I agree with the observation that the Qaddafi sons are deeply unpleasant people, but I'm not sure of the wisdom in downplaying what happened in Fallujah. The attack on Fallujah had no real military benefit in a country which was already securely under occupation. It was a revenge mission, a fact which was discussed openly in op-eds which appeared in the months ahead of the attack, encouraging a "Carthage" style razing of the town to show the Iraqis who is boss. As soon as Bush was re-elected, the coming operation was featured heavily in the US news cycle, with the revenge motive prominent in the coverage. Although civilians were allowed to leave (to become refugees), men of military ages were specifically barred from leaving, regardless of their sympathy. Rumsfeld publically declared that no civilians who stayed behind would be harmed, but later it was revealed that the US military had broad shoot-to-kill orders. Intense weaponry was used in the operations, and in recent years a spike of horrific birth defects and cancers have struck the people living in the area. Fallujah was an appalling crime, to the disgrace of the US miiltary and its leadership.
It is important to note that these searches have been defended as a sort of "tit-for-tat" or retaliation for the FOIA email release from Governor Walker's office. That led to the discovery of the incitement email which led to the resignation of a GOP official from another state.
The FOIA request directed at Walker's office came from, I believe, a newspaper and not a political or labor organization. At the height of the protests against Walker's legislation, the Governor was claiming that emails coming into his office were showing huge support for his policies. The FOIA request was made to see if that claim had validity (which it did not). This is a very different scenario compared to political operatives using FOIA on fishing expeditions to discredit those they perceive as their opponents. But the Right does not do critical thinking very well at all.
What I can't help remembering, when faced with these confirmations of suspected policies, is the utter vehemence and aggressive denials by which official israeli spokespersons and their supporters greeted any suggestion that what these cables confirm was in fact Israeli policy.
It's likely that this is not about Iran's nuclear program at all - much like the Iraq invasion was not really about WMD. One Wikileak which is intriguing is the report of Prince Andrew's comment about The Great Game, and how the Game is back on and "this time we're going to win!" While publicly the Anglo-American/NATO moves into Afghanistan and the Middle East have been sold as a response to 9-11/terrorists, less docile observers have seen it all as a series of maneuvers based on a geo-political strategy which favors aggressive military tactics to force advantage. Seems that the Prince agrees.
Intelligence gathering, informants, etc should be a primary defensive tool for these issues. The "underwear bomber" was on a State Department list of suspicious persons, and should not have been allowed to obtain a visa or get on a plane bound for the US. A State Dept official testified to Congress on January 27 of this year that "intelligence officials asked his agency not to deny a visa to the suspected terrorist over concerns that a denial would've foiled a larger investigation into al-Qaida threats against the United States."(testimony: Patrick F Kennedy) The bomber was allowed on the plane by the US government itself, and yet is being held up as the primary reason for these new invasive techniques.
As others commenting on Broder's opinion piece have noted: there is no stimulus to be gained from preparing for war with Iran, as the US has already been on a war footing for some time and already has all the battleships and fighter planes ready to go. What is revealing, as others have also pointed out, is that Broder is effectively calling for a government funded jobs or industrial program, and can only see it in the context of war preparations rather than pumping money into education, infrastructure, or other more constructive uses.
My guess was that this incident was intended to draw attention away from a major Nasrullah address on the culmination of the Hariri assassination probe. The fallout from that event is where the conspiracies lie.
Wow. What a massive screw-up on the behalf of the Israelis. Attacking with lethal force a humanitarian aid mission, and in international waters no less. This may prove to be the proverbial straw on the camel's back.
I agree with the observation that the Qaddafi sons are deeply unpleasant people, but I'm not sure of the wisdom in downplaying what happened in Fallujah. The attack on Fallujah had no real military benefit in a country which was already securely under occupation. It was a revenge mission, a fact which was discussed openly in op-eds which appeared in the months ahead of the attack, encouraging a "Carthage" style razing of the town to show the Iraqis who is boss. As soon as Bush was re-elected, the coming operation was featured heavily in the US news cycle, with the revenge motive prominent in the coverage. Although civilians were allowed to leave (to become refugees), men of military ages were specifically barred from leaving, regardless of their sympathy. Rumsfeld publically declared that no civilians who stayed behind would be harmed, but later it was revealed that the US military had broad shoot-to-kill orders. Intense weaponry was used in the operations, and in recent years a spike of horrific birth defects and cancers have struck the people living in the area. Fallujah was an appalling crime, to the disgrace of the US miiltary and its leadership.
It is important to note that these searches have been defended as a sort of "tit-for-tat" or retaliation for the FOIA email release from Governor Walker's office. That led to the discovery of the incitement email which led to the resignation of a GOP official from another state.
The FOIA request directed at Walker's office came from, I believe, a newspaper and not a political or labor organization. At the height of the protests against Walker's legislation, the Governor was claiming that emails coming into his office were showing huge support for his policies. The FOIA request was made to see if that claim had validity (which it did not). This is a very different scenario compared to political operatives using FOIA on fishing expeditions to discredit those they perceive as their opponents. But the Right does not do critical thinking very well at all.
What I can't help remembering, when faced with these confirmations of suspected policies, is the utter vehemence and aggressive denials by which official israeli spokespersons and their supporters greeted any suggestion that what these cables confirm was in fact Israeli policy.
It's likely that this is not about Iran's nuclear program at all - much like the Iraq invasion was not really about WMD. One Wikileak which is intriguing is the report of Prince Andrew's comment about The Great Game, and how the Game is back on and "this time we're going to win!" While publicly the Anglo-American/NATO moves into Afghanistan and the Middle East have been sold as a response to 9-11/terrorists, less docile observers have seen it all as a series of maneuvers based on a geo-political strategy which favors aggressive military tactics to force advantage. Seems that the Prince agrees.
Intelligence gathering, informants, etc should be a primary defensive tool for these issues. The "underwear bomber" was on a State Department list of suspicious persons, and should not have been allowed to obtain a visa or get on a plane bound for the US. A State Dept official testified to Congress on January 27 of this year that "intelligence officials asked his agency not to deny a visa to the suspected terrorist over concerns that a denial would've foiled a larger investigation into al-Qaida threats against the United States."(testimony: Patrick F Kennedy) The bomber was allowed on the plane by the US government itself, and yet is being held up as the primary reason for these new invasive techniques.
As others commenting on Broder's opinion piece have noted: there is no stimulus to be gained from preparing for war with Iran, as the US has already been on a war footing for some time and already has all the battleships and fighter planes ready to go. What is revealing, as others have also pointed out, is that Broder is effectively calling for a government funded jobs or industrial program, and can only see it in the context of war preparations rather than pumping money into education, infrastructure, or other more constructive uses.
My guess was that this incident was intended to draw attention away from a major Nasrullah address on the culmination of the Hariri assassination probe. The fallout from that event is where the conspiracies lie.
wound over 50 as they Board, Capture Gaza Aid Flotilla
Wow. What a massive screw-up on the behalf of the Israelis. Attacking with lethal force a humanitarian aid mission, and in international waters no less. This may prove to be the proverbial straw on the camel's back.
Israel also supported repressive Latin American regimes throughout the 1980s and beyond, not with nukes but with arms and training.