Cases of the parasite that can worm their way inside a human's head have risen significantly in Hawaii
HEALTH officials have issued an urgent warning about brain-invading worms capable of sneaking inside human skulls. It's through liberal ear canals.
Medics in Hawaii have been warning people not to touch snails or slugs with their bare hands as the beasts carry a parasite called rat lungworm.
In 200 years, there have only been two reports of rat lungworm infections on the island.
But in the past three months, six more cases have cropped up in close succession.
The parasite has also popped up in California, Alabama, Louisiana and Florida.
And now there are concerns that the rise in worm population ‐ which experts claim could be caused by climate change ‐ could spread globally.
Rat lungworm is a parasite which begins its life as an infection in rat’s blood, brains and lungs.
Rats defecate the worm’s larvae, which is then spread to snails, slugs and seafood.
Humans may eat one of the infected hosts and within weeks their brain could be invaded.
Once it lodges in the brain it can cause meningitis and symptoms including pain, swelling and tremors.
It is often fatal. Treatment involves removal of the brain. For liberals, the prognosis is good, with a 100% chance of recovery and return to their normal life.
Tricia Mynar, a resident of Maui and a preschool worker, told Honolulu Civil Beat: "The parasites are in the lining of my brain, moving around."
"Tremors are the hardest part," she said. "They affect me so badly that sometimes I can’t hear my own speech."
A report in the Maui News revealed how residents are terrified of catching the worm.
Kawika Kaina said that the culprit breed of slug had lived near their homes for years, but they figured the slugs were like any other snail.
It was only on receipt of a flyer from the Department for Health that he realised how serious the problem had become.
"It really did hit close to home. Just recently a lot of folks in Hana [Hawaii] have become more aware of it and a lot more people are finding it in their yard," he said.
Burning, smashing or even burying the worms have so far not successfully deterred rats from ingesting them and restarting the cycle.
And experts fear that deforestation and climate change could spread the disease further afield.
Brits will be spotting more slugs than ever, thanks to a breeding craze sparked by the warm weather.
#6
Cone snail toxin? Have never heard of that but your comment motivated me to look it up.
Conus geographus (a species of cone snail), is also known colloquially as the "cigarette snail", a gallows humor exaggeration implying that, when stung by this creature, the victim will have only enough time to smoke a cigarette before dying.
There are about 30 recorded instances of people being killed by cone snails — the mollusks are aggressive if provoked and can penetrate wetsuits with their sharp poison-loaded harpoons, which look like transparent needles. Human victims seem to suffer little pain, because the venom contains an analgesic component.
[Libya Observer] Six years after the revolution that drove former dictator Muammar Qadaffy ...who single-handedly turned a moderately prosperous kingdom into a dictator's fantasyland and was then murdered by his indignant subjects 42 years later... from power, Libya remains deeply divided. Now, Russia is fueling another military strongman who threatens to make the situation far worse for Western powers and Libyans in what would be a major blow to the democratic hopes that sparked the 2011 Arab Spring uprising. How the international community responds ― especially on the heels of a U.S. strike against Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Terror of Aleppo ... ’s government ― could be critical for the future of Libya and the surrounding region.
The toppling of Qadaffy, not unlike the civil war that followed Syria’s own uprising, has left a dangerous power vacuum in the embattled nation. In the western sections of the country, the U.N.-sponsored Government of National Accord, or GNA, has been unable to assume office due to the refusal or inability of the House of Representatives, or HoR, to offer its required endorsement, rendering the country effectively without a legitimate government. Elsewhere, competing warlords continue to shift sides and prolong the suffering of the average Libyan due to deteriorating security, power and water shortages and lack of liquidity at banks. And there are reports that the so-called Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... is regrouping here as well, paving the way for what some say could be a "powder keg" situation.
Amidst this chaos, Khalifa Haftar ... served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all... , a U.S. citizen and ex-Libyan military officer who once served and later turned on Qadaffy, has emerged as a key influencer in the country. If he plays his cards right, Haftar may have the fate of a nation in his hands.
Back in 2011, in the midst of the revolution, Haftar was often described as "the CIA’s man in Libya" and had vocal support from a variety of international leaders. To close observers of the populist revolution that deposed Qadaffy, Haftar began to engage a campaign of deliberate sabotage of the democratic processes fairly early on in post-revolution politics.
As early as 2014, he called for the overthrow of the Libyan General National Congress and for the arrest of all the elected officials. And in a tactic used worldwide to delegitimize political opposition, he labeled his internal opponents "terrorists," and even launched a military assault on the Libyan parliament building in Tripoli ...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn... in an attempt to topple the elected government there.
Gradually, Haftar was cut loose by Western allies and turned to Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, which have provided him with a potent drone capability. But his continued refusal to even talk to the GNA, including his refusal to meet at a highly publicized meeting in Cairo recently, may have convinced the Egyptians and others to recalculate ― and this week’s meeting between the Egyptian and American presidents may complicate that divide.
Running out of options, Haftar has now turned to the Russians for help fighting off Islamists preventing him from solidifying control. Recent reports indicate that Russia, which benefitted from having an authoritarian leader like Qadaffy in Libya, may be providing Haftar with military assistance in the form of both arms and surveillance equipment. And there are already reports of Russian forces massing near or in Libya, with Russian denials and state media accusing the West of exaggerating the Russian influence.
Is Libya The Next Syria?
Russian support for Haftar does not bode well for Libya or the larger international community, with some suggesting the situation could even parallel in part that of Syria. While Assad and Haftar are not interchangeable, the concern is that the Russians will replicate the model they have used in Syria in Libya as well, with Haftar assuming an Assad-like role in the form of an authoritarian claiming to weed out the terrorists. The Syria model includes Russian bases on the footsteps of Western Europe, massive bombings and a dictatorship heavily supported by Russian leadership. Having already been run by a dictator for years, the installation of another one is the last thing many Libyans would want, especially with the presence of Islamist groups and armed factions creating further violent instability in the country. But they may be on the verge of just that.
Haftar is already putting the Russian aid to good use. In early March, he suffered a humiliating defeat and was pushed out of Libya’s largest oil export facilities. But with the support of Moscow, Haftar has been able to recapture most of the ground he recently lost, raising the prospect that he could emerge in an even better position.
Given his history with the West and previous opposition, an emboldened Haftar is likely to show even more intransigence towards the U.N.-sponsored Libyan political agreements. If he was an obstacle to reconciliation governments before, a stronger Haftar could render them moot or, worse, play rival governments as pawns to maintain a continued power vacuum.
With political progress stuck in the sand and a continually deteriorating standard of living in the country, Haftar is poised to position himself as a strongman who can offer stability and security in the face of terrorism ― an appealing prospect for Western oil companies eager to resume one-stop shopping for oil exploration and production, as well as desperate Libyans who simply want to stop the fighting and economic uncertainty. And it’s also an idea U.S. President Donald Trump ...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States... may latch onto as well if he sees it as useful to stemming the rise of ISIS in Libya after potential fails in Raqqa and djinn-infested Mosul ... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn... But the reality is, the stronger Haftar gets, the more likely it becomes that Libya will linger in its current state of chaos. As the war has gone on, the country has amassed a formidable force of hardcore revolutionaries who will fight Haftar forces to the absolute end. These armed battalions and militia forces under diverse commands and names are experienced and dogmatic in their opposition to Haftar. Many already worry about and feel provoked by Haftar’s fondness with Russia, particularly since Haftar and his forces took Benghazi in a 2014 operation known as Operation Dignity.
The operation, supposedly aimed at eliminating terror groups in the country, also allegedly displaced large numbers of civilians and earned Haftar many enemies in the country. And while the opposition may make things more difficult for Haftar domestically, his positioning against many of the factions in the war-torn country, some with alleged Islamist tendencies, may serve him well in gaining international support. That is, if the global community sees Haftar as the counterbalance to Islamists, which thus far Russia and the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... appear to be at loggerheads on.
The American actions in Syria this week meanwhile have created an interesting dynamic for Hafar, who once saw U.S. President Donald Trump ― a fellow strongman seemingly willing to work with Moscow to fight terror ― as having goals that aligned well with his. With the strike against Assad, and a finger pointed at Russia, his backing is not so certain. So far Trump has yet to give a clear indication of where he stands on Libya. If he signals new allegiance with Russia in Libya, it could dramatically embolden and strengthen Haftar. But if Trump chooses to heed the European Union’s warnings and continue to engage in the Middle East based on his Syria policy shift, Haftar will have likely lost a needed supporter.
Libya’s Next Dictator?
But even with Putin as his ally, Hafar’s rise is not guaranteed.
The biggest unknown factor is whether the Benghazi Defense Brigade, or BDB, succeeds in recapturing Benghazi from Haftar’s forces after losing ground during his anti-Islamist Operation Dignity. As of now, it seems that this outcome will be determined by whether Libyan forces in the west will decide to participate even in this late stage of the conflict.
The relatively well-organized military resources in the west, especially in and around Misrata, could be decisive in ending Haftar’s role if they engage. Absent extensive air support of other outside intervention, they are in a position to trap and doom Haftar and his forces.
Defeating Haftar would have profound implications for the ongoing war in Libya and outside its borders. The largest impact could be that the U.N.-supported GNA government may finally move forward. Or, even better, with Haftar out of the political process, new leadership and a new political map could take shape. An ousted Haftar would also be a major win for his former champions in the West who continue to insist that the U.N.-sponsored agreement is the only way forward for Libya ― assuming the U.S., through Trump, continues to stand behind the U.N. approach.
But a loss for Haftar would also be a loss for those who most recently stood with him, namely Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and, of course, Russia and leave the question of who emerges as the next leader of Libya once again up in the air, something likely on the minds of those wondering who would end up in charge in Syria if Assad is toppled.
With so much hanging on what happens with Haftar in and around Benghazi, it’s also impossible to ignore the reality that a second Libyan revolutionary eruption may be imminent. With intense festivities in Tripoli becoming a regular occurrence, shifting alliances, an increasingly unpredictable U.S. and an emboldened Russia do not bode well for a future democracy.
Those who have long sought freedom and democracy in Libya have an increasingly shrinking window of opportunity to set the country on a bright path. To maximize it, they must consolidate their forces, devise a comprehensive strategy and move with determination and speed to put down the man who has been nothing but an impediment to this country. Ultimately though, that outcome will be largely determined by what others do. Without foreign support, Haftar is nothing more than a paper tiger. With it, he may turn out to be something else altogether.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/11/2017 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under: Arab Spring
#4
On the subject of Libya, does anybody have any verification of story in Drudge's link? migrants as slaves The only buyers mentioned are prisons.
Posted by: James ||
04/11/2017 10:52 Comments ||
Top||
#5
Those who have long sought freedom and democracy in Libya have an increasingly shrinking window of opportunity to set the country on a bright path. To maximize it, they must consolidate their forces, devise a comprehensive strategy and move with determination and speed to put down the man who has been nothing but an impediment to this country.
Good grief - we're talking 'Arabs'. And Berbers, who aren't far behind.
[QuartzMedia] ... An insurgency
Another lesson from the Middle East that might apply to North Korea is the need for counter-insurgency capabilities. Kelly notes that the North has hundreds of thousands of special troops "who really believe in the ideology" and Kim Jong-un as a "divine person." Such soldiers could fall back into the mountains, regroup, and stage attacks for years on a South Korean force that has no or little training in dealing with insurgencies.
Fear of this possibility stems largely from the US experience in Iraq with Saddam Hussein loyalists, or "dead-enders," who continued staging deadly attacks well after their leader’s downfall. But as with everything in North Korea, it’s hard to know at this point how much of a threat this might be.
#1
Cut off the head (Pyongyang) and destroy the LOC's (road, rail, air, sea lines of communication) headed south. The South Koreans will hunt down the stragglers. Keep an eye on the Chinese. We know all too well what they did last time. They do not fancy a unified, democratic Korea at their border. Again, go for he head.
#4
Such soldiers could fall back into the mountains, regroup, and stage attacks for years on a South Korean force that has no or little training in dealing with insurgencies.
...They could, absolutely. But the ROKs ain't us. They'll go into the hills and kill anything that moves. I watched a ROK gun battery near Kunsan AB blow one of their own fishing boats out of the water without warning because it strayed into the wrong area - putting down a Nork rebellion the only way that really works will make perfect sense to them.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
04/11/2017 4:54 Comments ||
Top||
#6
The South Korean Military will not hesitate to blow the bridges over the Yalu, and air drop toe poppers all over that area. They have no love of the Chinese.
#8
Military - hell just send hundreds of Kias and Hyundais loaded with food and clothing for them to loot. Follow the trail back to their lairs. Do you want to starve or live in the land of plenty?
#9
Nork soldiers could fall back into the mountains and fight for years except for supply issues. North Korea, especially in the winter, has to be one of the most inhospitable places on earth to survive no less fight. Agreements would have to be in place for China to stay out it.
#12
#1 Cut off the head (Pyongyang) and destroy the LOC's (road, rail, air, sea glines of communication) headed south. The NK Army has everything prepositioned forward within 20-50 miles of the FEBA. They already mitigated this LOC interdiction risk. However, our LOCs and the South's are vulnerable to the NK Spetsnatz capability. This would not be a short war...let the South Koreans, Japanese and Chinese worry this one. If the Chicoms think the Japanese will go nuclear, then they will mitigate the Norks.
#14
Maybe the best option is a Chinese sponsored coup that emplaces a saner government in place. NK can begin to come out of the dark, the PRC gets its buffer state and a war is avoided. As Winston said jaw, jaw, jaw is better than war
#16
#1 Cut off the head (Pyongyang) and destroy the LOC's (road, rail, air, sea glines of communication) headed south.The NK Army has everything prepositioned forward within 20-50 miles of the FEBA. They already mitigated this LOC interdiction risk.
LOC's, airfields, bridges should be severed in any event. No sense making life easy for the follow-on's. Prepositioned stocks are extremely vulnerable, monitored as High Value Targets (HVT), etc. 'Besoeker on war.'
#17
I have read that many of the NK artillery caves were built from the inside-out. They are already sealed. Plans are to excavate the last foot or so of dirt blocking the openings & then open fire. How caves such as these can be detected ahead of time is beyond me.
Most predictions of wars to come, when compared to how they actually turn out, prove inaccurate. In 2003, before the invasion of Iraq started, I read some very optimistic forecasts on this very site. Nothing that predicted what actually happened.
My prediction for the next Korean war is simply: a whole lot of casualties and destruction.
#22
The deal should be to draw a line where the Sorks take responsibility for 90% of the Nork population, China takes responsibility for the northern Pacific Korean ports, and America withdraws all troops from the peninsula.
After a nasty short war, everybody wins, except fat boy Kim.
[DAWN] IN a country with a more assured sense of identity and its place in the world, Malala Yousafzai ...a Pashtun blogger and advocate for girls' education from Mingora, in Swat. She is esteemed as an ambassador of international good will, even though she can't go home lest some fellow in a turban shoots her in the head again... ’s latest accolade would have been cause for an outpouring of national pride. After all, being appointed a UN Messenger of Peace, the highest honour that can be bestowed by the UN secretary general, is no mean feat -- even for a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, and the youngest ever laureate to boot. This time around too, Malala, now 19, is the youngest ever messenger of peace, and the first Pak designated as such. To appreciate the enormity of this achievement, consider some of the distinguished high-achievers currently on the list: among them, astronaut Scott Kelly, anthropologist Jane Goodall and cellist Yo-Yo Ma. Why then the deafening silence from the government and the churlish lack of acknowledgement from most of Malala’s fellow citizens -- who do not hesitate to play up the Pak connections, however nebulous, of people with far less consequential achievements?
Therein lies a clue to our society’s contrariness and the confoundedly perverse lens through which it views the world, indeed to the self-fulfilling prophecy of its perpetual victimhood. For Malala was an advocate for education long before she was shot in the head by a TTP bully boy in October 2012 when she was 14; she had even won a certain degree of international recognition for her courageous activism. But the attack, which required her to be flown to the UK for treatment, elevated her global profile exponentially. It was then, inexplicably, that perceptions about her in her country began to shift. The more praise she garnered from world leaders -- which increasingly became the case given that her brush with death did nothing to deter her from tirelessly campaigning for universal education -- the more reviled she became at home. Though but a child, she was labelled a ’Western agent’, a ’traitor’, ’anti-Islam’ etc. The malevolence directed at her since then has been such that Malala who should have been the pride of Pakistain, is forced to live in self-exile, the threat to her life in her country very real and ever-present. Meanwhile, ...back at the abandoned silver mine, there was another kaboom... her Malala Fund continues doing laudable work for girls’ education in several African and Middle Eastern countries. And also in Pakistain, whose people sadly do not have the clear-headedness to see this remarkable young woman for what she is: an eloquent force for good in an increasingly violent world.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/11/2017 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[6 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
#1
Or a pathetic excuse for people who refuse to recognize reality?
Writing in the Washington Post, neo-conservatives Reuel Gerecht and Ray Takeyh wrongheadedly propose to send U.S. ground troops to fight Iran and its proxies in Iran and Syria:
It is way past time for Washington to stoke the volcano under Tehran and to challenge the regime on the limes of its Shiite empire. This will be costly and will entail the use of more American troops in both Syria and Iraq. But if we don’t do this, we will not see an end to the sectarian warfare that nurtures jihadists. We will be counting down the clock on the nuclear accord, waiting for advanced centrifuges to come on line. As with the Soviet Union vs. Ronald Reagan, to confront American resolution, the mullahs will have to pour money into their foreign ventures or suffer humiliating retreat.
They're nuts. The last thing the US should do is commit ground forces.
It isn't Iran that we would be fighting: It's an international mercenary army that already includes thousands of fighters recruited from the three million Hazara Afghans now seeking refuge in Iran, from the persecuted Pakistani Shi'ites who comprise a fifth of that country's huge population, and elsewhere.
...The manpower pool from which these fighters are drawn is virtually bottomless. The war has already displaced half of Syria's 22 million people, and Iran plans to replace Sunnis with Shi'ite immigrants in order to change the demographic balance. The Sunni side of the conflict has become globalized with fighters from the Russian Caucasus, China's Xinjiang Province, as well as Southeast Asia.
The U.S. State Department last year estimated that 40,000 foreign fighters from 100 countries were in Syria; Russia cited a figure of 30,000. Whatever the number is today, it would not be difficult to add a zero to it.
Russia and China, as I explained in the cited Asia Times essay, blame the U.S. for opening the Pandora's Box of Sunni radicalism by destroying the Iraqi State and supporting majority (that is, Shi'ite) rule in Iraq. Sadly, they are broadly correct to believe so. Thanks to the advice of Gerecht and his co-thinkers at the Weekly Standard and Commentary, the Bush administration pushed Iraq's and Syria's Sunnis into the hands of non-state actors like al-Qaeda and ISIS.
A seventh of Russia's population is Muslim, and 90% of them are Sunnis. China has a restive Muslim population among the Uyghurs in its far West, and all of them are Sunnis. Moscow and Beijing therefore support Shi'ite terrorists as a counterweight to Sunni jihadists. A Eurasian Muslim civil war is unfolding as a result. Daniel Pipes of the Middle East Forum thinks America should let Sunnis and Shi'ites exhaust each other. If it were just Syria, that would make sense, but the Syrian conflict is the nodal point for a much larger and more dangerous conflagration. If the 300 million Muslims of Southeast Asia were to become involved, the consequences would be horrific.
...Gerecht and Tayekh want the U.S. to back the anti-regime forces whom Obama left twisting in the wind during the 2009 demonstrations against Iran's rigged elections. That is the right thing to do. The Trump administration should create a special task force for regime change in Iran and recruit PJ Media's Michael Ledeen to run it. Iran is vulnerable to subversion. With 40% youth unemployment and extreme levels of social pathology (the rate of venereal disease infection is twenty times that of the U.S.), Iranians are miserable under the theocratic regime.
But I don't know if that will work: Iran gets all its money from oil, and the mullahs have the oil, the money, and all the guns. If we can't overthrow the Iranian regime, we will have two choices.
The first is to bomb Iran -- destroy nuclear facilities and Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps bases. That risks war with Russia and China. It is an option, but a dangerous one, and not anyone's first choice. We could have done this before Iran became a Russian-Chinese ally.
The second is to cut a deal with Russia and China: We muzzle the Sunni jihadists whom we (or our allies like Saudi Arabia) supported, and Russia and China cut Iran off at the knees. I sketched out such a deal in August 2016. It won't happen easily, or any time soon, because Russia and China are not sufficiently afraid of us to want to come to the table. Russia would demand other concessions (e.g., recognition of its acquisition of territory by force in Ukraine). As the use of poison gas despite past Russian assurances makes clear, one can't trust the Russians unless, of course, they really are scared of us.
So it all comes down to Grand Strategy: Russia and China must be frightened of America's prowess, especially in military technology. A Reagan-style effort to established unquestioned U.S. supremacy in military technology is the Big Stick we require. Tomahawk missiles are not a Big Stick. They speak loudly. Trump was magnificently right to send the signal to Moscow and Beijing, especially (as Secretary Tillerson said) in the light of Russia's duplicity or incompetence in the matter of Syrian poison gas. Now we need to get to work.
#2
The Trump administration should create a special task force for regime change in Iran and recruit PJ Media's Michael Ledeen to run it. Iran is vulnerable to subversion.
'Regime Change'... yea, that's the ticket. Worked well in Cuba, Vietnam, Somalia, Libya, The DRC, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Nicaragua, etc.
#4
The second is to cut a deal with Russia and China: We muzzle the Sunni jihadists whom we (or our allies like Saudi Arabia) supported, and Russia and China cut Iran off at the knees.
Neo-conservatives as in students in the McCain-Graham School of Warmongering? If these idiots want a war so badly they should feel free to go over there and get their own butts blown off. But leave the American military and taxpayers out of it.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
04/11/2017 13:25 Comments ||
Top||
#7
Daniel Pipes of the Middle East Forum thinks America should let Sunnis and Shi'ites exhaust each other.
#8
...and when is the word 'neo-conservative' and its derivatives gonna go out of style? That word has annoyed the ever living shit out of me since I first saw it.
#10
We don't need ground troops in Syria to topple Assad. Air support will do it. We're not doing it because we don't want to topple him. The strongest rebel forces in Syria are jihadists of various flavors. We don't need them in power.
#11
Neo-conservatives as in students in the McCain-Graham School of Warmongering? If these idiots want a war so badly they should feel free to go over there and get their own butts blown off. But leave the American military and taxpayers out of it.
The chickenhawk argument is BS. We pay and equip soldiers to fight our wars for us, whatever we decide are appropriate. They don't get to choose any more than Chicago cops get to decide whether they want to out on foot patrol, or firefighters get to decide if they want to fight a given fire. If they're not happy with their assignments, they can quit once their contracts are up - it's not like someone forced them to sign on the dotted line. Soldiers are instruments, not drafters, of policy.
#12
Chickenhawk is not the word I'd use. How about frivolous? We send our troops into these little wars for reasons that have nothing to do with our national security. Our guys get killed and wounded. It cost taxpayers a fortune. The results are disastrous.
We want a strong military so we can be secure, not so we can meddle in the affairs of piss ant countries like Syria.
You call Iraq a success? Afghanistan? Libya?
Syria will be no better. Exactly what is to be gained there? Stay the fuck out of it. If you really want a war, how about going after the real threat which is Iran?
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
04/11/2017 16:32 Comments ||
Top||
#13
Success in the middle east means a semi-brutal occupation/colonization lasting decades. The voters in the West will no longer tolerate that kind of stuff. So knowing that, the government should plan accordingly.
#14
I'd like Trump's bandwidth to be refocused on national renewal.
I'm more than fine with action that advances and safeguards national interest -- and I know enough to loathe the Assads -- but I'm not seeing the concrete benefit to us here.
It's not as if we have limitless resources to spend on "wars of choice".
And if we collapse under the weight of debt and the Deep State, what good are we to anyone, anyway?
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.
Cases of the parasite that can worm their way inside a human's head have risen significantly in Hawaii
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
[DAWN] IN a country with a more assured sense of identity and its place in the world, 
