IRAN – IN CONTROL?

IRAN PULLING THE STRINGS??

            Muqtada al-Sadr has ordered his militia to “stand down”, the Iraqi Government is still attacking some of the less disciplined members of said militia. This was one approximately 24 hours after they took to the streets to re-ignite the chaos they are so familiar with. The so called truce was brokered by Iraqi and Iranian Government officials in a hastily called meeting. Military and Intelligence sources suspect the switch was turned ON & OFF at the behest of Iran.

           Mortar attacks continue sporadically in the Green Zone in Baghdad, with only minor injuries reported, everyone is keeping their heads down. I suspect the violence will increase in the runup to the election in November, this will be done to influence the Presidential hopefuls. This is a not to subtle message being sent to America, her enemies in The Middle East know they can have an influence in the elections.

           Certain governments believe the violence, which most Americans are tired of, will end quickly once the Democrats elect the next President. There are many statements to that effect from nearly all the Democratic contenders, those in and out of the race. They then believe after America leaves Iraq the door will be open for them to step in and dominate Iraq.

The next President cannot walk away and leave that ruined country to even greater chaos.

TURKEY – top court seeks dismissal of Government

TOP COURT SEEKS BAN ON RULING PARTY 

Turkeys’ top court will hear a case calling for a ban of the ruling party. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces the dissolution of the Islamist based party over plans to scrap secular principles enshrined in the constitution.

The 11 member Constitutional Court voted unanimously to send the issue to court. The issue revolves around a move by the government to “lift the ban on wearing of Islamic head scarves” in universities, as well as alleged anti-secular comments by government officials. 

The chief prosecutor of the High Court of Appeals, Abdurrahman Yalcinkaya, has accused the ruling Justice and Development Party of “anti-secular activities.” Yalcinkaya is asking that 71 people including the Prime Minister and President, Abdullah Gul, be banned from politics for 5 years. The government is making plans to seek a Constitutional Amendment to, in effect, give itself protection from the court’s authority. (Read – “get out of jail free card”) 

Comment: further chaos in a very troubled part of the world “can’t we all just get along (:” Turkey has been seeking membership in the European Economic Union for many years. This latest instability will further complicate an already troubled bid for membership.

CHINA – Olympic Torch Ceremony

Security surrounds Olympic Torch ceremony 

March 31, 2008

           The Olympic torch arrived in Beijing today, amid “iron clad” security. Citizens were not allowed within 1 mile of the invitation only group of government officials, secret police and army troops. China really doesn’t get the Olympic spirit! It did however ensure there would be NO demonstrations of any sort in front of the cameras.           The torch will not set off on a month long tour, covering 85,000 miles in a global public relations tour. This world tour will be the longest in Olympic history; China will not relish the attention she is likely to receive worldwide. This trip was planned long before the Tibetan protests began, I suspect that long before the trek is over Chinese Government officials will wish they had never invaded peaceful Tibet.             

Medical News – breakthrough in HIV fight?

Montreal, Canada

A team of Canadian and American researchers, led by Rafick-Pierre Sekaly of the Centre Hospitalier de Universite de Montreal, the team has discovered a “memory T-cell” mechanism that protects “Elite Controllers” from the Aids virus and it’s ravages. This special group of patients can remain healthy, without medications and have no symptoms of Aids, though infected with the virus.
The secret of the, elite controllers is a key protein called “FOX03a”, this allows the immune system to remain potent and protect the body, this protein stimulates “bad genes” to kill T-cells. The aids virus is virtually undetectable in these individuals. Scientists will now begin work for future therapies to treat not only HIV but potentially Cancer’s as well.Reference: published in the advance online edition of “Nature Medicine”.

“Iraq invasion was successful endeavour” – Cheney

Source: Reuters – www.reuters.com

Monday March 17, 2008.
Baghdad, Iraq.

U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney declared the 2003 invasion of Iraq a “successful endeavor” during a visit to Baghdad. That same day a woman suicide bomber killed 40 people. He went on to say “I was in Baghdad 10 months ago and I sense, as a result of the progress that has been made since then, phenomenal changes in terms of the overall situation,” Cheney said after a meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister al-Maliki.

Bush – dosen’t like Wolverines?

“George doesn’t like Wolverines?”

Bush says let Canada take care of Wolverines

The U.S. Presidents refusal to list the endangered species in four northwestern states has outraged many American environmentalists, they accuse federal scientists of relying on Canada for a healthy population of Wolverines to avoid protecting the Wolverine, south of the border!

In the U.S. the Wolverine may be little known, in Canada it is known as a fearless combatant, attacking Grizzly bears, wolves or any other interloper threatening it’s food. In Canada its ferocity and tenacity echo in the spirit of the Canadian people. Though tiny compared to its adversary, a Grizzly bear, it nevertheless will fight to the death to protect its prey.

George, when all the American Wolverines have been killed by American hunters or wolves, Canada will re-stock America as we did with the wolves, also killed off by ….?

At some point, an extinct species is forever more an extinct species and cannot be replaced…control the killing?

NAFTA Attacked by Democrats

NAFTA ATTACKED BY DEMOCRATS

March 19, 2008

Senators Hillary Clinton & Barack Obama have both attacked the North American Free Trade Agreement, NAFTA, while on the campaign trail in hard hit Ohio. Pandering to the electorate, most assuredly! I am an ex-Automotive Industry worker in Ontario Canada; we have lost over 200,000 manufacturing jobs in 5 years. That is not to mention the downward slide in our industry for 25 years, free trade with the Japanese and Korean Auto makers…also pushed by Corporate America as good for business – yes executives, not blue collar workers!!

U.S. big business pushed the NAFTA agreement down everyone’s throat at the time, the only ones to benefit were Corporate executives and their year end bonuses* All the rest of us have lost, some decades worth of good wages and secure jobs. This is “the greed thing, over and over again”, a very few benefit and most lose, with no thought given to the future of either of our countries.

Please my American cousins, and I do have many; please demand the facts from all of your politicians when statements are made – get the facts. The heat of a campaign can bring out statements based on emotion, not facts or reality and with no ties to policy of any kind.

Election – tap dancing?

March 19, 2008

Democrats return to The White House?

The polls show the Democratic battle between Senators Barak Obama and Hillary Clinton are giving a boost to Senator John McCain, though fleeting as that may be, it appears more and more as though the “rough and tumble” race may be a sham planned for media exposure and headlines. Political handlers, behind the scenes, are undoubtedly “placing the foot shaped imprints on the floor” for these two “opponents?” Much as in a dance studio the steps are planned for the dance, so the couples do not make a misstep.

The poll numbers, at this point, mean absolutely nothing! The numbers mean a great deal to “polling firms”, dollars and cents, and to the political operatives whose jobs depend on the numbers. To the rest of us, they are so much trash.

The Democrats, though choreographed, still have a chance to “shoot themselves in the foot!” If the leaders of the Democratic Party can’t make up the minds of the American People, resolve the issues and get on with the campaign, the American People will once again choose their own President possibly to the detriment of both parties?

The War on Terror – forgotten?

March 28, 2008

U.S. COMMANDER OF COALITION FORCES

Note: the following statements are paraphrased from his statements in a Canwest Global article March 27.

Gen. Dan McNeill, the commander of the coalition forces in Afghanistan, believes International troops will need to assist the Afghan Government with security and stabilization efforts until at least 2012. If the Afghan Police can catch up to the rate of The Afghan Army it may not take 5 years.

Gen. McNeill commanding the 47,000 troops from 39 countries also stated requests from Afghan Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak and his top Gen. Bishmullah Khan, along with many others in the Afghan Government, “to be patient with the training of the National Army and Police.” Government sources echo Gen. McNeill’s timeframe of 2012 before the army and police are fully capable to stabilize and defend the nation.

This is understandable after an entire generation-plus of war; invasion and insurgency have destroyed any semblance of government, infrastructure and society. Coalition governments must arm, equip, train and supply a national army of 80,000 men and a national police force of a further 82,000 men.

Comment:

Coalition forces, combined air and ground, will be required for decades to assist with potential security threats. To properly defend itself, in this region of the World, any country requires air power. This takes long term training to establish an air corps, put in place training schools, airfields, etc. It will require long-term security arrangements with a variety of governments, key being the U.S. and NATO. The provision of arms and equipment will be a large but necessary expenditure for all involved.

Election 2008

March 27, 2008

OBAMA-CLINTON-McCAIN

Gandalf’s prediction: Senator Obama will get the nod for the Democratic Presidential nominee, with overall popular support. Senator Clinton will not take it well! The machinations of the Democratic political machine, behind the scenes – read “closed doors”, may cause some strife that divides the party and gives Senator McCain a temporary rise in the polls – temporary. The Republican Party has no chance of retaining The White House, none whatsoever!!!!!

The decision by the Democratic National Party do disenfranchise Michigan and Florida voters was “a kick in the teeth” the type of move voters become incensed over and do NOT forget. The inflexibility, inadaptability of a long established political organization cries out for election reform – in a major way. This organization has lost elections in the past, recent and aged, because of the inability to adapt swiftly to changing situations.

To carry this thought further, the inability of the Democratic Party to quickly adapt to changing security threats globally has once again ensured the mantra of “we will pull the troops out of an unpopular war”, a politically correct response prior to an election. The average citizen that sees daily casualty numbers on TV, sees the chaos, thinks the only way to end this is to “pull out and it will all be over.” Not so! The War in Iraq was a mistake from the start. That is not to say that pulling out precipitously will magically make it all go away, it will not. Not for decades!

The Republicans on behalf of The American People have made the commitment, to fight this battle. If the Democrats were to withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq before the Iraqi Army, Navy and Air Forces – equipped with sufficient hardware, training, etc were able to resist Iran and Syria together – the United States Military would be re-engaged in far greater numbers than have been seen to date. Like it or not, the Republican Party has committed U.S. Forces to Iraq for decades to come and countless Billions in Military and Economic aid packages.