The Hitchens Hypothesis I am predisposed to like Christopher Hitchens. He is a witty and erudite writer. His view's on everything from Orwell to religion are often perfectly in tune with my own (though his ignorance of Nietzsche is unforgivable). It is because of these great correspondences that his advocacy of the war in Iraq is all the more painful and baffling.
However, more than his tortured logic of using violence to stop violence, is his generalization of Pacifists and Pacifism as a whole. Those on the left who opposed and oppose the war are being somehow disingenuous he believes. We are using the word ...continue reading
Okay for Wannabe Australian Prime Minister to visit Strip Club The leader of the Labor Party, Kevin Rudd, admitted to visiting Scores Strip Club in New York four years ago. He was drunk and persuaded to go along with a group of men, but only stayed for about twenty minutes.
BUSH - Unfit for Office Bush held a distorted view of reality, resulting in maladapted behaviours which showed unresolved emotional conflicts and instability. He was a person unsure of who he was and where he fitted into the world.
Besides the obvious case of the ballooning trade deficit, there are many reasons pertaining to this sticking point. China is after all, leader of the Developin...
After finishing the National Guard and moving onto Harvard Business School his spoilt, overgrown-student life style just continued to get worse. A year after finishing he got arrested for d...
Howard Australian Government in Trouble. You would expect if you were a democratically elected government, the economy is the best in the region, there is almost full employment, your people are prosperous, the poor are well supported by social security, the prime minister is well regarded by other leaders, you’ve just survived the worst drought in history with hardly an economic ripple, you’re exporting more goods than ever before, and by any test taxation is low you would expect to be re-elected.
The Misshaping of a President On the surface, Bush’s decision to stop drinking at the age of forty, would be the first independent, mature decision he had taken in his life. It might be counted as the first time he really tuned into reality and chose the appropriate and responsible action.
Bush’s Authorization of Warrantless Wiretapping The New York Times published a story in December 2005 revealing President Bush authorized the National Security Agency (NSA) to engage in warrantless electronic surveillance of telephone calls and emails. On December 17, 2005 President Bush admitted to authorizing the NSA program.
War for Oil Iraq is home to the second largest oil reserves in the world. The Bush administration has ties to the oil industry. Ironically, Operation Iraqi Freedom was first called Operation Iraqi Liberation: O.I.L.
Inside Politics in Iraq A Qada is a meeting of regional representatives in Iraq. Although it is not the same as a county meeting in the United States, it is similar to that in the area of people it represents. The world media reports the bad days in Iraq, but rarely takes the time to focus the lens on the normal days. Schaber takes you inside a Qada meeting in Abu Graib.
BUSH – THE YOUNG ADULT Student Life
Looking at the beginning of Bush's young adult life, there are already important indications of tendencies to "tune out of reality" as a general pattern of behaviour. Bush was notorious for his drinking and partying. Rather than it bei...
The Romanian Mission to Iraq Romania has soldiers and paratroopers in Iraq and Afghanistan. In Iraq, Romania's largest presence is at Camp Dracula in near the ancient Sumerian City of Ur and the Ziggurat. Currently, Romania's 495th Infantry Battalion called "Capt. Stefan Soverth" patrols the area and guards a strategic bridge.
Darfur- Death’s Dead End For the last four years Darfur has experienced horror of biblical proportions. Considered the world's worst humanitarian crisis by the United Nations, it has been has classified as genocide by the US.
The Downing Street Documents Part Three in a continuing series about the reasons to impeach President George W. Bush. This week's installment looks at eight British government documents leaked to the press which provide damning evidence against Bush.
Somalia – Al Qaeda’s New Base – America’s Next War? Somalia has long been the world’s centre of anarchy and Mogadishu the capital of mayhem. Awash with weapons for 16 years, it has existed without a central government and has been plagued by civil war between competing clan and sub-clans, warlords and jihadists.
In the medium to long-term, the invasion by Ethiopian forces looks set not to quell this phenomenon, but to eventually exacerbate it. There is a real danger that it will provide the incubus for the flourishing of al-Qaeda’s first solid base in Africa.
Misleading the Nation about Iraq In his 2003 State of the Union address Bush made many claims concerning Iraq, namely Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction (WMD), and supported terrorist networks (including al-Qaeda).
Al Qaeda : Secrets of its Hidden Power Generally, the only organization where such a phenomenon takes place, especially involving intelligent, prosperous, non-traumatized persons, who give up their life in mass or in groups, are certain extreme cults. Al Qaeda represents a hybrid of these different forms of cults, which like all of them all is based on brainwashing, mind-control and behavioral manipulation of their members.
Al Qaeda has also adopted a proactive, violent strategy of intervention into society using terrorist and guerrilla tactics and a perversion of Islam as the foundations of its religio-political ideology.
What were already farcical processes in terms of UN human rights enforcement have virtually collapsed following the United Nations failure to bring human rights and other international law abuses forward into the International ...
What appeared not to have been possible for decades may now be within reach if everything goes in accordance to proposals that are currently being formulated by the various Arab States including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Syria and t...
"The biggest story of the war became a non-event when the truth of the matter was that it was simply too bloody an event to report." Captain Eric H. May, a former intelligence officer.Ever more reports are emerging on the likelihood that the...
Abolish NATO Moves are afoot in Europe to abolish NATO.
For many years, the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, better known as NATO, has provided Europe, the US and Canada with the combined strength and security against any perceived threat comin...
Najaf - now forwards towards an Iraqi revolution! American and British flags burned and were trampled under foot by hundreds of thousands of Iraqis in Najaf last weekend. A crossroads has been reached from which this could be the spring board to a genuine revoutionary struggle against the US occupation and sectarianism. More of these actions are the only chance for Iraq to remain united and to drive out the occupiers as soon as possible.
Much has been said as to what might happen to Cuba beyond the Castro era and, as per usual, vested interests have muddied the waters to the extent that those who are likely to eventually run the country have, with the blessing ...
Could the Kurds Kill Iraq? Such is the mood in Kirkuk that matters could easily take on civil war proportions. For the Kurds, Kirkuk is non-negotiable and for the Arabs it represents the last straw. A move in the direction of independence would mean the collapse of Iraq.
McCain’s little big picture – what is the real situation in Iraq? Senator John McCain’s gibberish concerning the security situation in Baghdad was intended not to show the "big picture" as he claimed, but to throw dust in the eyes of people, just when the real situation has taken a decisive turn for the worse.
When George Bush waffles on about freedom, liberty and democracy as if he knows something about the subject, most people either throw up or walk off in disgust.
You see, when young George talks about these lofty subject...
It seems that just about every major country has had a go at trying to either conquer or stabilise Afghanistan, all of these attempts failing in one form or another, the most recent attempt being the Russian occupation which fell apart after...
Australia's Defence Chaos Given the amount of defence lemons the Australian Government has been purchasing, Australians must be getting a bit worried about Australia's capacity to defend itself militarily.
Insurgent psychology – why they aren’t trying to win, but why they will! For Arabs and Muslims their honour or the shaming of themselves and their brethren is something which cannot go unavenged. One must be prepared to die for it. It is linked to the culture of retribution, where a hurt or death brought upon another of one's family, tribe or clan must be avenged and this now extends to one's sect, nation, ethnicity and common religion. Psycho-culturally, the U.S. has entered an unwinable and endless war.
The Politics of War This article brings forth the ideas we have long known about the politics of war, although perhaps we have forgotten some of the details along the way. Read on . . .
Better Another Taliban Afghanistan, than a Taliban NUCLEAR Pakistan!? The defeat in Iraq undermines any hope of success in Afghanistan. At least half of the country will fall to the Taliban within two years. The new southern caliphate could become a Pashtunistan, tearing away Pastun tribes and threatening the break up of Pakistan and the creation of an unstable, fundamentalist, nuclear regime there.
THE CIA - AMERICA'S OWN TERRORISM ORGANISATION AND ITS SECRET ACTIVITIES The US has been accused of conducting terrorism activities in various countries around the world such activities designed to bypass international and US domestic laws. The US agency involved is the CIA, which can now be classified as a terrorist organisation in accordance with internationally recognised guidelines.
Iran – The Unwinable War, with Unachievable Aims and Unbelievable Consequences Despite all the diplomatic jaw-jaw and the attempts by the Bush administration to throw dust in the eyes of the public, it is likely that the U.S. has decided together with Israel to launch a "pre-emptive" attack on Iranian nuclear facilities.
Whatever conferences and accords come up, there is only a short window of opportunity to attack, before defeat in Iraq paralyses the U.S. scope for operations. It will be the last war for the lost cause.
The Right of Iraq to Self-Determination Bereft of new ideas for a new epoch, the U.S. is falling back on the old methods of British Imperialism in divide and rule and the sectarian tactics to deal with counter-insurgence. In particular, they are surreptitiously turning to a method which was successfully employed in Malaysia.
Whatever our personal opinion of what is the best or most suitable form of government, it is for the Iraqi peoples to work out and decide for themselves rather than our aspirations for them. It is their future.
What Some Forget About the War in Iraq Everyone has an opinion about the war in Iraq, although most are misinformed about those who are doing the fighting and the Weapons Of Mass Destruction that were not found. But was the war worth fighting? Read on . . .
IRAQ - BLUEPRINT FOR PEACE As the conflict in Iraq grinds on in a seemingly endless cycle of sectarian violence and counter violence, very little has been done, its seems, to get a permanent and lasting solution in terms of obtaining stability and personal and financial security within Iraq's population.
The U.S. and its allies have no further role to play in Iraq, they have done enough damage already and any external defence and security assistance should come from within the Middle-East or from neutral countries.
“Lost on a Couch” – Psychological Reasons for the US Defeat in Iraq In many ways the decisive factors which have lost the war in Iraq are the moral and psychological questions. How long will U.S. troops go on fighting for empty rhetoric and broken promises? How long can they continue to swear allegiance to the lies and deception of their Commander-in-Chief? How long can they keep up a fight without a meaning or cause in order to justify such suffering and death?
Global Warming Tyranny " . . . Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak up for me."
Private Contractors are Nothing New Private contracts awarded by the federal government are nothing new. They are an old tool of the government, where those with special ties in the right government places are awarded lucrative contracts.
Al Qaeda’s Hidden Weaknesses - Why Al Qaeda can't succeed Highly dangerous cults of hate like Al Qaeda are social mutations that grow virulently and seem unstoppable. But they are not invincible and are bedeviled with contradictions that can eventually consume them. Much depends on them having the right conditions to flourish. To live they must kill, to survive others must die. But still they are ultimately doomed by the futility of their very existence.
The Wild, Wierd and Ferocious Counter-Surge Helicopters falling from the skies, cult uprisings, "Mission Impossible" adventures and "Grozny"-style battles all make this surge different. Already in preparation the insurgency is showing itself ready and prepared to fight back. The madness of war is everywhere in a reckless, belligerency, mixed with new found professionalism that threatens a great conflagaration.
The Sisyphean Surge – Petraeus and the making a Greek Tragedy They say that whom the gods wish to destroy they first make mad. It is also said that madness can be defined by doing the same thing again and again and getting the same wrong result, without ever changing. Sisyphus was one such poor soul in question. Condemned by the Gods to roll a rock up and hill and watch it fall down again, and then continue to repeat the hopeless process for the rest of eternity. His crime had been to try to cheat the Gods, by cheating death and becoming one of them. Likewise the US is now condemned for trying to cheat defeat in Iraq, to repeating the same old mad policies over and over again. If once there was method in the madness, there is now madness in the method. This dysfunctional behaviour can only finally result in some unspeakable abomination.
Decision '08: Obama Officially Joins the Field The freshman senator from Illinois made his major move to campaign for the Democratic Presidential nomination with a public announcement.
GUANTANAMO BAY - THE DAVID HICKS TERRORISM CASE No Provable Facts, Little Evidence, And Lots Of Fiction
The charges against Hicks really have no basis in law and are virtually unprovable although there is no doubt that the 'tribunal', illegal as it is, will find him guilty. In fact, the charge of 'Providing material support for terrorism' does not even exist in the 'Laws of War'.
The Battle of Baghdad : Perspectives for the Surge Last stand at the last chance saloon. Best hope is the insurgents take a holiday in Honolulu, until things quiet down. Worst possibility is massacres and huge civilian losses due to fighting with heavy armor in densely populated areas. Some form of Iraqi Intifada cannot be ruled out. Whatever, this is the last chance, no Iraqi will stand for any new U.S. promises or plans in the future. The real showdown is still to come.
