++General Conway, formerly the Marine commander in Iraq, claims that the worst is over for Iraq with the ISIS advance.
++Iraq has produced the strangest bed fellows. Iran is furnishing drones,military personnel and equipment. The United States is providing drones, military personnel and equipment. Syria is bombing Iraq at the request of Prime Minister Maliki. Maliki has decided not to wait for the delivery of F-16s but is purchasing MiGs from Russia.
++Ayatollah Sistani insists a new unity government must be formed before the parliament meets. Iraqi parliamentarians are commuting to Tehran to get instructions about whom should be the next Prime Minister. Prime Minister Maliki insists he should be retained although the United States and even Iran has gently insisted he shouldn't. Publicly,Iran has denounced the United States for destabilizing Maliki.
++John Kerry first met in Paris and then in Saudi Arabia to encourage the Saudis,Qataris and Jordanians to support the "moderate" Syrian forces and to solidify the support of the Sunnis tribes in both Iraq and Syria against ISIS. The Saudis are in high alert because ISIS may move their way.
++ISIS' propaganda is more modern than Al Qaeda's. They ran an Instagram of Michelle Obama holding photoshopped sign "Where's Our Humvees" as a parody of her "Where's Our Children" call for the school kids kidnapped by Boko Haram. They also sent an image of Senator John McCain meeting Syrian rebels beneath a sign of ISIS.
++There is some confusion about whether Saddam Hussein's former troops are with ISIS because of their age.
++Depending on who you read, ISIS is aiming for the Sunni suburbs of Baghdad and will attack when American troops arrive or they are consolidating their positions around the country.
++Iran is not so happy. Tehran is debating how far they can extend themselves since they are under tight sanctions. They argue they have lost Hamas,that Hezbollah are lax, and 35,000 Shiite militiamen are returning to defend Iraq, leaving a gaping hole in Syria's defense.
++President Obama's choice to leave Iraq after not getting the Force Agreement looks great now as military analysts argue that he would have faced the situation of having to either escalate of leave when 10,000 Americans came under attack.
++His decision to re-insert hundreds of Special Forces doesn't look that great. His decision to train "moderate" Syrian forces,mostly former members of the Syrian army, has considerable risks. As Steve Clemons in Atlantic pointed out,the Free Syrian Army often sold the arms we provided to ISIS and formed fluid alliances on the ground,often with the Al Qaeda-affiliated troops. The leader of the Free Syrian government was replaced yesterday because of charges of corruption.
++On a brighter note, Bibi Netanyahu said that the removal of Syrian chemical weapons eliminated an "existential threat" to the State of Israel and he thanked the Obama Administration for that. Likewise, the American-provided Iron Dragon anti-missile defense system destroyed rockets launched from Gaza.
++The United Nations said that Iran had violated the arms embargo with their sale of weapons that were detained en route to the Sudan. Negotiators for the nuclear agreement between the P-5 and Iran will meet this week.
Showing posts with label Bibi Netanyahu. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bibi Netanyahu. Show all posts
Saturday, June 28, 2014
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
MunichKatrinaObamacareBenghazi
++Mark Halperin really did raise the issue of rationing care at the end of life and believes this will be a big issue about Obamacare.
++Paul Krugman thinks Obamacare will soon become another Benghazi as enrollments soar. Krugman and Ezra Klein both report smooth sailing on healthcare.gov. Klein now says the Administration will conduct their outreach.
++Politico reports that Obama has asked his team not to seek better national news coverage about Obamacare but focus on local stories that are positive.
++The Amazon Post actually wrote a positive story about the Kentucky exchanges after it had been covered for weeks by television stations.
++The Post now raises the question about how the IRS will be able to handle the deluge now that the website can handle 800,000 a day.
++Paul Krugman in another article wrote about how Californiacovered is doing quite well and that if Obamacare works in the largest state it can work anywhere.
++Republican governors are now faced with a dilemma of how to avoid expanding Medicaid. Apparently,Florida is in secret negotiations with the Administration to expand Medicaid.
++The Supreme Court is actually entertaining the Hobbyland Case, where the owner pretends his business is a religious organization and should not offer birth control in his insurance plans.
++NPR did a weirdly positive story about California's efforts on Obamacare. Weird because they had that nasty interview with Jerry Brown last week.
++The corporate television still repeats the strange meme that Obamacare is like Katrina, which left thousands dead.
++Ed Schultz to his credit is the only one on television who keeps pounding away on the positive news from Obamacare.
++Polls suggest that Obama and the Democrats have taken a pasting on this news coverage and the GOP now leads the generic congressional polls. This is incredible after the Democrats were posting "wave election" numbers during the shutdown.
++Patty Murray (D.-Wash) says that the budget conference will have a small budget deal, where the Democrats and GOP split the difference. It is still dubious whether the House GOP will go along.
++Bibi Netanyahu threatened President Obama in the phone call on Sunday after the Iranian deal saying that Obama should be concerned whether he will remain the most powerful person in the world after this.
++Think Progress wrote a piece showing how the world now looks according to Bibi's Bomb Cartoon, namely a helluva safer and Iran further away from a nuclear weapon.
++The GOP howling over the Iran deal continues, likening it to Munich, which is a reference always used on negotiated settlements.
++Rachel Maddow last night showed how deft the diplomacy was. Not only did the Iran deal get done but also it was agreed that the Syrian peace conference will be convened. The Syrian opposition has accepted.
++The one agreement that looks strangely in doubt is the Afghan security arrangement. Susan Rice met with President Karzai and he made more demands after having agreed to the last agreement negotiated with John Kerry. The United States now threatens to leave without one.
++President Obama has established parole boards for the remaining 167 prisoners in Gitmo. Today,the Amazon Post published a story that the CIA has operation "Penny Lane", which turned Gitmo prisoners into double agents and then released them. The sooner we close the base the better.
++China declared an air defense zone over the contested islands with Japan. Naturally, the US military flew through it without notifying the Chinese. There will be more bluffing as we pivot toward the Pacific.
++President Obama lobbied again in California on the immigration bill and challenged John Boehner to pass it even in a piecemeal fashion.
++Andrew Sullivan at The Dish had a fascinating article after the Iran deal on President Obama as the Liberal Reagan. I don't know about the liberal since the President said in California he doesn't have a strong ideology.
++Paul Krugman thinks Obamacare will soon become another Benghazi as enrollments soar. Krugman and Ezra Klein both report smooth sailing on healthcare.gov. Klein now says the Administration will conduct their outreach.
++Politico reports that Obama has asked his team not to seek better national news coverage about Obamacare but focus on local stories that are positive.
++The Amazon Post actually wrote a positive story about the Kentucky exchanges after it had been covered for weeks by television stations.
++The Post now raises the question about how the IRS will be able to handle the deluge now that the website can handle 800,000 a day.
++Paul Krugman in another article wrote about how Californiacovered is doing quite well and that if Obamacare works in the largest state it can work anywhere.
++Republican governors are now faced with a dilemma of how to avoid expanding Medicaid. Apparently,Florida is in secret negotiations with the Administration to expand Medicaid.
++The Supreme Court is actually entertaining the Hobbyland Case, where the owner pretends his business is a religious organization and should not offer birth control in his insurance plans.
++NPR did a weirdly positive story about California's efforts on Obamacare. Weird because they had that nasty interview with Jerry Brown last week.
++The corporate television still repeats the strange meme that Obamacare is like Katrina, which left thousands dead.
++Ed Schultz to his credit is the only one on television who keeps pounding away on the positive news from Obamacare.
++Polls suggest that Obama and the Democrats have taken a pasting on this news coverage and the GOP now leads the generic congressional polls. This is incredible after the Democrats were posting "wave election" numbers during the shutdown.
++Patty Murray (D.-Wash) says that the budget conference will have a small budget deal, where the Democrats and GOP split the difference. It is still dubious whether the House GOP will go along.
++Bibi Netanyahu threatened President Obama in the phone call on Sunday after the Iranian deal saying that Obama should be concerned whether he will remain the most powerful person in the world after this.
++Think Progress wrote a piece showing how the world now looks according to Bibi's Bomb Cartoon, namely a helluva safer and Iran further away from a nuclear weapon.
++The GOP howling over the Iran deal continues, likening it to Munich, which is a reference always used on negotiated settlements.
++Rachel Maddow last night showed how deft the diplomacy was. Not only did the Iran deal get done but also it was agreed that the Syrian peace conference will be convened. The Syrian opposition has accepted.
++The one agreement that looks strangely in doubt is the Afghan security arrangement. Susan Rice met with President Karzai and he made more demands after having agreed to the last agreement negotiated with John Kerry. The United States now threatens to leave without one.
++President Obama has established parole boards for the remaining 167 prisoners in Gitmo. Today,the Amazon Post published a story that the CIA has operation "Penny Lane", which turned Gitmo prisoners into double agents and then released them. The sooner we close the base the better.
++China declared an air defense zone over the contested islands with Japan. Naturally, the US military flew through it without notifying the Chinese. There will be more bluffing as we pivot toward the Pacific.
++President Obama lobbied again in California on the immigration bill and challenged John Boehner to pass it even in a piecemeal fashion.
++Andrew Sullivan at The Dish had a fascinating article after the Iran deal on President Obama as the Liberal Reagan. I don't know about the liberal since the President said in California he doesn't have a strong ideology.
Monday, November 25, 2013
The Reactions to the Iranian deal keep coming in
++Peter Beinert in The Daily Beast writes how the deal isn't a surrender.
++Josh Rogin in In The Daily Beast writes how the World now doubts Obama's Red Line.
++John Bolton in the Weekly Daily Standard says that Obama has sold us all out and that Israel must attack Iran unilaterally.
++Charles Pierce in Esquire writes that Bolton's statement is refreshing because it shows the neo-conservatives are being frank.
++David Ignatius in the Washington Post writes how the Iran deal is how smart and secret diplomacy works. It points out that a bilateral track had been used by President Obama since March and meetings in Oman brought the deal to fruition.
++Eli Lake in The Daily Beast writes how the devil is in the details of the deal.
++Steve Benen on the Rachel Maddow blog writes how neo-conservatives are exploding because of the first negotiations between Iran and the United States in years have produced results.
++Michael Tomasky in The Daily Beast writes on how Obama crushed the neo-cons.
++After yesterday's talks between President Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu, Bibi has dispatched his national security adviser to Washington to discuss the second phase of the negotiations.
++The Israeli press is laying into Bibi for his constant bragging that he is the one who could best represent Israel to the English-speaking world and how only he can influence the Americans but now it's clear no one listens to him. The domestic attacks are vicious ,recounting his political history and how his constant "boy cries wolf" has failed in recent years.
++In the morning The Telegraph reported that the Saudis have vowed to pursue an independent foreign policy and may strike unilaterally against Iran. By early afternoon they gave lukewarm support of the deal.
++Israelis have coined a phrase for Bibi "agreement anxiety disorder", noting his aversion to anyone reaching an agreement on anything.
++Josh Rogin in In The Daily Beast writes how the World now doubts Obama's Red Line.
++John Bolton in the Weekly Daily Standard says that Obama has sold us all out and that Israel must attack Iran unilaterally.
++Charles Pierce in Esquire writes that Bolton's statement is refreshing because it shows the neo-conservatives are being frank.
++David Ignatius in the Washington Post writes how the Iran deal is how smart and secret diplomacy works. It points out that a bilateral track had been used by President Obama since March and meetings in Oman brought the deal to fruition.
++Eli Lake in The Daily Beast writes how the devil is in the details of the deal.
++Steve Benen on the Rachel Maddow blog writes how neo-conservatives are exploding because of the first negotiations between Iran and the United States in years have produced results.
++Michael Tomasky in The Daily Beast writes on how Obama crushed the neo-cons.
++After yesterday's talks between President Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu, Bibi has dispatched his national security adviser to Washington to discuss the second phase of the negotiations.
++The Israeli press is laying into Bibi for his constant bragging that he is the one who could best represent Israel to the English-speaking world and how only he can influence the Americans but now it's clear no one listens to him. The domestic attacks are vicious ,recounting his political history and how his constant "boy cries wolf" has failed in recent years.
++In the morning The Telegraph reported that the Saudis have vowed to pursue an independent foreign policy and may strike unilaterally against Iran. By early afternoon they gave lukewarm support of the deal.
++Israelis have coined a phrase for Bibi "agreement anxiety disorder", noting his aversion to anyone reaching an agreement on anything.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
The Free Gaza Flotilla
Friends don't let friends commit suicide. Bibi Nentanyahu frequently invokes Masada like the teabaggers and Glenn Beck invoke the Alamo. So is the heroic ideal really to be extinguished in a futile military operation? The Jewish defenders of Masada committed suicide to prevent capture by the Romans. Is this the only viable policy option for Tel Aviv today? Do we really believe the Free Gaza Flotilla presented an "existential threat" to the state of Israel? From some of the commentary here in the States you would believe so.
What's worrisome to a supporter of the state of Israel is that the only people supporting it around the world are the extreme right in the United States, which has anti-semitic problems of their own, and politicians who have been conditioned over the years to provide Israel with a blank check for operations, which have become increasingly clumsily carried out and counter-productive to providing the country with true security.
Robert Fisk, someone who has been anti-Israel throughout his dinstinguished career as a Middle East journalist, wrote in the Independent this past week about the stunning lack of control by Israeli forces in combat for the past decade and raised real questions about their competence.
The events surrounding the Free Gaza Flotilla have spurred an outbreak of temporary insanity in some circles in the United States. The Associate Editor of the very mainstream New York Jewish Week calls for the bombing of all future humanitarian flotillas along with Iran. Given the quality of the response this past week, I have severe doubts Israeli forces could bomb Iran even if they wanted to. Liz Cheney, never one to stick to reality, blasted President Obama for calling the deaths "tragic". The Associated Press ran a story based on an interview with the former head of French counter-terrorism that the Turkish charities who supported the flotilla were linked to Al Qaeda, which if true means that they have finally adopted a very effective strategy of non-violence.
Congressman Brad Sherman, a Democrat from Sherman Oaks, California, called for the trial of all Americans involved in the Free Gaza Movement based on a mid-1990s law that prohibited Americans from providing aid and comfort to Hamas. I would love to see Ambassador Peck, Reagan's anti-terrorism chief, to be tried in open court for this. Or how about trying 28-year military veteran and former State Department official Ann Wright on this charge. Unfortunately, both have been calm and articulate spokespeople for the Free Gaza Movement. Or we could try Alice Walker of Color Me Purple fame, who wrote today an eloquent essay on the non-violence underlying the movement on Electronic Intifada.
The other part of Sherman's suggestion is to bar all foreigners involved from coming to the United States. This would mean that , besides Graham Greene, who was banned since the 1960s until his death, I would be deprived of hearing from Henning Mankell, the Swedish master of the crime novel. Mankell, who has become to mysteries what John le Carre means to spy novels, recounted for the Guardian his experience as the night watch on the "Sofia", which accompanied the Mavi Marmara. Mankell was detained by Israeli authorities, who confiscated his wallet, credit cards,his mobile phone, Ipod. "They even took my socks." Having been seized in international waters, he was charged with entering Israel illegally. He did not know about the deaths on the Turkish ferry until he was on the plane out of the country. Mankell with his Inspector Wallander series is the number one mystery writer in Hebrew. Unfortunately for Israel, he plans a detailed publication on the whole event complete with photos.
Mankell told the Guardian, " I believe so strongly in solidarity as an instrument ot change the world, and I believe in dialogue, but it's action that proves the word."
Early this morning the Rachel Corrie was seized about 25 miles from Gaza. It had tried to avoid the Israeli navy by travelling along the coast of Egypt. prior to its seizure, it offered to have an international team inspect its cargo for any items of military use. The passengers consisted of the former UN Secretary of State for Humanitarian Aid, an Irish winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and aides to government officials in Malaysia.
The killings, including one American murdered with 4 shots to the head, have provoked revulsion in Europe. Sweden and Norway are refusing to unload freight from Israeli ships and the Turkish government, once a strong ally of Israel, is conducting its own investigation and vows to severely curtail its relations with Israel. In the progressive blogosphere, the events have triggered duelling comments by pro-Israelis and pro-Palestinians which reveal the intensity of feeling on both sides.
To their credit, "J" Street has maintained its cool by issuing a statement that this tragedy should be used as a opportunity to move forward to a two-state solution and a resolution of the Gaza tragedy. I believe the Israeli negotiator to the Palestinian talks that if the Palestinians can maintain their non-violent actions then the Israelis will remain slow-footed and unable to respond to such a challenge.
What the Free Gaza Flotilla has done is to focus the world's attention on the very real humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Unbelievably there is actually a dispute here in the States whether such a thing exists. Of the 1.5 million people in Gaza, some 800,000 are children. Save the Children claims that this population is suffering malnutrition and severe food shortages. We know that over 60% of the adult women suffer from anemia. Part of the reason for this is that because of the Gaza blockade, Gazans can't mount the type of fishing fleets they did in the past and the population has not been getting their diet of fish like before. We also know that the farmers are routinely shot at by the IDF because their farms, the only real agricultural land, is cheek and jowl by the heavily armed border.
Critics of Israel maintain that there are not allowing in the necessary foodstuffs and other materials necessary to ease the crisis. Israelis claim that all materials would be delivered by them to Gaza, something that press reports contradict. On the other side, people claim that Hamas itself prevents the distribution of humanitarian goods to the population. Having gone through this when the PLO controlled refugee camps in Lebanon, I tend to believe this as well.
A solution to this is to allow international groups to deliver the materials and have international organizations distribute the goods. Even Hamas announced they would allow foreign groups to come in and rebuild the bombed out schools and houses with the building materials Israel has confiscated.
While American commentators are slipping into the weeds on debating the minutiae of the events of the past week and the appropriate response,it is clear that the neo-con dream of Israel as our proxy fortress against Islamic terrorism and fundamentalism is wrong-headed. It was never viable and puts Israel's security really at risk. Movement to a two-state solution is needed to defuse this unnecessary crisis in the Middle East.
What's worrisome to a supporter of the state of Israel is that the only people supporting it around the world are the extreme right in the United States, which has anti-semitic problems of their own, and politicians who have been conditioned over the years to provide Israel with a blank check for operations, which have become increasingly clumsily carried out and counter-productive to providing the country with true security.
Robert Fisk, someone who has been anti-Israel throughout his dinstinguished career as a Middle East journalist, wrote in the Independent this past week about the stunning lack of control by Israeli forces in combat for the past decade and raised real questions about their competence.
The events surrounding the Free Gaza Flotilla have spurred an outbreak of temporary insanity in some circles in the United States. The Associate Editor of the very mainstream New York Jewish Week calls for the bombing of all future humanitarian flotillas along with Iran. Given the quality of the response this past week, I have severe doubts Israeli forces could bomb Iran even if they wanted to. Liz Cheney, never one to stick to reality, blasted President Obama for calling the deaths "tragic". The Associated Press ran a story based on an interview with the former head of French counter-terrorism that the Turkish charities who supported the flotilla were linked to Al Qaeda, which if true means that they have finally adopted a very effective strategy of non-violence.
Congressman Brad Sherman, a Democrat from Sherman Oaks, California, called for the trial of all Americans involved in the Free Gaza Movement based on a mid-1990s law that prohibited Americans from providing aid and comfort to Hamas. I would love to see Ambassador Peck, Reagan's anti-terrorism chief, to be tried in open court for this. Or how about trying 28-year military veteran and former State Department official Ann Wright on this charge. Unfortunately, both have been calm and articulate spokespeople for the Free Gaza Movement. Or we could try Alice Walker of Color Me Purple fame, who wrote today an eloquent essay on the non-violence underlying the movement on Electronic Intifada.
The other part of Sherman's suggestion is to bar all foreigners involved from coming to the United States. This would mean that , besides Graham Greene, who was banned since the 1960s until his death, I would be deprived of hearing from Henning Mankell, the Swedish master of the crime novel. Mankell, who has become to mysteries what John le Carre means to spy novels, recounted for the Guardian his experience as the night watch on the "Sofia", which accompanied the Mavi Marmara. Mankell was detained by Israeli authorities, who confiscated his wallet, credit cards,his mobile phone, Ipod. "They even took my socks." Having been seized in international waters, he was charged with entering Israel illegally. He did not know about the deaths on the Turkish ferry until he was on the plane out of the country. Mankell with his Inspector Wallander series is the number one mystery writer in Hebrew. Unfortunately for Israel, he plans a detailed publication on the whole event complete with photos.
Mankell told the Guardian, " I believe so strongly in solidarity as an instrument ot change the world, and I believe in dialogue, but it's action that proves the word."
Early this morning the Rachel Corrie was seized about 25 miles from Gaza. It had tried to avoid the Israeli navy by travelling along the coast of Egypt. prior to its seizure, it offered to have an international team inspect its cargo for any items of military use. The passengers consisted of the former UN Secretary of State for Humanitarian Aid, an Irish winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and aides to government officials in Malaysia.
The killings, including one American murdered with 4 shots to the head, have provoked revulsion in Europe. Sweden and Norway are refusing to unload freight from Israeli ships and the Turkish government, once a strong ally of Israel, is conducting its own investigation and vows to severely curtail its relations with Israel. In the progressive blogosphere, the events have triggered duelling comments by pro-Israelis and pro-Palestinians which reveal the intensity of feeling on both sides.
To their credit, "J" Street has maintained its cool by issuing a statement that this tragedy should be used as a opportunity to move forward to a two-state solution and a resolution of the Gaza tragedy. I believe the Israeli negotiator to the Palestinian talks that if the Palestinians can maintain their non-violent actions then the Israelis will remain slow-footed and unable to respond to such a challenge.
What the Free Gaza Flotilla has done is to focus the world's attention on the very real humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Unbelievably there is actually a dispute here in the States whether such a thing exists. Of the 1.5 million people in Gaza, some 800,000 are children. Save the Children claims that this population is suffering malnutrition and severe food shortages. We know that over 60% of the adult women suffer from anemia. Part of the reason for this is that because of the Gaza blockade, Gazans can't mount the type of fishing fleets they did in the past and the population has not been getting their diet of fish like before. We also know that the farmers are routinely shot at by the IDF because their farms, the only real agricultural land, is cheek and jowl by the heavily armed border.
Critics of Israel maintain that there are not allowing in the necessary foodstuffs and other materials necessary to ease the crisis. Israelis claim that all materials would be delivered by them to Gaza, something that press reports contradict. On the other side, people claim that Hamas itself prevents the distribution of humanitarian goods to the population. Having gone through this when the PLO controlled refugee camps in Lebanon, I tend to believe this as well.
A solution to this is to allow international groups to deliver the materials and have international organizations distribute the goods. Even Hamas announced they would allow foreign groups to come in and rebuild the bombed out schools and houses with the building materials Israel has confiscated.
While American commentators are slipping into the weeds on debating the minutiae of the events of the past week and the appropriate response,it is clear that the neo-con dream of Israel as our proxy fortress against Islamic terrorism and fundamentalism is wrong-headed. It was never viable and puts Israel's security really at risk. Movement to a two-state solution is needed to defuse this unnecessary crisis in the Middle East.
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