Definitely check out GMD’s latest article, “War Powers and Sucker Punches” at The American Thinker, chronicling America’s strategic failure during the Long War against the more strident devotees of the religion of Peace.
Category Archives: Terrorism
Another excellent GMD analysis
Filed under Foreign Policy, General Interest, Islam, Military, Politics, Terrorism
Hillary Clinton Libya war genocide narrative rejected by U.S. intelligence – Washington Times
Hillary Clinton Libya war genocide narrative rejected by U.S. intelligence – Washington Times.
Yes, alas, Hillary Clinton, another fabulist of epic proportions, convinced President Obama to wage the Libyan air war to oust Gadaffi. Her Benghazi saga begins then. Maybe, we can find out the names of the Libyan”moderate”, “freedom-fighters” she met with in Benghazi. They provided her with the intelligence that a “genocide” was imminent and demanded US humanitarian R2P intervention??? Really, she bypassed US vetted intelligence, it appears. Benghazi….. perhaps the Hillary swan song, la, la, la.
Filed under Foreign Policy, General Interest, Islam, Military, Politics, Terrorism
The palace guard revolts…
Hopefully, I’ll be able to write a longer post soon, which will attempt to weave the many loose threads of our magic carpet that is the Obama foreign policy approach dealing with Islamic imperialism and we can take it on a test spin, but, alas for now I only have time for some links and a few short comments.
Up first, retired Lieutenant General Mike Flynn, former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, came out stating that the President’s strategy for defeating ISIS and the larger Islamic imperialists (Islamist radicals writ large) isn’t working. He described a war being run by bureaucrats outside of the Pentagon, not by war-fighters. What he said stands as fascinating, but that he said this speaks to a shot across the bow, aimed straight at the White House. Yes, there seems to be a revolt going on and since the generals on active duty can’t speak out against their CINC, expect more rebels in the retired ranks to carry the battle to Congress’s doorstep. Some Mike Flynn links to check out:
http://www.charlierose.com/watch/60510282
The White House, amidst the chaos wrought by Islamic imperialism (yeah, I think that term works well) refuses to utter the word “Islam” in connection to those who invoke it’s name in all they do. No the administration calls for “strategic patience”.
Alas, from Deep Throat in the Nixon era, onto the gabby, gushing , little blue dress clad, deep throat in the Clinton era, veteran reporter, Bob Woodward seems to have cultivated some well-placed “anonymous” deep throat sources within the Pentagon:
Stay tuned and see whom the Pentagon insiders recruit next to wage their stealth proxy war. Let’s hope their strategic planning can defeat the Obama sisterhood of Susan Rice, Valerie Jarret and Samantha Power. Yes, Susan Rice is micromanaging our fight against ISIS – the same Susan Rice who claimed Bowe Bergdahl served with honor and distinction…. The same Susan Rice who blamed Benghazi on a stupid video….
Filed under Culture Wars, Foreign Policy, General Interest, Islam, Military, Politics, Terrorism
The Age of Musterbation
Another fantastic GMD read!
“A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves.” – E. R. Morrow
Media icons are often given credit for thoughts that originated with their betters. The “nation of sheep” metaphor is an example. Thomas Jefferson addressed the subject in the Federalist Papers, long before Edward R. Morrow. And before that, herd similes might be traced to the Old and New Testaments. William J. Lederer wrote a book on the subject in 1961, a follow up to the best-selling Ugly American (1958).
Lederer’s lament focused on a passive electorate, arrogant foreign policy apparatchiks, and myopic politicians; the tendency of Americans to fail to educate themselves about issues and then throw good money after bad at home and abroad. In short, Lederer despaired…
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Filed under Foreign Policy, General Interest, History, Islam, Politics, Terrorism
Seeking “clarity”
“Don’t you love farce?
My fault, I fear.
I thought that you’d want what I want –
Sorry, my dear.
But where are the clowns?
Quick, send in the clowns.
Don’t bother, they’re here.”
The sad Obama clown mobile rattles along the long dusty road in search of more “moderates” on the way to paradise. The Arab Spring sowed the seeds of only chaos and more sectarian strife in the Near East, but political ideologues in this administration keep the blinders firmly in place, refusing to let the light of reality wash away the dark myths within their carefully constructed “narratives”. The hope has certainly faded as the changes unfolded, and still the Obama administration clings to their non-violent and secular, moderate Muslim delusions, (not to be confused with those Pennsylvanians clinging to their guns and religion), afraid to turn the page on their misguided quest to find illusive Muslim moderates to wrest control of crumbled regimes and build some new sharia-compliant, democracies from the rubble. “Hope and change” and “Yes, we can” looks more like “be careful what you wish for”.
The Obama “narratives”, after six long years of repetition, read more like Dr. Seuss’ “Green Eggs and Ham” than serious foreign policy.
Thanks to JK for forwarding the link to this latest sink hole the Obama State Department fell into – “Open Jihad Declared in Egypt Following State Dept. Meeting with Muslim Brotherhood-Aligned Leaders” (The Washington Free Beacon). Let’s just use a favorite Marie Harf, irrepressible State Department muppet, goal and seek “clarity” on the United States government official views on the Muslim Brotherhood. Quoting from the State Department February 12, 2014 Daily Press Briefing:
“The United States does not – has not designated the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization. We have been very clear in Egypt that we will work with all sides and all parties to help move an inclusive process forward. We’ve also repeatedly, both publicly and privately, called on the interim government to move forward in an inclusive manner. That means talking to all parties, bringing them into the process. We’re not saying what the future government should look like specifically other than that it should be inclusive. That, of course, includes the Muslim Brotherhood. We will continue talking to the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt as part of our broad outreach to the different parties and groups there.”
Juxtapose government officialdom’s view that the Muslim Brotherhood is not a terrorist organization, from The Washington Free Beacon linked above, Patrick Poole states:
“Terrorism expert and national security reporter Patrick Poole said he was struck by the clarity of the Brotherhood’s call.
“It invokes the Muslim Brotherhood’s terrorist past, specifically mentioning the ‘special apparatus’ that waged terror in the 1940s and 1950s until the Nasser government cracked down on the group, as well as the troops sent by founder Hassan al-Banna to fight against Israel in 1948,” he said.
“It concludes saying that the Brotherhood has entered a new stage, warns of a long jihad ahead, and to prepare for martyrdom,” Poole said. “Not sure how much more clear they could be.””
The Taliban isn’t a terrorist entity either, just ask the Obama administration, because that would mean the Obama administration released FIVE terrorists from GITMO in exchange for Bowe Bergdahl – here again, we seek “clarity” – according to Bergdahl’s brothers in arms, Bergdahl is a deserter, alas, according to Susan Rice, National Security Advisor, “I tell the facts as we know them.”, Bowe Bergdahl served with “honor and distinction”.
Filed under Foreign Policy, General Interest, Islam, Politics, Terrorism
Truth in advertising…..not
How about an expanded bio for Robert Kagan’s opinion piece, “Five reasons Netanyahu should not address Congress”, at the Washington Post:
“Robert Kagan is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. He writes a monthly foreign affairs column for The Post.”
Let’s add he is the spouse of Victoria Nuland, Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasisan Affairs at the US State Department.
Here’s the most laughable part in his 5-point, shallowly disguised State Department talking points:
“U.S. congressional leaders probably should have given this invitation more thought. Although not a violation of the letter of the Constitution, it certainly seems to violate the idea that the nation speaks with one voice on foreign policy and that foreign leaders cannot choose whether they prefer to deal with Congress or the president.”
Would that the President could speak with one voice, we might have a coherent foreign policy, instead of this meandering, sloppily edited narrative coming from the White House. While the President fixates on parsing Islamist terrorism and turning the Taliban into something other than a terrorist entity, to mask the Bergdahl/Gitmo detainee swap as something other than a disastrous decision, Netanyahu can be counted on to give an inspiring, carefully researched, accurate, and riveting speech. And he doesn’t even need to rely on a teleprompter. That’s why the White House is trying to dissuade Netanyahu from speaking to Congress. He will succeed at swaying American public opinion and that is a threat to the Obama administration that mobilizes them, as no Islamist terrorism ever will.
Thanks Robert Kagan/Nuland, but a dose of honesty about your connections to the Obama administration rather than your Brookings Institution bio would have served readers better.
Filed under Culture Wars, Foreign Policy, General Interest, Islam, Politics, Terrorism, Uncategorized
“A Tale of Two Soldiers: Benjamin Netanyahu and Caroline Glick” at The American Thinker
Here’s another GMD good read:
Filed under Foreign Policy, General Interest, Islam, Politics, Terrorism
New York Times Discovers Yemen’s ‘Death to America’ Houthi Rebels are Moderates and Possible U.S. Partners
Here’s a must read article from the always excellent Patrick Poole at PJMedia.
Filed under Foreign Policy, General Interest, Islam, Military, Politics, Terrorism
The Yemen “Success” Story In Flames
Malcolm Pollack wrote an excellent post on the Houthi coup in Yemen, “Rock and Roll, Houthi Coup”. Malcolm compiled the pertinent facts on Yemen being another Muslim failed state, clinging to the edge of the cliff – economic despair, a population reliant on government for its basic needs, a water supply imperiled by khat production, and internecine fighting. He states:
“About Yemen, President Obama — who, when it comes to foreign policy and a whole lot more, has been described of late as “King Midas in reverse” — had this to say back in September:
This strategy of taking out terrorists who threaten us, while supporting partners on the front lines, is one that we have successfully pursued in Yemen and Somalia for years.
As always, up is down, black is white, etc. Meanwhile, this:
The collapse of the U.S.-backed government of Yemen on Thursday has left America’s counter-terrorism campaign “paralyzed”, two U.S. security officials said, dealing a major setback to Washington’s fight against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), a potent wing of the militant network.”
I recommend you read his entire excellent post. Now, along with collapse of the Yemeni government, to the north, Saudi Arabia’s relic of a king passed away. So, we’ve got the “kingdom” of Saudi Arabia passing the crown to a 79 year-old, who reportedly suffers from dementia, while the court swarms with intrigue. Now, this kingdom feels threatened on all fronts – existentially from Shia expansion, from radicalized Sunni/Salafi Islamist groups, and from crashing oil prices. In reaction to these external threats they’re building walls (a defensive posture) to keep foreign dangers at bay and bankrolling President Obama’s half-hearted battle to defeat IS/ISIL/ISIS (a money down the drain effort). John McCreary’s Nightwatch predicts, the new king will likely move toward more conservative domestic postures, which makes sense, to try to preserve power and maintain political stability within the kingdom. Nightwatch’s analysis states:
“Be prepared for policy changes. The instinctive reaction of living systems is to contract during times of internal stress, and even more so during a leadership crisis. Leadership transition is a time of vulnerability. Most systems increase their defensive vigilance during that period.
Applying that to Saudi Arabia, guards will be extra vigilant to protect the new King and the Crown Prince. Restrictions on population movements and border controls usually tighten. Dissidents and miscreants usually go to ground for a while.
The protective and defensive instinct also applies to policies. That instinct ensures the continuation of the bedrock principles of a state, but not necessarily more discretionary initiatives. In Saudi Arabia, the monarchy, Wahhabism, the tribal heritage and oil are four of the bedrock principles. Experiments in modernity are expendable.
The emphasis in a leadership transition always is stability because when a King dies, the Kingdom can be at risk. Abdallah did all that a reigning monarch can do to protect the monarchy. Readers must expect that his policies and programs will be modified, assuming they survive at all.”
Shia powers smell weakness, as do the radicalized bands of Islamist nutcases, emboldening them to embark on ambitious offensive measures to seize more territory in rudderless states, left from the oh so glorious Arab Spring, our ass backwards, leader from behind, championed. Sorry, namby-pamby, narrative writers at the White House, the rest of the world isn’t in the business of selling Obama t-shirts, Obama policies or the Obama “legacy” (#ChickensCameHomeToRoost), so they already wrote Obama off as a weak, unreliable partner.
So, we’ve got bands of drug-crazed, drug-financed Islamists and batshit crazy Shia mullahs fighting to rule swaths of war-ravaged, barren sand pits, swarming with millions of hopeless, starving, illiterate people. Yemen is just one more to add to the list.
Don’t expect the Obama administration to do more than rewrite their “narrative” and send John Kerry bearing love beads, groveling to the Iranians once more, begging for them to cooperate on Peace in the region. “Up in smoke” goes the Obama foreign policy on Yemen, hailed only months ago as a huge “success” – like Somalia, no less (yep, failed state Somalia is a Obama success too, who knew….). To round out President Obama’s capitulation to the threat we can not name – (Islamic Imperialism) , stay tuned, because soon we will see how, the Iranian regime, Terror Central, incorporates nuclear weapons into their OFFENSIVE MILITARY POSTURE. One can only wonder if the Obama administration has chewed too much khat like the Somalis and Yemenis or scarier to consider, perhaps these stellar graduates from some of America’s finest universities really believe their own bullshit, oops, “narratives”.
Psst, no, no, no watch and see, it’s those nefarious “right-wing, gun-toting, clinging to their religion Americans” (ostensibly, those dastardly WASPs) who pose the greatest threat to America. Let me sip another cup of tea:-)
Filed under Culture Wars, Foreign Policy, General Interest, Islam, Military, Politics, Terrorism
A Naked Phrase Goes Clothes Shopping
By Minta Marie Morze
The President in the 2015 SOTU used the terms “fearful and reactive”. He also used the phrase “violent extremist”.
Consider these lines from the SOTU:
“Will we approach the world fearful and reactive, dragged into costly conflicts that strain our military and set back our standing? Or will we lead wisely, using all elements of our power to defeat new threats and protect our planet?”
Here, I believe: “Fearful” could translate to, for example, the NRA, Bible Clingers, Pro-Lifers, Tea Partiers, the Right, and so forth. “Reactive” could be a reference to the known term ”Reactionary”, which means Conservatives, the Right Wing, Climate Change Deniers, and in short, it also could include everyone who is “fearful”, etc.: the “Fearful Reactionary Them” on the Right against whom the Progressive “Courageous Anointed Us” is in perpetual conflict.
People wonder why the President and his Administration won’t use the phrase “Jihadi violent extremism” or “Muslim violent extremism”. Even in the SOTU, he used the term “violent extremism”. He has said elsewhere that he is going to convene an international conference on “Violent Extremism”.
From the SOTU:
“. . . and assisting people everywhere who stand up to the bankrupt ideology of violent extremism.”
While there are many reasons for the Administration to insist on these terms and against the others, against any term relating to Islamists, I believe that a major reason for the omission—a very, very important reason—is simply this:
If you use the phrases “Jihadi Violent Extremism” or “Muslim Violent Extremism”, and if you call for an international conference to deal with the problem, then Islamist Violence/Terrorism will be what it is about. If you simply say “violent extremism” and “violent extremist”, you can have conferences and make laws and policies and regulations about generic “Violent Extremists”. Then, at any time, by inserting numerous qualifiers before the term, you can make the laws, regs, and policies turn, with full force of the law, against all of the people and groups on the Right, all of those “fearful and reactive” people who hurt the Progressives.
“Pro-Life Violent Extremists”
“Tea Party Violent Extremists”
“NRA Violent Extremists”
“Right-Wing Violent Extremists”
See how easy it is? Now all the laws and regs and policies made to deal with “violent extremism” apply to these factions too!
A naked phrase can be dressed in any attire you choose to clothe it in. Just select the necessary qualifier. After all, note how the Administration’s spokespeople carefully say things like, “There are many people who use violence to further their cause”, and other such phrases. (It’s called “priming the pump” or “preparing the ground” or “working the room”.)
Examples:
JOSH EARNEST [WH Spokesman]: Because violent extremism is something that we wanna be focused on and it’s not just — it’s not just Islamic violent extremism that we want to counter there. There are other forms of –
Martha Maccallum of FOX interviews a spokeswoman for the State Department:
MARIE HARF: . . . . But that’s not the only way that you counter this kind of extremism. Much of it Islamic, you’re absolutely right, but some of it not. So we’re gonna focus on all the different kinds of extremism with a heavy focus on people who do this in the name of Islam, we would say falsely in the name of Islam, but there are other forms of extremism. . . . . Well, I — I — I think all of these leaders have made very clear the serious threats we face. If you look at the president’s speech at West Point, if you look at the things Secretary Kerry has said. It’s not as easy as — as defining at the way you just did. We have to look at each threat individually. All of those threats you just mentioned are from different groups and different places.
[Interviewer MARTHA MACCALLUM asks: “Tell me, what other forms of extremism are particularly troubling and compelling to you right now?”]
HARF: Well, look, there are people out there who want to kill other people in the name of a variety of causes. Of course, Martha, we are most focused on people doing this in the name of Islam. As we’ve talked about with ISIL, part of our strategy to counter this extremism is to have other moderate Muslim voices to stand up and say, they don’t represent our religion. They speak for their religion more than we do certainly, and we need those voices to stand up in addition to all the other efforts we’re undertaking.
And we can add qualifiers like “Hate-Speaking Violent Extremist”.
This can be tied all together, those who speak, incite, behave, etc., in ways that make any qualifying faction a “Designated-Group Violent Extremist”.
“White Privilege Violent Extremist”
Note that, still in the 2015 SOTU, the President said:
“A better politics is one where we appeal to each other’s basic decency instead of our basest fears.
A better politics is one where we debate without demonizing each other; where we talk issues, and values, and principles, and facts, rather than “gotcha” moments, or trivial gaffes, or fake controversies that have nothing to do with people’s daily lives.
A better politics is one where we spend less time drowning in dark money for ads that pull us into the gutter, and spend more time lifting young people up, with a sense of purpose and possibility, and asking them to join in the great mission of building America.”
“Fearful-Demonizing-Gotcha-Fake-Controversy Contriver-Dark-Money-Ad-Producing-Guttersniping Violent Extremist”
So of course I remember the President’s UN speech in 2012, which words I noted at the time, where he said:
“Today we must declare that this violence and intolerance has no place among our united nations.
“In this modern world, with modern technologies, for us to respond in that way to hateful speech empowers any individual who engages in such speech to create chaos around the world. We empower the worst of us if that’s how we respond.
“However, I do believe that it is the obligation of all leaders in all countries to speak out forcefully against violence and extremism.
“It is time to marginalize those who, even when not directly resorting to violence, use hatred of America or the West or Israel as the central organizing principle of politics, for that only gives cover and sometimes makes an excuse for those who do resort to violence. That brand of politics, one that pits East against West and South against North, Muslims against Christians and Hindu and Jews, can’t deliver on the promise of freedom.
“It is time to leave the call of violence and the politics of division behind.
“It’s time to heed the words of Gandhi, “Intolerance is itself a form of violence and an obstacle to the growth of a true democratic spirit.”
“And we must remain engaged to assure that what began with citizens demanding their rights does not end in a cycle of sectarian violence.”
Yah, we all know that citizens demanding their rights leads to violence. With this reasoning, any laws against “’Qualifier’ Violent Extremists” and “’Qualifier’ Violent Extremism” can magically transform to deal with “the demand for rights”, “intolerance”, “hate speech”, “division”, “factions”, etc. Repeating what the President told the UN, (ignoring a Prog ruse de guerre, the ”baseball, motherhood, and apple-pie”-sort of invocation of “America”, “the West”, and “Israel”, which verbalization is a normal Progressive subterfuge):
“It is time to marginalize those who, even when not directly resorting to violence, use hatred of America or the West or Israel as the central organizing principle of politics, for that only gives cover and sometimes makes an excuse for those who do resort to violence.”
Gosh! We wouldn’t want anyone, while themselves “not directly resorting to violence”, to do anything to “give cover to” or “excuse” “those who do resort to violence”.
“Fearful-Demonizing-Gotcha-Fake-Controversy Contriver-Dark-Money-Ad-Producing-Guttersniping-Not-Violent-Themselves-But-Givers-Of-Cover-To-Or-Excusing Violent Extremists or Extremism”
They.Must.Be.Stopped.
So, as a closing thought, maybe there are more reasons than people have suggested for why the President and Holder didn’t attend what was, after all, a demonstration in favor of “Free Speech”, including speech that “incites” and “offends”—you know, like “Hate Speech”.
A demonstration that marched against, oh, you know, “They-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named-By-Anybody-At-Any-Time Violent Extremists”.
Filed under Culture Wars, Food for Thought, Foreign Policy, General Interest, Islam, Politics, Terrorism, The Media
libertybelle diaries 