember a significant and groundbreaking statement made by Benjamin Netanyahu at the UN? The prime minister's speeches always come in the same package: They include reminders of the Holocaust and a review of the existential threats hovering over Israel.
This year it was actually Abbas who appears to have provided a groundbreaking speech: In his aggressive address, he may have tried to prove to his Paleostinian senders that there is a possibility they would make progress towards some kind of independence by appealing to the international community.
Abbas' announcement that he is turning to the Security Council to advance a decision to establish a Paleostinian state in the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, within a limited period of time, may receive the world powers' support at the Security Council.
If that were not enough, we must not rule out the possibility that the United States will support such a declaration one day. We must remember that Barack Obama We're gonna punish our enemies and we're gonna reward our friends who stand with us on issues that are important to us... was the first American president who, in a historic public speech which he delivered at the beginning of his presidency, addressed the '67 borders and a land swap as a possible formula for solving the Israeli-Paleostinian conflict.
There are at least two ways to deal with the issues raised by Abbas in his address. The first way, which will likely be reflected in Netanyahu's UN speech on Monday is: "I told you so. Abbas is not a partner for peace and is dangerously distorting history."
There is quite a lot of truth in that: Several years ago, when I listened to Abbas addressing UN General Assembly, I was amazed by the historic distortions about the history of Jerusalem that came out of his mouth. According to him, Judaism never even existed in the Old City where the Jewish Temple was located, and only Christianity and Islam have a place there.
The second response to Abbas' comments forces us to seriously consider the options and advance our own solution which will be based on one of the two following options: Two states for two people or one bi-national state which will guarantee full rights for all the residents of the Land of Israel, both Jews and Arabs.
Despite the harsh statements voiced by Abbas on Friday, we must not forget that he and the leaders of the Paleostinian security organizations are fully cooperating with the Israeli security services with a shared goal in mind: Preventing terror attacks.
Some will say that whoever cooperates with us at night is allowed to make speeches which include defamatory words against us during the day. But the decision about our future is not only in Abbas' hands. It is also in the hands of the Israeli government. It's just a shame that Netanyahu has yet to realize that and do something about it.
Indeed. How do you negotiate with someone determined to eradicate you?
he and the leaders of the Paleostinian security organizations are fully cooperating with the Israeli security services with a shared goal in mind: Preventing terror attacks.
There are two games in play here: Paleos vs Israelis and Fatah vs Hamas. Abbas intends to win both of them, just maybe not both at the same time.
Foreign Policy guest opinion piece, so no verbatim. Read at (cached) link.
BLUF: Author is a retired USMC colonel who thinks Dempsey is "pitching a losing game" with regards to Mr. Obama's non-war with the IS, and ought to slap his stars down on the Oval Office desk and tell the President to find another player.
Posted by: Pappy ||
09/29/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
I feel bad for the General, but I think we've all been there: The Boss says "Marty, I want you to do some stupid shxt." You say, "Boss, that's some stupid shxt. It's gonna bite us on the ass." Boss says, "Do it." And you do, hoping you can somehow mitigate the damage.
Resignation is not much of a threat. Obama would look at it as an opportunity to purge disloyal staff. Been a lot of personnel changes lately...
#3
I'd guess that Dempsey wants Chump to fire him so that the entire debacle lies on those puny shoulders. The Generals have apparently been offering advice that hasn't been taken. They can't all resign en masse
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/29/2014 7:22 Comments ||
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#4
Being an officer in the military has forever been a case carrying out dumbs**t decisions dropped from above. You all know what rolls downhill.
The last person that stood at the fork in road at this level was probably Douglas MacArthur.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
09/29/2014 7:53 Comments ||
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#5
I dunno. Think about Singlaub vs. Carter.
Posted by: Richard Aubrey ||
09/29/2014 8:13 Comments ||
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#6
They can't all resign en masse
Yes, they can. We don't have coups in the history of the US armed forces (though our pre-history as Brits will find Cromwell). However, nothing would send a message a week before a critical election like a mass resignation and remain people that their oath is/was to the Constitution, not an individual, which they could not carry out any further in true faith and confidence. Most of those in the upper echelons are political appointees already, so such an event is near zero.
#7
I think that Eric Shinseki got canned for standing his ground after his Congressional testimony back in 2003: http://youtu.be/a_xchyIeCQw which contradicted the wishes of Paul Wolfowitz and his masters.
#8
..and probably why they saved the dirt* on Petraeus till they needed to use it. *Nothing that wouldn't disqualify running for the Senate in MA, right Teddy.
#9
Nopresident in his right mind wants to see the very public resignation of a top general on principle. If his policy fails, and the Islamic State strategy surely will, President Obama would alone shoulder the blame for the debacle.
Obama will not shoulder the blame for any debacle alone. Obama is good at shedding blame and putting it on someone else. Someone, somehow will go under his bus. He will either get out in front of a Dempsey resignation by firing him for some trumped up cause or first disgracing him in some way and accepting the resignation.
After Benghazi, sometimes I have fleeting thoughts that Obama will leave a contingent of forces in Iraq or Afghanistan to fight their way out without support.
The thought has also crossed my mind, that maybe he is setting up the U.S. for an ignominious defeat in Iraq and Syria.
I suppose these are just slightly paranoid Monday morning thoughts but then there was Benghazi.
Mr. President, I served with General Dempsey, I knew General Dempsey, General Dempsey was a friend of mine. Mr. President, you are no General Dempsey. (Prolonged shouts and applause) What has to be done in a situation like that is to call in the — And frankly I think you are so far apart in the objectives you choose for your country that I did not think the comparison was well-taken.
#12
The thought has also crossed my mind, that maybe he is setting up the U.S. for an ignominious defeat in Iraq and Syria.
Everything is domestic politics with this fn guy. Heeling the US MIL down a notch and passing a bag of crap onto a republican prez would be considered a feature. It would explain why he wants so many levers under his control, but can't seem to take a day off from golfing. You want your job? Damn sure don't interrupt a potential bogey saving chip. So let it be duffed, so let it be sold.
#14
I too thought Dempsey should resign. It is the straight forward thing to do.
Instead, and I'm not certain on further reflection, Dempsey has chosen a strategy of passive aggression. He's not failing to obey orders, but, unlike the Vietnam era generals, he is telling the public the truth very clearly whenever asked. If the public is too stupid to listen, it will also be unable to blame the Army when the policy goes tits up. Obama ain't Truman, so he can't easily fire Dempsey without severe repercussions. But Dempsey ain't MacArthur, so he'll have to be careful in how he approaches the line. Wonder how often we'll see him on Sunday shows after the election.
Given that he's a lame duck, you're correct at a certain level. OTOH, he's not got a lot of support in the country. That would crater what's left. Opposing SCOTUS nominees would become much easier, nothing would get through Congress, etc.
#19
I don't see Obama providing much cover for Donk politicians in the upcoming election. I saw Bruce Braley(D) running for Senate in Iowa say that he is not Barack Obama. Joni Ernst(R) ate Braley's lunch in a debate. There are other Donks as well who are distancing themselves from Obama.
Obama doesn't seem to have much political capital these days. A 4-star resigning in protest might get someone's attention--most likely the conservatives--just not Obama's base of support.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
