Relotius, meanwhile, has "gone underground," according to the Guardian, returning several
awards for his work while being stripped of others, such as CNN's two Journalist of the Year
awards. A German publication also stripped the journalist of a similar accolade.
At least 14 articles by Relotius for Der Spiegel were falsified , according to Steffen
Klusmann, its editor-in-chief. They include an award-winning piece about a Syrian boy called
Mouwiya who believed his anti-government graffiti had triggered the civil war. Relotius
alleged he had interviewed the boy via WhatsApp .
The magazine – a prestigious weekly – is investigating if the interview took
place and whether the boy exists. Relotius won his fourth German reporter prize this month
with a story headlined "Child's Play".
Klusmann admitted the publication still had no idea how many articles were affected. On
Thursday it was revealed that parts of an interview with a 95-year-old Nazi resistance
fighter in the US were fabricated. -
The Guardian
According to Relotius' Der Spiegel colleague Juan Moreno - who busted Relotius after
conducting his own research after his bosses failed to listen to his doubts , released a video
in which he attempted to describe how Relotius got away with his fabrications.
"He was the superstar of German journalism if one's honest, and if his stories had been
true, that would have been fully justified to say so, but they were not," said Moreno. "At the
start it was the small mistakes, things that seemed too hard to believe that made me
suspicious."
In addition to having several awards stripped from him, the 33-year-old Relotius now faces
embezzlement charges for allegedly soliciting donations for Syrian orphans from readers "with
any proceeds going to his personal account," according to the BBC . On Thursday, Relotius denied the
accusations.
"... Ray McGovern works with Tell the Word, a publishing arm of the ecumenical Church of the Saviour in inner-city Washington. He was an Army Infantry/Intelligence officer before working as a CIA analyst for the next 27 years. Ray admits to a modicum of bias against Marine officers, but not those with whom he worked back in the day. He is co-creator of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, which includes Marines who remember what Semper Fi means. ..."
"... A case in point is when you hear members of congress criticize Trump decision to withdraw the US army personals from Syria and Afganistan. These members forget that the US army in Syria is in violation of international laws and US laws as well. ..."
utgoing Defense Secretary Gen. James "Mad Dog" Mattis was famous for quipping , "It's fun to shoot some
people." It remains a supreme irony that Mattis was widely considered the only "adult in the
room" in the Trump administration. Compared to whom? John Bolton, the rabid neocon serving as
national security adviser? That would be the epitome of "condemning with faint praise."
With his ramrod-straight image, not to mention his warrior/scholar reputation extolled in
the media, Mattis was able to disguise the reality that he was, as Col. Andrew Bacevich
put it on
Democracy Now! this morning, "totally unimaginative." Meaning that Mattis was simply incapable
of acknowledging the self-destructive, mindless nature of U.S. "endless war" in the Middle
East, which candidate-Trump had correctly called "stupid." In his resignation letter, Mattis
also peddled the usual cant about the indispensable nation's aggression being good for the
world.
Mattis was an obstacle to Trump's desire to pull troops out of Syria and Afghanistan (and
remains in position to spike Trump's orders). Granted, the abrupt way Trump announced his
apparently one-man decision was equally stupid. But the withdrawal of ground troops is
supremely sane, and Mattis was and is a large problem. And, for good or ill, Trump -- not
Mattis -- was elected president.
Marine Wisdom
Historically, Marines are the last place to turn for sound advice. Marine Gen. Smedley
Butler (1881-1940), twice winner of the Medal of Honor, was brutally candid about this after he
paused long enough to realize, and write, "War is a Racket":
I suspected I was just part of a racket at the time. Now I am sure of it. Like all members
of the military profession I never had an original thought until I left the service. My
mental faculties remained in suspended animation while I obeyed the orders of the higher-
ups. "
Shortly after another Marine general, former CENTCOM commander Anthony Zinni, retired, he
stood by silently as he personally watched then-Vice President Dick Cheney give his most
important speech ever (on August 26, 2002). Cheney blatantly lied about Iraq's (non-existent)
WMD, in order to grease the skids for the war of aggression against Iraq. Zinni had kept his
clearances and was "back on contract." He was well read-in on Iraq, and knew immediately that
Cheney was lying.
A few years later, Zinni admitted that he decided that his lips would be sealed. Far be it
for a Marine to play skunk at the picnic. And, after all, he was being honored that day at the
same Veterans of Foreign Wars convention where Cheney spoke. As seems clear now, Zinni was also
lusting after the lucrative spoils of war given to erstwhile generals who offer themselves for
membership on the corporate Boards of the arms makers/merchants that profiteer on war.
Marine officer, now Sen. Pat Roberts, R, Kansas, merits "dishonorable mention" in this
connection. He never rose to general but did become Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee
at an auspicious time for Cheney and Bush. Roberts kowtowed, like a "good Marine," to their
crass deceit, when a dollop of honesty on his part could have prevented the 2003 attack on Iraq
and the killing, maiming, destruction, and chaos that continues to this day. Roberts knew all
about the fraudulent intelligence and covered it up -- together with other lies -- for as long
as he remained Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman
Scott Ritter on Pat Roberts
Roberts's unconscionable dereliction of duty enraged one honest Marine, Maj. Scott Ritter,
who believes "Semper Fi" includes an obligation to tell the truth on matters of war and peace.
Ritter, former UN chief weapons inspector for Iraq, who in April 2005 wrote, "Semper Fraud,
Senator Roberts," based partly on his own experience
with that complicit Marine.
Needless to say, higher ranking, more malleable Marines aped Zinni in impersonating Uncle
Remus's Tar Baby -- not saying nuttin'.
It is conceivable that yet another sharply-saluting Marine, departing Chairman of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff Joseph Dunford, may be tapped by Trump to take Mattis's job. If that happens,
it will add to President Trump's bizarre penchant for picking advisers hell-bent on frustrating
the objectives he espoused when he was running for office, some of which -- it is becoming
quite clear -- he genuinely wants to achieve.
Trump ought to unleash Mattis now, and make sure Mattis keeps his distance from the Pentagon
and the Military-Industrial Complex before he is asked to lead an insurrection against a highly
vulnerable president -- as Gen. Smedley Butler was asked to do back in the day. Butler said
no.
Top Photo | U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis, sits on stage during a change of command
ceremony at the U.S. Southern Command headquarters on Nov. 26, 2018, in Doral, Fla. Brynn
Anderson | AP
Ray McGovern works with Tell the Word, a publishing arm of the ecumenical Church
of the Saviour in inner-city Washington. He was an Army Infantry/Intelligence officer before
working as a CIA analyst for the next 27 years. Ray admits to a modicum of bias against Marine
officers, but not those with whom he worked back in the day. He is co-creator of Veteran
Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, which includes Marines who remember what Semper Fi
means.
I am not so much surprised that military generals keep their mouths shot rather than tell
the truth when the truth is needed to avoid wars. But worse is that the US congress which are
supposed to overlook over the government misbehavior to make the government abide by the laws
and protect the interests of the people against government wrongs.
A case in point is when you hear members of congress criticize Trump decision to
withdraw the US army personals from Syria and Afganistan. These members forget that the US
army in Syria is in violation of international laws and US laws as well.
The congress are supposed the authority to declare war but the US is engaged in multiple
wars without US Congress authorization. Worse off these idiots want to force the Trump
administration to keep its illegal wars going on? What is the role of the congress??? To
correct and force the Administration to abide by the rule of laws of the force them to keep
violating international laws and US laws as well????
Trump's bizarre penchant for picking advisers hell-bent on frustrating the objectives
he espoused when he was running for office
It's bizarre that he's hired so many Bill Kristol approved neocons when they abandoned him
for Hillary in 2016. Or not so bizarre when one remembers what Russ Tice said about Cheney
using the NSA to get blackmail dirt. Now they've lost control, so it will be interesting to
see how they try to regain it.
"... "the C.I.A. and its Saudi counterpart have maintained an unusual arrangement for the rebel-training mission, which the Americans have code-named Timber Sycamore. Under the deal, current and former administration officials said, the Saudis contribute both weapons and large sums of money, and the C.I.A takes the lead in training the rebels. From the moment the C.I.A. operation was started, Saudi money supported it." ..."
"... "The Saudi efforts were led by the flamboyant Prince Bandar bin Sultan, at the time the intelligence chief, who directed Saudi spies to buy thousands of AK-47s and millions of rounds of ammunition in Eastern Europe for the Syrian rebels. The C.I.A. helped arrange some of the arms purchases for the Saudis, including a large deal in Croatia in 2012." ..."
"... "In late 2012, according to two former senior American officials, David H. Petraeus, then the C.I.A. director, delivered a stern lecture to intelligence officials of several gulf nations at a meeting near the Dead Sea in Jordan. He chastised them for sending arms into Syria without coordinating with one another or with C.I.A. officers in Jordan and Turkey. Months later, Mr. Obama gave his approval for the C.I.A. to begin directly arming and training the rebels from a base in Jordan, amending the Timber Sycamore program to allow lethal assistance. Under the new arrangement, the C.I.A. took the lead in training, while Saudi Arabia's intelligence agency, the General Intelligence Directorate, provided money and weapons, including TOW anti-tank missiles," ..."
One of the best articles that the New York Times ever published was by Mark Mazzetti and
Matt Apuzzo, on 23 January 2016, "US Relies
Heavily on Saudi Money to Support Syrian Rebels" . They reported that, "the C.I.A. and
its Saudi counterpart have maintained an unusual arrangement for the rebel-training mission,
which the Americans have code-named Timber Sycamore. Under the deal, current and former
administration officials said, the Saudis contribute both weapons and large sums of money, and
the C.I.A takes the lead in training the rebels. From the moment the C.I.A. operation was
started, Saudi money supported it." Furthermore, "The White House has embraced the covert
financing from Saudi Arabia -- and from Qatar, Jordan and Turkey." But "American officials said
Saudi Arabia was by far the largest contributor to the operation." The invasion and occupation
of Syria by jihadists from around the world was primarily a Saud operation, though it was
managed mainly by the US Government.
... ... ...
Prior to the failed US-backed coup-attempt on 15 July 2015 to replace Tayyip Erdogan as
Turkey's President, Turkey was part of the U.S-Saudi alliance to overthrow and replace Syria's
Government. But afterwards, Turkey increasingly switched against the US and Sauds, and toward
instead supporting the target of the Sauds and of America's aristocrats: Syria. And, so, Turkey
has increasingly joined Syria's alliance, which includes Iran and Russia. That's one of the
major geopolitical changes in recent decades.
The NYT continued: "The Saudi efforts were led by the flamboyant Prince Bandar bin
Sultan, at the time the intelligence chief, who directed Saudi spies to buy thousands of AK-47s
and millions of rounds of ammunition in Eastern Europe for the Syrian rebels. The C.I.A. helped
arrange some of the arms purchases for the Saudis, including a large deal in Croatia in
2012."
The US preferred to be supplying the jihadists weapons that weren't from US manufacturers,
in order to impede any tracing back to the United States the arming of the movement to oust and
replace Syria's secular, committedly non-sectarian, Government. The Sauds -- who are just as
committedly sectarian, and are even supporters of the extreme fundamentalist Wahhabist sect of
Sunni Islam -- likewise tried to cover their tracks in this operation, but their tracks were
financial. The Sauds have been especially skillful at covering their tracks. Prince Bandar bin
Sultan al-Saud was a buddy of George W. Bush, and had secretly donated over a million dollars
in cash to Al Qaeda prior to the 9/11 attacks, according to Osama
bin Laden's financial bagman , who had picked up personally each one of the
million-dollar-cash donations to that organization until 9/11 and who named amongst those
donors not only Prince Bandar but also Prince Salman al-Saud, who subsequently became King
Salman, who is now the father of Crown Prince Salman, who recently murdered the "In late
2012, according to two former senior American officials, David H. Petraeus, then the C.I.A.
director, delivered a stern lecture to intelligence officials of several gulf nations at a
meeting near the Dead Sea in Jordan. He chastised them for sending arms into Syria without
coordinating with one another or with C.I.A. officers in Jordan and Turkey. Months later, Mr.
Obama gave his approval for the C.I.A. to begin directly arming and training the rebels from a
base in Jordan, amending the Timber Sycamore program to allow lethal assistance. Under the new
arrangement, the C.I.A. took the lead in training, while Saudi Arabia's intelligence agency,
the General Intelligence Directorate, provided money and weapons, including TOW anti-tank
missiles," columnist Jamal Khashoggi. Crown Prince Salman is also a close friend of
America's current 'prince', Jared Kushner, the US President's son-in-law. So, the Saud family
are very close with America's Republican aristocrats, perhaps even closer than they are with
America's Democratic aristocrats. But especially because of the business links, the Sauds are
deeply influential throughout America's aristocracy. Not only is Saudi Arabia the world's most
oil-rich country, but it is also the world's largest purchaser of weapons from Lockheed Martin
and the other American 'defense' contractors, which sell exclusively to the US Government and
to the governments that are allied with it (such as to Saudi Arabia). So, those corporations
depend upon the Sauds more than upon any other family, even than any single American
family.
The Saud family are also crucial allies with Israel's
aristocracy , who include such American billionaires as the Republican Sheldon Adelson and
the Democrat Lesley Wexner.
"... On December 19, Donald Trump announced in a Twitter message: "Our boys, our young women, our men, they're all coming back and they're coming back now. We won". Shortly thereafter, Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White said in a statement: "We have started the process of returning US troops home from Syria as we transition to the next phase of the campaign". ..."
"... The temperature is heating up for Trump following the midterms, as the Democrats prepare to take command of the House of Representatives in January, something that Trump had always hoped to avert. He surrounded himself with generals, in the forlorn hope that this would somehow protect him. If the last two years of his presidency were constantly under the cloud of Mueller's investigation, or insinuations of being an agent of Putin, from January 2019 the situation is going to get much more complicated. The Democratic electoral base is baying for the President's impeachment, the party already in full pre-primary mode, with more than 20 candidates competing, with the incumbent of the White House offering the rallying cry. ..."
"... Given that 70% of Americans think that the war in Afghanistan was a mistake, the more that the mainstream media attacks Trump for his decision to withdraw, the more they direct votes to Trump. In this sense, Trump's move seems to be directed at a domestic rather than an international audience. ..."
"... The decision to get out of Syria is timed to coincide with another move that will also very much please Trump's base. The government shutdown is a result of the Democrats refusing to fund Trump's campaign promise to build a wall on the Mexican border. ..."
"... The choice to announce to his base, via Twitter, a victory against ISIS and the immediate withdrawal of US troops was a smart election move with an eye on the 2020 election. ..."
"... Macron has for now reacted angrily at Trump's decision, intensifying the division between the two, and is adamant that the French military presence in Syria will continue. ..."
"... The military-industrial-intelligence-media complex considers Trump's decision the worst of of all possible moves. Mattis even resigned on account of this. ..."
"... For Israel, it is a double disaster, with Netanyahu desperate to survive, seeking to factor in expected elections in a now-or-never political move. Trump probably understands that Bibi is done for, and that at this point, the withdrawal of troops, fulfilling a fundamental electoral promise, counts more than Israeli money and his friendship to Bibi. ..."
On December 19, Donald Trump announced in a Twitter message: "Our boys, our young women,
our men, they're all coming back and they're coming back now. We won". Shortly thereafter,
Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White said in a statement: "We have started the process of returning
US troops home from Syria as we transition to the next phase of the campaign".
The reasons for Donald Trump's move are many, but they are mainly driven by US domestic
concerns. The temperature is heating up for Trump following the midterms, as the Democrats
prepare to take command of the House of Representatives in January, something that Trump had
always hoped to avert. He surrounded himself with generals, in the forlorn hope that this would
somehow protect him. If the last two years of his presidency were constantly under the cloud of
Mueller's investigation, or insinuations of being an agent of Putin, from January 2019 the
situation is going to get much more complicated. The Democratic electoral base is baying for
the President's impeachment, the party already in full pre-primary mode, with more than 20
candidates competing, with the incumbent of the White House offering the rallying cry.
The combination of these factors has forced Trump to change gears, considering that the
military-industrial-intelligence-media-complex has always been ready to get rid of Trump, even
in favor of a President Pence. The only option available for Trump in order to have a chance of
reelection in 2020 is to undertake a self-promotion tour, a practice in which he has few peers,
and which will involve him repeating his mantra of "Promises Made, Promises Kept". He will list
how he has fought against the fake-news media, suffered internal sabotage, as well as other
efforts (from the Fed, the FBI, and Mueller himself) to hamper his efforts to "Make America
Great Again".
Trump has perhaps understood that in order to be re-elected, he must pursue a simple media
strategy that will have a direct impact on his base. Withdrawing US troops from Syria, and
partly from Afghanistan, serves this purpose. It is an easy way to win with his constituents,
while it is a heavy blow to his fiercest critics in Washington who are against this decision.
Given that 70% of Americans think that the war in Afghanistan was a mistake, the more that the
mainstream media attacks Trump for his decision to withdraw, the more they direct votes to
Trump. In this sense, Trump's move seems to be directed at a domestic rather than an
international audience.
The decision to get out of Syria is timed to coincide with another move that will also very
much please Trump's base. The government shutdown is a result of the Democrats refusing to fund
Trump's campaign promise to build a wall on the Mexican border. It is not difficult to
understand that the average citizen is fed up with the useless wars in the Middle East, and
Trump's words on immigration resonate with his voters. The more the media, the Democrats and
the deep state criticize Trump on the wall, on the Syria pull out and on shutting down the
government, the more they are campaigning for him.
This is why in order to understand the withdrawal of the United States from Syria it is
necessary to see things from Trump's perspective, even as frustrating, confusing and
incomprehensible that may seem at times.
The difference this time around was that the decision to withdraw US troops from Syria was
Trump's alone, not something imposed on him by the generals that surround him. The choice to
announce to his base, via Twitter, a victory against ISIS and the immediate withdrawal of US
troops was a smart election move with an eye on the 2020 election.
It is possible that Trump, as is his wont, also wanted to send a message to his alleged
French and British allies present in the northeast of Syria alongside the Syrian Democratic
Forces (SDF) and US soldiers. Trump may be now taunting: "Let's see what you can do without the
US!"
It is as if Trump is admonishing these countries in a more concrete way for not lifting
their weight in terms of military spending. Trump is vindictive and is not averse, after taking
advantage of his opponent, to kicking him once he is down. Trump could be correct in this
regard, and maybe French and British forces will be forced to withdraw their small group of 400
to 500 illegal occupiers of Syrian territory. Macron has for now reacted angrily at Trump's
decision, intensifying the division between the two, and is adamant that the French military
presence in Syria will continue.
There is also a more refined reason to justify the US withdrawal, even if Trump is probably
unaware of it. The problem in these cases is always trying to peer through the fog of war and
propaganda in order to discern the clear, unadulterated truth.
We should begin by listing the winners and losers of the Syrian conflict. Damascus, Moscow,
Tehran and Hezbollah have won the war against aggression. Riyadh, Doha, Paris, London, Tel Aviv
and Washington, with their al Qaeda, Daesh and Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist proxies, failed to
destroy Syria, and following seven years of effort, are forced to scurry away in defeat.
Those who are walking a tightrope between war and defeat are Ankara and the so-called SDF.
The withdrawal of the United States has confirmed the balance on the ledger of winners and
losers, with the clock counting down for Erdogan and the SDF to make their next determinative
move.
The enemies of Syria survive thanks to repeated bluffs. The Americans of the
military-industrial-intelligence apparatus maintain the pretence that they still have an
influence in Syria, what with troops on the ground, attacking Trump for withdrawing. In fact,
since the Russians have imposed a no-fly-zone across the country, with the S-300 systems and
other sophisticated equipment that integrate the Syrian air-defenses into the Russian air
defenses, US coalition planes are for all intents and purposes grounded, and the same goes for
the Israelis.
Of course the French and British in Syria are infected with the same delusional disease,
choosing to believe that they can count for something without the US presence. We will see in
the near future whether they also withdraw their illegal presence from Syria.
The biggest bluff of all probably comes from Erdogan, who for months threatened to invade
Syria to fight ISIS, the Kurds, or any other plausible excuse to invade a sovereign country for
the purposes of advancing his dreams of expanding Turkish territory as far as Idlib (which
Erdogan considers a province of Turkey). Such an invasion, however, is unlikely to happen, as
it would unite the SDF, Damascus and her allies to reject the Turkish advance on Syrian
territory.
The Kurds in turn seem to have only one option left, namely, a forced negotiation with
Damascus to give back to the Syrian people, in exchange for protection, the control of their
territory that is rich in oil and gas.
Erdogan wants to eliminate the SDF, and until now, the only thing that stood in his way was
the US military presence. He even threatened to attack several times, even in spite of the
presence of US troops. Ankara has long been on a collision course with NATO countries on
account of this. By removing US troops, Trump imagines, relations between Turkey and the US may
also improve. This of course is of little interest to the US deep state, since Erdogan, like
Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), is considered unsuitable, and is accordingly branded a
"dictator".
Trump probably believes that with this move, as with his defense of MBS concerning
Khashoggi, that he can try and establish a strong personal friendship with Erdogan. There are
even talks about the sale of Patriot systems to the Turks and the extradition of Gulen.
When Will They Leave, and Cui Prodest?
It remains to be confirmed when and to what extent US troops will leave Syria. If the US had
no voice in the future in Syria, with 2,000 men on the ground, now it has even less. Leaving
behind 200 to 300 special forces and CIA operatives, together with another 400 to 500 French
and British personnel, will, once they are captured with their Daesh and al Qaeda friends, be
an excellent bargaining chip for Damascus, as they were in Aleppo.
The military-industrial-intelligence-media complex considers Trump's decision the worst of
of all possible moves. Mattis even resigned on account of this. The presence of US troops in
Syria allowed the foreign-policy establishment to continue to formulate plans (and spend money
to pay a lot of people in Washington) based on the delusion that they are doing something in
Syria to change the course of events. For Israel, it is a double disaster, with Netanyahu
desperate to survive, seeking to factor in expected elections in a now-or-never political move.
Trump probably understands that Bibi is done for, and that at this point, the withdrawal of
troops, fulfilling a fundamental electoral promise, counts more than Israeli money and his
friendship to Bibi.
Erdogan has two options before him. On the one hand, he can act against the Kurds. On the
other hand, he can sit down at the negotiating table with Damascus and the SDF, in an Astana
format, guided by Iran and Russia. Putin and Rouhani are certainly pushing for this solution.
Trump, on the other hand, would like to see Turkey enter Syria in the place of US forces, to
demonstrate he concluded a win-win deal for everyone, beating the deep-state at their own
game.
Erdogan does not really have the military force necessary to enter Syria, which is the big
secret. He would be against both the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and the SDF, though the two not
necessarily in an alliance.
There is a triple bluff going on, and this is what is complicating the situation so much. On
the one hand, the SDF is bluffing in not wanting help from Damascus in case Erdogan sends in
his forces; on the other hand, Erdogan is bluffing in suggesting he is able to conquer the
territory held by the SDF; and finally, the French and British are bluffing by telling the SDF
they will be able to help them against both Erdogan and/or Assad.
Iran, Russia, Syria are the only ones who do not need to bluff, because they occupy the best
position – the commanding heights. They view Trump's decisions and his allies with
distrust. They know very well that these are mostly moves for internal consumption by the
enemies of Syria.
If the US withdraws, there is so much to be gained. The priority then becomes the west of
Syria, sealing the borders with Jordan, removing the pockets of terrorists from the east, and
securing the al-Tanf crossing. If the SDF will request protection from Damascus and will be
willing to participate in the liberation of the country and its reconstruction, Erdogan will be
done for, and this could lead to the total liberation of Idlib. It would be the best possible
outcome, an important national reconciliation between two important parts of the population. It
would give Damascus new economic impetus and prepare the Syrian people to expel the remaining
invaders (ISIS and the FSA/ Turkish Armed Forces) from the country, both in Idlib and in the
northeast in Afrin.
Russia is aware of the risk that Erdogan is running with the choices he will take in the
coming days. Perhaps the reason why Putin chose diplomacy over war with Turkey after the
downing of a Russian Su-24 in 2015 was in order to arrive at this precise moment, with as many
elements as possible present to convince Erdogan to stick with Russia and Iran instead of
embracing Trump's strategy and putting himself on an open collision course with Damascus,
Moscow and Tehran.
Putin has always been five moves ahead. He is aware that the US could not stay long in
Syria. He knows that France and the UK cannot support the SDF, and that the SDF cannot hold
territory it holds in Syria without an agreement with Damascus. He is also conscious that
Turkey does not have the strength to enter Syria and hold the territory if it did. It would
only be able justify an advance on Idlib with the support of the Russian Air Force.
Putin has certainly made it clear to Erdogan that if he made such a move to attack the SDF
and enter Syria, Russia in turn would militarily support the SAA with its air force to free
Idlib; and in case of incidents with Turkey, the Russian armed forces would respond with all
the interest earned from the unrequited downing of the Su-24 in 2015.
Erdogan has no choice. He must find an agreement with Damascus, and this is why he found
himself commenting on Trump's words the following day, criticizing US sanctions on Iran in the
presence of Iranian president Rouhani. The SDF know that they are between a rock and a hard
place, and have already sent a delegation to start negotiations with Damascus.
Trump's move was driven by US domestic politics and aimed at the 2020 elections. But in
doing so, Trump inevitably called out once and for all the bluffs built by Syria's enemies,
infuriating in the process the neoliberal imperialist establishment, revealing how each of
these factions has no more cards to play and is in actual fact destined for defeat.
Russia, according to TASS (note the snowflakes in their logo), is not clear on US
intentions in Syria and is relying on media reports. Is Trump clear? Is there a strategy? Or
just an idea? There seems to have been no coordination between the US, France, Britain, and
Israel, and no contacts between the US and Syria or Russia (or Iran). Trump and Erdogan had a
phone call and Trump has been invited to visit Turkey. Turkey and Syria are repositioning
forces. A fog has descended.
"... "Trump's move was driven by US domestic politics and aimed at the 2020 elections. But in doing so, Trump inevitably called out once and for all the bluffs built by Syria's enemies, infuriating in the process the neoliberal imperialist establishment, revealing how each of these factions has no more cards to play and is in actual fact destined for defeat." ..."
"... If Trump survives his domestic battles, I suspect that neocon policy has been dealt a glancing blow that it will never quite recover from. Not that it's down by any means, but diminished a little, put in its place a little. Or so we can hope. Much remains to happen yet, and we shall see. ..."
Well, I see my complaint comment got posted but the previous 4 remain in limboland! What a
crying shame! Anyway, here I go again trying to post a link to what I believe a very
perceptive article
by Federico Pieraccini :
"Trump's move was driven by US domestic politics and aimed at the 2020 elections.
But in doing so, Trump inevitably called out once and for all the bluffs built by Syria's
enemies, infuriating in the process the neoliberal imperialist establishment, revealing how
each of these factions has no more cards to play and is in actual fact destined for
defeat."
Now we'll see if this gets shared with the internet community or is swallowed by the
information cloud.
Agreed, the Pieraccini article is one of his best. He's a deep thinker, with a longer
horizon and memory than many other commentators, and I think he's pulled many, many of the
threads together in this analysis.
We've seen some commentary and sentiment to the effect that Trump is moving finally along
his stated plan to get out of the ME, but Pieraccini calls it as being only for the election.
I agree with this. Trump wants to win and he needs to start now to do it, because it takes
two years to win, and this is also crucial to build a defense from the Democrats along the
way.
However, just because Trump is perhaps "only" looking at election doesn't mean that
nothing is revealed about policy in the Middle East. What he has shown is that even a weak
President can still affect foreign policy, and also that the neocon dream means nothing
compared with domestic political realities - if the two come into sharp relief, as they now
do, then the illegitimate and parasitic neocon force must yield.
If Trump survives his domestic battles, I suspect that neocon policy has been dealt a
glancing blow that it will never quite recover from. Not that it's down by any means, but
diminished a little, put in its place a little. Or so we can hope. Much remains to happen
yet, and we shall see.
~~
The US is what Jeff Brown calls the colonial spawn of the western tip (Europe) of Eurasia,
all of which together have been consumed in racist and genocidal, imperial plunder of the
whole world for 500 years. This kind of mindset is not going to vaporize overnight. The
actions of one president are an insect bite in comparison. A dozen presidents maybe, one
after another, with all the other influences of the world included over that time. And
there's still the old money families at the root of it.
I begin to believe we must be looking at decades, perhaps almost a century, for this
global anomaly to die away completely. But this is the Asian Century. Heaven itself, perhaps,
sends its force against the old empires.
The U.S. has used hard and soft power with an iron fist to acquire its Empire status. For
now, Trump is using soft power i.e. financial tyranny more aggressively than any preceding
President, Iran being his number one target, followed by China.
Iran can't do much to fight this tyranny alone without China and Russia's help, but what
Trump is doing to China based on hyper-insecurity and imperial hubris will have serious
blowback.
The author of this article that appeared in Vanity Fair in 2014, but is more relevant than
ever
China's Rise already viewed China as the world's No. 1 economic power at that time and
Trump should be heeding his warning, but instead he's going the Neocon route: the Empire
cannnot share power, have any challenge to its authority or even a counter balance either
militarily or economically. This is not only an imperial mindset it's a Neocon standard.
If Trump uses economic tyranny with more force than his predecessors, you think he's going
to hold back on the Yinon objective to neutralize Iran? This is why I laugh at those who
think that Trump is not establishment. He's the Chosen of the 1%.
"... The Israelis lost big time from their IL-20 misadventure, but those losses will seem like childs play compared to their geostrategic losses from a repeat performance - that is if my interpretation is correct. ..."
It appears to be too early to say much about the latest Israeli attack, until more details
are released, but my inkling is of a lot in common with the IL-20 atrocity - namely that
the Israelis may have been deliberately hiding behind two civilian passenger jets to launch
their attack. If that is the case the Israelis can expect to be a gigantic loser.
From what I can gather it appears that 14 of the 16 the guided bombs were shot down
using Pantsir S1 and/or S200. If that is the case then it is not true to say that the S300
was not used, because the S300 is an integrated system which automatically chooses the most
appropriate means of response including S200/S125 etc and also including (as I understand)
the Pantsir. In the case of the S200 at least, the missiles will be guided to their targets
by the S300 radars and S300 control system.
The big question is the role of the two passenger jets and why their presence impeded
action against the Israeli F16's. That is where the parallels with the IL-20 come in. The
Russians are going to analyse this carefully and precisely before publishing
conclöusions - after that we can expect harsh action - certainly geostrategic and
maybe also kinetic.
The Israelis lost big time from their IL-20 misadventure, but those losses will seem
like childs play compared to their geostrategic losses from a repeat performance - that is
if my interpretation is correct.
By the way, I wouldn't take either Korybko or Cartalucci too seriously, both seem to me
to be pro-empire misinformation artists - or at the very least highly untrustworthy
sources.
Attacking Israeli aircraft over Lebanon? A no-go at the current state of affairs, as it
would most likely trigger an escalation neither Russia, Syria, Hezbollah and Iran want, at
least for the time being.
Posted by: Hmpf | Dec 26, 2018 11:08:26 AM | 26
This is precisely where the consequences of the Israeli timing my come in. If they
deliberately timed their offence with the landing of passenger jets in Beirut and Damascus,
thereby putting those jets at risk, Russia may be able to persuade Lebanon to allow them to
impose a total no-fly zone over Lebanon for all Israeli military aircraft and projectiles.
Check mate.
As for relations between Russia and Israel, don't for get that Russian Jews represent over
10% of the Israeli population. Roughly one million out of nine million. Putin obviously is
aware of this and may represent leverage for Israel. To use a favorite word of the pundits,
this "emboldens" the blue haired PM
All--Korybko, again, wrote hastily about something he fails to completely understand,
thereby making a fool of himself. Syrian air defenses are quite adequate without needing to
employ their S-300s. It's not clear if the changes to Syria's rules of engagement include
targeting AND shooting down Zionist jets over Lebanon outside of Syrian airspace, which
would employ S-300s. The following is Canthama's report from SyrPers posted @ 5 hours ago:
"Some latest news from Syria:
"1) Last night attack from the apartheid regime was very intense, used several vectors
such as cruise missiles, ground to ground missiles etc in total it was reported 64 IDF
missiles, this nbr can change as per SANA. only 7 went through the SyAAD defenses, which is
an incredible rate of hits.
"There were several targets, all on the IDF hit list targets released few weeks ago, but
only 1 target was hit SW of Damascus, causing material damages on a weapon depot, believed
to be one of the hundreds carrying ammo recollected from the very terrorists the apartheid
regime sent weapons to. SANA reported 3 SAA soldiers were injured during the explosion.
"It is believed the SAA fired retaliatory ground to ground missiles into occupied Golan
which caused the interruption of IDF attack. SANA is yet to comment on that, but there are
videos with Patriot attempts to intercept SAA missiles on the occupied Golan.
"2) There was not so ever any other casualty on this event, the web and news last night
was full of fake news and intentionally planted news.
"3) Yesterday was a tough day in the apartheid regime, Natanyahu dismantle the cabinet
for a new election and it seems the Likud party managed to hold him in power. Keep in mind
the corruption case against Natanyahu is strong and moving to the last phase, he is
desperate. On top of that the apartheid regime is completely against the US withdrawn from
Syria, placing Natanyahu at odds with Trump, thus the attack in Syria as a sign of defiance
and provocation to cause strong Syria/Russia's reaction, which it did not happen.
"4) SAA troops are in the very outskirt of Manbij, the deal is done between the MMC and
the Syrian Government, there are a mix of some key SAA armies involved, bringing to all the
Manbij pocket heavy tanks, missiles and thousands of soldiers. SyAAD has brought to
Kuweyres and Aleppo airbases AA to protect the skies in all northern Syria thus controlling
the events for the next months.
"Important to watch what is done in Qamishli and Hasaka airbases regarding AA defenses,
if it is beefed up in the next few days, it will mean some inroads were agreed.
"5) Early today, the SAA has moved NW of Aleppo and liberated the town of Malikiyah,
just northwest of Menagh airbase, this position was occupied by turkish backed terrorists.
There are reports local SDF forces worked with the SAA on this ops. Not clear why this is
happening, but it could be to divert the turkish backed terrorists that moved in force to
the area near Manbij. There is no huge strategic gain with it but to control a small road
that bypass the M5, but it could indicate advances toward Afrin and Azaz, but this is too
early and more info is needed."
What the Zionists did was to commit an obvious Terrorist Attack on a peaceful capital
city trying its best to celebrate Christmas that will further sully what remains of its
reputation, as if it could get any lower than it is now. Nutty's clearly terrorizing for
domestic reasons as there are Yellow Vest demonstrations and other political unrest
occurring in Zionistan daily. Hopefully, he will be the last in a long line of Zionists
Devils deserving a trial prior to dismemberment at The Hague.
It appears the lengthy, complicated back-room discussions between Damascus and Kurds has
reaped results that are now becoming visible. The holiday's over, so now it's time to
destroy the vermin. Iraq's PM is supposed to visit Assad for talks to coordinate several
key actions: approach to Kurds and Turks; action East of Euphrates; and Iraqi government
plans to deal with its Outlaw US Empire occupiers that are infiltrating from Syria. I've
peered into corners to see if Iran or Syria have made any comment about Trump's withdrawal,
but still nothing, which I entirely understand.
In any conventional conflict between Russia and the west, no matter how good the new
Russian weapons are, Russia will quickly run out of munitions. The West can overwhelm with
greater numbers of (poorer quality) weapons. This leads Russia into the position of
surrendering or having to escalate (to nuclear). So it is a dead-end to directly get into a
conflict with Israel as this too easily leads to the west mustering in support of Israel
and a direct confrontation between Russia and the West. Tactically, the way to deal with
Israel is to neutralise it's capabilities without resorting to direct confrontation and
ultimatums (unsatisfying as that may be).
This is supposed to complement the Syrian report I just posted but has yet to appear.
This provides the
reason why the Zionist attack on Damascus is an act of International Terrorism:
"The Israeli military put two civilian airliners in immediate danger, Igor Konashenkov,
the Defense Ministry spokesman, told reporters. 'Provocative acts by the Israeli Air Force
endangered two passenger jets when six of their F-16s carried out airstrikes on Syria from
Lebanese airspace.'"
Such behavior cannot be condoned for any reasons whatsoever, and ought to produce
an article 7 UNSC Resolution. Unfortunately, one Outlaw Nation protects the other Outlaw
Nation, so such a proper international response will not be forthcoming. The Moroccan
Terrorists are nothing compared to the Zionist and Outlaw US Empire's terrorists, and they
all ought to share a similar fate.
Was there another purpose behind the Israeli fighter jets hiding behind civilian aircraft?
What would be the international reaction or more specifically the US reaction, to Syrian
missiles downing a civilian commercial aircraft packed with civilian holiday passengers on
Christmas Day? Would the Israeli role be masked in well-honed outrage at "Assad the
butcher" again - without conscience - murdering defenseless civilians, necessitating
immediate retaliation on the part of virtue signaling Western forces? Would it validate the
cacophony from the Beltway regarding US withdrawal from Syria, vindicating Mattis'
resignation concerns?
First
report of Syrian retaliation I've seen today. No, it wasn't part of my detailed--6
paragraphs of Canthama's reporting--detained for who knows what as there were no links
within it as Korybko's essay was previously linked. Many things ongoing today as the
holiday's over, particularly movement around Manbij.
Elsewhere, Poroshenko ends martial law making him look weaker than ever. Arab League
going against advice of Outlaw US Empire to reinstate Syria. Ground broken in Korea by
North and South for construction of rail line linking them despite Outlaw Empire efforts to
forestall. Japan says to world: Fuck-off, we're going to kill whales regardless.
The purpose of a provocation is to lead the provoked into a rash act. There are many
posters on various sites who are guaranteed to condemn Putin for not taking (rash) action
in response to the latest provocation. I profoundly distrust such posters because they
appear to almost be acting in concert with the provocateur.
Today, Poroshenko announced the end of martial law. Poroshenko's plans to provoke
conflict with Russia and suspend elections appear to be effectively over. We can look
forward to new elections, a new President and an improved relationship with Ukraine. Where
would we be now if Putin had responded to Poroshenko's provocations as some would wish?
What would've been Trump's reaction if Syria had mistakenly downed a civilian airliner on
Christmas Day as the Israel's might've been hoping for?
Another round of missile attacks on Syria? Direct attack on Assad? Re-commit to the
occupation of Eastern Syria?
Whatever it might've been, we can be be sure that Americans and Europeans would've been
overwhelmingly supportive: those that were critical of Trump's pulling out of Syria and
those that were cheering his pulling out of Syria. United. Against. Assad.
And ready to face any counteraction by Assad or Putin. Together.
Still think Mattis' resignation was not a PR stunt?
I'm in full agreement with the author's sentiment. We should pull out of Syria and begin the
drawdown in Afghanistan. Our reason for being in Syria is in support of Israeli and Saudi
policies, not ours or the Syrian's. The hysteria over this dramatic and IMO welcome change in
policy is a pure neocon hysteria. They are not primarily concerned about the remaining IS
forces. They are hysterical about the withdrawal of US support for Israeli and Saudi
objectives in the region.
I do want to clear up a few details. Our material support to the jihadis we called
moderate rebels was a clear anti-Assad move. It was and is illegal and uninvited. Our initial
support to the Rojava Kurds was also illegal and uninvited by the Syrian government. However,
it was a pure anti-IS move. The SF teams, the air support and material support provided to
the Kurds was in our interests. Where this went wrong was when that support morphed into
maintaining a US-sponsored statelet in eastern Syria to thwart both Damascus and Tehran.
The air support we employ in Syria is primarily manned fighter-bombers and rotary wing
aircraft, not drones. We also have artillery on the ground in Syria along with infantry (500
or so Marines) to protect that artillery and forward air bases for helicopters and supply
aircraft along with the support personnel at those bases. There are also a 100 or so Rangers
around Manbij. The SF teams advising and assisting the SDF/YPG direct that air and artillery
support. All those duties will be taken over by SAA, Russian and Hezbollah and Iranian
forces. The SAA and SDF/YPG are already coordinating for the employment of SAA units along
the Turkish border.
The Marines and their artillery were pulled out many months ago after they had finished
reducing much of Raqqa to rubble, something the local Arabs who are the majority in the
Euphrates valley will never forgive the US for. Those guns were, as far as I have been able
to find, the only over 100mm barrel guns taken by the US into Syria as Turkey would have had
a fit otherwise.
US and UK drones are still in use against ISIS elements in Deir.
Our allies were the Jihadist and we armed them to overthrow the Syrian Government and destroy
its secular government. Just go to Youtube and watch all the videos of Salafist firing our
TOW missiles and taking out the tanks of the SAA. ISIS was a bridge too far and world
condemnation forced our hand. It appears to me our foreign policy objective was to encourage
sectarianism in order to overthrow a government that is hostile to Israel. Our foreign policy
establishment didn't give a damn about the Christians being slaughtered. As long as Jerusalem
was happy was all that mattered. In bed with the devil.
Trump is finally starting to get it. Most of Washington hates his guts and won't do a thing
to help out, no matter the mission. Might as well go it alone and push his constitutional
authority to the limits and then some, trusting the deplorables to have his back.
The grunts in the armed forces largely come from 'the deplorables'. I am sure they would
prefer to stay home than fight thousands of miles from home in a strange country for
absolutely no strategic gain to the US. How many of the liberals, the so called resistance,
actually serve in the armed forces? And they are the ones shouting the loudest to continue
the ending war. War frequently seems exciting to those who don't do the fighting!
But let me tell you the future: there will be no withdraw from Syria UNLESS the king of
Israel agrees.
No doubt about it. I'm sure the Trumpster is telling us peasants what we want to hear,
just as he did while campaigning, and who knows if the US military will really get out of
Syria on his order. I myself think he's bullshitting, but I hope I'm wrong.
@ChuckOrloski
Pretty much. Sounds like "the only democracy in the Middle East".
But if we cry for every victim of Israeli scheming, we can't drink enough to replenish the
store of tears. Maybe we should do something about it, rather than crying or laughing? Or
commenting here lulled by false anonymity? NSA is listening, anyway.
"... If in addition to withdrawing from Syria orange clown were to stop arming the "government" of "Ukraine" and agree to negotiations with Russia on the issue of intermediate range nuclear armed missiles in Europe -- with a goal to support/strengthen the INF treaty rather than withdraw from it -- I might be willing to entertain the idea that something's changed. ..."
"... Call me cynical but I think you cannot take ANYTHING our masters say or do, e.g. this, at face value. ..."
"... just watch their behaviour -- the wall never gets built even though they are now talking about increasing the "defense" budget from $700 billion to $750 billion next year -- the increase alone is the cost of two walls ..."
"President Donald Trump's order to withdraw from Syria has been greeted, predictably, with an
avalanche of condemnation culminating in last Thursday's resignation by Defense Secretary
James Mattis. The Mattis resignation letter focused on the betrayal of allies "
Call me cynical but I think you cannot take ANYTHING our masters say or do, e.g. this, at
face value.
Orange clown's alleged disengagement from Syria may be (and probably is) nothing more that
a tactical retreat/change in plans for which the Mattis resignation is merely a fig leaf;
that is, it's just more of the same disingenuous dialectics that we've been bombarded with
since the beginning of the "Trump" administration.
Apparently we're urged to conclude that Trump has finally had enough of the people he
knowingly and willingly surrounded himself with, and their agenda, and now all of a sudden
(because of some kind of a spiritual epiphany, pro-American New Year's resolution, etc.) he
wants to do right by (some of) his supporters by doing what he should've done a long time
ago. (And the hint of a military drawdown in Afghanistan adds a nice touch).
Sorry but I can't buy what they're selling.
If in addition to withdrawing from Syria orange clown were to stop arming the
"government" of "Ukraine" and agree to negotiations with Russia on the issue of intermediate
range nuclear armed missiles in Europe -- with a goal to support/strengthen the INF treaty
rather than withdraw from it -- I might be willing to entertain the idea that something's
changed.
As it is now it'll take a lot more than the obligatory "avalanche of condemnation" i.e.,
cheap words, to convince me that the perfidious orange clown and his jewish-supremacist
handlers are doing anything other than rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic with one
hand while steering it into the iceberg with the other hand.
Call me cynical but I think you cannot take ANYTHING our masters say or do, e.g.
this, at face value.
agree
just watch their behaviour -- the wall never gets built even though they are now
talking about increasing the "defense" budget from $700 billion to $750 billion next year --
the increase alone is the cost of two walls
Although Russia has avoided any direct military challenge to NATO, it has nonetheless
shown a growing willingness to disrupt the status quo: through its use of force in Georgia
in 2008 and Ukraine since 2014, its often indiscriminate military intervention in Syria,
and its aggressive use of cyberwarfare to attempt to affect political outcomes in the
United States and Europe.
Haass is a Cheney's choice of opportunist and Goebbelsian kind of criminal:
Haass was born to a Jewish family in Brooklyn From 1989 to 1993, he was Special
Assistant to United States President George H. W. Bush and National Security Council Senior
Director for Near East and South Asian Affairs. In 1991, Haass received the Presidential
Citizens Medal for helping to develop and explain U.S. policy during Operation Desert
Shield and Operation Desert Storm. Haass argued that the leaders of the United States
should adopt "an imperial foreign policy" to construct and manage an informal American
empire (Haass 2000)
.local sources told Al Jazeera and Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency --
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Tuesday that Ankara and Washington
agreed to complete withdrawal of the YPG forces from Manbij before the US pulls out of
Syria.
He added the US agreed to take back weapons given to the YPG.
Syrian government forces 'enter' Kurdish-controlled Manbij region. Trucks carrying
regime forces and equipment, and armoured vehicles have arrived in the region, sources
say.
Withdrawing from Syria is the right thing to do, though one has to be concerned that
there might be some secret side deals with Israel or Turkey that could actually result in
more attacks on Syria and on the Kurds.
Netanyahu says he will escalate attacks against Iran in Syria. Lets see if Russia
takes exception to that.
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel will escalate its fight against Iranian-aligned forces
in Syria after the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country, Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday.
Some Israeli officials have said U.S. President Donald Trump's move, announced on
Wednesday, could help Iran by removing a U.S. garrison that stems the movement of Iranian
forces and weaponry into Syria from Iraq.
Israel also worries that its main ally's exit could reduce its diplomatic leverage with
Russia, the Syrian government's big-power backer.
"We will continue to act very aggressively against Iran's efforts to entrench in Syria,"
Netanyahu said in televised remarks, referring to an Israeli air campaign in Syria against
Iranian deployments and arms transfers to Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas, carried out with
Moscow often turning a blind eye.
"We do not intend to reduce our efforts. We will intensify them, and I know that we do so
with the full support and backing of the United States."
4,000,000 Muslims have been killed as a consequence of the wars since 2001, millions more
displaced. More than 8,000 U.S. military have died in wars whose purpose was to take the
oil from the Arab s, a purpose which started in 1897 with at the Zionist Congress in
Switzerland. -- $6 trillion you say and counting, much of it borrowed. War without end means
killing without end and it has to stop.
Your article names the supporters of the war bandits and invading countries who rob the
govern of there of their money, so the money can be used to destroy the lives and to reduce
the quality of life in the target place to tribal at best (Iraq, Syria, Yemen and
Afghanistan). You mentioned war gang supporters Reuters, NYT, WoPo, mainstream television
news providers , Pentagon, the Middle East Institute, and Israel.. but you left out so many
others.
The important people to be considered in this are the Syrians humans governed by the Assad
Syrian Government. & years of catching USA, British, French, Turkish, and Israeli bombs
and donating, to Saudia Arabia raised Wahhabi's, Syrian heads and Syrian body parts, and
being forced into homeless status as refugees of one more invader war, the Syrian people have
evolved into strong nation organized to defend against the most powerful militarises in the
world, they have voted 87% to keep Dr. Assad in three different elections as their leader.
But something else happened: Syria became stronger, Syria became an international player,
because both Russia and Iran joined to help Syria defend its sovereignty and to defend the
lives of the Syrian people. I cannot think of one single American who wants anything the
Syrian people have?
Why the war? So a few oil companies can steal the oil in Syria and run oil pipelines
through Syria in order to defeat Russia's oil sales to Europe. Its not about Israel security
(no threatens to invade Israel), its about Zionist greed and the urge to be entertained by
murdering people in their homes.
So, Trump bends over his second least favorite babysitter/general, Mattis, and orders a
complete withdrawal from Syria opening the door to NATO's Turkey to go after the Kurd units
there, which is an interesting development.
Putin wanted the USA out but he also has warned Erdogan against funneling Idlib's Salafi
militants to Syria's Kurdish region, something Erdogan has been keen to do. Actually I expect
the erratic Erdogan will go for it anyway, and small wonder at that, considering Erdogan's
intelligence chief, Hakan Fidan, whose personal history is one of a bona fide member of al
Qaida. Is Putin ready for Erdogan to back-stab Russia again? (recalling Erdogan's military
had shot down a Russian jet.) This has to be the biggest geopolitical soap opera of the
moment:
"The third disagreement is related to the fate of extremists as Turkish officials want
to transfer them to Kurdish-controlled areas while Russian officials insist on "terminating
them""
So, then Trump's detractors (includes Mattis) will point the finger at Trump (not Turkey)
when Syria's east is reinfected with Salafi militants but secretly pleased Erdogan has
reopened the terrorism pipeline into Syria if only because it will cause Assad and Russia
problems, as well, there is the perpetual profits motive (noted by Phil.) And, so it goes
"... Maybe I am overestimating the intelligence of MIC profiteers, but my impression is that those thieves know that their loot is only useful as long as they are alive. There is a lot of silly hostile talk against Russia and China, but have you noticed how the US military always makes sure that there are no direct confrontations with countries that can turn the US into radioactive dust? The profiteers want huge Pentagon budget to steal from, but not the war where they lose along with everyone else. ..."
@Z-man
Israel fears Iran, is my idea. Norman Finkelstein once stated that Israeli jews do not see
how there ever can be peace with the Palestinians 'after all we did to them'. Not all jews
are idiots. Forgot in which book I read that in the thirties a Zionist reached Palestine, and
saw that this was not the 'land without people for people without land'. He stated 'this is a
crime'.
The destruction and destabilisation of the ME, an Israeli plan, as far as I know.
In 1921 and later years there was the enormous population exchange, without any financial
compensation, between Turkey and Greece. To this day tensions exist between the two
countries.
Iran is one of the oldest civilisations. Twice, one might say even three time, the west
overthrew Iranian democracy. Iran knows of course quite well that the VS brought Saddam to
power so that he could subjugate Iran, that had rid itself of the USA puppet shah. Iran also
of course knows quite well Jewish power in the USA, Bush' s promise to AIPAC to destroy Iraq.
Will those leading Iran now ever trust the USA or Israel ?
So that Netanyahu and USA jewry now are in complete panic, who had expected it to be
otherwise ? Uri Avnery wrote 'the only language zionists understand is power. Is there a
problem, use power, if it does not help, use more power, if that also fails, use even more
power'.
There has never been any serious negotiation between Israel and its neighbors, or with the
Palestinians. About the Oslo negotiations a book appeared in Israel with the title 'How we
fooled the Palestinians'? Sharon answered any Arab League peace proposal with force, Jenin,
one of them, if my recollection is correct. There always was the idea of overwhelming more
military power, and of USA support.
Kissinger saved Israel in the 1973 Yom Kippur war by flying over hundreds of the newest
USA anti tank weapons, wire guided, TOW. What will the USA do in case Israel is attacked ? Is
Netanyahu crazy enough to provoke an attack ?
Maybe I am overestimating the intelligence of MIC profiteers, but my impression is
that those thieves know that their loot is only useful as long as they are alive. There is a
lot of silly hostile talk against Russia and China, but have you noticed how the US military
always makes sure that there are no direct confrontations with countries that can turn the US
into radioactive dust? The profiteers want huge Pentagon budget to steal from, but not the
war where they lose along with everyone else.
As to the wall, it is one of the silliest projects ever suggested. Maybe that's why it was
so easy to sell it to the intellectually disadvantaged electorate. There are two things that
can stop illegal immigration. First, go for the employers, enact a law that fines them to the
tune of $50,000 or more per every illegal they employ. Second, enact the law that anyone
caught residing in the US illegally has no right to enter the US legally, to obtain asylum,
permanent residency, or citizenship for life, and include a provision that marriage to a US
citizen does not nullify this ban. Then enforce both laws. After that illegals would run out
of the country, and greedy employers won't hire any more. Naturally, the wall, even if built,
won't change anything: as long as there are employers trying to save on salaries, immigration
fees, and Social Security tax, and people willing to live and work illegally risking nothing,
no wall would stem the flow.
Unfortunately, no side is even thinking about real measures, both are just posturing.
If the Turks attack the Kurds it will be their own fault. If they don't learn the lesson of
Afrin and accept the Syrian Government offer, they will be eliminated by the Turkish Army and
proxy troops. They appear to have been offered the option of becoming part of the Syrian Arab
Army, an offer the Russians and Turks have supported.
Bear in mind that many of the Kurds are now in parts of Syria that were not theirs before
the US backed them and, under the eyes of US SF and DoS observers, they have been ethnically
cleaning some of those areas of Arabs. This will be reversed.
A cynical view on the Kurds would be that throwing them to the wolves will make the wolves
fight amongst themselves over the prey.
The one issue which united Russia, Syria, Iran & Turkey was that they all wanted the
US out of Syria. Now that has happened friction between the nations can occur.
Russia may have gained something from the new relationship with Turkey that they may not
want to sacrifice for Syrian-Iranian policy regarding who shall control Northern Syria.
Can Syria-Iran go it along against Turkey . I doubt it.
Even as what should have been a quick 2001 strike into Afghanistan bogged down into the quagmire of nation building, George W. Bush
in 2003 invaded Iraq. The pretenses were all false. Terrorism was the excuse, American control
over the region the goal. "Winning" in Iraq was built on an illusion the U.S. could somehow
establish a puppet government there incorporating Sunni, Shia, and Kurd power blocs. There was
no plan for this and it predictably failed, metastasizing into civil war, eventually drawing in
powerful outside forces, most predominantly the Iranians on the Shia side, and al Qaeda on the
Sunni side, with the US assuming a defacto role protecting the semiautonomous Kurds.
As the second Bush term gasped to conclusion and America grew weary of the Iraq War, the US
quietly abandoned its plans for a tripartite Iraqi state. It allowed Iranian-supported Shias to
"win" the 2010 elections at the expense of the Sunni population, and walled off the Kurds,
formal status to be sorted out sometime whenever. Under a deal negotiated by Bush, American
troops came home under Obama. That action didn't "lose" Iraq; Iraq was "lost" at a thousand
incremental steps between 2003-2010 when the US failed to create a viable government and left
everyone to fight it out. The continued presence of American troops post-2010 would not have
prevented the violence which followed, anymore than the continued presence of US troops
pre-2010 did not prevent the violence and in fact inflamed it.
The Shia government in Iraq, advised, financed, and controlled by newly-empowered Iran
(America's wars had removed Iran's two biggest enemies, the Taliban on its eastern border and
Saddam on the west, freeing up the bulk of Iran's military and foreign policy resources) wildly
overplayed its hand, setting off on a clumsy genocide of the Sunnis. Out of desperation, the
remnants of al Qaeda coupled with ultra-violent Sunni
nationalists/protectors/patriots/terrorists (pick one word, but they all describe ISIS) morphed
into Islamic State. From a Syrian border American interventionism had turned into a failed
state, Islamic State organized itself and began holding ground, quickly rolling over the Kurds
in northern Iraq and through sympathetic Sunni lands. When the American-trained (cost: $25
billion) Iraqi national army dropped its weapons and ran in 2014, remaining Shia forces
collapsed back toward Baghdad, and it looked like Iraq was about to snap apart.
The US, under Obama, reinserted itself into Iraq, in a devil's bargain with the most
powerful player on the ground other than ISIS, the Iranians. The US paired with Iranian special
forces, the US paired with Iranian-led Iraqi troops, and the US paired with Iranian-backed Shia
militias/nationalists/protectors/patriots/terrorists. This time there was no grand plan to do
any nation building. The plan was to literally kill every Islamic State fighter, and if that
meant destroying Sunni cities to save them, so be it. Death was rained in literal Biblical
doses. The American strategy against Islamic State worked. It should have; this was a war the
American military knew how to fight, with none of that tricky counterinsurgency stuff. Retaking
Ramadi, Fallujah, and Mosul were set-piece battles. City after Sunni city were ground into
little Dresdens before being turned over to the militias for ethnic cleansing of renegade
Sunnis.
Without much discussion, "fighting ISIS" into Syrian territory slipped into another, albeit
less enthusiastic, round of
regime change , this time aimed at Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. Assad's family controlled
the country since the 1960s, and was a sort-of American partner here and there, certainly
helpful during the early years of the GWOT in torturing folks on America's behalf. Bashar
himself was a goofy looking guy with a sophisticated wife, an optometrist by education, and
when he took office after his classic dictator Dr. Evil father's death, was briefly seen as a
"new voice" in the Middle East, a less fashionable version of last year's Saudi Mohammed bin
Salman. Assad was fighting Islamic State, too: they were seeking to seize territory from him,
and so the US and Assad were sort of on the same side.
Nonetheless, Obama's warhawks – the gals, Susan Rice and Hillary Clinton in the lead!
– drove policy toward regime change. Assad became an evil dictator who killed his own
people. Justification for the US going to war again in the Middle East was thus because a tiny
percentage of the deaths were maybe caused by gas instead of artillery, aerial bombs, machine
guns, tanks, rockets, grenades, car bombs, mines, bad food, or sticks and stones, a "red line."
The world of 2015 however was very different than the one of 2003. The US had been bled out by
the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and fights picked in Libya, Somalia, Yemen, and across Africa.
Iran was empowered. Russia, always a friend of Assad's, was
invited in to help rid Syria of chemical weapons by Secretary of State John Kerry and took
the opportunity to dramatically grow its military role there.
Saudi money fed the fight, often flowing into ISIS' coffers because ISIS was fighting
Iranian-backed troops whom the Saudi's opposed. Turkey saw an opportunity in chaos to push back
against the Kurds nipping at its southern and eastern borders and basically a small-scale
version of WWI unraveled as the United States bombed a bit, stepped back, sent in some special
forces, then claimed it had no boots on the ground, and so forth. America's goals –
destroy ISIS, fight Iranian influence, oust Assad – were often at odds with one another
and lead to US weapons and money flooding the battlefield. More than one firefight featured
American-supplied guns on both sides. More than one American special forces unit found itself
playing traffic cop stopping an American "ally" from attacking another American "ally."
How unlikely did it seem (pre-Khashoggi) that the Syrian situation would take the turns
we're now starting to witness?
Totally under the radar during the holiday newscycle.....major news story!
▪Saudi Arabia Agrees to Finance Rebuilding of Syria - Trump▪
US President Donald Trump said in a statement on Monday that Saudi Arabia has agreed to
pay for the reconstruction of Syria rather than the United States financing the
reconstruction of that country.
>>> "Saudi Arabia has now agreed to spend the necessary money needed to help
rebuild Syria, instead of the United States. See? Isn't it nice when immensely wealthy
countries help rebuild their neighbors rather than a Great Country, the U.S., that is 5000
miles away. Thanks to Saudi A! " Trump said via Twitter.<<<
Trump has welcomed Riyadh's decision, adding that it is "nice when immensely wealthy
countries help rebuild their neighbors rather than a Great Country, the US, that is 5000
miles away."
The US president's comment comes after, on Wednesday, he announced that the United States
would withdraw its roughly 2,000 troops from Syria since the Daesh* terror group had been
defeated. However, the White House later clarified the decision does not mean the US-led
international coalition's fight against the Daesh has ended.
Democratic and Republican lawmakers in the US Congress who have supported US military
engagement and intervention throughout the world have criticized Trump's decision, saying
that a US troop withdrawal from Syria will lead to the reemergence of the Daesh and aid
Russia, Turkey and Iran fulfilling their interests in the region.
"... America's presence in Syria, like Jim Mattis himself, is an artifact of another era, the failed GWOT. As a Marine, Mattis served in ground combat leadership roles in Gulf Wars I and II, and also in Afghanistan. He ran United States Central Command from 2010 to 2013, the final years of The Surge in Iraq and American withdrawal afterwards. There is no doubt why he supported the American military presence in Syria, and why he resigned to protest Trump's decision to end it: Mattis knew nothing else. His entire career was built around the strategy of the GWOT, the core of which was to never question GWOT strategy. Mattis didn't need a reason to stay in Syria; being in Syria was the reason. ..."
"... So why didn't Trump listen to his generals? Maybe because the bulk of their advice has been dead wrong for 17 years? ..."
"... The war on terror failed. It should have been dismantled long ago. Barack Obama could have done it, but instead became a victim of hubris and bureaucratic capture, and allowed it to expand. His supporters give him credit for not escalating the war in Syria, but leave out the part about how he also left the pot to simmer on the stove instead of removing it altogether. ..."
"... Peter Van Buren, a 24-year State Department veteran, is the author of ..."
"... . He is permanently banned from federal employment and Twitter. ..."
"... The GWOT was not only a failure, it was a fraud. Saddam's Iraq was secular and had nothing to do with terrorism. The same can be said for Libya and Syria. We armed and trained jihadis for the purpose of overthrowing Assad. How is that fighting terrorism? The war on terror was a deception, to cover for wars which were aggressive and unjustified. These wars were not just a failure, they were criminal and should be a source of shame and sorrow for our country. The men who orchestrated these wars did so by lying to the American people every step of the way, with the media repeating their every lie and distortion with robotic consistency. The neocon planners and all their willing accomplices deserve a special place in hell for the death and destruction they have wrought. Thank God the neocon era seems to be coming to a close. Thank God for Donald Trump, with all his flaws, for having the guts and decency to put an end to this prolonged military outrage. ..."
"... It's strange that Mr. van Buren celebrates the exit of Mattis as symbolizing the end of a long-discredited policy when Mattis was hired less than 2 years ago, many years after that policy became discredited, and after Mattis's hirer ran for President on a platform diametrically opposed to the discredited policy while denouncing the discredited policy. Now we find out belatedly that the only reason President Trump hired Mattis was because Mattis was fired for insubordination by former President Obama which incumbent President Trump hates, and for which a strong motivating factor is doing everything opposite of Obama. So now incumbent President Trump finds to his dismay that Mattis is insubordinate to himself as well. And yet Mr. van Buren thinks the important focus of this development is Mattis ..."
"... "The raw drive to insta-hate everything Trump does is misleading otherwise thoughtful people. So let's try a new lens: during the campaign Trump outspokenly denounced the waste of America's wars. Pro-Trump sentiment in rural areas was driven by people who agreed with his critique, by people who'd served in these wars, whose sons and daughters had served, or, given the length of all this, both. Since taking office, the president has pulled U.S. troops back from pointless conflicts in Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Congress may yet rise to do the same for American involvement in Yemen. No new wars have been started It is time for some old ideas to move on." ..."
"... The GWOT was a repudiation of the Powell Doctrine. Almost 20 years on, Powell looks like genius and the neocons like a bunch of morons. ..."
"... The retreat from Syria does not mean a U.S. retreat from its role as the Global Cop Gorilla. The Pentagon is merely changing its primary target set from the GWOT actors to the "revisionist powers". ..."
"... The National Defense Strategy Commission's report, ironically and perversely released by the "United States Institute of Peace", validates the fear-monger claims and also the claims to more TRILLIONS of taxpayer dollars to feed the Gorilla as it marauds around the perimeter of Asia. ..."
"... "There is no pleasure in watching Jim Mattis end his decades of service with a bureaucratic dirty stick shoved at him as a parting gift." ..."
"... "Don't make me have to kill you" ..."
"... It's no coincidence that Netanyahu's government fell apart today. Another good riddance. May the Israelis elect a new PM who actually wants peace in the Mideast. ..."
"... The War Party is still The War Party -- which is why so many of us who are strong Trump supporters have never joined the Republican Party and have no plans to join. This moment in history is particularly instruction. The Democrats have blown their cover. The Democratic Party is as much The War Party as the Republican Party. ..."
The New York Times , its journalists in mourning over the loss of a war,
ask , "Who will protect America now?" Mattis the warrior-monk is juxtaposed with the
flippant commander-in-Cheeto. The Times sees strategic disaster in an "abrupt and
dangerous decision, detached from any broader strategic context or any public rationale, [that]
sowed new uncertainty about America's commitment to the Middle East, [and] its willingness to
be a global leader."
"A major blunder," tweeted Senator Marco Rubio.
"If it isn't reversed it will haunt America for years to come." Senator Lindsey Graham called
for congressional hearings. And what is history if not irony? Rubio talks of haunting foreign
policy decisions in Syria seemingly without knowledge of previous calamities in Iraq. Graham
wants to hold hearings on quitting a war Congress never held
hearings on authorizing.
That's all wrong. Jim Mattis's resignation as defense secretary (
and on Sunday , Brett McGurk, as special envoy to the coalition fighting ISIS) and Trump's
decision to withdraw from Syria and Afghanistan are indeed significant. But that's because they
mark the beginning of the end of the Global War on Terror (GWOT), the singular, tragic, bloody
driver of American foreign policy for almost two decades.
Why does the U.S. have troops
in Syria?
To defeat the Islamic State? ISIS's ability to hold ground and project power outside its
immediate backyard was destroyed somewhere back in 2016 by an unholy coalition of American,
Iranian, Russian, Syrian, Turkish, and Israeli forces in Iraq and Syria. Sure, there are
terrorists who continue to set off bombs in ISIS's name, but they are not controlled or
directed out of Syria. They are most likely legal residents of the Western countries they
attack, radicalized online or in local mosques. They are motivated by a philosophy, which
cannot be destroyed on the ground in Syria. This is the fundamental failure of the GWOT: that
you can't blow up an idea.
Regime change? It was never a practical idea. As in Iraq, Libya, and Afghanistan, there was
never a plan for what to do next, for how to keep Syria from descending into complete chaos the
day Assad was removed. And though progressives embraced the idea of getting rid of another
"evil dictator" when it came through the mouthpiece of Obama's own freedom fighter Samantha
Power, the same idea today has little drive behind it.
Russia? Overwrought fear of Moscow was once a sign of unhealthy paranoia satirized on The
Twilight Zone . Today, Russia hate is seen as a prerequisite to patriotism, though it still
makes no more sense. The Russians have long had a practical relationship with Syria, having
maintained a naval base at Tartus since 1971, which they will continue to do. There was never a
plan for the U.S. to push the Russians out -- Obama in fact saw the Russian presence are part
of the solution
in Syria. American withdrawal is far more of a return to status quo than anything like a win
for Putin. (Elsewhere at TAC , Matt Purple
pokes more holes in Putin paranoia.)
The Kurds? The U.S.-Kurd story is one of expediency over morality. We've used them only
because, at every sad turn, there's been no force otherwise available in bulk. The Kurds have
been abandoned many times by America: in 1991 when it refused to assist them in breaking away
from Saddam Hussein following Gulf War I, when it insisted they remain part of a "united Iraq"
following Gulf War II, and most
definitively in 2017 following Gulf War III when the U.S.
did not support their independence referendum, relegating them to Baghdad's forever
half-loved stepchild.
After all that, America's intentions toward the Kurds in Syria are barely a sideshow-scale
event. The Kurds want to cleave off territory from Turkey and Syria, something neither nation
will
permit and something the U.S. quietly understands would destabilize the region. Mattis, by
the way, supported NATO ally Turkey in its fight against the Kurds, calling them an "active
insurgency inside its borders."
Iran? Does the U.S. really have troops in Syria to brush back Iranian influence? As with
"all of the above," that genie got out of the bottle years ago. Iranian power in the greater
Middle East has grown dramatically since 2003, and has been driven at every step by the
blunders of the United States. If the most powerful army in the world couldn't stop the
Iranians from essentially winning Gulf Wars II and III, how can 2,000 troops in Syria hope to
accomplish much?
The United States, of course, wasn't even shooting at the Iranians in Syria; in most cases
it was working either with them or tacitly alongside them towards the goal of killing off ISIS.
Tehran's role as Assad's protector was set as America rumbled about regime change. Iran has
since pieced together a
land corridor to the Mediterranean through Iraq and Syria, which it will not be giving up,
certainly not because of the presence of a few thousand Americans.
What remains is that once-neocon, now progressive catch-all: we need to stay in Syria to
preserve American credibility. While pundits can still get away with this line, the rest of the
globe already knows the empire has no clothes. Since 2001, the United States has spent some $6
trillion on its wars, and killed multiple 9/11s worth of American troops and foreign civilians.
The U.S. has
tortured , still maintains its gulag at Guantanamo, and, worst of all credibility-wise, has
lost on every front. Afghanistan after 17 years of war festers. Nothing was accomplished with
Iraq. Libya is a failed state. Syria is the source of a refugee crisis whose long-term effects
on Europe are still being played out. We are the "indispensable nation" only in our own minds.
A lot of people around the world probably wish America would just stop messing with their
countries.
So why does the U.S. have troops in Syria? Anyone? Bueller? Mattis?
America's presence in Syria, like Jim Mattis himself, is an artifact of another era, the
failed GWOT. As a Marine, Mattis served in ground combat leadership roles in Gulf Wars I and
II, and also in Afghanistan. He ran United States Central Command from 2010 to 2013, the final
years of The Surge in Iraq and American withdrawal afterwards. There is no doubt why he
supported the American military presence in Syria, and why he resigned to protest Trump's
decision to end it: Mattis knew nothing else. His entire career was built around the strategy
of the GWOT, the core of which was to never question GWOT strategy. Mattis didn't need a reason
to stay in Syria; being in Syria was the reason.
So why didn't Trump listen to his generals? Maybe because the bulk of their advice has
been dead wrong for 17 years? Instead, Trump plans a dramatic
drawdown of troops in Afghanistan. The U.S. presence in Iraq has dwindled from combat to
advise and assist. Congress seems poised to end U.S. involvement in Yemen
against Mattis's advice.
There is no pleasure in watching Jim Mattis end his decades of service with a bureaucratic
dirty stick shoved at him as a parting gift. But to see this all as another Trump versus the
world blunder is very wrong. The war on terror failed. It should have been dismantled long
ago. Barack Obama could have done it, but instead became a victim of hubris and bureaucratic
capture, and allowed it to expand. His supporters give him credit for not
escalating the war in Syria, but leave out the part about how he also left the pot to
simmer on the stove instead of removing it altogether.
The raw drive to
insta-hate everything Trump does is misleading otherwise thoughtful people. So let's try a
new lens: during the campaign Trump outspokenly denounced
the waste of America's wars. Pro-Trump sentiment in rural areas was
driven by people who agreed with his critique, by people who'd served in these wars, whose
sons and daughters had served, or, given the length of all this, both. Since taking office, the
president has pulled U.S. troops back from pointless conflicts in Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq.
Congress may yet rise to do the same for American involvement in Yemen. No new wars have been
started. Though the results are far from certain, for the first time in nearly 20 years,
negotiations are open again with North Korea. Mattis's ending was clumsy, but it was a long
time coming. It is time for some old ideas to move on.
Peter Van Buren, a 24-year State Department veteran, is the author ofWe Meant Well : How I Helped Lose the Battle for
the Hearts and Minds of the Iraqi People andHooper's War : A Novel of WWII Japan . He is permanently
banned from federal employment and Twitter.
I'm about as left wing as they come and have had a distain for Trump for decades. But, if he
can put an end to the GWOT and truly pull America out of those disasters I protested against
back in 2001-2002 (not to mention Libya and Yemen) then he will be my favorite modern
president. Granted, that's a low bar. I've not had one in my lifetime that was worth
admiring, but would be a welcome change.
I have my doubts he'll be able to pull it off but even if he manages to just not start any
new wars that would be a novel new direction for us.
It's good for Van Buren to remind people that our relationship with the Kurds has long been one
of support when it is convenient and abandonment when it is not. For left and right to feign
concern now is quite hypocritical.
Reading this offers some hope though the bulk of coverage on the Syria withdrawal from left
and right has been most depressing. May Mattis (and his ilk) go far and may it be soon!
Amen to everything in this article. I voted for Trump because of the way he strongly denounced
the Iraq war and our policies of interventionism and nation building in general. It has taken
two full years, but finally he is delivering what I hoped for. The media is trying to turn this
into another Trump smear issue, but I expect them to fail at this. At this point in time how
many people take the news channel narrative seriously? Especially if Trump removes our troops
from Afghanistan, I expect his popularity to soar.
The GWOT was not only a failure, it was a fraud. Saddam's Iraq was secular and had
nothing to do with terrorism. The same can be said for Libya and Syria. We armed and trained
jihadis for the purpose of overthrowing Assad. How is that fighting terrorism? The war on
terror was a deception, to cover for wars which were aggressive and unjustified. These wars
were not just a failure, they were criminal and should be a source of shame and sorrow for our
country. The men who orchestrated these wars did so by lying to the American people every step
of the way, with the media repeating their every lie and distortion with robotic consistency.
The neocon planners and all their willing accomplices deserve a special place in hell for the
death and destruction they have wrought. Thank God the neocon era seems to be coming to a
close. Thank God for Donald Trump, with all his flaws, for having the guts and decency to put
an end to this prolonged military outrage.
It's strange that Mr. van Buren celebrates the exit of Mattis as symbolizing the end of a
long-discredited policy when Mattis was hired less than 2 years ago, many years after that
policy became discredited, and after Mattis's hirer ran for President on a platform
diametrically opposed to the discredited policy while denouncing the discredited policy. Now we
find out belatedly that the only reason President Trump hired Mattis was because Mattis was
fired for insubordination by former President Obama which incumbent President Trump hates, and
for which a strong motivating factor is doing everything opposite of Obama. So now incumbent
President Trump finds to his dismay that Mattis is insubordinate to himself as well. And yet
Mr. van Buren thinks the important focus of this development is Mattis
"The raw drive to insta-hate everything Trump does is misleading otherwise thoughtful
people. So let's try a new lens: during the campaign Trump outspokenly denounced the waste of
America's wars. Pro-Trump sentiment in rural areas was driven by people who agreed with his
critique, by people who'd served in these wars, whose sons and daughters had served, or, given
the length of all this, both. Since taking office, the president has pulled U.S. troops back
from pointless conflicts in Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Congress may yet rise to do the same
for American involvement in Yemen. No new wars have been started It is time for some old ideas
to move on."
The President made the right decision. I WISH it had been reached in a more traditional manner
-- going thru the NSC and such, but we had no achievable strategic goals and were really only a
bit player. The very real danger was that we were dancing around the Russians like two
porcupines making love with the current "Russia!Russia!Russia!" political freakout preventing
what could have been a genuine opportunity for cooperation in at least one area. Syria will not
be any more chaotic for our departure, infact given less scrutiny and no danger of accidental
WW III, the Russians/Iranians/Syrian gov't may be able to wrap this up more faster.
Russia also has interest in Kurdish welfare and as 15% of Israelis ARE Russians, their
wellfare as well. In an administration that needed to project credibility, SEC Mattis was a
good choice and has done some great things cutting alot of uneeded red tape & worthless
'training' and giving clear priorities for the services. But, he's opposed almost everything
the President including the Trans ban so it was 'when not if'.
It all makes sense once you understand that by "restraint" they mean "leave American soldiers
as hostages to fortune in Syria!" and "unlimited mulligans for failed generals in Afghanistan!"
and "let's provoke Erdogan into releasing two or three million refugees into Europe!"
The Times sees strategic disaster in an "abrupt and dangerous decision, detached from any
broader strategic context or any public rationale, [that] sowed new uncertainty about
America's commitment to the Middle East, [and] its willingness to be a global leader."
Geez. I can also come up with something like this artwork by the Times journalists.
Here: "The lack of correlation between convergences caused an unwanted bifurcation of
idiosyncratic dichotomies". Twaddle? But how badass is sounds! Just read it aloud -- and you'll
see the credibility glittering like Swarovski crystals all over the place.
Merry Christmas to the MSM. I wish them to start writing something meaningful next year.
The retreat from Syria does not mean a U.S. retreat from its role as the Global Cop
Gorilla. The Pentagon is merely changing its primary target set from the GWOT actors to the
"revisionist powers".
Mattis fronted the updated National Defense Strategy. It again fear-mongers out the wazoo
about Russia and China with the only solution being "more, more, more" for the War Machine.
The National Defense Strategy Commission's report, ironically and perversely released by
the "United States Institute of Peace", validates the fear-monger claims and also the claims to
more TRILLIONS of taxpayer dollars to feed the Gorilla as it marauds around the perimeter of
Asia.
Re: "There is no pleasure in watching Jim Mattis end his decades of service with a
bureaucratic dirty stick shoved at him as a parting gift."
Au Contraire , there is much pleasure watching that sanctified War-Monger and
Pentagon Hack with his contrived "Don't make me have to kill you" schtick ride off
into the sunset.
Unfortunately for those of us not deluded into the Cult of Military Exceptionalism, Mattis
will no doubt segue to Fox News as yet another "Wizened Sage" of Pentagon wisdom and insight,
where he'll live very large for simply gas-bagging his "Warrior Hero" script. And perhaps Mad
Dog will even meander back to General Dynamics to pimp yet again for the Merchants of
Death.
Make no mistake, Mattis and his General pals are enemies of the taxpayers and rank apostates
of the Founders' principles. Mattis may soon be gone, but unfortunately, he won't be
forgotten.
It's good to see Trump finally realizing that he is the president, and not his generals and
"advisors" that no one elected. Goodbye and good riddance to Mattis, Haley et al. Next to go
should be John Bolton, Mike Pompeo and Jared Kushner.
It's no coincidence that Netanyahu's government fell apart today. Another good riddance.
May the Israelis elect a new PM who actually wants peace in the Mideast.
"'A major blunder,' tweeted Senator Marco Rubio. 'If it isn't reversed it will haunt America
for years to come.' Senator Lindsey Graham called for congressional hearings. And what is
history if not irony? Rubio talks of haunting foreign policy decisions in Syria seemingly
without knowledge of previous calamities in Iraq. Graham wants to hold hearings on quitting a
war Congress never held hearings on authorizing."
The War Party is still The War Party -- which is why so many of us who are strong Trump
supporters have never joined the Republican Party and have no plans to join. This moment in
history is particularly instruction. The Democrats have blown their cover. The Democratic Party
is as much The War Party as the Republican Party.
Article of interest at link below.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -
Send the Mad Dog to the Corporate Kennel
by Ray McGovern Posted on December 22, 2018
No wonder Mr. Van Buren is banned from federal employment and Twitter. His clarity and surgical
observations of American interventionism are indeed enlightening. Deep State forces must cringe
when reading his missives.
I don't agree with everything Trump does, but I have high hopes for his intent to extract
American military forces from the Middle East. Having cost trillions of dollars and countless
lives, these profit-motivated, failed expeditions could never be morally justified even if they
were successful.
Being the world's policeman does not make America a benevolent, inspiring global leader. The
opposite is true, as much of the world now perceives America to be a disruptive force,
conspiring against global peace for the benefit of the military industrial complex and
multinational corporations.
Let's pray for a changing tide that steers us further from the brink.
"Now Trump, the guy everyone expected to start new wars"
Hillary supporters said that. The rest of us knew that she was the danger of more and bigger
wars. That was a prime reason to defeat her. Too bad the only way to defeat her was to elect
Trump, but that is on the DNC, since they offered her, and every other Republican was even
worse (Cruz!).
=>
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President Trump has done the right thing with regard to America's troop
deployment in Syria. Trump ordered the 2,000 US troops based in Syria to get out and come home.
Neocons and the US war party are having
apoplexy even though there are some 50,000 US troops spread across the rest of the Mideast.
The US troops parked in the Syrian Desert
were doing next to nothing. Their avowed role was to fight the remnants of the ISIS movement and block any
advances by Iranian forces. As a unified fighting force, ISIS barely exists, if it ever did. Cobbled
together, armed and financed by the US, the Saudis and Gulf Emirates to overthrow Syria's regime, ISIS ran
out of control and became a menace to everyone.
In fact, what the US was really doing was
putting down a marker for a possible US future occupation of war-torn Syria that risked constant clashes
with Russian forces there.
We will breathe a big sigh of relief if
the US deployment actually goes ahead: it will remove a major risk of war with nuclear-armed Russia, whose
forces are in Syria at the invitation of the recognized government in Damascus. The US has no strategic
interest in Syria and no business at all being militarily involved there. Except perhaps that the war party
wants never-ending wars abroad for arms production and promotions.
Trump's abrupt pullout from Syria has
shocked and mortified Washington's war party and neocon fifth column. They were hoping reinforced US forces
would go on to attack Damascus and move against Iranian forces. It was amusing to watch the anguish of such
noted warlike chickenhawks as Sen. Lindsay Graham and the fanatical national security advisor John Bolton as
their hopes for a US war against Syria diminished. Israel was equally dismayed: its strategic plan has long
been to fragment Syria and gobble up the pieces.
The venerable imperial general and
defense secretary, Jim Mattis, couldn't take this de-escalation. He resigned. Marine General Mattis was one
of the few honorable and respected members of the Trump administration and a restraint on the president's
impulses. To his credit, he opposed the reintroduction of torture by US forces, a crime promoted by Trump,
Bolton and Chicago enforcer Mike Pompeo.
What really mattered was not a chunk of
the Syrian Desert. Matis's resignation may have been much more about Afghanistan, America's longest war. The
US has been defeated in Afghanistan, rightly known as the 'Graveyard of Empires.' Yet no one in Washington
can admit this defeat or order a retreat after wasting 17 years, a trillion dollars and thousands of
Americans killed or wounded. Least of all, Gen. Mattis, Bolton or Pompeo who bitterly opposed any peace deal
with the Taliban nationalist movement.
According to unconfirmed media reports,
the US has already thinned out its Afghan garrison of 14,000 plus soldiers. These soldiers' main function is
to guard the corrupt, drug-dealing Afghan puppet government in Kabul and fix Taliban forces so they can be
attacked by US airpower.
Taliban insists it won't begin serious
negotiations until all US and 8,000 foreign troops are withdrawn. In fact, Taliban, which has been quietly
talking to the US in Abu Dhabi, may agreed to a 50% western troops cut in order to begin peace talks.
ORDER IT NOW
The Afghan War has cost the US $1
trillion. Occupying parts of Iraq and Syria has cost a similar amount. Resistance against US rule continues
in both nations. Mattis and his fellow generals really like these wars, but civilian Trump does not. As a
candidate he vowed to end these 'stupid' wars. Let's hope he succeeds over the bitter objections of the
Republican war party, neocons, and military industrial complex.
Syria is an ugly little sideshow. By
contrast, Afghanistan is a dark blot on America's national honor. We watch with revulsion and dismay as the
US deploys B-52 and B-1 heavy bombers to flatten Afghan villages. We watch with disgust as the US coddles
the opium-dealing Afghan warlords and their Communist allies – all in the spurious name of 'democracy.'
If Trump wants to make America great, he
can start by ending the squalid Syrian misadventure and the butchery in Afghanistan.
We should give credit to president Trump for getting the US troops out of Syria and Afghanistan.
Mr. Trump
has always been consistent about the withdrawal of the US Forces from Afghanistan; back in 2011, in an
interview with Bill O'Reilly, Trump reiterated his total dismay and opposition to the waste of lives and
money in Afghanistan; he clearly mentioned that he would withdrawal the US Forces from Afghanistan
immediately, See the link:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/08/22/donald-trump-said-afghanistan-president-saying-now/
The same applies to Syria, America has no genuine strategy to remaining in Syria; staying in Syria would
be further destabilizing the region – fueling the Syrian civil war for the sole benefits of Israel and Saudi
Arabia whom had created the ISIS against the Iranian influence in the region.
President Trump deserves to get credit for being courageous and consistent about the US involvement in
the middle east; withdrawing from Syria and Afghanistan is the right strategy, too many lives have perished
and trillion of dollars have been wasted for nothing; let's put an end to this – thank you Mr. Trump for
doing the right thing !
"... The Defense Department under Mattis became more opaque and less accountable to the public and Congress. He presided over two years of shameful support for the Saudi coalition war on Yemen, and he went out of his way to offer absurd justifications for continued U.S. support for the war to the end of his tenure. ..."
"... No less than Secretary Pompeo, Mattis discredited himself in the desperate, unsuccessful effort to derail S.J.Res. 54. An administration that fights as hard as this has to keep the war on Yemen going is definitely not one interested in peace and restraint no matter what else happens. ..."
Officials said Mr. Mattis went to the White House on Thursday afternoon with his
resignation letter already written, but nonetheless made a last attempt at persuading Mr.
Trump to reverse his decision about Syria, which the president announced on Wednesday over
the objections of his senior advisers.
Mr. Mattis, a retired four-star Marine general, was rebuffed. Returning to the Pentagon,
he asked aides to print out 50 copies of his resignation letter and distribute them around
the building.
Mattis' departure from the administration after the midterms had been floated as a
possibility for months, but I don't think anyone seriously expected him to resign suddenly over
a policy disagreement with the president. It is telling and not to Mattis' credit that ending
an illegal war in Syria was the one policy disagreement with Trump that Mattis couldn't
stomach. The Defense Secretary had repeatedly disagreed with Trump on a range of issues, and he
usually lost the internal debate. The only times that he prevailed with Trump were when he
advised him to escalate ongoing U.S. wars, and his influence had waned enough that he couldn't
get his way on that, either. I was extremely
skeptical that a Syria withdrawal would actually happen. Now that Mattis has tried and
failed to reverse that decision, I have to acknowledge that I overestimated the ability of
Trump's advisers to change his mind.
The Defense Department under Mattis became more opaque and less accountable to the
public and Congress. He presided over two years of shameful support for the Saudi coalition war
on Yemen, and he went out of his way to offer absurd justifications for continued U.S. support
for the war to the end of his tenure. The disagreement over Syria will dominate coverage
of Mattis' resignation, but it is important to remember that when it came to the most
indefensible U.S.-backed war he and Trump were always on the same page. No less than
Secretary Pompeo, Mattis discredited himself in the desperate, unsuccessful effort to derail
S.J.Res. 54. An administration that fights as hard as this has to keep the war on Yemen going
is definitely not one interested in peace and restraint no matter what else happens.
As wrong as Mattis was on a number of foreign policy issues, there is a real danger that his
successor could be far worse. Even if Trump doesn't nominate a Tom Cotton or Lindsey Graham,
the next Defense Secretary is very likely to be a yes-man in the mold of Mike Pompeo. Almost
every time that Trump has replaced his top national security officials, he has chosen someone
who will flatter and praise him instead of telling him the truth and giving him the best
advice.
The next Defense Secretary is less likely to resist Trump's belligerent tendencies, and he
is more likely to indulge the president's worst impulses. Just as Pompeo has proven to be a
worse Secretary of State than Tillerson, Mattis' successor will very likely prove to be an
inferior Secretary of Defense.
You're right to fear what may replace him, especially after the disgusting Pompeo replaced
the decent but ineffectual Tillerson, but I'm glad Mattis is gone, especially if he quit over
the Syria decision, a no-brainer which should have been made two years ago.
It's hard to imagine anyone being worse than he was. Sadly, we may not have to imagine
it.
There's also the danger that the elites and establishment will now escalate their efforts to
remove him from office.
I've disagreed with Trump about many things, and I don't like the man, but I still trust
him more than the corrupt incompetents and foreign agents who dragged us into these Middle
East hellholes.
That is the terrible and ongoing damage that must be stopped.
But now that Trump has made a move in the direction of winding it down, you will almost
certainly see the fury and resentment of the elites and establishment redoubled. From their
point of view, the only thing worse than a Trump who doesn't keep his campaign promises is
one who does.
His next appointee will be no better and more than likely worse, a crafty Neocon who will
bite their tongue when they disagree with Trump in order to remain so that he can encourage
his worst tendencies. Bolton is a stellar example of this.
If he appoints someone like Cotton or Gen Jack Keane then Trump will be the last adult in
the room.
My SWAG, and this is merely SWAG, is that, since his election, Trump has given the neocons
everything they wanted or asked for, but he still is allowed any freedom of action.
In spite of governing much like a garden variety Republican, his enemies are still looking
for any excuse to remove him.
This is Trump reminding his enemies that he can do lots of things to upset the apple cart,
so cut him some slack, already.
Ignore the howls of protest – Trump's Syria withdrawal is a simple reflection of foreign
policy realities | The Independent
President Trump's decision to withdraw US troops from Syria is being denounced by an impressive range of critics
claiming that it is a surrender to Turkey, Russia, Syria and Iran – as well as a betrayal of the Kurds and a victory
for Isis.
The pullout may be one or all of these things, but above all it is a recognition of what is really
happening on the ground in Syria and the Middle East in general.
This point has not come across clearly enough because of the undiluted loathing for Trump among most of the
American and British media. They act as a conduit for the views of diverse figures who condemn the withdrawal and
include members of the imperially-minded foreign policy establishment in Washington and terrified Kurds living in
north-east Syria who fear ethnic cleansing by an invading Turkish army.
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Opposition to Trump's decision was supercharged by
the resignation of Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis
which came after he failed to persuade the president to
rescind his order. Mattis does not mention Syria or Afghanistan in his letter of resignation, but he makes clear his
disagreement with the general direction of Trump's foreign policy in not confronting Russia and China and ignoring
traditional allies and alliances.
The resignation of Mattis has elicited predictable lamentations from commentators who treat his departure as if it
was the equivalent of the Kaiser getting rid of Bismarck. The over-used description of Mattis as "the last of the
adults in the room" is once again trotted out, though few examples of his adult behaviour are given aside from his
wish – along with other supposed "adults" – to stay in Syria until various unobtainable objectives were achieved: the
extinction of Iranian influence; the displacement of Bashar al-Assad; and the categorical defeat of Isis (are they
really likely to sign surrender terms?).
Ignore the howls of protest – Trump's Syria withdrawal is a simple reflection of foreign policy realities | The
Independent
In other words, there was to be an open-ended US commitment with no attainable goals in an isolated and dangerous
part of the world where it was already playing a losing game.
It is worth spelling out the state of play in Syria because this is being masked by anti-Trump rhetoric,
recommending policies that may sound benign but are far detached from political reality. This reality may be very
nasty: it is right to be appalled by the prospects for the Syrian Kurds who are terrified of a Turkish army that is
already massing to the north of the Turkish-Syrian frontier.
There is a horrible inevitability about all this because neither Turkey nor Syria were ever going to allow a
Kurdish mini-state to take permanent root in north-east Syria. It existed because of the Syrian civil war in which
Assad withdrew his forces from the Kurdish-populated regions in 2012 in order to concentrate them in defence of
strategically vital cities and roads. Isis attacked the Kurdish enclave in 2014 which led to a de facto alliance
between the Kurds and the US air force whose devastating firepower enabled the Kurds to capture a great swathe of
Isis-held territory east of the Euphrates.
Turkey was
never going to accept this outcome
. Erdogan denounced the Kurdish political and military forces controlling this
corner of Syria as "terrorists" belonging to the Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) that has been
fighting the Turkish state since 1984.
This is a good moment to make a point about this article: it is an explanation not a justification for the
dreadful things that may soon happen. I have visited the Kurdish controlled part of Syria several times and felt that
it was the only part of Syria where the uprising of 2011 had produced a society that was better than what had gone
before, bearing in mind the constraints of fighting a war.
I met the men and women of the People's Protection Units (YPG and YPJ) who fought heroically against Isis,
suffering thousands of dead and wounded. But I always had a doomed feeling when talking to them as I could not see
how their statelet, which had been brought into existence by temporary circumstances, was going to last beyond the
end of the Syrian civil war and the defeat of Isis. One day the Americans would have to choose between 2 million
embattled Kurds in Syria and 80 million Turks in Turkey and it dd not take much political acumen to foresee what they
would decide.
Turkey had escalated its pressure on the US to end its protection of the Kurds and this finally paid off. A
telephone conversation with Erdogan a week ago reportedly convinced Trump that he had to get US soldiers and airpower
out of Syria. Keep in mind that Trump needs – though he may not get as much as he wants – Turkey as an ally in the
Middle East more than ever before. His bet on Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman and Saudi Arabia as the leader of a
pro-American and anti-Iranian Sunni coalition in the Middle has visibly and embarrassingly failed. The bizarre
killing of Jamal Khashoggi by a Saudi team in Istanbul was only the latest in a series of Saudi pratfalls showing
comical ineptitude as well as excessive and mindless violence.
Ignore the howls of protest – Trump's Syria withdrawal is a simple reflection of foreign policy realities | The
Independent
Critics of Trump raise several other important questions in opposing his withdrawal decision: is he not letting Isis
off the hook by prematurely announcing their defeat and thereby enabling them to make a comeback?
There is something in this
, but not a lot. The Islamic State, that once held territory stretching from the Tigris
River in Iraq to Syria's Mediterranean coast, is no more and cannot be resurrected because the circumstances that led
to its spectacular growth between 2013 and 2015 are no longer there.
Isis made too many enemies because of its
indiscriminate violence when it was at the peak of its power. Trump is right to assume in a tweet that "Russia, Iran,
Syria & many others will have to fight ISIS and others, who they hate, without us". Isis may seek to take advantage
of chaos in eastern Syria in the coming months, but there will be no power vacuum for them to exploit. The vacuum
will be filled by Turkey or Syria or a combination of the two.
Support free-thinking journalism and subscribe to Independent Minds
A further criticism of the US withdrawal is that it unnecessarily hands a victory to Vladimir Putin and Assad. But
here again, Trump's manoeuvre is more of a recognition of the fact that both men are already winners in the Syrian
war.
Nor is it entirely clear that Russia and Iran will have greater influence in Syria and the region after the US
withdrawal. True they have come out on the winning side, but as the Syrian state becomes more powerful it will have
less need for foreign allies. The close cooperation between Russia and Turkey was glued together by US cooperation
with the Kurds and once that ends, then Turkey may shift – though not all the way – back towards the US.
By denouncing Trump's decision to withdraw from Syria, his opponents are once again making the mistake of
underestimating his instinctive political skills.
"... You want to know what those casualty numbers tell us? American forces in Syria, Afghanistan, or Iraq aren't going outside the wire – off American bases – very often. That's how you stay alive in places like Syria and Afghanistan. You stay away from places where things like IEDs can kill you. And even then, in the comparative safety of American bases, you're not safe, because there are enemy soldiers posing as "friendly" Afghan soldiers who will kill you. ..."
"... This is the nature of the conflicts we're engaged in. You take thousands of American soldiers and send them thousands of miles away from home into combat zones in foreign lands, and you have them do as little as possible so not too many of them get killed. ..."
"... It pains me to say this, but Trump pulling 2,000 soldiers out of Syria and 7,000 soldiers out of Afghanistan is the right thing to do. It might be getting done by a certifiable loon with an orange muskrat on his head, but it's the right thing to do and it should have been done a long time ago. ..."
The arm-waving and hand-flapping and pearl-clutching in the foreign affairs and national
security "communities," not to mention in the Congress and among prominent Democrats, is
something to behold. Significant portions of all those communities have long thought we didn't
have any business being in Syria in the first place. Not to mention fighting our 17th year of
the so-called "war" in Afghanistan, from which Trump intends to remove some 7,000 American
troops...
More than 2,400 American soldiers dead in Afghanistan so far. More than 30,000
Afghan civilians killed. Sixty percent of Afghan districts under control of the Taliban. Opium
production at an "all-time high." Dozens, sometimes hundreds of Afghan soldiers killed every
single week. You thought Vietnam was a misbegotten military misadventure? How about 17 years in
Afghanistan with no end in sight? Hell, opium production was said to be at an "all-time high"
when I was in the Kunar River Valley in Afghanistan in 2004. That's 14 years ago, 14 years
of record-setting opium crops!
And what are the pundits saying about our military foray into the morass called Syria?
Listen to what I heard from one "expert" on MSNBC yesterday.
"Syria is a very winnable proposition," this numbskull said, looking gravely at the other
"experts" at the table. "The U.S. presence is actually very small numbers." Two thousand is the
"very small number" this blazer-and-tie wearing "expert" was talking about as he reached for
his "I'm a Pundit on the Katy Tur Show" cup and went on to blather about how "winnable" Syria
is.
Let me tell you what 2,000 soldiers is. It's about the size of a brigade, commanded by a
full colonel. A brigade is typically three to five battalions of 500 to 1,000 soldiers,
commanded by lieutenant colonels. Battalions are made up of three to five companies with around
200 soldiers, commanded by captains. Companies comprise three to four platoons of 40 to 100
soldiers, commanded by second lieutenants. So 2,000 soldiers is about 30 to 40 platoons of
soldiers. I used to command a platoon. I was 22 years old. There were about 40 soldiers in my
platoon. Let me tell you, taking care of 40 soldiers was a big fucking job, and we weren't even
in combat.
Taking care of 2,000 soldiers in a place like Syria with bullets flying and IEDs going off
is a huge fucking job. Taking care of 14,000 soldiers, like we currently have in Afghanistan,
or 7,000 which we'll have when Trump gets finished with his draw-down, is a massive fucking
job.
... ... ...
And now Trump's Last General's feelings are all hurt, because he wasn't consulted about
pulling 2,000 troops out of Syria or 7,000 troops out of Afghanistan. What were those troops
doing in Syria? We don't know, and I don't think Mattis had much of an idea what they were
doing, either.
We can get some idea what they're doing by the number of casualties American forces have
suffered in both places. An American soldier was killed in Manbij, Syria, by a roadside bomb in
March of this year. He was the fourth American killed in Syria since our forces entered the
country in 2014. There have been 18 Americans killed in Afghanistan this year. Eleven were
killed there last year. About half of those killed in Afghanistan have been so-called
"green-on-green" killings, incidents where "friendly" Afghans killed American soldiers, usually
on American bases.
You want to know what those casualty numbers tell us? American forces in Syria,
Afghanistan, or Iraq aren't going outside the wire – off American bases – very
often. That's how you stay alive in places like Syria and Afghanistan. You stay away from
places where things like IEDs can kill you. And even then, in the comparative safety of
American bases, you're not safe, because there are enemy soldiers posing as "friendly" Afghan
soldiers who will kill you.
This is the nature of the conflicts we're engaged in. You take thousands of American
soldiers and send them thousands of miles away from home into combat zones in foreign lands,
and you have them do as little as possible so not too many of them get killed.
It pains me to say this, but Trump pulling 2,000 soldiers out of Syria and 7,000
soldiers out of Afghanistan is the right thing to do. It might be getting done by a certifiable
loon with an orange muskrat on his head, but it's the right thing to do and it should have been
done a long time ago.
Advertisement:
All the talk you're hearing about how we've got to have American forces in this desert or
that mountainous no-man's land as a "counterbalance" to countries like Russia and Iran is
lip-flapping twaddle from the kind of "experts" who got us involved in Iraq, Syria, and
Afghanistan in the first place. They are the same "experts" you didn't hear a peep from when
Mattis stood loyally by Trump as he virtually capitulated to Vladimir Putin in Helsinki,
trashed NATO every chance he got, and sat down for Nuclear Kimchi with Kim Jong Un. Now Mattis
is all "maintaining strong alliances and showing respect to those allies" in his resignation
letter. Talk about a day late and a dollar short, he should call Angela Merkel and ask her how
much "respect" she's felt from the United States lately.
You want to know who can stop the resident of the adult day care center in the White House?
It wasn't Adult in the Room General McMaster. It wasn't Adult in the Room General Kelly. It
wasn't Adult in the Room General Mattis. And it's sure as hell not going to be somebody like
Secretary of Defense Kushner, or whoever the hell Trump decides he's going to sentence to a
padded cell on the E-Ring in the Pentagon next.
Trump can be stopped by Congress. The Congress can cut the funding for our misbegotten
misadventures in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan. It can refuse to fund the laughable wall along
our 1,900 mile border with Mexico that Trump apparently thinks 6,000 soldiers can guard in the
meantime. And Congress can impeach and convict Trump's insane clown ass for conspiring with a
foreign nation to defraud the United States of America. Congress can do all of this if
Republicans will stop bowing down before the Orange Hair Helmet and start looking out for the
United States of America.
Just between you and me, we'll wake up tomorrow morning, and even with The Last Adult in the
Room on his way out the door, the Western World will still be here, and so will Trump. Trust
me.
Lucian K. Truscott IV
Lucian K. Truscott IV, a graduate of West Point, has had a 50-year career as a journalist,
novelist and screenwriter. He has covered stories such as Watergate, the Stonewall riots and
wars in Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan. He is also the author of five bestselling novels and
several unsuccessful motion pictures. He has three children, lives on the East End of Long
Island and spends his time Worrying About the State of Our Nation and madly scribbling in a
so-far fruitless attempt to Make Things Better. He can be followed on Facebook at The Rabbit
Hole and on Twitter @LucianKTruscott.
Trump decision was even bigger surprise if we understand that the dominant part of the US population have been successfully brainwashed
into thinking it's normal for a country to exist in a state of permanent war, fighting in seven countries at once, spending half of
all discretionary funding on "defense" (which in reality is offence).
Notable quotes:
"... The bullshit about Bolton and others being aghast as they looked on and listened to the Trump/Erdogan phone call is just that, total b.s. Come like gangsters Erdogan has been told he can pay for US support if he so desires (Patriots is a euphemism) whilst on another front the war in Afganistan will be fully privatised. ..."
"... Let's not get too far afield here. Yes: wicked good news about Syria and the US announced withdrawal. Be sure, though, the ISIS/Saudi/Israeli elements will do all they can to prove Trump wrong. However, the focus will likely shift to the Ukraine. The Syrian situation has played itself out with no good neocon-approved outcome. ..."
"... Ukraine is fresh. Focused NATO-involved and with US/UK/EU encouragement, there is well-founded speculation for another military provocation seeking to entrap Russia. That will be the biggest challenge to Trump and Putin: not to pull the trigger over Ukraine. ..."
"... Watch the war criminals and banksters "find religion" with waves Clinton foundation avatars. (II and Silicon valley troughs just the first few drops) ..."
"... News is breaking that MbS is deploying troops into Syria to take over for U.S. ..."
"... What it does not signify is the slightest respect for the autonomy of the Syrian secular national government, nor for its sovereign rights to make alliance with Russia and Iran in an existential conflict. ..."
"... "How many senior American government officials resigned from their posts when Iraq's invasion and bombing of Libya campaigns were announced? "That's right, nobody, God forbid Trump ends a conflict, all hell breaks loose." ..."
Enjoying the fake left aka resistance exposing theselves further by demanding more war. Bolton, Mattis and co have served as pretty
good stooges in a final act.
Erdogan must have read Art of the Deal. Fair play.
The Demiurge-in-waiting was reportedly caught off guard by Trump's quick surrender to demands the US pull troops from Syria. Trump
ended his recent phone conversation with Erdogan by emphasizing his promise to withdraw from Syria, not explaining how, repeating
the pledge a second time to make sure the message was received -- perhaps pouncing on an opportunity and/or executing a script.
The bullshit about Bolton and others being aghast as they looked on and listened to the Trump/Erdogan phone call is just
that, total b.s. Come like gangsters Erdogan has been told he can pay for US support if he so desires (Patriots is a euphemism)
whilst on another front the war in Afganistan will be fully privatised.
Next up, Donald Trump appoints Eric Prince new Secretary of Defense.
Regarding II, what's interesting about the French cluster is that half of them are officials, not even half indepependent spooks
hiding behind charities and offshore companies.
I wonder if anything has been reported in the Baltic newspapers.
Let's not get too far afield here. Yes: wicked good news about Syria and the US announced withdrawal. Be sure, though, the
ISIS/Saudi/Israeli elements will do all they can to prove Trump wrong. However, the focus will likely shift to the Ukraine. The
Syrian situation has played itself out with no good neocon-approved outcome.
Ukraine is fresh. Focused NATO-involved and with US/UK/EU encouragement, there is well-founded speculation for another
military provocation seeking to entrap Russia. That will be the biggest challenge to Trump and Putin: not to pull the trigger
over Ukraine.
Not having a Ukrainian conflict would be the best gift we all could have.
I know it isn't true, but seeing this headline written in a MSM American newspaper is simply delicious:
It's official. We lost the Cold War. -- By Dana Milbank
Posted by: vk | Dec 22, 2018 8:04:44 AM | 7
Absolutely hilarious - and I'm talking about the garbled babies' bable in the content, not the title! As to the title, it rings
true in important respects - but the loss is due to Trump's predesessors, demented neocon savages in his administration, and demented
Dem opponents/the media, rather than (substantively) Trump himself. That irony is of course lost on the half-wit hack of this
article.
"money laundering schemes for unconfessable activities" ZeroHedge reports carnage . . . how to launder $21Trillion back into
circulation? Watch the war criminals and banksters "find religion" with waves Clinton foundation avatars. (II and Silicon
valley troughs just the first few drops)
Lemme resurrect this article from the past to impress on all Trump suckers just how Machiavellian he really is.
Trump's
Syria scam Sooo, while MbS is securing or rather wreaking havoc on one front, Trump can free up for the biggest target
of all. IRAN. Now you know why Trump was protecting MbSs ass! And don't think Netanyahoo wasn't in on Trump's game! Boy I hate
to say told ya so again! Throw away the Trump juice already! Sheesh, I hope you're finally awake.
Distracted by the timing of the call from Erdogan, I forgot how the US used ISIS (as it was then) against al-Maliki. They're not
too keen on Abdul-Mahdi today, nor do I think they are so pleased the IRG has had its wings clipped. Turkey's army doesn't equal
Erdogan's megalomania, but it can certainly keep YPG occupied. US withdrawal doesn't just give Erdogan a greenlight, but what's
left of ISIS as well.
What it does not signify is the slightest respect for the autonomy of the Syrian secular national government, nor for its
sovereign rights to make alliance with Russia and Iran in an existential conflict.
Back when the SAA took Deir Ezzour many expected immediate confrontation with the US/SDF forces east of the Euphrates.
I suggested at the time there would be a delay while the SAA consolidated the desert, the Golan and the southern border first.
I stated that the key indicator the SAA would be ready to reclaim the area east of the Euphrates would be the stationing of the
S300 in Deir
Thank you b for a great year of informed writing and thanks to all you comrade barflies for your harmonious buzzing and supportive
research and surmises. I have been spreading some xmas cheer to the USA audiences celebrating the resignation of the man who stood
on top of the $21trillion waste heap. Its just my idea of bringing the message home.
B: My read of the current situation is that Russia must avoid an obvious triumph- the Ukraine will be used against it if there
is too much publicity given to Russian or Syrian success. Instead a low key ground confrontation beteeen the SAA and SDF will
proceed while a lot to PR focuses on autonomy talks and the drafting of the Syrian constitution.
B: Should Kurdish arms need twisting the Turkish army will conduct incursions. I expect a long drawn out process - again the issue
is to downplay Russian success
With the US forces out of the area I would not be surprised to see Putin invite Trump to be part of the Astana process.
"How many senior American government officials resigned from their posts when Iraq's invasion and bombing of Libya campaigns
were announced? "That's right, nobody, God forbid Trump ends a conflict, all hell breaks loose."
I recall a few minor officials resigning in 2003, but nobody "senior."
<
Trump has thrown Erdogan in a trap. The Turkish army have been highly Islamized since the
coup. They would fight without hesitation on the more liberal YPG than then would dare to
confront ISIS.>
Until now Erdogan has been avoided confronting ISIS and other Islamist groups. He left the
task to the US, the Kurds, the Shia militias, the Russians and the Russian army. He failed to
expel the Islamist miliatias in the Edlib buffer zone because they are too close to him
ideologically.
He now made a promise to Trump to take care of ISIS and got a green light to crush the
Syrian Kurds and invade their land.
The Russians and the Syrians are eager to finish them off in Edlib, but could not proceed
for fear of a human disaster. The left the task to Erdogan.
Now they have the choice, either wait and see if Erdogan is able to deal with them without
the support of the USA, or get the Kurds to join the Syrian army and invade Edlib, Afrin
etc... thus kicking out the Turks, the FSA and ISIS.
Erdogan is counting on the fact that ISIS may not get financial support anymore from Saudi
Arabia and thus will be ready to compromise without fighting.
Erdogan is in a bind, if he shows sign of failure in dealing with Islamist militias in
Edlib then Iran, Russia and Syria will move on in Edlib and confront the Turks and their
allies. That is what Bashar al Assad wants: kick out the Turks and the FSA. Is Trump trying
to weaken Erdogan before the overdue pPalestinian plan is announced?
"... Defense Secretary James "Mad Dog" Mattis resigned from his position effective February 28. He disagreed with the president's decision. It was the second time in five years that an elected commander in chief had a serious conflict with Mattis' hawkishness. President Obama fired him as Central Command chief for urging a more aggressive Iran policy. Mattis is also extremely hawkish towards Russia and China. ..."
"... Mattis is an ingrained imperialist. He always asked for more money for the military and for more meddling abroad. One of Mattis' little notice acts as Defense Secretary was a unannounced change in the mission of the Pentagon : ..."
"... The Pentagon no longer "deters war" but provides "lethal force" to "sustain American influence abroad." There was no public nor congressional debate about the change. I doubt that President Trump agreed to it. Trump will now try to recruit a defense secretary that is more aligned with his own position. ..."
"... Associated Press ..."
"... Trump did not "capitulate". He always wanted to pull the U.S. troops out of Syria. He said so many times. When he was finally given a chance to do so, he grabbed the opportunity. Erdogan though, was not ready for that: ..."
"... Erdogan had planned to only occupy a 10 miles deep strip along the Syrian-Turkish border. Some 15,000 Turkish controlled 'Syrian rebels' stand ready for that. He would need some 50-100,000 troops to occupy all of east Syria northward of the Euphrates. It would be a hostile occupation among well armed Kurds who would oppose it and an Arab population that is not exactly friendly towards a neo-Ottoman Turkey. ..."
"... Any larger occupation of northeast Syria would create a serious mess for Turkey. Its army can do it, but it would cost a lot of casualties and financial resources. Turkey will hold local government election in March and Erdogan does not want any negative headlines. He will invade, but only if Syria and Russia fail to get the Kurds under control. ..."
"... 'The Pentagon's official website now defines its mission this way: "The mission of the Department of Defense is to provide a lethal Joint Force to defend the security of our country and sustain American influence abroad."' ..."
"... '"We had decided last week to launch a military incursion... east of the Euphrates river," he said in a speech in Istanbul'. So much for the UN Charter, then. Anyone who wants to can invade any other country and take over as much of its territory as he wants to - as long as Washington agrees. But, as Saddam Hussein could testify if he were still alive, it would be sensible to get such consent in writing. ..."
"... Macron's forces are illegally present too. Assad would have to request their presence, but I really doubt he will given the harm France has done to Syria over the past 7 years. Word is SAA's Tiger Forces will get sent East of Euphrates; when is now the question. ..."
"... One's got to worry about who will replace Mad Dog Mattis after February 28 next year. It would seem that whoever succeeds Mattis will be another former general, likely to share his views on maintaining and increasing US forces in Syria, Iraq and other parts of western Asia ..."
"... Compared to Mattis, Pompeo and Bolton, and now Nauert at the UN, are raving jingos. Thank Gord they have no ties to the US military. ..."
"... "there also a contingent of 1,100 French troops"... You can hear me laughing after reading this. The French empire was over a long long time ago and they still think that Syria is their colony. France has been sending French Jihadists for regime change in Syria since 2011 and their mission has failed since Russia intervened in 2015. France cannot even send troops to Mali - destabilized by Jihadists created by France in Libya to topple Kadhafi, without the help of the US!!! France is a de-facto vassal state of the US since they decided to joined the NATO central command under Sarkozy who was bribed by the zionist neocons. ..."
"... I personally distinguish between Trump's decision to withdraw from Syria and his move to withdraw partially from Afghanistan. The latter is a step towards ending a brutal, illegal NATO occupation war of over 17 years. The former is also illegal but the Syrian Kurds (left wing and largely communist) are likely to be supplanted as counters to "Iran" by fascists Turkey and Israel (this has been confirmed in reports), so we're moving from tactical NATO proxies to actual NATO governments seizing Syrian land. ..."
Fallout Of Trump's Syria Withdrawal - Why Erdogan Does Not Want To Invadeuuu
, Dec 21, 2018 1:37:31 PM |
link
President Trump's
strategic decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria creates some significant fallout.
The U.S. and international borg is enraged that Trump ends an occupation that is illegal
under international as well as U.S. domestic law. "That's un-American!"
Defense Secretary James "Mad Dog" Mattis
resigned from his position effective February 28. He disagreed with the president's
decision. It was the second time in five years that an elected commander in chief had a
serious conflict with Mattis' hawkishness. President Obama
fired him as Central Command chief for urging a more aggressive Iran policy. Mattis is
also
extremely hawkish towards Russia and China.
President Trump campaigned on lessening U.S. involvement in wars abroad. He wants to get
reelected. He does not need a Secretary of Defense that involves him in more wars that have
little to none defined purpose.
Mattis is an ingrained imperialist. He always asked for more money for the military
and for more meddling abroad. One of Mattis' little notice acts as Defense Secretary was a
unannounced change in the mission of the Pentagon :
For at least two decades, the Department of Defense has explicitly defined its mission on
its website as providing "the military forces needed to deter war and to protect the
security of our country." But earlier this year, it quietly changed that statement, perhaps
suggesting a more ominous approach to national security.
...
The Pentagon's official website now defines its mission this way: "The mission of the
Department of Defense is to provide a lethal Joint Force to defend the security of our
country and sustain American influence abroad."
The Pentagon no longer "deters war" but provides "lethal force" to "sustain American
influence abroad." There was no public nor congressional debate about the change. I doubt
that President Trump agreed to it. Trump will now try to recruit a defense secretary that is
more aligned with his own position.
The White House also announced that 7,000 of the 14,000 soldier the U.S. has in
Afghanistan will
withdraw over the next few months. The war in Afghanistan is lost with the Taliban ruling
over more than half of the country and the U.S. supported government forces losing more
personal than they can recruit. It was Mattis who had urged Trump to increase the troop
numbers in Afghanistan from 10,000 to 14,000 at the beginning of his term. There are also
8,000 NATO and allied troops in Afghanistan which will likely see a proportional
withdrawal.
The Associated Press has a
new tic toc of Trump's decision to withdraw from Syria:
Trump stunned his Cabinet, lawmakers and much of the world with the move by rejecting the
advice of his top aides and agreeing to a withdrawal in a phone call with Turkish President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan last week, two officials briefed on the matter said.
...
"The talking points were very firm," said one of the officials, explaining that Trump was
advised to clearly oppose a Turkish incursion into northern Syria and suggest the U.S. and
Turkey work together to address security concerns. "Everybody said push back and try to
offer (Turkey) something that's a small win, possibly holding territory on the border,
something like that."
Erdogan, though, quickly put Trump on the defensive, reminding him that he had
repeatedly said the only reason for U.S. troops to be in Syria was to defeat the Islamic
State and that the group had been 99 percent defeated. "Why are you still there?" the
second official said Erdogan asked Trump, telling him that the Turks could deal with the
remaining IS militants.
...
Erdogan's point, Bolton was forced to admit, had been backed up by Mattis, Pompeo, U.S.
special envoy for Syria Jim Jeffrey and special envoy for the anti-ISIS coalition Brett
McGurk, who have said that IS retains only 1 percent of its territory, the officials
said.
...
Bolton stressed, however, that the entire national security team agreed that victory over
IS had to be enduring, which means more than taking away its territory.
Trump was not dissuaded, according to the officials, who said the president quickly
capitulated by pledging to withdraw, shocking both Bolton and Erdogan.
Trump did not "capitulate". He always wanted to pull the U.S. troops out of Syria. He
said so many times. When he was finally given a chance to do so, he grabbed the opportunity.
Erdogan though, was not ready for that:
Caught off guard, Erdogan cautioned Trump against a hasty withdrawal , according to one
official. While Turkey has made incursions into Syria in the past, it does not have the
necessary forces mobilized on the border to move in and hold the large swaths of
northeastern Syria where U.S. troops are positioned , the official said.
The call ended with Trump repeating to Erdogan that the U.S. would pull out , but
offering no specifics on how it would be done, the officials said.
Erdogan had planned to only occupy a 10 miles deep strip along the Syrian-Turkish
border. Some 15,000 Turkish controlled 'Syrian rebels' stand ready for that. He would need
some 50-100,000 troops to occupy all of east Syria northward of the Euphrates. It would be a
hostile occupation among well armed Kurds who would oppose it and an Arab population that is
not exactly friendly towards a neo-Ottoman Turkey.
"We had decided last week to launch a military incursion... east of the Euphrates river,"
he said in a speech in Istanbul. "Our phone call with President Trump, along with contacts
between our diplomats and security officials and statements by the United States, have led
us to wait a little longer.
"We have postponed our military operation against the east of the Euphrates river until
we see on the ground the result of America's decision to withdraw from Syria."
The Turkish president said, however, that this was not an "open-ended waiting
period".
Any larger occupation of northeast Syria would create a serious mess for Turkey. Its
army can do it, but it would cost a lot of casualties and financial resources. Turkey will
hold local government election in March and Erdogan does not want any negative headlines. He
will invade, but only if Syria and Russia fail to get the Kurds under control.
Unfortunately the leaders of the anarcho-marxist PKK/YPK in Syria have still not learned
their lesson. They make the same demands to Damascus that were already rejected when similar
demands were made for Afrin canton before Turkey invaded and destroyed it.
YPG delegation was flown in to Mezzeh yday. Negos were inconclusive because they just
repeated their usual line of "SAA protects the border, we control the rest." No army allows
someone else allied with an enemy to control its rear and its supply lines. +
+ The YPG leadership is still stuck in its pro-Western rut. It needs to be purged before
any deal can be made with Damascus. Their present track will just lead to another Afrin,
then another, then another. Thousands of brave YPG/YPJ fighters will have died for nothing.
#Breakingnews: Private sources : President Bashar al Assad has rejected the Kurdish
proposal while Turkey is gathering forces (Euphrates Shield et al) to attack the Kurdish
controlled area north of #Syria. #Russia seems holding back president Erdogan for a while.
A lot of pressure
It is not (only) Russia that is holding Erdogan back. As seen above he has serious
concerns about such an operation. Moreover, he does not have enough troops yet and the U.S.
troops have not yet changed their pattern. As of today they still patrolled on the Turkish
border and yesterday new U.S. war material was
still coming in from Iraq. Erdogan does not dare to attack U.S. troops.
He will most likely want to avoid any additional military involvement in Syria. If
Damascus and Moscow can get the PKK under control, Ankara will be satisfied.
Besides the presence of 4,000 to 5,000 U.S. troops and contractors in northeast Syria
there also a contingent of 1,100 French troops and an unknown number of British forces.
France for now says
it wants to stay to finish the fight against the Islamic State enclave along the
Euphrates.
But France does not have the capability to sustain those forces without U.S. support.
Syria and Russia could ask Macron to put them under their command to finish the fight against
ISIS, but it is doubtful that President Macron would agree to that. It is more likely that he
will agree to a handover of their position to Russian, Syrian or even Iraqi or Iranian
forces. Those forces can then finish the fight.
Posted by b on December 21, 2018 at 01:09 PM |
Permalink
Comments
next page " Some of the conclusions toward the end of this article don't entirely
make sense to me. Trump is withdrawing 2000-4000 US troops. Why does it follow that their
absence would create a space requiring 50000 Turkish troops to fill? I don't see how
occupation of the entire eastern would be under consideration at all.
As far as IS is concerned, their defeat will be "enduring" when their sponsors stop paying
them, first of all.
Mattis comes across to me as a psycho case of a suppressed faggot who has spent his life
trying to disprove and conceal the blatantly obvious. There we go...fairly succinct analysis.
More importantly, Mattis, known to some by the nickname of "Mad Dog," has shown a callous
disregard for human life, particularly civilians, as evidenced by his behavior leading
marines in Iraq, comments he made about enjoying fighting in Afghanistan because "it's fun
to shoot some people. You know, it's a hell of a hoot," and myriad other problems.
...
While reporting from inside Fallujah during that siege, I personally witnessed women,
children, elderly people and ambulances being targeted by US snipers under Mattis' command.
Needless to say, all of these are war crimes.
For at least two decades, the Department of Defense has explicitly defined its mission on
its website as providing "the military forces needed to deter war and to protect the security
of our country." But earlier this year, it quietly changed that statement, perhaps suggesting
a more ominous approach to national security.
...
The Pentagon's official website now defines its mission this way: "The mission of the
Department of Defense is to provide a lethal Joint Force to defend the security of our
country and sustain American influence abroad."
At least Mattis is more honest than most of his fellow psychopath war criminals.
If the AP account is factually accurate (i.e. leaving aside the tendentious pro-imperial,
pro-war editorializing), then it's funny how fast Erdogan goes from "What are you doing here?
Why don't you leave?" to "I didn't mean now!" He was probably angling for something else and
didn't really want US withdrawal.
As for the French, what a contemptible squeak from a government on the ropes trying to
look tough.
Never Mind the Bollocks , Dec 21, 2018 1:48:37 PM |
link
'The Pentagon's official website now defines its mission this way: "The mission of the
Department of Defense is to provide a lethal Joint Force to defend the security of our
country and sustain American influence abroad."'
I wonder whether, perchance, the Chief Executive and Commander in Chief should have been
consulted about that. Traditionally, US Presidents have had some considerable say in defining
the country's foreign policy.
Although one could interpret the change as being wholly in tune with Mr Trump's overriding
policy of transparent honesty. After all, as long ago as 1900 - on the evidence of Marin
Major-General Smedley Butler - we know that the US armed forces were used almost exclusively
to promote American interests abroad. Maybe it's just refreshingly open to admit it at
last.
"Trump stunned his Cabinet, lawmakers and much of the world with the move by rejecting the
advice of his top aides..."
Please remind me: who was elected in 2016 - Mr Trump, or "his top aides"?
When David Ignatius reported that Mattis's bedtime reading was Marcus Aurelius in the
original Latin, who was responsible for the mistake? (Marcus Aurelius wrote in Greek.)
Ignatius, an aide of Mattis's, or Mattis himself?
"While Turkey has made incursions into Syria in the past, it does not have the necessary
forces mobilized on the border to move in and hold the large swaths of northeastern Syria
where U.S. troops are positioned, the official said".
Splendid! Let them hand it back to the lawfully elected democratic government of Syria,
then.
'"We had decided last week to launch a military incursion... east of the Euphrates river," he
said in a speech in Istanbul'.
So much for the UN Charter, then. Anyone who wants to can invade any other country and
take over as much of its territory as he wants to - as long as Washington agrees. But, as Saddam Hussein could testify if he were still alive, it would be sensible to get
such consent in writing.
thanks b... who replaces the war criminal mattis? and when does any american get charged in
the hague for the countless wars they start? how long do we have to wait for this to happen?
the fact he changed the wording is at least more honest, so i give him credit for that... he
could have said 'we are the worlds policeman, and we will continue to be the worlds policeman
too' which would have been equally appropriate...
one thing i do like about trump is his ability to surprise... he could have done this
earlier in his term - pull out of syria - but i guess he was waiting to see how things
went... as it stands i think the knifes are out for trump big time now, and i suspect he is
not going to last as president.. someone else mentioned this on the previous thread, and i
agree with that assessment..
at some point in the next month, it is going to look different if USA follows thru with
the commanders new position... meanwhile Russia has to continue to keep turkey on a leash and
Syria, Russia and Iran have to continue to work at regaining the area east of the Euphrates
as this unfolds... the leadership in France at this point are loony... the smart thing for
them would be to leave or hand it over to syria/ russia...
Macron's forces are illegally present too. Assad would have to request their presence, but I
really doubt he will given the harm France has done to Syria over the past 7 years. Word is
SAA's Tiger Forces will get sent East of Euphrates; when is now the question.
Rolling-back the Outlaw US Empire's overseas troop deployments and shuttering their bases
is something I've argued for since I was honorably discharged in 1985, with the monies turned
to desperate domestic needs -- the financial statement may declare the USA the world's richest
nation, but reality tells a very different story. That reality got Trump elected. The
haphazard, laissez-faire, unplanned structural nature of the USA's economy is in no way
prepared for the rising technological revolution, which is in stark contrast to China and
Russia's plans. The most important message Putin delivered in his annual meeting yesterday
was about the whys and hows of changing the structure of Russia's economy:
"I have said it on numerous occasions, and I will repeat it today. We need a breakthrough.
We need to transition to a new technological paradigm. Without it, the country has no
future . This is a matter of principle, and we have to be clear on this....
" Healthcare, education, research and human capital come first, since without them
there is no way a breakthrough can be achieved . The second vector deals with
manufacturing and the economy. Of course, everything is related to the economy, including the
first part. But the second part is directly linked to the economy, since it deals with the
digital economy, robotics, etc. I have already mentioned infrastructure....
"But we will not be able to achieve the GDP growth rates necessary for this breakthrough
unless the structure of the economy is changed. This is what the national projects are aimed
at, and why such enormous funds will be invested, which I have already said – to
change the structure and build an innovation-based economy . The Government is counting
on this, because if this happens, and we should all work towards this, then the growth rates
will increase and there will be other opportunities for development." [My Emphasis]
200 million residents of the USA--2/3s of the populous--also need a breakthrough, which is
why the Green New Deal has such
widespread support : "The survey results show overwhelming support for the Green New
Deal, with 81% of registered voters saying they either 'strongly support' (40%) or 'somewhat
support' (41%) this plan." IMO, domestic political pressure generally supports Trump's MAGA,
but the monies need to come from somewhere, and that somewhere is from the Outlaw US Empire
part of the USA.
One's got to worry about who will replace Mad Dog Mattis after February 28 next year. It
would seem that whoever succeeds Mattis will be another former general, likely to share his
views on maintaining and increasing US forces in Syria, Iraq and other parts of western Asia
where they're despised by the local people, and perhaps not averse to sounding out good ol'
Erik Prince to fill the vacancies left when US troops start leaving.
Tom Welsh. It's my understanding that the Constitution states that foreign policy IS the job
of the President. This Congress doesn't seem to have gotten the memo and though strictly a
legislative body, have engaged in some pretty spectacular over reach.
The Constitution also puts an elected civilian (the President) in charge of the armed forces
but put the power to declare war firmly in the hands of Congress.
The 1973 War Powers act has obscured this division of power. The President can order troops
anywhere for a short time but must get an Authorization for Military Force from Congress.
However, this is supposed to only in the case of attack or imminent danger, hardly the case
in the ME.
Time limits on AFMF are often ignored and Congressional! purse strings almost never limit
(exception: at the end of Viet Nam Congress was about to cut funding) any and all military
adventurism.
@ karlof1 14 Healthcare, education, research and human capital come first, since without them there is
no way a breakthrough can be achieved.
It would seem to me that if US politicians really cared about their job performance they
would be working more on your "human capital" and less on warfare and Russian collusion. But
there's no money in that, so they don't. So much for "democracy." Here's a recent article on
a US achieved "breakthrough," in a negative sense that is.
WaPo, Nov 29
Life expectancy in the United States declined again in 2017, the government said Thursday
in a bleak series of reports that showed a nation still in the grip of escalating drug and
suicide crises.
The data continued the longest sustained decline in expected life span at birth in a
century, an appalling performance not seen in the United States since 1915 through 1918.
That four-year period included World War I and a flu pandemic that killed 675,000 people in
the United States and perhaps 50 million worldwide.
Public health and demographic experts reacted with alarm to the release of the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention's annual statistics, which are considered a reliable
barometer of a society's health. In most developed nations, life expectancy has marched
steadily upward for decades. . .
here
Mattis could not, would not accept responsibility for the misappropriated 21 trillion dollars
at HIS defence department. Kick him out. He was always a moron and demonstrated his arrogant
dismissal of the elected president almost every day. $21 trillion buys a lot of MAGA.
Kurdish population in Syria is only 5% whereas the land they now control is 30% of the
country thanks to the democratic EUSA nations?
They can no longer feed the ISIS inmates (they'll end up in France or Germany or elsewhere
undertaking new projects?) since Khashoggi case (or Mr. Erdogan who caught the Saudis by
their balls) made Saudis quit financing the YPG. Almost all ISIS inmates left in Syria are
from abroad (they had been released from Libyan, Afghan, Iraqi prisons en mass at the
beginning of the war and are ready for relocation?
Will the globalists controlled China arrive to rebuild what the US demolitionmen destroyed
in Syria?
Who founded (USrael?) ISIS and made them lose water and oil rich territories in Syria to
the PKK/YPG/SDF and what are they planning to do now?
It'd be funny if Trump appointed Tulsi Gabbard to the post of DefSec.
I don't know much about her except that she's definitely very cute and probably isn't a
pushover. If the glowing praise of her MoA fans is any guide then she'd do a better job than
any recent appointment to the role and would then become a shoe-in for POTUS. If that came to
pass then 'Hillary Who?' would become part of America's Permanent Lexicon.
Thanks for your reply! Yes, the financialization and industrial hollowing-out of the USA's
economy renders following the path being broken by Russia/China very difficult, but the
projected outcome will be dire if the economy isn't radically restructured and the fake
economists and their financial predators aren't driven from the Temple by modern
Tribunes.
Meanwhile, shrouded by the Trump/Mattis circus,
Turkey & Iran held an "historic summit" that likely had an impact on Trump's decision
as everywhere he looks his previous foreign policy choices driven by his neocon advisors are
mostly backfiring.
The language of the US Constitution gives the President the power to make treaties and
choose Ambassadors, in consultation with and with the consent (2/3 majority) of the Senate.
Also, President is Commander-in-Chief of the military. This includes state militias if
formed. He also receives political figures from abroad.
Like so much else in the US Constitution, there has been creepy or 'necessary' or when
it's handy mission creep in regard to these delineated functions.
But more to the point, the US is and has long been a serial de facto repudiator of the US
Constitution and of International law. 'Let us discuss the fine points of law pertaining to
the repeated launching of wars of aggression on the basis of lies.'
Forgive the levity but here's Hillary's theme song.
Oh yes I'm the great pretender (ooh ooh)
Pretending that I'm doing well (ooh ooh)
My need is such I pretend too much
I'm lonely but no one can tell.
Oh yes I'm the great pretender (ooh ooh)
Adrift in a world of my own (ooh ooh)
I play the game but to my real shame
You've left me to dream all alone.
Too real is this feeling of make believe
Too real when I feel what my heart can't conceal
Ooh ooh yes I'm the great pretender (ooh ooh)
Just laughing and gay like a clown (ooh ooh)
I seem to be what I'm not (you see)
I'm wearing my heart like a crown
Pretending that I'm still around.
(stiill a rounnd)
If the U.S. withdraws its forces from NE Syria who will control the air space. That will
likely determine who controls the territory in the future. I don't think the Kurds have an
airforce.
mls
financial matters , Dec 21, 2018 4:13:46 PM |
link
karlof1 @ 14
"""But we will not be able to achieve the GDP growth rates necessary for this breakthrough
unless the structure of the economy is changed. This is what the national projects are aimed
at, and why such enormous funds will be invested, which I have already said – to change
the structure and build an innovation-based economy. The Government is counting on this,
because if this happens, and we should all work towards this, then the growth rates will
increase and there will be other opportunities for development."""
Similar sentiments are expressed by Rhiana Gunn-Wright.
After Sanders lost the Democratic primary in 2016 a group called 'Brand New Congress'
formed to carry on his ideas. This morphed into 'Justice Democrats' which helped
Ocasio-Cortez get elected. She is serving as a lightning rod giving the Green New Deal
popularity.
Rhiana Gunn-Wright is a young energetic and talented policy wonk working for 'New
Consensus' which is a spin off of the 'Justice Democrats'.
She is being tasked with forming policy for the Green New Deal.
'Again, the GND is not just climate policy. It's about transforming the economy, lifting
up the poor and middle class, and creating a more muscular, active public sector.
The GND "opens an opportunity to renegotiate power relationships between the public
sector, the private sector, and the people," says Gunn-Wright. "We are interested in
solutions that create more democratic structures in our economy.'
$21 Trillion + "interests abroad" DoD mission creep
>>
Silicon Valley hot air equity ($150,000 starting salaries for fresh graduates) on cash flow
only digital assetts
+ offshore oligarch accounts (kkr et al)
I found it helpful to take stock of reported conditions surrounding the troops out
move:
* ksa reportedly going bankrupt
* ksa reneges on golden glow globe sword dance MIC mou-s
* failed israeli missile attempt to start wwiii & ensuing s300 reinforcements
* kashoggi and related muslim brotherhood entanglements
* clinton foundation in DC "hearings" censored by msm
* continued censorship of Awan bros Blackberry scandal (espionage?)
* Cricket hero Khan batting for Pakistan
* Huawei affair
* Bibi & family corruption scandal
Trump has a keen eye for ratings, and surely knows giving the deplorables (private
contractors, self employeds etc) trying to rub two pennies together gasoline under $3/gallon
in the holiday season will mean much more to the public than Cnn Russiagate drivel working
people have no time for anyway. Keeping armed forces rank and file happy and re purposing for
disaster relief would be a good move.
Karlof1 is correct to make the most of the narrative. Glad b is on it. Hope troops arent
cleared for nuclear Armeggedon!
@mls The US currently does not control Syrian airspace. The Russians do, ever since they
switched from using the existing old Syrian S200 to the current advanced model S300, after
the downing of their plane by the Israeli interference.
This was probably another factor that made operating in Syria increasingly problematic and
handicapped: options of 'punishing Assad' or bombing mobile Iranian units were limited if
they didn't want to coordinate with the Russians.
The Syrians now have to amass a large contingent to 'control' the Kurdish area; likely the
Russians will be go-between to lower Kurdish demands as well as placate the SAA and achieve
some kind of tense co-existence which can keep Turkey satisfied.
Interesting to see how Syria will handle both wanting to mop up Idlib as well as re-establish
control over the North-East and its oil wells.
I read that Trump did not inform Netanyahu of the USA's Syria 'withdrawal' until about an
hour before it was made public via tweet. Five mins! according to another article. Also, that
Trump did discuss it with B.N. several days before (Haaretz), that sounded like a smoothing
over. Another article claimed that it was Pompeo who clued in Israel a short while before. So
who knows?
Right from the first time they met, Bibi was terrified of Trump, though I could not find
one telling vid. I saw.
Feb. 15 2017.
Trump today said that he is keeping his options open about how best to reach a peaceful
solution to the Israeli-Palestinian situation but urged Israel to hold back on settlement
building in occupied territories.
President Trump veered from years of U.S. policy in the Middle East by backing off the
"two-state solution," as the only path to peace between Palestinians and Israelis.
One article stated that Macron and Merkel learnt of the 'withdrawal' from the media! I
have noted that Macron is always very 'late' and 'behind the times' as far as the US is
concerned, obviously the F 'info' services have no clue, or he isn't kept informed, etc.
Not that there will be consequent 'fall-out' from either, for the moment. (Israel can only
go along, and the EU has more serious stuff on its plate.)
Yes, it's dispiriting, but not surprising that the anti-war "Left" movement has almost
totally dissolved following their failure to prevent the Iraq war. As a deeply cynical person
I'm certain that Hillary and the Clintonites worked behind the scenes in the DNC to undermine
the Anti-war movement in expectation of her eventual 2008 & 2016 runs, since she and Bill
supported the Iraq war and were no shrinking violets when it came to the use of military
force in furtherance of their foreign policy goals. The consequence of destroying the
Anti-war movement with the Democratic Party is that they have become a defacto Pro-war party
even in situations where the use of the military is blatantly illegal, futile and against the
National interest (since there is no organized Anti-war movement articulating why they should
not go to war/use military force to stand against the Military Industrial Complex that is
constantly advocating for more war). Hilariously, by becoming a Pro-war Party when the
American people are increasingly tired of constant warfare the Democratic Party lost the 2016
election to a mildly anti-war Trump, who will most likely be re-elected (unless he is
impeached or assassinated). In the long-term, unless the DNC faces up to the 30 years of
disastrous Clinton mismanagement and corruption and cleans house, I could certainty see the
Democratic Party collapsing over the next 15 years just like how the Labour Party in the UK
is still struggling with the legacy of Tony Blair.
What's really galling to me though is watching all these so called "liberals" (Cher, Beth
Midler, Rachael "Mad Cow" Maddow & Mia Farrow) whine about how the US should never leave
Syria and stay there indefinitely; Are they or their children going to be fighting this war?
Who gave the US such authority take seize parts of Syria? What exactly is the benefit to the
US & her people in doing all of this? How many hundreds of thousands people (mostly
Syrians) need to die for this ill-defined goal of spiting Syria & Russia? Just like the
destruction of the Anti-war left in the Democratic Party had long term consequences, people
will remember how Hollywood liberals behaved like jabbering, ignorant, warmongering
ideologues during this period of US decline and it will cause profound damage to them and
their professed causes.
Nice thoughts, but I don't think you have the time.
"Worst December since the great depression"
Just look at the pictures (charts), and scroll down.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-12-21/fear-reaches-most-extreme-ever-traders-see-panic-air
....
Trump has a tactic of "giving people what they ask for" (eg Jerusalem). Just to break a
deadlock. This Syria gambit seems to be something of the same as Erdogan now gets what he has
been asking for - and finds he doesn't want it yet.
I still think that there will be a continued US presence in Syria, concentrated around the
Oil sources. The Agricultural lands further north were owned by "Arabic", Christian, Yadizi
and other various tribes and ethnies. The Kurds only made up a small portion.
One reason that Trump may have decided to throw the Kurds to the wolves, is that they were
overstretched, and not motivated enough to continue to be cannon fodder for Uncle Sam. The
SDF (Which incorporates some turncoat ISIS members, which partly explains why there has only
been slow "progress" against the last ISIS enclave in Eastern Syria, brother against
ex-brother), also contains foreign mercenaries from various sources. What they will "demand"
is open to question. The tribal forces in the SAA who are directly opposite contain members
of the Shaitah, who saw 700 of their women and children massacred by ISIS. They may want
their own land back too, as well as "payback".
The other reason for Trump to act now is that Flynn has been given three months in which
to change his guilty "plea". After which, Mueller will HAVE TO provide proof, and not just
accusations and people that have been blackmailed into "plea deals". Trump doesn't have too
much time left for subtle tweet-tweets before the Dems arrive. etc (big topic by itself)
.... By the way, OT; Butina was really "brain-washed". 67 days in solitary confinement
with all the recognised means of brainwashing used on her. Assault (including sexual) sleep
deprivation, continued stress (including randomly timed "strip searches") probably lighting
either permanently on or randomly used to destroy time awareness. There are other methods to
be included, and at a "key" break point, a "counsellor/handler will whisper sweet nothings in
hear ear to control her way of thinking ( I am NOT a specialist in Brainwashing, but the
outline of what she suffered, means that she will always repeat what she has been told to
say.) Real Brainwashing from the cold war era .
b's statement regarding Turkey: "Its army can do it, but it would cost a lot of casualties
and financial resources."
During the entire war, Turkey's army has done not so much and not so well. Manbij, Afrin,
and where else? Well before the US presence with bases, the Turks could not hold their border
region from the Kurds.
They cannot impact deep anywhere. Their AF is not even as effective as Syria's, yet it is
a much better, more advanced arm of the military. It's special forces?
They are used to doing what NATO and US troops do. They murder civilians and massacre
opposition. They did little against ISIS which was a very fierce, mobile and effective
military.
They do have logistical advantage and can move heavy weapons for a siege. But they are a
set piece land force.
The Kurds also are quite overrated.
Erdogan knows that the notion of him holding the East is a pipedream. His FSA allies are
the weakest lot in Syria.
His real fighters are those in Idlib, al Nusra and the Uyghurs.
If he intends to hold land the US has marked out in the North-east and East, he will have
to move the headchoppers.
The Russians will annihilate them if they cross the zones in Idlib.
With the US vacuum the Syrians, Hezbollah, Quds, Iranian militias and the Russians will
complete the war.
The French and Brits say they are staying. They should write their Last Will letters. They
will be shot out of the sky and incinerated on the ground. Folly.
The pullouts from Syria and Afghanistan are severe blows to NATO as hegemonic shock
troops.
This time next year we will hear and see how Russia won and NATO is gone from Eurasia.
This is also an object lesson to those nations on Russia's periphery who are flirting with
the US, EU and NATO. Belarus, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan will have to recalculate.
I think we will see many more updates such as this one, showing us who's pushing back,
who's wavering, and who's simply blowing hot air. I could wish for better sources of the back
story than AP and Reuters, but we must wait for better analysis I think. I'm sure I'll see it
here first - thanks for your continued vigilance.
Meanwhile my guesses are that Trump holds the longest knife and will prevail in this
course. And that Erdogan is not faltering as the Reuters report implies, but is simply
letting players and forces adjust to the new situation. And that, regardless of the details
on the ground, the US flag has been struck in Syria, irreversibly. This is a geopolitical
milestone, and everything now changes from this.
@35 It has been my understanding that while the Russian forces have stepped up their air
defense systems the Americans still fly freely to the north-east of the Euphrates and have
not hesitated to attack SAA forces who came close to their proxies on the ground, as well as
attacking the SAA when they moved toward the U.S. base at al-Tanf. If the U.S. really does
evacuate their troops it will be interesting to see if they discontinue their air movements
over the eastern bank of the Euphrates. mls
Almost all ISIS inmates left in Syria are from abroad (they had been released from Libyan,
Afghan, Iraqi prisons en mass at the beginning of the war and are ready for relocation?
Who founded (USrael?) ISIS and made them lose water and oil rich territories in Syria to
the PKK/YPG/SDF and what are they planning to do now?
@ Kadath 39
As respects Rachel Mad Cow,MSNBC has been reading from the neo-con playbook for several years
now. Pre-Iraq War,Chris Matthews was vehemently against it, but in my limited recent
viewership they are silent on Syria in general. They did however have a one hour special by
Richard Engle which was essentially an hour of showing the carnage and saying "look what
Assad did". It was even more absurd than Fox's islamaphobic specials they ran a few times.
Truly pathetic and it feels like MSNBC is hewing to the HRC model "of no one can criticize me
fro the right on "national security".
my comment was chopped off... first time i can recall ew writing on foreign policy! at any
rate, skip the ew comment section, as the folks at ew can completely in denial about the role
the democrats have played in bringing the usa to this point in time... read @35 kadath post
for greater clarity on that...
Too many "old men who think in terms of nation states and peoples. There are no nations.
There are no peoples. There is only the Federal Reserve, the BIS, IMF, WB, WTO and an
entourage of multinational corporations all inextricably inter associated." as redux of Ned
Beatty's soliloquy from the film Network.
These pesky wars, as one front of many fronts, are getting in the way of NWO timing. The
world's major central banks are now involved in quantitative tightening and much of the
liquidity that was handed out as loans will now disappear and the debt trap will now be
sprung on many 'nation states' as it was in Greece. Turkey's major industries owe about 300
Billion. This while the Lira drops ever lower in relation to the Fed Reserve Note,
euphemistically the USD, and will be hard pressed to pay back the less abundant, higher
valued amounts at the higher interest rates of the FRN's borrowed. War, with very real
deaths, continues but on another front and Trump as the front figure is the main conductor of
this coming war.
When David Ignatius reported that Mattis's bedtime reading was Marcus Aurelius in the
original Latin, who was responsible for the mistake? (Marcus Aurelius wrote in Greek.)
Ignatius, an aide of Mattis's, or Mattis himself?
Posted by: lysias | Dec 21, 2018 1:54:56 PM | 9
Explanation from an aide of Mattis: the General purchased the volume while visiting Latin
America, so he always assumed that it is in Latin.
What theis "withdrawal" is about....To continue causing turmoil in Syria so as to impede its
rebuilt and return to peaceful normal life...This is why Israel has not said a word....
I have been away in the Scottish wilderness for a while, cut off from everything, so it with
somewhat jaded joy that I come back to stunning news from this unfailingly brilliant place to
hear the latest (US getting out of Syria, Mattis out, Macron on fire, Britain in an
existential crisis the like of which I have neither seen nor read about).
Like a schoolkid who has absented themselves I venture back into the classroom to take my
little seat, all the while carrying with me audio of howling winds and the low whistle of a
friend who came to visit, an Irish instrument that so resembles native American flutes. In
this Highland cabin I filled the stove with ash and oak and beech, listened to the haunting
sound of the low whistle and drank whisky as I watched the snow drift down.
The SDF (Which incorporates some turncoat ISIS members, which partly explains why there has
only been slow "progress" against the last ISIS enclave in Eastern Syria, brother against
ex-brother), also contains foreign mercenaries from various sources.
Josh on #35 hints at an explanation for Trumps action which is confirmed by a romanian
military expert in the article http://www.voltairenet.org/article204433.html
Assuming that analysis is correct, Trumps military associates like Mattis must have known but
was apparently more willing to risk american casualties.
So the past 2 years of bombing and support for bombing and special forces operations in
Syria, Yemen, Africa, Afghanistan and of course the ongoing genocide of the Palestinians in
Israel is blamed on Trumps aids, all of whom he hired.
Whenever something positive comes out (and Trump has said he was done in Syria before only
to be followed later by a barrage of missiles due to outrage over the poor babies killed in
the CW attack blamed on Assad) its presented as Trump heroically goes against his aids advice
and does right.
This is a common theme in MSM and almost all of the alt media now. Trumps swamp included
Bolton, Barr, Devos, Pompeo, Mnuchkin, Acosta, Haspel, Ross, Mulvaney, Kushner, Pruit,
Mattis. Blame them instead of the guy who hired them and has authority over them.
Right.
I have been away in the Scottish wilderness for a while, cut off from everything,
Posted by: Lochearn | Dec 21, 2018 6:03:22 PM | 51
I once spent a week in Glen Lyon which is not cut off from anything, there is a paved road
(one-lane for two way traffic, only in Scotland!) and Royal Mail operated, but these days
young people complain when there is no cell phone reception, there was a land line but our
niece was could not send any pics and texts to her boyfriend. Thus she very eagerly joined me
for a hike and after ascending 1000 m and getting the view of Loch Tay she immediately texted
etc. But something is brewing outside quiet glens: [video of parliamentary session] The
defence secretary, Gavin Williamson, says the UK will have 3,500 service personnel on standby
'to support any government department on any contingencies they may need'
Watch the situation, Lochearn, and if needed, run back to the hills.
Thanks for your reply with its post-2016 info! I returned to following domestic happenings
a few months prior to the 2018 election and was surprised by the gumption of the new Freshman
class. There was lots of negative speculation about how AOC would become a sellout, but I'm
impressed and added her twitter to my ever lengthening list. The first 2020 polls have
appeared with the narrative being Biden over washed up Sanders, but the reality is the
opposite. Wife and I had a dinner table discussion about that and related matters last night
from the frame of Media Truth from Putin's meeting I posted. There's an ideological divide
within the USA; but as AOC notes in this very informative* twitter
thread :
"People are starting to realize our issues aren't left and right, but top and bottom.
"And the just solutions will come from the bottom-up."
*--Informative due to the immoral hatred revealed, which unfortunately validates my
references to Monopoly philosophy and Zerosumism. Scrooge was tame in comparison.
Posted by: Piotr Berman | Dec 21, 2018 5:51:32 PM | 49
Explanation from an aide of Mattis: the General purchased the volume while visiting
Latin America, so he always assumed that it is in Latin.
Or in Latin American...
And it wasn't bedtime reading but bathroom reading.
Fortunately, the stock markets are not the economy. Trump campaigned on MAGA; the Green
New Deal makes MAGA possible and as the polling I linked to shows is popular across political
lines--the people know something must be done. Currently, it's the D Party Old Guard standing
in the way doing R Party work. When it comes to the traditional definitions of national
security and national interest, Trump was correct to say MAGA is a matter of national
security. Too many Trillions have already been wasted, and we within the USA cannot afford
any more of those mistakes from the past as the margin for success gets thinner daily. When I
compare the directions of China, Russia and USA, the former two are rising by attaining their
planned national goals, while the USA drops downward thanks to directionless policy
that only supports the greed of the greedy. I know its much better for an individual to be a
poor worker in China than a poor worker in the state of Georgia and too many other
places--very few opportunities and almost no social support very similar to the Great
Depression; but nowadays, you can't even hop a freight to go somewhere else as was possible
in the '30s.
Apparently, Mattis bought the book for the illustrations.
Latin America speaks Spanish and Portuguese not Latin American, which is not a
language.
Plus, there are secondary languages of indigenous people, and tertiary languages like German
and Italian, Japanese and Chinese as well as English.
From the "story" about Mattis, I think it is laughable. He pretended his whole life to be
a Patton.
Read their career stories and it is a joke that Mattis had four-stars, as did Patton.
"UK government refuses to release the documents on its 'counter-disinformation' programme
linked to the Integrity Initiative. Because (don't laugh now), it could 'undermine the
programme's effectiveness'."
Where is the evidence of widespread support for a green new deal as pushed by a couple of
people here. A poll of 966 people sorted by whether or not they are voters does not mean
there is widespread support. As in most polls claiming whatever we do not know the questions
that were asked or how they were framed. Thus they could have said "would you be for a new
green deal if it energized the economy bringing riches to all and extremely cheap rates on
power would you be for it." Until we know the full extent of this poll it's a nothing burger
pushing an agenda.
@ financial matters # 33 with the link to the Green New Deal....thanks
The problem with the GND is that it does not seem to address the underlying fact that
private finance makes all investment decisions. If they evolve to understand that, they can
do all they want if it is within the public government plans for investment.
If the government controlled finance instead of the private folk I would expect there to
be public input to/(control over) investment decisions.....just like the GND folks are
pushing for but in a more comprehensive context and manner.
The only reading generals do is Macchhiavelli, Von Clausewitz and Superman
O yeah -- and the bible, these days.
Posted by: bjd | Dec 21, 2018 7:42:17 PM | 60
A general slurps macchiato while reading The Prince of Niccolò
Machiavelli.
In the history of my country there is a nice episode when one of the main generals was
rousing the units before the critical battle that actually went well "In loco, spes in
virtute, salus in victoria" - Here, the (only) hope (lies) in bravery, salvation in victory,
which quotes Ceasar's De Bello Gallico. . Sadly, while the battle was brilliant, the
war was not. Nevertheless, I would recommend Ceasar.
Ceasar was victorious, so he should be balanced with History of the Peloponnesian
War of Thucidites. A terrible was in which one side lost terribly, while the other
succumbed to hubris, imposed painful domination on all and sundry to be irreversibly defeated
one generation after. Woe to the defeated, but the victors should be careful too.
The story of "Woe to the defeated", Vae victis , is interested too. Romans were
treated mercilessly by victorious (unmitigated?) Gauls, but then see De Bello Gallico
above.
Five unforgettable quotes by the killer, James Mattis (He will be missed?):
>1. 'It's quite fun to shoot them, you know. It's a hell of a hoot. It's fun to shoot
some people.'
>2. 'There are some assholes in the world that just need to be shot.'
>3. 'I come in peace. I didn't bring artillery. But I'm pleading with you, with tears in
my eyes: If you fuck with me, I'll kill you all.'
>4. 'Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everybody you meet.'
>5. 'There are some people who think you have to hate them in order to shoot them. I
don't think you do.'. . .
here
I am sure getting tired of entering my personal info each time I post a comment because the
remember doesn't work...
@ karlof1 with
"
"UK government refuses to release the documents on its 'counter-disinformation' programme
linked to the Integrity Initiative. Because (don't laugh now), it could 'undermine the
programme's effectiveness'."
"
They are lying through there teeth. The real problem for them is that some could end up in
jail, and rightfully so. We can only hope that they take the City of London down with
them.
What is their long term plan for containing the IntegrityNOTInitiative scandal? The house
of cards seems to be falling and now is when we hope that the losers love their children
enough to not takes us to extinction with their pride.
It appears more people are aware of such a threat as
this article notes . Pelosi's unfortunately a whore of the sort needing pasteurization,
along with Feinstein.
Posted by: Don Bacon | Dec 21, 2018 9:04:06 PM | 66 Five unforgettable quotes by the killer, James Mattis ...
Yep, the influence of Marcus Aurelius is all over him. Through and through.
True philosopher general indeed.
The problem with the GND being discussed here is in the Green. Any New Deal that starts with
a false premise and bad science is a bad idea IMO.
That said, a New Deal that incorporates Ellen Browns and Edison/Fords ideas on public
financing I am all for. Goals should be universal health care, guaranteed income and housing,
vast infrastructure projects and alternative energy development. The latter two should be
green in the sense of nonpolluting (Co2 is not a pollutant). Jobs are fine but with
automation, AI, and robotics lets face it, a world where most people dont work except as a
hobby or to live better than others is coming, as my old science teacher predicted with envy
over 50 years ago. The neomalthusians and transhumanists have other ideas.
I would also devote massive resources for researching the safety of GMO , vaccines and
medicines as well as upgrading climate monitoring and climate research since climate does
change and we have so little understanding of it. Climate measurements are indadequate
(number of weather stations in US have dropped by a factor of 3 since climate became a thing
and quality is a key concern. This research needs to be free of influence from parties having
an agenda (political and financial). Good luck with that.
Mattis is a coward, he knows the American efforts in Syria has failed, and will go nowhere.
So for him this was a great excuse and a good uportunity to resign and not share the blame
for failure of his past advise and insistence to continue a lost effort. Now all the blames
for loosing in Syria will go to Trump. The blame game has already started coming out of MSM
and the DC swamp (you read sewer).
@ pft will the great follow on the the GND proposal
I want to add a data point to the universal health care initiative.
Because we are a society wedded to the profit motive we put it between the client and the
health care provider and worse only promote "therapies" that make a profit. Let me provide my
personal proof of that statement.
This week, after a 12 year journey, I can state that I have healed myself (with help) from
a traumatic brain injury using neurofeedback. Neurofeedback in a non-drug, non-invasive EEG
based therapy based on the mental health brain paradigm of dis-regulated neural networks. The
world of Big Pharma does not want to see neurofeedback advance because it will eliminate most
of them.
Some on MoA have read me writing about this before and I will do so more in some future
Open Thread.....when the dust settles a bit.
@1 Isn't it obvious? US forces are there to support the Kurdish forces. Training, supplying,
and a little moral "stiffening".
But Turkisk forces would go in with the aim of defeating those Kurds, and then suppressing
the local pop in. That requires an order of magnitude more troops.
One think-tanker expects problems with troop morale, which by the way was the killer that
ended the stupid Vietnam War.
Trump's sudden decisions to drawdown troops in Syria and Afghanistan that sparked Mattis'
resignation marked for perhaps the first time in American history the departure of a
defense secretary in protest and adds to the overall unease that remains, experts said.
"I think it adds to a feeling that in some sense the wheels are beginning to come off of
American foreign policy and national security policy," said John Hannah, a senior counselor
at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a nonprofit, nonpartisan research institute
on foreign policy and national security in Washington.
Hannah said he thinks the Mattis resignation will inevitably affect troop morale . . . .
here
Tom Cotton is a rabid hawk especially on Iran. If Trump choses him then this will signal
what Trump meant by the next phase of the campaign after he announced a withdrawal
from Syria.
I read General Jack Keane was in the running but he doesn't want the job.
That leaves Lindsey Graham and David Petraeus. Both of these might be willing to take the
job, but I see Trump picking Petraeus over Graham, although Graham just visited the troops in
Afghanistan; maybe he's sending a subtle hint to Trump.
If it's Cotton, we should brace ourselves for escalation with Iran.
Well there are 50K Al Nusra fighters in Idlib that Russia and Syria want out of there and
Turkey is protecting. Maybe they will be on the move soon to deal with the Kurds in the NE
once the US pulls out. US can pretend ignorance and then step back in again under the cover
of stabilizing the region with replacement for the kurds to use against Assad and protect
assets in the NE. Everyone except the Kurds is happy, almost.
Further to your point about MSNBC, I just watched Michael Moore on MSNBC being interviewed
by Ali Velshi and Moore was actually advocating that the troops stay in Syria and blamed
Putin for ordering Trump to do this ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0SP7puk8f8)
- words fail..... Michael Moore, the Anti-Iraq war activist, the Occupy Wall Street advocate,
the Anti-Imperialist, has reached the terminal phase of his Trump Derangement Syndrome. His
irrational hatred of Trump has just driven him to torch all of his prior Anti-War work; to
betray every speech, every millimeter of film he's ever made all because he hates Trump that
much and everything he has previously done can be jettisoned if it furthers this new
goal.
Ugh... Is he doing this all for the money he can glean from the mainstream Media by being
even more extreme than them, was he always this shallow and empty? This is what I just cant
get over, do these jackanapes not understand that their words and behaviours are being
recorded and people will remember it, it will haunt their futures and taint their legacies.
Hating Trump is one thing (there is certainly no shortage of reasons to hate him), but I'm
rethinking my entire interpretation of Moore and his career because of these constant,
irrationally hateful and extreme statements. Michael Moore, Anderson Cooper, Don Lemon,
Rachal Maddow and Stephen Colbert can play to the crowd for now, but once Trump's term ends
people will never be able to take them seriously as public figures again because of all of
their delusional tirades while Trump was in office.
Troop moral today is far different than Vietnam. Reason in no order of importance
1. Well paid volunteer army, well trained with skills transferrable to private sector
2. Limited tour length, long paid breaks between tours
3. Skype/internet access on tours to stay in touch with family firiends
4. Contractors to do much of the dirty work
5. Military glorification at home treats them as heros and plenty of discounts
6. Far fewer casualties
7. Great benefits once the leave miliitary (loans, paid university transferrable)
8. Tax benfits for companies hiring vets helps them in job market
The main negative with fewer troops in Syria or Afghanistan means there are fewer tours
which means less money.
I expect they will be deployed elsewhere. Where is the big question. Like you say, moral
not an issue
Kadath 80 "do these jackanapes not understand that their words and behaviours are being
recorded and people will remember it"
The average person that watches MSM have the memory of a goldfish when it comes to politics.
"His irrational hatred of Trump has just driven him to torch all of his prior Anti-War
work"
Most that make it in politics or entertainment go with the flow - whatever will further their
career. Empty people. I don't know this Michael Moor, but sounds lie he is one of this
type.
People like Lindsey Graham simply cannot comprehend that USA is in fact a demolished country,
with its last leg - the stock market - getting cut off in real time, as we speak. The
implications of American equity markets collapse are momentous. The relentless year-end
selling means that government revenues will be drastically reduced, by at least couple
hundred billion dollars, driving US budget deficit to well in excess of $1.2T in current
fiscal year. And that's in a benign case. If America slips in a recession, and has to resort
to fiscal stimulus, we are talking about $1.5-2T budget shortfall. Add quickly deteriorating
demographics, and "japanisation" of the USA is all but inevitable (and yes, US financial
system is a dead man walking)
Trump, although not the brightest bulb, is infinitely smarter than Grahams, Rubios and
Cottons of the world. He knows that it's much better to withdraw on what looks like own
accord now, than being kicked out in the most disgraceful fashion upon the passage of time.
Or even worse, having your troops marooned in the troubled region without any prospect of
being extricated, unless on the most humiliating terms.
Whether Trump succeeds or fails in returning the troops home is irrelevant at this point.
They are coming home anyway. The only question remaining is not if but when, and how.
Maybe Trump is diversyfing, scaling down in the The Middle East (a lots been accomplished
already) and ramp up efforts in Africa and Latin America to counter BRICS
@87 once and future... first off i want to thank stonebird for there comments on this topic..
solitary confinement is inhumane.. that the usa is keen to use it in all sorts of
circumstances, is a reflection of their abu ghraib, guantanemo mentality... solitary
confinement is more of the same.. in a civilized world it would never be allowed to be
done... but this is more exceptional nation stuff from the exceptional nation and what the
world has come to expect from a country that preaches one thing while practicing something
completely different..
80 kadath... michael moore has really fallen... i was unaware of this and am not tapped
into the usa msm to be able to follow.. in fact, it is so depressing i have no interest in
following much of anything coming out of the usa at this point...
@78 circe.. another name mentioned was this tulsi gabbard from hawaii.. i doubt it very
much... the usa continues to fly way off the rails...
Michael Moore destroyed his credibility when he failed to denounce Obama for not jailing
the Banksters and it's been downhill from there as it's been with so many of his ilk. Another
case of money ruining youthful idealism. Caitlin's on a roll and deserves a much larger audience. The propagandizers have deluded
themselves via their own machinations and are now going mad.
"there also a contingent of 1,100 French troops"... You can hear me laughing after reading this. The French empire was over a long long time ago and they still think that Syria is their
colony. France has been sending French Jihadists for regime change in Syria since 2011 and their
mission has failed since Russia intervened in 2015. France cannot even send troops to Mali - destabilized by Jihadists created by France in
Libya to topple Kadhafi, without the help of the US!!! France is a de-facto vassal state of the US since they decided to joined the NATO central
command under Sarkozy who was bribed by the zionist neocons.
...
US can pretend ignorance and then step back in again under the cover of stabilizing the
region with replacement for the kurds to use against Assad and protect assets in the NE.
Everyone except the Kurds is happy, almost.
Posted by: Pft | Dec 21, 2018 11:19:21 PM | 79
I think you're right. And I hope so, too...
The Yanks should be counting their blessings. I thought it was extraordinarily generous of
Putin to agree with Donald that "the US beat ISIS in Syria" considering how
half-assed/limp-wristed their anti-ISIS actions were in comparison with Russia's 100+ sorties
per day 24/7 for many months.
Imo, if the Yanks dream up another excuse to go back into Syria, Putin will caution against
it and then make sure that none of them get out alive.
Blooming Barricade , Dec 22, 2018 2:07:30 AM |
link
I personally distinguish between Trump's decision to withdraw from Syria and his move to
withdraw partially from Afghanistan. The latter is a step towards ending a brutal, illegal
NATO occupation war of over 17 years. The former is also illegal but the Syrian Kurds (left
wing and largely communist) are likely to be supplanted as counters to "Iran" by fascists
Turkey and Israel (this has been confirmed in reports), so we're moving from tactical NATO
proxies to actual NATO governments seizing Syrian land.
All of that being said, both are policy decisions that should be able to be debated
freely. I can totally see why many on the anti-imperialist left welcome the decision to
withdraw from Syria, I'm not entirely unsympathetic to them. It the US and international
media response has been horrific.
The New York Times and Guardian are basically now neconservative papers indistinguishable from the Wall Steet Journal and Daily Telegraph. Not
a word of dissent is even remotely allowed or involved. The Blob has totally taken over the
entirety of the liberal global establishment which sees Trump's move as "treasonous." Not
looking forward to 2020 when Democrats will run on identical foreign policy platforms to Mitt
Romney.
Not sure if you watched when Michael Moore received the Oscar for Farenheit 9/11. Let's
remember he was addressing the top elite Liberal crowd and got booed. What is it they say
about prophets in their own land? Oh yeah, Jesus said: A prophet is without honor in his
own country.
I actually have some sympathy for Michael Moore. Aside from being a major critic of the
Bush Administration, Michael Moore was also very critical of Obama, and Hillary and was
lambasted by liberal centrists and neolibs. He was considered part of the radical left and
despite the success of his documentaries, he continued to be marginalized and never received
the respect he deserved. In 2015, Moore was supporting Bernie Sanders, but when Bernie was
railroaded, Moore who couldn't see himself voting for a Republican ever, especially a
depraved billionaire whom he rightly viewed as Chaos personified felt that Hillary was the
lesser evil, and from there found the respect that had been denied to him by his own side and
especially after he predicted Hillary was about to lose despite the polls and Michigan,
Wisconsin and Pennsylvania would deny her the Presidency. From the day his prediction
materialized Democrats were in awe of his perception. Since then he exchanged integrity for
their respect. The Michael Moore of 2003 would never criticize military de-escalation.
However, Moore recently released a new documentary Farenheit 11/9 wherein apparently he's
critical of Democrats whom he blames for the rise of Trump.
So don't be too hard on Moore who was an outcast in liberal country for too long. Once
you've earned the respect of your own and the mainstream it's not so easy to speak your truth
anymore. Thanks to Trump and the Dems, Moore has been temporarily altered. But you're right,
he'll look back with regret on this Syria opinion.
I can't stand Trump either, but I agree that getting out of Syria and de-escalating is a
good thing...IF in fact that's what he's really up to.
The national security adviser expanded U.S. goals in Syria to challenge Iran. But Trump
wasn't on board, senior officials say, and Turkey took an opportunity to push the U.S.
out.
...
Most that make it in politics or entertainment go with the flow - whatever will further their
career. Empty people. I don't know this Michael Moor, but sounds lie he is one of this
type.
Posted by: Peter AU 1 | Dec 21, 2018 11:48:20 PM | 83
Michael Moore has produced some brilliant anti-establishment docos focusing on gun-control
(Bowling for Columbine), the US healthcare rort, the sub-prime scam, and the absence of
socio-economic well-being in AmeriKKKa (Where To Invade Next?).
I'm hoping that Kadath @ #80 is kidding, but he's right about Moore being rabidly anti-Trump
from the get-go.
Geo-political chess. Russia, Turkey, Iran have called check and Trump is moving his pieces
accordingly. I think he will pull the US out of Syria. Seems he is not as blinded by his
hatred of Iran as his appointees.
So, does this mean that Bolton should or will resign?
I thought the update of the linked article with the statement about the Kurds from the
White House official was interesting: ""They've done the majority of the fighting against
ISIS in Syria," one U.S. official said. "How do you treat a partner like this?""
"... I really want to be naive and think Trump left Syria for good but no, US never leaves Israel alone specially now that Iran is present in Syria with only one intention, to threaten Israel. I believe US pulling out of Syria is bad news for Iranians, maybe he finally wants to bomb the hell out of Iran? I'm John Bolton would love it. ..."
Last Friday President Trump had another long phone call with the Turkish President Erdogan.
Thereafter he overruled all his advisors and decided to remove
the U.S. boots from Syria and to also
end the air war .
This was the first time Trump took a decisive stand against the borg , the permanent neoconservative and
interventionist establishment in his administration, the military and congress, that
usually dictates U.S. foreign policy.
It was this decision, and that he stuck to it, which finally made him presidential.
Trump's National Security Advisor John Bolton, his Secretary of Defense 'mad dog' Mattis
and his Secretary of State Pompeo were all against this decision. The specialist working on
Syria, the lunatic (vid) special representative for
Syria engagement James Jefferey and Brett McGurk, the special presidential envoy for the
global coalition to defeat ISIS, were taken by surprise. They had worked diligently to
install a permanent U.S. presence in a Kurdish ruled proxy state in northeast Syria.
While these people first tried to change Trump's decision, their resistance
has now ceased :
Secretary of Defense James Mattis, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and national security
adviser John Bolton met Monday, when Trump was said to formally decide on a US withdrawal
from Syria. Multiple US officials argued against an abrupt US withdrawal, but were said
to have given up trying to get Trump to change his mind by Tuesday night . US officials
began to notify allies of the decision Tuesday.
"The push back from DOD, State and NSC stopped [Tuesday] night," said one regional
expert who consults with the US administration, referring to the Department of Defense,
the State Department and the National Security Council.
Back in January we already explained why the neoconservative project of a Kurdish proxy
state in northeast Syria
was doomed from its start:
Ilhan tanir @WashingtonPoint - 7:50 PM - 24 Jan
2018
This map being discussed all day on Turkish TVs as Turkey's planned security zone/safe
zone on Syria border.
Reportedly OK'ed by Sec.Tillerson though nobody on the American side confirms it
Trump is a businessman. He sees only profit/loss. Why should America bare the
burden of occupying a hostile place and protected "Kurdish" interest?
I suspect the Northern Syria project was meant to be paid for by the Saudis/Persian Gulf
Arabs Sheikhs. But after the Kashoggi fiasco, the Saudis felt betrayed by the US and
stopped the cash flow. So Trump said, "fuck it, I'm out".
Any US action in the region is to a large extend, directly/indirectly for the benefit of
Israel - at least from the neocon's pov.
Erdogan holds all the cards in the Syria machinations as I stated back when he clearly put
his foot down against the Idleb attack.
Putin isn't going to sacrifice Russia's relations with Turkey simply to let his little
lapdog Assad pretend to be in control of all of Syria.
Trump needs victories in the new congressional term and his only hope is to start
playing ball with the Demotards and try to affect stuff that is truly populist.
Cutting out of Syria is one small opening step if he actually follows through. Giving up
his wall fantasy and building roads and bridges instead would be another.
He is pulling troops out because it is an Obama war and he is intent on removing any
trace of an Obama legacy.
He is also trapped. The only thing keeping him from the inside of a courtroom is the
presidency. He can pardon federal crimes, but the NY Attorney general is deep into his
finances and his entire family is being threatened. It is a battle between oligarchs who in
another age were called carpet baggers as they try to strip everything of value from U.S.A.
before the collapse of the economy or they manage to provoke Russia or China to respond
militarily.
It was an Obama mistake to try and overthrow Syria, and remember, Hillary was wanting to
Libya it with another no-fly zone, (so little imagination) which would likely have led to
usa/russia conflict.
This is a well written and researched article, but to suggest that Trump is
intentionally doing the smart thing is a little hard for me to believe.
That's a pretty nice dream scenario you laid out, and of course it makes perfect sense it
should happen that way. However, I still don't get why the Russians have no clue as to what
Trump means by the next phase of the campaign . I hope you're right on all this but
with all the other bad decisions Trump's been making like covering MbS's butt and still
supporting KSA on Yemen and catering to Zionist policy on Jerusalem and Iran, and keeping
his son-in-law in charge of swindling the Palestinians, I just have to remain skeptical
that there's not an even worse Plan B behind door no. 2. Let's be reminded that when Trump
was still President-elect he went out of his way, even risking breaching the Logan Act, to
scuttle a U.S.-supported Resolution put forth at the UNSC at the end of Obama's
administration condemning Israeli settlement expansion.
Now, is that the act of a man sensible enough to embrace the wonderful, sensible plan
you just laid out? I don't think so. I hope I'm wrong and you're right.
I really want to be naive and think Trump left Syria for good but no, US never leaves
Israel alone specially now that Iran is present in Syria with only one intention, to
threaten Israel. I believe US pulling out of Syria is bad news for Iranians, maybe he
finally wants to bomb the hell out of Iran? I'm John Bolton would love it.
I will believe it when I see it, talk is cheap. The US was going to pull out of Afghanistan
and Iraq but it is still there. There is also plenty of time to arrange the next 'chemical
attack' to create a pretext for staying.
I agree with Circe @9 that the following sentence goes a bit too far:
"One hopes that he can expand on it by further decreasing the influence of Saudi Arabia
and Israel on his policies."
Trump's biggest donor is an "Israel-first" billionaire and his most influential personal
and presidential contacts are from the shadowy world of the Israel-Saudi alliance.
As to the comment quoted by Annette @4, I have never understood why criticisms launched
more appropriately at Zionists are regularly directed by certain elements of the alt-right
against "Jews." Not only is this practice factually imprecise and also bigoted, it serves
to weaken the often legitimate points made against Israel and its influence by allowing
others to dismiss them as motivated by anti-Semitism. It is the equivalent of criticizing
the Saudi state ideology and using the word "Muslims" to do so, while including lots of
cherry-picked quotes from the Koran and Wahhabist propagandists to paint as scary a picture
of "Islam" or "Arabs" as possible. It's stupid and rhetorically counterproductive. It also
is *exactly* what the Zionists want you to keep doing, as it only enables their
self-interested conflation of anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism. If you want to blame "the
Jews" for all the problems in the world, just remember that your doing so in this language
actually strengthens the position of the Zionists. And you may want to consider that at
least *some* of these Jew-bashing critiques of Israel on sites like Unz and others are most
certainly written by paid propagandists of the state of Israel.
I agree with B4real. I find it hard to believe Trump is capable of the thinking you
attribute to him in the second of the following two paragraphs - the first paragraph, yes;
the second includes nuanced and informed thinking that IMO is beyond his capability.
Paragraphs #1: Trump never wanted that project to proceed. He had always wanted to
declare victory against ISIS and leave. It was the borg that tried to prevent this and
which push the project along.
Paragraph #2: But there are bigger geopolitical fish to fry than such meddling in the
Middle East. Trump knows that the United States' 'unilateral moment' after the demise of
the Soviet Union, which left the U.S. was the sole superpower, is over. Russia is back and
China is rising. [up through this sentence I can believe that "Trump know it" but not what
follows, i.e.:]
Trump's policy to adopt to the decreasing U.S. power is to end the 'globalization' that
allowed for China's rapid rise. He wants to geopolitical split this world into two
influence spheres. These will be separate from each other in the political, economic,
technological and military realms.
"It is quite refreshing to see that Trump was finally able to liberate himself from the
dictate of the borg."
From the jewish borg, yes, but not from the military/NATO/EU/geopolitical borg, those
who want to rule the world as an Atlantic Empire. And this is even more dangerous.
"Trump decided that to prevent Turkey from leaving NATO, and from joining a deeper
alliance with Russia, China and Iran, was more important than to further fool around at the
margins of the Middle East. It is the right decision."
What kind of strategists are you? Actually it would have been better for the world if
the US and Turkey had a major conflict. That would have destroyed NATO as we know it and
would weaken the Atlantic Empire considerably.
Do you know what the way for weakening the US is? Israel and the Zionists.
You should tacitly support them as they will bog down the US in the Middle East, cause
muslim anti-americanism, and weaken the Atlantic Empire on the Russian and the Chinese
fronts. The Iranian issue again always causes splits between the EU and the US as well.
Russia should actually covertly support AIPAC in the US. No better way of weakening the
US. Have you ever thought about it?
thanks b... i think the issue of turkey is very big to all this, but i think you might be
discounting the ability of those intent on screwing trump, succeeding in doing so... for
trump to finally achieve one of his election promises looks positive on the surface... why
is it, it took him this long? i am not convinced, but happy it is moving in this
direction...
turkey staying onside with the usa doesn't look like a done deal to me either... again,
i think we have to wait and see how this unfolds.. i would be concerned about trump hanging
onto power at this point.. there are a lot of interests that run contrary to him here..
The great strength of this analysis and the blog in general is that 'b' never falls into
the error of accepting that the US, and its faction riven government, is all powerful and
hegemonic.
The US government not only makes stupid mistakes- look at Afghanistan- which not all the
money and purchased PR in the world can compensate for, but regularly suffers defeats
obvious to anyone who isn't watching the Victory parades on TV.
Many commenters labour under the misapprehension that the neo-cons are clever
strategists. In Washington politics they may be but in the wider world they are as
incompetent as the slaves of an idiotic ideology always are: they greatly over estimate
their own abilities and those of the US forces. They spend their lives reading their own
publicity.
All that they can do is bring misery to other countries and increase it in their own. The
record is very clear.
Iraq is a mess and it certainly isn't, either economically or strategically, a feather in
Washington's cap. The same is true of Afghanistan after 17 years in which dozens of
countries, directed by the supposedly unbeatable US forces, are in the position of sharing
control of about a quarter of the land with friendly dope dealers.
Sudan, Somalia and Libya are similar, in each case the US would have been much better off
if it had left these places alone and relied upon its diplomatic and economic weight to
influence their governments. The same is true of Iran and, indeed, Russia where neo-con
aggression has forced governments into permanent and implacable opposition.
Ukraine is another strategic disaster for the US, with the added twist that it seems fair
set to break NATO up by forcing European nations to choose-as b notes above-the US economic
sphere. Or LNG, from rapidly declining fracking wells, over piped natural gas from the
biggest, cheapest and deepest gas reserves on the planet.
And it really doesn't matter to the Eurasian sellers whether Europe buys the gas or not: if
it wants to hobble its industries and lower living standards by paying twice the price in
solidarity with the neo-cons, it simply hastens its decline.
What the New Year holds in store is a United States returning to its ancient role of
bullying Latin America: no doubt Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba will come under intense
attack as the US preens itself on the strength of its new allies, in Brazil, Argentina,
Honduras etc. But all of these regimes are unstable, fascistic, military dictatorships
which are doomed to bring unbearable hardships on the people.
And the same is equally true of the US and its allies, everyone of which has a government
skewed towards subservient militarism, with domestic politics increasingly dominated by
xenophobic hysteria as a substitute for prosperity and social stability: millions of
homeless and economically insecure people, without permanent jobs, their savings and
pensions dissolving, being fed fear of Russia or China by governments which are transparent
fronts for oligarchs and imperialists.
The fact that this sad scenario of social suicide is being played out against a background
of rapidly approaching environmental disaster- the reality of climate change- is perhaps an
indication of the price that we pay for living under an hierarchy of the most corrupt,
venal and thoughtless people in the world. The ones we choose to govern us and tell us what
to do.
To say it was impulsive, or that the entire military
opposes it, would be grossly misreading the situation.
In 1966, in the midst of the Vietnam War, Vermont Senator George Aiken recommended that
President Lyndon Johnson simply "declare victory and get out." While what Aiken actually said
was more complex (because the U.S. couldn't win militarily, he implied, it should stop
deploying troops and start deploying diplomats), his statement is commonly cited as an example
of foreign policy wisdom -- then, as now, a much depleted currency in Washington.
While it's doubtful that President Donald Trump has studied Aiken's views (or even heard of
him), his decision on Wednesday to order the unilateral withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria is
one of the few "Aiken moments" in American history. Not surprisingly, given Trump's
inclinations, the news came in a tweet posted by the president on Wednesday morning: "We have
defeated ISIS on Syria,"
Trump announced , "my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency." U.S.
officials later said that all U.S. troops would be removed from Syria over the next 60 to 100
days.
While the announcement took much of official Washington by surprise, The American
Conservative has learned that a select group of administration officials, as well as a
handful of senior military officers, knew of Trump's decision as early as Saturday morning.
According to these officials, all of whom required anonymity in exchange for the information,
Trump's decision came as a result of a lengthy telephone exchange he had had with Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday. Everything that Trump announced today, we have been
told, was decided in that call.
That telephone discussion, as one of these officials told us, was the latest in "a series of
conversations the two have had over the last weeks on a host of issues," including the murder
of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Erdogan's insistence that the U.S. extradite cleric
Fethullah Gulen to Turkey, U.S. worries about Iranian meddling in the region -- and continuing
U.S. support for Kurdish forces operating in Syria (led by the People Protection Units -- the
YPG), which Turkey views as a terrorist organization. It was this last issue that was the focus
of Friday's telephone call, spurred by Erdogan's public pledge 48 hours earlier that he was
prepared to order his military into Syria to take on the YPG despite U.S. backing.
"We will begin our operation to free the east of the Euphrates [river] from the separatist
organization within a few days," Erdogan
had said on Wednesday . "Our target is not American soldiers, it is the terror
organizations that are active in the region."
During Friday's telephone call, Erdogan once again took a hard line against the Kurds, and
the administration's support for them. A part of his argument was that the U.S. had said it was
allying with the Kurds to destroy ISIS which, as Erdogan argued, had been accomplished. Nor was
Erdogan influenced by Trump's contention that the U.S. needed to remain in Syria in order to
check Iranian influence in the region. Erdogan, we have been told, was ready for the argument:
the best hedge against Iran, he told Trump, was not the Kurds, or even the Saudis, but
Turkey.
Erdogan, as it turns out, wasn't the only one making that argument.
As reported in these pages last April , senior U.S. military officers, including Gen.
Curtis Michael "Mike" Scaparrotti (the highly respected head of the U.S. European Command),
warned that the U.S. "marriage of convenience" with the YPG in its fight against ISIS in Syria
was poisoning its relationship with Turkey -- a NATO ally. Turkey, as Scaparrotti told James
Mattis in March, was particularly angry that the U.S. was supporting the YPG's deployment to
Manbij, threatening Turkish forces some 70 miles away. So what is more important, Scaparrotti
asked Mattis, our relationship with the Kurds, or our relationship with Turkey? Gen. Jospeh
Votel, the head of Centcom, pushed back against Scaparrotti, saying that America's "marriage of
convenience" was "temporary, tactical and transactional" and essential to defeating ISIS.
And so it was that the Scaparrotti-Votel debate was both postponed (with the administration
supporting Votel's position until ISIS could be decisively defeated) and papered over -- with
the Mattis and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issuing regular reassurances to Turkey that the
U.S.-YPG relationship was only temporary. Now, with Trump's decision, the debate has been
resolved. "Somewhere, you can bet, Joe Votel is absolutely spinning his head into the ceiling,"
a senior military officer told me. "I don't know what to call this -- but it sounds like
Scaparrotti's revenge." Perhaps, but for Syria experts and for those in the military who
supported Votel's position, while Trump's decision on a full U.S. withdrawal came as a
surprise, it might have been predicted.
"Yes, I was surprised," Joshua Landis, the head of the Center for Middle East Studies at the
University of Oklahoma, says, "but I suppose I should not have been. After all, we could see
this coming. Our relationship with Turkey is much, much more important than our relationship
with the Kurds. Then too, if the Trump administration wants to pin Iran's ears back in the
region, it's not Kurds, or the Saudis or the Emiratis who are going to do it. It's the
Turks."
John Allen Gay, an Iran expert and executive director of the John Quincy Adams Society,
agrees. He argues that Trump's decision confirms what everyone has quietly admitted for at
least the past year: that keeping U.S. forces in Syria to counter ISIS was starting to look
like a way for administration interventionists to argue that we should take on Iran.
"Keeping the troops there post-ISIS was in part natural mission creep, but it was also a
stalking horse for hawks in the administration who want to take on Iran," he told TAC
.
"Yet dangling a few thousand guys in between Turkish forces on one side and Iranians,
Russians, and Syrians on the other was never going to be decisive on Iran's regional role, and
it came with real risks and no endgame," Gay added. "I just don't think there's any appetite in
the American public for a big fight with Iran anywhere, let alone over Eastern Syria."
Gay may well be right, at least according to a number of U.S. military officers with whom
we've talked.
"We need a respite," a senior military officer told us in the wake of the Trump decision,
"and that's especially true for the Air Force. Those guys have been in the air over the Middle
East since Operation Enduring Freedom, back in 2001. These guys are running on fumes."
Nor, as we've been told, are senior military officers concerned that the announced U.S.
withdrawal from Syria gives Putin a victory. "Complete and absolute nonsense," a very senior
officer who served multiple tours in the region told us. "I hate to put it this way, but I
think it's true. We can't repair Syria -- and it's not our job to do it. If Putin wants to
inherit it, that's fine."
Which is not to say that Trump's decision has been greeted unanimously. In the wake of his
Friday decision, the administration's foreign policy triumvirate of James Mattis, John Bolton,
and Mike Pompeo pushed back, arguing that keeping U.S. troops in Syria was essential, if for no
other reason than to keep a high U.S. profile in the region. Their arguments were predictable,
if outspoken: ISIS isn't really defeated, Iran is on the march, the U.S. needs to show
solidarity with its Kurdish allies.
Trump, channeling Erdogan,
pushed back on each of them -- ISIS is finished, Iran could be countered in other
ways and, as Erdogan had told him, the Kurds were already talking with the Assad government
about an accommodation that would keep them in northeastern Syria. In truth, as we were told by
a senior Turkish diplomat who was privy to the Trump-Erdogan exchange, the decision had been
made on Friday, when Trump told Erdogan that he agreed that the U.S. could withdraw its troops
from Syria. When can you do that? Erdogan had asked. Trump wasn't sure, so he turned to his
national security adviser, who was listening in on the conversation.
Can we do it today? Now? Trump asked. Bolton nodded: "Yes," he said.
Turkey always seemed to be the key to the Syria situation, and so it has proved to be.
It's remains the key, or one of them at least, to other regional matters. We should have
pulled out many years ago and left it up to Turkey, Syria, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and
Egypt to make their own arrangements. All we've managed to do is mess things up.
I hope Trump and his people are finally recognizing the wisdom of doing that.
I believe "Syria" and other countries in the Middle East are victims of powerful war criminals,
and their illegal wars. All the propaganda in the world cannot hide the truth of their
monstrous crimes against humanity. More info below:
--
"A Christmas Report on the Crimes of the War Criminals"
There is no "Peace on Earth" because of what you do
Millions are dead and their homes destroyed, all "thanks" to you
Some cities have been reduced to burning, smoking rubble
And some countries are now in chaos; you started all this trouble
Millions are in refugee camps, and millions wander the earth
Many refugees are drowning in the sea, or lying dead in the surf
Bombing, killing, blood and gore is your legacy to humanity
All of you posture on the world stage and promote more bloody insanity
So as you toast each other and drink glasses of blood red wine
Perhaps in your hypocrisy you don't realise that you are, the "Gadarene Swine"
Fiends dressed in expensive suits, with "honourable" titles to your names
When you all should be in prison gear, and hanging your heads in shame
As you all relax for the holiday season, no doubt you will be sending each other Christmas
Greetings or Happy Holidays. It has been a busy war supporting year, 2018, for many of you.
Supplying the weapons that destroyed and decimated many countries, and attending meetings with
other war criminals, oops, I mean with other world leaders .
[read more at link below] http://graysinfo.blogspot.com/2018/12/a-christmas-report-on-crimes-of-war.html
I would have thought it would be wise to stay until an agreement was reached and in place that
guaranteed limited autonomy for the Kurds -who did a great deal of the fighting against ISIS --
and ensured Iran was not too dominating and threatening Israel. But -- the Russians are
probably good guarantures of Israeli interests (15% of Israels population are Russians) and as
a major Sunni power Turkey can counter Iran. So .ok.
Pulling out of Syria because "ISIS is defeated" is a joke of an excuse. ISIS is nowhere near
defeated, and if the US pulls out now new terror groups will just fill the power vacuum.
Of course it was a surprise. A more thoughtful president might have said something like. " I
have directed the Secretary of Defense to draft plans to remove all our ground forces in Syria
in the next 3 months or sooner"
Do we have NUKES in Turkey? Why else would we give 2 $hits about Erdogan's Islamist A$$. I
don't mind getting our guys out though. Let the savages and barbarians work it out amongst
themselves by killing one another. Who really cares about Syria, Israel can take care of the
Russians and the Iranians if need be. Leaving Afghanistan should be next!!
Strange that Bolton would agree that we could pull out right away. If he wants us to stay, why
wouldn't he prevaricate and come up with some superficial reason why it would take months
before we could actually start moving out.
This article describes the complexity of the Syrian quagmire. If we stay in the region with
military assets, the probability for conflict, accidental or intentional, with other
participants is close to 1, and may result in escalation of conflict with other participants.
Bottom line, Syria is not a national security interest of the US. And when we leave, there
will not be a vacuum for ISIS to re-fill as there was in Iraq, as some neocons and neoliberals
so disingenuously allege. Assad, Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah, who are working together as
allies, will be there to stomp out the remaining embers. Turkey is just another trouble-maker
in Syria.
The real motivation to stay there is that so many believe we should be the leading influence
in every conflict and pathetic country in the world. That, and the ideology that all
governments in the world should be a democracy. In the middle east, democracy is but a
transition to a theocracy. In the middle east, democracy is the god that failed.
Who shouldn't welcome a withdrawal from armed conflict, especially at Christmas? Well, those
making a buck off the killing of people in Syria and those who really worry about Iran keeping
Israel from stealing half of the Middle East, that's who.
Maybe the Spirit of the Lord descended on him, and he (finally) understands that he's got to
start getting us out of there.
But whatever the reason is, I'll take it. We beat ISIS? Fine. This is what I voted for, and
I'm glad he did it. Our people over there were just sitting ducks, hostages to fortune. Not any
more.
Let the other countries take care of whatever's left of ISIS now. We did the heavy lifting.
It's their turn. And if they're too lazy or cowardly to do it themselves, **** 'em.
Both Fox % Friends and Morning Joe have their hair on fire this morning and they're laying
Trump's decision all at the feet of Rand Paul. Jack Hunter has been saying all along that Paul
had Trump's ear on foreign policy. If Paul really is the one who persuaded Trump to do this,
God Bless Ron and Rand Paul. Now, Paul and his left-wing allies need to go on cable TV and
defend this move because right now Trump is being eviscerated.
What I don't understand is all the horrified whining about "commitments" and "honor".
Haven't these idiots been paying attention? Ever since he pulled out of the Iran deal, it
was plain as day that prior commitments mean nothing to him. But some of those now shrieking
and rending their garments seem to have though that the Kurds and Saudis and Israelis were
immune. Surely he would always do what they told him to do?
But pulling out of the Iran deal didn't mean "I can do whatever I want for Israel, Saudi
Arabia, and the Kurds". It meant "I can do whatever I want". And "whatever I want" can mean
"pull out of Syria". Which is what he just did.
It almost amounts to a strategy. And anyone who missed that after everything he's done over
the past two years either hasn't been paying attention or just plain dumb.
This is Trump.
On the bright side, it may be the smartest thing he's done in foreign policy since taking
office. And he owns it -- it's clearly NOT the work of his sinister and incompetent advisors.
Good! More! MORE!
The NYT editors and most of the commenters are in hysterics.
One thing I have learned from the Trump era -- mainstream liberals are as McCarthyite in their
attitudes sometime as the conservatives they love to attack.
On the decision itself, I wish something would be said about protecting the Kurds, but we
had no right to meddle in Syria in the first place. All of our interventions in the Mideast
turn to um, manure. ( Family blog). We are constantly justifying new interventions because of
the problems our earlier intervention caused, or we are told we can't pull out because we are
in too deep. It's almost as if this were some giant scam designed to make money for the
military industrial think tank complex.
I can't quite bring myself to defend Trump on this, but I have no problem attacking some of
his critics.
Just some facts that most of you USA suckers are ignorant of;
The Syrian army with the support of Russia, Iran and Hezbollah defeated ISIS.
The US seemed to be more intent on bombing haystacks oh and civillian infrastructure until
Russia stepped in.
Styria has claimed back 95% of her land.
Syria with the support of her allies is starting to rebuild the country
Alleppo is rebuilding thanks to Russias help
Many commentators acknowledge the war is basically over -- no thanks to the US.
But yes proclaim you defeated ISIS just get out of there. You are not wanted and your support
of ISIS to try and get rid of Assad has not worked.
Allies are allies until their interests diverge. Turkey and the US are prime examples. In the
chaotic world of the Middle East Ankara sees a Greater Kurdistan of threat to its territorial
integrity: Washington supports the YPG, a Marxist-Leninist organisation, because of its
importance in the fight against ISIS. It looks as though President Trump has decided Turkey a
more vital ally than the Kurds.
Every state pursues what is seen to be in its own best national interest. But it is important
that the pursuit does not undermine those very interests. It is a difficult calculation for any
leader, upon whom the responsibility of history weighs heavily. The past gives a grim
prediction for the future:
• Power, (manifested as interest) was present in very conflict in history -- no exception.
It is the underlying motivation for war. Interest cuts across all apparently unifying
principles: family, kin, nation, religion, ideology, politics -- everything. We unite with the
enemies of our principles, because that is what serves our interest. It is the one thing we
will destroy ourselves for, as well as everyone else.
• History shows that every civilization/nation eventually gets the war it is trying to
avoid: utter defeat. This applies as much today as any other time in history.
• Leaders and decision-makers delude themselves, thinking they can avoid their fate --
they can't. If survival is threatened, there is no alternative to war, however destructive. https://www.ghostsofhistory.wordpress.com/
I'm no fan of the president and have basically disagreed with everything he has done since
taking office. But I fully agree with him on this policy change and hope we continue to
withdraw from other pointless military quagmires around the world. I can't believe I'm writing
this but well done Mr President.
No because he is replacing them with uncontrollable paid mercenaries just like he is doing in
Afghanistan that way the United States is no longer responsible if they commit war crimes.
George W. Bush did it in Iraq using "Blackwater Security aka Academi Company now" until Iraq
kicked them out for killing incent civilians.
The first bit of actual good news in 2 years. Trump is finally acting on what he ran on. Next,
Afghanistan. Peace will reign in Syria in a short time now. The Kurds will receive some limited
autonomy from Damascus. Damascus will keep them under control, so Turkey will not need to
invade Syria to destroy them. The SAA and Russia will wipe out what is left of ISIS in short
order, then turn to the hard-core terrorists in Idleb, while Turkey tells its proxies to join
the political process. Syria will have survived one of the most vicious multi-national efforts
to dismember the country.
Never thought I'd see the day when American troops would be withdrawn from anywhere! Surely
unconstitutional or something This president really does have some crazy ideas!
Well about time for the US to pull out of Syria. Shouldn't been there in the 1st place. Maybe
one by one the US will start pulling out of some of the other misadventures in the Middle East,
and let the nations in the Middle East solve there own problems. Of course, I'm not going to
hold my breath, but nevertheless a 1st step had to be taken.
"... Russian President Vladimir Putin echoed on Thursday the widespread skepticism whether Trump's decision will be enforced by Pentagon commanders. Yet the odds are that they just might. This needs explaining. Admittedly, Trump is still a quintessential "outsider" in the Washington Beltway, but then, he also enjoys the backing of a good majority of the American people who are tired of the United States' endless wars abroad. ..."
"... Indeed, a coalition of disgruntled elements and assorted interest groups is forming to debunk Trump. Simply put, they are unhappy that the US military is pulling out of Syria. For many, a gravy train is running while for some others, the issue is Trump – not even Syria. ..."
"... Evidently, there is a sophistry in their campaign against Trump's decision. Principally, three phony arguments are being advanced – that Trump's decision "baffles" the United States' allies; that he has thrown the Kurds under the bus; and that a US pullout from Syria harms the anti-ISIS fight. ..."
"... At any rate, the brunt of the fight against the ISIS was borne by the Syrian government forces and their allies – remember Aleppo? Their grit to finish the job has never been in doubt and there is no reason to fear any let-up. In fact, their interest lies in stabilizing the security situation in the quickest possible way so the political process leading to a post-conflict Syrian order can be speeded up. ..."
"... Ironically, the departure of the US forces could help matters, since in many ways the US military presence only impeded the anti-ISIS fight in Syria. It is well known that terrorist groups took shelter in the US-led security zones in eastern Syria ..."
"... The Al-Tanf base and its 50-square-kilometer security perimeter was only the most glaring example. Again, the "no-fly zones" prevented Syrian and Russian jets from hunting down the ISIS cadres and de facto amounted to US air cover for terrorists. ..."
"... Succinctly put, the Americans are laboring under an illusion that they alone "won" the war against the ISIS in Syria, or Iraq. This illusion must be purged. No, without the 2,000 American troops, Syria isn't about to collapse like a sack of potatoes or become the revolving door for international terrorists. Trust the Russians and Iranians to eliminate the scourge of terrorism from Syrian soil, because it directly affects their own national security. ..."
"... The alliance with the Kurdish militia in Syria has severely damaged US-Turkish relations. Turkey will never allow the creation of a Kurdish homeland on its borders, and it has a congruence of interests with Iraq and Iran – and even Syria – in this regard. ..."
700 days out of US President Donald Trump's 1,461 days of presidency seem a wasteland of
unfulfilled promises and expectations in foreign policy – except, perhaps, on the Korean
Peninsula – things dramatically changed on December 19 when he announced the troop
withdrawal from Syria.
Taken together with Washington's hurry to negotiate with the Afghan Taliban, it appears that
Trump is, finally, on the move as a man of peace, fulfilling the pledge of Candidate Trump to
prioritize nation-building over extravagant military adventures in faraway lands.
However, the big question remains: Is the Washington establishment ready for Trump's action
plan? The signs so far are very discouraging. The resignation of US Defense Secretary James
Mattis raises the stakes incalculably.
Russian President Vladimir Putin echoed on Thursday the widespread skepticism whether
Trump's decision will be enforced by Pentagon commanders. Yet the odds are that they just
might. This needs explaining. Admittedly, Trump is still a quintessential "outsider" in the
Washington Beltway, but then, he also enjoys the backing of a good majority of the American
people who are tired of the United States' endless wars abroad. And that becomes a
decisive factor in Trump's political calculus. This is one thing.
A proxy war
Indeed, a coalition of disgruntled elements and assorted interest groups is forming to
debunk Trump. Simply put, they are unhappy that the US military is pulling out of Syria. For
many, a gravy train is running while for some others, the issue is Trump – not even
Syria.
For the Cold Warriors in the strategic community, Syria is a proxy war against Russia.
Evidently, there is a sophistry in their campaign against Trump's decision. Principally,
three phony arguments are being advanced – that Trump's decision "baffles" the United
States' allies; that he has thrown the Kurds under the bus; and that a US pullout from Syria
harms the anti-ISIS fight.
To take the last argument first – what will be the impact on the Syrian situation? To
be sure, ISIS is down, but not quite out. But then, ISIS is today only residual terrorism,
after the huge defeat in Iraq.
At any rate, the brunt of the fight against the ISIS was borne by the Syrian government
forces and their allies – remember Aleppo? Their grit to finish the job has never been in
doubt and there is no reason to fear any let-up. In fact, their interest lies in stabilizing
the security situation in the quickest possible way so the political process leading to a
post-conflict Syrian order can be speeded up.
Ironically, the departure of the US forces could help matters, since in many ways the US
military presence only impeded the anti-ISIS fight in Syria. It is well known that terrorist
groups took shelter in the US-led security zones in eastern Syria .
The Al-Tanf base and its 50-square-kilometer security perimeter was only the most
glaring example. Again, the "no-fly zones" prevented Syrian and Russian jets from hunting down
the ISIS cadres and de facto amounted to US air cover for terrorists.
National
security
Succinctly put, the Americans are laboring under an illusion that they alone "won" the
war against the ISIS in Syria, or Iraq. This illusion must be purged. No, without the 2,000
American troops, Syria isn't about to collapse like a sack of potatoes or become the revolving
door for international terrorists. Trust the Russians and Iranians to eliminate the scourge of
terrorism from Syrian soil, because it directly affects their own national security.
Therefore, isn't it the smart thing to do to let "others" do the job, as Trump put it?
However unpalatable the thought might be, a tragedy like the attack on the US Marine Corps
barracks in Beirut in 1983 is waiting to happen in Syria once the Turkish military crushes and
scatters the Kurdish militia, leaving the 2,000 US troops stranded like sitting ducks in 12
bases in the middle of nowhere spread over a vast territory about one-third the size of all
Syria.
Wouldn't Trump know he's skating on thin ice? For if body bags were to come home, the
political cost would be his – not Mattis'.
Equally, Trump can no longer take for granted the Saudi willingness generously to bankroll
the United States' war in Syria, especially if the self-styled humanists on the Hill proceed
with their foreign-policy agenda to wreak vengeance on Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman for the
killing of Jamal Khashoggi. You can't have the cake and eat it too, can you?
The ground reality is that Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Jordan have
exited the Syrian conflict. Egypt has no stomach to get involved and Turkey, of course, has
turned hostile. So who are these "allies" that the agitated folks in the US are talking about?
The frank answer is: a clutch of British and French operatives and a horde of Western
mercenaries. Isn't this a macabre joke?
The Americans have been acting as "spoilers" in Syria, locked in a geopolitical struggle
that has very little to do with fighting terrorism and has only impeded the stabilization of
the Syrian situation. Thus it is no coincidence that Trump unveiled his considered decision
just as the announcement was made in Geneva that the pan-Syrian committee for the drafting of a
new constitution has been set up, which will work under United Nations supervision to galvanize
a political process leading to elections and the formation of a new government enjoying the
mandate of the people.
Turkey and the Kurds
Finally, the Kurdish factor. The alliance with the Kurdish militia in Syria has severely
damaged US-Turkish relations. Turkey will never allow the creation of a Kurdish homeland on its
borders, and it has a congruence of interests with Iraq and Iran – and even Syria –
in this regard.
On the other hand, without a strong partnership with Turkey, a "swing" state overlooking
several regions, American strategies not only in the Greater Middle East but also in the
Eastern Mediterranean, the Balkans, the Black Sea and the Caucasus will be at a serious
disadvantage. Now, is that something the US can afford?
The US has done a great injustice to the Kurds by giving them false hopes. Leave them alone.
They will reconcile with Damascus, availing of the good offices of Russians who have dealt with
them from time immemorial.
Plainly put, the Pentagon's trainers and Special Forces "embedded" with Kurdish men and
women fighters helped develop romantic notions of creating an independent country for their
partners. This should never have happened.
PATRICK COCKBURN: The Turks benefit from this. It also shows, you know, that Turkey
is really powerful in the region. You know, they've moved a lot of troops up to the border.
They'd been threatening to come in anyway. I think, you know, portraying this as Russia being
the big winner, this is pretty naive, or even childish, in many ways. It's in Russia's
interests that the U.S. should stay in Syria in alliance with the Kurds, which means that the
U.S. is probably confronting Turkey, whose main policy objective is to eliminate this Kurdish
enclave. So if anything, you know, this is something which makes it easier for the
administration to revive the old U.S. alliance with Turkey. And so it doesn't necessarily work
in Russia's favor.
This is a very simpleminded view, that this benefits Russia. Turkey benefits because
suddenly this whole area in northeast Syria becomes vulnerable to them. They've threatened to
move in. They've talked about burying the Kurdish militants in ditches. And we know what
happened earlier in the year in Afrin, another Kurdish enclave. You know, there was extreme
ethnic cleansing. Almost half the Kurdish population was driven out, and hasn't come back.
They've been taken over by extreme Arab jihadis. So yeah, it's very much in Turkey's interests
what's happened. But it is not necessarily in Russia's interests at all. BEN NORTON:
Yeah, Donald Trump himself, in fact, repeatedly tweeted this on December 20 in response to the
news. You know, many media reports portrayed this as a gift to Russia and Iran. Trump pointed
out that now Russia and Iran will be fighting ISIS on their own in Syria, and there are still
elements of ISIS that are in the country. Thousands of fighters, although ISIS doesn't control
a territorial capital, as it had in the past. And what's also interesting about this is that on
the same day Trump announced the withdrawal of U.S. troops on December 19, the U.S. State
Department also cleared a $3.5 billion sale of air defense systems to Turkey. And in addition
to that, a few journalists, mostly Kurdish and Turkish journalists, pointed out that Trump's
decision to withdraw came just two days, or a few days, after he had a phone call with the
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. And just two days before that decision, Erdogan had, in
fact, claimed that in the phone call Trump had agreed, had greenlighted, to a Turkish assault
on northeast Syria. Turkey has been trying to get the U.S. to get approval to send Turkish
troops and embedded jihadist rebels east of the Euphrates River. So do you think that this is
essentially a kind of green light from Trump, saying to Erdogan go ahead and invade?
PATRICK COCKBURN: Well, it kind of–it opens the door to that. Green light
creates a picture of somebody saying, you know, go for it. Which is doubtful. But you withdraw
the troops, Turkey has been threatening to intervene. Yeah, I think, you know, it may well
amount to that.
I think that, you know, it's easy to pillory what Trump said and did. You know, saying that
the Islamic State will come back, ISIS will come back. But you know, this was a movement that
once controlled territory really from Baghdad to almost to the Mediterranean. And you know, it
just lost its last small town on the east of the Euphrates in eastern Syria. So you know, will
it come back? Well, yeah, there will be more guerrilla warfare. But again, you know, what
strikes me about a lot of the coverage is it's kind of hysterical. It kind of–it is based
on a sort of conspiratorial view of what Trump is up to, what his relations with the Russians
are. You know, this stuff is so far from the reality of what's actually happening on the ground
in Syria, or in Iraq, for that matter. It's very difficult to to discuss it or contradict it.
But it's just sort of off the wall.
BEN NORTON: And the question now up in the air is what will happen to the Kurdish
forces in northeast Syria, specifically the YPG, the People's Protection Units, which control
this area in the northeast. For months now the YPG has, in fact, had kind of on and off
relations with Damascus, the central government of Syria. They had brief negotiations and peace
talks, and they made some–a few agreements. But it seems that the agreements didn't go
very far. It seems to me that this decision will encourage the YPG to seek further
rapprochement and a kind of alliance with Damascus. So what do you think-
PATRICK COCKBURN: They'll be desperate to do that right now, because they may not
like Damascus very much, but they'd much prefer the Syrian government to the Turks. They're
really terrified of the Turks coming in. They're threatened. They are terrified of ethnic
cleansing. So they'll go to Damascus.
Now, previously, because of the U.S. presence that inhibited them, stopped them doing that.
And also the Russians didn't want them to do that. So they'll do that. But it's it's–you
know, the Turkish army is pretty big, pretty strong. Even supposing the Syrian army came into
this enclave it wouldn't necessarily be able to stop the Turks. I mean, what's happened is
that, you know, if you go to that area, one, it's not a great place for the Turks to fight
against heavy armor and aircraft. It's very flat, most of the east of the Euphrates. Not many
mountains, or no mountains, and few hills. And also mostly about 2 million Kurds there. But a
lot of them are in towns or cities along the Syrian-Turkish border. Often cities, when the
frontier was drawn up between Syria and Turkey, it ran along the old railway line between
Aleppo and Mosul. And so cities were cut in half. Kurdish cities were cut in half. So a lot of
these the Kurds live within artillery range of the Turkish army/.
It's important to talk about this, because if the Turks do come across, we could have a
great wave of 2 million Kurds taking to the roads, desperate to get out, going to northern
Iraq, going elsewhere. And there seems very little concern about this, and it's kind of
depressing to hear these sort of conspiracy theories about Russia when what is happening is
that, you know, is in many ways pretty–you know, pretty simple, but pretty bad.
BEN NORTON: And then finally, Patrick, let's just take a big look at what's going on
here. What do you think this will mean for the future of the war in Syria? The war has been
going on since early 2011, and it looks like the conflict is really finally in its final
stages. It might come to an end pretty soon. We've also seen, interestingly, negotiations
between Iran, Russia, and Syria, and Turkey. And specifically, Iran, Turkey, and Russia have
had these kinds of peace negotiations. They've had some developments, some breakthroughs, and
then some obstacles. But the three of them, it seems like they have had many agreements,
although there are some agreements that seem pretty intractable. And I think the question of
Idlib, and now the question of the Northeast, seem to be two major obstacles that Russia, Iran,
and Turkey have really different views on. So with this potentially the U.S. withdrawal, would
this potentially accelerate a peace negotiation for the end of the war? Or could it potentially
usher in a new phase of the war?
PATRICK COCKBURN: It could go either way. It's very difficult to tell which way the
ball will roll after this. Will the Turks come in directly, or will the Russians try to stop
them? Will the Syrian government sort of take over the, do a deal with the Kurds and take over?
You know, if the Turks do come in, what will happen to the Kurds in this area? You know, it's
about 50-50 Kurds and Arabs. And they–you know, the relations are very hostile. You know,
there could be a lot of revenge killings in this area.
So you know, it's difficult to say that. But I think a lot of this has to do with Trump
wanting to get on better terms with Turkey. And if he does want to do anything against Iran,
having better relations with Turkey is essential. But the actual having a U.S.–a Kurdish
enclave supported by the U.S. in Turkey never really, you know, didn't do any damage to the
Russians, and didn't do any damage to Iran. So I think the idea that this is, you know, Happy
Christmas for Putin and slogans like that is really completely unrealistic.
BEN NORTON: We'll have to end our conversation there. We were speaking with the
award-winning journalist Patrick Cockburn, who has for decades been a foreign correspondent for
the British newspaper the Independent, and he's also the author of several books. Thanks so
much for joining us, Patrick.
PATRICK COCKBURN: Thank you.
BEN NORTON: For The Real News Network, I'm Ben Norton.
The Grauniad just quoted a tweet from a predictably OUTRAGED @HillaryClinton:
Actions have consequences, and whether we're in Syria or not, the people who want to
harm us are there & at war. Isolationism is weakness. Empowering ISIS is dangerous.
Playing into Russia & Iran's hands is foolish. This President is putting our national
security at grave risk.
This from the woman who almost singlehandedly (i.e. along with David Cameron and Sarkovy)
destroyed Libya and allowed -- if not encouraged -- the flow of US weapons to go into the
hands of ISIS allies in the US-Saudi-Israeli obsession with toppling Assad regardless of the
consequences. As Justin Raimondo wrote in
Antiwar.com in 2015:
The policy of the Obama administration, and particularly Hillary Clinton's State
Department, was – and still is – regime change in Syria. This overrode all
other considerations. We armed, trained, and "vetted" the Syrian rebels, even as we looked
the other way while the Saudis and the Gulf sheikdoms funded groups like al-Nusra and
al-Qaeda affiliates who wouldn't pass muster. And our "moderates" quickly passed into the
ranks of the outfront terrorists, complete with the weapons we'd provided.
This crazy policy was an extension of our regime change operation in Libya, a.k.a.
"Hillary's War," where the US – "leading from behind" – and a coalition of our
Western allies and the Gulf protectorates overthrew Muammar Qaddafi. There, too, we
empowered radical Islamists with links to al-Qaeda affiliates – and then used them to
ship weapons to their Syrian brothers, as another document uncovered by Judicial Watch
shows.
After HRC's multiple foreign policy fiascos she is the last person who should be
commenting on this matter.
We used to jokingly call the Washington Post 'Pravda on the Potomac' because of what
appeared to be occasional heavy spin – the official story – in news coverage on
foreign policy. Now, the new coverage seems to be 'all spin all the time'. It's getting
harder and harder find reporting on foreign policy issues.
What is the most valuable thing Turkey has? The ability to block pipelines to Europe. They
need to have Syria in semi chaos to complete that block, but it is already the case. And
there is no shortage of cheap options to maintain it, nor any huge objection by regional
players to maintain it.
Turkey, otoh, controls its territory well enough to make its own moves, leveraging its
strategically central location to the max. (The whole flood-the-EU-with-refugees extortion
move was just vicious. Kissinger would be proud )
Also the pipeline expansion is a big part of the Russia phobia too. Keeping hydrocarbons
flowing by sea under the protection of the navy is a cornerstone of maintaining global
security. Thus, as long as Turkey blocks Russian pipelines too, it will get away with it for
the time being.
With a likely Emerging markets bust, however, TR will be at the mercy of creditors, so
Erdogan is going to need a whole new stack of cards to play for that round, which wol be next
year very possibly.
Thanks for this post. I makes the best sense of our actions. We want to keep Turkey loyal
to NATO, keep them buying our missiles, etc. The raging hatred of Turkey for the Kurds and
their pursuit of a corner of land to call their own somewhere in the east of Turkey (close to
huge oil reserves) and the threat of relentless terrorism has been Erdogan's big nightmare.
At odds with Erdogan has been the policy of the US Military which has always used the Kurds
as trusted allies in the ME. But all the sturm und drang of Syria has now subsided and seems
to have been almost pointless thanks to the Saudis falling apart. At least it looks that way.
And this also explains Mattis' abrupt resignation, explicitly stating he does not agree with
Trump turning his back on the Kurds. Basically. Mattis has worked with the Kurds for decades
probably. The only question now is what concessions did we get from Erdogan that Turkey will
not have a total pogrom on the Kurds? It is going to be interesting to see what becomes of
the Saudis as well.
"... The only losers are the Israelis and the Saudis ..."
"... Now is the time for noninterventionists of all colors to support these decisions. ..."
"... I have seen some indication that we (the USA) will be removing support for Saudi activities in Yemen ..."
"... How much more flak could the neocons give him at this point. Short of assassinating him they've just about thrown everything they have at him. ..."
"... This is good news. It is insane to occupy a third of Syria risking a world war. But I heard the other day Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon accusing Russia of using Facebook to destroy American democratic values. That is crazy. ..."
"... If Trump pulls the troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan just before the next presidential election - I think he can win it. There is strong bipartisan support for bringing the troops home. I am Canadian and a lefty - but if I were an American I would vote for Trump in the next election if he pulled the troops out (as long as his democratic opponent was not making a credible pledge to do the same). ..."
The papers are saying withdrawal in 30 days. I don't know when the clock starts. That's fast,
but enough time to coordinate the withdrawal with Damascus and her allies. The only
losers are the Israelis and the Saudis . Between this bold and far reaching decision by
Trump and the reestablishment of USSPACECOM, he is being presidential on a grand scale and
keeping promises. He's going to get a lot of flak from neocons on the left and right. Now
is the time for noninterventionists of all colors to support these decisions.
I would think that 30 days is an impossibly short period. It is not just a matter of climbing
on board aircraft to leave. It should be noted that the US has a long record of walking away
from allied peoples and groups in a treacherous way. People who trust us even in extremis are
fools. When you no longer serve our purpose we are done with you. Having been involved in
several of such abandonments I speak from experience.
A friend of mine was in 1st Log in Saigon and was told the order was to get out stuff out in
some silly assed time frame. He replied that we had been putting stuff in Vietnam for 10
years and you want it all out pronto???!!!
A good story but we actually back-hauled a great deal of materiel and still left the ARVNs
enough that the communists sold it all over the world for years. My outfit at the end was
STDAT-158. We were the rump of MACVSOG left behind to keep up the good work in that vale of
tears. We had vast warehouses full of weapons, ammunition, clothing, commo gear, medical
supplies, etc. We sent much of it to Okinawa and turned the rest of it over to our remaining
native troops. They were non-Vietnamese who were not ARVN. They went into the jungle north of
Pleiku where we had bought them at their request since the USG would not evacuate them and
their families from the country - BOHICA! I argued as best a major could to set them up
somewhere like Palau until I was told to shut up. Alas.
TTG, I have seen some indication that we (the USA) will be removing support for Saudi
activities in Yemen . The Kashogi killing seems to be the excuse. So maybe there is a
grander general withdrawal from MENA involvement afoot. How much more flak could the
neocons give him at this point. Short of assassinating him they've just about thrown
everything they have at him.
TTG, I am wondering if you have an opinion on the writings of active duty Army Maj. Danny
Sjursen, who posts a lot at
tomdispatch.com and is reprinted at
truthdig.com . Though often critical of the president, his latest (linked below) is
approving of Trump's Syria move:
Other sources are saying 60 to 100 days for a complete withdrawal. That's fine. Now is the
time for those Special Forces teams working with the Kurds and Arabs of the YPG/YPJ and SDF
to finally complete a full cycle of a US sponsored resistance, the demobilization and/or
integration of those forces into the host government's forces.
You would be surprised (or maybe not) at the range of people our Special Forces have worked
with. I wrote this a while back about our work with the Iranian Green Berets. Some of the
meet-ups I imagined may take place.
TTG. , theres some Russia reports on fighters from Syria moving to Africa , will this mean an
increase of US African activities after syria ? or do you foresee another theatre of
increased activity ?
I'm sure jihadis from Syria are making their way to various fronts in Africa. I doubt Trump
will be sending troops to the continent in response beyond a few more SF teams. I imagine the
Russians will be sending a few teams of their own.
What do you think when you see AFRICOM increased activity in africa ? is this one of the
neocon's way to counter china's influence in africa in the future ? The French also got
heavily involved in Mali and yet there still no end of it..
This is good news. It is insane to occupy a third of Syria risking a world war. But I
heard the other day Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon accusing Russia of using Facebook to destroy
American democratic values. That is crazy.
The Yellow Vests provincial French uprising is destroying corporate toll booths and speed
cameras. This plus Brexit documents how fragile the Western Alliance is. The anger across the
West is due to horrendous inequality, privatization, political incompetence, and degradation
of life. Instead of picking fights with everyone across the world, Mid America needs
rebuilding and healing to prevent a revolt at home.
As a corollary to today's announcement, we should see our troops out of Tanf most rikki-tik.
I bet we could get out of there in 24 hours if we had to. That would open the
Baghdad-Damascus Highway.
I was wondering, with the benefit of hind sight, who knew in advance given a flurry of SAA
activity recently around At Tanf. I doubted the point was a show down with the US now it
looks like an encirclement to intercept the force fleeing the area, once the US pulls out,
and in preparation for clearing the pocket.
A good start! Now, if Trump can also get our troops out of Afghanistan, he will have
fulfilled another campaign promise and free up some money for yet another; The Wall.
If Trump pulls the troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan just before the next presidential
election - I think he can win it. There is strong bipartisan support for bringing the troops
home. I am Canadian and a lefty - but if I were an American I would vote for Trump in the
next election if he pulled the troops out (as long as his democratic opponent was not making
a credible pledge to do the same).
That's a positive indication, but I thought the calculus was to force the Iranians out? Is
Trump now willing to engage a more diplomatic approach with Iran? Has neocon influence lost
momentum?
It looks like this is the rationale behind this move:
Ayham Kamel, an analyst with Eurasia Group, said Moscow, as part of any deal, may ask for
acceptance of Assad and an eventual withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria, as Trump has
suggested he would like to see happen by the end of the year.
"A public deal that accepts Assad in return for limiting Iranian influence implicitly if
not explicitly gives him some legitimacy, and gives a much more coherent meaning for the
victory beyond military terms," he said.
The president has also been trying to work out some sort of deal with the Taliban in
Afghanistan. Apparently the president wants to remove all US troops in Afghanistan by the
time of the 2020 election season. I'd certainly like to see that happen too.
That's a positive indication, but I thought the calculus was to force the Iranians out?
Iran activities in Syria will be limited (or regulated, if one wishes) by Russia-Israeli
arrangement, it is a given. Syrian air-defense officers Mustafa Ivanov and Akhmed Petrov
manning all those air-defense toys in Syria (S-300 PMU et al) saw to that. Russia is NOT
Israel's enemy but she expects some set of rules which work for everyone in Syria. IDF top
brass nowadays visits Moscow as if going to work everyday.
I think the tiny minds that infest this site would do well to expose themselves to the larger
strategic thinking of Mia Farrow:
"As Trump pulls troops out of Syria, we must acknowledge the enormity of
the world's failure to halt a humanitarian catastrophe . U.S exit
benefits Russia, ISIS - still active, Iran & Assad. Was this agreed
to during Putin/Trump's 2 hour Helsinki meeting- without witnesses?"
Being cynical for a second, could this be a response to the House's refusal to fund the
border wall ? I can imagine the Israeli lobby putting pressure on Congress to make any deal
necessary to retain American forces in Iraq. Is this overly convoluted thinking ?
On a second note, the Colonel has posted elsewhere about Erdogan's ambition to
(re)establish a pan-Turkic alliance across the ME. Will the fact that he won't have the US as
a buffer against Russsia be a help or a hindrance ?
Anyone hoping this means the Turks have cut their ties to the Russians is sadly mistaken.
They've taken the free Patriots, and will use the funds earmarked for the S-300 to pay for
the gas coming from Russia.
And sadly, the inner technical workings of the Patriots and their radar systems will now be
open to inspection by GRU technical intelligence experts. Same for the F35 if that deal frees
up in Congress.
I suspect that is what the Trump administration or more likely Trump himself (no matter
what the intelligence agencies say) personally believes (but then he doesnt listen to
briefings).
It was apparent that Erdogan believes the US was behind the coup against him and thus will
ensure he has ace's up his sleeve (i.e., air defenses that could not (potentially) be turned
off by NATO). Call it a strategic and temporary turn from Russia (for a few months?).
A notable part of US Special Operations Forces will remain on the ground
and additional forces of US-linked private military companies will be
deployed to "defend American interests"
The first US troops in were a couple of dozen Green Berets. They will probably be the last
ones out. If all goes well, they will hand over liaison duties to SAA, Russian or even IRGC
counterparts (loosely speaking). At least that's the way I think it should go.
As TTG says here the Rojava Kurds have a chance here but the window will close quickly if
they do not embrace fully the Syrian government. I suspect that the Russians have made a deal
with Turkey that involves a cessation of support of jihadis in Idlib and possibly Afrin in
return for a free hand against the Rojava Kurds and that Trump personally and against advice
made that decision.
I think one should NEVER betray one's own. Unless Russia gets some deal for the Kurds, they
will be thrown under the bus. The only place where they can get some mercy is, again, in
Damascus. If you ask me, I would crush them.
Assad's policy is to eventually exert control over ALL Syrian territory. He wants the Kurds
to be an integral part of that Syria, probably more integral than a lot of Kurds would want.
If we facilitate that transfer, we will for once do right by an indigenous ally. It is time
for the demobilization phase. Special Forces commanders should be doing everything in their
power to ensure this is part of the withdrawal plan. That's how we avoid betraying the Rojava
Kurds.
No, Sir. In fact, it is true that human nature has its contradictions. War is a total waste
of resources -both human and material. Negotiations and diplomacy are much better courses of
action. I guess I got carried away, and I reacted irrationally. Syria has suffered enough,
and I hope that the parties can find ways to put away their weapons and start the
recontruction of their country despite the mistakes from all sides.
Might be a bit of a tussle with Turkey but its probable that Damascus and the SDF have been
in talks for a while so hopefully this time, as opposed to Afrin, the Kurds will see sense.
The Turks biggest fear must be PKK spreading along their southern border and if Syria/Russia
can give them some assurances re that then perhaps they will sit back and watch.
This will leave the SAA and RuAF, with Iraqi help, to get stuck in on a proper demolition
of the remaining ISIS units followed by a Idlib campaign.
There is an implication in this move by the US that they have evacuated anyone that
matters from their proxy units. How the remaining disposable foot soldiers react to that is
an unknown so a factor in a rapid withdrawal to reduce shot in the back risk.
If Trump also wants to get out of Afghanistan perhaps this is a small scale dry run.
This article written more then a year ago still reads as today analysis of the situation.
Bravo !
Notable quotes:
"... That's fine, but the problem is that Trump's track record so far makes it impossible to give him unalloyed credit for this. ..."
"... Who exactly is the US at war against in Syria and why is it going on? http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-u-s-military-bases-in-syria-their-precise-location-is-known/5600527 ..."
"... Trump has decided. Perhaps. But do the CIA and/or Pentagon really care what Trump decides? Thank you for this concise summation of Imperial Washington's war against Syria. ..."
"... The goal of supporting the Kurds is still a priority, to advance Israel's fall back position of partition. It would prefer the chaos of a regime run by jihadi scum (not going to happen thanks to V. Putin) but either way we'll do Israel's bidding. ..."
"... As so often, the weakness of the argument is obvious in the first sentence: "Many Americans voted for Donald Trump because he vowed to end the foreign conflicts in which the US had become entangled". I can't say I recall any such vow. Trump is a master of doubletalk. He says everything and the contrary of everything. ..."
"... Where is the "Special Prosecutor" on this? Assange: 'CIA Not Only Armed Syria's Insurgents -- It Paid Their Salaries' http://www.informationliberation.com/?id=57076 ..."
"... "Pompeo and David B. Rivkin Jr., a senior fellow at the neoconservative think-tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies, argued in an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal that "Legal and bureaucratic impediments to surveillance should be removed." Pompeo has also suggested that National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden should be executed." ..."
"... ZeroHedge: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-07-23/five-weird-conspiracy-theories-cia-director-mike-pompeo "Mike Pompeo sounds increasingly unhinged when talking about Russia, Wikileaks and the media" ..."
"... U.S. Special Operations Commander Tony Thomas confirmed Friday that the U.S. had ended its covert program aiding rebel groups fighting against Syrian President Bashar Assad, saying the decision was made after assessing the years-long operation's capabilities and by no means an effort to curry favor with Assad's chief backer, Moscow ..."
"... Lavrov has some pretty direct and well-deserved words for Obama. Thus, Lavrov compares Obama to a small kid unable to comprehend the responsibilities of his position of a President of the US. ..."
"... Oded Yinon in his famous article "proceeds to analyze the weaknesses of Arab countries concluding that Israel should aim to bring about the fragmentation of the Arab world into a mosaic of ethnic and confessional groupings. "Every kind of inter-Arab confrontation," he argued, would prove to be advantageous to Israel in the short term. Ilan Peleg described it as "an authentic mirror of the thinking mode of the Israeli Right at the height of Begin's rule." Chomsky warned against complacency about these fringe ideas since, he argued: "(t)he entire history of Zionism and later that of Israel, particularly since 1967, is one of a gradual shift towards the positions of those formerly regarded as right-wing extremists." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yinon_Plan ..."
"... van Creveld also stated: "We have the capability of taking the world down with us. And I assure you that will happen before Israel goes down." Food for thought! ..."
"... Tucker and Tulsi on Syria vs CIAria https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IGAXJNzPfU ..."
Many Americans voted for Donald Trump because he vowed to end the foreign conflicts in which
the US had become entangled. So far, they have been disappointed. But this week a light flashed
at the end of the tunnel.
President Trump, according to numerous reliable Washington sources, has decided to end US
arms supplies and logistics support to Syria's jihadist rebels that have fuelled the bloody
six-year conflict. Washington, and its allies Britain and France, have persistently denied
arming Syria's jihadist rebels fighting to bring down the Russian and Iranian-backed government
of President Bashar Assad.
Former President George W. Bush actively considered invading Syria around 2008 in collusion
with Israel. But the Israelis then pointed out that there were no Western-friendly groups to
replace Assad, only extreme militant Sunni Muslim groups. Even the usually reckless Bush called
off the invasion of Syria.
By contrast, Barack Obama gave a green light to the CIA to arm, train and logistically
support anti-Assad jihadist rebels in Syria. Arms poured in from Lebanon and, later, Turkey,
paid for by Saudi Arabia and the Gulf emirates. Small numbers of US, British and French
advisors went to Syria to teach the jihadists how to use mortars, explosives, and anti-tank
weapons. The media's claim that the fighting in Syria was due to a spontaneous popular uprising
was false. The repressive Assad government was widely unpopular but the uprising was another
CIA 'color-style' operation.
The object of this operation was to overthrow President Assad and his Shiite-leaning regime,
which was supported by Iran, a bogeyman to all the US-backed feudal Arab oil monarchies. Syria
was also to be punished because it refused Washington's demands to sever ties with Iran and
accept US tutelage.
Then US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton championed the covert war against Syria,
arranging massive shipments of arms and munitions to the rebels from Kadaffi-era arms stores in
Libya, and from Egypt, Croatia, likely Serbia, Bulgaria and Azerbaijan. Once again, the Gulf
Arabs paid the bill.
The offensive against Syria was accompanied by a powerful barrage of anti-Assad propaganda
from the US and British media. From the background, Israel and its partisans beat the war drum
against the Assad government.
The result of the western-engendered carnage in Syria was horrendous: at least 475,000 dead,
5 million Syrian refugees driven into exile in neighboring states (Turkey alone hosts three
million), and another 6 million internally displaced. That is, some 11 million Syrians, or 61%
of the population, driven from their homes into wretched living conditions and near famine.
Two of Syria's greatest and oldest cities, Damascus and Aleppo, have been pounded into
ruins. Jihadist massacres and Russian and American air strikes have ravaged once beautiful,
relatively prosperous Syria. Its ancient Christian peoples are fleeing for their lives before
US and Saudi takfiri religious fanatics.
Just when it appeared the jihadists were closing in on Damascus, limited but effective
Russian military intervention abruptly changed the course of the war. The Syrian Army was able
to regain the military initiative and push back the jihadists. Intermixed with so-called
'takfiri' rebels are some 3,000 ISIS jihadists who were originally armed and equipped by US
advisors but have now run amok. They are under fierce western air attack in Syria and Iraq and
are splintering.
Russia and the US have been inching toward a major war over Syria. In fact, US intervention
has been far more extensive than generally believed, as this writer has been reporting for the
past five years. Turkish media linked to the government in Ankara has just revealed that the US
has at least ten small military bases in northern Syria being used to support rebel jihadist
forces.
Meanwhile, the US is now relying almost entirely on Kurdish militias, know in Syria as YPG,
to attack ISIS and act in US interests. This has outraged Turkey, which regards YPG as part of
the hated Kurdish independence movement, PKK, against which Turkey has fought for two decades.
During the 1980's, I covered the Turkish-PKK conflict in eastern Anatolia.
If YPG/PKK emerges victorious from the Syrian conflict, Kurdish demands for an independent
state in south eastern Turkey will intensify, threatening the breakup of the Turkish state.
Kurds make up some 20% of Turkey's population of 80 million.
For this very important reason, Turkey has been pulling away from US-run NATO, and warming
relations with Moscow. Turkey has NATO's second largest armed forces and key airbases that
cover the Mideast.
Trump's announced retreat from Syria -- if it turns out to be real -- will mark a major
turning point in US-Russian relations. It could well avoid a clash between Russia and the US,
both nuclear powers. The US has no real business in Syria and no strategic interests
America's powerful neocons, who have been pressing for war against Russia, will be furious.
Expect the media war against Trump to intensify. So too claims that Trump colluded with Moscow
to get elected.
But this week a light flashed at the end of the tunnel. President Trump, according to
numerous reliable Washington sources, has decided to end US arms supplies and logistics
support to Syria's jihadist rebels that have fuelled the bloody six-year conflict.
That's fine, but the problem is that Trump's track record so far makes it impossible
to give him unalloyed credit for this. At the moment it has to be counted as just
another "up" moment in the rollercoaster ride that has been the Trump presidency so far. Will
it foreshadow further moves towards sanity in foreign policy? Or will it just be followed by
another literally stupid lurch back to the neocon-driven norm?
Looked at optimistically, you can read it as a sign that the underlying sensibleness of
the patriotic "America first" noninterventionist approach (as opposed to the usual
Israel/Saudi first, or US-uber-alles militarism, or "humanitarian interventionism" approach)
is finally prevailing, or at least as a sign of a reduction in the US regime drive towards
direct confrontation of Russia.
But looked at pessimistically, it's just an admission of the already obvious failure of
one particular interventionist approach and its termination in favour of alternative
approaches to the same ends, which will be followed by some idiocy such as another childish
murder of Syrian conscripts when Trump is shown some more emotionally manipulative
photographs.
Kudos to Mr. Margolis for penning an excellent article describing the real facts of the
matter against the prevailing propaganda narrative and placing the blame, including by
implication war crimes responsibility, where it belongs.
Why is NO ONE at UNZ covering the UN pay-to-play Corruption/Bribery trial of Ng Lap Seng ?
More coming down the pike involving Ban Ki Moon's brother ! Thank Goodness for Mattew Lee at
Inner City Press ! https://youtu.be/62YnvqveGYU
UNZ should DEFINITELY carry his reportage as he seems to be the ONLY one at the Pressers w/
Dujarric asking questions about ANYTHING at the UN.
Former President George W. Bush actively considered invading Syria around 2008 in
collusion with Israel. But the Israelis then pointed out that there were no
Western-friendly groups to replace Assad, only extreme militant Sunni Muslim groups. Even
the usually reckless Bush called off the invasion of Syria.
You mean the Israeli government's desire that the US fragment Middle Eastern Arab states
for Israel's hegemonic purposes is actually a concern for "Western-friendly groups?" And the
repeated Israeli statements that "ISIS would be better than Assad" means they totally changed
their mind since Bush days? Something doesn't smell quite right here.
President Trump, according to numerous reliable Washington sources, has decided to
end US arms supplies and logistics support to Syria's jihadist rebels that have fueled the
bloody six-year conflict.
Trump has decided. Perhaps. But do the CIA and/or Pentagon really care what Trump
decides? Thank you for this concise summation of Imperial Washington's war against
Syria.
The great thing resulting from the election of Trump is that it made quite clear how
undemocratic the USA is, and how Israel influences, tries to determine, USA foreign policy.
Trump and Putin agree on a partial cease fire in Syria, who objects ?: Netanyahu. What media
continue accusing Trump on collusion with the enemy, Russia ? CNN, Washpost and NYT. I hope
Trump survives the Cold Civil War. Kennedy did not.
@RandalThe goal of supporting the Kurds is still a priority, to advance Israel's fall back
position of partition. It would prefer the chaos of a regime run by jihadi scum (not going to
happen thanks to V. Putin) but either way we'll do Israel's bidding.
Mr. Margolis is must read for me but I wonder at his embrace of the "repressive,"
"unpopular" Assad regime view. I don't get that impression and it is certainly not the view
of Eva Bartlett or Vanessa Beeley. The chemical weapons stuff is complete garbage as Margolis
knows.
Trump will be very popular if he pulls this off, war in Syria is not in the US interest and
being friends with Russia is a smart move. Go Trump!
Good article Eric!
The result of the western-engendered carnage in Syria was horrendous: at least
475,000 dead, 5 million Syrian refugees driven into exile in neighboring states (Turkey
alone hosts three million), and another 6 million internally displaced. That is, some 11
million Syrians, or 61% of the population, driven from their homes into wretched living
conditions and near famine.
You can lay all this at the door of Israel, US Neo-cons and their Congressional and MSM
collaborators + treasonous leaders like Hillary Clinton and John McCain. Same for the Iraq
war (duck shoot) with its WMD lies and the MSM 9/11 trigger "Event". The US as an Israeli
colony is a disaster for the people of Iraq, Libya and Syria and it's also the worst news for
the 98% of Gentiles in the US who have now lost their country to these Zionist freaks.
To claim that Israel got Bush the Mad to back off from invading Syria because they were
concerned about moderate head choppers being the only ones who would fill the power vacuum is
laughable. Israel has supported these thugs many times with medical care, money, shelter in
the stolen Golan and most importantly, their MSM buddies printing all those stories about how
Assad must go.
Israel had been directing its colony, the formerly free USA, to bust up Syria and murder
Assad and that we have been faithfully trying to do, but that damned Putin got in the way, so
sic the MSM on him and his buddy Trump.
The illegal war against Syria is far from over, Israel is PO that Syria hasn't been
destroyed and they will not take lightly some chump like Trump interfering with their
plans.
@Russ I think
that is a good observation. I also believe his traitorous sidekick Graham will also be a
little less vocal about his support for world destruction now that his comrade in stupidity
has fallen. These two obviously are bought and paid for by the Zionists. There is no other
explanation for their predictable level of malice and stupidity.
All good points but its disgusting how left anti imperialists care more about a foreign
people than the colonization and dispossession of the their own group by hordes of 'the
other' from the global south under the aegis of neoliberal ideology.
Well, we non-USA can only be hoping. That order was one of the better, anybody who is reading
English is to knowing that the building attack had nothing to do with a consulate, but the
consul happened to be there at the time. Sure, probably CIA. The weapons-running operation
certainly was.
Hillary was terrible to making 'The Kindness of Muslims' maker the scapegoat, sending him
to prison in defiance of his rights, I only saw the short, but it was both apt and funny, if
there is a feature-length version, I would love to seeing it. It did exist, it seems, was
shown once or twice.
As so often, the weakness of the argument is obvious in the first sentence: "Many
Americans voted for Donald Trump because he vowed to end the foreign conflicts in which the
US had become entangled". I can't say I recall any such vow. Trump is a master of doubletalk.
He says everything and the contrary of everything.
Mr Margolis, and others, heard what they wanted to hear and believed what they wanted to
believe. Quite simply, they fell into the trap Trump set for them. Even if Trump wasn't the
most pro-Israel president in US history, the Israel Lobby is there to see that US foreign
policy suits Israel's interests. Israel sees Iran as its principal enemy. Putin has snuggled
up to Iran and is propping up Iran's "ally", Assad. Israel thus needs to get both Assad and
Putin out of Syria. By failing to stand up to Putin in Ukraine, Obama allowed him to
discredit the US as Europe's, and by extension, Israel's protector and to discredit NATO as
the instrument of that protection. For obvious reasons of geography, there's no way the US
can defend Israel without the use of bases in Europe.
Thus, Trump has to restore US and NATO credibility and the only way to do that is to get
Putin out of Ukraine and, ideally, out of power. The simplest way to do that is to fight him
in Syria, where he's bogged down and cornered and cannot escape unless the US capitulates.
Thus, arming or not arming this or that Syrian group is totally irrelevant. It just shows
that the US can turn the heat up and down on Putin at will. I can't imagine, therefore, why
US neocons would be "furious".
The longer Putin is bogged down in Syria, the better. The last thing Trump needs is to
have anything he does, whether in Syria or Ukraine, billed as a "retreat" in regard to Putin.
That will simply inflame Russiagate.
Trumps word means nothing, and he never said a thing about the pentagram ending their support
of Isis aka al ciada, so this is much ado about nothing, the Zionists want war and war they
shall have until Zionist Israel destroys America.
Zionist Israel and the U.S. and Britain created isis aka al ciada and anyone who thinks
they have given up on regime change and the greater Israel plan in the Mideast is sadly
mistaken. America is under Zionist control.
Could it be that Trump is waking up? In spite of all his bluster during the campaign, it's
become obvious that Mr. Trump doesn't have the foggiest idea how government and politics
actually works. It's just a LITTLE different than running a real-estate operation.
My opinion is that that Trump, being the very insecure egotist that he is, is beginning,
just barely, to realize what people actually expect, not what the neocon con-artists and
rigged "opinion polls" tell him the story is.
Is Trump, maybe, just kinda sorta maybe, waking up to slimeballs like his dirty little
son-in-law he so fervently followed in the past?
Anyway, Trump has been scoring big lately with his chat with Putin and this kick to the
neocons' sensitive area.
Let's all write the guy and tell him he's on the right track. I'm sure the "opinion polls"
will tell him just the opposite, since they're nothing more than some Jew in an office in
Brooklyn telling us what we believe.
You are so clearly a harmful propagandist on so many levels that I need not to
pointing it out.
I am knowing that you are to making one or two of good points at times, but only to draw
to all of your lies and stupid assumptions. Essentially, to making EU= NATO=zionism is the
great thing to you, hate Russia is your cause.
Your 'Michael Kenny' is as much a pseudonym as mine. It is obvious. At least, when I am
posting, it is from the heart of the person behind the pseudonym and of goodwill or to
informing. Reading yours, it is very difficult to see any good intentions.
Many others here are to having critical faculties. They also will be seeing you for what
you are, just a nasty and cheap propagandist, with posts that are always being too long.
Are you on some kind of 'net agent of influence programme? Sure is looking like it.
The evidence seems to support the view that an informational war, with some actual murders,
is taking place within and between, the CIA, FBI, NSA, other U.S. agencies and institutions.
Also this happened in Russia but as Putin survived and consolidated power, it's much less so
now. It is probably happening in many countries. I have come to the conclusion that these
"hidden wars" within seemingly unified groups is part and parcel of human nature. The bad guy
deceivers normally have a huge advantage in that they become much more skilled at deceiving.
Their great disadvantage is that they eventually go so obviously nuts that nobody believes
them anymore!
Since the Resistance has relentlessly played the bogus Russia narrative to a point where it
is hampering him from getting anything done (thus jeopardizing his reelection, if not some
crazy impeachment attempt), Trump's only choice, according to Jiu-Jitsu, is to flip the
script and make the Left the pro-War party. Go!
http://www.martin-van-creveld.com/disaster-area/
Some years ago I had the pleasure of coming across a book by the aged doyen of "oriental
studies," Bernard Lewis. Titled What Went Wrong and first published in 2002, it tried to
explain how and why the brilliant civilization of the Middle Ages had declined until,
finally, it reached the point where the epithet "Arab" is positive only when applied to a
horse.
Must be tough typing out a couple thousand word screed re the destruction of the ME without
mentioning the vile jooies and their total domination of American foreign policy in the area.
The US Knesset on the Potomac is now actually trying to pass a law outlawing any criticism of
the bloodthirsty Izzies ..with very stiff fines for offenders. Need any more evidence?
@Sean The
brilliant Muslim civilization is a myth It never existed.
The Arabs conquered the Middle East and blundered into the legacy of Egypt, Persia
Mesopotamia, Greece Rome, and the Byzantine empire. Claiming the Muslim primitive Arabs
created the legacy of those civilizations is like saying Walter Raleigh developed tobacco or
the Spanish conquerors developed potatoes and corn. Iranians still resent the conquest of
their ancient civilization by the barbarian primitive Arabs
It took about 500 years but the Muslim Arabs destroyed those civilization. Morrish Spain?
Every one of those great buildings, from architects and engineers to porters were built by
European slaves.
It was the numerous Christians and less numerous Jews who kept things going. The Turks
wouldn't even hire Muslim Arabs for any kind of government positions in the Arab countries.
They used local Christians, Jews and imported slave Europeans.
I've read Bernard Lewis. He's outdated. For a long time in the 19th and early 20th century
Jews wrote many of those books extolling the superiority of Muslim Jewish countries over us
blue eyed barbarians. Lewis is one of those writers
@Michael
KennyFor obvious reasons of geography, there's no way the US can defend Israel
without the use of bases in Europe.
Why should the USA defend Israel from its horrible choices, especially being an Apartheid
nightmare? Why should we defend a nation that has attacked our ships, bases and personnel
numerous times? Why should we defend a nation that has control of our economy thru their
choke-hold on the FED and Treasury? Why should we defend a nation that acts like a spoiled
child anytime it doesn't get it's way and goes on murderous rampages against the world's
biggest concentration camp, Gaza? Why should we defend a nation that attacked us on 9/11,
then had their MSM whores blame the Muslim world?
The illness of McCain will give the prospects for cooperation between the US and Russian a
big boost. Here is an interesting article on the subject.
Dismantling McCain's Disastrous Legacy Should Now Be Trump's Top Priority
By Tom Luongo
The Arizona senator's absence creates a unique opportunity for President Trump to alter
the course of our foreign and domestic policy. From Iraq to Libya, Syria to Afghanistan and
right up to Russia's borders in Ukraine, McCain's bloody paw prints are all over more than
a decade of American foreign policy blunders.
@Greg Bacon
The attempted sinking of the USS Liberty in 1967 and the actions of the US government since
reveal 50 years of the Israeli tail wagging the yankee dog. It is unprecedented in history
for an auxilliary satellite state to so dominate the foreign policy actions of what should be
the dominant power. Whether or not 9-11 was a conspiracy is interesting but not dispositive,
since whatever its cause, whether or not intentionally planned or simply allowed to happen,
as I suspect, the event was used as a Reichstag fire event by the yankee regime and its
Israeli patrons to brush aside any remaining opposition to the neocon project. By the way, I
am totally convinced that the anthrax attacks occurring in the wake of 9-11 were to secure
this result.
@NoseytheDuke
" ten U.S. bases in the Syrian provinces of Al-Hasakah, Manbij and Raqqa, as well as in the
areas of Harab-Isk and Rmeilan The source also reported on the number of the U.S. servicemen
deployed at these bases."
Splendid. Illegally, on a territory of the sovereign state of Syria, without any permission
from the Syrian government.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-u-s-military-bases-in-syria-their-precise-location-is-known/5600527
But for the demonizers of Iran and apologists of Kievan junta, the US involvement in Syria is
a clear case of bringing the "democracy on the march."
@WorkingClass
"But do the CIA and/or Pentagon really care what Trump decides?"
-- You mean, the CIA and/or Pentagon will jump as high as the Lobby tell them to jump?
@Miro23 "The
US as an Israeli colony is a disaster for the people of Iraq, Libya, and Syria "
Agree. A minor addition: The US as an Israeli colony is a disaster for the people of the US
as well.
@Alden"in
the 19th and early 20th century Jews wrote many of those books extolling the superiority of
Muslim Jewish countries over us blue eyed barbarians"
Correct. But in the 2nd half of 20 c. the winds of history shifted with the creation of
state of Israel and Jewish historians decided to write the history anew in which Muslims were
not so good anymore. Father of Netanyahu was one of them.
@Greg Bacon
"Israel had been directing its colony, the formerly free USA, to bust up Syria and murder
Assad and that we have been faithfully trying to do, but that damned Putin got in the way
"
This is why the Russain Federation has been suffering the relentless barrage of demonization
and economic sanctions, and this why Americans have been suffering the stupidity of the
ziocon-promoted Russiangate.
@DESERT FOX "
the Zionists want war and war they shall have until Zionist Israel destroys America."
True. The Jewish communities of the EU/US, UK must decide -- now -- whether they are with
western civilization or with the mythological and barbarous dream of Eretz Israel. The US,
UK, and EU have been a safe harbor for the majority of Jewish people for the last 50 years.
However, the Jewish Lobby is not satisfied with such trifles as the peaceful life and
security and it wants Eretz Israel; PNAC (ziocons' manifest) has been used as an ideological
guise.
There were certain sane Germans who tried to stop Hitler and thus to save Germany. Some of
them paid for the attempts with their lives. Where are the Jewish communities of the US, UK,
and EU to stop the lunatics, all these Friends of Israel and AIPAC, these pushers towards a
worldwide catastrophe? See the ziocon plan in Ukraine, which made the lives of many Jews
there intolerable (welcome, neo-Nazi). What is next -- the rise of antisemitism in the
tolerant (for now) Europe and US?
If MSM were the honest sources of information, the westerners would have seen already the
thousands and thousands of little corpses, the victims of "humanitarian interventions" of
NATO/US in Libya and Syria and would already demand to hang the main war profiteers /war
criminals to prevent more carnage and more war-profiteering schems.
The ongoing wars in the Middle EAst are an integral part of Eretz Israel project. Give Israel
its due.
@Bruce
Marshall This is great: "CIA not only armed Syria's insurgents -- it paid their
salaries."
And who are these "insurgents" -- the "moderate" jihadis affiliated with ISIS and Al
Qaeda?
The supposedly "manly" CIA director Mike Pompeo comes out as a banal opportunist inclined to
hysterics.
Pompeo, "No one has the right to engage in the theft of secrets from America!"
Assange, "What sort of America can be "taken down" by the truth?"
"Pompeo and David B. Rivkin Jr., a senior fellow at the neoconservative think-tank
Foundation for Defense of Democracies, argued in an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal that
"Legal and bureaucratic impediments to surveillance should be removed." Pompeo has also
suggested that National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden should be
executed."
@Michael
Kenny "For obvious reasons of geography, there's no way the US can defend Israel without
the use of bases in Europe."
For obvious reasons, the sooner the US disengages from Israel, the better for the whole
world.
@Greg Bacon
Why should you? Because Jesus was a Jew just kidding! But didn't you utter something about a
chockhold on the Fed and the Treasury? Well, it may just be me but if I controlled my bitch's
purse then she would be dancing to my tune too!
Here is one of the many views of this unstable man -- How the Trump regime was
manufactured by a war inside the Deep Stat . A systemic crisis in the global Deep
System has driven the violent radicalization of a Deep State faction By Nafeez Ahmed
Top general confirms end to secret U.S. program in Syria
Special Operations commander walked back remarks that appeared to surprise the CIA. ASPEN
-- U.S. Special Operations Commander Tony Thomas confirmed Friday that the U.S. had ended
its covert program aiding rebel groups fighting against Syrian President Bashar Assad, saying
the decision was made after assessing the years-long operation's capabilities and by no means
an effort to curry favor with Assad's chief backer, Moscow . The comments appeared to
take the CIA -- which declined to comment -- by surprise.
Thomas almost immediately tried to walk back his comments after leaving the stage, telling
reporters he hadn't confirmed anything and was referring only to "public reporting."
@jilles
dykstra It won't come to that right away. But it will come to that if Trump does not
ultimately keep the pressure on the Assad regime, and if he ignores all the drumbeats (and
survives the "impeachment").
Try to compare Lavrov with a typical US legislator, for example, with Maxine Waters, John
McCain, and Chuck Schumer, who represent three main subgroups in the US Congress. The decades
of "unnatural selection" in the US government have produced a collection of intellectual and
moral pygmies, unfortunately.
Lavrov has some pretty direct and well-deserved words for Obama. Thus, Lavrov compares
Obama to a small kid unable to comprehend the responsibilities of his position of a President
of the US.
WHATEVER happens, Syria will remain a backward, retarded, Muslim shithole with no freedom,
democracy, respect for women, free speech or press and an all around dysfuntional Arab
country.
@dorkimundo
It is so easy to spot a ziocon thirsty for the US resources, who is eager to see the US to
waste the US limb&blood for the barbarious dream of Eretz Israel
@anon "
dysfunctional Arab country."
It is fun to observe how Israelis of Soviet extraction feel superior to other Israelis and to
everybody else. Check the level of "democracy, respect for women, free speech or press" in
Afghanistan in the 80-s and compare the facts with the disaster brought upon Afghani women by
US warriors.
Your bloodthirsty ideologues of Eretz Israel dream nothing more than creating the
dysfunctional Arab countries next to Israel (see Oded Yinon plan); hence the slaughter of
hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians of all ages in the Middle East. After this
holocaust of Arabs, which was designed and promoted by Israelis and Israel-firsters in the
US, your apartheid state of Israel will never recover morally. You are doomed.
@RobinG He is
the LAST Real Journalist at the UN pressers . Him today explain his oust of his office space
at the UN and replacement by a FAKE "Egyptian" Newspaper.
Thanks for it. Interrupted by a friend and tired, am forgetting what else I was wanting to
say, but your post 42 in this thread is very good.
IMHO, as USA people say, that man is a three-dollar bill. I don't even know if it was
common speech or made up by Phillip Kindred Dick, but 'phoney as a three-dollar bill', it is
a great expression!
@Alden My
point is the Arabs have never been easy to govern and they revolt a lot. Martin van Creveld
says
The aftermath of the war [WW1] saw the establishment of the colonies -- which later
developed into independent states -- of Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, the Gulf, and Trans-Jordan
(as it then was). Saudi Arabia, which was never occupied by either Britain or France,
became independent by default. [...]
Since then the peace to end all peace, as it has been called, has remained the source of
endless trouble. First the British had to cope with Arab uprisings in Palestine and, on a
much larger scale, in Iraq. No sooner were those revolts suppressed than trouble broke out
on the border between Trans Jordan and Saudi Arabia, an entirely artificial line on the map
that the local tribes refused to respect. In 1927-29 it was the turn of the French to
cope with what is still remembered as the Great Syrian Revolt. [...]
How to account for all this trouble? Perhaps the most important answer is the
extraordinary complexity of the region. A complexity which the new states, lacking firm
roots in the population as they did, never succeeded in controlling. There are, of course,
Egyptians and Syrians and Iraqis and Saudis and so forth. But there are also Israelis and
Palestinians. And Arabs and Kurds. And Egyptian Muslims and Egyptian Copts. There are
Sunnis and there are Shi'ites and there are Allawi's, whom some do not recognize as
Muslims at all ).
The Kurds' interminable revolts have had help from the US. but really you cannot say the
US created the uprising of the Kurds against every state they reside in The last time the US
helped Kurds and then abandoned them. Just like the Syrian rebels. Kurds never expected
anything different as they have been dumped by the US before. Leaving their erstwhile allies
to their fate is something America has a reputation for. So I would not get excited about the
US doing it in Syria.
@Sean " the
Arabs have never been easy to govern and they revolt a lot."
When "Arabs" is replaced with "Jews", the statement could be from a book on the history of
the Jewish Greek wars, "the Jews have never been easy to govern and they revolt a lot:"
http://www.onjewishmatters.com/the-jewish-greek-wars/
As for Martin van Creveld, this supremacist barbarian has obtained his fame by promoting
the Samson Option. " Van Creveld was quoted in David Hirst's The Gun and the Olive
Branch (2003) as saying: " We possess several hundred atomic warheads and rockets and can
launch them at targets in all directions, perhaps even at Rome. Most European capitals are
targets for our air force. " https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samson_Option
Very clear. Also explains the miserable role that the US is currently playing on the orders
from the Lobby.
Trump is thinking of doing what Cheney did on the CIA. He is sidelining Tillerson and urging
some handpicked guys to give him what he needs not to certify Iran when it is up for agin in
90 days .
"A third source with intimate knowledge of that meeting said Steve Bannon, the White House
chief strategist, and Sebastian Gorka, deputy assistant to the president, were particularly
vocal, repeatedly asking Tillerson to explain the U.S. national security benefits of
certification. "They repeatedly questioned Rex about why recertifying would be good for U.S.
national security, and Rex was unable to answer," the source said.
http://foreignpolicy.com/2017/07/21/trump-assigns-white-house-team-to-target-iran-nuclear-deal-sidelining-state-department/
It is not US interests . It is the fact that should guide Bannon , Gorka and Trump. Iran
is still in the crosshairs
@annamaria
Israel has no external threat, Syria was always a military minnow. Israel has an internal
threat inasmuch the West Bank Arabs cannot be kept as they are.
The US backs a two state solution and thus in the REALLY IMPORTANT THING America is NOT A
TOOL OF ISRAEL.
"Israel has no external threat" Israel simply wants a destruction of the functioning
neighboring states to proceed with the creation of Eretz Israel. http://www.ahavat-israel.com/eretz/future Not
all Jewish people share this view of Eretz Israel but a certain aggressive and loud part of
them does. The Likudniks are currently in power.
Oded Yinon in his famous article "proceeds to analyze the weaknesses of Arab countries
concluding that Israel should aim to bring about the fragmentation of the Arab world into a
mosaic of ethnic and confessional groupings. "Every kind of inter-Arab confrontation," he
argued, would prove to be advantageous to Israel in the short term. Ilan Peleg described it
as "an authentic mirror of the thinking mode of the Israeli Right at the height of Begin's
rule." Chomsky warned against complacency about these fringe ideas since, he argued: "(t)he
entire history of Zionism and later that of Israel, particularly since 1967, is one of a
gradual shift towards the positions of those formerly regarded as right-wing extremists."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yinon_Plan
One could sympathize with the non-solvable situation for Israel, if not the horrors of the
ongoing Middle Eastern wars that have been promoted by neo-& ziocons.
Is there any evidence that Assad is not the legitimate ruler of Syria? Or that Syria is
better off now than before the civil war started? Those poor people deserve peace.
van Creveld also stated: "We have the capability of taking the world down with us. And
I assure you that will happen before Israel goes down." Food for thought!
"Despite assurances to the contrary, Israel has always been involved in the Syria
conflict. Israel's repeated claims that "it maintains a policy of non-intervention in Syria's
civil war," only fools US mainstream media. Not only was Israel involved in the war, it also
played no role in the aid efforts, nor did it ever extend a helping hand to Syrian
refugees. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians have perished in the merciless war; many cities
and villages were totally destroyed and millions of Syrians become refugees. While tiny and
poor Lebanon has hosted over a million Syrian refugees, every country in the region and many
nations around the world have hosted Syrian refugees, as well. Except Israel.
Even a symbolic government proposal to host 100 Syrian orphans was eventually
dropped ." ( -- Wait when the Lobby starts squeaking that mentioning this shameful fact
is antisemitic.)
Israel has major responsibility for the Syrian tragedy. Astonishingly, Israelis are
planning to triple down on the support for ISIS & Co in Syria.
"Since the start of the conflict, Israel wanted to appear as if in control of the situation,
at least regarding the conflict in southwestern Syria. It bombed targets in Syria as it
saw fit , and casually spoke of maintaining regular contacts with certain opposition
groups. In recent comments before European officials, Netanyahu admitted to striking Iranian
convoys in Syria [whcih is a sovereign state] "dozens of times." But without a joint
Israeli-US plan, Israel is now emerging as a weak party. Making that realization quite
belatedly, Israel is becoming increasingly frustrated. Failing to obtain support from
newly-elected President Donald Trump, Israel is now attempting to develop its own independent
strategy.
On June 18, the Wall Street Journal reported that Israel has been giving "secret aid"
to Syrian rebels, in the form of "cash and humanitarian aid ." -- See the US taxpayers'
money in actions ($3 billion this year only). The "war on terror" came down to the "cash and
humanitarian aid" to terrorists, delivered by Israel directly from the US taxpayers pockets
to Israel's favorite head-choppers.
The trouble with CIA democrats is not that they are stupid, but that that are evil.
Hillary proved to be really destructive witch during her Obama stunt as the Secretary of State. Destroyed Libya and Ukraine,
which is no small feat.
Notable quotes:
"... The policy of the Obama administration, and particularly Hillary Clinton's State Department, was – and still is – regime change in Syria. This overrode all other considerations. We armed, trained, and "vetted" the Syrian rebels, even as we looked the other way while the Saudis and the Gulf sheikdoms funded groups like al-Nusra and al-Qaeda affiliates who wouldn't pass muster. And our "moderates" quickly passed into the ranks of the outfront terrorists, complete with the weapons we'd provided. ..."
"... She is truly an idiot. Thanks again, Ivy League. ..."
The Grauniad just quoted a tweet from a predictably OUTRAGED @HillaryClinton:
Actions have consequences, and whether we're in Syria or not, the people who want to
harm us are there & at war. Isolationism is weakness. Empowering ISIS is dangerous.
Playing into Russia & Iran's hands is foolish. This President is putting our national
security at grave risk.
This from the woman who almost singlehandedly (i.e. along with David Cameron and Sarkovy)
destroyed Libya and allowed -- if not encouraged -- the flow of US weapons to go into the
hands of ISIS allies in the US-Saudi-Israeli obsession with toppling Assad regardless of the
consequences. As Justin Raimondo wrote in
Antiwar.com in 2015:
The policy of the Obama administration, and particularly Hillary Clinton's State
Department, was – and still is – regime change in Syria. This overrode all
other considerations. We armed, trained, and "vetted" the Syrian rebels, even as we looked
the other way while the Saudis and the Gulf sheikdoms funded groups like al-Nusra and
al-Qaeda affiliates who wouldn't pass muster. And our "moderates" quickly passed into the
ranks of the outfront terrorists, complete with the weapons we'd provided.
This crazy policy was an extension of our regime change operation in Libya, a.k.a.
"Hillary's War," where the US – "leading from behind" – and a coalition of our
Western allies and the Gulf protectorates overthrew Muammar Qaddafi. There, too, we
empowered radical Islamists with links to al-Qaeda affiliates – and then used them to
ship weapons to their Syrian brothers, as another document uncovered by Judicial Watch
shows.
After HRC's multiple foreign policy fiascos she is the last person who should be
commenting on this matter.
a different chris, December 21, 2018 at 11:50 am
> the people who want to harm us are there & at war
Sounds like then they are too busy to harm us? She is truly an idiot. Thanks again, Ivy League.
Melania slap of Bolton face might be a good sobering measure. But neocons can't probably recover from their
addition
Notable quotes:
"... Ricardel is a longtime friend and associate of national security adviser John Bolton, who brought her into the National Security Council from the Department of Commerce, where she served as Undersecretary for Export Administration. Ricardel reportedly angered Ms. Trump over seating arrangements on a flight by Ms. Trump to Africa two weeks ago. Ricardel, who was to accompany the First Lady, did not make the trip. Ms. Trump, in an interview conducted with ABC News during the trip, said there were people in the White House she did not trust. Apparently, Ricardel was one of them. ..."
"... Perhaps no one in recent memory brought such a degree of ethnic baggage to her job like Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. Albright's Czech roots and the Yugoslav warrant issued for the arrest of her professor-diplomat father, Joseph Korbel, for the post-World War II theft of art from Prague, brought forth extreme anti-Serbian policies by the woman who would represent the United States at the United Nations and then serve as America's chief diplomat. Albright's hatred for Serbia was not much different than Zbigniew Brzezinski's Polish heritage evoking an almost-pathological hatred of Russia, while he served as Jimmy Carter's National Security Adviser. ..."
"... In 1981, Ronald Reagan appointed Valdas Adamkus as the regional administrator for the US Environmental Protection Agency, responsible for the Mid-West states. Retiring from the US government after 29 years of service, Adamkus was elected to two terms as President of Lithuania. ..."
"... One might ask whether Ilves and Adamkus were kept on the US government payroll merely to support them until they could return to their countries in top leadership positions to help lead the Baltic nations into NATO membership. ..."
"... From 1993 to 1997, Army General John Shalikashvili served as Chairman of the Joint Chefs of Staff. Shalikashvili was born in Warsaw, Poland to a Georgian and Polish mother. During World War II, his father served in the Georgian Legion, a special unit incorporated into the Nazi German "SS-Waffengruppe Georgien." General Shalikashvili served as commander of all US military forces during a time of NATO expansion into Eastern Europe. It was no surprise that he was an avid cheerleader for NATO's expansion to the East. ..."
America has always fancied itself as a "melting pot" of ethnicities and religions that form
a perfect union. The Latin phrase, E Pluribus Unum, "out of many, one," is even found on the
Great Seal of the United States.
However, as seen in a recent blow-up between First Lady Melania Trump and now-former Deputy
National Security Adviser Mira Ricardel, old feuds from beyond the borders of the United States
can result in major rifts at the highest echelons of the US government.
On November 13, Ms. Trump's communications director, Stephanie Grisham, fired off a tweet
that read: "it is the position of the Office of the First Lady that she [Ricardel] no longer
deserves the honor of serving in this White House." The White House announced Ricardel's
departure the next day, November 14.
Ricardel is a longtime friend and associate of national security adviser John Bolton, who
brought her into the National Security Council from the Department of Commerce, where she
served as Undersecretary for Export Administration. Ricardel reportedly angered Ms. Trump over
seating arrangements on a flight by Ms. Trump to Africa two weeks ago. Ricardel, who was to
accompany the First Lady, did not make the trip. Ms. Trump, in an interview conducted with ABC
News during the trip, said there were people in the White House she did not trust. Apparently,
Ricardel was one of them.
The bitter feud between Melania Trump and Mira Ricardel likely has its roots in their
backgrounds in the former Yugoslavia. Ricardel was born Mira P. Radielović, the daughter
of Peter Radielovich, a native of Breza, Bosnia-Herzegovina in the former Yugoslavia. Ricardel
speaks fluent Croatian and was a member of the Croatian Catholic Church. Melania Trump was born
Melanija Knavs [pronounced Knaus] in Novo Mesto in Slovenia, also in the former Yugoslavia.
Villagers in the village of Sevnica, where Ms. Trump was raised, claim she and her Communist
Party parents were officially atheists. Ms. Trump later converted to Roman Catholicism. She and
her son by Mr. Trump, Barron Trump, speak fluent Slovenian. The Yugoslav Civil War, which began
in earnest in 1991, pitted the nation's ethnic groups against one another. There are ample
reasons, political, ethnic, and religious, for bad blood between the Slovenian-born First Lady
and a first-generation Croatian-American. The "battle royale" between Ms. Trump and Ricardel is
but one example of a constant problem in the United States when individuals with foreign ties
bring age-old inter-ethnic and inter-religious squabbles to governance.
Perhaps no one in recent memory brought such a degree of ethnic baggage to her job like
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. Albright's Czech roots and the Yugoslav warrant issued
for the arrest of her professor-diplomat father, Joseph Korbel, for the post-World War II theft
of art from Prague, brought forth extreme anti-Serbian policies by the woman who would
represent the United States at the United Nations and then serve as America's chief diplomat.
Albright's hatred for Serbia was not much different than Zbigniew Brzezinski's Polish heritage
evoking an almost-pathological hatred of Russia, while he served as Jimmy Carter's National
Security Adviser.
Albright's bias against Serbia saw her influence US policy in casting a blind eye toward the
terrorism carried out by the Kosovo Liberation Army and its terrorist leader Hashim Thaci. That
policy resulted in Washington backing an independent Kosovo, a state beholden to organized
criminal syndicates protected by one of the largest US military bases in Europe, Camp
Bondsteel.
Ties by US foreign policy officials to their countries of origin continued to plagued
administrations after Carter. For example, Kateryna Chumachenko served in the Reagan White
House and State and Treasury Departments and later worked for KPMG as "Katherine" Chumachenko.
She also worked in the White House Public Liaison Office, where she conducted outreach to
various right-wing and anti-communist exile groups in the United States, including the Friends
of Afghanistan, on whose board Afghan refugee and later George W. Bush pro-consul in Iraq,
Zalmay Khalilzad, sat. Khalilzad, like Chumachenko, worked in the Reagan State Department.
Chumachenko was married to Ukrainian "Orange Revolution" President Viktor Yushchenko, and,
thusly, became the First Lady of Ukraine. Khalilzad became the Bush 43 ambassador to the UN,
where he often was at loggerheads with Iran, Libya, Syria, and other Muslim states. As was the
case with Albright and her anti-Serb underpinnings, it was difficult to ascertain whose agenda
Khalilzad was serving.
After being fired from the White House, there were reports that Ricardel was offered the
post of ambassador to Estonia. That Baltic country was no stranger to hauling foreign baggage
into the US government. Former Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves, a bow-tie wearing
former Estonian language broadcaster for the Central Intelligence Agency-funded Radio Free
Europe ; long time resident of Leonia, New Jersey; could have just as easily ended up in a
senior State Department position rather than President of Estonia. Such is the nature of
divided loyalties among senior US government officials of both major political parties.
In 1981, Ronald Reagan appointed Valdas Adamkus as the regional administrator for the US
Environmental Protection Agency, responsible for the Mid-West states. Retiring from the US
government after 29 years of service, Adamkus was elected to two terms as President of
Lithuania.
One might ask whether Ilves and Adamkus were kept on the US government payroll merely to
support them until they could return to their countries in top leadership positions to help
lead the Baltic nations into NATO membership.
From 1993 to 1997, Army General John Shalikashvili served as Chairman of the Joint Chefs of
Staff. Shalikashvili was born in Warsaw, Poland to a Georgian and Polish mother. During World
War II, his father served in the Georgian Legion, a special unit incorporated into the Nazi
German "SS-Waffengruppe Georgien." General Shalikashvili served as commander of all US military
forces during a time of NATO expansion into Eastern Europe. It was no surprise that he was an
avid cheerleader for NATO's expansion to the East.
Natalie Jaresko served in positions with the State Department, the Departments of Commerce,
Treasury, the US Trade Representative, and Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC). In
2014, she became the Finance Minister for Ukraine. Earlier, she served as a financial adviser
to Yushchenko. The United States is not the only "melting pot" in North America that suffers
from officials burdened by ethnic dual loyalties. Halyna Chomiak, the Ukrainian-born
émigré mother of Canada's Foreign Minister, Chrystia Freeland, weighs heavily on
Freeland's ability to advance Canada's interests over those of the nation of her mother's
birth.
Trump's entire White House Middle East police team is composed of individuals who place
Israel's interests ahead of the United States. Trump takes his Middle East advice from
principally his son-in-law Jared Kushner, a contributor to and member of the board of the
"Friends of the IDF," an American non-profit that raises funds for the Israeli armed forces.
Kushner was named by Trump as a "special envoy" to the Middle East, while Jason Greenblatt, a
former attorney with the Trump Organization, was named as special envoy in charge of the
Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Although the two positions appear to overlap, Kushner and
Greenblatt, both Orthodox Jews who have little time for Palestinians, are on the same page when
it comes to advancing the West Bank land grabbing policies of the Binyamin Netanyahu government
in Israel. Trump thoroughly Zionized his administration's Middle East policy with the
appointment of another Israel supporter, David M. Friedman, as US ambassador to Israel.
Friedman had been a bankruptcy lawyer with the Trump Organization's primary law firm, Kasowitz,
Benson, Torres & Friedman.
Trump has nominated as US ambassador to South Africa, handbag designer Lana Marks, who was
born in South Africa. Marks, who is known only to Trump from her membership in his Mar-a-Lago,
Florida "billionaires club," left South Africa in 1975, when the country was under the
apartheid regime. Marks claims to speak Afrikaans, the language preferred by the apartheid
regime, and Xhosa, the ethnic language of the late President Nelson Mandela. Because Marks
embellished her professional tennis career by claiming, without proof, participation in the
French Open and Wimbledon in the 1970s, her mastery of Xhosa can be taken with a grain of salt.
So, too, can her ability to deal with the current African National Congress government led by
President Cyril Ramaphosa, who had just been released from prison when Marks left the country
in 1975. The claims and politics of Marks and every official and would-be US official who
failed to shed their biases from their native and ancestral homelands, can all be taken with a
metric ton of salt.
Melting pots are fine, so long as they truly blend together. However, that is not the
situation in the United States as high government officials have difficulty in consigning the
bigotry inherent in family folklore and beliefs to the family scrapbooks.
Looks like Trump lost control of appointments in his administration... and it is Pompeo who is intrumental in defining the US
foreign policy, not Trump.
Notable quotes:
"... The decision by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to give former Wall Street Journal editorial writer Mary Kissel a senior position at the department, despite her previous clashes with US President Donald Trump, shows that neoconservatives are moving in on the administration ..."
"... As a writer, Kissel took Trump to task on Twitter on multiple occasions, criticizing him for his " frightening ignorance " on foreign policy. During a March 2016 appearance on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Kissel even went as far as saying on air that then-candidate Trump had neither principles nor policies. To this, Trump shot back on Twitter, calling her a " major loser ." ..."
"... The only thing that I can think of is that nobody takes Trump seriously in the White House on what he says from day to day ..."
"... Kissel's recent appointment, to no one's surprise, isn't exactly sitting well with the folks on the more conservative side of the political spectrum. In a recent opinion piece for the Washington Examiner, writer Ryan Girdusky wrote that "Kissel is so wrong so frequently that not only should she not be advising Pompeo on policy, she shouldn't be employed by a single newspaper in the country to talk about politics." ..."
"... Kissel, however, isn't the first Trump opponent to be hired by Pompeo. There's also Jim Jeffrey, who, along with several other GOP insiders, signed a letter in August 2016 which noted that then-candidate Trump "lacks the character, values and experience" to be president. Despite his past objections, Jeffrey is now serving in the Trump administration as the special representative for Syria engagement. ..."
The decision by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to give former Wall Street Journal
editorial writer Mary Kissel a senior position at the department, despite her previous clashes
with US President Donald Trump, shows that neoconservatives are moving in on the
administration, investigative reporter Dave Lindorff told Sputnik.
As a writer, Kissel took Trump to task on Twitter on multiple occasions, criticizing him
for his " frightening ignorance " on
foreign policy. During a March 2016 appearance on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Kissel even went as
far as saying on air that then-candidate Trump had neither principles nor policies. To this,
Trump shot back on Twitter, calling her a " major loser ."
An unidentified senior State Department official told Politico that Kissel's past remarks
were more of a reflection of her "role as a member of the Wall Street Journal editorial
board."
"As she has said previously when asked similar questions, her job there was to analyze and
write about policy," the department official said. "As a member of the editorial board, Mary
strongly endorsed this administration's policies on Iran, Afghanistan, tax cuts, energy policy,
regulatory reform, judicial nominations and other issues. She is proud to serve this President
and Secretary Pompeo."
"The only thing that I can think of is that nobody takes Trump seriously in the White House
on what he says from day to day," Lindorff told Radio Sputnik's Loud & Clear on
Wednesday in an attempt to explain Kissel's hiring.
"That could be one answer the other one could be that this kind of neocon person, which she
is, are basically taking over the White House. I wouldn't have called Trump a neocon when he
was running for office, but I think his policies are at this point pretty much in the neocon
playbook on foreign policy."
While it's unclear how Trump reacted to Pompeo's move, Lindorff, who also writes as a
columnist for CounterPunch, suggested that he might have let bygones be bygones after certain
apologies are exchanged.
Kissel's recent appointment, to no one's surprise, isn't exactly sitting well with the
folks on the more conservative side of the political spectrum. In a recent opinion piece for
the Washington Examiner, writer Ryan Girdusky wrote that "Kissel is so wrong so frequently that
not only should she not be advising Pompeo on policy, she shouldn't be employed by a single
newspaper in the country to talk about politics."
"It is frightening that Kissel has managed to fail forward," he added.
Kissel, however, isn't the first Trump opponent to be hired by Pompeo. There's also Jim Jeffrey, who, along with several other GOP insiders, signed a letter in
August 2016 which noted that then-candidate Trump "lacks the character, values and experience"
to be president. Despite his past objections, Jeffrey is now serving in the Trump
administration as the special representative for Syria engagement.
"Yeah, Right, there's no sign of wavering though."
Agreed, there is no *sign* of wavering.
Indeed, the degree of bombast coming out of the Israeli establishment is now
deafening.
"The Golan Heights aren't even an issue today, that's how bad it's gotten."
Oh, I think that once the Syrian government wipes out the last of the jihadists and then
forces the US to withdraw from Syrian territory then you will find the Golan Heights will
become very much a hot potato.
After all, it will then be the last piece of Syrian territory that is not under the
control of the Syrians, and they'll be in no mood to be "intimidated" by the Israelis.
The Israelis will keep beating up on the Gaza Strip? Sure, they will.
And that will lull the Likud into thinking that the IDF is still a mighty fighting force,
sure, it will.
But the strategic situation for Israeli is getting worse and worse, to the point where the
Israelis dare not attack Lebanon for fear that the Syrians will take the opportunity to seize
the Golan Heights, and the Israelis dare not launch an attack into Syria lest Hezbollah
launch a counter-attack on the flank of that expeditionary force.
And either way there is this slight problem: the IDF is now a bunch of
fluffy-girls-blouses, and as such is likely to get its arse kicked in a fight with a real
army.
laguerre has it correct below: the IDF has been hollowed out, as has Israeli society as a
whole. They are riding for a fall, and when they do they will come down to earth with a
thud.
And nobody will be more surprised than them, which is when they will stampede for the
door.
"That said, the airforce is very good, but it's the only arm that works now."
Rather highlights what an "own goal" the Israelis scored when their jets hid behind that
Russia Ilyushin Il-20 plane.
They had been very successful in convincing the Russians not to hand over any S-300
missiles to the Syrians, and now the Syrians not only have them, but they have the most
up-to-date version.
Hatuey
I somewhat share your pessimism but not want to give in yet. The problem is that the way this
has been set and the ground rules have been laid is that the whole 'international community'
is complicit in racism and ethnic cleansing and that is why there will be no progress. The
parameters set are self contradictory, either you recognise that Palestinians have the right
to Palestine or you don't. Recognising that they have the right, at least an equal right,
negates the current wisdom that some people have more rights than others, and that this
trumps all other rights. This obvious point has become a taboo.
SA, if you think this about "right" or "rights" or notions of justice or anything like
that, you aren't even in the right solar system, never mind the right planet. That horse
bolted decades ago.
Nobody with any seriousness disputes Israel's criminality in any of this. And nobody with
any seriousness disputes that we are talking about the highest order of crimes either, ethnic
cleansing, war of aggression, collective punishment, etc.
This is about brute force, nothing else. The UN has been condemning Israel continually for
about 50 years and nothing has come of it because the US vetoes just about everything.
I realise what you say but nevertheless there is a conversation going on that is a total
cover up of reality and trying to justify the unjustifiable. This conversation has set the
limits of what can and can't be discussed.
UK, US, EU, NZ, Canada, Australia, all controlled by Zionist puppets. This is why Israel
get away with what they do and to an extent Saudi, who have 'the goods' on UK dealings.
It's about time the people of these nations took responsibility for the actions of their
'elected' MP's, especially those with 'dual nationality'.
In UK Corbyn is being attacked, not for his policies, which haven't been mentioned, but for
what he stands for. His promise to recognise Palestine, if he becomes PM, has them really
scared, as has his policy for nationalised banks, that lend Government [Sovereign] money to
Entrepreneurs [SME's] who currently cant get loans from banks, as they provide competition to
their Corporate friends. He also wants new bank rules, no doubt based on Glass Seagal.
He'll need to watch is back. Look what happened to Lincoln, Andrew Jackson, John F Kennedy
when they went against the money men!
The only power given to satan is the "Negative Power of Whisper". We are constantly
bombarded with this shitty and crappy "Power of MSM Whisper" which is on a daily basis
brainwashing the masses of the world. This is s very powerful, "Power".
But it is now time that we use the "Positive Power of Whisper" and time to rejoice:
01. Netanyahu government is about to fall.
02. He is personally implicated in bunch of corrupt cases.
03. Hamas has become a pain in his ass, which he cannot defeat no more.
04. Not only Syria has survived, but its' skies are now closed to Israel.
05. Both Syria and Hezbollah forces have become battle hardened.
06. Syria is back in Arab League fold, and now it borders are opened to Iraq, Jordan and
Golan Heights.
07. The Syrian refugees are returning back to their homes.
08. Hamas fired 500 missiles in two day, the Iron Dome success rate was 20%.
09. Both Hezbollah and Hamas have precision guided missiles. Hamas videoed a military bus
they destroyed after everyone left the bus, and only the driver left.
10. Only 100 Iron Dome missiles were successful and at $65,000 a pop, the the total damage
was $30 millions and only 6 million Shekels were successful.
11. With Khashoggi saga, the MSB peace plan has been thrown in dustbin.
12. Iran with its' battle hardened military is at the doorsteps of Israel.
13. I can go on and on .
Syria - Back In The Arab FoldBM , Nov 19, 2018 1:01:56 PM |
link
Following Syria's
military success against its enemies, Arab states which supported the war on Syria are
again making nice with it. The United Arab Emirates will reopen its embassy in
Damascus. Kuwait and Bahrain will follow. Today a delegation of parliamentarians from Jordan
visited Damascus and met with
President Assad .
The members of the delegation affirmed that the pulse of the Jordanian street has always
been with the Syrian people in the face of the terrorist war against the, as Syria is the
first line of defense for the entire Arab region and the victory in this war will be a
victory for all the Arab countries in the face of Western projects aimed at destabilizing
and fragmenting these countries in service of Israel's security.
First signs that this was going to happen appeared a few month ago when a Kuwaiti TV
personality spoke about the pleasure of visiting an again peaceful Damascus. In June the
Foreign Affairs Minister of UAE
called the expulsion of Syria from the Arab league a "mistake". In an interview with a
Kuwaiti paper Assad
said that he had reached "major understanding" with Arab states.
The Saudis though are not yet welcome back in Damascus. They were one of the largest
financiers of the Jihadis and will have to pay an equally large price to come back into good
standing. Negotiations
are ongoing . A formal reentry of Syria into the Arab League can not be far away.
Behind this change is a fear of renewed Turkish ambitions. Not only Saudi Arabia but all
the Arab states do not want Turkey to expand and become more powerful. They do not want to
see Arab land in Syria under Turkish control. The sole exception so far is Qatar which is
allied with Turkey and has Turkish troops on its land to protect it from Saudi
imperialism.
The three blocks that form the larger Middle East, Turkey, Iran and the Arab states north
of the Red Sea are roughly of the same population size. Each block also represents a
religious-political stream with Turkey leading the political-Sunni Muslim Brotherhood, Iran
the political-Shia and with the third block consisting of Sunni majority countries with more
or less dictatorial rulers. The three blocks compete in their borderlands of Iraq and Syria.
The Arabs finally noticed that their attempts to dispose the Syrian government led to gains
for Iran and Turkey and put them on the losing site.
For Syria the new Arab position is a very welcome change. While it will certainly not end
its alliance with Iran, it will welcome any help against the Turkish ambitions. It also needs
investments to rebuild and the rich Gulf states will surely provide some. That will also
sabotage U.S. and European plans to starve Syria of money unless it submits to their will.
That is good news ... what we need now is some good news for Yemen
There were under currents of change earlier but it now seems to have sped up. The Khashoggi
killing seems to have knocked Trump and MBS out of the middle east great game. The Syrian
S-300 plus domestic politics seems to have shut down Netanyahu and Israel for the moment and
US now seem stalled by their domestic politics with the anti Trump group looking to be
sabotaging his foreign policy on top of his other setbacks in foreign policy.
Plenty of room for the GCC mice to play.
I read Crooke's most recent essay earlier and second your motion of its importance. As I
wrote yesterday, it seems Idlib Dawn will finally be given the go-ahead since the Iraqis
aren't yet ready to participate in the East Euphrates operation.
Unmentioned by Crooke is the escalating energy drama over drilling around Cyprus. Also
announced today and noted by a ceremony involving Putin and Erdogan is completion of
Turk-Stream's underwater
segment across Black Sea, thus gas deliveries will commence in 2019. The article provides
a map illustrating Russia's sensitivity to Ukrainian and NATO aspirations to conduct war
games in the Sea of Azov and surrounding area that it will never allow to occur, which is why
NATO's been pushing it as a flashpoint.
Overall, the forces of reaction are in disarray and retreating, although paradigm change
still has a long ways to go.
This is for me, very positive news. Hopefully, Assad and the Syrian people will move forward
together, providing they are wary of the empire's games, and don't except any rhetoric coming
from the West.
IMO they should ask the Russians to stay and move closer into the Russian/Arab orbit.
thanks b.. you forgot the 4th block in the middle east - usa-israel-ksa... look to them to
figure out a way to throw a monkey wrench into any hospitality that might otherwise enter
in..at present usa is still in al tanf and a few other places trying their best to play a
game with the kurds, and the headchoppers they are also responsible for - isis/al qaeda..
thanks god russia got involved.. after witnessing what happened in libya, they realized they
had to act.. a lot of those dictator states, i wouldn't trust, uae in particular.. will be
interesting to see how idlib is resolved, or what crazy game erdogan comes up with next..
Curious to see how Iraq decides which power bloc it will join. Despite Arabic being the first
language for most Iraqis, they are tied to Iran by religion (Shi'ism) and shared history: the
area known to the British as Mesopotamia (between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers and
surrounding territories) used to be part of the Sasanian and Safavid empires (both Persian)
before passing to the Ottomans.
The area south of the Persian Gulf which is currently part of the KSA is also mostly
Shi'ite and was also ruled / influenced by the Persians and the Ottoman Turks in the past. So
we can't assume that the Arabic-speaking populations in that part of the KSA and in Bahrain,
Qatar and the UAE will be necessarily loyal to their current Sunni royal family rulers.
Ham-fisted USA forceful, aggressive, big-stick foreign policy by full spectrum rectum has
served to force alliances btw China and Russia and Arab States. How much longer will the EU
states stay on board? They are fools to follow the USA.
"... Does terrorism even really exist? It seems to me that in most cases (in modern history) incidents of terrorism can be attributed to state actors seeking to discredit and/or escalate. ..."
"... If we look at Northern Ireland it is clear that the British State were involved in carrying out, organizing, etc. acts of terrorism on both sides of the divide. The protestant paramilitaries where actively controlled and directed by the British state and in many incidences actually took part. On the catholic paramilitaries there were British agents who were in senior positions within the IRA and extremely violent in their approach. ..."
"... It is now fairly obvious that Al Qaeda and ISIS were western controlled, funded, trained and directed organizations. ..."
"... There is the Gladio operation (US/Anglo stay behind armies) which staged many acts of terrorism in post war Europe and is likely to still be active. ..."
"... Turkey has both the leverage and, in neutrality, superior military strength vis-a-vis the Kurds in Northern Syria. To top it off, it has the geographic advantage, because a Syrian Kurdistan would be landlocked between hostile neighbors. They were pawns in the American adventure in Syria. ..."
thanks b.. it is still a proxy war and the usa is never going to leave.. they want to get
rid of the pmu in iraq.. sanctions and etc bs... obviously that would help facilitate isis
which the usa claims they are going after.. a load of bs is all i have come to expect from
the usa..
here is inherent bullshit resolve comment regarding your mention of 40 dead.. -
"Inherent Resolve: many open sources claiming massive casualties among civilians in Hajin
region as result of coalition actions without any evidences."
What is the diference between a moderate terrorist and a extreme terrorist? I wonder ? Will
the moderate say please, before he chops you head off?
Any that can help me here? I run afoul the wording. A terrorist is not necessarily a
terrorist ?
If he is on our side then he is ok , clear to go?
Say I wanted to throw bombs (I don't, and cant throw very far) my actions wound depend
on who the victims were? If they were Arabs, it would be ok? If it were white people, it
was probably not ok? Amirite ?
And what is a moral war? Anybody?
Seems like I am more confused today being 61 than I were when I was 20.
Does terrorism even really exist? It seems to me that in most cases (in modern history)
incidents of terrorism can be attributed to state actors seeking to discredit and/or
escalate.
If we look at Northern Ireland it is clear that the British State were involved in
carrying out, organizing, etc. acts of terrorism on both sides of the divide. The
protestant paramilitaries where actively controlled and directed by the British state and
in many incidences actually took part. On the catholic paramilitaries there were British
agents who were in senior positions within the IRA and extremely violent in their
approach.
It is now fairly obvious that Al Qaeda and ISIS were western controlled, funded,
trained and directed organizations.
With the Dakota Pipeline protests there where agitators without a history with the
protest seeking to provoke violence.
Hitler organized outrages against the German communities in Czechoslovakia to justify an
invasion (to protect German minorities).
There is the Gladio operation (US/Anglo stay behind armies) which staged many acts
of terrorism in post war Europe and is likely to still be active.
There is barely a terrorist incident that doesn't have some connection to state
actors.
How many times have we read reports of terrorists fleeing toward al-Tanf; I recall at least
a dozen over the past 2 years. The volume and rhetorical tone Russia uses in what are now
its demands that Outlaw US Empire forces abandon al-Tanf have drastically escalated over
just the past month as several damning reports of conditions at the refugee camp are now
published.
The rains in the region were quite spectacular and numerous videos of camel caravans
slogging through the mire along with others--a massive river in al-Safa flowing through the
rocks is one--are all over Twitter. Additional long-serving Syrian troops have been
demobilized and discharged from service and further amnesty programs introduced to goad
refugees to return. Civilian services still need lots of attention, but normal life is
steadily returning.
Idlib awaits its Dawn operation as the Turks have had more than enough time to do their
sorting, while the terrorists have increased their number of assaults inviting increased
counter-fire. The chemical FF potential still lurks, and further excellent published
exposures detailing the true nature of the White Helmet Terrorists are published. IMO,
Russian hopes of solving Idlib politically without a major combat operation have dimmed
greatly.
Numerous variables influence where the next major combat op will occur. Iraq's political
issues impede its military actions. A weighty contingent of Russian troops were moved to
Dier-Ezzor over the past two months along with fresh Syrian forces. With the clearing of
al-Safa, those forces will likely combine and head East over the Euphrates. I believe both
Russia and Syria are aware the situation there cannot be allowed to become frozen, and the
lands east of the Euphrates is the largest remaining district needing liberation. Indeed,
there are only 3 remaining: Idlib, al-Tanf, and East Euphrates--4 if the Turkish border
zone's included.
Politically, Assad can't allow too long a respite as his liberation task remains undone.
So, since the region lacking a political solution is East Euphrates, I look for the next
major action to occur there--and the first serious testing of the new, joint,
Syrian-Russian air defense system by the Outlaw US Empire, not the Zionists.
Throughout the war on Syria the Syrian Kurds have shown a lack of political wisdom. They
probably believe they can withstand the Turkish army or that the U.S. will come to their
help. The Turkish invasion of Afrin demonstrated that both ideas are nonsense. Their only
chance to keep their homes is to completely submit to Syrian government control.
If the Kurds knew about the tale of the Malvines, they would've already surrendered to
the Syrian government.
During the Falklands War, Argentina declared war against the UK calculating the USA
would side with them against the British because Argentina is in the American continent --
therefore the Monroe Doctrine would take precedence.
But the UK was (still is) a NATO member. The mistake the Argentinian military dictators
committed was that the choice wasn't between the Monroe Doctrine or NATO, but between
capitalism and socialism (i.e. West vs USSR). The military junta that was governing
Argentina at the time had already given up everything to the USA, they were already a
guaranteed ally, with or without the Malvines. The UK had much more leverage, and, if it
didn't have, it was the superior military power even if you factor the logistics of the war
theater.
Turkey has both the leverage and, in neutrality, superior military strength
vis-a-vis the Kurds in Northern Syria. To top it off, it has the geographic advantage,
because a Syrian Kurdistan would be landlocked between hostile neighbors. They were pawns
in the American adventure in Syria.
by Justin
Raimondo Posted on November 15,
2018 November 14, 2018 We don't really hear all that much about Melania Trump in the
media except occasional digs at her immigration status and a few daring photos. That's
because the FLOTUS is one of the few unreservedly good things about this administration, and
of course the media doesn't want to go there. Her grace, her reserve, her remarkable calm at
the epicenter of a tumultuous White House, and, strikingly, her sense of style (and I don't
just mean her clothes) puts her on a different plane from the Washington circus that
surrounds her.
She had managed to keep her distance from the cutthroat politics of the Beltway, that is,
until her
collision with Mira Ricardel, National Security Advisor John Bolton's top aide and
enforcer. Ricardel apparently disparaged the First Lady to other members of the White House
staff, and tried to withhold resources from her on her recent trip to Africa. Whatever
personal interactions of an unpleasant nature may have passed between these women, it's hard
to imagine what provoked the office of the FLOTUS to issue the following statement :
"It is the position of the Office of the First Lady that she no longer deserves the
honor of serving in this White House."
Ricardel is described by those who know her as abrasive, a bureaucratic in-fighter, and
one "who doesn't suffer fools lightly." Having mistaken the First Lady for a fool, Ms.
Ricardel is the one who will suffer – along with Bolton, who has protected her since
her appointment from a chorus of critics, but who cannot stand against Melania.
So Team Bolton is on the outs, which means the America Firsters within the administration
who oppose our foreign policy of globalism and perpetual war are on the rise. Which leads us
to contemplate the meaning of this incident. The War Party's ranks are not filled with Mr.
Nice Guys. They are nearly all of them pushy self-serving aggressive SOBs, with about as much
personal charm as a rattlesnake.
I'm reminded of an essay by the
conservative philosopher Claes Ryn, professor of politics at Catholic University, in which he
describes the obnoxious behavior of the children of our political class in a local
MacDonald's just inside one of the Beltway's more prestigious neighborhoods:
"Deference to grown-ups seems unknown. I used to take offense, but the children have
only taken their cue from their parents, who took their cue from their parents. The adults,
for their part, talk in loud, penetrating voices, some on cell phones, as if no other
conversations mattered. The scene exudes self-absorption and lack of self-discipline.
"Yes, this picture has everything to do with U.S. foreign policy. This is the emerging
American ruling class, which is made up increasingly of persons used to having the world
cater to them. If others challenge their will, they throw a temper tantrum. Call this the
imperialistic personality – if 'spoilt brat' sounds too crude."
The Imperialistic Personality, indeed! It seems Ms. Ricardel had one too many temper
tantrums so that even in the permissive atmosphere of Washington, D.C., it was too much.
There are a lot of imperialistic personalities in that particular location, it seems, for one
reason or another. But things are different in Donald Trump's Washington, and even if we have
to take down the Ricardels one by one, just think of the numbers we can rack up in the next
six years.
A NOTE TO MY READERS : My apologies for the short column: I have some medical
issues to take care off this week and I'm a bit pressed for time.
NOTES IN THE MARGIN
You can check out my Twitter feed by going here . But please note that my tweets are sometimes
deliberately provocative, often made in jest, and largely consist of me thinking out
loud.
If this is Trump policy, then Trump is 100% pure neocon. It took just three months for the Deep state to turn him.
Notable quotes:
"... Bolton shrugged off the reality that Iran is still doing business internationally, saying that he believes Iran is "under real pressure" from the sanctions, and that he's determined to see it keep getting worse. ..."
With the newly reimposed US sanctions against
Iran having little to no perceivable economic impact, national security adviser John Bolton
is talking up his plans to continue to escalate the sanctions track, saying he will "
squeeze
Iran until the pips squeak ."
Bolton shrugged off the reality that Iran is still doing business internationally, saying
that he believes Iran is "under real pressure" from the sanctions, and that he's determined
to see it keep getting worse.
Bolton went on to predict that the European efforts to keep trading with Iran would
ultimately fail. He said the
Europeans are going through the six stages of grief , and would ultimately led to
European acceptance of the US demands.
Either way, Bolton's position is that the US strategy will continue to be
imposing new sanctions
on Iran going forward. It's not clear what the end game is, beyond just damaging
Iran.
It's interesting that Clapper is against abandoned by Trump Iran deal.
Tramp administration is acting more like Israeli marionette here, because while there a
strategic advantage in crushing the Iranian regime for the USA and making a county another Us
vassal in the middle East, the cost for the country might be way to high (especially if we count
in the cost of additional antagonizing Russia and China). Trump might jump into the second
Afghanistan, which would really brake the back of US military -- crushing Iran military is one
thing, but occupying such a county is a very costly task. And that might well doom Israel in the
long run as settlers policies now created really antagonized, unrecognizable minority with a high
birth rate.
Vanishing one-by-one of partners are given due to collapse of neoliberalism as an ideology.
Nobody believes that neoliberalism is the future, like many believed in 80th and early 90th. This
looks more and more like a repetion of the path of the USSR after 1945, when communist ideology
was discredited and communist elite slowly fossilized. In 46 years from its victory in WWII the
USSR was dissolved. The same might happen with the USA in 50 years after winning the Cold
War.
Notable quotes:
"... a vanishing one by one of American partners who were previously supportive of U.S. leadership in curbing Iran, particularly its nuclear program. ..."
"... The United States risks losing the cooperation of historic and proven allies in the pursuit of other U.S. national security interests around the world, far beyond Iran. ..."
Only well calibrated multilateral political, economic and diplomatic pressure brought to
bear on Iran with many and diverse partners will produce the results we seek.
"Then there were none" was Agatha Christie's most memorable mystery about a house party in
which each guest was killed off one by one. Donald Trump's policy toward Iran has resulted in
much the same: a vanishing one by one of American partners who were previously supportive
of U.S. leadership in curbing Iran, particularly its nuclear program.
Dozens of states, painstakingly cultivated over decades of American leadership in blocking
Iran's nuclear capability, are now simply gone. One of America's three remaining allies on
these issues, Saudi Arabia, has become a central player in American strategy throughout the
Middle East region. But the Saudis, because of the Jamal Khashoggi killing and other reasons,
may have cut itself out of the action. The United Arab Emirates, so close to the Saudis, may
also fall away.
Such paucity of international support has left the Trump administration dangerously
isolated. "America First" should not mean America alone. The United States risks losing the
cooperation of historic and proven allies in the pursuit of other U.S. national security
interests around the world, far beyond Iran.
... ... ...
European allies share many of our concerns about Iran's regional activities, but they
strongly oppose U.S. reinstitution of secondary sanctions against them. They see the Trump
administration's new sanctions as a violation of the nuclear agreement and UN Security Council
resolutions and as undermining efforts to influence Iranian behavior. The new sanctions and
those applied on November 5 only sap European interest in cooperating to stop Iran.
... ... ...
The United States cannot provoke regime change in Iran any more than it has successfully in
other nations in the region. And, drawing on strategies used to topple governments in Iraq and
Afghanistan, the United States should be wary of launching or trying to spur a military
invasion of Iran.
Lt. Gen. James Clapper (USAF, ret.) is the former Director of National Intelligence.
Thomas R. Pickering is a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Russia and
India.
ISIS is as authentic and real as The White Helmets. There are mercenaries trained, paid
and moved around by foreign intelligence, but there is no independent entity with a cyber
division between the deserts of syria and iraq.
Looks like time is working against Israelis in general and Netanyahu administration specifically... the nest
result of 10`8 is he supply of S300 by Russia, which is a real thereat to Isreli air supremacy, no matter what Israili
minister of offence said.
Alastair Crooke: "Belatedly, Israel has understood that it backed the wrong side in Syria --
and it has lost. It is not really in a position to demand anything. It will not get an
American enforced buffer zone beyond the Golan armistice line, nor will the Iraqi-Syrian border
be closed, or somehow "supervised" on Israel's behalf."
In the next ten years Israel
regional position might deteriorate. It antagonized Palestinians to the point of "no reconciliation".
And as US faced its own internal difficulties and divisions (and neocons in the USA now are look
mostly negatively by wide swats of population), Israel
might again face hostile Arab countries on the "never negotiated" borders. To find itself the country without negotiated
borders with the hostile encirclement, of a kind Washington tries to create for Russia, is the position that any diplomat
would like to avoid.
So it looks like the key idea of Zionism -- colonizing the land and displacing Palestinians much like Indians were
displaced in the USA or aborigines in Australia, in retrospect looks not that realistic. A lot of Jewish talent and Western
money was spend on a this variation of "Drang nach Osten"
Notable quotes:
"... It will not get an American enforced buffer zone beyond the Golan armistice line, nor will the Iraqi-Syrian border be closed, or somehow "supervised" on Israel's behalf. ..."
"... simply failed ..."
"... Israel's unexpected failure was deeply feared in the West, and in the Gulf too. A small, armed (revolutionary) movement had stood up to Israel -- against overwhelming odds -- and prevailed: it had stood its ground. This precedent was widely perceived to be a potential regional "game changer." The feudal Gulf autocracies sensed in Hizbullah's achievement the latent danger to their own rule from such armed resistance. ..."
"... And the war in Syria started to be mooted as the "corrective strategy" to the 2006 failure (as early as 2007) -- though it was only with the events following 2011 that the "corrective strategy" came to implemented, à outrance ..."
"... Syria -- with indisputable help from its allies -- seems about to prevail: it has stood its ground, against almost unbelievable odds. ..."
"... Syria's "standing its ground" represents a historic turning ..."
"... with each other ..."
"... Netayahu's "near panic" (if that is indeed what occurred) may well be a reflection of this seismic shift taking place in the region. Israel has long backed the losing side -- and now finds itself "alone" and fearing for its near proxies (the Jordanians and the Kurds). The "new" corrective strategy from Tel Aviv, it appears, is to focus on winning Iraq away from Iran, and embedding it into the Israel-U.S.-Saudi alliance. ..."
"... Daniel Levy has written a compelling piece to argue that Israelis generally would not subscribe to what I have written above, but rather: "Netanyahu's lengthy term in office, multiple electoral successes, and ability to hold together a governing coalition [is based on] him having a message that resonates with a broader public. It is a sales pitch that Netanyahu [has] 'brought the state of Israel to the best situation in its history, a rising global force the state of Israel is diplomatically flourishing.' Netanyahu had beaten back what he had called the 'fake-news claim' that without a deal with the Palestinians 'Israel will be isolated, weakened and abandoned' facing a 'diplomatic tsunami.' ..."
"... "Difficult though it is for his political detractors to acknowledge, Netanyahu's claim resonates with the public because it reflects something that is real, and that has shifted the center of gravity of Israeli politics further and further to the right. It is a claim that, if correct and replicable over time, will leave a legacy that lasts well beyond Netanyahu's premiership and any indictment he might face. ..."
"... "And then events took a further turn in Netanyahu's favor with the rise to power in the United States and parts of Central Eastern Europe (and to enhanced prominence elsewhere in Europe and the West) of the very ethno-nationalist trend to which Netanyahu is so committed, working to replace liberal with illiberal democracy. One should not underestimate Israel and Netanyahu's importance as an ideological and practical avant-garde for this trend." ..."
"... And this week, Hassan Nasrallah called on the Lebanese government " to devise a plan and take a sovereign decision to liberate the Shebaa Farms and the Kfarshouba Hills" from Israel. ..."
"... Will ethno-nationalism provide Israel with a new support base? Well, firstly, I do not see Israel's doctrine as "illiberal democracy," but rather an apartheid system intended to subordinate Palestinian political rights. And as the political schism in the West widens, with one "wing" seeking to delegitimize the other by tarnishing them as racists, bigots and Nazis, it is clear that the real ..."
"... The increasingly "not to be" constituency of the Middle East has a simpler word for Netanyahu's "ethnic nationalism." They call it simply Western colonialism. Round one of Chas Freeman's making the Middle East " be ..."
"... For all Netanyahu's bluster about Israel standing stronger, and having beaten back "what he had called the 'fake-news claim' that without a deal with the Palestinians 'Israel will be isolated, weakened and abandoned' facing a 'diplomatic tsunami,'" Netanyahu may have just discovered, in these last two weeks, that he confused facing down the weakened Palestinians with "victory" -- only at the very moment of his apparent triumph, to find himself alone in a new, "New Middle East." ..."
"... [For more on this topic, see Consortiumnews.com's " The Possible Education of Donald Trump. "] ..."
Belatedly, Israel has understood that it backed the wrong side in Syria – and it has
lost. It is not really in a position to demand anything. It will not get an American
enforced buffer zone beyond the Golan armistice line, nor will the Iraqi-Syrian border be
closed, or somehow "supervised" on Israel's behalf.
Of course, the Syrian aspect is important, but to focus only on that, would be to "miss the
forest for the trees." The 2006 war by Israel to destroy Hizbullah (egged on by the U.S., Saudi
Arabia -- and even a few Lebanese) was a failure. Symbolically, for the first time in the
Middle East, a technologically sophisticated, and lavishly armed, Western nation-state
simply
failed . What made the failure all the more striking (and painful) was that a Western
state was not just bested militarily, it had lost also the electronic and human intelligence
war, too -- both spheres in which the West thought their primacy unassailable.
The Fallout from Failure
Israel's unexpected failure was deeply feared in the West, and in the Gulf too. A small,
armed (revolutionary) movement had stood up to Israel -- against overwhelming odds -- and
prevailed: it had stood its ground. This precedent was widely perceived to be a potential
regional "game changer." The feudal Gulf autocracies sensed in Hizbullah's achievement the
latent danger to their own rule from such armed resistance.
The reaction was immediate. Hizbullah was quarantined -- as best the full sanctioning powers
of America could manage. And the war in Syria started to be mooted as the "corrective
strategy" to the 2006 failure (as early as 2007) -- though it was only with the events
following 2011 that the "corrective strategy" came to implemented, à outrance
.
Against Hizbullah, Israel had thrown its full military force (though Israelis always say,
now, that they could have done more). And against Syria, the U.S., Europe, the Gulf
States (and Israel in the background) have thrown the kitchen sink: jihadists, al-Qaeda, ISIS
(yes),
weapons , bribes, sanctions and the most overwhelming information war yet witnessed. Yet
Syria -- with indisputable help from its allies -- seems about to prevail: it has stood its
ground, against almost unbelievable odds.
Just to be clear: if 2006 marked a key point of inflection, Syria's "standing its
ground" represents a historic turning of much greater magnitude . It should be
understood that Saudi Arabia's (and Britain's and America's) tool of fired-up, radical Sunnism
has been routed. And with it, the Gulf States, but particularly Saudi Arabia are damaged. The
latter has relied on the force of Wahabbism since the first foundation of the kingdom: but
Wahabbism in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq has been roundly defeated and discredited (even for most
Sunni Muslims). It may well be defeated in Yemen too. This defeat will change the face of Sunni
Islam.
Already, we see the Gulf Cooperation Council, which originally was founded in 1981 by six
Gulf tribal leaders for the sole purpose of preserving their hereditary tribal rule in the
Peninsula, now warring with each other , in what is likely to be a protracted and
bitter internal fight. The "Arab system," the prolongation of the old Ottoman structures by the
complaisant post-World War I victors, Britain and France, seems to be out of its 2013
"remission" (bolstered by the coup in Egypt), and to have resumed its long-term decline.
The Losing Side
Netayahu's "near panic" (if that is indeed what occurred) may well be a reflection of
this seismic shift taking place in the region. Israel has long backed the losing side -- and
now finds itself "alone" and fearing for its near proxies (the Jordanians and the Kurds). The
"new" corrective strategy from Tel Aviv, it appears, is to focus on winning Iraq away from
Iran, and embedding it into the Israel-U.S.-Saudi alliance.
If so, Israel and Saudi Arabia are probably too late into the game, and are likely
underestimating the visceral hatred engendered among so many Iraqis of all segments of society
for the murderous actions of ISIS. Not many believe the improbable (Western) narrative that
ISIS suddenly emerged armed, and fully financed, as a result of former Iraqi Prime Minister
Nouri al-Maliki's alleged "sectarianism": No, as rule-of-thumb, behind each such well-breached
movement -- stands a state .
Daniel Levy has written a compelling piece
to argue that Israelis generally would not subscribe to what I have written above, but rather:
"Netanyahu's lengthy term in office, multiple electoral successes, and ability to hold together
a governing coalition [is based on] him having a message that resonates with a broader public.
It is a sales pitch that Netanyahu [has] 'brought the state of Israel to the best situation in
its history, a rising global force the state of Israel is diplomatically flourishing.'
Netanyahu had beaten back what he had called the 'fake-news claim' that without a deal with the
Palestinians 'Israel will be isolated, weakened and abandoned' facing a 'diplomatic
tsunami.'
"Difficult though it is for his political detractors to acknowledge, Netanyahu's claim
resonates with the public because it reflects something that is real, and that has shifted the
center of gravity of Israeli politics further and further to the right. It is a claim that, if
correct and replicable over time, will leave a legacy that lasts well beyond Netanyahu's
premiership and any indictment he might face.
"Netanyahu's assertion is that he is not merely buying time in Israel's conflict with the
Palestinians to improve the terms of an eventual and inevitable compromise. Netanyahu is laying
claim to something different -- the possibility of ultimate victory, the permanent and
definitive defeat of the Palestinians, their national and collective goals.
"In over a decade as prime minister, Netanyahu has consistently and unequivocally rejected
any plans or practical steps that even begin to address Palestinian aspirations. Netanyahu is
all about perpetuating and exacerbating the conflict, not about managing it, let alone
resolving it [The] message is clear: there will be no Palestinian state because the West Bank
and East Jerusalem are simply Greater Israel."
No Palestinian State
Levy continues: "The approach overturns assumptions that have guided peace efforts and
American policy for over a quarter of a century: that Israel has no alternative to an eventual
territorial withdrawal and acceptance of something sufficiently resembling an independent
sovereign Palestinian state broadly along the 1967 lines. It challenges the presumption that
the permanent denial of such an outcome is incompatible with how Israel and Israelis perceive
themselves as being a democracy. Additionally, it challenges the peace-effort supposition that
this denial would in any way be unacceptable to the key allies on which Israel depends
"In more traditional bastions of support for Israel, Netanyahu took a calculated gamble --
would enough American Jewish support continue to stand with an increasingly illiberal and
ethno-nationalist Israel, thereby facilitating the perpetuation of the lopsided U.S.-Israel
relationship? Netanyahu bet yes, and he was right."
And here is another interesting point that Levy makes:
"And then events took a further turn in Netanyahu's favor with the rise to power in
the United States and parts of Central Eastern Europe (and to enhanced prominence elsewhere
in Europe and the West) of the very ethno-nationalist trend to which Netanyahu is so
committed, working to replace liberal with illiberal democracy. One should not underestimate
Israel and Netanyahu's importance as an ideological and practical avant-garde for this
trend."
Former U.S. Ambassador and respected political analyst Chas Freeman wrote
recently very bluntly: "the central objective of U.S. policy in the Middle East has long been
to achieve regional acceptance for the Jewish-settler state in Palestine." Or, in other words,
for Washington, its Middle East policy -- and all its actions -- have been determined by "to
be, or not to be": "To be" (that is) -- with Israel, or not "to be" (with Israel).
Israel's Lost Ground
The key point now is that the region has just made a seismic shift into the "not to be"
camp. Is there much that America can do about that? Israel very much is alone with only a
weakened Saudi Arabia at its side, and there are clear limits to what Saudi Arabia can do.
The U.S. calling on Arab states to engage more with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi
seems somehow inadequate. Iran is not looking for war with Israel (as a number of
Israeli analysts have acknowledged ); but, too, the
Syrian President has made clear that his government intends to recover "all Syria" -- and all
Syria
includes the occupied Golan Heights. And this week, Hassan Nasrallah called on the
Lebanese government " to
devise a plan and take a sovereign decision to liberate the Shebaa Farms and the Kfarshouba
Hills" from Israel.
A number Israeli commentators already are saying that the "writing is on the wall" -- and
that it would be better for Israel to cede
territory unilaterally, rather than risk the loss of hundreds of lives of Israeli servicemen in
a futile attempt to retain it. That, though, seems hardly congruent with the Israeli Prime
Minister's "not an inch, will we yield" character and recent statements .
Will ethno-nationalism provide Israel with a new support base? Well, firstly, I do not
see Israel's doctrine as "illiberal democracy," but rather an apartheid system intended to
subordinate Palestinian political rights. And as the political schism in the West widens, with
one "wing" seeking to delegitimize the other by tarnishing them as racists, bigots and Nazis,
it is clear that the real America First-ers will try, at any price, to distance
themselves from the extremists.
Daniel Levy points out that the Alt-Right leader, Richard Spencer, depicts his movement as
White Zionism. Is this really likely to build support for Israel? How long before the
"globalists" use precisely Netanyahu's "illiberal democracy" meme to taunt the U.S. Right that
this is precisely the kind of society for which they too aim: with Mexicans and black Americans
treated like Palestinians?
'Ethnic Nationalism'
The increasingly "not to be" constituency of the Middle East has a simpler word for
Netanyahu's "ethnic nationalism." They call it simply Western colonialism. Round one of Chas
Freeman's making the Middle East " be with Israel" consisted of the shock-and-awe
assault on Iraq. Iraq is now allied with Iran, and the Hashad militia (PMU) are becoming a
widely mobilized fighting force. The second stage was 2006. Today, Hizbullah is a regional
force, and not a just Lebanese one.
The third strike was at Syria. Today, Syria is allied with Russia, Iran, Hizbullah and Iraq.
What will comprise the next round in the "to be, or not to be" war?
For all Netanyahu's bluster about Israel standing stronger, and having beaten back "what
he had called the 'fake-news claim' that without a deal with the Palestinians 'Israel will be
isolated, weakened and abandoned' facing a 'diplomatic tsunami,'" Netanyahu may have just
discovered, in these last two weeks, that he confused facing down the weakened Palestinians
with "victory" -- only at the very moment of his apparent triumph, to find himself alone in a
new, "New Middle East."
Perhaps Pravda was right, and Netanyahu did appear close to panic, during his
hurriedly arranged, and urgently called, Sochi summit.
* Alastair Crooke is a former British diplomat who was a senior figure in British
intelligence and in European Union diplomacy. He is the founder and director of the Conflicts
Forum.
As it pursues its war with US-backed Kurdish-nationalist organizations, the Turkish
government is threatening an outright military occupation of large parts of Syria that could
provoke war with Syria and a direct clash with US forces.
On Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan denounced joint patrols by US forces and
Kurdish-led militias as "unacceptable." Speaking to reporters in Ankara, he said: "Not only can
we not accept (the joint patrols), such a development will cause serious problems at the
border."
This came after Turkey shelled positions of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in
the Zor Magar region east of the Euphrates River and the town of Tal Abyad starting on October
28, killing at least 10 Kurdish fighters. Two days earlier, Erdogan had delivered a "final
warning" to Syrian Kurdish fighters to retreat. He also warned that Turkey's next target would
be positions of the People's Protection Units (YPG, a Kurdish force that is the key component
of the SDF) east of the Euphrates.
On October 30, as shelling continued, Erdogan stepped up threats to invade Syria to attack
the US-backed Kurdish forces: "We are going to destroy the terrorist organization preparations
and plans have been completed. We've made our plans and programs, and initiated it in the
previous days. We will come down on the terrorist organization's neck with more extensive,
effective operations. We could arrive suddenly one night."
This provoked an angry warning from Washington on October 31. State Department deputy
spokesman Robert Palladino said: "Unilateral military strikes into northwest Syria by any
party, particularly as American personnel may be present or in the vicinity, are of great
concern to us Coordination and consultation between the United States and Turkey on issues of
security concern is a better approach."
Ankara, however, is determined to crush the YPG, which it views as an affiliate of the
Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), the Turkish Kurdish separatist movement against which it has
waged a bloody counter insurgency campaign for more than 30 years. Ankara also fears Kurdish
autonomy in Syria, worried it will provoke demands for Kurdish autonomy in eastern
Turkey.
In an apparent attempt to placate Ankara, Washington announced on Tuesday that it would
place bounties on the heads of three PKK leaders. Visiting Turkey, Deputy Assistant Secretary
of State Matthew Palmer announced that the State Department's Rewards for Justice program is
offering money for information leading to the capture of the PKK officials. The bounties are $5
million for Murat Karayilan, $4 million for Cemil Bayik and $3 million for Duran Kalkan.
But Ambassador James Jeffrey, the US special representative for Syria engagement, said
Washington did not see the YPG and PKK as the same entity. He declared: "For us, the PKK is a
terrorist organization. We are not of the same opinion on the YPG. We ensure that the YPG
operates as part of the Syrian Democratic Forces in the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq
and the Levant [ISIL] in a way that does not pose a threat to Turkey."
Turkish presidential spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin rebuffed the US initiative, saying Ankara
would treat it "with caution" and demanding that Washington sever all ties with the YPG.
Turkey's ever-deeper involvement in the bloodshed across the region is the product of
Erdogan's decision to support the proxy war for regime change launched by the NATO imperialist
powers in Syria in 2011.
As the WSWS previously noted : "All Erdogan's
calculations were upended by the intensification of the war and of the class struggle in the
Middle East. In 2013, amid growing working class anger against Egypt's Islamist President
Mohammad Mursi and social protests in Turkey centred in Gezi Park, the imperialist powers
backed an army coup that toppled Mursi. As the Islamic State (IS) militia grew in Syria and
invaded Iraq, moreover, they turned to the use of Kurdish nationalist groups as their proxies
against IS.
"Erdogan could not adapt himself to these sudden, violent shifts in imperialist war policy,
and Ankara's imperialist allies rapidly came to see him not as a 'strategic partner,' but as an
unreliable one."
After Russia intervened militarily to prevent NATO-backed Islamist militias from
overthrowing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Turkish jets shot down a Russian jet over Syria
in November 2015, with US support. After Russia escalated its military posture in response and
threatened economic sanctions in retaliation against Turkey, however, Ankara tacked back toward
Russia and China. Ankara turned first to China and then Russia for an air defence system, while
its relations with the Obama administration and its European allies rapidly deteriorated.
In July 2016, a section of Turkey's military, encouraged by Washington and Berlin, launched
an abortive putsch out of NATO's Incirlik air base, aiming to murder Erdogan and carry out
regime change in Turkey.
Erdogan responded to the coup by stepping up the war against the Kurds and imposing a state
of emergency, seeking to strangle all political opposition. Ankara also maneuvered closer to
Moscow and Tehran, setting up talks in Astana for a "solution" to the Syria war. And Erdogan
ordered the Turkish army to launch its own invasions of Syria, "Operation Euphrates Shield" (in
August 2016) and "Operation Olive Branch" (in January 2018), directed against the YPG.
The brief warming of US-Turkish relations that followed the gruesome state murder on October
2 of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul appears to have
quickly ended. Ankara clearly saw the investigation of the Khashoggi assassination as a means
of promoting Turkish interests in relation to Riyadh and Washington. It had shared tense
relations with both the Saudi regime and US imperialism, including over the Saudi blockade of
Qatar, a key Turkish ally, and the US alliance with the YPG in Syria.
Erdogan sought to improve relations with Washington by investigating the killing of
Khashoggi, who worked extensively for US publications, including the Washington Post .
Ankara also released US pastor Andrew Brunson, whom it had accused of helping prepare the 2016
coup. But Washington soon dropped the Khashoggi murder, focusing instead on strategies for
intensifying the war in Syria.
Ankara is responding by moving closer to the European powers and seeking to exploit their
growing differences with Washington. It joined a new mechanism with Germany, France and Russia
to work out a peace deal in Syria acceptable to the European imperialist powers. An
inconclusive October 27 Istanbul summit on Syria, hosted by Erdogan, was attended by German
Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and Russia President Vladimir
Putin.
After the summit, they called for a new Syrian constitution to be drafted before the end of
this year, "paving the way for free and fair elections," according to a joint statement.
Visiting Tokyo on Tuesday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu
also criticized US sanctions against Iran, which have been the subject of escalating conflict
between Washington and the European powers. "While we were asking (for) an exemption from the
United States, we have also been very frank with them that cornering Iran is not wise," he
said. "Turkey is against sanctions, we don't believe any results can be achieved through the
sanctions."
ardent 19 minutes ago ( Edited ) remove Share link Copy Report flag
"Abu-Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIS, is an Israeli Mossad-trained operative whose
real name is Elliot Shimon, a *** who took courses in Islamic theology and Arabic Speech." -
Snowden
Old Poor Richard 49 minutes ago remove Share link Copy
Now how would Ed Snowden know this? Is he some kind of super h4x0r tapped into the Pegasus
mainframe?
ShakenNotStirred 42 minutes ago remove Share link Copy
I heard you have a bunch of Mossad agents below your bed. Check it out or you will be
"Mossaded" before the morning.
passingthroughtown 2 hours ago remove Share link Copy
Proving once again that the Saudis and Israelies have been working hand in glove for a
very long time. Is there any doubt about the connection between the two and what happened on
911?
But what is even more disturbing:
In recent days, Egyptian President Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi and Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu have reached out to the Trump administration to express support for the
crown prince, arguing that he is an important strategic partner in the region, said people
familiar with the calls.
"Strategic partner" makes it all okay. This is merely a glimpse of what is coming in the
future. You ain't seen NOTHIN yet.
He–Mene Mox Mox 3 hours ago remove Share link Copy
Derezzed 3 hours ago ( Edited ) remove Share link Copy
" Israel is routinely at the top of the US' classified threat list of hackers along
with Russia and China [ ] even though it is an ally "
Our best allies ! " Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked the United States to stand by Saudi
Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman (MBS) in the wake of the Khashoggi case. "
The most morale people !
I bet they are behind ISIS too with their (((allies))) and the (((deep state))).
But hey isn't it conspirationnist and antisemitic to accuse them of anything ?
Because you know as the most " kind " and " human " people there needs to be
laws, censorship and repression, to protect them from being hated.
< 1% of the global population and they make the headlines 4/5 times a day.
Can only be bad luck and a cohencidence !
Dickweed Wang 3 hours ago remove Share link Copy
"Israel is routinely at the top of the US' classified threat list of hackers along
with Russia and China [ ] even though it is an ally"
Sorry Ed, IsraHell isn't an ally of the USA. It's a ******* parasite and it's well on its
way to killing the host.
alamac 4 hours ago remove Share link Copy
I guess Netanyahoo and KSM love each other because they have a common hobby: Killing
Arabs.
RagnarRedux 4 hours ago ( Edited ) remove Share link Copy
ISRAEL FLAGGED AS TOP SPY THREAT TO U.S. IN NEW SNOWDEN/NSA DOCUMENT (2007)
Former U.S. Officials Say CIA Considers Israel To Be Mideast's Biggest Spy Threat
(2012)
U.S. intelligence agents stationed in Israel report multiple cases of equipment
tampering, suspected break ins in recent years; CIA officials tell the Associated Press that
Israel may have leaked info that led to the capture of an agent inside Syria's chemical
weapons program.
What is really troubling, is Kushner's involvement in the affair. He would have been
debriefed once he returned to the U.S., not only by his father-in-law, Trump, but the intel
community too. You can bet every dollar you have that both the Israelis and Saudis were using
NSO surveillance on him. What is even more troubling, it appears that the action taken to
"neutralize" Jamal Khashoggi, more than likely had the blessings of Washington, since Kushner
met with the Saudis prior to the killing. It really makes one wonder, since Kushner declined
to discuss the state of his relationship with Prince Mohammed.
GRDguy 4 hours ago remove Share link Copy
"licensed only to legitimate government agencies"
That's the problem.
There are no legitimate government agencies any more.
One potential worry in both the extensive Democratic and Republican political criminal
cesspool would be that another wealthy populist-esque candidate for the Presidency will emerge in
the wake Trump's faux populism to come closer to the real thing. ....
As I gamely attempt to make some sense out of a daily inundation of various alternative
political realities and alternative illusions co-mingling, processing as best I can the bits
and pieces that I manage to filter through my taxed cranium, it occurs to me again that Trump
won the 2016 election against the Establishment of both parties.
Subsequently, Trump has had various anchors attached to him and booby traps placed in his
way and arrows shot at him from many political directions, and some self-inflicted. His own
behaviors and policies have managed to alienate just about everybody on the planet except
some tens of millions of Deplorables of indeterminate faithfulness.
But it appears to me that the strengthening of his position in the Senate, which
previously was at best weakly supportive at Trump and for good reason easily suspected of
being poised for betrayal, is potentially very significant. The question is to what extent
the new Senate will be more willing to flex its enhanced Republican muscles on behalf of
Trump.
"The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments." Okay, so the impeachment
possibility is nullified.
Another point is that whereas after 2016 the Democratic minority were reduced to political
'guerrilla-tactics', they are now able to actually propose and win the H. of Rep. vote on
their proposals. Since they require the assent of the Senate, will this lead to a more
cooperative approach to proposed legislation? After all, bashing Trump has not been a great
strategy. Might the Democrats try actually proposing and attempting to pass sensible
laws?
One potential worry in both the extensive Democratic and Republican political criminal
cesspool would be that another wealthy populist-esque candidate for the Presidency will
emerge in the wake Trump's faux populism to come closer to the real thing. Perhaps such a
political trend/event in the USA is as far fetched as the unicorn, but after all, who would
have thought Russia could have rebounded positively so far from their inebriated depressed
life support just a short generation ago?
This is a must watch Jimmy Dore show, Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University lays
out how Obama and Trump have made a mess of Syria and caused the deaths of half a million
people, the panel on MSMBC are stunned into silence by this truth telling.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_O2TRzA2ezk
I'm not surprised that you are such a fine shot with his harpoon considering your naval
background, Mark! The UK is slowly sinking to its appropriate level of incompetence and
self-delusion with the likes of former PM Dave Cameron declaring that he is 'shit bored' and
would like to return to cabinet, preferably as Foreign Minister. That could be arranged, but
as Foreign minister in Libya.
Still, the whole 'Russian corrupting in Britain' is the British government's perception
management at its finest. As someone recently posted on the last thread, a Spanish case
against RUSSIAN MAFIA collapsed for lack of evidenceafter ten years , which I
suspect was partly provided by British Intelligence paid organized crime experts from Russia
like Litvenenko & Skripal. Who's been bilked then?
Yes, this is a classic case of 'LOOK OVER THERE!' rather than the billions upon billions
sunk in to London by the UK and the west's bestest Gulf buddies, you know, the one's who fear
not their exposure for outrageous human rights abuses on a genocidal scale such as in Yemen,
and a much smaller scale with the likes of their own citizens, sic Kashoggi. But, Chelsea
& Westminster are such a fundamental part of British Life (coz its London, innit?) and
does very well for itself. I have to admit, it is (mostly) nice around there where you can
take a stroll along the Embankment, wander around Hyde Park and visit the museums.
"Like in the Wild West, betting in the saloon is also common when it comes to Syria. The US
State Department under Obama placed all its bets on some entity they invented, which they
liked to call "moderate rebels" (why not "respectable terrorists" or "polite criminals"?).
They lost. Numerous left-wing academics signed on to regime change years ago, and because
they only pretend to be seasoned analysts for their day jobs, they did not foresee the
collapse of the anti-government forces in Syria. That list included noted "post-colonial"
scholars and anthropologists, united in their belief in "democracy promotion" and remaking
Syria into something palatable to them, with the right leaders in place. Five years later and
a smaller group -- including feminists like Gloria Steinem and Judith Butler, anarchists like
Noam Chomsky and the anthropologist David Graeber, the Marxist David Harvey, and advocates of
recolonization like Michael Walzer -- placed their bets on socialist Kurdish militias,
presumably increasing the value of their bet by the important sign value of their brand name
authority. Ironically, in the process of reimagining legendary Rojava as the site of a second
Spanish Civil War, they were openly collaborating with Donald Trump (not naming him directly,
since "the US government" was more convenient). These signatories were thus complicit with
the very same commander-in-chief of the armed forces they were calling on for support of
Syrian Kurds. They wanted "the US government," whose President is Donald Trump, to impose
sanctions on Turkey, and to develop a foreign policy that put Kurdish interests at the
forefront. You can be sure that, elsewhere, in front of different crowds, they return to "the
Resistance" by puffing up their little chests and sounding all "anti-Trump" -- but when it
came to cheering their favourite band of ethnic anarchists, they could dispense with
appearances. Less "prestigious" characters, publishing in a less "prestigious" outlet,
countered the call to "defend Rojava", a call which appropriated "progressive" politics for
the cause of imperialism (thus reigniting an old marriage). (David Harvey, by the way, having
cashed in on abundant sales of his volume, The New Imperialism, has recently changed his
mind: he has decided that imperialism is merely a metaphor, "rather than anything real". Out
of curiosity, we have to wonder if "capitalism" is also a metaphor, rather than anything
real, seeing how Marxists have linked capitalism with imperialism. Perhaps even socialism is
a metaphor, rather than anything real."
This Canadian has a lot to say well worth reading!!!!!
A US military aircraft took control of 13 drones over Syria in January and tried to redirect them in an attack on a Russian airbase,
a senior Russian official has claimed. Russia's military managed to thwart the attempt.
The US military helped coordinate an attempted drone attack on Russia's Hemeimeem base in Syria, Russian deputy defense minister
Alexander Fomin claimed at a summit in Beijing on Thursday. The alleged attack took place in January 2018.
Fomin's statement marks the first time Russia has directly accused the US of targeting Russian forces.
The Russian official said that a coordinated group of 13 drones was directed toward the base while a US Poseidon-8, a high-tech
reconnaissance plane, was cruising over the Mediterranean. Once the drones "reached our barrier of radio-electronic interference,"
they were switched to manual navigation, according to Fomin.
"This manual control is not conducted by just some villager, but by a normal, modernized Poseidon-8," Fomin added. "It took on
manual control."
Fomin did not say who had launched the drones before the the US plane took over their direction. 'This needs to stop'
Russian forces managed to shoot down seven of the drones and then hack and take control of the remaining six, landing them safely.
"And this needs to stop -- in order to avoid high-tech weapons falling into terrorists' hands and having well-equipped terrorists,
it is necessary to stop strengthening them," Fomin told delegates at China's Xiangshan security forum.
The three-day summit in Beijing is organized by the Chinese defense ministry, with delegates expected from 79 countries.
Moscow has repeatedly accused the US of supplying and arming jihadist groups fighting the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
Islamist rebels often use drones to target Russian forces in Syria. Russia's defense ministry has claimed that rebel drones appear
to be basic, but are equipped with modern navigation and ordinance delivery systems. This suggests that "a country possessing the
technology to produce such systems supplied them to international terrorist groups," the ministry said, according to remarks cited
by Russia's RIA Novosti agency.
Syria has been engulfed in a devastating civil war since 2011 after Syrian President Bashar Assad lost control over large parts
of the country to multiple revolutionary groups. The conflict has since drawn in foreign powers and brought misery and death to Syrians.
Syria's army, officially known as the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), is loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and is fighting to
restore the president's rule over the entire country. The SAA has been fighting alongside a number of pro-Assad militias such as
the National Defense Force and has cooperated with military advisors from Russia and Iran, which back Assad.
Turkey, which is also part of the US-led coalition against IS, has actively supported rebels opposed to Assad. It has a tense
relationship with its American allies over US cooperation with Kurdish fighters, who Ankara says are linked to the Kurdistan Workers'
Party (PKK) fighting in Turkey. The Turkish military has intervened alongside rebels in northern Aleppo, Afrin and Idlib province.
The Kremlin has proven to be a powerful friend to Assad. Russian air power and ground troops officially joined the fight in September
2015 after years of supplying the Syrian army. Moscow has come under fire from the international community for the high number of
civilian casualties during its airstrikes. However, Russia's intervention turned the tide in war in favor of Assad.
A US-led coalition of more than 50 countries, including Germany, began targeting IS and other terrorist targets with airstrikes
in late 2014. The anti-IS coalition has dealt major setbacks to the militant group. The US has more than a thousand special forces
in the country backing the Syrian Democratic Forces.
The Free Syrian Army grew out of protests against the Assad regime that eventually turned violent. Along with other non-jihadist
rebel groups, it seeks the ouster of President Assad and democratic elections. After suffering a number of defeats, many of its members
defected to hardline militant groups. It garnered some support from the US and Turkey, but its strength has been greatly diminished.
Fighting between Syrian Kurds and Islamists has become its own conflict. The US-led coalition against the "Islamic State" has
backed the Syrian Democratic Forces, an alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias. The Kurdish YPG militia is the main component of the
SDF. The Kurds have had a tacit understanding with Assad.
"Islamic State" (IS) took advantage of regional chaos to capture vast swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria in 2014. Seeking
to establish its own "caliphate," IS has become infamous for its fundamentalist brand of Islam and its mass atrocities. IS is facing
defeat in both countries after the US and Russia led separate military campaigns against the militant group.
IS is not the only terrorist group that has ravaged Syria. A number of jihadist militant groups are fighting in the conflict,
warring against various rebel factions and the Assad regime. One of the main jihadist factions is Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, which controls
most of Idlib province and has ties with al-Qaeda.
Iran has supported Syria, its only Arab ally, for decades. Eager to maintain its ally, Tehran has provided Damascus with strategic
assistance, military training and ground troops when the conflict emerged in 2011. The Iran-backed Lebanese Shiite militant group
Hezbollah also supports the Assad regime, fighting alongside Iranian forces and paramilitary groups in the country.
In Moscow, President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the information was "very alarming," but added only the Russian
military could provide details.
Putin might raise the issue when meeting US President Donald Trump in Paris on November 11, Peskov told reporters.
The US Pentagon did not immediately comment on Fomin's claims.
The news of the alleged US-coordinated attack comes some two months after Russia lost a high-tech plane in Syria in an incident
Moscow says was caused
by Israel . Russia responded by pledging to supply Syrian forces with S-300 aerial defense systems.
Renowned [Zionist] international human-rights lawyer Irwin Cotler is nominating Syria's
famed White Helmets, a group of volunteer humanitarian workers Canada helped rescue from the
war-torn country for the Nobel Peace Prize...
A senior Canadian government official who was not authorized to speak publicly, confirmed
Friday that some of the refugees have already resettled in Canada. The government declined to
say exactly how many White Helmets have already arrived or the total number Canada plans to
welcome, citing security concerns..."
" Over the weekend, there was a huge explosion at a workshop used for making chemicals in
the small town of Tarmanin in Northern Idlib. The workshop included a large volume of
chemical, explosive materials and liquid chlorine barrels. NINE British, Chechen and Turkish
experts and TWO members of the White Helmets were killed in the blast."
Bolton pushes for the US to break out of the 1987 INF Treaty. Not surprising considering
that all those ABM components they are deploying around Russia are dual use and violate the
INF. The INF is also a joke (showing us what a comprador Gorby was) since it allows the US to
deploy unlimited range nuclear missiles in its Naval assets. So Russia cannot have any land
based intermediate range nukes, but the US can park its ships in EU harbours and deploy
unlimited amounts of the "banned" class of missiles.
I say let the US break the INF. The INF helps the USA and its NATzO minions more than it
helps Russia.
There may be several motivations for Bolton
– an attempt to force Russia into a ruinously expensive arms race;
– to create a regional Cold War to reverse the nascent rapprochement between Western
Europe and Russia;
– an attempt to limit war to the European/Russian region as much as possible if a war
against Russia is needed by the US.
Bolton is an idiot carrying out a moron's strategy. What could go wrong?
Bolton is a certified retard if he thinks he will bankrupt Russia with an arms race.
1) I find the theory that the USSR couldn't afford the 1970-80s arms race and went
bankrupt to be of zero credibility. The USSR was a command economy and various estimates of
how much it allegedly spent on the economy to be ridiculous western attempts to impose their
capitalist accounting on a command economy.
The USSR collapsed due to internal political rot and not some "budget deficit" which was
meaningless in command economics and never exiting in reality anyway. The only valid metrics
of deficits in command economies if there are labour shortages in various industries.
The USSR had more than enough engineers, researchers, workers and material resources to
keep up with the arms race.
This is why command economics is vastly superior to capitalist profiteering. Capitalism
only triumphs because humans are genetically deficient to live optimally under a command
economy since they need all sorts of superfluous incentives and feel-good junk.
2) Nuclear weapons are the cheapest option out of all military costs. Tanks, ships and
armed troops are much more expensive. In the current rocket era, these expensive options are
outdated and much less potent. Russia can neutralize any US move by deploying appropriately
designed missiles and warheads.
I initially backed Trump, though with reservations on his attitude to Iran and his wanting
to increase US military spending - build a stronger US military. Pulling out of the TPP was
great. Au had sovereignty on paper if not in practice, but with the TPP, Australia would not
have had sovereignty legally. His first attack on Syria was a flash bang exercise to disable
his opponents. His second attack I thought initially was the same, but with everything I've
read since, I believe Trump's US planned to destroy Syrian military but not wanting to go to
war with Russia at that time, respected the Russian nyet on targets.
With Idlib it moved up a notch, Trump's US threatening attack on Syria including Russian
personal stationed there, and Russia moving to asymmetrical moves rather than in your face
nuclear amageddon, which is what a full on US attack on Syria would have amounted
to..
"... The most flagrant case is Syria where a war was orchestrated by "proxy groups" by Western powers and the Petro monarchies of the Gulf States. Before the war, Syria was a country that could support itself in terms of food and industrialization with a well-developed population that enjoyed a modern health system. The "strategy of the chaos" imported hoards of mercenaries of which the Syrian government can hardly get rid of after 8 years of war (2011-2018). The imperialist intervention, meant to fight this state that refused to obey, has driven 5 million people from their homes" ..."
"... L'intervention and Libye, la pire erreur de ce début de siecle ..."
"... Propaganda Blitz. How the Corporate Media Distort Reality ..."
"... For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities of this dark world ... ..."
Living in Syria in the sixth-century Mar Yakub monastery in the city of
Qara, 90 kilometers north of the capital Damascus, Flemish Father Daniël Maes has been a
witness to the invasion of western-backed terrorists since the very beginning. To this day, he
and his friends continue to support the Syrian people by not only helping them directly, but
also by spreading the truth about what is truly going on in the country.
Each week, a newsletter written by Father Daniël
is published, in which he describes his experiences and thoughts on the situation in Syria.
With the help of much needed donations and NGOs such as Hand in Hand voor Syrië,
Father Daniël and others have been working tirelessly with the Syrian people liberated
from (formerly) terrorist-held areas.
Below, you can read his latest newsletter
, as published on September 28th, 2018, and as translated by Sott.net:
Dear friends,
It seems unlikely that the planned military escalation by Western forces to protect the
terrorists in Idlib and to risk a last chance to subvert Syria, will continue. The Abou
al-Dohour safe zone basically ensures that citizens can escape the terrorist-controlled
Idlib. This was largely guaranteed by the agreement between Russia and Turkey. And Putin
seems determined to impose a no-fly zone over all of Syria! Well done. Meanwhile, the Syrians
continue to work very diligently on the restoration of their country and society. After the
fantastic course of the 60th annual fair last Friday, a 'marathon of peace' was organized to
support those who work for the end of the war and the restoration of peace. This marathon was
held in Hama, Homs, Lattakia, Tartous and Sweida.
At the same time, a limited bicycle race was organized in Damascus for 200 cyclists from
the Ommayade mosque through the city.
In Qara there was one crossroad that was full of rubble for years. It was the place where
the hardest fighting took place in 2013. Well, the debris is finally cleared up. And between
the monastery and the Ante-Lebanon Mountains people have been working hard lately. The
so-called Qara 4 gas source is now operational. It delivers 120,000 cubic meters of gas and
100 condensed barrels every day. We pray and hope that there will be a definitive end to this
war and the Syrian people can fully develop their identity.
Father Daniël then goes on to sharing news about the community, his
reflection on the root causes of the refugee problem, and a warning with regard to the
"official fake news":
Preparation
We want to have a quiet retreat in the community and some preparation has been made for
this. On Monday, we visited Sadad and the Syrian Orthodox community with some sisters and a
guest, with whom we now maintain a close contact. We visited the "martyress" of the village
again, the old woman, who was all alone, was left behind by terrorists to die but recovered.
She received a shed that is now being converted into a two-room house, which she proudly
showed us.
We prayed together in the church and visited a number of villagers. The pastor abou
Michaiel and the Christians count on us that we also continue to help them financially. It is
mainly about the purchase of material for the reconstruction, they will do the work
themselves. Tuesday and Wednesday were still preparation days to start with a real quiet
retreat for the whole community on Thursday. Hopefully more about that next time. So, you
won't be getting a message about the war around us this time, we are committing to the
struggle in ourselves right now.
Ministerial visit
This week we were again visited by the Minister of Supply together with his wife. They
were with us before. He practically has the function of the patriarch Joseph in Egypt during
the famine. He asked mother Agnes-Mariam to help find the means to offer more people work in
agriculture so that they can provide themselves with their own food. In Aleppo we have been
able to help 5,000 families. He also asked in India (mother Agnes-Mariam will briefly give a
retreat in India) to find out whether material and prostheses can be shipped from there for
disabled people.
From our monastery MSJM (Saint Jacques le Mutilé) about 1,000 people are now
employed as paid workers in relief efforts throughout Syria. In the beginning we received a
lot of opposition and suspicion. Meanwhile, there is a strong and good spirit with five
responsible people, with mother Agnes-Mariam assuming the final responsibility. Now, big
organizations are coming to us to work with us. However, the first and foremost impulse
always starts with simple, sincere people who give their contribution with generosity. That
is why we would like to express our sincere thanks to all our benefactors.
Our wars, our refugees
The continuing flow of refugees from the Middle East and Africa to Europe is a
humanitarian drama for these people themselves and is also a threat to the countries in which
they seek refuge. In this regard, two attitudes are mainly present. Some respond from a
humanitarian point of view and want these people who are in need to be helped and taken care
of. The others want to defend the identity of their country to for example prevent a
Christian country from being flooded with Muslims who do not want to adapt and who create
their own areas where the authentic population can not even visit.
However, what is missing too often is the question about the actual cause and background
of the problem. When you return home and you see that the water is flowing out the front
door, do you first look for buckets and mops to remove the water from your house? No. You
first search for the cause of this flooding. And then you see, for example, that you have
left the faucet of the sink open while the stopper was in. So the very first thing you do is
close the tap.
There can be many causes that trigger a flow of refugees, but almost always they involve
rich Western countries who want to master the resources of other countries. Under the pretext
of "freedom and democracy" these countries are being disrupted, a change of government is
being worked on, and puppets are being appointed to ensure the interests of the West.
" The most flagrant case is Syria where a war was orchestrated by "proxy groups" by
Western powers and the Petro monarchies of the Gulf States. Before the war, Syria was a
country that could support itself in terms of food and industrialization with a
well-developed population that enjoyed a modern health system. The "strategy of the chaos"
imported hoards of mercenaries of which the Syrian government can hardly get rid of after 8
years of war (2011-2018). The imperialist intervention, meant to fight this state that
refused to obey, has driven 5 million people from their homes" . (Bruno Guigue, 23
september 2018: Link
)
The US and the Western powers proclaim that they no longer have colonial policies, that
they only want to ensure freedom and democracy, defend human rights and, finally, defend
their own national security and interests. Those who claim their sovereignty must also
recognize the sovereignty and interests of other countries. And that is precisely not the
case. The military intervention by Western countries is not the solution, but the problem
itself. It is the French troops in Mali, Niger (rich in uranium), Chad, Central African
Republic that ensure that the countries remain dependent and poor.
It is NATO that destroyed Libya with active participation from Belgium and France. After
the Belgian "aid" to Libya, there was hardly a bomb left in Belgium. No "mea culpa" came from
any country for this total devastation (Jean-François Kahn, L'intervention and
Libye, la pire erreur de ce début de siecle , Le Soir, 25/9/18; about this
well-known French journalist see: Link ). The invasions of Somalia
(1992), Afghanistan (2001), Iraq (2003) destroyed these countries. The aggression of Saudi
Arabia with active support from the West against Yemen has killed 10,000 people since March
2005, causing a deadly cholera epidemic and famine for 8 million people.
Certainly, there are several causes of the refugee flow. However, the most important
remains the neo-colonial domination of Western powers who shamelessly and with military force
appropriate the richness of other countries. Subsequently, there is often a corrupt elite of
the country itself who have allowed themselves to be bribed to betray their own people.
Finally, there are Mafia bosses who set up an extremely lucrative business to get the
refugees across. Let's stop whining about the shortage of mops, pullers, buckets, and turn
off the tap. These are our wars and our aggression against other countries that are making
people flee. If we want to assert our sovereignty, we must also respect the sovereignty of
other countries and their interests.
Ready for the battle for your mind!
The spreading of false, incorrect or misleading information, 'fake news', is a problem.
The European Union is working diligently on a strategy to combat this ailment. The East
StratCom Task Force was already set up for this purpose in 2015. Certain guidelines have been
developed and at the end of this year we can expect more concrete actions.
However, there's a catch. Let's make it clear immediately. We are getting more and more
into a situation where fake news is imposed with great enthusiasm by government leaders,
politicians, official statements, authoritative media and acclaimed journalists, who conceal
reality, while the channels of honest researchers who bring the truth, are closed expertly.
The justification is then: We must defend European values. That free speech and the
obligation to tell the truth are also values, is then forgotten. Or real news and truthful
reporting are condemned as being a "conspiracy theory". Or, as we now experience with the
announcement of the criminal behavior of the Dutch government, which smoothly helps with the
slaughter of innocent Syrian people, says that it should not come to light because it is a
"state secret".
The example we know best is of course Syria. A very harmonious, prosperous and
particularly safe (albeit imperfect) society with a President who is supported by broad
sections of the population is suddenly presented as a terrible dictatorship with a gruesome
dictator. The CIA provided an abundance of false photos, films, reports, books, testimonies
of inhuman torture (the American prisons remain an inexhaustible source for this) that were
spread throughout the West. And everyone (including our "conflict journalist"!) "knew",
almost one day after another, how that terrible Syrian president strangled people all day,
tortured them to death and carried out chemical attacks.
Something like that makes the blood of every right-minded person boil and that makes a
heavy-handed military intervention more than justified. When someone dared to say that there
was no "popular uprising" in Syria and certainly no "civil war", that Syria had not committed
any chemical attacks at all, he was dismissed as unreliable, fake news. And so the US,
Israel, NATO and allies could continue to send their most fanatical terrorists to destroy the
country and take away oil, gas and sovereignty. In our own Flemish press I never read one
balanced article about the situation in Syria.
In the end it is about the loss of credible journalism. For England, this is now greatly
described by David Edwards and David Cromwell, Propaganda Blitz. How the Corporate Media
Distort Reality , Pluto Press, 2018, foreword by John Pilger. They show how the liberal
media give half-truths and whole lies or sometimes represent reality in reverse, in the
service of large interest groups. And the writers of this work are not even journalists but a
former professor and an oceanographer. It will become increasingly difficult to discover
reality, but it is not impossible. The Australian journalist and founder of WikiLeaks, Julian
Assange, is now imprisoned at the Embassy of Venezuela in London but in reality deserves a
monument to what he has made public. There are undoubtedly many more people than we suspect,
who are aware of the prevalent lies.
Anyone who has any insight into the ever-recurring anti-Russia, anti-Iran, anti-China,
anti-Brexit... hysteria on the one hand and on the other Western unlimited war propaganda,
justified by the most unlikely pretext to dominate the rest of the world, will soon find more
reliable sources. It is also necessary. " For our struggle is not against flesh and
blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities of this dark world ... "
(Ephesians 6, 12). And by our attitude, we are always either on the side of the murderers or
on the side of the innocent victims. We are called to be people of peace and not silly
servants of hatred and war, which we conveniently want to package in a message of peace.
Bahar Azizi lives in Europe, holds an MA in psychology, is an instructor in Éiriú Eolas meditation , and is a
keen animal lover. Bahar has been a contributing writer and editor at SOTT.net since 2012.
I believe that is a truly pivotal piece by Gideon Levy in Haaretz and I share his
sentiment and cautious optimism. Israel behaves as a child. It has been spoilt by being
allowed to do as it pleases for far too long and by an over protective parent who comes
running every time it throws a tantrum. Putin, the responsible adult, is doing the World a
huge favor with his Syrian S300 therapy. These 2 paragraphs are spot on:
"Russia, without meaning to, may yet turn out to be better for Israel than all the insane,
corrupting support it receives from the current American administration, and from its
predecessors, too.
Russia has outlined for the world the way to treat Israel, using the only language Israel
understands. Let those who truly care for Israel's welfare, and for justice, learn how it's
done: Only by force."
