Kipling Haunts Obama’s Afghan War

Kipling Haunts Obama’s Afghan War by Ray McGovern

" Without batting an eyelash, Brzezinski noted that within three months the war in Afghanistan will be the "longest war in U.S. history," and warned that the United States could be "bogged down there for another decade or so." At the same time, he argued, the world impact of an early U.S. departure "would be utterly devastating." "

Now try to imagine a soldier on the battlefield in Afghanistan today, hearing that his leaders in Washington will not consider a departure because it would be utterly devastating.

That is: if he gets killed or crippled tomorrow, it will be "no problem" because he died or will live the rest of his life as a cripple so our departure wouldn't be utterly devasting.

Excuse me - but would our departure have been utterly devasting if we never arrived in the first place? Of course it couldn't be devasting - because there would be nothing to undo. So what he's saying is that undoing what we've done would be devastating. Doesn't that make anyone think that we should revisit what we did in the first place?

Referring to Jeff Huber's article "Our mission in Afghanistan has no bearing on our national security or vital national interests. If we really wanted to root out the source of the 9/11 attacks, we’d invade and occupy Germany, home of the Hamburg cell where the attacks actually originated. But wait; we’re already occupying Germany. We have been since the end of World War II. That didn’t prevent 9/11 from happening, did it? Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the supposed mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, was in the Philippines when he proposed the plan to Osama bin Laden. We occupied the Philippines for a long time, but they kicked us out. Most of the 9/11 thugs came from Saudi Arabia, who don’t want us in their country, and kissing the Saudis’ keister is our virtual national pastime."


Bill

Summing up Afghanistan

Please read Bob Gates’ Bad Bet by Jeff Huber

The one part Jeff Huber misses, I think, is that nobody ever thought we were going to win anything in Afghanistan, but it makes excellent cover for getting Iraq off the "news". After a few years of dicking with Afghanistan, we'll surely pull out, and by then the neocons figure we'll have forgotten about Iraq, so they'll escape their well deserved punishment.


Bill

The Liberty, and the lessons

Every now and then someone reminds us of the Liberty story, and today Counterpunch ran a link to this website, as it's 'Website of the day':

The Liberty Affair and the Problem with the Truth of History

Over the years, I've read a few narratives about this event, but this one is the most complete, well written and compelling of all.

Alan Hart has written a book about Zionism that I'd like to read when I get a chance.


Bill

Get a load of this ...

From Is the End Near for the Right-Wing's Vice Grip on U.S. Israeli Policy? By Joshua Holland


"... Rosenberg, who has firsthand knowledge of Ben-David's political tactics, called him "a feckless character, if there ever was one": "

"I knew him during his AIPAC days (he worked there for 25 years before being handed his gold watch and shown the door). At AIPAC, Lenny was in charge of the AIPAC version of oppo research. Lenny compiled files on everyone who criticized Israeli policies in any way and used the material he gathered to destroy careers. Lenny loved his files. He loved sending college kids out to gather negative information about journalists, politicians, rabbis, whatever. … Lenny now lives in Israel in the Efrat settlement. He's been on the payroll of the governments of Turkey, Georgia, oil companies, whoever will pay. He also was a Netanyahu aide. He remains close to AIPAC and to Netanyahu… "

That fucking war

Neocons and Pentagon Rage Against the Dying of the Fight by Jeff Huber

"Despite the public relations campaign that has so many folks convinced the surge was a success, Iraq is still a zoo."

...

"The more we give in to the agenda of a very bad group of people who should have been discredited years ago, the more difficult it will become to turn back from the path they have set us on. "

Is the End Near for the Right-Wing's Vice Grip on U.S. Israeli Policy? By Joshua Holland

"A more open discourse would reveal how the policies advocated by the traditional lobbying groups have damaged U.S. Interests and unintentionally harmed Israel as well," Harvard's Steven Walt, co-author of The Israel Lobby, said in an email-exchange. "And that is not something that AIPAC and the other hard-line groups want to have exposed."

So - the 2% of the population who contributed at least 50% of the duping of America into a military invasion of the Middle East, is now split into two, I guess 1% size pieces, and they are fighting over our future.

Please, please read The Age of Reason.

The Danger of Towing the Line Behind Israel By BOUTHAINA SHAABAN

"Israel was the main stoker of doubts in recent years about Iran’s nuclear projects. It was also behind drumming up war against Iraq, Lebanon and Gaza, and promoting a military strike against Iran following the same strategy it followed before the war on Iraq. It was the main power behind the decision of the United States and some Western states to launch this war which failed to convince any one of its real objectives since claims of the existence of mass destruction weapons proved to be false. "

"Towing the line behind Zionism is no longer a danger to Arabs alone, it has become a danger to international justice and the sanctity of human rights and dignity. "


Bill

Ten trillion and counting

Please see this PBS video:
Ten trillion and counting

This is very disturbing stuff, but we need to know it.

Let this presentation also remind us that there are really smart people who genuinely care about the world around us, and are capable of describing it. My hat is off, once again, to Public Broadcasting and Frontline.

If you watch this video, and others, very hopefully you will feel moved to do something about it. Even if it's only talking with your family and friends, it's better then doing nothing.

If you want a plan, here's one:

- put the people who duped America into the invasion of Iraq on trail for war crimes

- remove money from the election process (public funding + Internet = elections that will help us find and put the right people into public office)

- end the military invasion of the Middle East and it's mission to achieve military superiority in the region. It's a sinkhole that has accomplished nothing and continues to suck our blood, treasure and the very soul of this country.

- cease the "special relationship" with Israel. Denouce Zionism.

- seek balanced relationships with all countries

- support the United Nations and World Court

- assign responsibility for int'l terrorism to the UN. Assume there will be more terrorist acts here and abroad. Commit equally with all countries to support UN actions to deal with this problem.

- acknowledge that we cannot kill and destroy our way into people heart's, and that by trying we only create the terrorists we so fear. There are more people in the world that hate us today then ever before. In a world brimming with wmd's, it's only a matter of time before someone who hates us gets his hands on one of those terrible weapons. The best we can do to stop it is to show the world we mean business by putting the people responsible for the hatred of America in jail, where they belong.

- Universal health care is a basic human right, not a for-profit enterprise. For profits can leech all they want, but not for the basics. Use the military sick-bay concept as a minimal approach.

- negotiate with health care providers under threat of nationalizing the industry if a fair and equitable agreement cannot be reached between they and our representatives (who, due to reforms, actually represent us).

- bust up every company that is too big to fail. This was what anti-trust was supposed to be about. Put it back and make it work.

- use tariffs to bring jobs back to America. Achieving equilibrium and harmony with the world is vital, but it must happen at the right rate, not overnight as has happened. We need to back off and do it slowly.

- promote the Internet for "Made in America" products

- establish a world class legal reference and support library on the Internet. That is, get rid of most of the blood-sucking lawyers. If the gov't makes a law, the gov't must provide a sufficient explanation and whatever support is required to understand and work with - or challenge - that law. Forcing us pay lawyers to understand the law is unacceptable. Besides, all of this can be done right on the Internet, with existing technologies and for relatively small cost. Considering it's payback value to society, this is one of the best investments in history.

- Reduce military spending by 50%. Our greatest enemy is fear. Fear has driven the military budget to staggering, colossal heights. We cannot live in fear, and we cannot let fear do this to us. As we adjust from fear-based to "confidence based on doing the right thing", we will have fewer enemies to fear. And as we rid the world of terrible weapons, we'll have fewer people with fewer weapons.

- transform the military into rotations that provide our fair share of support to UN forces, otherwise training while performing public service and humanitarian missions.

- assist small businesses willing to provide training

- achieve 100% nuclear and wmd disarmament, worldwide

- achieve clean energy

- legalize and tax marijuana. Gov't never had the right to make it illegal in the first place. Re-educate the boozers, if you must, but if half the things on this list are done, there will be far fewer people turning to booze in the first place.


Bill






Bill

Will Israel Ensure That History Repeats Itself?

Will Israel Ensure That History Repeats Itself? by Jeff Gates


Jeff Gates argues the same case I've been writing about for years - but he does it much better then I ever could.

Please take the few minutes it takes to read this article.



Bill