Another big disappointment

Well, by now all of you good people know that the "no fly zone"bullshit and the attendant air strikes by the newest "coalition" of the all too willing has begun. France claims to have made the first of the air strikes against Libyan air defenses and other targets.
Yes, this is most disappointing to say the least. However, there is one other thing that I saw that is an even larger disappointment. Worse than another "war" or, as it has been billed by some, a "humanitarian intervention"? Yes, worse that that. It was an interview on al-Jazeera/English between two al-Jazeera reporters on the main set.  One of the reporters was Marwan Bishara. What is bothersome to me, is that I respect him as an honest person/reporter. He was going on and on how it was "needed" that Gaddafi get pushed out of power as he was using military force against his own people. Marwan, excuse me sir, but why not bomb TelAviv, or Manama, or Sanaa? The Zionist entity has and still does, bomb the Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. Do you not remember that vile "Operation Cast Lead" sir? And what about in Yemen, where the leader of that country has and still does, allow his military and security forces to kill any protestors? Or how about Bahrain sir? The ruler of that island country has even "invited" Saudi troops to enter his country to assist in stopping, aka killing, the protests there? In short sir, you seem to have a very selective disgust with the leaders you feel should be done away with.
Very disappointing sir, very disappointing indeed. While I will continue to monitor al-Jazeera, as it is still better than what is "standard fare" for America, your "star" has certainly been dimmed some.
Just my own very personal 2 cents worth on this.
For the record, I DO think that Gaddafi has over stayed his "welcome" as the leader of Libya. I wish the Libyan people the very best and hope they are successful in getting the old colonel to step down before many more people are killed and wounded. I hope they are able to form the government they want, without being taken over by any outside peoples, such as the US or the EU.


semper fi.

The world is changing

No need to tell any of the regular readers of this small corner post site that the world IS changing. Big time. But, is it for the better? Ah yes, there lies the problems.

First off, some not so good news. I have al-Jazeera English on and they have as the lead story the UN Security Council approving military force in Libya. It is bad news as this means that NATO, the outfit that has long outlived its original purpose, will be in the lead on this. Yes, that means the old US of A will no doubt send some of our aircraft to bomb old Gaddafi again. Again you ask? Oh, some of you may not remember, due to Alzheimer's?, that old "saint" Ronnie of Raygun did that way back when he was our "acting" president.  We missed old Gaddafi Duck back then, but, we did kill his adopted daughter and a few other innocent civilians.

YES, I DO support the Libyans who want a new government. I just do not believe it is the responsibility of the US government to make that happen. "We" did stay out of Tunisia and Egypt during their successful efforts to toss out their former leaders. Why not allow the Libyans to do the same? Yes, I know that Gaddafi has used tanks and heavy artillery against the protestors. Still, the idea of a "no fly zone" will lead to having troops on the ground. Do not toss Kosovo at me. That was a fluke and the air war lasted 78 days. In the end all that little war that Billy Bob Bubba got us into only gave us an "independent" Kosovo where the drug smugglers and human traffickers can have a nice safe haven. Not all that many countries recognize Kosovo as a "real" country even today.

A better(?) example of just what a "no fly zone" will end as would be Iraq. After Gulf War One, brought to the world by papa Bush, "we" imposed "no fly zones" (two of them!) on old Saddam. That did NOT stop him from killing large numbers of Kurds in the North and countless Shia in the South of his country. Also, Shrubbie went back to "finish" the job that papa started and well, you know how that has played out.

I am very happy that the people of Tunisia and Egypt have tossed out the dictators who used to rule over them. I wish them well and hope that they finally get some decent governments.

I feel the same for the people of Libya, Yemen, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and every other country, including the USA. It looks like Wisconsin may be the starting place for that here in the old US of A. Maybe.

On Thursday, 17 March, I read a report that says that Hi-Larry will not stay with gobomber even if (a very big IF) he wins re-election. Seems the poor gal is over worked and cannot tolerate that Gobomber seems to have no plan at all. Well, I told people back as far as the summer of 2007 that Gobomber was just all talk. The guy gives nice speeches, but it is all empty words. No doubt Hi-Larry knew this but what the hell, being Secretary of State pays good and it has sweet perks. Plus, it sure kept her in the news. Anybody think she is getting set to run for president again in 2012?

Well, as to Gobomber being wishy-washy, no kidding. The guy sends more mixed signals than any politician in a long time. He is all for the ruler of a given country until it looks like he has been forced out, then, and maybe only then, he sort of comes out in favor of the former leader going away. 

Oh, with some exceptions. BIG exceptions it seems. No doubt Gobomber will back the ruler of Bahrain until the very last. Not one small word, not even a peep, when the Saudis invaded Bahrain. Well, OK, maybe not an invasion, more like they were "invited" by the ruling clan of Bahrain. Yeah, the poor folks in Bahrain who want a more democratic government can be shot with live ammo, no problem. Hey, remember, they have OIL and "we" have a Navy base there. Never forget also, the majority of those protesting in Bahrain are Shia. Yep, just like those pesky folks in Iran. Need to stamp them down into their place ya know.  Hey, if any sort of "regime change" is successful in Bahrain, old Saudi Arabia might be next. The Saudis ARE very worried about that in fact. The majority of the Shia in Saudi Arabia live in the provinces with the bulk of their oil. Plus, the house of Saud does NOT want to give up the power and perks they have enjoyed for all these many decades. 

Gobomber is also quite silent on Yemen. There we also have a border with Saudi Arabia and the Saudis have sent troops into Yemen in the recent past. Another powder keg in the Gulf area. 

No wonder Gobomber can't make a decision. Just look at all the countries around the world that are just coming out of a revolt, in revolt, or damn close to having a revolt. Poor Hi-Larry also. Part of the job of Secretary of State is, no doubt, to keep track of this sort of thing and to help the president to decide what to do or not do. Well, Gobomber never did claim to be a "decider", yeah, that was old Shrubbie. 

Just to add more fuel to the fires, Mexico is still in the midst of a nasty drug war. The killings have not slowed down much and the total is well over 30,000 dead in just the past few years. Did I mention that there is no end in sight to the war and the killings? Hey, just look at America and see how "quick" a drug war can be won. Oh, yeah, we have been at that war since old Nixon was president and we still have not ended "our" drug war. Sorry Mexico, you are in for even more blood shed. All because America has not addressed any way to slow down the demand for drugs. Just throw more money and guns at the problem of illegal drugs. Yeah, that works.............not.  The US drug war has been going on for close to 40 years now. No end in sight here either.

The US economy is still in the dumps. Oh, the stock market has been up. OK, fine if you own stocks. Just how many of the recently unemployed and homeless own stock? How many of the people who have been foreclosed on own stock? I thought so. The "market" being up does nothing at all for the working class person and even less for those who are at or below the poverty level. The market being up is only good news to the banksters and the "too big to fail" gang.

If all this and more were not enough for poor old Gobomber and Hi-Larry, a nasty 9.0 earthquake and then a tsunami just had to hit Japan. Good grief, haven't those people suffered enough from nuclear radiation? Japan being the only country to ever be hit by nuclear weapons and now, their reactors are failing and possibly spreading huge amounts of radiation across their country and beyond. 

So much happening in the world. I was trying to hold off and try to write about how the revolts in Tunisia and Egypt came out. Of course there isn't much news from either of those countries now. They are no longer in revolt/protest and no longer "news" I suppose. Also, so many other countries are trying to copy them, see above for starters. Any way, so much has been going on, the idea of waiting for some good news seemed like it may be months. 

On a side note, I highly recommend the latest "Tomgram" over at www.tomdispatch.com.

He takes apart the way the US does "air war" today. In the opinion of this old former US Marine/Vietnam vet, he does a damn fine job of it. Extremely highly recommended. Warning, it isn't "pretty", but war never is. No, he does not get into the "blood and guts" descriptions, that is not his style. Just an independent and honest look at the way "we" do air wars now.

I have ranted on that topic before, in particular the use of drone aircraft. Mr. Engelhardt does it very well.

So, YES, I wish the Libyans can toss old Gaddafi Duck into the trash can of history, or even the ICC if that is their wish. I just do not want America to get into another damn fool war. If we send in troops, it will be "our" third invasion of a Muslim nation in less than ten years. That will not play well with many people around the world. France, Britain, and Italy seem to be the most in favor of this "no fly zone" crap. Let them have at it, just keep the US out of the mess. And, trust me, it WILL end up as a mess is we get into it. Just look to our recent "successes" in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some track record there folks. 

I really do want ALL people in all nations to be able to have decent government. I just think we should stick with what the founders of this republic said back in the 1770's. Fair trade with all nations, entangling alliances with none. Sounds like very good words to live by. As president Madison said, we should not go about the world looking for monsters to destroy. Hell, we have more than enough of them right here at home.

semper fi