Location: Dublin, Ireland. (No, I just live here.)
Posts: 654
Well, that's Newt neutered - he's officially suspending his campaign. Unless someone like Huckerbee gets a bee in his bonnet, it's Romney for the GOP nom.
Perhaps they've discovered that Syria and Egypt are wanting to push Israel into the sea, again for umpteenth time.
I'm not too sure just how Syria can do a hell of a lot of pushing right now given the current situation there, all that rioting and trying to overthrow the Syrian Government you know. The King needs all of his troops to stay home to protect his buttocks, the ones that have not gone over to the rebels' side that is.
As for Egypt, I don't think the Egyptian Military is all that keen on taking on Israel again and they are still running the country.
Maybe it is a faint? Perhaps Iran should look out.
I think it may be coming before long. Fare thee well, Israel. Thank you for fighting the battle we should be fighting.
Iran's government foments hatred, subsidized terrorism, brutalized its people, and is a general scourge on the world.
When the Cold War ended, and we all contemplated peace and prosperity after years under the threat of nuclear Armageddon, little did we know we would soon be plunged into this war against Islamist hatred.
We had a few years of basking in the sun. I guess that's about all one can ask for in this world.
Afghani opium exports totaled $4 billion last year. Not quite on par with McDonald's but worth noting. Every year since 2001 has seen an increase in Afghan opium production as well.
As is the fact that 35% of Afghanistan's arable land is used for opium poppy growing.
Prior to a few days ago I would have questioned your assertion that Iran subsidizes terror, aside from Hamas in Gaza.
I will no longer question that assertion.
I just finished one of the most hard-hitting, realistic and emotionally moving books I've ever read in my life. The name of the book is, and I would highly, highly recommend reading it if non-fiction military is your thing, 'Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan'. It is written by Lt. Sean Parnell and John Bruning. I still can't get this book out of my head.
Anyway, in the book Lt. Parnell describes in detail some of the weaponry and assorted explosive devices that the Taliban use. Many of the weapons originate in Iran. I did not know that. I would imagine this held true in the Iraqi theater of operations as well.
Lt. Parnell also describes a firefight with the Taliban which his platoon was engaged in whereby they could not return fire even though "all hell" was breaking loose. And why, you might ask, were they not able to defend themselves? Because embedded with the Taliban were several willing Pakistani troops. And the rules of engagement prohibited the platoon from firing on "friendlies."
I just finished one of the most hard-hitting, realistic and emotionally moving books I've ever read in my life. The name of the book is, and I would highly, highly recommend reading it if non-fiction military is your thing, 'Outlaw Platoon: Heroes, Renegades, Infidels, and the Brotherhood of War in Afghanistan'. It is written by Lt. Sean Parnell and John Bruning. I still can't get this book out of my head.
bud. on your recommendation, i've just ordered 2 copies (one for me) from that well know s.american river site.
The way the world is today, no Islamic state can or should be considered friendly. Even when run by a despot who maintains order, a la Mubarek, the populations under Islamic blight are seething with animosity toward the West, Israel, and everywhere Islam is denied a ruling status uber alles.
This is the defining hallmark of the world we live in today. We can deny it, rationalize it, bend over and take it - that's all up to us; or we can fight and defeat it, also up to us. Europe must address it first, as that is where the incursions are most advanced. Sooner or later, I'm convinced, free, tolerant, and egalitarian societies must also draw their lines in the sand.
Islam, and the misogyny, intolerance, hatred, and violence associated with it, has been ascendent over the past few decades. I think the time is coming to when it must be stopped and pushed back.
I can still say such things in America. Not so sure about PPRuNe, though.
Well, America itself seems pretty deadly, practicing as we do a sort of 'brutal friendship.' Imagine going to a wedding or a cook-out and having a Hellfire interrupt the festivities. That sort of thing happens fairly often in some countries with whom we are nominally allied, doesn't it? It seems okay to us, just not to 'them.'
A big part of what goes to make up 'the other, them, those people' is looking different, speaking differently, believing in something other than some variety of Christianity.... It can be difficult if not impossible for our troops to figure out who's a friend, who's a foe so that we often seem to go for an airstrike as a way of solving the problem, that 'Kill them all and let God sort them out!' mindset I noticed in Viet Nam. It makes pretty good sense when you are being shot at, but it doesn't quite match what we say we are doing, or even what we say we are trying to do.
Isn't it ironic that this extremist version of Islam that is proving so dangerous and troublesome is one we helped nurture as a way of making trouble for the Soviet Union? That worked just fine, for a while, but now we are up against the same crazies we called to life.
Every religion has its fanatics, even Buddhism, but sometimes certain forces (money, particularly) can cause those fanatics to multiply and become more dangerous. How many billions of dollars have we paid to the Wahabbis of Saudi Arabia, when Wahhabism seems to be one of the most intolerant versions of Islam going? Much of the time, when people spout off about how Islam is such a dangerous religion, they really are speaking about this very small sect that happens to have one hell of a lot of money and influence.
Just imagine being implicated in a mass killing when all that happens to you is that you are flown out of the site of that killing before anyone could even question you. Well, at the same time George W. Bush was promising to hunt down those behind 9/11, numerous Saudis were being flown back home so that nobody could ask hard questions about just where many of those perpetrators got their money from in the first place. The best guess: Saudi Arabia!
In this new world of ours we shall have to engage with Islam, when it's going to be necessary to understand it properly. Mixing Islam up with some of its smaller, more extreme, sects is not the way to do that, I think. In fact, it's exactly what the extremists would prefer that we do, confusing them with most Muslims. That would be like Muslims thinking that Christianity is typified by the Westboro Baptist Church. That would make the Westboro Baptist Church happy, I guess, but it would not be fair to most Christians, those who try to practice what Christ taught, love and tolerance.
Prepare to read the book in one sitting. Much to the chagrin of the Mrs. that is what I did! Glad you've decided to read it, you won't be disappointed.
Isn't it ironic that this extremist version of Islam that is proving so dangerous and troublesome is one we helped nurture as a way of making trouble for the Soviet Union?
A tad bit inaccurate, this statement chuks. Extremist Islam has been around for centuries. It's just recently that they've decided to cause trouble for the U.S. Europe had their share of extremist Islam many moons ago. I guess it's our turn now.
It does, however, need to be eradicated.
BandAide:
We don't often see eye-to-eye but your last post I whole-heartedly agree with: spot on!
I didn't say that we did it all by ourselves, but when you look at how the Taleban got their start, the USA played a major role in that. We certainly enjoyed seeing the Russkis getting the same treatment our own soldiers now have to endure. Ever read Charlie Wilson's War?
Going a bit further back, where would Saudi Arabia be today without its oil wealth? If they were practicing a form of Islam right out of the Dark Ages, who would care about that, since 'What would it matter?' They would just be sat around the oasis eating their dates and watching the camel's hump, a joke.
I think it might be good to seek to engage with moderate Islam, rather than to automatically think of all Believers as potential enemies. Drop a Hellfire on my grill party and then, if I survive, I will probably want to kill you right back. Does that make me a potential enemy, though?
The thing is though, chuks, you're only thinking of the Saudis that were involved in 9/11. When you look at this "hatred" for the West, you see they come from pretty much all "branches" of Islam (I bet some don't even know which Islam they actually practice) so it can't be just blamed on one "sect".
It's what happens when everyone has a "Westboro" in their neighbourhood, there's gonna be enough of the locals who believe everything that they are told and will "join in the hatred". When you have some countries who are unduly lenient towards what actually goes on with some of these "firebrand preachers", then you find more, allegedly educated (to the lowest common denominator), locals who also believe everything, etc, so you can recruit them to your "cause". So the numbers swell.
And all because of someone's "interpretation" of "The Book", someone with their own quest for power over others, someone who can say a lot whilst saying nothing, someone who has the ability to make people *believe*.
Add in all the other religions, sects and cults, and you see there's a hell of a lot of Adolfs out there, all just waiting for their chance to grow their own little "empire", when you think about it.
The Taliban was indeed a creation of the CIA, sort of. Yes, I read 'Charlie Wilson's War'. A lot of the original Taliban came from the mujaheden warriors who were funded by the CIA to fight the then Soviets.
Where would the House of Saud be without their oil wealth. Exactly as you stated: watching camels hump. Joke.
Yes indeed, we should engage with moderate Islam, I agree. Nor do I personally believe all of Islam is the same as Radical Islam. But just as we should engage the former, we should also eradicate the latter. Seeing as the former can't, or won't, do it themselves.
I didn't say that we did it all by ourselves, but when you look at how the Taleban got their start, the USA played a major role in that.
That is VERY much open to question.
After the end of the communists who ran the country, during and after the Russians went in, in 1992, there was a "unity" government formed by all the different tribes. After that happened, you can guess what kicked off next. You guessed it, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Pakistan (who had all the transport networks set up for it was through there that the US weapons against the Russians were shipped) all started interfering. First it was Pakistan, who also had the Madrassas which "schooled" the Taleban, started sticking their nose in, supplying weapons, etc, to the only group that didn't join in the Peshawar Accords, the forerunner to the Taleban), and the other two joined in to protect their Wahhabi and Shia interests, leading to civil war. The Taleban, thanks to Pakistan's support, went on to win that war and the rest we all know.
So, unless the USA had suddenly moved in next door to it's new Indian neighbours to get away from the Canadians and Mexicans, I don't think that the USA played as big a role in the formation of the Taleban as you make out.
